Category: Best Books

Book of Lives​​​​​

Margaret Atwood

New York Times 100 Notable Books | TIME 100 Must-Read Books
Washington Post Best Nonfiction | Guardian Best Biography and Memoir | Amazon Best Biography and Memoir | Kirkus Best Nonfiction

“One of the leading voices of modern literature” (NY Magazine), the author of The Handmaid’s Tale pulls back the curtain on her amazing life. It’s “a humble look at greatness” (Washington Post) and “the most spectacular, hilarious, and generous autobiography of the last quarter century—or ever” (Boston Globe).

Abundance

Derek Thompson

New York Times 100 Notable Books
Financial Times Best Business Books | Kirkus Best Nonfiction | Guardian Best History and Politics | Amazon Best Nonfiction | NPR Books We Love

We live in a world of scarcity: not enough housing, energy, or innovation. But we can flip the script. In his #1 New York Times bestseller, co-written with Ezra Klein and called “a must-read” by Barack Obama, this brilliant speaker offers a hopeful path towards a future where we have more than enough.

Empire of AI

Karen Hao

New York Times 100 Notable Books
The Economist Best Books | Financial Times Best Business Books

One of TIME‘s 100 most influential people in AI offers a thrilling look into the biggest tech arms race in history. TIME writes that her book “instantly struck a cultural nerve,” calling it a “page-turner that has made waves not just in Silicon Valley but around the world.”

Black Moses

Caleb Gayle

New York Times 100 Notable Books
Washington Post Best Nonfiction | Kirkus Best Nonfiction | Publishers Weekly Best Nonfiction

An award-winning journalist reveals the story of one Black man who tried to establish an all-Black state, and what that shows us today about the true promise of freedom. It’s “an enthralling saga” (Publishers Weekly) and “a hidden history that Americans need to know” (Ilyon Woo).

Bread of Angels

Patti Smith

TIME 100 Must-Read Books
Guardian Best Biography and Memoir | NPR Books We Love

In her most intimate memoir yet, the punk rock legend behind Horses and Easter shares a powerful exploration of identity, love, and the quest for self-understanding. Rolling Stone calls it “radiant and intimate,” while the LA Times hails it as “mesmerizing.”

Water Mirror Echo

Jeff Chang

Publishers Weekly 10 Best Books
Kirkus Best Nonfiction | NPR Books We Love

We’ve all heard of Bruce Lee. But do we really know him? This historian offers a sweeping new look at his life and the worlds he made possible—Publishers Weekly writes that “This definitive account cements Chang as a preeminent chronicler of Asian American history.”

The Eleventh Hour

Salman Rushdie

The Economist Best Books | Financial Times Best Fiction

Hailed as “a legend” (Toni Morrison) and “a storyteller of prodigious powers” (The New York Times), the literary legend behind Midnight’s Children grapples with questions about life, legacy, identity, and freedom of speech in his powerful new short story collection.

When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows…

Steven Pinker

The Economist Best Books | Amazon Best Business and Leadership

We think about each other’s thoughts about each other’s thoughts all the time, says this psychologist—and this “common knowledge” can help us understand our greatest enigmas, from financial bubbles to first dates. Bill Gates calls this book “one of the most insightful books I’ve read about what makes us human.”

The Running Ground

Nicholas Thompson

Kirkus Best Nonfiction

The CEO of The Atlantic and former editor in chief of Wired, this American record-holding distance runner offers a powerfully motivating exploration of life, work, family, resilience, and even what makes us human. Vogue‘s Anna Wintour calls it “an endlessly surprising, revelatory, and heart-rending read.”

Three or More Is a Riot

Jelani Cobb

Kirkus Best Nonfiction

In this collection of writing from his last decade of frontline reporting, the Dean of Columbia Journalism School looks back at one of the most consequential eras in American history, and forward to what lies ahead. Ta-Nehisi Coates calls it “an archive of a writer at the height of his powers—and his powers are many.”

Having It All

Corinne Low

Amazon Best Nonfiction

There’s a new way to win the war for talent—and it starts with the women already in your ranks. In her “passionate, provocative, evidence-based” book (Adam Grant), this Wharton economist shows how women can get the best from their working lives, and how companies can support their talent and gain a competitive edge.

Shift

Ethan Kross

Publishers Weekly Best Nonfiction

Emotions are information. And if you learn how to use them, they can become your superpower. This award-winning University of Michigan professor presents simple, science-based strategies for leveraging your emotions to gain an edge: Charles Duhigg calls it “a revolutionary guide to mastering your emotional life.”

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Abundance, by Derek Thompson

We have everything we need to create the future we want. But we need to start building. In his #1 New York Times bestselling book, Abundance (co-authored with Ezra Klein), Lavin Exclusive Speaker Derek Thompson argues that we live in a world of scarcity: not enough housing, workers, or innovation. But there’s a way out—and into a future of plenty. He shares a hopeful vision of a future where we have more than enough, and a practical roadmap for how to get there. Abundance was named a best book of the year by The New York Times, Kirkus, Financial Times, and more.

