Over the period of time, literature has played a major role in our life. As it is, before the arrival of television and radios, literature was the only available mode of entertainment, as well as communication of ideas. As it is, the twentieth century is one of the most notable periods of world history and literature too was not left untouched by these vast developments, which took place during this period.

It was the technological advancements during the 20th century which allowed lowering the cost of production of books. This further made way for a substantial increase in production of popular literature as well as trivial literature. It needs to be understood here that the so called division of popular literature and high literature in this period is not marked by any specific demarcation. As a result, this division is not at all absolute. This means that several genres like pulp fiction fluctuate between the two.

Several different genres like science fictions and detective stories played a vital role in maintaining the enthusiasm of the average reader towards literature. Although, they were usually ignored by mainstream literary critics, these genres further developed and later on, set up their establishments, as well as critical awards.

Several literary works of great importance have been churned out during this period, such as Quotations from Chairman Mao. Published in the year 1966, this book managed to sell more than 900 million copies. In recent times, when we talk of best sellers, then no one can ignore the phenomenal success of the Harry Potter series. As it is, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone was published in 1997, sold 120 million copies and made a star of J.K. Rowling.

Other masterpieces of the century include, And Then There Were None, which was published in 1939 and sold to sell more than 115 million copies. Also, a major work of this period is The Lord of the Rings. This magnificent piece of literature sold more than 100 million copies, yet gained much of its acclaim, after the release of the movie trilogy based on it. It was even voted the book of the century in several surveys.

Other major works of fiction include Mrs. Dalloway, To the Lighthouse, and A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf, The Waste Land, by T. S. Eliot, Ulysses by James Joyce, The Trial by Franz Kafka, Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse, Aelita by Alexey Tolstoy, nome della rosa (1980 - English translation: The Name of the Rose, 1983), Il pendolo di Foucault (1988 - English translation: Foucault's Pendulum, 1989) by Umberto Eco Il and Cat's Cradle (1963) and Slaughterhouse Five (1969) by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.

Several other great works of literature were produced during this period. However, due to paucity of space, mentioning all these brilliant pieces of literature is an absolutely impossible task.

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