Polls for Our Souls discussion

In you guys opinion, what are must read books for every book lover? I see discussions on here and posts that reference alot of books and characters i'm not familiar with. What do you guys think are must read books to be able to be considered "well read" for a lack of better thinking. I would like to take place in more discussions and such on here and I was thinking this is the first step. :)

The You I've Never Known is a really great book by Ellen Hopkins!

That depends on what genre you're more interested in knowing more about (:

I creeped on your profile (just a little) and saw that you're into YA fantasy. As far as that genre goes, the "must reads" are The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare, The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer, The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater, A Court of Thorns and Roses series by Sarah J. Maas (although this is more adult), and Six of Crows duology by Leigh Bardugo. Hopefully this will help you! If you need any more recommendations just let me know (:

If you mean great literature, try this

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Le_Mo...

Reading this list would make you among the best read on GR. It might not always be fun.

I think the link Peter provided is a great resource for you.
Additionally, I suggest the following books ABOUT books.
1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die
This is the same idea as the link Peter gave. It provides titles, background information, and a short summary of 1001 great works.
How to Read a Book: The Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading
I know it sounds like a silly title, but this is an important work that teaches you how to be a more critical reader, so you will be able to get more out of all those classics you want to read. (Be careful to get the 1940 book by Adler and Van Doren, not one of the countless other books with similar titles!)
The Art of X-Ray Reading
This is one of the best books I have read in the last couple of years. Clark explains different techniques to help you understand and appreciate what you read. He gives examples from many classic works of literature to guide you.

In my opinion, if you want to become more well-read (and well-rounded), you should NOT stick to the genres you already know you like. It sounds like you already know this, or you wouldn't be asking the question. There's nothing wrong with reading within your comfort zone some of the time, but stretching out of that comfort zone is very beneficial. Peter's right; it might not always be fun. One of the things that helped me do this was joining book discussion groups in my community. This forces me to read books that I would not ordinarily pick up, and gives me the opportunity to discuss them with some really well-read and intelligent people. Check your local library to see what book discussion groups they host, or to inquire about starting one!
Happy reading!

Definitely Harry Potter, A List of Cages, Wonder, and the Hunger Games.

I think being considered "well read" is a weird thing because it depends what sort of things people talk about... Like, I read lots of historical fiction, classic novels, YA novels, but if anyone ever asks about scifi I'm lost. I read Ender's Game to be "well read" and it was just not my thing. The lists that people have been giving are good generally, and I think Nyla's advice to branch out is good, but don't beat yourself up trying to read books that you don't like!
If you want to be well read so you can participate in discussions when books come up, check out "How to talk about books you haven't read" by Pierre Bayard.
It's kind of sacrilegious, but the point is that no one can ever really be well-read, and the people who seem to be are just super confident.
But still, I think I might also try to make it through some of those lists... :)

Twilight
The Hunger Games
Harry Potter
The Mortal Instruments
Infernal Devices
Lunar Chronicles
Throne of Glass
A Court of Thorns and Roses
Raven Boys
Those are just some of the “iconic”/“popular” books I think about. Must reads...but only if you like the genre

Infernal Devices
Mortal Interments
Anna Dressed in Blood
The Collector - Victoria Scott (Not as well known or talked about here on the site but it's a very good read. One of my personal favorites. )
Throne of Glass
Vampire Academy
Just to name some of the ones I've seen talked about the most on here. But don't do it if you don't think you'll enjoy the genre, seeing as I'm a firm believer that if you can't get into it or think that you wont like it from the description then don't put yourself through something your not going to enjoy reading.

Cassandra Clare books
ILLUMINAE FILES FOR LIFE - it may be hard to follow for a bit, but stick with it is AWESOME

It's hard to say because it depends on what genre you like to read. Some people consider some classics a must read, but I've never read one. In terms of ya fiction/fantasy, everything I'd consider a must read has already been names ;)

all the light we cannot see by anthony doerr

Anything from the shadowhunter chronicles -although my favorite is Clockwork Angel- and Wild Beauty oh and Fangirl oooooo and frozen charlotte ok I'm done now

Also forgot to mention the Stalking Jack the Ripper series is good too

The Nightingale by Kristen Hannah, The Lunar Chronicles, Heartless by Melissa Meyer

so many amazing titles already mentioned here! i totally agree about the infernal devices, all the light we cannot see, and wonder, but i'd love to add the book thief and to kill a mockingbird on the list :)

I think the only must-reads, really, are the classics? And then some. I mean, personally I think the books that most people reference are

The Great Gatsby
The Catcher In the Rye (even though it's boring af.)
Harry Potter
The Picture of Dorian Gray
IT
To Kill a Mockingbird (haven't read it yet, might change my mind)

Wonder. It’s a children’s book but I’ve read it over five times and still love it.

Well read in what context? Are you a teenager who wants to be up on the latest books? Are you an adult who wants to be considered a literary reader? Do you aspire to read the 100 top books of all time (i.e., classics both ancient and modern)? Or do you just want to sound smart at your book club? Define your terms a little better and I think you will get better and more pertinent suggestions.

Wonder
Pay it Forward
The Mortal Instruments
The Darkest Minds
We all Looked Up
The Wolves of Mercy Falls

Just read them all

Oh yeah The Fault in Our Stars