A couple of titles to make Faulks' list:
THE BLUE FLOWER by Penelope FitzgeraldRead about all 40 books.
A short novel of mysterious power about the poet Novalis (1772-1801) and his love for a plain 12-year-old girl. Art of such refinement that it defies attempts to explain how it works.
THE UNBEARABLE LIGHTNESS OF BEING by Milan Kundera
I remember the exhilaration with which I read this novel for review when it came out. I had never before seen big ideas so excitingly integrated into human lives.
--Marshal Zeringue