Ever since I first heard the term "Renaissance Man" and learned what it meant, I've always wanted to think of myself as a Renaissance man. It's such a great term, along the lines of "a gentleman and a scholar," and it fit me. I was interested in anything, and I wanted to be a well rounded individual in my education. I didn't want to specialize in one field and ignore others, I wanted to learn everything and be able to discuss every field.

It's with the well rounded, well educated, Renaissance Man idea of reading that I give my recommended list of 50 classic books everyone desiring a true classic education should read. These aren't in any particular order, as they all work together for a well rounded literary experience that you can be proud of.

1) "Book of Psalms," King James Version Bible. The poetry from this book is gorgeous. The use of language, the flow of words, and the struggles trying to reconcile the world and faith make this one a winner.

2) "The Wasteland," by T.S. Eliot. Few works in all of human history have captivated the common reader and the critic alike the way "The Wasteland" has.

3) "The Origin of Species," by Charles Darwin. Few works have changed the course of science, thought, or human history than this work. And with all the people incorrectly quoting this book without reading it (this goes to scientists and atheists as heavily as overly religious individuals), that makes this work a must read. I have it on my shelf next to the Bible, which seems pleasantly appropriate.

4) "The Brothers Karamazov," by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. In my opinion, this is the most brilliant novel ever written. Russian literature tends to be thick and complex (in the best of both words), and this book is so incredible that it can shake you to the core.

5) "A Tale of Two Cities," by Charles Dickens. "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times." And if you read the book, you'd know the entire first paragraph, about a page long, is equally as poetic and brilliant as that first sentence. Once of Dickens' finest works.

6) "Don Quixote," by Miguel de Cervantes. Considered to be the first Western modern novel, and a definite classic with great stories of the tragic Don Quixote.

7) "Red Badge of Courage," by Stephen Crane. A great work of American literature, maybe the best thing written in the time period released. A very short but powerful work.

8) "The Sun Also Rises," by Ernest Hemingway. Maybe the single greatest last line (in context) of any novel ever written.

9) "East of Eden," by John Steinbeck. "Grapes of Wrath" is also powerful, but Steinbeck set out to make "East of Eden" his masterpiece, and he succeeded in this brilliant novel.

10) "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller. One of the greatest satires ever written, this is a stunning work filled with great humor, story, satire, and it set a new standard for fictional dialogue that still hasn't been matched.

11) "No Easy Walk to Freedom," by Nelson Mandela. The single most important autobiography of the modern era.

12) "Jude the Obscure," by Thomas Hardy. The last novel by Thomas Hardy, commenting on much of society, a depressing work that shows the "dues ex machina" of "rigged doom," or a universe where all characters are turned towards their own destruction.

13) "On the Road," by Jack Kerouac. Part of the beat generation, few travel novels capture the age's society or pure intensity of energy Kerouac's writings produce.

14) "Frankenstein," by Mary Shelly. Hello modern horror novel.

15) "Gilgamesh" (epic poem). A great epic poem, better than "Beowulf," in my opinion.

16) "The Odyssey," by Homer. No one should be able to call themselves a scholar, or even well read, if they don't know this story.

17) "The Communist Manifesto," by Karl Marx. This isn't only a work of political philosophy, but also of spiritual philosophy in a staggeringly well written and argued thesis.

18) "Les Miserables," by Victor Hugo. Maybe the finest story ever produced by a French author, and they have many to choose from.

19) "The Prince," by Niccolo Machiavelli. One of the most important and formative political writings in European history. I had this assigned three times in college: once for a political theory class, once for western history, and once for English.

20) "Another Country," by James Baldwin. Right up there with Richard Wright's "Native Son" as some of the most important African-American literature out there.

21) "Catcher in the Rye," by J.D. Salinger. This is one of the most popular and incredible novels ever written, and solidified Salinger as one of the great master of letters of all time.

22) "Lord of the Rings," by J.R.R. Tolkien. He wasn't the first fantasy writer, but he should still be considered the father of the modern genre.

23) "Lord of the Flies," by William Golding. Short, easy to read, but this novel takes a deep look into the dark part of the human psyche, to the blackness of human nature, to the brutality of the beast.

24) "The Complete Collection of Sherlock Holmes," by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Modern British literature at its finest, these stories are exceptional.

25) "The Tale of Genji." A classic Japanese novel written around the year AD 1000, it is a work that is considered by Japanese scholars to be the mountain top towards which all Japanese literature aspires.

26) "Mere Christianity," by C.S. Lewis. This work was brilliant as theology, philosophy, and fine non-fiction rhetorical literature, and should be required reading at the college level.

