This is not just a list of "recommended literature" like the one that the Ministry of Education and Science hastened to present, and not just a list of good and favorite books. This is precisely a study based on an in-depth survey, literary investigation and analysis of the mention of texts in different eras. As a result, we were able to describe the origin of the key features of the “Russian soul” and even think about the future of our culture.
How was this list compiled? The people who participated in the survey were asked to name 20 books that are not necessarily their favorite, but that they must read in order to be able to speak with them “in the same language”. More than a hundred questionnaires were received. The age of the survey participants is from 18 to 72 years, geography - from Kaliningrad to Vladivostok. Among the respondents are journalists, doctors, librarians, builders, engineers, businessmen, programmers, waiters, managers, teachers, etc. Almost everyone either has a higher education or studies at a university. That is, representatives of the intellectual elite, the bearers of that same cultural code of Russia, if it exists, participated in the survey.
To our surprise, it turned out that he was. We really speak the same language. In general, Russian society turned out to be more homogeneous than we thought.
If you need even more letters, then continue. More impatient immediately offer a list of books.
100 books you need to read to understand yourself and others
1. The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
Textbook of Soviet and Christian history
2. "Eugene Onegin" Alexander Pushkin
A textbook of real feelings and an encyclopedia of Russian life
3. "Crime and Punishment" Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Textbook of Philosophy and Morality
4. "War and Peace" Leo Tolstoy
Real Human Behavior Tutorial
5. "The Little Prince" Antoine de Saint-Exupery
Philosophy textbook
6. "Hero of Our Time" Mikhail Lermontov
Psychology textbook
7. "Twelve Chairs" Ilya Ilf, Evgeny Petrov
Satire textbook
8. 1984 George Orwell
Textbook of social studies
9. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Textbook of knowledge of eternity
10. "Harry Potter" JK Rowling
Growing up textbook
11. "Dead Souls" Nikolai Gogol
Russian character textbook
12. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
Family life textbook
13. "The Idiot" Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Humanity textbook
14. The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
Decadence textbook
15. "Woe from Wit" Alexander Griboyedov
Textbook of Russian mentality
16. "Fathers and Sons" Ivan Turgenev
A textbook of generational conflicts
17. The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien
Textbook of good and evil
18. The Catcher in the Rye by Jerome Salinger
Teen crisis textbook
19. "Three Comrades" Erich Maria Remarque
True Friendship Tutorial
22. Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
Textbook of logic and dreams
23. The Brothers Karamazov Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Textbook of Philosophy and Religion
24. "Sherlock Holmes" (total 60 works) Arthur Conan Doyle
Textbook of deductive reasoning
25. Three Musketeers Alexandre Dumas
A textbook of the behavior of a real man
26. "The Captain's Daughter" Alexander Pushkin
Honor textbook
27. "We" Evgeny Zamyatin
Political science textbook
28. "Inspector" Nikolai Gogol
Textbook of the state structure of Russia
29. Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
Tragic love textbook
30. The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
Soul Power Textbook
32. Faust by Johann Wolfgang Goethe
A textbook of ethics and will
33. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Anti-degradation tutorial
34. Bible
textbook tutorials
35. Trial by Franz Kafka
A textbook for survival in a world of bureaucracy
36. The Golden Calf Ilya Ilf, Evgeny Petrov
Humorous attitude to life textbook
37. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
Illusion Relinquishing Tutorial
38. Quiet Flows the Don by Mikhail Sholokhov
Textbook of man's place in history
39. "Generation "P"" Victor Pelevin
Textbook of modern Russian history
40. Hamlet by William Shakespeare
A textbook of contradictions
42. "Two Captains" Veniamin Kaverin
Personal growth textbook
43. Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey
Freedom textbook
44. Trilogy about Dunno Nikolai Nosov
Economics textbook
45. "Oblomov" Ivan Goncharov
Textbook of Russian mentality
46. "Monday begins on Saturday" Arkady and Boris Strugatsky
Textbook of Idealism
47. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer Mark Twain
Childhood textbook
48. Gulag Archipelago Alexander Solzhenitsyn
Survival textbook on the wheel of history
49. The Great Gatsby Francis Scott Fitzgerald
A textbook of disappointments
50. Dandelion Wine by Ray Bradbury
A textbook of joy and fantasy
52. All About the Moomins by Tove Jansson
Textbook of knowledge of the world
53. "History of one city" Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin
Textbook of life in Russia
54. Lolita Vladimir Nabokov
A textbook of human weaknesses
55. All Quiet on the Western Front Erich Maria Remarque
A textbook of behavior in war
56. For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway
A textbook of courage
57. "Arc de Triomphe" Erich Maria Remarque
A guide to finding purpose in life
58. "It's hard to be a god" Arkady and Boris Strugatsky
Textbook of understanding of the world
59. Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach
Dream Realization Tutorial
60. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
A textbook of real emotions
62. "Moscow - Petushki" Venedikt Erofeev
Textbook of the Russian soul
63. "Tales of Belkin" Alexander Pushkin
Russian language textbook
64. Nausea Jean-Paul Sartre
Textbook of philosophical attitude to life
65. Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes
Textbook of humanism
66. "White Guard" Mikhail Bulgakov
Human Dignity Textbook
67. "Demons" Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Revolution textbook
68. Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri
Textbook of sin and faith
69. Fight Club Chuck Palahniuk
A textbook of life in the modern world
70. The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov
A textbook for abandoning old ideals
72. The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
Textbook of erudition
73. Lord of the Flies, William Golding
Team survival textbook
74. "Outsider" Albert Camus
Humanity textbook
75. Notre Dame Cathedral by Victor Hugo
The textbook of the beautiful
76. The Plague by Albert Camus
A textbook of humanity in an extreme situation
If you suffer from insomnia, or just don't know what to do in the evening before going to bed, then start reading! But be careful, because some books are so interesting that you won't notice how the morning comes!
