The Greatest Novels

 

What are the greatest novels? This is not my area of expertise; I am a poetry guy. It is entirely likely that I have not read some of the greatest novels. But from my own experience, these are the novels that did not merely entertain, but took up residence in my mind, and changed how I looked at the world. 

At least, they changed me.

Crime and Punishment 
Don Quixote
Alice in Wonderland
Through the Looking Glass
1984
Lord of the Flies
Heart of Darkness
Metamorphosis

World's Best Prose Narratives

Not my field, exactly; I'm more of a poetry guy. Being a poetry guy, I dislike long, rambling books, and am drawn to language that is fine in detail. The piece also has to have a deep and powerful vision to be on this list--not just a rip-snorting read. These are books that explain the universe.

Andersen, Hans Christian, "The Princess and the Pea"
Andersen, Hans Christian, "The Emperor's New Clothes"
Burgess, Anthony, A Clockwork Orange

Carroll, Lewis, Alice in Wonderland

Carroll, Lewis, Through the Looking Glass

Conrad, Joseph, Heart of Darkness

Defoe, Daniel, Robinson Crusoe

Dostoyevsky, Feodor, Crime and Punishment

Golding, William, Lord of the Flies

Kafka, Franz, The Metamorphosis

Orwell, George, 1984

Orwell, George, Animal Farm

Wells, H. G., "In the Country of the Blind" (short story)

Wells, H.G., "The Door in the Wall" (short story)

Nope, no Joyce. Too much of a chore to read. 

Happy for suggestions re what I am missing.