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Must Read Classics
My favorite books are the classics. I'm always searching for "new" classics to read, ones I've not heard of or have overlooked. Let me know which ones you love!
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A book’s total score is based on multiple factors, including the number of people who have voted for it and how highly those voters ranked the book.
| 400 |
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Lullaby
by
Chuck Palahniuk (Goodreads Author)
3.74 avg rating — 102,823 ratings
score: 855,
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9 people voted
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| 402 |
|
The 39 Steps (Richard Hannay, #1)
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3.59 avg rating — 45,407 ratings
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| 403 |
|
The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials, #1)
by
4.03 avg rating — 1,599,963 ratings
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| 404 |
|
Kristin Lavransdatter
by
4.31 avg rating — 14,044 ratings
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| 405 |
|
Almost Transparent Blue
by
3.29 avg rating — 13,064 ratings
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| 406 |
|
The Pilgrim's Progress
by
4.07 avg rating — 155,379 ratings
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| 407 |
|
The Mayor of Casterbridge
by
3.86 avg rating — 65,350 ratings
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| 408 |
|
Death in Venice and Other Tales
by
3.92 avg rating — 16,123 ratings
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| 408 |
|
The Raven
by
4.29 avg rating — 164,868 ratings
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| 408 |
|
Crime (Ray Lennox, #1)
by
3.65 avg rating — 5,863 ratings
score: 817,
and
9 people voted
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| 411 |
|
Heart of a Dog
by
4.09 avg rating — 69,427 ratings
score: 816,
and
9 people voted
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| 412 |
|
Starship Troopers
by
4.01 avg rating — 242,993 ratings
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| 413 |
|
A Confederacy of Dunces
by
3.89 avg rating — 293,443 ratings
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| 414 |
|
Selected Poems
by
4.18 avg rating — 29,836 ratings
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| 414 |
|
The New York Trilogy (New York Trilogy, #1-3)
by
3.86 avg rating — 85,098 ratings
score: 787,
and
9 people voted
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| 416 |
|
The Bad Beginning (A Series of Unfortunate Events, #1)
by
Lemony Snicket (Goodreads Author)
4.02 avg rating — 562,117 ratings
score: 785,
and
9 people voted
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| 417 |
|
Choke
by
Chuck Palahniuk (Goodreads Author)
3.71 avg rating — 219,253 ratings
score: 779,
and
9 people voted
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| 418 |
|
Story of the Eye
by
3.65 avg rating — 24,634 ratings
score: 778,
and
9 people voted
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| 419 |
|
Imperial Bedrooms
by
3.20 avg rating — 20,575 ratings
score: 777,
and
9 people voted
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| 420 |
|
Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions
by
3.81 avg rating — 76,180 ratings
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| 421 |
|
Matching Configurations (Quantum Roots, #3)
by
Kyle Keyes (Goodreads Author)
4.30 avg rating — 6,792 ratings
score: 772,
and
9 people voted
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| 422 |
|
Breakfast of Champions
by
4.06 avg rating — 276,405 ratings
score: 771,
and
9 people voted
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| 423 |
|
The Adventures of Augie March
by
3.84 avg rating — 18,754 ratings
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| 423 |
|
Save Yourself
by
Kelly Braffet (Goodreads Author)
3.48 avg rating — 3,913 ratings
score: 766,
and
9 people voted
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| 425 |
|
Buddenbrooks: The Decline of a Family
by
4.20 avg rating — 34,545 ratings
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| 425 |
|
Bridge to Terabithia
by
4.06 avg rating — 582,554 ratings
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| 427 |
|
Gone Girl
by
Gillian Flynn (Goodreads Author)
4.14 avg rating — 3,381,169 ratings
score: 760,
and
9 people voted
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| 428 |
|
The Iceman Cometh
by
3.90 avg rating — 10,084 ratings
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| 429 |
|
Os Lusiadas
by
3.99 avg rating — 9,305 ratings
score: 755,
and
9 people voted
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| 430 |
|
Pygmalion
by
3.89 avg rating — 108,694 ratings
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| 431 |
|
Dancing with The Field: Bringing Joy, Passion and Play into Everyday Life
by
Kris Kelkar (Goodreads Author)
4.41 avg rating — 108 ratings
score: 753,
and
8 people voted
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| 432 |
|
Lord Jim
by
3.61 avg rating — 32,616 ratings
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| 433 |
|
Dark Rooms
by
Lili Anolik (Goodreads Author)
3.14 avg rating — 3,445 ratings
score: 730,
and
8 people voted
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| 434 |
|
Tuck Everlasting
by
3.91 avg rating — 291,188 ratings
score: 729,
and
8 people voted
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| 435 |
|
Childhood's End
by
4.12 avg rating — 170,938 ratings
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| 435 |