Photo: goodfon.ru
So, a list of fascinating books that will interest both "avid readers" and novice "book lovers":
"Come in large numbers", Narine Abgaryan
This is a tragicomedy about a young and ambitious girl who, at the beginning of the difficult 90s, decided to leave her native small mountainous republic and conquer the capital. And she immediately realized that every visitor, whom the author calls "come in large numbers", has his own Moscow. Someone sees it in the millions of people scurrying through the streets, and someone gets the opportunity to get close to such people. And some of them protect, protect, care for, help, support and just love. The author of the book talks about his small piece of the very "come in large numbers" life of a visitor, which many indigenous residents of big cities do not know about. And there is a place for feats in it, the most important of which is to decide to emigrate and accept a new place as it is, and sincerely love it. And then Moscow will certainly reciprocate.
The Collector, John Fowles
This is the debut story of the author, and for many it practically freezes the blood, because this is a real psychological thriller that excites the mind. The plot is the fate of two people connected with each other. He is a butterfly collector. There is a void in his soul, which he seeks to fill with beauty. And one day Ferdinand finds himself a wonderful victim - the girl Miranda. It is as if she was created in order to create and enjoy freedom. And he understands that he will give everything to possess her. And so, Miranda becomes a prisoner of Ferdinand. But will he be able to keep real Life, Beauty, Freedom and all the most beautiful that can be in the human soul within the walls of the castle?
The story is built on the subtle relationship of the victim and the villain and allows you to rethink many of the stories of world classics that seemed to have long been worn out.
"Forrest Gump", Winston Groom
This is the story of a mentally retarded guy, which he himself outlined on the pages of the legendary book that formed the basis of the film of the same name. The plot can be called practically the embodiment of the myth about the very "American dream" that disturbed the minds of millions of young people who lived in the second half of the last century. But at the same time, this is a sharp and even slightly cruel satirical parody of the society of that time, which was not ready to accept people who were somehow different from the main mass. Forrest Gump was different, and therefore became the object of ridicule. But this boy is not crazy at all. He is different, and he can see and feel what others cannot see and feel. He is special.
"Amsterdam", Ian McEwan
The author of the book is one of the representatives of the "elite" of modern British prose. And for a work that has become a real world bestseller, he received the Booker Prize. Victor Golyshev, who translated this creation into Russian, also got around to the award. It would seem that the story is simple and very relevant. But how many nuances are in it, how many thoughts, how many doubts! The main characters are two friends. One of them is a successful editor of a popular newspaper. The second is a brilliant contemporary composer who is writing the Millennium Symphony. And they enter into an agreement on euthanasia, under the terms of which, if one falls into a state of unconsciousness and ceases to understand what he is doing, then the other will take his life.
Amendment 22 by Joseph Heller
Although more than half a century has passed since the publication of the first book, this work is still legendary and one of the most popular, and many publications have included it in the list of the best novels.
This is not an ordinary story about US Air Force pilots who took part in World War II. All of them get into absurd situations, face awkward people and thoughtless actions, they themselves commit incomprehensible acts. And all this is connected with a certain amendment No. 22, which actually does not exist on paper, but says that every military man who does not want to perform a combat mission is quite normal and therefore fit for service. But in fact, in this story one can see not so much an anti-war novel as a deep and global mockery of modern everyday life, of society and the laws in force.
