The Great World Novel?

[nancylebov]

This discussion of why haven't any women written the Great American Novel, inspired me to wonder whether there are any good nominees for the Great World Novel, and whether it's viewed as a worthy artistic ambition.

Obviously, you can't fit the whole world into a novel (you can't fit America in, either, and if you're really paying attention, you'll realize that you can't even do full justice to Lichtenstein), but it isn't crazy to think that a long novel could have a decent range of geography, time, and sub-cultures across the whole planet.

Link thanks to jtglover.