50 Amazing and Essential Novels to Enrich Your Library
I recently ran into a couple of reading lists (I’ll share them at the end) and realized that I LOVE reading book recommendations. I can’t get enough of them.
So I decided to compile my own (somewhat eclectic) list of novels I think are amazing and essential to every library. I hope you enjoy it.
I should make some notes before diving in. First, this isn’t a comprehensive list of classics. It’s not a comprehensive list of anything. It’s one man’s reading list — a writer, a book lover, a lover and a dad, but one man nonetheless. There are a lot of great books left off the list.
Another note: there are actually many more books listed here than 50 — a number of those listed are actually series of books, in a couple cases series that include 20 or more books. I also recommend must-read books by an author if I really love them, so the total will be well over 100.
There are classics here, but there are cheap thrillers and popular fiction and even a few “kids” books. All I know is that I loved these books — no, I still love them — and I hope you will too.
If you could fill your library with only 50 books, you could do much worse than choose these 50. So what is this list? A list of some great reads.
Not in any order but just in the order they came to me:
- King Lear
, by Shakespeare. This list of novels starts with a couple of non-novels, so you might say it’s cheating. But it’s Shakespeare! And I’m not going to do a list of amazing plays, so I’m including Shakespeare here. King Lear is my favorite — it was so ahead of its time that it’s amazing.
- Hamlet
, by Shakespeare. If Lear is my favorite, Hamlet just barely lost that title. Some of Shakespeare’s most amazing writing is in this play. I also like Othello
and Macbeth
, among others.
- The Great Gatsby
, by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Just an absolutely poetic writer. There’s a lot of power and beauty in this short book.
- Tender Is the Night
, by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Gatsby is better known, but Tender is written so beautifully that you have to read it if you haven’t. It’s poetry in prose.
- A Portrait of the Artist As a Young Man
, by James Joyce. A great introduction to this unmatched of modern writers, Portrait is notable for the development of its language as the narrator’s skill with language improves.
- Ulysses
, by James Joyce. An absolute masterpiece. Joyce puts the entire scale of human drama and English literature within the span of 24 hours, plotted within one square mile, told through the lives of ordinary people. Also see Joyce’s outstanding book of short stories, Dubliners
.
- Cat’s Cradle
, by Kurt Vonnegut. I just can’t get enough of Vonnegut, and I was devastated that he died last year. Until then, he held the title of my absolute favorite living writer. And Cat’s Cradle is my favorite of all his books. I think Vonnegut is in my granfalloon.
- Slaughterhouse-Five
, by Kurt Vonnegut. Anything by Vonnegut is excellent reading, but this is one of his best, and is considered a classic. A more humorous and raging commentary against war has rarely been written. Also see Bluebeard
, Slapstick
, Welcome to the Monkey House
, Breakfast of Champions
, among others, if you like the two listed here.
- Neuromancer
, by William Gibson. Perhaps my favorite sci-fi writer of all time, Gibson is gritty, dreamy, and ultra-cool all at the same time. Neuromancer was his first, and is the start of the Span trilogy. Oh, btw, Gibson, if you happen by the remotest chance to read this blog, drop me a line! I’m a ridiculously huge fan.
- All Tomorrow’s Parties
, by William Gibson. This tale of the near future features a Zen-like assassin, among other cool characters, who is one of my favorites in Gibson lore. ATP is the third in the Bridge trilogy.
- Pattern Recognition
, by William Gibson. With this book, Gibson starts a new series, set in the present day. In fact, it’s so much like his futuristic sci-fi that it’s eerie. Gibson has a unique way of looking at our world. I named my youngest daughter (Noelle Cayce, now 2 years old) after the main character of this book, Cayce Pollard, who is in turn a tribute to Edgar Cayce.
- Slow Man
, by J.M. Coetzee. One of the greatest living writers of the English language, you could pick up any of his titles (Disgrace would be my other recommendation) and get an excellent book. Slow Man plays with the boundaries of fiction.
- The Big Sleep
, by Raymond Chandler. The best of the detective novelists, Chandler took the genre to new heights that generations of writers have tried to reach. He’s the best, and his writing is just as relevant today as it was when it was written.
- Motherless Brooklyn
, by Jonathan Lethem. If you like Chandler and similar tough detective novels, you’ll love Lethem’s brilliant take on the genre. An excellent story featuring a protagonist with Tourette Syndrome, a killer giant and a Zen crime syndicate.
- Gun, with Occasional Music
, by Jonathan Lethem. Another excellent detective novel, this one combines the genre with sci-fi. Features talking kangaroos working for the mob and other cool stuff.
- Never Let Me Go
, by Kazuo Ishiguro. It’s hard to describe Ishiguro’s writing, except that he really plays with whether the narrator of a story is objective or not. He plays with traditional plot devices and uses the reader’s curiosity of the unfolding story drive the book forward. Never Let Me Go might technically be sci-fi, as it seems to be set in the future, but really there’s not much sci-fi about it.
- When We Were Orphans
, by Kazuo Ishiguro. Ostensibly a detective novel, it leaves you wondering about a lot of things, including what others really think of the narrator.
- Kafka on the Shore
, by Haruki Murakami. This guy is such an imaginative writer. Very different from most of the fiction you’ll read, anything can happen in a Murakami book.
- Bel Canto
, by Ann Patchett. One of the most beautiful books I’ve ever read, a must-read if you haven’t yet. Hostages and hostage takers trapped by seige, and some surprising things unfold.
- Run
, by Ann Patchett. I just love her writing. This is a moving story full of magic. Also see Patchett’s excellent The Magician’s Assistant
- The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series
, by Douglas Adams. The best comedy books ever, you’ll laugh out loud at every book. Adams is simply brilliant.
- The Discworld Series, by Terry Pratchett. Starts with The Color of Magic
, but there are well over 20 in the series now. You can just jump in and read any of them, and they’re all pretty much incredible. Second-funniest writer, after Adams.
- The Stand
, by Stephen King. Anything by Stephen King will be a good read, but The Stand is my favorite and if you’re going to just read one book by him, read this one. A master storyteller.
- Harry Potter series
, by J.K. Rowling. A classic series, from book one. Sure, it’s supposedly a kid’s series, but so is LOTR (next entry, below) and host of other wonderful works. Harry Potter made reading come alive for my children, and I actually cried numerous times while reading these books with them.
- The Hobbit
and the Lord of the Rings series
, by J.R.R. Tolkein. Absolute classics. The Hobbit by itself is a great little book, but the LOTR series adds epic drama to the world of the Hobbits.
- High Fidelity
, by Nick Hornby. Made into an excellent movie by John Cusack (who I also love), High Fidelity is as much about music as it is about relationships. Just a cool book.
- About a Boy
, by Nick Hornby. Better than the movie, which was pretty decent. The main characters — a do-nothing rich shallow bachelor and a son of a depressed and suicidal mom — are transformed by each other. Also see Hornby’s excellent How to Be Good
.
- Water for Elephants
, by Sara Gruen. I didn’t think I’d like this book, as it’s a historical book about circuses. But it’s a compelling story, and the well-researched facts really bring the story and characters alive.
- The Unbearable Lightness of Being
, by Milan Kundera. A classic, and a great read. Set in Czechoslovakia in the late 60s, it explores the insignificance of our actions and existence, in beautiful language.
- Anna Karenina
, by Leo Tolstoy. One of the greatest novels of all time, Anna is a tragic heroine brought down by her desire to live and be loved, while Levin is a wonderful character looking for a satisfactory answer to the only important question to Tolstoy: that of death. Incredibly interwoven stories presided over by a roving omniscient narrator.
- Crime and Punishment
, and The Brothers Karamazov
, by Dostoyevsky. These two classics are fascinating for their explorations of the human psyche under extreme conditions. An existentialist before his time, Dostoyevsky is a powerful writer.
- The Broker
, by John Grisham. I simply devour Grisham stories. He’s such a good storyteller that you can’t put down his books. I’ve read and enjoyed all of his books but the Broker is one of my favorites. Also see The Runaway Jury
and The Testament.
- The Catcher in the Rye
, by J.D. Salinger. A classic from when I was an adolescent, Catcher withstands multiple readings over the years. The main character is just someone you root for, who you want to be friends with. Also see Salinger’s Franny and Zooey
.
- Aztec
, by Gary Jennings. Amazing historical fiction, so detailed and thoroughly researched and fascinating. You won’t believe this book, or any of its sequels. Also see his wonderful story of Marco Polo — so rich in detail: Journeyer
- Creation
, by Gore Vidal. Another master of historical fiction, Vidal follows a fictional Persion diplomat who meets major philosophers of the time, from Socrates to Zoroaster and Buddha and Lao Tsu and Confucius. Also see Lincoln
, another example of Vidal’s best historical fiction, and the best insight into Lincoln you’ll ever find.
- To Kill a Mockingbird
, by Harper Lee. Another one I enjoyed as an adolescent, it’s a gripping story set in a small southern town with memorable characters. You’ve probably read it already — but it’s worth another visit.
- Shibumi
, by Trevanian. Not exactly a classic, but a hidden treasure of the spy genre. Compelling story with a main character you’ll wish you could be, especially if you’re a guy.
- Me Talk Pretty One Day
, by David Sedaris. Absolutely hilarious and brilliant social commentary in the guise of a memoir. OK, this isn’t exactly a novel, but the stories are so exaggerated as to be almost fictional, so I included it. Also read his others, including Naked
and Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim
.
- The Grapes of Wrath
, by John Steinbeck. A monumental classic by a master, explores the plight of the poor who are exploited by modern corporations in an epic tale of struggling sharecroppers.
