7 Books That Somehow Turned 50 in 2025

Time seems to fly by faster and faster. One way of getting hit with the stark reality of time is seeing how old some of our favorite things have become. Books that we read in the past can shock us when we hear their publication year.

If you’re ready for a shock to your system, we’re going to look at some of the books that celebrated their 50th anniversaries in 2025. For those who don't want to do mental math, that means these books were published in 1975. And yes, knowing that the ‘70s were 50 years ago is an existential crisis in itself. These books look great for their age and deserve a little recognition.

1. Salem’s Lot by Stephen King
2. Ragtime by E.L. Doctorow
3. Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt
4. Forever... by Judy Blume
5. Where Are the Children? by Mary Higgins Clark
6. Crocodile on the Sandbank by Elizabeth Peters
7. Curtain: Poirot's Last Case by Agatha Christie

Salem’s Lot by Stephen King

The first book on our list is by the master of horror, Stephen King. Salem's Lot was only King's second novel. King has said in interviews that this was one of his favorite novels because of how it portrays small towns. It’s also a favorite for fans, being adapted several times to film and TV.

Salem’s Lot tells the story of Ben Mears, a writer who goes back to his hometown to find inspiration for his next novel. Unfortunately for Ben and the rest of the town, a vampire has moved into the famous haunted house. Ben and his new friends have to fight against the army of vampires created when the original vampire bites and turns the townspeople. King took what sounds like a basic vampire plot and added his terrifying style and tone to make one of his best tales.

Ragtime by E.L. Doctorow

The world of musical theater is familiar with Ragtime, since this 1975 book inspired the Tony Award-winning musical of the same name. There was also a movie adaptation of Ragtime that was released in 1981. And if the film and the Broadway play are as brilliant as critics and fans have claimed, then the book they’re based on must be worth the read.

Ragtime is a historical fiction novel that, sometimes oddly, blends historical figures into the story of a wealthy white family gaining a new awareness of prejudice and racism while interacting with the Eastern European immigrants and a Black family in the neighborhood. The major themes of the novel ask the audience to question their own understanding of wealth, poverty, class, and race.

Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

When many people hear the title Tuck Everlasting, they may think of Disney’s 2002 film starring Alexis Bledel. That movie was based on Natalie Babbitt’s novel of the same name, and the book has aged well for a story about immortality.

Winnie Foster is a 10-year-old in the 1880s who ventures into the woods by her house and finds a spring. She finds a teenage boy there and becomes friends with him. He, Jesse Tuck, introduces Winnie to his family, who are all immortal after drinking from the spring. Winnie helps the Tuck family keep their secret and struggles to decide whether or not she wants to live forever along with them.

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Forever... by Judy Blume

It may surprise you to learn that Judy Blume, the children’s and young adult author, has several books on the Banned Books List. Forever... is the one most often challenged, or put up for banning. This is because Forever... is meant for older teens, discussing topics like sex and birth control.

The novel follows a couple as they try to navigate when and how they want to become intimate. It teaches the things many teens feel uncomfortable asking an adult.

Where Are the Children? by Mary Higgins Clark

The queen of mystery and thriller novels, Mary Higgins Clark gave us her most famous book in 1975. Where Are the Children? is a masterclass in suspense writing, and it will have you on the edge of your seat the entire time. Seriously, the twists and turns that the plot takes will leave you constantly jaw-dropped.

Years after being wrongly accused of murdering her children, Nancy Harmon has finally started to heal. She has a new husband and two beautiful children who help her to move on from her tragic past. But when her children are kidnapped, the suspicion falls on Nancy once again. Will she ever know peace, or will the horrific past repeat itself?

Crocodile on the Sandbank by Elizabeth Peters

Crocodile on the Sandbank is the first book in Elizabeth Peters’s Amelia Peabody series. It’s a historical mystery series about Amelia, a wealthy woman in her 30s, as a sleuth solving different cases. Elizabeth Peters is a pseudonym for Barbara Mertz, an Egyptologist who used her knowledge of the ancient civilization to craft a suspenseful story.

Amelia Peabody travels the world after inheriting her father’s wealth, determined to explore the places she’d only read about in books. She befriends another British woman, Evelyn Forbes, while in Rome, and they travel together to Egypt. There, they meet the Emerson brothers, and all four of them get involved in a mystery of a supposed mummy walking around in the dead of night.

It’s a great read, especially if you love accurate details in your historical fiction.

Curtain: Poirot's Last Case by Agatha Christie

1975 gave us the last book written by Agatha Christie before her death. While there were still other books published posthumously, Curtain was the last novel published during her lifetime. It is the finale of Christie’s beloved Hercule Poirot series, and like so many of her tales, wraps up with a series of shocking twists.

Poirot is now elderly and in a wheelchair due to arthritis. That doesn’t mean that he isn’t still the sharpest mind, though. He realizes that several murders, seemingly unconnected at first glance, were all committed by the same person. He knows that it is one of the guests staying at the hotel he’s at, and faces mounting pressure as the body count continues to climb. Even after his own death, Poirot proves that he is the greatest detective of the age.

One of the best parts about books is that no matter how old they are, they offer the same enchantment to first-time readers. That’s why, even after 50 years, these novels still hold up and will be enjoyed for many more years to come.