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Looking for book recommendations? What to read, what not to read, and the latest news in the world of books.

The latest in Books

The best books of the year (so far)The best books of the year (so far)
Culture

From debut character studies to beloved franchises, here are the best books of the last 6 months.

By Constance Grady
Revisiting Hillbilly Elegy, the book that made J.D. VanceRevisiting Hillbilly Elegy, the book that made J.D. Vance
Culture

The bestseller proves Trump’s VP pick has abiding disdain for absolutely everyone.

By Aja Romano
What do we do about Alice Munro now?What do we do about Alice Munro now?
Culture

Reckoning with the late author and Nobel Prize winner’s complicity in her daughter’s abuse.

By Constance Grady
The existential struggle of being BlackThe existential struggle of being Black
Audio
The Gray Area

A conversation with author Nathalie Etoke on Black existentialism and the case for tragic optimism.

By Sean Illing
Looking for your next great read? We’re here to help.Looking for your next great read? We’re here to help.
Culture

Introducing Vox’s Next Page.

By Constance Grady
A new book tackles the splendor and squalor of reality TV A new book tackles the splendor and squalor of reality TV 
Culture

Critic Emily Nussbaum makes the case for the guilty pleasure as an art form.

By Kyndall Cunningham
What this summer’s age-gap escapist fantasies are missing about romance and middle ageWhat this summer’s age-gap escapist fantasies are missing about romance and middle age
Culture

In her new novel All Fours, Miranda July romps where The Idea of You fears to tread.

By Constance Grady
The Idea of You — and the idea of age gapsThe Idea of You — and the idea of age gaps
Culture

From hit movies to viral essays, the discourse is rarely about the people inside the relationships.

By Constance Grady
The AI grift that can literally poison youThe AI grift that can literally poison you
Today, Explained newsletter

When AI comes for mushroom foragers.

By Constance Grady
The “feminist” case against having sex for fun
Politics

American conservatives are cozying up to British feminists who argue that the sexual revolution has hurt women.

By Eric Levitz
Amazon is filled with garbage ebooks. Here’s how they get made.
Culture

It’s partly AI, partly a get-rich-quick scheme, and entirely bad for confused consumers.

By Constance Grady
The Talented Mr. Ripley is a perfect striver gothic. The Netflix adaptation is lifeless.The Talented Mr. Ripley is a perfect striver gothic. The Netflix adaptation is lifeless.
Culture

Ripley fails to capture what makes Highsmith’s book so compelling.

By Constance Grady
Why half the people you know are obsessed with this book seriesWhy half the people you know are obsessed with this book series
Culture

With A Court of Thorns and Roses, Sarah J. Maas has established herself as the reigning queen of romantasy.

By Constance Grady
Why you probably shouldn’t blow up a pipeline
Politics

The revolutionary left’s theory of the climate crisis puts ideology above inconvenient truths.

By Eric Levitz
In The Book of Love, Kelly Link shows that the best romances are ghost stories tooIn The Book of Love, Kelly Link shows that the best romances are ghost stories too
Culture

The first novel by the acclaimed short-story writer is magical, strange, and just a tad too slow.

By Constance Grady
What the 5 love languages get right, and what they get very wrongWhat the 5 love languages get right, and what they get very wrong
Culture

Don’t think of love as a language. Experts say to think of love as a balanced diet instead.

By Constance Grady
Kiley Reid’s Come and Get It is a witty, overstuffed campus satireKiley Reid’s Come and Get It is a witty, overstuffed campus satire
Culture

The author of Such a Fun Age returns with a hit-and-miss sophomore effort, tracing lines of power with money.

By Constance Grady
How the internet built a conspiracy theory around a new spy flick, a debut novel, and Taylor SwiftHow the internet built a conspiracy theory around a new spy flick, a debut novel, and Taylor Swift
Culture

The Argylle authorship controversy, explained.

By Constance Grady
Want to understand American views on Israel? Take a look at this 1958 novel.
Books

Leon Uris’s bestselling epic Exodus — and its hit movie adaptation starring Paul Newman — influenced generations of Americans, from the suburbs to the State Department.

By Marjorie Ingall
The lasting impact of The Color PurpleThe lasting impact of The Color Purple
Your guide to the 2024 Oscars

The Color Purple is a melodrama — and the new movie musical keeps its traditions alive.

