Every season, the Next Big Idea Club editorial staff reviews dozens of upcoming books to identify the most exciting, must-read nonfiction titles. We start with a broad pool of nominees, and then share them with our curators—Adam Grant, Susan Cain, Daniel Pink, and Malcolm Gladwell—to identify a small handful of finalists and, ultimately, two official season selections.
Today, it’s our pleasure to share our list of eight finalists for Season 26! Without further ado, the new books we’re most excited about right now are…
Me, But Better: The Science and Promise of Personality Change
By Olga Khazan
Is it really possible to change your entire personality in a year? The Atlantic journalist Olga Khazan proves that it is in Me, But Better, which covers her year-long experiment in personality change. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Olga Khazan, in the Next Big Idea App or view on Amazon
How to Fall in Love with Questions: A New Way to Thrive in Times of Uncertainty
By Elizabeth Weingarten
Journalist and applied behavioral scientist Elizabeth Weingarten charts a new path to embrace the questions of our lives instead of seeking fast, easy answers. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Elizabeth Weingarten, in the Next Big Idea App or view on Amazon
The Book of Alchemy: A Creative Practice for an Inspired Life
By Suleika Jaouad
A guide to the art of journaling—and a meditation on the central questions of life. View on Amazon
The Shape of Things Unseen: A New Science of Imagination
By Adam Zeman
From how infants perceive the world to how we can anticipate the thoughts of other people, from the benefits of play to mental disorders, The Shape of Things Unseen dazzles and delights in its insights into the workings of the human mind. View on Amazon
Super Agers: An Evidence-Based Approach to Longevity
By Eric Topol
A detailed guide to a revolution transforming human longevity. This is a breakthrough moment in the history of human health care. The person making that bold claim is one of the most respected medical researchers in the world, Eric Topol. Listen to our Book Bite summary, read by author Eric Topol, in the Next Big Idea App or view on Amazon
Moral Ambition: Stop Wasting Your Talent and Start Making a Difference
By Rutger Bregman
A bold manifesto daring us to harness our talents and transform our idealism into action, all with the goal of making the world a wildly better place. View on Amazon
The Family Dynamic: A Journey into the Mystery of Sibling Success
By Susan Dominus
What explains those rare families that boast multiple children who achieve extraordinary success? An award-winning New York Times journalist weaves story with science to explore the circumstances that set those families apart. View on Amazon
Mark Twain
By Ron Chernow
Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Ron Chernow illuminates the full, fascinating, and complex life of the writer long celebrated as the father of American literature, Mark Twain. View on Amazon
The Key Ideas in 15 Minutes
“If you are going to get anywhere in life, you have to read a lot of books,” Roald Dahl once famously said. The only trouble is, reading even one book from cover to cover takes hours—and you may not have many hours to spare.
But imagine for a moment: What if you could read a groundbreaking new book every day? Or even better, what if you could invite a world-renowned thinker into your earbuds, where they personally describe the 5 key takeaways from their work in just 15 minutes?
With the Next Big Idea App, we’ve turned this fantasy into a reality. We partnered with hundreds of acclaimed authors to create “Book Bites,” short audio summaries of the latest nonfiction that are prepared and read aloud by the authors themselves. Discover cutting-edge leadership skills, productivity hacks, the science of happiness and well-being, and much more—all in the time it takes to drive to work or walk the dog.
Go Deeper with a Next Big Idea Club Membership
The Next Big Idea App is free for anyone to try—and if you love it, we invite you to become an official member of the Next Big Idea Club. Membership grants you unlimited access to Book Bites and unlocks early-release, ad-free episodes of our LinkedIn-partnered podcast. You also gain entry to our private online discussion group, where you can talk big ideas with fellow club members and join exclusive live Q&A sessions with featured authors.
For a more focused learning experience, we recommend a Hardcover or eBook Membership. Every few months, legendary authors and club curators Malcolm Gladwell, Susan Cain, Adam Grant, and Daniel Pink select two new nonfiction books as the must-reads of the season. We then send hardcover copies straight to your doorstep, or eBook versions to your favorite digital device. We also collaborate with the authors of selected books to produce original reading guides and premium e-courses, 50-minute master classes that take you step by step through their most life-changing ideas. And yes, it’s all available through the Next Big Idea App.
Learn Faster, from the World’s Leading Thinkers
Whether you prefer to read, listen, or watch, the Next Big Idea is here to help you work smarter and live better. Wake up with an always-fresh Idea of the Day, the perfect shot of inspiration to go with your morning coffee. Then dive into one of our Challenges, hand-picked collections of Book Bites that form crash courses in subjects like communication, motivation, and career acceleration. Later, watch the playback of an interview with U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, Stanford psychologist Jennifer Eberhardt, or philosopher John Kaag. And be sure to check the “Events” tab in the app, so that you can join an upcoming live Q&A and personally chat with the next featured thought leader.
If you’re hoping to grow as a person or as a professional, we hope you’ll join us and tens of thousands of others who enjoy the Next Big Idea. Get started by downloading the app today!
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