Browse 170+ classic books from Austen to Wilde, each paired with its movie adaptation, director, and release year.
Classic literature has always been Hollywood's favorite source material, and this list shows why. Below you'll find more than 170 enduring works of fiction, drama, poetry, and nonfiction, arranged alphabetically, from ancient epics to twentieth-century landmarks.
Wherever a book has been adapted for the screen, we've paired it with a notable film or television version, along with the release year and director, so you can decide whether to read the book first or start with the movie.
Start with widely loved, accessible titles such as Pride and Prejudice, The Great Gatsby, Jane Eyre, To Kill a Mockingbird-era school staples like The Catcher in the Rye, and adventure classics like The Count of Monte Cristo or Treasure Island. From there, branch into bigger works such as War and Peace, Crime and Punishment, and Moby Dick. The best approach is to pick a genre you already enjoy and choose the classic that defined it.
Several adaptations on this list are considered classics in their own right, including Alfred Hitchcock's Rebecca (1940), James Whale's Frankenstein (1931), David Lean-era epics like War and Peace (1967, Bondarchuk), and Ang Lee's Sense and Sensibility (1995). More recent standouts include Joe Wright's Pride and Prejudice (2005) and Anna Karenina (2012). A great adaptation captures the spirit of the book even when it trims the plot.
Reading first lets you imagine the characters and settings for yourself, and you will notice what the film changes or cuts. Watching first can also work well for long or difficult classics, since knowing the story makes dense prose easier to follow. Either order is fine; the pairing on this list makes it easy to do both.
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