Best Philosophical Literature (1167 books)

Fiction that aims to enlighten the reader "philosophically" (whatever you take that word to mean).

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1	The Stranger by Albert Camus 4.03 avg rating — 1,380,166 ratings score: 51,707, and 525 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	1984 by George Orwell 4.20 avg rating — 5,399,412 ratings score: 42,509, and 436 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	Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse 4.08 avg rating — 870,192 ratings score: 40,568, and 414 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	The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry 4.33 avg rating — 2,448,847 ratings score: 37,756, and 385 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	The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde 4.13 avg rating — 1,855,264 ratings score: 35,184, and 364 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	Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky 4.29 avg rating — 1,067,288 ratings score: 34,359, and 353 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	Brave New World by Aldous Huxley 3.99 avg rating — 2,062,203 ratings score: 27,185, and 286 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	The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky 4.39 avg rating — 382,550 ratings score: 22,648, and 235 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	Animal Farm / 1984 by George Orwell 4.30 avg rating — 215,058 ratings score: 21,571, and 229 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	Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury 3.97 avg rating — 2,805,377 ratings score: 20,512, and 217 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 Fountainhead by Ayn Rand 3.89 avg rating — 336,614 ratings score: 19,339, and 206 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	Lord of the Flies by William Golding 3.70 avg rating — 3,177,289 ratings score: 19,267, and 203 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 Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger 3.80 avg rating — 3,868,535 ratings score: 18,619, and 195 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	Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand 3.69 avg rating — 406,089 ratings score: 17,961, and 186 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	The Trial by Franz Kafka 3.94 avg rating — 391,193 ratings score: 17,959, and 190 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 Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka 3.90 avg rating — 1,404,682 ratings score: 17,463, and 188 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	Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse 4.13 avg rating — 213,616 ratings score: 17,223, and 181 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 Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera 4.11 avg rating — 539,811 ratings score: 17,043, and 179 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	The Beasts of Success by Jasun Ether 4.14 avg rating — 432 ratings score: 16,467, and 165 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	Sophie’s World by Jostein Gaarder 3.97 avg rating — 280,689 ratings score: 16,393, and 170 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	The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho (Goodreads Author) 3.92 avg rating — 3,532,922 ratings score: 16,306, and 168 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	Way of the Peaceful Warrior: A Book That Changes Lives by Dan Millman 4.13 avg rating — 56,183 ratings score: 15,416, and 157 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	Aesop’s Fables by Aesop 4.05 avg rating — 129,450 ratings score: 15,233, and 166 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 Dharma Bums by Jack Kerouac 3.93 avg rating — 101,203 ratings score: 15,183, and 166 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 Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis 4.27 avg rating — 515,699 ratings score: 15,029, and 161 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	Nausea by Jean-Paul Sartre 3.93 avg rating — 138,445 ratings score: 14,704, and 156 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	Animal Farm by George Orwell 4.02 avg rating — 4,498,553 ratings score: 13,724, and 152 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	Notes from Underground, White Nights, The Dream of a Ridiculous Man, and Selections from The House of the Dead by Fyodor Dostoevsky 4.19 avg rating — 78,417 ratings score: 13,564, and 144 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	The Plague by Albert Camus 4.02 avg rating — 311,953 ratings score: 13,335, and 144 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	VALIS by Philip K. Dick 3.91 avg rating — 32,639 ratings score: 12,636, and 140 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	Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. 4.10 avg rating — 1,475,592 ratings score: 12,537, and 137 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	Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley 3.90 avg rating — 1,861,576 ratings score: 11,944, and 131 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	Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inquiry Into Values (Phaedrus, #1) by Robert M. Pirsig 3.78 avg rating — 244,492 ratings score: 11,748, and 123 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	Candide by Voltaire 3.76 avg rating — 300,005 ratings score: 11,580, and 127 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	Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates 3.93 avg rating — 93,178 ratings score: 11,578, and 127 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	Demian: Die Geschichte von Emil Sinclairs Jugend by Hermann Hesse 4.14 avg rating — 134,315 ratings score: 10,085, and 108 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	Hamlet by William Shakespeare 4.03 avg rating — 1,043,191 ratings score: 9,958, and 110 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	Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett 3.84 avg rating — 221,225 ratings score: 9,632, and 106 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 Giver (The Giver, #1) by Lois Lowry (Goodreads Author) 4.12 avg rating — 2,786,858 ratings score: 8,993, and 95 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	Island by Aldous Huxley 3.85 avg rating — 35,795 ratings score: 8,809, and 103 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	Paradise Lost by John Milton 3.85 avg rating — 181,522 ratings score: 8,253, and 96 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	To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee 4.26 avg rating — 6,826,836 ratings score: 7,305, and 83 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	A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 765,999 ratings score: 6,687, and 75 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	One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez 4.12 avg rating — 1,096,291 ratings score: 6,556, and 76 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	Faust, First Part by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 3.83 avg rating — 85,684 ratings score: 6,381, and 72 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	Life of Pi by Yann Martel 3.94 avg rating — 1,746,447 ratings score: 6,265, and 70 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	Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad 3.43 avg rating — 555,759 ratings score: 6,151, and 71 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 Fall by Albert Camus 4.03 avg rating — 133,674 ratings score: 6,085, and 70 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	Macbeth by William Shakespeare 3.89 avg rating — 1,013,397 ratings score: 5,885, and 68 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	No Exit and Three Other Plays by Jean-Paul Sartre 4.09 avg rating — 30,011 ratings score: 5,835, and 65 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	Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. 