Top 100 Books

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

About this list

Lincoln Journal Star, 100 Books

This list is partly a metalist (using sources that thegreatestbooks.org has already used), but the article also says that Journal Star staff members were polled and used as sources for the below list as well. All of the books are from the 20th century and are listed in chronological order.

This list was originally published in 1999 and was added to this site about 1 year ago.

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Cover of 'The Interpretation of Dreams' by Sigmund Freud
The Interpretation of Dreams

Sigmund Freud

Cover of 'The Wonderful Wizard of Oz' by L. Frank Baum
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

L. Frank Baum

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

Joseph Conrad

Cover of 'Wings of the Dove' by Henry James
Wings of the Dove

Henry James

Cover of 'The Hound of the Baskervilles' by Arthur Conan Doyle
The Hound of the Baskervilles

Arthur Conan Doyle

Cover of 'The Story of My Life' by Helen Keller
The Story of My Life

Helen Keller

Cover of 'The Souls of Black Folk' by W. E. B. Du Bois
The Souls of Black Folk

W. E. B. Du Bois

Cover of 'The Cherry Orchard' by Anton Chekhov
The Cherry Orchard

Anton Chekhov

Cover of 'The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism' by Max Weber
The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism

Max Weber

Cover of 'The Jungle' by Upton Sinclair
The Jungle

Upton Sinclair

Cover of 'The Education of Henry Adams' by Henry Adams
The Education of Henry Adams

Henry Adams

Cover of 'The Elementary Forms Of The Religious Life' by Emile Durkheim
The Elementary Forms Of The Religious Life

Emile Durkheim

Cover of 'O Pioneers!' by Willa Cather
O Pioneers!

Willa Cather

Cover of 'An Economic Interpretation Of The Constitution Of The United States' by Charles A. Beard
An Economic Interpretation Of The Constitution Of The United States

Charles A. Beard

Cover of 'In Search of Lost Time' by Marcel Proust
In Search of Lost Time

Marcel Proust

Cover of 'The Good Soldier' by Ford Madox Ford
The Good Soldier

Ford Madox Ford

Cover of 'Of Human Bondage' by W. Somerset Maugham
Of Human Bondage

W. Somerset Maugham

Cover of 'The Age of Innocence' by Edith Wharton
The Age of Innocence

Edith Wharton

Cover of 'The Frontier in American History' by Frederick J. Turner
The Frontier in American History

Frederick J. Turner

Cover of 'Michael Robartes And The Dancer' by W.B. Yeats
Michael Robartes And The Dancer

W.B. Yeats

Cover of 'Ulysses' by James Joyce
Ulysses

James Joyce

Cover of 'The Waste Land' by T. S. Eliot
The Waste Land

T. S. Eliot

Cover of 'Relativity' by Albert Einstein
Relativity

Albert Einstein

Cover of 'Babbitt' by Sinclair Lewis
Babbitt

Sinclair Lewis

Cover of 'A Passage to India' by E. M. Forster
A Passage to India

E. M. Forster

Cover of 'The Magic Mountain' by Thomas Mann
The Magic Mountain

Thomas Mann

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

F. Scott Fitzgerald

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

Ernest Hemingway

Cover of 'To the Lighthouse' by Virginia Woolf
To the Lighthouse

Virginia Woolf

Cover of 'Lady Chatterley's Lover' by D. H. Lawrence
Lady Chatterley's Lover

D. H. Lawrence

Cover of 'Coming of Age in Samoa' by Margaret Mead
Coming of Age in Samoa

Margaret Mead

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

Erich Maria Remarque

Cover of 'The Maltese Falcon' by Dashiell Hammett
The Maltese Falcon

Dashiell Hammett

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

William Faulkner

Cover of 'The Man Without Qualities' by Robert Musil
The Man Without Qualities

Robert Musil

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

Aldous Huxley

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

James M. Cain

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

Henry Miller

Cover of 'Gone With the Wind' by Margaret Mitchell
Gone With the Wind

Margaret Mitchell

Cover of 'The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money' by John Maynard Keynes
The General Theory of Employment, Interest and Money

John Maynard Keynes

Cover of 'U.S.A. Trilogy' by John Dos Passos
U.S.A. Trilogy

John Dos Passos

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

John Steinbeck

Cover of 'The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter' by Carson McCullers
The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter

