When my husband and I purchased our house in 2017, we immediately knew a library should be built in the formal living room. 

My husband is a diligent DIY-er and designed and built the bookcase of my dreams, ladder and all.

It was big and beautiful. Then, I realized that it was very empty. I thought I owned a lot of books.

About this time, I found "bookstagram" by chance. I discovered the concept of it while looking for a book hashtag and went down the rabbit hole to realize there were tons of book accounts and people working with publishers to promote new titles.

I was posting about books on my personal social-media channels and not really getting the feedback or interaction that I was hoping for. I saw creating a bookstagram account as an incredible opportunity to talk about books and grow my personal library. I created a second account devoted to books, The Bookcase Beauty, in 2019.

I'd say about 5,000 followers was when I really felt it take off. 

I would intermittently experience some really fast-growth days. Many would send messages noticing how fast my following was growing and congratulate me or ask for advice.

I started it April 1, 2019, and hit 5,000 followers right at the beginning of July. I celebrated with a 5,000-followers giveaway.

Once I hit 5,000 followers, publishers began adding me to monthly sign-ups to receive their upcoming books, and I was doing a lot less initial emailing/requesting to read titles. From there, I'd say it grew even quicker because I was able to consistently showcase upcoming releases. I now have more than 50,000 followers and average 250,000 impressions a week.

I spend probably a total of 2 to 3 hours a day being active. 

I try to be intentional about engaging with other book accounts, including Oh the Books She Will Read, The Grateful Read, and Sweet Honey and Brei, responding to comments and replying to direct messages and emails.

I try to respond to as many comments as possible — probably about 100. There are more, but I'd say that's about my daily limit.

Comments usually pertain to the books I'm talking about, and I respond with encouragement to read the book. Other times, comments are about my bookshelves. People often ask where I got them or comment that they're their dream shelves. I always reply and give my husband credit for the shelves. I think the concept that he designed and built is also part of my niche.

The heaviest concentration of time spent is definitely over the weekends. On top of everything else I do for the account, I try to take all of my photo content for the week.

Sometimes I edit them all at once, and sometimes I edit them the day I post. This pattern cuts down on a lot of time-eating thought of, "What am I going to post today?"

There's not so much a typical day but a typical pattern. Three to four mornings a week, I run while listening to audiobooks.

I try to post that in my stories consistently. I thought it might bug people to see them so often, but the feedback I've gotten is that people love to know when I'm being active and they love to know what I'm listening to. I've heard from many that it's great motivation for them.

Typically, I post in the morning because that's what works best with my teaching schedule. I'll periodically check in throughout the day — lunch, after work — but my evenings are dedicated mainly to reading.

I was surprised to find out how little is paid in promotion. All in all, I've made about $6,000 in 2 years. 

To be clear, that's not why I started my account. 

I'm extremely grateful to have grown my personal library with so many gifted books. I receive five to 10 a week. 

Last year, I read or listened to 120 books. Those were primarily gifted copies. At about $20 to $25 a book, I saved $2,400 to $3,000. I would have read significantly less had I been purchasing books.

But when I see larger accounts promote titles, as a small account, I assumed they were working in partnership. It makes sense, since they have such a large, targeted audience, that they would be compensated for their advertising space.

For the most part, there's no compensation or promotional partnership. I've been a part of a couple of promotions that include media companies. All of my partnerships have been made via them reaching out to me, aside from my initial book requests to publishers while I was still a relatively "small" account.

In the age of instant streaming, I'd love to continue partnerships with media companies to help promote book-to-film adaptations. I think my platform provides a great space for readers to interact with each other in their shared opinions and excitement of the film adaptations. It's fun to do story polls, questions, and live reactions when watching the film adaptation. 

My side income breaks down like this:

• $5,000: combined media for book-to-film adaptation promotion.
• $300: box-subscription service.
• $300: nail-decal company.
• $200: book promotion for publisher.

I don't spend much on this business. The only costs I take on are when I'm shipping books to others via media mail. It's usually about $3 a book. I did purchased a small tripod to take photos.

I don't have an assistant. It's just me and my Bluetooth remote and tripod. Over the past two years, I'd say I've spent about $300 on my business. 

Having something that sets you apart or something that people will uniquely identify with you is beneficial.

Engage with others in a kind, supportive manner. The more you interact, the more it will be returned to you. 

Being open about who you are is also a key to connection. Yes, people are here for the books, but people want to know you, too. It's very connecting when people check in about my teaching year during the pandemic, my running routines, and my pets, Copper and Quilliam.

Practice taking pictures. Good photos will get attention. Figure out what's going to catch someone's eye. This goes for editing, too. Finding an aesthetic can take time. Play around and be open to creativity.

Don't let it become a chore. That perspective will burn you out quickly. You can't do it all.

For me, this platform is a source of joy, and I want to keep it that way. Participate when you can, and don't feel bad when you miss out. You have a life outside Instagram. 

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During the pandemic, many college professors abandoned assignments from printed textbooks and turned instead to digital texts or multimedia coursework.

As a professor of linguistics, I have been studying how electronic communication compares to traditional print when it comes to learning. Is comprehension the same whether a person reads a text onscreen or on paper? And are listening and viewing content as effective as reading the written word when covering the same material?

The answers to both questions are often "no," as I discuss in my book "How We Read Now," released in March 2021. The reasons relate to a variety of factors, including diminished concentration, an entertainment mindset, and a tendency to multitask while consuming digital content.

Read more: I'm a 28-year-old influencer who started promoting books on my Instagram. I've made $6,000 and now have 50,000 followers — here's how I turned my love of reading into a side hustle.

Print versus digital reading

When reading texts of several hundred words or more, learning is generally more successful when it's on paper than onscreen. A cascade of research confirms this finding.

The benefits of print particularly shine through when experimenters move from posing simple tasks — like identifying the main idea in a reading passage — to ones that require mental abstraction— such as drawing inferences from a text. Print reading also improves the likelihood of recalling details— like "What was the color of the actor's hair?"— and remembering where in a story events occurred— "Did the accident happen before or after the political coup?"

Studies show that both grade school students and college students assume they'll get higher scores on a comprehension test if they have done the reading digitally. And yet, they actually score higher when they have read the material in print before being tested.

Educators need to be aware that the method used for standardized testing can affect results. Studies of Norwegian tenth graders and US third through eighth graders report higher scores when standardized tests were administered using paper. In the US study, the negative effects of digital testing were strongest among students with low reading achievement scores, English language learners, and special education students.

My own research and that of colleagues approached the question differently. Rather than having students read and take a test, we asked how they perceived their overall learning when they used print or digital reading materials. Both high school and college students overwhelmingly judged reading on paper as better for concentration, learning, and remembering than reading digitally.

The discrepancies between print and digital results are partly related to paper's physical properties. With paper, there is a literal laying on of hands, along with the visual geography of distinct pages. People often link their memory of what they've read to how far into the book it was or where it was on the page.

But equally important is mental perspective, and what reading researchers call a "shallowing hypothesis." According to this theory, people approach digital texts with a mindset suited to casual social media, and devote less mental effort than when they are reading print.

Podcasts and online video

Given increased use of flipped classrooms— where students listen to or view lecture content before coming to class — along with more publicly available podcasts and online video content, many school assignments that previously entailed reading have been replaced with listening or viewing. These substitutions have accelerated during the pandemic and move to virtual learning.

Surveying US and Norwegian university faculty in 2019, University of Stavanger Professor Anne Mangen and I found that 32% of US faculty were now replacing texts with video materials, and 15% reported doing so with audio. The numbers were somewhat lower in Norway. But in both countries, 40% of respondents who had changed their course requirements over the past five to 10 years reported assigning less reading today.

A primary reason for the shift to audio and video is students refusing to do assigned reading. While the problem is hardly new, a 2015 study of more than 18,000 college seniors found only 21% usually completed all their assigned course reading.

Audio and video can feel more engaging than text, and so faculty increasingly resort to these technologies — say, assigning a TED talk instead of an article by the same person.

Maximizing mental focus

Psychologists have demonstrated that when adults read news stories or transcripts of fiction, they remember more of the content than if they listen to identical pieces.

Researchers found similar results with university students reading an article versus listening to a podcast of the text. A related study confirms that students do more mind-wandering when listening to audio than when reading.

Results with younger students are similar, but with a twist. A study in Cyprus concluded that the relationship between listening and reading skills flips as children become more fluent readers. While second graders had better comprehension with listening, eighth graders showed better comprehension when reading.

Research on learning from video versus text echoes what we see with audio. For example, researchers in Spain found that fourth through sixth graders who read texts showed far more mental integration of the material than those watching videos. The authors suspect that students "read" the videos more superficially because they associate video with entertainment, not learning.

The collective research shows that digital media have common features and user practices that can constrain learning. These include diminished concentration, an entertainment mindset, a propensity to multitask, lack of a fixed physical reference point, reduced use of annotation, and less frequent reviewing of what has been read, heard, or viewed.

Digital texts, audio, and video all have educational roles, especially when providing resources not available in print. However, for maximizing learning where mental focus and reflection are called for, educators — and parents — shouldn't assume all media are the same, even when they contain identical words.

Naomi S. Baron, professor of linguistics emerita, American University

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Wendy's is bringing its burgers back to the UK.

The fast-food chain plans to open up to 400 restaurants across the country, with the first location opening in the English town of Reading in June.

It left the UK market around 20 years ago, but plans to return with a tailored menu alongside its US classics.

Wendy's, which already has around 6,800 sites globally, said its relaunch in the UK would "spearhead" a European-wide expansion. It currently operates in around 30 countries.

Read more: These 6 restaurant chains skyrocketed in growth during the pandemic and now are courting new franchisees. Here's what it takes to open and run an El Pollo Loco, Jack in the Box, Noodles and Company, and others.

"Wendy's looks to build on strong growth on the other side of the Atlantic, where the brand last year dethroned Burger King to become the number two player in the US hamburger market," it said in a statement shared with Insider.

It said that it would adapt its menu to the British market, including more vegetarian options. It said menu items would include its famous "Dave" burger with a quarter-pound of beef, its chocolate Frosty milkshake, and its spicy chicken sandwich. It will also serve its breakfast menu, which includes croissants and coffee, as well as its "Baconator" bacon burger.

Wendy's previously had around 10 restaurants in the UK, but exited the market in 2001, citing high operating costs.

The Reading location is opening on June 2, with sites in Stratford and Oxford opening in the second half of 2021. It told The Mirror it plans to open at least two more restaurants this year, but wouldn't name the locations.

People will also be able to order Wendy's for delivery through a deal with Uber Eats.

It said the UK expansion would create at least 12,000 jobs, including at least 1,000 over the next two years, and added it wouldn't use zero-hour contracts.

Wendy's is joining other fast-food chains expanding to the UK to tap into soaring demand for takeout.

Fried-chicken chain Popeyes plans to open 350 restaurants over the next 10 years, while Canadian coffee and donut chain Tim Hortons said it wants to have branch in "every major city and town" in the UK by late 2022.

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Finding the right gift for a recent grad can be tough. Should you get them some decor to liven up a new apartment? Could you chip in for a big trip they're planning? Would they be better off with just a gift card or some cash?

As the college-aged contingent transitions from students to alumni, their lives will become occupied with all new kinds of challenges, excitements, and memories. Transitioning from the college bubble to the real world can be difficult, so why not impart some wisdom on your recent grad to guide them through all these changes?

Books make great gifts for college graduates, especially ones that can help them kickstart their careers, better understand the industry they're entering, supply them with lifelong lessons, or just tell them everything will be fine. We rounded up 21 of those books, from engaging memoirs to self-help books and guides.

Keep reading for 21 inspiring books that recent college grads will want to read:

Captions are adapted synopses from Amazon and Bookshop.

"The Defining Decade" by Meg Jay

"The Defining Decade," available at Bookshop and Amazon, $11.99

Drawing from a decade of work with hundreds of 20-something clients and students, "The Defining Decade" weaves the latest science of the 20-something years with behind-closed-doors stories from 20-somethings themselves. The result is a provocative read that provides the tools necessary to make the most of your 20s and shows us how work, relationships, personality, social networks, identity, and even the brain can change more during this decade than at any other time in adulthood-if we use the time wisely. 

"Ask a Manager" by Alison Green

"Ask a Manager," available at Bookshop and Amazon, $13.95

There's a reason Alison Green has been called "the Dear Abby of the work world." 10 years as a workplace advice columnist have taught her that people avoid awkward conversations in the office because they simply don't know what to say. Thankfully, Green does — and in this incredibly helpful book, she tackles the tough discussions you may need to have during your career. 

"Congratulations, By the Way" by George Saunders

"Congratulations, By the Way," available at Amazon and Bookshop, $10.44

Three months after George Saunders gave a graduation address at Syracuse University, a transcript of that speech was posted on the website of "The New York Times," where its simple, uplifting message struck a deep chord. Within days, it had been shared more than one million times. Why? Because Saunders's words tap into a desire in all of us to lead kinder, more fulfilling lives. Powerful, funny, and wise, "Congratulations, By the Way" is an inspiring message from one of today's most influential and original writers.

"Get Good with Money" By Tiffany Aliche (The Budgetnista)

"Get Good with Money: Ten Simple Steps to Becoming Financially Whole," available at Bookshop and Amazon, $13.99

Tiffany Aliche was a successful pre-school teacher with a healthy nest egg when a recession and advice from a shady advisor put her out of a job and into a huge financial hole. As she began to chart the path to her own financial rescue, the outline of her ten-step formula for attaining both financial security and peace of mind began to take shape. These principles have now helped more than one million women worldwide save and pay off millions in debt, and begin planning for a richer life.

"What I Know Now" by Ellyn Spragins

"What I Know Now," available at Bookshop and Amazon, $10.16

If you could send a letter back through time to your younger self, what would the letter say? 

In this moving collection, 41 famous women write letters to the women they once were, filled with advice and insights they wish they had had when they were younger. Their letters contain rare glimpses into the personal lives of extraordinary women and powerful wisdom that readers will treasure.

"Now What" by Ari King

"Now What?!" available at Amazon, $14.95

This book features over 60 interviews with recent college graduates (22-26 years old) and older, more established graduates (27-75 years old) about their experiences transitioning from college students to the real world while looking for work, applying for graduate school, and trying to figure out what to do next. From the budding marine biologist who studied abroad in Saint Croix to the driven journalist who graduated early for a newspaper job, "Now What?!" is packed full of advice for students and alumni alike.

