The Book of Great Books: A Guide to 100 World Classics

This is one of the 759 lists we use to generate our main The Greatest Books list.

About this list

Book, 105 Books

Editor W. John Campbell provides explanations and summaries for 100 of the world's best books.

This list was originally published in 2001 and was added to this site over 11 years ago.

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Cover of 'The Aeneid' by Virgil
The Aeneid

Virgil

Cover of 'All Quiet on the Western Front' by Erich Maria Remarque
All Quiet on the Western Front

Erich Maria Remarque

Cover of 'All the King's Men' by Robert Penn Warren
All the King's Men

Robert Penn Warren

Cover of 'Animal Farm' by George Orwell
Animal Farm

George Orwell

Cover of 'As I Lay Dying' by William Faulkner
As I Lay Dying

William Faulkner

Cover of 'As You Like it' by William Shakespeare
As You Like it

William Shakespeare

Cover of 'The Awakening' by Kate Chopin
The Awakening

Kate Chopin

Cover of 'Beowulf' by Unknown
Beowulf

Unknown

Cover of 'Billy Budd' by Herman Melville
Billy Budd

Herman Melville

Cover of 'The Bluest Eye' by Toni Morrison
The Bluest Eye

Toni Morrison

Cover of 'Brave New World' by Aldous Huxley
Brave New World

Aldous Huxley

Cover of 'The Call of the Wild' by Jack London
The Call of the Wild

Jack London

Cover of 'Candide' by Voltaire
Candide

Voltaire

Cover of 'The Canterbury Tales' by Geoffrey Chaucer
The Canterbury Tales

Geoffrey Chaucer

Cover of 'Catch-22' by Joseph Heller
Catch-22

Joseph Heller

Cover of 'The Color Purple' by Alice Walker
The Color Purple

Alice Walker

Cover of 'Crime and Punishment' by Fyodor Dostoevsky
Crime and Punishment

Fyodor Dostoevsky

Cover of 'The Crucible' by Arthur Miller
The Crucible

Arthur Miller

Cover of 'Daisy Miller' by Henry James
Daisy Miller

Henry James

Cover of 'David Copperfield' by Charles Dickens
David Copperfield

Charles Dickens

Cover of 'Death Of A Salesman' by Arthur Miller
Death Of A Salesman

Arthur Miller

Cover of 'The Diary of a Young Girl' by Anne Frank
The Diary of a Young Girl

Anne Frank

Cover of 'The Divine Comedy' by Dante Alighieri
The Divine Comedy

Dante Alighieri

Cover of 'The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus' by Christopher Marlowe
The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus

Christopher Marlowe

Cover of 'A Doll's House' by Henrik Ibsen
A Doll's House

Henrik Ibsen

Cover of 'Don Quixote' by Miguel de Cervantes
Don Quixote

Miguel de Cervantes

Cover of 'Ethan Frome' by Edith Wharton
Ethan Frome

Edith Wharton

Cover of 'Euthyphro' by Plato
Euthyphro

Plato

Cover of 'Apology' by Plato
Apology

Plato

Cover of 'Crito' by Plato
Crito

Plato

Cover of 'Phaedo' by Plato
Phaedo

Plato

Cover of 'A Farewell to Arms' by Ernest Hemingway
A Farewell to Arms

Ernest Hemingway

Cover of 'Faust' by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Faust

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Cover of 'For Whom the Bell Tolls' by Ernest Hemingway
For Whom the Bell Tolls

Ernest Hemingway

Cover of 'Frankenstein' by Mary Shelley
Frankenstein

Mary Shelley

Cover of 'The Glass Menagerie' by Tennessee Williams
The Glass Menagerie

Tennessee Williams

Cover of 'The Good Earth' by Pearl S. Buck
The Good Earth

Pearl S. Buck

Cover of 'The Grapes of Wrath' by John Steinbeck
The Grapes of Wrath

John Steinbeck

Cover of 'Great Expectations' by Charles Dickens
Great Expectations

Charles Dickens

Cover of 'The Great Gatsby' by F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Great Gatsby

F. Scott Fitzgerald

Cover of 'Gulliver's Travels' by Jonathan Swift
Gulliver's Travels

Jonathan Swift

Cover of 'Hamlet' by William Shakespeare
Hamlet

William Shakespeare

Cover of 'Hard Times' by Charles Dickens
Hard Times

Charles Dickens

Cover of 'Heart of Darkness' by Joseph Conrad
Heart of Darkness

Joseph Conrad

Cover of 'Henry IV, Part I' by William Shakespeare
Henry IV, Part I

William Shakespeare

Cover of 'House Made of Dawn' by N. Scott Momaday
House Made of Dawn

N. Scott Momaday

Cover of 'The House of the Seven Gables' by Nathaniel Hawthorne
The House of the Seven Gables

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Cover of 'Adventures of Huckleberry Finn' by Mark Twain
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

Mark Twain

Cover of 'I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings' by Maya Angelou
I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Maya Angelou

