I WAS ALWAYS A KID WHO WAS INTERESTED IN THE DARK SIDE OF HUMAN NATURE.

I THINK PEOPLE TEND TO BE EITHER PEOPLE WHO LIKE TO LOOK UNDER THE ROCK OR PEOPLE WHO DON'T LIKE TO LOOK UNDER THE ROCK.

AND I'VE ALWAYS BEEN LIKE, "WHAT IS UNDER THIS ROCK?"

BOINK.

WOMAN: EVIL IS INTERESTING.

EVIL IS EXCITING.

AND OUR HEART RATE INCREASES, BLOOD FLOW CHANGES.

MAN: YOU'RE JUST INTRIGUED BY THIS IDEA OF EVIL AND WHAT IT MEANS AND HOW IT OPERATES IN THE WORLD.

WELCOME TO "THE GREAT AMERICAN READ," EVERYONE.

I'M MEREDITH VIEIRA, HERE AT THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.

THE COMPETITION IS ON TO CHOOSE AMERICA'S BEST-LOVED NOVEL.

YOU'VE BEEN VOTING ON SOCIAL MEDIA, VIA TEXT MESSAGE, TOLL-FREE CALL, AND AT PBS.ORG.

WHILE YOU'VE BEEN VOTING AND SHARING, WE'VE BEEN INVESTIGATING THE THEMES TRENDING IN YOUR FAVORITE BOOKS, AND WE'VE DISCOVERED THAT AMERICANS CAN'T SEEM TO GET ENOUGH OF NOVELS WITH NOTORIOUS VILLAINS AND MONSTERS.

WHY ARE WE DRAWN TO THESE STORIES ABOUT EVIL-DOERS?

WHAT DO THEY REVEAL ABOUT OUR OWN DARK IMPULSES?

WOMAN: THERE ARE VILLAINS IN LITERATURE BECAUSE THERE ARE VILLAINS IN LIFE.

RIGHT?

THEY ALLOW US TO SEE A LITTLE BIT OF WHAT IT MIGHT BE LIKE TO KIND OF GO BEYOND THE EDGES OF ACCEPTED SOCIETY.

HOW DO YOU GO ABOUT CRAFTING A VILLAINOUS CHARACTER?

VERY FEW PEOPLE SAY TO THEMSELVES, "HEY, I'M EVIL.

I'M EVIL.

I'M AN EVIL PERSON."

WHAT IS THE PERSON'S MOTIVATION?

WHAT IS THEIR STORY THEY'RE TELLING THEMSELVES?

MAN: THE MONSTER IS VERY HUMAN, VERY MUCH A METAPHOR FOR A LOT OF THINGS.

YOU CAN ALMOST SYMPATHIZE WITH THE MONSTER, AND THEY BECOME, IN SOME WAYS, THE BEST PARTS OF BOOKS, EVEN IF AT THE END WE KNOW THEY MUST GO AWAY OR DIE.

THERE'S A LOT TO BE LEARNED FROM PEOPLE WHO DO THINGS THE WRONG WAY.

AND I THINK VILLAINS ARE SOMETIMES OUR BEST GUIDE IN TEACHING US THAT.

YOU KNOW, THE VILLAIN IS THE HERO OF THE OTHER SIDE.

VIEIRA: WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO READ AS MANY OF THESE BOOKS AS YOU'D LIKE, AND IF YOU FIND YOURSELF ROOTING FOR THE BAD GUYS, BE SURE TO VOTE FOR THEM, REMEMBER OUR GRAND FINALE IS COMING UP ON OCTOBER 23RD, SO IT'S MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER TO VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITES.

WOMAN: GUYS, YOU HAVE TO VOTE FOR "FRANKENSTEIN."

PLEASE HELP US REWARD MARY SHELLEY.

I KNOW IT WOULD BRIGHTEN HER SPIRITS FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE, OR EVEN REANIMATE HER, SO TO SPEAK.

WOMAN: "ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND."

I THINK YOU SHOULD VOTE FOR IT BECAUSE THE QUEEN OF HEARTS IS THE BEST VILLAIN OF ALL TIME.

MAN: "REBECCA."

THIS IS EVIDENCE THAT I WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO WRITE GOOD FICTION, BECAUSE THIS JUST BLEW ME AWAY, AND THERE'S NO WAY I COULD HAVE THOUGHT OF ANY OF THAT.

I'LL JUST BE A CONSUMER OF THIS MEDIUM.

[LAUGHS] ANNOUNCER: "THE GREAT AMERICAN READ" WAS MADE POSSIBLE IN PART BY A GRANT FROM ANNE RAY FOUNDATION AND BY CONTRIBUTIONS TO YOUR PBS STATION FROM VIEWERS LIKE YOU.

THANK YOU.

OF THE BOOKS THAT ARE TRENDING IN THE COMPETITION, A SURPRISING NUMBER ARE TALES THAT TAKE US TO THE DARK SIDE.

BUT THESE AREN'T JUST RUN-OF-THE-MILL HORROR STORIES, DEEPER TRUTHS ARE REVEALED IN OUR FAVORITE NOVELS ABOUT VILLAINS AND MONSTERS.

AND BY READING THEM, WE FIND OUT WHAT COULD MAKE ANY ONE OF US A VILLAIN.

I THINK WE'RE DRAWN TO VILLAINS AND MONSTERS IN AMERICA BECAUSE IT HELPS US KNOW WHO WE ARE.

YOU CAN ONLY UNDERSTAND LIGHT AGAINST DARKNESS.

WOMAN: WHEN I'M READING BOOKS, I FIND--I THINK THIS IS COMMON-- THAT WE IDENTIFY WITH THE VILLAIN.

AND YOU CAN UNDERSTAND A LITTLE BIT ABOUT WHAT HAS MADE THEM AND WHAT HAS SHAPED THEM, THAT THEIR MONSTROSITY DOESN'T SEEM FOREIGN.

WOMAN: WHEN WE READ ABOUT VILLAINS, PART OF US IS GOING TO IDENTIFY WITH THAT VILLAIN, BECAUSE ALL OF US HAVE THAT PART OF OURSELVES THAT WANTS TO GET CLOSE TO THAT LINE, YOU KNOW, WITHOUT NECESSARILY CROSSING IT.

AND WE CAN CROSS IT, YOU KNOW, IN THE STORIES.

AND THAT'S HEALTHY.

VIEIRA: SOME OF YOUR FAVORITE TALES ABOUT THE DARK SIDE DEMONSTRATE HOW EASILY WE CAN GO BAD WHEN WE ARE CONSUMED BY AN OBSESSION.

OBSESSION IS PASSION WITHOUT A LEASH.

IT JUST BURNS EVERYTHING OUT.

THERE'S NOTHING LEFT BEHIND.

IT'S JUST A PURELY DESTRUCTIVE FORCE.

VILLAINS HAVE TO BE TOTALLY FOCUSED ON WHAT THEY WANT, AND NOTHING STANDS IN THEIR WAY.

KERR: WE ALL HAVE LIKELY FOUND OURSELVES IN A SITUATION WHERE WE GET SUPER OBSESSED WITH ONE THING, AND YET WE DO KIND OF TEMPER OUR OBSESSION OR WE STAY WITHIN THE CONFINES OF ACCEPTABLE SOCIAL BEHAVIOR.

BUT IN STORIES, WE CAN IMAGINE WHAT IT'S LIKE TO SAY, "YOU KNOW WHAT, FORGET ABOUT MY CAREER.

I'M GOING TO GO CHASE THIS WHALE FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE."

VIEIRA: AND THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT CAPTAIN AHAB DID IN A BOOK THAT'S REELING IN YOUR VOTES, HERMAN MELVILLE'S 19TH CENTURY AMERICAN CLASSIC "MOBY-DICK."

MAN: THE THING THAT MAKES "MOBY-DICK" SO GREAT IS THAT IT'S REALLY ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHY ARE PEOPLE BAD?

IT HAS AHAB, WHO IS THE VILLAIN.

HE'S JUST A NORMAL MAN, YOU KNOW, HUMAN BEING WHO FOR SOME REASON SOME DARKNESS HAS BEEN UNLOCKED IN HIM.

WHAT IS IT IN THE WORLD THAT INSPIRED AHAB TO BE THE WAY HE IS?

VIEIRA: MELVILLE HAD A FASCINATION WITH THE SEA.

AND AT THE AGE OF 20 TOOK A VOYAGE ACROSS THE ATLANTIC AS A CABIN BOY, THE FIRST OF MANY OCEAN TRAVELS THAT INSPIRED HIS FAMOUS STORY.

IN THE LEGENDARY NOVEL, AHAB IS THE CAPTAIN OF A WHALING SHIP AND SEEKS REVENGE AGAINST THE WHALE THAT BIT OFF HIS LEG.

AHAB USES HIS POWERFUL CHARISMA TO CONVINCE THE CREW TO ABANDON THEIR ORIGINAL MISSION AND FOLLOW HIM ON HIS OBSESSIVE, BLOOD-THIRSTY CRUSADE TO KILL THE WHITE WHALE MOBY-DICK.

MULLER: "AND THIS IS WHAT YE HAVE SHIPPED FOR, MEN!

"TO CHASE THAT WHITE WHALE ON BOTH SIDES OF LAND, "AND OVER ALL SIDES OF EARTH, TILL HE SPOUTS BLACK BLOOD AND ROLLS FIN OUT."

MAN: YOU THINK ABOUT SOMEONE LIKE AHAB, WHO PUTS HIS CREW AT DANGER BECAUSE HE ONLY SEES KILLING THIS WHALE.

