Description Chapter 1: Literature 012 The Greek Creation Myth — Greek & Roman Mythology 014 The Oldest Greek Epic of Heroes — The Iliad 016 A Collection of Instructive Animal Tales — Aesop's Fables 018 The Finest of Ancient Greek Tragedies — Oedipus Rex 020 An Epic Reimagining Myths and Legends — Metamorphoses 022 An Epic on the Path to Salvation — The Divine Comedy 024 A Novel Bridging the Medieval and Modern Eras — The Decameron 026 The West's First Modern Novel Depicting True Humanity — Don Quixote 028 A Play Exploring Human Emotion in Fine Detail — Hamlet 030 The Most-Read Christian Book After the Bible — The Pilgrim's Progress 032 One Man's Tale of Shipwreck and Survival — Robinson Crusoe 034 A Masterful Satire of Human Society — Gulliver's Travels 036 The Pillar of German Literature — Faust 038 A Social Novel Disguised as a Romance — The Red and the Black 040 The Greatest French Novel of the 19th Century — Les Misérables 042 A Model of 19th-Century Popular Fiction — The Count of Monte Cristo 044 Beloved Fairy Tales Around the World — Andersen's Fairy Tales 046 The Novel That Helped End Slavery — Uncle Tom's Cabin 048 A Masterpiece of Russian Literature — Crime and Punishment 050 A Great Work Spanning Politics, Religion, and Love — Resurrection 052 The Roots of Modern American Literature — The Adventures of Tom Sawyer 054 A Gothic Novel of Human Duality — Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde 056 A Reading Textbook for Swedish Elementary Schools — The Wonderful Adventures of Nils 058 The First Novel Written in Stream of Consciousness — In Search of Lost Time 060 A Coming-of-Age Novel of Self-Discovery — Demian 062 A Self-Portrait of the Alienated Modern Individual — The Metamorphosis 064 A Masterpiece of 20th-Century American Literature — The Old Man and the Sea 066 The Most Beautiful Fairy Tale for Adults — The Little Prince 068 Beloved Love Poems Recited by Young People Worldwide — Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair Chapter 2: Philosophy & Religion 072 The Sacred Text of Judaism and Christianity — The Bible 074 A Book of Jewish Law and Wisdom — The Talmud 076 Socrates' Final Defense — The Apology of Socrates 078 Plato's Vision of the Ideal State — The Republic 080 The World's First Systematic Book of Ethics — Nicomachean Ethics 082 A Diary Written on the Battlefield — Meditations 084 The West's First Autobiography — Confessions 086 A Theology Textbook Endorsed by the Pope — Summa Theologica 088 The Governing Skills a Ruler Needs — The Prince 090 A Novel Depicting an Ideal Nation — Utopia 092 The West's First Essay Collection — Essays 094 The First Catholic Catechism Introduced to the East — The True Meaning of the Lord of Heaven 096 A Political Philosophy Emphasizing State Power — Leviathan 098 A Method for Reaching Truth — Discourse on the Method 100 A Logical Explanation of the Importance of Faith — Pensées 102 A Logical Proof of God — Ethics 104 A Political Book Envisioning Constitutional Monarchy — The Spirit of the Laws 106 A Treatise on Education Emphasizing Natural Human Emotion — Emile 108 A Philosophical Critique of Reason by Reason Itself — Critique of Pure Reason 110 How Individuals Find Happiness and Nations Develop — On Liberty 112 A Book Written to Overcome Despair — The Sickness Unto Death 114 An Attitude Toward Life's Emptiness — Thus Spoke Zarathustra 116 A Philosophical Exploration of the Limits of Language — Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus 118 The Principle by Which Power Tames Humanity — Discipline and Punish Chapter 3: History & Geography 122 The West's First History Book — The Histories 124 A Towering Work of Ancient Greek History — History of the Peloponnesian War 126 The Oldest Historical Record of England, France, and Germany — Commentarii de Bello Gallico 128 Parallel Lives of Greek and Roman Heroes — Plutarch's Lives 130 A History Book Championing the French Revolution — History of European Civilization 132 A New Interpretation of the French Revolution — The French Revolution: A History 134 The Path Civilization Should Follow — A Study of History 136 A Theoretical Work Emphasizing the Historian's Duty — What Is History? 138 A Major Record of the History of World War — The Second World War 140 A European's Account of Traveling the East — The Travels of Marco Polo 142 A Precious Historical Record of the Medieval Era — The Travels of Ibn Battuta 144 The First Record to Introduce Joseon to Europe — Hendrick Hamel's Journal Chapter 4: Science, Economics & Culture 148 A Systematic Compilation of Geometry — Elements 150 The Book Proposing Heliocentrism — On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres 152 The Physics Book That Introduced Universal Gravitation to the World — Principia 154 The Book That Revealed the Evolution of Species — On the Origin of Species 156