or a good reading list, period.

I assembled this list for book groups or book lovers · looking for something new to read and discuss — with an emphasis on the books being both well-written and discussable. You might enjoy "The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency" by Alexander McCall Smith, for example, but it doesn't make for a great discussion. The titles are alphabetized by the first letter of the MAIN first word of the title, so you will find “A Fine Balance” in the F section, for example.

I've provided links below to other good lists from which to find book club selections. There's a particular emphasis in this list on fiction, although some nonfiction is included. (At a "summit" of book groups at Politics & Prose, we noticed that men's groups tended to read more nonfiction than women's groups do; one men's group alternated nonfiction books one month with sports events the next.) Your group might decide on a specialty--for example, science fiction, spiritual titles, history or current events and issues, classics, mostly fiction, maybe books you might tend not to read on your own but would read if you have a deadline and a group to discuss the book with).

Sometimes the "bad" or not-universally-favorite books provide the liveliest discussions, but I've tried to list books here that book clubs enjoyed reading and discussing. Let me know if I've left out any favorites of your book group.

Links below take you to the amazon.com database, which is very helpful for telling you what the book is about and how some readers have reacted to it. But do frequent you local booksellers, so we can keep bookstores alive. Here is as good a place as any to thank the American library system, which allows us all to read more books than we can afford to buy. Many libraries also provide excellent general and specialized recommended reading lists and invite authors to speak.

~Pat McNees
www.patmcnees.com
www.writersandeditors.com

Asterisks indicate books that have been particular favorites for discussion.

· Accidental Tourist, The, by Anne Tyler
· After Long Silence, by Helen Fremont
· Alchemist, The, by Paulo Coelho
· All That Matters by Jan Goldstein
· All the King’s Men, by Robert Penn Warren
· All Passion Spent, by Vita Sackville-West
· All the Names, by José Saramago
· Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, The, by Michael Chabon
. American Pastoral, by Philip Roth**
· Anagrams, by Lorrie Moore
· Angela’s Ashes, by Frank McCourt
· Angle of Repose, Wallace Stegner**
· Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons, by Lorna Landvik
· Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy
· Armadillo, by William Boyd
· Art of Mending, The, by Elizabeth Berg
· As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner
· Assault, The, by Harry Mulisch
· As the Crow Flies by Ann Marie McDonald
· At Play in the Fields of the Lord by Peter Matthiessen
· Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
· Atonement by Ian McEwan
· Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream, The, by Barack Obama
· Autobiography of My Mother, by Jamaica Kincaid
· Back Roads by Tawni O'Dell
· Back When We Were Grownups, by Anne Tyler
· Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress by Dai Sijie
· Barchester Towers by Anthony Trollope
· Barn at the End of the World, by Mary Rose O’Reilly
· Beautiful Children: A Novel by Charles Bock
· Bed of Red Flowers--In Search of My Afghanistian, A, by Nelofer Pazira
· Be My Knife by David Grossman
· Bean Trees, The, by Barbara Kingsolver
· Bee Season by Myla Goldberg **
· Beginner's Luck by Laura Pedersen
· Beet Queen, The, by Louise Erdrich
· Bel Canto by Ann Patchett**
· Bell for Adano, A, by John Hersey
· Beloved, by Toni Morrison
· Bend in the River, A, by V. S. Naipaul
· Between a Rock and a Hard Place, by Aron Ralson (the Colorado climber who had to cut off his arm to survive)
· Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life, by Anne Lamott
· Black and Blue by Anna Quindlen
· Black Boy by Richard Wright
· Black Rain, by Masuji Ibuse
· Blessing Stone, The, by Barbara Wood
· Blind Assassin, The, by Margaret Atwood
· Blindness by Jose Saramago
· Blood Meridian, by Cormac McCarthy (but it's hard going)
· Blue Angel, by Francine Prose
· Blue Blood by Edward Conlon
· Blue Flower, by Penelope Fitzgerald
· Bluest Eye, The, by Toni Morrison
· Bone People, The, by Keri Hulme **
· Bonfire of the Vanities, by Tom Wolfe
· Book of Ruth, The, by Jane Hamilton
· Brave New World, by Aldous Huxley
· Breaking Clean by Judy Blunt
· Breath, Eyes, Memory by Edwidge Danticat
· Bridge of San Luis Rey, The, by Thornton Wilder
· Brighton Rock, by Graham Greene
· Brothers K, The, by David James Duncan
· Bucking the Sun by Ivan Doig
· Buffalo Soldier, The, by Chris Bohjalian
· Burnt-Out Case, A, by Graham Greene
· Cane River by Lalita Tademy
· Carry Me Across the Water by Ethan Canin
· Catcher in the Rye, The, by J.D. Salinger
· Cat's Eye, by Margaret Atwood
· Centaur in the Garden, The, by Moacyr Scliar
· Center of Everything, The by Laura Moriarty
· Charlotte's Web, by E.B. White
· Charming Billy, by Alice McDermott
· Ciderhouse Rules, The, by John Irving
· Cities of the Plain, by Cormac McCarthy (part of the Border Trilogy, which includes All the Pretty Horses
· Clearing, The, by Tim Gautreaux
· Cloudspitter, by Russell Banks
· Cold Mountain, by Charles Frazier
· Color of Water , The, by James McBride
· Color Purple, The, by Alice Walker
· Confessions of Nat Turner, The, by William Styron
· Continental Drift, by Russell Banks
· Corelli’s Mandolin, by Louis de Bernieres
· Corrections, The, by Jonathan Franzen
· Crossing to Safety, by Wallace Stegner **
· Crow Lake by Mary Lawson
· Crucible, The, by Arthur Miller
· Cry, The Beloved Country by Alan Paton
· Crying of Lot 49, The, by Thomas Pynchon
· Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, The, by Mark Haddon
· Custom of the Country, by Edith Wharton

