Designed to Feel by Peter Burchardt
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Designed to Feel
Why Evolution Built Your Emotions, and How to Make Them Work for You
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Best Classic Literature Books

Classic literature is the body of work that time has tested and culture has kept. These are the books that universities teach, translators revisit, and readers return to decade after decade because they continue to yield new meanings. The classics are not a fixed canon — they are an ongoing argument about which works matter and why, shaped by changing tastes, emerging voices, and the slow revision of received wisdom. From Homer and Dante to Austen, Melville, and Dostoevsky, the classics offer a conversation across centuries that no other cultural form can match.

50 titles ranked · Scored across 40+ editorial sources
#1
Cover of The Remains of the Day
literary-fiction

The Remains of the Day

Kazuo Ishiguro· 1989
★Nobel Prize in Literature★Booker Prize
Editorial Score100/100
#2
Cover of The Tin Drum
literary-fiction

The Tin Drum

Günter Grass· 1999
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score98/100
#3
Cover of The Grapes of Wrath
literary-fiction

The Grapes of Wrath

John Steinbeck· 1962
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score90/100
#4
Cover of Beloved
literary-fiction

Beloved

Toni Morrison· 1993
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score85/100
#5
Cover of The Trial
literary-fiction

The Trial

Franz Kafka· 1963
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score80/100
#6
Cover of Invisible Man
literary-fiction

Invisible Man

Ralph Ellison· 1952
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score79/100
#7
Cover of The Stranger
literary-fiction

The Stranger

Albert Camus· 1957
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score79/100
#8
Cover of The Sound and the Fury
literary-fiction

The Sound and the Fury

William Faulkner· 1949
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score78/100
#9
Cover of Mrs Dalloway
literary-fiction

Mrs Dalloway

Virginia Woolf· 1925
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score78/100
#10
Cover of To Kill a Mockingbird
literary-fiction

To Kill a Mockingbird

Harper Lee· 1961
★Pulitzer Prize
Editorial Score78/100
#11
Cover of Anna Karenina
literary-fiction

Anna Karenina

Leo Tolstoy· 1877
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score76/100
#12
Cover of Crime and Punishment
literary-fiction

Crime and Punishment

Fyodor Dostoevsky· 1866
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score76/100
#13
Cover of The Human Comedy
literary-fiction

The Human Comedy

William Saroyan· 1943
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score76/100
#14
Cover of The Magic Mountain
literary-fiction

The Magic Mountain

Thomas Mann· 1929
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score75/100
#15
Cover of Steppenwolf
literary-fiction

Steppenwolf

Hermann Hesse· 1946
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score74/100
#16
Cover of Snow Country
literary-fiction

Snow Country

Yasunari Kawabata· 1968
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score71/100
#17
Cover of Growth of the Soil
literary-fiction

Growth of the Soil

Knut Hamsun· 1920
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score71/100
#18
Cover of Ficciones
short-stories

Ficciones

Jorge Luis Borges· 1944
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score71/100
#19
Cover of The Waves
literary-fiction

The Waves

Virginia Woolf· 1931
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score71/100
#20
Cover of Humboldt's Gift
literary-fiction

Humboldt's Gift

Saul Bellow· 1976
★Pulitzer Prize
Editorial Score70/100
#21
Cover of The Adventures of Augie March
literary-fiction

The Adventures of Augie March

Saul Bellow· 1954
★National Book Award
Editorial Score70/100
#22
Cover of War and Peace
literary-fiction

War and Peace

Leo Tolstoy· 1869
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score70/100
#23
Cover of The Brothers Karamazov
literary-fiction

The Brothers Karamazov

Fyodor Dostoevsky· 1880
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score70/100
#24
Cover of Love in the Time of Cholera
literary-fiction

Love in the Time of Cholera

Gabriel García Márquez· 1985
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score70/100
#25
Cover of One Hundred Years of Solitude
literary-fiction

One Hundred Years of Solitude

Gabriel García Márquez· 1982
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score69/100
#26
Cover of The Master and Margarita
literary-fiction

The Master and Margarita

Mikhail Bulgakov· 1967
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score69/100
#27
Cover of The Plague
literary-fiction

The Plague

Albert Camus· 1947
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score69/100
#28
Cover of The Invisible Man
literary-fiction

The Invisible Man

Ralph Ellison· 1953
★National Book Award
Editorial Score69/100
#29
Cover of Independent People
literary-fiction

Independent People

Halldór Laxness· 1955
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score68/100
#30
Cover of Siddhartha
literary-fiction

Siddhartha

Hermann Hesse· 1922
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score68/100
#31
Cover of Narcissus and Goldmund
literary-fiction

Narcissus and Goldmund

Hermann Hesse· 1930
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score68/100
#32
Cover of The Old Man and the Sea
literary-fiction

The Old Man and the Sea

Ernest Hemingway· 1954
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score67/100
#33
Cover of Rabbit at Rest
literary-fiction

