Amazon releases its list of '100 Books to Read in a Lifetime

Amazon's book editors recently released their list of "100 Books to Read in a Lifetime."

In a press release that coincided with the unveiling of the list, Sara Nelson, Editorial Director of Print and Kindle Books at Amazon.com noted:

“With 100 Books to Read in a Lifetime, we set out to build a roadmap of a literary life without making it feel like a homework assignment...Over many months, the team passionately debated and defended the books we wanted on this list. In other words, we applied plenty of the bookish equivalent of elbow-grease, and we can’t wait to hear what customers have to say about our final picks.”

The Amazon list is comprised of fiction and non-fiction titles spanning from 1818 (Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice") to 2013 (Kate Atkinson's "Life After Life").

Notable among the list were the books that generated the most debate, "1984" by George Orwell, and those voted upon unanimously which included:

• "Little House on the Prairie" by Laura Ingalls Wilder
• "Charlotte’s Web" by E.B. White
• "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee
• "Portnoy’s Complaint" by Philip Roth
• "Unbroken" by Laura Hillenbrand

Below are some of our favorites from Amazon's list. You can add your own votes for 100 books to read in a lifetime over at Goodreads.

1984 by George Orwell

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl

Moneyball by Michael Lewis

The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger

 The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkhien

The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster