In the ratings there was an option to rate a book as 'Bad'. This list is a straight count of the books getting the most 'Bad' ratings in the initial round. Good to see some classics on there - probably the effects of being forced to read them at school?!
Only one of these make the cut for the Top 100: Harry Potter
Top Ten Most 'Bad' Votes
51 Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand
41 The Wheel of Time - Robert Jordan
30 Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever - Stephen Donaldson
30 The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
24 The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald
21 The Dark Tower Series - Stephen King
21 American Psycho - Bret Easton Ellis
18 Harry Potter Series - J. K. Rowling
17 Red Storm Rising - Tom Clancy
16 Moby Dick - Melville
Monday 27 February 2012
Not Top 100, but worth a mention...
In addition the following just missed the cut for the Top 100, but are worthy of mention:
War and Peace - Tolstoy
Something Wicked This Way Comes - Ray Bradbury
Don Quixote de la Mancha - Cervantes
Dying Earth series - Jack Vance
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court - Twain
Around the World in 80 Days - Jules Verne
Where the Wild Things Are - Maurice Sendak
The Pillars of the Earth - Ken Follet
and these books got high average ratings, but not enough votes to make the Top 100:
Fatelessness - Kertész
Satanic Mill - Otfried Preussler
The Reader - Bernhard Schlink
Hard-Boiled Wonderland and The End of The World - Haruki Murakami
Fool on the Hill - Matt Ruff
The First Law series - Joe Abercrombie
Wolf In Shadow - David Gemmell
Demons - Dostoyevsky
Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal - Christopher Moore
Pushing Ice - Alastair Reynolds
Little Big - John Crowley
The Book of Laughter and Forgetting - Milan Kundera
Satanic Verses - Salman Rushdie
War and Peace - Tolstoy
Something Wicked This Way Comes - Ray Bradbury
Don Quixote de la Mancha - Cervantes
Dying Earth series - Jack Vance
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court - Twain
Around the World in 80 Days - Jules Verne
Where the Wild Things Are - Maurice Sendak
The Pillars of the Earth - Ken Follet
and these books got high average ratings, but not enough votes to make the Top 100:
Fatelessness - Kertész
Satanic Mill - Otfried Preussler
The Reader - Bernhard Schlink
Hard-Boiled Wonderland and The End of The World - Haruki Murakami
Fool on the Hill - Matt Ruff
The First Law series - Joe Abercrombie
Wolf In Shadow - David Gemmell
Demons - Dostoyevsky
Lamb: The Gospel According to Biff, Christ's Childhood Pal - Christopher Moore
Pushing Ice - Alastair Reynolds
Little Big - John Crowley
The Book of Laughter and Forgetting - Milan Kundera
Satanic Verses - Salman Rushdie
76th-100th
76 The City And The City - China Mieville
77 Neverwhere - Neil Gaiman
78 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
79 The Raven - Edgar Alan Poe
80 The Road - Cormac McCarthy
81 The Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
82 The Maltese Falcon - Dashiell Hammett
83 Starship Troopers - Robert Heinlein
84 American Gods - Neil Gaiman
85 Journey to the Centre of the Earth - Jules Verne
86 The Hyperion Cantos - Dan Simmons
87 Childhood's End - Arthur C. Clarke
88 Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert A. Heinlein
89 The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury
90 World War Z - Max Brooks
91 The Anubis Gates - Tim Powers
92 The Colour of Magic - Terry Pratchett
93 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
94 Day Of The Triffids - John Wyndham
95 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea - Verne
96 Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas - Hunter S. Thompson
97 Le Morte d'Arthur - Thomas Mallory
98 Frankenstein - Mary Shelly
99 A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
100 Call of the Wild - Jack London
If the ratings had been based on most widely read rather than average rating then Alice in Wonderland would have made the Top 10.
77 Neverwhere - Neil Gaiman
78 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll
79 The Raven - Edgar Alan Poe
80 The Road - Cormac McCarthy
81 The Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck
82 The Maltese Falcon - Dashiell Hammett
83 Starship Troopers - Robert Heinlein
84 American Gods - Neil Gaiman
85 Journey to the Centre of the Earth - Jules Verne
86 The Hyperion Cantos - Dan Simmons
87 Childhood's End - Arthur C. Clarke
88 Stranger in a Strange Land - Robert A. Heinlein
89 The Martian Chronicles - Ray Bradbury
90 World War Z - Max Brooks
91 The Anubis Gates - Tim Powers
92 The Colour of Magic - Terry Pratchett
93 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
94 Day Of The Triffids - John Wyndham
95 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea - Verne
96 Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas - Hunter S. Thompson
97 Le Morte d'Arthur - Thomas Mallory
98 Frankenstein - Mary Shelly
99 A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
100 Call of the Wild - Jack London
If the ratings had been based on most widely read rather than average rating then Alice in Wonderland would have made the Top 10.
