Every year, She Reads reaches out to readers to discover the books that they thought were the best of the year! This year we had over 8,000 of you cast your vote and the results are in. In our roundups of all the Best Books of 2024, we’ll include the number one book, chosen by you and some favorites from our professional book loving editors. We hope this reading year was as wonderful for you as it was for us!

Best Memoir of 2024: From Here to the Great Unknown by Lisa Marie Presley, Riley Keough

From Here to the Great Unknown by Lisa Marie Presley, Riley Keough

This poignant memoir blends the voices of Lisa Marie Presley and her daughter Riley, offering a deeply personal look at love, loss, and resilience. Through Lisa Marie’s recorded memories—from her childhood at Graceland to her tumultuous marriages, motherhood, and battles with addiction—Riley fulfills her mother’s wish to share her incandescent yet painful story. This powerful book serves as both a tribute and a healing connection between a mother and daughter across worlds.

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Best Nonfiction of 2024: The Backyard Bird Chronicles by Amy Tan

The Backyard Bird Chronicles by Amy Tan

This is a charming exploration of nature’s beauty, blending daily observations, thoughtful reflections, and original sketches. Amid the turbulence of 2016, Tan turned to the birds in her yard for peace, discovering a profound connection to the natural world and the quiet joy of appreciating life’s small wonders. This captivating memoir invites readers to find solace and inspiration in the everyday marvels around them.

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2024 has gifted us with an extraordinary collection of memoirs and nonfiction works that illuminate the human experience in all its complexity. From intimate personal narratives to profound social commentary, these ten books challenge, inspire, and deepen our understanding of contemporary life, offering fresh perspectives on justice, identity, loss, and hope.

Lovely One: A Memoir by Ketanji Brown Jackson

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson’s memoir chronicles her remarkable journey from a family rooted in the segregated South to becoming a Supreme Court Justice. Named “Ketanji Onyika” (meaning “Lovely One”), she was raised by educator parents who instilled pride in her African heritage. The book details her academic excellence at Harvard, her legal career advancement despite barriers, and her balance of professional ambitions with family life. Through personal anecdotes and public records, Jackson offers an intimate look at breaking barriers and achieving dreams, inspiring future generations to pursue justice and equality.

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The Message by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Ta-Nehisi Coates’s book explores how narratives and myths shape our understanding of reality, through three interconnected essays. In Senegal, he confronts the gap between Afrocentric ideals and modern African reality. In South Carolina, he examines the aftermath of 2020’s racial reckoning against the backdrop of Confederate history. In Palestine, he witnesses the stark contrast between accepted narratives and ground realities through meetings with locals and visits to occupied territories. The book argues for the importance of confronting uncomfortable truths and abandoning destructive nationalist myths. Written during a pivotal moment, it challenges readers to embrace complex realities over simplistic narratives.

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Legacy: A Black Physician Reckons With Racism In Medicine by Uché Blackstock

Dr. Uché Blackstock’s memoir weaves her personal journey with a critique of American healthcare inequities. Growing up watching her mother and other Black women physicians in Brooklyn, she and her twin sister followed their path to Harvard Medical School. Through her experiences as an ER doctor and academic, she exposes the stark realities: Black women comprise only 2% of U.S. physicians and Black Americans face persistent healthcare disparities. Written during the pandemic and Black Lives Matter movement, the book combines family history with a call to action for healthcare equity reform.

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Grief Is For People by Sloane Crosley

In this poignant memoir, Sloane Crosley examines grief following her closest friend’s suicide. Known for her sharp wit, she searches beyond conventional wisdom about mourning, exploring how we process devastating loss through art, philosophy, and human connections. The narrative weaves together her personal journey through bereavement while investigating friendship, death, and healing. Despite its heavy subject matter, Crosley’s characteristic humor and keen observations shine through, offering an unconventional yet relatable perspective on navigating profound loss and finding meaning in life’s darkest moments.

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Who’s Afraid Of Gender? by Judith Butler

In this book, Judith Butler examines how “gender” has become a focal point for right-wing movements and authoritarian regimes. Butler analyzes global “anti-gender ideology movements” that frame gender as a threat to civilization, family, and culture. The book explores how these movements undermine reproductive rights, LGBTQ+ protections, and gender violence prevention. Butler connects anti-gender rhetoric with xenophobia and racial panic, showing how these movements fuel nationalism and oppression. Rather than offering new gender theory, the work calls for coalition-building among equality movements to combat rising authoritarianism and defend human rights.

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There's Always This Year

There’s Always This Year: On Basketball And Ascension by Hanif Abdurraqib

In this book, Hanif Abdurraqib explores basketball as a lens for examining success, expectations, and role models, rooted in his experiences growing up in 1990s Columbus, Ohio. Through the story of LeBron James and lesser-known players, Abdurraqib weaves personal memoir—including a poignant reflection on seeing his father shoot a basketball only once—with broader cultural analysis. Like his previous works on music and history, this book transcends its ostensible subject, using basketball to explore profound questions about American culture, opportunity, and identity.

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The Secret Lives of Booksellers And Librarians: True Stories Of The Magic Of Reading by James Patterson and Matt Eversmann

James Patterson shares inspiring stories of booksellers and librarians who transform lives through their passion for books. The narrative portrays these professionals as multifaceted heroes who act as detectives, matchmakers, and advocates, creating “book joy” by connecting readers with perfect books. Operating in both the magical realm of literature and the practical world of business, these storytellers and knowledge-keepers help others discover new voices and perspectives. The book offers an insider’s view of the book industry through the experiences of dedicated professionals who bridge the gap between stories and readers.

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Somehow: Thoughts On Love by Anne Lamott

In her twentieth book Thoughts On Love, Anne Lamott explores love’s diverse manifestations: from late-life romance to complex parent-child relationships and community bonds. Drawing from personal experience, she demonstrates how love educates, comforts, and sustains us through life’s challenges. With her signature warmth and wit, Lamott argues that while love isn’t always easy, it’s our best hope for facing despair and creating a better future. She portrays love as an essential force that transforms us, pushing us toward growth while keeping us grounded in our humanity.

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My Side Of The River by Elizabeth Camarillo Gutierrez

In this book Elizabeth recounts her experience as an unaccompanied, homeless youth after her Mexican immigrant parents were forced to return to Mexico due to expired visas. She suddenly found herself responsible for her younger brother while pursuing her education. Armed with only her passport and determination, she navigates the challenges of family separation caused by immigration laws. The memoir explores generational trauma, the American dream’s costs, and the deep bond between siblings as Elizabeth strives to make her brother’s path easier than her own.

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Splinters by Leslie Jamison

Leslie Jamison’s memoir, Splinters explores her most intimate relationships: the consuming love for her young daughter, a failed marriage, and her parents’ complex bond. Through vivid moments—pumping breastmilk in university offices, discovering new love on open highways, watching her daughter explore the world—she examines how women navigate being mothers, artists, teachers, and lovers simultaneously. The book wrestles with moving forward through loss while finding hope amid regret, creating a profound meditation on life’s complexities and the delicate balance between grief and joy.

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