4.15 avg rating — 435,199 ratings score: 5,744, and 65 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	The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck 4.03 avg rating — 988,941 ratings score: 5,723, and 66 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	Utopia by Thomas More 3.55 avg rating — 82,598 ratings score: 5,436, and 63 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	Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach (Goodreads Author) 3.86 avg rating — 271,421 ratings score: 5,244, and 57 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	East of Eden by John Steinbeck 4.44 avg rating — 629,926 ratings score: 5,070, and 58 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	In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust 4.34 avg rating — 14,006 ratings score: 4,883, and 55 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 Death of Ivan Ilych by Leo Tolstoy 4.14 avg rating — 219,064 ratings score: 4,882, and 57 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	The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov 4.28 avg rating — 416,259 ratings score: 4,839, and 57 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 Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann 4.13 avg rating — 60,987 ratings score: 4,827, and 56 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	Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison 3.92 avg rating — 201,314 ratings score: 4,775, and 54 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	Blindness by José Saramago 4.18 avg rating — 335,219 ratings score: 4,756, and 56 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	On the Road by Jack Kerouac 3.61 avg rating — 446,200 ratings score: 4,552, and 53 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	The Glass Bead Game by Hermann Hesse 4.10 avg rating — 42,216 ratings score: 4,474, and 52 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	Narcissus and Goldmund by Hermann Hesse 4.22 avg rating — 72,192 ratings score: 4,467, and 52 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	The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon 3.89 avg rating — 1,589,195 ratings score: 4,224, and 47 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	Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions by Edwin A. Abbott 3.81 avg rating — 77,166 ratings score: 4,033, and 44 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	The Man Without Qualities: Volume I by Robert Musil 4.28 avg rating — 3,393 ratings score: 3,845, 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
68	The Secret Magdalene by Ki Longfellow (Goodreads Author) 4.14 avg rating — 4,737 ratings score: 3,630, 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
69	The Dispossessed: An Ambiguous Utopia by Ursula K. Le Guin 4.26 avg rating — 149,445 ratings score: 3,617, 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
70	Franny and Zooey by J.D. Salinger 3.96 avg rating — 238,962 ratings score: 3,566, 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
71	Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson 3.83 avg rating — 660,962 ratings score: 3,562, and 44 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	Great Expectations by Charles Dickens 3.80 avg rating — 869,864 ratings score: 3,395, and 44 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	Les Fleurs du Mal by Charles Baudelaire 4.19 avg rating — 79,906 ratings score: 3,319, and 38 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	To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf 3.81 avg rating — 213,305 ratings score: 3,296, 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
75	The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 3.69 avg rating — 153,942 ratings score: 3,214, and 39 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	Solaris by Stanisław Lem 3.98 avg rating — 129,408 ratings score: 3,132, and 36 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	Z213: EXIT by Dimitris Lyacos 4.27 avg rating — 242 ratings score: 3,095, and 31 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	The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster 4.20 avg rating — 305,646 ratings score: 3,089, 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
79	The Road by Cormac McCarthy really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 1,028,487 ratings score: 3,019, and 36 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	Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah by Richard Bach (Goodreads Author) 4.15 avg rating — 66,490 ratings score: 3,005, 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
81	Moby-Dick or, The Whale by Herman Melville 3.56 avg rating — 613,120 ratings score: 2,889, 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
82	Catch-22 by Joseph Heller 3.99 avg rating — 883,795 ratings score: 2,832, and 38 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	Les Misérables by Victor Hugo 4.21 avg rating — 840,243 ratings score: 2,685, 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
84	The First Death by Dimitris Lyacos 4.55 avg rating — 167 ratings score: 2,650, and 27 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	We by Yevgeny Zamyatin 3.88 avg rating — 111,618 ratings score: 2,635, 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
86	The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery 3.80 avg rating — 199,146 ratings score: 2,603, 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
87	The Man Without Qualities by Robert Musil 4.19 avg rating — 7,361 ratings score: 2,551, and 27 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	Franz Kafka's The Castle by David Fishelson (Adapter) 4.10 avg rating — 28,714 ratings score: 2,521, 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
89	Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov 3.87 avg rating — 939,367 ratings score: 2,497, 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
90	Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis 4.20 avg rating — 79,674 ratings score: 2,470, and 27 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	Labyrinths: Selected Stories & Other Writings by Jorge Luis Borges 4.44 avg rating — 33,738 ratings score: 2,434, 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
92	Zorba the Greek by Nikos Kazantzakis 4.03 avg rating — 58,286 ratings score: 2,418, 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
93	Journey to the End of the Night by Louis-Ferdinand Céline 4.18 avg rating — 47,562 ratings score: 2,378, and 27 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
94	The Wall by Jean-Paul Sartre 4.07 avg rating — 26,790 ratings score: 2,326, and 27 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	Perfume: The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Süskind 4.04 avg rating — 548,066 ratings score: 2,322, and 27 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	The Book of Disquiet by Fernando Pessoa 4.39 avg rating — 37,309 ratings score: 2,275, 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
97	The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway 3.81 avg rating — 1,301,182 ratings score: 2,219, 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
98	The Notebooks of Malte Laurids Brigge by Rainer Maria Rilke 3.92 avg rating — 9,905 ratings score: 2,170, and 24 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	The Complete Stories by Franz Kafka 4.33 avg rating — 28,389 ratings score: 2,100, 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
100	Blood Meridian, or, the Evening Redness in the West by Cormac McCarthy 4.15 avg rating — 216,952 ratings score: 2,029, 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