- Deep Blue Good-by, by John D. MacDonald. The first of the incredible Travis McGee series, I actually highly recommend all of them. McGee is a hard-nosed “salvage expert” — actually a private eye who lives on a boat (called The Busted Flush) and is one of the most memorable detective characters since Sherlock Holmes.
- Watership Down
, by Richard Adams. Yet another book I read repeatedly as a teen-ager. I don’t know why I love this story about rabbits so much, but you just find yourself moved by the characters and rooted in the story (so to speak) as they struggle to overcome tyranny.
- Lolita
, by Vladamir Nobokov. This controversial book will test your moral boundaries, and at the same time push the boundaries of the language. Unmatchable in many ways.
- Sometimes a Great Notion
, by Ken Kesey. He’s better known for One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, but for some reason I loved this book more, and I think it’s the better book. It’s a masterpiece, really, with intricately interwoven narratives (which can be a bit confusing) telling the story of a hard-nosed logging family in Oregon. A must read.
- Life of Pi
, by Yann Martel. A charming story of an Indian boy lost in the middle of the ocean with a tiger. A great read.
- The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
, by Mark Haddon. A touching story about a 15-year-old autistic boy who is very intelligent, who uses his dedicated detective skills to solve more mysteries than he set out to solve.
- The Corrections
, by Jonathan Franzen. At first, I didn’t like this book much, as the author seems to dislike and make fun of the main characters. But the deeper you go into the novel, the more you begin to understand and sympathize with the characters. And beyond an intricately woven tale, it’s also an interesting critique of modern consumerism society.
- The Time Traveler’s Wife
, by Audrey Niffenegger. A beautiful love story, told with a unique twist of time travel.
- Cold Mountain
, by Charles Frazier. I couldn’t put this book down. The movie disappointed, but you’ll fall in love with these characters.
- Noble House
, by James Clavell. Incredibly intriguing historical fiction, in this case set in Hong Kong. Extremely compelling stories. Clavell has a whole series of can’t-put-down books set in Asia, including Tai-Pan
and Shogun
, among others
- Don Quixote
, by Cervantes. Another of the greatest novels of all time, the tales of Quixote and the amazing Sancho Panza will delight you with their humor and wit. Much of Western literature is indebted to this book, and Cervantes is the only writer who comes close to standing with Shakespeare.
Some other lists of books I’ve enjoyed recently:
What are your all-time favorite novels? Share in the comments!
Note: This post contains Amazon affiliate links to the books mentioned. If you click on them and decide to buy them (or any other products on Amazon), I get a small percentage. You are under no obligation to do so, of course. :)
—
If you liked this article, please share it on Yahoo Buzz, del.icio.us, StumbleUpon or Digg. I’d appreciate it. :)
39 trackbacks
207 brilliant comments
The Great Gatsby is one of my favorite novels. My wife actually got me into it. Before then I had never really gotten into the classics.
I also second anything by Tolkien.
The only thing I might add to this list is The Stranger by Albert Camus.
http://illuminatedmind.net - The less boring side of personal development
I freely admit that I haven’t been reading books as much (at all?) since I started blogging. :)
It’s not that I don’t read - in fact I read more than ever before, but for the past five months it’s been blogs, blogs and more blogs.
When I used to read books (hopefully I’ll get back to it eventually) I did tend to concentrate on the classics rather than on modern novels, simply because there are so many classics worth reading that I haven’t read yet.
Crime and Punishment is probably my favorite from this list, although I was bitterly disappointed by how it ends when I read it for the first time.
What an amazing bookshelf you must have, Leo!
While I’ve not read all of your suggested titles, I agree that although they are technically plays, any of Shakespeare’s works are worthwhile reading material.
If you persevere through the ‘olde’ prose, they are very clever accounts of human psychology and relationships.
I very much enjoyed The Street Lawyer by John Grisham, but I must say one of my all time favs is Ken Follett’s Pillars of the Earth: Set in 12th-century England, the narrative concerns the building of a cathedral in the fictional town of Kingsbridge. This is a most excellent book and I highly recommend it.
A song of fire and ice anyone ( a game of thrones, clash of kings …)
really leo? you only included five women, out of a list of fifty? I know the traditional english canon is totally male-dominated and all, but it doesn’t have to be. women actually do write “amazing novels” that “enrich your library.”
your male-centric view here didn’t stop you from using a photo of a pretty girl as a visual aid, though - so it’s alright for women to be pretty objects of illustration, but not for their brains or creative talent?
I know, I know, this is sounding all high-and-mighty and critical and all that. I love the work you do generally and I don’t think that you consciously think less of women or women’s writing, but I’d like to see that reflected in lists like this one. and you have a huge audience - I’d like to challenge you to think about what you’re putting forth in terms of social hierarchies, like gender, class, and race, to start.
incidentally, two of the five of the women authors you mentioned are two of my favorite books of all time: The Time Traveler’s Wife and Bel Canto. and in general, you’ve got some great picks. I’m not denying that these books are amazing, only that there are many, many other options for amazing novels, and I challenge the notion that 90% of the list are male authors.
See also: feminista!’s 1998 list of 100 best works by women writers and the Publishing Triangle’s 100 best lesbian & gay novels.
Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins is a fun read.
We saw Gibson in Philly for his PR tour. He’s outstanding and that remains my absolute favorite read.
You should read the book: Siddhartha. It has to be one of the best books ever. It also fits in nicely with the theme of Zen Habits.
Great list of books! You have a nice blend of different genres. I re-read Neuromancer not too long ago. That book still holds up and still gives us a glimpse of what the future may be like. I’ll have to reference this the next time I go to the library.
Great list, I’d have to add The Great Gatsby and The Grapes of Wrath as essential reading.
Some books grab us and never let go. Here are a few that still haunt me:
1. Infinite Jest
2. Naked Lunch
3. Tropic of Capricorn
4. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
5. Last Exit to Brooklyn
6. Kafka on the Shore (on your list, too!)
7. Capote: A Biography
8. The Road (Cormac McCarthy)
9. The Little Prince
10. The Giving Tree
Hi Leo,
You are killing me. Books make me want to weep, just out of sheer knowledge that I’ll never have the time for every one. Your list makes my list just grow and grow.
By far my fave author is Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I vacillate between Love in the TIme of Cholera, which is the most impactful book I’ve read, and 100 Years which is more of a classic. In the same genre is my other fave, Isabel Allende. I’ve read Marqez in Spanish in college. (”Read” may be an overstatement, I think “slogged through it” is more descriptive of my Spanish skills.) and reading the words in two languages really gives you a wider persepctive of any book- what the author was “really” trying to say….
My favorite is The Stranger. It’s a bit depressing, but I really liked how the main character is portraited via self narration.
Thank you for puting Sometimes A Great Notion on there. I still think that’s probably the best novel I’ve ever read.
Let me make one tweak and one addition. For Chandler the one, if you’re going to read just one, is The Long Goodbye. And in science fiction-type books, if you haven’t read Dhalgren by Samuel R. Delany, you’re missing out. It’s not for everyone, but I love that book.
I’ll second the inclusion of Siddhartha on the list…
I’m also happy to see The Time Traveler’s Wife and The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time make the list–both great novels…
I would also nominate You Shall Know Our Velocity! by Dave Eggers. A curiously powerful read…
I would also like to recommend, if you haven’t read them, The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant. The Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, and the Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant. Written by Stephen R Donaldson, these books are a great read. You get sucked in and you can’t put them down till you find out what happens. Then you HAVE to pick up the next in the series to find out what happens next.
@ BrennyBoy - yes!
@ Jin - the first real book I read in French. LOVED it.
@ Leo - I haven’t met anyone else who read Shibumi.
I’ll add (from my goodreads list): Heart of Darkness, Waiting, White Teeth, What is the What, Smilla’s Sense of Snow, The Poisonwood Bible, Rebecca, The Count of Monte Cristo, Stumbling on Happiness….
Oh, and Siddhartha, yes! How did I miss my favorite author of all time. Everything by Herman Hesse is wonderful.
My favorite John Grisham is also Street Lawyer. I was glad to see Franny & Zooey on the list - one of my favorites years ago. May have to read that one again.
Golly. I haven’t read any of those titles before. But looks great for a huge set of titles on your shelves there Leo! :)
The Alchemist :)
Thanks for the list Leo! A couple of my favs are:
East of Eden
by John Steinbeck
The Fountainhead
by Ayn Rand
Affliction
by Russell Banks
Where I’m Calling From
by Raymond Carver
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close
by Jonathan Safran Foer
Have you thought about setting up a page on GoodReads? It’s a great site for bookworms like us: http://www.goodreads.com/
I was feeling pretty bad there, Leo. My own reading felt suddenly spotty. But between #21 and #50, I’m only missing ten. My favorites from the last couple of years: Life of Pi and The Time Traveler’s Wife. I read both of those twice. And Brad, East of Eden is in my top ten of all time.
Anna Karenina is my all-time favorite. Overall, a very good and comprehensive list.
If you like Gibson (and I do) you MUST read Neal Stephenson. Start with Cryptonomicon http://www.amazon.com/Cryptonomicon-Neal-Stephenson/dp/0060512806 or, maybe one of his earlier ones. Say “Snow Crash” http://www.amazon.com/Snow-Crash-Bantam-Spectra-Book/dp/0553380958/; this one almost exactly describes “Second Life”. After you’re done reading Snow Crash, you’ll run to the computer to see what he’s writing now -in hopes of getting a glimpse of the not too far distant future.
PS. I know Gibson’s agent. :)
Great list, Leo. I definitely see a couple of my favourites on there! I just wanted to point out that Lord of the Rings is not a children’s book; while The Hobbit is considered a children’s book by most people, LotR is definitely not firmly in that category. In my opinion, people of all ages can enjoy Tolkien. : )
Fowles “Magus”. Works well with “Steppenwolf” by Hesse.
