My Reading List!

 

We are tasked with creating a 10-book, 10 year reading list. However, I would like to get more into reading in my 

rapidly-nearing independent future, so I am assigning myself a 120-book, 10 year reading list. 

In addition, a 10-book, 10 year reading list simply isn’t practical considering that a year isn’t a very strong 

deadline to finish a book. There is little incentive to build a strong reading habit. In order to efficiently 

build incentive, my list starts in June 2025. However, in order to honor the premise of this assignment, I will 

try to let the 1st book of each year be a particularly outstanding choice.

One thing to know about me is that I haven’t made good use of lists, plans, and unsurprisingly, syllabi in my 

everyday life. I’m a disorganized free spirit who lives by my own rules. This has led to many 

depressing moments of realizing I’m a lazy dumbass who has accomplished nothing in seventeen years of 

life and is hopelessly addicted towards lowest common denominator entertainment and shows 

no signs of discipline. Perhaps now, as I become an adult, it’s time to take full control over my own life and 

emancipate myself from the curses I’ve built my mind on.

I will try my best to give this list some chronological order/meaning, but it isn’t intended to be dwelled on. 

This list is best read holistically, as although I believe in some theoretically more fulfilling order

        to take on literature, it can hardly be set in stone. Nevertheless, I haven’t read any of these books before, 

so it’s more of an order based on general recommendations rather than my own opinion. Also, 120! is

        too large of a number for me to consider all possible reading orders of these books (obviously that is a huge 

overestimate due to some books clearly needing to be before others, but the number is still large). 

        There is also the fact that the list is catered to myself, and I read more than the type of “literature” that will 

be in this list. There are some things that compromise a lot of literature (religion, to name one) which 

        I’m simply not interested in. So ultimately, the list will be roughly but not entirely chronological.

 

        Don’t get me wrong, I’m making a 120-book reading list because I genuinely want to study literature. If a 

school assignment tends to coincide with my personal interests, sobeit.

“But some of these are way longer/shorter than the others! A month is unreasonable!” It’s fine. It was never 

set in stone.

Overall, here is my list for Top 10 Books to read throughout 10 years before I get to the actual list:

1.  Plato: Complete Works edited by John. M. Cooper
2. Critique of Judgement by Immanuel Kant
3.  Ulysses by James Joyce
4. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
5. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
6. No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai
7. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
   
8. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? By Philip Dick
9. American Psycho by Bret Easton Willis
10. Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy 

More details will be added in the list!

The list:

We are tasked with creating a 10-book, 10 year reading list. However, I would like to get more into reading in my rapidly-nearing independent future, so I am assigning myself a 120-book, 10 year reading list. In addition, a 10-book, 10 year reading list simply isn’t practical considering that a year isn’t a very strong deadline to finish a book. There is little incentive to build a strong reading habit. In order to efficiently build incentive, my list starts in June 2025. However, in order to honor the premise of this assignment, I will try to let the 1st book of each year be a particularly outstanding choice.

One thing to know about me is that I haven’t made good use of lists, plans, and unsurprisingly, syllabi in my everyday life. I’m a disorganized free spirit who lives by my own rules. This has led to many depressing moments of realizing I’m a lazy dumbass who has accomplished nothing in seventeen years of life and is hopelessly addicted towards lowest common denominator entertainment and shows no signs of discipline. Perhaps now, as I become an adult, it’s time to take full control over my own life and emancipate myself from the curses I’ve built my mind on.

I will try my best to give this list some chronological order/meaning, but it isn’t intended to be dwelled on. This list is best read holistically, as although I believe in some theoretically more fulfilling order to take on literature, it can hardly be set in stone. Nevertheless, I haven’t read any of these books before, so it’s more of an order based on general recommendations rather than my own opinion. Also, 120! is too large of a number for me to consider all possible reading orders of these books (obviously that is a huge overestimate due to some books clearly needing to be before others, but the number is still large). There is also the fact that the list is catered to myself, and I read more than the type of “literature” that will be in this list. There are some things that compromise a lot of literature (religion, to name one) which I’m simply not interested in. So ultimately, the list will be roughly but not entirely chronological.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m making a 120-book reading list because I genuinely want to study literature. If a school assignment tends to coincide with my personal interests, sobeit.