|
Cold Comfort Farm
by
3.88 avg rating — 54,144 ratings
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| 437 |
|
Nana
by
3.84 avg rating — 27,242 ratings
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| 438 |
|
Queer
by
3.50 avg rating — 22,173 ratings
score: 722,
and
8 people voted
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| 439 |
|
Sometimes a Great Notion
by
4.26 avg rating — 23,598 ratings
score: 721,
and
9 people voted
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| 440 |
|
Anne of the Island (Anne of Green Gables, #3)
by
4.28 avg rating — 190,277 ratings
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| 440 |
|
Coin Locker Babies
by
3.80 avg rating — 9,504 ratings
score: 720,
and
8 people voted
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| 440 |
|
Mystic River
by
Dennis Lehane (Goodreads Author)
4.17 avg rating — 161,883 ratings
score: 720,
and
8 people voted
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| 443 |
|
Tropic of Capricorn (Tropic, #2)
by
3.81 avg rating — 21,134 ratings
score: 716,
and
8 people voted
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| 444 |
|
The Yellow Wall-Paper
by
4.07 avg rating — 343,147 ratings
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| 444 |
|
Dead Babies
by
3.38 avg rating — 6,346 ratings
score: 715,
and
8 people voted
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| 446 |
|
Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
by
3.76 avg rating — 75,669 ratings
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| 447 |
|
Adam Bede
by
3.83 avg rating — 26,226 ratings
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| 448 |
|
The Velveteen Rabbit
by
4.31 avg rating — 270,069 ratings
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| 449 |
|
Lonesome Dove (Lonesome Dove, #1)
by
4.57 avg rating — 226,718 ratings
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| 449 |
|
Wolf Hall (Thomas Cromwell, #1)
by
3.91 avg rating — 229,139 ratings
score: 706,
and
9 people voted
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| 451 |
|
Frisk
by
3.65 avg rating — 3,976 ratings
score: 703,
and
8 people voted
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| 452 |
|
Big Sur
by
3.84 avg rating — 37,391 ratings
score: 701,
and
8 people voted
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| 453 |
|
Cocaine Nights
by
3.56 avg rating — 6,645 ratings
score: 700,
and
8 people voted
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| 453 |
|
Manifesto of the Free People's Union
by
Jakub Lasak (Goodreads Author)
4.52 avg rating — 33 ratings
score: 700,
and
7 people voted
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| 455 |
|
Brighton Rock
by
3.69 avg rating — 35,138 ratings
score: 698,
and
8 people voted
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| 455 |
|
The Bachman Books
by
Richard Bachman (Pseudonym)
4.15 avg rating — 74,452 ratings
score: 698,
and
9 people voted
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| 457 |
|
The Prince of Tides
by
4.26 avg rating — 214,609 ratings
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| 458 |
|
Stranger in a Strange Land
by
3.92 avg rating — 324,263 ratings
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| 459 |
|
Joan of Arc
by
4.11 avg rating — 7,433 ratings
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| 460 |
|
The House of the Spirits
by
Isabel Allende (Goodreads Author)
4.29 avg rating — 308,869 ratings
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| 461 |
|
Franz Kafka's The Castle
by
David Fishelson (Adapter)
4.10 avg rating — 28,619 ratings
score: 690,
and
8 people voted
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| 462 |
|
J.R.R. Tolkien 4-Book Boxed Set: The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings
by
4.61 avg rating — 142,194 ratings
score: 689,
and
9 people voted
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| 463 |
|
The Man in the High Castle
by
3.59 avg rating — 230,946 ratings
score: 688,
and
8 people voted
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| 463 |
|
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
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3.89 avg rating — 1,577,026 ratings
score: 688,
and
9 people voted
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| 465 |
|
In the Miso Soup
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3.62 avg rating — 42,527 ratings
score: 687,
and
8 people voted
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| 466 |
|
The Magic Mountain
by
4.13 avg rating — 59,355 ratings
score: 686,
and
9 people voted
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| 467 |
|
Inkheart (Inkworld, #1)
by
Cornelia Funke (Goodreads Author)
3.93 avg rating — 439,915 ratings
score: 682,
and
9 people voted
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| 468 |
|
Train Dreams
by
3.90 avg rating — 30,036 ratings
score: 679,
and
8 people voted
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| 469 |
|
Tales of H.P. Lovecraft
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4.19 avg rating — 6,523 ratings
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| 470 |
|
Jesus’ Son
by
4.13 avg rating — 39,524 ratings
score: 672,
and
8 people voted
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| 470 |
|
The Sex Lives of Siamese Twins
by
3.66 avg rating — 5,491 ratings
score: 672,
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8 people voted
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| 472 |
|
The Mysterious Island (Captain Nemo, #3)
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4.13 avg rating — 58,156 ratings
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| 473 |