AND SO, THE WAY YOU BECOME A VILLAIN IS YOU'RE ONLY POSSESSED AND, LIKE, OBSESSED WITH LIKE THIS IS WHAT I SEE IN FRONT OF ME, SO I DON'T SEE THE THINGS THAT'S HAPPENING, WHO I'M HURTING.

WOMAN: AHAB IS SO OBSESSED WITH THE WHALE THAT HE CAN'T THINK ABOUT THE HUMANITY OF THE SAILORS.

STOPPING FOR WATER, MAKING SURE THAT THE MEN HAVE ENOUGH TO EAT, MAKING SURE THAT THEY GET ENOUGH SLEEP, THAT BECOMES LESS AND LESS.

VIEIRA: LIKE THE BOOK'S AUTHOR, ENGLISH PROFESSOR MARY EDWARDS IS A SAILOR, AND SHE BRINGS HER STUDENTS TO AN AUTHENTIC SETTING TO EXPLORE MELVILLE'S RENOWNED NOVEL.

EDWARDS: I TAKE MANY STUDENTS ABOARD THE 1841 WHALE SHIP, "CHARLES W. MORGAN," AND I WALK THEM AROUND AND SHOW THEM THE DIFFERENT LOCATIONS IN WHICH DIFFERENT SCENES OF THE BOOK TAKE PLACE.

IT'S AMAZING TO SEE THEM RESPOND TO THAT.

READY?

YEAH.

VIEIRA: MARY EDWARDS AND HER STUDENTS UNDERSTAND WHAT MAKES AHAB A VILLAIN, BUT THEY ALSO SEE HIM AS AN ANTI-HERO.

ROTHMAN: THE ANTI-HERO IS A FASCINATING THING.

THE INTERNAL LOGIC OF A STORY IS YOU ROOT FOR THE PROTAGONIST.

SO A COOL THING YOU CAN DO TO MAKE YOUR STORY REALLY INTERESTING IS JUST PUT SOMEONE WHO YOU WOULDN'T ORDINARILY ROOT FOR IN THE PROTAGONIST'S SPOT, AND ALMOST LIKE A MAGIC TRICK, WE THE READER IDENTIFY WITH THAT PERSON AND WANT THEM TO SUCCEED.

EDWARDS: I HAVE DEEP SYMPATHY FOR AHAB.

HE THINKS OF HIS WIFE AND CHILD, AND THERE'S A MOMENT WHEN HE CONSIDERS GIVING EVERYTHING UP AND GOING BACK TO BE WITH THEM.

AND THEN THE OBSESSION, THE MONOMANIA TAKES OVER.

AND THAT MOMENT ALWAYS GETS ME.

IT ALWAYS MAKE ME FEEL SO SAD FOR HIM.

GIRL: I THINK THAT IT IS REALLY, REALLY EASY TO TURN PEOPLE INTO MONSTERS.

BUT I SEE A LOT OF HUMANITY IN AHAB.

HE'S JUST A PERSON.

HE WAS HURT, ACTUALLY.

READY ON THE HALYARD?

ALL: READY!

EDWARDS: "MOBY-DICK" IS A WARNING FOR ALL OF US AGAINST MONOMANIA AND OBSESSION.

YOU SHOULD VOTE FOR "MOBY-DICK" AS THE GREATEST AMERICAN NOVEL BECAUSE IT SIMPLY IS THE GREATEST AMERICAN NOVEL.

VIEIRA: THE SUBJECT OF OBSESSION IS EXPLORED IN ANOTHER CLASSIC TALE, IN A WAY THAT SEEMS JUST AS APPROPRIATE TODAY AS WHEN IT WAS PUBLISHED IN 1890-- "THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY" BY OSCAR WILDE.

IT IS A WARNING AGAINST FIXATING ON YOUTH AND BEAUTY.

WOMAN: IT'S ESSENTIALLY KIND OF A SCIENCE-FICTION HORROR STORY.

DORIAN GRAY IS A BEAUTIFUL YOUNG MAN OF 20 WHO HAS HIS PORTRAIT PAINTED, AND THROUGH SOME METAPHYSICAL THING THAT HAPPENS, THE PICTURE AGES, AND HE REMAINS HIS YOUNG, UNBLEMISHED SELF.

SOMEHOW THE IDEA THAT NOTHING HE DOES WILL BE REFLECTED ON HIS WRINKLE-FREE FACE GIVES HIM PERMISSION TO GO OUT AND DO THE MOST HORRIBLE, DEBAUCHED THINGS THAT ANYONE COULD IMAGINE.

TOVEY: "THE ONLY WAY TO GET RID OF A TEMPTATION "IS TO YIELD TO IT.

"RESIST IT, AND YOUR SOUL GROWS SICK WITH LONGING "FOR THE THINGS IT HAS FORBIDDEN TO ITSELF, "WITH DESIRE FOR WHAT ITS MONSTROUS LAWS HAVE MADE MONSTROUS AND UNLAWFUL."

VIEIRA: ONCE DORIAN GIVES IN TO HIS TEMPTATIONS, HE IS WILLING TO PROTECT HIS LOOKS AT ANY COST, EVEN IF IT MEANS COMMITTING MURDER.

NIXON: A LOT OF IT IS ABOUT, PARTICULARLY IN OUR VERY VISUALLY-FOCUSED WORLD RIGHT NOW, THE POWER THAT COMES WITH BEAUTY.

WE LET PEOPLE OFF THE HOOK IF THEY'RE ATTRACTIVE.

ARE WE GOOD 'CAUSE WE WANT TO BE GOOD OR ARE WE GOOD BECAUSE WE WANT PEOPLE TO THINK THAT WE'RE GOOD?

AND IF WE COULD GO AND DO THE WORST THINGS IN THE WORLD TO SEE WHAT IT FEELS LIKE AND TO FEEL THE POWER, WOULD WE DO IT IF NO ONE EVER KNEW AND NO TRACE OF IT EVER SHOWED ON OUR INNOCENT FACE?

WOMAN: THE NOVEL IS AS BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN AS DORIAN GRAY IS BEAUTIFUL TO OTHER PEOPLE.

I THINK WHEN WE READ "THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY," WE TAKE PLEASURE IN IT, AND WE'RE HORRIFIED BY THE PLEASURE WE TAKE IN IT.

AND SO WE DISCOVER PERHAPS A MONSTROUS SIDE OF OURSELVES.

THAT MIGHT BE THE MOST CHILLING PART OF DORIAN GRAY.

NIXON: OSCAR WILDE.

NOBODY WRITES BETTER THAN OSCAR WILDE.

I'M CYNTHIA NIXON, AND THIS IS ONE OF MY ALL-TIME FAVORITE BOOKS, "THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY" BY OSCAR WILDE.

VOTE FOR IT.

IT'S AN AMAZING CONTEMPORARY BOOK THAT WAS WRITTEN MORE THAN A HUNDRED YEARS AGO.

CHECK OUT ALL 100 TITLES AT PBS.ORG.

YOU CAN CAST YOUR VOTE RIGHT THERE OR ON OUR FACEBOOK PAGE, ON TWITTER, VIA TEXT MESSAGE OR TOLL-FREE CALL.

THERE ARE LOTS OF WAYS TO MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD.

MAN: IT'S A VICARIOUS THRILL.

I LIKE TO READ ABOUT PEOPLE BEHAVING BADLY AND IN THE SAFE SPACE OF FICTION.

WOMAN: THE BOOKS THAT I LIKE THAT SCARE ME ARE THE CRIME, MURDER MYSTERIES, THE SUSPENSE WHERE YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN THE NEXT PAGE.

YOU FEEL, LIKE, GOOSEBUMPS, AND YOUR HEART'S BEATING A LITTLE BIT FASTER.

JUST THE THRILL OF BEING TERRIFIED.

VIEIRA: VILLAINS AND MONSTERS ARE OFTEN FEATURED IN THE THRILLER, A GENRE THAT UTILIZES THE ELEMENT OF SUSPENSE.

AND 15 OF THE 100 NOVELS ON YOUR LIST INCORPORATE THIS LITERARY DEVICE.

I NEED ALWAYS TO WRITE SUSPENSE INTO ANY FICTION BECAUSE IN MY ESTIMATION, IT'S THE KEY ELEMENT OF OUR LIVES.

WE LIVE IN A CONSTANT STATE OF SUSPENSE.

WOMAN: FOR ME, I'VE ALWAYS USED SUSPENSE AS A MECHANISM TO TELL A STORY BECAUSE IT'S A GREAT WAY TO HOOK PEOPLE AND TALK ABOUT A LOT OF OTHER THINGS.

VIEIRA: ONE OF THE MOST FAMOUS THRILLER WRITERS OF ALL TIME IS AGATHA CHRISTIE.

AND YOUR FAVORITE CHRISTIE MYSTERY IS A BOOK PUBLISHED IN 1939 THAT REVOLUTIONIZED THE GENRE.

FLYNN: MY FAVORITE BOOK IS "AND THEN THERE WERE NONE" BY AGATHA CHRISTIE.

AND I JUST THINK IT'S ONE OF THE ALL-TIME GREAT WHODUNIT, WHYDUNIT, WHO'S NEXT MURDER MYSTERIES.

I READ IT AT LEAST ONCE A YEAR.

I HAVE A VERY DISTINCT MEMORY OF A WONDERFUL LIBRARY IN KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI, AND THE LIBRARIAN SAID, YOU KNOW, "WHAT KIND OF BOOKS ARE YOU INTERESTED IN?"

I SAID, "I LIKE SCARY BOOKS, I LIKE MYSTERIES, AND I LIKE BOOKS WHERE PEOPLE DIE."

