7 Books You Should Have Read Before You Die.

I have a reading list.

I've got tons of books on it, and I really see a pattern: It keeps growing instead of shrinking.

Reading is defined as the following:

"Reading is defined as a cognitive process that involves decoding symbols to arrive at meaning."

I think reading is a beautiful skill to have. It's like you have a look at the author's mind for a couple of hours.

This might sound a little vague, but we all once learned to read in our lives, now; let's use that skill to read these 5 books before you die.

To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

You might have heard about this book before; it's one of the many books you had to read when you were in high school.

It was published in 1960, and it's about exploring human behavior and conscience of 'The Deep South' in the early 1920s'. Combined with humor, this story might be one of the best novels ever written.

"People generally see what they look for and hear what they listen for."

1984, by George Orwell

Nineteen Eighty-Four is a classic literary example of dystopian fiction. Usually published as 1984.

The book was written by George Orwell and was the ninth and last book he had written in his life. This novel summarizes a totalitarian world of control, fear, and lies, and I think this book is more relevant than ever, even though 1984 has already passed us.

"But if thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought."

Pride and Prejudice, by Jane Austen

Pride and Prejudice is a novel, published in 1813, written by British writer Jane Austen.

Pride and Prejudice tell of five unmarried sisters from the English middle class at the turn of the 18th and 19th centuries. The main character is Elizabeth Bennet, the second oldest sister and also the most intelligent.

Austen's novel has been made into a film several times, including in 1940 and 2005.

"Angry people are not always wise."

Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury

Fahrenheit 451 (1953) is a dystopian science fiction book by the American writer Ray Bradbury.

It takes place in a world where books are banned, and critical thoughts are suppressed. The title refers to the temperature at which book paper catches fire and burns, 451 degrees Fahrenheit.

The storyline deals with issues that were important at the time the book was written: censorship and suppression of thoughts and ideas in the United States in the 1950s (McCarthyism), the burning of books in Nazi Germany from 1933, and the dire consequences of the use of an atomic bomb.

"It was a pleasure to burn."

Animal Farm, by George Orwell

Animal Farm is a novel by the British writer and journalist George Orwell.

The book was written during World War II and published in 1945, although it was not well known until the late 1950s. Today it is considered a classic.

The book is an allegory of the post-revolutionary events in the Soviet Union and the rise of Stalinism. Many of the characters in the book are identifiable as historical figures.

"All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others."

The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger

The Catcher in the Rye is a novel by J.D. Salinger. The book was highly controversial because of its foul language and the liberal treatment of sex and prostitution. That was very controversial in the 1950s.

The title has to do with fantasy by Holden Caulfield, which he bases on false memory of Robert Burns 'poem Comin' Through the Rye.

Fun Fact: Mark Chapman had a copy of this book with him when he killed John Lennon.

"I don't care if it's a sad good-bye or a bad good-bye, but when I leave a place I like to know I'm leaving it. If you don't, you feel even worse."

A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens

A Tale of Two Cities is a novel by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris during the French Revolution.

The novel appeared in weekly episodes of All the Year Round magazine between April and November 1859.

A Tale of Two Cities describes the situation in the period immediately preceding the French Revolution, the French peasants' demoralization and oppression by the old aristocracy, and the cruelty of the revolutionaries towards that aristocracy immediately after the revolution.

At the same time, Dickens sketches parallel social patterns in what was then London.

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,

it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness,

it was the era of faith, it was the era of unbelief,

it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness,

it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair"

Originally Published on Medium