The 100 greatest novels of all time: The list

1. Don Quixote Miguel De Cervantes
The story of the gentle knight and his servant Sancho Panza has entranced readers for centuries.
Harold Bloom on Don Quixote – the first modern novel

2. Pilgrim's Progress John Bunyan
The one with the Slough of Despond and Vanity Fair.

3. Robinson Crusoe Daniel Defoe
The first English novel.

4. Gulliver's Travels Jonathan Swift
A wonderful satire that still works for all ages, despite the savagery of Swift's vision.

5. Tom Jones Henry Fielding
The adventures of a high-spirited orphan boy: an unbeatable plot and a lot of sex ending in a blissful marriage.

6. Clarissa Samuel Richardson
One of the longest novels in the English language, but unputdownable.

7. Tristram Shandy Laurence Sterne
One of the first bestsellers, dismissed by Dr Johnson as too fashionable for its own
good.

8. Dangerous Liaisons Pierre Choderlos De Laclos
An epistolary novel and a handbook for seducers: foppish, French, and ferocious.
Jason Cowley on the many incarnations of Dangerous Liaisons

9. Emma Jane Austen
Near impossible choice between this and Pride and Prejudice. But Emma never fails to fascinate and annoy.

10. Frankenstein Mary Shelley
Inspired by spending too much time with Shelley and Byron.

11. Nightmare Abbey Thomas Love Peacock
A classic miniature: a brilliant satire on the Romantic novel.

12. The Black Sheep Honoré De Balzac
Two rivals fight for the love of a femme fatale. Wrongly overlooked.

13. The Charterhouse of Parma Stendhal
Penetrating and compelling chronicle of life in an Italian court in post-Napoleonic
France.

14. The Count of Monte Cristo Alexandre Dumas
A revenge thriller also set in France after Bonaparte: a masterpiece of adventure
writing.

15. Sybil Benjamin Disraeli
Apart from Churchill, no other British political figure shows literary genius.

16. David Copperfield Charles Dickens
This highly autobiographical novel is the one its author liked best.

17. Wuthering Heights Emily Brontë
Catherine Earnshaw and Heathcliff have passed into the language. Impossible to
ignore.

18. Jane Eyre Charlotte Brontë
Obsessive emotional grip and haunting narrative.

19. Vanity Fair William Makepeace Thackeray
The improving tale of Becky Sharp.

20. The Scarlet Letter Nathaniel Hawthorne
A classic investigation of the American mind.

21. Moby-Dick Herman Melville
'Call me Ishmael' is one of the most famous opening sentences of any novel.

22. Madame Bovary Gustave Flaubert
You could summarise this as a story of adultery in provincial France, and miss the
point entirely.

23. The Woman in White Wilkie Collins
Gripping mystery novel of concealed identity, abduction, fraud and mental cruelty.

24. Alice's Adventures In Wonderland Lewis Carroll
A story written for the nine-year-old daughter of an Oxford don that still baffles most
kids.

25. Little Women Louisa M. Alcott
Victorian bestseller about a New England family of girls.

26. The Way We Live Now Anthony Trollope
A majestic assault on the corruption of late Victorian England.

27. Anna Karenina Leo Tolstoy
The supreme novel of the married woman's passion for a younger man.

28. Daniel Deronda George Eliot
A passion and an exotic grandeur that is strange and unsettling.

29. The Brothers Karamazov Fyodor Dostoevsky
Mystical tragedy by the author of Crime and Punishment.

30. The Portrait of a Lady Henry James
The story of Isabel Archer shows James at his witty and polished best.

31. Huckleberry Finn Mark Twain
Twain was a humorist, but this picture of Mississippi life is profoundly moral and still
incredibly influential.

32. The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde Robert Louis Stevenson
A brilliantly suggestive, resonant study of human duality by a natural storyteller.

