The New Year brings excitement and new beginnings, one of them being resolutions. Each year, people make resolutions to eat healthier or exercise more, but many may set another goal: to read more. Some of the books highlighted here may seem “basic,” but they are popular for a reason. There’s nothing like a beloved book to get someone excited about reading. Each book on this list is guaranteed to captivate non-readers and might even convert some to regular readers.
While January is coming to an end, it’s not too late to set a reading goal for the year.
Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
If you want to start reading, a Taylor Jenkins Reid book is the way to go. Reid creates incredibly realistic worlds in her stories, so much so that they force readers to wonder if her characters were real people. (I had to look some up and was shocked to find out they weren’t). In Daisy Jones and the Six, she transports us to 1970s Los Angeles, following the rise and fall of a popular band. This story loosely resembles that of Fleetwood Mac. The novel is told through interviews, with band members and friends recounting their experiences from those years.
If you enjoyed Daisy Jones and the Six, try The Daydreams by Laura Hankins.
The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
The Summer I Turned Pretty, along with its two subsequent novels, are cheesy yet addicting. The novel follows teenager Belly as she explores her love life and returns to her family friends’ beach house for the summer. She has to make the ultimate teenage love drama choice: choose between two brothers. Written for young adults, this novel (and the aforementioned two brothers) captures the hearts of readers of all ages. This book was also turned into a Prime TV series, with its last season airing this coming summer.
If you enjoyed The Summer I Turned Pretty, try Better than the Movies by Lynn Painter to continue in the sweet young adult romance genre.
Everything I Know About Love by Dolly Alderton
I believe that every college-aged, twenty-something-year-old should read this memoir. Alderton navigates her life from her teenage years to adulthood while dealing with the ups and downs of growing up. This book made me laugh, cry and truly appreciate the value of the friendships in my life. Alderton shines a new light on what the word “love” means and how we can find love in our everyday lives.
If you enjoyed Everything I Know About Love, try All About Love by bell hooks.
The Night Shift by Alex Finlay
A thriller like The Night Shift by Alex Finlay is sure to hook readers and bring them one step closer to becoming bookworms. An attack at a Blockbuster New Year’s Eve 1999 leaves just one survivor, forever changing the town. 15 years later, a similar incident at an ice cream shop mirrors the tragedy from years before. The story follows the investigation of the current case while revisiting the one from 1999. With chapters that often end in cliffhangers, readers can’t help but want to read just one more chapter. It is the perfect spooky thriller to keep one on their feet.
If you enjoyed The Night Shift by Alex Finlay, try We Were Never Here by Andrea Bartz.