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UPSC Books List: Toppers’ Recommended Must-Read Books Every Aspirant Should Start With

Amith

UPSC Books List

📚 UPSC Books List: Topper's Recommended

Preparing for the UPSC Civil Services Examination is a marathon, not a sprint. Every topper emphasizes one key point: Start with basics, and master the NCERTs before moving to advanced books.

In this blog, we’ll cover:

  • Why NCERTs are important

  • Subject-wise standard books (with ‘Link’ text to easily find them online)

  • Strategy to use these books effectively

🌟 Why NCERT Books Are a Must for UPSC?

  1. Foundation Builder: NCERTs help you understand concepts in simple language.

  2. Direct Questions: Every year, 10–15 questions are directly or indirectly asked from NCERTs.

  3. Authentic Source: Government-published, hence reliable and unbiased.

  4. Linking Concepts: Helps you connect different topics across subjects (like history + geography + polity).

🔹 Tip: Start with Class 6–12 NCERTs for History, Geography, Polity, Economics, and Science.

⚠️ Important Warnings Before You Buy UPSC Books

1. Don’t Buy All Books at Once

Bro, don’t fall into the trap of buying all the recommended books together. Your table will look full, but your mind will feel empty. 😅
It becomes overwhelming, and you’ll start losing motivation because the pile feels too big to finish.

👉 Buy one or two books at a time, start reading, make notes, and then move on to the next.

2. Don't Be a Book Collector

UPSC is not about how many books you have, it’s about how well you study the few right ones.
Toppers revise limited books 5–6 times, not 50 books one time.

📌 Focus on content, not quantity.

3. Stick to One Source for Each Subject

For example, don’t study Polity from both Laxmikanth and some random coaching notes.
Choose one good source and revise it again and again. Switching too often only leads to confusion.

4. NCERTs First, Advanced Books Later

Jumping directly into Laxmikanth or Ramesh Singh without reading NCERTs will make you feel lost.
NCERTs build your foundation. Don’t skip them!

5. Follow Only One YouTube Channel or Coaching for a Subject

Bro, I prefer you make your own notes or read your coaching centre books (if you’ve joined any).
Otherwise, search YouTube for quality classes (like for Economy) – stick to one channel, watch with full focus, and make proper notes.

6. Avoid Over-Reliance on Telegram PDFs

Don’t just collect PDFs and keep forwarding them.
Ask yourself: Are you reading or just collecting?
Free materials help, but discipline and consistency matter more.

7. Revise More, Read Less

The secret to clearing UPSC is not in the first reading… but in the third or fourth revision.
So keep your sources limited and keep revising them.

📖 Subject-wise UPSC Book List (with Links)

🏛️ History

  1. NCERT History (Class 6–12) – [Link]

  2. India’s Ancient Past – R.S. Sharma (Old NCERT) – [Link]

  3. History of Medieval India – Satish Chandra – [Link]

  4. Modern India – Spectrum by Rajiv Ahir – [Link]

  5. Indian Art & Culture – Nitin Singhania – [Link]

🗺️ Geography

  1. NCERT Geography (Class 6–12) – [Link]

  2. Certificate Physical Geography – G.C. Leong – [Link]

  3. Oxford School Atlas – Oxford Publications

    • 3rd Edition – [Link]
    • 4th Edition – [Link]

🏛️ Polity

  1. NCERT Political Science (Class 9–12) – [Link]

  2. Indian Polity – M. Laxmikanth – [Link]

  3. Important Supreme Court Judgments (Optional Reference) – [Link]

📈 Economy

  1. NCERT Economics (Class 9–12) – [Link]

  2. Indian Economy – Ramesh Singh – [Link]
    (or)
    Indian Economy Courseware (English) by Jayant Parikshit - Link

  3. Economic Survey (Latest) – [Link]

  4. Budget Document (Summary PDF) – [Link-1] [Link-2]

🌐 Environment & Ecology

  1. NCERT Biology (Class 9 & 12 – selected chapters) – [Link]

  2. Environment – Shankar IAS Book – [Link]

  3. Government Reports (MOEF, IPCC summary) – [Link]

📰 Current Affairs

  1. The Hindu / Indian Express – [Join telegram for PDF's]

  2. PIB (Press Information Bureau) – [Join telegram for PDF's]

  3. Yojana / Kurukshetra Magazines – [Join telegram for PDF's]

  4. Vision IAS / Insights Daily Current Affairs PDF – [Join telegram for PDF's]

📚 General Science

  1. NCERT Science (Class 6–10) – [Link]

  2. Science & Tech – Spectrum / TMH Manual (optional) – [Link]

✍️ CSAT (Paper 2)

  1. CSAT Manual – Tata McGraw Hill / Arihant – [Link]

  2. Previous Year Question Papers (CSAT) – [Link]

📝 Answer Writing Practice (Mains)

  • Vision IAS / Forum IAS Test Series – [Link]

  • Previous Years’ Mains Question Papers – [Link]

  • Daily Answer Writing Initiatives (Insights / IASBaba) – [Link]

🧠 Strategy Tips for Beginners

  • 📘 Step 1: Read NCERTs before standard books

  • 📌 Step 2: Revise multiple times

  • 🗒️ Step 3: Make your own notes from NCERTs and standard books

  • 📅 Step 4: Practice MCQs daily (Prelims focused)

  • ✍️ Step 5: Write answers regularly (Mains focused)

🧾 Final Thoughts

Remember, UPSC is not about reading 100 books once, it is about reading one book 100 times. Build your foundation with NCERTs. Then layer your knowledge with standard reference books. And finally, sharpen your edge with test series and answer writing.

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