Treasure Island by Robert Louis StevensonMoby-Dick or, The Whale by Herman MelvilleMaster & Commander by Patrick O'BrianTwenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules VerneThe Odyssey by Homer
Nautical Tales
39th out of 751 books — 402 voters
In the Heart of the Sea by Nathaniel PhilbrickSix Frigates by Ian W. TollOver the Edge of the World by Laurence BergreenLongitude by Dava SobelCaptain Kidd by Samuel Marquis
Age of Sail Nonfiction
11th out of 355 books — 90 voters

Into Thin Air by Jon KrakauerInto the Wild by Jon KrakauerAlive by Piers Paul ReadBlack Hawk Down by Mark BowdenThe Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger
True Life Adventure
36th out of 390 books — 256 voters
Into Thin Air by Jon KrakauerUnbroken by Laura HillenbrandEndurance by Alfred LansingInto the Wild by Jon KrakauerIn the Heart of the Sea by Nathaniel Philbrick
Best True Survival Stories
95th out of 422 books — 547 voters

John Adams by David McCulloughThe Rise and Fall of the Third Reich by William L. Shirer1776 by David McCulloughTeam of Rivals by Doris Kearns GoodwinThe Guns of August by Barbara W. Tuchman
Best History Books
675th out of 3,896 books — 3,953 voters
The Three Musketeers by Alexandre DumasThe Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre DumasThe Princess Bride by William GoldmanTreasure Island by Robert Louis StevensonThe Scarlet Pimpernel by Emmuska Orczy
Swashbucklers
156th out of 575 books — 509 voters

Mutiny on the Bounty by Charles Bernard NordhoffCaptain Bligh's Portable Nightmare by John TooheyThe Bounty by Caroline AlexanderThe Bounty Mutiny by William BlighMr Bligh's Bad Language by Greg Dening
Mutiny on the Bounty
3rd out of 22 books — 15 voters
Dead Wake by Erik LarsonThe Perfect Storm by Sebastian JungerThe Wager by David GrannThunderstruck by Erik LarsonSea Fights and Shipwrecks by Hanson W. Baldwin
Narrative Nonfiction: Set at Sea
9th out of 226 books — 9 voters

The Devil in the White City by Erik LarsonFreakonomics by Steven D. LevittA Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill BrysonGuns, Germs, and Steel by Jared DiamondOutliers by Malcolm Gladwell
Best Non-Fiction (no biographies)
1327th out of 6,267 books — 8,079 voters
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. RowlingThe Da Vinci Code by Dan    BrownThe Kite Runner by Khaled HosseiniThe Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark HaddonThe Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
Best Books of 2003
196th out of 662 books — 331 voters

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. RowlingThe Hunger Games by Suzanne CollinsHarry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. RowlingHarry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. RowlingHarry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix by J.K. Rowling
Best Books of the Decade: 2000s
6647th out of 7,215 books — 28,370 voters
In the Heart of the Sea by Nathaniel PhilbrickThe Perfect Storm by Sebastian JungerA Night to Remember by Walter LordEndurance by Alfred LansingShadow Divers by Robert Kurson
Shipwrecks!
36th out of 121 books — 97 voters

The Wager by David GrannDead in the Water by Matthew  CampbellThe Outlaw Ocean by Ian UrbinaDead Wake by Erik LarsonThunderstruck by Erik Larson
Maritime true crime
10th out of 87 books — 8 voters
The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. KluneWhere the Crawdads Sing by Delia OwensCirce by Madeline MillerLife of Pi by Yann MartelRebecca by Daphne du Maurier
Popsugar 2025 #16 - A Book Set in or around a Body of Water
119th out of 352 books — 140 voters

The Correspondent by Virginia      EvansProject Hail Mary by Andy WeirAtmosphere by Taylor Jenkins ReidKin by Tayari JonesThe Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
[ATY 2026] Best Books of 2026
26th out of 59 books — 14 voters
Treasure Island by Robert Louis StevensonThe End of Calico Jack by Eddie       JonesMoby-Dick or, The Whale by Herman MelvilleDead Calm, Bone Dry by Eddie       JonesThe Odyssey by Homer
Nautical/Marine/Water Themed Books
109th out of 297 books — 33 voters

Treasure Island by Robert Louis StevensonMoby-Dick or, The Whale by Herman MelvilleTwenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules VerneMaster & Commander by Patrick O'BrianTwo Years Before the Mast by Richard Henry Dana Jr.
Maritime Classics
126th out of 277 books — 97 voters
The Wager by David GrannCrucible of War by Fred  AndersonPassionate Minds by David BodanisThe British Are Coming by Rick AtkinsonLongitude by Dava Sobel
18th Century History Books
61st out of 75 books — 2 voters

Saving Fish from Drowning by Amy TanWhere the Crawdads Sing by Delia OwensPhantom of the Shroppie by Dawn HammillUnbreak My Heart by Melissa C. WalkerOf Blood and Pulse by A. Jacob Sweeny
I'm on a boat!
88th out of 88 books — 15 voters

1,000 Places to See Before You Die by Patricia SchultzA Walk in the Woods by Bill BrysonSlaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr.A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled HosseiniTouching the Void by Joe Simpson
Lacey's Reading List
15th out of 90 books — 3 voters
The Little Ice Age by Brian M. FaganThe Long Summer by Brian M. FaganCollapse by Jared DiamondThe Collapse of Complex Societies by Joseph A. TainterThe Collapse of Ancient States and Civilizations by Norman Yoffee
Further Reading from Jared Diamond's Collapse
50th out of 100 books — 2 voters

Goodbye, Tahrir Square by Zarmati ElioA Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill BrysonThe Life of Elizabeth I by Alison WeirSalt by Mark KurlanskyBlack Folk by Blair L.M. Kelley
Historical Nonfiction
191st out of 307 books — 100 voters
Project Hail Mary by Andy WeirThe Hobbit, or There and Back Again by J.R.R. TolkienRun for the Hills by Kevin    WilsonThe Lincoln Highway by Amor TowlesThe Wager by David Grann
[ATY 2026] Road Trip or Long Journey
223rd out of 364 books — 86 voters

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper LeeThe Catcher in the Rye by J.D. SalingerThe Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. TolkienWhere Are You Now? by Sarah  Connell1984 by George Orwell
Best Books of Your Lifetime
282nd out of 532 books — 167 voters

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. LewisTreasure Island by Robert Louis StevensonLife of Pi by Yann MartelA Night to Remember by Walter LordThe Discovery of the Titanic by Robert D. Ballard
Ships on the Cover
243rd out of 446 books — 123 voters
Life of Pi by Yann MartelThe Old Man and the Sea by Ernest HemingwayMoby-Dick or, The Whale by Herman MelvilleThe Odyssey by HomerTreasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
Boat Books
468th out of 773 books — 502 voters

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. LewisLife of Pi by Yann MartelThe Assiduous Quest of Tobias Hopkins by James FaroThe Assiduous Quest of Tobias Hopkins by James FaroThe Code by James Faro
Watery themes
70th out of 83 books — 30 voters
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules VerneTreasure Island by Robert Louis StevensonThe Old Man and the Sea by Ernest HemingwayLife of Pi by Yann MartelThe Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger
Oceans, Water, Ice
440th out of 717 books — 172 voters

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