My son is a fiction reader, and here are his Top Ten Books: Novels. Thanks Luke. Did he miss some good ones?

Top Ten (Semi)-Recent Novels

1. A Farewell to Arms, Ernest Hemingway- saddest book
I can ever imagine, and classic Hemingway dealing with
wounds and scars and wars and failed love.

2. Native Son, Richard Wright- moving book about the
struggles of African-Americans.

3. Cien Anos de Soledad (One Hundred Years of
Solitude), Gabriel Garcia Marquez- a sad and hilarious
book all at the same time; master of magical realism.

4. A Prayer for Owen Meany, John Irving- God’s hand is
in everything, and it doesn’t always make sense.

5. The Power of One, Bryce Courtenay- the classic
novel of South Africa.

6. The Da Vinci Code, Dan Brown -no, I’m just kidding,
thought I’d check and see if you were really reading.

7. Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck- just a classic.

8. Hey Nostradamus, Douglas Coupland- a fictional
depiction of violence in schools with interesting
commentary on modern Christianity through the eyes of
various narrators.

9. The Screwtape Letters, CS Lewis- insightful.

10. Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemingway- Papa said
he intended no symbolism in the book at all; it was
just a story about one of his fellow marlin fishermen,
Gregorio Fuentes.

11. The Chronicles of Narnia, CS Lewis- great series,
better (and a tad less wordy) than Lord of the Rings.

Here are my (Scot McKnight) comments. I read The Old Man and the Sea ever year, along with A Christmas Carol and, if I can find the time, Tom Sawyer or Huckleberry Finn. I’ve been to Hemingway’s homes in Oak Park, IL, and in Key West, FL, and to his site in Ketchum, ID. I’ve touched Lewis’ wardrobe door at the Wade Center.

I’ve read Lewis’ novels. I read The DaVinci Code because I had to. I started Owen Meany but didn’t finish it; I did see the movie. I’ve not read the others.

On the Russian novelists…. I get lost in their endless train treks across Siberia, and can never keep their names straight, so I’ve never finished one of the Russians. But, I like them as thinkers and read their essays and biographies.