Waiting for Godot (1953) is Samuel Beckett’s most renowned play, centering on two vagrants who await the enigmatic Godot.

The Unnamable (1953) is the concluding novel in Beckett’s trilogy, which also includes Molloy (1951) and Malone Dies (1951). Originally penned in French, these novels are introspective monologues imbued with moments of dark humor.

Krapp’s Last Tape (1958) is another of Beckett’s stage plays. It features a monologue where the elderly Krapp tries to relive the fervor of his past by listening to recordings of his younger self.

Eugène Ionesco’s play The Chairs (1958) narrates the story of a man who, despite having the potential for greatness, chooses a simple life with his wife. After many years, he decides to reveal his secret to society. The play includes only three characters: the old man, the woman, and the person hired to disclose the old man’s secret. This work is a fundamental piece of the theater of the absurd.

David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross (1983) exemplifies Beckett’s impact on playwriting. Mamet was significantly influenced by Harold Pinter, to whom Glengarry Glen Ross is dedicated, and Pinter, in turn, was greatly influenced by Beckett.

Harold Pinter’s The Birthday Party (1958) revolves around Stanley, an unemployed pianist living in a seaside boarding house. Stanley is menacingly confronted and overpowered by two intruders who accuse him of mysterious, unspecified crimes.

Anthony Cronin’s Samuel Beckett: The Last Modernist (1997) is a comprehensive and well-crafted biography of Samuel Beckett, exploring his life as a writer, artist, and individual.