A Critical Library
August 29, 2015 3:01 AM Subscribe

What books should a critic own? "Each week, the National Book Critics Circle will post a list of five books a critic believes reviewers should have in their libraries." Here are all the lists, from 2007-2011. posted by thetortoise (14 comments total) 71 users marked this as a favorite

Maybe because I am a barbarian, but it took until John Updike before I even hit a name I recognised.

Which has nothing to do with the curation of this post, mind.
posted by Mezentian at 6:47 AM on August 29, 2015 [1 favorite]

Oooh, this is a fun list.

Thanks for sharing, and yay for your first post!
posted by Fizz at 7:24 AM on August 29, 2015 [1 favorite]

It's nice to see how many women they interviewed.
posted by matildaben at 7:32 AM on August 29, 2015 [2 favorites]

So excited to peruse this (and add to my own must-read list). Thank you so much for sharing! Congratulations on your first post, as well. What an intro.
posted by Atrahasis at 7:34 AM on August 29, 2015 [3 favorites]

Great post, well done! I'm enjoying the picks of the critics I like, and being annoyed by William Gass just as I always am. He's a splendid writer in his idiosyncratic way, but he gives me hives.
posted by languagehat at 8:14 AM on August 29, 2015 [4 favorites]

One more for my collection of favorited posts that reside under the category "One day I will surely get back to this."
posted by johnnydummkopf at 8:19 AM on August 29, 2015 [2 favorites]

Excellent post. It really dramatizes the difference between being someone who likes to read (me), and someone who writes as a profession (all the people listed).
posted by benito.strauss at 8:47 AM on August 29, 2015 [1 favorite]

Geoff Dyer's interesting selection includes Selected Essays by John Berger. An excellent choice, Berger is a wonderful essayist. Congratulations also to the book's editor, Geoff Dyer.
posted by Mister Bijou at 9:28 AM on August 29, 2015 [6 favorites]

There's never enough Sam Anderson in my life - thank you!
posted by Gin and Broadband at 12:48 AM on August 30, 2015

Wow - looks like I don't read the reviews of books, since I recognize only 2 on this list. Good-to-have post!

Errrr, has someone made a list of the actual books suggested by the critics?
posted by theobserver at 9:46 AM on August 30, 2015 [1 favorite]

That Helen Vendler list is a complete waste of electrons.
posted by yellowcandy at 10:26 PM on August 30, 2015 [1 favorite]

Unable to settle on five, here are six books suggested by William Gass,

This shit is positively endemic. Where are the copy editors of yesteryear?
posted by scratch at 5:23 AM on August 31, 2015

> That Helen Vendler list is a complete waste of electrons.

Why do you say that? Aside from the fact that the same thing could be said about your comment, Vendler is one of our greatest living critics and her recommendations are ipso facto of interest, even if they're not fresh and shocking.
posted by languagehat at 7:06 AM on August 31, 2015

This shit is positively endemic. Where are the copy editors of yesteryear?

Marjorie Perloff gets 10 (and deserves them).

The funny thing about it all is that NO ONE (critics included) will ever have the time to read all the MUST-READ books listed here (unless maybe if you decide that was all you would ever read, and still they are missing a lot. Is "Sentimental Education" on the list? "Long Day's Journey Into Night"? "Life, a User's Manual?" "Le Voyeur"? (Yes, I like French guys.))

being annoyed by William Gass just as I always am.

"Good books don't sell. Nearly no exceptions."

No, no sour grapes there at all, lol.
posted by mrgrimm at 4:20 PM on August 31, 2015 [2 favorites]

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