My list:

1. Atonement - actually didn't finish this I found it so boring.
2. Foe - again boring and the only reason I read it was because I had to for uni.
3. The bluest Eye
4. The Bell Jar
5. Things Fall Apart
6. 1984
7. Heart of Darkness - another book I wasn't keen on.
8. Tess of the D'Urbervilles
9. Far From the Madding Crowd
10. The Woman in White
11. Jane Eyre
12. Persuasion
13. Pride and Prejudice
14. Sense and Sensibility
15. Robinson Crusoe - so boring, only read for uni.

There are a few I plan to read soon.

I've read a good bunch of these ... I think there's a lot of padding, especially to get this all the way out to 1001 books. Would have expected a lot more classics, a lot fewer books published after 2000.

My list:


Choke – Chuck Palahniuk
Cryptonomicon – Neal Stephenson
Memoirs of a Geisha – Arthur Golden
The Reader – Bernhard Schlink
American Psycho – Bret Easton Ellis
Get Shorty – Elmore Leonard
The Things They Carried – Tim O’Brien TO READ. I OWN IT.
Foucault’s Pendulum – Umberto Eco
The Long Dark Teatime of the Soul – Douglas Adams
Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency – Douglas Adams
Watchmen – Alan Moore & David Gibbons
Less Than Zero – Bret Easton Ellis
Contact – Carl Sagan
The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood
Queer – William Burroughs
Neuromancer – William Gibson
Schindler’s Ark – Thomas Keneally (Is this Schindler's List? If so, I read it)
The Name of the Rose – Umberto Eco
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams
The World According to Garp – John Irving
The Shining – Stephen King
Interview With the Vampire – Anne Rice
Breakfast of Champions – Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Fear of Flying – Erica Jong
Gravity’s Rainbow – Thomas Pynchon (I OWN IT. HAVE TRIED TO READ SEVERAL TIMES. TO READ LIST)
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas – Hunter S. Thompson
Slaughterhouse-five – Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
The Godfather – Mario Puzo
2001: A Space Odyssey – Arthur C. Clarke
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? – Philip K. Dick
The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test – Tom Wolfe
In Cold Blood – Truman Capote
God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater – Kurt Vonnegut
Cat’s Cradle – Kurt Vonnegut
The Graduate – Charles Webb
Inside Mr. Enderby – Anthony Burgess
The Bell Jar – Sylvia Plath
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich – Aleksandr Isayevich Solzhenitsyn
The Collector – John Fowles
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest – Ken Kesey
A Clockwork Orange – Anthony Burgess
Stranger in a Strange Land – Robert Heinlein
Solaris – Stanislaw Lem
Naked Lunch – William Burroughs
A Town Like Alice – Nevil Shute
The Midwich Cuckoos – John Wyndham
Doctor Zhivago – Boris Pasternak
The Lord of the Rings – J.R.R. Tolkien
The Last Temptation of Christ – Nikos Kazantzákis
The Story of O – Pauline Réage
Lord of the Flies – William Golding
Junkie – William Burroughs
Casino Royale – Ian Fleming
Day of the Triffids – John Wyndham
Foundation – Isaac Asimov
The Catcher in the Rye – J.D. Salinger
I, Robot – Isaac Asimov
Nineteen Eighty-Four – George Orwell
Brideshead Revisited – Evelyn Waugh
Animal Farm – George Orwell
The Razor’s Edge – William Somerset Maugham
The Little Prince – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Rebecca – Daphne du Maurier
At the Mountains of Madness – H.P. Lovecraft
Brave New World – Aldous Huxley
Decline and Fall – Evelyn Waugh
The Trial – Franz Kafka
A Passage to India – E.M. Forster
Siddhartha – Herman Hesse
The Good Soldier – Ford Madox Ford
Tarzan of the Apes – Edgar Rice Burroughs
Heart of Darkness – Joseph Conrad
The Hound of the Baskervilles – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Kim – Rudyard Kipling
The War of the Worlds – H.G. Wells
The Invisible Man – H.G. Wells
Dracula – Bram Stoker
The Island of Dr. Moreau – H.G. Wells
The Time Machine – H.G. Wells
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The Picture of Dorian Gray – Oscar Wilde
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde – Robert Louis Stevenson
Kidnapped – Robert Louis Stevenson
Treasure Island – Robert Louis Stevenson
Through the Looking Glass, and What Alice Found There – Lewis Carroll
Crime and Punishment – Fyodor Dostoevsky
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland – Lewis Carroll
Les Misérables – Victor Hugo
Fathers and Sons – Ivan Turgenev
Wuthering Heights – Emily Brontë
Jane Eyre – Charlotte Brontë
Vanity Fair – William Makepeace Thackeray
The Pit and the Pendulum – Edgar Allan Poe
A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens
The Fall of the House of Usher – Edgar Allan Poe
The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby – Charles Dickens
Oliver Twist – Charles Dickens
Frankenstein – Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
Tristram Shandy – Laurence Sterne
A Modest Proposal – Jonathan Swift
Gulliver’s Travels – Jonathan Swift
The Pilgrim’s Progress – John Bunyan
Don Quixote – Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
The Thousand and One Nights – Anonymous
Aesop’s Fables – Aesopus

I've read 29 of them. I started Life of Pi and couldn't get through it. I got bored reading the religious experience stuff. And I have Don Quixote but I haven't read it yet.

