8. The Social
Contract
by Jean-Jacques
Rousseau
A famous quote from the book states that “Man is born free, and
everywhere he is in chains.” This accurately summarizes the book’s
prime position on the importance of individual human rights within
society.
9. One Hundred Years of
Solitude by Gabriel
García Márquez
This novel does not have a plot in the
conventional sense, but instead uses various narratives to
portray a clear message about the general importance of
remembering our cultural history.
10. The Origin of
Species by Charles
Darwin
Few books have had as significant an impact on the way society
views the natural world and the genesis of humankind.
11. The Wisdom of the
Desert by Thomas
Merton
A collection of thoughts, meditations and
reflections that give insight into what life is like to live
simply and purely, dedicated to a greater power than
ourselves.
12. The Tipping
Point by Malcolm
Gladwell
Gladwell looks at how a small idea, or product
concept, can spread like a virus and spark global sociological
changes. Specifically, he analyzes “the levels at which the
momentum for change becomes unstoppable.”
13. The Wind in the
Willows by Kenneth
Graham
Arguably one of the best children’s books ever
written; this short novel will help you appreciate the simple
pleasures in life. It’s most notable for its playful mixture
of mysticism, adventure, morality, and camaraderie.
14. The Art of
War by Sun
Tzu
One of the oldest books on military strategy in the
world. It’s easily the most successful written work on the
mechanics of general strategy and business tactics.
15. The Lord of the
Rings by J.R.R.
Tolkien
One of the greatest fictional stories ever
told, and by far one of the most popular and influential
written works in twentieth-century literature. Once you pick
up the first book, you’ll read them all.
16. David
Copperfieldby Charles
Dickens
This is a tale that lingers on the
topic of attaining and maintaining a disciplined heart as it
relates to one’s emotional and moral life. Dickens states that
we must learn to go against “the first mistaken impulse of the
undisciplined heart.”
17. Four Quartets by T.S.
Eliot
Probably the wisest poetic prose of modern times.
It was written during World War II, and is still entirely
relevant today … here’s an excerpt: “The dove descending
breaks the air/With flame of incandescent terror/Of which the
tongues declare/The only discharge from sin and error/The only
hope, or the despair/Lies in the choice of pyre or pyre–/To be
redeemed from fire by fire./Who then devised this
torment?/Love/Love is the unfamiliar Name/Behind the hands
that wave/The intolerable shirt of flame/Which human power
cannot remove./We only live, only suspire/Consumed by either
fire or fire.”
18. Catch-22 by Joseph
Heller
This book coined the self-titled term “catch-22”
that is widely used in modern-day dialogue. As for the story,
its message is clear: What’s commonly held to be good, may be
bad … what is sensible, is nonsense. Its one of the greatest
literary works of the twentieth century. Read it.
19. The Great
Gatsby by F. Scott
Fitzgerald
Set in the Jazz Age of the roaring 20s, this
book unravels a cautionary tale of the American dream.
Specifically, the reader learns that a few good friends are
far more important that a zillion acquaintances, and the drive
created from the desire to have something is more valuable
than actually having it.
20. The Catcher in the
Rye by J.D.
Salinger
This novel firmly stands as an icon for accurately representing the
ups and downs of teen angst, defiance and rebellion. If nothing
else, it serves as a reminder of the unpredictable teenage
mindset.
21. Crime and
Punishment by Fyodor
Dostoyevsky
A smooth-flowing, captivating novel of a young man living in
poverty who criminally succumbs to the desire for money, and the
hefty psychological impact this has on him and the people closest
to him.
22. The Prince by Niccolo
Machiavelli
This book does a great job at describing situations of power and
statesmanship. From political and corporate power struggles to
attaining advancement, influence, and authority over others,
Machiavelli’s observations apply.
23. Walden by Henry David
Thoreau
Thoreau spent two years, two months and two
days writing this book in a secluded cabin near the banks
of Walden Pond in Concord, Massachusetts. This is a story
about being truly free from the pressures of society. The book
can speak for itself: “I went to the woods because I wished to
live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life,
and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not,
when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.”
24. The
Republic by
Plato
A gripping and enduring work of philosophy on how
life should be lived, justice should be served, and leaders
should lead. It also gives the reader a fundamental
understanding of western political theory.
25. Lolita by Vladimir
Nabokov
This is the kind of book that blows your mind wide open to
conflicting feelings of life, love and corruption … and at times
makes you deeply question your own perceptions of each. The story
is as devious as it is beautiful.
26. Getting Things
Done by David
Allen
The quintessential guide to organizing your life
and getting things done. Nuff said.
27. How To Win Friends and Influence
People by Dale
Carnegie
This is the granddaddy of all self-improvement
books. It is a comprehensive, easy to read guide for winning
people over to your way of thinking in both business and
personal relationships.
28. Lord of the
Flies by William
Golding
A powerful and alarming look at the
possibilities for savagery in a lawless environment, where
compassionate human reasoning is replaced by anarchistic,
animal instinct.
29. The Grapes of
Wrath by John
Steinbeck
Steinbeck’s deeply touching tale about the
survival of displaced families desperately searching for work
in a nation stuck by depression will never cease to be
relevant.
30. The Master and
Margarita by Mikhail
Bulgakov
This anticommunist masterpiece is a
multifaceted novel about the clash between good and evil. It
dives head first into the topics of greed, corruption and
deception as they relate to human nature.