When it comes to entertainment and education, we can choose from podcasts, videos, games, live performances, or books, one of the oldest and still most popular ways to learn something new or escape (at least temporarily) from todays troubled world. We asked the staff of The Verge what their favorite reads were in 2024. Their answers ranged from fantasy and science fiction to histories of engineering and clothing to autobiographies, insights on body image, and more.Read on, and see if theres anything here that you want to check out during the holidays.Barbara Krasnoff, reviews editorWhen recommending novels, I usually try to go with those that come from independent presses or that arent on anyones bestseller list because there are so many books and authors that dont get the attention they deserve. However, this year, Ive gone against my usual habit and chosen two books that are popular and publicized retakes of well-known tales, simply because I could not put either down.James is an incredibly intelligent and insightful retelling of Mark Twains Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from the point of view of the boys companion, the enslaved man named Jim. And The Bright Sword is a fantastic (in both senses of the word) retelling of the mythos of King Arthur that takes place just after Arthurs death, from the viewpoint of a neglected young man who defies the class system to become a knight. Both books are not only extraordinarily well written but also bring new and unexpected insights into tales that have been so microscopically examined over the years that youd think there was nothing new to add. But in the case of both of these books, youd be wrong. James byPercival Everett$15A skillful retelling of Mark Twains Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from the point of view of the enslaved man Jim.$15 at Amazon (Kindle)The Bright Sword: A Novel of King Arthur by Lev Grossman$15A fantastic (in both senses of the word) retelling of the mythos of King Arthur that takes place just after Arthurs death.$15 at Amazon (Kindle)Kara Verlaney, managing editorLike most millennials, I grew up on a steady diet of daytime Food Network shows when I stayed home from school. Barefoot Contessa was always my number one. There was some form of procedural satisfaction about watching as this grandmotherly hostess spent hours, seemingly effortlessly, preparing a meal for a 20-person gathering, only to wistfully sigh, smile, and never enjoy the fruits of her own labor. So when I heard the Barefoot Contessa Ina Garten was writing a memoir, I knew I was already bought in.Ill put it plainly: this book is perplexing. From her previous stint as a US nuclear budget analyst to learning how to fly planes to five entire chapters about how she wanted to decorate her Paris apartment, its a memoir that will have you constantly asking yourself, Is this lady for real? (There is a lot of quiet money as an explanation for her various achievements.) Its a trip!I listened to the audiobook (she narrates), and hearing her lilting, peaceful voice talk about her rough childhood, relationship with her fan-favorite investment banker husband Jeffrey, and her (at the time) radical decision to not have children reminded me that were all human and all experience lifes trials. Ina just has the unique ability to make it all look like luck. Be Ready When the Luck Happens: A Memoir by Ina Garten$15A memoir of a fascinating life by the host of Barefoot Contessa.$15 at Amazon (Kindle)Andrew Liszewski, senior reporterBill Hammack is a professor of engineering who is better known as engineerguy on YouTube, where, for years, hes shared compelling videos breaking down the complex engineering of seemingly simple items we often take for granted. Think diapers, soda cans, and duct tape. His book, The Things We Make, does the same thing but provides more in-depth looks at the engineering behind ancient marvels like medieval cathedrals. Its worth a read just to learn how the microwave was created and eventually found its way into the average home. The Things We Make: The Unknown History of Invention from Cathedrals to Soda Cansby Bill Hammack$10Bill Hammack provides in-depth looks at the engineering behind ancient marvels like medieval cathedrals.$10 at Amazon (Kindle)Kristen Radtke, creative directorThis deranged collection of linked stories is so preposterously good that Ive read lines from it out loud to friends at dinner parties, on the subway, and once, in a public sauna. In this viscerally uncomfortable, laugh-out-loud, straight-up gorgeous book, Tulathimutte scrapes bare the corners of the internet and (forgive me) the contours of the human heart so piercingly that reading it is like a long-range emotional endurance exercise. I cant stop thinking about it or talking about it. Disclosure: the author is my friend, but that doesnt mean hes not a genius. Buy a copy for yourself and for your weirdest, smartest pal. Rejection by Tony Tulathimutte$15A preposterously good collection of linked stories.$15 at Amazon (Kindle)Allison Johnson, reviewerThis will surprise nobody: Midnight in Chernobyl is not an uplifting read. But it is meticulously well reported and an incredibly comprehensive look at the Chernobyl disaster, from the inception of the nuclear power plant to the aftermath visited on generations of people affected by its explosion. Its all very matter-of-fact but recounts the events before, during, and after the disaster with remarkable humanity and places it all in the broader context of Soviet corruption without ever feeling like a history textbook. It is a thick book, and I could not put it down.On a lighter note, I also picked up St. Lucys Home for Girls Raised by Wolves, an older collection of short stories from Karen Russell. The way she can just punch you in the guts with a sentence is unfair. The stories mostly feature kids in those awkward middle school-ish / early teen years, and theyre a little (or a lot) surreal. Theres a sleepaway camp for kids with sleeping disorders, a seaside formation of giant conch shells that might be haunted, and the titular home for girls raised by wolves, which is what it says on the tin. It makes you remember how hard it is to be growing up and more than once cracked my heart right open. Midnight in Chernobyl: The Untold Story of the Worlds Greatest Nuclear Disaster by Adam Higginbotham$17A meticulously well reported and incredibly comprehensive look at the Chernobyl disaster.