Post-Victorian bestsellers, 1900-1909
1900 Novels
- 1900 #1 To Have and to Hold by Mary Johnson
- 1900 #2 Red Pottage by Mary Cholmondeley
- 1900 #3 Unleavened Bread by Robert Grant
- 1900 #4 The Reign of Law by James Lane Allen
- 1900 #5 Eben Holden: A Tale of the North Country by Irving Bacheller
- 1900 #6 Janice Meredith by Paul Leicester Ford
- 1900 #7 Richard Carvel by Winston Churchill
- 1900 #8 The Redemption of David Corson by Charles Frederic Goss
- 1900 #9 When Knighthood Was in Flower by Charles Major
- 1900 #10 Alice of Old Vincennes by Maurice Thompson [Also 1901 #2]
1901 Novels
- 1901 #1 The Crisis by Winston Churchill
- 1901 #2 Alice of Old Vincennes by Maurice Thompson [Also 1900 #10]
- 1901 #3 Helmet of Navarre by Bertha Runkle
- 1901 #4 The Right of Way by Gilbert Packer
- 1901 #5 Eben Holden: A Tale of the North Country by Irving Bacheller
- 1901 #6 The Visits of Elizabeth by Elinor Glyn
- 1901 #7 The Puppet Crown by Harold MacGrath
- 1901 #8 The Life and Death of Richard Yea-and-Nay by Maurice Hewlett
- 1901 #9 Graustark by George Barr McCutcheon
- 1901 #10 D’Ri and I by Irving Bacheller
1902 Novels
- 1902 #1 The Virginian by Owen Wister [see also 1903]
- 1902 #2 Mrs. Wiggs of Cabbage Patch by Alice Hegan Rice [Also 1903 #6]
- 1902 #3 Dorothy Vernon of Haddon Hall by Charles Major
- 1902 #4 The Mississippi Bubble by Emerson Hough
- 1902 #5 Audrey by Mary Johnson
- 1902 #6 The Right of Way by Gilbert Parker
- 1902 #7 The Hound of the Baskervilles by Arthur Conan Doyle
- 1902 #8 The Two Vanrevels by Booth Tarkington
- 1902 #9 The Blue Flower by Henry van Dyke
- 1902 #10 Sir Richard Calmady by Lucas Malet
1903 Novels
- 1903 #1 Lady Rose’s Daughter by Mary Augusta Ward
- 1903 #2 Gordon Keith by Thomas Nelson Page
- 1903 #3 The Pit by Frank Norris
- 1903 #4 Lovey Mary by Alice Hegan Rice
- 1903 #5 The Virginian by Owen Wister [Also 1902 #1]
- 1903 #6 Mrs. Wiggs of the Cabbage Patch by Alice Hegan Rice [Also 1902 #2]
- 1903 #7 The Mettle of the Pasture by James Lane Allen
- 1903 #8 Letters of a Self-Made Merchant to His Son by George Horace Lorimer
- 1903 #9 The One Woman by Thomas Dixon Jr.
- 1903 #10 The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come by John Fox Jr. [See also 1904]
1904 Novels
- 1904 #1 The Crossing by Winston Churchill
- 1904 #2 The Deliverance by Ellen Glasgow
- 1904 #3 The Masquerader by Katherine Cecil Thurston [Also 1905 #7]
- 1904 #4 In the Bishop’s Carriage by Miriam Michelson
- 1904 #5 Sir Mortimer by Mary Johnson
- 1904 #6 Beverly of Grustark by George Barr McCutcheon
- 1904 #7 The Little Shepherd of Kingdom Come by John Fox Jr. [Also 1903 #10]
- 1904 #8 Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm by Kate Douglas Wiggin
- 1904 #9 My Friend Prospero by Henry Harland
- 1904 #10 The Silent Places by Stewart Edward White
1905 Novels
- 1905 #1 The Marriage of William Ashe by Mary Augusta Ward
- 1905 #2 Sandy by Alice Hegan Rice
- 1905 #3 The Garden of Allah by Robert Hichens
- 1905 #4 The Clansman by Thomas Dixon Jr.
