75 years: a timeline in books

Florence Cli ord looks back at the most influential novels

One of the joys of literature is its individual, subjective appeal: the personal importance we attach to the narratives which most speak to us. So the task of narrowing down the most influential books of the past 75 years is enormously daunting — some might go so far as to say impossible. Any survey on influential books will have its results heavily skewed by the demographic answering it. A respondent in New Delhi, Beijing, or Moscow will likely give very di erent answers to the average Durhamite, who in turn will have an alternative view to people living across the length and breadth of the UK. Condensing 75 years of literary history into 800 words is no mean feat — so this is hardly a scientific study! Inevitably this is a largely Westerncentric, English-language list, and I’ve stuck to fiction for ease (and one diary).

I’m not claiming that these are necessarily the best books of the past 75 years (although some of them are). The only criteria is that these books have all had a huge influence on how we see the world, each other, or literature as an art form.

1984 - George Orwell (1949)

Is there any book whose content has proved such a grim harbinger of the future, or whose language has become an inseparable part of everyday speech? 1984’s toxic, reality-manipulating surveillance state and paranoid political landscape took the world by storm and has never ceased to be jarringly relevant. Orwell’s masterpiece has a strong claim to the title of the most influential book of the past 75 years.

The Diary of a Young Girl - Anne Frank (1952)

Although first published in 1947, the harrowing diary of a young Jewish girl living in the shadow of Nazi persecution was translated into English in 1952. It’s not a book that particularly requires introduction: everyone has heard of it, if not read it, and Frank’s legacy extends far beyond literature. It is hugely powerful, not just as a literary text, but as a window into a world of tragedy and a stark reminder of human loss.

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy - J. R. R. Tolkien (1954-6) Tolkien’s epic adventure made high fantasy no longer a niche genre but popular and successful mainstream literature. The works have been translated into at least 38 languages, introducing millions of readers to Middle Earth, and spawned a film series that brought even bigger audiences. Tolkien made a case for fantasy as not just reading for children, but for everyone.

Things Fall Apart - Chinua Achebe (1958)

Achebe’s masterpiece brought the lived experience of colonialism centre stage, in this story of one man’s fight to preserve his community from change. It allowed Achebe to present the culture and language of his homeland to an English-language audience, reclaiming a literary form that had previously been dominated by white, Western writers. In the process, he opened up possibilities for generations of African and other under-represented writers to tell their stories.

To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee (1960)

Like other books on this list, Lee’s masterpiece about a white lawyer defending a black man accused of rape in 1930s Alabama has become more a cultural force than just a book. The story came out shortly before the Civil Rights Movement transformed America, mirroring a country mired in racial divisions, and has become a symbol of standing up to injustices and the importance of tolerance and truth.

The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath (1963)

Possibly no other twentieth-century figure exerts such a grip on the collective imagination than Sylvia Plath. This semi-autobiographical novel is a huge part of that, tangled up in complicated questions of writers’ legacies and the separation of art from real life. Beyond this, The Bell Jar is a story of mental health, trauma, and the societal oppression of women, one of the first to expose the brutality of the patriarchy, and which still resonates fiercely today.

The Satanic Verses - Salman Rushdie (1988)

Rushdie’s critically acclaimed novel, inspired by the life of the prophet Muhammad, was banned in Pakistan for its blasphemous content. The Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa calling for Rushdie’s death, and riots, assassination attempts, and killings have followed. The story and its death count illustrate the power words wield and the lengths people — especially authorities — will go to in order to silence them.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone - J. K. Rowling (1997)

In spite of the controversy surrounding the author, it’s hard to deny this series’ impact on recent literature. Harry Potter is a household name, both influencing children’s fiction and forming one of the most successful film franchises in history. Two decades on, the books and their author are now sparking di erent and more serious conversations, but have hardly left the headlines or cultural consciousness since first publication.

stage@palatinate.org.uk