$17 at Amazon (Kindle)St. Lucys Home for Girls Raised by Wolves: Stories by Karen Russell$14Stories that feature kids in those awkward middle school-ish / early teen years and which are a little (or a lot) surreal.$14 at Amazon (Kindle)Victoria Song, senior reviewerI read a lot of books this year, but these three stuck out because they made me think a lot about perspective. Notes on an ExecutionThe Travelling Cat Chronicles is told from the point of view of Nana, a sassy stray cat, as he accompanies his adopted human Satoru across Japan, trying to figure out why Satoru needs to rehome him. (Warning: you might want a tissue box if youre a cat owner.) Meanwhile, The Memory Police is a dystopian story of a small island in which the government can make certain peoples memories of objects and things disappear at will and one persons choice to hide a friend who can still remember things they shouldnt. (Its vibe is like The Giver by Lois Lowry, but make it Japanese.)Theyre all different books, but Ive been thinking about them all year because they deftly dig into why we make the choices we do and how those choices are viewed and felt by the people around us. Each book made me look in the mirror and think about the sort of person I am and who I want to be. I think thats the best kind of fiction, really. Notes on an Executionby Danya Kukafka$10The story of a serial killer on death row, narrated by both himself and three women whose lives he upended.$10 at Amazon (Kindle)The Travelling Cat Chroniclesby Hiro Arikawa, translated by Philip Gabriel$14Told from the point of view of Nana, a sassy stray cat, as he accompanies his adopted human Satoru across Japan.$14 at Amazon (Kindle)The Memory Policeby Yko Ogawa, translated by Stephen Snyder$13A dystopian story of a small island in which the government can make certain peoples memories of objects and things disappear at will.$13 at Amazon (Kindle)Kate Cox, senior producerMy only regret about reading The Steerswoman (and its three sequels) this year is that I did not read it 30 years ago this book would absolutely have become a formative part of my personal adolescent canon.The best way I can describe the Steerswomen is as a wandering order of largely female natural philosophers. They observe, deduce, test, and share knowledge in a slow-motion, preindustrial world, and the way Kirstein lays out her prose and her characters encourages the same in the reader. Several times during the series, I formed conclusions that were not borne out by the evidence and had to discard them and did not mind doing so because that was just part of the process.I read a lot of genre fiction, and I love a slow burn, so The Steerswoman fits the brief. But also I admire Kirsteins respect for the intelligence and wit of both her characters and her readers; she brings you along on the journey and trusts you to understand the people youre journeying with. Despite starting the series 35 years ago, shes still slowly adding to it, and to say I am looking forward to a fifth installment in coming years is a massive understatement. I will preorder and devour it when another book comes along. The Steerswomanby Rosemary Kirstein$3A wandering order of largely female natural philosophers observe, deduce, test, and share knowledge in a slow-motion, preindustrial world.$3 at Amazon (Kindle)Mia Sato, features reporterLook, I love clothes. I research them, I buy them, I even make them. Fashion is an essential part of how we express ourselves and our ideas (if you dont trust me, ask Steve Jobs). But the journey of how our fashion gets to us is purposely opaque, because the truth is far more upsetting than many of us are ready for especially in this era of ultrafast, dirt-cheap clothing.Sofi Thanhausers 2022 book is a pickax to this wall of secrecy. She traces the hidden history and costs of five types of textiles linen, cotton, silk, synthetics, and wool in this deeply reported work. Thanhauser travels to locales like China to learn from the last producer of ancient silk; to the North Carolina town where textile mill workers staged large-scale strikes in the 1920s; and to Northern England, where conservation groups are protecting local sheep biodiversity. This book isnt just for fashion people (though they should be the first to read it); its for anyone curious about the labor that goes into the luxuries they take for granted. You will never look at a T-shirt the same way again. Worn: A Peoples History of Clothing by Sofi Thanhauser$12Traces the hidden history and costs of five types of textiles linen, cotton, silk, synthetics, and wool in this deeply reported work.$12 at Amazon (Kindle)Cath Virginia, senior designerAs someone who is, more often than not, the fattest person in the room, its no surprise that I have struggled a lot with my body image and self-worth. That, on top of the guilt over feeling bad about feeling bad, ends up compounding like the interest on my student loans (and because body positivity feels like a pipe dream to a girl whose mind is riddled with body dysmorphic brain worms).Enter Jessi Kneeland, a former personal trainer turned body image coach, whose central thesis revolves around the notion that our body image issues are always a symptom of a larger and more complicated internal conflict. Through this, they share insight on how to identify the true source of a persons body image issues as well as clearly outlined steps on what to do about it. Life-changing is an understatement.Ta-Nehisi Coates latest book is an exploration of the concept of storytelling, told through a series of essays centered around three different locations. Dakar, Senegal, a historic site of the transatlantic slave trade; Columbia, South Carolina, where a school teacher fights an attempted banning of Coates own book; and finally, Palestine, where he spends a few days in May 2023 observing the stark contrasts between life in Gaza and Israel. It left me with a sense of optimism (or maybe blind faith?) that despite how hopeless the present moment can feel, our collective imaginations are ever shifting toward something better than before. Body Neutral: A Revolutionary Guide to Overcoming Body Image Issues by Jessi Kneeland$5A former personal trainer turned body image coach explains the notion that our body image issues are always a symptom of a larger and more complicated internal conflict.$5 at Amazon (Kindle)The Messageby Ta-Nehisi Coates$15An exploration of the concept of storytelling, told through a series of essays centered around three different locations: Dakar, Senegal; Columbia, South Carolina; and Palestine.$15 at Amazon (Kindle)