"What You're Really Meant to Do" by Robert Steven Kaplan

"What You're Really Meant to Do", available at Bookshop and Amazon, $15.86

Robert Steven Kaplan, leadership expert and author of the highly successful book "What to Ask the Person in the Mirror," regularly advises executives and students on how to tackle these questions. In this indispensable new book, Kaplan shares a specific and actionable approach to defining your own success and reaching your potential.

Drawing on his years of experience, Kaplan proposes an integrated plan for identifying and achieving your goals. He outlines specific steps and exercises to help you understand yourself more deeply, take control of your career, and build your capabilities in a way that fits your passions and aspirations.

"Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar" by Cheryl Strayed

"Tiny Beautiful Things," available at Bookshop and Amazon, $15.59

Life can be hard: your lover cheats on you; you lose a family member; you can't pay the bills — and it can be great: you've had the hottest sex of your life; you get that plum job; you muster the courage to write your novel. Sugar — the once-anonymous online columnist at The Rumpus, now revealed as Cheryl Strayed, author of the bestselling memoir "Wild"— is the person thousands turn to for advice.

“In Conclusion, Don’t Worry About It” by Lauren Graham

"In Conclusion, Don't Worry About It," available at Bookshop and Amazon, $10.45

In this expansion of the 2017 commencement speech she gave at her hometown Langley High, Lauren Graham, the beloved star of "Gilmore Girls" and "Parenthood," reflects on growing up, pursuing your dreams, and living in the here and now. In her hilarious, relatable voice, Graham reminds us to be curious and compassionate, no matter where life takes us or what we've yet to achieve. Grounded and inspiring — and illustrated throughout with drawings by Graham herself — here is a comforting road map to a happy life.

"Trick Mirror" by Jia Tolentino

"Trick Mirror," available at Amazon and Bookshop, $8.99

"Trick Mirror" is an enlightening, unforgettable trip through the river of self-delusion that surges just beneath the surface of our lives. This is a book about the incentives that shape us, and about how hard it is to see ourselves clearly through a culture that revolves around the self. In each essay, Tolentino writes about a cultural prism: the rise of the nightmare social internet; the advent of scamming as the definitive millennial ethos; the literary heroine's journey from brave to blank to bitter; the punitive dream of optimization, which insists that everything, including our bodies, should become more efficient and beautiful until we die. 

Gleaming with Tolentino's sense of humor and capacity to elucidate the impossibly complex in an instant, and marked by her desire to treat the reader with profound honesty, "Trick Mirror" is an instant classic of the worst decade yet.

"How to Be a Person in the World: Ask Polly's Guide Through the Paradoxes of Modern Life" by Heather Havrilesky

"How to Be a Person in the World," available at Amazon and Bookshop, $14.99

Should you quit your day job to follow your dreams? How do you rein in an overbearing mother? Will you ever stop dating wishy-washy, noncommittal guys? 

Heather Havrilesky is here to guide you through the "what if's" and "I don't knows" of modern life with the signature wisdom and tough love her readers have come to expect. Whether she's responding to cheaters or loners, lovers or haters, the anxious or the down-and-out, Havrilesky writes with equal parts grace, humor, and compassion to remind you that even in your darkest moments, you're not alone.

"Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail" by Cheryl Strayed

"Wild," available at Amazon and Bookshop, $12.99

 At 22, Cheryl Strayed thought she had lost everything. In the wake of her mother's death, her family scattered and her own marriage was soon destroyed. Four years later, with nothing more to lose, she made the most impulsive decision of her life. With no experience or training, driven only by blind will, she would hike more than a thousand miles of the Pacific Crest Trail from the Mojave Desert through California and Oregon to Washington State — and she would do it alone.

Told with suspense and style, sparkling with warmth and humor, "Wild" powerfully captures the terrors and pleasures of one young woman forging ahead against all odds on a journey that maddened, strengthened, and ultimately healed her.

“Becoming” by Michelle Obama

"Becoming," available at Amazon and Bookshop, $11.89

In her memoir, a work of deep reflection and mesmerizing storytelling, Michelle Obama invites readers into her world, chronicling the experiences that have shaped her — from her childhood on the South Side of Chicago to her years as an executive balancing the demands of motherhood and work, to her time spent at the world's most famous address. Warm, wise, and revelatory, "Becoming: is the deeply personal reckoning of a woman of soul and substance who has steadily defied expectations — and whose story inspires us to do the same.

"The Beautiful Chaos of Growing Up" by Ari Satok

"The Beautiful Chaos of Growing Up," available at Amazon, $14.99

With humor and insight, "The Beautiful Chaos of Growing Up" takes you into the turbulent world of young adulthood. Capturing the newfound freedoms of college life and the dizzying adventure of the years that immediately follow it, this poetry collection reflects on the ups, downs, and in-betweens of the journey towards independence.

In poems that explore the thrills and anxieties of college friendships and graduation, internships and job interviews, first dates and first apartments, lies a warmhearted, powerful examination of what it means to grow up.

"The Only Investment Guide You'll Ever Need" by Andrew Tobias

"The Only Investment Guide You'll Ever Need," available at Amazon and Bookshop, $13.26

For nearly 40 years, "The Only Investment Guide You'll Ever Need" has been a favorite finance guide, earning the allegiance of more than a million readers across America. This completely updated edition will show you how to use your money to your best advantage in today's financial marketplace, no matter your means.

Using concise, witty, and truly understandable tips and explanations, Andrew Tobias delivers sensible advice and useful information on savings, investments, preparing for retirement, and much more.

"I Will Teach You to Be Rich" by Ramit Sethi

"I Will Teach You to Be Rich," available at Amazon and Bookshop, $7.41

Buy as many lattes as you want. Choose the right accounts and investments so your money grows for you — automatically. Best of all, spend guilt-free on the things you love.
 
Personal finance expert Ramit Sethi has been called a "wealth wizard" by Forbes and the "new guru on the block" by Fortune. Now he's updated and expanded his modern money classic for a new age, delivering a simple, powerful, no-BS six-week program that just works.
 

"Lead From the Outside" by Stacey Abrams

"Lead from the Outside," available at Bookshop and Amazon, $7.99

Leadership is hard. Convincing others ― and yourself ― that you are capable of taking charge and achieving more requires insight and courage. "Lead from the Outside" is the handbook for outsiders, written with an eye toward the challenges that hinder women, people of color, the working class, members of the LGBTQ community, and millennials ready to make change.

Stacey uses her hard-won insights to break down how ambition, fear, money, and failure function in leadership, and she includes practical exercises to help you realize your own ambition and hone your skills. The book discusses candidly what Stacey has learned over the course of her impressive career in politics, business, and the nonprofit world: that differences in race, gender, and class provide vital strength, which we can employ to rise to the top and create real and lasting change.

"Option B" by Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant

"Option B," available at Bookshop and Amazon, $13.41

After the sudden death of her husband, Sheryl Sandberg felt certain that she and her children would never feel pure joy again. Her friend Adam Grant, a psychologist at Wharton, told her there are concrete steps people can take to recover and rebound from life-shattering experiences. We are not born with a fixed amount of resilience. It is a muscle that everyone can build.

"Option B" combines Sheryl's personal insights with Adam's eye-opening research on finding strength in the face of adversity. It illuminates how to help others in crisis, develop compassion for ourselves, raise strong children, and create resilient families, communities, and workplaces. Many of these lessons can be applied to everyday struggles, allowing us to brave whatever lies ahead. 

"Earn It" by Mika Brzezinksi and Daniela Pierre-Bravo

"Earn It!" available on Amazon, $10.99

The whirlwind of job applications, interviews, follow-up, resume building, and networking is just the beginning. What happens after you've landed the job, settled in, and begun to make a difference? Where do you go from here? What if you feel stuck in what you thought would be your dream profession?

"New York Times" best-selling author Mika Brzezinski and producer Daniela Pierre-Bravo provide an essential manual for those crucial next steps. "Earn It!" is a practical career guidebook that not only helps you get your foot in the door; it also shows you how to negotiate a raise, advocate for more responsibility, and figure out whether you're in the career that's right for you. 

"Make Your Bed" by William H. McRaven

"Make Your Bed," available at Bookshop and Amazon, $12.70

On May 17, 2014, Admiral William H. McRaven addressed the graduating class of the University of Texas at Austin on their Commencement day. He shared the 10 principles he learned during Navy Seal training that helped him overcome challenges not only in his training and long Naval career, but also throughout his life; and he explained how anyone can use these basic lessons to change themselves — and the world — for the better.

Told with great humility and optimism, this timeless book provides simple wisdom, practical advice, and words of encouragement that will inspire readers to achieve more, even in life's darkest moments.

"The Miracle Morning" by Hal Elrod

"The Miracle Morning," available at Amazon, $18.15

What's being widely regarded as "one of the most life-changing books ever written" may be the simplest approach to achieving everything you've ever wanted, and faster than you ever thought possible.

What if you could wake up tomorrow and any — or every — area of your life was beginning to transform? What would you change? "The Miracle Morning" is already transforming the lives of tens of thousands of people around the world by showing them how to wake up each day with more energy, motivation, and focus to take your life to the next level. It's been right here in front of us all along, but this book has finally brought it to life.

"This is Marketing" by Seth Godin

"This is Marketing," available at Amazon, $9.61

Seth Godin has taught and inspired millions of entrepreneurs, marketers, leaders, and fans from all walks of life, via his blog, online courses, lectures, and bestselling books. He is the inventor of countless ideas that have made their way into mainstream business language.

Now, for the first time, Godin offers the core of his marketing wisdom in one compact, accessible, timeless package. "This is Marketing"shows you how to do work you're proud of, whether you're a tech startup founder, a small business owner, or part of a large corporation.

"Sapiens" by Yuval Noah Harari

"Sapiens," available at Amazon and Bookshop, $11.40

Author Yuval Noah Harari's fascinating exploration of human history makes for a read that is as thought-provoking as it is captivating. A true history of humankind, Dr. Harari covers the theory of the out-of-Africa movement all the way to developments in CRISPR gene editing. He does so while keeping the information structured, interesting, and easily digestible.

You can read Insider's review of "Sapiens" here.

"You Learn by Living" by Eleanor Roosevelt

"You Learn by Living", available on Amazon and Bookshop, $13.89

One of the most beloved figures of the 20th century, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt remains a role model for a life well-lived. At the age of 76, Roosevelt penned this simple guide to living a fuller life. Now back in print, "You Learn by Living" is a powerful volume of enduring common-sense ideas and heartfelt values. Offering her own philosophy on living, Eleanor takes readers on a path to compassion, confidence, maturity, civic stewardship, and more.

We're already almost halfway through 2021: The days are longer, the grass is greener, and reader's favorite books of the year (so far!) are starting to emerge. 

Many of the new books from the first half of the year are reflective of the world's conversations last year. New novels feature characters that are diverse in more than one way, exploring problems such as social justice, immigration, and what it means to be human in this world. Meanwhile, nonfiction releases tackle climate change, personal growth, and racism while offering logical solutions. 

Though we're only five months into 2021, incredible books have already been published. Whether you're looking for a fun young adult read or a self-help book that addresses a complex problem, the books we recommend might make your favorites list at the end of the year. 

The 26 best new books in 2021:

• Nonfiction
• Historical Fiction
• Young Adult
• Thriller
• Fantasy
• Fiction and Poetry

Nonfiction

A new memoir of an extraordinary life

"Just As I Am" by Cicely Tyson, available on Amazon and Bookshop, from $17.32

For more than 60 years, Cicely Tyson was revered for her acting in American theater and film. Also a lecturer and activist, Cicely Tyson's story is one of authenticity, known and understood by any reader to pick up her book. It's a memoir of a full life, a timely and timeless story of the perseverance and triumph of Black women. Cicely is reflective and open, transferring her charisma to the page as readers follow her through great moments of her life, published just two days before her death at 96 years old.

A bestselling self-help book to change how we talk about trauma

"What Happened To You?: Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing" by Oprah Winfrey and Dr. Bruce D. Perry, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $17.39

While many of us blame ourselves for our emotions, Oprah Winfrey and Dr. Bruce Perry encourage us to shift the question from "What's wrong with you?" to "What happened to you?" Dr. Bruce Perry is a brain and trauma expert who offers scientific insight to the trauma-based reasoning behind our less favorable behavioral patterns. Combined with Oprah's personal and vulnerable anecdotes, the book weaves science and storytelling together to shift how we view trauma so our futures can be defined by more than our pasts.

A new look at the economic effects of racism

"The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together" by Heather McGhee, available on Amazon and Bookshop, from $17.98

Heather McGhee is an American political commentator and strategist with an economic specialty who noticed racism as a common root problem to economic crises. Her book details her personal journey to uncover what she calls the "Solidarity Dividend": Gains that occur when people come together to accomplish what we can't do on our own. Heather McGhee uses stories from across America to demonstrate how white supremacy's collateral damage includes white people themselves and outlines her own message for a new future. 

A popular new psychology book to encourage rethinking

"Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know" by Adam M. Grant, available on Amazon and Bookshop, from $16.80

This book blends psychology and self-help to prove how doubt, failing, and rethinking are instrumental to improving ourselves and our world. Adam M. Grant is a psychologist whose research has shown that intellectual humility, or the ability to take constructive criticism, often has more benefits to productivity than first-time successes. In three sections, he outlines why we struggle to embrace feedback, how we can help others rethink effectively, and how our communities can shift to encourage rethinking.

A collective historical collaboration

"Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019" by Editors Ibram X. Kendi and Keisha N. Blain, available at Amazon and Bookshop from $18.98

In an unparalleled and defining collection, "Four Hundred Souls" is a chronological account of 400 years of Black American history, told by 90 of America's most profound Black writers. In a book that reclaims the ways history was written, it outlines major events with people all but forgotten by American history. Through poems and essays, each author covers five years of Black American history, beginning with the arrival of 20 enslaved Ndongo people one year before the arrival of the Mayflower.

The biography of a Nobel Prize winner

"The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race" by Walter Isaacson, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $21

Jennifer Doudna became obsessed with science, DNA, and the code of life in the sixth grade. Now, she's known as the co-creator of CRISPR — a tool that can edit DNA. This biography depicts how Jennifer Doudna's childhood interest in nature evolved into a Nobel Prize and the potential to change how science affects all aspects of human life. This book also outlines the moral and ethical implications of DNA-editing as well as the ways in which it could improve our physical and mental health. 

