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A bunch of authors from all over the world were asked for the most "meaningful" books of all time. Their top 100. How many have you read? Is this one of the top 10 best best books lists ever? I think it is - it has Proust and not Lord Of The Rings!

― Martin Skidmore, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I've read 62 of them. My favourite book ever is on there: The 1001 Nights, or whatever you like to call it.

― Martin Skidmore, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Tally? I've read 11 of them, though I was surprised to see "The Decameron", up there.

However, I hate tags like "meaningful". It's all subjective anyway, isn't it?

Martin, you might consider getting protection, after making a comment like that;>

― Nichole Graham, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I've read 16 of them. This is the first time I've seen a list like this where I've read more than 3 of the books listed. I'm inclined to like this list if only because the cockfarming racist piece of nonsense that is _Heart Of Darkness_ isn't on it.

― Dan Perry, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

See, there's a subjective opinion, now;>

― Nichole Graham, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

42/100

― anthony, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I was v. pleased with whitman being on it

― anthony, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Hmmm...I don't seem to have read many of them! Though, yay for Knut Hamsun being on that list! I should stop only reading Murakami/Hamsun/Kerouac.

― jel --, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

9. [If you count the Aeneid (I'm halfway through but I can tell you what happens through all of it) and the Complete Tales of Poe (I read them randomly so there's some left).] I have not read enough books to tell you whether it is a good list though.

― Maria, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

oh dear, only 5 (kafka, borges, doestoyevsky, melville, nabakov). does look slightly different from these lists, but not hugely different, i'll have to look a bit more closely at it i think (easy everything not conducive to looking at things like this)

― gareth, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

30 read (not as many owned, not last I checked at least!). Unsurprisingly a fair amount of the twentieth century lit mentioned I haven't read.

Now about that LOTR bit, Martin. ;-) More seriously, I'd be interested in seeing how the respective authors polled considered their own work and what they were trying to do -- the list seems to treat humor (of all shades) as secondary to Deep Thoughts (again, of all shades), which I find more telling.

― Ned Raggett, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Why on earth would one pick Decameron?!? Ek. Read quite a few of'em. Gustave Flaubert's Madame Bovary is my fave. Also Lolita is fatastick. (Am now trying to figure what Adorno is on about in Cult.Industry. After having read 30 pages, I consider him to be an ass.)

― nathalie, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

ulysses is hilarious ned!

― Josh, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

49/100. Listing only Job seems like a deliberate slight to the rest of what's really the most "meaningful" book in history.

― briania, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

If Western Lit is a tree with two trunks , then Dante started the growth of one and Boccacio the start of the other. Or less obtusley, Decameron(sp) was the beginning of a few things-the troubdaur song, the romantic love story, the bawdy satire.

Can you imagine English Poetry w/o it ? ( From Chaucer to Spenser, from Spenser to Marlowe, From Marlowe to the Jacobeans)

― anthony, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I think I can manage it pretty well Anthony

― Josh, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

How can you say that Josh? Chaucer would be out of the picture, and with out Chaucer ?

― anthony, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

your pseudocausal theory of literature means nothing to me! here we are, in the present day. I'll pick and choose what I like and jeiophrix chowsser can suck it

― Josh, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

fine you uneducated lozer

― anthony, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

bwahaha i haf enticed josh ovah to the dark side!! if eloise and emmanuelle are not on that list it can fuck off

― mark s, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I've read six, with another 3 on my shelves waiting to be read. Dissapointed to see no Winnie-the-Pooh or Wind In The Willows.

― Nick Southall, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

it's got pippi longstocking though.

― Maria, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

32/100. But I _mean_ to read a lot more of 'em, honest.

I do like the general cut of its jib--it includes only a few things I think are really tedious (e.g. Whitman, Woolf).

