1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die

Wow! Most reviewers really liked this book. I'm a bit embarrassed to write that I was not only disappointed by it, but angry as well. Why angry? So many fine writers and wonderful books were left out, while entertaining but odd choices such as "The Buddha of Suburbia" were included. I read the latter, and if the editors had compiled a list of similar rather obscure but worthwhile books, it would belong here. But where is "Prince of Tides", then? Where are Louise Erdrich's and Michael Dorris' works? Why is "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt here(not a poorly written book, but not one I would have regretted missing). How about almost everything by Margaret Atwood??? And instead of the lovely "Animal Dreams" by Barbara Kingsolver, one editor chose her darkest and most unpleasant book(sorry, I made my own list of what I thought were poor choices and what I was surprised to see passed over, but I can't find the list now and can't remember the name of the Kingsolver book). One of my favorite books, "The Secret Book of Grazia Dei Rossi" by Jacqueline Park, would never be found in Ackroyd's tome(if you can call a list book a "tome"); neither would the historical fantasy series by Diana Gabaldon.My primary argument with this item is that the 1001 books described are ones that many readers, especially conventionally educated ones, have read or heard of already. Why would I need to know that Virginia Woolf is considered an important writer, and that one SHOULD read one of her obscurely written, boring(I FIND THEM boring)works? I skipped reading my Woolf assignment in World Lit. in college. I love reading about Woolf, but I can't read HER stuff! But really, how many of the 1001 choices were of books that one would not otherwise come across and should really check out? Albeit, I'm a voracious reader and had heard of or read many of the 1001. My anger came from seeing so many unimaginative picks, things that Harold Bloom would choose,i.e., classics. There's nothing wrong with suggesting that classic lit. is worth reading, but I bought this book to find out what else, among trillions of works, is out there: authors and titles I might not otherwise have come across and that are great reads. I would love to tell you what I thought were some of the interesting choices in Ackroyd's book, but all I can remember are "Time's Arrow" by Martin Amis, something by Jeannette Winterson, and, I think, "The English Patient"(the focus of which, by the way, is almost the opposite of the story as re-done by the movie's screenwriters). Someday, perhaps, I'll find my own list of what was unbelievably left out and what I thought really should have not made it into this book. All I can say for now is that it appears that many people find this book helpful in some way, perhaps in the capsule descriptions of classic stories. I haven't read all those other reviews, and would not want to argue with them, anyway. But I'd like to see someone write "At Least 1001 Books You Might Never Come Across that You Should Check Out Before You Die". I can't edit or write this book because I couldn't choose just 1001. On the other hand, I could recommend(or tell you must-to-avoid)a bunch of books that I don't know if ANYONE else has ever read.By the way, this was another book I returned to Amazon post-haste. I DO keep most books I buy, as Amazon could tell you. I am probably supporting most of the staff there.

This is the be-all end-all of books of lists. I have a dozen or so books that can best be described as merely "books of lists of books." Some are scholarly. Some are casual. Some are silly. This book, "1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die" is scholarly, as well as friendly to the everyday reader. It's a weighty book, maybe five pounds or so, but any book with 1001 book recommendations should be heavy. The high-quality glossy paper adds to the weight and durability. It starts with a nice preface, introduction, and then the bulk is in the chronological list of books from pre-1700 and proceeds to the 2000s. This is nice for people like me who like to cross things off as I get done with them. Each entry has an illustration or two. Sometimes it's as simple as a photo or line drawing of an author; other times it might be the original cover, or a still photo from the film adaptation, etc. It's a nice coffee table book that can guide you to more reading, and be referred to again and again. It ends with an author index (all the books by one author) and general index (literary terms, for instance). I enjoyed reading about some of my favorite books and also exploring some new books I want to read.

I love books, and I love books about books! Although I could almost not even lift this book at 4.6 pounds, once I got it on my lap I spent many evenings going through it page by page. The reproductions of retro (mostly retro) book covers as well as author photographs were a feast for the eyes, as they say. And the mostly pithy reviews were interesting and informative.As I jotted down notes about books to read and books to re-read, I began to be aware of authors and books that didn't make the cut: Ayn Rand (The Fountainhead, Atlas Shrugged) and Shirley Jackson (The Lottery) to mention two much-read and discussed authors from the U. S., but how about P. G. Wodehouse whose enormous book sales might deem him a page in the book, or has he so aggrieved the book community by his behaviors all those many years ago that he is better forgotten? Or, maybe these omissions are simply a matter of "you can't include everyone" ...In any case, I think this is a great book, wish it had even more photos of clever and artistic book covers, and am now off to page through the equally fabulous-looking book by the same publisher, 1001 Children's Books You Must Read Before You Grow Up, and thankfully it is lighter at only 4.5 pounds!

many reviewers have given this book a low rating because it leaves out many great works but i think that is unfair. no anthology can list all great literature and everyone is entitled to their own opinion of what books MUST be read. personally, i found this book very entertaining. i curled up on the couch and flipped through it for hours, reading the short synopsis on each book and marking pages of books that i had never heard of, which were MANY. i am an avid reader. i spend hours on Amazon, looking for new titles. i am at the library almost everyday to keep myself from spending my entire paycheck on books. so as a lover of books, i'm giving this book 5 stars because it gave me so many titles to look up and explore. i'm sure i have a long enough list of "must reads" to last me a lifetime now. and isn't that was a bibliophile looks for when they pick up a book like this?

I bought this product as a gift for a friend of mine. She's read everything under the sun, so I can never find a book she hasn't read. 1001 Books was a great solution to this problem. My friend immediately sat down with this book to make a list of the novels she hadn't read. She even enjoyed remembering her previous reading conquests. 1001 Books has a great description of each title (without spoilers which is key). As an added bonus, many have fantastic corresponding illustrations (with old movie posters, authors' photos, etc). I only have 2 problems with this product: 1) the cover is terribly cheesy and 2) there's too much focus on more recent literature. Other than that, this is a GREAT gift for the reader who has 'read everything.'