We at the Next Big Idea Club read a lot of books. Seriously—a lot of books. And while our curators Malcolm Gladwell, Susan Cain, Daniel Pink, and Adam Grant have a knack for picking the year’s most exciting nonfiction reads, our staff also wanted to share their favorite books of 2021, of any genre. So below you’ll find ten spectacular titles, whether you’re looking for some fun holiday reading or shopping for a fellow book-lover.
You could also invite them to join us in the Next Big Idea Club! Get 10% off your gift purchase today when you enter promo code HOLIDAY10 at checkout.
Miracle and Wonder: Conversations with Paul Simon
By Malcolm Gladwell, Bruce Headlam, and Paul Simon
“Confession: I used to think Paul Simon was great, but not one of the greats, not in the same league as, say, Bob Dylan or Joni Mitchell. I’ve since changed my tune thanks to Malcolm Gladwell and Bruce Headlam’s exhilarating new (audio)book, Miracle and Wonder: Conversations with Paul Simon. It’s at once a moving biography and a fascinating deconstruction of the creative process. More than that, though, it’s simply a treat to spend a few hours in Simon’s company and to be reminded—or, in my case, to discover—how lucky we are that he’s still brilliant after all these years.” – Caleb Bissinger, Senior Director of Audio. Order via Pushkin
The Extended Mind: The Power of Thinking Outside the Brain
By Annie Murphy Paul
“When I’m working, I need to pace, or walk often to think through problems. I thought there was something wrong with me, but it turns out… science says I’m not broken!” – Chris Chaput, VP of Product. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Annie Murphy Paul, in the Next Big Idea App
New York, My Village: A Novel
By Uwem Akpan
“At first I found this book to be a fascinating story about the immigrant experience, and it is, but it also captures the human experience. Uwem Akpan explores themes of identity, racism, culture, and the importance of community with both satire and compassion.” – Emily Pinto, Director of Member Happiness. View on Amazon
Chatter: The Voice in Our Head, Why It Matters, and How to Harness It
By Ethan Kross
“I don’t love being an overthinker—and sometimes liken it to being an ‘always-thinker’ (am I overthinking overthinking?) Like many of my favorite nonfiction books, it weaves scientific research and personal accounts into a fascinating exploration of the sometimes-unreliable narrator that lives in each of our minds. Without a doubt, the story that stands out the most is that of professional baseball player Rick Ankiel—I can think of nothing more terrifying than literally overthinking your way out of a learned skill!” – Eric Ramirez, Director of Audience Development. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Ethan Kross, in the Next Big Idea App
The Dangers of Smoking in Bed: Stories
By Mariana Enriquez
“A surreal sense of dread rises from these pages like the titular smoke—and I mean that in a good way. In these stories you will discover a new layer of strangeness and horror lurking just beneath the surface of modern life.” – Jeremy Price, Senior Editor. View on Amazon
Crying in H Mart: A Memoir
By Michelle Zauner
“At first, I did not want to read this book. It’s about a mother who died of cancer—I’m a cancer survivor myself, and my mother is currently battling cancer for the 2nd time. I was drawn to the book, yet terrified it would make me depressed and pull up all my anxiety about being a single mother with a history of cancer. Zauner opens her memoir on a solo shopping trip to H Mart, and every isle reminds her of the specific meals and dishes she and her mother ate together. You will crave Korean cooking the entire time you read this book—but this isn’t just a story about gastronomic remembrance. It’s a story about identity and finding oneself. It’s also about the many barriers that exist between people: language, culture, distance, stubbornness. But what I enjoyed most is that this book is about using creativity to communicate and to heal.” – Marquina Iliev, Business Development Director. View on Amazon
Think Again: The Power of Knowing What You Don’t Know
By Adam Grant
“I’ve never read a book that stressed so much the importance of unlearning and humility. I found this book absolutely crucial in a time where argument and debate between opposing sides are approached with reckless certitude.” – Melissa “Mishka” Ballarin, Happiness Engineer. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Adam Grant, in the Next Big Idea App
The Plot: A Novel
By Jean Hanff Korelitz
“I’m a sucker for twisty metafiction, and The Plot definitely scratches that itch. A deft parody of the writer’s life blended with a pulpy thriller.” – Michael Kovnat, VP of Product & Development. View on Amazon
Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals
By Oliver Burkeman
“As a lifelong organizer/hyper-scheduler, I read Four Thousand Weeks in a dizzying flurry of recognition. Like Burkeman, I have tried countless productivity systems, everything from time-blocking to the Eisenhower Matrix to the Pomodoro technique, and it all worked… sort of. The truth is that whatever efficiency gains I made, they were never quite enough to hold back the ever-replenishing flood of demands and expectations (many of which, to be fair, were created by me). Worst of all, the cost of this approach—that always-on, hyperaware-yet-perpetually-distracted state of mind—is way too high. Left unchecked, it leads to burnout, and a low-level, simmering, existential joylessness. Burkeman writes with wit and style about the impossibility of doing everything—and why we shouldn’t keep trying. Four Thousand Weeks is like a reassuring pat on the back from a good, wise friend, reminding you to focus on the truly important things in your life.” – Panio Gianopoulos, Editorial Director. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Oliver Burkeman, in the Next Big Idea App
The Dawn of Everything: A New History of Humanity
By David Graeber and David Wengrow
“The Dawn of Everything is one of those big sweeping history books—like Guns, Germs, and Steel and Sapiens before it—that comes out every decade or so. It draws from 30 years of archeological evidence to tell a more accurate—and hopeful—version of human pre-history. It turns out our species has been far more playful in trying out different forms of social organization than previously believed. This ‘new history of humanity’ is nothing less than a gift.” – Rufus Griscom, CEO. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by co-author David Wengrow, in the Next Big Idea App
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