AND BEING A GOOD LIBRARIAN, INSTEAD OF CALLING THE AUTHORITIES, SHE SAID, "HAVE YOU TRIED AGATHA CHRISTIE?"

MAN: "AND THEN THERE WERE NONE" TAKES PLACE IN THE LATE 1930S IN ENGLAND.

10 STRANGERS ARE INVITED TO ATTEND SOME SORT OF WEEKEND PARTY OR GATHERING ON A REMOTE ISLAND OFF OF THE COAST OF DEVON.

A RECORD IS PUT ON, AND EACH ONE IS ACCUSED OF A MURDER THAT THEY WERE NEVER CAUGHT OR CONVICTED FOR.

ONE OF THE GUESTS IS NOT WHAT THEY SEEM, ONE OF THE GUESTS IS ALMOST DELIVERING VIGILANTE JUSTICE, AND THEN ONE BY ONE, THEY'RE SLOWLY PICKED OFF ACCORDING TO THE DICTATES OF AN OLD ENGLISH NURSERY RHYME.

MAN: 10 LITTLE SOLIDER BOYS WENT OUT TO DINE.

ONE CHOKED HIS LITTLE SELF, AND THEN THERE WERE 9.

BOLLEN: 10 STRANGERS IN A REMOTE LOCATION ARE KILLED ONE BY ONE.

IT'S ACTUALLY BECOME THE FORMULA FOR MOST HORROR MOVIES AND A LOT OF MYSTERIES.

IT BASICALLY INVENTED AN ENTIRE FORMULA, AN ENTIRE WAY OF TELLING A STORY, WHICH, OF COURSE, THE BEST BOOKS ALWAYS DO.

THESE TWO OBSESSIONS THIS KILLER HAD, JUSTICE AND MURDER, THESE ARE THE VERY SAME QUALITIES THAT DEFINE A MURDER MYSTERY READER.

THEY LOVE READING ABOUT MURDER.

THEY LOVE READING ABOUT THE BLOOD.

AND THEY ALSO NEED THE COMFORT OF JUSTICE AT THE END.

AGATHA CHRISTIE IS PLAYING WITH THE IDEA OF WHAT THE READER WANTS.

THAT'S WHY IT'S SUCH A SMART, CRUEL BOOK.

FLYNN: I REMEMBER, YOU KNOW, BEING QUITE GIDDY ABOUT THE WHOLE THING AS A FIFTH GRADER, THINKING, LIKE... ♪ THE GROWNUPS ARE GONNA DIE ♪ [LAUGHS] VIEIRA: AUTHOR GILLIAN FLYNN HARNESSED HER LOVE OF AGATHA CHRISTIE TO WRITE HER OWN THRILLER, "GONE GIRL."

FLYNN: THE BASIC PITCH WAS MAN COMES HOME TO FIND WIFE IS MISSING.

DID HE DO IT?

VIEIRA: THE NOVEL CENTERS AROUND THE BEAUTIFUL COUPLE NICK AND AMY DUNNE, WHOSE SEEMINGLY FAIRYTALE MARRIAGE IS SHATTERED WHEN AMY DISAPPEARS.

AND AS THE WHODUNIT UNRAVELS, THE VENEER OF THIS PICTURE PERFECT COUPLE CHIPS AWAY.

I WAS GETTING MARRIED, AND IT SEEMED LIKE A GREAT IDEA TO WRITE A REALLY DARK STORY ABOUT MARRIAGE TO PRESENT TO YOUR NEWLYWED HUSBAND.

YOU KNOW, I STARTED THINKING OF THAT IDEA OF WHAT HAPPENS IF TWO PEOPLE WHO ARE EXPERT STORYTELLERS, AND NICK AND AMY ARE PROFESSIONAL WRITERS, WHAT IF AS THEY GET TO KNOW EACH OTHER, THEY DISCOVER THAT THEY ARE ACTUALLY INDEED VERY DIFFERENT PEOPLE?

VIEIRA: BUT NICK AND AMY AREN'T JUST MANIPULATING EACH OTHER, THEY'RE ALSO KEEPING SECRETS FROM THE READER.

HEYBORNE: "I WAS SOMETIMES AS GUILTY OF PLAYING "THE FIGURE-ME-OUT GAME AS AMY WAS.

"I'VE LEFT THAT BIT OF INFORMATION OUT TOO.

I'M A BIG FAN OF THE LIE OF OMISSION."

I JUST KNEW I WANTED TO PLAY WITH THIS IDEA OF UNRELIABLE NARRATORS.

THERE'S JUST NOTHING MORE UNSETTLING THAN THINKING THAT THIS PERSON THAT IS YOUR GUIDE ON THIS JOURNEY INTO THIS BOOK SLOWLY REVEALS HIMSELF TO HAVE THEIR OWN AGENDA.

BOLLEN: AN UNRELIABLE NARRATOR--MAY BE, YOU KNOW, THE ULTIMATE CONTEMPORARY EXAMPLE OF AN UNRELIABLE NARRATOR, SOMEWHERE BETWEEN TOO BRILLIANT AND COMPLETELY INSANE.

WHAT I LOVED ABOUT "GONE GIRL" IS I NEVER COULD ANTICIPATE THE LEVEL OF CRAZY THAT IT WENT TO.

GILLIAN FLYNN, I JUST WANT TO KNOW WHAT GOES ON IN HER HEAD TO COME UP WITH THESE CHARACTERS AND THESE STORYLINES.

HI, I'M DANA.

GET INVOLVED IN "THE GREAT AMERICAN READ" AND GET OUT THERE AND VOTE.

VIEIRA: IT'S CLEAR FROM YOUR VOTES THAT MANY OF YOUR FAVORITE VILLAINS AREN'T INTENT ON BEING EVIL FOR ITS OWN SAKE.

THEY'RE OFTEN TRYING TO DO SOMETHING THAT TO THEM SEEMS ALMOST MORAL.

I DON'T TRY TO WRITE ANYONE WHO'S, "OOH, I'M A VILLAIN.

LET ME GET UP TODAY "AND JUST GO OUT AND DO VILLAINY AND PULL THE WORLD IN DARKNESS."

THEY ALL HAVE GRIEVANCES.

THEY ALL HAVE WOUNDS.

AND THEY HAVE THINGS THAT DRIVE THEM TO DO THE THINGS THAT THEY DO.

VIEIRA: THESE NEXT NOVELS EXPLORE THE LENGTHS TO WHICH CHARACTERS WILL GO TO PROTECT THOSE THEY LOVE.

AND NO ONE REPRESENTS THIS IDEA BETTER THAN GEORGE R.R.

MARTIN, AUTHOR OF THE FANTASY SERIES "A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE," BETTER KNOW BY THE TITLE OF THE FIRST BOOK, PUBLISHED IN 1996, "A GAME OF THRONES."

WHAT I WANTED TO DO WAS TAKE CERTAIN TRADITIONS OF FANTASY, BUT MELD TO IT A LEVEL OF GRITTINESS AND REALISM AND SUBTLY AND MORAL AMBIGUITY THAT YOU SEE IN REAL HISTORY.

VIEIRA: IN THE FIRST BOOK OF THE SERIES, THE RULER OF THE 7 KINGDOMS DIES SUDDENLY, LEAVING BEHIND HIS WIDOW, QUEEN CERSEI, WHO MAY HAVE HAD A HAND IN HIS DEATH.

SHE WILL STOP AT NOTHING TO PROTECT THE ROYAL LINEAGE OF HER CHILDREN.

WHAT MAKES CERSEI SO GREAT IS SHE'S GOT A VERY HUMAN ELEMENT TO HER.

YOU SEE WHERE CERSEI COMES FROM AND YOU SEE HOW MUCH SHE LOVES HER FAMILY, BUT YOU ALSO SEE HOW MUCH SHE'S WILLING TO DESTROY TO PROTECT HER FAMILY.

DOTRICE: "HER SON WAS ATTENDED BY HIS KITTENS.

"AS SHE WATCHED THE CATS FROLIC ABOUT HIS FEET, "CERSEI FELT A LITTLE BETTER.

"NO HARM WILL EVER COME TO TOMMEN "WHILST I STILL LIVE.

"SHE WOULD KILL HALF THE LORDS IN WESTEROS "AND ALL THE COMMON PEOPLE IF THAT WAS WHAT IT TOOK TO KEEP HIM SAFE."

PEEPLES: SHE HAS THAT MATERNAL NATURE THAT WE ALL HAVE OF, I WANT MY CHILD TO SUCCEED.

AND IF THERE'S NOBODY TO PUT A CHECK ON THAT, IT BECOMES CERSEI.

I WOULD SAY SHE'S A LEVEL WE NEVER WANT TO REACH.

KERR: SHE HAS HER OWN MOTIVES, SHE HAS HER OWN GOALS, AND WE CAN RELATE TO THAT.

YOU KNOW, WE CAN RELATE TO WANTING TO PROTECT THE PEOPLE THAT WE LOVE OR WANTING TO, YOU KNOW, PROTECT AN ENTIRE COMMUNITY.

WE COULD SEE OURSELVES TAKING SOME OF THOSE PATHS TOWARDS THE DARK SIDE.

WE'RE ALL THESE COMPLICATED PEOPLE WHO ARE CAPABLE OF DOING A HEROIC ACT ON TUESDAY, AND ON WEDNESDAY DOING SOMETHING HORRIBLE ILL-CONSIDERED THAT HURTS OTHER PEOPLE 'CAUSE WE DIDN'T THINK ABOUT IT.

