The 80 Books Every Man Should Read

This is one of the 743 lists we use to generate our main The Greatest Books list.

About this list

Esquire, 80 Books

An unranked, incomplete, utterly biased list of the greatest works of literature ever published.

This list was originally published in 2015 and was added to this site over 12 years ago.

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

Raymond Carver

Cover of 'Deliverance' by James Dickey
Deliverance

James Dickey

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

John Steinbeck

Cover of 'Blood Meridian' by Cormac McCarthy
Blood Meridian

Cormac McCarthy

Cover of 'The Brothers Karamazov' by Fyodor Dostoevsky
The Brothers Karamazov

Fyodor Dostoevsky

Cover of 'The Known World' by Edward P. Jones
The Known World

Edward P. Jones

Cover of 'The Good War' by Studs Terkel
The Good War

Studs Terkel

Cover of 'American Pastoral' by Philip Roth
American Pastoral

Philip Roth

Cover of 'A Good Man Is Hard to Find' by Flannery O'Connor
A Good Man Is Hard to Find

Flannery O'Connor

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

Tim O'Brien

Cover of 'A Sport and a Pastime' by James Salter
A Sport and a Pastime

James Salter

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

Jack London

Cover of 'Time's Arrow' by Martin Amis
Time's Arrow

Martin Amis

Cover of 'A Sense of Where You Are' by John McPhee
A Sense of Where You Are

John McPhee

Cover of 'Hell's Angels' by Hunter S. Thompson
Hell's Angels

Hunter S. Thompson

Cover of 'Invisible Man' by Ralph Ellison
Invisible Man

Ralph Ellison

Cover of 'Dubliners' by James Joyce
Dubliners

James Joyce

Cover of 'Rabbit, Run' by John Updike
Rabbit, Run

John Updike

Cover of 'The Postman Always Rings Twice' by James M. Cain
The Postman Always Rings Twice

James M. Cain

Cover of 'Dog Soldiers' by Robert Stone
Dog Soldiers

Robert Stone

Cover of 'Winter's Bone' by Daniel Woodrell
Winter's Bone

Daniel Woodrell

Cover of 'Legends of The Fall' by Jim Harrison
Legends of The Fall

Jim Harrison

Cover of 'Under the Volcano' by Malcolm Lowry
Under the Volcano

Malcolm Lowry

Cover of 'The Naked and the Dead' by Norman Mailer
The Naked and the Dead

Norman Mailer

Cover of 'The Professional' by W. C. Heinz
The Professional

W. C. Heinz

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

Ernest Hemingway

Cover of 'Dispatches' by Michael Herr
Dispatches

Michael Herr

Cover of 'Tropic of Cancer' by Henry Miller
Tropic of Cancer

Henry Miller

Cover of 'Revolutionary Road' by Richard Yates
Revolutionary Road

Richard Yates

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

William Faulkner

Cover of 'The Killer Angels' by Michael Shaara
The Killer Angels

Michael Shaara

Cover of 'Slaughterhouse-Five' by Kurt Vonnegut
Slaughterhouse-Five

Kurt Vonnegut

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

Robert Penn Warren

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

Ken Kesey

Cover of 'Sophie's Choice' by William Styron
Sophie's Choice

William Styron

Cover of 'A Fan's Notes' by Frederick Exley
A Fan's Notes

Frederick Exley

Cover of 'Lucky Jim' by Kingsley Amis
Lucky Jim

Kingsley Amis

Cover of 'The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle' by Haruki Murakami
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle

Haruki Murakami

Cover of 'Master and Commander' by Patrick O'Brian
Master and Commander

Patrick O'Brian

Cover of 'Plainsong' by Kent Haruf
Plainsong

Kent Haruf

Cover of 'A Confederacy of Dunces' by John Kennedy Toole
A Confederacy of Dunces

John Kennedy Toole

Cover of 'Affliction' by Russell Banks
Affliction

Russell Banks

Cover of 'This Boy's Life' by Tobias Wolff
This Boy's Life

Tobias Wolff

Cover of 'Winter's Tale' by Mark Helprin
Winter's Tale

Mark Helprin

Cover of 'The Adventures of Augie March' by Saul Bellow
The Adventures of Augie March

Saul Bellow

Cover of 'Women' by Charles Bukowski
Women

Charles Bukowski

Cover of 'Going Native' by Stephen Wright
Going Native

Stephen Wright

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

Joseph Conrad

Cover of 'The Spy Who Came in From the Cold' by John le Carré
The Spy Who Came in From the Cold

John le Carré

Cover of 'The Crack-Up' by F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Crack-Up

F. Scott Fitzgerald

Cover of 'CivilWarLand in Bad Decline' by George Saunders
CivilWarLand in Bad Decline

George Saunders

Cover of 'War and Peace' by Leo Tolstoy
War and Peace

Leo Tolstoy

Cover of 'The Shining' by Stephen King
The Shining

Stephen King

Cover of 'Winesburg, Ohio' by Sherwood Anderson
Winesburg, Ohio

Sherwood Anderson

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

Herman Melville

Cover of 'Midnight's Children' by Salman Rushdie
Midnight's Children

Salman Rushdie

Cover of 'Labyrinths' by Jorge Luis Borges
Labyrinths

Jorge Luis Borges

Cover of 'The Right Stuff' by Tom Wolfe
The Right Stuff

Tom Wolfe

Cover of 'The Sportswriter' by Richard Ford
The Sportswriter

Richard Ford

Cover of 'American Tabloid' by James Ellroy
American Tabloid

James Ellroy

Cover of 'The Autobiography of Malcolm X' by Alex Haley
The Autobiography of Malcolm X

Alex Haley

Cover of 'What It Takes' by Richard Ben Cramer
What It Takes

Richard Ben Cramer

Cover of 'The Continental Op' by Dashiell Hammett
The Continental Op

Dashiell Hammett

Cover of 'The Power and the Glory' by Graham Greene
The Power and the Glory

Graham Greene

Cover of 'So Long, See You Tomorrow' by William Maxwell
So Long, See You Tomorrow

William Maxwell

Cover of 'Native Son' by Richard Wright
Native Son

Richard Wright

Cover of 'Let Us Now Praise Famous Men' by James Agee
Let Us Now Praise Famous Men

James Agee

Cover of 'Angle of Repose' by Wallace Stegner
Angle of Repose

Wallace Stegner

Cover of 'The Great Bridge' by David McCullough
The Great Bridge

David McCullough

Cover of 'The Dharma Bums' by Jack Kerouac
The Dharma Bums

Jack Kerouac

Cover of 'Lonesome Dove' by Larry McMurtry
Lonesome Dove

Larry McMurtry

Cover of 'Lolita' by Vladimir Nabokov
Lolita

Vladimir Nabokov

Cover of 'Underworld' by Don DeLillo
Underworld

Don DeLillo

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

Mark Twain

Cover of 'The Road' by Cormac McCarthy
The Road

Cormac McCarthy

Cover of 'Let the Great World Spin' by Colum McCann
Let the Great World Spin

Colum McCann

Cover of 'Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk' by Ben Fountain
Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk

Ben Fountain

Cover of 'The Orphan Master's Son' by Adam Johnson
The Orphan Master's Son

Adam Johnson

Cover of 'Savages' by Don Winslow
Savages

Don Winslow

Cover of 'The Stories of John Cheever' by John Cheever
The Stories of John Cheever

John Cheever