Know what to read next.

• The OdysseyThe OdysseyHomerStart here.Nearly everything after it assumes you have read it.
• The RepublicThe RepublicPlatoRead first: The OdysseyPlato calls Homer the educator of Greece, then spends three books arguing with him.
• Nicomachean EthicsNicomachean EthicsAristotleRead first: The RepublicAristotle answers his teacher Plato throughout.
• The AeneidThe AeneidVirgilRead first: The OdysseyVirgil modeled his poem on Homer.
• MeditationsMeditationsMarcus AureliusRead first: Epictetus, EnchiridionShort, and Marcus quotes Epictetus throughout.
• The Divine ComedyThe Divine ComedyDanteRead first: The AeneidDante modeled the Divine Comedy on Virgil’s poem.
• HamletHamletShakespeareStart here.Nothing is needed first.
• Don QuixoteDon QuixoteCervantesStart here.It makes fun of books you do not need to read.
• Paradise LostParadise LostMiltonRead first: The Bible, Genesis 1 to 3Milton retells those three chapters across twelve books.
• Pride and PrejudicePride and PrejudiceAustenStart here.It needs nothing first, and it is a pleasure from the first page.
• Moby-DickMoby-DickMelvilleRead first: King LearMelville modeled his main character’s speeches on the play.
• Crime and PunishmentCrime and PunishmentDostoevskyRead first: Notes from UndergroundShort, written two years earlier, and the best introduction to how Dostoevsky thinks.
• War and PeaceWar and PeaceTolstoyStart here.It asks for time, not preparation.

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