Enid
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1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die
- Thread starter DiscoBoy
- Start date
Do the authors of the book that contain this list own stock in the publishers of books on the list. A lot of those books are things I have no desire to read.
THAT IS A BS EXCUSE.
Many of the books on the list stirred up a lot of controversy, which in many cases the reason they should be read.
One should read these 1001 books before the Bible?
(and maybe hundreds of others as far as the creator of the list is concerned since the list maker does not seem to understand the importance of the Bible)
SMILE ! :smile:
Here are some other book lists
100 Must-Read Books: The Essential Man’s Library | The Art of Manliness
1000 novels everyone must read: the definitive list | Books | guardian.co.uk
25 Banned Books That You Should Read Today
30 Books Everyone Should Read Before Their 30th Birthday | Marc and Angel Hack Life
Courtesy of a google search.
Other glaring omissions
Homer
Plato
Aristotle
Only one book from all of classic Roman literature
It was just a thought, whether that was their line of thinking or not, I have no idea. And it's not so much that the content of the Bible is controversial (not saying it isn't), it's more so that the mere addition of the Bible to the list could be controversial.
:biggrin1: Thank you! Going to start with that list of 25 since I've read a nice chunk of those already.
A lot of the books on the original list are not commonly known to most peeps. The books on the lists offered by Pittbull are better known. We read many of the 25 and 30 list while I was in school.
We should read these based on what? Why were these chosen? For what?
Context is everything. For example, if you wanted to learn to play the guitar, I could come out with a list of "must reads", and it would still only be my opinion which is debatable.
I am sure every subject has it "must reads" for specific purposes.
Context is everything. For example, if you wanted to learn to play the guitar, I could come out with a list of "must reads", and it would still only be my opinion which is debatable.
I am sure every subject has it "must reads" for specific purposes.
midlifebear
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I bought a Spanish version of the 1001 Books at el Aeteneo bookstore in Buenos Aires several years ago. The biggest problem I have with the list is that it focuses almost exclusively on Western Civilization. It does include the Ilyad, Oddyssey, and Homer's Epic poems, some Aristotle, and some Roman poets (Pliny for example). But there is a stunning absence of Hindu literature (the Vedas, Bhagavad Gita!), Chinese literature (The Analicts of Confuscius, without which South Korean business could not operate including I Ching, and Tao Te Ching), virtually no mention of Buddhist texts (Theravada, The Lotus Sutra, in fact none of the many famous sutras).
The list is heavy on English literature, beginning with Chaucer, and many obscure works by eastern European authors. It's equally heavy on French and German literature. What Spanish language works are listed are mostly modern 20th Century writers.
But the compilation of recommended books has been under fire by most academics of world comparative literature since the first edition was published.
Of more importance, if, as someone mentioned earlier, you find The Great Gatsby difficult to read and your only language is English, well . . . that's a major tragedy. Obviously you'll never be able to wade through translations from the original German into English of such works as Magic Mountain (no, it's not a ride at Disney World). God forbid 'Mericuhn intermediate and high school students should be challenged develop reading skills that give them entrance into the prose of Henry James, (or his brother, William).
I maintain that anyone who cannot easily read 20th Century American authors (Light in August, by Faulkner for example) and whose native language is English is living evidence that the public school system in the USA has been purposefully dumbed down by the various State Departments of Education so as to keep the masses undereducated and too lazy (or ill equipped) to pick up a book and read. There's a major conspiracy, in my humble opinion, to dismantle intellectual thought and discourse in the USA since at least the first year Reagan became President (who, as I understand preferred to read and reread the works of Zane Gray -- look him up, Zane Gray's books aren't bad writing, but you won't be terribly impressed). I don't hate the United States of America, but I do hate how the gullible TV-watching public has been conned into reading fluff that doesn't challenge them.