51st-75th
51 Gardens of the Moon - Steven Erikson
52 Perfume - Patrick Suskind
53 Use of Weapons - Iain M Banks
54 Invisible Cities - Italo Calvino
55 The Master and Margarita - Mikhail Bulgakov
56 A Wild Sheep Chase - Haruki Murakami
57 The Westing Game - Ellen Raskin
58 Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
59 The Name of the Wind - Patrick Rothfuss
60 Tigana - Guy Gavriel Kay
61 From Hell - Moore/Campbell
62 The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman
63 The Crow Road - Iain Banks
64 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
65 Treasure Island - Robert Louis Stevenson
66 A Prayer For Owen Meany - John Irving
67 Anna Karenina - Tolstoy
68 The Murder of Roger Ackroyd - Agatha Christie
69 Foucault's Pendulum - Umberto Eco
70 Bone - Jeff Smith
71 Watership Down - Richard Adams
72 Snow Crash - Neal Stephenson
73 Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut
74 Odyssey - Homer
75 The Sparrow, Mary Doria Russel
The following books got high enough average ratings, but not enough votes to make the cut for the Top 50:
Gardens of the Moon - Steven Erikson
Perfume - Patrick Suskind
Use of Weapons - Iain M Banks
Invisible Cities - Italo Calvino
The Master and Margarita - Mikhail Bulgakov
A Wild Sheep Chase - Haruki Murakami
The Westing Game - Ellen Raskin
Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
52 Perfume - Patrick Suskind
53 Use of Weapons - Iain M Banks
54 Invisible Cities - Italo Calvino
55 The Master and Margarita - Mikhail Bulgakov
56 A Wild Sheep Chase - Haruki Murakami
57 The Westing Game - Ellen Raskin
58 Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
59 The Name of the Wind - Patrick Rothfuss
60 Tigana - Guy Gavriel Kay
61 From Hell - Moore/Campbell
62 The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman
63 The Crow Road - Iain Banks
64 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
65 Treasure Island - Robert Louis Stevenson
66 A Prayer For Owen Meany - John Irving
67 Anna Karenina - Tolstoy
68 The Murder of Roger Ackroyd - Agatha Christie
69 Foucault's Pendulum - Umberto Eco
70 Bone - Jeff Smith
71 Watership Down - Richard Adams
72 Snow Crash - Neal Stephenson
73 Cat's Cradle - Kurt Vonnegut
74 Odyssey - Homer
75 The Sparrow, Mary Doria Russel
The following books got high enough average ratings, but not enough votes to make the cut for the Top 50:
Gardens of the Moon - Steven Erikson
Perfume - Patrick Suskind
Use of Weapons - Iain M Banks
Invisible Cities - Italo Calvino
The Master and Margarita - Mikhail Bulgakov
A Wild Sheep Chase - Haruki Murakami
The Westing Game - Ellen Raskin
Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
41st-50th
41 A Canticle for Leibowitz - Walter M Miller
42 Ubik - Philip K. Dick
43 I, Robot - Isaac Asimov
44 Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque - Edgar Allan Poe
45 Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption - Stephen King
46 The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe - C.S. Lewis
47 One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest Nest - Ken Kesey
48 Nightfall - Isaac Asimov
49 The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin
50 Ficciones - Jorge Luis Borges
The Least Known Stories in the Top 50
Lolita - Nabokov
A Canticle for Leibowitz - Walter M Miller
One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The Brothers Karamazov - Dostoevsky
The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin
Lord of Light - Roger Zelazny
Ubik - Philip K. Dick
The Player of Games - Iain M. Banks
50 Ficciones - Jorge Luis Borges
42 Ubik - Philip K. Dick
43 I, Robot - Isaac Asimov
44 Tales of the Grotesque and Arabesque - Edgar Allan Poe
45 Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption - Stephen King
46 The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe - C.S. Lewis
47 One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest Nest - Ken Kesey
48 Nightfall - Isaac Asimov
49 The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin
50 Ficciones - Jorge Luis Borges
The Least Known Stories in the Top 50
Lolita - Nabokov
A Canticle for Leibowitz - Walter M Miller
One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The Brothers Karamazov - Dostoevsky
The Dispossessed - Ursula K. Le Guin
Lord of Light - Roger Zelazny
Ubik - Philip K. Dick
The Player of Games - Iain M. Banks
50 Ficciones - Jorge Luis Borges
31st-40th
31 Neuromancer - William Gibson
32 The Trial - Franz Kafka
33 The Stand - Stephen King
34 Harry Potter Series - J. K. Rowling
35 Lord of Light - Roger Zelazny
36 The Man in the High Castle - Philip K. Dick
37 Flowers for Algernon - Daniel Keyes
38 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
39 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
40 A Wizard Of Earthsea - Ursula K Le Guin
If I'd been putting this list together based purely on how widely read the books were then Harry Potter would have been in the Top 10, but on average rating it sits at 34th.
32 The Trial - Franz Kafka
33 The Stand - Stephen King
34 Harry Potter Series - J. K. Rowling
35 Lord of Light - Roger Zelazny
36 The Man in the High Castle - Philip K. Dick
37 Flowers for Algernon - Daniel Keyes
38 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas
39 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl
40 A Wizard Of Earthsea - Ursula K Le Guin
If I'd been putting this list together based purely on how widely read the books were then Harry Potter would have been in the Top 10, but on average rating it sits at 34th.