Regarding Sci-Fi, Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card is probably the highest in my “totally amazing” list.
Hi Leo!
Have you read “The Tiger’s Claw” by Shauna Singh Baldwin? I think you would enjoy it!
Thank you for your list. I’ve been looking to add to my home library and am printing out your list to bring along to the bookstore with me:)
Love LOVE your blog!
“Sure, it’s supposedly a kid’s series, but so is LOTR”? No. Tolkien wrote The Hobbit for children, drawing from the world he’d already created and been working on for many years. But The Lord of the Rings, like most of his work, was written for adults.
fantastic list…have you actually read all of those? One of my favorites is To Kill a Mockingbird :)
Great list. My personal list would include:
The New York Trilogy by Paul Auster
The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien
These two novels, along with Slaughterhouse Five, are the most formative novels of my life. Everything I’ve read since I’ve read these is with the filter of these works in my brain.
I’d also include:
The Satanic Verses and Shalimar the Clown by Salman Rushdie
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
From Hell by Alan Moore and Eddie Campbell
Great topic. Great discussion.Thank you.
GREAT POST!!!! I love your blog:>)
Of Mice and Men, The story Of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wroblewski(awesome), The call of the wild(Jack London)
great list! you mention the LOTR series but not specifically The Silmarillion, which is a must read for any LOTR fan and my absolute favorite book of all time along with Thus Spoke Zarathustra by Nietzsche. i read those two over and over. anything by Larry Niven is outstanding as well.
How Green was My Valley
Hanta Yo
Be Here Now
5 Favorite books, no particular order.
1. The Razor’s Edge
2. Neuromancer
3. Hannibal: Enemy Of Rome
4. Upanishads
5. Sun and Steel
Great list, Leo. I’ll add a few for those wishing to expand their minds and to understand themselves a bit more (without the superficial “self-help” noise):
1. Tao Te Ching by Lau-tzu, D.C Lau interpretation
2. The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Philosophy, 3rd ed
3. Meditations on First Philosophy, Rene Descartes
4. Stumbling on Happiness, Daniel Gilbert
5. How to Win Friends and Influence People, Dale Carnegie
Thanks for the list. Reading, to say the least, is vital for personal growth, as well as for relaxation and entertainment (without the attached media noise).
“You are the same today that you are going to be in five years from now except for two things: the people with whom you associate and the books you read.” ~ Charles Jones
“The reading of all good books is indeed like a conversation with the noblest men of past centuries who were the authors of them, nay a carefully studied conversation, in which they reveal to us none but the best of their thoughts.”~ Rene Descartes
“The purpose of learning is growth, and our minds, unlike our bodies, can continue growing as long as we live.” ~ Mortimer Adler
Thanks again…
Kent (The Financial Philosopher)
Thanks for sharing your favourite books with us, Leo. Been waiting for that a long time.
Books that I loved:
Life of Pi by Yann Martel
The Physician by Noah Gordon
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling
The Chemistry of Death by Simon Beckett (this is the most thrilling crime-fiction i’ve read so far. must-read!)
Written in Bones by Simon Beckett
The Surgeon by Tess Gerritsen
Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami
The Win-up Bird-Chronicle by Haruki Murakami
Sophie’s World by Jostein Gaarder
Crime and Punishment by Fjodor Dostojewski
i could go on, but these are my favourites!
Cheers
Neuromancer is the first of the Sprawl trilogy, not Span trilogy.
Love Hitchhiker’s. Love Siddhartha. Love Shakespeare, Joyce, Rowling, Pratchett.
Also love Persuasion by Jane Austen. It’s a short book, but there’s a lot packed into it. Also love Pride and Prejudice (it’s funnier than people give it credit for), but Persuasion edges just a bit ahead for me.
Possession by A.S. Byatt - a book you have to let yourself wander through at a leisurely pace or you’ll miss something. Ash and Cristabel are superbly written - hard to believe they weren’t real poets. The film version nowhere near did this book justice.
Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman - I’ll never look at the London Underground the same way again.
The Sandman series by Neil Gaiman - everything I thought I knew about writing got turned upside down by reading these graphic novels
The Griffin and Sabine books - a new way to tell a story through letters and postcards
Jeeves and Wooster books by P.G. Wodehouse - DO NOT read these in public because people will wonder what you’re laughing at.
The Dante Club by Matthew Pearl - the first chapter was a little off-putting because it was so gross, but it gets good after that and it made me appreciate Dante’s writing in new ways
Thursday Next series by Jasper Fforde - this man LOVES books, history and culture, and writes about them in a mind-bendingly fun way; start with The Eyre Affair
Galileo’s Daughter by Dava Sobel - wonderful book about the relationship Galileo had with his oldest daughter
The Three Golden Keys and Tibet Through the Red Box by Peter Sis - these may be books for kids, but adults will enjoy them too
@cate
Just finished reading Neverwhere this week!
Gaiman is an incredibly imaginative writer, and I’m looking forward to reading American Gods in the very near future as well!
Ok, I also have to add Marley and Me to my list. As a dog owner and lover, this book literally brought tears (of both laughter and sadness) to my eyes…
And I would agree that if you’re going to read one book by Steven King, then it should be The Stand. But if you’re going to read two, then also read It, still his most terrifying novel ever IMHO…
The Jungle
Farewell To Arms
Merchant of Venice
The Red Tent
Black Boy
100 Years Of Solitude
Huckelberry Finn
If it is written by Twain, Hemingway, and Old Bill, I’ll read it.
The most beautiful book I’ve read in the last 10 years was Willa Cather’s Death Comes for the Archbishop.
I very much enjoyed Robert Fagles’ new translations of the Odyssey and the Iliad.
I think Art Spiegelman’s Maus and Maus II, and Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis are among the best of a wonderful world of graphic novels.
Everything Is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer was magic on the page.
Any novel by Richard Russo, starting with Nobody’s Fool.
The Raj Quartet by Paul Scott
I think it’s cruel that literary people keep sending the unsuspecting to read Ulysses. They should be warned that unless you want a book that will make you very upset by its unreadability and will only be fun the 3rd time around, no one should read it!
Just to make a point that I REALLY spent a lot of time with this book and connected with it instead of just being some loony who hates the book: I have a tattoo on my arm that is the last line from Ulysses. I think that says it all.
Finnegan’s Wake will be more fun and less frustrating if you want to read something by Joyce that won’t make much sense. At least reading FW is nicely hypnotic, like watching a fire.
On the other hand, I couldn’t agree with you more about including Watership Down and the Time Traveler’s Wife in there. Two of my absolute favorites.
Might I add to the list “His Dark Material” all three books, The Golden Compass, The Subtle Knife and The Amber Glass by Phillip Pullman. Religion, politics, quantum physics, metaphysics and more you will be stunned by how much pleasure you will get and what you will learn from these books. One suggestion, take notes when reading the first time around or you will find yourself reading the whole time again. Which if I must say so, is not such a bad thing.
I think that War & Peace should be on that list. Tolstoy was an amazing writer. Try the most recent translation of it by Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky. None better.
Hi Leo,
Thanks so much for sharing your list of favorites. Absolutely love your blog and seeing a book recommendation list has got me very excited. Here are few of my favorites:
Pride and Prejudice
by Jane Austen (love all her books)
The Tale of two Cities
by Charles Dickens
The Fountainhead
by Ayn Rand
A Fine Balance
by Rohinton Mistry
The Thorn Birds
by Colleen McCullough
Gone with the Wind
by Margaret Mitchell
A Thousand Splendid Suns
by Khaled Hosseini
There are so many others…
Thanks again.
“Till We Have Faces. A myth retold.” by C. S. Lewis. Never have I understood non-romantic love (or our society’s total misunderstanding of it) better than after reading the last chapter.
“The Left Hand of Darkness” by Ursula LeGuin
“The Lathe of Heaven” by Ursula LeGuin
“The Last Unicorn” by Peter S. Beagle
“Fahrenheit 451″ by Ray Bradbury
“Fire and Ice” by Ray Bradbury. This one’s really a short story which poses a fundamental question that I think of often. What if human lifespan was shortened to 8 days but also included the memories of everyone who came beforehand; what would you do with your time?
You’ve got to have Winnie the Pooh on your list, it’s one of the most Zen books I know. (Also the Tao of Pooh perhaps?)
BTW try getting it from a library not buying it, that way you save money and save space. Much more Zen.
Great list!
some of my recent favorites to add:
Les Miserables- Victor Hugo- one of the most beautiful developments of the human spirt. The story covers human emotions arranging from guilt, depression, romance, lost love, death, duty, honor, revolution, commitment, sacrifice. It just has it all.
The Idiot- Fyodor Dostoyevsky- a truly innocent, honest man thrusted into a corrpupt society. A great exploration of the human mind as well as a commentary on the social order in Russia at that time.
Treasure Island- Robert Louis Stevenson- the best adventure story ever. It can be read in one sitting and every page is dripping with adventure and drama. Great lessons to be had as well.
Exile and the Kingdom- Albert Camus- a collection of short stories about man(woman) finding his kingdom, his paradise, either deep with in or in the world without. Jonas or the Artist at Work is an all-time personal favorite.
Leo,
All the books are wonderful. The readers are very fortunate to have the ability to derive pleasure from these great books. Wouldn’t this be a great opportunity to invite everyone to volunteer at a local literacy program, or donate books to underprivileged children so they also can share in the joy of a good book.
