I adore this book!

I had the previous edition as well, but the updates on this are spectacular.

Honestly, I read it and immediately download sample after sample to my kindle. It's only a great resource for what to read, but for *why* to read it.

You also get interesting notes on the authors.

This belongs on every reader's shelf!

*ARC Provided via Net Galley

1000 Books to Read Before You Die by James Mustich is a delightful compendium of important works through history. This volume is arranged alphabetically by author. There are some exceptions to this, such as religious texts, and those works for which we don't know the author. Each entry gives an overview of the book, and its importance. At the end of each book entry is a section telling what genre the book falls under, other notable books by the author, books you might like if this one interests you, and any adaptations. There are additional works listed in boxes sections called Booknotes, and More to Explore. My only qualm is that though the organisation is alphabetically by author, it is instead the book title that appears first and in bigger, bold font. Decidedly not alphabetic.

***Many thanks to the Netgalley and Workman Publishing for providing an egalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This book should come with a health warning – Do Not Read If You Can’t Resist Lists. Unfortunately I can’t, and now I have even more books on my TBR which was in any case ridiculously large. Great book. Fun, thought-provoking, intelligent, comprehensive. Essential reading for all book lovers.

James Mustich is truly an avid reader! He’s loved to read since he was a child. One of his first jobs was at a bookstore where his love of reading was encouraged and enhanced. He ultimately became the cofounder of The Common Reader, a mail order catalog which provided commentary on books.

His idea of writing about “1,000 books to read before you die” was a challenge to say the least! It took fourteen years for him to finally publish his list. It contains book titles that range from children’s books to adult fiction and nonfiction, and from classics to bestsellers and everything in between. He doesn’t presume to leave the impression that his list of books is the standard by which most people should choose their titles. He admits that he wrote and rewrote his list many times. The list is meant to pique readers’ interest and to call attention to books that, in his (humble) opinion are well worth reading. He readily admits that there are many more books that others would add as well.

The book list is alphabetical by author and gives a brief commentary about each book. This book is a joy to peruse and definitely achieves its intent! Avid readers, whether you agree or disagree, would be absorbed in its recommendations!

Thank you to Net Galley, author James Mustich, and Workman Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read the ARC of this fascinating book.

This book was great and easy to read. However, it at least doubled my want to read list, which is a good and a bad thing. If you're looking for a way to learn about really amazing books, you should read this. This is the perfect coffee table book or a gift for a bookish loving friend!

We have a huge interactive display in our library for the Great American Read and should anyone finish those titles, they might want to start in on the recently published 1,000 BOOKS TO READ BEFORE YOU DIE by James Mustich. His compilation has a page or so devoted to each of the wide–ranging (the publisher says: poetry, science fiction, memoir, travel writing, biography, children's literature, the novel) 1,000 titles. One aspect I really liked was Mustich's comments on "if you like this, you'll like that" recommendations in addition to his frank assessments. Several years ago someone gave me the gift of the original 2006 version of 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die edited by Peter Boxall. Both collections are immense fun to explore.

This is a great resource for those who are looking for more books to read. I would not sit and read this cover to cover but i would look through it once in a while to find another book to read.

For lovers of well-researched, wonderfully curated guides; offers a tasting menu for the expansion of one's reading palette. I was especially pleased, as a fan of this type of book, to see titles that had not been touched upon in the other reviews I've read. Sure there's Pride and Prejudice and Huckleberry Finn (*yawn*) but there's also Madeline, and Fun Home, and My Dog Tulip. I also found the sort of, "if you like this book, maybe try that one!" recommendations interesting and well thought out. Definitely would recommend.

This was a great resource to have and I could have flipped through it for ages while selecting all the books I need to add to my TBR. Now, if only I could find a few more hours in a day to devote to reading... *Advance copy provided by the publisher in exchange for my honest review.

I couldn't review this bc my copy expired before I got a chance to. It looked interesting, though. I will try to find a print copy to read.

We've all seen those lists of 100 classic novels, 50 best books to read, high school and college syllabi, full of weighty, important tomes by a series of old white men with increasingly eccentric beards. I myself have checked off many a list and felt smug that I've read so many IMPORTANT texts, even if I had no desire to read the rest of the titles listed. This book is not like that.

Mustich has compiled a thoughtful, funny, varied reference volume of 1,000 books of different genres, fiction, nonfiction, books by women and people of color, old books, recent books, and more. Halfway through the As, I was already looking for a piece of paper to write down titles I want to read. This will be a great addition to a public library's readers' advisory section or an avid reader's personal collection.

I have not read this entire book, but I have gotten in a good start, and plan to dip in and out of it for years to come. I purchased my own hardcover copy, which is both gorgeous and heavy enough to serve as a weapon, lol.

Thank you to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review James Mustich's 1,000 Books to Read Before You Die. There are, I am aware, myriad books out there that aim to create the quintessential reading list. I think that this one, which was released on October 2, does an excellent job of formulating a list that contains, along with works so classic that any list is incomplete without them, something for everyone - History, Sports, Memoir, Biography, Science, Philosophy, and every genre of Fiction. I particularly loved the inclusion of Children's Literature from picture books to young adult classics.
The author's descriptions were accessible, short, and just tantalizing enough to make me want to pick up each book I read about and start reading then and there. Along with the descriptions of the collection's highlighted entries were lists of authors other notable books, suggestions for similar or related books, and, my favorite as a film lover, adaptations. The suggested adaptations included not just films but also adaptations for the stage, opera and stand out audiobooks. Most of the entries also included photographs and stunning illustrations from some of the seminal editions.
I'll admit that I didn't read every entry, focusing instead on books that I've read, that are on my to-be-read list, or that simply piqued my interest as I scrolled through the pages. Even the appendices, which include a Miscellany of Special list (such as books from the list that you can Read in a Sitting or Family Read Alouds) and the 1,000 Books Checklist made 1,000 Books to Read Before You Die a joyous bibliophile experience. The checklist alone has me longing for my own hard copy of this book.

