Jane Austin is fun. You'll be able to skip right through those. I would recommend Dostoyevsky as your next challenge. I think he has more meat in him, if you are looking for philosophical discourse (oh, the Russians are good for that). Start with the Idiot and go to Crime and Punishment. I think it would be hard to find a more influential novel than Crime and Punishment. So many times I've read references to a complex character in the book, Raskolnikov.

If I were you, I would skip Ulysses, unless you just want bragging rights. That book is full of scholarly references. It's like a puzzle, the most challenging long Sunday Crossword puzzle that tests your knowledge of classical references. If you like that sort of stuff, go for it.

Anyway, that's my opinion. My favorite author of all time was always Dostoyevsky. I was disappointed later in my life to find some dreadful instances of anti-semitism. Be ready for that if you read the books. He was a creature of his time, I guess.

I hope you don't mind the long commentary. I spent a lot of time reading literature from all over the world (it's what I studied in graduate school). I do have strong opinions. You write a blog like this and you get my attention :)

Happy reading.