THERE'S ALSO THE LESSONS OF TRYING TO UNDERSTAND OTHER PEOPLE EVEN WHEN YOU DON'T NECESSARILY AGREE WITH THEM.

YOU CAN UNDERSTAND SOMEONE AND STILL THINK THEY'RE WRONG.

"GAME OF THRONES" IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE BOOK SERIES.

YOU SHOULD DEFINITELY READ IT IF YOU HAVEN'T.

AND YOU SHOULD VOTE FOR IT TO BE THE BEST BOOK IN AMERICA.

VIEIRA: GEORGE R.R.

MARTIN USES FANTASY TO EXPLORE HOW WE GO TO EXTREMES FOR OUR LOVED ONES, BUT IN THE 1938 NOVEL "REBECCA," ENGLISH AUTHOR DAPHNE DU MAURIER APPLIED A VERY DIFFERENT STYLE TO EXAMINE DESTRUCTIVE LOVE-- THE GOTHIC GENRE.

"REBECCA" READS LIKE A GHOST STORY.

GOTHIC LITERATURE AT ITS VERY BEST.

YES.

I REMEMBER WHEN WE READ IT, THERE WAS LIKE-- THE HOUSE ITSELF FEELS LIKE IT'S ALMOST ALIVE.

THERE'S ALL OF THESE HALLWAYS THAT SORT OF ARE NEVER ENDING.

AND-- IT IS A JUICY ONE.

IT IS A JUICY ONE.

IT IS A GOOD, JUICY, GOTHIC...

NOVEL.

NOVEL.

GOTHIC LITERATURE TENDS TO BE HIGHLY SENSATIONAL STORIES THAT HAVE OFTEN SUPERNATURAL ELEMENTS.

THEY OFTEN TAKE PLACE IN LARGE, CREEPY HOUSES FULL OF SECRETS.

THERE ARE BIG REVELATIONS.

THERE'S BIG EMOTIONS.

THEY'RE SPINE CHILLING.

THEY'RE FULL OF TERROR.

THIS IS SORT OF BIG LITERATURE THAT'S AIMING FOR BIG RESPONSES.

VIEIRA: THE NOVEL "REBECCA" IS TOLD BY AN UNNAMED NARRATOR WHO MARRIES A WEALTHY ENGLISH WIDOWER CALLED MR. DE WINTER, BUT WHEN THE NARRATOR MOVES INTO HER NEW HUSBAND'S HOME, MANDERLEY, SHE IS GREETED BY THE HOUSEKEEPER, MRS. DANVERS, WHO HAS TAKEN UNUSUALLY GREAT CARE TO SUSTAIN THE LEGACY OF THE FIRST MRS. DE WINTER, REBECCA.

SEHGAL: MRS. DANVERS PRESERVED AND KEPT REBECCA'S WING OF THE HOUSE AND KEPT-- HER HAIRBRUSHES ARE STILL ON THE DRESSING TABLE AND HER NIGHTGOWN IS STILL ON THE BED.

EVERYTHING IS CLEAN AND HER PERFUME IS STILL IN THE AIR.

HERE'S WHAT INTRIGUED ME ABOUT "REBECCA."

THE MOST IMPORTANT CHARACTER IN THAT STORY IS NEVER THERE.

REBECCA, SHE'S DEAD.

IT IS THE MEMORY OF REBECCA IN THE HEARTS AND MINDS OF EVERY CHARACTER PORTRAYED THAT ALLOWS YOU TO FEEL HER PRESENCE IN EVERY PAGE YOU READ.

AND I JUST THOUGHT THAT WAS BRILLIANT.

HERITAGE: MRS. DANVERS IS TERRIFYING.

SHE DOESN'T WANT A SECOND MRS. DE WINTER.

SHE DOESN'T WANT SOMEONE TO OCCUPY REBECCA'S PLACE.

MASSEY: "DON'T BE AFRAID, SAID MRS. DANVERS.

"I WON'T PUSH YOU.

I WON'T STAND BY YOU.

"YOU CAN JUMP OF YOUR OWN ACCORD.

"WHAT'S THE USE OF YOUR STAYING HERE AT MANDERLEY?

"YOU'RE NOT HAPPY.

"MR. DE WINTER DOESN'T LOVE YOU.

"THERE'S NOT MUCH FOR YOU TO LIVE FOR, IS THERE?

"WHY DON'T YOU JUMP NOW AND HAVE DONE WITH IT?

THEN YOU WON'T BE UNHAPPY ANY MORE."

HERITAGE: AS A HOUSEKEEPER, MRS. DANVERS CAN INFILTRATE THE BEDROOM, THE MOST PRIVATE SPACE IN THE HOUSE.

SHE CAN WALK AT ANY MOMENT INTO THIS WOMAN'S LIFE.

SEHGAL: THERE'S SOME KIND OF ATTACHMENT THERE THAT FEELS VERY POWERFUL AND ILLICIT.

SHE JUST SORT OF WANTS TO PREY ON THE NARRATOR AND HURT THE NARRATOR AND TORMENT THE NARRATOR BY TALKING ABOUT REBECCA.

THE INTERESTING THING AS YOU READ "REBECCA" IS THAT YOU DO START TO UNDERSTAND THAT YOU CAN SEE MORE THAN SHE'S SHOWING YOU.

THE BOOK DOES SORT OF INVOLVE YOU IN THIS-- YOU KNOW, FOR A STORY THAT CAN SEEM FAMILIAR, DOES TAKE YOU ON A VERY MORALLY COMPLICATED JOURNEY.

I WAS IN SUSPENSE THE ENTIRE TIME WONDERING WHAT WAS GONNA HAPPEN.

I LOVE STORIES.

I LOVE FEELING CHARACTERS AND FEELING INVOLVED IN SOMEONE ELSE'S LIFE IN MANY WAYS.

AND WE BOTH LOVE READING AND RECOMMEND YOU GET INVOLVED WITH "THE GREAT AMERICAN READ."

VIEIRA: IS YOUR FAVORITE GOTHIC NOVEL ON THE LIST?

CHECK OUT "THE GREAT AMERICAN READ" SOCIAL HUB ON OUR WEBSITE AND TELL US WHY YOU LOVE YOUR FAVORITE BOOK.

AND ATTEND EVENTS ORGANIZED BY YOUR LOCAL PBS STATION.

THERE ARE LOTS OF WAYS TO MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD.

WHILE MANY OF THE NOVELS YOU'VE CHOSEN REVEAL HOW OUR EMOTIONS CAN LEAD US TO DO UNTHINKABLE THINGS, SOME BOOKS GO EVEN FURTHER, OFFERING A GRIM REALITY OF WHAT HAPPENS WHEN OUR INNER EVIL SPREADS AND INFECTS A WHOLE CULTURE.

SOME OF THE MOST POWERFUL BOOKS ON YOUR LIST OF 100 FAVORITES CONSIDER WHAT HAPPENS WHEN AN ENTIRE SOCIETY IS THE VILLAIN.

WHAT YOU ALWAYS SEE WITH VILLAINS IS THAT THEY'RE NOT BORN, BUT THEY ARE CREATED.

AND WHAT CREATES THE INDIVIDUAL BESIDES THE SOCIETY THAT THEY COME FROM?

WE NEED CHARACTERS AND WE NEED FICTIONAL STORIES TO CONFRONT THE WEIGHT OF COLLECTIVE OPPRESSION, THE WEIGHT OF ABUSE, THE WEIGHT OF TRAUMA, BECAUSE IT'S JUST-- IT CAN BE TOO HARD TO TRY AND TACKLE IT HEAD ON.

VIEIRA: IN 1984, CANADIAN AUTHOR MARGARET ATWOOD WROTE "THE HANDMAID'S TALE," WHICH IMAGINES A FUTURE WHERE AMERICA BECOMES A FUNDAMENTALIST, THEOCRATIC STATE.

THE STORY TAKES PLACE IN THE RELIGIOUS REPUBLIC OF GILEAD, WHERE THE NARRATOR, OFFRED, IS FORCED TO BECOME A HANDMAID.

LIKE MOST WOMEN IN GILEAD, SHE HAS LIMITED RIGHTS AND EXISTS FOR ONE PURPOSE ONLY-- TO PRODUCE OFFSPRING FOR THE MOST PROMINENT FAMILIES IN THE NEW REGIME.

BUT OFFRED FREQUENTLY RECALLS HER PREVIOUS LIFE WHEN SHE HAD A CAREER, A HUSBAND, AND A CHILD.

DANES: "IT'S STRANGE TO REMEMBER HOW WE USED TO THINK, "AS IF EVERYTHING WERE AVAILABLE TO US, "AS IF THERE WERE NO CONTINGENCIES, "NO BOUNDARIES, "AS IF WE WERE FREE TO SHAPE AND RESHAPE "FOREVER THE EVER-EXPANDING PERIMETERS OF OUR LIVES.

I WAS LIKE THAT TOO, I DID THAT TOO."

THE REGIME THAT I HAVE IN THE BOOK IS THE ANSWER TO THE QUESTION, IF YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE A TOTALITARIANISM IN THE UNITED STATES, WHAT KIND OF TOTALITARIANISM WOULD THAT BE?

MY RULE FOR "THE HANDMAID'S TALE" WAS NOTHING GOES IN IT THAT PEOPLE HAVE NOT DONE TO OTHER PEOPLE AT SOME TIME IN SOME PLACE.

AND, NO, MARGARET, IT'S NOT JUST YOUR SICK, TWISTED IMAGINATION.

PEOPLE HAVE DONE THESE THINGS.

I WAS BORN IN 1939, SO STALIN, HITLER, THAT WAS ALL AROUND.

YOU COULD NOT AVOID IT.

