9 Books Paul McCartney Thinks Everyone Should Read

If you loved the game-changing hardcover edition, you’ll love the paperback, now with more songs and a personal foreword, giving us even more Paul McCartney. The audio recordings that Paul Muldoon made with Paul McCartney as they collaborated on this incredible book have been cut into the new Pushkin podcast, A Life in Lyrics — and while McCartney doesn’t recommend a book in every episode, the ones he does mention are worth revisting here.

A precise and exacting indictment of modern society, from capitalism to conformity, Howl is just as relevant today as it was when its initial publication got the publisher arrested. This is a foundational piece of modern American poetry. 

The essential revenge story from the master of the stage, Hamlet tells the tale of a Danish prince as he begins to unravel, losing track of what’s real and what’s not. This timeless classic will always be a warning against the quest for vengeance by showing the repercussions of exactly that. 

An ode to life and an examination of love, Under Milk Wood retains a levity of voice throughout, despite deeply examining the more difficult parts of the life being celebrated. Originally a radio play, it makes for a unique lens into a literary time often dominated by cynicism. 

A collection of Harold Pinter’s earliest work set on and off the stage, forming the foundation of the pillar of theater he would become. With rich dialogue and a refined ease of the intricacies of language, Pinter’s work is both humorful and harrowing, even in these early stages. 

Consistently ranking in the upper echelon of the James Bond universe, Live and Let Die features iconic Bond villains like Mr. Big and fascinating locales from Harlem to Jamaica, with action sequences forming the connective tissue that makes this such a timeless brand. 

A classic battle royale between the patients at a mental institution and the nurse who oversees them. Grappling with themes of good and evil, this is a narrative that will leave readers checking in with themselves as they inevitably root for the antics of Randle Patrick McMurphy.

From Rime of the Ancient Mariner to Kubla Khan, Samuel Taylor Coleridge made a seminal impact on poetry in the age of Romanticism. Exploring themes of life, love, death and age, Coleridge’s work still resonates with a modern readership. 

The last completed work of Charles Dickens retains his buoyant narrative voice, unique and intentional characters and sheer depth of meaning. It all begins with an inheritance and spirals into a memorable story satirizing life, death and the state of industrial London.

The timeless classic built on themes of abandonment and loneliness en route to adulthood, Alice in Wonderland is a singular work of absurdity and madness. Alice bears witness to a bizarre world that presents both dangers and delights as she grapples with what awaits her back in the real world.