V.
Winner of the William Faulkner Foundation Award for best debut novel in 1963. More
Caedmon Records and Audiobooks
In 1952, Barbara Cohen and Marianne Roney, a pair of recent college graduates, wrote a letter to Welsh poet Dylan Thomas that contained an unusual business proposal. More
Being and Time
Perhaps the twentieth century’s most influential philosophical work, which shaped existentialism and postmodern thought. More
Tom Robbins
I write to twine ideas and images into big subversive pretzels of life, death, and goofiness—on the chance that, like the Trickster figure in tribal myths, they might help keep the world lively and give it the flexibility to endure. More
Geronimo Johnson
I write to unread what has been written about me in error and with malice. More
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
Thompson’s highly subjective blend of fact and fiction that popularized what has become known as gonzo journalism. More
Collected Poems 1947–1997
Poetry from a chief figure of the Beats that helped catalyze a revolution in contemporary culture. More
The Monkey Wrench Gang
Classic, irreverent novel that helped spark the modern movement of environmental activism. More
Essays of E. B. White
Classic collection by one of the greatest essayists of our time, Pulitzer Prize–winning author E. B. White. More
Karthika Nair
Books that influenced me: Haroun and the Sea of Stories. More
Just Kids
Legendary artist Patti Smith’s critically acclaimed memoir; winner of the National Book Award. More
The Dangerous Book for Boys
A genre-busting “guidebook” that was a bestseller in the U.K., the U.S., and Canada. More
The Crying of Lot 49
This highly original satire is a classic of postmodern literature. More
T. C. Boyle
I read in the way that I breathe, as a necessity of life. More
Ariel
Plath’s landmark poetry collection; includes “Ariel,” “Daddy,” and “Lady Lazarus.” More