Classic Cultural Texts and Historical Books to Read Before College

Posted in Reading Lists and Book Lists on March 21, 2017 - by

Cultural and Historical Classics for high school and college bound students

When The College Board released a list of 101 books to read before college they also included 20 classic cultural and historical texts. This is not a comprehensive list of every classic historical book, but it is an excellent list for high school students and college prep.

To make it as easy as possible to check out, rent, or buy these books, I included direct links to Amazon Books search, The World Catalog (to find out which local libraries have a copy), and to the Kindle bookstore search.

  1. The Arabian Nights
    Library Search
  2. Profiles in Courage
    Written by: Kennedy, John F. | Lexile scale: 1410
    Library Search
  3. The Bible
    Library Search
  4. A Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings and
    Written by: King, Martin Luther, Jr.
    Library Search
  5. Speeches of Martin Luther King, Jr.
    Library Search
  6. The Education of Henry Adams
    Written by: Adams, Henry
    Library Search
  7. Le Morte D'Arthur
    Written by: Malory, Sir Thomas
    Library Search
  8. Aesop's Fables
    Written by: Aesop
    Library Search
  9. The Prince
    Written by: Machiavelli, Niccolò | Lexile scale: 1350
    Library Search
  10. Andersen's Fairy Tales
    Written by: Andersen, Hans Christian | Lexile scale: 1060
    Library Search
  11. The Communist Manifesto
    Written by: Marx, Karl | Lexile scale: 1360
    Library Search
  12. Nicomachean Ethics
    Written by: Aristotle | Lexile scale: 1260
    Library Search
  13. Common Sense
    Written by: Paine, Thomas | Lexile scale: 1330
    Library Search
  14. The Souls of Black Folk
    Written by: DuBois, W.E.B. | Lexile scale: 1280
    Library Search
  15. The Republic
    Written by: Plato | Lexile scale: 1120
    Library Search
  16. Autobiography
    Written by: Franklin, Benjamin | Lexile scale: 1370
    Library Search
  17. Democracy in America
    Written by: Tocqueville, Alexis de | Lexile scale: 1310
    Library Search
  18. Mythology
    Written by: Hamilton, Edith | Lexile scale: 1040
    Library Search
  19. The Autobiography of Malcolm X
    Written by: X, Malcolm with Haley, Alex | Lexile scale: 1120
    Library Search
  20. The Federalist Papers
    Written by: Hamilton, John, et al. | Lexile scale: 1450
    Library Search

Before college reading list

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