In the spirit of this summer's games in Athens, I propose a Literature Olympics. We will debate and vote for a country who we believe has the best literary offerings in each particular category. (Feel free to vote for a country that does not appear below, I can't remember everybody.) And they are:
In the category of pre-20th century novels we have:
The Isles (GB&IRE) : The works of Austen, Dickens, Hardy, the Brontes, et al.
France: The works of Dumas, Hugo, Voltaire, Flaubert, et al.
Russia: The works of Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Turgenev, et al.
U.S.: The works of Hawthorne, Melville, Twain, James, et al.
Spain: The works of Cervantes, et al.
In the category of 20th century novels we have:
The Isles (GB&IRE): The works of Joyce, Conrad, Greene, et al.
France: The works of Proust, et al.
U.S.: The works of Steinbeck, Crane, Faulkner, Kesey, London, Sinclair, et al.
In the category of best short stories/novellas we have:
The Isles: The works of Joyce, Hardy, Greene, Wells, et al.
France: The works of Maupussant, Balzac, et al.
Russia: The works of Chekov, Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, et al.
U.S.: The works of Irving, Bierce, James, Poe, O. Henry, London, et al.
In the category of best plays we have:
The Isles: The works of Shaw, Wilde, Shakespeare, et al.
France: The works of Moliere, Racine, et al.
Russia: The works of Chekov, et al.
Norway: The works of Ibsen, et al.
U.S.: The works of Miller, O'Neill, et al.
In the category of best poetry we have:
The Isles:The works of Blake, Wordsworth, Shelley, Byron, Shakespeare, et al.
France: The works of Villon, Hugo, Baudelaire, et al.
Italy: The works of Dante, et al.
Russia: The works of Ivanova, Pushkin, et al.
U.S.: The works of Whitman, Emerson, Poe, Longfellow, Dickinson, et al.
List who you believe wins in each category (even if your choice isn't listed).
If possible, try to expound on your selections too.
I'll keep a tally and the overall winner(s) will be announced at the end of the summer games.
Let the debating commence.