1. the sixth extinction by elizabeth kolbert (2014) a fascinating account of the impending catastrophe caused by ecology’s “neighbors from hell”: humanity.
2. Joan Didion’s Year of Magical Thinking (2005) This steely and devastating examination of the author’s grief after the sudden death of her husband changed the nature of writing about grief.
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3. Naomi Klein’s No Logo (1999) Naomi Klein’s timely anti-branding bible combined a fresh take on corporate hegemony with powerful reporting on the dark side of capitalism.
4. Ted Hughes’s Birthday Letters (1998) These passionate and audacious poems addressed to Hughes’s late wife, Sylvia Plath, contribute to the couple’s mythology and are a landmark in English poetry.
5. Dreams of My Father by Barack Obama (1995) This remarkably candid memoir revealed not just a literary talent, but a force that would change the face of politics forever.
6. A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking (1988) The theoretical physicist’s best-selling account of the origins of the universe is a masterpiece of scientific inquiry that has influenced the minds of a generation.
7. Tom Wolfe’s The Right Stuff (1979) Tom Wolfe took reporting to dazzling new levels in his quest to discover what makes a man fly to the moon.
8. Orientalism by Edward Said (1978) This controversial masterpiece challenging Western attitudes toward the East is as current today as it was upon publication.
9. Dispatches of Michael Herr (1977) A compelling sense of urgency and a unique voice make Herr’s Vietnam memoir the definitive account of war in our time.
10. The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins (1976) A heady renewal of evolutionary theory that coined the idea of the meme and paved the way for Professor Dawkins’ later and more controversial works.
11. Seamus Heaney’s North (1975) This raw, tender, and unattended collection transcends politics and reflects Heaney’s desire to move “like a double agent between big concepts.”
12. Awakenings of Oliver Sacks (1973) Sacks’ moving account of how, as a physician in the late 1960s, he revived patients who had been neurologically “frozen” by sleeping sickness resonates to this day.
13. Germaine Greer’s The Female Eunuch (1970) The Australian feminist’s famous polemic remains a masterpiece of passionate free expression in which she challenges the role of women in society.
14. Nik Cohn’s Awopbopaloobop Alopbamboom (1969) This passionate account of how rock and roll changed the world was written with the wild energy of its subject matter.
15. James D Watson’s Double Helix (1968) A startlingly personal and accessible account of how Cambridge scientists Watson and Francis Crick unlocked the secrets of DNA and transformed our understanding of life.
16. against the interpretation of susan sontag (1966) the first essays of the American novelist provide the quintessential commentary on the 1960s.
17. Sylvia Plath’s Ariel (1965) Revolving around the poet’s fascination with her own death, the groundbreaking collection established Plath as one of the most original and talented poets of the last century.
18. betty friedan’s feminine mystique (1963) the book that ignited second-wave feminism captured the frustration of a generation of middle-class American housewives daring to ask, “Is this it?” /p>
19. The Making of the English Working Class by Ep Thompson (1963)This influential and painstakingly compiled masterpiece reads like an anatomy of pre-industrial Britain and a description of the common man’s lost experience.
20. Silent Spring by Rachel Carson (1962) This American defense classic sparked a national outcry against the use of pesticides, inspired legislation that would strive to control pollution, and launched the modern environmental movement in the United States.
21. the structure of scientific revolutions by thomas s kuhn (1962) the american physicist and philosopher of science coined the phrase “paradigm shift” in a book that is considered a milestone in scientific theory.
22. An Observed Grief By CS Lewis (1961) This powerful study of loss asks, “Where is God?” and explores the feeling of loneliness and the sense of betrayal that even non-believers will recognize.
23. Style elements from William Strunk and Eb White (1959) Dorothy Parker and Stephen King have urged aspiring writers to follow this crisp guide to the English language where brevity is key.
24. the affluent society by john kenneth galbraith (1958) an optimistic bestseller, in which jfk’s favorite economist promotes investment in the public and private sectors.
25. The Uses of Literacy: Aspects of Working-Class Life by Richard Hoggart (1957) This influential cultural study of postwar Britain offers pertinent truths about mass communication and the interaction between ordinary people and elites .