Carson McCullers

Cover of 'Native Son' by Richard Wright
Native Son

Richard Wright

Cover of 'The Stranger' by Albert Camus
The Stranger

Albert Camus

Cover of 'No Exit' by Jean Paul Sartre
No Exit

Jean Paul Sartre

Cover of 'Hiroshima' by John Hersey
Hiroshima

John Hersey

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

Anne Frank

Cover of 'Cry, the Beloved Country' by Alan Paton
Cry, the Beloved Country

Alan Paton

Cover of 'The Gathering Storm' by Winston Churchill
The Gathering Storm

Winston Churchill

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

George Orwell

Cover of 'The Catcher in the Rye' by J. D. Salinger
The Catcher in the Rye

J. D. Salinger

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

Samuel Beckett

Cover of 'Charlotte's Web' by E. B. White
Charlotte's Web

E. B. White

Cover of 'Invisible Man' by Ralph Ellison
Invisible Man

Ralph Ellison

Cover of 'Fahrenheit 451' by Ray Bradbury
Fahrenheit 451

Ray Bradbury

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 'Lolita' by Vladimir Nabokov
Lolita

Vladimir Nabokov

Cover of 'Atlas Shrugged' by Ayn Rand
Atlas Shrugged

Ayn Rand

Cover of 'On the Road' by Jack Kerouac
On the Road

Jack Kerouac

Cover of 'The Cat in the Hat' by Dr. Seuss
The Cat in the Hat

Dr. Seuss

Cover of 'The Alexandria Quartet' by Lawrence Durrell
The Alexandria Quartet

Lawrence Durrell

Cover of 'The Affluent Society' by John Kenneth Galbraith
The Affluent Society

John Kenneth Galbraith

Cover of 'Night' by Elie Wiesel
Night

Elie Wiesel

Cover of 'Things Fall Apart' by Chinua Achebe
Things Fall Apart

Chinua Achebe

Cover of 'To Kill a Mockingbird' by Harper Lee
To Kill a Mockingbird

Harper Lee

Cover of 'Stranger in a Strange Land' by Robert A. Heinlein
Stranger in a Strange Land

Robert A. Heinlein

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

Joseph Heller

Cover of 'A Clockwork Orange' by Anthony Burgess
A Clockwork Orange

Anthony Burgess

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

Ken Kesey

Cover of 'Silent Spring' by Rachel Carson
Silent Spring

Rachel Carson

Cover of 'The Guns of August' by Barbara Wertheim Tuchman
The Guns of August

Barbara Wertheim Tuchman

Cover of 'The Bell Jar' by Sylvia Plath
The Bell Jar

Sylvia Plath

Cover of 'The Fire Next Time' by James Baldwin
The Fire Next Time

James Baldwin

Cover of 'In Cold Blood' by Truman Capote
In Cold Blood

Truman Capote

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

Alex Haley

Cover of 'Adrift On The Nile' by Naguib Mahfouz
Adrift On The Nile

Naguib Mahfouz

Cover of 'The Late Bourgeois World' by Nadine Gordimer
The Late Bourgeois World

Nadine Gordimer

Cover of 'Wide Sargasso Sea' by Jean Rhys
Wide Sargasso Sea

Jean Rhys

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

Gabriel García Márquez

Cover of 'The Double Helix' by James D. Watson
The Double Helix

James D. Watson

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

Kurt Vonnegut

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

Maya Angelou

Cover of 'On Death and Dying' by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross
On Death and Dying

Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

Cover of 'Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee' by Dee Alexander Brown
Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee

Dee Alexander Brown

Cover of 'Gravity's Rainbow' by Thomas Pynchon
Gravity's Rainbow

Thomas Pynchon

Cover of 'Winter In The Blood' by James Welch
Winter In The Blood

James Welch

Cover of 'Ragtime' by E. L. Doctorow
Ragtime

E. L. Doctorow

Cover of 'Dispatches' by Michael Herr
Dispatches

Michael Herr

Cover of 'Song of Solomon' by Toni Morrison
Song of Solomon

Toni Morrison

Cover of 'The World According to Garp' by John Irving
The World According to Garp

John Irving

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

Tom Wolfe

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

Alice Walker

Cover of 'The Handmaid's Tale' by Margaret Atwood
The Handmaid's Tale

Margaret Atwood

Cover of 'An Artist of the Floating World' by Kazuo Ishiguro
An Artist of the Floating World

Kazuo Ishiguro

Cover of 'The Making of the Atomic Bomb' by Richard Rhodes
The Making of the Atomic Bomb

Richard Rhodes

Cover of 'And the Band Played On' by Randy Shilts
And the Band Played On

Randy Shilts

Cover of 'Schindler's List' by Thomas Keneally
Schindler's List

Thomas Keneally

Cover of 'Angela's Ashes' by Frank McCourt
Angela's Ashes

Frank McCourt