Books That Everyone Should Read At Least Once
Books that encourage thought
1 To Kill a Mockingbird
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4.22 of 5 stars 4.22 avg rating — 1,395,387 ratings
2 1984
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4.06 of 5 stars 4.06 avg rating — 906,930 ratings
3 Pride and Prejudice
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4.23 of 5 stars 4.23 avg rating — 968,850 ratings
4 Harry Potter and the Sorcer...
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4.35 of 5 stars 4.35 avg rating — 1,792,370 ratings
5 The Diary of a Young Girl
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4.04 of 5 stars 4.04 avg rating — 901,577 ratings
6 Animal Farm
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3.75 of 5 stars 3.75 avg rating — 981,103 ratings
7 The Hobbit
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4.18 of 5 stars 4.18 avg rating — 1,045,544 ratings
8 The Catcher in the Rye
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3.76 of 5 stars 3.76 avg rating — 1,093,147 ratings
9 The Little Prince
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4.21 of 5 stars 4.21 avg rating — 302,870 ratings
10 To Kill a Mockingbird
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4.22 of 5 stars 4.22 avg rating — 1,395,387 ratings
11 The Great Gatsby
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3.79 of 5 stars 3.79 avg rating — 1,151,280 ratings
12 Romeo and Juliet
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3.72 of 5 stars 3.72 avg rating — 912,296 ratings
13 Jane Eyre
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4.06 of 5 stars 4.06 avg rating — 646,397 ratings
14 The Chronicles of Narnia (C...
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4.22 of 5 stars 4.22 avg rating — 208,128 ratings
15 Lord of the Flies
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3.59 of 5 stars 3.59 avg rating — 907,213 ratings
16 Green Eggs and Ham
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4.32 of 5 stars 4.32 avg rating — 277,714 ratings
17 The Lord of the Rings (The ...
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4.41 of 5 stars 4.41 avg rating — 207,209 ratings
18 Fahrenheit 451
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3.92 of 5 stars 3.92 avg rating — 512,779 ratings
19 The Giving Tree
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4.37 of 5 stars 4.37 avg rating — 352,832 ratings
20 Charlotte's Web
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4.1 of 5 stars 4.10 avg rating — 416,948 ratings
21 The Kite Runner
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4.18 of 5 stars 4.18 avg rating — 875,099 ratings
22 The Giver (The Giver, #1)
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4.11 of 5 stars 4.11 avg rating — 530,016 ratings
23 Night  (The Night Trilogy, #1)
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4.25 of 5 stars 4.25 avg rating — 320,570 ratings
24 Alice's Adventures in Wonde...
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4.04 of 5 stars 4.04 avg rating — 193,903 ratings
25 Harry Potter and the Deathl...
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4.54 of 5 stars 4.54 avg rating — 906,788 ratings
26 Little Women (Little Women ...
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3.97 of 5 stars 3.97 avg rating — 729,334 ratings
27 Holy Bible: King James Version
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4.34 of 5 stars 4.34 avg rating — 76,073 ratings
28 Wuthering Heights
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3.76 of 5 stars 3.76 avg rating — 427,857 ratings
29 The Adventures of Huckleber...
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3.77 of 5 stars 3.77 avg rating — 698,671 ratings
30 Gone with the Wind
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4.22 of 5 stars 4.22 avg rating — 463,005 ratings
31 Brave New World
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3.9 of 5 stars 3.90 avg rating — 547,394 ratings
32 Of Mice and Men
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3.75 of 5 stars 3.75 avg rating — 794,914 ratings
33 The Hunger Games (The Hunge...
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4.44 of 5 stars 4.44 avg rating — 1,574,773 ratings
34 Hamlet
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3.99 of 5 stars 3.99 avg rating — 274,735 ratings
35 The Book Thief
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4.35 of 5 stars 4.35 avg rating — 302,713 ratings
36 The Hitchhiker's Guide to t...
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4.14 of 5 stars 4.14 avg rating — 515,712 ratings
37 The Picture of Dorian Gray
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3.99 of 5 stars 3.99 avg rating — 252,576 ratings
38 The Cat in the Hat
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4.12 of 5 stars 4.12 avg rating — 160,711 ratings
39 Harry Potter and the Prison...
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4.44 of 5 stars 4.44 avg rating — 935,867 ratings
40 Les Misérables
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4.04 of 5 stars 4.04 avg rating — 311,131 ratings
41 Crime and Punishment
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4.12 of 5 stars 4.12 avg rating — 191,204 ratings
42 Harry Potter and the Goblet...
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4.44 of 5 stars 4.44 avg rating — 909,695 ratings
43 Memoirs of a Geisha
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4.0 of 5 stars 4.00 avg rating — 780,833 ratings
44 The Odyssey
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3.64 of 5 stars 3.64 avg rating — 449,961 ratings
45 Harry Potter and the Half-B...
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4.46 of 5 stars 4.46 avg rating — 874,608 ratings
46 The Color Purple
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4.11 of 5 stars 4.11 avg rating — 195,538 ratings
47 Where the Sidewalk Ends
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4.22 of 5 stars 4.22 avg rating — 659,582 ratings
48 The Lion, the Witch, and th...
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4.14 of 5 stars 4.14 avg rating — 627,569 ratings
49 Where the Wild Things Are
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4.26 of 5 stars 4.26 avg rating — 273,924 ratings
50 The Secret Garden
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4.09 of 5 stars 4.09 avg rating — 320,033 ratings
