Book Log 2013 Extra: The Most Famous Book Set in Each US State

The folks at Business Insider came up with this map of the US that gives the most famous book set in each state. There's no real discussion of how they came up with these selections, and in a number of cases there's a real question as to whether on not they chose correctly. Those that stand out to me:

Arkansas: A Painted House. OK, it's hard to argue that a John Grisham book wouldn't be famous, but it's not exactly the first (or second, or fifth) book of his you'd name if asked to name one. True Grit would seem more popular (thanks mostly to the films), and for people of a certain generation Summer of My German Solider would be an option, too.

Connecticut: Revolutionary Road. Maybe it's a little on the nose, but what about A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court?. There's also Long Day's Journey into Night and Ah, Wilderness!, both of which may have been dinged for being plays. And if the only criteria is fame, perhaps The Stepford Wives would be a contender thanks to its movie adaptations (I'm assuming that the movie adaptation of Revolutionary Road helped get it here). Although if we're really only considering fame, wouldn't The Baby-sitter's Club be the obvious choice?

District of Columbia: The Lost Symbol. See, this is where using fame as your sole criteria breaks down. This isn't even Dan Brown's most famous book, and even for him it was pretty much crap. Why you wouldn't go with one of the Alex Cross novels here? Either Along Came a Spider or Kiss The Girls would work.

Also, if you're going to include DC in the list, how about putting it in its proper place alphabetically rather than sneaking it in after Virginia?

Louisiana: Interview With the Vampire. Uh, Uncle Tom's Cabin?

Maine: Carrie. There are any number of Stephen King novels you could choose here, but as King was already selected for Colorado (The Shining), we could go with The Cider House Rules here. Which would give John Irving two entries (for now). As I think of it, Empire Falls may be a better choice.

Massachusetts: Walden. Considering it's almost impossible to get out of high school without reading either The Scarlet Letter or Little Women, I'd have chosen either of them over Walden, which is plenty famous in its own right, obviously.

New Hampshire: The Hotel New Hampshire. Having the state in the title helps, but I'd go with A Prayer for Owen Meany. Were this 20 years ago I'd also suggest Peyton Place.

New Mexico: Red Sky at Morning. I'll admit to never having heard of this book, and while it's possible I'm out of the loop on this one, I would still argue that Death Comes for the Archbishop is a better choice.

North Carolina: A Walk to Remember. Probably correct (the most likely replacement would be another Nicholas Sparks book) but depressing. I'll throw Cold Mountain out there as an option.

Ohio: The Broom of the System. Beloved, The Bluest Eye, Captain Underpants and Winesburg, Ohio would all seem like more natural choices than David Foster Wallace's first novel, at least if we're going by fame.

South Carolina: The Secret Life of Bees. Helped by its recent movie adaptation, but I'm wondering if The Prince of Tides would be a better choice.

I could probably critique every selection, but I think I'll quit while I'm ahead.