The Greatest Books of All Time on Realism

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This list represents a comprehensive and trusted collection of the greatest books. Developed through a specialized algorithm, it brings together 759 'best of' book lists to form a definitive guide to the world's most acclaimed books. For those interested in how these books are chosen, additional details can be found on the rankings page.

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Rank Book Authors Year Country Language Actions
26 The Grapes of Wrath John Steinbeck 1939 American English
73 The Portrait of a Lady Henry James 1881 American English
174 Rabbit, Run John Updike 1960 American English
195 An American Tragedy Theodore Dreiser 1925 American English
209 Hunger Knut Hamsun 1890 Norwegian Norwegian
256 Babbitt Sinclair Lewis 1922 American English
336 Sister Carrie Theodore Dreiser 1900 American English
338 Effi Briest Theodor Fontane 1895 German German
356 Germinal Émile Zola 1885 French French
386 La Regenta Clarín 1884 Spanish Spanish
390 The Old Wives' Tale Arnold Bennett 1908 British English
424 A Doll's House Henrik Ibsen 1879 Norwegian Norwegian
432 Lost Illusions Honoré de Balzac 1837 French French
437 Passing Nella Larsen 1929 American English
486 Adam Bede George Eliot 1859 British English
523 Fortunata and Jacinta Benito Pérez Galdós 1887 Spanish Spanish
533 Cousin Bette Honoré de Balzac 1846 French French
552 The Red Badge of Courage Stephen Crane 1895 American English
555 The Lady with the Dog Anton Chekhov 1899 Russian Russian
612 Green Henry Gottfried Keller 1855 Swiss German
737 The Custom of the Country Edith Wharton 1913 American English
759 Thérèse Raquin Émile Zola 1867 French French
785 The Stechlin Theodor Fontane 1898 German German
928 Tobacco Road Erskine Caldwell 1932 American English
989 The Lonely Londoners Sam Selvon 1956 Trinidadian English
1006 Saturday Night and Sunday Morning Alan Sillitoe 1958 British English
1065 La Bête humaine Émile Zola 1890 French French
1222 Studs Lonigan James T. Farrell 1932 American English
1396 Pierre et Jean Guy de Maupassant 1888 French French
1473 What We Talk About When We Talk About Love Raymond Carver 1981 American English
1516 The People of Hemsö August Strindberg 1887 Swedish Swedish
1547 What Maisie Knew Henry James 1897 American English
1654 O Pioneers! Willa Cather 1913 American English
1665 The House of Ulloa Emilia Pardo Bazán 1886 Spanish Spanish
2125 Tell Me a Riddle Tillie Olsen 1961 American English
2979 The Man of Property John Galsworthy 1906 British English
3324 Life and Death of Harriett Frean May Sinclair 1922 British English
4115 For a New Novel Alain Robbe-Grillet 1963 French French
4258 The Father August Strindberg 1887 Swedish Swedish
4855 Best of Simple Langston Hughes 1961 American English
4862 What Is Cinema? André Bazin 1967 French French
5990 Writing Degree Zero Roland Barthes 1953 French French
6500 Vermeer Lawrence Gowing 1952 British English
6716 The Son of a Servant August Strindberg 1886 Swedish Swedish
7215 On The Historical Novel Alessandro Manzoni 1800 Italian Italian
11660 Velazquez Jonathan Brown 1986 American English
12324 Balzac Graham Robb 1994 British English
14822 The Wild Duck Henrik Ibsen 1884 Norwegian Norwegian
14896 Maggie Stephen Crane 1893 American English
17117 Common Sense, Science, And Scepticism Alan Musgrave 1993 New Zealand English
17117 Realism And Truth Michael Devitt 1991 American English
17117 Worldviews Richard DeWitt 2004 Unknown English
17117 Fields Of Sense: A New Realist Ontology Markus Gabriel 2013 German English
17117 The Method Isaac Butler 2022 American English