Mania
Mania by Lionel Shriver is one of 2026's most credible books, appearing on 1 of the year's most respected lists, including The Economist, for a Consensus Score of 15 out of 100.
Appears on these lists
Our take
AI-draftedShriver's premise imagines an America that has decided intelligence differences are a bigoted fiction, with universities and workplaces enforcing strict cognitive equality by decree. It's a satire built for maximum provocation, and reviewers split sharply on whether the provocation earned its keep: some found it her funniest and sharpest work in years; others found the central conceit thin, better suited to an essay than a full novel.
In the press
“very funny, occasionally offensive and, yes, smart”
Maureen Corrigan, The Washington Post“Satire demands precision, and Shriver applies an ax to a job calling for a scalpel”
The New York Times
How the Consensus Score is calculated
Our Consensus Score is our own transparent editorial metric — not a user rating. It weighs each list by the credibility of its source, how recent the listing is, and any award status. Here is the full breakdown.
| Source | Authority | Recency | Award | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Economist | 0.95 | 0.70 | 1.00× | 0.67 |
| Weighted sum → Score | 0.67 → 15 | |||
Similar consensus books
Because they appear on some of the same lists.
Frequently asked
What lists is Mania on?
Mania appears on 1 list in our 2026 corpus, including The Economist.
What is its Consensus Score?
Mania has a Consensus Score of 15 out of 100, our transparent editorial measure of how many credible lists agree on it.