Not everyone is a reader, and not everyone has the time to read. Being glued to our phones or laptops has essentially taken away the patience and joy that reading could bring to us. Perhaps we’ve all been scarred from various education systems that shove books and reading assignments down our throats, but as we grow and develop, there are books we absolutely must read.
According to Business Insider, “when we read, not only are we improving memory and empathy, but research has shown that it makes us feel better and more positive too.” The list below is not even a snippet of all the books one must read in his or her lifespan, but it surely is a start.
Literature, History, Realistic Fiction & ‘The Classics’
Animal Farm By George Orwell
Animal Farm
Animal Farm by George Orwell is a purely symbolic, allegorical political satire that addresses issues of equality, dictatorship, and governance through animals. Published in 1945 post World War 2, Animal Farm is a story about farm animals who rebel against their human farmer to create an equal, free and happy society. Much to their dismay, the rebellion fails and the farm becomes an even worse place under a pig named Napoleon. This novel is purely political as it reflects the events that led to the Russian Revolution against the monarchy in 1917, the Soviet Union and what much of Europe was dealing with in the 20th century.
The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Great Gatsby
Based in the fictional town of West Egg and East Egg on a place called Long Island in the summer of 1922 in New York, The Great Gatsby is said to be the greatest novel ever written. This is a story of the ‘roaring twenties’ and the ‘American Dream’ as it portrays economic prosperity, idealism, resistance to change, ‘excess’ in everything, rebellious youth, romance and a lot of jazz music. The story is very simply about Jay Gatsby, a young and mysterious millionaire and his love story with Daisy.
The Help By Kathryn Stockett
The Help
A 2009 realistic fictional novel by American Author Kathryn Stockett, The Help is a rollercoaster of a story about African Americans working in ‘white’ households in Jackson, Mississippi in the 1960s. The novel exposes the darkest stories that black women are faced with while working for prominent, wealthy white families. The plot line follows the life of main character, Skeeter, a white southern young girl who dreams to become a writer and does so by interviewing what black maids have to say about mistreatment and racism.
The Works of Khaled Hosseini
The Kite Runner (2003), A Thousand Splendid Suns (2007), and And The Mountains Echoed (2013
One cannot simply choose the best Khaled Hosseini novel. It’s not possible. If you read one, you must read all of them. Hosseini’s three famous novels; The Kite Runner (2003), A Thousand Splendid Suns (2007), and And The Mountains Echoed (2013), all made best sellers and mostly all follow the stories of unfortunate events in Afghanistan between the closed doors of family homes. All are heart wrenching and could potentially make you angry at the world.
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- The Kite Runner opens up in present day USA with the story of a young boy who struggles to understand his place in the world, and takes the readers back to Afghanistan under Taliban to tell the full story of his upbringing and life.
- A Thousand Splendid Suns, also set in Afghanistan, takes on a feminine perspective and follows the story of two women under Taliban, Mariam and Laila, who face rape, abuse, gender-based violence and constant discrimination.
- And The Mountains Echoed talks about the story between siblings; Abdualla and his sister Pari, who is sold to a childless couple in Kabul, Afghanistan. As usual, Hosseini tackles issues of family, love and sacrifice.
Jane Eyre By Charlotte Brontë
Jane Eyre
Written by one of the famous Brontë sisters, Jane Eyre is set in North England in the early 19th century. Reading it now, one may simply brush over the fact that the novel was way ahead of its time as it addresses class, religion, feminism and sexuality. The readers see the main character, Jane, grow from being an abused child at a school in the early chapters and into adulthood as she falls in love with Mr. Rochester, the master of Thornfield Hall where she works as a governess.
The Diary of Anne Frank By Anne Frank
Anne Frank
This is the book you read knowing how it ends – and it ends suddenly, without warning as if to remind readers that this is no fiction; this is what it is; the diary of Anne Frank, a documentation of her life in hiding from the Nazis in the Netherlands. Oddly enough while her family is in hiding, Anne writes about the simple things; her childhood, her friends, the boys she likes, her studies, her sister, and how she sometimes feels lonely and misunderstood. But it is all intertwined with what she understands of the Nazis and the political situation at the time, and her views develop with her as she grows.
War and Peace By Leo Tolstoy
War and Peace
A series of mini books that were published in entirety in 1896, arguably, this is a difficult and rather heavy novel to read, but for those history lovers, War and Peace is an account of the French Invasion of Russia and how the Napoleonic era changed Russia’s Tsarist society via the life stories of five Russian wealthy, aristocratic families. At the time, Russia was ruled by Catherine The Great, the country’s longest-ruling female leader who was heavily impacted by French culture, and was also behind Russia’s Golden Age.
