10 Books You Must Read Before You’re 30

Books are priceless wealth that a person possesses. And today’s young people are completely lucky, because today they have a gigantic library at their service, which has absorbed all the masterpieces of Russian and world book printing. However, as you know, a spoon is good for dinner, and some works are best perceived in a separate period of life. So, below are 10 must-read books before you turn 30.

10 To Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee

This novel was published by the American writer Harper Lee in 1960. The work is written in the spirit of an educational book, so it is not surprising that “Mockingbird” is included in the curriculum of 80 percent of US schools. Contrary to popular belief that the plot of the novel is taken from the childhood of Lee herself, and the characters are none other than her own family, the writer admitted in an interview that the storyline is completely fictional. Harper also spoke rather modestly about the frenzied popularity of “Mockingbird”, citing the fact that she did not expect such a shot of the novel. However, just a year after publication, the work was awarded the prestigious Pulitzer Prize.

9. War and Peace – Leo Tolstoy

What can be said about this legendary four-volume book? Tolstoy’s work is so popular and causes such a storm of thoughts that it is extremely difficult to concentrate on one thing. Trying to fit a summary of War and Peace into three lines is as pointless as putting an elephant in a coffee cup. It will not be difficult to assess the scale of the novel, having the following figures available. 569 – the number of characters, 6 – so many years it took Tolstoy to write the work, 5202 – so many sheets are the handwritten version of “War and Peace”, 8 – at least as many times Lev Nikolayevich rewrote the novel by hand. Surprisingly, the writer himself did not attach much importance to the work and, not without irony, called “War and Peace” trifles.

8. Atlas Shrugged – Ayn Rand

But Ayn Rand, unlike previous masters of the pen, treated her novel more respectfully and considered Atlanta to be the main work of her literary activity. Well, the writer had every reason to do so. What is worth only the fact that the novel took sixth position in the list of bestsellers according to the New York Times literally on the third day of sales. No less an achievement is the fact that among the members of the Book of the Month Club (about 2000 people) 17 admitted that reading Atlanta changed their lives. As for Russia, the book became popular in Russia in 2008, when the crisis was only in its development stage.

7. 1984 – George Orwell

By analogy with “War and Peace” here it is pointless to take up the retelling of the content. Orwell depicted a possible variant of the near future in great detail (recall that the book was written in 1948, and the events in it take place in 1984). Here all the subtleties of totalitarianism are taken into account, and its “bastard children” are clearly demonstrated. The name of the work, as well as the name of Orwell himself, has long become a household name. These words denote what society can easily turn into if the powers that be follow the path of globalization and totalitarianism. “1984” is included in the cohort of the brightest and most popular books of the dystopian genre.

6. The Lord of the Rings – John Tolkien

Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” is the clearest example of a successful shot not only of the book, but of everything that was done on its basis. Finally, the writer himself also did not stand aside. In the early 60s, a real boom in Tolkien began. In addition to the fact that the fresh “Lord” was swept from the shelves like pies, John had to change his phone due to calls from fans around the clock. Now imagine that the book (and with it the film) could easily be gone. Initially, the continuation of The Hobbit was not included in Tolkien’s plans, but the owner of the publishing house that printed the book persuaded John, and here is the result. The novel has been translated into at least 38 languages, and often the quality of the translation was personally controlled by Tolkien as an expert philologist.

5. Lolita – Vladimir Nabokov

The history of this book is full of extremes and even some absurdity. Firstly, Nabokov first wrote Lolita in English and only after more than 10 years translated the work into his native language. Secondly, the storyline connects an adult man and a very young girl, who is 12 years old (and she is no longer a virgin!), in a love affair. While working on such a controversial novel, Nabokov twice decided to burn the manuscripts. The writer also planned to release the work anonymously, so as not to provoke a big scandal (which eventually did take place). Finally, Lolita is considered one of the great books of the XNUMXth century, but at the same time it was banned in a number of countries – initially the novel was simply mistaken for pornography.

4. Rich Dad Poor Dad – Robert Kiyosaki

A rather controversial book by an American businessman with Japanese roots was published relatively recently, in 1994. Actually, there is no reason for her to be unambiguous, because in the work there are 2 points of view, the common object of analysis of which is money. The book is based on advice that Robert himself received from his father (a small civil servant) and from his friend’s father (one of the richest people in Hawaii). However, later Kiyosaki retracted his own assertion that “rich dad” is a real person. Many criticize the book for not giving concrete advice on how to get rich. But, damn it, then what kind of book is this if everything is laid out in it on a silver platter?

3. Catcher in the Rye – Jerome David Salinger

The Catcher in the Rye is one of those books that came to court not only at the time of publication. Such a work will be relevant at all times, since the book raises the burning topic of perception of reality, as well as confrontation with social canons, stable opinions and morals. The protagonist of the novel is a 16-year-old boy, whose plot fate is quite closely intertwined with the biography of Salinger himself. Not surprisingly, the book quickly gained popularity among young people. However, adults did not shy away from the novel. Thus, The Catcher in the Rye became one of the cult works of the entire XNUMXth century.

2. The Little Prince – Antoine de Saint-Exupery

This touching work is familiar to almost everyone. An integral part of the book are the unique drawings of Exupery himself, which anyone who once read The Little Prince remembers with absolute certainty. These are not just illustrations, but the real part of the plot. In addition, through drawings, the language barrier is overcome, and those who cannot make out what is written can understand everything without words. By the way, the work has been translated into as many as 180 languages, and the total circulation of all publications is more than 80 million copies. Impressive, isn’t it? By the way, a great reason to get hold of one of the books in such an extensive circulation and re-read the “Prince” again.

1. The Master and Margarita – Mikhail Bulgakov

Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov began writing his truly legendary work in 1928 and worked on it until his very last days. Despite the fact that the novel was created for 12 years, the book remained unfinished. The final version of The Master and Margarita was collected bit by bit by the writer’s widow, using handwritten pages and drafts. For the first time, the novel saw the light of day and did 27 years later, and the work howled in a separate book in the USSR only in 1973. Despite the fact that The Master and Margarita is included in the school curriculum, it is worth reading this novel (rather, even rereading it) at a more conscious age. But too much delay with this process is also not recommended.