51 Oh, the Places You'll Go!
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4.31 of 5 stars 4.31 avg rating — 117,195 ratings
52 Winnie-the-Pooh
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4.32 of 5 stars 4.32 avg rating — 103,502 ratings
53 The Grapes of Wrath
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3.85 of 5 stars 3.85 avg rating — 267,634 ratings
54 One Flew Over the Cuckoo's ...
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4.15 of 5 stars 4.15 avg rating — 244,758 ratings
55 Anne of Green Gables (Anne ...
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4.2 of 5 stars 4.20 avg rating — 261,428 ratings
56 The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
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3.84 of 5 stars 3.84 avg rating — 234,181 ratings
57 Ender's Game (Ender's Saga,...
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4.28 of 5 stars 4.28 avg rating — 400,924 ratings
58 A Tale of Two Cities
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3.71 of 5 stars 3.71 avg rating — 402,260 ratings
59 One Hundred Years of Solitude
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3.94 of 5 stars 3.94 avg rating — 323,847 ratings
60 Tuesdays With Morrie
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3.95 of 5 stars 3.95 avg rating — 261,358 ratings
61 Catch-22
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3.95 of 5 stars 3.95 avg rating — 271,677 ratings
62 The Alchemist
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3.7 of 5 stars 3.70 avg rating — 587,642 ratings
63 A Christmas Carol
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3.96 of 5 stars 3.96 avg rating — 166,053 ratings
64 Flowers for Algernon
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3.92 of 5 stars 3.92 avg rating — 140,668 ratings
65 The Outsiders
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3.97 of 5 stars 3.97 avg rating — 274,558 ratings
66 A Thousand Splendid Suns
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4.28 of 5 stars 4.28 avg rating — 386,941 ratings
67 The Scarlet Letter
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3.3 of 5 stars 3.30 avg rating — 272,307 ratings
68 Slaughterhouse-Five
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3.97 of 5 stars 3.97 avg rating — 470,101 ratings
69 Twilight (Twilight, #1)
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3.58 of 5 stars 3.58 avg rating — 1,648,291 ratings
70 Anna Karenina
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3.98 of 5 stars 3.98 avg rating — 182,994 ratings
71 Life of Pi
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3.84 of 5 stars 3.84 avg rating — 479,538 ratings
72 The Time Traveler's Wife
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3.9 of 5 stars 3.90 avg rating — 690,455 ratings
73 Goodnight Moon
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4.25 of 5 stars 4.25 avg rating — 130,840 ratings
74 The Fellowship of the Ring ...
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4.27 of 5 stars 4.27 avg rating — 799,894 ratings
75 The Old Man and the Sea
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3.58 of 5 stars 3.58 avg rating — 224,772 ratings
76 The Count of Monte Cristo
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4.1 of 5 stars 4.10 avg rating — 348,087 ratings
77 Siddhartha
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3.91 of 5 stars 3.91 avg rating — 176,828 ratings
78 Macbeth
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3.85 of 5 stars 3.85 avg rating — 247,777 ratings
79 Lolita
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3.82 of 5 stars 3.82 avg rating — 284,430 ratings
80 The Little House Collection...
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4.34 of 5 stars 4.34 avg rating — 73,444 ratings
81 The Help
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4.44 of 5 stars 4.44 avg rating — 740,713 ratings
82 The Book of Mormon: Another...
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4.48 of 5 stars 4.48 avg rating — 46,904 ratings
83 The Handmaid's Tale
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3.97 of 5 stars 3.97 avg rating — 250,239 ratings
84 A Tree Grows in Brooklyn
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4.21 of 5 stars 4.21 avg rating — 156,036 ratings
85 The Metamorphosis
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3.71 of 5 stars 3.71 avg rating — 161,815 ratings
86 Uncle Tom's Cabin
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3.73 of 5 stars 3.73 avg rating — 71,889 ratings
87 Frankenstein
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3.66 of 5 stars 3.66 avg rating — 464,992 ratings
88 Atlas Shrugged
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3.67 of 5 stars 3.67 avg rating — 148,502 ratings
89 A Clockwork Orange
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3.93 of 5 stars 3.93 avg rating — 214,469 ratings
90 The Stand
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4.3 of 5 stars 4.30 avg rating — 211,514 ratings
91 The Stranger
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3.89 of 5 stars 3.89 avg rating — 192,276 ratings
92 Don Quixote
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3.79 of 5 stars 3.79 avg rating — 64,938 ratings
93 War and Peace
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4.05 of 5 stars 4.05 avg rating — 78,446 ratings
94 All Quiet on the Western Front
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3.79 of 5 stars 3.79 avg rating — 110,809 ratings
95 The Poisonwood Bible
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3.94 of 5 stars 3.94 avg rating — 353,512 ratings
96 The Good Earth
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3.9 of 5 stars 3.90 avg rating — 106,552 ratings
97 The Hiding Place
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4.42 of 5 stars 4.42 avg rating — 82,533 ratings
98 The Quran
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4.36 of 5 stars 4.36 avg rating — 18,755 ratings
99 Moby-Dick
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3.36 of 5 stars 3.36 avg rating — 257,639 ratings
100 The Brothers Karamazov
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4.26 of 5 stars 4.26 avg rating — 78,106 ratings
8,107 books · 37,927 voters · list created July 11th, 2008 by Deth Graham (votes) .
Lists are re-scored approximately every 500 seconds.


