I’m pleased to share what I consider the most promising, must-read nonfiction titles scheduled for release in July 2024. These titles make up our second group of nominees for Season 25 of the Next Big Idea Club (the first group was announced here).
Our Next Big Idea Club curators—Susan Cain, Malcolm Gladwell, Adam Grant, and Daniel Pink—will narrow the list down to a handful of finalists and, ultimately, two official season selections.
Authors will also be invited to create a “Book Bite”, a 15-minute audio self-recording that features five key insights from their book. Imagine chatting with a stranger on an airplane—only that person just happened to write a fascinating nonfiction book!
And now, the July 2024 titles are…
Sharing Space: An Astronaut’s Guide to Mission, Wonder, and Making Change
By Cady Coleman
Publication Date: July 2, 2024
One of America’s few female astronauts reveals the wisdom that helped her overcome the barriers of others’ expectations—and learn to work on a team both in close quarters and remotely. View on Amazon
The Education Wars: A Citizen’s Guide and Defense Manual
By Jennifer Berkshire & Jack Schneider
Publication Date: July 2, 2024
A perfectly timed book for the educational resistance—those of us who believe in public schools. View on Amazon
How to Be a Citizen: Learning to Be Civil Without the State
By C.L. Skach
Publication Date: July 2, 2024
An expert on the writing of constitutions argues that the path to a thriving society begins with forgetting about them. View on Amazon
The Presidents and the People: Five Leaders Who Threatened Democracy and the Citizens Who Fought to Defend It
By Corey Brettschneider
Publication Date: July 2, 2024
American presidents have often pushed the boundaries established for them by the Constitution; this is the inspirational history of the people who pushed back. View on Amazon
Smart, Not Loud: How to Get Noticed at Work for All the Right Reasons
By Jessica Chen
Publication Date: July 9, 2024
Ever wonder why the “loud” people at work get noticed, rewarded, and promoted? Do you worry that you need to be loud to succeed at work, too? View on Amazon
Rat City: Overcrowding and Urban Derangement in the Rodent Universes of John B. Calhoun
By Jon Adams & Edmund Ramsden
Publication Date: July 9, 2024
How one experiment in rat behavior effected the re-making of society in the post-WWII boom years. View on Amazon
Devil’s Contract: A History of the Faustian Bargain
By Ed Simon
Publication Date: July 9, 2024
A historical tour of the Faustian bargain, from biblical themes to the Charlie Daniels Band, which illustrates how the instinct for sacrificing our principles in exchange for power models all kinds of social ills, from colonialism to nuclear warfare, and even social media, climate change, and AI. View on Amazon
Unit X: How the Pentagon and Silicon Valley Are Transforming the Future of War
By Raj Shah & Christopher Kirchhoff
Publication Date: July 9, 2024
A riveting inside look at an elite unit within the Pentagon—the Defense Innovation Unit, also known as Unit X—whose mission is to bring Silicon Valley’s cutting-edge technology to America’s military: from the two men who launched the unit. View on Amazon
Democracy in Retrograde: How to Make Changes Big and Small in Our Country and in Our Lives
By Sami Sage & Emily Amick
Publication Date: July 9, 2024
A whip-smart combo of self-help and political manifesto that is perfect for anyone who wants to save our democracy but doesn’t know where to start. View on Amazon
Rebels with a Cause: Reimagining Boys, Ourselves, and Our Culture
By Niobe Way
Publication Date: July 9, 2024
An in-depth exploration about what boys and young men teach us about themselves, us, and the toxic culture we have created, one in which we value money over people, toys over human connection, and academic achievement over kindness. View on Amazon
Pattern Breakers: Why Some Start-Ups Change the Future
By Mark Maples Jr. & Peter Ziebelman
Publication Date: July 9, 2024
Based on extensive research and real-world examples, Pattern Breakers upends accepted wisdom about how to achieve breakthrough success, and provides a playbook for anyone launching a startup or creating a new product. View on Amazon
Die Hot with a Vengeance: Essays on Vanity
By Sable Yong
Publication Date: July 9, 2024
A sharp-toothed and hilarious essay collection about beauty and vanity, examining their stigmatization in the cultural zeitgeist, and how to shift the focus to use both for powerful tools for self-exploration, interpersonal connection, and cultural change. View on Amazon
More, Please: On Food, Fat, Bingeing, Longing, and the Lust for “Enough”
By Emma Specter
Publication Date: July 9, 2024
An unflinching and deeply reported look at the realities of binge-eating disorder from a rising culture commentator and writer for Vogue. View on Amazon
Mastering AI: A Survival Guide to Our Superpowered Future
By Jeremy Kahn
Publication Date: July 9, 2024
A Fortune magazine journalist draws on his expertise and extensive contacts among the companies and scientists at the forefront of artificial intelligence to offer dramatic predictions of AI’s impact over the next decade. View on Amazon
Impossible Monsters: Dinosaurs, Darwin, and the Battle Between Science and Religion
By Michael Taylor
Publication Date: July 16, 2024
Impossible Monsters reveals the central role of dinosaurs and their discovery in toppling traditional religious authority, and in changing perceptions about the Bible, history, and mankind’s place in the world. View on Amazon
Meet the Neighbors: Animal Minds and Life in a More-than-Human World
By Brandon Keim
Publication Date: July 16, 2024
What does the science of animal intelligence mean for how we understand and live with the wild creatures around us? View on Amazon
The Stoic Path to Wealth: Ancient Wisdom for Enduring Prosperity
By Darius Foroux
Publication Date: July 16, 2024
From investor and popular newsletter writer with 100k+ subscribers Darius Foroux comes an approach to building wealth that applies ancient wisdom to the chaos of modern-day markets. View on Amazon
The Incorruptibles: A True Story of Kingpins, Crime Busters, and the Birth of the American Underworld
By Dan Slater
Publication Date: July 16, 2024
The harrowing tale of an immigrant underworld, a secret vice squad, and the rise of organized crime. View on Amazon
Why Machines Learn: The Elegant Math Behind Modern AI
By Anil Ananthaswamy
Publication Date: July 16, 2024
A rich, narrative explanation of the mathematics that has brought us machine learning and the ongoing explosion of artificial intelligence. View on Amazon
Job Therapy: Finding Work That Works for You
By Tessa West
Publication Date: July 23, 2024
A psychologist’s guide to finding your most fulfilling job yet. View on Amazon
The Science of Human Possibilities
By V. Kumar Murty
Publication Date: July 23, 2024
Through Murty’s reflections as a Mathematics Professor intertwined with profound Vedanta teachings, readers are guided to realize the infinite potential inherent in the human experience, empowering individuals from all walks of life to evolve and flourish. View on Amazon
Autocracy, Inc.: The Dictators Who Want to Run the World
By Anne Applebaum
Publication Date: July 23, 2024
From the Pulitzer-prize winning, New York Times bestselling author, an alarming account of how autocracies work together to undermine the democratic world, and how we should organize to defeat them. View on Amazon
The Horse: A Galloping History of Humanity
By Timothy Winegard
Publication Date: July 30, 2024
From New York Times bestselling author of The Mosquito, the incredible story of how the horse shaped human history. View on Amazon
Into the Clear Blue Sky: The Path to Restoring Our Atmosphere
By Rob Jackson
Publication Date: July 30, 2024
From one of the world’s leading climate scientists, a heart- and mind-changing book that offers a hopeful and attainable vision for restoring the atmosphere and ending the climate crisis. View on Amazon
Download the Next Big Idea App to enjoy “Book Bite” summaries of hundreds of groundbreaking books like these:
When you buy through our Amazon links, the Next Big Idea Club may earn an affiliate commission.