I loved your list and found a lot of my favorites on it! I am constantly reading - doesn’t matter much the genre. One book I have recently read that is in my top 50 now is Victor Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning. It is amazing and very inspirational.
I read Shibumi as a youngling, a few times. It had a huge impact on my youth, and development. I’m amazed that it’s in your list! Good show.
#33 The Catcher in the Rye is a favorite of mine. I had never read it but go a chance years ago in high school and really enjoyed it. The story is told so well that you just get lost in it.
Oui! I’ve got some serious reading to do. Out of the 50 titles listed I didn’t see “Where the Wild Things Are”. Highly depressing, haha.
Great list.
A great list, indeed. It’s hard though not to add the following, even if you don’t agree with their end principles:
1. Atlas Shrugged - Ayn Rand
2. The Fountainhead - Ayn Rand
(Debatable which of these is better, one focuses on society, the other on a man)
3. The Tao of Pooh - Benjamin Hoff
(Taosim translated through Winnie the Pooh)
I’d add few Philip K. Dicks here (Valis, A Scanner Darkly), and change the Stephen King’s The Stand to Hearts in Atlantis by the same author. It seems that after getting sober, Mr King is getting better all the time.
Nevertheless, a good list of books, reminds me to check some new items :D.
Very nice list! Thanks for the picks, I’ll be adding several of these to the queue.
Here are a few books I would add from my personal list:
All 3 books in the The Foundation Trilogy–Foundation, Foundation & Empire, and Second Foundation–by Isaac Asimov
The Screwtape Letters by CS Lewis
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
There are more than 20 of my favorites on your list. I’m sure I’m going to like the others. Another one is ‘The secret history’ by Donna Tartt. Try it. Really nice.
Ok, here are some less than “spectacularly literary” titles that I love:
The Rabbi Small series of crime novels (starting with Friday the Rabbi Slept Late). Fun crime novels that also feature exchanges on religion between the rabbi and the Catholic chief of police.
Neal Stephenson’s Cryptonomicon and his three volume Baroque Cycle.
Stranger in a Strange Land and Starship Troopers by Robert Heinlein.
The Foundation Trilogy and I, Robot by Isaac Asimov.
The Martian Chronicles and Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury.
1984 and Animal Farm by George Orwell.
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley.
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens.
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance by Robert Pirsig.
This list includes some excellent novels but seems a bit light on female writes with just five: J.K. Rowling, Sara Gruen, Harper Lee, Audrey Niffenegger and Ann Patchett.
I would like to suggest:
Late Nights on Air by Elizabeth Hay
The Shipping News by Annie Proulx
Beloved by Toni Morrison
The Awakening by Kate Chopin
The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
The Stone Angel by Margaret Laurence
House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros
The Stone Diaries by Carol Shields
Oranges are Not the Only Fruit by Jeanette Winterson
Away by Jane Urquhart
Small Wonder by Barbara Kingsolver
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson
A History of Love by Nicole Krauss
The Sparrow and Children of God by Mary Doria Russell
Alchemist, one of most inspiring book for me.
Ulysses has always frightened me, I realize it would be a major commitment to spend the time required to make sense of it, but I’m sure it would be worth the effort. Someday….
To add to the list, in no particular order:
The World According to Garp, by John Irving
The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner, by Alan Sillitoe
The Sun Also Rises, by Ernest Hemingway
A Good Day to Die, by Jim Harrison
The Naked and the Dead, by Norman Mailer
Dog Soldiers, by Robert Stone
Catch 22, by Joseph Heller
Something Happened, by Joseph Heller
The Sportwriter, by Richard Ford
and more recently, Middlesex, by Jeffrey Eugenides.
I also really like the novels of Alan Furst, all set in pre-WWII Europe, with reluctant heroes, dripping with atmosphere. Reading him is like watching Casablanca, you are totally transported back to that world.
I’ve read a lot of the books on your list. I’d have to add one more very important one:
The Violent Bear it Away by Flannery O’Connor
I finished War with the Newts from Karel Capek just yesterday for third or fourth time. Absolutely brilliant book, just up-to-date as nearly 80 years ago when been written.
Great list. Based on much of what you have here I wonder what you might think of Italo Calvino. Though I love his treatment of Italian folktales I think you might enjoy his fiction a great deal.
Give Marcovaldo or If on a Winter’s Night a Traveler a try.
Umberto Ecco is also fun.
NIce list. And thank you, Ellen, for that point about LOTR. I was going to say the same thing. A few books dear to my heart are:
100 Years of Solitude ~ Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Written on the Body ~ Jeanette Winterson
Brideshead Revisited ~ Evelyn Waugh
The Moviegoer ~ Walker Percy
The Power and The Glory ~ Graham Greene
Brave New World ~ Aldous Huxley
Pride & Prejudice ~ Jane Austen
Ender’s Game ~ Orson Scott Card
Anne of Green Gables ~ LM Montgomery (the whole series)
Leo:
Excellent, I am proudf that I found 25 that I’ve read.
But please, read “A Confederacy of Dunces” by John Kennedy Toole, please, please!!! you will cry and laugh and love/hate the characters….
I, too, liked Shibumi. Read it several times in my 20s. “Who must do the hard things? Those who can.” There’s a lot to enjoy in that book (but it’s a mistake to assume that the rest of his books are good, although I liked Incident at Twenty-Mile). I enjoyed Aztec, About a Boy, and Franny and Zooey, also. Other favorites of mine include:
One-Eyed Cat (for school-aged kids, but I loved it as an adult)
River Teeth
Mill on the Floss
My Antonia
Dandelion Wine
Angle of Repose
Travels With Charley
Silas Marner
Love and Glory (Robert Parker)
I’m really enjoying the book recommendations! I’ve read some of them but am looking forward to reading some of the others. A few points:
* I wasn’t trying to disparage LOTR — I read it as a kid and know many people who did, which is why I said what I said. It’s great for adults, too tho, and I still love it to this day.
* A number of you asked why I didn’t include such and such book … of course, I said this list isn’t comprehensive, but just some of my favorites, all of them really good reads. For the great books I’ve left out (and for every book I included 10 great ones aren’t included), I leave the task of adding them to you, here in the comments.
* Regarding why I didn’t include more women writers — I have read more women writers than I’ve included, but I guess some of them didn’t stick with me as favorites. Again, it’s a very personal list. Leaving women off the list wasn’t intentional. I’m not a big Jane Austen fan, although she’s an excellent writer. I think Margaret Atwood and Toni Morrison are also wonderful writers, but their books just aren’t among my all-time favorites. Some women, though, including Ann Patchett and others, are some of my undoubted favorites. However, you’re welcome to add your favorite women authoers to the comments (as a couple have done).
uninspired list of books. If you haven’t read half of them, you probably didn’t go to high school in the US.
Murakami’s latest, “After Dark”, was great too — just read it today.
clarification — *I* just read it today. Didn’t mean to sound as if I was commanding you to go out and read it this moment, although that wouldn’t be a bad idea if you like Murakami’s style. ;)
Thanks champ! I’d love to see some books you think should have been included.
So many books, so little time. Here are a few by women authors I’ve enjoyed (since they seem to be in short supply here):
The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
Number Our Days by Barbara Myerhoff
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
Hanna’s Daughters by Marianne Fredriksson
The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
Spirit of Survival by Gail Sheehy
The Year of Magical Thoughts by Joan Didion
And lady authors on my coming attractions list:
Virginia Woolfe
Iris Murdoch (I read her husband’s Elegy to Iris and enjoyed it… long before the movie)
Speaking of which, Leo, are you a movie watcher – do you have a movie list to share too?
Don’t forget Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach
Dude, so many on here I haven’t read. I am working my way through LOTR right now, though. I have to say that I’m getting a big kick out of seeing some books I absolutely hate being mentioned by folks. I may not agree, but I’m glad someone out there likes them.
My faves include Paradise and Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison. (You mentioned that her books haven’t stuck with you, but if you didn’t try Song of Solomon yet, I’d really recommend it as being one of her best and most accessible.)
A Room with a View and Howards End by EM Forster
The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
The Fisher King by Paule Marshall
The Sun Also Rises by Hemingway
The Bridge of San Luis Rey by Thornton Wilder
The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien
I also highly recommend reading smut from time to time. It’s good for the soul.
And here’s one more vote for joining GoodReads.com. I find it’s just a great way to track what I’ve read.
I second Mike Lutz’s recommendation of Pirsig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and George Orwell’s 1984. Absolutely amazing books.
Wow, I love book lists too–no time to add my favorites right now, but if you read The Stand (which I love in a popcorn-crunching way), try to find the original 1978 edition. In the “uncut” edition (1990) King foolishly (IMO) tried to update the setting from 1980 to 1990 by changing a few surface details only–the feel of the era doesn’t ring true. He also restored material that again IMO makes an already-long-but-enjoyable book TOO long. Some writers really need editors and their work can suffer when they get famous enough to be handled with kid gloves…
Leo, sometimes I think we share a common brain. Great list! I would add “I Know This Much Is True” by Wally Lamb and I would delete “The Correction”. I think “The Correction” was over-hyped crap ad I found the author’s treatment of the characters as shallow.
I will give the William Gibson sci-fi novels a try. I have to confess that I’ve always been a snob about sci-fi novels. Thanks.
Good list and good recommendations from everyone. I’m surprised at the seeming lack of mention of Jack Kerouac or Allen Ginsberg anywhere in the comments however. Ah well they are certainly authors I recommend especially “On the Road” and “Big Sur” by Kerouac and the poem “Howl” by Ginsberg.
The Little Prince and Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance had huge impacts on my life, certainly must reads I think. And I love Vonnegut, a brilliant man he was.
