The Hobbyist Recommendations
Winter Book Releases 2025-2026
For The Hobbyist, winter is the perfect time to recharge and create. Whether you’re cooking something comforting, crafting something beautiful, or focusing on self-care, this season’s new releases will spark inspiration and joy in your favorite pastimes.
february books:
Bottom Shelf: How a Forgotten Brand of Bourbon Saved One Man's Life
by Fred Minnick
"This book ain't just about whiskey. It's about heart, healing, and finding meaning in the most unexpected places." --Terry Bradshaw, NFL Hall of Fame quarterback
A forgotten bottle. A buried legacy. And one man determined to uncover the truth about his favorite bourbon.
Before he became one of the most influential voices in American whiskey, Fred Minnick was a combat veteran wrestling with the invisible wounds of war. What started as a quiet exploration of taste and ritual soon became something more--a way to calm his mind, reconnect with his senses, and slowly rebuild a life.
Today, Fred's palate shapes the industry. His reviews move markets, his instincts set trends. So when he casually named a dusty 1969 bottle of Old Crow as his all-time favorite in an interview, the response was seismic: prices soared from $40 to $3,000 almost overnight. But behind the buzz was a deeper mystery. Once revered by presidents, poets, and distillers alike, Old Crow had been stripped of its legacy and banished to the bottom shelf. Why was one of bourbon's most iconic brands abandoned--and what really happened to the whiskey itself?
Part memoir, part whiskey-world investigation, Bottom Shelf unearths the forgotten history of America's most misunderstood bourbon--and reveals how one man's search for flavor became a fight to rediscover meaning, purpose, and truth in a world full of half-truths and tall tales.
"From the first page, this is an honest, fascinating, and moving discovery not just of the great American spirit that is bourbon, but of the great American spirit within Fred himself."--Graham McTavish, actor and #1 New York Times bestselling coauthor of Clanlands
All about Allergies: Everything You Need to Know about Asthma, Food Allergies, Hay Fever, and More
by MD Rubin
From viral social media sensation Dr. Zachary Rubin, an in-depth look at both common and surprising allergies, spotlighting patient stories, the history and science behind allergies, common myths, treatment options, and more
Millions of people suffer from various allergic diseases. They're some of the most common but widely misunderstood afflictions today, and Dr. Rubin has made it his mission to pull back the curtain and help everyday people understand their allergies and find ways to feel better.
In All About Allergies, Dr. Rubin explores and explains dozens of allergies and diseases and provides actionable treatment options and information. Sections on the history of allergies, asthma, contact dermatitis, sinusitis, food allergies, anaphylaxis, medication allergies, and more pair with treatment info on medications, immunotherapy, and biologics to equip people with the tools they need to tackle their allergies.
Grounded by expert research and propelled by patient stories, science, history, and, of course, Dr. Rubin's engaging voice, All About Allergies is the ultimate resource for anyone who's ever felt in the dark about their health.
A World Appears: A Journey Into Consciousness
by Michael Pollan
Named a Most Anticipated Book of 2026 by The New York Times, TIME, and Oprah Daily
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of How to Change Your Mind, a panoptic exploration of consciousness--what it is, who has it, and why--and a meditation on the essence of our humanity
When it comes to the phenomenon that is consciousness, there is one point on which scientists, philosophers, and artists all agree: it feels like something to be us. Yet the fact that we have subjective experience of the world remains one of nature's greatest mysteries. How is it that our mental operations are accompanied by feelings, thoughts, and a sense of self? What would a scientific investigation of our inner life look like, when we have as little distance and perspective on it as fish do of the sea? In A World Appears, Michael Pollan traces the unmapped continent that is consciousness, bringing radically different perspectives--scientific, philosophical, literary, spiritual and psychedelic--to see what each can teach us about this central fact of life.
When neuroscientists began studying consciousness in the early 1990s, they sought to explain how and why three pounds of spongy gray matter could generate a subjective point of view--assuming that the brain is the source of our perceived reality. Pollan takes us to the cutting edge of the field, where scientists are entertaining more radical (and less materialist) theories of consciousness. He introduces us to "plant neurobiologists" searching for the first flicker of consciousness in plants, scientists striving to engineer feelings into AI, and psychologists and novelists seeking to capture the felt experience of our slippery stream of consciousness.
