The essays are short and the tone is warm (but never saccharine), which made book feel easy to sink into. I was sad when it was over. I look forward to reading whatever Jones writes next!

This book is both sad and hopeful, scathing and uplifting. Brb, time to (finally) go read Abdurraqib’s entire backlist.

Written by the first American woman to win the Boston Marathon in 33 years, Choosing to Run is exactly what I love in a memoir. It was engaging, taught me something new, and made my world a little bigger.

Running While Black is the perfect blend of memoir and hard-hitting social commentary. Desir’s focus on the running world is both narrow (making it feel particularly fascinating) and broad (illustrating its necessity.

Dyscalculia is a hard-hitting, strikingly original little book about a messy breakup amid the author’s lifelong struggle with trauma and mental illness. It’s a very quick read that will definitely make for a strong reread.

The Undocumented Americans is a moving, well-written memoir-in-essays that does exactly what I want from nonfiction: it helps open my understanding of the world and other people.

The Year of Magical Thinking is the best parts of Joan Didion — shart, unapologetic, perfect sentences — but, by nature of the topic (grief), more personal and less detached. That was a winning recipe for me.

I Came All This Way to Meet You is honest, funny, and of course well written. Jami Attenberg is so good at her craft, and the book feels like a gift she gave us generously.

Fox & I is a unique, heartfelt little memoir. Although it didn’t quite hold my attention all the way through, the prose is excellent and I ‘m glad I read it.

Finding the Mother Tree wasn’t quite what I’d expected, but it was interesting and taught me something new and I’m glad I read it. I also recommend the audiobook!

These Precious Days is another beautifully heartfelt essay collection from Ann Patchett. It was a delight to read, especially the title essay.

Crying in H Mart is a beautifully written, deeply honest memoir. It will make you laugh, cry, and order Korean food.

¡Hola Papi! is a funny, compassionate memoir-in-essays full of personality and heart.

Somebody’s Daughter is exactly as good as all the hype says it is. Moving, gripping, smart, and incredibly observed. You should read it.

As You Were is a well written but extremely dark, heavy memoir. I recommend reading it across a long stretch of time.

A portrait of grief and examination of resilience, Sanctuary is a gorgeously written, vulnerable, insightful memoir of Rapp Black’s experience losing her son and having her second child.

Carry is one of those memoirs that just stands so far out from all the others. The writing is fierce, poetic, and self-assured. Read it.

Is Rape a Crime? is a scorching, no-holds-barred work that’s part memoir, part investigation into a society that refuses to treat rape like the felony that it is.