As the holiday season ensues, you may find yourself overworked with cooking festive dishes for the family and trying to buy the perfect present for everyone on your list. In the midst of the holiday craze, try to decompress with a book and a cup of tea.
She’s Come Undone by Wally Lamb
I first read this book during my freshman year of high school. She’s Come Undone follows Dolores Price as she lives through her life after her father leaves her and her mother for another woman. As Dolores deals with her father’s departure and a few other tragedies, she becomes clinically obese by the time she turns 17. The story of Dolores as told from her point-of-view is so beautifully told that you almost forget that Wally Lamb is the actual author here.
Inherit Midnight by Kate Kae Myers
In this thriller, Avery VanDemere competes alongside the rest of her family for her grandmother’s fortune. Avery’s wealthy grandmother left her hefty inheritance to the family member who proved to be the most worthy through a global puzzle and riddle solving competition. The VanDemere family has its fair share of drama, and this jet-setting competition for the inheritance brings it all to light. Avery sees this competition as a chance to not only win the money, but to escape the family who had ostracized her all her life.
More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera
16-year-old Aaron Soto struggles to find happiness after a family tragedy. He slowly begins to feel joyful with the support of his girlfriend Genevieve, but his best friend, Thomas, is the one that gets him to open up. He confides in Thomas about his past and their conversations make Aaron confront his future. Throughout the summer, Aaron and Thomas continue to grow closer, until an alarming self-revelation on Aaron’s part threatens to shatter the comfort that he managed to build. In order to straighten himself out, Aaron thinks about a revolutionary memory-alteration procedure. Silvera’s debut novel confronts issues of race, class, and sexuality during a charged summer in the Bronx.
All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely
Police brutality and the abuse of power are heavy subjects within this heart-wrenching thriller. Rashad, an ROTC kid, was sent to the hospital due to an incident with a police officer. A woman had tripped over Rashad, making him drop a bag of chips; apparently, it looked like he was shop lifting, hence the police coming to the store. The officer beats Rashad so violently that he requires hospitalization. Naturally, the incident causes strong and passionate discourse throughout the town and Rashad’s school. All American Boys deals with the racial tension that a community experiences during a high-profile case of police brutality.
Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyou
The only non-fiction book on this list highlights the meteoritic rise and fall of Theranos, a medical startup masterminded by Elizabeth Holmes that claimed to revolutionize blood testing. Carreyou, an investigative reporter for the Wall Street Journal, received the Gerald Polk Award for Financial Reporting, the Gerald Loeb Award for Distinguished Business and Financial Journalism in the category of beat reporting, and the Barlett & Steele Silver Award for Investigative Business Journalism. This book tells the real-life story of how one woman was able to start up a company and essentially keep up with a nationwide, multi-billion dollar scam.
Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by J.K. Rowling, Jacke Thorne, and John Tiffany
If you’re nostalgic and sad about Harry Potter ending, worry not as this two-part play starts 19 years after the events of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. The play follows Harry Potter, who now is the Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement at the Ministry of Magic, and his younger son Albus Severus Potter, who’s set to attend the infamous Hogwarts. The play is deemed as the eighth installment of the Harry Potter series.
Many of us have fallen out of love with reading, but this holiday season can be different. Instead of picking up your phone to check Instagram for the millionth time, pick up a new book and dig in!