“But some of these are way longer/shorter than the others! A month is unreasonable!” It’s fine. It was never set in stone.

The list:

[2025]

1. [June] – Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

“Start with the Greeks,” they say. Arguably the beginning of all western literature, I’d like to begin my journey with the fundamentals, so many of the beginning picks won’t be books I personally find the most important, but ones that I believe will lay a good foundation for me to begin my literary journey.

But why Meditations? The simple answer is that I already have this book on the bookshelf and have started it before, so it won’t be too challenging to get back into. The nicer answer is that Meditations is a philosophical collection of writings by Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius which detail his own philosophies and journey towards self-improvement. As someone who’s been through some hard times, I’ve heard good things about these writings and hope they can help heal me.

2. [July] – Mythology by Edith Hamilton

Published in 1942, this book is a more modern telling and comprehension of Greek mythology (along with Roman and Norse mythology). I’ve heard good things about this book, so I hope it will set me up with a good background on Western culture.

3. [August] – The Trojan War: A New History  by Barry Strauss

This book explores the mythological and historical stories of the Trojan war. My main intention for reading this is to get a modern contextualization of Homer’s the Iliad and the Odyssey, both considered pretty challenging books. Since Homer’s works are so old and apparently missing many parts to them, I think added context will be incredibly useful. Published in 2007, I’ve heard good things about this book as a good introduction to these topics.

4. [September] – The Iliad  by Homer

Known as one of the greatest pieces of literature of all time and one of the first substantial works, I’m very excited to read this one. The history and the mythology will mostly be pretty new to me, and I’d like to know if it lives up to the hype. I’m looking forward to both an epic war story and commentary on the human condition.

5. [October] – The Odyssey by Homer

What else could follow The Iliad if not The Odyssey? The Odyssey, as I’ve heard, is a much more personal story than The Iliad, following the story of one man coming home from war. Again, Homer’s works are so fundamental to western literature, and this poem is one of the oldest major works of literature which still survives.

6. [November] – Histories by Herodotus

Another Ancient Greek book, this time the first ever surviving “history” book.

I actually love history (well, some parts of history, to be specific). Ancient history is fascinating, because you can either view it through the personal or detached lens due to how different society was back then. Like the rest, this is another fundamental piece of literature.

7. [December] – The First Philosophers: The Presocratics and Sophists translated by Robin Waterfield

Published in 2000, this book is meant to be a comprehensive introduction to the most prevalent Ancient Greek philosophers and Ancient Greek philosophical movements, going into detail on what each philosopher brought to the game. Since I want to study Greek Philosophy in more detail, I thought I needed an introductory book.

[2026]

8. [January] – Plato: Complete Works edited by John M. Cooper

New year, the start of a new exciting pick of mine. Out of all the Greek literature, the philosophy is probably what I’m most excited for. I’ve heard great reviews of Plato. One thing to mention though is that I did pick up Plato’s The Republic before (but did not finish it), and after some more research have realized that people generally don’t consider it a good start into philosophy, so I’m planning to read up generally on some of Plato’s earlier dialogues.

9. [February] – The Complete Works of Aristotle

Usually people read Plato before Aristotle, but I’m still just as excited for Aristotle, although I wonder if I’ll become sick of him after reading Plato (I’ve heard Aristotle can be quite annoying in many of Plato’s dialogues, as well as many things about Aristotle’s questionable lifestyle). I’m mostly interested in Aristotle’s “Metaphysics”.

10. [March] – The Nature of Things by Lucretius

A scientific philosophical view of the world which explores the concepts of atomism and metaphysics, this poem seeks to define the mind and soul. Personally, I’m just interested in philosophy, and this seems like a proper next step.

