Welcome to our list of the 10 best books of 2022! We have carefully selected a range of the freshest works of fiction and non-fiction that have been published this year. From gripping thrillers to heartwarming novels, this list has something for every reader. Whether you're looking for a page-turning mystery or a thought-provoking work of non-fiction, you're sure to find something that piques your interest. So without further ado, let's dive in and take a look at the best books of 2022!
The Escape Artist
Jonathan Freedland
This harrowing historical memoir tells the story of Rudolf Vrba, who was the first jew to escape from Auschwitz during the second world war, accompanied by his friend Fred Wetzler. ‘The Escape Artist’ is a detailed account of Vbra’s selfless journey to save not only himself but also hundreds of thousands of Jewish lives by telling the world the truth about the concentration camp and its brutality. However, this account is not limited to the escape alone; it details the aftermath in which much of the world failed to act upon Vbra’s report in an accurate and honest presentation of an incredibly painful and unjust part of history.
Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before?
Julie Smith
Julie Smith is a clinical psychologist whose debut self-help book ‘Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before?’ is filled with powerful coping strategies to help readers manage their mental health. During the pandemic, Smith found a following on TikTok as one of the first professionals to use the social media platform to provide users with therapy insights. Her book provides readers with easy-to-digest information that gives them the opportunity to understand how their mind works and how to use practical, manageable strategies to help improve your mental health. The book also includes a number of exercises for readers to put into practice the strategies Smith describes throughout the book.
Carrie Soto Is Back
Taylor Jenkins Reid
Taylor Jenkins Reid has taken social media by storm with her stories focused on the lives of famous fictional women. Like many of Jenkins Reid’s main characters, Carrie Soto is a flawed heroine learning about the cost of success and greatness in a competitive world. Despite these flaws and imperfections, she is a character that readers root for and want to see succeed. Reid’s depiction of strong, determined and sometimes imperfect women on their rise to fame is what makes all her books, but especially this one, significant. She provides readers with a new way to regard the lives of the famous women, all while addressing important societal issues in the form of conflicts her characters face.
The Light We Carry
Michelle Obama
Former First Lady Michelle Obama’s insightful second book explores ways to stay hopeful in a chaotic and uncertain world. Obama’s profound wisdom is accompanied by stories from her life that work together to create a narrative that gives readers strategies to help overcome adversity. While it is more rooted in the self-help genre than her first book, ‘The Light We Carry’ features powerful discussions about race, diversity, change and challenges, which Obama presents so eloquently that it will leave readers feeling inspired, motivated and empowered.
Verity
Colleen Hoover
Originally self-published in 2018, 2022 saw one of Hoover’s most popular books republished with a new bonus chapter that left fans reeling. The inception-like ending of this thriller left readers torn, with little idea who the true villain of the story was: Verity or her husband Jeremy. The ending lacked any concrete resolution and left it to readers to decide if they were “Team Letter” or “Team Manuscript” with the former painting Jeremy as the villain and the latter Verity. However, this single additional chapter took the internet by storm with another shocking twist that gave readers clarity regarding the true colours of these characters and the book’s ominous ending.
Notes On Heartbreak
Annie Lord
‘Notes on Heartbreak’ is a must-read for anyone struggling with a breakup or anyone who has been through one at some point in their life. Lord’s raw, in-depth account of her five-year relationship and the aftermath of it highlights the complexities of not only the stages one goes through after a breakup but also the process of self discovery they often bring. This memoir is an honest and accurate account of what modern-day dating is truly like without shying away from the messy, unglorified details, and will ultimately leave readers feeling like they are certainly not alone in their breakup struggles.
Strangers to Ourselves: Stories of Unsettled Minds
Rachel Aviv
Featured on both the New York Times’ and Wall Street Journal’s best books of 2022 lists, ‘Strangers to Ourselves: Stories of Unsettled Minds’ follows multiple individuals who have experienced the limits of being defined by certain psychiatric disorders. Aviv highlights important ideas regarding the presentation of mental illnesses including how one diagnosis is not always accurate for all patients and the ways in which different people try to make sense of their diagnoses in themselves and in society. This exploration of mental health features Aviv’s personal experience with anorexia alongside her case studies, creating a book that is both informational and empathetic in its presentation of a difficult subject.
The Candy House
Jennifer Egan
‘The Candy House’ is a follow-up to Egan’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel ‘A Visit from the Goon Squad.’ Egan uses multiple narratives that intersect over a number of decades to comment on the human desire for true connections, love, family, privacy and redemption in a world in which social media is so prevalent. While set in a fictional world, this book will cause readers to reflect on their own lives and perhaps consider Egan’s warning that there is a price to pay for oversharing and renouncing our privacy in this modern, technology-driven world.
The Family Remains
Lisa Jewell
‘The Family Remains’ is the sequel to Lisa Jewell’s 2019 novel ‘The Family Upstairs,’ which has its own storyline while simultaneously providing insight into the actions of the characters in the first book. Throughout the book, Jewell hints at connections that later come to light in a shocking twist that will leave readers unable to put the book down. This psychological thriller combines an intriguing storyline with real, imperfect characters who readers can truly connect with.
Babel: An Arcane History
R.F. Kuang
‘Babel’ is a historical fantasy novel that dives into the history and politics of language and translation. Described by readers as an ambitious exploration of complex themes, Babel revolutionises the genre of dark academia and will leave readers informed yet intrigued by intense discussions of linguistics and colonial studies. Ultimately, this novel is the perfect combination of fantasy and academia.
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