― Douglas, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I would tell you to suck me anthony but that would probably backfire so DON'T SUCK ME ha

― Josh, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

WOOLF AND WHITMAN RULEZ PREPARE TO BATTLE DOUGLAS

― anthony, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

perhaps we should form... some kind of ALLIANCE, anthony. if we set aside our differences we can overcome douglas.

― Josh, Wednesday, 8 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Has anyone in history ever actually made it all the way through Don Quixote, or is everyone lying?

― Justyn Dillingham, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Where's High Fidelity? Oh no!

― Mark S, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

meaningful schmeaningful...there's no "children's books" there, though I guess alot of those are helped to be "meaningful" (???) by having a strong pictorial content. In fact the other day I read a "children's book" that was all pictures no text. The River, by Charles Keeping. I found it meaningful.

― haloist, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

oh I correct myself, hans xtian andersen tales were second on the list. And perhaps Great Expectations counts as children's lit.
No one from my country wrote any of these meaningful books. I hate lists like these. But then I am only wanting to use lists to find books that I want to read - amazon can be useful there with the themed reader lists. Maybe we should do our own top five (or whatever - but some small number) something books [I'm not in favour of meaningful as a category because it seems...er...too meaningless...but I can't think of another one].

― haloist, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

it's a virtual who's who. I didn't even go all the way through it because I got frustrated with it. What About the Plague? That was better than the stranger and probably more relevant, but damn that is really subjective as is the whole thing. They didn't include AmeriKa either, and I would be willing to bet that they didn't include a confederacy of dunces or Eden Express (mark vonnegut, not kurt) or HotWater Music, or anything by Bukowski....I could go on. Maybe I'll go back and read it. It seems to be a top ten from the teacher's manuals though, and unfortunately, those aren't written by the teachers. Know your Enemy.

― Hank, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I don't "get" Celine. I used to like it (Journey to the End of the Night) but I was young and I don't think I really did it just seemed impressive but it doesn't anymore. I guess I just latched on to his thing with the sentence structure the run-ons.....like this....which is something with much appeal to me especially then....but maybe I just can't handle reading about the war stuff...no but really, did it sag a bit in the middle of the book or something or is that just me? I mean, I couldn't even read Ulysses so I really don't get that.

― haloist, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Celine is not worth getting.

― anthony, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

that feels reassuring, anthony.
I'm having one of those "am I the only one...?" periods.

I tried to start a conversation about Agatha Christie (who I like alot and had just finished reading "partners in crime" a non-poirot non-marple one) at the pub and my friend ambarked on a diatribe which included the claim that said mystery writer sucked faeces. Directly from my friend's rectum in fact.

― haloist, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Pessoa! Hurrah. But "100 best works of fiction" Fiction? Celan? Whitman? Those sound like poets to me.

― bnw, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

There was an ILE thread about celine , i should find it for you.

― anthony, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

A whole 4 read! But lots of them I wouldn't even consider reading, they just don't appeal.

― Ally C, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I think that the Dictionary is probably the most meaningful book.

― jel --, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

If they'd asked me, I would have included _Where The Red Fern Grows_, _A Wrinkle In Time_, _The Phantom Tollbooth_ and _Ordinary Jack_. Children's lit is not dead!

― Dan Perry, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

ulysses is hilarious ned!

Doubtless. Still have only read Portrait of an Artist myself.

And yes, I've read all of Don Quixote. Long but worth it.

― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I've read all of Don Quixote too, and really enjoyed it. It's not nearly as long as The 1001 Nights or A La Recherche Du Temps Perdu - and yes, I've read both of those too. "Meaningful" is silly, and of course there are omissions (Victor Hugo strikes me as the worst omission - Les Miserables is another long masterpiece), and some of the stuff is very hard work, but at least it's not full of crap as these things usually are.

― Martin Skidmore, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Orwell, but no Pynchon, & wrong Nabokov & very wrong Rushdie = list is trendy canon crap! Also no henry james, no miller. Also absolutely the wrong dickens (i'll just shrug and accept he'd be in there somehow) and sophocles but no aristophanes!

