Literary Canon
Best Books from Spain
Spain's literary tradition encompasses the first modern novel — Cervantes's Don Quixote — and one of the richest poetic traditions in European literature. The Generation of '98 confronted the country's imperial collapse; the Generation of '27, including Federico García Lorca and Rafael Alberti, brought European modernism into Spanish soil before the Civil War scattered or silenced them. Post-Franco Spanish fiction — Javier Marías, Eduardo Mendoza, Almudena Grandes — reckoned with the long shadow of the dictatorship. Today, writers like Javier Cercas and Irene Vallejo balance historical excavation with formally inventive nonfiction.
#1
mystery-thriller
The Shadow of the Wind
Carlos Ruiz Zafón· 2005
★National Book Award
Editorial Score77/100
#2
literary-fiction
Don Quijote de la Mancha
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra· 1600
Kirkus Reviews
Editorial Score55/100
#3
poetry
Poems
Federico García Lorca· 1900
Notable Work
Editorial Score46/100
#4
literary-fiction
Memórias póstumas de Brás Cubas
Machado de Assis· 1881
Library Journal
Editorial Score45/100
#5
science-fiction
Her Body and Other Parties
Carmen Maria Machado· 2017
Publishers Weekly
Editorial Score45/100
#6
literary-fiction
Don Quixote
Miguel de Cervantes· 1605
Guardian 100 Best Novels
Editorial Score44/100
#7
horror
El Príncipe de la Niebla
Carlos Ruiz Zafón· 1993
Notable Work
Editorial Score43/100
#8
literary-fiction
Dom Casmurro
Machado de Assis· 1900
Library Journal
Editorial Score40/100
#9
horror
Marina
Carlos Ruiz Zafón· 2003
Editorial Score38/100
#10
horror
Luces de Septiembre
Carlos Ruiz Zafón· 2003
Editorial Score38/100
#11
literary-fiction
Novelas ejemplares
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra· 1626
Library Journal
Editorial Score35/100
#12
classic-literature
El amante liberal
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra· 1939
Kirkus Reviews
Editorial Score35/100
#13
classic-literature
Rinconete y Cortadillo
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra· 1761
Library Journal
Editorial Score35/100
#14
romance
Memorial de Aires (Classicos Da Literatura Brasileira)
Machado de Assis· 1908
Kirkus Reviews
Editorial Score35/100
#15
biography-memoir
Campos de Castilla
Antonio Machado· 1912
Publishers Weekly
Editorial Score35/100
#16
travel-exploration
Los trabajos de Persiles y Sigismunda
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra· 1617
Library Journal
Editorial Score35/100
#17
travel-exploration
Poet in New York
Federico García Lorca· 1940
Kirkus Reviews
Editorial Score35/100
#18
classic-literature
La casa de Bernarda Alba (Coleccion obras maestras)
Federico García Lorca· 2007
Library Journal
Editorial Score30/100
#19
classic-literature
La española inglesa
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra· 2007
Library Journal
Editorial Score30/100
#20
adventure
The ingenious hidalgo Don Quixote de la Mancha
Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra· 2000
Publishers Weekly
Editorial Score30/100
#21
classic-literature
Ideas del Canario - 554 -
Machado de Assis· 1995
Library Journal
Editorial Score25/100
#22
classic-literature
La Casa de Bernarda Alba
Federico García Lorca· 1997
Publishers Weekly
Editorial Score25/100
