Except it's not just 54 books. Many of the books in the set have multiple books in them. Here's the link to the Wikipedia page that gives a pretty good explanation of the set. Here's the opening paragraph...
Great Books of the Western World is a series of books originally published in the United States in 1952 by Encyclopædia Britannica Inc. to present the Great Books in a single package of 54 volumes. The series is now in its second edition and contains 60 volumes.
The original editors of the series chose three criteria for inclusion: a book must be relevant to contemporary issues, and not only important in its historical context; it must reward rereading; and it must be a part of "the great conversation about the great ideas," relevant to at least 25 of the 102 great ideas identified by the editors. Books were not chosen on the basis of ethnic or cultural inclusiveness, historical influence, or the editors' agreement with the views expressed.
So if you are interested in so deep reading like..
... you can get yourself a Christmas present. I saw the newer set (used) on Amazon for only $300. (collectable edition $1980.00) You'll get your moneys worth if you ever manage to read them all.
Posts
4 comments:
No Dan Brown? No "Fifty Shades of Gray"? No "Hunger Games"? Who dreams up these lists, anyhow?
Bilbo - It's probably that snooty academia types.
Somebody should do something similar to this by putting the 150 most banned (or challenged) books into one big series.
Jay
Jay - I see a money making opportunity. Now to get past those pesky copyrights.
Post a Comment