Deth
Deth
1110 books
54 friends
Sidney
Sidney
18 books
11 friends
Gina
Gina
654 books
42 friends
Natasha
Natasha
2685 books
120 friends
Layne
Layne
260 books
5 friends
Randy
Randy
644 books
22 friends
Steven
Steven
6539 books
1697 friends
Julie (jjmachshev)
Julie (jjmachshev)
3170 books
281 friends

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Comments (showing 1-50 of 399) (399 new)


message 1: by Debbie (new)

Debbie i dnot think you can get a copy of uncle toms cabin any more


message 2: by Mary Todd (new)

Mary Todd What a great list!


message 3: by Wendy (new)

Wendy Wanderer Of course you can get Uncle tom's Cabin... why wouldn't you be able to.? It's required reading in many school districts.


message 4: by [deleted user] (new)

Not only can you still get it, there's a handsome new illustrated and annotated edition, published in 2007, with an introduction by Henry Louis Gates Jr.



message 5: by Robbie (new)

Robbie I am absolutely delighted by this great list of books. A thousand thanks. I have read quite a few of these myself. Right now I'm into an Indian philosophy phase!

Try these Epic Indian philosophical books if you find the time> The BHAGAVAD GITA, The MAHABHARATA and RAMAYANA.

Keep on reading folks! It's the best way to be healthy and have a sound mind! Cheers to all!

Regards,
Robbie





message 6: by Tony (new)

Tony Willis About the tenacity and the strength of the human heart. About true courage and goodness in the face of horror and evil. About the reason for living, about life and love, about enduring rock solid faith tried to the limit of endurance and yet unshaken.


message 7: by Faera (new)

Faera I skimmed through this list and there are some very horribly written books on it. Like Twilight and the Bible for instance.


message 8: by Melynna (new)

Melynna Faera wrote: "I skimmed through this list and there are some very horribly written books on it. Like Twilight and the Bible for instance."

No matter your personal opinion about those books, there are good reasons why they're on this list. The fact is that both of them are very influential to people, and the Bible has been influential in shaping the way people and societies act for centuries. Even if you hate it the whole way through, it behooves you to read it at least once.

As for Twilight, I personally hate it. But it's at least something to be familiar with, since it's such a cultural phenomenon. I would agree with you, though, that Twilight is an abysmally written book. It and its sequels are some of the worst things I've ever read. I did read them, though, because I think I'm better off informed.


message 9: by Robbie (new)

Robbie Tony wrote: "About the tenacity and the strength of the human heart. About true courage and goodness in the face of horror and evil. About the reason for living, about life and love, about enduring rock solid f..."

