The Greatest Western Books of All Time

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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
8721 Rules Of Prey John Sandford 1989 American English
8723 The Social Construction Of Reality Peter Berger, Thomas Luckmann 1966 German English
8726 In Praise Of Older Women Stephen Vizinczey 1965 Canadian English
8725 The Uninhabitable Earth David Wallace-Wells 2019 American English
8727 The Living End Stanley Elkin 1979 American English
8728 The History of Silence Pedro Zarraluki 1995 Spanish Spanish
8729 It Happened One Summer Tessa Bailey 2021 American English
8731 Hymns And Fragments Freidrich Hölderlin 1984 German German
8734 Houses Without Doors Peter Straub 1990 American English
8730 A Girl's Story Annie Ernaux 2016 French French
8737 The End Of Eddy Édouard Louis 2014 French French
8738 Poems Of Sophia De Mello Breyner Sophia de Mello Breyner 1964 Portuguese Portuguese
8738 The Dalkey Archive Flann O'Brien 1964 Irish English
8738 Second Skin John Hawkes 1964 American English
8738 Poems Of Alvin Feinman Alvin Feinman 1964 American English
8738 Poems Of Mark Strand Mark Strand 1964 American English
8746 The Key To Rebecca Ken Follett 1980 British English
8747 The Murder Of The Maharajah H. R. F. Keating 1980 British English
8745 All The Sinners Bleed S. A. Cosby 2023 American English
8750 The Leper Of Saint Giles Ellis Peters 1981 British English
8749 Reaper Man Terry Pratchett 1991 British English
8751 The Creation Of Patriarchy Gerda Lerner 1986 American English
8752 Running Away Jean-Philippe Toussaint 2005 French French
8755 Clothes, Clothes, Clothes. Music, Music, Music. Boys, Boys, Boys Viv Albertine 2014 British English
8756 Russian Thinkers Isaiah Berlin 1978 British English
8756 The Foundations Of Modern Political Thought Quentin Skinner 1978 British English
8758 Night Draws Near Anthony Shadid 2005 American English
8758 Disney War James B. Stewart 2005 American English
8760 Mrs. Humphry Ward John Sutherland 1990 British English
8760 Rats And Gargoyles Mary Gentle 1990 British English
8767 Man Meets Dog Konrad Lorenz 1949 German German
8767 War Diaries Jean Paul Sartre 1940 French French
8763 Prentice Alvin Orson Scott Card 1989 American English
8763 Tourists Lisa Goldstein 1989 American English
8766 The Island Of Crimea Vasily Aksenov 1979 Russian Russian
8765 Spill Simmer Falter Wither Sara Baume 2015 Irish English
8769 John Adams David McCullough 2001 American English
8772 Inland Téa Obreht 2019 American English
8773 Four Ways To Forgiveness Ursula K. Le Guin 1994 American English
8777 State And Revolution Vladimir Il’ich Lenin 1917 Russian Russian
8775 Eroticism Georges Bataille 1957 French French
8778 Like One Of The Family Alice Childress 1956 American English
8778 Proud Shoes Pauli Murray 1956 American English
8778 Two In The Far North Margaret E. Murie 1956 American English
8781 Among The Cities Jan Morris 1985 British English
8785 The Greening Of The Church Findley Edge 1976 American English
8784 Cape Breton Road D. R. MacDonald 2001 Canadian English
8786 Natasha’s Dance Orlando Figes 2002 British English
8789 Dinosaurs On Other Planets Danielle McLaughlin 2014 Irish English
8790 Bittersweet Philip Lee 2001 Canadian English
8791 The Reivers William Faulkner 1962 American English
8792 What Work Is Philip Levine 1991 American English
8794 Viper In The Fist Hervé Bazin 1948 French French
8795 Here Are The Young Men Rob Doyle 2014 Irish English
8798 It Happened One Wedding Julie James 2014 American English
8798 The Understatement Of The Year Sarina Bowen 2014 American English
8797 Heave Christy Ann Conlin 2002 Canadian English
8800 The Edge Of Running Water William M. Sloane 1939 American English