Besides some books you mentioned, my favorites are
1. Dune by Frank Herbert
2. Dracula by Bram Stoker
3. The Perfum by Patrick Súskind
It’s better to read the original rather than a translation, so for those who can give Don Quijote de la Mancha in spanish a try! (it’s not that hard)
This looked like a great list until I saw that you’d included Lolita, which was so badly-written and boring that I couldn’t even get past the first few chapters. Judging from the Wikipedia summary, I didn’t miss much, either.
It disgusts me that people call this guy a great writer. Despite his complete inability to form a sentence less than ten thousand words long, it appears on every single recommendation list I ever see. At least you didn’t include the modern hack king, Dan Brown.
However, since this list does contain good titles, I’ll add a few to my “omg hueg” list of books to read.
As for my own recommendations (and the opposite), they can be found on my Shelfari profile.
Glad to see Hitch Hikers Guide on this list - I recommend his Dirk Gently (Svlad Cjelli) series as well. Douglas Adams was possibly my all time favourite writer … RIP…*sigh*
I was hoping that you’d have Anna Karenina and the Unbearable Lightness of Being on the list… and you did! Right in a row. I’d like to ad Ham on Rye– Bukowski
Great list! It’s good to see so much older stuff on there…. I’m currently on a Norse Sagas kick, and they’re really quite entertaining, despite being old and in a different language.
So is Les Miserables. It’s another of my favorite older foreign-language stories that hasn’t been mentioned yet.
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich
@ Fekket - Lolita is generally considered one of the top five Western books….
@ Devan - Love the Dirk Gently books!
@Fekket: Not everyone likes Nabokov — his sense of humor is a bit dry, for example — but I think he writes beautifully.
Sometimes a Great Notion is at the top of my All-Time Favorites list, along with Steinbeck’s East of Eden and David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest (in my the middle of my 2nd reading of it).
I wouldn’t put Shibumi on my top fifty list, but I did read and enjoy it years ago and it has stuck in my mind.
The one book of philosophy that I recommend to everyone is The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius.
Let me throw out a few short (so they aren’t too great an investment of reading time–Dhalgren is humongous!) SF books for piankeshaw that have done a lot for me over the years:
A Spectre Is Haunting Texas, by Fritz Leiber.
The Last Hot Time, by John M. Ford
Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom, by Cory Doctorow
In the Ocean of Night, by Gregory Benford
Much as I love Kerouac, I don’t think I could pick one of his books out. Maybe Dr. Sax or Maggie Cassidy. (Now, if we were talking poetry, Howl would be on my list. Hey! There it is anyway!)
Oh, and Sara? I would be suspicious of anyone’s list that didn’t have one book on it I didn’t like.
Hmm is it coincidence I stumbled accross this list on my way to the library?
Two of my favourites that don’t appear on the list or in the comments (and which also happen to be by female authors) are We need to talk about Kevin by Lionel Shriver (mother considering her relationship with her son after he commits mass murder at his school) and The Bronze Horseman by Paulinna Simons (a love story set in St Petersburg during the siege of WW2). Both awesome reads and highly recommended.
I just read Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. Loved it! I’m about to go pick up The Fountainhead by the same author.
I am a devoted reader - though lately I have not read a good satisfying book.. your list will help .. I have read some of the books on your list.. I think I am going to try out ‘Sometimes a great notion’, next. I like the sound of the title :)
Some of my all time favorites are:
1) Crime and Punishment.. when I think of the book sometimes I feel that it was me who murdered the old woman
2) The Great Gatsby… much thumbed copy.. I agree with Leo.. best descriptions I have ever seen..
3) 1984
It was a hopeless fancy
It passed like a april dye…
But 1984 which I read six years ago
It twists my heartstrings yet
4) War and Peace
5) To kill a Mockingbird
6) The old man and the sea.. other Hemingway books too
7) Catcher in the Rye.. my blog is named after this book :)
8) The Power and the glory
9) The Hitchhiker’s guide to the galaxy … comedy is often not treated like great literature.. but I personally think comedy is the hardest to write.
10) Ray Bradbury - short stories
11) Catch-22 .. Who can forget Major Major?
12) White Blindness .. read this one recently
To a lesser degree:
1) Midnight’s children
2) The remains of the day
and many more which I can’t recall right now.
There are great books and than there are comfortable authors. Some of mine are:
P.G Wodehouse
Agatha Christie
Isaac Asmiov
Michael Crichton
A recent series find which I discovered while pottering around the bookstore:
The no 1 ladies detective agency
I also started reading Terry Pratchett after hearing about him on this blog. His book have flashes of Douglas Adam’s brilliance, but his plot sometimes gets a little lost.
well I guess I got carried away, and made a rather longish comment.. but enjoyed the post Leo
The Forsyte Saga by John Galsworthy, seems to be a forgotten classic. I particularly like the first two books.
I know many people claim to dislike Dan Brown’s novels, but they are fun reads. Obviously, they shouldn’t be seen as 100% historically accurate, they are fiction after all. My favorite Brown novel is “Angels & Demons.”
That being said, your list is great (as is your blog!). You seem to be very well read in a variety of genres. This will serve you well if you’re ever a contestant on Jeopardy.
Great List!!!
I recently set a goal to read the 100 greatest books of all time over 100 months from November 2007. I have read 24 books so far and am finding the process incredibly rewarding. I highly recommend The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. It’s great for kids too!
Lots of good books in your list, but …
Neuromancer is the most over-rated book I’ve ever read - yes, it was a founding book of a genre, but how could you ignore Neil Stephenson? Snowcrash and Cryptonomicon are vastly superior books (superior to what? virtually anything).
No Orson Scott Card? Enders Game, Speaker for the Dead, and Pastwatch at the very minimum.
And to have a list w/o Heinlein’s Stranger in a Strange Land is … well, I have no words!!!
Hullabaloo in the Guava Orchard, by Kiran Desai is an incredibly sumptuous and voluptuous “Fool’s Journey” with layers upon layers of depth.
Douglas Coupland’s All Families are Psychotic and Generation X both demand reading.
Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere and Stardust are impressive books. He and Terry Pratchett collaborated on the “funnest” end-of-the-world novel, Good Omens (which absolutely shuts out the ENTIRE Disk World series all by itself).
Otherwise it is an excellent list! (and yes, I know that some of this is a matter of taste … but choosing Gibson over Stephenson?!?)
to add one more: I highly recommend Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi.
Too Cool!
I have actually read at least 1/4 of that list… I’m making note of the rest… chances are I’ll enjoy them as well.
Thank you :)
I was really happy to see you list The Catcher in the Rye. It’s just one of those books. Ironically, I didn’t enjoy reading it the first time, but then I found myself reflecting back on it over time.
This blog entry has tons of value, I really like it. You seem to like the same type of books that I like.
I’m reading Crime and Punishment now and Lolita and The hobbit are definetily the next two in my list. I’ll see the other lists of books later.
Cheers.
I must add the Gunslinger series by King (his best I think)
The Wind up Bird by Murakami and Three Comrades by Remarque
Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer deserves to be on your list. Amazing book about a small boy who lost his father on 9/11…
I don’t think LOTR should be considered children s book, nor was it Tolkien intention to be, it started with a children book The Hobbit, but as Tolkien admitted the book got a much darker storyline.
Hello,
I recommend The Norwegian Wood from Haruki Murakami and The Alchemist from Paulo Coelho.
These are the best books I have ever read.
Ondrej
I love how people bitch when _their_ favorite books aren’t on a list. It’s called a personal list for a reason. Besides, you can’t list every great book ever written.
And to those complaining about the lack of female writers… so what? I recommend books based on the content, not on who wrote it. I don’t care if the list is 100% male or 100% female. It’s the content that matters in the end.
And Neuromancer in one of my favorite books of all time. It was just so amazing when it came out - and still is, although if you’re a young person it might have lost a bit of its magic. Nevertheless, it’s a very valid choice IMO.
Dear
I loved the way YOU behaved here and took YOUR precious time to do good to all the BENEFICIARIES, including me.
Thanks A Lot!
Amit Verma
Delhi, India
Last months Im reading again and again various chapters from
Existential Psychotherapy by Irvin D. Yalom
http://www.amazon.com/Existential-Psychotherapy-Irvin-D-Yalom/dp/0465021476
he writes about death, anxiety, intrapersonal isolation and existential isolation, responsibility, guilt, meaning, awarenessm, freedom and many other existential stuff in such wise and understandable way - its a must read for every psychotheraphist and shoudl read and discuss for everyone interested in life
you say “Harry Potter” I say good bye.
A great list but in some ways 50 is not enough for everyone to be satisfied (which is, of course, you catalyst for comments). Everyone will react differently when their favourite book is not on someone elses and will need to get their point across. It’s how you do it that will show either your appreciation of literature or your appreciation of your own opinions.
For example, I feel that my list would begin with “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas”, “Catch 22″, “Animal Farm” and “A Prayer for Owen Meany”, but you may hate all of them. The important thing is to carry on reading, keep an open mind and keep buying books!
Thanks for the list, I’m hoping mine will be on there one day.
Simon
I’ve read only seven of these (two of which are long series). Thanks for some inspiration to read others that I have been interested in, but never got around to, like Anna Karenina.
The only thing I don’t like about these sorts of lists is that by their nature, they exclude a number of equally wonderful books. There are thousands of great books out there. :-)
Still, I enjoyed the list.
I love book lists. I would add: any novel by Tom Robbins. My favorite book by him would have to be “Half Asleep In Frog Pajamas”.
I just finished reading “Gilligan’s Wake” by Tom Carson… Incredibly bizarre but very smart and super-hilarious ‘back story’ of the castaways. Highly recommended.
