The Great American Read - Season 1

Season 1
The Great American Read is an eight-part series that explores and celebrates the power of reading, told through the prism of America's 100 best-loved novels (as chosen in a national survey)*. It investigates how and why writers create their fictional worlds, how we as readers are affected by these stories, and what these 100 different books have to say about our diverse nation and our shared human experience.
The television series features entertaining and informative documentary segments, with compelling testimonials from celebrities, authors, notable Americans and book lovers across the country. It is comprised of a two-hour launch episode in which the list of 100 books is revealed, five one-hour theme episodes that examine concepts common to groups of books on the list, and a finale, in which the results are announced of a nationwide vote to choose America's best-loved book.
The series is the centerpiece of an ambitious multi-platform digital, educational and community outreach campaign, designed to get the country reading and passionately talking about books.

Episodes

Launch Special
The country's 100 favorite novels are announced in a two-hour celebration of reading, hosted by Meredith Vieira. Celebrities, authors, and book lovers reveal the novels that have affected their lives. The national vote gets under way, to decide America's Best-Loved Novel.

Fall Kick-off
Meredith Vieira returns as the Great American Read hits high gear. You spent the summer reading and voting for your favorite novels, now tune in to see which books celebrities, authors, and other readers across the country are rooting for.

Who Am I?
How do the books we love answer the question "Who am I?" We explore first-person narratives and other ways authors tell stories of characters on personal journeys. From navigating the teen years through discovering our "chosen families", these novels can help us find ourselves at any age.

Heroes
We examine books on America's list that feature heroic characters. Celebrities, literary experts, authors and everyday book lovers discuss why our favorite heroes are complex and relatable, from the everyday hero to the tragic and unlikely or anti-hero.

Villains and Monsters
How do novels featuring our favorite villains and monsters help us understand why people behave badly? We examine the evil characters in our favorite novels, to find out why we go to the dark side. We also meet authors who have created some of our best-loved villains.

What We Do For Love
How do our favorite novels reflect what we do for love? From classic romance to family dramas, from unrequited passion to unforgettable first love, we take a look at our best-loved books that feature the most important emotion in our lives. And we examine why we are drawn to these stories.

Other Worlds

Grand Finale
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