In this novel, a young law student works hard to climb up the social ladder in cutthroat Parisian society.

Cousin Bette is one angry lady: get a load of how she gets revenge on her arrogant relatives.

Dickens's novel may be full bureaucracy, but it's still a fun read.

What does a bored housewife living in a small town in the French provinces do with her time? She has affairs, of course.

Pip's journey from childhood to adulthood is full of obstacles, but he does well for himself and lives up to some of his great expectations.

This story of a girl and her brother growing up in a small provincial English town is a classic coming-of-age tale.

The narrator of this short novel by Dostoevsky is one twisted dude. How twisted? See for yourself.

Raskolnikov, the protagonist of this novel, commits a murder and faces the unexpected consequences.

A young man falls in love with an older woman. It's a classic study of 19th-century French society.

Yup, this baby one of the longest novels ever written, and it's 1000+ pages of sheer awesome.

Tolstoy's famous heroine just can't figure out a way to be with her handsome lover.

This novel about a group of characters living in the town of Middlemarch is so intricate it's practically a soap opera.

Check out Twain's classic novel about Huck and his friend the escaped slave Jim as they paddle down the Mississippi River.

In this story, a married man meets a lady with a lapdog, and all kinds of subtle things start to happen.

This collection of essays is a great (and short!) introduction to Realism.

Since the novel is such an important medium for Realist writers, you can't do without this collection of essays.

If you want to get all theoretical about your Realism, then this is the book to go to.

This one's got everything you ever wanted to know about 19th-century Realism but were afraid to ask.

A handy discussion of realistic techniques in contemporary literature. Just goes to show you that the style is still popular.