Best Nonfiction Books of 2024, as chosen by the Amazon Editors

EDITORS' PICKS

Best Nonfiction Books of 2024, as chosen by the Amazon Editors

Lindsay Powers | November 21, 2024

“The Boys of Riverside,” “Hope for Cynics,” “Nexus,” “Revenge of the Tipping Point,” “Narcotopia,” and “Our Hidden Conversations” (all pictured here) are among our top 100 book recomendations this year.

There is truly a title for every type of reader on the Amazon Editors’ Best Nonfiction Books of 2024 list. Looking for a feel-good story? You’ll root hard for the inspiring underdogs of The Boys of Riverside, even if you’re not a sports fan. Seeking an “A-ha!” moment? Malcolm Gladwell’s latest, Revenge of the Tipping Point, is irresistibly insightful. Trying to understand current events—or escape from them altogether? We’ve got plenty of books that fall into both categories, as we review below.

You can also check out the Amazon Editors’ favorites across genres—mystery, history, romance, sci-fi, and more—and our top 100, ranked. Read on.

When I read The Boys of Riverside, I was taken back in time to when I first saw Remember the Titans at the cinema. Thomas Fuller delivers a thought-provoking American underdog story that hits all the right beats. Where the Titans fought through racial prejudice, these football boys face a different foe—no one believes they can win for the simple fact that they're an all-deaf team. Every chapter is an engrossing look into the lives of the players, coaches, families, and Riverside community at large, diving into such topics as drug abuse, the vilification of sign language, and even the urbanization of farmland. It all plays a part in how this team comes together on the football field. A story of defeat and victory, of haves versus have-nots, and overcoming adversity, the narrative will make you want to read on, and even though you know the ending, it offers surprises and nail-biting moments along the way. One of the best books I've read all year; ultimately, it's an inspiring story that will speak to sports fans, deaf communities, allies, and more. —Ben Grange, Amazon Editor

Revenge of the Tipping Point is the kind of nonfiction book you could hand to literally anyone, and they would disappear for hours with their head buried in its pages. (Both my husband and my sixth-grader snatched up my copy.) Twenty-five years ago, Gladwell published The Tipping Point, which put him on the map as one of America’s most sought-after thinkers, speakers, podcasters, and writers. Now, Gladwell is re-interrogating the “dark side” of his famous tipping point theory, sharing intriguing stories that show how a tiny action, or number of people, can cause an epidemic, whether it’s opioid, crime, or COVID. But this isn’t a bleak read, because the takeaway is that a miniscule action or single person can also prevent, or stop, an epidemic in its tracks. You’ll walk away feeling inspired to action, with fresh insight into the forces that shape the world today. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

Perhaps you’re one of the more than 45 million people who read Yuval Noah Harari’s 2015 blockbuster, Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind. The history professor and philosopher’s latest book, Nexus, takes an expansive look at AI, the “alien life form” we’ve unleashed on humanity. But this brilliant and thought-provoking read is about so much more than a buzzy technology people are just wrapping their heads around—it’s a much wider look at how humans have leveraged technology to communicate through time, and how that has shaped culture, power, and currency—usually in ways we never could have planned or imagined. Deploying fascinating stories (you’ll never think about the Bible, the US Constitution, or the Roman Empire the same way again), Harari once again draws connections between vast ideas, and reshapes the way we see the world. He asks the questions I never thought to, but that we should all demand answers to. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

Fans of The Wire, Breaking Bad, and The Godfather won’t be able to resist this heart-pounding—and true—tale of drugs, crime, and power, with real-life characters whose astonishing stories have never been told. Take Wei Xuegang, whom you might call Asia’s “El Chapo,” otherwise known as a “stone-cold genius with the mind of a Fortune 500 CEO” who “dresses like a strip mall accountant”—and is the world’s best player ever in the drug trafficking game. He operates out of “one of the most secretive places on earth,” the 12,000-square-mile Wa State, nestled in a hilly region of Asia that might be compared to America’s Appalachia. Determined to stop Xuegang’s criminal enterprise and bring respect to his people is Superstar, himself a former druglord, whose steely principles land him squarely in the crosshairs of the US’ War on Drugs as a DEA informant. Who are the good guys, and who are the bad guys here? The lines are blurry—but Patrick Winn’s sharp, riveting storytelling never loses focus. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