In Pollan's dazzling exploration of consciousness, he discovers a world far deeper and stranger than our everyday reality. Eye-opening and mind-expanding, A World Appears takes us into the laboratories of our own minds, ultimately showing us how we might make better use of the gift of awareness to more meaningfully connect with the world and our deepest selves.
Get Home Safe: A Guide to Self-Defense and Building Our Collective Power
by Rana Abdelhamid
Grounded in her experience as a blackbelt, self-defense instructor, and globally recognized organizer, Rana Abdelhamid offers a bold, urgent roadmap to a safer world.
Abdelhamid wants every woman and survivor of gender-based violence to be able to defend themselves, and every community to build collective safety. What if we didn't accept that it's unsafe to walk home alone as a fact of life, but instead went out and created safe spaces for ourselves?
Through thousands of training sessions, she's seen firsthand the strength we carry in our bodies, no matter our background or circumstance. Her revolutionary framework for finding that strength starts with emotional healing, then teaches physical self-defense and economic safety, and finally equips readers with organizing strategies to fight the systems that enable violence in the first place. A rallying cry and a practical guide, Get Home Safe will leave readers, regardless of strength, identity, or income, knowing they can fight back and reclaim power.
A Taste of Madagascar: Culinary Riches of the Red Island
by Emmanuel Laroche
Discover Madagascar's hidden food treasures from vanilla to caviar to unique spices--a food explorer's guide across the Red Island.
What's hiding in Madagascar's lush forests, vibrant coasts, and fertile soil that beckons culinary explorers worldwide?
A Taste of Madagascar: Culinary Riches of the Red Island takes you on a rare sensory journey of the island's flavors. From the world-renowned vanilla beans to the endemic voatsiperifery wild pepper, and more. Award-winning author and food podcaster Emmanuel Laroche unveils the island's extraordinary food treasures. Discover the inspiring stories behind both legendary and little-known ingredients alongside the Malagasy farmers, artisans, and chefs who cultivate and transform them.
With Emmanuel as your guide, you'll uncover:
- The vibrant flavors and stories behind Madagascar's famed vanilla, cocoa, wild honey, pink peppercorn, and caviar.
- Recipes reimagined by Malagasy chefs and global culinary leaders.
- Inspiring interviews with local farmers and companies committed to sustainable practices.
Perfect for chefs, food writers, home cooks, and conscious travelers, A Taste of Madagascar invites you to explore a rich culinary scene that's waiting to be savored, shared, and preserved.
january picks:
Everyday Elixirs: Mocktails, Matchas, and Seasonal Drinks to Inspire Wellness
by Blair Horton
From the holistic nutritionist behind Holistic Rendezvous, Blair Horton, a beautiful wellness-focused collection of 80 seasonal, delicious, and healthful beverage and mocktail recipes.
Whether you're looking for an alternative to an alcoholic beverage or to proactively support your wellness, holistic nutritionist Blair Horton has a tasty drink for you. In each of her 80 mocktail and beverage recipes, she deliciously features seasonal ingredients known to aid and support your health, with benefits that can boost your immunity, reduce inflammation, promote digestion, and more. Blair guides us through the seasons, starting first with foundational herbal, spiced, and floral syrups, before inviting us to find the magic in every sip:
Tasty and packed full of health benefits, these zero-proof drinks cover occasions of all kinds--a nightcap for restful sleep; a showstopping punch for the dry-bar at your holiday party; a festive nog; or a fun little drink, just because. Cheers to better health!
Eat Yourself Healthy: Food to Change Your Life [American Measurements]
by Jamie Oliver
From New York Times bestselling author Jamie Oliver comes a new cookbook to help you build a celebratory relationship with nourishing food that will make you feel healthier and happier
For more than two decades, Jamie Oliver has been leading the charge on a global food revolution, aiming to improve everyone's health and happiness through food. Now, in response to the changing food environment and industry that is working against us, Jamie puts to use his nutrition diploma and chef experience to help us wrestle back control and build a celebratory relationship with good food, embracing its power to make us healthier and happier.
