We Compiled A List Of The Best Books Of All Time For When You’re Looking For Something To Read
Storytelling has existed ever since mankind learned to express themselves. We tell stories to pass on traditions, to entertain, to express our creativity. After the written word was invented, people started writing their stories down so that other people could read them even when the narrator wasn’t there.
Recommending books to read can be very difficult. What captivates one person’s attention can be rather uninteresting for another. Yet, there are some works of fiction that are universally appreciated and considered worth reading.
A recipe for such a book is actually very simple: a compelling story, well-developed characters with solid motivations, completed world-building (even if the story is set in real life, you need to establish the protagonist’s world), and preferably no clichés that have been used time and time again.
Sometimes best selling books don’t necessarily mean the best ones for reading, and on the contrary, books that were not appreciated upon publication can find universal love and popularity decades later. In this article, we’ve collected a library-worth of books that have stood the test of time. How many of them have you read? Which ones would you pick next? Share your opinions in the comments below, and also let us know which book you’d like to be included on this list.
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To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee
To Kill a Mockingbird (Harper Lee, 1960)
Ever since its publication, To Kill a Mockingbird has remained one of the most widely read books. Told from the perspective of a young girl, the story revolves around the events that happened in a small town in Alabama, when her father, a white lawyer, was appointed to defend a black man accused of raping an underage girl. Dealing with grave issues like racial inequality and injustice, the novel gave us the iconic character of Atticus Finch, an example of moral integrity for lawyers.
The Fellowship Of The Ring By J.R.R. Tolkien
The Fellowship of the Ring (J.R.R. Tolkien, 1954)
The opening part of the famous book series, The Fellowship of the Ring doesn’t need much of an introduction. It sets off the story of an unlikely group of heroes on their quest to save the world from a powerful evil. Initially, Tolkien was planning to publish the entire trilogy in one volume, with six subdivisions he called books. However, his publisher convinced him to publish it in three different parts.
The Little Prince By Antoine De Saint-Exupéry
The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, 1943)
Equally loved by children and adults, The Little Prince is rightfully considered among the classics of world literature. The story describes the encounter between a young boy referred to as the little prince and an adult narrator, loosely based on Saint-Exupéry himself. The novel has been translated into over 505 languages, as the themes of friendship, love, loneliness, and loss the book addresses resonated with readers from different backgrounds and cultures.
Where The Sidewalk Ends By Shel Silverstein
Where the Sidewalk Ends (Shel Silverstein, 1974)
This poetry collection is a true representation of children’s imaginations and common childhood worries. From “The Truth About Turtles” to “Who's Taller?” and the titular “Where the Sidewalk Ends,” it is full of imagination-inspiring stories and illustrations. The book stirred quite some controversy due to its subject matter and was banned in some libraries and schools. However, in 2007, the National Education Association listed it in the Teachers’ Top 100 Books for Children.
The Shining By Stephen King
The Shining (Stephen King, 1977)
When Jack Torrance and his family moved to the Overlook Hotel, where Jack accepted the position of an off-season caretaker, the last thing they expected was a series of terrifying supernatural occurrences that eventually drove Jack mad and put his wife and 5-year-old son in danger. Based on King’s own experience, The Shining was his third published novel that firmly established him as the master of horror.
1984 By George Orwell
The Handmaid’s Tale By Margaret Atwood
The Handmaid’s Tale (Margaret Atwood, 1985)
After the Second American Civil War, a new totalitarian regime with a very strict class system is established in New England. Any women from the lower layers of society that fail to fit the rules engrafted by the ruling class are forced to become natal slaves, or handmaids, for noble families. Even though The Handmaid’s Tale is set in a dystopian future, its themes of female individuality and suppressing women’s reproductive and other rights hold relevant in our society.
This is a tie with the best book ever I stated above, To Kill A Mockingbird. A while ago I realised that basically every book I have ever read had all been written by male authors, I sat down and thought about the books I have read by women, Mockingbird, this, and Frankenstein, 3 of my most favourite books. Yet I still have some kind of in built misogyny as too often I have disregarded a book because it was written by a woman. I do not know where this comes from, I am not, in any way a misogynist in real life. Nowadays I am trying to make a concerted effort to read more books written by women.