"Collusion of Dunces", John Kennedy Toole
The author of this book, who, by the way, lived to see the Pulitzer Prize for this creation, was able to create a literary hero, unlike any described in satirical literature. Ignatius J. Riley is creative, imaginative and eccentric. He fancies himself an intellectual, but in reality he is a glutton, a spendthrift and a quitter. He is similar to the modern Don Quixote or Gargantua, who despises society for its lack of geometry and theology. He is reminiscent of Thomas Aquinas, who launched his own hopeless war against everything and everyone: gay people, the excesses of the century, and even intercity buses. And this image is so interesting, unusual and, unfortunately, relevant that everyone can see a part of themselves in it.
"Monday Starts on Saturday" Strugatsky Brothers
This book is a real masterpiece of Russian science fiction, a kind of embodiment of the utopia of the Soviet era, a kind of artistic fulfillment of the dream of the possibilities of a modern person to learn, create, learn and solve the mysteries of the universe.
The main characters of the book are employees of NIICHAVO (Research Institute of Witchcraft and Wizardry). They are masters and magicians, real pioneers. And they will face many amazing events and phenomena: a time machine, a hut on chicken legs, a genie and even an artificially grown man!
"The Girl on the Train" by Paula Hawkins
This book has become a real bestseller. This is a mysterious and fascinating story of the girl Rachel, who, from the train window, watches, as it seems to her, the ideal spouses. She even gave them names: Jason and Jess. Every day she sees the cottage of a man and a woman and understands that they probably have everything: well-being, happiness, wealth and love. And Rachel had all this, but not so long ago she lost all this. But one day, approaching the already well-known cottage, the girl realizes that something is going wrong. She sees frightening, mysterious and disturbing events that disturb her consciousness. And after that, the ideal wife Jess disappears. And Rachel understands that it is she who must solve this mystery and find a woman. But will the police take her seriously? And, in general, is it worth interfering in someone else's life? This is for the reader to find out.
The Book of Life: Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom
In the last months of his life, the old professor managed to make several important discoveries.
He realized that death is not the end at all. This is the beginning. And, therefore, dying is the same as preparing for something unknown and new. And it's not scary at all, but even interesting.
Before leaving for another world, the old man passed on such knowledge to everyone who was with him in the last minutes of his earthly life. What's next? Will we know it?
The Process, Franz Kafka
The author is one of the most beloved, mysterious, readable and popular writers of the last century. He managed to create a unique artistic universe in which everything is completely different from real life. She is sad, dreary and almost absurd, but incredibly and bewitchingly beautiful. Her characters constantly become participants in strange adventures, they are looking for the meaning of life and trying to get answers to questions that have been tormenting them for a long time. The novel "The Trial" is the work that will most clearly understand the mysterious nature of Franz Kafka's work.
"Lord of the Flies" by William Golding
This book can be called strange, scary and incredibly attractive.
According to the plot, boys brought up in the best traditions find themselves on a desert island. The author told the readers a philosophical parable about how fragile the world is and what can happen to people who have forgotten about kindness, love and mercy. This is a dystopia with some symbolic overtones, which explores the behavior of children who find themselves on a desert island during wartime. Will they be able to maintain humanity or will they obey natural instincts?
Rita Hayworth, or the Shawshank Redemption by Stephen King
The plot of this book is the story of a man whose nightmare suddenly became a reality. He, innocent of anything, was thrown into prison, into a real hell, in which he will spend the rest of his life. And no one has been able to get out of this terrible place yet. But the main character does not intend to give up and put up with what was destined for him by fate. He took a desperate step. But can he not only escape, but also get used to freedom and the new world, survive in it? By the way, this work of the real fantasy king Stephen King served as the basis for the film of the same name, which starred Morgan Freeman and Tim Robinson.
The events unfold in England in 1960. Jennifer Sterling wakes up after a terrible car accident and realizes that she cannot remember who she is, what happened to her. She does not remember her husband either. She would have continued to live in ignorance if, by chance, she had not found letters addressed to her and signed with the letter "B". Their author confessed his love to Jennifer and persuaded her to leave her husband. Further, the author takes readers to the XXI century. Young reporter Ellie finds one of the letters written by the mysterious "B" in a newspaper archive. She hopes that by taking up the investigation, she will be able to unravel the mystery of the author and recipient of the messages, restore her reputation and even sort out her own personal life.
“Lady with glasses with a gun in a car”, Sebastien Japrisot
The main character of the book is a blonde. She is beautiful, sentimental, sincere, deceitful, restless, stubborn and stupid. This lady, who has never seen the sea, gets into a car and tries to escape from the police. At the same time, she constantly repeats to herself that she is not crazy.
But people around here disagree. The heroine behaves more than strangely and constantly gets into ridiculous situations. She believes that wherever she is, she can be harmed. But if she escapes, she can be alone with herself and free herself from what she hides, from what worries her so much.
