11 Must-Read Books Recommended by Ann Patchett

She’s been called the “patron saint of independent bookstores” and rightly so. Patchett doesn’t just write books, she sells them at Parnassus Books in Nashville. The New York Times best-selling author was the featured speaker at the University of California San Diego’s Dinner in the Library on September 8, 2017. She charmed the audience with her graciousness and shared her top reads. Here’s the list for your reading pleasure.

A Book About Post-Apocalyptic Fiction
 Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
A Book About Science
Lab Girl  by Hope Jahren
A Book About Essays
The Unspeakable by Meghan Daum
A Book About Middle Schoolers
Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson
A Book About Public Office and the Golden Age of Journalism
The Bully Pulpit by Doris Kearns Goodwin 
A Book About a Transgender Person  
In the Dark Room by Susan Faludi
A Book About Historical Fiction Set Before the 1900’s
The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead
A Book About Politics
Evicted by Matthew Desmond
A Book About Food
My Kitchen Year by Ruth Reichl
A Book About Mental IIlness
Imagine Me Gone by Adam Haslett
A Book About the Universal Bond Between a Parent and a Child
The Rainbow Comes and Goes by Anderson Cooper and Gloria Vanderbilt
Be sure to watch her full talk on UCSD-TV/UCTV’s Library Channel.