Cover of 'The Iliad' by Homer
The Iliad

Homer

Cover of 'Invisible Man' by Ralph Ellison
Invisible Man

Ralph Ellison

Cover of 'Jane Eyre' by Charlotte Brontë
Jane Eyre

Charlotte Brontë

Cover of 'The Joy Luck Club' by Amy Tan
The Joy Luck Club

Amy Tan

Cover of 'Julius Caesar' by William Shakespeare
Julius Caesar

William Shakespeare

Cover of 'The Jungle' by Upton Sinclair
The Jungle

Upton Sinclair

Cover of 'King Lear' by William Shakespeare
King Lear

William Shakespeare

Cover of 'Light in August' by William Faulkner
Light in August

William Faulkner

Cover of 'Lord Jim' by Joseph Conrad
Lord Jim

Joseph Conrad

Cover of 'Lord of the Flies' by William Golding
Lord of the Flies

William Golding

Cover of 'The Lord Of The Rings' by J. R. R. Tolkien
The Lord Of The Rings

J. R. R. Tolkien

Cover of 'Macbeth' by William Shakespeare
Macbeth

William Shakespeare

Cover of 'Madame Bovary' by Gustave Flaubert
Madame Bovary

Gustave Flaubert

Cover of 'The Mayor of Casterbridge' by Thomas Hardy
The Mayor of Casterbridge

Thomas Hardy

Cover of 'The Merchant of Venice' by William Shakespeare
The Merchant of Venice

William Shakespeare

Cover of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' by William Shakespeare
A Midsummer Night's Dream

William Shakespeare

Cover of 'Moby-Dick' by Herman Melville
Moby-Dick

Herman Melville

Cover of 'Native Son' by Richard Wright
Native Son

Richard Wright

Cover of 'Nineteen Eighty Four' by George Orwell
Nineteen Eighty Four

George Orwell

Cover of 'The Odyssey' by Homer
The Odyssey

Homer

Cover of 'Oedipus the King' by Sophocles
Oedipus the King

Sophocles

Cover of 'Oedipus at Colonus' by Sophocles
Oedipus at Colonus

Sophocles

Cover of 'Antigone' by Sophocles
Antigone

Sophocles

Cover of 'Of Mice and Men' by John Steinbeck
Of Mice and Men

John Steinbeck

Cover of 'The Old Man and the Sea' by Ernest Hemingway
The Old Man and the Sea

Ernest Hemingway

Cover of 'The Adventures of Oliver Twist' by Charles Dickens
The Adventures of Oliver Twist

Charles Dickens

Cover of 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' by Ken Kesey
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

Ken Kesey

Cover of 'Othello' by William Shakespeare
Othello

William Shakespeare

Cover of 'Paradise Lost' by John Milton
Paradise Lost

John Milton

Cover of 'The Pearl' by John Steinbeck
The Pearl

John Steinbeck

Cover of 'The Plague' by Albert Camus
The Plague

Albert Camus

Cover of 'A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man' by James Joyce
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

James Joyce

Cover of 'Pride and Prejudice' by Jane Austen
Pride and Prejudice

Jane Austen

Cover of 'The Prince' by Niccolo Machiavelli
The Prince

Niccolo Machiavelli

Cover of 'The Red Badge of Courage' by Stephen Crane
The Red Badge of Courage

Stephen Crane

Cover of 'The Republic' by Plato
The Republic

Plato

Cover of 'The Return of the Native' by Thomas Hardy
The Return of the Native

Thomas Hardy

Cover of 'Richard III' by William Shakespeare
Richard III

William Shakespeare

Cover of 'Romeo and Juliet' by William Shakespeare
Romeo and Juliet

William Shakespeare

Cover of 'The Scarlet Letter' by Nathaniel Hawthorne
The Scarlet Letter

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Cover of 'A Separate Peace' by John Knowles
A Separate Peace

John Knowles

Cover of 'Silas Marner' by George Eliot
Silas Marner

George Eliot

Cover of 'Sons and Lovers' by D. H. Lawrence
Sons and Lovers

D. H. Lawrence

Cover of 'The Sound and the Fury' by William Faulkner
The Sound and the Fury

William Faulkner

Cover of 'Steppenwolf' by Hermann Hesse
Steppenwolf

Hermann Hesse

Cover of 'The Stranger' by Albert Camus
The Stranger

Albert Camus

Cover of 'The Sun Also Rises' by Ernest Hemingway
The Sun Also Rises

Ernest Hemingway

Cover of 'The Taming of the Shrew' by William Shakespeare
The Taming of the Shrew

William Shakespeare

Cover of 'The Tempest' by William Shakespeare
The Tempest

William Shakespeare

Cover of 'Tess of the d'Urbervilles' by Thomas Hardy
Tess of the d'Urbervilles

Thomas Hardy

Cover of 'Their Eyes Were Watching God' by Zora Neale Hurston
Their Eyes Were Watching God

Zora Neale Hurston

Cover of 'The Adventures of Tom Sawyer' by Mark Twain
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

Mark Twain

Cover of 'Treasure Island' by Robert Louis Stevenson
Treasure Island

Robert Louis Stevenson

Cover of 'Twelfth Night' by William Shakespeare
Twelfth Night

William Shakespeare

Cover of 'Waiting for Godot' by Samuel Beckett
Waiting for Godot

Samuel Beckett

Cover of 'Walden' by Henry David Thoreau
Walden

Henry David Thoreau