Goldfinch, Donna Tartt
The author has been writing this book for ten whole years, but it has become a real masterpiece. It talks about the fact that art has the power and power, and sometimes it can radically change and literally turn our lives upside down, and quite suddenly.
The hero of the work, 13-year-old boy Theo Decker, miraculously survived after the explosion that killed his mother. His father abandoned him, and he is forced to wander through foster families and completely strange houses. He traveled to Las Vegas and New York and almost despaired. But his only consolation, which, by the way, almost led to his death, is the masterpiece of the Dutch old master, which he stole from the museum.
Cloud Atlas, David Mitchell
This book is like a complex mirror maze in which seemingly completely different and unrelated stories echo, intersect and overlap each other in an amazing way.
In total, there are six main characters in the work: a young composer who is forced to sell his soul and body; 19th century notary; a journalist working in California in the 1970s who uncovers a conspiracy of a large company; a clone servant working in a modern fast food business; a modern petty publisher and a simple goatherd living in the decline of civilization.
1984 George Orwell
This work can be attributed to the genre of dystopia, it describes a society in which a harsh totalitarian regime reigns.
There is nothing more terrible than the imprisonment of free and living minds in the fetters of social foundations.
"Blackberry Winter" Sarah Gio
Events unfold in 1933 in Seattle. Vera Ray kisses her little son before going to bed and goes to work at night in a hotel. In the morning, a single mother discovers that the whole city is covered with snow, and her son has disappeared. In a snowdrift near the house, Vera finds the boy's favorite toy, but there are no footprints nearby. A desperate mother is willing to do anything to find her child.
The author then takes readers to present-day Seattle. Reporter Claire Aldridge writes an article about a snowstorm that literally paralyzed the city. By chance, she learns that similar events have already occurred 80 years ago. Starting to explore the mysterious history of Vera Ray, Claire realizes that she is somehow mysteriously intertwined with her own life.
"Blindness" José Saramago
The inhabitants of a nameless country and a nameless city are facing a strange epidemic. All of them rapidly begin to go blind. And the authorities, in order to stop this incomprehensible disease, decide to introduce strict quarantine and relocate all the sick to the old hospital, taking them into custody.
The main characters of the work are an infected ophthalmologist and his wife pretending to be blind. They are trying to collect the world bit by bit and find order in this gradually embracing chaos.
“Three apples fell from the sky”, Narine Abgaryan
This book is the story of a small village, which is somewhere high in the mountains.
Its inhabitants are all a little grumpy, a little eccentric, but at the same time, real treasures of the spirit are hidden in each of them.
This is a witty, sublime and unusual dystopia about the modern consumer society, which is programmed at the genetic level. And in this world, the sad story of the Savage is unfolding, whom the author regards as the Hamlet of our time. It still retains the remnants of humanity, but people divided into social consumption castes do not want to recognize it or simply cannot do it.
If we list noteworthy books by contemporary authors, then we cannot fail to mention the work “Social network “Kovcheg” by Evgeniy Vetsel which consists of three parts.
The main character falls from the roof, but is reborn again. Having lived a little in the XI century, he finds himself in the distant future - in the XXXVI century in Moscow. The author touches on many interesting devices, techniques of psychology and sales, modern reflections on life and reasons to seriously think about rhetorical questions. The second book describes life in America and the theory of one of the options for a worldwide conspiracy. And the third part tells about the adventures of the hero on another planet, where white angels live.
These were the most interesting books worth reading even for those who think they don't like to read. They will turn your views and even ideas about the world.
P.S. What books do you remember the most?
The novel, on which Mikhail Afanasyevich worked for more than ten years, is read and re-read all over the world. The author was able to skillfully reveal not just a few storylines: love, historical and fantastic, but also raise such eternal questions as the meaning and price of human life, Evil and Good, death and immortality, and many others. Starting reading from the very first words, each of us, at any age, plunges headlong into the world of the Master, Margarita, Pontius Pilate, Woland and other heroes of the novel, discovering more and more of its facets.
George Orwell "1984"
Can there be anything worse and worse than total lack of freedom? It is this question that permeates every line of George Orwell's most famous dystopian novel. This work, whose name has already become a household name, is a brilliant satire that mercilessly denounces every form of totalitarianism. Every day a person, surrounded by political propaganda, lies and violence, loses his identity and individuality, plunging into a life full of fear and restrictions.
William Shakespeare "Romeo and Juliet"
The immortal work of the great playwright and poet is one of the must-reads both in school years and in adulthood. The story of love and enmity between two ancient families, the Montagues and the Capulets, leaves an indelible mark on the soul of everyone. The main characters teach us kindness, selflessness and purity, inherent only in young romantics. The tragic story has become a classic, and the names of the heroes have become common nouns. "Romeo and Juliet" is a work that can revive faith in beauty, in love - a feeling that knows no misfortune, and even death.
