The Curator: the Great American novels redux
what I would add to The Atlantic list and what it means to be a true American
Some housekeeping. Subverse headquarters is undergoing capital improvements. As a seasoned Substack veteran with 13 months experience, I’ve come to learn what may or may not work in this space. The weekly Curator will now be reserved for bookish ideas, lists, and ponderings while extra editions will feature essays on whatever book I feel like discussing that day. You can find all book essays in the Book Essay tab or the feature at the bottom of the home page.
Oh and please welcome Ghostie to the team. He’s just a cute ghost carrying some books. Thank you - Natalie
As most of us with remaining free articles know, last week convicted instigator The Atlantic published a list of 136 Great American Novels. My first reaction was what a chaotic list.
And then after some discussion with the fine folks on Substack, I started thinking
what is more American than being chaotic?
Now I know I have taste but what flavor is questionable. My formal literature training stopped when I half-heartedly applied to English Lit grad programs and the GRE broke me instead. It’s impossible to know everything about all books no matter how hard Rory Gilmore has tried. And maybe that’s why these types of lists are so controversial - if it would take three years to complete, how can anyone definitively say what should be on it??
And judging by the amount of chatter this list has generated, they like it that way.
Of the 136 novels on this list, I have read or attempted 34. I have another 16 on my shelves. That leaves 86 that I haven’t heard of or felt called to read. This remainder list could be wonderful, or it could be trash. I may never know.
However, giving my unsolicited opinion is my *specialty* ::throws jazz hands::. Of those I have read, I have minor issues (House of Leaves is weird, Nothing to See Here is mind-boggling, a few I don’t remember being set in America). I loved the inclusion of genres other than lit fic. The list is diverse. I can even look past the absurdity of novels from the last five years popping up since it’s an American (everyone?) pastime to award prestigious titles to just published books without first seeing if they stand the test of time. I might have subbed different books for some of the authors, but small nuts to the overall vibe (Tertulia rounded up a bunch of important response tweets and I love this hot take that Stephen King’s The Stand being on the list instead of It is “unserious”.)
Like most of us, it’s the absences I feel. It’s not just that I miss my favorites, it’s that I think these authors say something important about American life. I am sure you have others that are just as worthy. A few I would add if anybody had asked me:
Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides - starting hot with A PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING novel about a Greek immigrant family in 1970s suburban Detroit navigating life with a transgender child what more do you want fam???
The Power of the Dog by Don Winslow - a historical crime thriller about the failed Mexican/American War on Drugs. There are gangs, rivalries, corrupt politicians, and an egomaniacal US government to contend with. Nobody is the good guy and no decisions are without consequences. Don Winslow is a genius and I could have picked any one of his novels (Savages was a close second).
Sex and Rage by Eve Babitz - Eve is THE quintessential ‘70s California surfer girl. This might be the biggest reach but what Eve conveys about the hollowness of the consumerist celebrity life versus the value of an authentic artistic existence is to me uniquely American.
The Dutch House by Ann Patchett - besides the fact that Ann Patchett is a national treasure akin to Tom Hanks (who appropriately narrates the audiobook version), The Dutch House is about a blended family passive-aggressively fighting over lost inheritance and property. What could be more American than that?
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood - perhaps Ms. Atwood doesn’t grab a spot on the list because she releases first in her native Canada, but The Handmaid’s Tale is a literal American dystopian nightmare that is slowly coming true all around us (and has in fact been historically true for some Black Americans). It absolutely deserves a spot.
Alas, I was not asked to instigate an internet riot by participating in deliberations. Although I greatly appreciate giving us something new to talk about, what this list has done is 1). force me to question my biases about what makes something American, and 2). give me a reason to argue with people about books on the internet. Thank you, Atlantic staff writers!
What’s your take on this list? How many on the list have you read, or even heard of? What would you add or edit? What terrible complaining DMs have you been sending the list masterminds??? I am genuinely dying to know.
READING →
Still reading The Idiot by Elif Batuman. It’s funny but the plot is not that compelling. Some of the absurdities of college are spot on, but the MC is also very hard to understand. This is going to be a tough go.
Finished Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan. A fellow bookstagrammer posted an image of the cover and said, “This may be my perfect opportunity to say nothing,” which is so poetic, but we know I won’t be able to do that.
WATCHING →
Well I finally joined the other 8 million people binge-watching all nine seasons of Suits on Netflix. It’s so unrealistic (a man who remembers every word he ever reads? Lawyers that are just so lawyerly they always come out on top?), but honesty corner - that’s why we all like it, right?
NEW BOOKS →
include a story about a man and his robot girlfriend, a speculative friendship story spanning from the 1980s to the 2040s, a suspense novel that sounds so perfect for me it’s painful (murder, intrigue, Satanic panic!!!), and the literary event of the year.
BOOK NEWS →
This article on the death of the babysitter has me nostalgic for The Babysitters Club series. I think I’ll write about the childhood books that made us soon…
Megan Nolan’s article on the legacy of Stephen King’s Carrie has given me a new appreciation for King’s ability to write about teenage girls in crisis.
Thriftbooks has a list of the most popular books by state in 2023. Ohio must be going through it.
Don’t tell me how to organize MY bookshelves devil man.
RESTACK OF THE WEEK →
chases the feeling of never, ever feeling rested. AND CATS →
Birdy Saturdays > Cartoon Saturdays
In Case You Missed It 🖤
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See you around the bookshelf!
Natalie
Welcome, Ghostie! He's adorable.
That list felt weeeeird. Chaos is very American. We have so many experiences across so many identities, cultures, ethnicities. Even though I was born here, I don't feel fully American because my father's side immigrated here. Ni aquí, ni allá (neither here nor there) is a common feeling amongst first and second generation born Americans whose ancestral line is in Mexico. I very much agree with James Baldwin and Toni Morrison being on there multiple times.
Excited to see what you have planned for the newsletter! I love everything you write! ❤️🔥
Yes! Middlesex is a must! My adds: A Fan’s Notes by Frederick Exley—beautifully heartbreaking and funny, truly unforgettable; Trout Fishing in America by Richard Brautigan—can’t get more strange or American than Brautigan; Confederacy of Dunes by John Kennedy Toole—funny, funny, funny and set in New Orleans, another only in America thang; The Sot-Weed Factor by John Barth—best American historical novel; So Long, See You Tomorrow by William Maxwell—a beautiful, unforgettable masterpiece in 135 pages by the New Yorker fiction editor with the magic touch.