- 1905 #5 Nedra by George Barr McCutcheon
- 1905 #6 The Gambler by Katherine Cecil Thurston
- 1905 #7 The Masquerader by Katherine Cecil Thurston [Also 1904 #5]
- 1905 #8 The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton [Also 1906 #9]
- 1905 #9 The Princess Passes by C. N. Williamson and A. M. Williamson
- 1905 #10 Rose o’ the River by Kate Douglas Wiggin
1906 Novels
- 1906 #1 Coniston by Winston Churchill
- 1906 #2 Lady Baltimore by Owen Wister
- 1906 #3 The Fighting Chance by Robert W. Chambers
- 1906 #4 The House of a Thousand Candles by Meredith Nicholson
- 1906 #5 Jane Cable by George Barr McCutcheon
- 1906 #6 The Jungle by Upton Sinclair
- 1906 #7 The Awakening of Helena Ritchie by Margaret Deland
- 1906 #8 The Spoilers by Rex Beach
- 1906 #9 The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton [Also 1905 #8]
- 1906 #10 The Wheel of Life by Ellen Glasgow
1907 Novels
- 1907 #1 The Lady of the Decoration by Frances Little
- 1907 #2 The Weavers by Gilbert Parker [Also 1908 #10]
- 1907 #3 The Port of Missing Men by Meredith Nicholson.
- 1907 #4 The Shuttle by Frances Hodgson Burnett [Also 1908 #5]
- 1907 #5 The Brass Bowl by Louis J. Vance
- 1907 #6 Satan Sanderson by Hallie Erminie Rives
- 1907 #7 The Daughter of Anderson Crow by George Barr McCutcheon
- 1907 #8 The Younger Set by Robert W. Chambers
- 1907 #9 The Doctor by Ralph Connor
- 1907 #10 Half a Rogue by Harold MacGrath
1908 Novels
- 1908 #1 Mr. Crewe’s Career by Winston Churchill
- 1908 #2 The Barrier by Rex Beach
- 1908 #3 The Trail of the Lonesome Pine by John Fox Jr.
- 1908 #4 The Lure of the Mask by Harold MacGrath
- 1908 #5 The Shuttle by Frances Hodgson Burnett [Also 1907 #4]
- 1908 #6 Peter by F. Hopkinson Smith
- 1908 #7 Lewis Rand by Louis J. Vance
- 1908 #8 The Black Bag by Harold MacGrath
- 1908 #9 The Man from Brodney’s by George Barr McCutcheon
- 1908 #10 The Weavers by Gilbert Parker [Also 1907 #2]
1909 Novels
- 1909 #1 The Inner Shrine by Basil King
- 1909 #2 Katrine by Elinor Macartney Lane
- 1909 #3 The Silver Horde by Rex Beach
- 1909 #4 The Man in Lower Ten by Mary Roberts Rinehart
- 1909 #5 The Trail of the Lonesome Pine by John Fox Jr.
- 1909 #6 Truxton King by George Barr McCutcheon
- 1909 #7 54-40 or Fight by Emerson Hough
- 1909 #8 The Goose Girl by Harold MacGrath
- 1909 #9 Peter by F. Hopkinson Smith
- 1909 #10 Septimus by William J. Locke
Great War Era bestsellers, 1910-1919
1910 Novels
- 1910 #1 The Rosary by Florence Barclay [Also 1911 #9]
- 1910 #2 A Modern Chronicle by Winston Churchill
- 1910 #3 The Wild Olive by Anonymous (Basil King)
- 1910 #4 Max by Katherine Cecil Thurston
- 1910 #5 The Kingdom of Slender Swords by Hallie Erminie Rives
- 1910 #6 Simon the Jester by William J. Locke
- 1910 #7 Lord Loveland Discovers America by C.N. Williamson & A.M Williamson
- 1910 #8 The Window at the White Cat by Mary Roberts Rinehart
- 1910 #9 Mary Make-Believe by Eleanor Hallowell Abbott [Also 1911 #8]
- 1910 #10 When a Man Marries by Mary Roberts Rinehart
1911 Novels
- 1911 #1The Broad Highway by Jeffrey Farnol
- 1911 #2 The Prodigal Judge Vaughan Kester
- 1911 #3 The Winning of Barbara Worth by Harold Bell Wright [Also 1912 #6]
- 1911 #4 Queed by Henry Syndor Harrison
- 1911 #5 The Harvester by Gene Stratton-Porter
- 1911 #6 The Iron Woman by Margaret Deland
- 1911 #7 The Long Roll by Mary Johnson
- 1911 #8 Mary Make-Believe by Eleanor Hallowell Abbott [Also 1910 #9]
- 1911 #9 The Rosary by Florence Barclay [Also 1910 #1]
- 1911 #10 The Common Law by Robert W. Chambers
1912 Novels
- 1912 #1 The Harvester by Gene Stratton-Porter
- 1912 #2 The Street Called Straight by Basil King
- 1912 #3 Their Yesterdays by Harold Bell Wright
- 1912 #4 The Melting of Molly by Maria Thompson Davies
- 1912 #5 A Hoosier Chronicle by Meredith Nicholson
- 1912 #6 The Winning of Barbara Worth by Harold Bell Wright [Also 1911 #3]
- 1912 #7 The Just and the Unjust by Vaughan Kester
- 1912 #8 The Net by Rex Beach
- 1912 #9 Tante by Anne Douglas Sedgwick
- 1912 #10 Fran by J. Breckenridge Ellis
1913 Novels
- 1913 #1 The Inside of the Cup by Winston Churchill [Also 1914 #3]
- 1913 #2 V.V.’s Eyes by Henry Syndor Harrison
- 1913 #3 Laddie by Gene Stratton-Porter
- 1913 #4 The Judgment House by Sir Gilbert Parker
- 1913 #5 Heart of the Hills by John Fox Jr.
