Best books by authors who can be considered as part of the "Silent Generation" (i.e. born between 1925 and 1945).

The term is usually used for Americans, but for the purposes of this list, any author born between the above years (more or less) is fine.

Any authors born after 1945 can be added to the list for baby boomers: http://www.goodreads.com/list/show/32...
1

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4.26 avg rating — 6,927,893 ratings
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2

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4.15 avg rating — 2,448,641 ratings
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3

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4.38 avg rating — 1,371,287 ratings
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4

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4.17 avg rating — 94,671 ratings
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5

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4.39 avg rating — 1,240,808 ratings
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6

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4.10 avg rating — 249,549 ratings
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7

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4.26 avg rating — 217,452 ratings
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8

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4.04 avg rating — 93,296 ratings
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9

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3.90 avg rating — 84,719 ratings
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10

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3.96 avg rating — 164,032 ratings
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11

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4.24 avg rating — 338,406 ratings
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12

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3.75 avg rating — 414,980 ratings
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13

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4.20 avg rating — 782,892 ratings
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14

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3.95 avg rating — 73,074 ratings
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15

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really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 288,818 ratings
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16

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4.07 avg rating — 133,477 ratings
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17

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4.12 avg rating — 1,112,754 ratings
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18

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4.19 avg rating — 69,657 ratings
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19

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4.40 avg rating — 159,708 ratings
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20

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4.09 avg rating — 734,033 ratings
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21

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3.95 avg rating — 88,797 ratings
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22

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4.11 avg rating — 19,168 ratings
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23

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3.94 avg rating — 38,546 ratings
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24

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3.86 avg rating — 117,969 ratings
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25

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4.16 avg rating — 193,581 ratings
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25

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3.99 avg rating — 5,825 ratings
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27

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4.18 avg rating — 15,493 ratings
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28

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3.68 avg rating — 10,249 ratings
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29

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4.04 avg rating — 157,745 ratings
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30

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4.17 avg rating — 91,738 ratings
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31

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3.87 avg rating — 8,071 ratings
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32

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4.34 avg rating — 101,451 ratings
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33

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4.08 avg rating — 378,854 ratings
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34

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3.87 avg rating — 21,379 ratings
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35

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4.08 avg rating — 98,504 ratings
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36

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4.17 avg rating — 196,489 ratings
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37

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4.24 avg rating — 43,605 ratings
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38

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3.94 avg rating — 180,040 ratings
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39

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4.10 avg rating — 35,524 ratings
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40

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4.26 avg rating — 18,719 ratings
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41

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3.73 avg rating — 9,343 ratings
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41

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3.92 avg rating — 79,228 ratings
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43

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4.15 avg rating — 660,115 ratings
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44

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3.97 avg rating — 95,280 ratings
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45

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really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 3,016 ratings
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46

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3.78 avg rating — 4,582 ratings
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47

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3.80 avg rating — 34,864 ratings
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48

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2.84 avg rating — 16,127 ratings
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49

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4.19 avg rating — 21,550 ratings
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50

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4.19 avg rating — 14,243 ratings
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51

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4.14 avg rating — 10,287 ratings
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52

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4.01 avg rating — 1,970 ratings
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53

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4.05 avg rating — 64,317 ratings
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54

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3.72 avg rating — 33,828 ratings
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54

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4.17 avg rating — 27,076 ratings
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56

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4.11 avg rating — 239,456 ratings
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57

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4.19 avg rating — 8,599 ratings
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58

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4.27 avg rating — 950,705 ratings
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59

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4.26 avg rating — 590,530 ratings
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60

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3.76 avg rating — 16,802 ratings
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61

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3.76 avg rating — 6,004 ratings
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62

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3.84 avg rating — 10,408 ratings
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63

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3.69 avg rating — 98,233 ratings
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64

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4.13 avg rating — 25,609 ratings
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65

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3.78 avg rating — 246,329 ratings
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66

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3.98 avg rating — 22,708 ratings
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67

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4.17 avg rating — 6,753 ratings
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67

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3.77 avg rating — 6,003 ratings
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69

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3.98 avg rating — 3,182 ratings
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70

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3.56 avg rating — 575 ratings
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71

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4.24 avg rating — 18,902 ratings
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71

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4.28 avg rating — 756,177 ratings
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73

