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30 Books You Should Read Before You're 30

Great literature grows out of periods of change, and there are few transitions more more, well, transitional than the end of your twenties and the onset of the whole rest of your life. Whether it's Edith Wharton in The House of Mirth or Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie in Americanah, authors have made narrative hay of that period in life. Here are 30 favorites from an informal poll of TIME staffers. (Sarah Begley)
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1
Americanah (Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie)
Americanah
Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
2
Rich and Pretty (Rumaan Alam)
Rich and Pretty
Rumaan Alam
3
Giovanni's Room (James Baldwin)
Giovanni's Room
James Baldwin
4
Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte)
Jane Eyre
Charlotte Bronte
5
Kindred (Octavia Butler)
Kindred
Octavia Butler
6
Open City
Open City
7
You Shall Know Our Velocity
You Shall Know Our Velocity
8
The Veins of the Ocean (Patricia Engel)
The Veins of the Ocean
Patricia Engel
9
Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay (Elena Ferrante)
Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay
Elena Ferrante
10
Fates and Furies (Lauren Groff)
Fates and Furies
Lauren Groff
11
The Reluctant Fundamentalist (Mohsin Hamid)
The Reluctant Fundamentalist
Mohsin Hamid
12
Far From the Madding Crowd (Thomas Hardy)
Far From the Madding Crowd
Thomas Hardy
13
Never Let Me Go (Kazuo Ishiguro)
Never Let Me Go
Kazuo Ishiguro
14
The Best of Everything
The Best of Everything
15
The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man
The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man
16
Fear of Flying (Erica Jong)
Fear of Flying
Erica Jong
17
You Too Can Have a Body Like Mine (Alexandra Kleeman)
You Too Can Have a Body Like Mine
Alexandra Kleeman
18
The Flamethrowers, Rachel Kushner
The Flamethrowers, Rachel Kushner
19
The Namesake (Jhumpa Lahiri)
The Namesake
Jhumpa Lahiri
20
Quicksand and Passing - Nella Larsen
Quicksand and Passing - Nella Larsen
21
10:04 (Ben Lerner)
10:04
Ben Lerner
22
The Group
The Group
23
On Chesil Beach (Ian McEwan)
On Chesil Beach
Ian McEwan
24
Waiting to Exhale (Terry McMillan)
Waiting to Exhale
Terry McMillan
25
The Emperor's Children - Claire Messud
The Emperor's Children - Claire Messud
26
Jasmine (Bharati Mukherjee)
Jasmine
Bharati Mukherjee
27
Ceremony (Leslie Marmon Silko)
Ceremony
Leslie Marmon Silko
28
NW (Zadie Smith)
NW
Zadie Smith
29
The House of Mirth (Edith Wharton)
The House of Mirth
Edith Wharton
30
A Little Life (Hanya Yanagihara)
A Little Life
Hanya Yanagihara
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