12 Modern Classics You MUST Read!

[@Monsterblood]

I just finished the Lord of the Rings for the first time recently. I had been putting it off for so long because I didn't care for The Hobbit and I was worried I would find the LoTR trilogy to be boring, but oh how wrong I was. I absolutely loved it. Better than the movies, for sure.

[@rachelthompson9324]

I've read it at least ten times and I hope to read another ten

[@farhad_s]

I'm starting to realise you've really influenced my 2023 TBR. First Robert E Howard's Conan, then all the Louis Lamour books I bought for June on the Range, and of course, Lonesome Dove.

[@barbaraboethling596]

Great list! I'm pleased to say I've read them all. Lonesome Dove & LOTR are firmly in my personal top five! Thanks to you, I'm finally reading A Princess of Mars. Loving it! Thanks

[@thespaminator]

14:34 reading Lonesome Dove now. I’m shocked at how good it is. I thought I didn’t like westerns.

[@vickiragland8066]

love your videos. always take notes when i watch you.

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

Thanks Vicki!

[@shirleyanne6573]

Glad to see LofR up there! When i was in high school, it was kind of the Harry Potter of its day. Everybody had to read it, everybody was discussing it. I remember a teacher yelling at us to read 'something better' :D Speaking of amazing stories, I just read 'Bartelby the Scrivener. Absolute landmark!

[@art.and.lit.matters]

In yet another instance of the the lines between pop culture and literature blurring the first three works you mention were all published first in serial form in popular magazines. Herbert's "Dune" appeared in Analog Magazine, Conrad's fabulous "Nostromo" first appeared in T.P.s Weekly, and Hammett's "The Glass Key" appeared in The Black Mask. Some of the Lovecraft Stories in the Library of America Volume also first appeared in popular magazines. I would find picking twelve favorites a daunting task with the stunningly beautiful modern works that did not make the cut shrieking over the betrayal. Very nice show today.

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

Thanks!

[@DuncanMcCurdie]

The Long Goodbye is my favourite Chandler. It is his most personal and is very emotional as he wrote it when his wife was dying. Critically speaking it is probably overwrought but I love how raw it is and feels like Chandler put his everything in to it.

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

Yes! I agree completely.

[@timkelehan5147]

Fun video,. thank you! Lonesome Dove is in my ever evolving list of best books I've ever read. I read it back in '90 or '91 and think about it still.

[@mushfiquefahim141]

So glad to see some love for I, Claudius! A very interesting book about a very interesting time!

[@BunBunontheRun]

Good job giving some titles that usually are not heard about in other lists. For instance, Raymond Chandler when recommended will always be The Big Sleep. It is great to hear about some of the other works from some of these writers

[@sgriffin9960]

Good morning, Lord Michael! Interesting list here! I'd recommend Conrad's Typhoon. I'm hoping to read Rebecca, Lonesome Dove, and Grapes of Wrath some day. Just about to start Return of The King for the first time! Have a great day!

[@michaelwood185]

The long good bye is a masterpiece it's better than the big sleep like you it stayed with me after I read it last year

[@TH3F4LC0Nx]

I loved Hill House! Glad to see you chose that Jackson book instead of We Have Always Lived in the Castle. And I actually meant to read Rebecca this year but didn't get to it. I wound up with 2 copies actually, so I'm thinking next year it's getting read! Enjoyed the video! 🙂

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

I really hope you like Rebecca. Of course, it will probably end up on your inevitable Top Ten Books That MKV Likes That Totally Suck video.

[@TH3F4LC0Nx]

@@michaelk.vaughan8617 😂

[@Sherlika_Gregori]

Loved this list. I’ll watch it again.

[@kevinrussell-jp6om]

A 12-book collection including Nostromo, Dune, and The Glass Key....what are we to do with you? Neither Nostromo (yes, Great) nor Heart of Darkness are fire starters; Chance or Lord Jim are easier to catch on to. I, too, love the prolix Long Goodbye over the others. Those bar visits with Terry Lennox and PM's excursions to Idle Valley and Bay City are pure magic. Ditto with Mountains of Madness and Charles Dexter Ward. I also prefer The Op in Personville to The Glass Key, but spending time with either is beyond price. Your taste in books is impeccable.