AND FOR PEOPLE OF MY GENERATION, THE QUESTION THAT WE WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO ANSWER IS, HOW WOULD I HAVE BEHAVED?

AND YOU DON'T KNOW.

SO HOW DO PEOPLE BEHAVE WHEN THEY'RE PUT UNDER THAT KIND OF PRESSURE?

PEOPLE WITH VARYING LEVELS OF LIMITED POWER ARE GOING TO ADJUST THEMSELVES ACCORDINGLY.

YOU KNOW, IF I DON'T DO THIS, SOMEBODY ELSE WILL DO IT TO ME.

PEEPLES: YOU TAKE A BOOK LIKE "THE HANDMAID'S TALE," AND I THINK WE READ THAT AS A WAY OF VACCINATING OURSELVES AGAINST THAT, LIKE IF I READ ABOUT THIS, THEN I'LL KNOW IT'S COMING.

THIS WILL SOMEHOW EQUIP ME TO WITHSTAND WHAT'S COMING.

WOMAN: I THINK THAT "THE HANDMAID'S TALE" IS A RALLYING CRY.

IT IS A WARNING.

IT'S A CONDEMNATION OF AN ACTION.

AND IT'S AN ESSENTIAL NOVEL FOR OUR TIMES.

AND YOU SHOULD TOTALLY VOTE FOR IT.

VIEIRA: MARGARET ATWOOD'S STORY LOOKED AT A POSSIBLE FUTURE, BUT PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING AUTHOR TONI MORRISON FOCUSED ON AMERICA'S OWN DARK PAST TO EXPLORE THE CONSEQUENCES OF INSTITUTIONAL EVIL.

IT'S ANOTHER NOVEL RECEIVING MANY OF YOUR VOTES, "BELOVED."

PEEPLES: SOMETIMES I THINK IT'S EASIER TO READ ABOUT THE BAD THINGS THAT HAPPENED IN A BOOK AS A WAY OF GIVING YOURSELF SOME PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTANCE AND ALLOWING YOURSELF TO SORT OF CATCH UP TO THAT IDEA THAT, YES, I HAD A PART IN THIS, WHETHER I WANT TO ADMIT IT OR NOT.

I THINK THAT THAT'S WHAT BOOKS LIKE "BELOVED" SHOW.

WOMAN: ♪ BEEN RUNNING HOME ON WOUNDED FEET ♪ ♪ AM I FREE YET?

AM I FREE?

♪ VIEIRA: "BELOVED" IS BASED ON THE REAL LIFE OF MARGARET GARNER WHOSE TRAGIC STORY MADE HEADLINES IN THE 1850S WHEN HER FAILED ATTEMPT TO ESCAPE SLAVERY LED GARNER TO KILL HER OWN DAUGHTER.

IN TONI MORRISON'S ADAPTATION, THE MAIN CHARACTER, SETHE, IS A FORMER SLAVE.

WHEN SHE IS VISITED BY A SPIRIT IN THE FORM OF A YOUNG WOMAN NAMED BELOVED, SETHE MUST COME TO TERMS WITH A HARROWING PAST THAT CONTINUES TO PLAGUE HER.

"BELOVED'S" LITERALLY HAUNTED AS A BOOK.

IT'S A BOOK ABOUT HAUNTING AND THE HAUNTING OF AMERICAN LIFE BY SLAVERY, BY INJUSTICE, BY THE HORRORS OF AN INSTITUTION THAT STILL HAS RESONANCE NOW.

♪ AM I FREE YET?

AM I FREE?

♪ I'M ZENIBA BRITT.

I AM AN ARTIST BASED IN NEW YORK CITY.

AND I AM A HUGE FAN OF TONI MORRISON'S "BELOVED."

MY FIRST INTERACTION WITH THE TEXT WAS IN HIGH SCHOOL.

AND I THINK MY FIRST IMPRESSION WAS JUST TOTAL OVERWHELMENT.

I THINK TONI MORRISON MAKES US FACE SOMETHING PHYSICAL ABOUT SLAVERY.

THE MOST HORRIFIC SCENE OF THAT PIECE CENTERS AROUND MOTHERHOOD.

LOTS OF TERRIBLE THINGS ARE HAPPENING, BUT FOR SOME REASON, THE SCARIEST OF ALL THOSE THINGS IS THAT THE WHITE MEN STEAL HER BREAST MILK.

MORRISON: "AFTER I LEFT YOU, THOSE BOYS CAME IN THERE "AND TOOK MY MILK.

"THAT'S WHAT THEY CAME IN THERE FOR.

"HELD ME DOWN AND TOOK IT.

"I TOLD MRS. GARNER ON 'EM.

"SHE HAD THAT LUMP AND COULDN'T SPEAK, BUT HER EYES ROLLED OUT TEARS."

I DON'T KNOW HOW YOU RECONCILE THAT.

I DON'T KNOW... UM...

IT'S DISGUSTING.

IT'S REALLY DISGUSTING.

UM... AND IT'S SHAMEFUL, AND IT IS SO INTIMATE.

IT'S A DARK MESSAGE.

I MEAN, I THINK THE REASON THAT WE READ "BELOVED," GIVEN, YOU KNOW, WHAT A PAINFUL AND HARROWING READ IT IS IS IT'S THE BEAUTY OF THE PROSE, IT'S THE ARTISTRY.

YOU KNOW, MORRISON HAS WRITTEN BEAUTIFULLY-- WRITTEN BEAUTIFUL NONFICTION BOOKS AND ESSAYS ABOUT THE HORRORS OF SLAVERY AND OTHERNESS, BUT, YOU KNOW, SHE CHOSE TO WRITE IT AS A NOVEL.

I THINK "BELOVED" RIGHTLY IS REMEMBERED AS BOTH AN AMAZINGLY WELL-WRITTEN POPULAR BOOK AND A BOOK THAT CHANGED LITERATURE.

TONI MORRISON FOUND A METAPHOR FOR SLAVERY IN A GHOST STORY.

AND BY JOINING THE TWO, IT HELPED US THINK ABOUT HOW WE COULD TELL OUR OWN STORIES.

BRITT: LITERATURE AND ART OFFER US THE EMOTIONAL HEALING THROUGH WHICH RACISM AND PREJUDICE CAN BE HEALED.

YOU SHOULD READ TONI MORRISON'S "BELOVED" BECAUSE IT IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT PIECES OF LITERATURE IN THE AMERICAN CANON, AND YOU CAN RETURN TO THIS NOVEL AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN AND ALWAYS FIND A DIFFERENT UNDERSTANDING.

IF THERE IS A BOOK ON THIS LIST THAT HAS CHANGED YOUR LIFE, WE WANT TO KNOW.

SHARE YOUR STORY ON SOCIAL USING HASHTAG #GREATREADPBS.

AMONG YOUR FAVORITE NOVELS THAT TAKE US TO THE DARK SIDE ARE ONES THAT REVEAL THE DANGERS OF HUBRIS, ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO OUR SCIENTIFIC ASPIRATIONS.

WHEN A CHARACTER PRIZES AMBITION OVER ETHICS, IT CAN LEAD TO CATASTROPHE.

KOONTZ: WE LOVE SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY 'CAUSE IT JUST MAKES OUR LIVES BETTER, BUT WE ALSO KNOW THAT WE'RE HUMAN BEINGS AND WE TEND TO MISUSE EVERYTHING WE CREATE.

ROTHMAN: IT'S RAISING QUESTIONS ABOUT WHO ARE THE PEOPLE DOING THE TRANSFORMING.

WHAT ARE THEIR MOTIVATIONS?

HOW RESPONSIBLE ARE THEY?

IT'S ASKING WHAT THEY OWE TO THE PEOPLE WHOSE LIVES THEY CHANGE.

VIEIRA: ONE THE MOST RECOGNIZABLE CHARACTERS IN LITERARY HISTORY CAME OUT OF THE YOUNG MIND OF MARY SHELLEY, WHO AT AGE 18 STARTED WRITING HER FIRST NOVEL, "FRANKENSTEIN."

SUBTITLED "THE MODERN PROMETHEUS," THE BOOK CELEBRATES ITS 200TH ANNIVERSARY THIS YEAR.

MANY CONSIDER IT THE BLUE PRINT FOR SCIENCE FICTION.

RUTHERFORD-MORRISON: WE'RE COMING OUT OF THE INDUSTRIAL AGE.

AND SO THERE IS A LOT OF SORT OF NEW ANXIETY IN THE EARLY 19TH CENTURY ABOUT SCIENCE, AND CERTAINLY THE NOVEL IS SORT OF TAPPING INTO AND RESPONDING TO SOME OF THOSE ANXIETIES.

VIEIRA: IT IS ALSO A CREATION STORY AND A METAPHOR FOR WHAT HAPPENS WHEN WE DON'T TAKE CARE OF OUR CHILDREN.

RUTHERFORD-MORRISON: "FRANKENSTEIN" IS A NOVEL ABOUT A VERY AMBITIOUS SCIENTIST NAMED VICTOR FRANKENSTEIN WHO BECOMES COMPLETELY OBSESSED WITH THE IDEA OF MAKING LIFE FROM SCRATCH.

AND HE ACTUALLY ACCOMPLISHES IT, BUT WHEN HE MEETS HIS CREATURE, HE IS SO HORRIFIED BY ITS APPEARANCE THAT HE ABANDONS IT.

STEVENS: "I HAD GAZED ON HIM WHILE UNFINISHED; "HE WAS UGLY THEN, BUT WHEN THOSE MUSCLES AND JOINTS "WERE RENDERED CAPABLE OF MOTION, "IT BECAME A THING SUCH AS EVEN DANTE COULD NOT HAVE CONCEIVED."

