7 Books You’ll Be Glad You Discovered in 2025

In a world overflowing with content, discovering a book that truly resonates feels like finding a lighthouse in a storm. 2025 has gifted us with literary gems—thought-provoking, transformative, and deeply human works that cut through the noise. Below is a list of 7 books you’ll be glad you discovered in 2025.

We’ve handpicked titles across genres—fiction, non-fiction, memoir, and social commentary—that are not only well-written but deeply relevant to today’s world. So let’s dive in and explore the books you’ll be thankful you picked up this year.

1. The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley

Kaliane Bradley’s debut novel is a striking mix of time-travel science fiction and post-colonial commentary. When a climate refugee is assigned to care for a 19th-century Arctic explorer brought to the present by a secretive British government project, tensions arise between duty, desire, and identity. The novel is richly layered, exploring how imperial power persists even across centuries. Bradley’s lyrical, sharp prose brings nuance to the historical figures while interrogating the ethics of “saving” the past. A bold, genre-bending story, The Ministry of Time reminds us that how we remember history may determine how we survive the future.

2. Grief Is for People by Sloane Crosley

In Grief Is for People, Sloane Crosley departs from her signature humor to deliver a deeply personal and emotionally raw memoir. Following the suicide of her close friend and literary confidante, she unpacks the stages of grief with clarity, intelligence, and bittersweet honesty. Crosley doesn’t aim to fix grief or make it palatable—instead, she lays it bare, allowing readers to see the messiness, confusion, and unexpected beauty in mourning. Her reflections on friendship, mental health, and life’s sudden turns create a space for empathy and shared experience. It’s a rare memoir that balances intimacy with universal emotional truth.

3. The Great Wave by Michiko Kakutani

Pulitzer Prize-winning critic Michiko Kakutani returns with a tour de force of cultural and political analysis. The Great Wave dissects the forces reshaping our world—AI disruption, political extremism, institutional collapse—and connects them to historical patterns and cultural shifts. With references ranging from Plato to Orwell, Kakutani’s narrative is both deeply intellectual and shockingly relevant. She explores how outsiders—once marginalized—are now reshaping democracies, markets, and ideologies in profound ways. This book offers clarity amid chaos, challenging readers to think critically about the cost of progress and the urgency of civic renewal. A must-read for those seeking context in turbulent times.

4. Clear by Carys Davies

Carys Davies’ Clear is a hauntingly intimate historical novel set in 19th-century Scotland during the Highland Clearances. A minister is sent to evict the last remaining tenant on a remote island, only to encounter a man who speaks a dying language and clings fiercely to his solitude. What unfolds is a quiet, tender meditation on cultural erasure, spiritual duty, and the fragile bond between strangers. Davies writes with exquisite restraint, capturing the harsh beauty of the landscape and the emotional undercurrents between characters. Clear is a reminder that the smallest acts of resistance can echo louder than empires.

5. Burn Book by Kara Swisher

Kara Swisher’s Burn Book is a scorching, insightful memoir-meets-exposé that charts her decades covering Silicon Valley. With biting wit and journalistic rigor, Swisher reveals the ambitions, blind spots, and moral failings of tech giants like Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and Steve Jobs. What makes Burn Book more than gossip is Swisher’s clear-eyed critique of how technology has reshaped power, politics, and truth. This is not a nostalgic look back but a call to accountability—one that demands readers think critically about the people behind our screens. Entertaining, alarming, and necessary, Swisher’s book is a landmark in tech journalism and cultural commentary.

6. Real Americans by Rachel Khong

Rachel Khong’s Real Americans is a sweeping, emotionally layered novel that spans three generations of a Chinese American family. The story explores questions of identity, inheritance, and scientific intervention, weaving timelines that stretch from the 1990s to a biotech-infused near future. At its core is a mother-son relationship shaped by secrets and sacrifice. Khong’s prose is elegant and probing, blending emotional warmth with intellectual curiosity. She tackles themes of immigration, class, and belonging with nuance and grace. Real Americans captures the push and pull between heritage and reinvention, asking us what it truly means to be “American” in a fractured age.

7. The Book of Love by Kelly Link

Award-winning short story master Kelly Link delivers her long-awaited novel, and it doesn’t disappoint. The Book of Love is a spellbinding blend of gothic fantasy and emotional coming-of-age. Three teenagers, mysteriously brought back from the dead in a seaside town, are pulled into a magical realm of music, memory, and myth. With her trademark surrealism and literary depth, Link crafts a richly textured tale about resurrection, identity, and the burden of unfinished business. It’s eerie, romantic, and thought-provoking, steeped in folklore yet brimming with contemporary urgency. The Book of Love is a haunting exploration of what we owe the living—and the dead.

Final Thoughts

In a fast-moving year, these books help us slow down, look deeper, and think bigger. They challenge us to be more present, more empathetic, and more attuned to the complexities of modern life.

Whether you’re a casual reader or a lifelong bibliophile, there’s something transformative waiting for you in these pages.

Don’t just read to escape—read to evolve.