- 1913 #6 The Amateur Gentleman by Jeffrey Farnol
- 1913 #7 The Woman Thou Gavest Me by Hall Craine
- 1913 #8 Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter [Also 1914 #2]
- 1913 #9 The Valiants of Virginia by Amelie Rives
- 1913 #10 T. Tembarom by Frances Hodgson Burnett [Also 1914 #6]
1914 Novels
- 1914 #1 The Eyes of the World by Harold Bell Wright
- 1914 #2 Pollyanna by Eleanor H. Porter [Also 1913 #8]
- 1914 #3 The Inside of the Cup by Winston Churchill
- 1914 #4 The Salamander by Owen Johnson
- 1914 #5 The Fortunate Youth by William J. Locke
- 1914 #6 T. Tembarom by Frances Hodgson Burnett [Also 1913 #10]
- 1914 #7 Penrod by Booth Tarkington
- 1914 #8 Diane of the Green Van by Leona Dalrymple
- 1914 #9 The Devil’s Garden by W. B. Maxwell
- 1914 #10 The Prince of Graustark by George B. McCutcheon
1915 Novels
- 1915 #1 The Turmoil by Booth Tarkington
- 1915 #2 A Far Country by Winston Churchill
- 1915 #3 Michael O’Halloran by Gene Stratton-Porter
- 1915 #4 Pollyanna Grows Up by Eleanor H. Porter
- 1915 #5 K by Mary Roberts Rinehart
- 1914 #6 Jaffrey by William J. Locke
- 1915 #7 Felix O’Day by George Barr McCutcheon
- 1915 #8 The Harbor by Ernest Poole
- 1915 #9 The Lone Star Ranger by Zane Grey
- 1915 #10 Angela’s Business by Henry Syndor Harrison
1916 Novels
- 1916 #1 Seventeen by Booth Tarkington
- 1916 #2 When A Man’s a Man by Harold Bell Wright
- 1916 #3 Just David by Eleanor H. Porter
- 1916 #4 Mr. Britling Sees It Through by H. G. Wells [Also 1917 #1]
- 1916 #5 Life and Gabriella by Ellen Glasgow
- 1916 #6 The Real Adventure by Henry Kitchell Webster
- 1916 #7 Bars of Iron by Ethel J. Dell
- 1916 #8 Nan of Music Mountain by Frank H. Spearman
- 1916 #9 Dear Enemy by Jean Webster
- 1916 #10 The Heart of Rachael by Kathleen Norris
1917 Novels
- 1917 #1 Mr. Britling Sees It Through by H. G. Wells [Also 1916 #4]
- 1917 #2 The Light in the Clearing by Irving Bacheller
- 1917 #3 The Red Planet by William J. Locke
- 1917 #4 The Road to Understanding by Eleanor Porter
- 1917 #5 Wildfire by Zane Grey
- 1917 #6 Christine by Alice Cholmondeley
- 1917 #7 In the Wilderness by Robert S. Hichens
- 1917 #8 His Family by Ernest Poole
- 1917 #9 The Definite Object by Jeffrey Farnol
- 1917 #10 The Hundredth Chance by Ethel M. Dell
1918 Novels
- 1918 #1 The U.P. Trail by Zane Grey
- 1918 #2 The Tree of Heaven by May Sinclair
- 1918 #3 The Amazing Interlude by Mary Roberts Rinehart
- 1918 #4 Dere Mable by Edward Streeter
- 1918 #5 Oh, Money! Money! by Eleanor H. Porter
- 1918 #6 Greatheart by Ethel M. Dell
- 1918 #7 The Major by Ralph Connor
- 1918 #8 The Pawns Count by E. Phillips Oppenheim
- 1918 #9 A Daughter of the Land by Gene Stratton-Porter
- 1918 #10 Sonia: Between Two Worlds by Stephen McKennal
1919 Novels
- 1919 #1 The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse by V. Blasco Ibanez
- 1919 #2 The Arrow of Gold by Joseph Conrad
- 1919 #3 The Desert of Wheat by Zane Grey
- 1919 #4 Dangerous Days by Mary Roberts Rinehart
- 1919 #5 The Sky Pilot in No Man’s Land by Ralph Connor
- 1919 #6 The Re-Creation of Brian Kent by Howard Bell Wright [Also 1920 #3]
- 1919 #7 Dawn by Gene Stratton-Porter
- 1919 #8 The Tin Soldier by Temple Bailey
- 1919 #9 Christopher and Columbus by “Elizabeth”
- 1919 #10 In Secret Robert W. Chambers
Roaring Twenties bestsellers, 1920-1929
1920 Novels
- 1920 #1 The Man of the Forest by Zane Grey
- 1920 #2 Kindred of the Dust by Peter B. Kyne