21st-30th
21 The Player of Games - Iain M. Banks
22 Lolita - Nabokov
23 All Quiet on the Western Front - Erich Maria Remarque
24 The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain
25 The Great Book of Amber - Roger Zelazny
26 The Brothers Karamazov - Dostoevsky
27 Iliad - Homer
28 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
29 The Princess Bride - William Goldman
30 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The following books got high enough average ratings, but not enough votes to make the cut for the Top 20:
The Player of Games - Iain M. Banks
Lolita - Nabokov
All Quiet on the Western Front - Erich Maria Remarque
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn had lots of geeks rating it very highly, but its average rating stopped it making the Top 20.
22 Lolita - Nabokov
23 All Quiet on the Western Front - Erich Maria Remarque
24 The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn - Mark Twain
25 The Great Book of Amber - Roger Zelazny
26 The Brothers Karamazov - Dostoevsky
27 Iliad - Homer
28 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoyevsky
29 The Princess Bride - William Goldman
30 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The following books got high enough average ratings, but not enough votes to make the cut for the Top 20:
The Player of Games - Iain M. Banks
Lolita - Nabokov
All Quiet on the Western Front - Erich Maria Remarque
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn had lots of geeks rating it very highly, but its average rating stopped it making the Top 20.
11th-20th
11 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
12 Slaughter House Five - Kurt Vonnegut
13 Watchmen - Moore/Gibbons
14 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
15 Animal Farm - George Orwell
16 The Sandman series - Neil Gaiman
17 The Count of Monte Cristo - A. Dumas
18 Hamlet - William Shakespeare
19 Guards, Guards - Terry Pratchett
20 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
Animal Farm, Hamlet and To Kill a Mockingbird were more well known than some of the books in the Top 10, but their average ratings weren't high enough for them to make the cut for the Top 10.
12 Slaughter House Five - Kurt Vonnegut
13 Watchmen - Moore/Gibbons
14 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller
15 Animal Farm - George Orwell
16 The Sandman series - Neil Gaiman
17 The Count of Monte Cristo - A. Dumas
18 Hamlet - William Shakespeare
19 Guards, Guards - Terry Pratchett
20 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
Animal Farm, Hamlet and To Kill a Mockingbird were more well known than some of the books in the Top 10, but their average ratings weren't high enough for them to make the cut for the Top 10.
The Top Ten
Lord of the Rings was the not very surprising overall winner, but 2nd-10th were a lot harder to predict:
1 The Lord of the Rings - J.R.R. Tolkien
2 Dune - Frank Herbert
3 The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien
4 A Song of Ice and Fire - George RR Martin
5 1984 - George Orwell
6 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
7 The Sherlock Holmes stories - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
8 The Foundation Trilogy - Isaac Asimov
9 Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
10 The Name of the Rose - Umberto Eco
The final order was fairly stable, though Hitchikers was doing better until the final stages of the voting, dropping from 4th place.
1 The Lord of the Rings - J.R.R. Tolkien
2 Dune - Frank Herbert
3 The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien
4 A Song of Ice and Fire - George RR Martin
5 1984 - George Orwell
6 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams
7 The Sherlock Holmes stories - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
8 The Foundation Trilogy - Isaac Asimov
9 Ender's Game - Orson Scott Card
10 The Name of the Rose - Umberto Eco
The final order was fairly stable, though Hitchikers was doing better until the final stages of the voting, dropping from 4th place.
Background
I asked a population of geeks for their nominations for their favourite Novels/Stories.
Originally I had a twist for this contest in letting people nominate only a single entry to keep quality high and stop the contest from being too huge. In the end 82 books were nominated in this way and it made for an interesting start. But I wanted a broader contest so I opened up the nominating and in the end 371 books entered the contest.
Four of those 82 'single nomination' books made it into the Final where five books competed.
The contest was primarly conducted based on average ratings, but in addition books needed a (gradually increasing) minimum number of ratings to progress from round to round to keep the results relevant to the geek jurors.
I didn't go just for novels because I also wanted to cover novellas/short stories/linked short stories/graphic novels if people wanted to nominate them. As a group we also made a collective decision to exclude religious books to avoid the discussion being derailed by whether they were a story or not.
Originally I had a twist for this contest in letting people nominate only a single entry to keep quality high and stop the contest from being too huge. In the end 82 books were nominated in this way and it made for an interesting start. But I wanted a broader contest so I opened up the nominating and in the end 371 books entered the contest.
Four of those 82 'single nomination' books made it into the Final where five books competed.
The contest was primarly conducted based on average ratings, but in addition books needed a (gradually increasing) minimum number of ratings to progress from round to round to keep the results relevant to the geek jurors.
I didn't go just for novels because I also wanted to cover novellas/short stories/linked short stories/graphic novels if people wanted to nominate them. As a group we also made a collective decision to exclude religious books to avoid the discussion being derailed by whether they were a story or not.
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