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Latest Book Recommendations

The Best China Books of 2022, recommended by Jeffrey Wasserstrom

©Audrey Fong

From a true story that reads like a spy novel to a detailed study of the mythic origins of the Chinese Communist Party in Northwest China, there were lots of interesting books published about China this year. Jeffrey Wasserstrom, a professor at UC Irvine and specialist in modern Chinese history, recommends some of his 2022 favourites.

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The best cookbooks of 2022, recommended by Becky Krystal of the Washington Post’s Voraciously
“We’re still riding that 2020 wave, when a lot of people got into bread baking”

**Five outstanding 2022 audiobooks, recommended by Robin Whitten, AudioFile’s founder and editor**
“It has to be an audio experience that people will remember.”

The best art and design books of 2022, recommended by Five Books art editor Romas Viesulas
“Digital and analogue realms cross over with ever-greater regularity”

Most Popular Expert Interviews

Caro Sanderson, chair of the judges for the prestigious Baillie Gifford Prize, discusses the six nonfiction books on this year’s shortlist
“It’s about the originality of the book: quite simply, we’re looking for something that we don’t feel that we’ve read before.”

The best contemporary mysteries, recommended by bestselling crime writer Mark Edwards
“Mystery writing is a craft, like being a magician: you’ve got to be able to use red herrings, misdirect”

Philosopher Massimo Pigliucci recommends the best books on Stoicism
“One of the most rewarding things that has happened to me since I started writing about it is the constant flow of testimonies to the fact that it really helps people”

Neil MacGregor, chair of the 2022 Booker Prize judges, talks us through the shortlist
“These are six books that we want to recommend to people to read and re-read”

The Best Historical Fiction: The 2022 Walter Scott Prize Shortlist, recommended by Elizabeth Laird, one of the prize’s judges
“We’re finding now that many writers, some with long and distinguished careers behind them, are looking to the past for inspiration”

The best history books: the 2022 Wolfson Prize shortlist, recommended by Wolfson judge Carole Hillenbrand
“There is one book about God, one about Turkey, one about the United States, and then two about medieval England”

The Best Science Fiction of 2022: The Arthur C. Clarke Award
Academic and chair of the judges Andrew M. Butler talks us through this year’s shortlist

The Best Romance Books of 2022, recommended by writer and bookseller Katherine D. Morgan
“Working as a bookseller for Powell’s Books has really allowed me to see what titles have been flying off of the shelves”

Nietzsche expert Brian Leiter recommends the best Nietzsche books
“When he writes about suffering he’s not a tourist”

The Best World War I Books, recommended by historian Jonathan Boff
“There still isn’t much consensus about why it was fought, how it was fought, how it ended, and its consequences. All of those remain contested ground”

The Great American novel, recommended by Lawrence Buell
“It’s a concept to have fun with but it also is still taken seriously as an aspiration. A bunch of books always ambitiously try to sum up national culture and history”

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“Pessimists tend not to notice changes for the better”

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Recent Reader Lists

Our aim is to make Five Books the place to go to on the web for book recommendations, arranged by topic. Help us achieve our goal by making a reading list on a subject you know a lot about. These lists have been created by our readers using our new interactive tool. Browse them all, or make your own.

The Best China Books of 2022, recommended by Jeffrey Wasserstrom

The best cookbooks of 2022, recommended by Becky Krystal of the Washington Post’s Voraciously “We’re still riding that 2020 wave, when a lot of people got into bread baking”

Five outstanding 2022 audiobooks, recommended by Robin Whitten, AudioFile’s founder and editor “It has to be an audio experience that people will remember.”

The best art and design books of 2022, recommended by Five Books art editor Romas Viesulas “Digital and analogue realms cross over with ever-greater regularity”

Caro Sanderson, chair of the judges for the prestigious Baillie Gifford Prize, discusses the six nonfiction books on this year’s shortlist “It’s about the originality of the book: quite simply, we’re looking for something that we don’t feel that we’ve read before.”

The best contemporary mysteries, recommended by bestselling crime writer Mark Edwards “Mystery writing is a craft, like being a magician: you’ve got to be able to use red herrings, misdirect”

Philosopher Massimo Pigliucci recommends the best books on Stoicism “One of the most rewarding things that has happened to me since I started writing about it is the constant flow of testimonies to the fact that it really helps people”

Neil MacGregor, chair of the 2022 Booker Prize judges, talks us through the shortlist “These are six books that we want to recommend to people to read and re-read”

The Best Historical Fiction: The 2022 Walter Scott Prize Shortlist, recommended by Elizabeth Laird, one of the prize’s judges “We’re finding now that many writers, some with long and distinguished careers behind them, are looking to the past for inspiration”

The best history books: the 2022 Wolfson Prize shortlist, recommended by Wolfson judge Carole Hillenbrand “There is one book about God, one about Turkey, one about the United States, and then two about medieval England”

The Best Science Fiction of 2022: The Arthur C. Clarke Award Academic and chair of the judges Andrew M. Butler talks us through this year’s shortlist