A Wrinkle In Time By Madeleine L’Engle
A Wrinkle in Time (Madeleine L’Engle, 1962)
This young adult fantasy novel is full of things you expect from the genre: adventure, time and dimension travel, fighting evil in the name of justice, saving the world, and – above all – concepts of love, friendship, and good versus evil. After an encounter with their neighbor Ms. Whatsit, the Murry siblings and their friend Calvin set out on a journey to save inventor Alexander Murry, who is also Meg and Charles Murry’s father. A Wrinkle in Time opens the Time Quintet series that follows Meg, Charles, and Calvin’s adventures.
Anna Karenina By Leo Tolstoy
Anna Karenina (Leo Tolstoy, 1878)
Even though Tolstoy had two major works and a number of shorter stories to his name before publishing Anna Karenina, he called it his first true novel. Although the main focus is on the protagonist and her extramarital affair with Count Vronsky, there are a number of other storylines and characters in the novel. Tolstoy draws attention to issues of family, happiness, high society in Imperial Russia, the differences between city and rural life, among others.
Valley Of The Dolls By Jacqueline Susann
Valley of the Dolls (Jacqueline Susann, 1966)
When Valley of the Dolls was published, it received largely negative reviews from critics, yet it went on to become one of the bestselling novels in history. Telling the stories of several characters working in show business and their subsequent involvement with drugs, it is largely believed to be based on some real-life big names in the entertainment industry. Susann never fully confirmed or denied this supposition.
Dune By Frank Herbert
Man’s Search For Meaning By Viktor E. Frankl
This book actually changed my life. My whole perception of courage and suffering shifted in profound ways.
Pride And Prejudice By Jane Austen
Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen, 1813)
Pride and Prejudice is not only Austen’s most popular novel that has been adapted for screen and theater numerous times, but it also often ends up in top positions on “must-read books of all time” lists. Centered around the Bennet family, who have five adult daughters but are on the brink of losing their property should the father of the family die, the novel explores the concepts of class, marriage, societal expectations and prejudices. Upon its first publication, the novel received very mixed reviews, from admiration to disappointment. Austen herself felt like her book lacked “shade.”
Great Expectations By Charles Dickens
All The President’s Men By Bob Woodward And Carl Bernstein
This is on my reading list, I was born after this happened and can remember growing up in a time when the name "Nixon" was a dirty word...but surprisingly, we didn't really learn about the actual events surrounding Watergate in school. Seems like it would be a pretty significant time in US history that students should know, but all we learned is that Nixon is the only president to resign.
Beloved By Toni Morrison
A very very hard read. Know what you're getting into with this book. It's extremely heavy. The subject matter, that is. However, please do read it! It's also very important. So very sad.
A Long Way Gone: Memoirs Of A Boy Soldier By Ishmael Beah
EVERYONE should read this book. It's been probably 15 years since I read it and I still think about it regularly.
Angela’s Ashes: A Memoir By Frank McCourt
This book was sometimes brutal to read. I’d be on the verge of tears reading how desperate their situation was. But some parts were also funny and mischievous. Not a summer beach read, but a good book for the lengthening days of Fall and Winter.
In Cold Blood By Truman Capote
Charlotte’s Web By E.B. White
Spoiler Alert.... It broke my heart when Charlotte died and I am not a lover of spiders at all.
Little Women By Louisa May Alcott
I grew up reading these books, I think because I associated myself with Jo. A lovely lovely set of stories
The Diary Of A Young Girl By Anne Frank
Fahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury
The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe By C.S. Lewis
The Chronicals of Narnia is a great series. I've read them many times.
Animal Farm By George Orwell
Lord Of The Flies By William Golding
Reading this as a child and again as an adult put a whole new view to it
The Complete Tales And Poems Of Edgar Allan Poe By Edgar Allan Poe
The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn By Mark Twain
Daring Greatly: How The Courage To Be Vulnerable Transforms The Way We Live, Love, Parent, And Lead By Brené Brown
Yes! Yes, yes, yes! Shame is incredibly destructive, yet few people even recognize when they're feeling it.
Harry Potter And The Sorcerer’s Stone By J.K. Rowling
The Iliad By Homer
Oh we had to read this in HS... I literally couldn't get to page 2. I read page 1 over and over again and not a word made sense to me... I was lucky Troy was in theaters later that month...
