Must-Read Books
Full List

Realistic Fiction

All This Could Be YoursDoxologyDucks, NewburyportThe Dutch HouseFind MeFleishman Is In TroubleGirl, Woman, OtherLost Children ArchiveThe Man Who Saw EverythingMiracle CreekMostly Dead ThingsThe Nickel BoysNormal PeopleNothing to See HereOlive, AgainOn Earth We're Briefly GorgeousThe Other AmericansPatsyQueenieRed at the BoneSearching for Sylvie LeeSupper ClubThe RevisionersThe Shadow KingThe Topeka SchoolTrust ExerciseThe UnpassingWomen Talking

Suspense & Altered Worlds

American SpyBlack Leopard, Red WolfBunnyThe ChainThe FarmInlandThe NeedNinth HouseThe Old DriftAn Orchestra of MinoritiesQuichotteRecursionThe Starless SeaThe TestamentsThe Water DancerWhere Reasons End

Literature in Translation

The CapitalChina DreamDrive Your Plow Over the Bones of the DeadIt Would Be Night in CaracasThe Memory PoliceStalingrad

Short Stories & Poetry

Everything Inside: StoriesExhalation: StoriesLot: StoriesMagical Negro: PoemsOculus: PoemsSing to It: New StoriesThe Tradition

Memoir & Essays

The Collected Schizophrenias: EssaysDear Girls: Intimate Tales, Untold Secrets & Advice for Living Your Best LifeGood Talk: A Memoir in ConversationsHow We Fight For Our Lives: A MemoirIn the Dream House: A MemoirOnce More We Saw Stars: A MemoirOver the Top: A Raw Journey to Self-LoveThe Source of Self-Regard: Selected Essays, Speeches, and MeditationsSurvival Math: Notes on an All-American FamilyThick: And Other EssaysTrick Mirror: Reflections on Self-DelusionThe Undying: Pain, Vulnerability, Mortality, Medicine, Art, Time, Dreams, Data, Exhaustion, Cancer, and CareThe Unwinding of the Miracle: A Memoir of Life, Death, and Everything That Comes AfterThe Yellow House: A Memoir

History & Politics

EdisonThe Education of an Idealist: A MemoirThe Heartbeat of Wounded Knee: Native America from 1890 to the PresentMidnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World's Greatest Nuclear DisasterReport on the Investigation into Russian Interference in the 2016 Presidential Election (The Mueller Report)Places and Names: On War, Revolution, and ReturningStony the Road: Reconstruction, White Supremacy, and the Rise of Jim CrowThis Land Is Our Land: An Immigrant's ManifestoA Warning

Society & Science

The Age of Surveillance Capitalism: The Fight for a Human Future at the New Frontier of PowerBecause Internet: Understanding the New Rules of LanguageDiversity, Inc.: The Failed Promise of a Billion-Dollar BusinessThe Great Pretender: The Undercover Mission That Changed Our Understanding of MadnessHow to Be An Anti-RacistHow to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention EconomyHow to Hold a Grudge: From Resentment to Contentment ― The Power of Grudges to Transform Your LifeMaybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, Her Therapist, and Our Lives RevealedThe Moment of Lift: How Empowering Women Changes the WorldSelf-Portrait in Black and White: Unlearning RaceThe Uninhabitable Earth: Life After WarmingThree WomenUnderland: A Deep Time Journey

True Crime & Journalism

Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy to Protect PredatorsFurious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper LeeKnow My Name: A MemoirMy Friend Anna: The True Story of a Fake HeiressSay Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern IrelandShe Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a MovementThings We Didn't Talk About When I Was a Girl
Realistic Fiction
Suspense & Altered Worlds
Literature in Translation
Short Stories & Poetry
Memoir & Essays
History & Politics
Society & Science
True Crime & Journalism
Must-Read Books
Full List
Realistic Fiction
Suspense & Altered Worlds
Literature in Translation
Short Stories & Poetry
Memoir & Essays
History & Politics
Society & Science
True Crime & Journalism

The 100 Must-Read Books of 2019

Stirring novels and short stories, thought-provoking histories, affecting memoirs and more. These are the books that captured our attention.

