1,000 Books to Read Before You Die: A Life-Changing List

Product Description

Features

• Book - 1, 000 books to read before you die: a life-changing list (1000 before you die)
• Language: english
• Binding: hardcover

Top Reviews

Not just for adults
by Denny Dimwit,Top Contributor: Fantasy Books (4 out of 5 stars)
May 16, 2019

I've only briefly looked at this. I'm a science fiction (and fantasy) affectionado, so that's one area I consider myself competent (although by no means an expert) to comment. The sci-fi is mostly ancient - stuff I read in the 60's to 80's. It has Harry Potter (Sor. St.) which was alarming till I also saw Goodnight Moon and The Little Prince - which are for very young children. It doesn't have as much genre scope as I might have expected. I believe it has Le Carre & Flemming, but no John D. MacDonald; O'Brian but no C.S. Forester. If I had to guess (from my cursory reading thru the "check list" (list of authors) I'd guess it avoids "pulp" authors - those whose works are now mainly in the paperback market.

I'm not at all competent to comment about (general) non-fiction. Perhaps I'm a bit more "in tune" with the (general public accessible: i.e. "popular") scientific literature. It does a better job here, but misses quite a few, too (Penrose, Hawking, Russell,...). I guess if I'd give it a D- for sci-fi, I'd give it a C+, maybe even a B-, for science. (note that it is definitely about literature written in (or translated to) English.) I also should mention that the book is mostly composed of articles on individual authors, some merit mention of several works some don't. It also has some oddities - for instance the Book of Common Prayer and the Qur'an. The problem is that both works are (easily) available in a number of versions. Mustich fails (serious failure here, imho) to compare versions or (risibly) even guide the reader towards or away from various (multitudinous) choices. It is like recommending to read The Iliad without specifying the translator (Mustich DOES recommend two versions of that work). If the purpose of this book is to suggest books to read, then Mustich dropped the ball. How pervasive the failure is, I don't know - as I mentioned, I've just glanced at my copy. I'm quite pleased to have purchased this. There's more good books out there than could be covered in any work of manageable size, so it is completely unreasonable to expect a comprehensive work. Mustich does include some books which are about books, and some of these have their own lists of the "greats" (so it's a bit disingenuous to say this book has 1000 book recommendations). It has three "indices". One section has some of the books under quirky categories (audio books, family read-alongs, about cities,...). Another is a general index which lists both books mentioned and authors. The latter, alas, includes neither characters nor subjects. And the one I read thru is a check list of the 1000 books to read. I wish it also had a subject list (the main fiction categories (romance, sci-fi/fantasy, action,...) and the main non-fiction categories (nature/science/math, history, biography, civilization/technology, ... ) or whatever. (And given the number of children's books (as well as "young adult") an "age" (MPAA-like rating?) index would have been nice.)
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Excellent read
by Amazon Customer (5 out of 5 stars)
December 29, 2018

We loved the Common Reader Catalog while it existed so when I came across 1000 Books, I gave it to my bibliophile husband for Christmas. I left the house one day and came back 4 hours later where I found him still reading this book. He is hard to please with book gifts so I am pleased. It is great to just read for both literary and non literary types. I love that I can find references to more authors I might like. Mustich has managed to write well for all levels of readers! A marvelous feat.
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What a Terrific Ineractive Reading Experience-and a Great Gift Idea
by David Crumm (5 out of 5 stars)
December 19, 2018

In only discovered James Mustich's work recently, even though I've been a journalist myself for more than 40 years. I was fascinated immediately by the range of his work. Then, I learned about this wonderful book he produced in the "1,000" series of volumes. I already had thoroughly enjoyed and completely marked up my copy of 1,000 foods. I thought I'd give this new volume a try.

I was so impressed that I ordered copies of the book for friends as Christmas presents. If you're a lifelong book lover, it's a pleasure to flip through these pages and visit "old friends." Unlike another reviewer on this page, I long ago decided to mark up my books. Lots of noted readers have added their own thoughts to the margins of their books and I find it a pleasant surprise to look back through books and re-discover what I was thinking on an earlier trip through the pages. So-perhaps you don't want to mark up this book-or perhaps you do. I'm simply saying that I'm having lots of fun adding my notes.

