100 Must-Read Books: The Essential Man’s Library (102 books)

Listopia > 100 Must-Read Books: The Essential Man’s Library

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The intent of this list is to replicate a list compiled by The Art of Manliness (PDF). However, feel free to vote on your favorites that already appear on the list!

The original author's description:

"There are the books you read, and then there are the books that change your life. We can all look back on the books that have shaped our perspective on politics, religion, money, and love. Some will even become a source of inspiration for the rest of your life. From a seemingly infinite list of books of anecdotal or literal merit, we have narrowed down the top 100 books that have shaped the lives of individual men while also helping define broader cultural ideas of what it means to be a man.

Whether it be a book on adventure, war, or manners, there is so much to learn about life's great questions from these gems. Let us know in the comments which of these you loved, hated, and the books that meant a lot to you and should have made the list (you can even get really indignant about your favorite book). And without further ado, this is our list."

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1	1984 by George Orwell 4.20 avg rating — 5,652,266 ratings score: 7,706, and 80 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
2	The Hobbit, or There and Back Again by J.R.R. Tolkien 4.30 avg rating — 4,563,557 ratings score: 4,704, and 50 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
3	To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee 4.26 avg rating — 7,035,664 ratings score: 4,691, and 49 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
4	Animal Farm by George Orwell 4.03 avg rating — 4,713,501 ratings score: 4,575, and 49 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
5	Brave New World by Aldous Huxley 3.98 avg rating — 2,125,152 ratings score: 3,861, and 42 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
6	All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque 4.12 avg rating — 533,105 ratings score: 3,782, and 41 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
7	Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. 4.10 avg rating — 1,510,881 ratings score: 3,761, and 40 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
8	Lord of the Flies by William Golding 3.70 avg rating — 3,273,355 ratings score: 3,732, and 40 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
9	Catch-22 by Joseph Heller 3.99 avg rating — 898,230 ratings score: 3,460, and 37 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
10	The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas 4.33 avg rating — 1,059,377 ratings score: 3,285, and 35 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
11	The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger 3.80 avg rating — 3,968,041 ratings score: 3,232, and 35 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
12	The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald 3.93 avg rating — 6,059,667 ratings score: 3,136, and 34 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
13	The Iliad / The Odyssey by Homer 4.07 avg rating — 85,424 ratings score: 3,115, and 33 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
14	The Call of the Wild by Jack London 3.92 avg rating — 482,334 ratings score: 3,082, and 33 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
15	Hamlet by William Shakespeare 4.03 avg rating — 1,077,425 ratings score: 2,994, and 33 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
16	The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Adventures of Tom and Huck, #2) by Mark Twain 3.83 avg rating — 1,347,605 ratings score: 2,906, and 32 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
17	The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde 4.13 avg rating — 1,955,153 ratings score: 2,675, and 30 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
18	The Holy Bible: King James Version by Anonymous 4.45 avg rating — 325,026 ratings score: 2,656, and 29 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
19	Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson 3.85 avg rating — 550,062 ratings score: 2,552, and 29 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
20	Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe 3.68 avg rating — 336,090 ratings score: 2,512, and 28 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
21	Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley 3.92 avg rating — 1,964,883 ratings score: 2,458, and 29 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
22	Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky 4.29 avg rating — 1,127,657 ratings score: 2,390, and 26 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
23	The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli 3.84 avg rating — 394,735 ratings score: 2,377, and 26 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
24	The Art of War by Sun Tzu 3.94 avg rating — 588,151 ratings score: 2,209, and 25 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
25	The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky 4.39 avg rating — 404,412 ratings score: 2,048, and 23 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
26	The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck 4.03 avg rating — 1,014,514 ratings score: 1,947, and 22 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
27	Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer (Goodreads Author) 4.02 avg rating — 1,212,483 ratings score: 1,920, and 23 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
28	For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway 3.99 avg rating — 323,986 ratings score: 1,906, and 21 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
