# What are the 5 best novels you've ever read? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 26, 2003, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068 "2003-07-26T12:37:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Jeff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19b73/32.png) [@Jeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jeff)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2003, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/41 "2003-07-26T23:38:49Z")
Jorge Luis Borges - _Collected Fictions_ Hemingway - _For Whom the Bell Tolls_ Umberto Eco - _The Name of the Rose_ John Hawkes - _Second Skin_ (outside of the one single American Lit class where this was taught, I’ve never known anyone else who has read this guy. Shame.) Number five is a toss-up between Alistair MacLeod (_No Great Mischief_) and John Irving (_A Prayer for Owen Meaney_). ---
**Author:** ![look\_ninjas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b2d939/32.png) [@look\_ninjas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/look_ninjas)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2003, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/42 "2003-07-26T23:55:39Z")
Here are today’s favorites, in no particular order. _Pride and Prejudice_ - Jane Austen _The Stranger_ - Albert Camus _Tripmaster Monkey_ - Maxine Hong Kingston _Pnin_ - Vladimir Nabokov _The Brothers Karamazov_ - Fyodor Dostoevsky Look for the new list tomorrow! _But The Lord of the Rings still rules!!_ ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2003, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/43 "2003-07-26T23:59:37Z")
_A Prayer for Owen Meany,_ John Irving _The Good Earth,_ Pearl S. Buck _To Kill a Mockingbird,_ Harper Lee _The Sirens of Titan,_ Kurt Vonnegut Hmmm, that was easy. A lot of contenders for #5: _Little Women,_ Louisa May Alcott _Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland/Through the Looking-Glass_, Lewis Carroll _Rascal,_ Sterling North _1984,_ George Orwell _Flatland,_ Edward A. Abbott _The Adventures of Robin Hood,_ Howard Pyle I think I’ll stop now. ---
**Author:** ![5\_time\_champ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/5/278dde/32.png) [@5\_time\_champ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/5_time_champ)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/44 "2003-07-27T00:21:51Z")
1. _The Lord of the Rings_ JRR Tolkien . . . . 2._The Godfather_ Mario Puzo 3._Les Miserables_ Victor Hugo 4._1984_ George Orwell and since no one has mentioned novels by this author 5._Babbit_ Sinclair Lewis ---
**Author:** ![koeeoaddi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/koeeoaddi/32/408_2.png) [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/45 "2003-07-27T01:16:59Z")
Had to pop back with a few I’d forgotten that no one has mentioned: The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson Madness of a Seduced Woman by Susan Fromberg Schaeffer Mystery by Peter Straub A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula LeGuin I wonder if anyone would come up with the same list twice? ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/46 "2003-07-27T01:32:34Z")
Criteria is (1) there always has to be a copy of this book at hand and (2) I’ve bought extras for loaners. The Dollmaker by Harriette Simpson Arnow The Stand by Stephen King Heart of the Country by Greg Matthews Crazy Love by David L. Martin Celebrity by Thomas Thompson ---
**Author:** ![Rune](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e68b1a/32.png) [@Rune](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rune)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 1:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/47 "2003-07-27T01:36:15Z")
In no order: 1984 Hamlet Lord of the Rings Dune All Quiet on the Western Front ---
**Author:** ![DeVena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/dec6dc/32.png) [@DeVena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeVena)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/48 "2003-07-27T01:45:43Z")
Beloved - Toni Morrison To Kill A Mockingbird - Harper Lee The Stand - Stephen King Princess Bride - S Morgenstern Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen (also Dune, Bel Canto, The Hobbit, I Robot, and Rebecca) 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![maddiesilver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cab0a1/32.png) [@maddiesilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maddiesilver)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/49 "2003-07-27T01:57:04Z")
My list also changes according to moods, world events, personal strife, etc… certainly…I’d have to say Nabokov’s Lolita, Faulkner’s Light in August , Margaret Atwood’s Alias Grace , Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man , Edith Wharton’s Ethan Frome … ---
**Author:** ![fizzestothetop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e79b87/32.png) [@fizzestothetop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fizzestothetop)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/50 "2003-07-27T02:16:54Z")
The Lord of the Rings - Tolkien (if that is cheating then I’ll say just Return of the King) The Witching Hour- Anne Rice Animal Farm- George Orwell The Little Prince - can’t spell his name (not really a novel since it’s awful short but it’s one of my favorites) Alice in Wonderland- Lewis Carroll ---
**Author:** ![LolaCocaCola](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7cd45c/32.png) [@LolaCocaCola](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LolaCocaCola)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/51 "2003-07-27T02:18:14Z")
Gone with The Wind God of Small Things Catch 22 To Kill a Mockingbird A Confederacy of Dunces Can I please go on? Pleeeeeease??? ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/52 "2003-07-27T02:30:38Z")
_The Lord of the Rings_, J.R.R. Tolkien _Julian_ and _Burr_, Gore Vidal _Dune / Dune Messiah / Children of Dune_, Frank Herbert I, Claudius / Claudius the God\*, Robert Graves _The Three Musketeers_, Alexandre Dumas _The Left Hand of Darkness_, Ursula K. Leguin _The Moon is a Harsh Mistress_, Robert A. Heinlein The _James Bond_ series, Ian Fleming _Raise the Titanic!_, Clive Cussler _The Plague_, Albert Camus _The Godfather_, Mario Puzo _Titus Groan_ and _Gormenghast_, Mervyn Peake _The Shining_ and _The Stand_, Stephen King That’s all I can think of for now… ---
**Author:** ![Quack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e99b99/32.png) [@Quack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quack)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 3:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/53 "2003-07-27T03:01:16Z")
In no particular order, of course… Catcher in the Rye Watership Down Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban To Kill a Mockingbird Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy I am unoriginal…yay. ---
**Author:** ![tesa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9de053/32.png) [@tesa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tesa)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/54 "2003-07-27T03:19:41Z")
In order, from No. 1 on my list to No. 5: _To Kill A Mockingbird_ by Harper Lee _Good Times, Bad Times_ by James Kirkwood _The Godfather_ by Mario Puzo _The Hawkline Monster_ by Richard Brautigan _The Stand_ by Stephen King Tesa ---
**Author:** ![Greywolf73](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d9b06d/32.png) [@Greywolf73](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Greywolf73)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/55 "2003-07-27T03:40:07Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AuntiePam \* > \*\*Criteria is (1) there always has to be a copy of this book at hand and (2) I’ve bought extras for loaners. > The Dollmaker by Harriette Simpson Arnow > > \*\* I LOVE this book. I ran across a tattered and very old copy at a library booksale last summer and bought it for 10 cents. I’d never heard of it. I started reading it that afternoon and ended up staying up until 2 AM. It’s one of the most moving books I have ever read. My criteria for Best Book is the same as **AuntiePam’s**. Two copies–one for the top shelf of my bookcase and one to loan out. My list: Outlander by Diana Gabaldon Watership Down The Secret History by Donna Tartt The Stand by Stephen King A Prayer for Owen Meany I could go on and on and on…I have a list of about 20 favorites. ---
**Author:** ![Nvme77](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c89c15/32.png) [@Nvme77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nvme77)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/56 "2003-07-27T03:41:16Z")
I also forgot about Roots, Alex Haley The Color Purple, Alice Walker Like water for chocolate (en espanol) Laura Esquivel The Commitments, Roddy Doyle ---
**Author:** ![Zoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/a4c791/32.png) [@Zoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zoe)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/57 "2003-07-27T03:48:37Z")
_Trinity_ by Leon Uris _Les Miserables_ by Victor Hugo _Rebecca_ by Daphne DuMaurier _Gone with the Wind_ by Margaret Mitchell _Heidi_ by Johanna Spyri _Green Mansions_ by William Henry Hudson ---
**Author:** ![Walloon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/fbc32d/32.png) [@Walloon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walloon)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/58 "2003-07-27T03:49:07Z")
F. Scott Fitzgerald, **The Great Gatsby** Ray Bradbury, **Dandelion Wine** Vladimir Nabokov, **Lolita** William Kennedy Toole, **A Confederacy of Dunces** Harper Lee, **To Kill a Mockingbird** ---
**Author:** ![Sigmundex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e19adc/32.png) [@Sigmundex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmundex)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/59 "2003-07-27T03:58:41Z")
Okay, a couple of repeats here, but this is my list: A Prayer for Owen Meany - I think I LIVED this book while I was reading it. It’s got everything a book should have, funny but moving, too. War and Peace - Yes, I’ve really read the whole damn thing… twice! Lolita - I’m working on this one again right now. Illusions - by the guy who wrote Jonathon Livingston Seagull. But this one is a far better book, imho. A Confederacy of Dunces - This book is one of the few that have made me laugh out loud many times. Pardon me, but excessive consumption of Paradise hot dogs has ruined my digestion for the day, and I feel I must write in a Big Chief and relax my pyloric valve for a while. ---
**Author:** ![KRC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/45deac/32.png) [@KRC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KRC)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2003, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068/60 "2003-07-27T04:11:01Z")
My nominations: _The Brothers Karamazov_ _Catch 22_ _Beloved_ _The Second Coming_ by Walker Percy _Sounder_ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-5-best-novels-youve-ever-read/191068.md?page=4)