Homer "Iliad"
The real name of the creator of the legendary poem of the VIII-VII centuries. BC, which is the source of ideas, plots, characters in all areas of art, is hidden in the fog of myths. The story of the Trojan War and the return of Odysseus, the king of Ithaca, to his homeland, told by him in the smallest detail, for a long time raised doubts among researchers with its authenticity. However, after excavations in Troy, a culture was discovered that corresponded to that described in the Iliad. Thus, covered with age-old secrets and legends, the ancient Greek poem becomes that literary and, in many ways, historical school that every person must go through in his life.
Erich Maria Remarque "Arc de Triomphe"
This work is one of the most beautiful and saddest European novels of the 20th century. Its action develops in Paris, where the main character, the German surgeon Ravik, who survived the horrors of the First World War and is accustomed to fear and hatred, falls in love with an Italian actress who does not think about love and lives only in every minute victories. The born passion between two people who have lost themselves, doomed to tragedy in advance, gives each of them a particle of warmth that they will never be able to feel again.
Fyodor Dostoyevsky "Crime and Punishment"
Having created a fundamentally new novel in world literature, called polyphonic, the author revealed in the work many themes that are most important for every person: crime and punishment, love and sacrifice, freedom and pride. An analysis of the psychological process of realizing and accepting guilt for a crime committed - that's what Dostoevsky wanted to say. This novel should be read several times - the deep psychologism of the characters contributes to a better understanding not only of the meaning of the novel, but also of one's own life.
One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
The novel of the Colombian writer is the personification of magical realism, in the plot of which reality and fictional reality, everyday life and fairy-tale elements coexist. One Hundred Years of Solitude is one of the greatest books of the 20th century, a whimsical story of the city of Macondo, lost somewhere in the jungle, and the lineage of the Buendia family, from creation to decline. The novel will take you to a very real parallel world, where miracles are commonplace, which you should not even pay attention to, men are strong and courageous, and women are proud and incredibly beautiful.
The Catcher in the Rye by Jerome David Salinger
The only novel by an American writer became a turning point in the history of world literature, and the name of the main character, Holden Caulfield, became a code for many generations of young rebels. The book tells the personal perception of life by the 16-year-old hero himself: his rejection of modern American reality, established social canons and morality of modern society. This young man is the prototype of each of us at that age when we believed that we could change the world and go against all existing laws.
Alexander Pushkin "Eugene Onegin"
The novel in verse "Eugene Onegin" is one of the most significant works of Russian literature. From the encyclopedia of Russian life (as Belinsky rightly called the novel), one could learn almost everything about the era: the style of dress, the demeanor of people from high society, interests and moral attitudes. In the reflections of the characters, their emotions, hidden under the shell of education and imposed values, we recognize ourselves. This novel is required reading in school years and at a more conscious age.
Leo Tolstoy "Anna Karenina"
“All happy families are alike, each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way,” this is how one of the most famous and brilliant novels in the treasury of Russian literature begins. This is a book about eternal values: about family, love and faith, about human dignity, and the issues raised in it have been and remain relevant. A story about a conscious choice that every person must make, about an irreconcilable conflict between duty and feeling - a novel for centuries, for all times and for all generations.
Mikhail Bulgakov: The Master and Margarita
The volume of Mikhail Bulgakov, standing on the bookshelf, testifies to the good taste of the reader. It is no coincidence that what was written by this author survived the death of Soviet literature without loss and today is read as a continuation of the golden fund of Russian classics of the 19th century. Fascinating plots (“fantasy, rooted in everyday life”), vivid images, moral problems raised to a universal scale - all this makes you return to what you read again and again.
Marquez Garcia: One Hundred Years of Solitude
One of the greatest books of the 20th century. A strange, poetic, whimsical story of the city of Macondo, lost in the jungle, from creation to decline. The history of the Buendía family, a family in which miracles are so everyday that they are not even noticed. The Buendia clan produces saints and sinners, revolutionaries, heroes and traitors, dashing adventurers - and women too beautiful for ordinary life. Extraordinary passions boil in him - and incredible events take place.
George Orwell: 1984. Animal Farm
"1984" A peculiar antipode of the second great dystopia of the XX century - "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley. What, in essence, is more terrible: the “consumer society” brought to the point of absurdity, or the “idea society” brought to the absolute? According to Orwell, there is and cannot be anything more terrible than total lack of freedom ... "Animal Farm" A parable full of humor and sarcasm. Can a humble farm become a symbol of a totalitarian society? Of course yes. But… how this society will be seen by its “citizens” – animals doomed to slaughter.