In Eat Yourself Healthy, he's back with 120 incredible recipes sure to energize, satisfy, and nourish. Jamie proves that healthy eating can be joyful, generous and abundant-this is all about what you can have, not what you can't. Teamed with 50 helpful healthy hacks and a nutrition-packed 2-week meal plan to kickstart your health journey, it's never been easier to make choices that support your wellbeing. This is food to change your life!
Herbal Gut Health: Natural Therapies to Promote Healthy Digestion, Boost Your Microbiome, and Support Gut Repair
by Maria Noel Groves
From the bestselling author of Body into Balance, clinical herbalist Maria Noël Groves offers a comprehensive guide to the best herbs and natural practices to boost your gut microbiome, decrease your risk of chronic disease, and alleviate conditions like SIBO, leaky gut, irritable bowel syndrome, and GERD.
A healthy gut is the key to good overall health--both physical and mental--and researchers are beginning to uncover the links between an unbalanced gut microbiome and chronic conditions such as inflammatory bowel disease, obesity, and cancer.
As a clinical herbalist with decades of experience, Maria Noël Groves has helped patients of all ages resolve their digestive complaints and related health issues by teaching them how to adopt healthier dietary habits, employ herbs to alleviate digestive issues and improve digestion, and incorporate balanced lifestyle practices--resolving their diseases and dramatically improving their quality of life.
The Healing Power of Resilience: A New Prescription for Health and Well-Being
by Tara Narula
A revolutionary, science-backed approach to living well from ABC News chief medical correspondent and cardiologist Dr. Tara Narula, that bridges the gap between our physical and mental health to show how resilience is the key to both.
As the number one leading cause of death in the United States, heart disease has several common prescriptions from cardiologists, such as medication, surgery, diet, and exercise. There is, however, one treatment that is consistently overlooked: resilience. We need resilience to get us to face new diagnoses, to show up to doctor's appointments, to take those medications, to make it through surgery (and to recover from it), and to stick to that diet or new workout plan.
That's where this paradigm-shifting book comes in, connecting the worlds of medicine and psychology. Its application goes beyond heart disease to other difficult diagnoses and traumatic health events, and overall well-being.
Opera Wars: Inside the World of Opera and the Battles for Its Future
by Caitlin Vincent
Blunt, irreverent, and at times wittily subversive, Opera Wars spotlights opera's colorful and sometimes warring personalities, increasingly fierce controversies over content, and the battles being waged for its economic future.
Drawing on interviews with dozens of opera insiders--as well as her own experience as an award-winning librettist, trained vocalist, opera company director, and arts commentator--Caitlin Vincent deftly unravels clichés and presumptions, exposing such debates as how much fidelity is owed to long-dead opera composers whose plots often stir racial and gender sensitivities, whether there's any cure for typecasting that leaves talented performers out of work and other performers chained to the same roles, and what explains the bizarre kowtowing of opera companies to the demands of traditionalist patrons.
Why We Drink Too Much: The Impact of Alcohol on Our Bodies and Culture
by Knowles Charles Knowles Charles
We drink it, celebrate with it, and barely question it--but what is alcohol really doing to us?
Drinking alcohol can be fun; its chemical effects on our brain are fundamentally pleasurable, and it can have social benefits. Alcohol may also help us forget the worries in our lives and temporarily overcome psychological barriers to human interaction.
But there are downsides. We now know that alcohol, even in quite modest amounts, is not good for our long-term health. So why do we, as humans, consume alcohol at all, and why does our tendency to drink "too much" vary from person to person?
December Picks:
The Complete Slow Cooker Cookbook: 75 Tasty, Time-Saving, Slow-Cooked Recipes
by DK
Take a whistle-stop tour of key slow cooker techniques, with 75 simple recipes for delicious mains, sides, snacks and desserts.
With The Complete Slow Cooker Cookbook you'll enjoy all-in-one winter warmers like curries, casseroles, stews and chilies, plus comforting veg-packed soups.