[@Thecatladybooknook_PennyD]

Great list! I've read some of these but need to get to a few others!

[@M-J]

Wonderful list! 👏🏻👏🏻 I’ll say it again, Lonesome Dove is on tap for June on the Range. I also have to get around to Rebecca this year.

[@trishbovell9042]

Rebecca and Lonesome Dove are both great books. You need to put those both on your must read list.

[@M-J]

@@trishbovell9042 Thanks Trish! You just gave me a video idea. 🤗🤗🤗

[@karlokamenjasevic921]

Have you read Roadside picnic or Monday starts on Saturday?

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

No, I haven’t yet.

[@tarquinmidwinter2056]

Interesting list. I used to look down my nose at westerns, but then I heard about Lonesome Dove on a video similar to this one and read it last year on a trip to America, and it's now one of my favourite novels. truly epic. Currently reading Dune, which so far isn't living up to all of the good things I'd heard about it. The list was quite heavy on horror/detectives. Maybe you could have squeezed in some Cormack McCarthy and/or Kazuo Ishiguro, or my own favourite - Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset. (Nah, you probably wouldn't like that if your list is anything to go by, but for me it's the best novel in the whole wide world ever.) Thank you for not including Catcher in the Rye or the Great Gatsby, btw.

[@CriminOllyBlog]

Really great list. I've not read all of them, but all of the ones I have I liked a lot

[@DDB168]

12. Dune Frank Herbert 11. Nostromo Joseph Conrad 10. The Glass Key Dashiell Hammett 09. I, Claudius Robert Graves 08. Tales HP Lovecraft 07. The Long Goodbye Raymond Chandler 06. The Best of Richard Matheson 05. The Haunting of Hill House Shirley Jackson 04. Rebecca Daphne Du Maurier 03. Lonesome Dove Larry McMurtry 02. The Grapes of Wrath John Steinbeck 01. The Lord of the Snooze JRR Tolkien

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

This list is almost as good as mine! Oh wait…

[@chrisl4133]

I am currently reading Warlock by Oakley Hall. I was not familiar with it until I found it in the LOA volume of westerns. Not as good as Lonesome Dove but I was surprised by it. Long but good.

[@jade7398]

It was a good thing that you only included literature written in the English language, because now you can make another video for books in other languages! 12 Translated Modern Classics You MUST Read! Last week I read Planet of the Apes by Pierre Boulle and I could not stop laughing. I was expecting the book to be deep and intelligent, but I did not expect it to be so funny.

[@wburris2007]

Maybe 2023 will be the year that I finally read Lord of the Rings.

[@CalamariAtari]

Been waiting for this!

[@khamzaliev3881]

Hello! I'm not a native English speaker but I'm learning English and from time to time some confusing questions come up all the time about English which is quite impossible to explain without a native English speaker. If you're by chance learning my native language I'll be glad to help you. If you don't mind I'd give you some my social media or something so we could keep in touch. I will be looking forward to your feedback!!!Wish you a good day!!!

[@Jesterdoggie]

Lonesome Dove. My favorite book.

[@donnakirby6998]

I loved The Haunting of Hill House and I loved the 1963 black and white movie of it as well! At least, I think it was 1963. A great list Michael!

[@2025Mindfulness]

Read most of these and have the others on my TBR list. 2023 will be the year I read LOTR, I, Claudius and for June on the Range- Lonesome Dove.

[@supernova1969]

Thanks Michael! I would also include DESPERATION by Stephen King but, it's only twelve books rather than thirteen

[@parlabaneisback]

I'd also choose 'Grapes of Wrath' (masterpiece) over 'East of Eden' (great). Happy to see 'Rebecca' on the list too.

[@KelanJ29534]

What a charming man you are, Mr. Micheal. I am happy I found your channel❤️😘

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

I’m happy you found my channel too!