Historical Fiction

A bestselling Great Depression historical novel

"The Four Winds" by Kristin Hannah, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $17.39

After "The Nightingale," Kristin Hannah truly became known as an outstanding historical fiction writer. This novel is set in 1934 Texas, where the Great Depression and an insufferable drought has farmers struggling to keep their livelihoods. Elsa is one of them, torn between fighting for her homeland or going to California with the hope of a brighter future. It's a portrait of the American Dream, a heartbreaking story that reads so easily despite the complexity of Kristin Hannah's characters and detailed portrait of life during the Great Depression.

A forbidden love story between enslaved men

"The Prophets" by Robert Jones Jr, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $18.59

This is a magnificent story of love thriving despite the heavy backdrop of slavery. Isiah and Samuel are two enslaved young men, caring for animals on a southern plantation. Their intimacy and refuge in each other protects them from the harsh world — until an older fellow slave begins preaching the master's gospel to gain his favor. When the enslaved people begin to turn on each other, not only is Isiah and Samuel's relationship threatened, but the harmony of the entire plantation. 

A World War II novel about code-breaking women

"The Rose Code" by Kate Quinn, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $13.49

In 1940, World War II engulfed Europe, and three women from England volunteered to train as code breakers while Britain prepared to join the fight against Germany. Osla, Mab, and Beth each have their own undeniable assets to code breaking. Seven years later, the three women are sworn enemies, torn apart by the pressures of secrecy and reunited over a mysterious letter — the key to which lies in the betrayal that tore them apart. 

An historical story about the power of books

"The Paris Library" by Janet Skeslien Charles, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $17.56

Odile was a librarian at the American Library in Paris in 1939 when the Nazis invaded the city. With her fellow librarians, Odile joined the Resistance armed with books. Nearly 45 years later, Lily is a teenager living in Montana when her elderly neighbor's interesting past and common passions offer her the adventure for which she's been searching. This book is about heroism, life during World War II, and the timeless love of literature.

Young Adult

A new YA book that asks deep questions

"One of the Good Ones" by Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $11.99

When Kezi Smith is killed after attending a social justice rally, she becomes immortalized as a victim in the fight against police brutality. As Happi, her sister, mourns, she finds herself questioning the perfect and angelic ways in which Kezi is remembered. Struggling with big philosophical questions after her sister's death, Happi sets out to honor her sister in her own way, spurring a life-altering ride of discovery. This book is poignant and deeply interesting, addressing from a new angle the mentality that victims are either "thugs" or "one of the good ones."

The story of an Indian American teenager

"Red, White, and Whole" by Rajani LaRocca, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $11.99

"Red, White, and Whole" is the story of Reha, a teen torn between her traditional home and her school, where she is the only Indian American student. Her parents rarely notice this clash of worlds unless Reha isn't meeting their expectations. When Reha's mother is diagnosed with leukemia, Reha decides she will be the ideal daughter in the hopes of saving her mother's life. Though fictional, many of the struggles in this book are very real for teenage immigrants and children of immigrants. The emotion packed into these pages might break your heart and leave you shedding more than a few tears. 

A coming-of-age YA novel

"Concrete Rose" by Angie Thomas, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $13.98

A prequel to "The Hate U Give," this YA takes place 17 years prior to Starr's story, where Maverick Carter is torn between making money by dealing for the King Lords or finishing school and working an honest job. When Maverick finds out he's a father, his life and priorities change, even though he's still torn between loyalty and responsibility. In this coming-of-age novel, Maverick tackles big issues with real consequences and finds what it really means to be a father.

Thriller

A new science-fiction thriller

"Project Hail Mary" by Andy Weir, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $17.47

All Ryland knows is he's been asleep for a very long time, he's millions of miles from Earth, and he's the sole survivor of a last chance space mission with an impossible task ahead of him: Conquering an extinction-level threat to the human race. Full of perfectly geeky sci-fi excitement paired with nail-biting thriller elements, this story is an exciting read with Andy Weir's trademark humor throughout.

A bestselling, suspenseful thriller with two narrators

"The Good Sister" by Sally Hepworth, available on Amazon and Bookshop, from $16.79

Fern and Rose are twin sisters who've escaped their mother's sociopathic home and are trying to live normal lives. Rose spent her childhood protecting Fern, so when Rose finds she can't have a baby, Fern sees an opportunity to repay her for everything she's done. As the long-buried secrets begin to reveal themselves, this thriller holds tight and refuses to let you go until the final pages. It's a domestic suspense of skewed memories and creepy double meanings. 

Stephen King's latest release

"Later" by Stephen King, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $9.56

In this coming-of-age storyline mixed with the supernatural elements that Stephen King writes best, Jamie is an extraordinary child who just wants an ordinary childhood. Though his mom urges him to keep it a secret, Jamie's ability to see the supernatural pulls him into a police pursuit of a killer threatening to strike from beyond the grave. "Later" is Stephen King at his finest: Creepy, compelling, and complex.

Fantasy

The final book of an epic fantasy series

"A Court of Silver Flames" by Sarah J Maas, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $16.85

This is the fifth and final novel of Sarah J. Maas's super-popular "A Court of Thorns and Roses" series. What began as a "Beauty and the Beast" re-telling morphed into a sexy, fantastical series with wolves, faeries, and nymphs while also tackling mental health, healing, and self-love. If you are a fantasy reader, this is a series you need to read, knowing that this final installment lives up to the high expectations.

A fresh story full of magical realism

"The Midnight Library" by Matt Haig, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $13.29

Nora has regrets. On an evening when she feels like she's out of options and has ruined her life, she finds the midnight library. In the midnight library, the shelves go on forever — a different world inside each book, a life parallel to her own. Nora explores the lives she may have lived if she had made any single choice differently: Pursuing swimming or glaciology, undoing breakups, taking trips she'd previously canceled. This book has spurred some great conversations and leaves readers with the message that it's never too late to make the choices that can change their lives for the better.

A reimagining of a mythological legend

"The Witch's Heart" by Genevieve Gornichec, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $18.69

In "The Witch's Heart," fantasy meets Norse mythology to create an epic modern twist on a legend. Angrboda is a banished witch, forced to hide in the forest as a punishment from Odin for refusing to reveal the future. It is here that she meets Loki, and while their initial meeting breeds distrust, Angrboda soon falls in love with him. As she slowly recovers her powers, she knows she must protect her three children from growing dangers. This fantasy novel is a story of love, survival, and competing conflicts.

Fiction

A perfect beach read

"The People We Meet on Vacation" by Emily Henry, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $10.06

This is a fun and cute rom-com story — and the perfect beach read. Alex and Poppy could not be more different, yet for the past 10 years, they've taken a summer vacation together to celebrate their friendship — until one mistake led to them not speaking for two years. When Poppy thinks back on the last time she was happy, she knows it was on vacation with Alex, so she reaches out and they embark on one more vacation to make everything right. While reading this book, you'll feel every bit of love and heartbreak that Alex and Poppy endure.

The bestselling story of a family torn by immigration

"Infinite Country" by Patricia Engel, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $14.95

A breathtaking book with a timely plot, this book follows a Columbian family fractured by immigration. Once their first child is born, Elena and Mauro flee a war-riddled Columbia for Houston, where they debate either overstaying their tourist visas or returning to Columbia and risking the safety of their children. When Mauro is deported, Elena is left in America — undocumented, caring for three children, and with few options for survival.

An emotional, funny new novel from a bestselling author

"Yolk" by Mary H.K. Choi, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $15.48

Jayne and June are estranged sisters. Jayne struggles to get by while juggling school, her mental health, her deadbeat boyfriend, and her social-media-obsessed friends. Meanwhile, June's life seems perfect, with her high-paying finance job and huge apartment — that is, until she's diagnosed with uterine cancer and desperately needs her sister's help. In this funny yet emotional contemporary novel, the sisters switch places to commit insurance fraud in the hopes of saving June's life. Though this book works through a lot of pain, the messages within are hopeful and uplifting.

A unique story of parenthood

"Detransition, Baby" by Torrey Peters, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $22.91

"Detransition, Baby" is an unapologetically vulnerable novel about an unconventional family. Reese is a trans woman with a nearly perfect life, except for her inability to have a baby. When Reese and her ex-girlfriend (now Ames) broke up and Ames detransitioned, Reese's life seemed to self-destruct. Meanwhile, Ames thought himself infertile until his boss, Katrina, got pregnant with his baby. As Katrina is unsure if she wants to keep it, Ames sees an opportunity to give his ex the baby she always wanted.

A new novel about two intertwining Muslim families

"The Bad Muslim Discount" by Syed M. Masood, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $17.72

"The Bad Muslim Discount" follows two families who immigrated from Pakistan and Iraq (respectively) to San Francisco in the 1990s. Anvar Farris' family unanimously decides to move to California and escape the fear growing in Pakistan, some of his family adjusting easily and others finding few ways to fit in as Muslims in America. Meanwhile, Safwa is a young girl growing up in Baghdad, who finds a far more dangerous route to escape the war. Anvar and Safwa's very different worlds collide and create a real picture of identity and faith in America, with fantastic dry humor spun throughout.

A historic inaugural poem

"The Hill We Climb: An Inaugural Poem for the Country" by Amanda Gorman, available on Amazon and Bookshop from $9.59

This is the special edition of the inspirational poem read by Amanda Gorman at the 46th Inauguration on January 20, 2021. With a foreword from Oprah Winfrey, this poem plants the hope of America's future, demonstrates the power of poetry, and captivates readers with its breathtaking and uplifting messages.

Feminism is a powerful social and political movement that calls for economic, cultural, social, and political equality for women. As such, the movement makes its greatest strides when it's intersectional — which is why books that explore feminism across class, race, gender identity, ability, and sexuality help foster greater inclusion and change. 

To gather most of these best feminist book recommendations, I spoke to Dr. Sara Matthiesen and Dr. Barbara LeSavoy for their scholarly expertise in feminist theory. Dr. Matthiesen is an Assistant Professor of Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and History at The George Washington University. Her expertise is in feminist theory and US social movements. Dr. LeSavoy is an Associate Professor in the Department of Women and Gender Studies at SUNY Brockport. Her scholarly expertise is in feminist theory as well as intersectionality and gender equity. I also added a few popular feminist titles — personal favorites with many positive reviews on Goodreads and Instagram book reviewers.

By learning about the history of feminism and striving for intersectionality in all forms, the feminist movement gets vastly closer to a future of true equality. 

29 great fiction and nonfiction feminism books, according to professors

• Manifestos
• Essay collections
• Memoirs
• Nonfiction
• Fiction

Manifestos

A feminist manifesto charged with hope

"Dear Ijeawele, or A Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

A few years before the publication of this book, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie received a letter from an old friend, asking how to raise a baby girl as a feminist. Written as a letter in response, this book outlines 15 vital suggestions from open conversations about sexuality to debunking historical, misogynistic myths. This manifesto is short but powerful — and necessary in helping define how we create a feminist future and what it may look like.

Memorable quote: "Your feminist premise should be: I matter. I matter equally. Not 'if only.' Not 'as long as.' I matter equally. Full stop."

A historical look at the relationship between women and power

"Women & Power: A Manifesto" by Mary Beard

Mary Beard is an English scholar of Ancient Roman civilization. In this book, she retraces the origins of misogyny to explore how women have been denied, mistreated, and silenced throughout history. She includes her own reflections and narrations as well as examples from Homer to Hillary Clinton to illuminate the centuries-long tumultuous relationship between women and power. LeSavoy recommended this manifesto, saying that she's drawn to books "that have historical roots because [she likes] to look at how we accumulated the inequalities that we experience right now."

Memorable quote:"You cannot easily fit women into a structure that is already coded as male; you have to change the structure."

A feminist manifesto that uses personal storytelling

"See No Stranger: A Memoir and Manifesto of Revolutionary Love" by Valarie Kaur

This part-memoir, part-manifesto is written by Valarie Kaur, a renowned Sikh activist, filmmaker, and civil rights lawyer. Kaur tells her story of growing up as a Sikh woman in America spurred to fighting injustices after learning of xenophobic reactions to 9/11 and healing after her own traumatic experiences. She uses her personal history to call readers into action, demonstrating how using love as a revolutionary force can create new possibilities and opportunities that can quite literally change the world.  

Memorable Quote:"Deep listening is an act of surrender. We risk being changed by what we hear."

A manifesto that highlights critical feminist issues

"Feminism for the 99%: A Manifesto" by Cinzia Arruzza, Tithi Bhattacharya, and Nancy Fraser 

"Feminism for the 99%" uses a few pages to make a simple case: That feminism does not exist to simply fight inequality in the workplace, but must start at the bottom and address healthcare, housing, and poverty disparities. This is one of LeSavoy's favorite recommendations, expertly critiquing "the ways capitalism and materialism envelop inequalities."

Memorable quote:"We have no interest in breaking the glass ceiling while leaving the vast majority to clean up the shards."

A queer, observational manifesto

"Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity" by Julia Serano 

Julia Serano is a lesbian, transgender activist and professional biologist whose experiences both before and after transition offer observations into the ways in which negative societal attitudes towards feminity shape our reactions to trans women. Serano's writing reflects her exceptional intelligence, using acute arguments to prove that deep-rooted cultural beliefs connecting fragility and femininity are misogynistic misconceptions that must be dismantled in order to empower women to embrace femininity. 

Memorable quote: "The hardest part has been learning how to take myself seriously when the entire world is constantly telling me that femininity is always inferior to masculinity."

Essay Collections

A feminist collection to remind us of the essential work of the Combahee River Collective

"How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective" by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor

Through interviews with founding members of the Combahee River Collective and contemporary activists, scholar Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor revisits the Collective's "A Black Feminist Statement." The 1977 manifesto demonstrated the interlocking systems of oppression against which movements must fight, stating that "If Black women were free, it would mean that everyone else would have to be free." This book is recommended by Matthiesen, who says it "anticipates intersectionality [before we had a name for it] and provides a roadmap for how to build solidarity across difference."

Memorable quote: "Always ally yourself with those on the bottom, on the margins, and at the periphery of the centers of power."

A foundational feminist text

"This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color, Edited" by Cherríe Moraga and Gloria Anzaldúa

This classic anthology of essays, poems, interviews, visuals, and criticism written by radical women of color, originally published in 1981, is considered a foundational text of feminism. Recommended by Matthiesen, who likes this collection because it "centers the experiences of women of color," this book uses first-person narratives to define feminism that embraces and encourages the complexity of race, class, gender, and sexual identities — and reject the idea of one singular idea of womanhood.