33. Three Men in a Boat Jerome K. Jerome
One of the funniest English books ever written.

34. The Picture of Dorian Gray Oscar Wilde
A coded and epigrammatic melodrama inspired by his own tortured homosexuality.

35. The Diary of a Nobody George Grossmith
This classic of Victorian suburbia will always be renowned for the character of Mr
Pooter.

36. Jude the Obscure Thomas Hardy
Its savage bleakness makes it one of the first twentieth-century novels.

37. The Riddle of the Sands Erskine Childers
A prewar invasion-scare spy thriller by a writer later shot for his part in the Irish
republican rising.

38. The Call of the Wild Jack London
The story of a dog who joins a pack of wolves after his master's death.

39. Nostromo Joseph Conrad
Conrad's masterpiece: a tale of money, love and revolutionary politics.

40. The Wind in the Willows Kenneth Grahame
This children's classic was inspired by bedtime stories for Grahame's son.

41. In Search of Lost Time Marcel Proust
An unforgettable portrait of Paris in the belle époque. Probably the longest novel on
this list.

42. The Rainbow D. H. Lawrence
Novels seized by the police, like this one, have a special afterlife.

43. The Good Soldier Ford Madox Ford
This account of the adulterous lives of two Edwardian couples is a classic of unreliable narration.

44. The Thirty-Nine Steps John Buchan
A classic adventure story for boys, jammed with action, violence and suspense.

45. Ulysses James Joyce
Also pursued by the British police, this is a novel more discussed than read.

46. Mrs Dalloway Virginia Woolf
Secures Woolf's position as one of the great twentieth-century English novelists.

47. A Passage to India EM Forster
Forster's great love song to India.

48. The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald
The quintessential Jazz Age novel.

49. The Trial Franz Kafka
The enigmatic story of Joseph K.
John Banville on the story behind Kafka's great novel of judgment and retribution

50. Men Without Women Ernest Hemingway
He is remembered for his novels, but it was the short stories that first attracted notice.

51. Journey to the End of the Night Louis-Ferdinand Celine
The experiences of an unattractive slum doctor during the Great War: a masterpiece of linguistic innovation.

52. As I Lay Dying William Faulkner
A strange black comedy by an American master.

53. Brave New World Aldous Huxley
Dystopian fantasy about the world of the seventh century AF (after Ford).

54. Scoop Evelyn Waugh
The supreme Fleet Street novel.
Ann Pasternak Slater on the journalistic experiences that shaped Waugh's novel

55. USA John Dos Passos
An extraordinary trilogy that uses a variety of narrative devices to express the story of America.

56. The Big Sleep Raymond Chandler
Introducing Philip Marlowe: cool, sharp, handsome - and bitterly alone.

57. The Pursuit Of Love Nancy Mitford
An exquisite comedy of manners with countless fans.

58. The Plague Albert Camus
A mysterious plague sweeps through the Algerian town of Oran.

59. Nineteen Eighty-Four George Orwell
This tale of one man's struggle against totalitarianism has been appropriated the

60. Malone Dies Samuel Beckett
Part of a trilogy of astonishing monologues in the black comic voice of the author of
Waiting for Godot.

61. Catcher in the Rye J.D. Salinger
A week in the life of Holden Caulfield. A cult novel that still mesmerises.

62. Wise Blood Flannery O'Connor
A disturbing novel of religious extremism set in the Deep South.

63. Charlotte's Web EB White
How Wilbur the pig was saved by the literary genius of a friendly spider.

64. The Lord Of The Rings J. R. R. Tolkien
Enough said!

65. Lucky Jim Kingsley Amis
An astonishing debut: the painfully funny English novel of the Fifties.

66. Lord of the Flies William Golding
Schoolboys become savages: a bleak vision of human nature.

67. The Quiet American Graham Greene
Prophetic novel set in 1950s Vietnam.

68 On the Road Jack Kerouac
The Beat Generation bible.

69. Lolita Vladimir Nabokov
Humbert Humbert's obsession with Lolita is a tour de force of style and narrative.

70. The Tin Drum Günter Grass
Hugely influential, Rabelaisian novel of Hitler's Germany.

71. Things Fall Apart Chinua Achebe
Nigeria at the beginning of colonialism. A classic of African literature.

72. The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie Muriel Spark
A writer who made her debut in The Observer - and her prose is like cut glass.

73. To Kill A Mockingbird Harper Lee
Scout, a six-year-old girl, narrates an enthralling story of racial prejudice.

74. Catch-22 Joseph Heller
'He would be crazy to fly more missions and sane if he didn't, but if he was sane he
had to fly them.

75. Herzog Saul Bellow
Adultery and nervous breakdown in Chicago.

76. One Hundred Years of Solitude Gabriel García Márquez
A postmodern masterpiece.

77. Mrs Palfrey at the Claremont Elizabeth Taylor
A haunting, understated study of old age.

78. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy John Le Carré
A thrilling elegy for post-imperial Britain.

79. Song of Solomon Toni Morrison
The definitive novelist of the African-American experience.

80. The Bottle Factory Outing Beryl Bainbridge
Macabre comedy of provincial life.

81. The Executioner's Song Norman Mailer
This quasi-documentary account of the life and death of Gary Gilmore is possibly his
masterpiece.

82. If on a Winter's Night a Traveller Italo Calvino
A strange, compelling story about the pleasures of reading.

83. A Bend in the River VS Naipaul
The finest living writer of English prose. This is his masterpiece: edgily reminiscent of
Heart of Darkness.

84. Waiting for the Barbarians JM Coetzee
Bleak but haunting allegory of apartheid by the Nobel prizewinner.

85. Housekeeping Marilynne Robinson
Haunting, poetic story, drowned in water and light, about three generations of
women.

86. Lanark Alasdair Gray
Seething vision of Glasgow. A Scottish classic.

87. The New York Trilogy Paul Auster
Dazzling metaphysical thriller set in the Manhattan of the 1970s.

88. The BFG Roald Dahl
A bestseller by the most popular postwar writer for children of all ages.

89. The Periodic Table Primo Levi
A prose poem about the delights of chemistry.

90. Money Martin Amis
The novel that bags Amis's place on any list.

91. An Artist of the Floating World Kazuo Ishiguro
A collaborator from prewar Japan reluctantly discloses his betrayal of friends and
family.

92. Oscar And Lucinda Peter Carey
A great contemporary love story set in nineteenth-century Australia by double Booker prizewinner.

93. The Book of Laughter and Forgetting Milan Kundera
Inspired by the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968, this is a magical fusion of
history, autobiography and ideas.

94. Haroun and the Sea of Stories Salman Rushdie
In this entrancing story Rushdie plays with the idea of narrative itself.

95. LA Confidential James Ellroy
Three LAPD detectives are brought face to face with the secrets of their corrupt and
violent careers.

96. Wise Children Angela Carter
A theatrical extravaganza by a brilliant exponent of magic realism.

97. Atonement Ian McEwan
Acclaimed short-story writer achieves a contemporary classic of mesmerising
narrative conviction.

98. Northern Lights Philip Pullman
Lyra's quest weaves fantasy, horror and the play of ideas into a truly great
contemporary children's book.

99. American Pastoral Philip Roth
For years, Roth was famous for Portnoy's Complaint . Recently, he has enjoyed an
extraordinary revival.

100. Austerlitz W. G. Sebald
Posthumously published volume in a sequence of dream-like fictions spun from
memory, photographs and the German past.

380 Words Essay on Corruption in India

Corruption is not a new phenomenon in India. It has been prevalent in society since

ancient times. History reveals that it was present even in the Mauryan period. Great

scholar Kautilya mentions the pressure of forty types of corruption in his contemporary society. It was practised even in Mughal and Sultanate period. When the East India Company took control of the country, corruption reached new height. Corruption in India has become so common that people now are averse to thinking of public life with it.