VIEIRA: WHEN FRANKENSTEIN'S PROGENY IS CAST OUT INTO THE WORLD, HE IS MET WITH NOTHING BUT BIGOTRY, AND AS A RESULT, THE CREATURE SOON BECOMES A MONSTER.

THE MORE OBVIOUS VILLAIN, OF COURSE, IS THE MONSTER WHO KILLS PEOPLE AND FRAMES PEOPLE FOR MURDER, AND PEOPLE ARE PUNISHED FOR THOSE MURDERS AS A RESULT OF HIS ACTIONS.

BUT THE ORIGINAL SIN, SO TO SPEAK, IS ANIMATING THE MONSTER, SO THAT WOULD MAKE THE VILLAIN DR. FRANKENSTEIN.

THIS THING CAME INTO THE WORLD AS A BLANK SLATE.

IT HAD THE POTENTIAL TO BE THE BEST OF HUMANITY, AND INSTEAD IT ENDED UP LEARNING FROM AND BEHAVING LIKE THE WORST OF HUMANITY, TRIGGERED BY HUMAN UNKINDNESS.

MAN: MARY SHELLEY DOES SUCH A BEAUTIFUL JOB OF EXPLORING WHAT A MONSTER IS AND WHAT THE OTHER IS, AND SHOWING US THAT INDEED, FRANKENSTEIN'S CREATION IS NOT A MONSTER.

IT IS THE CIRCUMSTANCES, IT IS HIS TREATMENT, IT IS THE WAY IN WHICH HE IS OUTCAST THAT MAKE HIM DO WHAT HE DOES.

WHAT HAVE I DONE?

MY CREATION IS LAYING, MY PATIENT PATIENTLY WAITING.

AM I GOD?

AM I SATAN?

IS THIS MY SON?

♪ NO DAY BREAK, NO ESCAPE... VIEIRA: RICARDO PEREZ GONZALEZ HAD A CHANCE TO EXPLORE HIS FAVORITE BOOK DURING A WORKSHOP THAT COMBINED THEATER AND CONTEMPORARY VERSE.

GONZALEZ: IT WAS AN INCREDIBLE ASSEMBLAGE OF ARTISTS HOSTED BY THE PUBLIC THEATER THAT DECIDED TO TAKE GREAT WORKS OF LITERATURE, OUR COMMON SHARED MYTHOLOGY, WORKS LIKE "FRANKENSTEIN," AND REINTERPRET THEM IN A LANGUAGE THAT IS OF THIS DAY AND AGE AND IS ALSO AN INCREDIBLY POETIC LANGUAGE.

WHAT ARE THESE HANDS?

AM I MEAT?

OR AM I MAN?

DR. FRANKENSTEIN WAS UNABLE TO MARRY HIS SCIENTIFIC PROWESS WITH THE CARING FEELING OF A PARENT.

AND AS SUCH, HE CREATED A MONSTER.

ROTHMAN: FRANKENSTEIN'S MONSTER IS CREATED BY US, BUT THEN, LIKE, SPURNED BY US, WHICH I THINK IS KIND OF BROADLY YOU COULD SAY WITH CLIMATE CHANGE OR SOMETHING, THAT'S US.

WE'VE CREATED THIS MONSTER, AND WE'RE JUST GONNA IGNORE IT.

THAT'S THE SORT OF PARABLE OF "FRANKENSTEIN" THAT'S SO--YOU KNOW, STILL SO APPEALING NOW.

GONZALEZ: I WAS SO IN LOVE WITH MARY SHELLEY'S PROSE, THE DUALITY THAT MARY SHELLEY IS WORKING WITH THROUGHOUT THIS NOVEL.

SHE'S MARRYING, REALLY, THE ANGEL AND THE DEMON WITHIN ALL OF US.

WILLIAMS: FOR ANYONE WHO'S A FAN OF SCIENCE FICTION, YOU'VE GOT TO GO TO THE SOURCE MATERIAL.

YOU HAVE TO GO TO WHERE IT ALL KIND OF BEGAN, AND THIS BOOK, THIS "FRANKENSTEIN" BY MARY SHELLEY, IS IN MANY WAYS ONE OF THE FOREFATHERS, OR FOREMOTHERS, OF SCIENCE FICTION.

GUYS, IT'S ALLISON WILLIAMS HERE.

YOU HAVE TO VOTE FOR "FRANKENSTEIN" BY MARY SHELLEY.

I'M VERY BIASED.

I LOVE THIS BOOK.

I'VE READ IT A MILLION TIMES.

BUT IF YOU READ IT, YOU'LL LOVE IT TOO.

SO VOTE FOR "FRANKENSTEIN."

KOONTZ: THERE'S MORE BOOKS WRITTEN ABOUT SCIENTIFIC THINGS GOING VERY BADLY WRONG OR CREATING SOME KIND OF HORRIFIC SITUATION BECAUSE SCIENCE IS NOW CAPABLE OF DOING SO MUCH MORE THAN IT WAS IN MARY SHELLEY'S TIME, FOR INSTANCE.

VIEIRA: AUTHOR DEAN KOONTZ, A MASTER OF SUSPENSE, CREATED HIS OWN MONSTER THAT ANY "FRANKENSTEIN" FAN WOULD FIND FAMILIAR IN THE 1987 THRILLER "WATCHERS," ONE OF YOUR 100 FAVORITES.

IN THE STORY, THE U.S. GOVERNMENT'S EXPERIMENTS ON ANIMALS PRODUCE A HIGHLY INTELLIGENT GOLDEN RETRIEVER AND A GROTESQUE DEADLY BRUTE BUILT FOR BATTLE.

BUT WHEN BOTH CREATURES ESCAPE FROM THE LAB, THE EXPERIMENT RESULTS IN MORE VICTIMS THAN VICTORIES.

THEY CREATED THE DOG WITH HIGH INTELLIGENCE, AND THE DOG HAS A VERY ALMOST MORAL VIEW OVER THE WORLD.

BUT THEN THERE'S THIS CREATURE THAT'S MEANT TO BE ON A BATTLEFIELD TO TAKE THE PLACE OF SOLDIERS AND JUST BE A KILLING MACHINE.

THIS CREATURE DIDN'T WANT TO BE WHAT IT WAS.

IT WAS GENETICALLY ENGINEERED TO BE WHAT IT WAS.

YOU ALSO START TO GET HINTS THAT IT HATES WHAT IT IS AND IT WANTS TO BE SOMETHING MORE.

PEOPLE TELL ME THEY GET TO A POINT WHERE THEY CRY FOR THE MONSTER.

AND I SAY, "YES, THAT'S EXACTLY RIGHT."

IT'S LIKE IN THE ORIGINAL "FRANKENSTEIN" STORY, IN THE NOVEL, THE CREATURE IS TRAGIC.

THE MONSTER IS THE GUY WHO CREATED HIM.

"WATCHERS."

IT WAS TERRIFYING.

I WAS ACTUALLY AFRAID TO PUT IT DOWN.

YOU READ IT.

YOU'LL VOTE FOR IT TOO.

"THE GREAT AMERICAN READ" IS HAPPENING ALL ACROSS THIS WONDERFUL COUNTRY, AND THERE ARE A HUNDRED BOOKS ON THE LIST.

YOU SHOULD READ ALL OF THEM, REALLY, BUT TRY TO READ AT LEAST 10 OR 12 OF THEM.

ALL OF THEM ARE GOING TO ENTERTAIN YOU AND MAKE YOUR LIFE BETTER.

VIEIRA: AMERICA'S BOOKSHELF IS FULL OF STORIES THAT HELP US UNDERSTAND COMPLEX VILLAINS AND MONSTERS, SO PLEASE CHECK OUT EVEN MORE OF THE TITLES ON THE PBS WEBSITE.

WHILE YOU'RE THERE, SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER TO STAY UP TO DATE WITH ALL "THE GREAT AMERICAN READ" EVENTS.

SO MUCH OF WHY PEOPLE END UP GOING DOWN A DARK PATH IS FOR CONTROL, AND THE ULTIMATE FORM OF CONTROL IS HAVING ABSOLUTE POWER.

KERR: WHY IS THAT WE ARE DRAWN TO POWER?

POWER IS KIND OF MAGNETIC.

WHAT IS IT LIKE TO HAVE UNBRIDLED POWER AND ASK OURSELVES WHAT WOULD WE DO IF WE HAD THAT POWER.

PEEPLES: THESE PEOPLE THAT ABUSE POWER, THEY'RE SO COMPELLING AND THEY'RE SO SEDUCTIVE.

AND IN A WAY, THERE'S SORT OF LIKE A DARK LOVE STORY OF THE ATTRACTION TO THE ABUSIVE, POWER-MAD VILLAIN.

VIEIRA: IN TONIGHT'S FINAL GROUP OF YOUR FAVORITE EVIL CHARACTERS, WE INVESTIGATE THE DANGERS OF UNCHECKED POWER.

ONE 19TH-CENTURY AUTHOR EMPLOYED A PARTICULARLY DISTINCTIVE COMBINATION OF STYLES TO EXPLORE HOW THE ABUSE OF POWER CAN MAKE US VILLAINS, USING FANTASY AND HUMOR IN ONE OF YOUR BEST-LOVED NOVELS, "ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND."

HERITAGE: LEWIS CARROLL, HE WAS A MATHEMATICAL LECTURER AT CHRIST CHURCH, OXFORD, AND THE ORIGINS OF "ALICE IN WONDERLAND" DERIVE FROM HIS LOVE FOR SPENDING TIME WITH CHILDREN.