[@christianmaltais]

I will definitely read Lonesome Dove following your recommendation. Would you include All the Pretty Horses in the "best Western novel" conversation? That was one powerful book.

[@someonerandom8552]

Hmm really cool picks. Some I hadn’t heard of, so I’ll track them down I’m quite fond of Asimov and H G Wells, when it comes to sci fi classics, personally Just recently picked up I Claudius. Excited to get into it

[@bigaldoesbooktube1097]

Amazing list Mike 👏 I just have to say that The Lord of the Rings’ quality is greater than it’s influence and I am wholly convinced it will be studied 400 years from now as hallmark of our century.

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

I think you are right.

[@normanleach5427]

If it conveys such longevity, it must impart an enduring wisdom...and it does. Though they never met, he and Carl Jung were contemporaries

[@genemcn3579]

Can we hear more about the John Carter of Mars series? And how did the movie compare? I'm enchanted with the idea of being transported to fight on Mars!

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

More on John Carter soon.

[@thespaminator]

11:04 I beg to differ. The Haunting of Hill House is the scariest book I’ve ever read. Her prose had me looking over my shoulder.

[@alvindimes4729]

The Woman in Black by Susan Hill, is a worthy competitor to this. Both are great reads, and to me both as scary, but maybe I'm a wimp.

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

Woman in Black had some pretty scary moments.

[@BookBlather]

Really interesting list. I was underwhelmed by the Haunting of Hill House. I enjoyed it, but yes, I was indeed expecting it to be scarier. Rebecca is on the short list and I’m planning to read it this year.

[@konstantinos-6-6-6-8]

Same here

[@lindagreen1534]

Rebecca……you won’t be disappointed.

[@Zozette27]

I was also underwhelmed and disappointed by the Haunting of Hill House. I am glad to see it wasn’t just me.

[@BookBlather]

@@lindagreen1534 glad to hear it!

[@BookBlather]

@@Zozette27 Have you seen the show? Totally different, but I liked it.

[@peterbrown3004]

How about Streets of Laredo? All the Pretty Horses?

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

I haven’t read either of those yet.

[@peterbrown3004]

@@michaelk.vaughan8617 movies have been made based on both

[@gregorycarnes3521]

Streets of Laredo is great.

[@WesternOutpostDonVonFilms]

Lovecraft is amazing. I love his stories.

[@adolphsanchez1429]

Some impressive choices (although I am not a huge fan of the horror genre). Nostromo is listed on multiple literary lists of "must read" books, and I, Claudius is one of my favorite television series of all time, (although I confess I have yet to read the series -- two volumes, I believe). Richard Matheson is another writer where my introduction was via his scripts for films and TV shows like The Twilight Zone. All in all, a very good and eclectic reading list.

[@RafBlutaxt]

4/12 and I am in fact very happy that I Claudius made it on this list. I have only read Heart Of Darkness so far but Nostromo and The Secret Agent are going to follow.

[@tottifan6979]

Fascinating book on the Roman Empire -> The Assassination of Julius Caesar by Michael Parenti, was nominated for a Pulitzer.

[@stews9]

Hi, Michael, Dune as an influence as much on fantasy as on science fiction, and it being written in a more literary tone than most SF, are trenchant, cogent points. The more Joseph Conrad one reads, the more amazing he becomes, especially if you also read about his life. Can’t go wrong with Dashiell Hammett, who raised the detective mystery into literature with fine writing and intelligent, informed content. I, Claudius, and Claudius the God, superb historical novels about the guy who gave James T. Kirk his middle name but is not, as a book, to be confused with the autobiography I, Asimov, should be taught in schools. Superb stuff. HPL is influential among writers, King influenced markers a lot more. Love that cover on The Long Goodbye, what a great blurb on it, too, and hooray for Chandler and Marlowe. Frustrated poet makes good slumming in the detective genre. Richard Matheson is one of the greats, sui generis, and I’d concur that the Penguin is the better choice for the range of work. The Haunting of Hill House gets better the more one thinks about it. Scarier, too, in a burgeoning way. It places evil firmly in our banal world, where it can reach any of us, all of us. It wasn’t pulp scary, that’s all. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier is, yes, beautifully written, and tricky, and shadowed, and atmospheric. Such a conjuring. Lonesome Dove is the greatest western. Anyone who reads westerns knows this. Only rival might be The Ox-Bow Incident, or maybe The Way West or The Virginian. But … nah. It’s Lonesome Dove. I’d have chosen East of Eden over Grapes of Wrath as a personal choice but yes, both are amazing, and I think Grapes of Wrath reaches more readers, touches on their life experiences. The Lord of the Rings is a singularly superb work by a genius who also took the time and effort to load it with brilliance while also keeping it engaging, readable, and so atmospheric. We’d all live in The Shire, for example. The deeper one digs, the more one finds in LOTR. It is a world unto itself. Great list. Bravo, sir. Cthulhu behind you approves, but Roger needs to flush and get back to work. ///

