An unbiased (but incomplete) list of things to read before you die.

[gumpzilla]

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also, the sound and the fury is another book that some people like to crap on these days, but i think it's fantastic.

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Faulkner has by and large failed to do anything for me. None of Light in August, As I Lay Dying, or Sound and the Fury made much of an impression. Then again, they might all be suffering from having read them when I was <20.

[goofball]

I'd add Animal Farm and The Elements of Style

[Kimbell175113]

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The Brothers Karamozov, Doetoeskvy <sp?>

Don't let the length fool you, and this book itsn't as hard to understand as other great 'classics' (Crime and Punishment, Dubliners, etc.). It's a surprisingly readable, provocative, and deep story that reveals in complete clarity the various heights and depths of human emotion.

I've never met ANYONE who's read this book and did not consider it one of their all-time favorites </reading rainbow>

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I was just about to say we should add Dubliners. I don't see it as 'hard to understand' though: what do you mean by that?

[winooski8]

The U.S. Constitution, if it's still published.

[IggyWH]

Beowulf

Read this before that POS movie comes out and ruins such a great piece. Beowulf is claimed to be the central inspiration of Tolkien. SPeaking of him, you probably want to read The Lord of the Rings while your at it. While the movies are awesome, they still don't do justice to the books.

[justhetip]

I liked Conversations with God, maybe not a classic but worth a read. Ishmael is pretty good also.

[ringosnuff]

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I'd add The Elements of Style

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Agreed. Everyone can, and should benefit from reading this 60-something page book.

[Kimbell175113]

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I'd add The Elements of Style

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Agreed. Everyone can, and should benefit from reading this 60-something page book.

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Was that comma some kind of meta-joke?

[xorbie]

I'm going to try to read all of these things before I die.

[Subfallen]

Dostoevsky - Notes from Underground

The best overture for existentialism ever written.