· Damascus Gate, by Robert Stone
· Dancing at the Rascal Fair, by Ivan Doig
· Danish Girl, The, by David Ebershoff
· Da Vinci Code, The, by Dan Brown
· Daughter of Fortune by Isabel Allende
· Day of the Locust, by Nathaniel West
· Dead Man Walking, by Sister Helen Prejean
· Death Be Not Proud, by John Gunther
· Death of a Salesman, by Arthur Miller**
· Death of Vishnu, The, by Manil Suri **
· Deep End of the Ocean, The, by Jacquelyn Mitchard
· Desperate Characters by Paula Fox
· Devil in the White City, The, by Erik Larson
· Dew Breaker, The, by Edwidge Danticat
· Dewey Defeats Truman, by Thomas Mallon
· Digging Out by Katherine Leiner
· Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant, by Anne Tyler
· Disgrace, by J. M. Coetzee**
· Distinguished Guest, The, by Sue Miller
· Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood, by Rebecca Wells
· Dogs of Babel, The, by Carolyn Parkhurst
· Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight, by Alexandra Fuller
· Dream of Scipio, The, by Ian Pears
· Drowning Ruth by Christina Schwarz
· Dry (or Running with Scissors) by Augusten Burroughs
· East of Eden, by John Steinbeck
· Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia, by Elizabeth Gilbert
· Elegant Gathering of White Snows, The, by Kris Radish
· Elizabeth Costello by J. Coetzee
· Emperor of Ocean Park, The, by Stephen L. Carter
· Empire Falls, by Richard Russo
· End of the Affair, The, by Graham Greene
· Enduring Love, by Ian McEwan
· English Patient, The, Michael Ondaatje
· Ethan Frome, by Edith Wharton
· Eventide by Kent Haruf
· Everyman, by Philip Roth
· Everything Is Illuminated, by Jonathan Foer
· Eye Contact, by Cammie McGovern
· Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury
· Fair and Tender Ladies by Lee Smith
· Fall on Your Knees by Ann-Marie MacDonald
· Family History by Dani Shapiro
· Famished Road, The, by Ben Okri
· Fan's Notes, A, by Frederick Exley
· Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser
· Fasting, Feasting by Anita Desai
· Felicia’s Journey, by William Trevor
· Fifth Business, by Robertson Davies
· Fine Balance, A, by Rohinton Mistry**
· For the Relief of Unbearable Urges, by Nathan Englander
· Founding Brothers by Joseph J. Ellis
· Free Food for Millionaires, by Min Jin Lee
· French Lieutenant’s Woman, The, by John Fowles
· Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistlestop Cafe, by Annie Flagg
· Full Cupboard of Life, The, by Alexander McCall Smith
· Gesture Life, A, by Chang-Rae Lee
· Gilead, by Marilynne Robinson
· Ginger Tree, The, by Oswald Wynd
· Girl in Hyacinth Blue by Susan Vreeland
· Girl with a Pearl Earring, The, by Tracy Chevalier
· Girl, Interrupted by Susanna Kaysen
· Glass Castle, The: A Memoir, by Jeannette Walls
· Go Tell It on the Mountain, by James Baldwin
· God of Small Things, The, by Arundhati Roy
· Gone With the Wind, by Margaret Mitchell
· Good Earth, The, by Pearl S. Buck
· Good Faith, by Jane Smiley
· Good German, The, by Joseph Kanon
· Good Husband, by Gail Godwin
· Grapes of Wrath, The, by John Steinbeck
· Great Fire, The, by Shirley Hazzard
· Great Gatsby, The, by F. Scott Fitzgerald
· Great Santini, The, by Pat Conroy
· Giants in the Earth, by O.E. Rölvaag
· Guns, Germs, and Steel, by Jared Diamond
· Handmaid's Tale, The, by Margaret Atwood
· Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, by J.K. Rowling
· Hateship, Friendship, Courtship, Loveship, Marriage, by Alice Munro (short stories)
· Heart Is a Lonely Hunter, The, by Carson McCullers
· Heart of a Woman, The, by Maya Angelou
· Heart of the Matter, The, by Graham Greene
· Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, A, by Dave Eggers (discussable because self-indulgent)
· Heat and Dust, by Ruth Prawer Jhabvala
· Here on Earth by Alice Hoffman
· History of Love, The, by Nicole Krauss
· Hobo: A Young Man's Thoughts on Trains and Tramping in America by Eddie Joe Cotton
· Hopscotch, by Julio Cortazar
· Hours, The, by Michael Cunningham
· House for Mr. Biswas, A, by V. S. Naipaul
· House of Mirth, The by Edith Wharton
· House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubus III**
· House of the Spirits, The, by Isabel Allende
· House of Women by Lynn Freed
· Housekeeping, by Marilynne Robinson
· How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents, by Julia Alvarez
· How To Be Good, by Nick Hornby
· Human Stain, The, by Philip Roth
· I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith
· I Know This Much Is True by Wally Lamb
· I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou
· Icy Sparks by Gwyn Hyman Rubio
· Independent People, by Halldor Laxness
· Inheritance of Loss, The, by Kerai Desai
· Innocents Abroad, by Mark Twain
· In the Lake of the Woods, by Tim O’Brien
· In the Memory of the Forest, by Charles Powers
· Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri
· Into The Wild, by Jon Krakauer
· Into Thin Air, by Jon Krakauer
· Intuition, by Allegra Goodman (about politics in science labs)
· Jazz, by Toni Morrison
· Jesus’ Son, stories by Denis Johnson
· John Adams by David McCullough
· Jude the Obscure, by Thomas Hardy
· Kabul Beauty School: An American Woman Goes Behind the Veil by Deborah Rodriguez, Kristin Ohlson
· Killer angels, The, by Michael Shaara (classic Civil War novel)
· Kite Runner, The, by Khaled Hosseini**
· Known World, The, by Edward P. Jones