Memorable quote: "...It is not really the difference the oppressor fears so much as the similarity."

Funny and thoughtful essays on the evolution of one woman's feminism

"Bad Feminist: Essays" by Roxane Gay 

In her collection of critical essays on politics and feminism, Roxane Gay grants us insight into the evolution of her identity, culture, feminism, and place in the world. She offers the reflection that we become what we consume, we all carry racism, and how we still need to be better. Recommended by LeSavoy, Gay's essays are moving, uncomfortable, and encouraging all at once. Readers of all kinds will undoubtedly find an essay that resonates and calls for self-reflection of our feminism and accountability. 

Memorable quote:"I embrace the label of bad feminist because I am human."

The collected writings of a prominent historical woman

"The New Woman of Color: The Collected Writings of Fannie Barrier Williams, 1893-1918" by Fannie Barrier Williams, edited by Mary Jo Deegan 

LeSavoy recommends reading Fannie Barrier Williams, whose writing and speaking brought light to the difficulties African American women experienced in the Progressive Era and helps us "return to some of these early thinkers who were overlooked by white dominance." Highly influential and successful, Fannie Barrier Williams spent the entirety of her life fighting for change and equality preserved in this collection of speeches and essays. Though this book may be difficult to find online today, it's available in many libraries. 

Memorable quote: "The fixed policy of persecution and injustice against a class of women who are weak and defenseless will be necessarily hurtful to the cause of all women."

Essays that illuminate a powerful voice

"Sister Outsider: Essays and Speeches" by Audre Lorde 

Audre Lorde was a profound, distinguished feminist and civil rights activist, dedicating her life to addressing inequality and injustice. Recommended by LeSavoy, this collection of essays and speeches is from 1976-1984, where Audre Lorde wrote and spoke about her beginnings in empowerment movements and the importance of increasing the visibility of minority women. Audre Lorde advocated the necessity of distinct representation within feminism, anticipating intersectionality years before the word was coined. Her writing demands to be not only heard but consumed and carried, becoming an essential part of readers' feminist journeys. 

Memorable quote: "Your silence will not protect you."

A collection from a world-renowned scholar

"Freedom is a Constant Struggle: Ferguson, Palestine, and the Foundations of a Movement" by Angela Y. Davis

In this educational collection of interviews, essays, and speeches, Angela Y. Davis discusses the importance of illuminating historical movements of liberation to connect the history of international oppression to the feminist revolutions of today. Without honoring the legacies of injustices, the journey towards gets inevitably longer and more difficult. But if we can face long-lasting issues, such as the prison-industrial complex, then we can draw the connections that will create pathways to an inclusive, feminist future. 

Memorable quote:"Whenever you conceptualize social justice struggles, you will always defeat your own purposes if you cannot imagine the people around whom you are struggling as equal partners."

Memoirs

A memoir that redefines motherhood

"Waiting in the Wings: Portrait of a Queer Motherhood" by Cherrié Moraga 

Recommended by Matthiesen for its "beautiful reflection on life and death as well as the necessity of queer kinship,""Waiting in the Wings" is a memoir from Cherrié Moraga, a Chicana lesbian writer and activist. This story resonates with all women for the fears and miracles of pregnancy and the trauma of the near-loss of her son. However, Moraga's story is one of lesbian motherhood amidst the AIDS crisis and legal uncertainty for the "queer family." Moraga's memoir explores the ways in which a family is not only dependent on shared genetics.

Memorable quote:"I am trying to write about the impossible. The ordinary beginning and ending of a life."

A memoir of life beyond disability

"Don't Call Me Inspirational: A Disabled Feminist Talks Back" by Harilyn Rousso 

Harilyn Rousso is tired of being patronized as a woman who is so much more than her disability, yet it seems to be the only thing the world sees about her. Her memoir is vulnerable and honest, managing to capture a breadth of emotions on the journey that is the relationship between her and her disability. This novel is a celebration of life, growth, and overcoming the prejudice surrounding disabilities. 

Memorable quote: "As a visual artist I think about a book as a collage or a series of images about my life rather than a formal portrait."

A bestselling memoir from the daughter of Asian American immigrants

"Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning" by Cathy Park Hong

The 2021 National Book Critics Circle Award Winner for Best Autobiography, Cathy Park Hong's "Minor Feelings" is a combination of memoir, cultural criticism, and history together in an essay collection about being a Korean American daughter of immigrants. The "minor feelings" that Hong felt arose when she believed the lies she was told about her racial identity. Hong's essays span her relationships with the English language, depression, her family, and other women. "Minor Feelings" validates the experiences of Asian American people — especially women — who have faced racism and invalidation throughout their lives by bringing racial consciousness to the forefront. 

Memorable Quote: "I have struggled to prove myself into existence."

An Indigenous woman's memoir told in comedic essays

"Bury My Heart at Chuck E. Cheese's" by Tiffany Midge

This collection of essays from Tiffany Midge encapsulates the life and identity of Native women in America, a distinct voice that's been missing from the comedy landscape. Her short, stand-alone essays are mostly either humorous social commentary or autobiographical musings and confessions, using her identity and voice to disrupt the common narrative and offer a unique perspective on culture, media, and feminism from an indigenous, female lens. 

Memorable quote: "Being that so many white people believe that Indians practice magic, you'd think they'd try to be nicer to us."

Analytical Nonfiction

A contemporary, intersectional read

"Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot" by Mikki Kendall 

In "Hood Feminism," author and activist Mikki Kendall spotlights the blind spot of modern feminism: failing to meet the basic needs of survival for women of color and instead focusing on increasing the privilege of the few. LeSavoy recommends this book because it addresses "the issues of white feminism excluding women of color," offering practical ways to becoming greater allies. By recognizing white, middle-class privilege within feminism, we can take the first step towards active allyship and inclusive feminism in the future. 

Memorable quote:"There's nothing feminist about having so many resources at your fingertips and choosing to be ignorant."

A study of the women's liberation movement in the US

"Women, Race, and Class" by Angela Y. Davis 

In her study of the movement for women's rights, activist and political figure Angela Y. Davis uses an expanse of history from abolitionist days to now in order to demonstrate how classist and racist bias of leaders hinders the progression of women's liberation. This read is recommended by LeSavoy, and although nearly 40 years old, is still highly relevant today.

Memorable quote:"If most abolitionists viewed slavery as a nasty blemish which needed to be eliminated, most women's righters viewed male supremacy in a similar manner — as an immoral flaw in their otherwise acceptable society. "

The honest antidote to mansplaining

"Men Explain Things to Me" by Rebecca Solnit

Using a combination of humor and critical commentary, Rebecca Solnit addresses a problem that we often refer to as "mansplaining," writing about men who incorrectly assume they know things that women do not and the role that gender plays in these interactions. Sharing some of her own notable encounters with mansplainers, Solnit leaves us with the message that silencing women in large or small ways has the potential to be dangerous to women in the long run — making it a read recommended by LeSavoy.

Memorable quote: "Every woman knows what I'm talking about. It's the presumption that.. crushes young women into silence by indicating, the way harassment on the street does, that this is not their world."

A cultural critique

"Feminism is for Everybody: Passionate Politics" by bell hooks 

"Feminism is for Everybody" uses an engaging and open style to analyze critical issues that feminism faces, such as domestic violence and reproductive rights. Social activist and professor bell hooks demands intersectionality in feminism, welcoming people of all races, sexualities, abilities, and identities to collaborate on feminism that can create alternatives to the current patriarchal structures in society. This recommendation comes from LeSavoy who, like hooks, stresses that feminist knowledge must be accessible.

Memorable quote: "As long as women are using class or race power to dominate other women, feminist sisterhood cannot be fully realized."

A reframing of contemporary Black feminism

"Black Feminism Reimagined: After Intersectionality" by Jennifer C. Nash 

Recommended by Matthiesen, "Black Feminism Reimagined" is a philosophical and political take on intersectionality in feminism that begins with basic concepts and grows to explore deeper and more complex issues. In her mission to reclaim intersectionality, Nash encourages inclusion that will open feminism to a world of analytical freedom.

Memorable quote: "The labor of Black feminist scholarship, then, is to incite the reader to protect intersectionality from a set of forces — colonization, appropriation, gentrification — that are undeniably violent."

An approachable read about feminist theory

"Living A Feminist Life" by Sara Ahmed 

"Living a Feminist Life" is an accessible take on feminist theory, one that uses everyday experiences to prove application of practical changes can help anyone live a feminist life. Sarah Ahmed notes that feminists often become estranged from the problems they are trying to solve — but can create solutions that address the issues facing women of all races, classes, abilities, and sexualities. Recommended by LeSavoy, it's an academic feminist text that refuses to feel like one, opting for a narrative storytelling style that begs inclusivity of all feminist conversations. 

Memorable quote:"If talking about sexism and racism is heard as damaging institutions, we need to damage institutions."

Feminist Fiction

A fierce and passionate novel about womanhood

"Girl, Woman, Other" by Bernardine Evaristo 

In his contemporary fiction novel about the Black British experience, we follow 12 stories of mostly women and their families, friends, and lovers. This book is full of energy, vibrantly embracing the struggles and successes of Black womanhood. Spanning across countries and years, Bernardine Evaristo creates a diverse spectrum of voices and experiences that represent womanhood in many of its forms. 

Memorable quote: "Gender is one of the biggest lies of our civilization."

An eerie dystopian novel

"The Handmaid's Tale" by Margaret Atwood

"The Handmaid's Tale" is a classic, feminist reading list staple. Both a satire and a warning, it depicts a dystopian fantasy where women are valued only as reproductive vessels. In this fiction recommendation from LeSavoy, Offred is a Handmaid to the Commander in a world where reproduction is declining, laying down once a month and praying the Commander gets her pregnant. In a strictly enforced republic where women aren't even allowed to read, Offred can remember the times before and longs for the days of freedom in her past. This powerhouse of a novel is frightening, one that still feels contemporary despite 20 years passing since its publication. 

Memorable quote: "Don't let the bastards grind you down."

A novel about a brave young woman

"The Girl With The Louding Voice" by Abi Daré

"The Girl With The Louding Voice" is a courageous, contemporary story about Adunni's formative years in Nigeria. Adunni lives in a rural Nigerian village until she is granted the opportunity to leave her impoverished community in pursuit of an education and a good job. Even though it means leaving her family and risking her safety, she decides achieving her dreams is worth the risk. Adunni's unique voice is instrumental in the reader's comprehension of her growth as she pursues education. Throughout the book, her voice slowly but deliberately evolves as she uses her new experiences and education to find her true voice. 

Memorable quote: "My mama say education will give me a voice. I want more than just a voice, Ms. Tia. I want a louding voice." 

A timeless feminist story

"The Color Purple" by Alice Walker 

In this iconic story about African American women in 20th-century rural Georgia, Alice Walker breaks the silence about domestic and sexual abuse, buried pain, resilience, and recovery. Nettie and Celie are sisters separated by an ocean and connected only through the letters Celie writes first to her sister, then to God. Attempting to survive immeasurable pain, Celie's strength is drawn from the women around her. This novel uses magnificent storytelling to pull a visceral and deeply empathetic reaction from readers, garnering profound love for powerful and admirable characters. 

Memorable quote: "Let 'im hear me, I say. If he ever listened to poor colored women the world would be a different place, I can tell you."

A feminist historical fiction novel set in the time of Jesus' life

"The Book of Longings" by Sue Monk Kidd

Sue Monk Kidd reimagines history in this novel of Ana, the brilliant writer and wife of Jesus. In "The Book of Longings," Ana is a feminist before her time, writing about silenced women, protesting injustices, and using her passion and womanhood to influence a time in history where she is otherwise destined to be stifled. This book is as powerful as Ana, following her rebellious and daring spirit from her rejection of the man her family wishes her to marry, to her marriage to Jesus and resistance to Rome's occupation. This historical fiction novel is an example of strong and courageous women demanding to be heard. 

Memorable quote:"Anger is effortless. Kindness is hard. Try to exert yourself."

A novel about motherhood and immigration

"A River of Stars" by Vanessa Hua

While working in a factory in her native China, Scarlett Chen fell in love and got pregnant by her married boss, who sent her to America so their son would have better opportunities as a US citizen. After a shocking sonogram, Scarlett escapes the maternity home in Los Angeles and finds herself in Chinatown amongst other immigrants in search of the American Dream. It's a story that encompasses a diverse lens of identity across nationality, class, documentation status, and motherhood. 

Memorable Quote: "Here in America, she might change the world — but she had to hurry before someone else did."

A profound historical fiction read

"Homegoing" by Yaa Gyasi 

This remarkable debut novel from Yaa Gyasi an emotional historical fiction novel that spans 300 years. Two half-sisters, Effia and Esi, are born in different villages in Ghana in the 18th century. When Effia is married off to an English man in a castle, she has no idea her sister is imprisoned in the dungeons beneath. As the story spans generations, the narration splits between the slave trade and British colonization in Ghana and slavery and the Civil War in America. Gyasi's writing flows beautifully through this portrait of womanhood.

Memorable quote: "We believe the one who has power. He is the one who gets to write the story. So when you study history, you must ask yourself, whose story am I missing?"

An emotional, contemporary feminist novel

"A Woman Is No Man" by Etaf Rum

In this multigenerational story of Arab women in America, Deya is 18 years old and her grandparents are beginning to force her to meet suitors, despite her near-refusal to get married. Her mother also had no choice when she was forced to leave Palestine to marry her husband in America. While they seem to mirror each other, Deya slowly discovers that her story is vastly different from her mother's. This isn't a happy story, but a memorable novel about the role of women in families, cultures, and communities. Recommended by LeSavoy, it highlights the ways in which traditions can be oppressive to women and while individualism and the ability to choose can be powerful, it can also have consequences. 

Memorable quote: "A real choice doesn't have conditions. A real choice is free."

Every summer, universities around the country release their recommended summer books and reading lists for incoming students. 

This year, schools like Columbia, Duke, UC Berkeley, NYU, Northwestern, and more shared their 2021 reading lists online. They included books like "Caste: The Origins of Our Discontent,""The Vanishing Half,""The Alchemist,""The Nickel Boys,""Think Again," and more.

Read below to see some of the best books to have made it on reading lists this year. 

Copy provided by Amazon and edited lightly for length.