Great list! I would add Cormac McCarthy — any of his books are amazing. Even though the subject matter is quite violent, I’ve never encountered writing like that. Also, love the poetry of Edna St. Vincent Milay, Marie Ponsot, and Emily Dickenson.
Since becoming a mom and blogging, I don’t find much time to read these days. Hard to believe that I once taught English…
Your list brought back so many fond memories from long ago, as well as a few from the present.
I’d add:
- The Women’s Room by Marilyn French
- Fear of Flying by Erica Jong
- The Loo Sanction and The Eiger Sanction by Trevanian
- The Hieronymus Bosch series of detective novels by Michael Connelly
- The Quiller series by Adam Hall (better than James Bond)
- Kisscut (and everything else) by Karin Slaughter
- The Power of One by Bryce Courtenay
Thanks for the list. I’m always looking for good books to read.
Good list,
Books shelves and CD collections always give you a peek into someone’s life. Perhaps this has already been mentioned by someone else, but I didn’t catch it, so I will say that Jack Kerouac is a great addition. He and his friends found a somewhat mismashed approach to zen and it is interesting to follow it in his writings. Here are my top three Kerouac novels
1. On the Road
2. The Dharma Bums
3. Desolation Angels
Also, another great read from Michael Chabon
-Adventures of Kavalier and Clay
Though I thought the end tended to drag, the setup is great and takes you to a golden age of comic books. Kind of cool.
Great blog, love reading it. Thanks Leo!
To champ: I bet you did not read half of these in high school, even right now. Uninspired is your nickname.
Poser.
I can’t believe my favorite book missed this wonderful list. I can’t say I have read even 1/4 of these, so I guess I have some work to do. However, I would love to add:
Siddhartha, by Herman Hesse.
The book changed my life, and I suggest it for everyone as #51 :)
http://yinvsyang.com/
Agree with a lot here.
Some kids books to check out by Jon Muth:
Zen Shorts
Zen Ties
Three Questions
I’d also add “How to Talk Dirty and Influence People” by Lenny Bruce for an eye opening read.
Finally, the whole “Ishmael” trilogy by Daniel Quinn (Ishmael, the Story of B and My Ishmael) completely altered my life upon reading them.
Great List … I would have to suggest:
Golf in the Kingdom, Michael Murphy
Zen & The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, Robert Pirsig
The New Lao Tzu, Ray Grigg
The Tao of Zen, Ray Grigg
-Mark (the biker, golfer, zen taoist :)
Many books you listed are from english-speaking writers.
In order to illustrate the reputation of my country, I would suggest 2 classic novels in french:
“Ruy Blas”, by Victor Hugo and “Cyranno de Bergerac”, by Edmond Rostand.
Both are romantic LOVE books.
Kisses to the readers ;-)
“Star Maker” and “Last and First Men”, both by Olaf Stapledon, who inspired Arthur C. Clarke. Both mind-expanding 1930’s sci-fi.
“Childhood’s End”, Arthur C. Clarke.
“Power of the Dog”, Don Winslow. Raw and brutal novel about cross-border drug trafficking. Similar vein to “No Country for Old Men” (also on my list, along with “The Road”)
Thanks Tim - I was surprised no one had mentioned Ishmael. If you have not read it make time for it. I read it just after finishing college and it has shaped my view of the world ever since. I can not recommend this book enough. The trilogy is good but the first is a work that should not be missed.
Good list, quite mixed up, but where are the French writers ? Since you like Tolstoï and Dostoievsky, why not give a try to some classic 19th centery French lit ?
:
Balzac : Pere Goriot (introducing the fascinating Rastignac and Vautrin… maybe the best initiation to Balzac)
Stendhal : the red & the black, an all time best, a true page turner
and you can give a try : Zola : l’Assommoir, a striking descent into low class Paris
….
I’d hafta add Many Lives Many Masters by Weiss to any list I’d make. Cool to see you enjoy Pratchett. He’s a hoot.
A couple of books I would add to your list are:
“The Crying of Lot 49″ by Thomas Pynchon
&
“The Sailor Who Fell From Grace With The Sea” by Yukio Mishima
I read a lot, but not many novels. I mostly enjoy non-fiction. I may have to give a couple off your list a try. I probably need to broaden my horizons in this area. Thanks!
Thanks for sharing some of your favorites. Couldn’t help noticing some historical fiction on your list so thought I would pass along one that recently fell in love with:
The Book of Negroes, by Lawerence Hill
http://www.amazon.com/Book-Negroes-Lawrence-Hill/dp/0002255073/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1219250471&sr=8-3
It’s tells the life story of an African woman, Aminata, when the slave trade was in full swing. It’s a first person narrrative where we are taken on a journey with her starting in Africa, to Charleton, to NY, to Canada, back to African and finally concluding in London. Aminata is one of those few characters that tatoos your heart.
I’ve never read Vonnegut, but I just looked up “granfalloon” and my brain went *pop*. I think that means I should read Vonnegut. Thanks, Leo!
-Linnea
Based on your list, I’d strongly, strongly recommend Gaiman’s American Gods and its sequel (of sorts), Anansi Boys. They are breathtaking and absorbing and funny and disturbing all at once. Even better, try listening to them–the audio productions are fantastic, with the readers managing somehow to give each character a distinctive, memorable personality.
Hi, Leo –
Now, let me pretend I know nothing about you and only just stumbled on your blog today; and let me try to guess a thing or two about you from your reading list –
(1) Your list may be very “male,” but I would say you are safely in the “alpha male” camp. (What would you say?)
(2) Apart from being a professional journalist, I just bet you once majored in English . . . Did you?
Both your list of novels (plus a couple of grand plays) and your readers’ responses to that list are very heartening indeed. Just when I had thought that no one was reading anything anymore — apart from text messages, IMs, random spam, attention-grabbing flames, and best-selling books of financial advice — it was thrilling to discover so many kindred spirits and avid bookworms.
Responding to Meade’s critique: I am sympathetic. I had a somewhat similar gut-reaction to Leo’s “male-dominated” pantheon. But I suspect this is more reflective of his naturally masculine interests than of any insensitivity to social hierarchies. Regarding your mention of race and sexual orientation, specifically, I trust you caught Leo’s recommendations of Harper Lee and David Sedaris?
Leo, I intend to investigate some of the “hardboiled male detective” titles you listed, as I am personally pretty deficient when it comes to this specific genre! Reciprocally, I hope that if you have not read some of the all-time awesome detective novelists who happen to be female, you may decide to give them a try. PD James tops my own list — masterful British detective plots plus plenty of substantive “literary” content for those of us wanting a little more than pure escapism in our mysteries.
Thanks so much for mentioning Franny and Zooey, which so rarely gets cited; also Dubliners, a truly wonderful collection of short stories which almost NEVER gets mentioned! I haven’t read the latter for decades, but the last line of one story, “Araby” — “and his eyes burned with anguish and anger,” if I am not misquoting it too badly — still gets me teary.
Boy, did I goof! Forgive me, Leo - I meant to say “beta male,” not “alpha male.” (Didn’t I?) (So much talk about “alpha” these days, it starts to seem as if “beta” is the runner-up, when actually, most women I’ve known would prefer “beta” 100x more and want nothing to do with any alpha guy . . .) Mea culpa, my bad, ever so sorry!
This list is great.
I have a few of my own to add.
I must also promote Anything by Stephen R. Donaldson. His Thomas Covenant series are wonderful (have not yet read the new ones) and his Gap Cycle series is equally as good. He really does a wonderful job with the anit-hero.
Also, the entire Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind, great books.
Stranger From a Strange Land, by Heinlein, a wonderful character study about what makes us human.
Another wonderful sci-fi series is Otherworld by Tad Williams, absolutely fantastic.
Hope that these suggestions are useful.
Great list - I think a couple people have already mentioned it but definitely give Kerouac’s On The Road a read. It just paints a picture so beautifully it almost puts you there beside him.
Great list. I am reading “Kafka on the Shore” by Haruki Murakami, great story, totally different from other novels. I also like Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini and his A Thousand Splendid Suns. Snow by Orhan Pamuk is another classical book, “My Name is Red” by Pamuk, a very riveting book set in Turkey.
I also point to Siddhartha. It is such a beautiful book, and I think just about anyone can relate to the main character.
Snow Crash in my opinion is better than Neuromancer. But they are both great.
The Hobbit, and an odd pick — Necroscope by Brian Lumley (search amazon), a very unusual tale about a boy who can talk to the dead and can borrow their talents, oh, and a vampire.
I’d also like to suggest Botchan, a wonderful Japanese novel by Soseki. You can find many good translations.
I know that the term “chick lit” is often used as a term of derision, but some of the best novels I’ve read in the past ten years fall in this category. “Bridget Jone’s Diary”, anyone? (Forget Renee Zellweger, please!) Plus I heartily recommend anything written by the wonderful Irish author Marion Keyes - her books may be called “chick lit” but they deal with serious issues, including substance abuse and domestic abuse. I would suggest starting with “Rachel’s Holiday”, although all her books are wonderful.
That said, my all time favourite book is on your list, Leo - “To Kill a Mockingbird”. Would have named my daughter “Scout” if my darn neighbours hadn’t already given their Golden Retriever the same name!
I’ll have to toss in another vote for Poisonwood Bible and To Kill a Mockingbird - two of my favourite novels ever. I was happy to see Time Traveler’s Wife on your list, another book that ranks at the top of my list!
Some others I don’t believe I’ve seen mentioned yet:
The Way the Crow Flies by Ann-Marie MacDonald, Weaveworld by Clive Barker, the Fionavar Tapestry trilogy of novels by Guy Gavriel Kay.