Rabbit at Rest

John Updike· 1991
★Pulitzer Prize
Editorial Score67/100
#34
Cover of To the Lighthouse
literary-fiction

To the Lighthouse

Virginia Woolf· 1927
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score66/100
#35
Cover of Hunger
literary-fiction

Hunger

Knut Hamsun· 1890
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score66/100
#36
Cover of The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea
literary-fiction

The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea

Yukio Mishima· 1963
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score66/100
#37
Cover of The Sea, The Sea
literary-fiction

The Sea, The Sea

Iris Murdoch· 1978
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score65/100
#38
Cover of Doctor Zhivago
literary-fiction

Doctor Zhivago

Boris Pasternak· 1958
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score64/100
#39
Cover of The Color Purple
literary-fiction

The Color Purple

Alice Walker· 1983
★Pulitzer Prize
Editorial Score62/100
#40
Cover of All the King's Men
literary-fiction

All the King's Men

Robert Penn Warren· 1947
★Pulitzer Prize
Editorial Score62/100
#41
Cover of The Stories of John Cheever
short-stories

The Stories of John Cheever

John Cheever· 1979
★National Book Award
Editorial Score61/100
#42
Cover of The Makioka Sisters
literary-fiction

The Makioka Sisters

Jun'ichirō Tanizaki· 1943
★Nobel Prize in Literature
Editorial Score60/100
#43
Cover of Rabbit Is Rich
literary-fiction

Rabbit Is Rich

John Updike· 1982
★Pulitzer Prize
Editorial Score60/100
#44
Cover of White Noise
literary-fiction

White Noise

Don DeLillo· 1985
★National Book Award
Editorial Score60/100
#45
Cover of A Confederacy of Dunces
literary-fiction

A Confederacy of Dunces

John Kennedy Toole· 1981
★Pulitzer Prize
Editorial Score59/100
#46
Cover of The Big Sleep
mystery-thriller

The Big Sleep

Raymond Chandler· 1939
★Edgar Award
Editorial Score58/100
#47
Cover of Farewell, My Lovely
mystery-thriller

Farewell, My Lovely

Raymond Chandler· 1940
★Edgar Award
Editorial Score56/100
#48
Cover of 1984
science-fiction

1984

George Orwell· 1949
TIME 100 Best NovelsBBC Big Read
Editorial Score55/100
#49
Cover of Pride and Prejudice
literary-fiction

Pride and Prejudice

Jane Austen· 1813
Guardian 100 Best NovelsBBC Big Read
Editorial Score55/100
#50
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
literary-fiction

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Lewis Carroll· 1865
Library Journal
Editorial Score55/100
Happy Employees
The Management Companion
Happy Employees
What Evolution Tells You About Leading People
Lead with human nature, and your team won’t just perform — they’ll thrive.
Get It on Amazon →Paperback & Kindle

By Country

🇺🇳International2304🇬🇧United Kingdom477🇺🇸United States394🇫🇷France106🇮🇪Ireland47🇷🇺Russia23🇩🇪Germany21🇯🇵Japan20🇳🇴Norway13🇵🇱Poland10🇪🇸Spain9🇮🇳India9🇨🇿Czech Republic8🌍Canada7🇮🇹Italy7🌍Nigeria4🇨🇴Colombia3🌍Denmark3🇱🇧Lebanon3🇬🇷Greece2🇦🇹Austria2🇲🇽Mexico2🌍Chile2🇦🇷Argentina1🇮🇸Iceland1🇩🇴Dominican Republic1🇸🇪Sweden1🇵🇪Peru1🇿🇦South Africa1🇸🇩Sudan1🇪🇬Egypt1🌍Afghanistan1

Key Authors

Kazuo IshiguroGünter GrassJohn SteinbeckToni MorrisonFranz KafkaRalph EllisonAlbert CamusWilliam FaulknerVirginia WoolfHarper Lee

Classic Literature Books — FAQ

What are the best classic literature books of all time?

The top-ranked classic literature books include The Remains of the Day, The Tin Drum, The Grapes of Wrath — all with high editorial consensus scores across major literary prizes and critic lists.

How are classic literature books ranked on 50 Best Books?

Rankings are based on aggregate editorial scores drawn from Nobel Prizes, Booker Awards, Pulitzer Prizes, and 40+ other critical sources. Each mention is weighted by prestige, recency, and scope.

Which countries produce the most acclaimed classic literature books?

International, United Kingdom, United States lead our rankings in classic literature, producing the most internationally recognised titles in the genre.

Who are the most acclaimed classic literature authors?

Key authors in classic literature include Kazuo Ishiguro, Günter Grass, John Steinbeck, whose works consistently appear across major prize lists and critic selections.

Are there classic literature books for beginners?

Yes — our rankings include books at every level. Look for titles with broad critical acclaim and accessible descriptions. Start with books scoring 70+ on our editorial scale.