By Nylah Iqbal Muhammad
The very best books of 2023
Culture

From buzzy novels to literary biographies, Vox’s book critic breaks down the year in reading.

By Constance Grady
The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes might be the best Hunger Games movie yetThe Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes might be the best Hunger Games movie yet
Culture

The Hunger Games prequel finds a new wrinkle in a story we thought we knew.

By Alex Abad-Santos
All of this year’s National Book Award finalists, reviewed by Vox
Books

We read all of the 2023 nominees. Here’s what we thought.

By Vox Staff
Professional raconteur Fran Lebowitz thinks art should be uselessProfessional raconteur Fran Lebowitz thinks art should be useless
Culture

And that you should probably wear shoes.

By Constance Grady
The big Elon Musk biography asks all the wrong questionsThe big Elon Musk biography asks all the wrong questions
Culture

In Walter Isaacson’s buzzy new biography, Elon Musk emerges as a callous, chaos-loving man without empathy.

By Constance Grady
How cars ruin wild animals’ lives
Future Perfect

If you love nature, consider not driving in it.

By Marina Bolotnikova
The book of the year so far is Lauren Groff’s The Vaster WildsThe book of the year so far is Lauren Groff’s The Vaster Wilds
Culture

Groff’s latest is an un-put-down-able story of survival.

By Constance Grady
Zadie Smith on the problem of the good white womanZadie Smith on the problem of the good white woman
Culture

The Fraud, a Victorian novel for the post-Trump era, is elegant, flawed, and sharp as a knife.

By Constance Grady
Dealing With Dragons is the kind of book a kid builds their personality aroundDealing With Dragons is the kind of book a kid builds their personality around
Culture

Patricia C. Wrede just published her first book in a decade. Here’s how she enchanted a generation.

By Constance Grady
How does Elon Musk get away with it all?
Culture

The billionaire’s heroic image is built on media praise, breathless fans, and … romance novel tropes.

By Constance Grady
Publishing scammers are using AI to scale their griftsPublishing scammers are using AI to scale their grifts
Culture

Large language models are disrupting the publishing industry, from spam submissions to garbage books.

By Constance Grady
A reading guide for grownups who don’t readA reading guide for grownups who don’t read
Even Better

Librarian secrets to getting into books for the very first time.

By Constance Grady
Colson Whitehead on the heists, fire, and movie magic of his new novel Crook ManifestoColson Whitehead on the heists, fire, and movie magic of his new novel Crook Manifesto
Culture

The two-time Pulitzer winner is using his Harlem Shuffle trilogy to tell the history of New York.

By Constance Grady
2023’s best books (so far)2023’s best books (so far)
Culture

From shipwrecks to hijackings to sex comedies, these are the best books of the first half of 2023.

By Constance Grady
How Frog and Toad became queer anti-capitalist cottagecore iconsHow Frog and Toad became queer anti-capitalist cottagecore icons
Culture

Arnold Lobel’s quietly radical creations speak to those who don’t want to live a predetermined life.

By Cyrena Touros
When you can’t separate art from artistWhen you can’t separate art from artist
Audio
The Gray Area

Talking Monsters: A Fan’s Dilemma with Claire Dederer.

By Constance Grady
In Lorrie Moore’s new book, a man and his dead ex-girlfriend go on a road tripIn Lorrie Moore’s new book, a man and his dead ex-girlfriend go on a road trip
Culture

I Am Homeless If This Is Not My Home is weird, funny, gross, and tender.

By Constance Grady
What a new conservative call for “regime change” in America reveals about the culture war
Books

“Regime Change” sounds like a radical book. It isn’t — and that’s telling.

By Zack Beauchamp
The Shakespearean resonance at the heart of the Succession finaleThe Shakespearean resonance at the heart of the Succession finale
The Vox guide to HBO’s “Succession”

How Succession’s finale referenced Shakespeare to bring out Kendall’s crumpled ambitions.

By Constance Grady
The latest book ban target: Amanda Gorman’s poem from the Biden inaugurationThe latest book ban target: Amanda Gorman’s poem from the Biden inauguration
Politics

A Florida school has restricted who can read “The Hill We Climb,” a poem read at Biden’s 2021 inauguration.

By Li Zhou