Herman Melville: Moby Dick, or the White Whale
Herman Melville is a writer and sailor, in whose work and destiny the experience of a traveler and the mythopoetic worldview of the artist surprisingly organically melted. The realization of the magnitude of Melville's talent did not come immediately, and only a quarter of a century after the death of the writer, the outlines of the enormous contribution that he made to the treasury of world literature became visible. Melville's work - the grandiose "Moby Dick" - became one of the pinnacles of American literature.
Francis Fitzgerald: The Great Gatsby
“
The Great Gatsby” - the most famous novel by Francis Fitzgerald, which has become a symbol of the “Jazz Age”. America, 1925, the time of Prohibition and gangster showdowns, bright lights and bright life. But for Jay Gatsby, the epitomeamerican dreamturned into a real tragedy. And the way up, despite fame and fortune, led to a total collapse. After all, each of us, first of all, strives not for material goods, but for love, true and eternal ...
Fyodor Dostoyevsky: Crime and Punishment
“
Crime and Punishment” is a novel about one crime. A double murder committed by a poor student for money. It is difficult to find a simpler plot, but the intellectual and spiritual shock that the novel produces is indelible. And the question that the main character set for himself to decide: “Am I a trembling creature or do I have the right?” - terrifying.Abyssthe fall is explored by the writer in order to rise to the heights of the spirit.
Ray Bradbury: Dandelion Wine
“
Dandelion wine” Ray Bradbury is a classic work that has entered the golden fund of world literature.Enter the bright world of a twelve-year-old boy and live one summer with him, filled with joyful and sad, mysterious and disturbing events; summer, when amazing discoveries are made every day, the main of which is that you are alive, you breathe, you feel!
Daniel Keyes: Flowers for Algernon
This fantastic story has amazing psychological power and makes you think about universal questions of morality: do we have the right to experiment on each other, what results can this lead to, and what price are we willing to pay to become “the smartest”. What about lonely?
Alexander Pushkin: Eugene Onegin
Novel "Eugene Onegin“
– “encyclopedia of Russian life” – presented in thisbookwith the famous comments by Yu.M. Lotman, allowing the reader to better understand the spirit and customs of the era and the novel, whose heroes have been loved by readers for the third century. The book is illustrated with drawings by A.S. Pushkin, made by the poet on the handwritten pages of the novel.
Ernest Hemingway: The Old Man and the Sea. Beyond the river, in the shade of the trees
The story "The Old Man and the Sea" is one of the most famous and beloved by readers of Hemingway's works. She brought the author the Pulitzer Prize, and also played an important role in awarding him the title of Nobel laureate. This is a story about “tragic stoicism” and courage, about how, in the face of a ruthless fate and loneliness, a person, even losing, must maintain dignity.
Jonathan Swift: The Travels of Lemuel Gulliver
Gulliver's Travels is Jonathan Swift's most significant work. Similar at first glance to a funny fairy tale, “Gulliver's Travels” is an allegory, a parable, the author of which is a ruthless and brilliant master of words, ridiculing human and social vices. Masterfully using all shades of the funny, from good-natured humor and mild irony to angry sarcasm and venomous ridicule, Swift created one of the greatest satirical books in world literature.
Leo Tolstoy: War and Peace
Tolstoy's "War and Peace" is a book for all time. It seems that it has always existed, the text seems so familiar, as soon as we open the first pages of the novel, many of its episodes are so memorable: hunting and Christmas time, the first ball of Natasha Rostova, a moonlit night in Otradnoye, Prince Andrei in the battle of Austerlitz ... Scenes of “peaceful” , family life are replaced by paintings that are important for the course of the entire world history, but for Tolstoy they are equivalent, connected in a single stream of time.
Margaret Mitchell: Gone with the Wind
Gone with the Wind is the only novel by Margaret Mitchell (1900-1949) for which she - a writer, emancipe and advocate for women's rights - received a Pulitzer Prize. This is a book about what makes us live and fight - no matter what happens around. For more than 70 years we have been reading this novel, for more than 70 years we have admired Vivien Leigh and Clark Gable in the film adaptation - and the story does not become outdated. Most likely, it is eternal.
Vladimir Nabokov: Lolita
“
Lolita” was released in 1955. Causing scandal on both sides of the ocean, this book liftedauthorto the top of the literary Olympus and became one of the most famous and, without a doubt, the greatest works of the 20th century. Today, when the polemical passions around Lolita have long subsided, we can confidently say that this is a book about great love that has overcome illness, death and time, love that is open to infinity, “loveat first sight, from the last glance, from the eternal glance.
Daniel Defoe: The Life and Wonderful Adventures of the Sailor Robinson Crusoe
The famous novel by Daniel Defoe was published almost 300 years ago. But even now, after many, many decades, the exciting adventures of Robinson Crusoe still captivate readers. The life of a sailor who, by chance, ended up on a desert island, is full of amazing events. And how many difficulties fall to his lot!
