Best Books to Read in 2025

The Fifth Trimester by Lauren Smith Brody

I LOVED this book. It was exactly what I needed as I searched for childcare for my baby and envisioned what it would be like to return to work. There are so many lines I highlighted that I will be returning to again and again. I mainly appreciated that the author made me feel less alone and provided practical advice for many situations I have faced and will face in the coming months.

Uptime by Laura Mae Martin

Check out my in depth blog post on this book.

I loved this book and have been implementing the techniques for the last month, with significant success! My key takeaways are that you have to be crystal clear on your priorities and boundaries (and say no to everything else); you have to be hyper protective of your most productive hours; you have to have space in your calendar to allow for space in your head and you have to disconnect from technology; you have to treat working on email as its own task and not an all day, every day thing.

Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf

This book was enjoyable and required a lot of concentration. The character studies made me think and challenged the default perspective. I’ll leave you with this quote that is a great example of how the entire book is written.

“Absorbing, mysterious, of infinite richness, this life. And in the large square where the cabs shot and swerved so quick, there were loitering couples, dallying, embracing, shrunk up under the shower of a tree; that was moving; so silent, so absorbed, that one passed, discreetly, timidly, as if in the presence of some sacred ceremony to interrupt which would have been impious. That was interesting. And so on into the flare and glare.”

The Whalebone Theatre by Joanna Quinn

I had an excellent time reading this book! Typically I don’t love books that are set during a world war, but the focus on children’s perspectives and the theater more than made up for it.

This book tells the story of three children who create their own theater at their home. Most adults continually disappoint them, but there are a few who come through and it’s interesting to explore the qualities that contribute to those relationships, like consistency.

As the children grow up they engage in war efforts in their own ways, and as their genders allow. I was surprised by how invested I was in this portion of the story and could definitely relate to the oldest daughter experience.

I was very glad to have read this story and recommend it wholeheartedly!

The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai

Oh man, the AIDS epidemic brings such sadness and fear whenever I learn about it, but also admiration and respect for those who navigate it. This story follows a group of friends whose community is being ravaged by AIDS, an art gallery, and a nearly forgotten history of a muse and artist.

While this may seem like a lot of storylines (and it is), they are all told so well and come together to make the story as a whole strong. There were events and actions by characters that made my blood boil and that I viewed as unforgivable, but every character was explored with a measure of understanding and grace.

This is another read that I highly recommend!

Just Kids by Patti Smith

I didn’t really know what I was getting into when I read this book, but I ended up learning so much about an era in NYC that I wasn’t familiar with before. The author, Patti Smith, tells the real story of her relationship with Robert Mapplethorpe (which was beautiful, but definitely confusing for me as a fairly traditional person). She discusses their evolution as artists and how they supported and pushed one another.

I was inspired to read this after hearing Patti on Julia Louis-Dreyfus’s podcast and I appreciated Patti’s use of language, both in the interview and the book. If you enjoy memoirs and have any interest in NYC, artists, or rock and roll, this is for you.

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

Well. This is something. I have a lot of thoughts. To set the scene, if you read this book, you’re about to embark on hundreds and hundreds of pages of very disturbing and difficult tales. However, your reward will be deep character study and development, and so much tension.

We start out going into the backstory of each of four college friends. You may think that means you’ll get to stay with these characters intimately throughout the story. You’d be wrong. You’re only going to focus on the most abused and desperately sad character of all.

I really did love the tension building and slow release of information throughout the story. The author did a masterful job of never quite letting you feel like you knew the whole story. However, I found it getting repetitive towards the end and the number of unfortunate and unlucky and horrible things that went on became unbearable.

If you’re ready to be disturbed and saddened and lose a lot of faith in humanity, but also appreciate the power of love that can’t quite be explained, have at it.

The Bee Sting by Paul Murray

This was a tension-filled novel that had me in near constant fear of something about to happen, and that was the case right up until the very end. Set in Ireland in the country, you follow four core characters of a father, mother, adolescent son and young adult daughter. The writing style is unique to each one, who mostly get their own chapters, and it’s a very effective tool to put you in the mindset of the character you’re focusing on at the moment.

I struggled with the threat of child abuse, and actual physical abuse that happens, but I was able to tolerate it as it truly added to the story and created the tension that I couldn’t shake. If you want to dive deep into how people can experience the same events but have wildly different perspectives, this novel is for you.

Table for Two by Amor Towles

I’ve loved all of Amor Towles books and this work of short stories was thoroughly enjoyable. It was fun to be dropped into a story and appreciate how Towles is able to communicate the essence of his characters quickly and compellingly. I recommend this book without reservation to any reader!