11. [April] – Macbeth by Shakespeare

To be honest, that was about all the research on Greek philosophy I’d done, so let’s do more contemporary works now. I want to read Shakespeare because his plays are pretty fun, and they are referenced everywhere. They provide insight into the entertainment of the time period as well as the popular media within the time, since many Shakespeare plays are references or have references.

12. [May] – Othello by Shakespeare

Another classic Shakespeare play. I’d love to watch renditions of the plays along with book copies, I think that’d be the proper way to enjoy them. Apparently Othello’s live action is popular, as it comes up first when I search up the name.

13. [June] – King Lear by Shakespeare

Probably the last of Shakespeare’s most famous tragedy plays which I haven’t read yet. I wonder if Shakespeare gets old at this point. A lot of his plot points, although clever, might have aged poorly and become “tropey,” which is usually a turn-off for me for a book. Well, I still may enjoy it.

14. [July] – A Midsummer Night’s Dream by Shakespeare

A comedy, because Shakespeare is fun. Seriously, I’d have just read challenging books for almost a whole year by this point, I think I can spend a few months on something lighter. Shakespeare sure did seem to like making fun of lovers.

15. [August] – Antony and Cleopatra by Shakespeare

This will be the last one, because I only want to read the most popular/influential ones. It’s very shallow of me. But also, I like the history (accuracy aside). I don’t really care about reading all of the Henry plays. They seem boring. Maybe after I’ve finished the list.

16. [September] – Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes

This is a political book, questioning the English government and the role of government during the English Civil War. Hobbes was a founder of political theory which still exists today, namely that humans are selfish and need to be controlled, and I’m interested in reading the story which helped inspire his theories.

17. [October] – Candide by Voltaire

A satire novel, considered Voltaire’s magnum opus. I like books with a sharp edge to them, and ones with a philosophical undertone as well. I want to find out how Voltaire remains beloved even in today’s world.

18. [November] – Critique of Pure Reason by Immanuel Kant

This is the founding text of modern philosophy. Finally, I’ll be able to reinvent everything I’ve read so far. Rationalism, empiricism, and idealism, which is the most true to our realities? I like books with an edge to them, as I said before. They seem to have a lot to say, which I’m excited to read.

19. [December] – Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals by Immanuel Kant

Another defining philosophical work that I can’t skip. The title alone is interesting enough for me.

[2027]

20. [January] – Critique of Judgement by Immanuel Kant

Since Kant is so fundamental to philosophy, I believe this can count as my personal choice book of the year. This is my favorite choice book of 2027! Kant critiques god and our own aesthetics, very impressive for the time.

21. [February] – Critique of Practical Reason by Immanuel Kant

Kant sure does love to critique things. I’m not really sure what’s the difference between this one and the others, but I felt that it was necessary to finish off the series.

22. [March] – Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

I’ve had this book on my shelf but never read it because one, it’s very long and two, I know the story already from watching the school play and it didn’t interest me that much. Maybe the book will be better, since people do seem to love it, after all. I think it’d be nice to give it one chance, at least.

23. [April] – Emma by Jane Austen

This is Jane Austen’s other famous book, and people love this book. You’ll notice that I like reading author’s works all at once – I do believe that’s the correct way to consume them. The girl on the cover is a bit creepy for me though.

24. [May] – The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

This book is intense, or so I’ve been told. The plot is quite intriguing – a story about a publicly shamed woman for her adultery – but I’ve heard that the writing style itself is not very good. Well, I think there must be some value to it considering how much it’s referenced.

25. [June] – A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

This book is very beloved, and I’m excited to read the grand story that this novel promises as well as the social commentary.

26. [July] – Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

By now, this should be expected as the next pick. To be honest, the plot of this one is a bit more silly to me than the last Dickens’ novel, but who am I to judge when most people admire Dickens’ writing style a lot? I’m very excited to read this one.