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1,167 books · 2,724 voters · list created July 30th, 2008 by deleted user.

Tags: literary-fiction

1871 likes · Like

Lists are re-scored approximately every 5 minutes.

People Who Voted On This List (2724)

Antoine 949 books
177 friends

Seth 2017 books
432 friends

David 2651 books
604 friends

Fire-fish 243 books
1 friend

Nathan 267 books
0 friends

Anastasia 780 books
114 friends

Naomi 848 books
42 friends

Danielle 990 books
9 friends

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Comments Showing 1-27 of 27 (27 new)

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message 1: by Derya (new)

Dec 28, 2010 04:54AM

Each and every text could be a subject for a philosophical discussion. Thus, The Little Prince may "enlighten" the reader, as well as The Happy Prince and Other Tales.

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message 2: by ibrahim (new)

Aug 31, 2013 01:23PM

so entrusting book to red and inspire

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message 3: by Sam (new)

Sep 06, 2013 03:22AM

This is the best group of books I have seen on a list. I am going to work my way down it!

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message 4: by ibrahim (new)

Oct 12, 2013 12:16PM

work on it brother,then you can brief me sir

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message 5: by Timatima (new)

Jan 28, 2014 11:42PM

I love this list!! Thank you x

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message 6: by Denisa (new)

May 10, 2014 01:15PM

Life of Pi, seriously?

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message 7: by BookLovingLady (deceased Jan. 25, 2023...) (last edited Sep 20, 2014 02:23AM) (new)

Sep 20, 2014 02:21AM

Believe it or not, but Justine, of De tegenspoed der deugdzaamheid by Marquis de Sade does pose some very interesting philosophical questions...

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message 8: by Paul (new)

Dec 19, 2014 08:09AM

Checked for duplicates: 1 book removed.

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message 9: by Catherine (last edited Aug 11, 2015 01:10AM) (new)

Aug 11, 2015 01:07AM

Loving this list because:

1. It has quite a few of my favourite books
2. For once the voters have stuck to the brief
3. It doesn't have Twilight on it!

PS - I added Knowledge of Angels - please read it.

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message 10: by Mike (last edited Jun 12, 2016 06:37AM) (new)

Jun 12, 2016 06:33AM

To Kill a Mockingbird?

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message 11: by B (new)

Jun 22, 2016 05:54AM

Mike wrote: "To Kill a Mockingbird?"

Are you serious? Of course!! It's a beautiful piece

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message 12: by Mike (last edited Jun 24, 2016 03:27PM) (new)

Jun 24, 2016 03:23PM

B wrote: "Mike wrote: "To Kill a Mockingbird?"

Are you serious? Of course!! It's a beautiful piece"
it's a beautiful piece and a great novel but not a philosophical one.

