The Amazon Editorial team just released their 2019 selections for the Best Books of the Year — right in time for holiday shopping. From thrilling mysteries and fanciful adventures to moving memoirs and picture books, you can find the perfect book for any reader on this list.
Featuring numerous “Read With Jenna” picks, such as Ann Patchett’s “The Dutch House” and Etaf Rum’s “A Woman is No Man,” the annual list names the top 100 books of the year as chosen by Amazon editors.
At the top of the list, Margaret Atwood’s “Handmaid’s Tale” sequel “The Testaments” is ranked the best book of 2019. The editors also created multiple Top 20 lists for categories ranging from non-fiction and fiction to children’s and young adult.
Amazon’s Top 10 books of 2019
1."The Testaments," by Margaret Atwood
A #1 New York Times Bestseller, “The Testaments” is the award-winning sequel of Atwood’s classic “The Handmaid’s Tale.” Taking place more than fifteen years later after the first book, the Republic of Gilead is finally beginning to fall apart as the lives of three women converge.
2."The Nickel Boys: A Novel," by Colson Whitehead
As a follow-up to his Pulitzer Prize winning novel, "The Underground Railroad," Whitehead's "The Nickel Boys" follows the story of two boys sent to a juvenile reform school in Florida during the Jim Crow-era. Based on the real story of a reformatory, their experiences at the Nickel Academy will determine their fates.
3."Wild Game: My Mother, Her Lover, and Me," by Adrienne Brodeur
Named a best fall book by People and Entertainment Weekly, "Wild Game" memoir chronicles the life of author Adrienne Brodeur as she becomes entangled in covering up her mother's affair. It's a story of resilience and the timeless memoir reminds readers of the lies we tell ourselves to justify our actions and the calamitous consequences these actions can have.
4."Quichotte: A Novel," Salman Rushdie
Dubbed "an epic 'Don Quixote' for the modern age," the book follows writer Sam DuChamp as he creates the story of Quichotte, a courtly salesman on a quest with his imaginary son Sancho to win the hand of a TV Star. As DuChamp enters into a mid-life crisis, his life begins to intertwine with that of Quichotte as he too goes on a journey for love.
5."The Starless Sea," by Erin Morgenstern
After discovering a mysterious book containing a story from his own childhood, graduate student Zachary Ezra Rawlins follows a series of clues that lead him to an ancient library filled with magic and secrets. Rawlins teamed up with the protector of the palace and traveled through the magical realm to find his purpose both in the book and in life.
6."Super Pumped: The Battle for Uber," by Mike Isaac
A New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller, "Super Pumped" traces the evolution of Uber from a Silicon Valley startup to the transportation giant it is today. Carefully following the ups and downs of the company and founder, Travis Kalanick, this work of investigative journalism is a captivating inside-look at the business that transformed the way we use transportation.
7."City of Girls: A Novel," by Elizabeth Gilbert
From the author of "Eat Pray Love," the story is told from the perspective of Vivian Morris as she looks back on her life. Set in New York City during the 1940s, a nineteen-year-old Vivian finds love and loss as she navigates the flamboyant and unconventional world of theater.
8."They Called Us Enemy," by George Takei, Justin Eisinger, Steven Scott, and Harmony Becker
'They Called Us Enemy" recounts George Takei's childhood while imprisoned in the American internment camps of World War II. The story tells of his firsthand account of the years behind barbed wire, growing up under legalized racism and what those experiences would mean for his future and for America.
9. "The Silent Patient," by Alex Michaelides
Described as "a mix of Hitchcockian suspense, Agatha Christie plotting and Greek tragedy" by Entertainment Weekly, this psychological thriller follows murderer Alicia Berenson and psychotherapist Theo Faber as he obsessively works to uncover her motive. "The Silent Patient" was an instant New York Times bestseller.
10."Maybe You Should Talk to Someone," by Lori Gottlieb
Psychotherapist Lori Gottlieb's world comes crashing down when she finds herself in need of her own therapist in this disarmingly funny and revealing personal story. From the viewpoint of both a clinician and a patient, Gottlieb examines the truths and fictions we tell ourselves, giving the reader a powerful portrait of what it means to be human.
For more stories like this, check out:
- 12 best new books for fall 2019
- The 24 best books to gift this holiday season 2019
- 10 most talked about paperback books of the summer
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