[@philipmsearle1399]

I would change The Secret Agent for Nostromo, and woolrich's Black Alibi over The Glass Key and most of the other choices are really excellent books. I think though i d put Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms above Matheson s stories, but it would be close.

[@edwardmeade]

If you want a translation, I suggest Life and Fate by Vasily Grossman (trans. Robert Chandler/Elizabeth Chandler). Even if you're not looking for a translation it should be on your list. I am a big fan of Chandler, Hammett, and Mathiesen (especially the short story, The Near Departed), but Life and Fate is so much better than any of those. By the way, Nostromo is set in Arica, Chile. It used to be part of Bolivia and was the port used to ship silver from the Potosi mines in Bolivia. Conrad visited there during his merchant marine career.

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

I actually have Life and Fate. I should have thought of that.

[@Anika99356]

I love you Mr. Vaughn! 😂❤ You are very entertaining

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

Thanks!

[@massonman9099]

Great choices. Regarding 'Dune': anyone who enjoyed Dune needs to get hold of his 'The Santaroga Barrier', which has a very interesting plot, and the precursor of melange; in this novel melange is 'jaspers' which are life-prolonging fungi. Great, short book. Heck, I'm off to read it again!

[@ramblingraconteur1616]

I, Claudius is a really interesting book to read. I hope that it continues to be a gateway to Roman history and literature. The Long Goodbye is also my favorite among Chandler’s novels. I reread The Glass Key four years ago and enjoyed it more than K had the first time, though I think The Maltese Falcon remains my favorite among Hammett’s works. Hope you have a wonderful weekend and holiday!

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

Thanks Jack! I would love to see your version of this! Happy Holidays!

[@Manistan274]

You should also read Claudius the God. I believe the storied adaption was based on both. It’s really just one big book

[@vilstef6988]

I met Frank Herbert in 1976. Fascinating gentleman!

[@duffypratt]

Good, I’ve read all of these except Matheson (a big hole, I know), but that means after I read him I won’t have to read anything else. That’s a relief. I’m not sure I could make this list, so instead I’m gonna put down the first 12 20th Century books that I’ve rated highest: End Zone by Don DeLillo (absolutely the best book about College Football that is really about the apocalypse.) American Gods by Neal Gaiman. In Our Time by Hemingway. Rebecca (our one overlap but only because several of yours must have randomly appeared further down Goodreads list). Autobiography of Malcolm X by Huxley. Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant by Anne Tyler. Trouble on Triton by Samuel R. Delaney. Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison. Childhood’s End by Arthur Clarke (I loved this book as a kid but suspect that I wouldn’t like it now. Kind of afraid to reread it). Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas. Night by Elie Wiesel.

[@Ninaofthe90s]

"The long awaited video that no one asked for" that... doesn't make sense 😂😂 great video btw 😁

[@Brunette_Rapunzel]

HUGE Lord of the Rings/Tolkien fan here! My entire library room is done in Lord of the Rings! :)

[@dennisjohnson8967]

The spice must flow!

[@maxalburg5665]

Down Here in the Warmth by Euel Arden is one of the best books I’ve read in a while. It really drained me emotionally. I had to take a reading break after finishing it.