On a dark night in Dallas, the body of an affluent white man was left for dead in a poor Black neighborhood. A man was swiftly arrested for the heinous crime, a jury spent about an hour deliberating his fate, and he was locked away for 35 years. But Ben Spencer didn’t murder Jeffrey Young, as reams of evidence proved. He was just in the wrong place, at the wrong time—and the investigation and his trial were bungled at every turn. This was by design, as NPR reporter Barbara Bradley Hagerty reveals in her gasp-inducing narrative about how the whims of chance, politics, racism, and our country’s laws make it shockingly easy to wrongly convict somebody, and nearly impossible to win their freedom. Written with the drama of a John Grisham novel, the character-building of The Wire or Charles Dickens, this David and Goliath story will provoke outrage, and action. Because, as this book proves beyond any reasonable doubt, what happened to Ben could happen to nearly anyone. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

Ten trillion scream emojis are not enough to describe this book, and I’ll resist the urge to write this entire review IN ALL CAPS. In two sittings, I tore through this horrifying narrative, a ticktock of North Korea launching a hypothetical nuclear missile at the US, followed by a minute-by-minute breakdown of what happens next (with the history of atomic weapons and geopolitics slyly woven in). Nuclear War is written like a thriller; it’s visceral and cinematic, like the big-budget blockbuster of Hollywood’s dreams. My heart is pounding. I am a mess. I need a break and yet can’t even put my Kindle down long enough to refill my water glass. This is all the more terrifying because it’s nonfiction, pieced together through interviews and classified documents dug up by Pulitzer Prize-nominated author Annie Jacobsen. Some books stick in your brain forever, and this is one of them; I can’t stop thinking about it—and talking about it—with everyone I know. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

If you could reveal your deepest, most intimate thoughts about race or identity in just six words, anonymously, what would you say? Those candid confessions—joyful, vulnerable, honest—are the heart of former NPR host Michele Norris’ stunning book, based on her 14-year-long “Race Card Project.” No matter your background or beliefs, everyone’s viewpoints are represented, in their own words—you squirm, you learn, you reflect, you relate. The result is a dynamic collection of stories and photos that crackle with energy. Because when we remove the shame and judgment from these conversations and expose them to the light, we can finally embrace and understand each other, what sets us apart, and what brings us together. Reading this powerful page-turner is a vital step in creating a more peaceful, prosperous country with room for everyone to have a seat at the table. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

Vanishing Treasures is filled with the wonder and awe of the most extraordinary animals—the perfect book to lose yourself in, or to bring up at any family gathering to avoid talking about politics. Katherine Rundell, author of the beloved best-selling (and Amazon Editors’ Pick) Impossible Creatures, has written a nonfiction tale that will spark your curiosity and love of the natural world, and leave you highlighting incredible facts about five-century-old sharks that grow 23-feet long (but survive off the caloric equivalent of about a cookie a day), air-filled hedgehogs that burst like balloons, tuna that swim so fast the Pentagon models missiles on their bodies, wombats with lush fur as gold as Marilyn Monroe’s hair…. Reading about these enchanting animals is perhaps the only opportunity humans have to encounter them, as they’re exceedingly rare and endangered. And each comes alive in short, vibrant chapters and vivid sketches, inspiring readers to savor what we have, and perhaps strive to save what could soon be gone forever. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

Bob Woodward shot to fame after breaking news of the Watergate scandal (alongside Carl Bernstein), which eventually led to then-President Richard Nixon’s resignation. Since then, the Washington Post reporter has doggedly held truth to power, especially in the political sphere. His latest book is no different. In a display of the longevity of his career and his access to power players, Woodward opens this book by uncovering a lost interview he conducted decades ago with former (and future) President Donald Trump, positing that it’s the early blueprint for modern Trumpism. Woodward then jumps to modern day to pull back the curtain on three current wars: in Ukraine, the Middle East, and for the American presidency. Newshounds and history readers alike will be enthralled with the Pulitzer Prize-winning author’s newest entry. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