BonFire wrote: "Well I am reading the list right now, and I can already tell you I will NOT be reading "Franny and Zoey" by J.D. Salinger, lol. I hated "Catcher in the Rye" with a fiery burning passion. I'm not a ..."

I never liked 'Catcher in the Rye' either and have always wondered if I just missed something. I've always been tempted to read 'Franny and Zoey' but then I think of 'Cather in the Rye' and I just can't bring myself to do it.

Well I am reading the list right now, and I can already tell you I will NOT be reading "Franny and Zoey" by J.D. Salinger, lol. I hated "Catcher in the Rye" with a fiery burning passion. I'm not a fan of Woolf either and I have a feeling I am going to see her on there too. But most of these so far look pretty interesting.

... Also, I didn't really like "Bell Jar ".

*runs away*

You're welcome, Michelle. I hope you like Song of Solomon.

I have Song as well, one day I'll sit down and read them. They are fairly quick to get through. Thanks for the heads up on Sula.

I don't think Sula is one of her best. It was hard to understand and not terribly interesting (at least to listen to).

I really liked Song of Solomon, probably because it was my first exposure to magical realism or surrealism. Also because I hadn't read a lot of books with African American characters at that point in my life set in the past. It was great to see how people of my ethnicity lived in the 40s. I think Toni Morrison is one that you either like or don't. I've talked to a fair amount of people lately who don't care for her.

Gatadelafuente (Danielle) wrote: "I hope you enjoy it more the second time, Lisa Anne."

Thank you!

I own most of the Toni Morrison books but I can't stand how she writes most of the time, I want to read them because the stories are interesting but it becomes like a chore...I've wanted to read Sula but I can't get myself to pick it up.

I hope you enjoy it more the second time, Lisa Anne.

I definitely agree on The Catcher in the Rye, not one of my faves.
The Great Gatsby I would like to give another chance after having some time away from it and know I am not going to like Daisy.

These are the ones I read.
Portrait of An Artist as a Young Man (wallbanger, dnf)
Siddhartha (pretty good)
A Passage to India (loved it)
Billy Budd (okay)
The Great Gatsby (hated it because of Daisy)
The Sound and the Fury (didn't understand. Cliff notes helped--pretty interesting idea)
Catcher in the Rye (I think it's overrated)
Invisible Man (pretty good)
Beloved (very well-written but painful to read)
The Color Purple (loved it)
Song of Solomon (loved it)
Sula (on audio--weird. It was okay)
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (loved it)
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovitch (really good)
Little Women (a long time favorite)
Crime and Punishment (excellent)
The Scarlet Letter (loved it)
Call of the Wild (I think White Fang is much better)
The Yellow Wallpaper (I've read the short story not the volume-interesting)
Dracula (started, didn't finish it, good though)

There are quite a few I intend to read on the list

I know I've read 24 off of the 1001 books list, and I'm currently trying to get through number 25 which is The Count of Monte Cristo.

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Loved it)
Interview with the Vampire (Loved it)
Animal Farm (Made me laugh)
The Great Gatsby (Dull)
The Yellow Wallpaper (Interesting)
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Interesting)
Alice in Wonderland (Fun)
Through the Looking Glass (Fun)
Jane Eyre (Loved it)
A Christmas Carol (Great)
Frankenstein (One of my favs)
A Modest Proposal (Hilarious to me)
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (It was okay)
Beloved (Hated it)
The Bluest Eye (Hate it)
The Call of the Wild (It was okay)
Things Fall Apart (Hated it)
Of Mice and Men (Reminded me of Bugs Bunny)
The Posionwood Bible (Has it's moments)
The Hobbit (Fun)
Wuthering Heights (Loved it)
Life of Pi (Liked it)
Dracula (Favorite)
The Picture of Dorian Grey (Favorite)
The Purloined Letter
The Pit and the Pendulum
The Fall of the House of Usher

YoudontGnomie wrote: "I haven't read a single one... I'm not into classics... I've seen some of the movies though LOL"
They had a few books on there was weren't classics. There was something by David Gemmell, but I can't remember what... I noticed that a lot of the books had movies based on them too. LOL I like classics as movies more than books sometimes...