8800 The Revenger's Tragedy Thomas Middleton 1606 British English
8800 The Trail Of Fu Manchu Sax Rohmer 1934 British English
8800 Creep, Shadow! A. Merritt 1934 American English
8800 Pages From Cold Point Paul Bowles 1947 American English
8800 Jumbee And Other Uncanny Tales Henry S. Whitehead 1929 American English
8800 House Of Flesh Bruno Fischer 1950 American English
8800 A Question Of Upbringing Anthony Powell 1951 British English
8800 Time Regained Marcel Proust 1927 French French
8800 Ann Veronica H. G. Wells 1909 British English
8800 Trails Plowed Under Charles Marion Russell 1927 American English
8800 The Valley Of The Moon Jack London 1913 American English
8813 Feed M. T. Anderson 2002 American English
8816 Shikasta Doris May Lessing 1979 British English
8817 Man Gone Down Michael Thomas 2007 American English
8820 The Werewolves Of London Brian Stableford 1990 British English
8820 Victorian Fantasy Literature Karen Michaelson 1990 American Unknown
8820 The Weird Tale S. T. Joshi 1990 American English
8820 The Unsettled Dust Robert Aickman 1990 British English
8826 The Laws Of Hospitality Pierre Klossowski 1965 French French
8826 The Baphomet Pierre Klossowski 1965 French French
8826 Words In Stone Yves Bonnefoy 1965 French French
8826 Harlem Gallery M. B. Tolson 1965 American English
8825 Plenilunio Antonio Muñoz Molina 1997 Spanish Spanish
8824 The Sacred Hoop Paula Gunn Allen 1986 American English
8826 Photographs Eudora Welty 1971 American English
8832 Fire Weather John Vaillant 2023 Canadian English
8834 The Flies Jean Paul Sartre 1943 French French
8835 Stones For Ibarra Harriet Doerr 1984 American English
8836 Ordinary Grace William Kent Krueger 2013 American English
8840 The Chalice And The Blade Riane Eisler 1987 American English
8844 Zeitoun Dave Eggers 2009 American English
8845 Our Kids Robert D. Putnam 2015 American English
8849 The Munch Mancini Mystery Series Barbara Seranella 1997 American English
8851 The Emperor's New Mind Roger Penrose 1989 British English
8849 My Lives Edmund White 2005 American English
8852 I Am Homeless If This Is Not My Home Lorrie Moore 2023 American English
8853 How German Is It Walter Abish 1980 American English
8855 The Water Dancer Ta-Nehisi Coates 2019 American English
8857 Letters From My Windmill Alphonse Daudet 1869 French French
8858 The Navigator Of New York Wayne Johnston 2002 Canadian English
8861 The Warrior's Honor Michael Ignatieff 1997 Canadian English
8861 A Commotion in the Blood Stephen S. Hall 1997 American English
8860 Empire Of The Ants Bernard Werber 1991 French French
8864 Dungeon Crawler Carl Matt Dinniman 2020 American English
8865 First on the Rope Roger Frison-Roche 1941 French French
8868 African Stories Doris May Lessing 1964 British English
8868 For the Union Dead Robert Lowell 1964 American English
8868 Crisis Of The House Divided Harry V. Jaffa 1959 American English
8871 Becoming Mrs. Lewis Patti Callahan Henry 2018 American English
8871 When Katie Met Cassidy Camille Perri 2018 American English
8873 Yawning Heights Alexander Sinowjew 1976 Russian Russian
8875 April Morning Howard Fast 1961 American English
8876 How To Survive A Plague David France 2016 American English
8877 Tongues Anders Nilsen 2025 American English
8879 Philosophy And The Mirror Of Nature Richard Rorty 1979 American English
8880 Mockingbird Walter Tevis 1980 American English
8881 Hard Revolution George P. Pelecanos 2004 American English
8881 I'll Go To Bed At Noon Gerard Woodward 2004 British English
8881 Měsíc Nad řekou Fráňa Šrámek 2006 Czech Czech
8884 Black and Blur Fred Moten 2017 American English
8887 Theft Of Swords Michael J. Sullivan 2011 American English
8886 Monsters Claire Dederer 2023 American English