23 Books You Didn’t Read In High School But Actually Should
You probably SparkNoted these books before, but now’s your chance to read them.
posted on July 5, 2013, at 6:03 p.m.
![Spencer Althouse](http://s3-ak.buzzfeed.com/static/user_images/webdr05/2013/4/2/13/spenceralthouse-20644-1364923212-8_large.jpg)
Spencer Althouse
BuzzFeed Staff
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1. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
![The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr03/2013/7/1/13/enhanced-buzz-15432-1372698988-17.jpg)
Via en.wikipedia.org
A love story within a love story. It takes the American dream, amplifies it, and then tears it apart in every way possible.
2. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
![To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr01/2013/7/1/13/enhanced-buzz-16395-1372700138-0.jpg)
The Washington Post / Getty Images
It blends innocence and triumph in a
way that makes you learn something without actually feeling like you’re
learning. Also, you will fall in love with Atticus Finch.
3. Night by Elie Wiesel
![Night by Elie Wiesel](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr05/2013/7/1/13/enhanced-buzz-11931-1372700915-11.jpg)
Via amazon.com
The Jewish author was sent to
Auschwitz at 15-years-old. This is his story of personal struggle,
heartbreak, and passion. At barely 100 pages, you can’t afford to not
read this book.
4. Lord of the Flies by William Golding
![Lord of the Flies by William Golding](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr03/2013/7/1/13/enhanced-buzz-4625-1372700554-1.jpg)
Via amazon.com
Lord of the Flies reveals the true nature of humans and will even make you question your own morality.
5. Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
![Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr03/2013/7/1/14/enhanced-buzz-5539-1372702946-28.jpg)
Via amazon.com
This novel is the inspiration for Apocalypse Now. Need I say more? (The answer to that question is no.)
6. The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
![The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr03/2013/7/1/13/enhanced-buzz-11170-1372701385-0.jpg)
MANDEL NGAN / Getty Images
The protagonist’s fear for adulthood will make this one of the most relatable books you will ever read.
7. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
![Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr06/2013/7/1/14/enhanced-buzz-11012-1372702413-19.jpg)
It gives new meaning to the American
dream, focusing on power and a friendship that will enrage you with
jealousy (but in a good way).
8. Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell
![Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr06/2013/7/1/14/enhanced-buzz-30206-1372704528-34.jpg)
Via behance.net
This novel will scare the crap out of
you, and you will love it. Besides, Big Brother is watching, so it’s
not like you even have a choice now…
9. Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
![Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr05/2013/7/2/17/enhanced-buzz-12450-1372798965-0.jpg)
It incorporates time travel and porn stars. Enough said.
10. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
![Frankenstein by Mary Shelley](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr06/2013/7/1/14/enhanced-buzz-11046-1372704093-46.jpg)
Via amazon.com
Mary Shelley bet her husband that she could write a better horror story than him. She did.
11. Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
![Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr01/2013/7/3/10/enhanced-buzz-11601-1372860394-16.jpg)
Because everyone’s in need of a good cry.
12. Animal Farm by George Orwell
![Animal Farm by George Orwell](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr06/2013/7/1/14/enhanced-buzz-11118-1372705083-38.jpg)
This book is basically a satirical
puppet show about a revolution. If anything, you should read it for this
quote: “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than
others.”
13. Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett
![Waiting for Godot by Samuel Beckett](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr01/2013/7/2/17/enhanced-buzz-9211-1372800256-13.jpg)
It’s a play about two characters who wait for something that never comes, but it’s never dull, just thought-provoking.
14. Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf
![Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr03/2013/7/2/19/enhanced-buzz-18854-1372807226-18.jpg)
Via slate.com
Virginia Woolf will show you how disconnected you are from society, and you will thank her for doing so.
15. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley
![Brave New World by Aldous Huxley](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr05/2013/7/2/23/enhanced-buzz-10749-1372820775-8.jpg)
Via npr.org
Because you’ve always wondered what the world would be like without religion.
16. As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
![As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr02/2013/7/1/15/enhanced-buzz-8758-1372705900-35.jpg)
Via amazon.com
Everyone in this novel is pretty messed up, and that’s refreshing. Also, James Franco is releasing a film adaption of the book, so you have to read it before that comes out, too.
17. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller
![Catch-22 by Joseph Heller](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr06/2013/7/1/15/enhanced-buzz-18012-1372707095-10.jpg)
Via heathcates.com
This is the only book that will make you feel OK about American politics. It’s basically a novel version of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.
18. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey
![One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest by Ken Kesey](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr06/2013/7/1/15/enhanced-buzz-17007-1372707508-3.jpg)
Via en.wikipedia.org
It uses literature’s greatest heroes
and villains to make you question authority, freedom, and reality. And
Ken Kesey is an LSD-tripping, counter-cultural genius.
19. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
![The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr06/2013/7/3/10/enhanced-buzz-25041-1372861673-17.jpg)
Via thejanedough.com
Its bleak honesty and dark humor will teach you to not sweat the small stuff.
20. Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller
![Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr01/2013/7/2/17/enhanced-buzz-9096-1372802169-39.jpg)
Via en.wikipedia.org
Miller uncovers the reality of the American dream in a way that will make you question your own desire for success.
22. Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka
![Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr06/2013/7/2/18/enhanced-buzz-20137-1372805049-34.jpg)
Via eastwing.co.uk
It will single-handedly change the way you treat people.
23. Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
![Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston](http://ak-hdl.buzzfed.com/static/enhanced/webdr06/2013/7/2/23/enhanced-buzz-17941-1372823127-0.jpg)
It will make you rethink everything you thought you knew about love.
[Have you read any of them? Mrs P.]
I read none of these books ^^
ReplyDeleteBamboo.
I have never read a book in my life I think x) It's an article for Primrose.
ReplyDeleteGrapefruit---
WHERE IS GAME OF THRONES ?!
ReplyDeleteI have read one of them, 1984 !
PonPonPon
I've already read 5 of them. By the way Of Mice and Men is problably my favorite book of all time.
ReplyDelete