[@arekkrolak6320]

Glass Key is the only Hammett book I have read, so interesting to hear it is different from his other books

[@KDbooks]

I require the top 12 contemporary classics to complete the series

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

I am not at all qualified for anything contemporary.

[@obscuracrimepodcast]

I do love Lonesome Dove. But it will never be considered greater than Blood Meridian.

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

If you say so.

[@obscuracrimepodcast]

@@michaelk.vaughan8617 no harm meant. Love your videos!

[@DamnableReverend]

The Long GOodbye may stick with you more, because it almost seems more an existentiall philsophical novel rather than a detective story. I don't remember the detective mystery. i remember the stuff about teh writer killing himself, and the rambling letter he wrote, which marlowe was reading as he shot hismelf, and Marlowe getting beaten up by the cops, marlowe trying to help a friend who wasn't that great of a person, etc.

[@theramblingreviewer5150]

I think I might make a concerted effort to knock many classics (modern and ...well... classic) off my tbr in the new year. I'll probably use this, Steve's, KD's, and maybe a few other lists.

[@kevinogracia1615]

I would squeeze in... "Blood Meridian" by Cormac McCarthy And "Slauterhouse Five" by Kurt Vonnegut. So many more... Peace on earth.

[@szaggasd]

Try Italo Calvino If on a winter night the traveler

[@johncrwarner]

I have enjoyed all these lists of "x modern classics you MUST read" I particularly in yours liked the suppression of giggling when you kept saying "MUST read". LOL

[@johncrwarner]

BTW I never finished LOTR - didn't even finish the first volume LOL

[@ivancurtis]

Where do people find the time to read so much? I read maybe 10 books per year. (As an aside, I'd vote for Victory as Conrad's best novel.)

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

I still have to read Victory, so that’s good to hear.

[@BookwormAdventureGirl]

I really want to read The Haunting of Hill House and the Grapes of Wrath. I did enjoy East of Eden. Really enjoyed Rebecca and Lonesome Dove. Great list. 😊💙

[@jscottphillips503]

You surprised me with no ERB. Because … I MUST read ERB, you know.

[@BrandonsBookshelf]

Interesting list, some surprise on here for sure.

[@WesternOutpostDonVonFilms]

I also love Dune.

[@Robbo_C]

I agree that The Haunting of Hill House is the best haunted house novel, but I think the scariest is Burnt Offerings by Robert Marasco. I recommend it if you haven't yet read it.

[@anotherbibliophilereads]

I read the first two books of Lord of the Rings a long time ago, but I never bothered with the third. They weren’t bad, as far saw I remember, but I liked them enough to finish. I also prefer Gapes of Wrath to East of Eden, but it’s an arguably point.

[@climatedeniersbelonginasyl4191]

Return of the king was my favourite part!

[@jamesabbiati5775]

I read Lonesome Dove last year and loved it. It sits in the middle of a chunky series, and I'd be interested to know if you or others have gone back to read the rest. Worth it, or should I just stick with having read the one classic? I'd also echo Lord of the Rings as #1 ... been listening to Andy Serkis's audio versions lately, which are AMAZING. Well worth the bank. He is a tad slow in his narration, so I listen to them with the tempo increased (which doesn't change the pitch of his voice). Add the soundtrack from the movies in the background and you've got yourself one of the best audiobook experiences E.V.E.R.

[@gregorycarnes3521]

You should read The Streets of Laredo for sure. It is the next one. Lonesome Dove was epic, Streets of Laredo is lean and mean. I may like it better, maybe. Fantastic read.

[@johannemilsom7503]

I've read the first four on this list. You are spot on with number 1, The Lord of the Ring! And may I strongly suggest reading The Hobbit, also written by JRRT first as I did. It is an introduction in many ways. And Michael, if this had been a top 20. The Stand by Stephen King would be on it.

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

No comment on The Stand!

[@johannemilsom7503]

@@michaelk.vaughan8617 What a suprise!😀

[@mediumjohnsilver]

You now have an opportunity do a follow-up video with twelve lesser known works, titled “12 Modern Classics You May Have Overlooked”.

