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Books on Your First Step to Being Well-Read

These are among the most basic books to read that will jump-start your journey to being very well-read, or at least basically well-read. Many of these are found on grade school through Intro English college reading lists. (And they appear over and over again in numerous book lists on this website!) This list covers a wide range of reading levels, genres, time periods, etc. Some can be read in one sitting, some will take quite a few days. None of them are particularly difficult to read. I hope you enjoy the journey!
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1984 (George Orwell)
1984
1
George Orwell
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (Jules Verne)
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
2
Jules Verne
A Christmas Carol (Charles Dickens)
A Christmas Carol
3
Charles Dickens
A Raisin in the Sun (Lorraine Hansberry)
A Raisin in the Sun
4
Lorraine Hansberry
A Tale of Two Cities (Charles Dickens)
A Tale of Two Cities
5
Charles Dickens
A Wrinkle in Time (Madeleine L'engle)
A Wrinkle in Time
6
Madeleine L'engle
Aesop's Fables (Aesop)
Aesop's Fables
7
Aesop
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Lewis Carroll)
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
8
Lewis Carroll
All Quiet on the Western Front (Erich Maria Remarque)
All Quiet on the Western Front
9
Erich Maria Remarque
And Then There Were None (Agatha Christie)
And Then There Were None
10
Agatha Christie
Angela's Ashes (Frank McCourt)
Angela's Ashes
11
Frank McCourt
Animal Farm (George Orwell)
Animal Farm
12
George Orwell
Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery)
Anne of Green Gables
13
L.M. Montgomery
Arabian Nights (One Thousand and One Nights) (Anonymous)
Arabian Nights (One Thousand and One Nights)
14
Anonymous
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. (Judy Blume)
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret.
15
Judy Blume
Around the World in Eighty Days (Jules Verne)
Around the World in Eighty Days
16
Jules Verne
Babar the Elephant Series (Jean De Brunhoff)
Babar the Elephant Series
17
Jean De Brunhoff
Beloved (Toni Morrison)
Beloved
18
Toni Morrison
Beowulf (Anonymous)
Beowulf
19
Anonymous
Black Beauty (Anna Sewell)
Black Beauty
20
Anna Sewell
Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)
Brave New World
21
Aldous Huxley
Breakfast at Tiffany's (Truman Capote)
Breakfast at Tiffany's
22
Truman Capote
Candide (Voltaire)
Candide
23
Voltaire
Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)
Catch-22
24
Joseph Heller
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Roald Dahl)
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
25
Roald Dahl
Charlotte's Web (E.B. White)
Charlotte's Web
26
E.B. White
Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoevsky)
Crime and Punishment
27
Fyodor Dostoevsky
Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde & Other Tales (Robert Louis Stevenson)
Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde & Other Tales
28
Robert Louis Stevenson
Dracula (Bram Stoker)
Dracula
29
Bram Stoker
Fahrenheit 451 (Ray Bradbury)
Fahrenheit 451
30
Ray Bradbury
Fences (Wilson)
Fences
31
Wilson
Ficciones (Jorge Luis Borges)
Ficciones
32
Jorge Luis Borges
Frankenstein (Mary Shelley)
Frankenstein
33
Mary Shelley
Gone With the Wind (Margaret Mitchell)
Gone With the Wind
34
Margaret Mitchell
Great Expectations (Charles Dickens)
Great Expectations
35
Charles Dickens
Green Eggs and Ham (Dr. Seuss)
Green Eggs and Ham
36
Dr. Seuss
Grimm's Fairy Tales (The Brothers Grimm)
Grimm's Fairy Tales
37
The Brothers Grimm
Gulliver's Travels (Jonathan Swift)
Gulliver's Travels
38
Jonathan Swift
Hamlet (William Shakespeare)
Hamlet
39
William Shakespeare
Hans Christian Anderson Fairy Tales (Hans Christian Anderson)
Hans Christian Anderson Fairy Tales
40
Hans Christian Anderson
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