12 Pieces of Literature Everyone should Read

I firmly believe that being well-read is one of the greatest assets a person can possess. Reading widely allows us to connect with cultures that are not our own, create a sense of mutual understanding based on shared humanity, and learn things about ourselves in the process. 
I personally abide by the code that all books are worth reading, but there are some books that are life changing. These are the books that stop you in your tracks and force you to pay attention. The books that leave you turning the final page over again and again because you cannot bear the thought of the story being over. The books that make you laugh out loud, or fall to your knees and weep. The fourteen books I have listed below changed my life, and I hope that one of them may do the same for you. 

1.  Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison. This is one of the most underappreciated books in the global literary canon, and one of the most influential pieces of American literature ever written. Invisible Man follows the story of a black, unnamed narrator who escapes the oppression of the South in the early 20th century, only to find that the idyllic world of the North presents a set of obstacles all its own. In a stunning display of symbolism coupled with unparalleled prose, the Invisible Man struggles with identity, individuality, and political pressures  in a way that will leave you breathless.  
2. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. To Kill a Mockingbird is the first book I can remember that made me weep. Following the story of hero-lawyer Atticus Finch and his two children, To Kill a Mockingbird conveys a story of racial injustice, pressures of gender conformity, and the dangers of prejudgment under the guise of  a playful bildungsroman filled with characters with which you will fall in love.
3. Ulysses by James Joyce. One of the most fantastic works in the English language, James Joyce's magnum opus is set over the course of a single day in Dublin, following Stephen Dedalus and Leopold Bloom. It is impossible to list all of the issues tackled in Ulysses. A piece you have to read more than once to appreciate, Ulysses combines the real and the fantastic to create a narrative that runs the gamut of literary themes, from the dangers of religious hypocrisy to symbolic use of the kidney.
4. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Garcia Marquez's One Hundred Years of Solitude tackles the story of the Buendia family, set over 100 years in the town of Macondo. The novel presents a commentary on issues ranging from the dangers of colonialism to the importance of tradition to the role of matriarchs within a family. Garcia Marquez creates a novel laden with symbolism in phenomenal prose. 
5. My Bondage and My Freedom by Frederick Douglass. The first nonfiction piece on this list, My Bondage and My Freedom is the autobiography of Frederick Douglass, dealing with his life in slavery, his escape, and his experiences with freedom. This heart-wrenching piece is a testament to human resilience, and also the human capacity for cruelty, that every American should read before graduating high school. 
6. To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf. Yet another novel that follows a family, To the Lighthouse follows the Ramsay family and their visits to the Isle of Skye between 1910 and 1920. The modernist novel deals with gender roles, family structures, and love within the plot, while also exploring the philosophical nature of storytelling itself.
7. The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien.  In a book that blends fact and fiction, Tim O'Brien catalogs the story of a platoon of American soldiers fighting a ground war in Vietnam. In a narrative that presents a commentary on truth, humanity in times of crisis, and the damage done by war, O'Brien creates a war story that will make you weep, laugh, and discover elements of your own nature.
8. Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton. Set in apartheid South Africa, Cry, the Beloved Country follows two father-son pairs: the Kumalos, an African family struggling for survival in a valley, and the Jarvises, a wealthy white family living on the hill who support apartheid. When Stephen Kumalo discovers that his son, Absalom, murdered the son of James Jarvis, the fathers meet. What follows presents a moving political commentary on the state of South Africa in the 1960s, but also a look into human nature. 
9. Night by Elie Wiesel. The second nonfiction piece on this list, Night is Elie Wiesel's harrowing autobiography on his experience with his father in a concentration camp during the Holocaust. You must be the proper head-space to handle this piece of nonfiction, as Wiesel spares no detail in describing the crimes against humanity committed in the camp. This book is difficult to get through without becoming sick to your stomach, but it is necessary all the while.  
10. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. A modern classic in the making, Hosseini's Kite Runner shines a light on both the human capacity for goodness and that for evil. Set in Kabul, Afghanistan, the novel follows the growth of a boy named Amir and his closest friend Hassan through Soviet military occupation, the rise of the Taliban, and American intervention. The Kite Runner presents a moving narrative of love, sacrifice, and a quest for redemption that is guaranteed to leave you speechless. 
11. Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck.  Of Mice and Men is barely more than one hundred pages, but it presents one of the greatest  platonic love stories of all time. Follow quick-witted George and gentle giant Lennie, two migrant workers travelling during the Great Depression, as they experience hope and despair that provide the ultimate test of the boundaries of brotherly love. 
12. Lord of the Flies by William Golding. Following the story of a group of British boys stranded on a desert island, Lord of the Flies presents a harrowing allegory for the global governance as the boys attempt to establish a system of government on the island. Golding's prose presents an easy-read on the surface of the novel, but be prepared to encounter complicated philosophical questions and implications once you venture below it.