357; NYT: What is the best work of American fiction in the last 25 years?

[carsong]

Early this year, the Book Review's editor, Sam Tanenhaus, sent out a short letter to a couple of hundred prominent writers, critics, editors and other literary sages, asking them to please identify "the single best work of American fiction published in the last 25 years." [Read A. O. Scott's essay. See a list of the judges.] Following are the results.

THE WINNER:

Beloved -- Toni Morrison (1987)
Review

THE RUNNERS-UP:

Underworld -- Don DeLillo (1997)
Review

Blood Meridian -- Cormac McCarthy (1985)
Review

Rabbit Angstrom: The Four Novels -- John Updike
Review: 'Rabbit at Rest' (1990)
Review: 'Rabbit Is Rich' (1981)
Review: 'Rabbit Redux' (1971)
Review: 'Rabbit, Run' (1960)

American Pastoral -- Philip Roth (1997)
Review

THE FOLLOWING BOOKS ALSO RECEIVED MULTIPLE VOTES:

A Confederacy of Dunces -- John Kennedy Toole (1980)
Review

Housekeeping -- Marilynne Robinson (1980)
(This book was not reviewed by The Times.)

Winter's Tale -- Mark Helprin (1983)
Review

White Noise -- Don DeLillo (1985)
Review

The Counterlife -- Philip Roth (1986)
Review

Libra -- Don DeLillo (1988)
Review

Where I'm Calling From -- Raymond Carver (1988)
Review

The Things They Carried -- Tim O'Brien (1990)
Review

Mating -- Norman Rush (1991)
Review

Jesus' Son -- Denis Johnson (1992)
Review

Operation Shylock -- Philip Roth (1993)
Review

Independence Day -- Richard Ford (1995)
Review

Sabbath's Theater -- Philip Roth (1995)
Review

Border Trilogy -- Cormac McCarthy
Review: 'Cities of the Plain' (1998)
Review: 'The Crossing' (1994)
Review: 'All the Pretty Horses' (1992)

The Human Stain -- Philip Roth (2000)
Review

The Known World -- Edward P. Jones (2003)
Review

The Plot Against America -- Philip Roth (2004)
Review