Corruption has been defined variously by scholars. But the simple meaning of it is that corruption implies perversion of morality, integrity, character or duty out of mercenary motives, i.e. bribery, without any regard to honour, right and justice. In other words, undue favour for any one for some monetary or other gains is corruption.

Simultaneously, depriving the genuinely deserving from their right or privilege is also a corrupt practice. Shrinking from one’s duty or dereliction of duty are also forms of corruption. Besides, thefts, wastage of public property constitute varieties of

corruption. Dishonesty, exploitation, malpractices, scams and scandals are various

manifestations of corruption.

Corruption is not a uniquely Indian phenomenon. It is witnessed all over the world in

developing as well as developed countries. It has spread its tentacles in every sphere of life, namely business administration, politics, officialdom, and services. In fact, there is hardly any sector which can be characterised for not being infected with the vices of corruption. Corruption is rampant in every segment and every section of society, barring the social status attached to it. Nobody can be considered free from corruption from a high ranking officer.

To root out the evil of corruption from society, we need to make a comprehensive code of conduct for politicians, legislatures, bureaucrats, and such code should be strictly enforced. Judiciary should be given more independence and initiatives on issues related to corruption. Special courts should be set-up to take up such issues and speedy trial is to be promoted. Law and order machinery should be allowed to work without political interference. NGOs and media should come forward to create awareness against corruption in society and educate people to combat this evil. Only then we would be able to save our system from being collapsed.

