I could easily highlight every other paragraph in this essay — so much of what you say resonates with my own thinking re: the subjective, even arbitrary, nature of choosing ‘best’ books of the year. But I do have a special appreciation for reviewers who bring to light the works of little-known authors publishing with small presses. As far as the NYT list goes, I do think that ‘James’ is a brilliant novel but I have to smile at the reality that it took a movie version of an earlier Percival Everett novel to turn him into a household name.