What you uncover in these pages are memories of so many earlier encounters with great books. I would flip a page and respond: "Oh, my goodness! High school English class. I chose that book from the reading list and have never forgotten it." Or, flip another page: "Wow. I was in my 30s and this book came to me under the arm of a friend. I still remember talking about that one over coffee." Another page: "Oh really? There's a new translation? I probably read the old translation and that's why it was so hard for me to appreciate."

On and on ... It's like a pilgrimage with old friends for avid readers.

I don't think any reader of this volume will have read every book-or even will have heard of every book. There are a number of marvelous "finds" in these pages-another part of the fun.

Thanks Workman for this series. Thanks James for putting together this new volume.
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Brilliant Book
by David J. Spellman (5 out of 5 stars)
October 2, 2018

This is a book of magnificent brilliance. I loved it. But, then, I'm one of those addicts who spent several decades awaiting Jim's monthly catalogue of literary gems for sale...to read all the descriptions and to enjoy the books that seemed destined for me to read. Well, I'm 62 now and I've got to get cracking on the 1,000 here (making good use of the handy checklist in the back, which I will photocopy because I have a deep aversion to writing within books). Oh and you will also have some quibbles...my only one so far is that I believe that More's "Utopia" deserved more than just a footnote at the end of the Erasmus entry. I am sure I will think of more (no pun intended), but that's also a great part of the fun. If you love books (and I certainly do) I guarantee that you shall love this book and treasure it and refer to it time and again. OK, so Jim convinced me to read Dostoevsky. I'll start with Notes From The Underground. Wow I have so much to look forward to thanks to Jim's book. You will too. I am adding on November 15 that I just bought two copies for birthday gifts and plan to buy a dozen more as Christmas gifts...that's how much I love this book!
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BEWARE!
by John F. Karr (3 out of 5 stars)
October 2, 2018

The Kindle edition of the book lacks the Index of the hardcover version. This makes it practically useless, unless you want to scroll thru dozens or hundreds of pages to find an author. I found the actual contents, the essays, etc, to be as notable as other reviewers. But no Index? Gimme a break! The Kindle is also entirely black and white, unlike the very colorful print edition. It may be awkwardly large to haul around when compared to the Kindle, but there's no joy in having the Kindle edition. Get it in print form!
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A Beautiful Book
by minnemom (5 out of 5 stars)
October 15, 2018

This is a beautiful book. The paper, the layout, and the photos take this beyond just a to-read list, and the 1000 books grow to many more if you follow the "also by" and "try" paths to even more books. I learned that I am not well-read, but should I want to vary my usual reading patterns, I need only open to a random page and find inspiration for something new. Books range from children's to modern to classics, and cover a variety of topics. An excellent purchase.
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Perfect for Reading Lovers
by Paula Cappa Reviews (5 out of 5 stars)
November 27, 2018

This book is a library on your bookshelf and no bibliophile should be without it. From Aristotle to Virginia Woolf, you'll find authors here you know and some you don't. A valuable and beautiful compendium by Mustich-My only criticism is that he did not include May Sarton, which I consider essential to read before you die. I especially like how Mustich gives you a magnified quick insight about the authors as well as the titles. Lots of books like this out there and most have the same authors and titles. This book has far more women and minority authors, YA and children's books. And, he has a miscellany list, one I loved: "read in a sitting" list if you are into flash reading for an afternoon.
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Even-Handed and Nicely Annotated
by Pop Bop (4 out of 5 stars)
October 2, 2018

If you're a sucker for lists, and especially book lists, this strikes me as a very nice choice. It passed my first two tests - the foreword wasn't a Little Jack Horner what-a-good-boy-am-I celebration by the author of his admirable bookishness. It was modest, informative, and rather amiable. So already I was willing to trust this curator, (who wrote the "A Common Reader" mail-order book catalogue for decades, so was already sort of pre-approved).

The next test was to read one of his descriptive essays. (Each listed book comes with a brief essay and a load of background information about the book, including date of publication, other books by the author, similar books, and so on.) The first book on the list is Abbey's "Desert Solitaire". (The list is alphabetical by author.) I think Abbey is a great nature writer, but also a condescending sourpuss with a NIMBY problem and dismissiveness of anyone who doesn't fit his idea of an eco-warrior. Most reviews of "Desert Solitaire" rhapsodize about Arches National Park and overlook Abbey's kvetching. Mustich's essay, though, notes Abbey's "crankiness... and mordant quirky vehemence", while still giving him full marks as a nature writer and observer. O.K., I thought, Mustich isn't just a sugar coated sycophant, and appears to be trustworthy.

