Dino Jim - The Sybervision 100 Greatest Books List

Zane's Top 10 Book List

1. Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy

The only one on all 5 lists -

2. Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert

Also on the Norwegian, Sybervision, and the Observer lists -

3. War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy

Also on the Norwegian, Sybervision, and the BBC lists -

4. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

Also on the Observer and the Norwegian lists -

5. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (1996ish)

Also on the Norwegian, Sybervision, and the Observer lists - As most children I was forced to read this in school, a couple of times. Its actually one of the better novels most kids read (unfortunately closed-minded people try to ban this novel). It gives the "kid's adventure" that Mark Twain is known for but also has the racial issues of the time with the escaped slave Jim and how Huck eventually learned to just see him as a friend. A book that should be read just because of the criticism it receives from the ignorant people who can't get passed the language.

6. Hamlet by William Shakespeare (1998)

Also on the Norwegian and Sybervision lists - Considered the best Shakespeare play by most, except for maybe Macbeth. The tale everyone knows about a man trying to find the murderer of his father and the slow ensuing madness of most of the characters around him. Intriguing even to a non-Shakespeare fan.

7. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (1996?)

Also on the Observer, Sybervision, and BBC lists - Like almost every kid, I had to read this, but it was so long ago I do not really remember the gist of it. The book follows the life of a man in the 1920's who created his fortune while living around people who inherited their fortunes. Two separate worlds clashing over what is proper. Reading reviews on this book leads me to believe that this is either a book about religion, poverty to wealth, love or something else entirely. A must reread in my mind, now that I am older.

8. In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust

Also on the Observer list -

9. The Stories of Anton Chekhov by Anton Chekhov

10. Middlemarch by George Eliot (January - March 2008)

Also on the Norwegian, Sybervision, and the BBC lists - I rather enjoyed this book, it started off slow but as the book went on it picked up its pace rather well. Although the book was the longest I have yet read, about 900 pages, the plot was simple enough that it was easy to follow through the whole book. Middlemarch is a town in England where the book follows the lives of the families there, mainly two different families and their daughters. The book also shows a lot of conflicts including doctors versus faith, modern medicine versus traditional medicine, and similar subjects. There was an initial period that took me to get used to the language but afterwards I easily understood and followed the story. I can easily recommend this book as a great story with good lessons, if you are willing to take the time to read it.

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