29	Walden or, Life in the Woods by Henry David Thoreau 3.77 avg rating — 207,041 ratings score: 1,871, and 21 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
30	Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values (Phaedrus, #1) by Robert M. Pirsig 3.78 avg rating — 248,781 ratings score: 1,778, and 20 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
31	East of Eden by John Steinbeck 4.45 avg rating — 683,111 ratings score: 1,769, and 20 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
32	The Divine Comedy: Inferno - Purgatorio - Paradiso by Dante Alighieri 4.09 avg rating — 176,947 ratings score: 1,751, and 21 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
33	Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse 4.13 avg rating — 222,244 ratings score: 1,704, and 21 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
34	The Stranger by Albert Camus 4.03 avg rating — 1,477,774 ratings score: 1,695, and 20 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
35	The Republic by Plato 3.97 avg rating — 230,459 ratings score: 1,653, and 19 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
36	A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway 3.82 avg rating — 362,400 ratings score: 1,646, and 19 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
37	Moby-Dick or, The Whale by Herman Melville 3.57 avg rating — 628,149 ratings score: 1,644, and 19 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
38	Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra 3.91 avg rating — 311,946 ratings score: 1,632, and 19 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
39	The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Malcolm X 4.37 avg rating — 296,801 ratings score: 1,528, and 17 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
40	The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka 3.91 avg rating — 1,503,997 ratings score: 1,517, and 17 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
41	How to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie 4.21 avg rating — 1,177,668 ratings score: 1,463, and 18 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
42	The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin by Benjamin Franklin 3.85 avg rating — 93,323 ratings score: 1,435, and 18 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
43	The Island of Dr. Moreau by H.G. Wells 3.73 avg rating — 138,306 ratings score: 1,409, and 16 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
44	Self-Reliance: An Excerpt from Collected Essays, First Series by Ralph Waldo Emerson 3.99 avg rating — 10,016 ratings score: 1,400, and 16 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
45	The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov 4.28 avg rating — 438,559 ratings score: 1,399, and 17 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
46	Hatchet (Brian's Saga, #1) by Gary Paulsen 3.80 avg rating — 460,861 ratings score: 1,393, and 16 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
47	Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand 3.69 avg rating — 410,330 ratings score: 1,385, and 16 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
48	The Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane 3.30 avg rating — 111,294 ratings score: 1,312, and 16 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
49	Undaunted Courage: The Pioneering First Mission to Explore America's Wild Frontier by Stephen E. Ambrose 4.23 avg rating — 69,092 ratings score: 1,282, and 15 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
50	On the Road by Jack Kerouac 3.61 avg rating — 455,725 ratings score: 1,276, and 15 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
51	Blood Meridian, or, the Evening Redness in the West by Cormac McCarthy 4.15 avg rating — 235,649 ratings score: 1,264, and 15 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
52	Cannery Row (Cannery Row, #1) by John Steinbeck 4.06 avg rating — 158,999 ratings score: 1,219, and 15 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
53	The Idiot by Fyodor Dostoevsky 4.21 avg rating — 226,481 ratings score: 1,120, and 14 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
54	Politics by Aristotle 3.98 avg rating — 43,563 ratings score: 1,108, and 14 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
55	Ulysses by James Joyce 3.76 avg rating — 140,427 ratings score: 1,103, and 13 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
56	The Killer Angels (The Civil War Trilogy, #2) by Michael Shaara 4.33 avg rating — 93,382 ratings score: 1,006, and 12 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
57	The Histories by Herodotus 4.01 avg rating — 56,749 ratings score: 961, and 13 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
58	A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole 3.89 avg rating — 304,427 ratings score: 906, and 12 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
59	The Dharma Bums by Jack Kerouac 3.93 avg rating — 103,138 ratings score: 884, and 11 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
60	Beyond Good and Evil by Friedrich Nietzsche 4.02 avg rating — 118,042 ratings score: 875, and 11 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
61	The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss 3.91 avg rating — 110,800 ratings score: 835, and 12 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
62	Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen 4.30 avg rating — 4,936,040 ratings score: 827, and 9 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
63	Paradise Lost by John Milton 3.86 avg rating — 186,286 ratings score: 796, and 11 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
64	The Rise of Theodore Roosevelt (Theodore Roosevelt, #1) by Edmund Morris 4.22 avg rating — 62,218 ratings score: 781, and 12 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
