The best books of 2024

This list is part of the best books of 2024.

Join 1,605 readers and share your 3 favorite reads of the year.

My favorite read in 2024

Book cover of Absolution

Michelle Brafman ❤️ loved this book because...

I'm a huge fan of Alice McDermott's work, and ABSOLUTION is my favorite novel of hers, hands down. Her choice to give voice to the American women in this story about the Vietnam War was fresh and fascinating. I loved the line in the jacket copy about "the quest for absolution in a broken world." Sadly, so relevant.

  • Loved Most

    🥇 Immersion 🥈 Thoughts
  • Writing style

    ❤️ Loved it
  • Pace

    🐇 I couldn't put it down

By Alice McDermott,

Why should I read it?

6 authors picked Absolution as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

Named a Best Book of the Year by Time, Esquire, Good Housekeeping, Kirkus Reviews, Los Angeles Times, NPR, Oprah Daily, Real Simple, and Vogue

A riveting account of women’s lives on the margins of the Vietnam War, from the renowned winner of the National Book Award.

You have no idea what it was like. For us. The women, I mean. The wives.

American women―American wives―have been mostly minor characters in the literature of the Vietnam War, but in Absolution they take center stage. Tricia is a shy newlywed, married to a rising attorney on…


When you buy books, we may earn a commission that helps keep our lights on (or join the rebellion as a member).

My 2nd favorite read in 2024

Book cover of The Still Point

Michelle Brafman ❤️ loved this book because...

  • Loved Most

    🥇 Emotions 🥈 Writing
  • Writing style

    ❤️ Loved it
  • Pace

    🐇 I couldn't put it down

By Tammy Greenwood,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Still Point as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Dance Moms meets Little Fires Everywhere in award winning author Tammy Greenwood’s addictive new novel set in the hyper cutthroat world of ballet girls and their mothers as they compete for a prestigious prize…

"The Still Point is a must-read full of love, hope, desire and jealousy – a vivid, compelling and deeply nuanced look at a place where lives are forever shaped and changed.” –Mary Kubica, New York Times bestselling author of Just the Nicest Couple

“She had never seen Bea dance like this. Ever sat spellbound as her daughter grew from a little girl into a woman before…


My 3rd favorite read in 2024

Book cover of Behind You Is the Sea

Michelle Brafman ❤️ loved this book because...

  • Loved Most

    🥇 Emotions 🥈 Outlook
  • Writing style

    ❤️ Loved it
  • Pace

    🐕 Good, steady pace

By Susan Muaddi Darraj,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Behind You Is the Sea as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

An exciting debut novel that gives voice to the diverse residents of a Palestinian American community in Baltimore-from young activists in conflict with their traditional parents to the poor who clean for the rich-lives which intersect across divides of class, generation, and religion.

Funny and touching, Behind You Is the Sea brings us into the homes and lives of three main families-the Baladis, the Salamehs, and the Ammars-Palestinian immigrants who've all found a different welcome in America.

Their various fates and struggles cause their community dynamic to sizzle and sometimes explode: The wealthy Ammar family employs young Maysoon Baladi, whose…


Don‘t forget about my book 😀

Swimming with Ghosts

By Michelle Brafman,

Book cover of Swimming with Ghosts

What is my book about?

It’s June 2012. The magical and slightly cultish River Run swim club is alive with the spirit of fun competition when a perfect storm brews between team moms and best friends, Gillian Cloud and Kristy Weinstein. The ghost of family addiction has turned up, looming over their carefully planned pasta parties, tie-dye nights, and pep rallies, forcing them to face their unresolved childhood trauma.

Gillian responds by trying to control everyone around her, while Kristy relapses into her dangerous addiction to love. Real sparks fly on the night of the derecho—a freak land hurricane—which sweeps through Northern Virginia, knocking out power for days. The storm ignites a tinder box of secrets, leaving Gillian and Kristy alone in the hot dark—their shame their only company.

At times humorous and devastating, Swimming with Ghosts is a hauntingly dark, yet uniquely tender story of the various entrapments of addiction and lingering trauma, and what it takes to overcome our hidden legacies of disgrace and discover a once unimaginable freedom made possible by confronting life’s greatest storms with the people closest to us.

Book cover of Absolution
Book cover of The Still Point
Book cover of Behind You Is the Sea

Share your top 3 reads of 2024!

And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.

1,605

readers submitted
so far, will you?