Alice’s Adventures In Wonderland & Through The Looking-Glass By Lewis Carroll
The Grapes Of Wrath By John Steinbeck
Fairy Tales And Stories By Hans Christian Andersen
Slaughterhouse-Five By Kurt Vonnegut
The Man Who Mistook His Wife For A Hat: And Other Clinical Tales By Oliver Sacks
The Immortal Life Of Henrietta Lacks By Rebecca Skloot
Read this!!! This woman gave everything. Her life, her family. And they got nothing! Her immortal cells saved countless lives!
The World According To Garp By John Irving
A Prayer for Owen Meany is one of the most exquisite books I have ever read. I wish I had never read it so I could read it for the 1st time again
And Then There Were None By Agatha Christie
The class and race issues are painful to read with today's sensibilities but a great story.
The Joy Luck Club By Amy Tan
The Devil In The White City: Murder, Magic, And Madness At The Fair That Changed America By Erik Larson
I normally don’t like stories about serial killers, but this book pulled me in. It was part historical novel, part horror story. It was absolutely riveting. Holy Moly.
The Catcher In The Rye By J.D. Salinger
The Golden Compass By Philip Pullman
Brave New World By Aldous Huxley
The Count Of Monte Cristo By Alexandre Dumas
Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret By Judy Blume
Catch-22 By Joseph Heller
My favourit book of all time. I've bought this at least five times (I'm 78). It gets worn out and tatty after about six or seven years.
The Color Purple By Alice Walker
Wuthering Heights By Emily Brontë
Moby Dick By Herman Melville
Crime And Punishment By Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Me Talk Pretty One Day By David Sedaris
The Road By Cormac McCarthy
Read this as part of a book club. Disturbing book, but well-crafted, with a particularly brutal scene. A tribute to the love of a parent for their child. Another book that stays with you.
Tess Of The D'urbervilles By Thomas Hardy
The Fault In Our Stars By John Green
Absolutely heart-wrenching. Brilliant book, aimed at YA but like most 'teenage' books it's no different to adult fiction. I loved this book, and the movie too, but I can't read or watch them again - so upsetting.
The Giver By Lois Lowry
I read this book when I was 11, it made me very uncomfortable. Looking back, I'm incredibly glad I did.
Never Let Me Go By Kazuo Ishiguro
Unbroken: A World War II Story Of Survival, Resilience, And Redemption By Laura Hillenbrand
The Kite Runner By Khaled Hosseini
Middlemarch By George Eliot
A Confederacy Of Dunces By John Kennedy Toole
Definitive book about the quirky soul and quirky characters of New Orleans. Enjoyable and hilarious. The story behind Toole’s attempts to get this book published is sad. But his mama persisted, and we are now the beneficiaries of his imagination.
Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas: A Savage Journey To The Heart Of The American Dream By Hunter S. Thompson
Lolita By Vladimir Nabokov
Uncomfortable read. Very uncomfortable. You're in a pedophile's head listening to him justify his attraction to a young girl. 🤢
The Right Stuff By Tom Wolfe
Between The World And Me By Ta-Nehisi Coates
The Things They Carried By Tim O’Brien
Heart Of Darkness By Joseph Conrad
The Old Man And The Sea By Ernest Hemingway
Faust By Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe
Epic Of Gilgamesh By Unknown
Interpreter Of Maladies By Jhumpa Lahiri
Moneyball: The Art Of Winning An Unfair Game By Michael Lewis
In Search Of Lost Time By Marcel Proust
Poems Of Emily Dickinson By Emily Dickinson
Bleak House By Charles Dickens
I've read fewer that I care to admit, even to myself. Did I miss "Of Mice and Men"? The most beautiful opening paragraphs in all of English literature.
Does anyone ever go out and read a book that's recommended by just looking at the front cover of a book? Yet another listing just posted on here with no thought for us the readers... sorry but i'm not wasting my time looking at book covers hoping for a decent read. It's the same when people post films, where are the write ups? In order to be a successful poster or blogger you need to put some work into doing a project. All you have done here is cut and paste book covers .... nope ...
I've read fewer that I care to admit, even to myself. Did I miss "Of Mice and Men"? The most beautiful opening paragraphs in all of English literature.
Does anyone ever go out and read a book that's recommended by just looking at the front cover of a book? Yet another listing just posted on here with no thought for us the readers... sorry but i'm not wasting my time looking at book covers hoping for a decent read. It's the same when people post films, where are the write ups? In order to be a successful poster or blogger you need to put some work into doing a project. All you have done here is cut and paste book covers .... nope ...
