Desert Island Books

by Peter Saint-Andre

2024-12-04

My reading list contains hundreds of items. Indeed, I maintain multiple such lists, since some of them are dedicated to particular research topics or historical figures on which I plan to write books of my own, such as Pyrrho, Socrates, and Shakespeare. Periodically, however, I like to think about how I would cull my reading list down to absolute essentials if forced to do so. The general principle seems to be: which authors would I most want to interact with in future years, for the sake of learning, enjoyment, and contemplation?

Having pondered it again recently, I'd say that nowadays my desert island books would look like this:

For the ancient Greek authors, I'd want both English translations and Greek originals. I'd also need some reference books: the OED, Webster's Dictionary of 1841, Smyth's Greek Grammar, Cunliffe's Lexicon of the Homeric Dialect, and the LSJ (standard dictionary of ancient Greek). Because some of these are published in multiple volumes, all told that's about thirty physical books.

Naturally this leaves out many, many books and authors that I'd like to explore or re-read, but difficult decisions would need to be made if I were shipped off to that mythical desert island...

(Cross-posted at philosopher.coach.)

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