71 books like Last Night a DJ Saved My Life

Definitely dated, UK-centric, and undeniably highly opinionated, this is nonetheless essential. It is a fascinating read, a historical document of the height of the 90s dance scene, and it's both honest and humorous to boot. If you want a pile of hints and tips about how to DJ well while at the same time finding yourself falling in love with how special dance music can be and what it can mean to those who dedicate their lives to it, add this one to your list.

Not one to leave lying around, though, as it is pretty honest about the underbelly of the dance scene in places—as is another book we're getting to later in this list.

I have to declare an interest here as I was John's technical editor for the most recent edition of this book (which isn't that recent, to be honest—but trust me, a lot of this advice is timeless). Therefore, this book remains a great guide to DJing if you're more interested in learning how it was done before laptops, subscription music services, sharing your mixes online, and all the other bells and whistles that digital has brought to the table.

One of the central skills of DJing is being able to "beatmix" tunes effectively, and John is particularly good at teaching systematically how to do this without using any of the aids modern DJing affords the beginner. Dated, then, but still undeniably useful.

As a DJ tutor who's been in this game for 30+ years, I'm amazed at how often students really want me to tell them a bit about what it was like to DJ on the club scene "back in the day." When they do, I send them to this book.

Written by an anonymous DJ who toured the world playing in the best clubs for long enough to experience many highs and some considerable lows, it is part memoir, part Spinal Tap, as it lifts the lid on the hedonism, stupidity, and craziness of the club/rave scene at its height. Certainly harrowing in parts, but it is also laugh-out-loud funny - and is nothing if not brutally honest.

Rick has been the go-to expert in print on how to make dance music for many years, and while techniques and practices in music production change all the time, this book remains an invaluable reference on how to make music for yourself.

Nowadays, if you want success outside of your own town or city, it is practically essential that you make music as well as play it, so if being a "DJ/producer" rather than just a "DJ" is what you're gunning for, this is one you should definitely add to your bookshelf, which will give you the theory and background behind the skills that courses and videos can teach you when it comes to making music the modern way.

The boundaryless love we give in childhood no longer exists once our heart picks up some mileage. But what if, years later, you met up once again with your childhood best friend and fell in love? In love with the one from whom your heart built no boundaries? The fear, the joy, the euphoria…imagine the agony of abandonment when adult problems and life’s complications intervene. This book hurt because it reminded me of the fragility of love and the necessity of regaining that boundaryless faith and trust when it’s time to rebuild. 

This book is a fun, fresh take on the werewolf genre. Seeing the world through the eyes of the main character, who is both a DJ and a closeted werewolf, is a great way to be introduced to this paranormal world. Kitty's ability to relate to the paranormals who call into her show is an excellent way to tell a story because it gives us depth into the lives of those who are struggling with their paranormal heritage.

Throw in a cute, broody male werewolf, a whole lot of danger, and some very interesting characters. This is a story I highly recommend anyone read. The best part is that it is the first book in a series, so you will be in for an amazing ride.

When I was pitching my book, I used this book as a comp: it’s like This Song Will Save Your Life, but at raves! There are definitely some similarities (credit to Leila Sales: hers came first). They both feature geeky girls, and Sales’ Elise Dembowski is one of the truest awkward-teen first-person voices I’ve ever read. They’re both set against the backdrop of underground music scenes, and the way Sales describes indie dance parties made me feel like I was back in the basement of NYC’s Lit trying to look cool while bopping around awkwardly to Joy Division. Both of our protagonists have weird relationships with older guys, and they both learn lessons that suck at the time but make them stronger. So is there room in the world for two girl-DJ books? Yes! Check out This Song Will Save Your Life and you’ll see exactly why. 

If you love music and you love romance, you’re going to adore Love Radio.

I’m a romantic from way back, so it was a lot of fun watching Prince try to impress Dani with three dates (which he says is all he needs to get her to fall in love with him). I also enjoyed how hard she made it for him—a girl who knows what she wants for her future, she wasn’t about to get played.

This was one of my favorite books of 2022 in any category.

This is my favorite book on the challenging task of why and how to forgive “unforgivable” offenses. Beverly Flanagan was involved in the Stanford Forgiveness Project and is an expert on the subject of forgiveness. I liked this book because it honors the depth of the pain of wounded persons, including from spousal infidelity, in a way that I seldom see in the “forgiveness” literature. My copy is highlighted on nearly every page. Highly recommended for those who still feel stuck in the mire of pain after a wayward partner’s affair or were deserted by an unremorseful, straying spouse. She offers no clichés or trite solutions. Good for both religious and non-religious readers.

I can’t help being inspired by an artist for whom drawing was such a natural, intuitive, lifelong act. Picasso is known to have kept 175 sketchbooks during his lifetime, some linked to his best-known works, such as Les Demoiselles d’Avignon. This book (“I Am the Sketchbook”) not only catalogues all 175, but it reproduces six of them in full, revealing a process of trial and discovery. The looseness, the simplicity, the richness, and the joy of enquiring lines and marks in these pages are, to me, an irresistible stimulant to draw. (There’s the occasional dud too, as any sketchbook should have.)