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

That’s a good idea. I should do that.

[@geraldparker8125]

"Lonesome Dove", eh? Can it really be better than "Riders of the Purple Sage", that incomparably beautiful, perceptive, and haunting novel by Zane Grey? Now THAT one, whatever one think of Zane Grey otherwise re. his other books, is a real masterpiece!

[@alexm3448]

All the Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy is another western that really blew my socks off. If you liked Lonesome Dove, scope it out. It really embodies the romanticism of youth and the west and how that idealism collides with the harsh reality of the times and the consequences of the choices we make or don't make.

[@gutenbird]

I read that book and no offense, I have to say wow was I expecting something more than a drawn short story.

[@meofamily4]

While the original classics you had to read spanned Western European languages, these modern classics are all in English. For one example of what you're missing, there's Life and Fate by Vassily Grossman. Head and shoulders above most of your choices, both as literature, as philosophy, and as modern history.

[@nikkivenable73]

I’ve put off reading LOTR my entire 49 yrs of life. I really think I want 2023 to be the year I read them! Can I make that happen, finally? 😅

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

You can!

[@Falconlibrary]

We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson is even better than The Haunting of Hill House. I cannot recommend it often enough, nor highly enough. “Merricat, said Connie, would you like a cup of tea? Oh no, said Merricat, you’ll poison me. Merricat, said Connie, would you like to go to sleep? Down in the boneyard ten feet deep!”

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

Yeah, it’s a tough call for me between those two books.

[@Falconlibrary]

@@michaelk.vaughan8617 Castle > Hill House for me because Merricat is such a vivid character, a fascinating monster. Also has the creepiest ending ever.

[@saintdonoghue]

What the? No ERB??? I’d have bet a Boston Cream Pie that “Tarzan of the Apes” would have made the list for you of all people!

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

Wait…what!? Holy Smoke, you’re right! That’s the last time I let Roger make a list!

[@paulmonahawk4921]

Interesting choices I have read most of these authors but not many of these books

[@tommonk7651]

Michael, I love your channel, and I love this topic. However, I find your list a little too niche. You stayed mostly in your chosen genres, which is understandable. But, there are nonfiction works, historical fiction or other works of fiction that it seems to me would be better choices to be considered "modern classics". Shogun, for example, or Rise and Fall of the Third Reich or Walking With Destiny (a biography of Churchill).

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

Well, you see, Roger made this list. That’s why it’s sucks. If I had done it, it would totally have all those books you mentioned. Damn that Roger!

[@tommonk7651]

@@michaelk.vaughan8617 Priceless! 😆 Oh, and I never said it sucked, so if Roger misunderstood, please apologize for me....

[@simonagree4070]

We must, we MUST, we must increase our bust... of William Shakespeare! To the Bat-poles, Robin! 😂 We are very different people, Michael. Gotta have Catch-22 on my list of modern classics. Not so much the Herbert or Tolkien.

[@nedmerrill5705]

For my money, the best Marlowe/Chandler novel is _The Lady in the Lake._

[@pamelatarajcak5634]

Prefacing, I'm joking. "You get lost in LOTR." Impossible with how Tolkien acts like he's writing a map in prose.

[@climatedeniersbelonginasyl4191]

Nostromo is fun!

[@evanames5940]

A good list, but D#$% You, I added three more books to my future read list. 📚📕📕📖📖

[@nunyabidness4220]

I read Dune and hated it. I'm glad I read it, and was impressed with the world-building, but the story bored the bejesus out of me. Haven't read The Glass Key, but I've read other Hammett and liked 'em a lot. I need to go back to that one. Didn't read the Long Goodbye, either, but have read other Chandlers and liked those, too. Love Rebecca, great, great book. Grapes of Wrath is really good, always love Steinbeck. I've read just about everything of Lovecraft's, multiple times. The only one I haven't read is Dream Quest of Unknown Kaddath, just because it's long and I suspect it's going to be a mess. Agree completely on Library of America, they're the best. Matheson is also brilliant. And everything by Shirley Jackson is essential. We Have Always Lived In The Castle is almost as good as Hill House. I've read both multiple times. I was very glad Library of America got Shirley back into print. Lonesome Dove is in definite consideration for best book I ever read. It's kind of a toss-up with another Western, The Time It Never Rained by Elmer Kelton. Still haven't read Lord of the Rings. Not my kind of thing, but enough other people love it that I'd agree it's very important.

