Master and Commander
First book in O’Brian’s Aubrey/Maturin series, widely regarded as the greatest series of historical novels ever written. More
The Kon-Tiki Expedition
This classic, inspiring tale of daring and courage has been translated into sixty-five languages. More
Nostromo
A sweeping masterpiece considered by many to be Conrad’s greatest novel. More
The Hobbit
J. R. R. Tolkien’s enchanting tale became an instant success when it was first published. More
The Fellowship of the Ring
First volume in The Lord of the Rings series, which has sold more than 100 million copies. More
Two Years Before the Mast
An early landmark of adventure and travel writing, now considered one of America’s first literary classics. More
Our Town
Pulitzer Prize–winning drama; hailed by Edward Albee as “The finest play ever written by an American.” More
Seven Years in Tibet
A landmark in travel writing, it has been translated into fifty-three languages. More
The 42nd Parallel
The first volume of the “brilliantly original” (Alfred Kazan) U.S.A. trilogy, a landmark of modernism. More
A Game of Thrones
First volume in the internationally bestselling series that has sold upward of 70 million copies. More
The Wapshot Chronicle
Winner of the 1958 National Book Award, it established Cheever as a major American novelist. More
Tracy Chevalier
I read because I want to know what it’s like to look at the world through someone else’s eyes, and reading is a remarkably efficient and vigorous way of doing that. More
Namita Gokhale
I read to share the world, to treasure words, to learn and intuit and recognise experiences to which I have no direct access. More
Bernard Cornwell
The most magical phrase I knew as a child was “Once upon a time” because those four words meant a story was coming. More
Moby-Dick
Often called the greatest American novel of all time. More
The Once and Future King
White’s masterful retelling of the Arthurian legend. More
The Odyssey of Homer
Hailed as “the best translation there is of a great, perhaps the greatest, poet” (New York Times Book Review). More