—Naina Bajekal, Emma Barker, Judy Berman, Andrew R. Chow, Kelly Conniff, Eliana Dockterman, Merrill Fabry, Lori Fradkin, Lucy Feldman, Annabel Gutterman, Suyin Haynes, Nate Hopper, Cady Lang, Sam Lansky, Belinda Luscombe, Lily Rothman, Eben Shapiro, Lucas Wittmann, Elijah Wolfson

Realistic Fiction

all-this-could-be-yours
All This Could Be Yours
Jami Attenberg
doxology
Doxology
Nell Zink
ducks-newburyport
Ducks, Newburyport
Lucy Ellmann
the-dutch-house
The Dutch House
Ann Patchett
find-me
Find Me
André Aciman
fleishman-is-in-trouble
Fleishman Is In Trouble
Taffy Brodesser-Akner
girl-woman-other
Girl, Woman, Other
Bernardine Evaristo
lost-children-archive
Lost Children Archive
Valeria Luiselli
the-man-who-saw-everything
The Man Who Saw Everything
Deborah Levy
miracle-creek
Miracle Creek
Angie Kim
mostly-dead-things
Mostly Dead Things
Kristen Arnett
the-nickel-boys
The Nickel Boys
Colson Whitehead
normal-people
Normal People
Sally Rooney
nothing-to-see-here
Nothing to See Here
Kevin Wilson
olive-again
Olive, Again
Elizabeth Strout
on-earth-were-briefly-gorgeous
On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous
Ocean Vuong
the-other-americans
The Other Americans
Laila Lalami
patsy
Patsy
Nicole Dennis-Benn
queenie
Queenie
Candice Carty-Williams
red-at-the-bone
Red at the Bone
Jacqueline Woodson
searching-for-sylvie-lee
Searching for Sylvie Lee
Jean Kwok
supper-club
Supper Club
Lara Williams
the-revisioners
The Revisioners
Margaret Wilkerson Sexton
the-shadow-king
The Shadow King
Maaza Mengiste
the-topeka-school
The Topeka School
Ben Lerner
trust-exercise
Trust Exercise
Susan Choi
the-unpassing
The Unpassing
Chia-Chia Lin
women-talking
Women Talking
Miriam Toews

Suspense & Altered Worlds

american-spy
American Spy
Lauren Wilkinson
 
black-leopard-red-wolf
Black Leopard, Red Wolf
Marlon James
 
bunny
Bunny
Mona Awad
 
the-chain
The Chain
Adrian McKinty
 
the-farm
The Farm
Joanne Ramos
 
inland
Inland
Téa Obreht
 
the-need
The Need
Helen Phillips
 
ninth-house
Ninth House
Leigh Bardugo
 
the-old-drift
The Old Drift
Namwali Serpell
 
an-orchestra-of-minorities
An Orchestra of Minorities
Chigozie Obioma
 
quichotte
Quichotte
Salman Rushdie
 
recursion
Recursion
Blake Crouch
 
the-starless-sea
The Starless Sea
Erin Morgenstern
 
the-testaments
The Testaments
Margaret Atwood
 
the-water-dancer
The Water Dancer
Ta-Nehisi Coates
 
where-reasons-end
Where Reasons End
Yiyun Li
 

Literature in Translation

the-capital
The Capital
Robert Menasse, trans. Jamie Bulloch
 
china-dream
China Dream
Ma Jian, trans. Flora Drew
 
drive-your-plow-over-the-bones-of-the-dead
Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead
Olga Tokarczuk, trans. Antonia Lloyd-Jones
 
it-would-be-night-in-caracas
It Would Be Night in Caracas
Karina Sainz Borgo, trans. Elizabeth Bryer
 
the-memory-police
The Memory Police
Yoko Ogawa, trans. Stephen Snyder
 
stalingrad
Stalingrad
Vasily Grossman, trans. Robert Chandler, Elizabeth Chandler
 

Short Stories & Poetry

everything-inside
Everything Inside: Stories
Edwidge Danticat
 
exhalation
Exhalation: Stories
Ted Chiang
 
lot
Lot: Stories
Bryan Washington
 
magical-negro
Magical Negro: Poems
Morgan Parker
 
oculus-poems
Oculus: Poems
Sally Wen Mao
 
sing-to-it
Sing to It: New Stories
Amy Hempel
 
the-tradition
The Tradition
Jericho Brown
 

Memoir & Essays

the-collected-schizophrenias
The Collected Schizophrenias: Essays
Esmé Weijun Wang
 
dear-girls
Dear Girls: Intimate Tales, Untold Secrets & Advice for Living Your Best Life
Ali Wong
 
good-talk
Good Talk: A Memoir in Conversations
Mira Jacob
 
how-we-fight-for-our-lives
How We Fight For Our Lives: A Memoir
Saeed Jones
 
in-the-dream-house
In the Dream House: A Memoir
Carmen Maria Machado
 
once-more-we-saw-stars
Once More We Saw Stars: A Memoir
Jayson Greene
 
over-the-top-a-raw-journey-to-self-love
Over the Top: A Raw Journey to Self-Love
Jonathan Van Ness
 
the-source-of-self-regard
The Source of Self-Regard: Selected Essays, Speeches, and Meditations
Toni Morrison
 