I remember looking at a list of goals taped above the computer of the payroll/book keeper at a software company where I worked. The goals were from a Stephen R. Covey book on self-improvement. One of those goals was: Read one book a month. One book a month! God help her, I hope she didn't overtax her little brain! Why not at least one book a week? I might add she was the sister-in-law of the CEO and never churned out a bi-monthly payroll without making 10 or 12 mistakes with the employees' paychecks. I truly felt sorry for her.
My Mexican grandmother gave me a copy of Death in Venice when I was 12 years-old for a birthday present. I was thrilled. I doubt 90% (or possibly a higher percentage) of posters to LPSG have a clue who wrote that book, let alone have read it. It's fucking unconscionable. And I'm not trying to say I'm better than anyone else because I'm a voracious reader.
My point is how most 'Mericuhns are purposefully disabled by government-sponsored public education and who will probably never experience the joy of consuming a good novel that challenges their thoughts and spurs them on to think for them selves. Case in point. Tom Sawyer was written for a reading audience of 10 to 14 year-olds. It's also a good read for adults, too. However, it has a universal appeal to young readers. Therefore, imagine how sad it was for me to discover that my 5th graders had not read the book. However, they did have the book read to them by a previous instructor. Yes, children, rest your heads on your desks as teacher reads one or two chapters of Tom Sawyer an hour before the end of the school day bell rings. That's a major tragedy. My maternal grandmother, who dropped out of the 6th grade after two months read Tom Sawyer when she was 11 years-old. And she was born in 1880!
Sorry, the graphic novel is just a thick comic book. It ain't literature. Therefore, even if the 1001 Books ya gotta read before you die is controversial, it pales in controversy compared to popular, contemporary science fiction. But those of you reading science fiction already know how poorly educated most of the USA population is. As for the graphic novel, well the panel drawings are so pretty you don't need to have an imagination.
I'm not above incorrectly using the wrong version of there, their, or they're when I'm typing fast. Same goes for the use of to and too, your and you're. But for the most part they are simple typos or an example of me not proof reading before I post. And I'm great and misspelling words when I should know better.
However, trust me folks, from the consistent bad grammar, outright poor spelling, and inability to write a complete sentence or inability to coordinate subjects and verbs that I read in so many posts on LPSG, believe me when I say you've gotten a raw deal from most of your State tax supported public schools. I suggest you get together and form a public interest groups intent upon getting a refund for receiving such lack luster educations.
As for the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Kick the Bucket, although I don't agree with many of the selections you should all read as many of the suggested books that you can. Your lives will be a lot richer for it than just sitting around and watching Desperate Housewives.
The list is heavy on English literature, beginning with Chaucer, and many obscure works by eastern European authors. It's equally heavy on French and German literature. What Spanish language works are listed are mostly modern 20th Century writers.
But the compilation of recommended books has been under fire by most academics of world comparative literature since the first edition was published.
Of more importance, if, as someone mentioned earlier, you find The Great Gatsby difficult to read and your only language is English, well . . . that's a major tragedy. Obviously you'll never be able to wade through translations from the original German into English of such works as Magic Mountain (no, it's not a ride at Disney World). God forbid 'Mericuhn intermediate and high school students should be challenged develop reading skills that give them entrance into the prose of Henry James, (or his brother, William).
I maintain that anyone who cannot easily read 20th Century American authors (Light in August, by Faulkner for example) and whose native language is English is living evidence that the public school system in the USA has been purposefully dumbed down by the various State Departments of Education so as to keep the masses undereducated and too lazy (or ill equipped) to pick up a book and read. There's a major conspiracy, in my humble opinion, to dismantle intellectual thought and discourse in the USA since at least the first year Reagan became President (who, as I understand preferred to read and reread the works of Zane Gray -- look him up, Zane Gray's books aren't bad writing, but you won't be terribly impressed). I don't hate the United States of America, but I do hate how the gullible TV-watching public has been conned into reading fluff that doesn't challenge them.
