The Academy of Achievement, an organization that brings students face-to-face with the "greatest thinkers and achievers of our age," compiled a list of books that have impacted the lives of remarkable people. Read the entire list here. A few examples:

James Earl Jones recommends The Song of Hiawatha by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Jonas Salk, MD, recommends The Island Within by Ludwig Lewisohn

Author Peggy Noonan recommends The Moviegoer by Walker Percy

Explorer Sylvia Earle recommends Galapagos: World's End by William Beebe

We asked Katie Raynolds, the amazing high school student we interviewed about words, language and books, to recommend her favorite reads to fellow students. Here's what she wrote:

I love anything by Ray Bradbury, like Fahrenheit 451, and especially his short story anthology The Illustrated Man. I also recommend Alexandre Dumas's The Count of Monte Cristo, which has a lot adventure and not too many crazy words that others may struggle with. I admit, many of the books I read would not suit boy readers, but they're still good! An example would be Stargirl. This book may be better for girls, and it's a little better suited for girls that are younger than I, but it changed my life. Holes is also a really, really good book -- the author ties every detail to another plot point, and it's incredibly smart. And of course, there are the popular Harry Potter books and the Lord of the Rings series, which are an acquired taste but are, in the end, a joy to read. I know that some of these titles are obvious suggestions, but they're great, great books!!!

We asked our Bad Language columnist Matthew Stibbe to recommend his favorite books on writing well. Check them out, plus read his reviews.

Writing to Deadline by Donald M. Murray (Matthew's review)

The Economist Style Guide (Matthew's review)

The Pyramid Principle by Barbara Minto (Matthew's review)

The Elements of Style by William Strunk, Jr. ("The obvious choice," says Matthew. But timeless -- and small enough to fit in your pocket. His review.)

How about checking out these National Book Award winners for your next vacation read?

Europe Central by William T. Vollmann (2005 winner)

The News from Paraguay by Lily Tuck (2004 winner)

The Great Fire by Shirley Hazzard (2003 winner)

Three Junes by Julia Glass (2002 winner)

"A Lifetime of Reading" is a list of the "world's 500 greatest books" compiled by author Philip Ward. Click here to read the entire list. Some of the classics are well known, others less so. Here's a sampling from the list:

The Pickwick Papers by Charles Dickens

Hojoki : Visions of a Torn World by Kamo no Chomei

The Narrow Road to the Deep North and Other Travel Sketches by Basho

The Lost Steps by Alejo Carpentier

The New York Times Book Review asked leading literary types to choose the best work of American fiction in the last quarter century. Here are the results. (the article )

The Winner:

Beloved by Tony Morrison

The Runners-Up:

Underworld by Don DeLillo

Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy

Rabbit Angstrom: The Four Novels by John Updike

The Monroe County, IN, Public Library compiled a list of some fifty cult fiction classics. Here are six of our favorites:

1. The Monkey Wrench Gang by Edward Abbey
   
   
2. The Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel
   
   
3. Ham on Rye by Charles Bukowski
   
   
4. Stranger in a Strange Land by Robert Heinlein
   
   
5. The Gunslinger by Stephen King
   
   
6. At the Mountains of Madness by H.P. Lovecraft