The next books on the list are Abbott's "Flatland", Achebe's "Things Fall Apart", Ackerley's "My Dog Tulip", Adams' "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy", and Henry Adams' "Education of Henry Adams". This tells you that the net here has been spread wide indeed, and it practically invites readers to argue about how this particular thousand was chosen. Since that's all part of the fun of books like this, that's all fine with me. (For what it's worth, I think these life list things should be organized on an ages of man theme, listing books in the order in which they should be read as the reader ages. A book that's just right for a teen might not tickle the fancy of an octogenarian, and I amused myself by trying to plot the books here into where and when I should have read them, if ever.)

The selection is about evenly split between fiction and nonfiction, which is a bit unusual, but welcome. And there are certainly some unexpected choices. I would challenge any reader to skim through this book and not find at least a few enticing and previously unknown volumes. (Reginald Arkell's "Old Herbaceous" anyone?) As you might expect, the Western canon is heavily represented, but Mustich makes a credible attempt to cover what is available in translation.

Anyway, this is a game and fair effort; the author is above board regarding his methods and his predilections, and the essays are enough to give the reader at least a brief taste of those books with which he is not familiar. Mustich is witty in an unforced way and enthusiastic, and as surveys and lists go, this one struck me as fun and engaging.
(Please note that I received a free advance will-self-destruct-in-x-days Adobe Digital copy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
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BUY THE PRINT EDITION! DO NOT BUY THE KINDLE EDITION!
by Rusty Chapman (2 out of 5 stars)
October 14, 2018

As has been mentioned, the Kindle edition is virtually unusable, as there is no index, outside of alphabetical chapters of author's last names, leaving the reader to scroll through 30-40 books to the object of desire. A simple solution would be to put a LOCATION NUMBER FOR EACH BOOK in the list of books, so it can be searched. The book itself is superb. I will be ordering the hardcover version soon in addition to the kindle
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Great Recommendations to Blow Up Your TBR Pile
by scostner1 (5 out of 5 stars)
October 3, 2018

As if I didn't have enough trouble keeping my TBR pile under control as it is, now this book comes along and recommends even more titles?! It's not that I haven't read any of the books the author discusses, it is the sheer number of others that he offers like a bibliophile's buffet. Mustich has covered a wide range of genres, age and reading levels, time periods, and cultures. Entries range from Aristotle to Vonnegut, bedtime stories such as Goodnight Moon to horror like Dracula, and adventures like Homer's Iliad or Ender's Game.

The entry for a book might include a synopsis, a brief description of the authors' life, the social climate at the time of publication, or other relevant facts. Endnotes also point out other titles by the same author, books for further information about each subject, adaptations of the work, any awards it won, and read-alikes by other authors. It's like having an "if you like that, then try this" feature on steroids.

Quotes from critics or other authors underscore the sort of reactions a book inspires in its readers, although Mustich does a wonderful job of expressing his own opinions. He says this about Roald Dahl, for instance, "Standing out among his storytelling treats is Matilda, whose superheroine is heroic - and triumphant - first and foremost because she reads." Along with the written entries there are also images of authors, book covers, teaser posters for movie adaptations, historical photos, and reproductions of iconic illustrations.

Booknote sidebars cover related titles, while More to Explore sections group books with similar themes (even other books about books). Back matter includes a general index of the books and authors mentioned, and "A Miscellany of Special Lists" has curated groupings of titles based on subject, style, or audience. The explanation of the book's organization explains all these features as well as letting readers know that over 3,000 authors and 6,000 additional books are mentioned besides the main entries. (So does that make it 7,000 books to read before you die?) The companion website has books indexed by chronology and genre.

No matter what sort of reader you are - constant, binge, persnickety, omnivorous - you will find more useful information than you are likely to have the time to implement. I suggest investing in some highlighters or sticky tabs if you purchase a print version, or be prepared to bookmark your e-book edition like crazy. You won't want to forget any of the entries or other details that catch your interest.

Highly recommended for YA and up - or as a reference for school librarians and teachers to help steer students to titles that suit their tastes.

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