The most popular novels worth reading. List, rating, genre, authors, plot and main characters

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

The list of the most popular novels will always tell you which book to read at the moment. In this article, we will talk about works of various genres that have been loved and popular by many generations of literature fans for many years. There are a large number of various ratings and lists of the best books of all times and peoples, we will try to focus on the works that fall into most of them.

Fahrenheit 451

Almost always in the list of the most popular novels is the work of the American science fiction writer Ray Bradbury "451 ° Fahrenheit". This is a science fiction utopia that first saw the light of day in 1953. It describes the American society of the near future, in which books are banned. There is a special unit whose memberscall themselves "firefighters", their job is to burn any books they find. The protagonist of the novel named Guy Montag also works as a "fireman".

In the course of the work, Guy becomes disillusioned with social ideals, turns into an outcast, and as a result joins a small group of outcasts who operate underground. They memorize the texts of books to save them for posterity.

Such an unusual name for this most popular novel is explained in the epigraph. It is at 451 degrees Fahrenheit that paper begins to burn. The novel has been popular for many years, it is obvious that now there will be a new wave of interest in Bradbury's work in connection with the release of the film of the same name, in which the main role is played by Michael Jordan.

Shantaram

In recent years, the creation of the Australian Gregory David Roberts "Shantaram" has consistently been among the most popular novels. The events that it describes are mostly autobiographical, the action takes place in the Indian city of Mumbai. The protagonist is a man with a difficult fate, a former robber and drug addict who is hiding from an Australian prison. After traveling through Australia and New Zealand, he arrives in India on a fake passport.

Shantaram is his nickname, only he uses it when communicating with people so as not to give out his real name and not end up in prison again. In India, he makes money on illegal transactions, works for mafiosiand even agrees to take weapons to Kandahar, where there is a war.

The book has a lot of philosophical reflections, mystical coincidences make it one of the most popular modern novels. It is believed that she helps to get out of prison. The infamous real estate dealer Sergei Polonsky claimed that on the day he read this book, he was released from prison in Cambodia and Matrosskaya Tishina.

Three Comrades

"Three Comrades" by Erich Maria Remarque is another of the most popular novels. The book was published in 1936. This is one of the main works devoted to the problem of the "lost generation".

The book is set in Germany in 1928. Three friends decide to open a small auto repair shop to make a living. The main character named Robbie meets an amazing girl Patricia. Although they both come from different social strata, young people fall in love. Their relationship develops against the background of the crisis that gripped Germany in those years.

The novel is dedicated to the generation that went through the First World War. These are people who cannot get rid of the ghosts of the past. They were united by a military brotherhood, for the sake of friendship they are ready for anything, while in the war they were defeated, and we must live with this.

To Kill a Mockingbird

Among all the books of the 20th century in the ranking of the most popular novels, Harper Lee's book "To Kill a Mockingbird" invariably occupies one of the leading places. It was first published in 1960. It's educationala novel based on the author's personal experiences, these events happened to her when she was only 10 years old. They describe their family, neighbors, and events in their hometown in 1936.

The book brings up important themes, children compare the financial situation of families, and the whole city discusses the issues of racism and the perpetrator of the mysterious rape. The narrator's father, whose name in the novel is Atticus Finch, is a model of honesty and morality. This is a lawyer who gives many generations of readers a lesson in courage and civic integrity.

One of the main ideas of the novel is that every child has an innate sense of justice from birth, and he receives all the anger and prejudice under the influence of the family and the people around him in society.

Flowers for Algernon

In 1959 Daniel Keyes's novel "Flowers for Algernon" was published. Most people know this American writer from his other work - the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. We have to admit that "Flowers …" deserve no less attention.

The protagonist of this book is a 32-year-old mentally handicapped floor cleaner at Charlie Gordon's bakery. He decides on a bold experiment that could drastically change his life - artificial intelligence enhancement through a dangerous surgical operation.

Nothing like this has ever been done with a single person, only the experiment on a mouse named Algernon was successfully completed. Encouraged Scientistsdecide that now it's time to operate on some mentally retarded person.

The entire story is written in the form of a report compiled by Charlie himself. We are watching before our eyes how the language and literacy of the hero changes immediately after the operation. But it turns out that the consequences of scientific experience do not appear immediately. This sci-fi novel brought Keyes real fame.

Anna Karenina

Among the most popular romance novels in most ratings, Leo Tolstoy's "Anna Karenina" has an undeniable advantage. This is a tragic love story of a married woman, the main character, for the young and brilliant officer Vronsky. These events unfold against the background of the happy family life of the married couple Konstantin Levin and Kitty Shcherbatskaya.

Tolstoy managed to paint a large-scale and plausible picture of the life and customs of the Russian nobility in the second half of the 19th century. It is still one of the most popular love stories to this day. It intertwines the author's philosophical reflections with surprisingly accurate psychological sketches, scenes from the life of peasants, and the mores of modern society to Tolstoy. The novel "Anna Karenina" is popular not only in Russia, but also abroad. In the West, it has been repeatedly translated and filmed.

Loneliness on the Web

Among the most popular modern romance novels, one should name "Loneliness on the Net" by the Polish author Janusz Wisniewski. The book was written in 2001. Although the novel was written a dozen and a halfyears ago, the events described in it are surprisingly relevant to our day.

The main characters get acquainted on the Internet, they communicate, experience some events together, all this develops into love. At the same time, the author describes the life of each hero "outside the Web" - work, friends, relatives and acquaintances, hobbies. After a fairly long period of virtual communication, they finally meet in Paris. They will have to endure difficult trials, the determining factor will be their own attitude to life.

The main part of the story is the virtual correspondence of the characters on the web. The book is still popular and discussed by many readers.

Process

The list of popular books should be completed with Franz Kafka's great novel The Trial. The book was published shortly after the death of the author, in 1925, during his lifetime he never managed to publish it.

The main character's morning begins with an unpleasant surprise. Bank clerk Josef K. is arrested without giving any reason. He is convinced that this is a mistake, he is trying to find out what he is accused of, but he falls under such a pressure of the bureaucratic machine, which not everyone can handle. He constantly goes to court to justify himself, but getting to the meeting is not so easy. The process, which he initially treated with disdain, being sure of a mistake, causes him increasing anxiety. He not only does not know what he is accused of, but also what sentence he passed to the court. In pursuit of a verdict, he losesyourself.