I remember looking at a list of goals taped above the computer of the payroll/book keeper at a software company where I worked. The goals were from a Stephen R. Covey book on self-improvement. One of those goals was: Read one book a month. One book a month! God help her, I hope she didn't overtax her little brain! Why not at least one book a week? I might add she was the sister-in-law of the CEO and never churned out a bi-monthly payroll without making 10 or 12 mistakes with the employees' paychecks. I truly felt sorry for her.
My Mexican grandmother gave me a copy of Death in Venice when I was 12 years-old for a birthday present. I was thrilled. I doubt 90% (or possibly a higher percentage) of posters to LPSG have a clue who wrote that book, let alone have read it. It's fucking unconscionable. And I'm not trying to say I'm better than anyone else because I'm a voracious reader.
My point is how most 'Mericuhns are purposefully disabled by government-sponsored public education and who will probably never experience the joy of consuming a good novel that challenges their thoughts and spurs them on to think for them selves. Case in point. Tom Sawyer was written for a reading audience of 10 to 14 year-olds. It's also a good read for adults, too. However, it has a universal appeal to young readers. Therefore, imagine how sad it was for me to discover that my 5th graders had not read the book. However, they did have the book read to them by a previous instructor. Yes, children, rest your heads on your desks as teacher reads one or two chapters of Tom Sawyer an hour before the end of the school day bell rings. That's a major tragedy. My maternal grandmother, who dropped out of the 6th grade after two months read Tom Sawyer when she was 11 years-old. And she was born in 1880!
Sorry, the graphic novel is just a thick comic book. It ain't literature. Therefore, even if the 1001 Books ya gotta read before you die is controversial, it pales in controversy compared to popular, contemporary science fiction. But those of you reading science fiction already know how poorly educated most of the USA population is. As for the graphic novel, well the panel drawings are so pretty you don't need to have an imagination.
I'm not above incorrectly using the wrong version of there, their, or they're when I'm typing fast. Same goes for the use of to and too, your and you're. But for the most part they are simple typos or an example of me not proof reading before I post. And I'm great and misspelling words when I should know better.
However, trust me folks, from the consistent bad grammar, outright poor spelling, and inability to write a complete sentence or inability to coordinate subjects and verbs that I read in so many posts on LPSG, believe me when I say you've gotten a raw deal from most of your State tax supported public schools. I suggest you get together and form a public interest groups intent upon getting a refund for receiving such lack luster educations.
As for the 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Kick the Bucket, although I don't agree with many of the selections you should all read as many of the suggested books that you can. Your lives will be a lot richer for it than just sitting around and watching Desperate Housewives.
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DiscontentBoy strikes me as being extremely intelligent. Just thought I'd say (credit where it's due!). 
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Enid
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Midlife Bear.
Have read a lot of your posts and probably don't see eye to eye on most things but I admire your intelligence.
I would agree with most of your post here, though, and glad you wrote it because saves me time I don't have to write much of the same.
What I would disagree on is that I don't think the slide in American education is a conscious conspiracy or that it started with Regan.
I think there are many reasons.
Teachers are not paid well and in general we are getting what we pay for.
My wife was exceptional fluent in many languages including Spanish.
Constantly finding things our daughter's teacher was telling the students that were incorrect.
Ditto for me with some of the math.
So this extends into English taught by people that take film courses to get an English degree instead of reading literature or writing anything.
There is an approach in education that started in the 60's that things must be relevant.
That has been translated into being practical.
Meaning can we make a buck from this.
The Bible, Homer, Confucius are not relevant or practical.
Gangsta Rap is because you can make dough and bang ho's.
Pretend to sing wear lots of bling.
Too much TV, cell phone use, texting.
You don't need to read, write, spell or speak.
Just grunt.
Have read a lot of your posts and probably don't see eye to eye on most things but I admire your intelligence.
I would agree with most of your post here, though, and glad you wrote it because saves me time I don't have to write much of the same.
What I would disagree on is that I don't think the slide in American education is a conscious conspiracy or that it started with Regan.
I think there are many reasons.
Teachers are not paid well and in general we are getting what we pay for.
