30 Books You Should Have Read
Are you a book lover? If yes, you should definitely check out this list of 30 books you "should have read." If there are any you haven't managed to digest yet, it's not too late!
Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel García Márquez
This book is an untraditional love story—it follows a man's decades-long love for a woman who married someone else.
The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith
Would you risk your life to become someone else? A psychological thriller novel about a man who murders someone and takes on his identity.
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg
This is a story of two siblings who run away from home and live in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
This book is a gothic romance that tells the story of a woman who marries a man and moves to his estate, only to find out that his first wife still lingers in the house and in his heart.
Holes by Louis Sachar
This young adult novel is all about Stanley Yelnats, a boy who is sent to a juvenile detention center and must dig holes all day long as punishment.
Atonement by Ian McEwan
Atonement follows a young girl who makes a devastating mistake that changes the course of several people's lives.
Kindred by Octavia E. Butler
A science fiction novel with a strong dose of African-American history, Kindred tells the story of a woman who is transported back in time to the days of slavery.
We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
This Gothic novel is the story of two sisters who live in isolation with their strange, dark family secrets.
The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin
A mystery novel with a touch of comedy, The Westing Game is about a group of people who are brought together to solve a will contest.
Address Unknown by Kathrine Kressmann Taylor
This epistolary novel follows a man in Nazi Germany who tries to save the woman he loves by sending her letters.
The Watsons Go to Birmingham – 1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis
This young adult novel tells the story of a middle-class black family who travels to Birmingham, Alabama in 1963 to visit their relatives.
The Hustler by Walter Tevis
The Hustler follows a young man who is determined to be the best pool player in the world.
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John le Carré
This novel is about a group of British spies who are trying to find a Soviet mole.
Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
This children's novel is about a young girl who is cursed by a wicked witch and turned into an old woman.
Beloved by Toni Morrison
This Pulitzer Prize-winning novel is about a mother who kills her daughter rather than let her be taken back into slavery.
The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy
This Booker Prize-winning novel is set in India and tells the story of twin brothers whose lives are changed by a series of events.
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
A semi-autobiographical novel about a young woman who is struggling with her mental health, this story sheds light on the unavoidable challenges of a person’s mental state.
Life Of Pi by Yann Martel
Life of Pi tells the story of a young man who is stranded on a lifeboat with a tiger.
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
This novel is set in Nigeria and tells the story of a man who is struggling to hold on to his traditions in the face of British colonialism.
The Color Purple: A Novel by Alice Walker
This Pulitzer Prize-winning novel is about a young black girl who is struggling to find her place in the world.
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
This is an autobiographical novel about a young black girl who is growing up in the Jim Crow South.
Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
This novel is about a black woman who is searching for her own identity.
1984 by George Orwell
This is a dystopian novel about a society where citizens are constantly watched by the government.
The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
This young adult novel is set in Nazi Germany and tells the story of a girl who steals books to make up for her own illiteracy.
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
A young man tries to come to terms with the events of his past.
Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison
A young black man tries to find his place in the world.
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
Jane Eyre is a novel about a young woman who is mistreated by her guardian and ends up falling in love with him.
Watchmen by Alan Moore
This graphic novel is set in an alternate history where superheroes exist, and the United States is on the brink of nuclear war.
Lord of the Flies by William Golding
This novel is about a group of boys who are stranded on an island and must figure out how to survive.
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
A young scientist creates a monster that turns on him.