survival-math
Survival Math: Notes on an All-American Family
Mitchell S. Jackson
 
thick
Thick: And Other Essays
Tressie McMillan Cottom
 
trick-mirror
Trick Mirror: Reflections on Self-Delusion
Jia Tolentino
 
the-undying
The Undying: Pain, Vulnerability, Mortality, Medicine, Art, Time, Dreams, Data, Exhaustion, Cancer, and Care
Anne Boyer
 
the-unwinding-of-the-miracle
The Unwinding of the Miracle: A Memoir of Life, Death, and Everything That Comes After
Julie Yip-Williams
 
the-yellow-house
The Yellow House: A Memoir
Sarah M. Broom
 

History & Politics

edison
Edison
Edmund Morris
 
the-education-of-an-idealist
The Education of an Idealist: A Memoir
Samantha Power
 
the-heartbeat-of-wounded-knee
The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee: Native America from 1890 to the Present
David Treuer
 
midnight-in-chernobyl
Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the World's Greatest Nuclear Disaster
Adam Higginbotham
 
the-mueller-report
Report on the Investigation into Russian Interference in the 2016 Presidential Election (The Mueller Report)
Robert Mueller
 
places-and-names
Places and Names: On War, Revolution, and Returning
Elliot Ackerman
 
stony-the-road
Stony the Road: Reconstruction, White Supremacy, and the Rise of Jim Crow
Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
 
this-land-is-our-land
This Land Is Our Land: An Immigrant's Manifesto
Suketu Mehta
 
a-warning
A Warning
Anonymous
 

Society & Science

the-age-of-surveillance-capitalism
The Age of Surveillance Capitalism: The Fight for a Human Future at the New Frontier of Power
Shoshana Zuboff
 
because-internet
Because Internet: Understanding the New Rules of Language
Gretchen McCulloch
 
diversity-inc
Diversity, Inc.: The Failed Promise of a Billion-Dollar Business
Pamela Newkirk
 
the-great-pretender
The Great Pretender: The Undercover Mission That Changed Our Understanding of Madness
Susannah Cahalan
 
how-to-be-an-anti-racist
How to Be An Anti-Racist
Ibram X. Kendi
 
how-to-do-nothing
How to Do Nothing: Resisting the Attention Economy
Jenny Odell
 
how-to-hold-a-grudge
How to Hold a Grudge: From Resentment to Contentment ― The Power of Grudges to Transform Your Life
Sophie Hannah
 
maybe-you-should-talk-to-someone
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone: A Therapist, Her Therapist, and Our Lives Revealed
Lori Gottlieb
 
the-moment-of-lift
The Moment of Lift: How Empowering Women Changes the World
Melinda Gates
 
self-portrait-in-black-and-white
Self-Portrait in Black and White: Unlearning Race
Thomas Chatterton Williams
 
the-uninhabitable-earth
The Uninhabitable Earth: Life After Warming
David Wallace-Wells
 
three-women
Three Women
Lisa Taddeo
 
underland
Underland: A Deep Time Journey
Robert Macfarlane
 

True Crime & Journalism

catch-and-kill
Catch and Kill: Lies, Spies, and a Conspiracy to Protect Predators
Ronan Farrow
 
furious-hours
Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper Lee
Casey Cep
 
know-my-name
Know My Name: A Memoir
Chanel Miller
 
my-friend-anna
My Friend Anna: The True Story of a Fake Heiress
Rachel DeLoache Williams
 
say-nothing
Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland
Patrick Radden Keefe
 
she-said
She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement
Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey
 
things-we-didnt-talk-about-when-i-was-a-girl
Things We Didn't Talk About When I Was a Girl
Jeannie Vanasco
 
Customer ServiceSite MapPrivacy PolicyAd ChoicesTerms of UseYour California Privacy RightsCareers
© 2023 TIME USA, LLC. All rights reserved.
TIME may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.
Home
U.S.
Politics
World
Business
Tech
Health
TIME Health
Motto
Entertainment
Science
Newsfeed
Living
Sports
History
The TIME Vault
Magazine
Ideas
TIME Labs
LIFE
Photography
Videos
The Goods
TIME Shop
Press Room
TIME Guide to Happiness
The 100 Most Influential People
American Voices
The Breakdown
Finding Home
The Influencers
Longevity 2017
Next Generation Leaders
Person of the Year
Space 2017
Top of the World
Workarounds
Subscribe
Newsletters
Feedback
Privacy Policy
Your California Privacy Rights
Terms of Use
Ad Choices
RSS
TIME Apps
TIME for Kids
Advertising
Reprints and Permissions
Site Map
Help
Customer Service
Follow TIME