New year, new reading “to-read” list!
NONFICTION'S 2026 READING GOALS
Instead of setting a few new goals and resolutions, why not stock your library with books aimed to help you achieve your goals. Whether you are looking to develop new healthy habits, set financial priorities, or achieve personal growth in the new year, books can offer inspiration no matter the aim.
Here is a curated reading list for 2026 nonfiction reading, featuring memoirs with real experiences, self-help offering practical guidance, and wellness reads focusing mindfulness, rest, and emotional well-being. These books aren’t about overnight transformation or quick-fixes or rigid rules. Instead they share real-life experiences, new studies and insights, and new ways to face problems.
No matter your reading type, these books are a great place to start off your reading goal in 2026.
- Memoirs
- Self-Help
- Wellness
- Career
Memoirs:
A Different Kind of Power: A Memoir
by Jacinda Ardern
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - From the former prime minister of New Zealand, then the world's youngest female head of government and just the second to give birth in office, comes a deeply personal memoir chronicling her extraordinary rise and offering inspiration to a new generation of leaders.
"A clear and compelling case for compassion . . . an implicit repudiation of the strongman style of leadership that has taken hold around the world."--The Washington Post
What if we could redefine leadership? What if kindness came first? Jacinda Ardern grew up the daughter of a police officer in small-town New Zealand, but as the 40th Prime Minister of her country, she commanded global respect for her empathetic leadership that put people first. This is the remarkable story of how a Mormon girl plagued by self-doubt made political history and changed our assumptions of what a global leader can be.
Raising Hare: A Memoir
by Chloe Dalton
NEW YORK TIMES NOTABLE BOOK - NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - FINALIST FOR THE 2025 WOMEN'S PRIZE - A fascinating meditation on freedom, trust, loss, and our relationship with the natural world, explored through the story of one woman's unlikely friendship with a wild hare.
A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, TIME, The Boston Globe, The Economist, Scientific American, Slate
"Moving. . . . Impart[s] valuable lessons about slowing down and the beauty in the unexpected."--USA Today
"A perfect testimony to the transformative power of love."--Margaret Renkl, author of The Comfort of Crows
Imagine you could hold a baby hare and bottle-feed it. Imagine that it lived under your roof and bounded around your bedroom at night, drumming on the duvet cover when it wanted your attention. Imagine that, more than two years later, it still ran in from the fields when you called it and slept in your house for hours on end. For political advisor and speechwriter Chloe Dalton, who spent lockdown deep in the English countryside, far away from her usual busy London life, this became her unexpected reality.
A Clean Mess: A Memoir of Sobriety After a Lifetime of Being Numb
by Tiffany Jenkins
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - The bestselling author of High Achiever chronicles life after addiction--the raw, the dark, and the hilarious--from setting out with nothing but a backpack to discovering her marriage was built on a shakier foundation than she'd ever imagined to staying sober when life fell apart.
"Tiffany Jenkins illustrates that recovery is not just about sobriety, but about learning to live and feel again. Her compelling story is a testament to the power of resilience, humor, and hope."--Sarah Levy, author of Drinking Games
A Clean Mess opens with the moment that changed everything. Tiffany is about to go on stage when she receives an odd message from her husband: "Hey Babe, some of the guys here are making some stupid decisions. Not me. But I just wanted to let you know in case you heard it from some of the other wives." By the end of the night, Tiffany knew her life would never be the same.
Marsha: The Joy and Defiance of Marsha P. Johnson
by Tourmaline Tourmaline
THE NATIONAL BESTSELLER
Featured in The New York Times's Nonfiction to Read This Spring
Black transgender luminary Tourmaline brings to life the first definitive biography of the revolutionary activist Marsha P. Johnson, one of the most important and remarkable figures in LGBTQIA+ history, revealing her story, her impact, and her legacy.
"She is the preeminent and foremost scholar on Marsha P. Johnson. . . . To us, Tourmaline is the expert."--Janet Mock, Allure
"Thank god the revolution has begun, honey." Rumor has it that after Marsha P. Johnson threw the first brick in the 1969 Stonewall Uprising, she picked up a shard of broken mirror to fix her makeup. Marsha, a legendary Black transgender activist, embodied both the beauty and the struggle of the early gay rights movement. Her work sparked the progress we see today, yet there has never been a definitive record of her life. Until now.
Self-Help:
Guided: The Secret Path to an Illuminated Life
by Laura Lynne Jackson
"The kind of book that stays with you."--KIM KARDASHIAN
"A reminder [that] you're never walking alone."--JAY SHETTY
"Imbued with both spiritual insight and emotional clarity."--GWYNETH PALTROW
The renowned psychic medium and New York Times bestselling author of Signs explains how our loved ones who have passed continue to communicate with us, steering us to discover our purpose and create lives of meaning, connection, and love.
Who am I, really? Why am I here? How can I more fully understand my connections to others and the world around me? And how does that understanding reveal the magic the universe has to offer?
According to Laura Lynne Jackson, to answer these questions is to live an illuminated life.
Jackson knows that her psychic gifts are not unique to her. She believes that everyone is capable of perceiving energy and identifying and interpreting messages sent to us by the Other Side. In Guided, Jackson shows that our loved ones who have passed form our own Team of Light, and that they never stop sharing their wisdom with us. By embracing the connections they reveal, we are put on a path to our best life--a life that Jackson calls illuminated.
The Overthinker's Guide to Making Decisions: How to Make Decisions Without Losing Your Mind
by Joseph Nguyen
New York Times Bestseller!
From the author of the international bestseller Don't Believe Everything You Think comes a companion guide that transforms the paralyzing cycle of overthinking into clear, intuitive decision-making.