"Caste: The Origins of Our Discontent" by Isabel Wilkerson

Read by students at:The University of California, Berkeley; The University of Maryland

Beyond race, class, or other factors, there is a powerful caste system that influences people's lives and behavior and the nation's fate. Linking the caste systems of America, India, and Nazi Germany, Wilkerson explores eight pillars that underlie caste systems across civilizations, including divine will, bloodlines, stigma, and more.

Using riveting stories about people — including Martin Luther King, Jr., baseball's Satchel Paige, a single father and his toddler son, Wilkerson herself, and many others — she shows the ways that the insidious undertow of caste is experienced every day.

"The Vanishing Half" by Brit Bennett

Read by students at:Bryn Mawr College; The University of St. Thomas

The Vignes twin sisters will always be identical. But after growing up together in a small, southern black community and running away at age sixteen, it's not just the shape of their daily lives that is different as adults, it's everything: their families, their communities, their racial identities. Many years later, one sister lives with her Black daughter in the same southern town she once tried to escape. The other secretly passes for white, and her white husband knows nothing of her past.

Still, even separated by so many miles and just as many lies, the fates of the twins remain intertwined. What will happen to the next generation, when their own daughters' storylines intersect?

Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants" by Robin Wall Kimmerer

Read by students at:New York University

Drawing on her life as an indigenous scientist, and as a woman, Kimmerer shows how other living beings ― asters and goldenrod, strawberries and squash, salamanders, algae, and sweetgrass ― offer us gifts and lessons, even if we've forgotten how to hear their voices.

In reflections that range from the creation of Turtle Island to the forces that threaten its flourishing today, she circles toward a central argument: that the awakening of ecological consciousness requires the acknowledgment and celebration of our reciprocal relationship with the rest of the living world. For only when we can hear the languages of other beings will we be capable of understanding the generosity of the earth, and learn to give our own gifts in return.

"Thinking, Fast and Slow" by Daniel Kahneman

Read by students at:Northwestern University 

System 1 is fast, intuitive, and emotional; System 2 is slower, more deliberative, and more logical. The impact of overconfidence on corporate strategies, the difficulties of predicting what will make us happy in the future, the profound effect of cognitive biases on everything from playing the stock market to planning our next vacation—each of these can be understood only by knowing how the two systems shape our judgments and decisions.

Engaging the reader in a lively conversation about how we think, Kahneman reveals where we can and cannot trust our intuitions and how we can tap into the benefits of slow thinking. He offers practical and enlightening insights into how choices are made in both our business and our personal lives—and how we can use different techniques to guard against the mental glitches that often get us into trouble.

You can read Insider's review of this book here.

"The Alchemist" by Paulo Coehlo

Read by students at:The University of California, Berkeley; Bryn Mawr College

Paulo Coelho's masterpiece tells the mystical story of Santiago, an Andalusian shepherd boy who yearns to travel in search of a worldly treasure. His quest will lead him to riches far different — and far more satisfying — than he ever imagined.

Santiago's journey teaches us about the essential wisdom of listening to our hearts, of recognizing opportunity and learning to read the omens strewn along life's path, and, most importantly, to follow our dreams.

"Somebody's Daughter" by Ashley C. Ford

Read by students at:Boston University

Through poverty, adolescence, and a fraught relationship with her mother, Ashley Ford wishes she could turn to her father for hope and encouragement. There are just a few problems: he's in prison, and she doesn't know what he did to end up there. She doesn't know how to deal with the incessant worries that keep her up at night, or how to handle the changes in her body that draw unwanted attention from men.

In her search for unconditional love, Ashley begins dating a boy her mother hates. When the relationship turns sour, he assaults her. Still reeling from the rape, which she keeps secret from her family, Ashley desperately searches for meaning in the chaos. Then, her grandmother reveals the truth about her father's incarceration...and Ashley's entire world is turned upside down.

"Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don't Know" by Adam Grant

Read by students at:The University of Maryland

Organizational psychologist Adam Grant is an expert on opening other people's minds — and our own. As Wharton's top-rated professor and the bestselling author of "Originals" and "Give and Take," he makes it one of his guiding principles to argue like he's right but listen like he's wrong. With bold ideas and rigorous evidence, he investigates how we can embrace the joy of being wrong, bring nuance to charged conversations, and build schools, workplaces, and communities of lifelong learners.

You'll learn how an international debate champion wins arguments, a Black musician persuades white supremacists to abandon hate, a vaccine whisperer convinces concerned parents to immunize their children, and Adam has coaxed Yankees fans to root for the Red Sox.

"Such a Fun Age" by Kiley Reid

Read by students at:Duke University

Alix Chamberlain is a woman who gets what she wants and has made a living, with her confidence-driven brand, showing other women how to do the same. So she is shocked when her babysitter, Emira Tucker, is confronted while watching the Chamberlains' toddler one night, walking the aisles of their local high-end supermarket. The store's security guard, seeing a young black woman out late with a white child, accuses Emira of kidnapping two-year-old Briar. A small crowd gathers, a bystander films everything, and Emira is furious and humiliated. Alix resolves to make things right.

With empathy and piercing social commentary, "Such a Fun Age" explores the stickiness of transactional relationships, what it means to make someone "family," and the complicated reality of being a grown-up.

"Exit West" by Mohsin Hamid

Read by students at:Smith College

In a country teetering on the brink of civil war, two young people meet — sensual, fiercely independent Nadia and gentle, restrained Saeed. They embark on a furtive love affair, and are soon cloistered in a premature intimacy by the unrest roiling their city. When it explodes, turning familiar streets into a patchwork of checkpoints and bomb blasts, they begin to hear whispers about doors — doors that can whisk people far away, if perilously and for a price.

As the violence escalates, Nadia and Saeed decide that they no longer have a choice. Leaving their homeland and their old lives behind, they find a door and step through...

"The Nickel Boys" by Colson Whitehead

Read by students at:Siena College

When Elwood Curtis, a Black boy growing up in 1960s Tallahassee, is unfairly sentenced to a juvenile reformatory called the Nickel Academy, he finds himself trapped in a grotesque chamber of horrors. Elwood's only salvation is his friendship with fellow "delinquent" Turner, which deepens despite Turner's conviction that Elwood is hopelessly naive, that the world is crooked, and that the only way to survive is to scheme and avoid trouble. As life at the Academy becomes ever more perilous, the tension between Elwood's ideals and Turner's skepticism leads to a decision whose repercussions will echo down the decades.

Based on the real story of a reform school that operated for 111 years and warped the lives of thousands of children, "The Nickel Boys" is a devastating, driven narrative that showcases a great American novelist writing at the height of his powers and "should further cement Whitehead as one of his generation's best"("Entertainment Weekly").

"The Daughters of Kobani: A Story of Rebellion, Courage, and Justice" by Gayle Tzemach Lemmon

Read by students at:The University of Kentucky

In 2014, northeastern Syria might have been the last place you would expect to find a revolution centered on women's rights. But that year, an all-female militia faced off against ISIS in a little town few had ever heard of: Kobani. By then, the Islamic State had swept across vast swaths of the country, taking town after town and spreading terror as the civil war burned all around it. From that unlikely showdown in Kobani emerged a fighting force that would wage war against ISIS across northern Syria alongside the United States. In the process, these women would spread their own political vision, determined to make women's equality a reality by fighting — house by house, street by street, city by city — the men who bought and sold women.

Based on years of on-the-ground reporting, "The Daughters of Kobani" is the unforgettable story of the women of the Kurdish militia that improbably became part of the world's best hope for stopping ISIS in Syria.

"When the Emperor Was Divine" by Julie Otsuka

Read by students at:Augustana College

On a sunny day in Berkeley, California, in 1942, a woman sees a sign in a post office window, returns to her home, and matter-of-factly begins to pack her family's possessions. Like thousands of other Japanese Americans, they have been reclassified, virtually overnight, as enemy aliens and are about to be uprooted from their home and sent to a dusty internment camp in the Utah desert.

In this lean and devastatingly evocative first novel, Julie Otsuka tells their story from five flawlessly realized points of view and conveys the exact emotional texture of their experience: the thin-walled barracks and barbed-wire fences, the omnipresent fear and loneliness, the unheralded feats of heroism.

"Invisible Families: Gay Identities, Relationships, and Motherhood Among Black Women" by Mignon R. Moore

Read by students at:Columbia University

Mignon R. Moore brings to light the family life of a group that has been largely invisible — gay women of color — in a book that challenges long-standing ideas about racial identity, family formation, and motherhood.

Drawing from interviews and surveys of one hundred black gay women in New York City, "Invisible Families" explores the ways that race and class have influenced how these women understand their sexual orientation, find partners, and form families. In particular, the study looks at the ways in which the past experiences of women who came of age in the 1960s and 1970s shape their thinking, and have structured their lives in communities that are not always accepting of their openly gay status.

"The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America" by Richard Rothstein

Read by students at:The University of California, Berkeley

Widely heralded as a "masterful" ("Washington Post") and "essential" ("Slate") history of the modern American metropolis, Richard Rothstein's "The Color of Law" offers "the most forceful argument ever published on how federal, state, and local governments gave rise to and reinforced neighborhood segregation" (William Julius Wilson).

Exploding the myth of de facto segregation arising from private prejudice or the unintended consequences of economic forces, Rothstein describes how the American government systematically imposed residential segregation: with undisguised racial zoning; public housing that purposefully segregated previously mixed communities; subsidies for builders to create whites-only suburbs; tax exemptions for institutions that enforced segregation; and support for violent resistance to African Americans in white neighborhoods.

A groundbreaking, "virtually indispensable" study that has already transformed our understanding of twentieth-century urban history ("Chicago Daily Observer"), "The Color of Law" forces us to face the obligation to remedy our unconstitutional past.

"Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption" by Bryan Stevenson

Read by students at:Seton Hall University

Bryan Stevenson was a young lawyer when he founded the Equal Justice Initiative, a legal practice dedicated to defending those most desperate and in need: the poor, the wrongly condemned, and women and children trapped in the farthest reaches of our criminal justice system.

One of his first cases was that of Walter McMillian, a young man who was sentenced to die for a notorious murder he insisted he didn't commit. The case drew Bryan into a tangle of conspiracy, political machination, and legal brinksmanship — and transformed his understanding of mercy and justice forever.

"The Death of Vivek Oji" by Akwaeke Emezi

Read by students at: The University of St. Thomas

One afternoon, in a town in southeastern Nigeria, a mother opens her front door to discover her son's body, wrapped in colorful fabric, at her feet. What follows is the tumultuous, heart-wrenching story of one family's struggle to understand a child whose spirit is both gentle and mysterious. Raised by a distant father and an understanding but overprotective mother, Vivek suffers disorienting blackouts, moments of disconnection between self and surroundings.

As adolescence gives way to adulthood, Vivek finds solace in friendships with the warm, boisterous daughters of the Nigerwives, foreign-born women married to Nigerian men. But Vivek's closest bond is with Osita, the worldly, high-spirited cousin whose teasing confidence masks a guarded private life. As their relationship deepens — and Osita struggles to understand Vivek's escalating crisis — the mystery gives way to a heart-stopping act of violence in a moment of exhilarating freedom.

"The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race" by Walter Isaacson

Read by students at:The University of Maryland

When Jennifer Doudna was in sixth grade, she came home one day to find that her dad had left a paperback titled "The Double Helix" on her bed. She put it aside, thinking it was one of those detective tales she loved. When she read it on a rainy Saturday, she discovered she was right, in a way. As she sped through the pages, she became enthralled by the intense drama behind the competition to discover the code of life. Even though her high school counselor told her girls didn't become scientists, she decided she would.

Driven by a passion to understand how nature works and to turn discoveries into inventions, she would help to make what the book's author, James Watson, told her was the most important biological advance since his co-discovery of the structure of DNA. She and her collaborators turned ​a curiosity ​of nature into an invention that will transform the human race: an easy-to-use tool that can edit DNA. Known as CRISPR, it opened a brave new world of medical miracles and moral questions.

"The Righteous Mind: Why Good People Are Divided By Politics and Religion" by Jonathan Haidt

Read by students at:Bryn Mawr College

Drawing on his 25 years of groundbreaking research on moral psychology, social psychologist Jonathan Haidt shows how moral judgments arise not from reason but from gut feelings. He shows why liberals, conservatives, and libertarians have such different intuitions about right and wrong, and he shows why each side is actually right about many of its central concerns.

In this subtle yet accessible book, Haidt gives you the key to understanding the miracle of human cooperation, as well as the curse of our eternal divisions and conflicts. If you're ready to trade in anger for understanding, read "The Righteous Mind."

"The Undocumented Americans" by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio

Read by students at:The University of California, Berkeley

Writer Karla Cornejo Villavicencio was on DACA when she decided to write about being undocumented for the first time using her own name. It was right after the election of 2016, the day she realized the story she'd tried to steer clear of was the only one she wanted to tell. 

So she wrote her immigration lawyer's phone number on her hand in Sharpie and embarked on a trip across the country to tell the stories of her fellow undocumented immigrants — and to find the hidden key to her own.

"Recipes for a Sacred Life: True Stories and a Few Miracles" by Rivvy Neshama

Read by students at:Columbia University

On a dark winter night with little to do, Rivvy Neshama took a "Find Your Highest Purpose" quiz. And the funny thing was, she found it: to live a sacred life. Problem was, she didn't know how. 

But she set out to learn. And in the weeks and months that followed, she began to remember and encounter all the people and experiences featured in this book — from her father's jokes to her mother's prayers, from Billie in Harlem to a stranger in Salzburg, and from warm tortillas to the humble oatmeal. Each became a story, like a recipe passed down, beginning with her mother and her simple toast to life.

"The Artist's Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity" by Julia Cameron

Read by students at:Spelman College

Since its first publication, "The Artist's Way" phenomena has inspired the genius of Elizabeth Gilbert and millions of readers to embark on a creative journey and find a deeper connection to process and purpose. Julia Cameron's novel approach guides readers in uncovering problems areas and pressure points that may be restricting their creative flow and offers techniques to free up any areas where they might be stuck, opening up opportunities for self-growth and self-discovery.

The program begins with Cameron's most vital tools for creative recovery – The Morning Pages, a daily writing ritual of three pages of stream-of-conscious, and The Artist Date, a dedicated block of time to nurture your inner artist. From there, she shares hundreds of exercises, activities, and prompts to help readers thoroughly explore each chapter. She also offers guidance on starting a "Creative Cluster" of fellow artists who will support you in your creative endeavors.

