Apr 23, 2024
A saying goes, ‘To read is to know and to understand is to grow’. On World Book Day 2024, here we list 12 brilliant Classics from English and Hindi literature that everyone must read at least once in their life.
Canva
This masterpiece by Premchand is about the ‘nawabi’ culture of Lucknow during the British Raj and the obsession of two Nawabs with a game of chess and how their immersion into the play made them lose their city to the British as they failed to protect it.
Diamond-Books
The holy grail of Hindi literature, Rashmirathi is the epic tale of Surya putr Karna, and tales from Mahabharata. The poem brings to life the inner conflicts and moral dilemmas faced by Karna during the war.
Lokbharti-Prakashan-Pvt-Ltd
From the man who popularised drama and literature, Shakespeare, Othello is a story of jealousy, manipulation, and prejudice. Through the downfall of Othello, Shakespeare highlights how unchecked jealousy can lead to great destruction.
Maple
Another masterpiece by Shakespeare, ‘Romeo and Juliet’ is the tragic story of two lovers who come from feuding families in Verona.
Maple
‘Oliver Twist’ is the classic tale that covered themes of poverty, crime, and redemption. Through the life of an orphan, ‘Oliver Twist’, Dickens showed the harsh realities of Victorian society.
RUPA-PUBLICATIONS-INDIA
A book so controversial for its time, but absolutely groundbreaking today, is ‘Lady Chatterley's Lover’. D.H. Lawrence's story of the affair between Lady Constance Chatterley and her husband's gamekeeper was a challenge to societal norms for his time.
Penguin-Classics
Austen's ‘Pride and Prejudice’ is nothing less than a masterpiece when it comes to literature. Through the story of Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy, Austen showed themes of love, marriage, and social status, during the time of Regency-era England.
Fingerprint-Publishing
Set in a time when the ‘American Dream’ was all the rage, ‘The Great Gatsby’ is a tragic tale of love and illusion. Fitzgerald's story gives a stark and clear image of the Jazz Age, wealth, class, and the emptiness of materialism.
Scribner
A book you won't be able to set down once you start reading is ‘Gunahon ka Devta’. Set in Allahabad, now Prayagraj, ‘Gunahon ka Devta’ is a story of love, sacrifice, and redemption and the question - How redeeming is love?
Bharatiya-Jnanpith
‘Raag Darbari’ is often hailed as the magnum opus of Hindi literature. Set in a fictional village, Shukla's novel is about the rampant corruption, nepotism, and moral decay of society in the newly, post-independent India.
Rajkamal-Prakashan
One of the greatest epic poems of all time, ‘The Odyssey’ covers the adventures of the Greek hero ‘Odysseus’ as he journeys home from the Trojan War.
Penguin-Classics
While it is not an easy read, Dostoevsky's ‘Crime and Punishment’ is an absolute psychological masterpiece. The story follows Raskolnikov, a student, and his eventual descent into madness after committing a murder.
Penguin-Classics
Thanks For Reading!
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