Your brain is wired to overthink decisions--not because something's wrong with you, but because you care deeply about making the right choice.
If you've ever found yourself trapped in endless loops of "what if," analyzing every option to exhaustion, or seeking everyone's advice while still feeling lost... this book is your way out.
The Overthinker's Guide to Making Decisions breaks new ground where "just trust your gut" advice has failed you. Unlike traditional approaches that leave you stranded between endless analysis and vague intuition, this book provides a counterintuitive system that bypasses the overthinking loop entirely.
This isn't about making perfect choices. It's about making aligned ones from a place of clarity instead of chaos.
All the Way to the River: Oprah's Book Club: Love, Loss, and Liberation
by Elizabeth Gilbert
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
AN OPRAH'S BOOK CLUB PICK
"A delicious mashup of narrative that's by turns harrowing and healing." -People
"Entertaining, insightful, wrenching ... punch-to-the-gut powerful." -The Washington Post
"A blockbuster: brutally honest, lurid, transcendent, and compelling...Gilbert is undoubtedly a force." --Boston Globe
In her first nonfiction book in a decade, the #1 bestselling writer who taught millions of readers to live authentically (Eat Pray Love) and creatively (Big Magic) shows how to break free.
In 2000, Elizabeth Gilbert met Rayya. They became friends, then best friends, then inseparable. When tragedy entered their lives, the truth was finally laid bare: The two were in love. They were also a pair of addicts, on a collision course toward catastrophe.
Wellness:
Eight Million Ways to Happiness: Wisdom for Inspiration and Healing from the Heart of Japan
by Hiroko Yoda
A Japanese cultural historian shares a path to joyful living drawn from her nation's unique approach to spirituality and nature, offering a "fascinating" (Wintering author Katherine May) blend of memoir, cultural reporting, and practical guidance for anyone struggling to find balance in our turbulent modern world.
Everyone's in the pursuit of happiness, but few know how to attain it. Millions around the world have turned to Japan for advice on finding their Ikigai, or summoning The Courage to Be Disliked. Japan's spiritual traditions hide in plain sight, forming the basis of so much of what we love about the country's culture. Without Japan's spiritual sustenance, Jiro wouldn't dream of sushi; Hayao Miyazaki's films wouldn't spirit us away; and Marie Kondo wouldn't spark joy.
Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before?
by Julie Smith
Over 1 million copies sold worldwide!
International Bestseller
Drawing on years of experience as a clinical psychologist, online sensation Dr Julie Smith provides the skills you need to navigate common life challenges and take charge of your emotional and mental health in her debut book.
Filled with secrets from a therapist's toolkit, Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before teaches you how to fortify and maintain your mental health, even in the most trying of times. Dr Julie Smith's expert advice and powerful coping techniques will help you stay resilient, whether you want to manage anxiety, deal with criticism, cope with depression, build self-confidence, find motivation, or learn to forgive yourself. Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before tackles everyday issues and offers practical solutions in bite-sized, easy-to-digest entries which make it easy to quickly find specific information and guidance.
Career:
Fired Up: How to Turn Your Spark Into a Flame and Come Alive at Any Age
by Shannon Watts
INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER!!
"I'm a big admirer of the fire in Shannon Watts. Now she shares with all of us how we, too, can ignite our power and change the world."
--Maria Shriver
From the founder of Moms Demand Action, a guide to harnessing your potential, living without fear, and coming alive at any age.
Too many of us are living on autopilot. We believe we're too old, too busy, or too inexperienced to go after what we really want. Shannon Watts has a message for you: Think again. If you are ready to stand tall in your greatness, Fired Up invites you to shatter your self-imposed limitations and unleash your potential so you can finally start living the life you deserve.
The Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness
by Morgan Housel
**OVER 8 MILLION COPIES SOLD AROUND THE WORLD... The Psychology of Money is the original bestselling classic from the author of the new book, Same as Ever.**
Doing well with money isn't necessarily about what you know. It's about how you behave. And behavior is hard to teach, even to really smart people.
Money--investing, personal finance, and business decisions--is typically taught as a math-based field, where data and formulas tell us exactly what to do. But in the real world people don't make financial decisions on a spreadsheet. They make them at the dinner table, or in a meeting room, where personal history, your own unique view of the world, ego, pride, marketing, and odd incentives are scrambled together.
In The Psychology of Money, award-winning author Morgan Housel shares 19 short stories exploring the different ways people think about money and teaches you how to make better sense of one of life's most important topics.
Supercommunicators: How to Unlock the Secret Language of Connection
by Charles Duhigg
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - From the author of The Power of Habit, a fascinating exploration of what makes conversations work--and how we can all learn to be supercommunicators at work and in life
"A winning combination of stories, studies, and guidance that might well transform the worst communicators you know into some of the best."--Adam Grant, author of Think Again and Hidden Potential
ONE OF NPR'S BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR - FINALIST FOR THE SABEW BEST IN BUSINESS BOOK AWARD
Come inside a jury room as one juror leads a starkly divided room to consensus. Join a young CIA officer as he recruits a reluctant foreign agent. And sit with an accomplished surgeon as he tries, and fails, to convince yet another cancer patient to opt for the less risky course of treatment. In Supercommunicators, Charles Duhigg blends deep research and his trademark storytelling skills to show how we can all learn to identify and leverage the hidden layers that lurk beneath every conversation.
Communication is a superpower and the best communicators understand that whenever we speak, we're actually participating in one of three conversations: practical (What's this really about?), emotional (How do we feel?), and social (Who are we?). If you don't know what kind of conversation you're having, you're unlikely to connect.