1,000 Books to Read Before You Die

August 1, 2018

Between 1986 and 2006, Mustich put together an eagerly awaited mail-order catalog, A Common Reader, that every three weeks highlighted notable titles old and new. Now the author has drawn on his lifelong passion and knowledge, creating this compilation of 1,000 must-reads. Not a list of classics or "great books," this is instead a wide-ranging selection of literary and nonfiction classics as well as best sellers, popular mysteries, sf, romances, and YA and children's books. As Mustich planned, his work is "expansive in its tastes, encompassing revered classics and commercial favorites, flights of escapist entertainment and enlightening erudition...novels of imaginative reach and histories with intellectual grasp." Discursive annotations of each book range from 300 to 500 words, with longer entries on some authors (from Margaret Wise Brown to Henry James, Herman Melville, William Shakespeare, and others). VERDICT A treasure chest for book lovers everywhere. (Not to be confused with Peter Boxall's 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die, rev. ed.), which includes only fiction, with annotations by more than 100 contributors.)--Marcia G. Welsh, Dartmouth Coll. Lib., Hanover, NH

Copyright 2018 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from August 6, 2018
This compulsively readable reference work from Mustich, cofounder of the Common Reader book catalogs, is sure to send bibliophiles hopscotching through its pages. The 1,000 entries (actually more when taking into account the book’s recommended reading lists and many sidebars), ordered alphabetically by author, include classic and contemporary works, literary and genre titles, fiction (mostly) and nonfiction, and children’s and adult reading—each fleshed out with several short but insightful paragraphs of critical commentary. Some selections are no-brainers, among them Fahrenheit 451, To Kill a Mockingbird, and Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad. Others are slightly more unusual: John Updike’s The Maples Stories but not his Rabbit Angstrom novels; Margaret Atwood’s Cat’s Eye but not The Handmaid’s Tale. There are also some surprising omissions, with no works by Joyce Carol Oates or Raymond Carver making the cut. Throughout, Mustich shows a knack for getting to the gist of his subjects, as when noting “the intense drama and disregard for orthodox morality” that distinguish Wuthering Heights, or acknowledging the myriad objections of Dan Brown’s critics but touting “the sheer energy of his invention” in The Da Vinci Code. Mustich’s informed appraisals will drive readers to the books they’ve yet to read, and stimulate discussion of those they have. Agent: Paul Feldstein, the Feldstein Agency.

Starred review from August 1, 2018
Every so often, a reference book appears that changes the landscape of its area of focus. In the case of reading and readers' advisory, this is one such book. The lively, witty, insightful prose covers 1,000 titles across all fields of literature, from fiction to philosophy, nature to technology. The entries are alphabetical by author and various in length, though most run to about 3/4 of a double-column page. At the end of the conversation addressing each title, there is a short section with bibliographic information, including the subject of the book, publication date, edition information as well as other books by the author, notable film and dramatic adaptations, and further reading. Of particular interest are the suggestions for similar reading experiences, with a page number given if a suggested title has an entry in this book. An indispensable aid for librarians recommending titles to their patrons, but beware: the unwary library professional may find him- or herself browsing long after the patron has departed. Or an enamored patron may just wander away with the book. It might be wise to invest in several copies of this wonderful meditation on life lived with and enhanced by the written word.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)