50 Books to Read Before You Die

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

About this list

Complex, 50 Books

Complex Magazine's selection of 50 must-read books.

Who voted?
Written by Matt Barone (@MBarone) and Ross Scarano (@RossScarano)

This list was originally published in 2012 and was added to this site over 11 years ago.

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Cover of 'The Divine Comedy' by Dante Alighieri

The Divine Comedy

Dante Alighieri

Cover of 'I Wish Someone Were Waiting for Me Somewhere' by Anna Gavalda

I Wish Someone Were Waiting for Me Somewhere

Cover of 'Under the Volcano' by Malcolm Lowry

Under the Volcano

Cover of 'White Noise' by Don DeLillo

White Noise

Cover of 'Wonder Boys' by Michael Chabon

Wonder Boys

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

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest

Cover of 'The Things They Carried' by Tim O'Brien

The Things They Carried

Cover of 'Breakfast of Champions' by Kurt Vonnegut

Breakfast of Champions

Cover of 'Heart of Darkness' by Joseph Conrad

Heart of Darkness

Cover of 'The Shining' by Stephen King

The Shining

Cover of 'Earth Abides' by George Rippey Stewart

Earth Abides

George Rippey Stewart

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

The Great Gatsby

F. Scott Fitzgerald

Cover of 'Nineteen Eighty Four' by George Orwell

Nineteen Eighty Four

Cover of 'House of Leaves' by Mark Z. Danielewski

House of Leaves

Mark Z. Danielewski

Cover of 'Frankenstein' by Mary Shelley

Frankenstein

Cover of 'Catch-22' by Joseph Heller

Catch-22

Cover of 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas' by Hunter S. Thompson

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

Hunter S. Thompson

Cover of 'Lord of the Flies' by William Golding

Lord of the Flies

William Golding

Cover of 'The Fortress of Solitude' by Jonathan Lethem

The Fortress of Solitude

Jonathan Lethem

Cover of 'Watchmen' by Alan Moore

Watchmen

Cover of 'A Clockwork Orange' by Anthony Burgess

A Clockwork Orange

Anthony Burgess

Cover of 'The Stranger' by Albert Camus

The Stranger

Cover of 'The Notebook, The Proof, The Third Lie' by Agota Kristof

The Notebook, The Proof, The Third Lie

Cover of 'Lolita' by Vladimir Nabokov

Lolita

Vladimir Nabokov

Cover of 'The Haunting of Hill House' by Shirley Jackson

The Haunting of Hill House

Shirley Jackson

Cover of 'Books of Blood' by Clive Barker

Books of Blood

Cover of 'I Am Legend' by Richard Matheson

I Am Legend

Richard Matheson

Cover of 'The Intuitionist' by Colson Whitehead

The Intuitionist

Colson Whitehead

Cover of 'Tales of H. P. Lovecraft' by H. P. Lovecraft

Tales of H. P. Lovecraft

H. P. Lovecraft

Cover of 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy' by Douglas Adams

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Cover of 'Brave New World' by Aldous Huxley

Brave New World

Cover of 'Flicker' by Theodore Roszak

Flicker

Theodore Roszak

Cover of 'What We Talk About When We Talk About Love' by Raymond Carver

What We Talk About When We Talk About Love

Cover of 'Haunted' by Chuck Palahniuk

Haunted

Chuck Palahniuk

Cover of 'The Stories of Ray Bradbury' by Ray Bradbury

The Stories of Ray Bradbury

Cover of 'The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao' by Junot Diaz

The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao

Cover of 'The Big Sleep' by Raymond Chandler

The Big Sleep

Raymond Chandler

Cover of 'If on a Winter's Night a Traveller' by Italo Calvino

If on a Winter's Night a Traveller

Cover of 'The Electric Michelangelo' by Sarah Hall

The Electric Michelangelo

Cover of 'The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe' by Edgar Allan Poe

The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe

Edgar Allan Poe

Cover of 'Ghostwritten' by David Mitchell

Ghostwritten

Cover of 'Jesus' Son' by Denis Johnson

Jesus' Son

Cover of 'The Savage Detectives' by Roberto Bolaño

The Savage Detectives

Roberto Bolaño

Cover of 'Selected Stories of Philip K. Dick' by Philip K. Dick

Selected Stories of Philip K. Dick

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

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

Cover of 'The Metamorphosis' by Franz Kafka

The Metamorphosis

Cover of 'Native Son' by Richard Wright

Native Son

Cover of 'A Wild Sheep Chase' by Haruki Murakami

A Wild Sheep Chase

Haruki Murakami

Cover of 'One Hundred Years of Solitude' by Gabriel García Márquez

One Hundred Years of Solitude

Gabriel García Márquez

Cover of 'No Country for Old Men' by Cormac McCarthy

No Country for Old Men

Cormac McCarthy