Skip to content

The Great American Read

Season 1 · 8 episodes · May 22, 2018

  1. The Great American Read season 1 episode 1 still

    Episode 1

    Launch Special

    May 22, 2018

    America’s 100 best-loved books are revealed, launching the campaign & the nationwide vote.

  2. The Great American Read season 1 episode 2 still

    Episode 2

    Fall Kick-off

    Sep 11, 2018

    Join host Meredith Vieira in the search for America's best-loved novel. The voting is underway, and the competition is heating up; any book could win.

  3. The Great American Read season 1 episode 3 still

    Episode 3

    Who Am I?

    Sep 18, 2018

    Explore the ways that America's best-loved novels answer the age-old question, “Who am I?” From life lessons to spiritual journeys, these books help us understand our own identities and find our place in the world.

  4. The Great American Read season 1 episode 4 still

    Episode 4

    Heroes

    Sep 25, 2018

    Follow the trials and tribulations of some of literature's favorite protagonists. From Katniss Everdeen to Don Quixote, examine how these everyday heroes and anti-heroes find their inner strength, overcome challenges and rise to the occasion.

  5. The Great American Read season 1 episode 5 still

    Episode 5

    Villains & Monsters

    Oct 2, 2018

    Learn why literature's most notorious villains began behaving badly. Many weren't born evil, but became that way when faced with some of the same choices we make every day. See what these villains can teach us about our own dark impulses.

  6. The Great American Read season 1 episode 6 still

    Episode 6

    What We Do for Love

    Oct 9, 2018

    Fall in love with some of literature's most beautiful romances and explore the many forms of love, from family to passion to the unrequited type. Learn how America's best-loved novels reflect the things we do for love.

  7. The Great American Read season 1 episode 7 still

    Episode 7

    Other Worlds

    Oct 16, 2018

    Take a magical journey to another world through some of America's best-loved novels. From Middle Earth to Lilliput, the trials and tribulations of these alternate universes help us to better understand our own world.

  8. The Great American Read season 1 episode 8 still

    Episode 8

    Grand Finale

    Oct 23, 2018

    And the winner is... after millions of votes, find out which of the 100 nominated books is crowned America's best-loved novel.