My wife was exceptional fluent in many languages including Spanish.
Constantly finding things our daughter's teacher was telling the students that were incorrect.
Ditto for me with some of the math.
So this extends into English taught by people that take film courses to get an English degree instead of reading literature or writing anything.
There is an approach in education that started in the 60's that things must be relevant.
That has been translated into being practical.
Meaning can we make a buck from this.
The Bible, Homer, Confucius are not relevant or practical.
Gangsta Rap is because you can make dough and bang ho's.
Pretend to sing wear lots of bling.
Too much TV, cell phone use, texting.
You don't need to read, write, spell or speak.
Just grunt.
hud01
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I am a huge reader. I didn't see a book I knew until the 90's. I have not heard of about 60% to 70% of the books. This is a very subjective list.
So here are the 70 or so that I have read.
The World According to Garp John Irving ,
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy John Le Carré
Breakfast of Champions Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Rabbit Redux John Updike
Slaughterhouse-five Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
The French Lieutenants Woman John Fowles
Portnoys Complaint Philip Roth
The Godfather Mario Puzo
Ada Vladimir Nabokov
God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater Kurt Vonnegut
Cats Cradle Kurt Vonnegut
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold John Le Carré
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich Aleksandr Isayevich Solzhenitsyn
Franny and Zooey J.D. Salinger
Catch-22 Joseph Heller
To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee
Rabbit, Run John Updike
Doctor Zhivago Boris Pasternak
Lolita Vladimir Nabokov
The Story of O Pauline Réage
Lord of the Flies William Golding
Casino Royale Ian Fleming
Invisible Man Ralph Ellison
The Old Man and the Sea Ernest Hemingway
The Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger
The Third Man Graham Greene
The Man With the Golden Arm Nelson Algren
Nineteen Eighty-Four George Orwell
Animal Farm George Orwell
For Whom the Bell Tolls Ernest Hemingway
Native Son Richard Wright
The Grapes of Wrath John Steinbeck
Gone With the Wind Margaret Mitchell
The Thin Man Dashiell Hammett
The Maltese Falcon Dashiell Hammett
A Farewell to Arms Ernest Hemingway
All Quiet on the Western Front Erich Maria Remarque
Lady Chatterleys Lover D.H. Lawrence
The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald
Billy Budd, Foretopman Herman Melville
Tarzan of the Apes Edgar Rice Burroughs
The Jungle Upton Sinclair
The Hound of the Baskervilles Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The War of the Worlds H.G. Wells
Dracula Bram Stoker
The Time Machine H.G. Wells
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Robert Louis Stevenson
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Mark Twain
The Death of Ivan Ilyich Leo Tolstoy
Treasure Island Robert Louis Stevenson
The Brothers Karamazov Fyodor Dostoevsky
Anna Karenina Leo Tolstoy
Around the World in Eighty Days Jules Verne
The Idiot Fyodor Dostoevsky
Journey to the Centre of the Earth Jules Verne
Crime and Punishment Fyodor Dostoevsky
Notes from the Underground Fyodor Dostoevsky
Walden Henry David Thoreau
Moby-Dick Herman Melville
The Scarlet Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne
A Christmas Carol Charles Dickens
Last of the Mohicans James Fenimore Cooper
Frankenstein Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
Candide Voltaire
Fanny Hill John Cleland
Gullivers Travels Jonathan Swift
Robinson Crusoe Daniel Defoe
Don Quixote Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
Aesops Fables Aesopus
So here are the 70 or so that I have read.