Your slow-cooker unlocks easy-leave-alone cooking of heartier traditional cuts of meats, plus fiber- and protein-packed pulses - allowing for thriftier, healthier eating.
This fresh new book is packed with ingenious tips and tricks, plus tasty snacks, treats and puddings too! You'll master quick-to-prep and zero-stress slow-cooked recipes in no time at all, and enjoy healthy and tasty meals without spending hours over the stove.
Crochet How: Learn to Crochet with Simple Stitches, Patterns, and Tips
by Meghan Fernandes - Lydia Gluck
The perfect learn-to-crochet book for beginners, from the creators of the premier knit and crochet brand Pom Pom
Crochet How takes new crocheters through the basics so they can develop their skills and increase their crochet confidence with each new project. The book's friendly teaching style, clear instructions, and easy to make patterns are specifically designed to make starting out fun and to inspire new crocheters to stick with the craft.
Following in the footsteps of Knit How, Pom Pom's classic beginning knitting guide, Crochet How demonstrates key first stitches and helps readers build their skills while progressing at their own pace. With 15 trendy and fun patterns, and endless possibilities for customizing, Crochet How keeps readers motivated and inspired as they stitch their way through the projects and master a new craft.
Pom Pom is well-known for their exciting use of color, and these new crochet designs do not disappoint. Start with an easy throw blanket, scarf, or tote, then complete your new crocheted collection by stitching up a cute hat, a sweet cowl, pullover, crop top, and granny square creations galore.
Convent Wisdom: How Sixteenth-Century Nuns Could Save Your Twenty-First-Century Life
by Ana Garriga - Carmen Urbita
An infectiously edifying, not-so-saintly self-help book that dives into the wild, wise, and unconventional lives of 16th- and 17th-century nuns, offering advice for our modern age and proving one thing: no matter the century, nuns know best.
When most of us think of nuns, we picture hands clasped in prayer, solemn shuffles down cloistered halls, and that iconic habit silhouette. But what about the nuns who ate spiderwebs, erupted into jealous fights over makeup, or chain-produced manuscripts for extra cash? In reality, these women were no one-dimensional martyrs. 16th- and 17th-century nuns were resourceful, rebellious, and refreshingly relatable--and their lives hold surprising lessons for us today.
Every Day I Read: 53 Ways to Get Closer to Books
by Hwang Bo-Reum - Shanna Tan
From the author of the international bestseller Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop, a heartfelt invitation to reflect on your relationship with reading and celebrate the joys of books.
Why do we read? What is it that we hope to take away from the intimate, personal experience of reading for pleasure?
The Instant Kitchen Meal Prep Cookbook: Plan and Cook Ahead for Fast, Family-Friendly Meals Using Your Pressure Cooker and Air Fryer
by Coco Morante
From cookbook author Coco Morante, a weeknight meal prep guide using your pressure cooker and air fryer to save on time, cooking, and cleanup, with 10 weeks of dinner meal plans, 20 bonus recipes, and inspiration for quick breakfasts and lunches.
For anyone who loves the idea of meal prep but doesn't love the idea of sacrificing a whole Sunday afternoon to cooking for the week and eating the same meals on repeat, Coco Morante has made this book just for you. As a busy mom of two little ones, she understands the need for healthy meals that can make it onto the table quickly during hectic weeknights.
Why Do I Keep Doing This?: Unlearn the Habits Keeping You Stuck and Unhappy
by Kati Morton
Leading mental health advocate and licensed marriage and family therapist, Kati Morton, explores our common struggle and contradiction with control in ourselves and relationships, giving readers the ability to not only ask themselves whydo I keep doing this, but have the insight to find a real answer.
Many of us were told to stuff our feelings down when we were younger. We were taught that that our emotional reactions and responses should be controlled so we didn't embarrass or upset our parents and those around us. However, if that control oozes over into our relationships it's considered a bad thing. Controlling our friends or romantic partners is seen as toxic. Control is a precarious thing. Some sides of control are meant to keep us safe, while others harm connections. So, what are we supposed to do?
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.