The 25 best books of 2022
The 25 highest-ranked books first published in 2022 in our ranking of 2,816, scored on how much readers love them, their prize, best-list and bestseller record, and current buzz. We rank 86 books of 2022 in all. How we rank
- 1
Demon Copperhead96.3Must-Read ScoreDemon Copperhead
Dickens's David Copperfield, moved to the mountains of Lee County, Virginia, in the 1990s and 2000s.
Why it made the listPulitzer Prize for Fiction winner (2023)Women's Prize for Fiction winner (2023)81 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2022Goodreads Choice (fiction) finalist (2022) - 2
I'm Glad My Mom Died91.3Must-Read ScoreI'm Glad My Mom Died
Jennette McCurdy was six when her mother put her in her first audition, and she spent the next decade as a child actor, eventually starring on Nickelodeon's iCarly, all to make her mother happy.
Why it made the listGoodreads Choice (memoir autobiography) winner (2022)#1 New York Times bestseller (8 weeks at #1)151 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2022 - 3
The Housemaid89.3Must-Read ScoreThe Housemaid
Millie is out of prison, out of options and living in her car when she's offered a live-in job as a housemaid for the wealthy Winchester family.
Why it made the list#1 New York Times bestseller (3 weeks at #1)One of the ten best-selling books of 2024 and 2025 (Publishers Weekly)Goodreads Choice (mystery thriller) finalist (2022) - 4
Remarkably Bright Creatures87.4Must-Read ScoreRemarkably Bright Creatures
Since her husband died, seventy-year-old Tova Sullivan has worked the night shift cleaning the Sowell Bay Aquarium, and she's been grieving for much longer: her eighteen-year-old son vanished on a boat in Puget Sound more than thirty years ago.
Why it made the list133 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2022Goodreads Choice (fiction) finalist (2022) - 5
Unreasonable Hospitality83.3Must-Read ScoreUnreasonable Hospitality
Will Guidara was 26 when he took over Eleven Madison Park, a struggling two-star New York brasserie.
Why it made the list120 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2024 - 6
Black AF History: The Un-Whitewashed Story of America83.3Must-Read ScoreBlack AF History: The Un-Whitewashed Story of America
Michael Harriot, a columnist and commentator, retells American history from the perspective of Black Americans, from the first Africans brought to Virginia to the present.
Why it made the list44 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2023Goodreads Choice (history biography) finalist (2023) - 7
Finding Me83.1Must-Read ScoreFinding Me
Viola Davis grew up in a rat-infested apartment in Central Falls, Rhode Island, hungry, bullied and living with her father's violence against her mother.
Why it made the list#1 New York Times bestseller (1 week at #1)74 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2022Goodreads Choice (memoir autobiography) finalist (2022) - 8
An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us82.9Must-Read ScoreAn Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us
Every animal lives inside its own sensory bubble, a world of the signals it can pick up.
Why it made the list19 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2022NBCC Award (Nonfiction) finalist (2022)Goodreads Choice (nonfiction) finalist (2022) - 9
Reminders of Him82.7Must-Read ScoreReminders of Him
Kenna Rowan has spent five years in prison for a mistake that cost a young man his life.
Why it made the listOne of the ten best-selling books of 2022 (Publishers Weekly)Goodreads Choice (romance) finalist (2022) - 10
Septology81.6Must-Read ScoreSeptology
Asle, an aging painter and widower, lives alone on the coast of Norway, with a fisherman neighbor as his only friend.
Why it made the listNYT 100 Best Books of the 21st Century - 11
The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times81.4Must-Read ScoreThe Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times
In this follow-up to her memoir Becoming, Michelle Obama shares the habits, relationships and ways of thinking that have helped her stay hopeful and steady through uncertain times.
Why it made the list#1 New York Times bestseller (8 weeks at #1)38 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2022 - 12
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow79.5Must-Read ScoreTomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow
Sam and Sadie meet as children in 1987 in a hospital game room, where they bond over video games.