|
Death Comes for the Archbishop
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3.97 avg rating — 42,218 ratings
score: 663,
and
9 people voted
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| 474 |
|
Nutshell
by
Ian McEwan (Goodreads Author)
3.68 avg rating — 56,717 ratings
score: 660,
and
7 people voted
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| 475 |
|
Dr. Faustus
by
3.80 avg rating — 71,313 ratings
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| 476 |
|
The Ways of Autumn
by
William Graney (Goodreads Author)
4.43 avg rating — 119 ratings
score: 657,
and
8 people voted
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| 477 |
|
The City of Ember (Book of Ember, #1)
by
3.90 avg rating — 296,195 ratings
score: 652,
and
8 people voted
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| 478 |
|
Effi Briest
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3.27 avg rating — 15,941 ratings
score: 651,
and
9 people voted
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| 479 |
|
An Old-Fashioned Girl
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4.09 avg rating — 22,002 ratings
score: 646,
and
9 people voted
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| 479 |
|
The Grifters
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3.93 avg rating — 12,019 ratings
score: 646,
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8 people voted
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| 481 |
|
Out of the Silent Planet (The Space Trilogy, #1)
by
3.93 avg rating — 104,466 ratings
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| 482 |
|
Little Men (Little Women, #2)
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3.88 avg rating — 67,267 ratings
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| 483 |
|
If on a Winter’s Night a Traveler
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4.02 avg rating — 109,164 ratings
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| 484 |
|
Jurassic Park (Jurassic Park, #1)
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4.13 avg rating — 1,040,761 ratings
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| 485 |
|
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
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3.70 avg rating — 59,776 ratings
score: 636,
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9 people voted
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| 486 |
|
Crash
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3.59 avg rating — 28,705 ratings
score: 627,
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7 people voted
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| 487 |
|
Absalom, Absalom!
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3.99 avg rating — 47,292 ratings
score: 625,
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9 people voted
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| 488 |
|
Rant: An Oral Biography of Buster Casey
by
Chuck Palahniuk (Goodreads Author)
3.84 avg rating — 69,870 ratings
score: 624,
and
7 people voted
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| 489 |
|
A High Wind in Jamaica
by
3.76 avg rating — 10,388 ratings
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| 489 |
|
The Great Santini
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4.16 avg rating — 34,430 ratings
score: 622,
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8 people voted
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| 489 |
|
Delta of Venus
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3.61 avg rating — 24,938 ratings
score: 622,
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7 people voted
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| 492 |
|
The Major Works
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4.04 avg rating — 7,039 ratings
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| 493 |
|
Tree of Smoke
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3.60 avg rating — 15,005 ratings
score: 620,
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7 people voted
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| 494 |
|
The Rum Diary
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3.85 avg rating — 65,053 ratings
score: 617,
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| 495 |
|
Love in the Time of Cholera
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3.94 avg rating — 538,954 ratings
score: 616,
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| 496 |
|
The Secret Agent
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3.58 avg rating — 24,419 ratings
score: 614,
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9 people voted
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| 496 |
|
Last Exit to Brooklyn
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3.92 avg rating — 28,920 ratings
score: 614,
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| 498 |
|
4 3 2 1
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3.97 avg rating — 36,300 ratings
score: 613,
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7 people voted
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| 498 |
|
Ham on Rye
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4.14 avg rating — 116,528 ratings
score: 613,
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7 people voted
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| 500 |
|
High-Rise
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3.60 avg rating — 36,927 ratings
score: 606,
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Tags:
classic, literary-fiction
1729 likes · Like
Lists are re-scored approximately every 5 minutes.
