Everyday, new books from an infinite number of authors hit the physical or digital bookshelves. While plenty of them have a great story to tell, there are tons of excellent evergreen titles that you should pick up and read as soon as possible.

In this article, we will share what avid readers like Robert Bassam have consumed over the years…

1) The Richest Man in Babylon

Confused how you have never been able to hold on to money that you have made over the years, while others that probably make less than you manage to sock away money for retirement?

The wisdom that makes this possible lies at the core of the book, The Richest Man In Babylon. Set in this ancient civilization many thousands of years ago, it tells the story of a chariot-maker that learns the secrets of money after becoming the apprentice of a money lender.

Of all the lessons relayed in this book, the fundamentals that it relays how paying oneself first will forever change your financial reality.

2) Think and Grow Rich

Think and Grow Rich is another classic non-fiction self-help book that is well worth your time. Written by Napoleon Hill, it communicates the insights he learned from interviewing scores of self-made millionaires and learning from the examples of many others.

The main lesson imparted by this book is that there you need more than technique and strategies to build wealth and to experience financial success – you need to fix your mindset as well, or it will sabotage your efforts.

Instead of being defeated by your attitude, you can use your mental resources to support what you are trying to accomplish, making it easier to reach your end goals.

3) To Kill A Mockingbird

While we thought we had left the issues that plagued us in the mid 20th century behind us, they have reared their ugly head again in recent times.

If you haven’t done so in school, To Kill A Mockingbird will prove to be a timely read. Telling the story of a black man that has been falsely accused of a serious crime, it not only tackles the issue of racial discrimination, but it also implores the reader to step inside the shoes of others, to experience life as they do.

This is the true lesson of the book, to have empathy for people outside our own personal circle. In today’s self-segregated world that the internet makes possible, this perspective is needed more than ever.

4) 1984

A tome that was intended to warn us of a future that could be avoided, George Orwell’s 1984 is a badly-needed alarm bell to wake us up to the current climate in which we find ourselves.

In a world where NSA surveillance and ‘alternative facts’ are taken for granted, delving into Orwell’s dystopia where Big Brother lorded over us all is key to understanding how we have slipped into our present situation.

By informing ourselves about a future we thought could never happen, we can begin the process of clawing our way back to a system where fairness and liberty reigns.