The Best Books to Read

            “Of making [and therefore purchasing and reading] many books there is no end” said Solomon (Ecclesiastes 12:12), and this causes trouble for avid and occasional readers alike. For avid readers the problem is knowing whether or not “another book for the books-to-read shelf” is really worth the purchase and/or the time. For people who haven’t really gotten into reading a lot but want to start reading more, the problem is knowing where to begin. This article is the last in a series I started four months ago on books. We looked at why books matter, and how to read them. Any converts I’ve made to book reading now deserve to know where to start. What books are worth reading, and where should you begin?

The Best for Children

            I start the list with children’s books because, while long time readers may have devoured them already, those of you who are really wanting to start reading but are maybe a little intimidated by it will find that reading children’s books is quick, meaningful and fun. As for long time readers, you may find something new in this list that you’ve never read. I also think children’s books should be high on your list because they’re a great way to break up your pace and avoid burnout. I find that, once I read a classic and really work hard at trying to understand it, I do well afterward to read a children’s book—one that is profound, but easier on my brain. It lightens me and rests me so I can gather strength for the next reading challenge. So children’s books—what to read:

1. The Chronicles of Narnia – Hands down and without reservation I recommend these seven books before anything else.
2. Then there’s every other great children’s book in the world. There are so many that I can’t name them all. But here are some to start with: The Hobbit, Aesop’s Fables, A Wrinkle in Time, Treasure Island, The Princess and the Goblin, Peter Pan, The Wizard of Oz, Grimm’s Fairy Tales, The Giver, Tuck Everlasting, Esperanza Rising, Hatchet, and Holes.
3. Then come all the children’s books which may not be great but I like them anyway: I think the Harry Potter books are worth reading—Christian parents who talk to their children about the biblical stance on witchcraft need not be afraid of these fun books. I’m a big fan of Eoin Colfer’s Artemis Fowl books. One set of books I would not recommend are the His Dark Materials books by Phillip Pullman of which The Golden Compass is the first. Pullman specifically wrote his books as an attack on Christianity.

The Great Classics

            If we don’t read the great classics of Western literature, the wealth of truth they have to teach us may disappear. That would be a terrible loss. But there are so many and they’re so difficult. How do we read them and how do we choose which to start with?

            A few tips on reading classics: 1. Get an edition of the book that has footnotes. 2. Get a translation that is easy for you to read. 3. Read some introductory material about the book before you read it. 4. Take your time, and don’t worry if you get confused—these books take work and may take a lifetime to understand. 5. Last tip: consider buying a book called Invitation to the Classics (Baker Books) which lists the best of the best and introduces them to you as well.

            Now which classics should you start with? Let me apologize right now to anyone who is offended by the absence of any of a hundred or more books left out of this list. There just wasn’t room to write them all in.

1. Hands down and without a doubt, no book matters more than the Bible. If you’ve never read it all the way through, you should.
2. After the Bible I say read Homer’s great Epics, The Iliad and The Odyssey (try the translations by Robert Fagles).
3. The other great epic works of our cultural tradition worth your time include The Aeneid, Dante’s Divine Comedy, Spenser’s Faery Queene, Paradise Lost, Moby-Dick, War and Peace, and The Brothers Karamazov. These wonderful books are annoyingly long, amazingly profound, and will stretch you beyond your limits.
4. There are far too many great classics to name here, so let me turn to naming great authors with whom you can’t go wrong. First among them: William Shakespeare. He’s the greatest writer the English language has ever known. Next, in no particular order, the classic Greek playwrights: Aeschylus, Sophocles, Euripides and Aristophanes; the great Russians, Tolstoy and Dostoevsky; English writers: Chaucer, Milton, Jane Austen (and so many more); and American writers: Hawthorne, Poe, Melville, and Faulkner.

Popular Genres

            Still want more choices? How about these authors in the area of particular genres:
The best writers in Science Fiction and Fantasy include, Jules Verne, H. G. Wells, J.R.R. Tolkien, C. S. Lewis, George MacDonald, Frank Herbert, Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, Orson Scott Card, and Stephen Lawhead just to name a few. Classic mystery writers include Arthur Conan Doyle, G. K. Chesterton, and Agatha Christie. P.D. James is a mystery writer living today who some think does more than just tell a good story—she writes literature. I’m leaving out romance, adventure, thriller, spy, Western (can anyone beat Louis L’Amour?), historical fiction and more. But hopefully this list will get you started.

For more of Charlie's book recommendations, see his list of Books Worth Reading.