Polygon Ranks the Five Best Book Releases Since 1990

Literary classics tend to bring to mind Austen and Shelley, Joyce and Steinbeck. These authors lived and died long ago, and their work keeps their legacy alive. Plenty of great writers are still publishing today, though. Some of the books they have released over the last three decades may become the classics of the future.

The list below collects five books for your to-be-read pile. All of them came out after 1990. Read any of them and you’ll see that literature is alive and well, with authors still producing work that readers will remember for years.

5. Normal People (2018) by Sally Rooney

Connell and Marianne make an unlikely pair of friends. In high school, Connell is a popular, working-class athlete, and Marianne is an upper-class outcast. The novel follows their budding romance, with all its miscommunication and awkwardness. It starts in their tiny Irish village and moves with them to Trinity College in Dublin, where they both study. Sally Rooney, who has built a devoted following, wrote the book. It was adapted into a TV series that premiered on BBC Three and Hulu in April 2020.

Normal People became an acclaimed hit. Critics praised its portrayal of the class divide, mental health and emotional disconnect, and The Guardian called it “an elegant love story for a cynical age.” As of October 2026, it holds a 3.8 rating on Goodreads and remains a BookTok favorite. It is still a recent book, but it has already left a large mark on culture.

4. A Little Life (2015) by Hanya Yanagihara

Hanya Yanagihara’s tome may be a controversial pick, but it is beautifully written. The novel runs past 800 pages and explores profound trauma. It follows four friends in New York City as they move through life and hardship, with a focus on Jude St. Francis, a man who has endured the worst life has to offer. It is a deeply sad and very moving book. It earned a spot on the Booker Prize shortlist in 2015 and became a finalist for the National Book Award.

Not everyone loves A Little Life. Many critics have objected to Yanagihara’s portrayal of assault and self-harm. Even so, the book qualifies as a future classic, polarizing as it is. It has provoked strong reactions, and many readers were moved to tears. That response speaks to the power of its writing.

3. Project Hail Mary (2021) by Andy Weir

The film adaptation starring Ryan Gosling helped popularize Project Hail Mary. The science fiction epic balances high stakes with wholesome moments between alien species. After the sun starts to dim, high school science teacher Ryland Grace is tapped to save the world. He travels to the outer reaches of space to look for a solution. There he meets an unlikely ally, an alien named Rocky, who is on a similar mission. The two team up in the race to save the sun and become good friends along the way.

Author Andy Weir has said in interviews that he felt the movie improved on the novel. The source material still stands as a future sci-fi classic. Brandon Sanderson commended the novel as well, calling it “modern sci-fi at its best” and naming it his favorite book of the year. That is very high praise, and Weir looks set to take his place among the sci-fi greats.

2. The Secret History (1992) by Donna Tartt

Many already consider Donna Tartt’s debut novel a classic. It made a huge splash upon its release and still astounds readers today. Tartt drew on her time at Bennington College for The Secret History. It follows Richard Papen, a student from California thrust into the cold, dreary culture of New England. At school he joins a cohort of fellow students studying Ancient Greek, but the group is not as effortlessly cool as it seems. The novel is a meditation on the darker side of aestheticism, and it features bacchanals, drug use and murder.

Avid readers see The Secret History as a foundational text for the “dark academia” aesthetic, which has taken hold on BookTok even in recent years. The book came out in 1992 and still resonates with readers, especially young people. As of 2026, it has never been adapted into a widely released film or TV series. Its devoted cult following has pushed it into classic status anyway.

1. Parable of the Sower (1993) by Octavia Butler

Parable of the Sower is a harrowing tale for the modern age, and the article names it the dystopian book to end all dystopian books. Many have praised Butler as a Nostradamus of the 90s, because the novel predicted an America not far from the one we live in now. It is set in a wildfire-ravaged California at the height of climate change. Fifteen-year-old Lauren Olamina navigates the social divide and the decay of humanity around her. She becomes a prophet and a leader of sorts, developing a new religion called Earthseed that may be the key to rebuilding society after political and social strife.

The thesis of both the book and Earthseed is “God is Change,” so it is no surprise that the speculative novel resonated with audiences. It won multiple awards after its release, including the 1994 New York Times Notable Book of the Year. It re-entered the New York Times Bestseller List in September 2020. The article’s verdict is that everyone should read it and schools should teach it. At the end of the day, it works as a guidebook for what to do when things are past the point of no return.

Source: Polygon