Thank you Tony, I couldn't have put it better myself. I have found all these in the Books I recommended. It is pocket of fresh air to say the least. The mind behind these writings is fantastic! Cheers again for the great review!


message 10: by Maral (new)

Maral Espanol this list is so great! i'm gonna start reading them!


message 11: by Mary (new)

Mary Grace good


message 12: by Mary (new)

Mary Grace Maral wrote: "this list is so great! i'm gonna start reading them!" uluts




message 13: by Mary (new)

Mary Grace hololololo


message 14: by Mary (new)

Mary Grace hololololo


message 15: by [deleted user] (new)

Debbie wrote: "i dnot think you can get a copy of uncle toms cabin any more"

Um. Yes you can, I have one. Try going to Barnes and Noble.




message 16: by Mary (new)

Mary Animal Farm and Atlas Shrugged are absolutely books you must read AT THIS TIME in the USA before it is too late to change our path


message 17: by Melynda (new)

Melynda Yesenia Mary wrote: "Animal Farm and Atlas Shrugged are absolutely books you must read AT THIS TIME in the USA before it is too late to change our path"

I've been saying this about Atlas Shrugged to a lot of my friends for years and they seem to think i'm just trying to proselytise about objectivism but seriously. It's downright uncanny. You can practically use it as a play book now. It is both terrifying and uplifting to read this novel at this time in our history.



message 18: by arianna (new)

arianna This list is great! i hope people keep adding books to it!


message 19: by arianna (new)

arianna Melynna wrote: "Faera wrote: "I skimmed through this list and there are some very horribly written books on it. Like Twilight and the Bible for instance."

No matter your personal opinion about those books, there ..."


I have to agree with you on twilight and once again i would like to emphaisze the bile. I think the bible is one of the greatest worsk of fiction i have ever read, and has a lot of good moral stories in it. Killing people is bad, be nice to your neighbors, don't be a dickhead. All of these lessons are taught in the bible just like in Aseop's fables using rich enigmatic characters. It's just when you take it is Literal infallible truth no questions asked that the battle begins, you know?



message 21: by arianna (new)

arianna John wrote: "[b:The Name of the Rose including Postscript to the Name of the Rose|119073|The Name of the Rose including Postscript to the Name of the Rose|Umberto Eco|http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I......"


when i click on this it comes up as an error...



message 22: by edna (new)

edna the book of mormon and twilight? you've got to be kididng me, now i do like twilight but not to be put aside with to kill a mocking bird or the catcher and the rye. shouldnt even be in this list, and dont get me started on the book of mormon, uuuuuughhh


message 23: by [deleted user] (new)

LOL! I agree with you about the book of Mormon! But altho I had to read To Kill a Mockingbird it bored me, however, I could barely put Twilight down!!! Much more entertaining IMO.

Then I had to buy the next 3 and I was never bored.


message 24: by Poe (new)

Poe Bird I love that Dr Suess made it onto the list, and more than once! And the Tao of Pooh. However I'm disappointed that One Hundred Years of Solitude made it onto the list, and not Love in the Time of Cholera. Ah well, different strokes.


message 25: by [deleted user] (new)

Poe wrote: "I love that Dr Suess made it onto the list, and more than once! And the Tao of Pooh. However I'm disappointed that One Hundred Years of Solitude made it onto the list, and not Love in the Time of C..."

Well, you can certainly add it, can't you?




message 26: by arianna (new)

arianna Canary Alice wrote: "Poe wrote: "I love that Dr Suess made it onto the list, and more than once! And the Tao of Pooh. However I'm disappointed that One Hundred Years of Solitude made it onto the list, and not Love in t..."


i'm adding it right now...



message 27: by Debbie (last edited Mar 30, 2009 06:11pm) (new)

Debbie James McBride's Song Yet Sung should be added to the list.

Regarding the books already on the list...it doesn't that they are necessarily well written or fiction/non-fiction...the group is "Books Everyone Should Read at Least Once - Books that Impact Thinking." Quality is not required...however, enlightenment might be, which does not require agreement. Live a little!


message 28: by arianna (new)

arianna Debbie wrote: "James McBride's Song Yet Sung should be added to the list.

Regarding the books already on the list...it doesn't that they are necessarily well written or fiction/non-fiction...the group is "Book..."



AMEN!



message 29: by arianna (new)

arianna Debbie wrote: "James McBride's Song Yet Sung should be added to the list.