65	Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller 3.65 avg rating — 79,265 ratings score: 766, and 11 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
66	The Dangerous Book for Boys by Conn Iggulden 4.03 avg rating — 8,237 ratings score: 750, and 9 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
67	A River Runs Through It and Other Stories by Norman Maclean 4.19 avg rating — 31,489 ratings score: 730, and 10 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
68	The Pearl by John Steinbeck 3.58 avg rating — 282,413 ratings score: 729, and 10 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
69	30 Years Behind Bars: Trials of a Prison Doctor by Karen Gedney (Goodreads Author) 4.31 avg rating — 160 ratings score: 700, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
70	Tarzan of the Apes (Tarzan, #1) by Edgar Rice Burroughs 3.90 avg rating — 48,571 ratings score: 695, and 11 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
71	The Federalist Papers by Alexander Hamilton 4.10 avg rating — 42,517 ratings score: 691, and 9 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
72	Foucault’s Pendulum by Umberto Eco 3.91 avg rating — 75,905 ratings score: 678, and 10 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
73	The Maltese Falcon by Dashiell Hammett 3.86 avg rating — 117,831 ratings score: 675, and 10 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
74	A Separate Peace by John Knowles 3.60 avg rating — 234,866 ratings score: 630, and 9 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
75	Another Roadside Attraction by Tom Robbins 3.99 avg rating — 35,830 ratings score: 627, and 9 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
76	King Solomon's Mines (Allan Quatermain, #1) by H. Rider Haggard 3.79 avg rating — 53,423 ratings score: 585, and 8 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
77	The Naked and the Dead by Norman Mailer 3.95 avg rating — 26,734 ratings score: 580, and 8 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
78	Theodore Rex (Theodore Roosevelt, #2) by Edmund Morris 4.19 avg rating — 51,574 ratings score: 552, and 8 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
79	Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster by Jon Krakauer (Goodreads Author) 4.26 avg rating — 582,369 ratings score: 514, and 8 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
80	Lonesome Dove (Lonesome Dove, #1) by Larry McMurtry 4.59 avg rating — 267,238 ratings score: 504, and 8 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
81	The Wolf and the Shepherd by C.J. Thorin (Goodreads Author) 4.32 avg rating — 22 ratings score: 500, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
82	Strenuous Life by Theodore Roosevelt 3.93 avg rating — 1,371 ratings score: 484, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
83	An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith 3.89 avg rating — 35,431 ratings score: 449, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
84	White Noise by Don DeLillo 3.86 avg rating — 130,102 ratings score: 440, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
85	Leviathan by Thomas Hobbes 3.70 avg rating — 54,295 ratings score: 421, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
86	The Long Goodbye (Philip Marlowe, #6) by Raymond Chandler 4.19 avg rating — 47,942 ratings score: 405, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
87	Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand 4.06 avg rating — 92,285 ratings score: 389, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
88	The Thin Red Line by James Jones really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 14,607 ratings score: 377, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
89	Bluebeard by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. 4.07 avg rating — 45,341 ratings score: 362, and 6 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
90	Fear and Trembling by Søren Kierkegaard really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 32,763 ratings score: 344, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
91	The Boys of Summer by Roger Kahn 4.13 avg rating — 12,786 ratings score: 338, and 6 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
92	The Crisis by Winston Churchill 3.74 avg rating — 753 ratings score: 297, and 7 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
93	Lives of the Noble Grecians and Romans by Plutarch 4.17 avg rating — 2,114 ratings score: 296, and 6 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
93	The Book of Deeds of Arms and of Chivalry by Christine de Pizan 3.55 avg rating — 550 ratings score: 296, and 6 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
95	The Rough Riders by Theodore Roosevelt 3.78 avg rating — 3,649 ratings score: 255, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
96	Seek: Reports from the Edges of America and Beyond by Denis Johnson 3.88 avg rating — 1,625 ratings score: 194, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
97	Nicomachean Ethics by Aristotle really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 62,415 ratings score: 192, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
98	The Great Railway Bazaar: By Train Through Asia by Paul Theroux 3.89 avg rating — 21,790 ratings score: 179, and 4 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
99	From Here to Eternity by James Jones 4.08 avg rating — 18,266 ratings score: 146, and 5 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
100	The Boy Scout Handbook by Boy Scouts of America 3.99 avg rating — 3,063 ratings score: 127, and 2 people voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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102 books · 241 voters · list created October 21st, 2011 by William (votes) .

