There are few people more insufferable than those all high-and-mighty about the classic pieces of literature they’ve read. Like, we GET it. You’ve read every single Jane Austen novel, EVEN Northanger Abbey. COOL.

If the classic novels on your to-be-read pile have been gathering more dust than eyeballs – or perhaps you’ve been avoiding them altogether – fret not, dear reader. Simply sweep that pile into the bin (kidding, of course – donate them please) and start again. Here are five quote-unquote “must read” classics that we reckon you actually must read.

SENSE AND SENSIBILITY BY JANE AUSTEN Think of it like a rom-com, but written some two hundred or so years ago. Jane Austen’s debut novel has long-suffered middle child syndrome among the company of Pride and Prejudice, but dare we say Sense and Sensibility is her best. Witty, heartbreaking, eloquent, and a whole lot sillier than you’ll expect it to be, there’s something very precious about how similar the relationships of the early 19th century are to those of today (men not replying to letters, situationships falling apart, et cetera).

IN COLD BLOOD BY TRUMAN CAPOTE This non-fiction novel by Truman Capote pretty much invented the true-crime genre. Detailing the events as they unfolded around the 1959 Clutter family murders in Kansas, Truman served up a slice of juicy small-town gossip packaged in once-in-a-generation writing and – voila! Readers developed a frenzied appetite for a dish they’d never tasted before. In Cold Blood is mildly harrowing, but admittedly as good as everyone says it is.

PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK BY JOAN LINDSAY Joan Lindsay’s iconic Picnic at Hanging Rock is basically the biggest prank in Australian literature. The novel opens with a plea to the reader to make up their own mind about what really happened at Hanging Rock on Valentine’s Day in 1900, before heavily insinuating that everything that follows in the book did, in fact, happen. And look, it does feel scarily real, we’ll give Joan that. The only tell-tale sign is that the days of the week in the book don’t quite match up with the ones from our real-life calendar. Nice try, Joan.

TO THE LIGHTHOUSE BY VIRGINA WOOLF Now, friends, let us introduce you to the one and only Ms Virigina Woolf. The 20th century English writer is a nifty gateway to a world of classic literature for those just now dipping their toes in the shallows of famously good writing. While To the Lighthouse isn’t a necessarily long book, it’s dense, introspective approach and stream-of-consciousness cadence will demand your full attention. But trust us, it’s worth it.

MY BRILLIANT CAREER BY MILES FRANKLIN Yes, that Miles Franklin, from the award and all. Considered one of the most famous of the Aussie classics, My Brilliant Career is also one of the ones that actually holds up to its name. Brilliant? You bloody bet. The 1901 novel was written under a traditionally masculine name, despite so obviously being a book written by a woman, for women, about the truisms of being a woman. Over a century on and it still rings true.

After some more ace reads? Have a squiz at these public transport-perfect books or these transportive reads. Plus, sign up to our newsletter to never miss a rad book round-up.