Welcome to The Reading Room’s 101 Books to Read Before You Die. We want to create a list of the 101 books that everyone should read – and we need your help. Which book do you think should be essential reading for everyone? Whether it’s a book that changed your life, or just one you really enjoyed, we want to hear about it. It doesn’t matter if it’s a work of great literature or a trashy paperback, a bestseller, or something a little more obscure – all that matters is that you love it and want to share it with others.
To take part, simply email us at readingroom@sirenonline.co.uk with your nomination and a short explanation of why you think it should be on the list. What’s it about? Why is it so important to you? And why do you think others should read it?
The list was launched in February 2011 and will continue to grow each month - here's the list so far...
001
McCarthy's Bar by Pete McCarthy
Nominated by Paul Tyler
002
Bad Science by Ben Goldacre
Nominated by Jonny Haw
003
Freakonomics by Steven D Levitt & Stephen J Dubner
Nominated by Joanne at The Book Pond
004
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Nominated by Ed Hartop
005
Room by Emma Donoghue
Nominated by Sarah Ann Juckes
.
006
The Catcher in the Rye by J D Salinger
Nominated by Steven Lawrence
007
The Time Machine by H G Wells
Nominated by Georgia Twynham
008
Life of Pi by Yann Martel
Nominated by Kate Tyler
.
009
The Sound of One Hand Clapping by Richard Flannigan
Nominated by Caroline McLean from TheReadingRoom.com
010
What's Not to Love? by Jonathan Ames
Nominated by Richard Herring
011
Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K Jerome
Nominated by Gill Hart
012
Stuart: A Life Backwards by Alexander Masters
Nominated by Lesley Farrell
013
Ransom by David Malouf
Nominated by Kate Anderson from TheReadingRoom.com
.
014
Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
Nominated by Claire Kinton
015
The Power and the Glory by Graham Greene
Nominated by Karen Maitland
016
Selected Poems 1963 - 2003 by Charles Simic
Nominated by Brendan Cleary
017
The Rum Diary by Hunter S Thompson
Nominated by Abigail Tarttelin
018
7 Myths about Love... Actually! by Mike George
Nominated by Tony Hawks
019
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Nominated by Mark Kermode
020
The House Of The Spirits by Isabel Allende
Nominated by Marcia Conter Davies
021
Miss Garnet's Angel by Salley Vickers
Nominated by Tracy Borman
022
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning by Alan Sillitoe
Nominated by James Walker, Books Editor at LeftLion
023
A Handful of Dust by Evelyn Waugh
Nominated by Luke Wright
024
The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins
Nominated by Elly Griffiths
025
Dear Olivia by Mary Contini
Nominated by Peter Kerr
.
026
Dark Matter by Michelle Paver
Nominated by Nikki Valentine
027
Actual Air by David Berman
Nominated by John Osborne
028
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami
Nominated by John Mitchinson from Unbound
029
The Lonely Polygamist by Brady Udall
Nominated by Jim Bob
