Books for Anyone on Your List

Newsweek's staff picks for best books of 2022 to give others...or pick up for yourself

- 

IS IT BETTER TO GIVE OR TO RECEIVE? WITH THE holidays almost upon us and long gift lists waiting to be completed, we wanted to recommend the simple pleasure of a book. And remember, sometimes taking the time to indulge yourself and escape in a good book is really the best way to keep your spirits high. Here to help, Newsweek staff have gathered together to recommend the perfect reading material for anyone on your gift list-yourself included!-with a roundup of our own favorite books from the past year.

Our offerings run the gamut from rom-coms to truecrime, politics to music, investigative journalism to humor and more. Find the ideal story to give or to add to your own wishlist!

Fiction

Lessons in Chemistry

By Bonnie Garmus | DOUBLEDAY | $29

Elizabeth Zott is a brilliant scientist trying to make it in a man's world in the 1960s. Out of a job when she gets pregnant, she uses her talent for chemistry to land herself in the unlikeliest of places as the beloved host of Supper at Six, an unusual cooking show with a distinctly feminist point of view. Chock-full of historical details and endearing characters, you'll cheer on Zott and her distinctive show sign-off: "Children, set the table. Your mother needs a moment to herself." ▸ Meredith Wolf Schizer, Senior Editor

Book Lovers

By Emily Henry BERKLEY | $27

In Book Lovers, Emily Henry both embraces and breaks the classic rom-com mold with a heroine who navigates romantic and familial love in the most beautiful way, but doesn't have to change what makes her strong, ambitious and unique in order to get there. This novel is gripping, hilarious and touching on every page.