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1 | CRYSTAL'S TRULY MASSIVE LIFELONG BOOKLIST | |||
2 | For more about me: http://www.crystalking.com | Read before | Date Read | |
3 | This booklist is an ongoing work-in-progress. The list is ordered roughly according to birth of the author where known or if not, by publication date. Where possible I will attempt to purchase the more important works on the list. Some books are not in wide circulation or are too rare to purchase. If that is the case, links are listed here--I will try to keep those links up-to-date. I'm also starting to add more books to my Kindle library vs. hardback--due to space/$ primarily. Notes may include bits of relevant information as well as my tracking of related plays/movies I've seen, birthplaces/homes I have visited, versions of interest, etc Over the years, more contemporary items may be added as they are recommended or deemed valuable by society. . If I read the book prior to 2005 I intend to read it again, to get a fresh perspective--due to the number of books on the list, however, I may decide not to re-read in many cases--usually if the book is still fresh in memory. | This book list has been compiled from various sources (originally it was heavily taken from Robert Teeter's Great Books List at: http://www.interleaves.org/~rteeter/greatbks.html) on the Net but that has grown as I receive personal recommendations or read about other books I may want to add. Sheet 2 contains any other book that I end up reading not on this list. Sheet 3 lists yearly book prizes...books I still need to add to the list. This link will also take you to a list where I'm tracking which books I've read from Peter Boxall's 1001 Books to Read Before You Die (http://bit.ly/diGpc) since they will heavily overlap. http://bit.ly/14nM7O And yes, I am crazy. | ||
4 | Unknown, Sumer, ca. 2000 BCE. The Epic of Gilgamesh. | 2007 | ||
5 | Sinuhe, Egyptian, Ancient, ca. 2000 BCE. The Story of Sinuhe. | 2007 | http://www.touregypt.net/storyofsinuhe.htm | |
6 | Unknown, Egypt, ca. 1000 BCE. Egyptian Book of the Dead. | X | 2007 | Two copies--traditional Budge version and illustrated (gorgeous) version by Faulkner. |
7 | Homer, Greece, ca. 800 BCE. The Iliad | X | 2007 | |
8 | Homer, Greece, ca. 800 BCE. The Odyssey. | X | 2007 | |
9 | Unknown, Israel, ca. 800-200 BCE.Genesis, Exodus, Isaiah, Job. (Old Testament) | X | 2007 | Jerusalem Bible, King James, Good News |
10 | Unknown, India, ca. 800 BCE. The Rig Veda. | 2007 | ||
11 | Hesiod, Greece, ca. 700 BCE. Theogony. | 2007 | ||
12 | Unknown, India, ca. 600 BCE. The Upanishads. | X | 2007 | |
13 | Sappho, Greece, ca. 600 BCE. Hymn to Aphrodite. | X | 2005 | Anne Carson's "If Not Winter" which is the collected fragments of Sappho |
14 | Aesop, Greece, ca. 600 BCE. Aesop's Fables | X | 2007 | |
15 | Confucius, China, 551-479 BCE. The Analects. | x | ||
16 | Lao Tzu, China, ca. 550 BCE. The Tao Te Ching. | x | 2007 | |
17 | Aeschylus, Greece, 525-455 BCE. Agamemnon, Libation Bearers, Eumenides. The Oresteia, Prometheus Unbound | X | 2007 | |
18 | Sophocles, Greece, 496-406 BCE. Oedipus Rex, Oedipus at Colonus, Antigone, Electra | X | 2007 | need to read electra |
19 | Herodotus, Greece, 484-425 BCE. The Histories. | 2007 | One of the most interesting history books I've ever read! | |
20 | Euripides, Greece, 484-406 BCE. Medea, Alcestis, Trojan Women, Hippolytus, The Bacchae, Andromache, Alkestis, Herakles, Hekabe | 2007 | Anne Carson's Grief Lessons contains 4 of these plays in a new translation | |
