Latest Book Recommendations

The Best Thrillers for Teens, recommended by Kathryn Foxfield

Kathryn Foxfield

Thrillers for teens have to be fast paced, exciting and entertaining, argues Kathryn Foxfield, author of YA thriller Good Girls Die First. She recommends some of her favourite teen thrillers, from books published this year to classics of the genre.

Recent Recommendations

Mphuthumi Ntabeni

The Best African Writing, recommended by novelist Mphuthumi Ntabeni
“I wanted books that I thought were genre-defining books in African writing”
Walt Hickey

The Best Graphic Novels That Were Made into Movies, recommended by Walt Hickey
“We’re fundamentally visual creatures”
Andrew Hill

The Best Business Books of 2023: the Financial Times Book of the Year Award, recommended by Andrew Hill
“It’s an interesting shortlist because it divides into three pairs”

Most Popular Expert Interviews

Frederick Studemann

The Best Nonfiction Books of 2023: Frederick Studemann, literary editor of the Financial Times, talks us through the shortlist of the Baillie Gifford Prize
Cal Flyn

The Best Novels of 2023: The Booker Prize, introduced by our deputy editor Cal Flyn
“The 2023 shortlist features a novel-in-stories, an Irish dystopia, and plenty of family drama”
Andrew Roberts

The best books on Napoleon, recommended by British historian Andrew Roberts
“Napoleon was a dictator politically in that he dictated the laws of France and what happened. But I don’t think he has anything in common with the 20th-century dictators”
Sudhir Hazareesingh

The Best History Books of 2023: Sudhir Hazareesingh talks us through the shortlist of the Wolfson History Prize
“You want a set of books that are going to broaden our intellectual and cultural horizons”
Seanan McGuire

The best urban fantasy books, as recommended by bestselling novelist Seanan McGuire
“It is human nature to come up with magical explanations for things that don’t make sense.”
Rebecca Henry

The Best Science Books of 2023: The Royal Society Book Prize
Neuroscientist Rebecca Henry talks us through the shortlist: “What we are looking for is a topic that’s written in a compelling way, that can appeal to the general public”
Tom Hunter

The best sci-fi of 2023: the Arthur C. Clarke Award
The prize’s director, Tom Hunter, talks us through the six books that made the shortlist
 
Peter Florence

The funniest books of 2023, picked out by Peter Florence and the judges of the Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction
“I think it’s particularly difficult to write comedy. But judging it is easier because there’s a straightforward laugh test.”
Massimo Pigliucci

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”

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

The best books on Geopolitics and Global Commerce, recommended by Paul Tucker of Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government
“Yan’s book on ancient Chinese thought is useful for westerners because China is a great power, and it’s going to carry on being a great power”
 
Tom Mead

The Best Locked-Room or Puzzle Mysteries, recommended by mystery writer Tom Mead
“The locked-room mystery and the impossible crime story is the point at which mystery and magic are at their closest”

Most Recommended Books

War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
Plato's Republic
The Looming Tower by Lawrence Wright
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
Stumbling on Happiness by Daniel Gilbert
wealth of nations

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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.

5 Essential Reads for Women Considering A Career in Tech, recommended by Daisy Reynolds

She Chose TECH: The essential guide to inspire and empower women in tech
by Sonal Shah

Brotopia: Breaking Up the Boys' Club of Silicon Valley
by Emily Chang

Girl Code
by Cara Alwill Leyba

Women of Color in Tech: A Blueprint for Inspiring and Mentoring the Next Generation of Technology In
by Susanne Tedrick

Innovating Women: The Changing Face of Technology
by Vivek Wadhwa & Farai Chideya

Five Inspiring Books Championing Womens’ Voices, recommended by Daisy Reynolds

The Gift: One woman's journey from tragedy to building a global business for good
by Zareen Roohi Ahmed

Voices of Powerful Women: Words of Wisdom from 40 of the World's Most Inspiring Women
by Zoe Sallis

The Great Book of Badass Women: 15 Fearless and Inspirational Women that Changed History
by Rachel Walsh & Bill O'Neill

The Female Factor: The Whole-Body Health Bible for Women (The Food Medic)
by Hazel Wallace

What It Takes: The Inspiring Journey of Sarina Wiegman and the Lionesses’ Rise to Success
by Sarina Wiegman & Jeroen Visscher

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