- 1920 #3 The Re-Creation of Brian Kent by Harold Bell Wright [Also 1919 #6]
- 1920 #4 The River’s End by James Oliver Curwood
- 1920 #5 A Man for the Ages by Irving Bacheller
- 1920 #6 Mary-Marie by Eleanor H. Porter
- 1920 #7 The Portygee by Joseph C. Lincoln
- 1920 #8 The Great Impersonation by E. Phillips Oppenheim
- 1920 #9 The Lamp in the Desert by Ethel M. Dell
- 1920 #10 Harriet and the Piper by Kathleen Norris
1921 Novels
- 1921 #1 Main Street by Sinclair Lewis
- 1921 #2 The Brimming Cup by Dorothy Canfield
- 1921 #3 The Mysterious Rider by Zane Grey
- 1921 #4 The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
- 1921 #5 The Valley of Silent Men by James Oliver Curwood
- 1921 #6 The Sheik by Edith M. Hull
- 1921 #7 A Poor Wise Man by Mary Roberts Rinehart
- 1921 #8 Her Father’s Daughter by Gene Stratton-Porter
- 1921 #9 The Sisters-in-law by Gertrude Atherton
- 1921 #10 The Kingdom Round the Corner by Coningsby Dawson
1922 Novels
- 1922 #1 If Winter Comes by A.S. M. Hutchinson
- 1922 #2 The Sheik by Edith M. Hull
- 1922 #3 Gentle Julia by Booth Tarkington
- 1922 #4 The Head of the House of Coombe by Frances Hodgson Burnett
- 1922 #5 Simon Called Peter by Robert Keable
- 1922 #6 The Breaking Point by Mary Roberts Rinehart [Also 1923 #10]
- 1922 #7 This Freedom by A.S. M. Hutchinson [Also 1923 #6]
- 1922 #8 Maria Chapdelain by Louis Hemon
- 1922 #9 To the Last Man by Zane Grey
- 1922 #10 Babbitt by Sinclair Lewis (tie) [Also 1923 #4]
- 1922 #10 Helen of the Old House by Harold Bell Wright (tie)
1923 Novels
- 1923 #1 Black Oxen by Gertrude Atherton
- 1923 #2 His Children’s Children by Arthur Train
- 1923 #3 The Enchanted April by Elizabeth*
- 1923 #4 Babbit by Sinclair Lewis [see also 1922 #4]
- 1923 #5 The Dim Lantern by Temple Bailey
- 1923 #6 This Freedom by A.S. M. Hutchinson [Also 1922 #7]
- 1923 #7 The Mine with the Iron Door by Harold Bell Wright
- 1923 #8 The Wanderer of the Wasteland by Zane Grey
- 1923 #9 The Sea-Hawk by Rafael Sabatini
- 1923 #10 The Breaking Point by Mary Roberts Rinehart [Also 1922 #6]
1924 Novels
- 1924 #1 So Big by Edna Ferber
- 1924 #2 The Plastic Age by Percy Marks
- 1924 #3 The Little French Girl by Anne Douglas Sedgwick
- 1924 #4 The Heirs Apparent by Phillip Gibbs
- 1924 #5 A Gentleman of Courage by James Oliver Curwood
- 1924 #6 The Call of the Canyon by Zane Grey
- 1924 #7 The Midlander by Booth Tarkington
- 1924 #8 The Coast of Folly by Coningsby Dawson
- 1924 #9 Mistress Wilding by Rafael Sabatini
- 1924 #10 The Home-Maker by Dorothy Canfield Fisher [Also 1925 #10]
1925 Novels
- 1925 #1 Soundings by A. Hamilton Gibbs
- 1925 #2 The Constant Nymph by Margaret Kennedy
- 1925 #3 The Keeper of the Bees by Gene Stratton-Porter
- 1925 #4 Glorious Apollo by E. Barrington
- 1925 #5 The Green Hat by Michael Arlen
- 1925 #6 The Little French Girl by Anne Douglas Sedgwick [Also 1924 #3]
- 1925 #7 Arrowsmith by Sinclair Lewis
- 1925 #8 The Perennial Bachelor by Anne Parrish
- 1925 #9 The Carolinian by Rafael Sabatini
- 1925 #10 The Home-Maker by Dorothy Canfield Fisher [Also 1924 #10]
1926 Novels
- 1926 #1 The Private Life of Helen of Troy by John Erskine
- 1926 #2 Gentlemen Prefer Blondes by Anita Loos
- 1926 #3 Sorrell and Son by Warwick Deeping [Also 1927 #4]
- 1926 #4 The Hounds of Spring by Sylvia Thompson
- 1926 #5 Beau Sabreur by P.C. Wren
- 1926 #6 The Silver Spoon by John Galsworthy
- 1926 #7 Beau Geste by P.C. Wren
