Reader's Digest's 21 Classic Books Everyone Should Read at Least Once

"What exactly qualifies a work as classic literature? Broadly speaking, classic books are groundbreaking for their era, have broad appeal beyond one community or country, and have withstood the test of time—their stories and messages remain relevant today. For our list, we chose classic books written in the 20th century or earlier, and every book on this list is more than 25 years old. We combed through best-seller lists of old to dig up books that have been well-reviewed and won awards. But more importantly, we've rounded up books that broke ground, kept us thinking, and even created new literary genres. Many of these novels have graced high school reading lists for generations, while others have been spotlighted and elevated in recent decades; we offer you this list of classic books in the hopes that you slow down, dive in, and delight in the warm comfort a great book can bring." - stage.rd.com