The New York Times has put his huge Napoleon bio on its annual list of the year’s hundred most notable books. Yes, Katha Pollitt’s 272-page ode to abortion, and the notorious Norman Rockwell bio that speculates about the man’s sexuality, are also on the list — this is the New York Times, after all — but this is still a big deal. Hurrah for Mr. Roberts (who, I am proud to note, writes occasionally for NR).