VIEIRA: LEWIS CARROLL, WHOSE REAL NAME WAS CHARLES DODGSON, PUBLISHED "ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND" IN 1865, AND IT HAS BEEN A FAVORITE AMONG CHILDREN AND ADULTS EVER SINCE.

IT'S A STORY ABOUT A YOUNG GIRL NAMED ALICE WHO FALLS THROUGH A RABBIT HOLE AND FINDS HERSELF IN THE UPSIDE-DOWN WORLD OF WONDERLAND.

AND THERE ALICE ENCOUNTERS THE RULES OF WONDERLAND, THE QUEEN OF HEARTS.

WOMAN: "THE QUEEN WAS IN A FURIOUS PASSION, "AND WENT STAMPING ABOUT AND SHOUTING, OFF WITH HIS HEAD!

"OR OFF WITH HER HEAD!

ABOUT ONCE IN A MINUTE.

ALICE BEGAN TO FEEL VERY UNEASY."

WOMAN: IT'S THIS SORT OF ABSURD UNIVERSE, AND THEN YOU COME ACROSS THE QUEEN OF HEARTS CHARACTER, WHO'S OBVIOUSLY VERY DARK BECAUSE ALL SHE WANTS TO DO IS MURDER PEOPLE FOR DOING RIDICULOUS THINGS LIKE PAINTING WHITE ROSES RED.

YOUNG: I THINK WHAT'S GREAT ABOUT THE QUEEN OF HEARTS IS SHE'S LOUD AND OBNOXIOUS AND SHE'S A LITTLE BIT LIKE US, YOU KNOW.

SHE CAN BE A LITTLE BIT LIKE A TODDLER.

AND SHE WANTS WHAT SHE WANTS, YET AT THE SAME TIME, THERE'S SOMETHING FUNNY.

WHAT I LIKE TO DO WITH VILLAINS IS MAKE THEM UNCONSCIOUSLY FUNNY.

AND SO YOU CAN KIND OF LAUGH AT THEM EVEN THOUGH YOU'RE TERRIFIED OF THEM.

MILLER: I THINK THAT THE FACT THAT THE QUEEN OF HEARTS IS SO OVER THE TOP MAKES HER A LOT MORE MEMORABLE AS A CHARACTER AND AS A VILLAIN.

VIEIRA: SEATTLE MUSICIAN DEBBIE MILLER BECAME ATTRACTED TO THE MIX OF HUMOR AND TERROR IN THE QUEEN OF HEARTS WHEN SHE JOINED A UNIQUE BOOK CLUB.

MILLER: THE BUSHWICK BOOK CLUB SEATTLE IS A GROUP OF MUSICIANS THAT WRITES SONGS INSPIRED BY LITERATURE.

VIEIRA: AND DEBBIE'S FIRST ASSIGNMENT WAS "ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND."

♪ I AM THE QUEEN OF HEARTS AND SEE ♪ ♪ THE WORLD FORGOT SOMEHOW ♪ MILLER: SO THE SONG "QUEEN OF HEARTS" THAT I WROTE IS COMING FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE QUEEN.

IT'S REALLY ABOUT TRYING TO UNDERSTAND WHO THE QUEEN OF HEARTS IS ON THE INSIDE.

MAYBE SHE STARTED OUT WELL INTENTIONED AND THEN GOT A LITTLE BIT OUT OF CONTROL.

♪ SO I TOOK HIS HEAD AND THE HEAD OF HIS LOVER ♪ ♪ SO SHE WOULD NOT BE LONELY ♪ [LAUGHTER] IS THAT FUNNY?

OK, YOU GUYS ARE SICK.

SHE IS SORT OF WRITTEN AS THIS HYSTERICAL WOMAN WHO IS TOTALLY UNCONTROLLABLE.

ON THE OTHER HAND, SHE'S A REALLY STRONG CHARACTER BECAUSE SHE KNOWS WHAT SHE WANTS AND SHE'S GETTING IT HOWEVER SHE WANTS TO GET IT, AND I REALLY RESPECT THAT.

MY NAME IS DEBBIE MILLER, AND I'M A MUSICIAN, AND ONE OF MY FAVORITE BOOKS OF ALL TIME IS "ALICE'S ADVENTURES IN WONDERLAND."

AND I THINK YOU SHOULD VOTE FOR IT BECAUSE THE QUEEN OF HEARTS IS THE BEST VILLAIN OF ALL TIME.

VIEIRA: THE QUEEN OF HEARTS MIGHT BE A FUNNY VILLAIN, BUT NO ONE IS LAUGHING AT LORD VOLDEMORT, THE SERIOUSLY POWER-HUNGER ANTAGONIST IN J.K. ROWLING'S IMMENSELY POPULAR SERIES ABOUT A BOY WIZARD NAMED HARRY POTTER.

THE BOOKS BEGIN WHEN THE ORPHAN HARRY POTTER FINDS OUT ON HIS 11TH BIRTHDAY THAT HE IS A WIZARD.

HIS LIFE IS TRANSFORMED WHEN HE GOES TO A NEW SCHOOL DEVOTED TO MAGIC.

BUT THE EVIL LORD VOLDEMORT IS OUT FOR WORLD DOMINATION AND IS PREPARED TO DISPOSE OF ANY CHILD WIZARD WHO GETS IN HIS WAY.

MAN: "HARRY POTTER ESCAPED ME BY A LUCKY CHANCE.

"AND I AM NOW GOING TO PROVE MY POWER BY KILLING HIM, "HERE AND NOW, IN FRONT OF YOU ALL, "WHEN THERE IS NO DUMBLEDORE TO HELP HIM AND NO MOTHER TO DIE FOR HIM."

HE'S JUST A MANIFESTATION OF HIS OWN WILLINGNESS AND NEED TO GATHER POWER AND TO CLING TO THAT POWER AT ANY COST.

VIEIRA: LORD VOLDEMORT'S UNBRIDLED QUEST FOR CONTROL OFTEN FEELS VERY REAL.

AND IN FACT, IT'S AN IDEA J.K. ROWLING KNOWS WELL.

BEFORE WRITING "HARRY POTTER," THE BRITISH AUTHOR WORKED FOR A NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION WHERE SHE READ HEART-BREAKING FIRST-HAND ACCOUNTS OF HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES.

I THINK THE SCARIEST THING IS ACTUALLY LORD VOLDEMORT'S REPUTATION, BECAUSE JUST SAYING HIS NAME IS THIS WHOLE CULTURE AND SOCIETY OF FEAR.

I THINK IT'S A VERY REAL REMINDER TO WHAT CAN HAPPEN WHEN SOMEONE HAS THAT KIND OF POWER.

SEHGAL: THE KIND OF VILLAIN THAT I THINK STICKS AROUND IS THE VILLAIN THAT IS VERY CLOSE TO THE HERO.

SO THAT, IN THE CASE OF HARRY POTTER, RIGHT, YOU SEE HOW MUCH THERE WAS IN VOLDEMORT'S CHILDHOOD THAT PARALLELED WHAT HAPPENED IN HARRY POTTER'S CHILDHOOD, WHETHER IT WAS BEING PARENTLESS OR BEING A PARTICULAR COMBINATION OF AMBITION AND NERVE AND WOUNDEDNESS.

AND YOU SEE AS YOU'RE READING THESE BOOKS THE DECISIONS THAT HARRY POTTER MAKES EXPLICITLY TO STEP AWAY, TO CHOOSE A DIFFERENT PATH.

WOMAN: "THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE" GIVES THE TALE OF LORD VOLDEMORT.

YES, HE HAD REALLY, REALLY BAD CIRCUMSTANCES, BUT EVERY TIME HE CHOSE EVIL, IT ALLOWED HIM TO BECOME MORE EVIL.

AND I LIKED THAT YOU COULD SEE THAT IT WAS A CHOICE THAT HE MADE.

AND I THOUGHT, NO ONE HAS TO BE THAT WAY.

NO ONE HAS TO BE SELFISH AND CRUEL.

IT'S A CHOICE THAT YOU MAKE.

WOMAN: VOLDEMORT IS AN EXTRAORDINARILY KIND OF WELL-CRAFTED, WELL-WRITTEN, POTENT VILLAIN.

HE CLEARLY HAS A REMARKABLY STRATEGIC MIND.

HE BOTH INSPIRES PEOPLE TO HIS CAUSE AND HE TERRIFIES PEOPLE TO HIS CAUSE.

PEEPLES: IT'S AN ATTRACTION TOWARDS CONTROL.

SO A LOT OF THE BEST VILLAINS, THEIR DESIRE FOR CONTROL IS EVERYBODY'S DESIRE FOR CONTROL.

PEOPLE WANT CERTAINTY.

THEY WANT TO KNOW WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN NEXT.

IN A SENSE, THE DEATH EATERS THAT FOLLOW VOLDEMORT, THEY HAVE BOUGHT THIS IDEA THAT HE CAN CONTROL WHAT'S GONNA HAPPEN.

HE CAN TELL THEM, THIS IS HOW YOUR STORY WILL END, AND THAT IS DEEPLY POWERFUL.

YISRAEL: VOTE FOR "HARRY POTTER" BECAUSE IT HAS GOT TO BE AMERICA'S MOST-LOVED BOOK BECAUSE IT'S FOR EVERYBODY.

IT'S FOR EVERY SINGLE AMERICAN, INCLUDING THE DEATH EATERS.

VIEIRA: WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO SYMPATHIZE WITH MOST OF THE DARK CHARACTERS WE'VE FOLLOWED THUS FAR, BUT NOBODY HAS SYMPATHY FOR THE DEVIL.