"The Water Dancer" by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Read by students at:Bryn Mawr College

Young Hiram Walker was born into bondage. When his mother was sold away, Hiram was robbed of all memory of her — but was gifted with a mysterious power. Years later, when Hiram almost drowns in a river, that same power saves his life. This brush with death births an urgency in Hiram and a daring scheme: to escape from the only home he's ever known.

So begins an unexpected journey that takes Hiram from the corrupt grandeur of Virginia's proud plantations to desperate guerrilla cells in the wilderness, from the coffin of the Deep South to dangerously idealistic movements in the North. Even as he's enlisted in the underground war between slavers and the enslaved, Hiram's resolve to rescue the family he left behind endures.

"The Feeling Economy: How Artificial Intelligence is Creating the Era of Empathy" by Roland T. Rust and Ming-Hui Huang

Read by students at:The University of Maryland

As machines are trained to "think," many tasks that previously required human intelligence are becoming automated through artificial intelligence. However, it is more difficult to automate emotional intelligence, and this is where the human worker's competitive advantage over machines currently lies. 

The book argues that AI is rapidly assuming a larger share of thinking tasks, leaving human intelligence to focus on feeling. The result is the "Feeling Economy," in which both employees and consumers emphasize feeling to an unprecedented extent, with thinking tasks largely delegated to AI. The book shows both theoretical and empirical evidence that this shift is well underway. Further, it explores the effect of the Feeling Economy on our everyday lives in the areas such as shopping, politics, and education. Specifically, it argues that in this new economy, through empathy and people skills, women may gain an unprecedented degree of power and influence.

"Escape from Rome: The Failure of Empire and the Road to Prosperity" by Walter Scheidel

Read by students at:Northwestern University

The fall of the Roman Empire has long been considered one of the greatest disasters in history. But in this groundbreaking book, Walter Scheidel argues that Rome's dramatic collapse was actually the best thing that ever happened, clearing the path for Europe's economic rise and the creation of the modern age. Ranging across the entire premodern world, "Escape from Rome" offers new answers to some of the biggest questions in history: Why did the Roman Empire appear? Why did nothing like it ever return to Europe? And, above all, why did Europeans come to dominate the world?

In an absorbing narrative that begins with ancient Rome but stretches far beyond it, from Byzantium to China and from Genghis Khan to Napoleon, Scheidel shows how the demise of Rome and the enduring failure of empire-building on European soil launched an economic transformation that changed the continent and ultimately the world.

"The Book of Longings" by Sue Monk Kidd

Read by students at: Bryn Mawr College

In her mesmerizing fourth work of fiction, Sue Monk Kidd takes an audacious approach to history and brings her acclaimed narrative gifts to imagine the story of a young woman named Ana. Raised in a wealthy family with ties to the ruler of Galilee, she is rebellious and ambitious, with a brilliant mind and a daring spirit. Ana is expected to marry an older widower, a prospect that horrifies her. An encounter with eighteen-year-old Jesus changes everything.

Their marriage evolves with love and conflict, humor and pathos in Nazareth, where Ana makes a home with Jesus, his brothers, and their mother, Mary. Ana's pent-up longings intensify amid the turbulent resistance to Rome's occupation of Israel, partially led by her brother, Judas.  When Ana commits a brazen act that puts her in peril, she flees to Alexandria, where startling revelations and greater dangers unfold, and she finds refuge in unexpected surroundings. Ana determines her fate during a stunning convergence of events considered among the most impactful in human history.

"This I Believe: Life Lessons" edited by Dan Gediman, John Gregors, and Mary Jo Gediman

Read by students at:The University of Louisiana, Monroe

Based on the NPR series of the same name, "This I Believe" features eighty Americans ― from the famous to the unknown ― completing the thought that the book's title begins. Each piece compels readers to rethink not only how they have arrived at their own personal beliefs but also the extent to which they share them with others.

The result is a stirring and provocative trip inside the minds and hearts of a diverse group of people whose beliefs ― and the incredibly varied ways in which they choose to express them ― reveal the American spirit at its best.

Stephen King is an American author of more than 60 books and 200 short stories. Establishing himself as a legendary writer since his first book's publication in 1974, King is adored by readers looking for a perfect scare. And while he's best known for his chilling horror novels, he also writes supernatural thrillers, suspenseful crime fiction, and series full of magical realism. Many of his stories have been adapted into television series and films, and his books have sold over 350 million collective copies.

To discover readers' top 20 favorite King novels, I turned to Goodreads reviewers. On the popular reading platform, reviewers have rated Stephen King novels over 15 million times and left over 630,000 reviews. In compiling this ranking, I used the books with the highest numbers of five-star reviews from Goodreads readers.

The top 20 Stephen King books, ranked by Goodreads reviewers:

#1: A modern horror classic

"The Shining" 

It should hardly be a surprise that Stephen King's most popular book is also his first-ever bestseller: "The Shining," a classic 1977 horror novel, spurred a cult-favorite movie and a sequel. It's a deeply suspenseful paranormal story about Jack Torrance, who starts a new job as a caretaker at the Overlook Hotel, hoping to spend more time with his family and work on his writing. During the off-season, a chilling winter storm confines Jack to the hotel — and sinister forces begin to emerge. It's a classic haunted house story that has been scaring readers for nearly 50 years.

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 589,454

#2: An iconic creepy clown horror story

"It"

In Derry, Maine, seven teenagers first discovered the horror that they deemed "It"— often taking the form of Pennywise the Clown. Now adults, each with their own successes, one of the self-proclaimed "Losers Club" asks the gang to return and end the evil creature's reign once and for all. Stephen King uses dual timelines from 1958 and 1985 and chilling descriptions to develop unique characters and explore deep themes that extend far beyond the traditional horror genre. 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 439,976

#3: A post-apocalyptic fantasy thriller

"The Stand" 

This book begins the day after 99% of the Earth's population is killed from a man-made flu that was accidentally released. The few remaining survivors are plagued with strange dreams and struggle with a society torn between two prevailing allegiances. At over 1,100 pages, this masterpiece combines King's classic supernatural and fantasy elements and combines them with an apocalyptic dystopia that addresses huge topics of survival, religion, and the ultimate compass of morality. 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 363,134

#4: An intense psychological thriller about an obsessive fan

"Misery"

After celebrating the release of a new novel, Paul Sheldon gets in a car accident in the Rocky Mountains and is rescued by Anne Wilkes, his #1 fan. While nursing Paul back to health after he shattered both his legs, she compels him to write a new novel, furious that he killed off her favorite character. Fueled by obsession, Anne keeps Paul captive in a story of torture, psychological manipulation, and addiction. This is a gory and gruesome horror novel with a multi-dimensional villain, an intense and graphic tale of the struggle between prisoner and captor. 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 236,407

#5: A historical fiction, time travel thriller about JFK

"11/22/63"

This is a time travel adventure novel that tells the story of Jake Epping, a high school English teacher who is introduced to a portal to 1958 and sets out on a mission to stop the JFK assassination. Jake adopts a new identity, tests the rules of time travel, and discovers what may wait in the present if he's to succeed. With very little (if any) horror in this novel, King fans get to experience a thrilling historical fiction story, one where the fascinating "what ifs" of history are explored through time travel. 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 226,920

#6: The first of a heroic fantasy series

"The Gunslinger"

This is the first installment of King's hugely popular series "The Dark Tower," of which there are eight books and a short story. Roland of Gilead is The Last Gunslinger — the final hero in a knightly order. With a mix of dark fantasy, horror, and Western themes, the story follows Roland as he sets off on his quest for the Dark Tower which holds all of existence together. On his journey, he pursues his arch-nemesis, develops a friendship, and meets a mysterious woman. An added excitement for regular King readers is the tie-ins to other novels: references and Easter eggs that expand and intertwine King's multiverse. 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 206,268

#7: A supernatural horror story centered on bullying

"Carrie"

Stephen King's first published novel focuses on Carrie White, a telekinetic teenager who's able to move objects with her mind. Abused and bullied all her life, one particularly traumatic day unleashes a streak of revenge that cumulates with a famously terrifying prom night scene. This modern horror classic is also a powerful anti-bullying testament, offering the frightening combination of real and supernatural elements that makes it an exceptionally fast read.

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 188,558

#8: A paranormal novel with building horror

"Pet Sematary"

In rural Maine, a picturesque family has moved into a perfect home to live a simple and happy life, just to find the town is haunted by horrors that should have remained dead — all seeming to originate from an evil and ominous nearby pet cemetery. This is a slow-burn horror, one that offers less gore but rather builds and builds on disturbing elements and skin-crawling feelings to scare readers in a way only Stephen King can. The developments in this novel are shocking and nightmarish, with even King admitting that this story scared him more than his others. 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 166,564

#9: A dramatic and emotional book

"The Green Mile"

"The Green Mile" is a series that was released one volume at a time in 1996, with each installment landing on the "New York Times" Best-Seller List. Now compiled as a single work, it follows Paul Edgecombe, a prison guard at Cold Mountain Penitentiary where convicted killers wait to walk "the green mile" to the electric chair. Though Paul has seen nearly everything, his experiences with inmate John Coffey are like no other. John is a strange inmate, convicted of a depraved crime despite appearing to have the mind of a child. This is a thought-provoking and emotional novel, an iconic and believable story that mixes in shocking elements consistent with King's horror style. 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 154,291

#10: A horrifying vampire story

"'Salem's Lot"

This was Stephen King's second published novel, the story of writer Ben Mears who returns to his childhood town of Jerusalem's Lot (nicknamed 'Salem's Lot) to confront the evil he once escaped. This unique vampire story is packed with more horror than most of King's other works and is inspired by classic vampire tales and films. King writes incredible small-town horrors and this one is no different, featuring a wonderful, quaint town with secrets of abuse, violence, and murder not far beneath the surface. This story is suspenseful and foreboding, a vampire horror for any reader who's ready to be scared. 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 130,253

#11: An autobiographical self-help book about writing

"On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft"

In a book that is part-memoir and part-advice, Stephen King uses his personal anecdotes to inspire budding and aspiring writers. While his guidance is not always sparkling with encouragement, it's always realistic: imploring that those who wish to be writers must be constantly learning, reading, and writing every day. King is honest about his own struggles and setbacks and offers insight into his methods and inspirations which culminate in a master class from one of the most successful writers of this generation. 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 124,089

#12: The second installment of a beloved series

"The Drawing of the Three"

This is the second book of "The Dark Tower" series, which follows Roland, The Last Gunslinger, on his quest to reach the Dark Tower, the nexus of all universes that his world desperately needs to survive. In this sequel, Roland navigates a world that is a nightmarish mirror of our own to encounter a beach with three doors. Each is a gateway to a person living in New York with whom Roland must collaborate to fight evil forces. This book is a plot-driven horror story mixed with magical realism, a page-turning novel that demonstrates some of the best of King's cross-genre writing. 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 101,581

#13: A collection of four horror novellas

"Different Seasons"

"Different Seasons" is a collection of four horror novellas, one for each season. Three of them have thus far been adapted to the screen, the most notable being "Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption" adapted to the film "The Shawshank Redemption." These novellas were early writings of King's, held until their 1982 publication because King's editors didn't want him to be characterized as solely a horror writer too early in his career. The four stories are magical, paranormal, and horrifying, each one a standalone example of the underlying meaning in all of King's horror stories. 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 94,588

#14: A psychological sci-fi novel

"Under the Dome"

On an otherwise normal day, the residents in Chester's Mill, Maine find themselves trapped under an invisible dome, a forcefield separating them from the rest of the world. Told through multiple perspectives, a group of citizens comes together to fight their new enemies in this strange and unprecedented dystopia. There is a large cast of characters in this story, but King writes each one as a prominent individual so readers can easily follow each story. "Under the Dome" is definitely a violent science-fiction thriller, but also comes peppered with dark humor and strong characters, making it a rich read with profound messages about contemporary society. 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 88,866

#15: The third novel in a thrilling series

"The Waste Lands"

In "The Dark Tower" series, readers follow Roland, the last in a knightly order, on his quest to reach the Dark Tower — the only hope for his world. This is the third book, where Roland experiences double memories as a result of saving a boy who had already died in a parallel universe. Roland and his new gang of fellow gunslingers must draw the boy into their world in order to reach the Dark Tower. This novel is full of important character development and genuine entertainment from the plot, one that solidifies readers' necessity to continue the series. 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 87,870

#16: A suspenseful true crime mystery thriller

"Mr. Mercedes"

The opening of this book is emotional but quickly turns gruesome, as a man driving a Mercedes plows into a line of innocent people waiting at a job fair. After killing eight and injuring 15, the man gets away and retired detective Bill Hodges is left haunted by the crime. On the verge of suicide, Bill receives a message from the murderer, spurring a mission to catch the killer before he strikes again. The juxtaposition between the conniving and manipulative Mr. Mercedes and the tired but determined Hodges is what makes this King novel such an invigorating read. It continues on to create the "Bill Hodges" trilogy, a fast-paced supernatural series featuring this detective-turned-hero.

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 86,846

#17: The fourth book in a sci-fi, horror series

"Wizard and Glass"

This is the fourth installment of "The Dark Tower" series, which mixes horror, science fiction, and fantasy while following Roland, the last of a knightly order as he attempts to reach the Dark Tower. In this epic addition, Roland and his friends find themselves in a virus-ridden parallel version of Topeka, Kansas, where Roland tells the gang his origin story. In this nearly novel-long flashback, readers gain a far greater understanding of Roland's motivation, garnering a deeper connection between the reader and King's characters. 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 85,030

#18: An anticipated sequel to a modern classic

"Doctor Sleep"

In this sequel, readers reunite with Dan Torrance, once the young boy from "The Shining," but now a middle-aged man drifting through life. When Dan settles into a job at a nursing home in New Hampshire, he's coined "Doctor Sleep," using his paranormal abilities to help and comfort the dying. But there is a group of traveling, murderous paranormals who are deriving their energy from the "steam" given off by paranormal children as they're tortured and killed. When Dan meets 12-year-old Abra with the same gift he has, he knows he must try to save her. This is a psychological and gory sequel, hugely satisfying to readers who adored "The Shining." 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 83,287

#19: The final book in an epic adventure series

"The Dark Tower" 

In this seventh and final book of "The Dark Tower" series, readers join beloved Roland — the final gunslinger — in the last leg of his 20-year journey to reach the Dark Tower and save his world. Roland and his team must close out their business on Earth to return to their world before the forces of evil destroy the final beams that hold reality in place. Roland is a hero of epic proportions, and this series is a testament to King's masterful characterization, world-building, and cross-genre writing. 