Jenny
1695 books
75 friends
75 friends
Kathryn
575 books
128 friends
128 friends
Brooke
127 books
20 friends
20 friends
Antoine
949 books
177 friends
177 friends
Susanna - Censored by GoodReads
3384 books
853 friends
853 friends
Erin
563 books
65 friends
65 friends
Mary
1150 books
28 friends
28 friends
Jill
1716 books
98 friends
98 friends
More voters…
Comments Showing 1-50 of 73 (73 new)
message 1:
by
Silvana
(new)
Sep 04, 2008 07:03PM
there are two "to kill a mockingbird". how to delete one?
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Silvana wrote: "there are two "to kill a mockingbird". how to delete one?"there are three wuthering heights - i voted for 'em all
You've a bit of Russian lit on here. If you enjoy it, and you've not read these already, you might try: Mikhail Bulgakov's "The Master and Margarita"
Nikolai Gogol's "Dead Souls"
The team of Pevear and Volokhonsky is my current favorite for Russian to English translation whenever I can find them. They do very well capturing the "flavor" and sensibilities of the original Russian.
I give it a week before the Bible or Book of Mormon supplants Camus as number one.
This is a great list! Eventually I'll work my way through it...lol
It's nice to know someone else is enjoying these books besides me! If only I could find someone in High School who enjoys them this much! Love your list and will hopefully be able to make it through all 456 books!!!
Emily, I love these books. Some strange ones slipped in this list but I really like them on the whole.
Some of these are not classics yet.
Great list! I'm a lover of classics myself, and if you haven't read them already, I highly recommend "La dame aux camelias" by Alexandre Dumas fils and "Manon Lescaut" by L'Abbe Prevost. They are some really great books that have been much neglected by readers. These two stories are similar but not alike.
Anne wrote: "Great list! I'm a lover of classics myself, and if you haven't read them already, I highly recommend "La dame aux camelias" by Alexandre Dumas fils and "Manon Lescaut" by L'Abbe Prevost. They are ..."
Anne, I just downloaded Manon Lescaut from Project Gutenberg. I could not find Dumas' La Dame aux Camelias. Thank you for the suggestions. I will find it somewhere else.
Anne, I just downloaded Manon Lescaut from Project Gutenberg. I could not find Dumas' La Dame aux Camelias. Thank you for the suggestions. I will find it somewhere else.
And diary of a wimpy kid dog days! What on earth?
Charlotte's web should be on that list. Its a true classic.
There are several repeats, I noticed The Bible, "To Kill a Mockingbird," "I capture the Castle," and "Metamorphosis." They are the different formats of the same book on here twice.... Can it be fixed?
Librarians' can change it, I think.
I removed diary of a wimpy kid from the list, but I am not sure if I should remove Harry Potter or not since I don't know how old a book can be before it is deemed a "classic."
I tried to do a check for duplicates but some of the books are wierd. For example, there is a 7 in one book for the Chronicles of Narnia, but there is also the first two in separate places on the list. Unfortunately, those can't be combined and if I delete one than votes will be lost, also being on the delete book page scares me, because if I delete something I shouldn't than my librarian privileges could be revoked. I value my librarian status too much to risk that.
Danielle wrote: "I removed diary of a wimpy kid from the list, but I am not sure if I should remove Harry Potter or not since I don't know how old a book can be before it is deemed a "classic.""I know that it has been a while but I agree with your decision to keep Harry Potter. It may not be a classic now, exactly, but I believe that one day it will be.
Can anyone recommend a publisher of hard cover classics? Or a book club where I can purchase them? I'd like to begin a library to pass on to my family's future generations. Thank you.
Classics are just phenomenal! They are basis of books today and a reason why I keep reading!