26. Notes from a Native Son by James Baldwin (1955) Baldwin’s landmark collection of essays explores, in revealing language, what it means to be a black man in modern America.
27. The Nude: A Study in Ideal Art by Kenneth Clark (1956) Clark’s study of the nude from the Greeks to Picasso foreshadows the critic’s imposing claims about humanity in his later seminal work, Civilization.
28. the hedgehog and the fox by isaiah berlin (1953)the great historian of ideas starts from an animal parable and ends, through a dissection of the work of tolstoy, in a system of existential thought.
29. samuel beckett’s waiting for godot (1952/53) an enigmatic and sadly hilarious milestone that changed the language of theater and still generates debate six decades later. a masterpiece of the absurd.
30. a book of mediterranean food by elizabeth david (1950) a horrified reaction to post-war rationing, this landmark cookbook introduced cooks to southern european food and readers to the art of writing about food.
31. The Great Tradition of Fr Leavis (1948) The controversial critic’s statement on English literature is an entertaining, often shocking dissection of the novel, the effects of which are still felt to this day.
32. Hitler’s Last Days by Hugh Trevor-Roper (1947) The historian’s vivid and terrifying account of the Führer’s death, based on his post-war work for British intelligence, remains second to none.
33. the common sense book on baby and child care by dr. benjamin spock (1946) the groundbreaking handbook urged parents to trust themselves, but was also accused of being the source of postwar “permissiveness.”
34. Hiroshima by John Hersey (1946) Hersey’s extraordinary and gripping book tells the personal stories of six people who suffered from the 1945 atomic bomb attack.
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35. The Open Society and Its Enemies by Karl Popper (1945) The Austrian philosopher’s rallying cry for Western liberal democracy was highly influential in the 1960s.
36. Black Boy: A Record of Richard Wright’s Childhood and Youth (1945) These influential memoirs of a rebellious Southern boyhood vividly evoke the struggle for African-American identity in the decades before civil rights.
37. How to Cook a Wolf by Mfk Fisher (1942)The American culinary icon was one of the first writers to use food as a cultural metaphor, depicting the sensual pleasures of the table with elegance and passion.
38. Enemies of Promise by Cyril Connolly (1938) Connolly’s dissection of the art of writing and the perils of literary life transformed the contemporary English scene.
39. George Orwell’s The Road to Wigan Pier (1937) Orwell’s utterly honest account of three northern towns during the Great Depression was a landmark in the writer’s political development.
40. Robert Byron’s The Road to Oxiana (1937) Much admired by Graham Greene and Evelyn Waugh, Byron’s dazzling and timeless account of a journey to Afghanistan is perhaps the greatest travel book of the 20th century.
41. How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie (1936) The original self-help manual on American life, with its influence stretching from the Great Depression to Donald Trump, has a lot to answer for.
42. Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain (1933) Brittain’s study of her World War I experience as a nurse and later victim of loss remains a powerful anti-war and feminist statement.
43. My Early Life: A Traveling Commission by Winston Churchill (1930) Churchill revels in candid childhood tales and the boy’s own adventures in the Boer War that made him a sensational hero.
44. Goodbye to All That Robert Graves (1929) Graves’ account of his experiences in the trenches of World War I is a subversive tour de force.
45. A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf (1929) Woolf’s essay on women’s struggle for independence and creative opportunity is a landmark in feminist thought.
46. The Waste Land of TS Eliot (1922) Eliot’s long poem, written in extremis, came to embody the spirit of the years after the First World War.
47. Ten Days That Shook the World by John Reed (1919) The American socialist’s romanticized account of the Russian Revolution is a masterpiece of reportage.
48. The Economic Consequences of Peace by John Maynard Keynes (1919) The great economist’s account of what went wrong at the Versailles Conference after World War I was contentious, passionate, and prescient.
49. the american language by hl mencken (1919)this declaration of linguistic independence from the renowned american journalist and commentator marked a crucial new chapter in american prose
50. Eminent Victorians by Lytton Strachey (1918) Strachey’s often inaccurate but brilliant partisan demolitions of four great 19th-century Britons illustrate life in the Victorian period from different perspectives.