27. [August] – Das Kapital by Karl Marx

Another political book by a very famous political thinker. This book was very beloved by economically left communities back in the day, although nowadays it’s received more critical reception. I’d like to take a look at it for myself, but I can’t deny that the book is very influential, if nothing else.

28. [September] – Moby Dick by Herman Melville

I hear great things about this book, and I know the basic story, and apparently it’s more than what it seems at first. Captain Ahab sounds like a fun character I’d like to read about. However, I can still remember reading this book in middle school and dropping it quickly because it was so boring. Maybe I’ll find it in better taste in 2027?

29. [October] – The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

I know well from English Class that Oscar Wilde was an… interesting man who liked to break the rules. This book is known for pushing boundaries (well, a lot of infamous books are). Reading reviews of this book reminded me that reading is more enjoyable when you hold respect for the author. For a time, I was uptight enough to forget this fact.

30. [November] – The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky

The first infamous Russian novel on the list. I wonder if they live up to the hype? They are known for being incredibly long, but hopefully not drab. I don’t mind a long book as long as it has good pacing. That’s what’s most important, after all.

31. [December] – The Idiot by Fyodor Dostoevsky

I like the idea of this novel a lot – a man who becomes dismayed by the “emptiness” of the world around him. This book feels like my type, and it’s also not that long for a Russian novel (667 pages).

[2028]

32. [January] – Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky

This is my top choice of 2028. Another classic book that I’ve only read praise for. The slow burn is intriguing to me. Raskolnikov is an interestingly flawed character, he seems downright insane with his strange political theories, and I think that reflects in the context surrounding this novel.

33. [Feburary] – Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

I was actually planning to read this for my summer reading this year, but it was too long. This book is so famous that I’ve grown very excited to read it. Why do classic Russian novels all have such depressing plots about the degradation of the human mind? Apparently the titular character was also very iconic in Russia for a long time.

34. [March] — War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

Another Tolstoy novel, on the war (Napoleon’s invasion of Russia). This book is apparently very complex and contains many characters and plot lines, so it sounds very fun and exciting. Also, it’s incredibly well acclaimed. Holy crap, it is super long though. 1392 pages… that would be 45 pages every day in the month. Oh, that’s actually doable as long as I don’t miss a few days. I’m looking forward to the challenge. Besides, considering that I’d be reading for years at this point, I think I’ll be well prepared by then.

35. [April] — Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

I actually know this book because of its anime and because it’s popular in Japan.This is a more lighthearted novel, which I think will be fun to read for a change of pace.

36. [May] — Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Another book about an orphan girl (I guess being orphaned was just more common back then). This book is also highly acclaimed as a “gothic masterpiece,” so much so that I’ve been recommended to read it many times, but never got to it. I think it’s funny/sad how Bronte used a male pseudonym to publish the book — I want to read more stories written by women.

37. [June] — Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen

Another Austen novel, I guess I forgot to fit this one earlier. Oops. I think it fits here as well. Austen does seem to title her novels in similar ways. The thing that makes me most curious about her books, however, is how they still seem to hold appeal to young people over 200 years later, where other books fail to. Is it the writing style? The romance? Is it because they’re written by a woman? I want to find the answers to these questions.

38. [July] — Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

I also have this book on my shelf. Apparently it holds wide appeal outside of just being a book for women. This book was written clearly very closely to someone’s own personal experiences, so I think I will find it both heartfelt and resonant with social circumstances at the time.

39. [August] — Frankenstein by Mary Shelley

This book, known as the first science fiction book ever, is genuinely one of the most infamous books of all time. The premise is already classic, so I really want to read it. It’s also not that long, I tried picking it up before but stopped. I’m realizing now that I don’t actually finish many of the books I started. Maybe I really have horrible reading habits…

40. [September] — Dracula by Bram Stoker

Another classic gothic story, so how could I not read it? I’ve heard this one is much more horror-like than Frankenstein. I like good horror, since it keeps one on edge, but I’m scared of actual horror imagery. I’m excited to read this one.

