Top 50 Picks for Spring 2014 from Well Read (50 books)

Mary Ann Gwinn is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and lifelong book addict. On the national public television series “Well Read,” Mary Ann helps book lovers discover new books to enjoy. Each week she recommends a new list of books to viewers based upon the guest author that is interviewed on the show that week.

These are the top 50 picks she recommended to viewers on episodes airing in April, May and June 2014.

Mary Ann offers more about all of her “Well Read” book recommendations on her blog at www.wellreadtv.com/category/blog/.

After she won a Pulitzer Prize for her reporting on the Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1991, Mary Ann became the Book Editor and a weekly columnist at the Seattle Times. She also sits on the board of the National Book Critics Circle.

New episodes of “Well Read” are taped weekly and air nationally on local public television stations across the country.

To find specific viewing dates and times for "Well Read" in your area, go to www.wellreadtv.com/schedule.

flag

List Challenge
The average Goodreads member has read 2 out of 50 books on this list — how many have you read?

All Votes

1	The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro (Goodreads Author) 4.14 avg rating — 361,430 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
2	Cathedral by Raymond Carver 4.24 avg rating — 40,359 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
3	Tinkers by Paul Harding 3.42 avg rating — 38,951 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
4	A Grief Observed by C.S. Lewis 4.22 avg rating — 96,512 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
5	The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion 3.93 avg rating — 302,177 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
6	Last Bus to Woodstock (Inspector Morse, #1) by Colin Dexter 3.82 avg rating — 18,290 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
7	From Doon With Death (Inspector Wexford, #1) by Ruth Rendell 3.67 avg rating — 15,147 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
8	The Beekeeper's Apprentice (Mary Russell and Sherlock Holmes, #1) by Laurie R. King (Goodreads Author) 4.04 avg rating — 87,855 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
9	Knots and Crosses (Inspector Rebus, #1) by Ian Rankin (Goodreads Author) 3.80 avg rating — 57,621 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
10	The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean (Goodreads Author) 3.66 avg rating — 22,027 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
11	Stalking the Wild Asparagus by Euell Gibbons 4.22 avg rating — 1,121 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
12	Flower Confidential: The Good, the Bad, and the Beautiful in the Business of Flowers by Amy Stewart (Goodreads Author) 3.97 avg rating — 1,545 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
13	Winter's Tale by Mark Helprin 3.51 avg rating — 29,492 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
14	The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton 3.97 avg rating — 196,322 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
15	The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald 3.93 avg rating — 5,932,813 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
16	Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter 3.68 avg rating — 185,530 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
17	Atonement by Ian McEwan (Goodreads Author) 3.95 avg rating — 564,367 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
18	The Fly on the Wall by Tony Hillerman 3.77 avg rating — 3,915 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
19	A Family Trust by Ward Just 3.81 avg rating — 70 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
20	An Unfinished Season by Ward Just 3.56 avg rating — 1,225 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
21	The Shipping News by Annie Proulx 3.88 avg rating — 152,746 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
22	The Imperfectionists by Tom Rachman (Goodreads Author) 3.55 avg rating — 50,357 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
23	Motherless Brooklyn by Jonathan Lethem 3.86 avg rating — 42,610 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
24	Native Speaker by Chang-rae Lee 3.75 avg rating — 9,102 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
25	A Good Fall by Ha Jin 3.71 avg rating — 2,066 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
26	What Happened to Anna K. by Irina Reyn (Goodreads Author) 3.18 avg rating — 1,120 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
27	The Black Stallion (The Black Stallion, #1) by Walter Farley 4.19 avg rating — 75,628 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
28	The Age of Wonder: How the Romantic Generation Discovered the Beauty and Terror of Science by Richard Holmes 3.97 avg rating — 10,008 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
29	Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier (Goodreads Author) 3.90 avg rating — 55,712 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
30	Obsessive Genius: The Inner World of Marie Curie by Barbara Goldsmith 4.07 avg rating — 3,190 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
31	Rosalind Franklin: The Dark Lady of DNA – A Powerful Biography of the Woman Airbrushed Out of Scientific History by Brenda Maddox 4.12 avg rating — 2,607 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
32	Leaving Home by Garrison Keillor 3.83 avg rating — 1,951 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
33	Empire of the Sun by J.G. Ballard 3.98 avg rating — 22,615 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
34	When We Were Orphans by Kazuo Ishiguro (Goodreads Author) 3.54 avg rating — 47,774 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
35	Shanghai Girls (Shanghai Girls, #1) by Lisa See (Goodreads Author) 3.92 avg rating — 162,930 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
36	Five Star Billionaire by Tash Aw 3.47 avg rating — 4,721 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
37	The Great Game: The Struggle for Empire in Central Asia by Peter Hopkirk 4.33 avg rating — 9,169 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
38	Return of a King: The Battle for Afghanistan by William Dalrymple 4.35 avg rating — 5,074 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
39	An Unexpected Light: Travels in Afghanistan by Jason Elliot 4.06 avg rating — 1,825 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
40	The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11 by Lawrence Wright (Goodreads Author) 4.36 avg rating — 37,638 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
41	An Anthropologist on Mars: Seven Paradoxical Tales by Oliver Sacks 4.15 avg rating — 23,806 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
42	The Book of Woe: The DSM and the Unmaking of Psychiatry by Gary Greenberg 3.65 avg rating — 742 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
43	Saving Normal: An Insider's Revolt Against Out-Of-Control Psychiatric Diagnosis, DSM-5, Big Pharma, and the Medicalization of Ordinary Life by Allen Frances 3.85 avg rating — 1,821 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
44	Live Through This: A Mother's Memoir of Runaway Daughters and Reclaimed Love by Debra Gwartney (Goodreads Author) 3.61 avg rating — 898 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
45	Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place by Terry Tempest Williams 4.19 avg rating — 10,787 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
46	The Snow Leopard by Peter Matthiessen 4.06 avg rating — 20,662 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
47	The Call of the Wild by Jack London 3.92 avg rating — 473,673 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
48	Old Yeller by Fred Gipson 4.11 avg rating — 103,840 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
49	Marley and Me: Life and Love With the World’s Worst Dog by John Grogan 4.14 avg rating — 477,044 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
50	The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein (Goodreads Author) 4.23 avg rating — 554,975 ratings	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars