2000s Books: Top Writers, Novels And Reading Trends

Richard and Judy, Amazon, and the last decade before the screen took over.

Below: books published in the 2000s, the writers who defined it, what was changing in publishing, and how people actually got hold of a book.

Every title and date is real. Useful for a reading list, a quiz round or a reminiscence session.

Books published in the 2000s

• The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon (2003).
• The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown (2003).
• Life of Pi by Yann Martel (2001).
• Atonement by Ian McEwan (2001).
• The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini (2003).
• Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell (2004).
• Twilight by Stephenie Meyer (2005).
• Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel (2009).

Writers who defined the decade

• Hilary Mantel, who won the Booker in 2009 and again in 2012.
• Ian McEwan, writing the decade's most discussed literary novels.
• Dan Brown, selling in numbers that had nothing to do with reviews.
• Sarah Waters, with Fingersmith (2002) and The Night Watch (2006).
• Alan Bennett, whose Untold Stories (2005) sold like fiction.
• Jacqueline Wilson, the most borrowed author in British libraries.

Publishing and writing trends

• The Richard and Judy Book Club turns midlist novels into million-sellers.
• Amazon becomes the default bookshop, and high street chains shrink.
• The Kindle launches in 2007 and the e-book argument starts.
• Celebrity autobiographies dominate the Christmas charts.
• Young adult becomes a category in its own right, read by adults too.

How people read

• Three-for-two tables, then Amazon's price, then the charity shop.
• Book groups everywhere, often with a Richard and Judy pick.
• Libraries adding computers, and the first round of closures.
• Reading on a phone screen starts to feel normal towards the end.

Years covered in the 2000s

• 2000 - The Millennium Dome, the fuel protests and Big Brother arriving from nowhere. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2000
• 2001 - Foot-and-mouth, 11 September and the first iPod. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2001
• 2002 - The Golden Jubilee, the death of the Queen Mother and Pop Idol fever. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2002
• 2003 - Iraq, a record-breaking heatwave and England winning the Rugby World Cup. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2003
• 2004 - Strictly and The X Factor both started, and the year ended with the tsunami. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2004
• 2005 - The Olympic bid, the 7 July bombings and the Ashes coming home. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2005
• 2006 - Arctic Monkeys, the Wii and another World Cup penalty shoot-out. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2006
• 2007 - The iPhone, the smoking ban, the floods and the run on Northern Rock. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2007
• 2008 - The banking crash, a brilliant Olympics and Lewis Hamilton on the last corner. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2008
• 2009 - Recession, MPs' expenses and a Christmas number one campaign that worked. Full year: /blogs/news/look-back-to-2009
• That is every 2000s year we have written up so far: 2000 to 2009.

How to use this

• Reading list: pick one novel and one non-fiction title from the decade someone was born in.
• Quiz round: read a title and ask for the decade, or read a writer and ask for one book.
• Reminiscence: ask what they were made to read at school, and what they read in secret.
• Anyone born in 2000 turns 50 in 2050, 60 in 2060 and 70 in 2070.

Shop prints and posters

How to write it so it lands

• Publication year and the year someone read it are rarely the same - paperbacks arrived a year or two later.
• For a birthday, a first edition is expensive but a decent second-hand copy from their birth year is not.
• Libraries can order almost anything on this list for free.

Where to shop next

• Look back to 2000
• Look back to 2001
• Look back to 2002
• Look back to 2003
• Look back to 2004
• Look back to 2005
• Look back to 2006
• Look back to 2007
• Look back to 2008
• Look back to 2009
• 2000s books, films and TV
• 2000s food and recipes
• 2000s films and directors
• 2000s calendar: year by year
• 2000s trivia: fun facts
• The 2000s: the whole decade
• Retro gift guide: the 2000s
• 2000s party playlist
• 00s quiz questions
• Dial-up, MSN and MySpace
• Adverts we can still recite
• Decade music round questions
• Decade literature: writers and books by era
• Decade guides: books, films and TV by era
• Decade films: best movies and directors by era
• Decade history: key events, politics and culture by era
• Decade art: artists, styles and trends by era
• Food by decade: dishes and food trends
• Music by decade: albums, artists and songs
• Decade calendar: every year from 1920
• Decade trivia: fun facts by era
• Decade trivia game: play for points
• Nostalgia gift shop
• Milestone birthday cards
• Planning the party? Birthday party ideas
• How to make a balloon arch
• Photo booth prop ideas
• Pin badges
• All guides

Frequently asked questions

What are the best books from the 2000s?

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon (2003). The full list above gives the novels and non-fiction worth reading from the decade, with publication years.

Which writers defined the 2000s?

Hilary Mantel, who won the Booker in 2009 and again in 2012. The writers section above names the rest.

What was changing in publishing in the 2000s?

The Richard and Judy Book Club turns midlist novels into million-sellers. The trends section covers how books were made, priced and sold.

Do you sell books?

No. We make greeting cards, art prints and pin badges in the UK. This page is free to read and free to copy - try a library or a second-hand bookshop for the books.