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 80,051

#20: A thrilling fantasy tale of a mysterious store

"Needful Things" 

In his shop, Needful Things, Leland Gaunt knows that every customer will find the object of their heart's deepest desire. In exchange, Leland asks for a small prank to be carried out on his behalf, generating a novel of chaos in a small town. This story is fascinating as the characters are tempted and lured into complete obsession over possessions, blinded by greed and willing to do anything for the object they want — even murder. It's an intense novel, a thriller and fantasy that swirls with mayhem while still being the small-town horror that King writes so well.

Number of 5-star reviews on Goodreads: 73,327

With a national debate raging about how — or even if — teachers should discuss race in their classrooms, many educators may find themselves uncertain about how to navigate the subject of race.

Parents may also find it difficult to broach topics of race in conversations with their teens.

As a former junior high teacher and current teacher educator, I have found that literature can do much of the heavy lifting for these kinds of discussions.

Books offer a way for educators and parents to engage students on a particular topic over an extended period of time. They also enable young people to imagine possibilities and rehearse how to confront inequities in society.

However, when it comes to books that deal with racism, I have found it beneficial to read the text using an anti-bias, anti-racist lens.

Read more: I'm a 28-year-old influencer who started promoting books on my Instagram. I've made $6,000 and now have 50,000 followers — here's how I turned my love of reading into a side hustle.

A closer look

Reading with an anti-bias, anti-racist lens means readers doing certain things when they encounter a scene that involves harm or unfairness. That includes, among other things, summarizing what took place and naming it. Is it racism? Homophobia? Sexism? Ableism? Hate speech? Categorizing the harm or unfairness will help readers better understand it.

Readers should also look for what, if anything, is being done in the story to repair the harm, whether by another character or the community at large.

With that said, here are five titles that I believe can engage young people in conversations about race in America.

1. "Angel of Greenwood" (2021) by Randi Pink

This historical fiction novel is — above all — about love in the 1921 Greenwood District of Tulsa, Oklahoma, that is often referred to as "Black Wall Street," a Black community thriving apart from Jim Crow America.

Angel and Isaiah fall in love over books, debating Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois, days before white rioters burn 35 blocks of their home, killing hundreds. Pink centers love, literature, and family in two-thirds of this novel, because love takes time.

2. "A Song Below Water" (2020) by Bethany C. Morrow

A story of fantastical characters is offered in this novel of magical realism narrated by two sisters: Tavia, who is learning to use her voice through song; and Effie, who performs as a mermaid at the local Renaissance fair.

Set in Portland, Oregon, with elokos — beings who captivate with melodies held in lockets — protective gargoyles and powerful sirens (some forced to wear silencing collars), Morrow confronts the present-day push to limit civil rights by interrogating discrimination, bias used to excuse harm and even hierarchy among creatures.

3. "Land of the Cranes" (2020) by Aida Salazar

This novel — written in poetic form — is an act of activism as Salazar explores how terms like "illegal" can be weaponized and how anti-immigrant policies are the structures of racism.

In this story, a 9-year-old girl, Betita, and her pregnant mother are detained at the Mexican-US border. While the main character is young, Betita is observant and wise, with caring parents who help her find courage and agency in ancestral stories.

4. "Dragon Hoops" (2020) by Gene Luen Yang

This graphic memoir captures in comics multiple story threads: an Oakland high school basketball program, a teacher contemplating leaving the classroom, the history of basketball, and the emergence of basketball as a sport in China.

Through sarcasm and humor and a steep learning curve with basketball, Yang shares the joy of sports alongside subtle and overt racism.

5. "Hearts Unbroken" (2020) by Cynthia Leitich Smith

This realistic fiction novel won the American Indian Library Association's Youth Literature Award. High school senior Louise is making sense of her Muscogee Nation heritage while competing for bylines in her school's newspaper. When the school musical gets pushback in the mostly white, middle-class Kansas town for casting a nonwhite lead in "The Wizard of Oz," Louise reports on the newly formed Parents Against Revisionist Theater.

Sarah J. Donovan, assistant professor of secondary English education, Oklahoma State University

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Whether you're already a Kindle user or simply like to read, you're probably familiar with Amazon's massive range of e-books in the Kindle store. For super-avid readers, however, Amazon has a service called Kindle Unlimited that gets users unlimited access to Kindle's full e-book catalog, plus some other perks like audiobooks and magazine subscriptions.

Kindle Unlimited Prime Day deal 2021

For Prime Day, first-time Kindle subscribers can choose between a free 30-day trial or a two-month subscription for $4.99 total (normally $19.98). After two months, the subscription will auto-renew to $9.99 a month.

If you were otherwise to spend about $15 a week on books, this service could save you $50 a month in the long run (minus the usual $10 monthly fee). 

What is Kindle Unlimited?

An Amazon Kindle Unlimited subscription grants users access to over one million e-books, as well as unlimited access to audiobooks and up to three magazine subscriptions. You can read to your heart's content, whether you want to stock up on beach reads, dive into thrillers or true crime stories, snag the latest new releases, or prep some audiobooks for an upcoming trip.

Of course, it's worth noting that you don't necessarily need a Kindle e-reader to take advantage of the Kindle Unlimited service. You can enjoy Kindle e-books on other devices too, including your tablet, smartphone, or even on your computer. 

You can also cancel your subscription any time, so if after two months you end up deciding that Kindle Unlimited isn't right for you, you don't have to pay anymore (just remember to cancel before it auto-renews).

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Whether you're already a Kindle user or simply like to read, you're probably familiar with Amazon's massive range of ebooks in the Kindle store. For super-avid readers, however, Amazon has a service called Kindle Unlimited that gets users unlimited access to Kindle 's full ebook catalog, plus some other perks like audiobooks and magazine subscriptions.

The service typically costs $10 a month, but Amazon is running a special promotion for Prime Day 2021. The deal includes a four-month free trial for new members.

Kindle Unlimited Prime Day 2021 deal

As part of a limited-time Prime Day deal, Prime members can get four months of Kindle Unlimited for free. After four months, the subscription will auto-renew to $10 a month.

If you were otherwise to spend about $15 a week on books, this service could save you $50 a month in the long run (minus the usual $10 monthly fee). 

Note: You do not have to be an Amazon Prime member to sign up for Kindle Unlimited — it's a different Amazon service. You just have to be a Prime member to access this deal.

What is Kindle Unlimited?

An Amazon Kindle Unlimited subscription grants users access to over one million ebooks, as well as unlimited access to audiobooks and up to three magazine subscriptions. You can read to your heart's content, whether you want to stock up on beach reads, dive into thrillers or true crime stories, snag the latest new releases, or prep some audiobooks for an upcoming trip.

Kindle Unlimited benefits

Kindle Unlimited functions like a digital library, but unlike actual digital libraries, you won't have to wait for weeks to access brand new releases. You can also keep up to 10 ebooks/audiobooks at a time and don't have any due dates.

Another big plus is that you don't necessarily need a Kindle e-reader to take advantage of the Kindle Unlimited service. You can enjoy Kindle ebooks on other devices, including your tablet, smartphone, or even on your computer. 

Is Kindle Unlimited worth it?

If you find yourself cycling through books pretty quickly and like the idea of reading them on a Kindle or digital device, Kindle Unlimited can be worth trying out, especially if you want access to brand-new books (and don't see a need in buying ones you'll probably only read once).

You can also cancel your subscription any time, so if after four months you end up deciding that Kindle Unlimited isn't right for you, you don't have to pay anymore (just remember to cancel before it auto-renews).

More Amazon Prime Day 2021 Kindle deals

• The best Kindle deals on Amazon Prime Day 2021

• This Prime Day Audible deal gets you 53% off the first four months of Audible Premium Plus

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As much as I love watching shows, movies, and documentaries, reading a book is a very different experience. It forces you to slow down and reflect on things in a way that's a bit harder when you're more passively watching (or listening) to a story. Especially if you're an entrepreneur, you don't get very many moments to slow down — so reading encourages you to take that time for yourself.

This past year, I read a handful of books that ended up having a strong impact not just on my life, but on my business as well. All of these books share a common theme, and that's the undeniable effect that having a better culture and being a better leader can have on anything you're building — whether it's a company, a family, or a new version of yourself. 

If you haven't read these books, I highly recommend giving them a try.

Read more: I'm a 28-year-old influencer who started promoting books on my Instagram. I've made $6,000 and now have 50,000 followers — here's how I turned my love of reading into a side hustle.

1. "Rituals Roadmap" by Erica Keswin

This is Erica Keswin's second book, and it's incredible. "Rituals Roadmap: The Human Way to Transform Everyday Routines Into Workplace Magic" is all about the art of employee engagement, how to help co-workers better connect, and what separates authentic relationships in the workplace from non-authentic or non-fulfilling roles and duties.

Pulling from case studies from companies like Starbucks, Chipotle, LinkedIn, and Microsoft, and sharing fun, actionable tips for fostering meaningful interactions, I would recommend this book to any company leader. It's the little things that make all the difference.

2. "Humor, Seriously" by Jennifer Aaker and Naomi Bagdonas

"Humor, Seriously: Why Humor Is a Secret Weapon in Business and Life (and How Anyone Can Harness It. Even You.)" is a great reminder of the power of lightheartedness in the workplace. 

The book shares interesting stats like "98% of executives prefer employees with a sense of humor, and 84% of executives believe these types of employees do better work." And yet, humor is often one of those things that either gets avoided, tip-toed around, or lost in translation. There's little to no emphasis on how and when it's appropriate to "be funny" in the workplace — when really, it's those moments of laughter, joy, and connection people tend to remember most.

3. "Brandsplaining" by Jane Cunningham and Philippa Roberts

As a founder of a female brand, this book really hit home. "Brandsplaining: Why Marketing Is (Still) Sexist and How to Fix It"sums it up. Much of the messaging toward women hasn't changed in decades. Companies still use women as sex objects in their marketing all the time. Women are still left out of many conversations and are hardly considered viable markets for certain types of products (and don't get me started on how female-founded companies are underrepresented and less likely to be funded than companies founded by men).

Most of all, this book reveals how many of the experiences women have remain either misrepresented or entirely ignored out in the market. This book summarizes exactly how far we've come, and yet, how far we still have to go for female representation to be more active, and more important, more accurate out in the market.

4. "The Creativity Leap" by Natalie Nixon

Creativity is not exclusive to the arts. In "The Creativity Leap: Unleash Curiosity, Improvisation, and Intuition at Work," fellow Inc.com columnist Natalie Nixon explains why being creative is crucial to scientific and entrepreneurial success. She goes further to make the case that "humans are hardwired to be creative," and shows how creativity is a skill (not just an innate talent some people have and others don't) that anyone can develop.

I love a book like this because it confirms how advantageous it is for business leaders to take creative risks and foster environments that give unconventional ideas the opportunity to flourish. No matter what industry you're in, this is a terrific book to read with your team — and engage in conversations around what it means to be "creative" in the context of your industry and business.

5. "Undaunted" by Kara Goldin

Kara Goldin is an inspiring founder, and her book is an inspiring reminder of what it takes to be successful in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds. "Undaunted: Overcoming Doubts + Doubters" is her story of building Hint into one of the most successful beverage businesses today. One half personal stories, the other half actionable advice for aspiring entrepreneurs, this is an up-close-and-personal look at what it takes to build something out of nothing. 

All of these books are both interesting and enjoyable to read. So if you're looking for new ways to improve your business, I encourage you to give these a try.

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Over the last year, many of us have felt the world spin out of control. The global pandemic has forced us to abandon familiar routines and adopt new habits for everything, from working to socializing.

But no matter what the pandemic puts us through, there's one thing we can always control: ourselves. So if you'd like to invest some time and energy into personal growth, the seven books below are an excellent place to start.

1. "The Power of Ritual: Turning Everyday Activities into Soulful Practices" by Casper ter Kuile

In America and around the world, it's no secret that many people are struggling to find fulfillment in traditional organized religion. But Harvard Divinity School Fellow Casper ter Kuile believes that whether you're religious or not, you can design personal rituals for your life, rituals that add joy and meaning to everyday experiences. 

View Our "Book Bite" Summary

2. "In Awe: Rediscover Your Childlike Wonder to Unleash Inspiration, Meaning, and Joy" by John O'Leary

With so much bad news showing up everywhere from TV to Twitter, we may find ourselves feeling burned out and jaded more often than we'd like. But internationally renowned speaker John O'Leary believes that we can adopt a different, healthier, more joyful mindset — if only we're ready to try a new perspective.  

View Our "Book Bite" Summary

3. "Think Like a Monk: Train Your Mind for Peace and Purpose Every Day" by Jay Shetty

When business and media influencer Jay Shetty encourages us to "think like a monk," he's not referencing something he read about, or researched for a doctorate degree. He's talking about something he lived, as he spent years in India as a monk himself. This remarkable book lays bare the most ancient, most valuable wisdom he learned along the way.

 View Our "Book Bite" Summary

4. "Bravey: Chasing Dreams, Befriending Pain, and Other Big Ideas" by Alexi Pappas

Olympic athlete, actress, and filmmaker Alexi Pappas may seem to have it all figured out. But when she was just four years old, her mother died by suicide — and over the years, she's had to battle demons of her own. In this candid and moving memoir, Pappas shares what she's learned about overcoming adversity and living the life you've always wanted.

View Our "Book Bite" Summary

5. "Being the Person Your Dog Thinks You Are: The Science of a Better You" by Jim Davies

Your dog thinks you're probably the best person in the world. After all, enduring your absence for even half an hour seems to stress her out. So if you want to become every bit as kind, generous, and wise as she thinks you are, you'll want to crack open this book by cognitive scientist Jim Davies. 

View Our "Book Bite" Summary

6. "The Socrates Express: In Search of Life Lessons from Dead Philosophers" by Eric Weiner

Wondering about how to attain true happiness, or how to become a more ethical person, or what the meaning of life could be? If so, there's no need to start answering those questions from scratch — in fact, history's greatest minds have already done the heavy lifting. Let Eric Weiner be your guide through their greatest insights. 

View Our "Book Bite" Summary

7. "Beginners: The Joy and Transformative Power of Lifelong Learning" by Tom Vanderbilt

When we're kids, we constantly try new hobbies, sports, and activities. And although we're not always successful, these forays help us become stronger, more well-rounded individuals. So why do we stop trying new things in adulthood? In "Beginners," acclaimed journalist Tom Vanderbilt contends that you're never too old to learn something new. 