- 1926 #8 Show Boat by Edna Ferber
- 1926 #9 After Noon by Susan Ertz
- 1926 #10 The Blue Window by Temple Bailey
1927 Novels
- 1927 #1 Elmer Gantry by Sinclair Lewis
- 1927 #2 The Plutocrat by Booth Tarkington
- 1927 #3 Doomsday by Warwick Deeping
- 1927 #4 Sorrell and Son by Warwick Deeping [Also 1926 #3]
- 1927 #5 Jalna by Mazo de la Roche [Also 1928 #9]
- 1927 #6 Lost Ecstasy by Mary Roberts Rinehart
- 1927 #7 Twilight Sleep by Edith Wharton
- 1927 #8 To-Morrow Morning by Anne Parrish
- 1927 #9 The Old Countess by Anne Douglas Sedgwick
- 1927 #10 A Good Woman by Louis Bromfield
1928 Novels
- 1928 #1 The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder
- 1928 #2 Wintersmoon by Hugh Walpole
- 1928 #3 Swan Song by John Galsworthy
- 1928 #4 The Greene Murder Case by S. S. Van Dine
- 1928 #5 Bad Girl by Vina Delmar
- 1928 #6 Claire Ambler by Booth Tarkington
- 1928 #7 Old Pybus by Warwick Deeping
- 1928 #8 All Kneeling by Anne Parrish
- 1928 #9 Jalna by Mazo de la Roche [Also 1928 #5]
- 1928 #10 The Strange Case of Miss Annie Sprague by Louis Bromfield
1929 Novels
- 1929 #1 All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque
- 1929 #2 Dodsworth by Sinclair Lewis
- 1929 #3 Dark Hester by Anne Douglas Sedgwick
- 1929 #4 The Bishop Murder Case by S. S. Van Dine
- 1929 #5 Roper’s Row by Warwick Deeping
- 1929 #6 Peder Victorious by O. E. Rolvaag
- 1929 #7 Mamba’s Daughters by DuBose Heyward
- 1929 #8 The Galaxy by Susan Ertz
- 1929 #9 Scarlet Sister Mary by Julie Peterkin
- 1929 #10 Joseph and His Brethern by H. W. Freeman
Dear Ms.Aragoni.
I am Emailing you from Sydney Australia.
Your 1908 lists has “The Strange Case of Miss Annie Spragg” at No.10 this is listed in 1928.
No.10 for 1908 is “The Weavers” which was No.2 for 1907.
Your reviews are very interesting as I have been researching early 20th American popular literature by using the best selling book lists published in monthly journals and weekly newspapers for a number of years.
Regards
Robert Page
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Thank you for catching that error. What would I do without readers like you?
I don’t know how I got Annie Spragg in 1908. (I just recently bought a 2nd edition copy of the book for re-reading.)
I made a correction to my bestseller lists and to the most recent post about coming attractions. I’m going to leave The Weavers to review in January. I’m going to do my 2017 reviews in chronological order in instead of in reverse order as in past years.
Are you researching popular literature for fun or do you have some more serious reason?
Have you seen the blogs Leaves and Pages https://leavesandpages.com/ and Rich Horton’s blog http://rrhorton.blogspot.com/ Both review older fiction, though not exclusively. Both bloggers are good writers as well as good readers.
Thanks again for catching the mistake and keeping me on the straight and narrow.
Linda
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Hello Linda.
One of my many interests is gauging the book buying habits of Americans.I use the best selling book lists from monthly literary publications and weekly newspaper lists.The history of sound recording and film started in the 1890s as did best seller book lists.
It is all part of American culture – popular music and cinema and literature.The cavalcade of American artistic achievements .
Regards
Robert Page
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