Wow. Lawrence Ingrassia’s sweeping story of cancer gutted me, and is also one of the best science books I’ve read this year. Ingrassia, a journalist, turns the lens on his own family after his mother, two sisters, brother, and nephew succumb to cancer. Reading about them slowly developing the disease, beating it, and then ultimately dying is heartbreaking. Why does cancer strike certain families so relentlessly, how can you prevent it from happening to your relatives, and to yourself? This is when the book takes a turn into a medical mystery that evokes Brain on Fire (incredible memoir), Hidden Valley Road (stunning family narrative), and Outlive (medical information every human should know). We learn how genes hold clues as to how we’ll age, how certain bodies better ward off illness, and about the discovery of a rare syndrome that can increase your family’s risk for cancers of all types. On one hand, this book is a tragedy—this rare genetic disorder can feel like a death sentence, although the stories of strength and fortitude in spite of that are astonishing. On the other hand, this book is a triumph—the ability of doctors and science to fight cancer is stunning compared to just several decades ago, and the future is even more remarkable. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

You'll never look at your garden the same way after reading this delightfully insightful book about the chaos, savagery, and brilliance of the plant world. Perhaps you’ve read about how trees talk to each other. Well, this vibrant book posits that’s just the start—and that plants can actually send messages through the air via hormones, and they’re more alive than we ever thought possible. Plants are savvier than we give them credit for, with a rich world of connectedness and consciousness—and perhaps have much in common with humans. (Also, strawberry sex is a real thing that you’ll have to read the book to learn all about.) Science writer Zoe Schlanger’s enthusiasm shines through on every place, and you’ll revel in her wonder and awe at the natural world, and think deeply about the flora and fauna that people are usually too quick to take for granted. Readers are taken on a wild ride (anyone who’s seen the ‘80s movie Honey, I Shrunk the Kids might relate), fully immersed in the drama and beauty happening just outside our door any given day. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

There are books that consume you, that haunt you, that you read in a single sitting—and Ta-Nehisi Coates’ The Message is one. And that’s the goal, writes Coates (also author of the Pulitzer Prize-finalist and National Book Award-winning Between the World and Me) in his sweeping meditation on the stories we tell ourselves, and others, about our past and future. Coates takes readers on a literal and metaphorical journey—to Africa, to South Carolina, to Israel and Palestine—that will leave you deep in thought, and hungry to have conversations that lead to real connection. “You cannot merely stand at the edge. You have to walk the land,” Coates says, later writing, “It’s not surprising that everyday people grappling with laundry, PTA meetings, and bills do not always see the device and the deception.” Hypnotic, hopeful, lyrical—Coates wields incredible power with his pen. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

This book is deeply profound from the very first page. It’s hopeful, thoughtful, and mind-expanding: What could we accomplish, what kind of lives could we live, with true freedom? What do we lose when we look to the past instead of the future? Yale historian Timothy Snyder, author of the best-selling On Tyranny, has written a very smart purpose-driven life kind of book, one we wouldn’t be surprised to see among former President Barack Obama’s annual recommended reading list. Regardless of your personal politics, Snyder’s cerebral prose and thought process will make you pause to think about the lives we’ve settled for, the dreams we let die, and the fights we left unfought. How we move through the world, the communities we align ourselves with, the stories we tell ourselves—the small decisions we make every day have lasting, and outsized, impact. This book may make you reframe history and the present, and envision a more expansive future. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

I was skeptical that a 300-page book on refrigeration could hold my interest, but honestly, with Nicola Twilley’s narrative, zippy writing, I could have read 300 more pages. Twilley kicks off her page-turning journey into the “artificial cryosphere” by taking a job inside a nearly inhospitable commercial freezer that holds the milk, chicken nuggets, lobsters, yogurt, and ground beef consumed everywhere from school cafeterias to upscale restaurants. She introduces readers to an Arctic “doomsday vault” of seeds, a frozen dumpling billionaire, and even a “refrigerator dating expert,” and in the process, uncovers what’s at stake if the step that comes between the farm and the table is compromised. Refrigeration is “the most important invention in the history of food and drink,” she writes, transforming every aspect of modern-day life, “as worthy of awe as the Pyramids of Giza,” giving humans “power over space, time, and the seasons.” And that’s just the tip of the iceberg in this brilliant book full of frosty fables. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

