9 Books We Can’t Stop Talking About

June 29 2017
Share 9 Books We Can’t Stop Talking About

“Read. Recommend. Repeat.” That’s more than just a motto here at Off the Shelf. Sharing the books we love is a big part of how we move through the world. Bonding over our favorite authors is how we connect with new people and how we get closer to those we love most. In that spirit, here are 9 books we can’t stop talking about.

The Refugees
by Viet Thanh Nguyen

This book came to me at a particular week in our nation’s history when immigration reform was at the forefront. I wished that I could stand at the door of a congressional meeting and hand a copy of Viet Thanh Nguyen’s newest short story collection to every person as they walked out. Nguyen, a Pulitzer Prize–winning author, weaves together stories of turmoil and triumph as refugees navigate the cultural shock of a new world as well as feelings for the homeland they had to leave behind.
—Stu

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo
The Refugees
Viet Thanh Nguyen

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo

MENTIONED IN:

Hope and Heartbreak: 10 Books About Immigration and the Refugee Experience

By Carrie Cabral | March 19, 2020

6 Fantastic Books by MacArthur ‘Genius Grant’ Winners

By Alice Martin | March 3, 2020

13 Authors That Define and Celebrate America

By Taylor Noel | February 7, 2018

9 Books We Can’t Stop Talking About

By Off the Shelf Staff | June 29, 2017

Close
The Bright Hour
by Nina Riggs

THE BRIGHT HOUR is one of the most amazing books I have read. Nina Riggs, a young wife, mother, and poet, was just 37 years old when she was diagnosed with terminal breast cancer. The writing is beautiful and honest. I am so thankful to Nina for sharing her story, her courage, and her strength. I have a view of living, and dying, I had not had before. That’s the best gift a book can give.
—Aimee

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo Bookshop logo
The Bright Hour
Nina Riggs

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo Bookshop logo

MENTIONED IN:

The Best Memoirs We’ve Ever Read

By Off the Shelf Staff | July 29, 2019

The Best of 2018: The Top 10 Reviews of the Year

By Off the Shelf Staff | December 27, 2018

Readers’ Choice: The Top 25 Most Shelved Books of the Year!

By Off the Shelf Staff | December 24, 2018

10 Recommendations from the Co-Owner of Literati Bookstore

By Hilary Gustafson | July 12, 2018

6 Must-Read Books from Alice Hoffman’s Shelf

By Alice Hoffman | July 3, 2018

13 of the Most Powerful Memoirs I’ve Ever Read

By Taylor Noel | June 7, 2018

Close
Cork Dork
by Bianca Bosker

As I endured the last brutal snowstorm of the winter in New York, my friend convinced me to book a plane ticket to Napa. I envisioned warm afternoons and sun-dappled rows of vines. The only problem was I knew almost nothing about how to taste wine. Enter CORK DORK, an informative and entertaining memoir by a former tech journalist who chronicles her yearlong efforts to become a sommelier. She helpfully breaks down the different ways to taste and sniff out the components of a good glass of vino while offering hilarious anecdotes (like the specific technique for spitting).
—Elizabeth

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo
Cork Dork
Bianca Bosker

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo

MENTIONED IN:

The 5 Best Unconventional Memoirs You Should Read Right Now

By Elizabeth Breeden | November 7, 2018

12 Foodie Books For Every Eater (and Reader) On Your Gift List

By Allison Tyler | December 8, 2017

Staff’s Choice: 12 Recently Shelved Books from the Off the Shelf Team

By Off the Shelf Staff | November 24, 2017

9 Books We Can’t Stop Talking About

By Off the Shelf Staff | June 29, 2017

Close
Stir
by Jessica Fechtor

I stumbled upon this memoir of courage, acceptance, and personal rediscovery in the staff picks’ section of a great California independent bookstore. Jessica Fechtor was a 28-year-old, newly married grad student at an academic conference when an aneurysm burst in her brain. In STIR, she chronicles her ordeal with candor, vulnerability, and humor. Because her journey to recovery began in her kitchen, she laces her story with recipes (I highly recommend the whole wheat chocolate chip cookies).
—Wendy

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo
Stir
Jessica Fechtor

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo

MENTIONED IN:

9 Books We Can’t Stop Talking About

By Off the Shelf Staff | June 29, 2017

Close
Swimming Lessons
by Claire Fuller

I started seeing SWIMMING LESSONS all over Instagram after Book of the Month Club featured the novel in December. I’m kicking myself for not picking it up sooner because it’s such a charming literary mystery and all-around satisfying read. As Gil, a famous author, is dying from cancer, he finds hidden notes from his wife who disappeared suddenly 12 years before. Everyone assumed that she drowned—everyone except Flora, Gil’s daughter, who returns to care for him and finally uncover what happened to her mother. You won’t be able to put this book down until you, too, figure out what really happened.
—Taylor

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo
Swimming Lessons
Claire Fuller

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo

MENTIONED IN:

Readers’ Choice: The Top 10 Most Shelved Books in September

By Off the Shelf Staff | September 28, 2018

Excited for the Big New Books of Fall? Read These 14 Novels First!