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message 13: by BookLovingLady (deceased Jan. 25, 2023...) (last edited Jun 24, 2016 10:37PM) (new)

Jun 24, 2016 10:25PM

Mike wrote: "it's a beautiful piece and a great novel but not a philosophical one. "

I was wondering why the book was on the list, but it seems I'm not the only one. I just thought my idea of what would be considered 'philosophical literature' was (completely) different from others, as it's not the only title I wouldn't have put on this list :-) But again, I might have a completely different idea of philosophical literature, because after all the description does say "whatever you take that word to mean".

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message 14: by Mike (new)

Jul 25, 2016 04:57PM

Booklovinglady wrote: "Mike wrote: "it's a beautiful piece and a great novel but not a philosophical one. "

I was wondering why the book was on the list, but it seems I'm not the only one. I just thought my idea of what..."

Yeah! I just saw that. But it's wrong and actually it doesn't need any explanation why it's wrong. 'Philosophical literature' is a category. It can't be "whatever you take that word to mean".

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message 15: by MarpleInvestigates (new)

Dec 14, 2016 07:49PM

Mike wrote: "B wrote: "Mike wrote: "To Kill a Mockingbird?"

Are you serious? Of course!! It's a beautiful piece"
it's a beautiful piece and a great novel but not a philosophical one."

It may not explore what is more often considered to be philosophy like metaphysics or epistemology but the themes of morality and value of living could be considered philosophical to some but I agree that it's not really philosophical literature like some of the other pieces like The Little Prince or Steppenwolf.

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message 16: by Greg (new)

Feb 20, 2017 01:25PM

Great list! I'm always looking for a great novel with some philosophical undertones so I searched curated lists and took suggestions from readers and from philosophical fiction authors like Khaled Hosseini, Irvin D. Yalom, Rebecca Goldstein and Daniel Quinn. From over 400 books, I came up with this list of The 105 Best Philosophical Novels: https://www.greghickeywrites.com/best...

I also produced two free bonus downloads: 1) the favorite works of philosophical fiction from eleven contemporary philosophical fiction authors and 2) a one-page PDF shopping guide to The 105 Best Philosophical Novels. Happy reading!

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message 17: by Donna (new)

Aug 25, 2017 08:34PM

Mike wrote: "B wrote: "Mike wrote: "To Kill a Mockingbird?"

Are you serious? Of course!! It's a beautiful piece"
it's a beautiful piece and a great novel but not a philosophical one."

How can one not see this as philosophical? Think about issues surrounding race and justice. Think about the ways in which we treat people with mental health issues; how many Boo Radleys out there have been treated as pariahs? You can see the philosophy inherent.

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message 18: by Donna (last edited Aug 25, 2017 09:44PM) (new)

Aug 25, 2017 08:38PM

Removed as nonfiction: Phenomenology of Spirit, by Hegel

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9...

The Invention of Religion, by Drake
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

Gagh. It's like a wreck on the freeway. Everything is flowing along nicely, and then someone isn't paying attention and does something dumb; next thing you know, half the world has crashed along with them.

PEOPLE. Read the description of the list. This is fiction. There's no place for straight philosophy here. Now trusty souls like me have to come clean up your mess. It's either that or look at it, so to me the choice is clear. NOW...

Nietzsche didn't write fiction. Seriously. There's a mess of it here, and he's not alone either. Here we go:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

The Sickness Unto Death, by Kierkegaard et al...

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

Fear and Trembling, also Kierkegaard
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

And yet more Kierkegaard:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

The Trial and the Death of Socrates, by Plato:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

Tuesdays with Morrie is memoir, NOT fiction; the same is true of Night:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6...
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

Crimony. MORE Nietzsche:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

Medium-Stupid: It's true at least that Camus wrote a lot of fiction; still, the word "Essays" in the title should have been a clue:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

Winnie the Pooh is fiction; however, The Tao of Pooh and Piglet is not:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8...

Meditations, by Marcus Aurelius...c'mon now.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...

And Kahlil Gibran
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

Critique of Reason, by Kant:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

More Nietzsche:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5...

Autobiography of a Yogi cannot be fiction because it's an...
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6...

And Tao te Ching:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6...

Pretty sure the first page is clean now.

Those that see books left on this list in error--not because you don't care for the book, but because it's not fiction--please note the title of the book in this comment section along with the # or at least the page on which you saw it. Those of us editing these lists are all volunteers; I get notified when a comment pops up, so extraneous comments about books liked or not liked, and especially spam done by authors whose books aren't selling yet are to be avoided.

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message 19: by Donna (last edited Aug 25, 2017 09:53PM) (new)

Aug 25, 2017 09:49PM

Good grief. I thought I would just go enjoy the list and vote; I went to page 2, and there it was...more Nietzsche:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8...