Jonathan Haidt’s impeccably researched best seller is a must-read for parents—and anyone who’s interested in the intersection of technology and culture. Haidt details how childhood has fundamentally changed with the onslaught of smartphones and screens, with concrete advice on how to mitigate the damage. As the parent to two sons who devote countless hours to Fortnite, Roblox, iPads, and smartphones, I read this with eyes wide open and my highlighter uncapped. Haidt tackles the issues from all sides: steps that should be taken by parents, schools, tech companies, lawmakers—and dives deep into why technology is negatively impacting girls more than boys (but why boys are withdrawing from the world more). We can’t turn back time; technology is here to stay. But we can implement changes to improve the lives of our children. We all want to raise compassionate, kind, engaged, thoughtful children—The Anxious Generation will help us find the way. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

You’ll want to bring a copy of Marty Makary’s Blind Spots to your next doctor’s appointment. Makary, a Johns Hopkins professor and member of the National Academy of Medicine, reframes the myths about medicine, and explains the nuanced stories and sometimes shocking histories behind clickbait health headlines. Forget the fear mongering around hormone replacement therapy for women going through menopause or the panicky guidelines around infants and peanuts (which have been rolled back after sparking a staggering spike in allergies)—Makary breaks down the science, studies, and his real-life medical experience to offer a more balanced take that will leave readers feeling supported, informed, and more in control of our health. If your copy of Outlive is full of highlighted lines, you’ll devour this even-more-accessible primer. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

Hope for Cynics—if that’s not a title that stirs, ahem, hope in our beleaguered times, I don’t know what is. Fans of Adam Grant (Think Again, Hidden Potential) will find much to love in Stanford psychologist Jamil Zaki’s accessible, science-backed primer that feels very of-the-moment, given everything going on in the wider world, from wars to political strife. (And indeed, Grant gives Zaki a ringing endorsement, calling this book “a ray of light for dark days”). As Zaki explains, cynicism can lead to depression, inequality, and stagnation. Healthy skepticism, though, can stir a person to self-reflection and action. Take Martin Luther King Jr., who figures prominently in a compelling anecdote about how his cynicism gave him the moral clarity to fight for social change. Each chapter is narrative, replete with engaging anecdotes—with thoughtful takeaways for all readers to help open ourselves up to hope. Resonant. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

“We’re living in what they call the ‘Information Age,’ but life only seems to be making less sense,” Amanda Montell astutely observes in her funny and highly readable nonfiction book, which takes on wellness buzzwords like “magical thinking,” “Mercury in retrograde,” “The Secret,” and mindsets that lead us to make questionable choices or hold unexplainable beliefs. Whereas her last book was on the language of cults, her latest is on the psychology of language and how we use it to convince, connive, coerce, and comfort ourselves and each other. “Our shared grasp on reality [has] slipped,” Montell writes, deploying “whimsical to warlike” analogies (Taylor Swift, Disney adults, conspiracy theories) to explain why we all feel so overwhelmed, insecure, and disoriented. Reassuring, entertaining, endlessly quotable…after reading this “love letter to the mind,” the world suddenly made more sense to me. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

I picked up Stephanie Kiser’s debut memoir, about nannying for the richest New Yorkers, fully expecting a story in the vein of The Devil Wears Prada—you know, Lauren Weisberger’s 2003 dishy tell-all that sold over 13 million copies and was made into a movie that earned Meryl Streep an Oscar nomination. And there are plenty of eye-popping moments about unfathomably wealthy, out-of-touch Manhattanites with over-the-top demands for their children’s care. But the similarities end there. Kiser has also crafted a thoughtful, nuanced take on class, race, age, and sexism by weaving in her own experience growing up on the edge of poverty, struggling to stay afloat in college, and setbacks as she chases that ever-elusive American dream. Her astute observations—about motherhood, about the way we treat people we hire in service and caregiving roles—give readers plenty to think about, not unlike Maid. Come for the gossip, stay for the deep reflection this book is likely to provoke. —Lindsay Powers, Amazon Editor

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About the Editor

Lindsay Powers

Lindsay is a book lover, writer (bylines include The New York Times and The Washington Post), and an author (her first book, You Can’t F*ck Up Your Kids: A Judgment-Free Guide to Stress-Free Parenting, came out in 2020). When not devouring narrative nonfiction, fiction, memoirs, and essays, Lindsay can be found out and about in Brooklyn, where she lives with her husband and two young sons.