Why it made the listGoodreads Choice (fiction) winner (2022)56 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2022NYT 100 Best Books of the 21st Century - 13
Babel78.4Must-Read ScoreBabel
In 1828, Robin Swift is taken from Canton as an orphan to England and trained to study at Babel, Oxford's Royal Institute of Translation.
Why it made the listNebula Award winner (2022)Goodreads Choice (fantasy) finalist (2022) - 14
In the Blood77.0Must-Read ScoreIn the Blood
A woman boards a plane in Burkina Faso after carrying out an assassination for Israel, and two minutes later the plane is blown out of the sky.
Why it made the list#1 New York Times bestseller (1 week at #1) - 15
The Escape Artist76.2Must-Read ScoreThe Escape Artist
In April 1944, nineteen-year-old Rudolf Vrba and a fellow prisoner escaped from Auschwitz after hiding for three days in a woodpile.
Why it made the listBaillie Gifford Prize finalist (2022)Goodreads Choice (history biography) finalist (2022) - 16
The Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness, and Healing in a Toxic Culture76.0Must-Read ScoreThe Myth of Normal: Trauma, Illness, and Healing in a Toxic Culture
Gabor Maté, a Canadian doctor known for his work on addiction, argues that much of the chronic illness and mental illness in Western societies comes from trauma and stress, and from a culture that is itself unhealthy.
Why it made the list27 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2022Goodreads Choice (nonfiction) finalist (2022) - 17
Stay True75.4Must-Read ScoreStay True
Hua Hsu arrived at Berkeley in the 1990s as a serious, music-obsessed son of Taiwanese immigrants who made zines and looked down on anything popular.
Why it made the listPulitzer Prize (Memoir) winner (2023)NBCC Award (Memoir) winner (2022)Goodreads Choice (memoir autobiography) finalist (2022)NYT 100 Best Books of the 21st Century - 18
Beyond the Wand75.0Must-Read ScoreBeyond the Wand
Tom Felton spent ten years playing Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter films.
Why it made the list#1 New York Times bestseller (1 week at #1) - 19
Book Lovers74.5Must-Read ScoreBook Lovers
Nora Stephens is a ruthless New York literary agent who never gets the guy in the story; she's the city woman the hero leaves for a small-town girl.
Why it made the listGoodreads Choice (romance) winner (2022)#1 New York Times bestseller (2 weeks at #1)25 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2022 - 20
Every Summer After74.2Must-Read ScoreEvery Summer After
Persephone Fraser spent every summer of her teens at her family's lake cottage in Ontario, falling for Sam Florek, the shy, bookish boy next door, who became her best friend and then much more.
Why it made the list24 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2022Goodreads Choice (romance) finalist (2022) - 21
Carrie Soto Is Back74.1Must-Read ScoreCarrie Soto Is Back
Carrie Soto was the greatest tennis player in the world, with a record twenty Grand Slam titles, and she was famous for being fierce and unlikable.
Why it made the listGoodreads Choice (historical fiction) winner (2022) - 22
Things We Never Got Over73.9Must-Read ScoreThings We Never Got Over
Naomi Witt has just run out on her own wedding when she arrives in the small town of Knockemout, Virginia, to help her troubled twin sister.
Why it made the list38 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists since 2022Goodreads Choice (romance) finalist (2022) - 23
A World of Curiosities73.7Must-Read ScoreA World of Curiosities
It's spring, and the village of Three Pines is emerging from a harsh winter.
Why it made the list#1 New York Times bestseller (1 week at #1) - 24
Part of Your World73.3Must-Read ScorePart of Your World
Alexis Montgomery is a successful ER doctor from a wealthy, powerful family, recovering from an abusive relationship.
Why it made the listGoodreads Choice (romance) finalist (2022) - 25
Some Desperate Glory73.2Must-Read ScoreSome Desperate Glory
Earth was destroyed by aliens when Kyr was a baby.
Why it made the listHugo Award winner (2024)Goodreads Choice (science fiction) finalist (2023)
