It can sometimes seem like all mainstream books these days are written by either American or British authors, but of course there are still plenty of great books out there written all across the world. If you’re interested in broadening your literary horizons then you’ll want to gaze upon this great literary map created by a user on Reddit named Backforward24.
One of the great things about books is that they can transport the reader to different places and eras and show us things that we may never encounter in our everyday lives. This fantastic map shows each country represented by arguably the most classic book written by an author from that part of the world.
Russia is represented by War and Peace, Britain has Pride and Prejudice, the United States is sporting To Kill a Mockingbird, and France has Les Miserables. Some may feel that certain countries should be represented by other titles. Some bibliophiles on Reddit argued that England should be represented by Shakespeare whilst others thought Spain should have Don Quixote. This is the kind of map you want hanging on your wall whilst you and your friends argue over which books should represent which countries.
As well as being an interesting take on iconic books from different parts of the world, the map may well inspire some readers to read each book from each country. Certainly a useful map for anyone who wants to see what literature is like in other parts of the world. It can be easy for Western readers to be isolated from great works from places like Africa or the Middle-East but, as this map shows, great works of literature can be found across the globe.
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