Flavorwire's 50 Incredibly Tough Books for Extreme Readers

1.
Moby Dick
Moby Dick 3.56 avg rating β€” 602,863 ratings
2.
Gravity's Rainbow
Gravity's Rainbow 4.01 avg rating β€” 46,905 ratings
3.
Infinite Jest
Infinite Jest 4.25 avg rating β€” 98,675 ratings
4.
War and Peace
War and Peace 4.17 avg rating β€” 357,031 ratings
5.
Heart of Darkness
Heart of Darkness 3.43 avg rating β€” 545,816 ratings
6.
To the Lighthouse
To the Lighthouse 3.81 avg rating β€” 207,222 ratings
7.
The Canterbury Tales
The Canterbury Tales 3.52 avg rating β€” 234,644 ratings
8.
The Sound and the Fury
The Sound and the Fury 3.86 avg rating β€” 192,294 ratings
9.
The Silmarillion
The Silmarillion 4.03 avg rating β€” 325,097 ratings
10.
Naked Lunch: The Restored Text
Naked Lunch: The Restored Text 3.46 avg rating β€” 96,907 ratings
11.
Blood Meridian, or, the Evening Redness in the West
Blood Meridian, or, the Evening Redness in the West 4.16 avg rating β€” 204,564 ratings
12.
2666
2666 4.21 avg rating β€” 46,708 ratings
13.
In Search of Lost Time
In Search of Lost Time 4.34 avg rating β€” 13,696 ratings
14.
House of Leaves
House of Leaves 4.09 avg rating β€” 191,519 ratings
15.
The Restored Finnegans Wake
The Restored Finnegans Wake 3.68 avg rating β€” 13,450 ratings
16.
The Divine Comedy: Inferno - Purgatorio - Paradiso
The Divine Comedy: Inferno - Purgatorio - Paradiso 4.08 avg rating β€” 167,125 ratings
17.
The Castle
The Castle 3.92 avg rating β€” 72,006 ratings
18.
Tristram Shandy
Tristram Shandy 3.73 avg rating β€” 22,672 ratings
19.
Underworld
Underworld 3.95 avg rating β€” 33,133 ratings
20.
Sophie's Choice
Sophie's Choice 4.17 avg rating β€” 93,616 ratings
21.
Wittgenstein's Mistress
Wittgenstein's Mistress 3.92 avg rating β€” 7,090 ratings
22.
The Year of Magical Thinking
The Year of Magical Thinking 3.93 avg rating β€” 285,055 ratings
23.
Pet Sematary
Pet Sematary 4.08 avg rating β€” 669,029 ratings
24.
The Faerie Queene
The Faerie Queene 3.58 avg rating β€” 17,147 ratings
25.
Dhalgren
Dhalgren 3.78 avg rating β€” 12,077 ratings
26.
Clarissa, or, The History of a Young Lady
Clarissa, or, The History of a Young Lady 3.39 avg rating β€” 8,499 ratings
27.
Hopscotch
Hopscotch 4.20 avg rating β€” 47,327 ratings
28.
J R
J R 4.32 avg rating β€” 3,682 ratings
29.
The Painted Bird
The Painted Bird 3.90 avg rating β€” 27,863 ratings
30.
Out
Out 3.94 avg rating β€” 45,891 ratings
31.
The Tunnel
The Tunnel 4.05 avg rating β€” 1,926 ratings
32.
Trainspotting (Mark Renton, #2)
Trainspotting (Mark Renton, #2) 4.11 avg rating β€” 174,926 ratings
33.
Nightwood
Nightwood 3.61 avg rating β€” 14,255 ratings
34.
Johnny Got His Gun
Johnny Got His Gun 4.21 avg rating β€” 47,429 ratings
35.
Geek Love
Geek Love 3.95 avg rating β€” 71,416 ratings
36.
The Collected Stories of Lydia Davis
The Collected Stories of Lydia Davis 4.24 avg rating β€” 6,879 ratings
37.
Tampa
Tampa 3.33 avg rating β€” 54,265 ratings
38.
The Making of Americans
The Making of Americans 3.55 avg rating β€” 583 ratings
39.
Cosmos
Cosmos 4.01 avg rating β€” 4,644 ratings
40.
Coin Locker Babies
Coin Locker Babies 3.80 avg rating β€” 9,420 ratings
41.
Almanac of the Dead
Almanac of the Dead 3.95 avg rating β€” 3,132 ratings
42.
The Unfortunates
The Unfortunates 3.87 avg rating β€” 1,144 ratings
43.
A Tale of a Tub
A Tale of a Tub 3.45 avg rating β€” 2,045 ratings
44.
Archipelag GuΕ‚ag 1918-1956. Tom 1-3
Archipelag GuΕ‚ag 1918-1956. Tom 1-3 4.33 avg rating β€” 33,414 ratings
45.
Battle Royale
Battle Royale 4.26 avg rating β€” 83,118 ratings
46.
Alphabetical Africa
Alphabetical Africa 3.58 avg rating β€” 336 ratings
47.
The Conservationist
The Conservationist 3.31 avg rating β€” 3,269 ratings
48.
Bad Behavior
Bad Behavior 3.87 avg rating β€” 13,215 ratings
49.
The Royal Family
The Royal Family 3.96 avg rating β€” 788 ratings
50.
The Demon
The Demon 3.90 avg rating β€” 3,488 ratings