Les Misérables By Victor Hugo
Les Misérables
What starts as a story of a poor man, Jean Valjean, who goes to prison for 19 years simply for stealing bread for his starving family turns into an elaborate novel on the history of France in politics, justice, religion, romance, rebellion and revolution, and much more. The novel tells the story of various characters and all their storylines as they struggle to make ends meet in an impoverished France – all of which eventually leads to a revolution between the working class, the aristocracy, and the government.
Business, Work, Management & Self-Help
The 80/20 Principle: The Secret to Achieving More with Less By Richard Koch
80/20 Principle
The 80/20 principle is something that can be applied in almost everything in life. Very simply, 80 percent of our ‘results’ in business and life come from 20 percent of our effort. This book helps explain how we can achieve more in less time to potentially transform our effectiveness in our jobs, careers, businesses and personal lives.
The Surprising Science of Meetings: How You Can Lead Your Team to Peak Performance By Steven G. Rogelberg
The Surprising Science of Meetings
At work, we constantly go into useless meetings with unclear goals only to realize all of the time we wasted could’ve been summarized in an email. And unfortunately, this staggering routine is the case globally. The Surprising Science of Meetings delves into techniques that could potentially help both managers and employees to improve their meetings.
Ditch the Act: Reveal the Surprising Power of the Real You for Greater Success By Leonard Kim & Ryan Foland
Ditch the Act
In an interesting take on what a leader should be like, Ditch the Act gives it to you straight by saying that humanness is key to success. Imperfection, flaws and a willingness to learn shows authenticity and honesty. And in this overly competitive world where everyone claims to be the best at what they do, this is exactly what we need right now.
Made to Stick By Chip and Dan Heath
Made to Stick
For those who are working on doing their own business or startup, the question of how to come up with a special idea is always challenging. Made to Stick goes over what makes an idea memorable and worth doing through “SUCCES”; S for simple, U for unexpected, C for concrete, C for credible, E for emotional, and S for stories.
The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers By Ben Horowitz
The Hard Thing About Hard Things
Almost every group of friends once say “let’s start a project together”, but no one ever really talks about how challenging that could be. Horowitz himself is a well-known entrepreneur who draws on his own experiences to help others navigate their way through running their own startup. He includes issues on how to fire a friend all the way to managing people.
First, Break All the Rules By Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman
First, Break All the Rules
This New York Times bestseller is basically the key to what “the world’s greatest managers do differently”, as written in the book’s subtitle. As you’d expect from the title, this is all about what to do and what not to do, including how to maintain employee satisfaction, how to focus on strengths and not weaknesses, and how to give rewards.
Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action By Simon Sinek
Start With Why
This is a book for everyone; small business, big businesses, politicians, teachers, world leaders – because the question of ‘why something is the way it is’, is powerful. This book draws on real life stories from leaders who were innovative and inspirational enough to inspire others who want to follow in their footsteps.
The Empathy Edge: Harnessing the Value of Compassion as an Engine for Success By Maria Ross
The Empathy Edge
Quitting your job because your boss is the embodiment of satan is a real thing. A huge part of success in business is having empathy, and this is what this book discusses. Empathy helps create productivity and loyalty from employees. A missed deadline counts for nothing in the face of a committed team.
Who Moved My Cheese? By Spencer Johnson
Who Moved My Cheese?
Dealing with change in life is no easy task. Subtitled “An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life”, bring in four characters; two of which are mice, Sniff and Scurry, and two of which are ‘littlepeople’; a metaphor to humans, named Hem and Haw. The book deals with how to handle change and what the four typical reactions to change are.
Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy By David D. Burns
Feeling Good
A big part of being able to go through life positively and successfully has to do with mental health. Feeling Good outlines a bunch of techniques that can help keep you positive by recognizing what causes your mood swings, helping you deal with guilt, handling criticism and negative people, and building self-esteem.
Honestly speaking, this list of books could go on forever. If you’re looking to be successful in life, then start by reading. It doesn’t have to be these books in particular, but pick up what interests you. The classics of literature are absolutely necessary for one to understand people, learn about different eras in history and immerse themselves completely in a world they initially knew nothing about. When it comes to self help and advice books, everyone needs a bit of guidance in their life nowadays, and reading the work of experts is surely inspirational to say the least.