51. The Souls of Black Folk by Web Du Bois (1903) The great social activist’s collection of essays on the African-American experience became a founding text of the civil rights movement.
52. Reading De Profundis by Oscar Wilde (1905) There is a thrilling majesty in Oscar Wilde’s tormented tour de force written as he prepared to leave prison.
53. William James’s Varieties of Religious Experience (1902) This groundbreaking work by Henry James’s less famous brother brought a democratizing impetus to the realm of religious belief.
54. Brief Lives of John Aubrey, Edited by Andrew Clark (1898) Truly ahead of his time, 17th-century historian and gossip John Aubrey is rightly credited as the man who invented the biography.
55. Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S Grant (1885) The Civil War general turned President was a reluctant author, but he set the gold standard for presidential memoirs, describing his journey from childhood onward.
56. Life on the Mississippi by Mark Twain (1883) This memoir of Samuel Clemens’s time as a steamboat pilot provides insight into his best-known characters, as well as the writer he would become .
57. Travels with a Donkey in the Cévennes by Robert Louis Stevenson (1879) The Scottish writer’s trek in the French mountains with a donkey is a pioneering classic in outdoor literature, and as influential as his fiction.
58. Nonsense Songs by Edward Lear (1871) Victorians loved puns, and few could rival this compendium of verbal delirium from the British “Laureate of Nonsense.”
59. culture and anarchy by matthew arnold (1869) arnold captured the public mood with this lofty yet entertaining critique of victorian society that raises questions about the art of civilized life that still perplex us.
60. On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin (1859) Darwin’s groundbreaking, humane, and highly entertaining introduction to his theory of evolution is arguably the most important book of the Victorian era.
61. On Freedom by John Stuart Mill (1859) This excellent and lucid writer captured the mood of the times with this forceful affirmation of the rights of the English individual.
62. Mrs. Seacole’s Wonderful Adventures in Many Lands by Mary Seacole (1857)A gloriously entertaining autobiography of the much-revered Victorian woman sometimes described as “the black nightingale of Florence.”
63. the life of charlotte brontë by elizabeth gaskell (1857) arguably gaskell’s greatest work: a bold portrait of a brilliant woman worn down by the eccentricities of her father and the death of her brothers.
64. Walden by Henry David Thoreau (1854) This account of one man’s rejection of American society has influenced generations of freethinkers.
65. thesaurus of dr. Peter Mark Roger (1852) Born out of a Victorian desire for order and harmony among nations, this guide to the English language is as unique as it is indispensable.
66. Henry Mayhew’s London Labor and the London Poor (1851)The influence of the Victorian journalist’s detailed and dispassionate descriptions of lower-class London life is clear, to this day.
67. Harriet Martineau’s Home Education (1848) This protest against the lack of education of women was as pioneering as the author of it in Victorian literary circles.
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68. narrative of the life of frederick douglass, an american slave by frederick douglass (1845)this vivid memoir influenced the abolition of slavery, and its author would become one of the most influential black americans of the 19th century.
69. essays by rw emerson (1841) the inventor of new england “transcendentalism” is still revered for his altruistic thoughts on individuality, freedom, and nature expressed in 12 essays.
70. Domestic Manners of Americans by Frances Trollope (1832) Rich in detail and Old World snobbery, Trollope’s classic travelogue identifies aspects of America’s national character that are still visible today.
71. An American Dictionary of the English Language by Noah Webster (1828) Although a lexicographical milestone to rank alongside Dr Johnson’s achievement, the original sold only 2,500 copies and left its author in debt.
72. Confessions of an English Opium User by Thomas de Quincey (1822) A memoir on addiction, by the celebrated and supremely talented contemporary of Coleridge and Wordsworth, describing the life of him addicted to the drug.
73. Shakespeare’s Tales by Charles and Mary Lamb (1807) A team of troubled siblings produced one of the best-selling volumes of the 19th century, simplifying the complexity of Shakespeare’s plays for younger audiences.
74. Travels in the Inner Districts of Africa by Mungo Park (1799) The Scottish explorer’s account of his heroic individual quest for the River Niger was a contemporary bestseller and a major influence on Conrad, Melville, and Hemingway.
75. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin (1793) The life of America’s founding father, drawn from four different manuscripts, combines the affairs of revolutionary America with his private struggles.