I could not download this book after many tries and deleting the program I downloaded to use to read it.

beautiful book!
such a book lovers dream book!
so many recommendations, such fantastic reviews for the books and basically every genre in covered with at least one book in here!

Lets start with the "negative":
- Of course not every book in here is for every reader!
And not every recommendation/review is what every reader thinks about the books mentioned. For example at least 20 books in here are books i read and didn't like and so i actually don't think the same as the author of this book says. But when isn't it that way if you look at reviews or recommendations?

- i am a bit disappointed to not have found Joyce Carol Oates as one of the recommended authors in here. She is mentioned as one of the people where a book should be tried from. But not as an individual recommendation which i find quiet sad. She is one of those authors that has so many books and so many different genres she writes. So i was a bit surprised to find her not included.
There are of course other authors as well that i personally would have included in my own list - for example Astrid Lindgren (Her children's stories are so wide ranging and wonderful that i believe that every child should read at least a few of her books) -but it is not my personal list! So i won't complain about that too much!


Now lets talk about the positive!

- There are a lot of books in here -way, way more than 1000!

- I love how the author talks about each of the book.
He doesn't try to share is personal option and push it on the reader. Which is lovely. I have read quiet a few books of this kind and a lot of them are written in the way of "you HAVE to read this or you are not a real reader!" kind of way.
Not my personal favourite way of getting recommendations.
I rather hear what makes the book special, or why i should read it -what makes the book worth reading? Why is it worth my time? What does it give me that others book don't have? Why is this book on that topic the book i should read?

And this book does exactly that.
It tells you why it is special and why it should be read.

I love it that way!

- I also really love that this book shares the genre of each book talked about, suggestions of further readings. Sometimes "just" similar books, a lot of the times books that are actual further reading in a way especially with classics!

- I am also a fan of the way that with some authors there is not just one book listed. Some authors there is not just that ONE book everyone should give a try. Dickens for example one of the authors in here that has basically his entire novels listed as books to read. Which i think is wonderful since not every Dickens book is for everyone. For example i prefer his "family" stories over the "law" stories - at least so far. So if i would have only ever been told to read one of his "law" based books i am sure i wouldn't have learned to appreciate his writings!
So i think that if you want to actually get someone else to appreciate an author especially for classics? You need to give them a bit more options than just one specific book!

- I also love the "checklists" at the end of the book.
There is one where all the books reviewed/recommend in this book.
There is also a list that puts the books into specific sub-categories so that if you want to read a specific genre or avoid a specific one, it is all right there.

- its also lovely that all the authors mentioned in this books are listed at the end. The ones which books are specifically talked about as well as those that are "Just" mentioned as books that should be tried as well.


Overall?
Highly recommend this book!
If you are in search of a wonderful book that shares other books? Give this one a look and see if it is too your liking!

I have nothing but admiration for this compendium and especially for the author who not only selected a thousand books but also wrote essays for every book. He covers fiction and nonfiction from Dante to Shakespeare to Bill Bryson to Anne Tyler and includes books for all ages.

This book is recommended to anyone who wants to organize a reading list of literary titles and is also perfect for every home library. Book groups will also want a copy for future reading selections. Plus with the holidays coming, it would make for a great gift.

The following comment is based on the advance reading copy so the finished copy could well include what I would like to see and that's an easily read list of titles included in the book. And while the author included a few interesting lists such as Off-Beat Escapes, Mind-Expanding, 12 Books to Read Before You're 12, and others, some basic lists would have been helpful, e.g. Philosophy, Memoirs, Historical Novels, et al.

I also understand the finished copy has nice full-page illustrations.

A huge thanks to the publisher for the advance reading copy.

I could not download this title. I was very excited about reading it, but all I got was the title page.

As a person who will generally spend more time reading about books then actually reading books, this book was a treat. Not only are there 1000 books to potentially add to your TBR list, but each of those 1000 entries direct you to other books you may be interested in, TV and movie adaptations you might like, and other genres you should explore. This book is very comprehesive, almost painfully, but it’s a book I would definitely buy and refer to for years to come.

Thank you Net Galley for providing a digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

Fantastic book! I have been going through and noting what I have read and what I haven't-- I know the odds of reading all 1000 are slim, but it's a good conversation starter!!!

I select titles for the Dewey 00's at the library, and when I saw 1,000 Books to Read Before You Die, by James Mustich (Workman), I knew I had to have it for our collection. It's a door-stopper at 960 pages and there are already multiple holds on the book at the library (which will allow us to purchase another copy)! For the most part, the author has listed the books in alphabetical order, by author, and there are a wide variety of historical authors as well as more contemporary ones, e.g. Douglas Adams, Aeschylus, Aristophanes, Asimov, and Austen, just to mention a few from the "A's." There are about an equal number of titles of fiction and non-fiction listed. I did not, of course, read the entire book, but browsed through it, and I believe this is the intent. One can take a look to see what books have already been read, then find new, different and unusual books and authors to expand one's breadth of knowledge and interest. The book tends to skew toward more classic titles, which were, in large part, written by white male authors due to the era in which they were written, and I can see this book appealing to the Boomer generation more than the current one; but if you are looking for a well-curated list of books that will provide you with a lifetime challenge to become extremely well-read, this book is for you. I think it will have huge appeal to readers and bibliophiles everywhere!