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4.38 avg rating — 40,942 ratings
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74

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3.49 avg rating — 5,780 ratings
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75

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4.06 avg rating — 9,342 ratings
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76

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3.75 avg rating — 17,801 ratings
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77

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4.18 avg rating — 6,544 ratings
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78

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3.74 avg rating — 74,323 ratings
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79

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3.69 avg rating — 9,010 ratings
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80

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4.27 avg rating — 296 ratings
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80

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3.67 avg rating — 304 ratings
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82

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3.82 avg rating — 77 ratings
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83

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3.97 avg rating — 470 ratings
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84

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3.46 avg rating — 221 ratings
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85

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3.44 avg rating — 206 ratings
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86

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3.76 avg rating — 399 ratings
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86

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3.83 avg rating — 42 ratings
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86

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3.77 avg rating — 56 ratings
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89

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3.71 avg rating — 2,304 ratings
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90

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3.93 avg rating — 17,955 ratings
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91

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3.95 avg rating — 46,871 ratings
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92

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4.14 avg rating — 24,492 ratings
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92

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3.63 avg rating — 1,762 ratings
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94

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4.40 avg rating — 8,774 ratings
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94

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4.30 avg rating — 1,997 ratings
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96

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3.82 avg rating — 10,440 ratings
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96

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4.02 avg rating — 653,422 ratings
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98

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3.73 avg rating — 60,935 ratings
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99

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3.79 avg rating — 232,683 ratings
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100

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3.74 avg rating — 2,246 ratings
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228 books · 33 voters · list created February 13th, 2013 by Ben (votes) .
12 likes · 
Lists are re-scored approximately every 5 minutes.


Ben 1082 books
70 friends
Susanna - Censored by GoodReads 3387 books
851 friends
Bettie 15681 books
19 friends
Thom 6022 books
293 friends
Sarah 2374 books
146 friends
Betsy 955 books
121 friends
Likka 193 books
196 friends
Amy 2013 books
12 friends

More voters…


Comments Showing 1-8 of 8 (8 new)

dateUp arrow    newest »

Susanna - Censored by GoodReads I combined duplicates, and 1 was combined; was that it?


message 2: by Thom (last edited Feb 15, 2013 02:40AM) (new)

Thom Dunn It seems odd to exclude Truman Capote from this list, he who misses it by just three arbitrary months. Truman Capote who was a chief entertainer for this generation of writers. Who was famously a contemporary and friend of Harper Lee whose autobiographical To Kill a Mockingbird gives us a stunning portrait of him and is #1 on this list.


message 3: by Thom (new)

Thom Dunn Add: Joyce Carol Oates; Cynthia Ozick


message 4: by Thom (new)

Thom Dunn Reese wrote: "I voted for Updike's COUPLES; Thom D. voted for what appears to be another edition of COUPLES. But when you click on that edition, you find Richard Russo's ELSEWHERE."

Oh, swell....I'll check it out. Yesterday my GR text turned to garbage, then just as unexpectedly turned back. Asteroids ? Terrorists ?


message 5: by Ben (new)

Ben Thom wrote: "It seems odd to exclude Truman Capote from this list, he who misses it by just three arbitrary months. Truman Capote who was a chief entertainer for this generation of writers. Who was famously a c..."

Thom, go ahead and add Capote. The dates are approximations.


message 6: by Thom (new)

Thom Dunn Let others decide Salman Rushdie, 1947; Norman Mailer, 1923.... Taken alongside the writers listed above, they form part of the general zeitgeist of the Silent Generation, IMO.


message 7: by Ben (new)

Ben Thom wrote: "Let others decide Salman Rushdie, 1947; Norman Mailer, 1923.... Taken alongside the writers listed above, they form part of the general zeitgeist of the Silent Generation, IMO."

Rushdie fits better with the Baby Boomers list (see link in list description above). Also, I think 1923 is a bit too far off to qualify for this list. I realize that these divisions are fairly arbitrary, but we have to draw the line somewhere.


message 8: by Thom (new)

Thom Dunn Ben wrote: "Thom wrote: "Let others decide Salman Rushdie, 1947; Norman Mailer, 1923.... Taken alongside the writers listed above, they form part of the general zeitgeist of the Silent Generation, IMO."

Rus..."


Agreed


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