10 books you should have read: My book tips

Created: 09/02/2022, 15:00

By: Jessica Bradley

Bookshelf © Jessica Bradley

There are many lists of books to read.

This list is very personal and includes many well-known classics.

Have fun while reading.

Note to our readers:

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This changes nothing for you.

This is my 100th book recommendation today and I asked the readers via social media which article they wanted.

A list of my personal book recommendations was what most wanted.

As a fiction editor, I had a hard time finding 10 books and not making a never-ending list.

Anyone who knows me will be surprised that there is no Stephen King novel on this list.

That's because I've already published a list of the 8 best King novels here.

Some of the novels mentioned have accompanied me in my development, I still love them, but some of them are to be seen more critically nowadays.

Nevertheless, it is novels that are unique and great literary art.

The list is arbitrary and is not a "best of" ranking.

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry "The Little Prince"

Cover of "The Little Prince" Saint-Exupery © Anaconda Verlag

I was totally blown away by this little book the first time I read it.

"The Little Prince" is a very emotional and philosophical story.

The drawings are to die for and the depth of the story is incredible.

I took a lot from it and have kept it in my heart to this day.

One sees clearly only with the heart.

The essential is invisible to the eyes.  

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

The story was first published in April 1943 and the author Antoine de Saint-Exupéry did not expect such a worldwide success.

Antoine de Saint-Exupéry "The Little Prince"

2015, Anaconda Verlag, ISBN 13-978-3-730-60229-4

Price: paperback €3.95, e-book €0.49, number of pages: 96 (different format) Order now (promotional link)

JRR Tolkien "The Hobbit"

Cover "The Hobbit" JRR Tolkien © dtv Verlag

I chose Tolkien's The Hobbit, although I also love The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion.

Probably because, after I saw the 1978 animated film The Lord of the Rings when I was about 10, I thought it was the book to go with it.

So my first exposure to the Shire was actually The Hobbit in book form.

"If more of us valued merriment, good food, and melodious song above hoarded gold, we should have a happier world."

JRR Tolkien

The Hobbit was first published in September 1937.

Exactly 40 years and 5 days before my birth.

I think it's great that today's generations still celebrate the stories about the hobbits Bilbo, Frodo and Sam.

JRR Tolkien "The Hobbit"

2012, dtv Verlag, ISBN 13-978-3-423-21412-4

Price: paperback €11.95, number of pages: 336, order now (promotional link)

George Orwell "Animal Farm"

Animal Farm cover by George Orwell © Anaconda Verlag

Oh my god, I cried watching the cartoon.

I didn't read the book myself until many years later.

But the scenes from that time burned themselves into my heart.

I will never forget the images and my emotions as Benjamin runs after Boxer to save him.

Just thinking about it gives me a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes.

All animals are equal.

But some are more equal than others.

George Orwell

George Orwell published "Animal Farm" for the first time in August 1945. The end of a difficult time had come and much can be found in the fable.

The cartoon was released in 1954 and is also a classic.

George Orwell "Animal Farm"

2022, Anakonda Verlag, ISBN 13-978-3-730-61098-5

Price: paperback €4.99, number of pages: 288 Order now (promotional link)

Richard Adams "Watership Down"

Cover "Watership down" Richard Adams © Ullstein Verlag

Here, too, I came to the book through the cartoon and this film also carried me away emotionally.

Richard Adams' fable is a classic, yet it couldn't be more relevant than ever.

We are destroying more animal habitat than ever before.

"Watership down" is a classic not to be missed.

He fought because he actually felt safer fighting than running.

Richard Adams

Watership down was first released in November 1972 and the animated film came out in October 1978, a year after I was born.

Still, I associate a lot with Hazel and Fiver.

If you don't know it yet, be sure to read it!

Richard Adams "Watership down-down by the river"

2018, Ullstein Verlag, ISBN 13-978-3-548-29015-7

Price: paperback €14.99, number of pages: 656 Order now (promotional link)

Frances Hodgson Burnett "The Secret Garden"

Cover of "The Secret Garden" Frances Hodgson Burnett © Anaconda Verlag

I read this book for the first time in France.

As far as I remember it was my 4th novel that I have ever read.

At that time I was struck by the "sacrifice" and "healing" of Mary's cousin Colin.

Today I see things a little differently.

It is nonetheless a novel that transports hope and beauty.

If you just look properly you can see that the whole world is a garden.

Frances Hodgson Burnett

The first publication of "The Secret Garden" was in 1911. There was a remake in 2020 and I really liked it.

Anyone who reads this classic again with a view to today will still like it.

Frances Hodgson Burnett "The Secret Garden"

2013, Anaconda Verlag, ISBN 13-978-3-730-60035-1

Price: hardback €4.95, e-book €2.99, number of pages: 320 (deviating from the format) Order now (promotional link)

Marion Zimmer-Bradley "The Mists of Avalon"

Cover "The Mists of Avalon" Marion Zimmer-Bradley © Fischer Verlag

The Mists of Avalon was the second novel I have read in my life, after Stephen King's It.

The Arthurian legend had fascinated me ever since.

But what struck me the most was that Marion Zimmer-Bradley told the story from the women's point of view.

This novel sparked my love for fantasy and, despite the difficult background, remains a part of my development.

I no longer own any of the author's books.

Nothing remains of all the tears that the women of this world cry.

Marion Zimmer Bradley

The first release of The Mists of Avalon was in 1982 and it was made into a film, albeit a really bad one, in 2001. For the perspective on women in fantastical genres, this book is one of the pioneers.

Marion Zimmer-Bradley "The Mists of Avalon"

1987, Fischer Verlag, ISBN 13-978-3-596-28222-7

Price: paperback 2.74 €, number of pages 1118, order now (promotional link)

Leon Uris "Exodus"

Cover "Exodus" Leon Uris © Heyne Verlag

Exodus was the novel I read after The Mists of Avalon and saw myself in so many things.

A book that couldn't be heavier than reading.

However, there was also criticism of the author here, especially for the novel "Hajj".

Both novels are stories with a historical background.

Moses cried out to the Lord, What shall I do with this people?

A little is missing and they stone me.

Exodus 17:4

First published in 1958, Exodus is definitely not an easy read.

Leon Uris "Exodus"

1998, Heyne Verlag, ISBN 13-978-3-453-13834-6

price: paperback €10.99, number of pages: 848, order now (promotional link)

Isabel Allende "The Haunted House"

Cover “The Ghost House” Isabel Allende © Suhrkamp Verlag

Here it was the other way around, I read the book first and then saw the 1993 film adaptation with Marly Streep and Winona Ryder.

Both the book and the film are terrific and both are definitely my favorites.

The family epic is not easy to digest, but definitely worth reading.

Death doesn't exist.

People only die when they are forgotten;

if you can remember me, i will always be with you.

Isabel Allende

"The Haunted House" was published in 1982 and is still one of Isabel Allende's most successful novels.

Isabel Allende "The Haunted House"

2022, Suhrkamp Verlag, ISBN 13-978-3-518-47266-8

Price: hardback €20, e-book €9.02, number of pages: 500 (deviating from format) Order now (promotional link)

Mary Shelly "Frankenstein"

Cover "Frankenstein" Mary Shelly © katjaholst/Anaconda Verlag

I had to choose between Bram Stoker's Dracula and Mary Shelly's Frankenstein.

And well, I like Dracula a lot, but I love Frankenstein.

I think no further explanation is needed, a world classic and known to most people to this day.

Alone through the remake in 2019 also the younger generation.

Learn from my mistakes instead of repeating yours.

Mary Shelly

Mary Shelly's "Frankenstein" was first published in 1818, that's how long ago it was.

Film adaptations abounded, as did retelling.

But the original remains unrivaled.

Mary Shelly "Frankenstein"

2009, Anaconda Verlag, ISBN 13-978-3-866-47376-8

Price: hardback €6.95, e-book €0.99, number of pages: 304 (deviating from the format) Order now (promotional link)

Charles Dickens "David Copperfield"

Cover "David Copperfield" Charles Dickens © dtv Verlag

Many love and know the novel "Oliver Twist" by Charles Dickens.

But my favorite novel of his is and remains “David Copperfield”.

It grabbed me emotionally more than "Oliver Twist".

To this day it is my favorite Dickens book.

Do as much good as you can and talk about it as little as possible.

Charles Dickens

Charles Dickens' David Copperfield was first published in 1849, 12 years after Oliver Twist.

Both books are masterpieces by the author, but my heart goes out to David Copperfield.

Charles Dickens "David Copperfield"

2009, dtv Verlag, ISBN 13-978-3-423-13730-0

Price: paperback 15 €, e-book 0.99 €, number of pages: 1136 8 different format) Order now (promotional link)

The list is so much longer

It was quite difficult for me to decide.

Books like "Moby Dick", "Dune - The Desert Planet" or "Agatha Christie" and "Jules Verne" only just missed the list.

Nevertheless, these are also wonderful novels, stories and writers.

And the list is still very long.

What are your favorite books?

Is it more classic or more modern literature?

Feel free to write me, maybe you will find one or the other book that I offer here as a book tip.