76. A Vindication of the Rights of Women by Mary Wollstonecraft (1792) This radical text attacked the dominant male thinkers of the day and laid the foundation for feminism.
77. the life of samuel johnson lld by james boswell (1791) this enormous work is one of the greatest of all english biographies and a testament to one of the great literary friendships.
78. Reflections on the Revolution in France by Edmund Burke (1790) Motivated by the revolution on the other side of the channel, this passionate defense of the aristocratic system is a milestone in conservative thought.
79. Olaudah Equiano’s Engaging Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano (1789)The Most Famous Slave Memoir of the Eighteenth Century is powerful and terrifying reading, and established Equiano as a founding figure in the black literary tradition.
80. The Natural History and Antiquities of Selborne by Gilbert White (1789) This priest’s beautiful and lucid observations on the wildlife of a Hampshire village inspired generations of naturalists.
81. the federalist papers of ‘publius’ (1788) these wise essays clarified the goals of the american republic and stand alongside the declaration of independence as the cornerstone of american democracy.
82. The Diary of Fanny Burney (1778) Burney’s keenly observed memoir opens a window on the literary and court circles of late eighteenth-century England.
83. the history of the decline and fall of the roman empire by edward gibbon (1776-1788)perhaps the greatest and certainly one of the most influential history books in the english language, in which gibbon develops the narrative from the height of the roman empire until the fall of byzantium.
84. The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith (1776)Combining history, philosophy, psychology, and sociology, the Scottish intellectual single-handedly invented modern political economy.
85. Common Sense by Tom Paine (1776) This little book helped spark revolutionary America against the British under George III.
86. A Dictionary of the English Language by Samuel Johnson (1755) Dr Johnson’s decade-long effort framed the English language for centuries to come with clarity, intelligence, and extraordinary ingenuity.
87. A Treatise on Human Nature by David Hume (1739) This is widely seen as the philosopher’s most important work, but the first publication of it was a disaster.
88. A Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift (1729) The satirist’s astonishing solution to the plight of the poor Irish is among the most powerful treatises in English.
89. A Tour of the Whole Island of Great Britain by Daniel Defoe (1727) Readable, trustworthy, full of surprise and charm, Defoe’s Tour is an excellent literary travel guide.
90. an essay on human understanding by john locke (1689) Eloquent and influential, the Enlightenment philosopher’s most celebrated work embodies the English spirit and retains enduring relevance.
91. Thomas Cranmer’s Book of Common Prayer (1662) Cranmer’s Vernacular English Prayer Book is arguably the most widely read book in the English literary tradition.
92. The Diary of Samuel Pepys by Samuel Pepys (1660) A portrait of an extraordinary Englishman, whose brilliant first-hand accounts of England’s restoration are recorded alongside his unrestrained sexual prowess.
93. hydriotaphia, burial in urn or a short discourse on sepulchral urns recently found in norfolk by sir thomas browne (1658) browne earned his reputation as a “writer’s writer” with this dazzling short essay on burial customs.
94. thomas hobbes leviathan (1651)hobbes’s essay on the social contract is both a founding text of western thought and a masterpiece of wit and imagination.
95. Areopagitica by John Milton (1644)Today, Milton is remembered as a great poet. but this ferocious attack on censorship and call for press freedom reveals a brilliant English radical.
96. Devotions on Emerging Occasions by John Donne (1624) The poet’s intense meditation on the meaning of life and death is a dazzling work containing some of his most memorable writings.
97. William Shakespeare’s First Folio (1623) The first edition of his works established the playwright of all time in a treasury of 36 plays with an assembled cast of immortal characters.
98. Robert Burton’s Anatomy of Melancholy (1621)Burton’s garrulous, repetitious masterpiece is a compendium of melancholy studies, a sublime literary landmark exploring humanity in all its aspects.
99. The History of the World by Walter Raleigh (1614)Raleigh’s most important prose work, nearly 1 million words in all, used ancient history as astute commentary on current issues.
100. King James Bible: The Authorized Version (1611)It is impossible to imagine the English-speaking world celebrated in this series without the King James Bible, which is as universal and influential as Shakespeare.
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