21 | Thucydides, Greece, 470-400 BCE. The Peloponnesian War. | on Kindle | ||
22 | Aristophanes, Greece, 448-338 BCE. The Birds, Lysistrata, The Clouds | X | 2007 | |
23 | Xenophon, Greek, ca. 429-ca. 354 BCE. Cyropaedia. Memorabilia. Anabasis. | on Kindle | ||
24 | Plato, Greece, 428-348 BCE. The Apology of Socrates, The Republic. | X | 2005 | |
25 | Demosthenes, Greek, ca. 384-322 BCE. Philippics, Olynthiacs, and Minor Public Orations. De Corona. | on Kindle | ||
26 | Theophrastus, Greek, ca. 372-ca. 287 BCE. Characters. | |||
27 | Aristotle, Greece, 332 BCE. The Nicomachean Ethics. Politics. Poetics. | on Kindle | ||
28 | Sun-Tzu, China, ca. 500 BCE. The Art of War. | 2008 | audiobook scary how some of the tenets hold true in light of the Iraq war today. | |
29 | Various, India, ca. 400 BCE. The Teachings of The Buddha. | x | ||
30 | Menander, Greek, 343-292 BCE. Girl from Samos. | |||
31 | Epicurus, Greek, 341-270 BCE. Writings. Letter to Herodotus, Letter to Menoeceus. | on Kindle | ||
32 | Mencius, China, ca.320 BCE. The Mengzi. | |||
33 | Chuang Tzu, ca. 300 BCE. The Chuang Tzu. | |||
34 | Euclid, Greek, fl. ca. 300 BCE. Elements | on Kindle | ||
35 | Valmiki, India, ca. 300 BCE. The Ramayana. | on Kindle | ||
36 | Plautus, Rome, 254 BCE. Pseudolus, The Braggart Soldier, The Rope, Amphitryon | 2007 | ||
37 | Vyasa, ca. India, 200 BCE. The Mahabharata. | on Kindle | ||
38 | Unknown, ca India, 200 BCE. The Bhagavad Gita. | X | 2007 | |
39 | Cato, Marcus Porcius, Rome 149 BCE. On Farming | 2008 | on Kindle. Key text for my Apicius research. | |
40 | Lucretius, Rome, 60 BCE. Of the Nature of Things. | on Kindle | ||
41 | Julius Caesar, Rome, 50 BCE. Commentaries on the Gallic War. | on Kindle | ||
42 | Cicero, Rome, 45 BCE. On the Nature of the Gods. | on Kindle | ||
43 | Virgil, Rome, 19 BCE. The Aeneid. Eclogues. Georgics. | X | Have read Aeneid in past. Have others on Kindle | |
44 | Ovid, Rome, 8 BCE. Metamorphoses. The Art of Love. Heroides. | X | 2005 | Have Meta and Art of Love. |
45 | Horace, Rome, 8 BCE. Odes, Epistles, Satires | x | 2009 | Read Satires. Odes. Have Odes. |
46 | Various Authors, Jews writing in Hebrew and Aramaic, 2nd C BCE-1st C CE. Apocrypha. | on Kindle | ||
47 | Various Authors, Jewish Christians writing in Greek, 1 CE. The Bible, | x | 2007 | |
48 | Various Authors, Jewish Christians writing in Greek, 2 CE. The New Testament Apocrypha | |||
49 | Various Authors, Christians writing in Greek, 1st-2nd C. The Genuine Epistles of the Apostolical Fathers (Translated and published by William Wake (1657-1737)) | |||
50 | Various Authors, Mesopotamian Jews writing in Hebrew and Aramaic, 2nd to 6th C. Talmud (Babylonian). | |||
51 | Pliny the Elder, 23 - 79 CE. Naturalis Historae. | 2007 | Joe bought me all 10 harvard classic volumes for xmas | |
52 | Persius, Roman, 34-62 CE. Satires. | on Kindle | ||
53 | Lucan, Roman, 39-65 CE. Pharsalia. | on Kindle | ||
54 | Seneca, Rome 49. On the Shortness of Life. Tragedies, particularly Medea and Hercules Furens. | |||
55 | Tacitus, Publius Cornelius, Rome, ca 54-100 CE. Histories, Annals | 2007 | Histories vol. 1. Annals. | |
56 | Epictetus, Greek, ca. 55-135 CE Discourses. Encheiridion (Manual). Works | on Kindle | ||
57 | Petronius, Rome, 60. The Satyricon. | 2007 | WOW. Talk about salacious! The first book in a "novel" type format. | |
58 | Juvenal, Roman, ca. 60-ca. 140 CE. Satires. | |||
