Canon Books

Showing 1-50 of 31,036
The Great Gatsby The Great Gatsby (Paperback)
by (shelved 100 times as canon)
avg rating 3.93 — 5,892,320 ratings — published 1925
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The Odyssey The Odyssey (Paperback)
by (shelved 82 times as canon)
avg rating 3.83 — 1,188,099 ratings — published -700
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The Catcher in the Rye The Catcher in the Rye (Paperback)
by (shelved 81 times as canon)
avg rating 3.80 — 3,882,141 ratings — published 1951
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Pride and Prejudice Pride and Prejudice (Hardcover)
by (shelved 74 times as canon)
avg rating 4.29 — 4,781,123 ratings — published 1813
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To Kill a Mockingbird To Kill a Mockingbird (Paperback)
by (shelved 74 times as canon)
avg rating 4.26 — 6,859,541 ratings — published 1960
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1984 1984 (Paperback)
by (shelved 72 times as canon)
avg rating 4.20 — 5,432,126 ratings — published 1949
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Frankenstein: The 1818 Text Frankenstein: The 1818 Text (Paperback)
by (shelved 70 times as canon)
avg rating 3.91 — 1,875,833 ratings — published 1818
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Wuthering Heights Wuthering Heights (Paperback)
by (shelved 67 times as canon)
avg rating 3.90 — 2,036,070 ratings — published 1847
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Hamlet Hamlet (Paperback)
by (shelved 66 times as canon)
avg rating 4.03 — 1,047,287 ratings — published 1601
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Jane Eyre Jane Eyre (Paperback)
by (shelved 66 times as canon)
avg rating 4.16 — 2,315,811 ratings — published 1847
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The Metamorphosis The Metamorphosis (Mass Market Paperback)
by (shelved 65 times as canon)
avg rating 3.90 — 1,415,927 ratings — published 1915
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The Picture of Dorian Gray The Picture of Dorian Gray (Paperback)
by (shelved 65 times as canon)
avg rating 4.13 — 1,867,529 ratings — published 1890
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Moby-Dick or, The Whale Moby-Dick or, The Whale (Paperback)
by (shelved 59 times as canon)
avg rating 3.57 — 614,517 ratings — published 1851
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The Iliad The Iliad (Hardcover)
by (shelved 57 times as canon)
avg rating 3.93 — 508,075 ratings — published -800
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Don Quixote Don Quixote (Paperback)
by (shelved 54 times as canon)
avg rating 3.91 — 304,454 ratings — published 1615
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The Stranger The Stranger (Paperback)
by (shelved 54 times as canon)
avg rating 4.03 — 1,391,042 ratings — published 1942
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Crime and Punishment Crime and Punishment (Paperback)
by (shelved 53 times as canon)
avg rating 4.29 — 1,074,107 ratings — published 1866
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Romeo and Juliet Romeo and Juliet (Mass Market Paperback)
by (shelved 53 times as canon)
avg rating 3.74 — 2,815,854 ratings — published 1590
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Anna Karenina Anna Karenina (Paperback)
by (shelved 52 times as canon)
avg rating 4.10 — 928,562 ratings — published 1878
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Macbeth Macbeth (Paperback)
by (shelved 52 times as canon)
avg rating 3.89 — 1,017,091 ratings — published 1623
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The Scarlet Letter The Scarlet Letter (Paperback)
by (shelved 51 times as canon)
avg rating 3.44 — 917,469 ratings — published 1850
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Animal Farm Animal Farm (Mass Market Paperback)
by (shelved 51 times as canon)
avg rating 4.02 — 4,526,883 ratings — published 1945
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Of Mice and Men Of Mice and Men (Paperback)
by (shelved 49 times as canon)
avg rating 3.90 — 2,824,996 ratings — published 1937
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The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Adventures of Tom and Huck, #2) The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Adventures of Tom and Huck, #2)
by (shelved 48 times as canon)
avg rating 3.83 — 1,335,407 ratings — published 1885
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Brave New World Brave New World (Paperback)
by (shelved 47 times as canon)
avg rating 3.99 — 2,069,917 ratings — published 1932
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Lolita Lolita (Kindle Edition)
by (shelved 47 times as canon)
avg rating 3.87 — 942,618 ratings — published 1955
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The Grapes of Wrath The Grapes of Wrath (Hardcover)
by (shelved 47 times as canon)
avg rating 4.03 — 991,738 ratings — published 1939
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Great Expectations Great Expectations (Paperback)
by (shelved 46 times as canon)
avg rating 3.80 — 872,076 ratings — published 1861
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Fahrenheit 451 Fahrenheit 451 (Kindle Edition)
by (shelved 45 times as canon)
avg rating 3.97 — 2,822,192 ratings — published 1953