41. [October] — Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson

This book is another famous gothic horror. This book has been referenced so many times so I want to read it.

Ok. At this point, I will just complete the list rather than describing each book for times’ sake. I’ll still describe the important ones, like I said.

42. [November] — The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

43. [December] — The Trial by Franz Kafka

[2029]

44. [January] — Ulysses by James Joyce

Explanation

45. [February] — The Castle by Franz Kafka

46. [March] — The Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce

47. [April] — To The Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf

48. [May] — Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf

49. [June] — Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes

50. [July] — Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison

51. [August] — Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut

52. [September] — Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

53. [October] — Waiting for Godoy by Samuel Beckett

54. [November] — The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas

55. [December] — Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

[2030]

56. [January] — The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

Explanation

57. [February] — The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien

58. [March] — The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain

59. [April] – The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain

60. [May] – Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream by Hunter Thompson

61. [June] – One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey

62. [July] – The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

63. [August] – Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell

64. [September] – The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien

65. [October] – The Fellowship of the Ring by J. R. R. Tolkien

66. [November] – The Two Towers by J. R. R. Tolkien

67. [December] — The Return of the King by J. R. R. Tolkien

[2031]

68. [January] – A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

Explanation

69.  [February] — The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas

70. [March] — The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemmingway

71. [April] – A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemmingway

72. [May] – For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemmingway

73. [June] – Notes From Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky

74. [July] – Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace

75. [August] – Gravity’s Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon

76. [September] — Ulysses by James Joyce

77. [November] – 2666 by Roberto Bolano

78. [October] – Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong

79. [December] — Romance of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guanzhong

This book is so long I feel bad putting it for only one month, for my own sanity.

[2032]

80. [January] – No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai

Explanation

81.  [February] — Journey to the West by Wu Cheng'en

82. [March] — Journey to the West by Wu Cheng'en

Same reasoning as Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

83. [April] – Confessions of a Mask by Yukio Mishima

84. [May] – Spring Snow by Yukio Mishima

85. [June] – Runaway Horses by Yukio Mishima

86. [July] – The Temple of Dawn by Yukio Mishima

87. [August] – The Decay of the Angel by Yukio Mishima

88. [September] – Beloved by Toni Morrison

89. [October] – Beowulf by Unknown

90. [November] – A Streetcar Named Desire by Tennessee Williams

91. [December] — A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry

[2033]

92. [January] – Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? By Philip Dick

Explanation

93.  [February] — I, Robot by Issac Asimov

94. [March] — Dune by Frank Herbert

95. [April] – The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

96. [May] – Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card

97. [June] – The Collector by John Fowles

98. [July] – The Vegetarian by Han Kang

99. [August] – If on a Winter’s Night a Traveler by Italo Calvino

100. [September] – Fathers and Sons by Ivan Turgenev

101. [October] – Swann’s Way by Marcel Proust

102. [November] – In the Shadow of Young Girls in Flower by Marcel Proust

103. [December] — The Guermantes Way by Marcel Proust

[2034]

104. [January] – American Psycho by Bret Easton Willis

Explanation

105.  [February] — Sodom and Gomorrah by Marcel Proust

106. [March] — La Prisonniere by Marcel Proust

107. [April] – La Fugitiva by Marcel Proust

108. [May] – Time Regained by Marcel Proust

109. [June] – Finnegans Wake by James Joyce

110. [July] – Life of Pi by Yann Martel

111. [August] – The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

112. [September] – Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

113. [October] – Thus Spoke Zarathustra by Friedrich Nietzsche

114. [November] – Beyond Good and Evil by Friedrich Nietzsche

115. [December] — Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes

[2035]

116. [January] – Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy

117.  [February] — The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula LeGuin

118. [March] — The Dispossessed by Ursula LeGuin

119. [April] – War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells

120. [May] – Going Postal by Terry Pratchett