Regarding the books already on the list...it doesn't that they are necessarily well written or fiction/non-fiction...the group is "Book..."



oh and i'm adding your book...



message 30: by Melissa (new)

Melissa Debbie wrote: "i dnot think you can get a copy of uncle toms cabin any more"

I just got a copy a few months ago at Barnes and Nobel in thier classic books for under $10.


message 31: by Caitlin (new)

Caitlin Is there a way to save a list so I can return to it without searching?


message 32: by Karen (new)

Karen From Beirut to Jerusalem
Thomas Friedman can take the most complicated subject (here the Arab/Israeli conflict) and make it read like a novel. This is my favorite of his books but all are worth reading.


message 33: by arianna (new)

arianna TURQOISE* wrote: "You must remove those comercial books, like HP and Twilight"

i don't think you can, once they are on there, they're on there.


message 35: by [deleted user] (new)

I have never read Twilight but I have seen the movie! Is the book better then the movie?


message 37: by Julie (new)

Julie Jamieson This is my favorite book of all time. But it didn't make the list:( booo



message 38: by Mandy (new)

Mandy Erg. Why does every one always feel the need to share how much they hate Twilight in these types of lists? All these books are so popular that there are tons of people who like and dont like them. Twilights popular. Get over it.


message 39: by Mark (new)

Mark Wendy wrote: "Of course you can get Uncle tom's Cabin... why wouldn't you be able to.? It's required reading in many school districts. "

in addition to uncle tom's cabin u might be interested in "To Master, A Long Goodnight" by Brion Gysin a bio ov josiah henson thee "real" uncle tom and on an unrelated matter read ANTICHRIST SUPERSTUD painless at scribd.com




message 40: by Vanessa (new)

Vanessa Debbie wrote: "i dnot think you can get a copy of uncle toms cabin any more"

Yes, you can get Uncle Tom's Cabin. My daughter had to read it last year in school. I got a copy from the library and then bought a copy as well at Barnes and Noble.




message 41: by Kitty (new)

Kitty Debbie, its probably at your local library





message 42: by Zeinab (new)

Zeinab Awesome list! :]


message 43: by Kristina (new)

Kristina Amazing list - I've realised, that I already read quite a few if them and that I have a lot of them on my to-read list.
But as many of you said before, it's weird which books also find their place in this list - Bible I understand and Mormon book also. But Twilight? Weird. I'm just waiting to find Asterix and Obelix up here...


message 44: by Angryy0uth (new)

Angryy0uth 41: Erg. Why does every one always feel the need to share how much they hate Twilight in these types of lists? All these books are so popular that there are tons of people who like and dont like them. Twilights popular. Get over it.

it's quite simple really. as long as there are people out there who rave and rant about how great twilight is (and nominating it for best book of ______), you're going to have a backlash. get used to it.

but to be fair, i agree that it should be on this list, so people can read it and realise how bad it is.


message 45: by Mml (new)

Mml Melynna wrote: "Faera wrote: "I skimmed through this list and there are some very horribly written books on it. Like Twilight and the Bible for instance."

No matter your personal opinion about those books, there ..."


I am glad someone else dislikes Twlight, I really hated it.


message 46: by Patrick (new)

Patrick Debbie wrote: "i dnot think you can get a copy of uncle toms cabin any more"

are you serious? check out some used-book stores



message 47: by Leslie (new)

Leslie I got a copy of Uncle Tom's Cabin, new from Books a Million


message 48: by Laikhuram (last edited Sep 07, 2009 07:53am) (new)

Laikhuram Recently I went searching for this very enlightening book by Ivan Illich, Deschooling Society, only to find that it has been out of print for ages...


BTW, my friends here, please be very careful what you read. Books changes life and society. Reading books like Twilight will send the human mind back to the days of stones and cavalry, if not amoebas.


message 49: by Laikhuram (new)

Laikhuram m wrote: "Mary wrote: "Animal Farm and Atlas Shrugged are absolutely books you must read AT THIS TIME in the USA before it is too late to change our path"

I've been saying this about Atlas Shrugged to a lot..."


Same goes with Nineteen Eightyfour. This is the age of distortion, not reason. America and the world need another Thomas Paine.



message 50: by Jan C (new)

Jan C " I skimmed through this list and there are some very horribly written books on it. Like Twilight and the Bible for instance. "

Twilight somehow always makes every list. Along with The Book of Mormon.

What I objected to about the Bible being on the list was the version used - the MORMON version. Should have been the KING JAMES.





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