99 Books You Must Read Public

Created by pygospa

On June 22nd, 2019 I saw a scratch poster at my local book store, titled "99 Books You Must Read" - the poster features each book with a cover artwork which is covered by a scratch-off panel, so that you can just make out the title, plus a sentence about the book underneath it. This list collects those 99 books, and the little sentence underneath each cover as a note (translated from German to English by me).

Because I wanted to read more, plus I felt like not only reading my typical leisure reads (fantasy, horror and sci-fi), I bought that poster and pinned it to my door. I wasn't too successful till now, but maybe this list will further motivate me in finishing that poster (some books I have already read, but I'll be re-reading those again, just for the fun of it, probably - if possible - …

  1. The Great Gatsby by 

    Here is a novel, glamorous, ironical, compassionate – a marvelous fusion into unity of the curious incongruities of the life …

    pygospa says:

    1925 - Jay Gatsby's life revolves around decadence, parties, idealism and an unattainable love in the "Roaring Twenties".

  2. Nineteen eighty-four by 

    Nineteen Eighty-Four: A Novel, often referred to as 1984, is a dystopian social science fiction novel by the English novelist …

    pygospa says:

    1949 - two citizens secretly rebel against the dictatorship in a totalitarian surveillance state, are exposed and psychologically broken.

  3. Nausea by 

    A story of the troubled life of an introspective historian, Antoine Roquentin, and an exposition of one of the most …

    pygospa says:

    1938 - Living in solitude, Roquentin writes a book. He is increasingly overcome by disgust at the randomness and meaninglessness of existence.

  4. Deutschland. Ein Wintermärchen by 

    Germany. A Winter's Tale (German: Deutschland. Ein Wintermärchen) is a satirical epic poem by the German writer Heinrich Heine (1797–1856), …

    pygospa says:

    1844 - Heine, living in exile in France, denounces Prussian militarism and nationalism.

  5. The Robbers by 

    pygospa says:

    1781 - Franz Moor intrigues against his brother Karl, so that the latter is disowned by his father and joins the robbers.

  6. Don Quixote by ,

    A new translation by Edith Grossman

    pygospa says:

    1615 - Don Quixote, the dreamer, is convinced he is a knight. To gain more fame, he decides to set out on an adventure.

  7. The Hunchback of Notre-Dame by 

    The Hunchback of Notre-Dame (French: Notre-Dame de Paris, lit. 'Our Lady of Paris', originally titled Notre-Dame de Paris. 1482) is …

    pygospa says:

    1831 - Embedded in descriptions of medieval life in Paris, the novel tells the story of the deformed Quasimodo.

  8. The Divine Comedy by 

    Presents a translation of Dante's allegorical poem.

    pygospa says:

    1321 - An adventure through the three realms of the afterlife: Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise.

  9. The adventures of Tom Sawyer by  (Illustrated classics)

    The adventures and pranks of a mischievous boy growing up in a Mississippi River town in the early nineteenth century.

    pygospa says:

    1876 ​​- The story of an exciting and carefree childhood full of adventures.

  10. Hamlet by 

    In this quintessential Shakespeare tragedy, a young prince's halting pursuit of revenge for the murder of his father unfolds in …

    pygospa says:

    1609 - Hamlet embarks on a tragic quest for revenge to avenge the cold-blooded murder of his father.

  11. Die unendliche Geschichte by 

    The Neverending Story (German: Die unendliche Geschichte) is a fantasy novel by German writer Michael Ende, published in 1979. The …

    pygospa says:

    1979 - The fantastical parallel world of Phantásien is destroyed by the "Nothing". Only imagination can save the world.

  12. The Odyssey by ,

    The Odyssey (; Greek: Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, Attic Greek: [o.dýs.sej.ja]) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to …

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    8th century BC - Oldest poem in Western literature about Odysseus' ten-year wanderings and return home after the conquest of Troy.

  13. Oliver Twist by  (Everyman's library ;)

    ONE OF THE MOST SWIFTLY MOVING AND unified of Charles Dickens's great novels, Oliver Twist is also famous for its …

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    1838 - Oliver grows up in a poor orphanage. He escapes to London, where he joins a gang of thieves.

  14. Der Prozess by ,

    The Trial (German: Der Process, later Der Proceß, Der Prozeß and Der Prozess) is a novel written by Franz Kafka …

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    1925 - One morning, Josef K. is arrested. Caught in the clutches of a surreal bureaucracy, he tries to find out what crime he is accused of.

  15. Robinson Crusoe by 

    The Life and Strange Surprizing Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, Of York, Mariner: Who lived Eight and Twenty Years, all alone …

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    1719 - Robinson Crusoe fights for survival on a deserted island.

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