Veronika Bondarenko
Were you one of those people who skipped through half their books in English class and dreaded having to write another essay? Here are some of the books that you may come to appreciate a lot more now that you're out of school.
Storyline: After suddenly coming into a large inheritance, a young orphan named Pip learns that love, loyalty and common humanity are more valuable than money and social advancement.
Author: Charles Dickens
If you still haven't read this Jazz-era novel about extravagance, unrequited love and human emptiness, you most definitely should.
Author: F. Scott Fitzgerald
Storyline: Following the story of a young girl growing up with a father who works as a lawyer, this classic novel explores themes of prejudice, racial inequality and human compassion in small-town Alabama.
Author: Harper Lee
Storyline: In a world where owning books is illegal, fireman Guy Montag puts himself at great risk to preserve what's left of literature.
Author: Ray Bradbury
Storyline: Young heroine Emma Woodhouse playing matchmaker in the lives of her friends, but never expects her meddling to result in serious consequences for the ones around her.
Author: Jane Austen
Storyline: After a drought and the Great Depression ravage any chances for a future in Oklahoma, the Joad family sets out on a journey to a better life in California.
Author: John Steinbeck
Storyline: Inspired by Hemingway's own experiences as a reporter in the Spanish Civil War, this book tells the story of Robert Jordan, an American soldier who travels behind enemy lines to fight the regime of Francisco Franco.
Author: Ernest Hemingway
Storyline: After a French Algerian senselessly kills a man on the beach, he faces a trial and much deeper reflections on the seeming senselessness of human existence.
Author: Albert Camus