The Best Romance Books of 2022, recommended by writer and bookseller Katherine D. Morgan “Working as a bookseller for Powell’s Books has really allowed me to see what titles have been flying off of the shelves”

Nietzsche expert Brian Leiter recommends the best Nietzsche books “When he writes about suffering he’s not a tourist”

The Best World War I Books, recommended by historian Jonathan Boff “There still isn’t much consensus about why it was fought, how it was fought, how it ended, and its consequences. All of those remain contested ground”

The Great American novel, recommended by Lawrence Buell “It’s a concept to have fun with but it also is still taken seriously as an aspiration. A bunch of books always ambitiously try to sum up national culture and history”

The best critical thinking books, recommended by British philosopher Nigel Warburton “Pessimists tend not to notice changes for the better”

Books like... The Thursday Murder Club

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THE IDEATION EQUATION: How a Handful of Habits Can Make You a Creative Genius by Linus Bille & Christopher Morris

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The Creative Thinking Handbook: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Problem Solving in Business by Chris Griffiths, Melina Costi & Caragh Medlicott

Thinkertoys: A Handbook of Creative-Thinking Techniques (2nd Edition) by Michael Michalko

The Innovator's Handbook: A Short Guide to Unleashing Your Creative Mindset by Hussain Almossawi

Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Beloved by Toni Morrison

One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

About

The best cookbooks of 2022, recommended by Becky Krystal of the Washington Post’s Voraciously
“We’re still riding that 2020 wave, when a lot of people got into bread baking”

**Five outstanding 2022 audiobooks, recommended by Robin Whitten, AudioFile’s founder and editor**
“It has to be an audio experience that people will remember.”

The best art and design books of 2022, recommended by Five Books art editor Romas Viesulas
“Digital and analogue realms cross over with ever-greater regularity”

Caro Sanderson, chair of the judges for the prestigious Baillie Gifford Prize, discusses the six nonfiction books on this year’s shortlist
“It’s about the originality of the book: quite simply, we’re looking for something that we don’t feel that we’ve read before.”

The best contemporary mysteries, recommended by bestselling crime writer Mark Edwards
“Mystery writing is a craft, like being a magician: you’ve got to be able to use red herrings, misdirect”

Philosopher Massimo Pigliucci recommends the best books on Stoicism
“One of the most rewarding things that has happened to me since I started writing about it is the constant flow of testimonies to the fact that it really helps people”

Neil MacGregor, chair of the 2022 Booker Prize judges, talks us through the shortlist
“These are six books that we want to recommend to people to read and re-read”

The Best Historical Fiction: The 2022 Walter Scott Prize Shortlist, recommended by Elizabeth Laird, one of the prize’s judges
“We’re finding now that many writers, some with long and distinguished careers behind them, are looking to the past for inspiration”

The best history books: the 2022 Wolfson Prize shortlist, recommended by Wolfson judge Carole Hillenbrand
“There is one book about God, one about Turkey, one about the United States, and then two about medieval England”

The Best Science Fiction of 2022: The Arthur C. Clarke Award
Academic and chair of the judges Andrew M. Butler talks us through this year’s shortlist

The Best Romance Books of 2022, recommended by writer and bookseller Katherine D. Morgan
“Working as a bookseller for Powell’s Books has really allowed me to see what titles have been flying off of the shelves”

Nietzsche expert Brian Leiter recommends the best Nietzsche books
“When he writes about suffering he’s not a tourist”

The Best World War I Books, recommended by historian Jonathan Boff
“There still isn’t much consensus about why it was fought, how it was fought, how it ended, and its consequences. All of those remain contested ground”

The Great American novel, recommended by Lawrence Buell
“It’s a concept to have fun with but it also is still taken seriously as an aspiration. A bunch of books always ambitiously try to sum up national culture and history”

The best critical thinking books, recommended by British philosopher Nigel Warburton
“Pessimists tend not to notice changes for the better”

Books like...
The Thursday Murder Club

Books like...
Where the Crawdads Sing

Books like...
Harry Potter

Books like...
Wolf Hall

Books like...
The Handmaid’s Tale

Books like...
Dune

THE IDEATION EQUATION: How a Handful of Habits Can Make You a Creative Genius
by Linus Bille & Christopher Morris

Creativity, Inc.: Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration
by Ed Catmull & Amy Wallace

The Creative Thinking Handbook: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Problem Solving in Business
by Chris Griffiths, Melina Costi & Caragh Medlicott

Thinkertoys: A Handbook of Creative-Thinking Techniques (2nd Edition)
by Michael Michalko

The Innovator's Handbook: A Short Guide to Unleashing Your Creative Mindset
by Hussain Almossawi

Nineteen Eighty-Four
by George Orwell

To Kill a Mockingbird
by Harper Lee

Beloved
by Toni Morrison

One Hundred Years of Solitude
by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

The Great Gatsby
by F. Scott Fitzgerald