By Taylor Noel | September 11, 2018

Readers’ Choice: September’s 10 Most Shelved Books on Off the Shelf

By Off the Shelf Staff | September 29, 2017

9 Books We Can’t Stop Talking About

By Off the Shelf Staff | June 29, 2017

Close
The Supergirls
by Mike Madrid

I got into comic books as an adult, and THE SUPERGIRLS was the first and best nonfiction book I read on the history and cultural significance of female superheroes—from the famous heroines we’ve seen on the big screen to those long forgotten. Mike Madrid gives them all profound respect and opens our eyes to why we need these women and how they can reflect the best of our society.
—Kerry

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo
The Supergirls
Mike Madrid

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo

MENTIONED IN:

9 Books We Can’t Stop Talking About

By Off the Shelf Staff | June 29, 2017

Close
The Hate U Give
by Angie Thomas

I’m not normally a YA reader, but I was immediately taken with Angie Thomas’s new bestselling novel. THE HATE U GIVE follows a black teenager named Starr who was in a car with her best friend when he was shot and killed by a police officer. Now, Starr has to come to terms with how the public’s perception of the event shapes her identity. It’s a raw, intense, and thought-provoking book that I couldn’t put down, and it should be required reading for everyone.
—Julianna

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo
The Hate U Give
Angie Thomas

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo

MENTIONED IN:

Inspiring Fictional Characters Who Changed Their Worlds

By Sabrina Sánchez | January 14, 2021

8 Best Book Club Books I’ve Read So Far This Year

By Hannah Schaffer | October 1, 2019

11 Banned Books Never Leaving Our Shelves

By Off the Shelf Staff | September 23, 2019

11 Inspiring Books From the Activists of Our Time

By Tolani Osan | January 21, 2019

5 Books to Read After You’ve Seen “The Hate U Give”

By Tolani Osan | October 18, 2018

What Book Should You Read Based on Your Zodiac Sign?

By Lara Blackman | October 1, 2018

Close
Lincoln in the Bardo
by George Saunders

After eight books of short stories and essays, finally, George Saunders has written a novel based on the death of President Lincoln’s son, Willie. “The Bardo” refers to the purgatory-like place that Willie finds himself in along with a gaggle of ghosts. I recommend listening to the audio edition of this compelling and humorous novel for maximum enjoyment. It’s read by a stellar cast of 23, including David Sedaris, Julianne Moore, Ben Stiller, Don Cheadle, and Susan Sarandon.
—Chris

Read the full review of LINCOLN IN THE BARDO

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo
Lincoln in the Bardo
George Saunders

George Saunders is an acclaimed short story writer of collections THE TENTH OF DECEMBER, PASTORALIA, and more. His first novel, LINCOLN IN THE BARDO, is a mesmerizing blend of historical fact and fiction. It is the story of the death of Abraham Lincoln’s son, Willie, told almost entirely through the voices of the spirits in the graveyard where Willie is laid to rest and where Lincoln returns to hold his son’s body. —Erin

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo

MENTIONED IN:

7 Books So Compelling We Almost Missed Our Train Stops

By Off the Shelf Staff | February 24, 2020

12 Tips for How to Read as Many Books as Possible

By Taylor Noel | April 5, 2018

6 Fiction Favorites Out in Paperback This February

By Meagan Harris | February 20, 2018

The 11 Books on Our Nightstands Right Now

By Off the Shelf Staff | January 8, 2018

The 10 Best Books We Read in 2017

By Off the Shelf Staff | January 5, 2018

Readers’ Choice: The Top 25 Shelved Books of 2017

By Off the Shelf Staff | December 29, 2017

Close
The Nordic Theory of Everything
by Anu Partanen

I’ve been daydreaming of moving to another country, and after hearing so much chatter over the years about the “happiest” people on the planet and the joys of the now ubiquitous hygge, I found my way to this eye-opening read. THE NORDIC THEORY OF EVERYTHING smartly demonstrates—minus the stereotypes—how a government can empower its people and why it should want to.
—Allison

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo
The Nordic Theory of Everything
Anu Partanen

Amazon logo Audible logo Barnes & Noble logo Books a Million logo Google Play logo iBooks logo

MENTIONED IN:

9 Books We Can’t Stop Talking About

By Off the Shelf Staff | June 29, 2017

Close

You must be logged in to add books to your shelf.

Please log in or sign up now.