Zen Mind Beginners Mind - Shunryu Suzuki
The Contemplative Heart - James Finley
On The Road - Jack Kerouac
Illusions - Richard Bach
Mindfulness in Plain English - Henepoa Gunaratana
The Blue Clilff Record
The Way of Chuang Tzu
The Tao Te Ching - Lao Tzu
The Tao of Pooh
LOTR
The Bhagavad Gita
I am a weird and picky reader who often best likes books by favorite authors that are not the best known or most popular books by those authors. In that spirit, let me offer you these three titles:
Visions of Cody, by Jack Kerouac. On The Road, which is lovely, was the book where Kerouac started to find his unique voice. Visions of Cody is sort of the same story, retold with Kerouac’s full power.
Journey to the East, by Hermann Hesse. Everything I know about mysticism is in this book. I’m not saying that’s where I learned it, just that you can find it there.
Waldo and Magic, Inc., by Robert Heinlein. This early pair of novellas catch Heinlein before he became cynical, and too successful to be edited. I love every one of his books, but these are as good as he ever got.
I will recommend for a third time:
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
Then read Ender’s Shadow.
Then read Ender’s Game again…
Then read everything written associated with Ender and Bean.
I also am a huge fan of Gibson. Neuromancer and Pattern Recognition are sitting on my night stand right now. Awesome books.
The Picture of Dorian Gray-Oscar Wilde
The Mandarins-Simone DeBeauvoir
She Came to Stay- Simone DeBeauvoir
My Sisters Keeper- Jodi Piccoult
The Harvesting Heart- Jodi Piccoult
Great Expectations-Charles Dickens
Paris and to the Moon
Loved the Time Travelers Wife (especially once lived in Chicago and Evanstion) & Never Let Me Go
Great list.
I too love World According to Garp and the rest of John Irving’s books.
I would like to add
Cat’s eye ,Oryx and Crake and Handmaid’s tale ,all by Margaret Atwood
Night, by Elie Weisel. Talk about poetry in prose! His memoir about the holocaust is astounding.
So many great ones have already been posted so I’ll include a few that some of you probably have never read but should.
We-Yevgeny Zamyatin (Why is this not as popular as 1984, Brave New World, etc…? It started the whole dystopian genre and is very good)
Master and Margarita-Bulgakov (The Devil, a murdering giant cat, the basis for a Sympathy for the Devil. What’s not to like. It was banned for many years. One of my favorite books).
The Teachings of Don Juan-Castaneda (Not about the seducer but mushrooms. The drug movement shoudl just hand out books like this and it’ll be legal in no time).
Blindness-Saramago (People go blind, get confined to a madhouse. Bodily functions and bodily urges ensue en masse. Okay, so a lot of people probably read this).
Geek Love- Dunn (Circus Folk. Amazing).
A Picture of Corian Gray- Wilde (Read it, love it, put on your lipstick and then kiss his grave).
Journey To the End Of The Night: Celine (No description. If you can get it then for god’s sakes read it. It led the way for Miller, Bukowski, Thompson, and the like just like We did for his followers).
I always love reading lists of people’s favourite books, and while you do say the list reflects your personal preferences, you also say they are “essential to every library”, which I have to disagree with. The books essential to a particular person’s library depend on that person.
As to my personal choices, if I was making a top 50 or even top 10 list, I’d include something by David Mitchell, Richard Flanagan, and Tim Winton. Neil Gaiman, Margaret Atwood and Peter Carey would all make my top 50 if not my top 10.
This, of course, is before I even get started on kid’s and ya books.
I also like reading recommendation lists. Thank you!
I would like to say The Big Sleep is remarkable, as are Raymond Chandler’s other Phillip Marlow stories. Enjoying these led me to Dashiell Hammett’s The Maltese Falcon and his Continental Op stories. I highly recommend Hammett’s story “Red Harvest,” which served as the basis for the films Yojimbo and A Fistful of Dollars. The themes of corruption and decay in these tales resonate still.
Let me also add my votes for Neil Gaiman (Sandman and American Gods/Anansi Boys) and add The Autobiography of Malcolm X. As a novel, Malcolm moves through as amazing transformation, made all the more moving since it is non-fiction.
I think the call for more diversity (sex, race, orientation, etc.) is needed and important. I hope people will post their suggestions, so I can find more of those authors!
Three more to add to the list:
Fountainhead by Ayn Rand
Sophie’s Choice by William Styron
Stone Diaries by Carol Shields
Cheers, Joanne
Also - did you know they are making Neuromancer into a movie? http://tinyurl.com/5pahnm
#35
What’s a Persion?
Rushdie’s ‘Midnight’s Children’. It’s like reading a movie instead of watching a book…
Also, Swift’s ‘Waterland’. Great read.
Thank-you thank-you thank-you!
I LOVE reading lists too…
I’ve been overdosing on non-fiction lately so these reminded me of some fabulous books worth revisiting. And more than a few new ones to check out too :-)
Oh, and “Self” and “The Facts Behind the Helsinki Roccamatios” by Yann Martel both well worth a read too. His writing is so warm and familiar whilst thematically quite daring. Such talent. sigh.
If you find yourself with a big gaping hole after reading they LOTR and Harry Potter books, I’d recommend checking into the Drow Elf series by R.A. Salvatore. It’s a decently long series and is well written. The first six books, you can purchase as a collection of two books….oops I hope that’s not confusing, just trying to save you guys some money.
Dark Elf Trilogy Collectors Edition (First three books):
# ISBN-10: 0786915889
# ISBN-13: 978-0786915880
Icewind Dale Trilogy Collectors Edition (Next three books):
# ISBN-10: 078691811X
# ISBN-13: 978-0786918119
After that there is a live series of 10 more books.
What?! No comics?! What about “Maus” and “Watchmen” and “The Dark Knight Returns”? These are definitely some of the most important pieces of literature of the 20th Century! They changed the way people look at comics, the way people are still looking at comics! I’m simply flabbergasted…Okay, okay, I guess it isn’t THAT surprising ;-)
A side note, I almost think lists like these should be made up of authors instead of books (that way you don’t use up too entries on books by the same authors), unless both books are too amazing to be lumped together.
Thanks for the great list. (I stumbled it)
Some of these are definitely on favorite list.
One of my favorites is Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
My all-time favs are the books by Hermann Hesse
Oscar Wilde - The Picture of Dorian Gray I like too.
Always on the lookout for a good read, so thank you for sharing your list!
We love:
The House of The Scorpion by Nancy Farmer
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
***Stargirl (and Love, Stargirl) by Jerry Spinelli*** (a book about an individualistic non-conformist who prevails despite being shunned by the norm, and a fellow meditator as well)
Animal Farm and 1984 by George Orwell
Surely You’re Joking Mr. Feynman by R. Feynman
How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali
Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
The Wall by Peter SIs
Red Scarf Girl by Ji-Li Jiang
Seeing The Great Gatsby on your list made me smile. We had to study The Great Gatsby in school. I ate it right up.
Will check some of these books out
http://reyestroika.com/images/hand.jpg
Mark Haddon’s second book “A Spot of Bother” is deffinately well worth a read if you liked The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time.
I’d also recommend The Traveller by John Twelve Hawks, a very interesting novel, which is a fantasy look at the big brother state, the best way to decribe it is The Matrix crossed with 1984
I loved “The Great Big Book Exchange”. So honest, real and well-told. Yeah, there really is a book with that name.
So many books I love have already been mentioned! Strange, but just reading through the names and remembering them makes me feel warm all over again.
But I just have to add a few.
1) Almost anything by C J Cherryh: she’s a sci fi writer who creates scenarios that make the reader think about why we do what we do, and that’s a valuable trait. Her Foreigner series (seriesssss?) is a particular favourite.
2) Arturo Perez-Reverte, particularly The Dumas Club. He writes mysteries steeped in art or religious history: I think one (possibly the Duma Club) was made into a movie starring Johnny Depp.
3) Syrup, Jennifer Government, and Company, by Max Barry. He’s an Aussie writer who satirises aspects of society to make funny and very readable stories. I’m re-(re-re-re-) reading Jennifer Government at the moment.
4) Grass, Raising The Stones, and Sideshow by Sheri S Tepper. She’s very passionate about what she sees as wrong with humans, and this is a great trio of sci fi stories.
I have books that move (often lately) with me and I re-read consistently some have already been suggested BUT:
1. siddartha
2. candide
3. tao te ching
4. My Life in France- Julia Child
5. the bible
6. the bhadavadgita
7. the alchemist
8. a fine balance
9. courdroy
10. the giving tree
11. wabi-sabi
12. the art of seeing
13. the complete works of shakespeare
The only book to which I object (and object strenuously) is THE CORRECTIONS. Franzen is a pretnetious snob who delights in flaunting his vocabulary. “Oh…look at me! I can use big words. Nannienanniebooboo.” Give me a break.I’d substitute THINGS FALL APART by Chinua Achebe.
Great list - better than some I’ve seen, although that is perhaps biased as this contains many of my favourites. I particularly agree with “Never Let Me Go” as that is my favourite by Ishiguro.
I love lists of books - thanks for this! I don’t think I could create one limited to 50 books (although I suppose you haven’t really managed this!)
Agree with the comments about Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett, his last novel “Making Money” was hilarious but also very insightful!!!
My additions would be:
The entire works of JG Ballard - they fuel my dreams and nightmares.
Same for Angela Carter and Margaret Atwood who makes me want to leave Britain for Canada.
Kate Atkinson’s “One Good Turn” although the rest of her novels are also worth a read.
If you want a really good cry you should try “After you’d Gone” by Maggie O’Farrell.