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The Aeneid The Aeneid (Kindle Edition)
by (shelved 45 times as canon)
avg rating 3.87 — 143,087 ratings — published -19
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The Old Man and the Sea The Old Man and the Sea (Hardcover)
by (shelved 44 times as canon)
avg rating 3.81 — 1,307,331 ratings — published 1952
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Ulysses Ulysses (Paperback)
by (shelved 43 times as canon)
avg rating 3.76 — 137,613 ratings — published 1922
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Madame Bovary Madame Bovary (Paperback)
by (shelved 43 times as canon)
avg rating 3.71 — 373,751 ratings — published 1856
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Paradise Lost Paradise Lost (Paperback)
by (shelved 43 times as canon)
avg rating 3.86 — 182,090 ratings — published 1667
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Heart of Darkness Heart of Darkness (Paperback)
by (shelved 43 times as canon)
avg rating 3.43 — 557,164 ratings — published 1899
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Mrs. Dalloway Mrs. Dalloway (Hardcover)
by (shelved 43 times as canon)
avg rating 3.78 — 355,361 ratings — published 1925
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Dracula Dracula (Paperback)
by (shelved 42 times as canon)
avg rating 4.02 — 1,470,558 ratings — published 1897
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A Midsummer Night’s Dream A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Mass Market Paperback)
by (shelved 40 times as canon)
avg rating 3.94 — 577,440 ratings — published 1595
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The Bell Jar The Bell Jar (Paperback)
by (shelved 40 times as canon)
avg rating 4.05 — 1,213,314 ratings — published 1963
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Little Women (Little Women, #1) Little Women (Little Women, #1)
by (shelved 40 times as canon)
avg rating 4.17 — 2,451,643 ratings — published 1868
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The Brothers Karamazov The Brothers Karamazov (Paperback)
by (shelved 40 times as canon)
avg rating 4.39 — 384,570 ratings — published 1880
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War and Peace War and Peace (Paperback)
by (shelved 39 times as canon)
avg rating 4.17 — 364,973 ratings — published 1869
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A Tale of Two Cities A Tale of Two Cities (Paperback)
by (shelved 39 times as canon)
avg rating 3.88 — 1,010,707 ratings — published 1859
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The Divine Comedy: Inferno - Purgatorio - Paradiso The Divine Comedy: Inferno - Purgatorio - Paradiso (Hardcover)
by (shelved 39 times as canon)
avg rating 4.08 — 171,820 ratings — published 1320
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The Sound and the Fury The Sound and the Fury (Paperback)
by (shelved 39 times as canon)
avg rating 3.86 — 195,663 ratings — published 1929
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The Canterbury Tales The Canterbury Tales (Paperback)
by (shelved 39 times as canon)
avg rating 3.53 — 237,605 ratings — published 1400
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One Hundred Years of Solitude One Hundred Years of Solitude (Mass Market Paperback)
by (shelved 37 times as canon)
avg rating 4.12 — 1,100,756 ratings — published 1967
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Catch-22 Catch-22 (Paperback)
by (shelved 37 times as canon)
avg rating 3.99 — 885,234 ratings — published 1961
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Middlemarch Middlemarch (Mass Market Paperback)
by (shelved 35 times as canon)
avg rating 4.04 — 178,818 ratings — published 1872
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The Hobbit, or There and Back Again The Hobbit, or There and Back Again (Paperback)
by (shelved 35 times as canon)
avg rating 4.30 — 4,442,150 ratings — published 1937
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Clement of Alexandria
“Nous avons un livre sur cette histoire, comme nous en avons également uu sur les Machabées. Durant cette captivité, Misaël, Ananias et Azarias ayant refusé d'adorer une statue, furent jetés dans une fournaise ardente, et sauvés des flammes par un ange qui descendit vers eux. Alors aussi, Daniel ayant été jeté dans la fosse aux lions, fut nourri par les mains d'Habacuc, par un miracle, et retiré sain et sauf de la fosse le septième jour. Ce fut alors aussi qu'un miracle fut fait en faveur de Jonas, et que Tobie, avec le secours de l'ange Raphaël, épousa Sara, dont les sept premiers prétendants avaient été tués par le démon; et que Tobie le père, après la célébration des noces, recouvra la vue.”
Clement of Alexandria, Miscellanies

Tim Parks
“The canon is finished. Anyone who believes that one can construct a canon from the tidal wave of narrative produced today is guilty of wishful thinking. All we will have is a record of who won the prizes and achieved celebrity status. But, perhaps, the canon was always a fairly heavy-handed tool and little more than a convenience. The only thing is to follow one’s nose and listen carefully to the way others talk about books, learn who’s opinion takes you to interesting places.”
Tim Parks

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