I haven't read a single one... I'm not into classics... I've seen some of the movies though LOL

Terri wrote: "Ones I have read:

Curious Incident of Dog in the night-Time
Fingersmith
Everything is Illuminated (hated)
Middlesex
Under the Skin (bizarre but good)
The Hours
The SHipping News
The Virgi..."

Geez! You have read A LOT of them!

Ones I have read:

Curious Incident of Dog in the night-Time
Fingersmith
Everything is Illuminated (hated)
Middlesex
Under the Skin (bizarre but good)
The Hours
The SHipping News
The Virgin Suicides
Possessing the Secret of Joy (hated it)
Black Water
Like Water for Chocolate
A Prayer for Owen Meany
Cat's Eye
Long Dark Tea Time of the Soul
Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency
Watchmen
Less Than Zero
The Handmaid's Tale
The Color Purple
The Name of the Rose
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
The World According to Garp
Delta of Venus
Interview with the Vampire
Breakfast of Champions
Surfacing
Slaughterhouse Five
The Godfather
2001 A SPace Odysey
Do Androids Dream of ELectric Sheep?
The Electric Kool Aid Acid Test
God Bless YOu Mr. Rosewater
Cat's Cradle
The Graduate
One Day in the Life of Ivcan Denisovitch
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's NEst
A Clockwork Orange
Stranger in a Strange Land
To Kill A Mockingbird
A Town Like ALice
Lolita
Lord of the Flies
The Killer Inside Me
The Catcher in the Rye (hated it)
1984
Animal Farm (very funny)
Rebecca
Their Eyes Were Watching God
Brave New World
All Quiet on the Western Front
The SOund and the Fury
The Great Gatsby
The Fox
Of Human Bondage
Ethan frome
Heart of Darkness (dull)
The Island of Dr. moreau
The Yellow Wallpaper
Diary of a Nobody
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Portrait of a Lady
Anna Karenina (dull)
Little Women
Journey to the Center of the Earth
Alice in Wonderland
Les Miserables
Hard TImes
The House of the Seven Gables
The Scarlet Letter (not that great)
Jane Eyre (did not like)
The Purloined letter
A Christmas Carol
Frankenstein
Northanger Abbey
Pride and Prejudice (did nto like very much)
A Modest Proposal


A few comments - if they have no notes otherwise I enjoyed them

I have many of these in my piles

I do plan on reading all on this list

Terri wrote: "I wonder if I were to re-read The Great Gatsby if I would like ti better than in school"

I think I have already been ruined on "The Great Gatsby", if I tried to re-read it...I think I would be too antsy, and irritated to make it through the entire book.

I remember not loving The Great Gatsby in school, but then I read Reading Lolita in Tehran A Memoir in Books and thought I should give it a second chance.

I wonder if I were to re-read The Great Gatsby if I would like ti better than in school

I've only read eight.

Joy wrote: "I went through that entire list and I have only read 7 of the books on it! You'd think that with all the books I have read in my life, I would have read more books from that list...LOL
Lisa, how ma..."

I'm with you, Joy. I did not like The Great Gatsby. I hated Daisy.

I was assigned to read To Kill a Mockingbird when I was in school in Illinois, but then we moved to Texas. I went to the library and checked it out to finish it. It is one of my top favorites of all times.

I love love love Little Women!

I didn't have a problem getting through Little Women. LOL It was one of the few classics that I chose to read on my own, instead of being forced to in school. I think I read it for that thing in 8th grade where we had to get a certain amount of reading points in order to go to six flags for the day...
Do you remember that?
I was forced to read To Kill a Mockingbird, but ended up loving it. I remember that we didn't have to finish it, and I ended up being the only one who chose to finish it. LOL I remember Vince thinking I was weird to WANT to finish that book. LOL

I've read 36 ... I was keeping track so I actually have a bookshelf for them. I know I'm a nerd. Can't remember them all off the top of my head though.
I need to reread the Great Gatsby, I don't think I gave it much of a chance in high school. As well as To Kill a Mockingbird. I read it in Jr. High and missed quite a bit.
I actually couldn't ever get through Little Women because I read the Great Illustrated classic version as a kid so I knew at least all the basics and I can never get through books then. It's like seeing the movie first.

I went through that entire list and I have only read 7 of the books on it! You'd think that with all the books I have read in my life, I would have read more books from that list...LOL
Lisa, how many have you read from that list?

I've read...
Oliver Twist (Okay)
Great Expectations (Enjoyed)
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Fun)
The Great Gatsby ( I wasn't a fan)
To Kill a Mockingbird (Surprisingly, interesting)
Lord of the Flies (Blah)
Little Women (great)

I know not everyone is crazy about lists, but I tend to like them, I also own 1001 Places to See before you die. So for all the books lovers who like books here's the link to 1001 Books to Read before you die

http://www.listsofbests.com/list/2222

I also find it interesting to at least see what is put on the list.