Anne wrote: "Great list! I'm a lover of classics myself, and if you haven't read them already, I highly recommend "La dame aux camelias" by Alexandre Dumas fils and "Manon Lescaut" by L'Abbe Prevost. They are ..."It is impossible I have finally got somenone who loves La dame aux camelias, this story is one of the best love stories EVER>
It's pretty easy to add books to lists; at the top of the list, at the tab next to "all votes."
Susanna wrote: "It's pretty easy to add books to lists; at the top of the list, at the tab next to "all votes.""How does #181 Isn't It Pretty To Think So? qualify for this list?
Because those same 12 people have spammed it on 27 pages of Listopias! (Was 28, but I removed it from a few, like "Time's Top 10 Novels of 2012," which it wasn't.)
Removed, because a book published in 2012 is not a classic in the terms of this list:Isn't It Pretty To Think So?
some books are not classics and so should be removed
Dorothy wrote: "Can anyone recommend a publisher of hard cover classics? Or a book club where I can purchase them? I'd like to begin a library to pass on to my family's future generations. Thank you."Great idea - building a library to pass on to future generations. Thanks for the idea!
The Godfather is a classic? I liked it but a classic?
The movie is a classic. Haven't read the book.
I read the book and the part about the horse was much too graphic. I would not call it a classic yet but I am not sure how that is determined.
Is there a list for classic movies? (will search)
thanks
Is there a list for classic movies? (will search)
thanks
There are several for movies, don't know if there's a list for that or not, though. (There's at least one of all of these, though: book and movie both good, book better than movie, movie better than book.)
My definition of "classic" is about as liberal as you're going to find. In going through this list, I found and removed some titles published within the last ten-fifteen years:The Fault In Our Stars
The Book Thief
The Five People You Meet In Heaven
Dear John
Sense & Sensibility by Joanna Trollope (this is a YA modernization of the classic Austen novel)
Code Name Verity
Don't Sweat the Small Stuff... And It's All Small Stuff
Looking For Alaska
I Know This Much Is True
Angela's Ashes
Many of these books are good, but it's too soon to say whether they'll become classics for future readers.
Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia-Marques is the greatest novel of the twentieth century IMHO.Archy and Mehitabel by Don Marquis is a great cycle of poetry.
The Illustrated Man by the late Ray Bradbury is excellent as are ANY OF HIS WRITINGS!
Other good reads:
The Devil's Storybook by Natalie Babbitt
Hawaii by James Mitchener
Clarence Darrow: Attorney for the Damned by John A. Farrell
A Bend in the River by V.S. Naipaul
i have just retired an want a place to start reading,i have read a lot but want to read classics at this point, why? because i want to see what the great thinkers and writes had to draw on to get where they got with the knowledge they saw before them
I am very surprised to see The Scarlet Pimpernel on the list. Although Baroness Orczy should be credited for creating the disguised-hero-alter-ego oeuvre, I don't think that she had any talent!
One of the best non-fiction short stories I ever read was Jack London's People of the Abyss. It is a harrowing sociological study of the East End of London around the time of Jack the Ripper. This is a great classic and one that most people should read if for no other reason than to put that time frame in context. You will be thanking God that you live in this time as opposed to that time after reading this book. It is available to download on gutenberg https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1688
Bruce wrote: "i have just retired an want a place to start reading,i have read a lot but want to read classics at this point, why? because i want to see what the great thinkers and writes had to draw on to get w..."Hi Bruce, I retired from "corporate America" recently but am doing lots of different things now. I too am catching up on my reading. I think this list is a pretty good place to start. I've read seven of the top ten and Jane Eyre is next!
This list is way too long. A lot of these aren't classics, especially the books on the latter pages.
Greg wrote: "Bruce wrote: "i have just retired an want a place to start reading,i have read a lot but want to read classics at this point, why? because i want to see what the great thinkers and writes had to dr..."Bruce, I read Jane Eyre. Worst book I've ever read. IF you dare read it, don't say I didn't warn you.
what definition is being used for "classic" ? i'd say some are too recent to be included.
I checked for duplicates and removed 17.
I went and typed this out on a spreadsheet & removed duplicates. The Harry Potter series is in there at least three times, still.
From the 1046 I have 956 non-duplicated books.
I love the classics for sure, but I just don't get the fascination with Gatsby or Catcher in the Rye... just because it's old doesn't make it a classic.
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