[@denisadellinger4543]

I have not read LOTR. I did see the movies. So long and epic and I didn't understand a lot of it and all the enemies and battles. It has a lot of spiritual implications. The great temptation of the ring and it's power. I would have a completely different list of must reads. That's what makes it fun, reading someone else's list. I think everything in the beginning of this century is shaded by Game of Thrones. The series lasted a long time. I never read the books or watched the series; however, I have watched little two-to-five-minute snippets of it on KZbin. It does look interesting. But I don't think it has the message and theme that LOTR has. The theme of the struggle between good and evil is eternal and can be told in a good story or allegory. From what I gather, GOT is just about the struggle of those with the most dragons and sitting on a freaking throne and have the power to make war with the kingdoms around you. I'd be interested to hear your views on that book series.

[@frankmorlock9134]

No Hemingway, no F.S. Fitzgerald ? I agree Hemingway, despite his reputation, shouldn't be here, but Fitzgerald should be. Conrad, I agree, but I would pick Under Western Eyes. But the biggest omission for me is Thomas Wolfe. Look Homeward Angel belongs on any top 10 list. And again, not one playwright. No Eugene O'Neill, no G.B. Shaw, no W.B. Yeats.

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

Well, I didn’t say it was a GOOD list!

[@troytradup]

Oh, Michael, no. The twelve English language books of the 20th century a person MUST read? I'll be magnanimous and give you four out of the twelve. For the rest, please see me after class.

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

It could have been worse. I was so close to putting the novelization of Clash of the Titans at #1.

[@MarshOakDojoTimPruitt]

thanks

[@philtrabaris7033]

Add : The Sun Also Rises by Hemingway and Catch-22 by Heller. Glad to see no Fitzgerald…ugh

[@davidhawley3337]

I would add _Blood Meridian, Or the Evening Redness in the West_, by Cormac McCarthy. Calling it a Western is like calling _Moby Dick_ a fishing story.

[@rickcroucher]

How come it isn't the 500 modern classics you MUST read?

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

Because I’m lazy.

[@rickcroucher]

What a great answer

[@staygoldponyboy8881]

You left off Watership Down dude.

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

Deliberately.

[@derekgreen7319]

No ! Of mice and men is Steinbeck's best!

[@guyakerstimelord]

Lol when you said modern I thought you were going to name some books that came out this year. xD

[@khamzaliev3881]

Hello! I'm not a native English speaker but I'm learning English and from time to time some confusing questions come up all the time about English which is quite impossible to explain without a native English speaker. If you're by chance learning my native language I'll be glad to help you. If you don't mind I'd give you some my social media or something so we could keep in touch. I will be looking forward to your feedback!!!Wish you a good day!!!

[@guyakerstimelord]

@@khamzaliev3881 I would be happy to help you with your english but you sound like you are pretty fluent already bro.

[@khamzaliev3881]

@@guyakerstimelord Thank you for not leaving my message off and for your respond🙏🏻 I learn English with my girlfriend and sometimes we stick on some things and can't figure it out you will really help us if you just answer to some of our questions when you have free time. We're looking forward to have a friend of native English speaker

[@guyakerstimelord]

@@khamzaliev3881 Feel free to ask me any questions when you want bro and I will be happy to answer.

[@khamzaliev3881]

@@guyakerstimelord sorry could you text me I'd give you my whatsapp number here

[@psikeyhackr6914]

Only Dune for science fiction. It is significant for non-Fanatical SF readers. Otherwise The Mote in God's Eye is better. Significant complaints about it being sexist, but it was portraying a sexist human culture. Dune is good but too medieval.

