Glenn R Miller

Hello, friends:

There’s been a lot of buzz regarding the New York Times’ list of the 100 Best Books of the 21^st Century. Now that the full list has been revealed, I’ve been enjoying emails and texts from friends who have been commenting about those included and those missing. That’s the nature of a limited list: not everyone can make it. While I had read 30 of the listed books, I was surprised by some seemingly glaring gaps in my reading, having not read anything by Jesmyn Ward (3 listed books), Elena Ferrante (3 listed, including the #1 book), Roberto Bolaño (2 listed), or Hillary Mantel (2 listed). The game immediately turns into identifying those who are missing: Gary Shteyngart? Louise Erdrich? Maggie O’Farrell? How could O’Farrell’s Hamnet have possibly been overlooked? Which books do you feel are deserving of a top-100 ranking?

Tangentially related to this: at many of the book clubs I’ve been invited to attend for Doorman Wanted, readers often ask me who are some of my favorite authors. Beyond the big-name authors of whom everybody has heard, I like to toss out names of all-too-often overlooked or forgotten authors, such as:

Raymond Kennedy, author of Ride a Cockhorse, one of the funniest, oddest books I’ve read. The protagonist is a small-town, mid-level bank manager who simply decides to take over the bank. Not rob it, just… take it over through sheer willpower. Kennedy looks at not just small-town politics, but the inability of people to say no to ruthless behavior and power grabs.

Robert Plunkett, author of My Search for Warren Harding. Audacious, crazy, laugh-out-loud storyline about a historian desperately attempting to get Warren Harding’s love letters out of the clutches of Harding’s nonagenarian mistress. The plot really doesn’t matter; it’s the zany antics of the antihero narrator that had me racing – and laughing – through this book.

Jen Beagin, author of Big Swiss. Beagin is quickly gathering a cult following and, if it gets any bigger, will lose its status as “cult” following. Big Swiss is Beagin’s breakout book. The premise is one that authors would kill for: set in the Hudson River valley, a small-town transcriber, Greta, begins working for a psychiatrist who needs his sessions to be transcribed. Greta becomes enamored with one patient in particular, nicknamed Big Swiss. When the two happen to meet at a coffee shop, the action – already flying high – begins to soar.

What under-the-radar writers are you most enthusiastic about? Surprise me.