The Official Rewire 2025 Book List

Whether you’re celebrating the holidays with loved ones or just enjoying some quiet time off, this time of year is prime for curling up under a blanket and catching up on all the reading you wish you’d done during the year. The Rewire News Group staff is, unsurprisingly, made up of a bunch of book nerds, and we rounded up some of our favorites for all ages. Here are the books we think you should add to your shelf this year.

For adults

The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World by Robin Wall Kimmerer (non-fiction)

This is a quick read, but it resonated with me all year. It’s a book about the economy of nature, a gift economy. Finishing this book gave me so much hope. I borrowed it from the library, but a physical copy is necessary for home. -Cage Rivera, Senior Graphic Designer

Bitch: On the Female of the Species by Lucy Cooke (comedic science)

This book takes a critical—and comedic—look at evolution and the role sex and sexual pleasure plays in the animal kingdom. Cooke, through intriguing interviews with animal experts, challenges the idea that our cultural beliefs about the role of evolution in gender roles, sex, and sexual choice have firm footing in evolutionary science. -Cameron Oakes, Staff Editor

Easy Beauty by Chloé Cooper Jones (memoir)

This is a provocative and honest memoir exploring disability, motherhood, and the perception of beauty. It challenged me with difficult feelings that begged me to reconsider my own understanding of beauty differently. -Ashley Guckert, RNG consultant from the News Revenue Hub

Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley (fiction)

I was skeptical when I saw Bradley’s debut novel promoted as “recommended reading for literally everyone” at my local bookseller. Science fiction isn’t normally my genre, and Ministry of Time is about time travel. But it’s also about a lot more than that, including imperialism, spy intrigue, forbidden love, climate change, and more. I tore through this page-turner in a few days. -Catesby Holmes, Editorial Director

Bad Summer People by Emma Rosenblum (fiction)

Set on Fire Island, New York, Bad Summer People is one-part rich people behaving badly, and one-part murder mystery. This book was delicious—it follows several wealthy couples and singles whose summers are dictated by tennis, the beach, and mind games. It’s scandalous and at times enraging, and the mysterious death at the center of it all keeps you flipping the pages. What more could you ask for? (Plus, the movie adaptation is set to star Sarah Michelle Gellar!) -Natasha Roy, Staff Editor

Second Chances in New Port Stephen by T.J. Alexander (queer fiction)

Though the romance market is diversifying, there are still not enough romance novels about trans people, especially trans men, so I jumped at the chance to read this gem. When TV writer Eli Ward returns to his Florida hometown for the holidays, he doesn’t know what to expect. He’s sober, post-transition, and unsure if his small town will welcome him. But then he runs into his high school ex, Nick, and their magical love story propels the plot forward and really makes the book shine. I love reading about trans folks being properly cared for and loved! -Evette Dionne, Newsletter Editor

For young children

Grump Groan Growl by bell hooks

My sneaky way of inserting anti-racism into my nephew’s formative years has been buying bell hooks’ children’s books. Grump Groan Growl is a humorous exploration of moods. -A.G.

Pride Puppy by Robin Stevenson

After the Supreme Court heard a case about banishing this board book from schools, I knew I would buy it. What I didn’t know is that my 2-year-old, knowing nothing of anti-rights politics, would adore Pride Puppy. It’s now a favorite on heavy rotation in my house. It’s not about bondage, as Justice Neil Gorsuch seemingly suggested during oral arguments. It’s a colorful, joyful lesson on ABCs. “K is for kindness and friends that we’re keeping.” -C.H.

On the Day You Were Born by Debra Frasier

It’s a win if I can get through this book without crying. As my baby approaches 18 months, I’m feeling all the feelings about the transition from babyhood into toddler life. I love to read this book to my baby at bedtime, all cozied up, and marveling at how it tells the story of how the whole universe anticipated and welcomed her. It takes me back to the life-changing moment of her arrival and puts it in a beautiful context of the wider world and all other living things. -Sarah Frank, RNG consultant from the News Revenue Hub

Santa’s Diaries: A Year of Mayhem, Merriment, and Miracles at the North Pole by Nicholas F. Christmas, J.M. Tannenbaum, and V.C. Tannenbaum

Ask not what Santa can do for you, but what you can do for Santa. In this delightful, cute little novel, we witness a year in the life of the big man himself in the form of diary entries. I used to reread this around the holidays for years, and it never failed to make me laugh out loud. From Mrs. Claus trying to help Santa stay healthy to maintaining the sleigh, Santa’s Diaries is a fun read for adults and kids alike. -N.R.

For teens, young adults, and adults who are young at heart

Joy to the Girls by Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick (YA sapphic fiction)

Rachael Lippincott and Alyson Derrick are my favorite married writing duo. Joy to the Girls, a novella follow-up to She Gets the Girl, follows our graduating seniors Alex and Molly to Barnwich, Massachusetts, a fictional Christmas-obsessed town, during their winter break. They’re enjoying all the town’s fun holiday activities while also trying to get two of their friends to realize they like each other. This quick read will get you into the holiday spirit. -E.D.

Only This Beautiful Moment by Abdi Nazemian (YA gay fiction)

If you, like me, largely learned about Iran through American aughts propaganda, political thriller TV shows, or any other inaccurate or Islamophobic source, I encourage you to read this sweet, poignant novel on Iranian and American boyhood, queerness, and family. Split across three generations, Moud and his distant father, Saeed, travel from Los Angeles to Tehran to see his dying grandfather. Tender, poignant, and contemporary, Nazemian invites you into a portion of Iranian history, culture, and queer identity with compassion and love. -Diana Fraser, Head of Operations

Loudmouth by Deborah Heiligman (YA feminist history)

U.S. textbooks often give American anarchism short shrift. The political activist Emma Goldman, who envisioned a less capitalist, more communal U.S., was a big player in that movement. Goldman, born in Lithuania, was a complex, volatile character who fought mercilessly to change the adopted homeland she loved. Heiligman doesn’t attempt to whitewash Goldman’s complicated and sex-filled life for young readers, and her story reads more like a novel than a biography. -C.H.

Only for the Holidays by Abiola Bello (YA holiday romance)

Tia Solanké is a London girl who loves the hustle and bustle of the city. Quincy Parker is a country boy who loves his family’s farm and inn. Their worlds collide when Tia’s mother surprises her daughters with a trip to Quincy’s farm. When Quincy needs a date to the town’s biggest ball of the year, the pair agree to fake-date. This classic romance trope has been done countless times, but there’s something endearing about Black teens in the United Kingdom unwittingly falling in love during the holidays. -E.D.

The Afterlife of Holly Chase by Cynthia Hand (YA holiday novel)

For those who enjoy innovative reimaginings of A Christmas Carol. Spoiled and selfish teen Holly Chase was visited by the three classic Ghosts on Christmas Eve five years ago. Unlike Ebenezer Scrooge, Holly dies because her behavior didn’t improve after her haunting. Now, unable to move fully to the afterlife, she works for Project Scrooge, the top-secret company that selects a Scrooge to haunt every holiday season. But this year’s Scrooge is also a teenager who may die if he doesn’t change his ways, and Holly might just be falling for him. I read this book two years ago and the twist still stays with me! -E.D.

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