Prof. Junot Díaz’s Oscar Wao #11 on the New York Times “100 Best Books of the 21st Century”

Congratulations to CMS/W professor of writing Junot Díaz having his debut novel The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao included at #11 The New York Times new list of the 100 Best Books of the 21st Century — selected by best-selling author Ann Napolitano:

Díaz’s first novel landed like a meteorite in 2007, dazzling critics and prize juries with its mix of Dominican history, coming-of-age tale, comic-book tropes, Tolkien geekery and Spanglish slang. The central plotline follows the nerdy, overweight Oscar de León through childhood, college and a stint in the Dominican Republic, where he falls disastrously in love. Sharply rendered set pieces abound, but the real draw is the author’s voice: brainy yet inviting, mordantly funny, sui generis.

Díaz — who won the the Pulitzer Prize for fiction for Oscar Wao, a National Book Award for his story collection This Is How You Lose Her, and a MacArthur “Genius Grant” — is the long-time instructor of one of CMS/W’s most popular subjects, Critical Worldbuilding.