Okay then. I am leaving for the night. Turning off the monitor and muting sound. If anyone sees anything that shouldn't be here, shoot me a message via this thread and I'll check it Saturday. My copy of Colson Whitehead's The Underground Railroad is waiting...

(Forehead smack) As soon as I knock The Republic, by Plato, off the list at #23. How did I miss that? Gone:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...

'night, all.

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message 20: by Donna (new)

Aug 26, 2017 10:44AM

I return, fresh as a daisy, and the first thing I see is that I missed something else on the first page. Rats!

Removed, The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

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message 21: by Donna (last edited Aug 26, 2017 11:09AM) (new)

Aug 26, 2017 10:53AM

Back again, fresh as a daisy from an almost-full-night's sleep, and sure enough, I missed titles on page 1. I've removed over a dozen titles that are nonfiction, and still they aren't all gone.
Usually with a list this severely compromised, I would be tempted to abandon it, but the concept is so strong, I've grown attached to it and want to save it. So here we go.
The Myth of Sisyphus and Other Essays, gone from page 1, nonficiton:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

From #43, The Decline of the West:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8...
Page 2, Foucault, Discipline and Prisons:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8...
A note: I'm seeing a lot of poetry collections here. For the moment I am not touching them; it seems to me to be a gray area, especially in the case of ballads that tell a story in verse rather than prose. If anyone sees a work that straight-up lands outside the category of fiction, say what it is and where it is, and I will deal with it. A further complication, of course, is that many of these are collections of poems AND short stories. So for now, never mind all that; it's looking like a job just to pull out the nonfiction works of philosophy and the occasional philosophic memoir, biography, autobiography.

If anyone reading this comment knows which is the best list that embraces philosophy as a genre, please post it here so that readers that want to spend time with Hegel, Kant, and (*shudder*) Nietzsche can go there.

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message 22: by Donna (last edited Aug 26, 2017 10:18PM) (new)

Aug 26, 2017 11:12AM

From #116 By Descartes, Discourse on Method and Meditations on First Philosophy (say that one ten times fast and I will give you a nickel):

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...

Top o' page 2, nonfiction philosophy by Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

Page 2, Being and Nothingness by Jean-Paul Sartre
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

Page 2: Love Richard Dawkins, but The God Delusion is nonfiction, and so it's been removed:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

Page 2, Complete Essays
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...

Page 2 :
Again with the Tao of Pooh. No, no, no.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4...
Oracles by Mario Brooks
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
#166 Om Chanting and Meditations
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9...
#168 Birth of Tragedy by (of course) Nietzsche
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7...
#182 The Unwords
#165 Poena Damni
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4...
#186
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...
#187 Meetings with Remarkable Men
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3...

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message 23: by Greg (new)

Nov 02, 2017 08:05AM

To all voters/commenters, what are your favorite philosophical fiction books of 2017?

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message 24: by Donna (last edited Nov 02, 2017 11:38AM) (new)

Nov 02, 2017 11:25AM

Greg wrote: "To all voters/commenters, what are your favorite philosophical fiction books of 2017?"
Greg, that sounds like a good topic for a new list. Have you thought about starting one? Of my votes, 11 (if I counted correctly) are books published this year. 2 of them actually haven't been published yet--I read the DRCs for them--but they will be published soon.

The system found and removed 2 duplicates.

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message 25: by Greg (new)

Nov 02, 2017 11:42AM

Donna wrote: "Of my votes, 11 (if I counted correctly) are books published this year."

Thanks Donna. I went through the entire list and identified books published in 2017. I just wanted to see if anyone had others to add.

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message 26: by Donna (last edited Nov 02, 2017 12:01PM) (new)

Nov 02, 2017 11:43AM

Removed as nonfiction from page 3: Antifragile...
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

and from page 2, The Love Poems of Rumi:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6...

Also page 2, Letters to a Young Poet, nonfiction
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4...

And from page 3, Utilitarianism, by John Stuart Mill, who totally didn't write fiction EVER:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5...

Okay, readers, that's it for now, but Granny Donna will be back, so don't go sliding any more nonfiction into this list. Nobody that fails to follow directions may have dessert tonight.

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message 27: by Greg (new)

Feb 12, 2018 12:41PM

Here's the update to my previous list of The 105 Best Philosophical novels, with the best of 2017: https://www.greghickeywrites.com/best....

The list is based on rankings from Amazon, Esquire, Harper’s Bazaar, Publishers Weekly and The Washington Post, suggestions from readers on Goodreads and Reddit and ratings on Goodreads and Amazon. Enjoy!

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