20. The Federalist Papers by ‘Publius’ (1788) These wise essays clarified the aims of the American republic and rank alongside the Declaration of Independence as a cornerstone of US democracy. On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin (1859) Darwin’s revolutionary, humane and highly readable introduction to his theory of evolution is arguably the most important book of the Victorian era. Goodbye to All That by Robert Graves (1929)Graves’s account of his experiences in the trenches of the first world war is a subversive tour de force. The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith (1776)Blending history, philosophy, psychology and sociology, the Scottish intellectual single-handedly invented modern political economy.

46. 68. Life on the Mississippi by Mark Twain (1883) This memoir of Samuel Clemens’s time as a steamboat pilot provides insight into his best-known characters, as well as the writer he would become. by Marcus Aurelius Simply click the links below to check them out. 51. 98.

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... creative activities, and wisdom (imparted by both the professional psychologist who helped create it and the reader who does the exercises). The Life of Charlotte Brontë by Elizabeth Gaskell (1857) Possibly Gaskell’s finest work – a bold portrait of a brilliant woman worn down by her father’s eccentricities and the death of her siblings. 80.

The Last Days of Hitler by Hugh Trevor-Roper (1947) The historian’s vivid, terrifying account of the Führer’s demise, based on his postwar work for British intelligence, remains unsurpassed. Travels in the Interior Districts of Africa by Mungo Park (1799) The Scottish explorer’s account of his heroic one-man search for the river Niger was a contemporary bestseller and a huge influence on Conrad, Melville and Hemingway. Creative nonfiction is a type of nonfiction writing that encourages writers to incorporate techniques more often found in fiction writing and include personal opinion and emotion into their work. This has been corrected to say George III.

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The Best Nonfiction Books by Category. by Richard P. Feynman 52. How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie (1936) The original self-help manual on American life – with its influence stretching from the Great Depression to Donald Trump – has a lot to answer for. The Varieties of Religious Experience by William James (1902) This revolutionary work written by Henry James’s less famous brother brought a democratising impulse to the realm of religious belief. Ariel by Sylvia Plath (1965) The groundbreaking collection, revolving around the poet’s fascination with her own death, established Plath as one of the last century’s most original and gifted poets. 5.

87. The Right Stuff by Tom Wolfe (1979) Tom Wolfe raised reportage to dazzling new levels in his quest to discover what makes a man fly to the moon. The Wonderful Adventures of Mrs Seacole in Many Lands by Mary Seacole (1857)A gloriously entertaining autobiography by the widely revered Victorian sometimes described as “the black Florence Nightingale”.

70. 54. Black Boy: A Record of Childhood and Youth by Richard Wright (1945) This influential memoir of a rebellious southern boyhood vividly evokes the struggle for African American identity in the decades before civil rights.

Enemies of Promise by Cyril Connolly (1938)Connolly’s dissection of the art of writing and the perils of the literary life transformed the contemporary English scene.