Alexandre Dumas: The Three Musketeers
Where can a poor Gascon nobleman go if all he has is courage, a noble heart and ambition? Well of course inParis! And of course, such a brave man has a place among the royal musketeers. However, the honor to be in this privileged regiment still needs to be earned, and the surest way is to make powerful enemies and make friends. D'Artagnan brilliantly succeeded in both in the shortest possible time ...
Ilf, Petrov: Twelve chairs
The famous feuilleton novel by Ilf and Petrov “Twelve Chairs
” was first published in 1928. The story of two swindlers who set off in search of Madame Petukhova's diamonds brought unprecedented success to the authors. But few people know that one of the most popular works of RussianliteratureThe twentieth century, which withstood hundreds of successful reprints, was mangled by Soviet censorship: not only individual phrases and episodes, but entire chapters were not allowed to print.
Ray Bradbury: 451° Fahrenheit
Fahrenheit 451 is a novel that brought the writer world fame. Fahrenheit 451 is the temperature at which paper ignites and burns. The philosophical dystopia of Ray Bradbury paints a hopeless picture of the development of a post-industrial society; this is the world of the future, in which all written publications are mercilessly destroyed by a special detachment of firefighters, and the possession of books is prosecuted by law, interactive television successfully serves to fool everyone ...
Charles Dickens: The Life of David Copperfield as Told by Himself
The novel of the great English writer won the love and recognition of readers all over the world. Largely autobiographical, this novel follows the fate of a boy forced to fight alone against a cruel, bleak world populated by evil teachers, self-serving factory owners and soulless servants of the law. In this war, David can only be saved by moral firmness, purity of heart and a talent that can turn a ragamuffin into England's greatest writer.
Jules Verne: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
One of the most fascinating novels by J. Verne. Biologist Pierre Aronnax and harpooner Ned Land set off in search of a strange fish spotted by sailors in different parts of the world. The mysterious creature turns out to be a submarine designed by the mysterious Captain Nemo.
Arthur Doyle: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
Peru of the English writer and journalist Arthur Conan Doyle owns historical, adventure, fantasy novels and works on spiritualism, but he entered world literature as the creator of the Great Detective of all times and peoples - Sherlock Holmes. A noble and fearless fighter against Evil, the owner of a sharp mind and extraordinary powers of observation, with the help of his deductive method, the detective solves the most intricate puzzles, often saving human lives.
The fairy tale of the modern classic Leonid Filatov is the best book for family reading, half of the text of which has already been parsed into aphorisms and anecdotes. Here is the first fully illustrated edition. Characteristic characters, witty mise-en-scenes - one of the most striking books of the 20th century is finally coming out in a wonderful design.
Antoine Saint-Exupery: The Little Prince
A touching, kind and philosophical work by Antoine de Saint-Exupery with author's drawings. A book addressed to children will accompany you all your life, each time revealing itself in a new way.
Strugatsky, Strugatsky: It's hard to be a god
Perhaps the most famous of the works of the Strugatsky brothers. One of the most famous stories of Russian science fiction. A fascinating, full of drama story of the life, love and adventures of "Don Rumata" from the kingdom of Arkanar on a distant planet - a knight with two swords, under whose name Anton is a resident from the planet Earth of the XXII century.
Lewis Carroll: Alice in Wonderland
Every educated person must have read many great books in their lifetime. No wonder there is a proverb: “To become smart, it is enough to read 10 books, but to find them, you need to read thousands,” because worthwhile works can greatly affect a person’s consciousness and shape his vision of life.
Fiction is a storehouse of knowledge that has been collected for centuries and displayed in foreign and Russian classics. Many of the works are not only very interesting and informative, but also ideal for development in a variety of areas, helping to understand yourself and other people.
The best classical writers managed to create more than a hundred golden books that should be read in the life of absolutely every person. Below is a list of a hundred books included in the top best works of all time.
As evidenced by the world ranking, the list displays not only interesting books that are worth reading, but also those that carry a considerable life lesson and will surely help a person solve many problems or find a way to accept himself and the world.
So, the list of the 100 best literary works that must be read contains the following works:
1. Mikhail Bulgakov "The Master and Margarita"
2. Alexander Pushkin "Eugene Onegin"
3. Fyodor Dostoyevsky "Crime and Punishment"
4. Leo Tolstoy "War and Peace"
5. Antoine de Saint-Exupery "The Little Prince"
6. Mikhail Lermontov "A Hero of Our Time"
7. Ilya Ilf, Evgeny Petrov "The Twelve Chairs"
8. George Orwell 1984
9. Gabriel Garcia Marquez One Hundred Years of Solitude
10. JK Rowling "Harry Potter"
11. Nikolai Gogol "Dead Souls"
12. Leo Tolstoy "Anna Karenina"
13. Fyodor Dostoevsky "The Idiot"
14. Oscar Wilde The Picture of Dorian Gray
15. Alexander Griboyedov "Woe from Wit"
16. Ivan Turgenev "Fathers and Sons"
17. J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings
18. Catcher in the Rye by Jerome Salinger
19. Erich Maria Remarque "Three Comrades"
20. Boris Pasternak "Doctor Zhivago"
21. Mikhail Bulgakov "Heart of a Dog"
22. Lewis Carroll "Alice in Wonderland"
23. Fyodor Dostoevsky "The Brothers Karamazov"
24. Arthur Conan Doyle "Sherlock Holmes" (60 works)
25. Alexandre Dumas The Three Musketeers
26. Alexander Pushkin "The Captain's Daughter"
27. Evgeny Zamyatin "We"
28. Nikolai Gogol "The Government Inspector"
29. William Shakespeare Romeo and Juliet
30. Ernest Hemingway "The Old Man and the Sea"
31. Ivan Bunin "Dark Alleys"
32. Johann Wolfgang Goethe "Faust"
33. Ray Bradbury, Fahrenheit 451
34. Bible
35. Franz Kafka "The Trial"
36. Ilya Ilf, Evgeny Petrov "The Golden Calf"
37. Aldous Huxley, Brave New World
38. Mikhail Sholokhov Quiet Flows the Don
39. Victor Pelevin "Generation "P""
40. William Shakespeare "Hamlet"
41. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
42. Veniamin Kaverin "Two Captains"
43. Ken Kesey Over the Cuckoo's Nest
44. Nikolai Nosov "Trilogy of Dunno"
45. Ivan Goncharov "Oblomov"
46. Arkady and Boris Strugatsky "Monday begins on Saturday"
47. Mark Twain, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer
48. Alexander Solzhenitsyn "The Gulag Archipelago"
49. Francis Scott Fitzgerald The Great Gatsby
50. Ray Bradbury "Dandelion Wine"
51. Alexander Volkov "The Wizard of the Emerald City"
52. Tove Jansson "All About the Moomins"
53. Mikhail Saltykov-Shchedrin "History of one city"
54. Vladimir Nabokov "Lolita"
55. Erich Maria Remarque “All Quiet on the Western Front”
56. Ernest Hemingway For Whom the Bell Tolls
57. Erich Maria Remarque "Arc de Triomphe"
58. Arkady and Boris Strugatsky "It's hard to be a god"
59. Jonathan Livingston Seagull Richard Bach
60. Alexandre Dumas The Count of Monte Cristo
61. Jack London "Martin Eden"
62. Venedikt Erofeev "Moscow - Petushki"
63. Alexander Pushkin "Tales of Belkin"
64. Jean-Paul Sartre Nausea
65. Daniel Keyes "Flowers for Algernon"
66. Mikhail Bulgakov "The White Guard"
67. Fyodor Dostoevsky "Demons"
68. Dante Alighieri The Divine Comedy
69. Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club
70. Anton Chekhov "The Cherry Orchard"
71. Franz Kafka "Castle"
72. Umberto Eco "The Name of the Rose"
73. William Golding "Lord of the Flies"
74. Albert Camus "The Outsider"
75. Victor Hugo Notre Dame Cathedral
76. Albert Camus The Plague
77. Kurt Vonnegut "Slaughterhouse Five, or the Children's Crusade"
78. Boris Vasiliev "The Dawns Here Are Quiet"
79. Nikolai Gogol "Evenings on a farm near Dikanka"
80. Anatoly Pristavkin “A golden cloud spent the night”
81. Arkady and Boris Strugatsky Roadside Picnic
82. Leonid Filatov "About Fedot the Archer, a daring fellow"
83. George Orwell, Animal Farm
84. Margaret Mitchell Gone with the Wind
85. Alexander Grin "Scarlet Sails"
86. O. Henry "The Gift of the Magi"
87. Miguel de Cervantes "The Cunning Hidalgo Don Quixote of La Mancha"
88. Homer "Iliad" and "Odyssey"
89. Daniel Defoe "Robinson Crusoe"
90. Jerome K. Jerome "Three in a boat, not counting the dog"
91. Anton Chekhov "Ward No. 6"
92. Alan Milne, Winnie the Pooh and All, All, All
93. Alexander Blok "The Twelve"
94. Varlam Shalamov "Kolyma stories"
95. Andrey Platonov "Pit"
96. Joseph Brodsky "Letters to a Roman friend"
97. Sergei Yesenin "Black Man"
98. Osip Mandelstam "The Noise of Time"
99. Jonathan Swift Gulliver's Travels
100. Daniil Kharms "Cases"