Tags: manliness

395 likes · Like

Lists are re-scored approximately every 5 minutes.

People Who Voted On This List (241)

William 492 books
96 friends

Susanna - Censored by GoodReads 3388 books
850 friends

Ben 1082 books
70 friends

Adam 1097 books
36 friends

Kate 54 books
6 friends

David 895 books
1892 friends

Thom 6022 books
293 friends

Kamakana 6636 books
461 friends

More voters…

Post a comment »
Comments Showing 1-23 of 23 (23 new)

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newest »

message 1: by Colin (new)

Oct 23, 2011 07:16AM

May I nominate The Quiet American by Graham Greene?

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message 2: by William (new)

Oct 23, 2011 08:08AM

This is actually a static list that I am (slowly) adding. It can be viewed at the link above. I thought in general the selection was good and I picked a lot from it so others might enjoy it similarly.

reply | flag

message 3: by Ben (new)

Nov 04, 2011 03:05PM

This list is now complete. I have deleted the duplicates and books that don't belong on the list.

PLEASE DO NOT ADD ANY OTHER BOOKS.

reply | flag

message 4: by Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (new)

Nov 07, 2011 09:45AM

You probably need to add that (and I'd suggest bolded) to the list description.

But some people will add books anyway.

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message 5: by William (new)

Nov 07, 2011 10:07AM

If people vote for all of the listed books it would create something of a buffer to new books being added.

reply | flag

message 6: by Jaymason (new)

Apr 24, 2012 11:33AM

Thanks for putting this list up! It's made my life much easier. So glad GoodReads has some AoM readers as well!

reply | flag

message 7: by Ben (new)

Aug 30, 2012 06:58AM

Chris wrote: ""The Great Gatsby" is listed twice."

I removed the duplicate.

reply | flag

message 8: by Lois (new)

May 04, 2013 05:27PM

This is a list of male centric books, mostly from past generations. Very few are relevant to today, and fewer are relevant to women. I'll pick my reading list elsewhere.

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message 9: by William (new)

May 07, 2013 10:49AM

Spot on! The list is entitled "The Essential Man's Library" from the popular blog "The Art of Manliness." I strongly disagree with your point that many are not relevant today; in fact most are. For instance, Brave New World was uncannily clairvoyant in its depiction of certain elements of modern social life, while Grapes of Wrath is a very pertinent cautionary tale against the ideals of the more libertarian factions of contemporary politics. Catch-22 is quite salient with respect to the foolhardiness with which we've entered wars in the past decade and the world of Nineteen Eighty-Four is eerily similar to some present-day totalitarian regimes. Yet, you are free to read as you wish, so be all means do so.

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message 10: by Roderic (last edited Aug 11, 2013 09:48AM) (new)

May 08, 2013 09:01AM

From my sampling of it, the collection isn't all bad.

