What To Read

Every month, we share the books we can't wait to read. Our August staff picks include: a French bestseller finally landing in the U.S., a novel debut by a writer of Parks and Rec, and one of critics’ most anticipated books of the summer from a National Book Award winner.

FICTION

Sunbirth by An Yu (Aug 5)

Selected by Emmanuel Hidalgo-Wohlleben

I was instantly intrigued by the premise of this novel from Chinese author An Yu, who has received heaps of praise for her previous two novels. The story is set in a small isolated village, surrounded by deserts, and follows the lives of a young woman and her sister as the sun slowly disappears above them. As the villagers begin to accept their doom, strange humans arrive in their town and the villagers wonder if they hold the key to his mystery. The plot is so surreal and strange and I am dying to know how it turns out.

People Like Us by Jason Mott (Aug 5)

Selected by Lynda Hammes

I still smile sometimes when I stay in a hotel, remembering that scene from Hell of a Book where 'The Kid' chases the author around on his book tour. If this follow-up delivers even half the haunting humor of Mott's National Book Award winner—and early buzz suggests it will—then consider me hooked!

Mona's Eyes by Thomas Schlesser (Aug 26)

Selected by Fernanda Gorgulho

This international bestseller has finally arrived in English, and I can’t wait to take this art-filled tour guided by an author who’s also an art historian. The novel follows a ten-year-old girl and her grandfather as they spend 52 Wednesdays visiting Paris’s great museums before she loses her sight. Each masterpiece becomes a lesson in how to see the world—its beauty, pain, and wonder—while she still can.

Loved One by Aisha Muharrar (Aug 12)

Selected by Fernanda Gorgulho

Emmy-winning writer Aisha Muharrar, whose credits include Parks and Recreation, The Good Place, and Hacks (a personal favorite), makes her fiction debut with a novel that’s been landing on just about every summer reading list. Centered on two women brought together after the death of someone they both loved, it digs into the layered grief and quiet rivalry that follows. With its mix of humor, emotional honesty, and sharp dialogue, it will read like the work of someone who’s spent years crafting unforgettable television.

A New New Me by Helen Oyeyemi (Aug 26)

Selected by Lynda Hammes

This book is made up of 7 diary entries of 7 different embodiments of a single woman named Kinga - all of whom need to reckon with their split personality when discovering a man tied up in their apartment. Another fractured fiction from the great Helen Oyeyemi perfect for making my own hang-ups seem like a Hallmark movie.

The Once and Future Me by Melissa Pace (Aug 19)

Selected by Romina Raimundo

Melissa Pace’s debut novel throws us straight into the mind-bending dilemma of a woman who wakes up in a 1950s psychiatric hospital with no memory—unsure if she’s mentally ill or the only one who can stop a dystopian future. It promises a wild, unpredictable ride and a fierce look at how society punishes women who won’t play by the rules.

This Kind of Trouble by Tochi Eze (Aug 5)

Selected by Natalie Shaw

What excites me about This Kind of Trouble is how it captures that electric edge of adolescence—made even sharper against the backdrop of 1990s Lagos, where military rule and protest are woven into daily life. Tochi Eze brings a rare depth to this story of four friends coming of age in a city full of contradictions, while also tracing the buried secrets of the past that continue to ripple through their families. I’m drawn to the way it explores how young people find joy, love, and defiance even in the most uncertain times.

Songs for Other People's Weddings by David Levithan (Aug 5)

Selected by Fernanda Gorgulho

This adult novel from longtime YA author and Scholastic editor (including the new Hunger Games!) sounds like a total delight. It follows a wedding singer who writes personal songs for every couple, even as his own relationship quietly falls apart. The novel was written in collaboration with Swedish indie musician Jens Lekman, who shared real-life wedding gig stories (including passing out inside a fake cake) and composed 16 original songs that readers can listen to while reading.

NONFICTION

King of Kings: The Iranian Revolution by Scott Anderson (Aug 5)

Selected by Emmanuel Hidalgo-Wohlleben

In the wake of Israel's bombing and the US strikes on Iran, I wanted to better understand how we got here—and King of Kings feels like essential reading. What I've seen from Scott Anderson’s telling of the Iranian Revolution is sharp, fast-paced, and almost unbelievable in the ways both the U.S. and the Shah managed to get it so catastrophically wrong.

Blessings and Disasters: A Story of Alabama by Alexis Okeowo (Aug 5)

Selected by Iliyah Coles

I absolutely love intimate histories and I couldn't trust Alexis Okeowo more to deliver on this extensive and personal look into Alabama. Such a charged state with a charged past – both beautiful and devastating. She draws a straight line between laboring in cotton fields all over the state to working in Amazon warehouses today. Just the thought of it gives me chills, as texts like this make you reflect on how much has changed and wonder if it's enough.