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The Ultimate Best Books of 2020 List - 62 Books

This year has been "unprecedented" and "unusual" and "an outlier" and "anomalous" and "freakish" and "extraordinary" in many ways. The Covid-19 pandemic has upended our way of life, our topics of conversation, and our entire world. However, some things will always be the same. What I mean to say is: Nothing can stop listicle season.
Yet again, I have scoured the internet to find out which books were recommended most on the "best of the year" lists, consulting 2020 roundups published by everyone from Literary Hub (that would be us) to Apartment Therapy. I read a total 41 lists, which recommended a whopping 952 different books. But a few were mentioned repeatedly, and you will find those ranked below, by order of frequency of inclusion. Does this mean these books are The Best? Only as much as any popularity contest ever does, I suppose. But if you're looking to add some books to your holiday reading list, you could do a lot worse.
Here are the results:
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from lithub.com · made by BookReader09
avg. score: 5 of 62 (7%)
required scores: 1, 2, 3, 4, 7 

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The Vanishing Half (Brit Bennett)
The Vanishing Half
1
Brit Bennett
Leave the World Behind (Rumaan Alman)
Leave the World Behind
2
Rumaan Alman
Transcendent Kingdom (Yaa Gyasi)
Transcendent Kingdom
3
Yaa Gyasi
Luster (Raven Leilani)
Luster
4
Raven Leilani
Deacon King Kong (James McBride)
Deacon King Kong
5
James McBride
Hamnet (Maggie O'farrell)
Hamnet
6
Maggie O'farrell
Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents (Isabel Wilkerson)
Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents
7
Isabel Wilkerson
Memorial (Bryan Washington)
Memorial
8
Bryan Washington
Homeland Elegies (Ayad Akhtar)
Homeland Elegies
9
Ayad Akhtar
A Burning (Megha Majumdar)
A Burning
10
Megha Majumdar
The Mirror & the Light (Hilary Mantel)
The Mirror & the Light
11
Hilary Mantel
Weather (Jenny Offill)
Weather
12
Jenny Offill
The Office of Historical Corrections (Danielle Evans)
The Office of Historical Corrections
13
Danielle Evans
Cleanness (Garth Greenwell)
Cleanness
14
Garth Greenwell
Shuggie Bain (Douglas Stuart)
Shuggie Bain
15
Douglas Stuart
Memorial Drive (Natasha Trethewey)
Memorial Drive
16
Natasha Trethewey
Hidden Valley Road (Robert Kolker)
Hidden Valley Road
17
Robert Kolker
The Lying Life of Adults (Elena Ferrante)
The Lying Life of Adults
18
Elena Ferrante
The City We Became (N K Jemisin)
The City We Became
19
N K Jemisin
A Children's Bible (Lydia Millet)
A Children's Bible
20
Lydia Millet
A Promised Land (Barack Obama)
A Promised Land
21
Barack Obama
Just Us (Claudia Rankine)
Just Us
22
Claudia Rankine
Uncanny Valley (Anna Wiener)
Uncanny Valley
23
Anna Wiener
How Much of These Hills Is Gold (C Pam Zhang)
How Much of These Hills Is Gold
24
C Pam Zhang
Piranesi (Susanna Clarke)
Piranesi
25
Susanna Clarke
Wow, No Thank You (Samantha Irby)
Wow, No Thank You
26
Samantha Irby
The Glass Hotel (Emily St. John Mandel)
The Glass Hotel
27
Emily St. John Mandel
Such a Fun Age (Kiley Reid)
Such a Fun Age
28
Kiley Reid
The Death of Vivek Oji (Akwaeke Emezi)
The Death of Vivek Oji
29
Akwaeke Emezi
Minor Feelings (Cathy Park Hong)
Minor Feelings
30
Cathy Park Hong
Writers & Lovers (Lily King)
Writers & Lovers
31
Lily King
Real Life (Brandon Taylor)
Real Life
32
Brandon Taylor
Interior Chinatown (Charles Yu)
Interior Chinatown
33
Charles Yu
Hood Feminism (Mikki Kendall)
Hood Feminism
34
Mikki Kendall
Vesper Flights (Helen MacDonald)
Vesper Flights
35
Helen MacDonald
Mexican Gothic (Silvia Moreno-Garcia)
Mexican Gothic
36
Silvia Moreno-Garcia
The Dead Are Arising: The Life of Malcolm X (Les Payne and Tamara Payne)
The Dead Are Arising: The Life of Malcolm X
37
Les Payne and Tamara Payne
The Invisible Life of Addie Larue (V.E. Schwab)
The Invisible Life of Addie Larue
38
V.E. Schwab
The Undocumented Americans (Kate Cornejo Villavicencio)
The Undocumented Americans
39
Kate Cornejo Villavicencio
The Cold Millions (Jess Walter)
The Cold Millions
40
Jess Walter
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