Black Moses, by Caleb Gayle

Caleb Gayle is a contributing writer to The New York Times Magazine and the author of We Refuse to Forget. In Black Moses, named a best book of the year by Kirkus, The Washington Post, and more, he tells the story of Edward McCabe, who attempted to achieve self-determination for his fellow Black people by establishing a Black state. With this sweeping tale, Caleb “skillfully uncovers a history that feels at once wildly alive, scarcely visible, and integral to the United States we inhabit now” (Ilyon Woo, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Master Slave Husband Wife).

Book of Lives, by Margaret Atwood

“One of the leading voices of modern literature” (New York Magazine), Margaret Atwood is the acclaimed storyteller behind The Handmaid’s Tale, The Testaments, and Oryx and Crake, among many others. In her anticipated memoir, Book of Lives: A Memoir of Sorts, this Lavin Exclusive Speaker pulls back the curtain on her own life, offering what The Boston Globe calls “the most spectacular, hilarious, and generous autobiography of the last quarter century—or ever.” Book of Lives was named a best book of the year by The New York Times, Kirkus, The Washington Post, and more.

Empire of AI, by Karen Hao

A long-time Silicon Valley insider and 2025 TIME100 AI honoree, Karen Hao is the author of Empire of AI: a thrilling look behind the scenes of OpenAI and the biggest tech arms race in history. TIME calls it a “page-turner that has made waves not just in Silicon Valley but around the world,” and writes that Karen “is fundamentally shaping many people’s perceptions and understanding of the company at the center of the AI revolution.” Empire of AI was named a best book of 2025 by The New York Times, The Economist, and Financial Times.

“Candid, plain-spoken and gripping. Knife reminds us of the things worth fighting for.”— The New York Times

Few writers have shaped contemporary literature like Sir Salman Rushdie. The author of modern classics like The Satanic Verses and Midnight’s Children, which received the prestigious Booker Prize and was then named the Best of the Booker, he has won countless awards and never stopped fighting for the right to free expression.

In his latest memoir, he offers the searing, deeply personal story of the attack that almost took his life 30 years after the fatwa that called for his death. Knife is a riveting, masterful, defiantly witty account of his journey to recovery that was named one of the best books of the year by The New York Times, The New Yorker, TIME Magazine, Kirkus, and more. The Guardian calls it a “testament to his resilience and dark humour,” while The Wall Street Journal hails it as “a brave and beautiful book that tells his story with a cathartic relish.”

In spellbinding keynotes, Sir Rushdie weaves together the worlds of politics, literature, and modern life, reminding audiences why he remains one of the most important voices of our time. He draws on his experience and his book—as well as his storied career—to explore the resilience of the human spirit, the sustaining power of love, and the importance of free expression in a moment like ours.

Below, watch his speech at the PEN America Gala: “The cause of free expression has never been more significant.”

DOPPLEGANGER

Naomi Klein

TIME 10 Best Nonfiction Books | New York Times (NYT) 100 Notable Books

Vulture #1 Book of the Year | Amazon Best Nonfiction | Slate Best Books

Extreme conspiracy taken as fact. AI blurring the line between human and machine. In a world where the familiar feels slightly wrong, this internationally bestselling author shows us how to find our way back to stable ground. Her latest bestseller is “deft and intricate” (NYT) and “an essential read” (Cory Doctorow).

TREMOR

Teju Cole

TIME 10 Best Fiction Books | TIME 100 Must-Read Books

Washington Post Best Fiction | Publishers Weekly Best Fiction | Financial Times Best Fiction

“A masterful novel by one of America’s finest writers” (The Daily Telegraph), this brilliant book engages with literature, music, race, and history to explore the passage of time and the value of art for a world in chaos. Publishers Weekly calls it “a splendid feast for the senses.”

THE 272

Rachel L. Swarns

NYT 100 Notable Books | TIME 100 Must-Read Books

Kirkus Best Nonfiction | Washington Post Best Nonfiction

In her acclaimed addition to our understanding of America, this journalist and author reveals the untold story of the families who were enslaved and sold by Catholic priests. She’s prompted a national reckoning into how we can transform our knowledge of the past into concrete action in the present.

ABOVE GROUND

Clint Smith

TIME 100 Must-Read Books | NPR Books We Love

In this moving poetry collection which follows his #1 NYT bestseller How the Word Is Passed, this National Book Critics Circle Award-winning writer explores parenthood and the world that his children are growing up in. He “finds faith in the unknowable and hope in a world that is ever changing” (TIME).

THE STORY OF ART WITHOUT MEN

Katy Hessel

Kirkus Best Nonfiction

“If you haven’t encountered Katy Hessel, the feminist dynamo who’s on a mission to grant female artists their rightful place in history, now’s your moment” (LA Times). This NYT bestselling author challenges us to build a more inclusive story—for art, and every other field.

POWER AND PROGRESS

Daron Acemoglu

Financial Times Best Technology Books

Innovation doesn’t necessarily mean social progress, argues the third most cited economist in the world. He proves that it’s up to us to choose a world where tech benefits us all. Nobel laureate Sir Angus Deaton calls this brilliant exploration “an important book that is long overdue.”

THE WIND KNOWS MY NAME

Isabel Allende

NPR Books We Love

The most widely read Spanish-language author in the world intertwines two stories—a boy fleeing Nazi-occupied Europe and a girl fleeing 21st century El Salvador—in this “ambitious, intricate historical saga that is deeply connected to our present day” (People).