BookRank

Best of the year

Best books of 1962

16 highest-rated books first published in 1962.

← 19611963 →

Why King Rat is #1

King Rat (James Clavell) scores 8.2/10 from 117 ratings — 0.1 points ahead of The Structure of Scientific Revolutions in second place.

The score is a weighted average across 3 independent rating sources. A title with few ratings is pulled toward the category average, so a handful of enthusiastic reviews cannot outrank a book that thousands of readers have judged. Method →

  1. King Rat
    King RatJames Clavell · 1962Filmed 1965 Historical fiction117 ratings
    8.28.2 / 10
  2. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
    The Structure of Scientific RevolutionsThomas Kuhn · 1962 Popular science124 ratings
    8.18.1 / 10
  3. Silent Spring
    Silent SpringRachel Carson · 1962 Popular science149 ratings
    8.18.1 / 10
  4. Travels with Charley
    Travels with CharleyJohn Steinbeck · 1962193 ratings
    8.18.1 / 10
  5. A Clockwork Orange
    A Clockwork OrangeAnthony Burgess · 1962Filmed 1971 Science fiction1.5K ratings
    7.97.9 / 10
  6. The Wolves of Willoughby Chase
    The Wolves of Willoughby ChaseJoan Aiken · 1962 Children’s books52 ratings
    7.97.9 / 10
  7. Another Country
    Another CountryJames Baldwin · 1962 Classics71 ratings
    7.97.9 / 10
  8. Something Wicked This Way Comes
    Something Wicked This Way ComesRay Bradbury · 1962Filmed 1983 Fantasy553 ratings
    7.77.7 / 10
  9. Island
    IslandAldous Huxley · 1962 Science fiction111 ratings
    7.77.7 / 10
  10. The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side
    The Mirror Crack'd from Side to SideAgatha Christie · 1962 Crime & mystery129 ratings
    7.77.7 / 10
  11. Little Fuzzy
    Little FuzzyH. Beam Piper · 1962 Science fiction75 ratings
    7.77.7 / 10
  12. A Murder of Quality
    A Murder of QualityJohn le Carré · 1962 Crime & mystery137 ratings
    7.47.4 / 10
  13. Cover Her Face
    Cover Her FaceP. D. James · 1962Filmed 1985 Crime & mystery80 ratings
    7.47.4 / 10
  14. The Drowned World
    The Drowned WorldJ. G. Ballard · 1962 Science fiction86 ratings
    7.37.3 / 10
  15. The Man in the High Castle
    The Man in the High CastlePhilip K. Dick · 1962NYT bestsellerFilmed 2015 Science fiction1.3K ratings
    7.17.1 / 10
  16. The Spy Who Loved Me
    The Spy Who Loved MeIan Fleming · 1962 Thriller67 ratings
    7.17.1 / 10

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