Page turners: The top 10 books voted most valuable to humanity

The bible was voted the most valuable book to humanity.

18:14 14 November 2014

London-based publisher The Foilo Society has conducted a survey to identify the top 10 most valuable books and judging by the results scientists-turned-authors dominate the top three positions.

British participants were asked to rate the influence and significance of 30 selected books on the modern world. The bible topped the list while half in the list were penned by scientists.

Two of the top three titles were written by scientists. Darwin’s The Origin of Species gained 35 per cent, while Stephen Hawking’s A Brief History of Time gained 17 per cent.

Meanwhile, the Bible got 37per cent votes and was voted the most valuable text overall.

Other scientific works included: Relativity by Einstein Principia Mathematica - a three-volume work on the foundations of mathematics by Alfred North Whitehead and Bertrand Russell.

Tom Walker, Editorial Director at The Folio Society, said: ‘The results of the survey highlighted some interesting dynamics, with A Brief History of Time on the list -surely one of the most under-read bestsellers ever written, - relatively little on economics despite the financial climate and only two overtly political, fiction titles in the list.

‘The first question I had was whether the similar figures for Darwin and the Bible does show a continuing polarisation between the realms of science and religion, or whether in fact it reveals a more balanced approach to ideas for the modern reader.’

The top 10 books voted most valuable to humanity

1) The Bible (37%)
2) The Origin of Species (35%)
3) A Brief History of Time (17%)
4) Relativity (15%)
5) Nineteen-Eighty-Four (14%)
6) Principia Mathematica (12%)
7) To Kill a Mockingbird (10%)
8) The Qur’an (9%)
9) The Wealth of Nations (7%)
10) The Double Helix (6%)