I found myself reading this whilst I was at work and could not put this down until I had finished it - Kate Atkinson’s “One Good Turn” - the rest of her novels are also worth a read.
Mark Haddon’s newish book “A spot of Bother” is also an excellent read.
I will stop at this point.
Illuminatus!
Leo,
Have you read all these books? Is this list based on all the books you have read?
- Sendhil
@Sendhil: Yep, these are all books I’ve read — my favorites, actually. These are the books I would recommend to anyone who is looking for really good reads … not the best books of all time, not the most artistic or intellectual … just really good reads. Of course, they’re very personal choices — you may have different preferences, and as you’ve seen in the comments, most people do!
I’ve been out of town… but thanks for the link Leo. ;-)
Stranger in a Strange Land!
One of my all time favorite books is The Doomsday Book by Connie Willis.
I have also enjoyed The Thornbirds and The Time Traveller’s Wife.
Wow, I’ve read about three quarters of your list, and totally agree. The other comments are also great books.
Amazing that we all share such common taste in great literature.
To add a few good SF authors not yet mentioned:
Steven Erikson, Gene Wolfe, Roger Zelazny, George R.R. Martin, Robert J. Sawyer.
Interesting to see what makes someone’s personal top 100. I also recommend Banana Yoshimoto, Jeannette Winterson, and Sheila Heti.
Whoops, I mean top 50. (must have been the other lists listed that caused that slip.)
Hey there. Love the books on the list. I’m very much a reader of Tolkien, Murakami, and Hornby. Dostoyevsky is part of my reading goals.
I’d say i’d add:
1. Mark Twain’s Tom Sawyer and Huckleberry Finn- its a classic young boy adventure book.
2. RA Salvatore’s Drizzt Do’urden Saga- A supposedly evil by birth child chooses to be good. Its an interesting turn of events and the character is engrossing.
3.Coetzee’s Youth
Good list. I’m was happy to see books i was familiar with. I have yet to try Tolstoy. The sight of Annakarenina is intimidating.
Wow, I am really pleased to have come across your site.
Your list of books is fantastic and I have discovered that I have read more than I had originally thought. You have listed 2 of my favorite series and 5 other individual works of art. Yes, it was a sad day when Kurt Vonnegut passed away, we lost a brilliant mind.
The Harry Potter series is not just for children, they are for all walks of life - I enjoyed them immensely and I am 42. I am now saving the set for my children for when they are old enough, at the moment they are only 5 and 3.
Hope to see more here.
Theresa
I have seen that Murakami is mentioned by several in the comments. One of his books — but not necessarily one that would figure in the list of Essential Novels — may particularly appeal to you, since you are a (marathon) runner: “What I Talk About When I Talk About Running”.
Leo:
I’ll give another vote to recommend anything by Stephen R. Donaldson.
I’ll also recommend Kop by Warren Hammond and Declare by Tim Powers.
Great list!
Since you recommended Harry Potter and LOTR, I would recommend you try Philip Pullman’s trilogy “His Dark Materials”.
I second the mention of Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy. It’s one of the best book series I’ve read in a long time.
I’d also recommend “The Boat” by Nam Le. I love the last paragraph of the first story and the 3rd story especially. Kind of reminded me of the movie City of God…
Anyways, glad to see someone mention “The Sparrow” by MDR.
I didn’t see “Blindness” on the list by Jose Saramago, if you haven’t read it add it to your list.
Much better than #28’s Water for Elephants was Geek Love by Katherine Dunn.
Hi Leo,
I haven’t read most of the books in this list, so I found it very interesting.
My favorites that are not listed here are:
Kafka: The Metamorphosis
Hermann Hesse: Siddharta, Narcissus and Goldmund,
Ayn Rand: Fountainhead.
I absolutely love this blog and check it every single day, no exceptions.
Out of the books you’ve listed here, I will definitely read the ones I haven’t already read and most of the ones I’ve read I absolutely love love love.
I say “most,” however, because I just can’t see what everyone sees in Catcher in the Rye! Holden Caulfield is not only annoying, but he is not in the least a sympathetic character and certainly not someone I’d like to be friends with. Static, overly angsty and spoiled, Holden deserves a slap in the face. I’m sorry, but to me, Catcher in the Rye is the definitive most overrated piece of fiction to come out of the twentieth century–maybe ever–not only because of Holden’s character, but because of the shoddy writing that could be beaten by any 13-year-old’s diary.
Lucie, I was reading your comment and had to do a double-take on your name to make sure I wasn’t reading a comment I had written and just forgot about. Thank you; you are now the second person I’ve ever heard of disliking that book! There aren’t many of us, and I’m sure I could google a forum/support group for Caulfield haters. But then, that might be giving him undue attention ;-)
One of my most favorite books to read, though it is without words and done for kids is Zoom. It really puts a perspective on our place in the universe. It tells it best with pictures, as words for this type of thing are overrated.
Oh, by the way, Zoom is by Istvan Banyai. He has another one out, Re-Zoom, which is listed as new. I went to Powells Books, and Zoom is out of print(?), but worth going back to time and again!
I enjoyed your comments and agree with many of your choices. I noticed that you have Steven King but not David Koontz. His early works were just ok, please consider reading some of his later stuff. Try Odd Thomas (the first of a series), and enjoy the dialogue.
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
It’s probably a little young for a lot of people, it’s probably sold in the kids/young adults section but I loved it when I was younger and a second read when I was around 20 gave it a new light. It follows the story of a bored little boy who finds himself in a world of numbers and letters where sometimes you can literally jump to the island of Conclusions. So don’t judge it! :P
Hey, whats up!?
I love your posts at zen habits.
Well, i guess you love to read something new and i have a suggestion, its a wonderful brazilian classic, called Dom Casmurro - by Machado de Assis. I think its not difficult to find same english version.The book is amazing.
i wish sucess!!
ps. sorry about my english skills
Great list! Some of the books mentioned here feature in my favorites list too!
However, I also loved the following:
Shophie’s World by Jostein Gaarder
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Atonement by Ian McEwan
Cormac McCarthy needs to be on that list. The Road, at least.
I admire this listing and could quibble here and there about inclusions or missing in action. BUT there is one inclusion that made me squirm: Catcher in the Rye. This feeble book was included in high school curricula in the ’60’s as a part of the ’search for relevance’. It was thought to appeal to teens with its modest rebellions and titter-making vulgarity.
Its relevance was short-lived and perhaps even still-born. Its literary merits are a stretch.
Its redemption is that it is one of the few required readings that survived for many years. Thus, it has become a ’shared experience’ for generations of American youth.
Now it has been ‘canonized’ (with apologies to Bloom). Let’s all admit that, at best, we read it once and never referred to it again—other than as a handy answer to the question “Which novels do you admire the most?”
Where is The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn!?
Oh.my. goodness. I love this list.
I love these comments and all the people who made them.
I add my vote for anything by Toni Morrison, the Color Purple, The Poisonwood Bible, The Phantom Tollbooth and all of Jane Austen.
Yall are going to laugh, but I nominate Dr Seuss. I can’t live without Seuss. I read Seuss and then I read Dostoevsky or Proust. With no shame.
@ John Lynch
I don’t really think people who say they like Catcher in the Rye secretly dislike the book and just won’t admit it. I think when people put a book on a list, it means they really like it!
I love the Catcher in the Rye. Holden Caulfield totally has reasons to be “angsty”, if you remember the whole story. I guess you just have to have that sense of alienation and ‘outsider status’ to relate to Holden. I love the guy.
Fantastic list!
1. P. Merimee - Carmen
2. Not novels, but nice books: Wheels, Airport, Moneychangers by Arthur Hailey
Steinbeck is absolutely amazing. I’m particularly a fan of East of Eden, which I would say rivals Grapes of Wrath.
Very few women on your list and I don’t think I saw much in the way of writers from other cultures.
I’d add:
The Mists of Avalon, Marion Zimmer Bradley, a book I return to again and again
The Known World, Edward P Jones (al;so his short story collections, Lost in the City and All Aunt Hagar’s
Children
The Poisonwood Bible and Pigs in Heaven, Barbara Kingsolver
The 5th Sacred Thing, StarHawk
Cry, the beloved Country, Alan Paton
The Mysterious Stranger, Mark Twain
I loved the Time Traveler’s Wife but I wouldn’t put it in the same class with Kingsolver.
When We Were Orphans: The whole return to China and search for his mother was bizarre/unbelievable — the kind of thing that makes me say “Oh, Please.” One of the most depressing books I’ve read.
Jeanette Winterson, ‘Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit’
and I second ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’, as well as ‘Fahrenheit 451′ - if you haven’t read this, do, do read it - it’s only a short novel and will give you goosebumps! Frighteningly prophetic.
One Hundred Years of Solitude was one of Marquez’s most accessible works and is absolutely magical.
I have to disagree about The Road, though: as one reviewer commented, it’s not much more than a ‘post apocalyptic zombie movie’. There are some interesting elements, and the imagery is intense, but ultimately it is unsatisfying: I had a strong feeling that McCarthy just had no clue how to end the story.
I recently found Octavia Butler. She is classified as Sci-Fi, but I think she deserves a subject classification of her own. Outside-of-the-box ideologies…
What book(s) of Butler’s are you reading? Kindred is probably my favorite, but the two Parable novels are also very good.
She died too soon, a year or so ago.
Thanks Leo, there are some great pieces of world literature in your post. I like them a lot and I will definitely try to buy at least one piece from this collection.
Interesting list. I’m afraid I can’t agree with you about Nick Hornby or Harry Potter but you definitely hit the target with some of your suggestions. Check out my list of 10 great historical novels
http://adammalster.wordpress.com/2009/06/19/ten-great-historical-novels/
Comments on this entry are closed.