27) "The Sound and the Fury," by William Faulkner. Faulkner's most complex and ambitious work, this novel is incredible, and don't be surprised if you have to read it two or three times to fully appreciate the staggering complexity and genius behind this work.

28) "House Made of Dawn," by N. Scott Momaday. This little known Pulitzer Prize winning novel was written about a Native American's experiences after fighting overseas in the World War, and struggling to join back into a people and culture he feels permanently separated from.

29) "A Small Place," by Jamaica Kincaid. One of several great pieces of modern Caribbean literature, but this work is the best of them all and is a staple of many liberal arts programs now.

30) "The Invisible Man," by Ralph Ellison. An incredible work describing the problems, plights, and struggles of post-Civil War black culture in America.

31) "The Souls of Black Folk," by W.E.B. Du Bois. An incredible work that is considered ground breaking in sociology, as well as African-American history.

32) "Their Eyes Were Watching God," by Zora Neale Hurston. An early work that was a breakthrough for both African-American and women's literature, paving the way for much later works by Maya Angelou and Toni Morrison.

33) "The Art of War," by Sun-Tzu. Still considered the Bible for military tactics and military history.

34) "The Second World War," by Winston Churchill. This six volume set is considered one of the best and most important modern histories ever written.

35) "The Wealth of Nations," by Adam Smith. It's a shame all the people screaming for unregulated capitalism don't read this work they so often claim to quote.

36) "Leaves of Grass," by Walt Whitman. This was Whitman's most brilliant poetic masterpiece.

37) "Le Morte D'Arthur," by Sir Thomas Malory. These are the original legends and stories that became the legends of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table.

38) "One Hundred Years of Solitude," by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. This is an incredible work blending history, fiction, and magical realism in a creative blend that makes this novel a one of a kind work.

39) "Siddhartha," by Herman Hesse. A story that became extremely popular 40 years after its writing, this search for enlightenment, peace, and fulfillment is a spiritualist classic to this day.

40) "Ideas & Opinions," by Albert Einstein. The musings, thoughts, and contemplations of one of the most brilliant men to ever live.

41) "A Brief History of Time," by Stephen Hawking. Often called "the unread best seller," this book has sold millions of copies, but few have read the entire book all the way through. I have, and it's worth the time and effort.

42) "Illywhacker," by Peter Carey. This is truly an epic Australian novel, and one that really has a different feel and subtle style that makes it very Australian, and not just another piece of "Western" literature.

43) "Brave New World," by Aldous Huxley. One of the big three of science fiction dystopias, this is maybe the best written of the three, and this book should always be read with "1984" and "Fahrenheit 451" to get the full effect of all three works.

44) "Viking Sagas," a collection of Norse mythological poetry & stories. The Viking histories, or "sagas," are really interesting and unique reads that give a different feeling than most mythological studies, and a very distinctive style that you will want to experience.

45) "Ulysses," by James Joyce. Joyce has several works that are considered all time classics, and Ulysses is the strange and giant epic that trumps them all. Interesting, intense, and sometimes disturbing, Ulysses is unquestionably one of giants on the literary landscape.

46) "The Jungle," by Upton Sinclair. This book changed U.S. history and is known for bringing about radical changes in the meat packing industry…which is ironic since that was only a mild point Sinclair was making, as he tried to use real life mixed with fiction to document the deplorable lives hard working and law abiding immigrants were forced to live.

47) "Main Street," by Sinclair Lewis. Now mostly forgotten, Sinclair Lewis was one of the most popular and controversial authors of his time as he tackled racism, sexism, women's rights, fascism, religious hypocrisy, and many other taboo topics in the early 1920's and 1930's. "Main Street" was his first best seller and perhaps his finest work.

48) "Slaughterhouse Five," by Kurt Vonnegut. Kurt Vonnegut is an author with a distinctive style that has never been matched. "Slaughterhouse Five" is the crown jewel from a very impressive list of published works.

49) "Animal Farm," by George Orwell. A fantastic allegory about the Cold War and corruption of Communism to look just like its opposite evil: unbridled capitalism. An intense and intriguing allegorical story, and a far more pleasurable read than "1984."

50) "Walden Pond," by Henry David Thoreau. A giant of the American naturalist movement, Walden is not only nature writing, but it mixes philosophy and thought in such a way that makes this book a thick read, but a really satisfying one as well.

These are just the beginning, but if you've read all the books on this list you can definitely consider yourself a well read scholar.

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This article is an expanded version of the original 40 book list I published on Associated Content.