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Classic Literature Books

These are the books that everyone should read, and read again&mdash From Harper Lee’s timeless To Kill a Mockingbird to John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and MenBarnes & Noble Collectible Edition of Alice in Wonderland or revel in the horror of Frankenstein. These are the pillars of fiction, and they’re waiting for you.

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Bestsellers

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To Kill a Mockingbird (Pulitzer Prize Winner) Add to Wishlist
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To Kill a Mockingbird (Pulitzer Prize Winner)
by Harper Lee
Meditations Add to Wishlist
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Meditations
by Marcus Aurelius, Gregory Hays (Translator), Ryan Holiday (Foreword by)
Crime and Punishment Add to Wishlist
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Crime and Punishment
by Fyodor Dostoevsky, Richard Pevear (Translator), Larissa Volokhonsky (Translator)
Of Mice and Men Add to Wishlist
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Of Mice and Men
by John Steinbeck
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass (Signature Classics) Add to Wishlist
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Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass (Signature Classics)
by Lewis Carroll
Little Women Add to Wishlist
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Little Women
by Louisa May Alcott
Macbeth (Folger Shakespeare Library Series) Add to Wishlist
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Macbeth (Folger Shakespeare Library Series)
by William Shakespeare, Dr. Barbara A. Mowat (Editor), Paul Werstine Ph.D. (Editor)
The Count of Monte Cristo Add to Wishlist
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The Count of Monte Cristo
by Alexandre Dumas, Robin Buss (Translator), Robin Buss (Introduction), Robin Buss (Noted by)
The Crucible Add to Wishlist
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The Crucible
by Arthur Miller, Christopher W. E. Bigsby (Introduction)
East of Eden Add to Wishlist
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East of Eden
by John Steinbeck
The Picture of Dorian Gray Add to Wishlist
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The Picture of Dorian Gray
by Oscar Wilde, Robert Mighall (Editor), Robert Mighall (Introduction), Robert Mighall (Noted by)
Crime and Punishment Add to Wishlist
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Crime and Punishment
by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, David McDuff (Translator), David McDuff (Introduction), David McDuff (Noted by)
Pride and Prejudice (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions) Add to Wishlist
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Pride and Prejudice (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions)
by Jane Austen
Wuthering Heights Add to Wishlist
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Wuthering Heights
by Emily Brontë, Pauline Nestor (Introduction), Lucasta Miller (Preface by), Pauline Nestor (Noted by)
Dracula (Signature Classics) Add to Wishlist
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Dracula (Signature Classics)
by Bram Stoker

Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions

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Pride and Prejudice (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions) Add to Wishlist
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Pride and Prejudice (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions)
by Jane Austen
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions) Add to Wishlist
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Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions)
by Lewis Carroll, John Tenniel (Illustrator)
The Art of War (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions) Add to Wishlist
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The Art of War (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions)
by Sun Tzu, Lionel Giles (Translator)
Aesop's Fables (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions) Add to Wishlist
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Aesop's Fables (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions)
by Aesop, Arthur Rackham (Illustrator), Walter Crane (Illustrator), Ernest Griset (Illustrator)
Treasure Island (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions) Add to Wishlist
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Treasure Island (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions)
by Robert Louis Stevenson, N.C. Wyeth (Illustrator)
Jane Austen: Seven Novels (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions) Add to Wishlist
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Jane Austen: Seven Novels (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions)
by Jane Austen
Dracula (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions) Add to Wishlist
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Dracula (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions)
by Bram Stoker
A Journey to the Center of the Earth (Barnes & Noble Children's Collectible Editions) Add to Wishlist
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A Journey to the Center of the Earth (Barnes & Noble Children's Collectible Editions)
by Jules Verne
Little Women and Other Novels (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions) Add to Wishlist
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Little Women and Other Novels (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions)
by Louisa May Alcott
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions) Add to Wishlist
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Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (Barnes & Noble Collectible Editions)
by Jules Verne, Milo Winter (Illustrator)

Signature Editions

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Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass (Signature Classics) Add to Wishlist
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Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass (Signature Classics)
by Lewis Carroll
Meditations (Signature Classics) Add to Wishlist
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Meditations (Signature Classics)
by Marcus Aurelius
Little Women (Signature Classics) Add to Wishlist
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Little Women (Signature Classics)
by Louisa May Alcott
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Signature Classics) Add to Wishlist
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The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Signature Classics)
by Mark Twain
Frankenstein (Signature Classics) Add to Wishlist
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Frankenstein (Signature Classics)
by Mary Shelley
The Scarlet Letter (Signature Classics) Add to Wishlist
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The Scarlet Letter (Signature Classics)
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
The Jungle (Signature Classics) Add to Wishlist
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The Jungle (Signature Classics)
by Upton Sinclair
Inferno (Signature Classics) Add to Wishlist
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Inferno (Signature Classics)
by Dante Alighieri
Persuasion (Signature Classics) Add to Wishlist
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Persuasion (Signature Classics)
by Jane Austen
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (Signature Classics) Add to Wishlist
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The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (Signature Classics)
by Mark Twain

Gifts for Book Lovers Collections

Pride and Prejudice Books and Mug

Pride and Prejudice

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Other Stories books, cards, and mug

Alice in Wonderland

Edgar Allen Poe

Little Women books and mug

Little Women

Agatha Christie book, journal, and trivia

Agatha Christie

Signature Gilded Editions

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Little Women (Special Edition) Add to Wishlist
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Little Women (Special Edition)
by Louisa May Alcott
Wuthering Heights (Special Edition) Add to Wishlist
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Wuthering Heights (Special Edition)
by Emily Brontë
Persuasion (Special Edition) Add to Wishlist
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Persuasion (Special Edition)
by Jane Austen
Sense and Sensibility (Special Edition) Add to Wishlist
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Sense and Sensibility (Special Edition)
by Jane Austen
Emma (Special Edition) Add to Wishlist
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Emma (Special Edition)
by Jane Austen
The Picture of Dorian Gray (Special Edition) Add to Wishlist
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The Picture of Dorian Gray (Special Edition)
by Oscar Wilde

Penguin Clothbound Classics

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Pride and Prejudice (Penguin Clothbound Classics) Add to Wishlist
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Pride and Prejudice (Penguin Clothbound Classics)
by Jane Austen, Vivien Jones (Editor), Vivien Jones (Introduction), Tony Tanner (Introduction), Vivien Jones (Noted by)
Frankenstein Add to Wishlist
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Frankenstein
by Mary Shelley, Maurice Hindle (Editor), Maurice Hindle (Introduction), Maurice Hindle (Noted by), Coralie Bickford-Smith (Artist)
The Odyssey Add to Wishlist
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The Odyssey
by Homer, E. V. Rieu (Translator), D. C. H. Rieu (Revised by), Peter V. Jones (Introduction), Coralie Bickford-Smith (Artist)
The Picture of Dorian Gray Add to Wishlist
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The Picture of Dorian Gray
by Oscar Wilde, Robert Mighall (Editor), Robert Mighall (Introduction), Robert Mighall (Noted by), Coralie Bickford-Smith (Artist)
Dracula Add to Wishlist
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Dracula
by Bram Stoker, Maurice Hindle (Introduction), Maurice Hindle (Noted by), Christopher Frayling (Preface by), Coralie Bickford-Smith (Artist)
The Iliad Add to Wishlist
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The Iliad
by Homer, E. V. Rieu (Translator), Peter Jones (Revised by), D. C. H. Rieu (Revised by), Coralie Bickford-Smith (Artist)
The Count of Monte Cristo Add to Wishlist
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The Count of Monte Cristo
by Alexandre Dumas, Robin Buss (Translator), Robin Buss (Introduction), Robin Buss (Noted by), Coralie Bickford-Smith (Artist)
Crime and Punishment Add to Wishlist
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Crime and Punishment
by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, David McDuff (Translator), David McDuff (Introduction), David McDuff (Noted by), Coralie Bickford-Smith (Artist)
Emma Add to Wishlist
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Emma
by Jane Austen, Fiona Stafford (Editor), Fiona Stafford (Introduction), Fiona Stafford (Noted by), Coralie Bickford-Smith (Artist)
Moby-Dick: or, The Whale Add to Wishlist
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Moby-Dick: or, The Whale
by Herman Melville, Andrew Delbanco (Introduction), Tom Quirk (Noted by), Tom Quirk (Commentaries by), Coralie Bickford-Smith (Artist)

Chiltern Classics

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Little Women Add to Wishlist
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Little Women
by Louisa May Alcott
Wuthering Heights Add to Wishlist
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Wuthering Heights
by Emily Brontë
The Scarlet Letter Add to Wishlist
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The Scarlet Letter
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
The Picture of Dorian Gray Add to Wishlist
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The Picture of Dorian Gray
by Oscar Wilde
Grimm's Fairy Tales Add to Wishlist
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Grimm's Fairy Tales
by Wilhelm & Jacob Grimm
The Tenant of Wildfell Hall Add to Wishlist
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The Tenant of Wildfell Hall
by Anne Bronte
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland Add to Wishlist
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Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
by Lewis Carroll
Madame Bovary Add to Wishlist
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Madame Bovary
by Gustave Flaubert
Tess of the d'Urbervilles Add to Wishlist
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Tess of the d'Urbervilles
by Thomas Hardy
Sense and Sensibility Add to Wishlist
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Sense and Sensibility
by Jane Austen

Penguin Classics Series

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Pride and Prejudice (Penguin Classics) Add to Wishlist
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Pride and Prejudice (Penguin Classics)
by Jane Austen, Vivien Jones (Editor), Vivien Jones (Introduction), Vivien Jones (Noted by)
Lord of the Flies: (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition) Add to Wishlist
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Lord of the Flies: (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition)
by William Golding, Lois Lowry (Foreword by), Stephen King (Introduction), E. M. Forster (Contribution by), Jennifer Buehler (Contribution by)
Meditations Add to Wishlist
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Meditations
by Marcus Aurelius, Martin Hammond (Translator), Martin Hammond (Noted by), Diskin Clay (Introduction)
The Count of Monte Cristo Add to Wishlist
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The Count of Monte Cristo
by Alexandre Dumas, Robin Buss (Translator), Robin Buss (Introduction), Robin Buss (Noted by)
The Picture of Dorian Gray Add to Wishlist
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The Picture of Dorian Gray
by Oscar Wilde, Robert Mighall (Editor), Robert Mighall (Introduction), Robert Mighall (Noted by)
Pride and Prejudice (Penguin Clothbound Classics) Add to Wishlist
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Pride and Prejudice (Penguin Clothbound Classics)
by Jane Austen, Vivien Jones (Editor), Vivien Jones (Introduction), Tony Tanner (Introduction), Vivien Jones (Noted by)
East of Eden Add to Wishlist
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East of Eden
by John Steinbeck, David Wyatt (Introduction)
Wuthering Heights Add to Wishlist
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Wuthering Heights
by Emily Brontë, Pauline Nestor (Introduction), Lucasta Miller (Preface by), Pauline Nestor (Noted by)
Jane Eyre Add to Wishlist
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Jane Eyre
by Charlotte Brontë, Stevie Davies (Editor), Stevie Davies (Introduction), Stevie Davies (Noted by)
Frankenstein: The 1818 Text (Penguin Classics) Add to Wishlist
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Frankenstein: The 1818 Text (Penguin Classics)
by Mary Shelley, Charlotte Gordon (Introduction), Charlotte Gordon (Contribution by), Charles E. Robinson (Contribution by)

SparkNotes Literature Guides Series

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Oryx and Crake SparkNotes Literature Guide Add to Wishlist
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Oryx and Crake SparkNotes Literature Guide
by SparkNotes
The Bonesetter's Daughter SparkNotes Literature Guide Add to Wishlist
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The Bonesetter's Daughter SparkNotes Literature Guide
by SparkNotes
The Testaments SparkNotes Literature Guide Add to Wishlist
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The Testaments SparkNotes Literature Guide
by SparkNotes
Americanah SparkNotes Literature Guide Add to Wishlist
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Americanah SparkNotes Literature Guide
by SparkNotes
Between the World and Me SparkNotes Literature Guide Add to Wishlist
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Between the World and Me SparkNotes Literature Guide
by SparkNotes
The Devil in the White City SparkNotes Literature Guide Add to Wishlist
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The Devil in the White City SparkNotes Literature Guide
by SparkNotes
The Glass Castle SparkNotes Literature Guide Add to Wishlist
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The Glass Castle SparkNotes Literature Guide
by SparkNotes
The Hate U Give SparkNotes Literature Guide Add to Wishlist
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The Hate U Give SparkNotes Literature Guide
by SparkNotes
The Scarlet Letter SparkNotes Literature Guide Add to Wishlist
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The Scarlet Letter SparkNotes Literature Guide
by SparkNotes
Educated SparkNotes Literature Guide Add to Wishlist
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Educated SparkNotes Literature Guide
by SparkNotes

What makes a book a classic piece of literature is widely debated, but there are some things most readers can agree on. Classic books are high in literary quality, have longevity in terms of publication and appeal to readers, and a great degree of influence. Books of classic literature often challenge ideas and concepts in social, political or cultural aspects of human existence, and explore enduring concepts of human experience. You can find such classic concepts in the works of Charles Dickens, who was also an outspoken critic of the socioeconomic status of England. Jane Austen’s work speaks directly to upper-class society and authors like Toni Morrison and Octavia E. Butler used storytelling to hold a mirror to the society they lived in.

If you’re not sure where to start, you can’t go wrong with any of the above mentioned, or you could look for something different, try the foundation of modern science fiction in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein or perhaps the greatest multi-generational story of all time in Gabriel García Márquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude.

Whether you’re a classic literature buff or are looking for specific literature books for school, find all the best classics at Barnes & Noble. No matter if you’re reading these classic novels for a summer assignment or if you are planning to read literary fiction classics for fun, these classics are worth reading (or re-reading), and will not disappoint. Students consider literary classics old literature, but these famous novels are still relatable today. The common themes in these famous classic books are timeless since many of them explore enduring literary topics like love, friendship, betrayal, social justice and women’s issues. But wait! Classic literature doesn't just include novels, discover classic plays like Hamlet, epic poems like The Iliad, and classic stories like The Canterbury Tales. If you're a collector of classic literature, be sure to take a look at our beautiful collectible editions of these beloved literary classics!

20 Classic Literature Books You Must-Read At Least Once in Your Lifetime

  1. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
  2. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
  3. Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
  4. The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
  5. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky
  6. Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
  7. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
  8. Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
  9. Summer by Edith Wharton
  10. Anna Kerenina by Leo Tolstoy
  11. Dracula by Bram Stoker
  12. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
  13. Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens
  14. Moby-Dick by Herman Melville
  15. The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
  16. Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
  17. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
  18. The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
  19. Aesop's Fables by Aesop
  20. Gulliver's Travels by Jonathan Swift