View Our "Book Bite" Summary

Read more:

Dream First, Details Later: How to Quit Overthinking & Make It Happen!
How to Change: The Science of Getting from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be
Dedicated: The Case for Commitment in an Age of Infinite Browsing

A version of this article was published by The Next Big Idea Club, which delivers key insights from all the best new books via the Next Big Idea App, website, and podcast. To hear the audio version of this post, narrated by the author, and to enjoy more Book Bites, download the Next Big Idea App today.

The Next Big Idea Club is a subscription book club curated by Malcolm Gladwell, Susan Cain, Daniel Pink, and Adam Grant. Get smarter faster with the Next Big Idea app, which offers the key insights from the best new books every day, created and narrated by bestselling authors, ad-free episodes of our popular podcast, and live zoom conversations with leading thinkers.  

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With the end of the coronavirus pandemic in sight, it seems that we'll soon return to get-togethers, cocktail parties, and other social engagements. And inevitably, the conversation will turn to what everyone did with all that time at home. While we can — and should — proudly admit to binge watching those dozen seasons of "Survivor," we may also want to join others in mentioning a book or two that we enjoyed.

So if you're hoping to become a bit more well-read, we recommend checking out the eight new books below. They're sure to make for fascinating conversation, and who knows? They might help you become the smartest person in the room.

1. "2030: How Today's Biggest Trends Will Collide and Reshape the Future of Everything" by Mauro F. Guillén

Wharton professor Mauro F. Guillén offers a groundbreaking analysis on the global trends shaping the future, including an analysis on how COVID-19 will amplify and accelerate each of these dramatic, often surprising changes. 

View Our "Book Bite" Summary

2. "The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race" by Walter Isaacson

The bestselling author of "Leonardo da Vinci" and "Steve Jobs" returns with a gripping account of how Nobel Prize winner Jennifer Doudna and her colleagues launched a revolution that will allow us to cure diseases, fend off viruses, and have healthier babies. 

View Our "Book Bite" Summary

3. "The Delusion of Crowds: Why People Go Mad in Groups" by William J. Bernstein

Financial theorist William J. Bernstein shares stories of mass hysteria that are as revealing about human nature as they are historically significant. He observes that if we can absorb the history and biology of mass delusion, we can recognize it more readily in our own time, and avoid its frequently dire impact. 

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4. "The Disordered Cosmos: A Journey into Dark Matter, Spacetime, and Dreams Deferred" by Chanda Prescod-Weinstein

One of the leading physicists of her generation, Dr. Chanda Prescod-Weinstein is also one of fewer than one hundred Black American women to earn a PhD from a department of physics. Her vision of the cosmos is vibrant, buoyantly nontraditional, and grounded in Black feminist traditions. 

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5. "Four Lost Cities: A Secret History of the Urban Age" by Annalee Newitz

Acclaimed science journalist Annalee Newitz takes readers on a quest to explore some of the most spectacular ancient cities in human history — and figure out why people abandoned them. 

View Our "Book Bite" Summary

6. "Fundamentals: Ten Keys to Reality" by Frank Wilczek

Nobel laureate Frank Wilczek shares a simple yet profound exploration of reality based on the deep revelations of modern science. With an infectious sense of joy, Wilczek investigates the ideas that form our understanding of the universe, such as time, space, matter, energy, complexity, and complementarity. 

View Our "Book Bite" Summary

7. "Mine!: How the Hidden Rules of Ownership Control Our Lives" by Michael Heller and James Salzman

A hidden set of rules governs who owns what, explaining everything from whether you can recline your airplane seat to why HBO lets you borrow a password illegally. And in this lively and entertaining guide, two acclaimed law professors reveal how things become "mine." 

View Our "Book Bite" Summary

8. "The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together" by Heather McGhee

One of today's top experts on social and economic policy offers a powerful exploration of inequality and the lesson that generations of Americans have failed to learn: Racism has a cost for everyone — not just for people of color. 

View Our "Book Bite" Summary

A version of this article was published by The Next Big Idea Club, which delivers key insights from all the best new books via the Next Big Idea App, website, and podcast. To hear the audio version of this post, narrated by the author, and to enjoy more Book Bites, download the Next Big Idea App today.

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Because I had the gall to plan a wedding and buy a house at the same time, I'm not sleeping much — never mind that my current sleep hygiene is a level above garbage. 

I often forget to wash my face and watch TikToks for at least an hour immediately before bed, falling asleep with my phone in my hand.

My saving grace is I'm consistently asleep by 11:30 p.m. thanks to a guided narration app (please ask me about Loona, I'm obsessed).

Seeking sleep-routine guidance, I turned to the group of people who are obsessed with optimizing every minute of their lives: CEOs

Arianna Huffington even wrote an entire book on it. 

The most common nighttime habits of CEOs fall into one of three categories: unplug, reflect, and maintain routine. They don't work past dinner and take plenty of time for family bonding or leisure activity.

Most CEOs have a tried-and-true method for unwinding, like Joel Gascoigne, cofounder and CEO of Buffer, who takes a 20-minute walk before bed every night. 

I decided to give some best practices a shot and focused on:

• Unplugging: No more TikTok or social media before bed. CEOs like Bill Gates read before bed, so I chose an old favorite to snuggle in with.
• Reflecting: I took 15 minutes each night to journal before bed. I wrote down three things I accomplished and three things to do the next day.
• Maintaining routine: I turned off Netflix, washed my face, and was in bed ready to journal by 9:30 p.m. 

I woke up tired already on Monday

Since it was an observed holiday, I let myself sleep in. But even after walking both dogs and several cups of coffee, I was still wiped. 

I'm a writer, so my work for the day was editing a short story for submission later. The wedding-related goal for the week was booking the venue and picking a date, so my husband and I took some time to divvy up those tasks ("husband," because like so many other couples from the last year, we didn't want to wait to get married, but certainly could wait to throw a wedding).

That night, I hauled myself away from the TV at 9:30 p.m., did my nighttime skincare, and spent 30 minutes journaling and reading. I fell asleep a full hour and a half earlier than normal. 

Tuesday morning I woke up naturally 2 hours before my alarm 

This never happens. Sleep is magic. 

I finished editing my short story and drafted about 1,400 words for a new piece. I also called and spoke with the rental manager for the wedding venue, picked a date, and got a contract.

By 5:00 p.m. I still felt revved — is this how people become workaholics? 

My in-bed routine suffered a little bit on Tuesday night. I caved to 30 minutes of TikTok while lying in bed (it was only supposed to be five!), but despite this, journaling and reading knocked me out just as quickly as the night before. 

Unfortunately, I was up and down throughout the night, once at 1:00 a.m. and again at 4:00 a.m. to check on my elderly Pitbull.

I felt the disruptions in my sleep acutely on Wednesday morning

I still woke up before my alarm, but only by one hour instead of two. When I sat down to work, I was drowsy and grumpy. 

I worked on final touches to my short story before leaving to cat-sit for a friend. I figured this was a good addition to the experiment since CEOs are always jetting off to new locations.

On transit, I got an email that the library holds I wrote in my to-do list for two nights in a row had been canceled. Apparently writing a to-do list where you can't see it in the morning is self-defeating. 

Once settled, I reviewed the rental contract, called my husband to pick out open houses to tour over the weekend, and had a few informational interviews for an article. In between all this, I grabbed a can of Coke from the fridge without thinking about it. 

Unfortunately, at bedtime I could still feel the caffeine. My book made me bored, not sleepy, and it took 45 minutes of trying the sleep app before I moved onto my less-than-healthy but tried-and-true sleep method: old episodes of "The Office" played on my phone with the screen flipped down so I only hear the audio.

I was awake, alert, and working by 7:15 a.m. Thursday morning

I spent my morning editing manuscript chapters and my afternoon getting quotes from the beverage manager at the wedding venue in between more informational interviews.

I avoided afternoon caffeine, taking a walk instead. This was effective until dinner when I felt all-caps TIRED. I decided there was no harm in laying down to watch TikTok "for just a few minutes," then woke up from a dead sleep to an 8:00 p.m. phone call from a friend. 

Annoyed that I had totally blown my new routine, I stayed up until 10:00 p.m., then crawled back into bed. I sulkily watched more TikTok before I conked out. At least I remembered to do my evening skincare.

After totally throwing my new routine out the window, Friday morning felt horrible

If I thought somehow this whole week was magic and not the result of intentional changes, Friday morning proved that thoughtful sleep matters.

I was up by 7:00 a.m., grudgingly punching my phone to stop the same alarm I bounced up at yesterday. My stomach hurt and I didn't want to make coffee yet, but I was having a horrible time trying to focus without it.

I managed 1,900 words on a rough draft before taking a ridiculously long lunch. I caved to a case of the "summer Fridays" and used my afternoon to set up my Monday workload.

I stayed out late that night at a movie with a friend. Once I finally got home at 10:30 p.m., I felt like a toddler kept up without a nap. I journaled and read for about 10 minutes, trying to stay up even later because the shy cat I'd roomed with finally sat in my lap and I wanted to celebrate the moment. I fell asleep almost as soon as the lights were out, lulled by purrs.

At the end of the week, I found myself torn between returning to what felt comfortable and continuing what I'd proven worked 

The challenge to upgrading sleep hygiene isn't knowing what to do at night — we know our screens are bad for us in the dark, we know we shouldn't drink before bed, we know we should keep a consistent bedtime, etc. 

But by bedtime, we've run out of energy to maintain order in our lives. It takes extra energy when I'm already tired to force myself to change a habit, and that alone may be what keeps me from a CEO sleep schedule.

Maybe if I continue to try, I will eventually stick to reading before bed instead of going on TikTok.

Whichever habits I carry forward, it will certainly take a C-suite level investment in shifting and maintaining them.

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Following is a transcript of the video.

Tom Corley: Hi, this is Tom Corley. I'm the author of "Rich Habits."

Wealth, success, being in the middle class, being poor is all about your habits. Reading certain specific books— this is what the self-made millionaires do to help increase their wealth.

You don't have to do a lot. 15 to 20 minutes is all it takes to develop more knowledge, to build your knowledge-base and to improve yourself. You start out with that 15 to 20 minutes of reading every day, and the next thing you know you'll be doing an hour a day because you'll be so excited about all the information that you're learning.

So, I found in my research that there are some common books that the self-made millionaires read. Now, there are self-help books that they read and "How to Win Friends and Influence People" is one of them. But they also read a lot of biographies of other successful people.

Why? Why would they read about someone else's life? Inside these books — these autobiographies or these biographies of successful people is actually a history of all the mistakes that they made. And one of the things that I uncovered in my research is: mentors are the fast-track to building wealth. Well, a book — an autobiography or biography can be a mentor. It can point you in the right direction. It can tell you what to do and what not to do.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This video was originally published in December 2017.

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COVID-19 undoubtedly changed K-12 classrooms for the near future.

When school resumes in the fall, even if education returns to pre-pandemic "normal"— with students attending classes all day and in person — teachers are likely to use more online tools and virtual resources than they did pre-COVID-19. The push into remote learning due to the pandemic opened up resources and opportunities that many schools might not have used before the pandemic. This has led to rethinking the K-12 education system as a whole and how online learning can continue both when students are in school or studying at home.

That means parents need to be prepared to continue the role of facilitator of learning and technology specialist for their school-aged children.

Read more: An inside look at Stanford Graduate School of Business' pivot to remote learning — and why it plans to keep some of its innovations post-pandemic

A daunting challenge continues

The pandemic exposed deep inequities in our society — not just in health issues but in everything from which families could afford childcare to how easily schools could transition to remote learning. But any parent may feel daunted by the prospect of managing their child's or children's remote learning.

One's education degree doesn't always matter, nor their level of education. For example, a second-grade teacher might struggle in the role of instructional aide for their teenage child taking physics. Likewise, a high school teacher might be unable to break down the basics of teaching reading to their own kindergartner learning at home. Parents with high school diplomas or less may do just as well assisting their kids with schoolwork as those with a law or medical degree.

Furthermore, consider parents who had three children at home in three different grade levels — or even three different schools. Some juggled three different teachers working in different formats, learning platforms, and time schedules.

As teachereducators who are reevaluating how to prepare teachers for future learning disruptions, we'd like to offer parents and caregivers some tips for the upcoming back-to-school season.

1. Get to know the teacher

Your child's teacher may be unaware of your concerns, so don't be afraid to ask questions. For example, if your child remains in virtual learning full- or part-time, you may want to ask the teacher about meeting times; whether video and audio should be on at all times; and how to use the learning platform to submit work or ask questions. Parents could meet with their child's teacher — virtually or in person. Fostering a positive working relationship with your child's teacher can improve academic performance.

Consider the day-to-day changes that your child will experience upon returning to the classroom. For example, children will begin to work in collaborative group settings and may be required to resolve conflicts with peers. The small changes may affect your child's transition, so it's beneficial to check in with the teacher regularly.

2. Embrace technology

Even children new to a specific learning platform are likely to be digital natives who can figure out how to use the newly introduced technology on their own.

Allow your child the opportunity to explore different learning websites and apps, either ones recommended by the teacher or ones that adhere to expectations determined by you. These might include active read-aloud activities, educational games, and virtual field trips.

Even if your child is not in a virtual learning environment, online learning tools can help reinforce topics taught in class and provide additional help for a child struggling with a specific lesson or topic.

3. Keep expectations high

Encourage your child to complete homework, assigned activities, and reading. This requires affirming their knowledge and ability to do the work on their own. Routines are critical during this transition period coming out of the pandemic, but foster your child's independence through flexibility in those routines. Remember that some good came out of the pandemic, as families were reminded to slow down and readjust as needed.

4. Focus on your own strengths

Learning occurs in all aspects of our day-to-day lives. As a parent-turned-teacher, consider everyday tasks such as cooking, household chores, and managing finances to be true learning experiences for your child. Discuss with your children your own transition from pre-pandemic to post-pandemic in terms of technology use, work habits, and stress, among other things.

5. Encourage reading

Provide at least 30 minutes a day for your child to read books of their choice. All children, no matter their age, should be encouraged to read daily to increase their literacy.

If your child continues to attend class virtually, library books may not be as readily available. In that case, try e-books — with and without read-aloud components. Also consider assisting your children in using the internet to research types of books they may want to read.

Lorrie Webb, department chair and professor of curriculum & instruction, Texas A&M-San Antonio and Rebekah Piper, assistant professor of education and human development, Texas A&M-San Antonio

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