No doubt you have noticed the proliferation of Best Books of 2021 or Best Books of the Year lists that seem to be appearing all over the internet and in print periodicals. Every December, I take a deep dive into these lists to see which books i have missed over the past year and also to see how my opinions of the “best books” compares. As usual I have serious quibbles with many of the choices for the lists, but I’ll keep by notions to myself.

Here’s a far from comprehensive list with links to some of the “Best of 2021” compelations :

• • The 10 Best Books of 2021, 100 Notable Books of 2021, Times Critics’ Top Books of 2021, The Best Cookbooks of 2021 (NY Times)

• • Books We Love (NPR)

• • Favorite Books of 2021 (Barack Obama)

• • The Best Books We Read in 2021 (New Yorker)

• • Best Books of 2021 (Book Riot)

• • Best Books of 2021 (Kirkus Reviews)

• • The Best Art Books of 2021 (ARTnews)

• • Best Books 2021 (Library Journal)

• • The Best Books Of 2021 (The Guardian)

• • The Best Audiobooks of 2021, The Best Books of 2021 (Slate)

• • Best Books of the Year (Amazon)

• • Best Books of 2021 (Goodreads)

• • 28 Best Cookbooks of 2021, According to Home Cooks & Pro Chefs Alike (Food52)

• • The Best of 2021 (Audible)

• • Best Books 2021, The Top 50 Books of the Year (Children’s and Young Adult) (Publishers Weekly)

• • The 100 Must-Read Books Of 2021 (Time)

• • The 50 Best Books of 2021 (Esquire)

• • The Best Books to Read in 2021 (Vogue)

• • The 10 Best Books Of 2021 (Washington Post)

• • The Best Young Adult Books Of 2021 (BuzzFeed)