by Shane Dayton

Created on: February 13, 2008

Ever since I first heard the term "Renaissance Man" and learned what it meant, I've always wanted to think of myself as a Renaissance man. It's such a great term, along the lines of "a gentleman and a scholar," and it fit me. I was interested in anything, and I wanted to be a well rounded individual in my education. I didn't want to specialize in one field and ignore others, I wanted to learn everything and be able to discuss every field.

It's with the well rounded, well educated, Renaissance Man idea of reading that I give my recommended list of 40 classic books everyone desiring a true classic education should read. These aren't in any particular order, as all twenty work together for a well rounded literary experience that you can be proud of.

1) "Book of Psalms," King James Version Bible. The poetry from this book is gorgeous. The use of language, the flow of words, and the struggles trying to reconcile the world and faith make this one a winner.

2) "The Wasteland," by T.S. Eliot. Few works in all of human history have captivated the common reader and the critic alike the way "The Wasteland" has.

3) "The Origin of Species," by Charles Darwin. Few works have changed the course of science, thought, or human history than this work. And with all the people incorrectly quoting this book without reading it (this goes to scientists and atheists as heavily as overly religious individuals), that makes this work a must read. I have it on my shelf next to the Bible, which seems pleasantly appropriate.

4) "The Brothers Karamazov," by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. In my opinion, this is the most brilliant novel ever written. Russian literature tends to be thick and complex (in the best of both words), and this book is so incredible that it can shake you to the core.

5) "A Tale of Two Cities," by Charles Dickens. "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." And if you read the book, you'd know the entire first paragraph, about a page long, is equally as poetic and brilliant as that first sentence. Once of Dickens' finest works.

6) "Don Quixote," by Miguel de Cervantes. Considered to be the first Western modern novel, and a definite classic with great stories of the tragic Don Quixote.

7) "Red Badge of Courage," by Stephen Crane. A great work of American literature, maybe the best thing written in the time period released. A very short but powerful work.

8) "The Sun Also Rises," by Ernest Hemingway. Maybe the single greatest last line (in context) of any novel ever written.

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