A year ago Esquire Magazine came out with its list of the 75 Books Every Man Must Read. I decided to do my own list, but am not presumptious enough to believe I know 75 books, so I arbitrarily picked 27 as the number of books I will recommend, enjoy - and start reading (in no particular order).
1) Sahara by Clive Cussler - The single greatest adventure novel written, try putting it down.
2) In the Heart of the Sea by Nathaniel Philbrick - Liked Moby Dick? This is what really happened.
3) Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane - If you can figure out the ending, let me know. A complete, mind blowing experience.
4) The Power of the Dog by Don Winslow - Finished it for the 2nd time in six months, completely enthralled both times. Epic in scope, important in ambition.
5) Generation Kill by Evan Wright - The best book on Iraq. Period.
6) Berlin Noir by Philip Kerr - Could have put any of his Bernie Gunther books on, but this way you get to read 3 books in one neat package.
7) The Stand by Stephen King - Awesome. Also, read It. (Bonus book!)
8) Under the Banner of Heaven by Jon Krakauer - Quite simply the only book to make the history of religion fascinating.
9) The Winds of War / War and Rememberance by Herman Wouk - Interested in WW2? Here is a good place to start.
10) The Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger - Fishing industry vs. mighty storm. Man vs. nature.
11) Monster by Sanyika Shakur - The definitive account of life inside the Crips and why young people turn towards, and ultimately away from, gang life.
12) Sphere by Michael Crichton - Great premise and just metaphorical enough to be re-read time and again.
13) Red Riding Quartet by David Peace - Dark, lyrical, brutal, savage and perfect.
14) Stalingrad by Antony Beevor - WW2 through the microcasm of a singular battle which defined a War.
15) Shadow Divers by Robert Kurson - So compelling you will read it at red lights. One of the best books of all time.
16) The Sweet Forever by George Pelecanos - Haunting urban noir with characters so real you live and breathe in their world.
17) American Tabloid by James Ellroy - Staggering ride through the Kennedy conspiracies written in a machine gun style.
18) Homocide by David Simon - Want to know what it is like to be a cop? Read this.
19) The Tin Roof Blowdown by James Lee Burke - Burke is a master, this is his take on Hurricane Katrina.
20) Priest by Ken Bruen - Years of animosity towards the corrupt Catholic Church come out through Irish Noir poetry.
21) There's a Boy in the Girls Bathroom by Louis Sachar - The best "childrens" book you will ever read...again and again.
22) The Devil in the White City by Erik Larsson - America's first serial killer and the greatest World's Fair in history collide in an incredible account.
23) The Godfather by Mario Puzo - How does one man slide into a life of crime?
24) A Simple Plan by Scott Smith - See Godfather, The.
25) The Lost City of Z by David Grann - What do you know about the least explored part of our world? A lot more after reading this book.
26) To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee - The one book from school you will read again.
27) Exodus by Leon Uris - Why Palestine and Israel will never get along.
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