― Sterling Clover, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I've read about 14. I've never read a lot of fiction, so I don't have strong opinions on what should appear on such a list. I don't turn much to fiction for illuminating life. A lot of things here I might want to read eventually, but mostly I am not in any hurry to get to the books (on this list) that I haven't tackled yet. Tackled? Ick.

― DeRayMi, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Wah. Only 13.

― Tim, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Some pretty shocking realizations : 1. I've read none of those books. 2. All I've read this year is the "Asterix And The Great Divide" and that's only because it's beside the shitter.....it's the issue I was supposed to return to the public library about 13 years ago. 3. Never been to an art gallery, ever.

So tell me, how did I become so wonderful? I'm a sidewalk flower, bitch!

― Ramosi, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I have no problems with the list. Lists are good reference points to try things you haven't read or forgot about. But 100 books is way too small for world literature. As far as children's literature goes, The Little Prince belongs on any list. Now that's a meaningful book.

― bryan, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

All I've read this year is the "Asterix And The Great Divide"

A sign of true greatness (says the man with 15 or so Asterix books).

― Ned Raggett, Thursday, 9 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I have 25 Asterix books and they're great, though I wouldn't claim that any should have made this list. If there were such a thing as The Komplete Krazy Kat Sundays, yes. I'd put the complete Segar Popeye dailies (which does exist, in 7 or 8 volumes (I can't check, cos I'm at work)) in my top 100 every time.

― Martin Skidmore, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I've read TEN of those b-b-but GUESS WHOT soon it will be 11 as I have decided I am boring and uneducated and generally stupid so I am improving my mind by reading Hamlet on the tube. My problem is I get bored just coming up to Waterloo and start reading those exciting tube adverts instead. SIGH. Stupid thick boring ect ect although Hamlet haf GHOSTS hurrah.

― Sarah, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Although the ghost hasn't said anything yet, just entered and exited and exeunted.

― Sarah, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

If I hadn't done a literature based Modern Languages degree I would have done a lot worse. As it was I did OK and way better than I do on most book lists. Huzzah. Do I get extra points for reading them in the original language?

― Emma, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I've read 30 some-odd of them. Most of the one's I've read are quite good (excepting Hemingway and Lawrence, urgh). I'm not sure how exceptional this list is. In fact it looks rather similar to the one passed out before the summer of my senior year in high school to prep me for AP English.

― Alex in SF, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

none, zero, zilch. I though I might be able to play my To Kill A Mockingbird/1984/Animal Farm trump cards, but alack no. Do I get a dunce's hat?

― Graham, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

eek, a not v. good 27 - and some of those only half of. still, THE DECAMERON IS ACE and v happy was i to see Woolf and Rabelais in there hehehe :)

― katie, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Graham, 1984 is on there.

― Alex in SF, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Dunce's hat for ME!

― Graham, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I've read 9 and a half of them (didn't finish The Idiot and am counting Canterbury Tales cause I've read a good number of them and they are slow to read what with being in ye olde English).

Anyway, that's a pretty crap score and proves what I had suspected, that I am v.poorly read. I stopped reading old books a long time ago. Maybe I should start again.

― N., Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Martin Skidmore! Segar Popeye dailies! PROPS!

I think it is one of the greatest crimes of this century that Popeye has been so distorted by the rub cartoons. Thimble Theatre = classick.

― misterjones, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

GRRRR Nick the canterbury tales are in MIDDLE ENGLISH!

― see, i can be a pedant too!, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

sorry, the last century

― misterjones, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

wot no marian keyes?

― Alan Trewartha, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I know that Katie, but 'ye olde' ≠ 'Old'. It's just a generally signifier of ye oldiness.

― N., Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

i figgered you prob did know that N, but still it annoys me that people do not make the distinction *sigh* although, someone did once ask if, as we move on and on in time, "middle english" will have to be replaced by something like "fairly old, but not the oldest english" or something.

― katie, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Ktee is pedant shockah!

Of course Ye and Olde are both very Middle English words. SO much so that even new shops in the 1340's were often called Ye Olde Tuck Shop.

Is Middle Engligh what they speak in Middle Earth?

(Oh and I read Don Quixote all the way through at college and loved it. Ditto the Man Of La Mancha).

― Pete, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

But, Misterjones, some of the Popeye cartoons are classic, specifically the really old Fleischer Brothers ones (they made wonderful Superman cartoons too). The newer ones are utter rub, obv.

― Martin Skidmore, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Read: 31. Saw films of : 10. Read comic book adaptions of: 2. Started but did not complete: 5. (note there is some overlap in all but the last category).

― Sterling Clover, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

13, and most of them I didn't enjoy. How can Wuthering Heights be in there and Jane Eyre not? I'm just glad there's no Thomas Hardy.

― celeste, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

because Wuthering Heights is brilliant and Jane Eyre is crap.

― haloist, Friday, 10 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I second that. Wuthering Heights is ace.

― Alex in SF, Saturday, 11 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

36 - but can someone tell me what meaning, and being full of it, is? Or is that are?

― Queen G the abreviated, Saturday, 11 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I suppose 13 isn't bad for me. I agree with Dan about those children stories. Where the Red Fern Grows breaks my heart everytime. I have read Don Quixote (in Spanish) and I actually hated it. It was only done for a class and not at all for personal enjoyment.

― Lindsey B, Sunday, 12 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

A sign of true greatness (says the man with 15 or so Asterix books).

Ned, but have we read them in English, or French? Dude, we must chat;>

― Nichole Graham, Sunday, 12 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

"english and french" --> haha NEIN!!! i had most of the collection in german when i was a kid! granted i couldn't understand most of it, but "words" are totally overrated when you're six!

― geeta, Sunday, 12 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

shit, i only just noticed that it says 'meaningful' (yeah, i know its in the damn threat title, you'd think i'd a seen it). but 'meaningful' though? the greatest thing about 'meaningful' is how its actually the most meaningless word in the world

― gareth, Sunday, 12 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I'd say I'm pretty well read and I've only read one of those books (19Schmeightyfour). What does this mean? Note: I hate old books. Have I just answered my own question? No Scottish books: the list can fuck right off!

― david h, Sunday, 12 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Who wants to read:: Pride & Prejudice; Wuthering Heights; any Chaucer; The Divine Comedy (people who like getting through long arduous books to prove how clever they are just to find they've actually learned nothing from it - y'd be better reading a fuckin' commentary of such a book, cue: "you can't beat the original text"); any fucking Dickens; Homer (yawn); Ulysses, ah mean fuckin' Ulysses; DH Lawrence - I'd only read an obituary; Moby Dick.

No Richard Yates, Carson McCullers Rarrr... it makes me so mad. I bet you Milan Kundera isn't peeved. No Scotland, would you f'in believe that?

Indignation!

I'm just jealous aren't I?

― david h, Sunday, 12 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Straying towards that 'absorption' lark again. I'll shut my mouth now. Sorry.

― david h, Sunday, 12 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Momus to thread! *ziiiiiiiiiiiip*

― david h, Sunday, 12 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Last note: on a further cursory glance I realised I've actually read more of those books than I thought. BUT, not any of the ones consigned to the dustbin by my judgmental self above. I'm just as prejudiced as you.

― david h, Sunday, 12 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

I've read 3 of them with another in my rucksack waiting for the moment when all my good books are read, I just don't like old books, if that makes me a philistine then so be it. But the history of the Spanish civil war by Anthony Beevor is great, as is Cod. mmmmm, cod history.

― chris, Sunday, 12 May 2002 00:00 (twenty-three years ago)

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Most Meaningful Books

Indignation!