The World According to Garp John Irving ,
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy John Le Carré
Breakfast of Champions Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Rabbit Redux John Updike
Slaughterhouse-five Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
The French Lieutenants Woman John Fowles
Portnoys Complaint Philip Roth
The Godfather Mario Puzo
Ada Vladimir Nabokov
God Bless You, Mr. Rosewater Kurt Vonnegut
Cats Cradle Kurt Vonnegut
The Spy Who Came in from the Cold John Le Carré
One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich Aleksandr Isayevich Solzhenitsyn
Franny and Zooey J.D. Salinger
Catch-22 Joseph Heller
To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee
Rabbit, Run John Updike
Doctor Zhivago Boris Pasternak
Lolita Vladimir Nabokov
The Story of O Pauline Réage
Lord of the Flies William Golding
Casino Royale Ian Fleming
Invisible Man Ralph Ellison
The Old Man and the Sea Ernest Hemingway
The Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger
The Third Man Graham Greene
The Man With the Golden Arm Nelson Algren
Nineteen Eighty-Four George Orwell
Animal Farm George Orwell
For Whom the Bell Tolls Ernest Hemingway
Native Son Richard Wright
The Grapes of Wrath John Steinbeck
Gone With the Wind Margaret Mitchell
The Thin Man Dashiell Hammett
The Maltese Falcon Dashiell Hammett
A Farewell to Arms Ernest Hemingway
All Quiet on the Western Front Erich Maria Remarque
Lady Chatterleys Lover D.H. Lawrence
The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald
Billy Budd, Foretopman Herman Melville
Tarzan of the Apes Edgar Rice Burroughs
The Jungle Upton Sinclair
The Hound of the Baskervilles Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The War of the Worlds H.G. Wells
Dracula Bram Stoker
The Time Machine H.G. Wells
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Robert Louis Stevenson
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Mark Twain
The Death of Ivan Ilyich Leo Tolstoy
Treasure Island Robert Louis Stevenson
The Brothers Karamazov Fyodor Dostoevsky
Anna Karenina Leo Tolstoy
Around the World in Eighty Days Jules Verne
The Idiot Fyodor Dostoevsky
Journey to the Centre of the Earth Jules Verne
Crime and Punishment Fyodor Dostoevsky
Notes from the Underground Fyodor Dostoevsky
Walden Henry David Thoreau
Moby-Dick Herman Melville
The Scarlet Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne
A Christmas Carol Charles Dickens
Last of the Mohicans James Fenimore Cooper
Frankenstein Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley
Candide Voltaire
Fanny Hill John Cleland
Gullivers Travels Jonathan Swift
Robinson Crusoe Daniel Defoe
Don Quixote Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
Aesops Fables Aesopus
hud01
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DiscontentBoy strikes me as being extremely intelligent. Just thought I'd say (credit where it's due!).
Perhaps brighter than the average bear, but no real brilliance here. And as Midlife Bear pointed out, the fact that I found The Great Gatsby difficult to read when English is my most predominant language (not the first language I learned though) is quite sad. I am proud to say that I understood it completely (or at least I think I did), but I have no shame in saying that I did have to read some some things over to make sure I understood. I guess I just have to read more. But thanks all the same, joll.
The list may not be the greatest, but it does have some great selections. Just avoid the books you don't think are worth reading.
Discontent - You're welcome, dude (was actually your posts and responses to people that gave me that impression - rather than the list).
Hud01 - I didn't spot The Third Man (and I was looking, lol). Great film, too.
Hud01 - I didn't spot The Third Man (and I was looking, lol). Great film, too.
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invisibleman
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I read a lot of stuff. I have a few DH Lawrence novels on PDF. I have a Henry Miller novel on PDF "Sexus". I have a bunch of Jean Genet books.
invisibleman
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nudeyorker
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Oddly I have not read any of the first 69 books, but have read about 30% of the subsequent titles. I recently had a conversation with a friend about re-reading the books that we were forced to read in school to see what our perspectives would be as adults with some insight from experience... meanwhile a few titles not listed that I have enjoyed are...
My Old Sweetheart
The Whiteness of Bones
Sleeping Beauties
And if you enjoyed those you can read
I Myself Have Seen It
My Old Sweetheart
The Whiteness of Bones
Sleeping Beauties
And if you enjoyed those you can read
I Myself Have Seen It
Barnes and Noble used to carry a book by Benjamin Franklin that everyone should read. It was simply titled "Fart Proudly".
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