Books by Winners of the Nobel Prize for Literature
The Nobel Prize for Literature is given for a body of work, not one specific title. The books chosen for this list are noted works by Nobel winners and reflect the variety of types of writing considered for the award. These include: novels, plays, poetry, essays, speeches, short stories, historical narratives, and philosophic writings. At the end of each title annotation, the year its author won the Nobel Prize is included in parentheses.
The often criticized philosophy of Jean-Paul Sartre encompasses the dilemmas and aspirations of the individual in contemporary society. (1964)
Mahfouz's epic trilogy is combined here in one volume. It presents the story of three generations of a Muslim family in British-occupied Egypt. (1988)
Mehring is a rich, South African man, successful in his work, but very poor when it comes to the people in his life. (1974)
Plays and political writings are included in this compilation written by political activist Harold Pinter who takes a stand against terrorism and war. (2005)
Banned in the Soviet Union until 1988, Pasternak's widely known novel about the life and loves of a poet-physician during the Russian revolution remains a classic today. (1958)
Herman Broder, refugee and survivor of World War II, muddles through life in New York with three wives. (1978)
Controversial Chinese author Yan Mo focuses his novel on the topic of the one-child policy enforced by a female doctor and midwife, desperate to prove her allegiance to the Communist Party. (2012)
This Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of China tells the story of farmer Wang Lung and his wife Olan as they struggle to live off the land and endure as a couple. (1938)
Alice Mellings transforms her bourgeois home into a headquarters for a group of radicals who plan to join the IRA. (2007)
Steinbeck depicts the Depression-era Joads, an Oklahoman family forced to move to California following the Dust Bowl. (1962)
This is a complete collection of Swedish poet Transtromer's work, featuring his early poems as well as his later verses, all rooted in the natural world. (2011)
Since its 1945 publication, this work has been considered unparalleled in its comprehensiveness as it traces philosophy from ancient Greece to the 20th century. (1950)
17-year-old Leo Auberg is deported to a labor camp in the Soviet Union where he works relentlessly in the coke processing plant to survive. (2009)
Kipling's menagerie of tales are all included in this volume along with his original illustrations. (1907)
Michael K. is left alone in war-torn South Africa. When imprisoned, he escapes, fleeing to find a life of dignity and hope. (1983)
O'Neill's autobiographical play, considered his finest work, vividly brings the pain of family relationships to life. (1936)
This modern classic tells the story of what happens when plane-wrecked boys compete against each other to survive. (1983)
Istanbul's cultural clash between the past and the present sets the scene for this novel about Kemal, torn between the life he knows and the woman he loves. (2006)
Eliot's famous collection of nonsense verse about cats is the inspiration for Lloyd Webber's Broadway musical, "Cats." (1948)
This novel portrays a graphic picture of Russian work camp life while paying tribute to man's will to prevail. (1970)