AND THE DEVIL IN THIS CASE IS RANDALL FLAGG FROM ONE OF YOUR FAVORITE HORROR STORIES, "THE STAND," WRITTEN BY TERROR MASTER STEPHEN KING.

ROTHMAN: STEVEN KING READ EVERY CRAZY BOOK WRITTEN BETWEEN, LIKE, 1930 AND 1970, AND THEN HE PUT THEM IN A BLENDER AND HE CREATED THIS VERY DISTINCTIVE TYPE OF NOVEL THAT NO ONE ELSE WRITES.

THERE'S ONLY ONE STEPHEN KING, REALLY.

PEEPLES: I'VE BEEN READING STEPHEN KING MY WHOLE LIFE.

I THINK HE UNDERSTANDS THE SORT OF IMPLICIT TERROR IN EVERYTHING.

MAN: WHEN I READ A STEPHEN KING NOVEL, I FEEL LIKE I HAVE NO IDEA HOW MANY MORE PLACES IT'S GOING TO TAKE ME.

HE DOESN'T WRITE SHORT BOOKS, SO EVERY CHAPTER YOU KNOW THERE'S GONNA BE ANOTHER TWIST, THERE'S GONNA BE ANOTHER PROBLEM, AND THERE'S SO MUCH BOOK LEFT THAT HE CAN GO ANYWHERE WITH IT.

SO IT'S NOT JUST THE UNKNOWN, BUT ALSO THE UNEXPECTED THE ENTIRE TIME.

VIEIRA: STEPHEN KING'S 1978 MASTERPIECE "THE STAND" DESCRIBES A DYSTOPIAN NIGHTMARE.

A VIRUS IS ACCIDENTLY RELEASED, KILLING MOST OF THE POPULATION.

THOSE LEFT BEHIND MUST CHOOSE WHICH LEADER TO FOLLOW, THE SAINTLY MOTHER ABIGAIL OR THE PART MAN, PART DEMON RANDALL FLAGG, WHO RECRUITS HIS FOLLOWERS BY INVADING THEIR DREAMS.

GARDNER: "HE LOOKS LIKE ANYBODY YOU SEE ON THE STREET.

"BUT WHEN HE GRINS, BIRDS FALL DEAD OFF OF TELEPHONE LINES.

"WHEN HE LOOKS AT YOU A CERTAIN WAY, "YOUR PROSTATE GOES BAD AND YOUR URINE BURNS.

THE GRASS YELLOWS UP AND DIES WHERE HE SPITS."

WE HAVE THE RISE OF THE DEMAGOGUE, LIKE RANDALL FLAGG, WHICH IS A VERY SCARY-- SOMEBODY WHO DOESN'T SEEM THAT BAD THE FIRST TIME WE MEET THEM, AND THEN JUST BECOMES PROGRESSIVELY WORSE, MORE AND MORE EVIL BECAUSE OF THIS JUST IDEA OF, WELL, HE'S A GOOD LEADER, LET'S FOLLOW HIM.

RANDALL FLAGG, IT'S LIKE SOMEBODY'S TOLD HIM WHAT THE SCRIPT IS.

HE KNOWS EXACTLY WHERE HE'S GONNA GO AND EXACTLY WHAT HE'S GONNA DO WITH A CERTAINTY THAT NOBODY HAS DAY TO DAY.

AND EVERY OTHER CHARACTER IN "THE STAND" IS JUST TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO GET ALONG WHEN HE HAS THE WORD AND HE'S GOING TO MAKE IT HAPPEN.

YOU ALWAYS WANT TO BE ON THE WINNING TEAM.

YOU WANT TO BE ON THE WINNING SIDE.

THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE DISCOVER IN JUNIOR HIGH AS YOU START TO LINE UP, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE EITHER THE POPULAR KID OR YOU'RE NOT THE POPULAR KID.

AND SO WHEN YOU LINE UP WITH SOMEBODY WHO HAS POWER TO MAKE OTHER PEOPLE DO THINGS, YEAH, YOU WANT TO BE ON THAT SIDE.

VIEIRA: FANS PAYING HOMAGE TO STEPHEN KING'S DARK SIDE FLOCK TO THE AUTHOR'S HOMETOWN IN BANGOR, MAINE.

MAN: JUST THE FACT THAT HE COULD GO WHERE HE WANTED WHEN HE WANTED AND NOBODY WOULD MESS WITH HIM.

AND I GOT MESSED WITH A LOT IN HIGH SCHOOL, AND HAVING SOMEBODY THAT I COULD IDENTIFY WITH THAT YOU DON'T MESS WITH, THAT WAS AWESOME.

DOES IT LOOK SCARY?

WOMAN: EVERYONE CAN RELATE TO EVIL ON SOME LEVEL.

EVERYONE HAS DONE BAD THINGS AND EVERYBODY WANTS TO KNOW IS THIS BAD THING GOING TO AFFECT WHO I AM LATER.

KERR: WE LIKE READING ABOUT PEOPLE WHO ABUSE POWER BECAUSE IT REMINDS US THAT POWER UNCHECKED CAN BE HORRIFIC.

AS A SOCIETY, ESPECIALLY IN THE U.S., WHERE WE VALUE DEMOCRACY SO MUCH, WE NEVER WANT ANY ONE KIND OF PERSON OR GROUP TO HAVE TOO MUCH POWER BECAUSE THE POTENTIAL FOR ABUSE IS SO HIGH.

AVELINO: HEY, AMERICA, WE LOVE TO VOTE.

VOTE FOR "THE STAND."

IT'S A GREAT BOOK.

IT TAPS INTO WHAT'S GOING ON IN HERE, WHAT'S GOING ON OUT THERE IN THE WORLD.

IT'S A HUGE READ, SO YOU CAN FEEL LIKE YOU'VE EARNED SOMETHING BY THE TIME YOU'RE DONE WITH IT.

AND VOTE FOR "THE STAND" BECAUSE TAKE A STAND.

VIEIRA: TONIGHT'S SELECTION OF NOVELS ON YOUR LIST OF FAVORITES HAS REVEALED WHY WE ARE ALL SO FASCINATED BY CHARACTERS AND STORIES THAT TAKE US TO THE DARK SIDE.

BECAUSE MOST PEOPLE IDENTIFY THEMSELVES AS GOOD PEOPLE, THERE'S SORT OF THIS NEED TO UNDERSTAND HOW A BAD PERSON OPERATES.

BUT I THINK THE OTHER WISH FULFILLMENT IS SEEING THAT RIGHT ULTIMATELY WINS.

WE CAN PLAY THE ROLE OF THE VILLAIN IN READING ABOUT THE VILLAIN AND IDENTIFY WITH IT WITHOUT GETTING TOO CLOSE, AND AT THE END OF THE DAY, WE CAN SAY, "OK, WELL, THAT WAS A NICE KIND OF "DIPPING MY TOE INTO THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WATERS, BUT I KNOW THAT I AM NOT THAT."

WE'VE DISCOVERED HOW BOOKS ABOUT VILLAINS AND MONSTERS CAN HELP US MAKE SENSE OF REAL-LIFE EVILS, STRENGTHEN OUR SENSE OR RIGHT AND WRONG, AND EVEN ALLOW US TO LIVE VICARIOUSLY THROUGH CHARACTERS WHOSE BEHAVIOR WE'D NEVER REALLY DARE TO EMULATE.

WELL, NOW IT'S YOUR CHANCE TO GET INVOLVED.

HEAD OVER TO PBS.ORG/GREATAMERICANREAD AND CHECK OUT ALL 100 BOOKS.

READ, SHARE YOUR THOUGHTS, AND MAKE SURE TO VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITES.

REMEMBER, IT'S ALL UP TO YOU TO CHOOSE AMERICA'S BEST-LOVED NOVEL.

VIEIRA: ARE YOU READY TO TAKE PART IN THE SEARCH FOR AMERICA'S BEST-LOVED NOVEL?

GET YOUR PHONE OUT, GRAB A PEN AND PAPER, FIND YOUR FAVORITE TITLE, AND ITS UNIQUE 3-DIGIT NUMBER AND CALL TODAY.

YOU CAN VOTE ONCE A DAY EVERY DAY FOR YOUR FAVORITE TITLE UNTIL VOTING CLOSES ON OCTOBER 18 AT MIDNIGHT PACIFIC TIME.

REMEMBER, ALL CALLS FROM LANDLINES ARE TOLL FREE.

DON'T FORGET TO DIAL CAREFULLY.

VIEIRA: NEXT TIME, THE NOVELS YOU LOVE ABOUT LOVE.

WHO WINS, WHO LOSES, WHO LIVES HAPPILY EVER AFTER?

VIEIRA: WHAT DO THESE BOOKS TELL US ABOUT THE MOST IMPORTANT EMOTION IN OUR LIVES?

SEHGAL: WHEN YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT LOVE, YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT EVERYTHING.

YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT GENDER, YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT RACE, YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT HISTORY.

VIEIRA: FROM FAMILY LOVE-- MICHAEL KILLS IN THE NAME OF FAMILY.

VIEIRA: TO ROMANCE GONE WRONG.

WE DON'T ALWAYS GET SECOND CHANCES.

VIEIRA: IT'S ALL ABOUT LOVE, NEXT TIME.

BE A PART OF "THE GREAT AMERICAN READ."

ANNOUNCER: "THE GREAT AMERICAN READ" WAS MADE POSSIBLE IN PART BY A GRANT FROM ANNE RAY FOUNDATION AND BY CONTRIBUTIONS TO YOUR PBS STATION FROM VIEWERS LIKE YOU.

THANK YOU.