Search for books, people and lists
Read This Twice
HomePeopleBooksSonaLibrariesSign in

Best Classic Books

Embark on a journey through time with literature that has withstood the test of age. These top classic books have been selected for their enduring influence and popularity.

Recommendations from 55 articles, Barack Obama, Rihanna, Bill Gates and 181 others.
Best Classic Books
100 books on the list
Sort by
Number of Articles
Layout
To Kill a Mockingbird book cover
To Kill a Mockingbird
Harper Lee - 2006-05-23 (first published in 1960)
Goodreads Rating
This classic American novel tells the story of a young girl growing up in a sleepy Southern town and the moral crisis that shakes her community to its core. With universal themes of innocence and experience, love and hate, and kindness and cruelty, this Pulitzer Prize-winning book has sold over 18 million copies and been translated into forty languages. Harper Lee's simple love story is now regarded as a masterpiece of American literature.
The Great Gatsby book cover
The Great Gatsby
F. Scott Fitzgerald - 1925-01-01
Goodreads Rating
Step into the glamour and intrigue of the roaring 20s with a masterpiece novel that defies classification. Follow the enigmatic Jay Gatsby as he rises to wealth and power, throwing elaborate parties and chasing his elusive love, Daisy Buchanan. Filled with both lyrical beauty and stark realism, this captivating tale reveals a hero like no other who will live on in readers' memories long after the final page. Prepare for a reading experience that blends irony, romance, and mysticism for an unforgettable literary journey.
Jane Eyre book cover
Jane Eyre
Charlotte Brontë - 2003-02-04 (first published in 1847)
Goodreads Rating
This classic tale tells the story of an orphaned young woman named Jane who struggles with feeling like an outcast. When she is hired to care for a young ward at Thornfield Hall, she falls in love with the brooding and mysterious owner, Edward Rochester. However, there is a terrifying secret lurking within the halls of Thornfield, and Jane must face difficult decisions about her future. Will she be left heartbroken and exiled once again?
Recommended by
Shonda Rhimes
Little Women book cover
Little Women
Louisa May Alcott - 2004-04-06 (first published in 1868)
Goodreads Rating
Four unique sisters rely on each other during their father's absence in this heartwarming story. From putting on plays to forming secret societies, they face life's ups and downs with the one question always on their minds: will Father make it home safely from war?
Pride and Prejudice book cover
Pride and Prejudice
Jane Austen - 2000-10-10 (first published in 1813)
Goodreads Rating
This beloved classic novel follows the dynamic protagonist, Elizabeth Bennet, as she learns the impact of hasty judgments and the importance of genuine goodness. Set in Regency-era Great Britain, the story satirizes societal expectations and the pressure to marry for financial gain. With witty humor and memorable characters, Pride and Prejudice has become one of the most popular and widely adapted novels in English literature.
Frankenstein book cover
Frankenstein
Mary Shelley - 2018-03-08 (first published in 1818)
Goodreads Rating
This Gothic thriller is a cautionary tale about the dangers of science. It tells the story of Victor Frankenstein, a science student obsessed with discovering the cause of life. Upon bringing his creation to life, Frankenstein recoils in horror at the creature's hideousness. Tormented by loneliness, the creature turns to evil and seeks revenge against his creator. This bestseller raises thought-provoking questions on the meaning of humanity, our responsibilities to each other, and how far we should tamper with nature.
Recommended by
Guillermo del Toro
Wuthering Heights book cover
Wuthering Heights
Emily Brontë - 2002-01-01 (first published in 1847)
Goodreads Rating
Experience a tumultuous and passionate tale of love and revenge in an English literary masterpiece. Follow the intense and almost demonic love between Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff, a foundling adopted by Catherine's father, as they navigate the chaos and violence that surrounds them. With evocative descriptions of the lonely moorland setting and a complex structure skillfully executed, this unforgettable novel is a tour de force of poetic grandeur.
Recommended by
Chloe Grace Moretz
The Picture of Dorian Gray book cover
The Picture of Dorian Gray
Oscar Wilde - 2004-06-01 (first published in 1890)
Goodreads Rating
A Gothic and philosophical novel, this controversial book by Oscar Wilde explores the boundaries of morality and art. Originally censored before publication, the story of Dorian Gray offended British reviewers who accused Wilde of violating public morality laws. Despite the backlash, the author passionately defended his work and released a revised version with a preface that became a literary manifesto. With its unflinching examination of beauty, sin, and decadence, this classic continues to captivate readers today.
Recommended by
Jenn Im
The Catcher in the Rye book cover
The Catcher in the Rye
J. D. Salinger - 2001-01-30 (first published in 1951)
Goodreads Rating
This coming-of-age novel follows Holden Caulfield, a complex and conflicted teenager from New York, as he navigates his way through society, grappling with love, fear, and uncertainty. J.D. Salinger's masterpiece has been widely regarded as one of the greatest novels of the 20th century, and for good reason. With poignant and introspective prose, The Catcher in the Rye explores themes of rebellion, angst, and the struggle to communicate in a rapidly changing world. This classic novel continues to captivate readers, sparking discussions of societal norms and the complexity of adolescence.
Lord of the Flies book cover
Lord of the Flies
William Golding - 1999-10-01 (first published in 1954)
Goodreads Rating
A group of schoolboys are stranded on an uncharted island with no adult supervision in the midst of a world war. Excited by their newfound freedom, they attempt to create their own society but fail in the face of terror, sin, and evil. As order collapses and fear reigns, the hope of adventure and rescue becomes more distant. Labeled a parable and allegory of the darkness in man's heart, this unforgettable novel can be enjoyed by all.
Recommended by
Harry Khachatrian
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
1984 by George Orwell
Moby Dick by Herman Melville
Animal Farm by George Orwell
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
The Color Purple by Alice Walker
The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown
Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
Ulysses by James Joyce
Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
Great Expectations by Charles Dickens
Middlemarch by George Eliot
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
Beloved by Toni Morrison
Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Harry Potter And The Sorcerer's Stone by J. K. Rowling
Charlotte's Web by E. B White
Emma by Jane Austen
The Call of the Wild by Jack London
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote
The Awakening by Kate Chopin
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Les Misérables by Victor Hugo
Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf
The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
Dracula by Bram Stoker
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift
Tess of the D'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy
Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
The Giver by Lois Lowry
Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
Corduroy by Don Freeman
Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner
The Diary Of A Young Girl by Anne Frank
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr.
Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie
A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf
The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell
The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame
The Time Machine by H. G. Wells
The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien
Stuart Little by E. B White
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis
The Art of War by Sun Tzu
Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren
Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass by Frederick Douglass
The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton
Hamlet by William Shakespeare
The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
Native Son by Richard Wright
My Ántonia by Willa Cather
The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey
The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans
The Stranger by Albert Camus
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
The Little Engine That Could by Watty Piper
The Odyssey of Homer by Homer
The Boxcar Children Books 1-4 by Gertrude Chandler Warner
The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter
The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway
To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf
A Tree Grows In Brooklyn by Betty Smith
The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton
Matilda by Roald Dahl
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
Night by Elie Wiesel
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie