What is considered the greatest book of all time?

There's no single "greatest book," as it's subjective, but literary classics consistently appearing on "best of" lists include Tolstoy's War and Peace, Joyce's Ulysses, Márquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude, Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, and Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, alongside foundational works like Don Quixote and Shakespeare's plays, with fan polls often featuring The Lord of the Rings and Pride and Prejudice. The greatest book often depends on personal connection, cultural impact, and literary innovation.

What is the #1 book of all time?

According to Guinness World Records, the Bible is the best-selling book of all time with an estimated 6 billion copies sold and distributed as of 1995. Sales estimates for other printed religious texts include at least 800 million copies for the Qur'an and 200 million copies for the Book of Mormon.

What is the #1 sold book of all time?

The best-selling book of all time is The Bible, with estimates of 5 to 7 billion copies sold, followed by Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-Tung (the Little Red Book) and The Quran, though sales for religious texts are hard to track precisely. For secular fiction, Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes is considered the top seller, with over 500 million copies, while the Harry Potter series leads as the best-selling book series.
 

What's one book everybody should read?

There's no single "one book," but consistently recommended reads offering universal themes, powerful messages, or deep insights include To Kill a Mockingbird, The Little Prince, 1984, Pride and Prejudice, The Alchemist, Frankenstein, and One Hundred Years of Solitude, addressing justice, humanity, societal critique, love, destiny, ethics, and family across cultures and generations, making them impactful for almost anyone. 

What is the greatest history book of all time?

The Best History Books of All Time

• Twilight of Democracy. ...
• The Warmth of Other Suns. ...
• The Power Broker. by Robert A. ...
• A Woman of No Importance. by Sonia Purnell. ...
• Dreams in a Time of War. by Ngugi wa Thiong'o. ...
• The Devil in the White City. by Erik Larson. ...
• The Life of Elizabeth I. by Alison Weir. ...
• Guns, Germs, and Steel. by Jared Diamond.

Top 20 Greatest Books Of All Time

What is the greatest book ever written in the world?

There's no single "best book ever," as it's subjective, but Don Quixote, Ulysses, War and Peace, and To Kill a Mockingbird are consistently ranked highly by critics and readers, often appearing on lists from Britannica, The New York Times, and Penguin Random House for their lasting impact, literary innovation, and exploration of the human condition. Other contenders include The Great Gatsby, One Hundred Years of Solitude, and Beloved.
 

What are 10 must-read books of all time?

There's no single definitive list, but "must-read" books often include classics like To Kill a Mockingbird, Pride and Prejudice, The Great Gatsby, 1984, The Lord of the Rings, One Hundred Years of Solitude, The Catcher in the Rye, Don Quixote, Frankenstein, and The Grapes of Wrath, representing diverse themes from social commentary and fantasy to profound human struggles, according to lists from Britannica, Reddit, Penguin Random House, and Mark Manson. These selections span genres, eras, and continents, offering rich storytelling and enduring insights into the human condition, notes Britannica, Penguin Random House, and Book Club Forum. 

What are the five books everyone should read?

There's no single definitive list, but consistently recommended books that offer profound themes, cultural insight, and lasting impact include To Kill a Mockingbird, 1984, The Great Gatsby, Beloved, and The Alchemist, covering justice, dystopia, societal critique, history, and personal journeys, though many other classics like Pride and Prejudice or One Hundred Years of Solitude are also often cited as essential reading. 

What is the book that nobody can read?

Many call the fifteenth-century codex, commonly known as the “Voynich Manuscript,” the world's most mysterious book. Written in an unknown script by an unknown author, the manuscript has no clearer purpose now than when it was rediscovered in 1912 by rare books dealer Wilfrid Voynich.

What is the top 10 most read book?

The top 10 most-read books list varies, but consistently features religious texts like The Bible and The Quran, political works like Mao's Quotations, classics such as Don Quixote, A Tale of Two Cities, and The Lord of the Rings, plus modern bestsellers like Harry Potter series, The Alchemist, and The Da Vinci Code, often based on massive sales and distribution numbers. 

What is the best-selling book of all time other than the Bible?

The 24 Best-Selling Books of All Time

• The Bible (5 billion)
• The Quran (3 billion)
• The Little Red Book: Quotations from Chairman Mao (900 million)
• Don Quixote (500 million)
• Selected Articles of Chairman Mao (450 million)
• A Tale of Two Cities (200 million)
• The Lord of the Rings (150 million)

Which book made the most impact on the world?

Here is a comprehensive look at the most impactful books that have shaped our worldview, each with its own legacy and lasting influence.

1. The Bible. ...
2. The Quran. ...
3. Bhagavad Gita. ...
4. The Epic of Gilgamesh. ...
5. The Iliad and The Odyssey by Homer. ...
6. The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri. ...
7. Paradise Lost by John Milton.

Why do books have 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1?

That sequence of numbers (10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 or similar) on a book's copyright page is a "printer's key," showing its print run; the lowest number indicates the printing (e.g., '1' for first, '4' for fourth), with publishers removing the lowest number with each new run to avoid re-typesetting, letting readers and collectors know which version it is.
 

What are the top 3 most sold books?

The top 3 best-selling single books of all time, after religious texts like the Bible and Quran, are generally considered Don Quixote (around 500M copies), A Tale of Two Cities (around 200M copies), and The Lord of the Rings (around 150M copies), with variations depending on sales tracking for older or distributed works.
 

What is the second most read book of all time?

The second most-read book is debated but often cited as The Holy Quran, with billions of copies distributed, though sometimes the King James Bible (actually a collection) or Quotations from Chairman Mao (Little Red Book) are contenders, while Don Quixote is frequently the top-selling single-author fiction book after religious texts, depending on how "read" vs. "sold" and single vs. series are counted.
 

What is the longest book ever written?

The longest novel ever written, recognized by Guinness World Records, is Marcel Proust's In Search of Lost Time (À la recherche du temps perdu), with about 1.2 to 1.3 million words and over 9.6 million characters, published in multiple volumes. While epic poems like the Mahabharata are longer, Proust's work holds the title for a novel, exploring memory, time, and life through its expansive narrative. 

Which book cannot be read?

illegible. When your friend scribbles a note to you and you can't figure out what it says, it's because her handwriting is illegible — it's unreadable.

What's the rarest book ever?

The rarest books aren't just old; they're unique or few in number, including handwritten manuscripts like the indecipherable Voynich Manuscript, unique scientific records like Leonardo da Vinci's Codex Leicester, early printed masterpieces like Gutenberg Bibles (only ~48 left), and Shakespeare's First Folio (around 230 copies). Also highly prized are first printings of modern classics, such as J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter or Beatrix Potter's The Tale of Peter Rabbit, and historically significant documents like Audubon's Birds of America, making them invaluable to collectors and libraries.
 

What is the biggest banned book?

The Most Challenged and Banned Books

• Gender Queer. by Maia Kobabe. ...
• The Bluest Eye. by Toni Morrison. ...
• Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (Revised Edition) by Jesse Andrews. ...
• The Great Gatsby. by F. ...
• Between the World and Me. by Ta-Nehisi Coates. ...
• A Thousand Splendid Suns Illustrated Edition. ...
• The 1619 Project. ...
• The God of Small Things.

What are the 10 greatest books ever written?

There's no single "top 10" list, as it's subjective, but consistently acclaimed books often include classics like To Kill a Mockingbird, Pride and Prejudice, The Lord of the Rings, and 1984 (though not listed here), while polls name Tolstoy's Anna Karenina and Shakespeare's Hamlet as greatest; modern favorites often feature Dune, The Book Thief, and Project Hail Mary, reflecting diverse tastes in timeless storytelling. 

Which book is must read?

Must-read books often include timeless classics like To Kill a Mockingbird, 1984, Pride and Prejudice, and The Great Gatsby, alongside impactful modern works such as The Secret History, The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and The Alchemist, with popular recommendations spanning genres from Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment to contemporary favorites like A Little Life. The best choice depends on your taste, but classics exploring justice, society, and human nature, plus hugely popular fantasy and philosophical reads, consistently top "must-read" lists. 

What books got 5 stars on GoodReads?

Books with a rating of 5 stars according to GoodReads

• Fairy Tale. Stephen King. ...
• All Your Perfects. Colleen Hoover. ...
• Where the Crawdads Sing. Delia Owens. ...
• Gone Girl. Gillian Flynn. ...
• A History of Wild Places. Shea Ernshaw. ...
• True Biz. Sara Nović ...
• Normal People. Sally Rooney. ...
• Things We Do in the Dark. Jennifer Hillier.

What novel should everyone read?

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Detailing the social mores of 19th-century England, Austen crafts a novel that is amusing, timeless and utterly delightful. If you haven't met Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy yet, now is the time, for this is surely a book that everyone should read!

What is America's favorite book?

America's favorite book is the Bible. A new Harris Poll asked more than 2,000 adults in the U.S. to name their favorite book, and the Bible came in number one across all different demographics. Number two overall is “Gone with the Wind” by Margaret Mitchell, followed by the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling.

What are some books that changed the world?

10 times fiction changed the world

• Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens (1837)
• The Jungle by Upton Sinclair (1905)
• The Well of Loneliness by Radclyffe Hall (1928)
• 1984 by George Orwell (1949)
• Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe (1958)
• The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood (1985)
• Beloved by Toni Morrison (1987)