I find it quite normative- go on, fight your battle, keep centre, come back to your own and take care of them. Apparently noble, but very judgemental.

Let's grant, for a second, that works of female authorship have no place in a list about "Manliness" (though a list about Manliness without S.E. Hinton's "The Outsiders"...). Still, where's Hunter S. Thompson? Where's William S. Burroughs? Where's Ralph Ellison? Capote exploring the depths of distorted man-ego "In Cold Blood"? Ken Kesey? How does Winston Churchill get an entry? The Boy Scouts Handbook??? Where are all the latin-american boom writers denouncing colonialism in style? Where is Chinua Achebe's "Things Fall Apart", talking precisely and on-point about "Manliness" and its folly across time and distance? Is it not absurd to have "The Wealth of Nations" up there, but not "Das Kapital"?

Surely there's some arbitrary line drawn over time and geography that explains how coincidentally all these books are written by white dudes, how anything still mildly subversive just didn't make the cut.

Manliness, as defined by what this collection of classics and weird ideological hanger-ons, is stuck in the past.

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message 11: by William (new)

May 08, 2013 09:09AM

I do agree with you that that these are all very important subjects that any man worth his salt ought to read up on. It is obvious that this list has a particular slant, however it makes no claim of being the exclusive list of 'manly' books. The list is a collection of one man's ideas of the hundred most essential books on manliness. Personally, I have great experience drawing from many of the works on this list; there are others that I have no interest whatsoever in reading. I think the take away message is to take this list, or any other, with a grain of salt. It is nothing more than one man's opinion. It does nothing to prevent others from creating their own lists in their own vision, as they well should if they believe they have an insight to share.

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message 12: by Roderic (new)

May 08, 2013 09:12AM

I understand. I mean, I'm not telling you to take it down. I'm just leaving my comment there for whomever happens to browse down to the comment section, perhaps feeling vaguely uneasy.

After all, that's how I got most of my education.

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message 13: by Ed Rokose (new)

Sep 15, 2013 04:30PM

No Fight Club?

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message 14: by Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (new)

Sep 15, 2013 04:45PM

Apparently not.

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message 15: by Gareth (new)

Aug 14, 2015 04:20PM

This seems like a better list, although it has a slight American bias.

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message 16: by Heather (new)

Oct 20, 2015 10:44PM

Get rid of:
10 Secrets of the New Rich: How To Join The World's New Breed Of Millionaires
by Kevin J. Donaldson
Complicity (The CCCCC Conspirators Code #1)

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message 17: by Noah (new)

Nov 15, 2015 12:46AM

Heather wrote: "Get rid of:
10 Secrets of the New Rich: How To Join The World's New Breed Of Millionaires
by Kevin J. Donaldson
Complicity (The CCCCC Conspirators Code #1)"

Seconded.

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message 18: by Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (new)

Nov 15, 2015 10:06AM

Done.

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message 19: by Raleighhunter (new)

Jan 23, 2018 09:41AM

I know everyone has their own tastes, but I'll never complete this list.

I will never read Slaughterhouse - Five, Catch-22, A Brave New World, A catcher in the Rye, or Atlas Shrugged. They just don't appeal to me and I don't think I'd finish any of them.

I will never read another Dostoyevsky or Steinbeck novel; once each was painful enough for me.

I had to read excerpts of Walden in high school and all I could think of Thoreau was he certainly could whine.

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message 20: by Judeanne (new)

Sep 27, 2018 12:07PM

Awaken Your Alpha is a book that belongs on this list.

It's being released Oct 3, 2018, but I read an advanced copy. It is the foremost discussion of modern masculinity.

You need to read it and add it to your list.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4...

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message 21: by Susanna - Censored by GoodReads (new)

Sep 27, 2018 01:39PM

This is a "closed" list, Judeanne.

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message 22: by Malachi (new)

Apr 17, 2019 08:25AM