1309 Words Essay on Global Warming: Causes, Effects and Remedies

Global warming is the greatest challenge facing our planet. It is, in fact, the increase in
the temperature of the earth’s neon- surface air. It is one of the most current and
widely discussed factors. It has far-reaching impact on biodiversity and climatic
conditions of the planet. Several current trends clearly demonstrate that global
warming is directly impacting on rising sea levels, the melting of ice caps and
significant worldwide climate changes. In short, global warming represents a
fundamental threat to all living things on earth.
Global average temperature rose significantly during the past century. The prevailing
scientific view is that most of the temperature increases since mid-20th century has
been caused by increases in atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations produced by
human activity. Most scientists agree that planet’s temperature has risen 0.5 degree
Celsius since 1900 and will continue to increase at an increasing rate. As a result, the
world is getting warmer. The year 1990 was the hottest year in the last century.
Together with 1991, the years of 1983, 1987, 1988 and 1989 have been measured to be
the warmest six years in the last hundred years. The year 1991 was the second warmest
year of the past century. The consequences of the rise in temperature is being felt all
over the globe the findings of scientific research done in this field reveal that the
temperature of the earth is likely to rise from 1.4°C to 5.8°C within a period of 100
years.
Unfortunately, the imbalance which we have created between our life and earth is
already showing the signs disasters in the form of flood, cyclones, landslides, tsunami,
drought, etc. If the imbalance continues to rise, one day this will pose a question mark
on the existence of this planet. Carbon dioxide (C02) which is an important constituent
of environment is causing a warming effect on the earth’s surface.
It increases the evaporation of water into the atmosphere. Since water vapour itself is a
greenhouse gas, this causes still more warming. The warming causes more water vapour
to be evaporated. The C02 level is expected to rise in future due to ongoing burning of
fossil fuels and landuse change. The rate of rise will depend largely on uncertain
economic, sociological, technological and natural developments. Other gases such as
methane, CFCs, nitrous oxide, tropospheric ozone are also responsible for global
warming. Increases in all these gases are due to explosive population growth, increased
industrial expansion, technological advancement, deforestation and growing
urbanisation, etc.
Trees play a significant role in the global carbon cycle. They are the largest land-based
mechanism for removing carbon dioxide from the air. Deforestation is checking these
positive processes. It is the second principle cause of atmospheric carbon dioxide.
Deforestation is responsible for 25 per cent of all carbon emissions entering the
atmosphere, by the burning and cutting of 34 million acres of trees each year. Everyday
over 5500 acres of rainforest are destroyed. As a consequence of massive loss of forests,
global CO, levels rise approximately 0.4 per cent each year, the levels not experienced
on this planet for millions of years. As we know the forests are the great absorbers of
CO,,.
There is a close relation between global warming and population growth. Today the
large population on earth is using the technologies which are destructive for the earth.
Approximately, 80 per cent of atmospheric C02 increases are due to man’s use of fossil
fuels either in the form of coal, gas or oil. A large portion of carbon emission is
attributed to the burning of gasoline in internal-combustion engine of vehicles.
Vehicles with poor gas mileage contribute the most to global warming. Besides, the
sulphur group gas is the most harmful for this. Its contribution is 30 per cent in global
warming. This gas is also emitted from the burning of fossil fuels.
Increase in global temperatures will cause rise in sea level.
It will lead to melting of glaciers, changes in rainfall patterns, increased intensity and
frequency of extreme weather. As per the latest survey report the rate of melting of
glaciers has seen sharp increase in recent times. Even those glaciers are affected from
global warming which have been considered permanent. The shrinking of glaciers is
going to pose a major problem of drinking water.
The sea levels as a result of melting of glaciers have risen from 0.35 mm to 0.4 mm.
Scientists have warned in their reports that most of the glaciers will disappear within a
period of 15 to 25 years. It will create problems of drinking water and food grains in
most of the North American countries. India is not unaffected from it. The Himalayan
glaciers have shrunk about 30 per cent after 1970.
The rise in sea levels is a major cause of concern. A large number of cities located in
coastal areas will submerge in the sea. Besides, many island countries will ultimately
“lose their existence and will be washed away from the surface of the earth. The
damage of rising sea levels is diverse. Buildings and roads close to the water could be
flooded and they could suffer damage from hurricanes and tropical storms. Experts
believe that global warming could increase the intensity of hurricanes by over 50 per
cent. In addition, as the sea rises, beach erosion takes place, particularly on steep
banks.
Wetlands are lost as the level rises. Rise in atmospheric temperature will lead to the
outbreak of air¬borne and water-borne diseases. It would also contribute to the rise in
death caused by heat. The problem of drought would be frequent. Consequently,
malnutrition and starvation will pose serious challenge before humanity.
Global warming is a great threat to the flora and fauna of the earth. A large number of
species of them may become extinct.
The expanse of desert would increase. Low rainfall and rising temperature could add to
the intensity and frequency of dusty storm. This in turn will immensely affect the
quality of agricultural land, ultimately causing adverse effect on agricultural produce.
It would have far-reaching socio-economic impact.
In Indian context, the impact of global warming is a matter of grave concern. As is well
known, India is mainly an agricultural country and agriculture here is gamble of the
monsoon, e.g. largely depending on rainfall. Though it is to affect the whole country,
the worst likely impact would be on central and northern India which is high-yielding
parts of the country. These are the regions which produce the largest agricultural yield.
The rise in atmospheric temperature and fall in rain would naturally result in decline
in crop production. Moreover, it would have great effect on biodiversity as well.
The growing concerns over global temperatures have led to the nations, states,
corporations and individuals to draw out a plan of action to avert the situation. As a
result the world’s primary international agreement on combating global warming was
reached in Kyoto in 1997 which came to be known as Kyoto Protocol. However, ten
years have passed; the situation does not appear to be very changed. It seems that the
member countries are not very serious about its devastating effects.
In addition, forestation can be of great help in this regard. Planting more trees and
reducing timber cuts worldwide will help restore the imbalance. Secondly, we must
follow on environmental policy of ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’, i.e. promoting the reuse of
anything. Thirdly, the use of fuel-efficient vehicles should be promoted as these vehicles
have lower emissions of harmful gases. Fourthly, every individual should be aware of
the importance of the protecting environment. Besides, eco- friendly technologies must
be promoted, and must be substituted with the technologies which cause great emission
of global warming gases. Public awareness campaign can be of great help in this regard
because unless each and every individual is aware only governments’ effect cannot
bring desired difference.

