Jerome Groopman

The Last of the Just by Andre Schwarz-Bart (Overlook, $16). This epic history of a family dedicated to doing good ends tragically with the Holocaust, and powerfully portrays the great crime of genocide. When I was a young man, this book reinforced my commitment not to ignore injustices against the innocent, regardless of race, creed, or country of origin.

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Ulysses by James Joyce (Vintage, $17). This sprawling, wonderful book about a day in Dublin captures the special joy and strivings of the Irish people. Not an easy read, but the kind of book that rewards determined effort to delve deeply and explore the many corners of character.

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American Pastoral by Philip Roth (Vintage, $15). Roth is one of the greatest living American writers, and this chilling tale of a 1960s family in upheaval is set against a tumultuous time in our country’s history. It brings into sharp focus how difficult it is to raise children and keep them in equilibrium. This is the kind of book that both frightens and informs a parent.

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He, She, and It by Marge Piercy (Fawcett, $8). Written as science fiction, this narrative is prescient, portraying a time when the Earth has become toxic and life itself may be extinguished. Under such conditions, human beings are forced to make difficult ethical choices, many of which could eventually be at hand, given the pace of scientific technology.

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The Confessions of Nat Turner by William Styron (Vintage, $15). Styron is a master at capturing the sounds and sentiments of the South. Like Faulkner before him, Styron focuses on the tragedy of racism, a shameful legacy that haunts us to this day.

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A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving (Ballantine, $8). Irving has both a playful and bizarre worldview, pushing his characters into absurd situations that, despite their absurdity, teach us important lessons about ourselves. At its core, this book is about faith, how we pursue it, perceive it, and adopt or abandon it.

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