[@madahad9]

Lovecraft is,vastly overrated. Last year I finally got to read the complete collection of his work that I had bought on Kindle many years before and have several false starts at tackling this, but I finally decided to tick it off of my TBR list once and for all. It was a slog to get through. His writing style is so verbose and needlessly weighed down by these archaic words, some he used to excess and became unintentionally funny whenever they appeared. The stories themselves are not very good and tended to meander along and then abruptly stop. I recall one story where the main character continues to write as some ghastly creature was dragging him across the floor. It made burst out laughing as I read it. It played in my mind like something from a Monty Python sketch. The characters are flat, dull, and forgettable. Female characters are seldom seen. The only story that I thought was satisfying was the Herbert West Re-Animator ones. But my favourite of his work is his study of the supernatural in fiction. I've read it numerous times and it makes wish that he had expanded it into a full-length book. Dune is science fiction for people who don't really like science fiction, but it is not a casual or easy read and demands that you keep a lot of the plot treads focused in your mind. It's not Star Wars where there is a clear distinction between the heroes and villains, it gets very blurred, especially as the series goes on. But this was Frank Herbert's intention of making people wary of embracing a hero too quickly. The collection of Matheson stories is dreadful. Apart from a few of the more famous ones they are utterly forgettable. I've been reading Matheson since the 70's and what impressed me as a kid doesn't stand up to a modern appraisal. I find his writing style somewhat bloodless and the characters are oftentimes very one dimensional. This was a tough collection to get through, but I had a worse time with a collection of Ray Bradbury stories which I thought was never going to end. I have Claudius the God but haven't gotten to it yet. I, Claudius is great, especially the passages about Caligula. Unfortunately I never got to see the series when it aired on the PBS station.

[@Tolstoy111]

Bradbury's best short stories are wonderful. You may have read weaker stories.

[@brettrobson5739]

Come on, Mike. For the prose alone The Big Sleep is superior, let alone the plot (try explaining it to someone), and the social commentary, and the characters. By comparison Goodbye is tired. I could say similar things about Heart of Darkness, almost perfect, something no one ever accused Nostromo of being.

[@michaelk.vaughan8617]

The Big Sleep is WAY more tired…um…it’s even called The Big SLEEP 💤!! And Roger says Nostromo is almost perfect, SO THERE!! See how wrong you are?!

[@kevinrussell-jp6om]

Everyone is free to promote their own favorites, but I can't agree with you. The first five Marlowe novels are all good, but in the BS Chandler was still learning his craft. That novel is a cut and paste job of earlier material. The style is there, but the plot is clunky and confused in places, although very fast paced. Farewell My Lovely and Lady in the Lake are clearly superior as works of art than the Big Sleep, although I'm not in any way throwing dirt on the latter. But the Long Goodbye is something different. Chandler was trying for something else, to say something about friendship, loneliness, aging, the difficulty of finding love, and in Wade the writer of trash novels, no doubt he was saying something about himself and his view of the same. Chandler was a complex guy, and not especially nice, but he WAS a craftsman. In the Long Goodbye I think you're seeing a lot of the moving parts behind the production. It's an acquired taste. And in your comparison of Heart of Darkness with Nostromo, it's the difference between a one-trick pony and a thoroughbred, or a disturbing (but exquisite) black and white sketch with a full-palette watercolor by Turner.

[@brettrobson5739]

@kevinrussell-jp6om Mike's point is clear. Taste is a personal thing. I, for instance, have never seen a Turner painting I didn't find trite. Give me the B&W sketch every time. Similarly, themes resonate differently with different people. Loneliness & aging engage me less than the criminalisation of homosexuality & the unfairness/inherent corruption of capitalism. I say this as a 64 year old who seems to be losing people every day. As to Chandler being a craftsman, let's not forget he's drunk (or hungover) the entire time. HOD vs N is largely a matter of length. The one trick pony (really!) is the perfect length. The thoroughbred requires work, diminishing its effectiveness. Again, personal taste. You do have Roger on your side though.