Many people read books to go on an adventure. And there are a lot of possibilities. Different authors bring their own take on the genre and it has led to some amazing books. We decided to list some of the best adventure books of all time and this is the result.
Books have gone a massive change since the 1800’s. But even then, books published back then hold up pretty well. Authors like Jules Verne and Robert Louis Stevenson have written some of the best adventure books of all time. Back when movies weren’t a thing, these books were one of the few ways to experience improbable adventures.
The Best Adventure Books of All Time
- Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
- Around the World in Eighty Days by Jules Verne
- Moby-Dick by Herman Melville
- Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
- The Call of the Wild by Jack London
- Odyssey by Homer
- Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad
- Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne
- The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
- Congo by Michael Crichton
- Tarzan of the Apes by Edgar Rice Burroughs
- The Road by Cormac McCarthy
- Journey to the Center of the Earth by Jules Verne
- Life of Pi by Yann Martel
- The Perfect Storm by Sebastian Junger
- The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien
- The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien
- Seven Years in Tibet by Heinrich Harrer
- The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
- The Martian by Andy Weir
- Gulliver’s Travels by Dr Jonathan Swift
- Lord of the Flies by William Golding
- K2, The Savage Mountain by Charles Snead Houston
Classic Adventure Books
Books like Treasure Island and Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea took readers on amazing adventures. The genre has changed a lot since then. And that has led to even more spectacular books as a result. Science fiction adventures became common as well as fantasy.
J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings series became the epitome of fantasy novels. They also popularized the adventure group formula that has been used many times since. There are many of these books that could have made the list but I decided to keep it simple.
Instead, I opted to go with mostly the writers that became known for their amazing adventure novels. The list also includes real-life books from authors that adventures to new and unknown places. While many people have accomplished these “adventures”, they did it when it was considered impossible or a certain death.
Conclusion
Whether it is a real adventure or a fictional adventure story, it will have your heart beating. We pick these books up to go on an adventure that we are unable to. These are the books that many people turned to and still do to this day. Until next time, happy reading!
Do you have a review for Congo?
I really liked the movie but was greatly disappointed by the book. Crichton really droned on about computers, sigh….
I haven’t read it but will add it to my reading list. I gave Crichton’s other book (not named Jurassic park) a try and wasn’t a fan and decided he wasn’t for me.
Awesome adventure book list provided in this article, you really are doing a fantastic job providing us booklovers with the best books to read
Thank you
Thanks!!!
Enjoy your day
You forgot “The Oregon Trail”.
Papillon
Excellent list and thank you. I’ve read some of the books and have The Count of Monte Cristo. on my TBR list. Lord of the Flies still haunts me. I had a hard time with Heart of Darkness. Don’t question that one it’s an Important book, I found it challenging and really needed to read it again to understand it.
Glad you enjoyed it. Books have different effects on people so that’s totally normal 🙂
The Count of Monte Cristo is a great book
Robinson Crusoe is on my list!
Apparently, the author of this article feels only books about men are worthy to list. This list is short sighted, uninformed, and refuses to take into account half of the world’s population.
You obviously don’t care much for men in general. Most lists feel they have to recognize second-rate writing by queer, disabled, indigenous writers so too bad.
All fantastic books, but not a single woman author on this list? Where is E. Nesbit?
Consider Lost Horizon