· Ladder of Years, by Anne Tyler
· Ladies and Gentlemen of the Jury, ed. Michael Lief (great closing arguments examine core issues in America)
· Larry’s Party, by Carol Shields
· Last Life, The, by Claire Messud
· Last Orders, by Graham Swift
· Last Thing He Wanted, The, by Joan Didion
· Le Divorce by Diane Johnson
· Leap of Faith by Queen Noor
· Lesson Before Dying, A, by Ernest J. Gaines**
· Liar’s Club, The by Mary Karr
· Libra, by Don DeLillo (fictional life of Lee Harvey Oswald)
· Like Water for Chocolate, by Laura Esquivel
· Life of Pi, by Yann Martel**
· Light in August, by William Faulkner
· Little Big Man by Thomas Berger
· Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
· Lonesome Dove, by Larry McMurtry (a great read)
· Long Way Down, A, by Nick Hornby
· Loon Lake, by E.L. Doctorow
· Loop, The by Joe Coomer
· Lord of the Flies, by William Golding
· Louisiana Power and Light, by John Dufresne
· Love in the Time of Cholera, by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
· Love Medicine, by Louise Erdrich
· Love Wife, The, by Gish Jen
· Lovely Bones, The, by Alice Sebold
· Lucia, Lucia by Adriana Trigiani
· Lucky Jim, by Kingsley Amis
· Lydia Cassat Reading the Morning Paper by Harriet Scott Chessman
· Magic Mountain, The, by Thomas Mann`
· Map of the World, A, by Jane Hamilton
· March, by Geraldine Brooks
· March, The, by E. L. Doctorow
· Mariette in Ecstasy, by Ron Hansen
· Master Georgie, by Beryl Bainbridge
· Master Butchers Singing Club, The by Louise Erdrich
· Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
· Memory Keeper’s Daughter, The, by Kim Edwards
· Middlemarch, by George Eliot
· Middle Passage by Charles Johnson
· Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides**
· Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt,
· Midwives