Essays on Morning Walk or Walking is a good exercise

Short Paragraph for kids on a Morning Walk
A morning walk is a very useful exercise. It is a light exercise. It refreshes our body and mind. In the morning Nature is at its best. A morning walk brings us in contact with the beautiful surroundings of Nature. It gives us a great joy and also keeps us fit and healthy. The green grass, the blossoming flowers, chirping birds, the fresh air, the rising sun and morning dew - all provide us great joy and they fill our heart with happiness. Morning walk is good for all. The old and the young, the healthy and the weak, all should take a morning walk.

688 Words Essay on a the advantages of morning walk

Some people play games like cricket, hockey, football, volleyball, badminton, etc. Others prefer yogic exercises because these keep not only the body but also the mind in perfect condition. Nowadays, games have become very expensive. Everybody cannot afford them. Yogic exercises cannot be learned without the help of a yoga teacher. But walking is an exercise which is the cheapest. It does not need any training. It is the easiest of all exercises. It is a light exercise.

A morning walk is the best exercise. It can keep a person fit and fresh throughout the
day. It is suitable for all, whether rich or poor, the young or the old, boys and girls. It
refreshes the mind and improves the health. It provides fresh air to the lungs. It
purifies the blood. It improves digestion. That is why doctors always recommend a
morning walk to their patients. Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of our Nation, laid great stress on morning walk. He himself used to go out for a morning walk every day. He even undertook a number of “Pad Yatras”, journeys on foot, to meet the people on the way. He loved walking very much.

It is true that for some persons it is not very easy to get up from their beds early in the morning, particularly in the winter season. But if one has the determination and a strong will-power, it should not be too difficult for any person to rise early even in
winter. One must form a regular habit of a morning walk. This exercise is good for
health only if it is undertaken regularly without any break.

In small towns, the people can go out for a morning walk to the nearby open fields or
just stroll along a canal or a river. But this is not possible in big cities like Delhi,
Mumbai and Kolkata. People of these cities should go to a public park or a garden to
have a morning walk. These places look green and beautiful and offer fresh air.

A morning walk can also be had on the road provided it is free from heavy traffic. A
city-dweller must not go out for a morning walk to an industrial place because
industrial pollution is a health hazard. Morning is the best time for a walk. A cool breeze blows at this time. Birds chirp in the bushes and branches of the trees. In villages, one can see the farmers ploughing their fields, sowing new crops or reaping the ripe standing crops. Persian wheels of the wells produce melodious sound.
The scene in the cities is however different. Here the people generally go to the public parks or gardens for a walk. One can see many old men walking or doing light
exercises. One can also come across some men doing yogic exercise on the green grass. The beautiful flowers of the garden dance with joy when a breeze blows. It is a delight to watch. The fresh and cool air of the gardens is very invigorating. In the garden, some people take rounds; others walk barefoot on the green grass. The green grass is covered with drops of dew. Those who are young also do jogging.
Fat persons are prone to diseases like diabetes, hypertension, high blood pressure, etc.

Doctors advise them to restrict their diet and bring down their weight. In such cases, a brisk morning walk is very helpful in reducing weight. Even persons who are lean and thin can benefit from a morning walk. Morning walk makes a lean person fit to digest food and thereby put on some extra flesh.

One should spend at least an hour or two on walking in a garden so that when the sun rises in the east, one can enjoy the beauty of the rising sun. Every object is draped in the golden light of the rising sun. The first rays of the sun are very good for health. It is a fact that health is wealth. A morning walk every day keeps the doctor away. It is the cheapest and the best recipe for maintaining good health.