59 | Pliny the Younger, Roman, ca. 62-ca. 113 CE. Letters. | on Kindle | ||
60 | Catullus, Roman, ca. 84-ca. 54 BCE. Attis and Other Poems. | on Kindle | ||
61 | Ptolemy, Alexandrian Greek, ca. 100-170. Almagest. | |||
62 | Plutarch, Greece, 100. Life of Alexander, Life of Cato. | on Kindle. | ||
63 | Lucian, Syrian Greek, ca. 115-ca. 180 Works. Satires | on Kindle | ||
64 | Suetonius, Rome, 119. The Twelve Caesars. | 2007 | Really interesting...super readable. | |
65 | Pausanias, Greek, ca. 120-180. Description of Greece | |||
66 | Galen, Greek, ca. 130-200. On the Natural Faculties | |||
67 | Apuleius, Numidia, 160. The Golden Ass. | on Kindle | ||
68 | Marcus Aurelius, Rome, 180. Meditations. | x | on Kindle | |
69 | Sextus Empiricus, Greek, fl. ca. 190. Outlines of Pyrrhonism. | |||
70 | Plotinus, Greek, ca. 205-ca. 262. Enneads | |||
71 | Unknown, Japan, ca. 230. The Kojiki | |||
72 | Athanasius, St., Byzantine Greek, ca. 297-373. On the Incarnation | |||
73 | Kaalidasa, India, ca. 400. The Cloud Messenger. Sakuntala | |||
74 | Augustine of Hippo, Rome, 410. The City of God.The Confessions. | X | on Kindle | |
75 | Boethius, Roman, ca. 480-524. Consolation of Philosophy. On Music. | on Kindle | ||
76 | Procopius, Byzantine Greek, ca. 498-ca. 560 Works. | |||
77 | Muhammad of Medina, Arabia, 632. The Koran. | |||
78 | John Damascene, St., Syrian Greek, ca. 675-ca. 749. An Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith | |||
79 | Hui-Neng, China, ca 700. The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch. | |||
80 | Li Bai (Li Po), Chinese, 701-762. Poems | |||
81 | Du Fu (Tu Fu), Chinese, 712-770. Poems. | |||
82 | Various Authors, Irish (Celtic), 8th C. Early Irish Epic (including the Ulster Cycle). | |||
83 | Unknown, Baghdad, 950. The Thousand and One Nights | X | On Kindle | |
84 | Sei Shonagon, Japan, 990. The Pillow Book. | Saw movie adaptation. Beautiful story. | ||
85 | Lady Murasaki Shikubu, Japan, ca. 990. The Tale of Genji. | |||
86 | Ben Hasan Firdausi, Persia, ca 1000. Shah Nameh. | |||
87 | Unknown, England, ca. 1000. Beowulf. | x | want buy Seamus Heaney's translation | |
88 | Anselm, St., Italian-English writing in Latin, 1033-1109. Proslogium. Reply to Gaunilo. | |||
89 | Abelard, Pierre and Héloïse, French writing in Latin, 1079-1142 and 1101-1164. Letters. Historia Calamitatum. | |||
90 | Comnena, Anna, Byzantine Greek, 1083-ca. 1153. Alexiad. | |||
91 | Hildegard of Bingen, German writing in Latin, 1098-1179. Scivias. | her music is beautiful...will be good to read this. Read a historical fiction novel about her life as an anchorite. Fascinating. Need to find the Latin transation of this. | ||
92 | Omar Kayyam, Persia, ca 1100. The Rubaiyat. | X | ||
93 | Anonymous, English. 1154. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle | |||
94 | Anonymous, French, 11th C. La Chanson de Roland (Song of Roland). | |||
95 | Gaunilo, French writing in Latin, 11th C. On Behalf of the Fool. | |||
96 | Anonymous, Spanish, ca. 1140. Cantar de Mio Cid (Poem of the Cid). | |||
97 | Unknown, Wales, ca. 1150. The Mabinogion. | on Kindle | ||
98 | Various Authors, Icelandic, 9th-12th C. Poetic Edda (also known as the Elder Edda) | on Kindle | ||
99 | Anonymous, Armenian, 11th-12th C traditions (first pub. 1874).Sasuntsi Davith (Saga of Sassoun; Daredevils of Sassoun; Daredevils of Sassoun). | |||
100 | Chrétien de Troyes, France, ca. 1170. Yvain: The Knight of the Lion, Lancelot, Perceval |