November Book Roundup: 8 Worthwhile Reads from Memoir to Mystery
—November 2025 Book Recommendations
“That’s the thing about books. They let you travel without moving your feet.”
― Jhumpa Lahiri
November has been overflowing with reading—fitting, since it’s Nonfiction November! Between my book club picks, a heartwarming memoir, and novels I didn’t want to put down, this month’s stack felt satisfying.
Whether you’re in the mood to learn, reflect, or escape, here are six nonfiction books and two novels that captured my own attention and heart.
[See previously recommended books here]
NONFICTION
1. Being Henry
The Fonz . . . and Beyond
by Henry Winkler
If you grew up watching Happy Days like I did, Being Henry feels like catching up with an old friend. This memoir is delightful! Winkler’s honesty and humility are endearing. Listening to his narration for the audioversion is icing on the cake.
2. The Art of Gathering *
How We Meet and Why It Matters
by Priya Parker
Priya Parker will make you excited to a host a gathering. My book club just finished reading this together. We collected many wonderful ideas about how to make our individual gatherings more meaningful. See one gathering we experimented with here.
* Asterisked books from Daniel Pink’s Favorite Books list; you can find it here.
3. Traffic
Why We Drive the Way We Do and What It Says About Us
by Tom Vanderbilt
This book fascinated me from beginning to end about how we drive. It explores topics like why you should become a late merger, why dangerous roads are safer, why the other lane always seems faster, driving in a parking lot, and much more. It’s changed how I think (and drive) when I’m on the road.
4. The Gift of Therapy
An Open Letter to a New Generation of Therapists and Their Patients
by Irvin D. Yalom
Even if you’re not a therapist (I’m not, yet aren’t we all sort of one?), you’ll appreciate Irvin Yalom’s insights on how to be a better therapist and a better patient. His empathy for clients is obvious through his real-life examples. This book is an interesting one just as one human being interacting with another.
5. Moving On Doesn’t Mean Letting Go
A Modern Guide to Navigating Loss
by Gina Moffa
Not only do I love the content of this book, but I also love Gina Moffa’s tone. She is so gentle and kind. She offers such practical guidance for navigating grief at your own pace—without pressure or the false promise of “moving on.”
6. Joyspan
The Art and Science of Thriving in Life’s Second Half
by Kerry Burnight
Growing older can feel a bit scary. But this book is a refreshing antidote to the fear-based talk we typically hear. It offers lots of practical—and hopeful!—messages that older years can be full of purpose and joy.
[Read my full review of Joyspan here]
FICTION
7. Golden Girl
by Elin Hilderbrand
Even though I had to wait a while to get this 3-year-old book from my library, it was worth it. Hilderbrand tells this story with such charm and mystery about a family in Nantucket whose author mom was killed in a hit-and-run accident.
8. Broken Country
by Clare Leslie Hall
“The farmer is dead. He is dead, and all anyone wants to know is who killed him.” This engrossing novel is a haunting mix of love story and unfolding mystery. It kept me wanting to read one more chapter.
WHAT I’M READING NOW
- The Dreaming Way
Courting the Wisdom of Dreams
by Toko-pa Turner - Dear America
Notes of an Undocumented Citizen
by Jose Antonio Vargas - Growing Old
Notes on Aging with Something like Grace
by Elizabeth Marshall Thomas - My Friends
by Fredrik Backman - The Kite Runner
by Khaled Hosseini
Have you read a good book lately? I’d love to hear in the comments.
- 5 Reasons to “Do” the Book Instead of Just Reading It (+ 5 Book Picks)
- Double the Insight: Why It Works to Read Fiction and Nonfiction Together
Thanks, Lisa, as always for these great recommendations. Blessings!
You always seem to find the best nonfiction reads! I think I’d find that driving one fascinating as I am often thrown by how others drive nowadays. The Art of the Gathering sounds great too; I’m struggling with wanting to host much of anything lately so perhaps that would remind me of why I used to love it so darn much.
I haven’t heard of any of these but Broken Country looks interesting!
Alsooo, if you feel like helping a chaotic reader out — I’ve got a November Readathin poll up where y’all pick my book by its first line. Come vote and join the madness
Wishing you cozy chaos and untamed joy — Ash
Ash @ https://essentiallyash.blogspot.com
I have read The Kite Runner.
Currently I am reading Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport, and Giants in the Earth by OE Rolvaag.
Lisa, always love your recommendations and interests. I seem to detect a vintaging theme! 🙂 Pressed for time…. but know I love you.
xo
Lynn
“Joyspan” is a great concept. I am certainly happier now than when I was younger – my younger years were so fraught with fear, shame, and tension. The years have been a gift that has brought me a chance to change those patterns. Getting better at being joyful is work for a lifetime.
I’ve been reading books by Willa Cather lately. They can be sad, but are so insightful and beautifully written.
Lisa, I’m off to get my name on the library wish list for The Gift of Therapy. Sounds so good! I love that stuff!
Happy weekend, friend.
These sound like such great reads. I never would have thought to read the one about how we drive, but now you’ve piqued my interest. This is especially true since I drive almost a thousand miles a week.
Lisa, you always share such great recommendations. I’ll need to check out a few of these. Thank you for sharing.
I see several books here I need to add to my list. The Henry Winkler one is already on my “To Read” Goodreads list. Right now I am reading Wild Houses which is a slow go, as was Where They Last Saw Her. But I also recently read Between Two Kingdoms and it was excellent.
Have two of these requested from my library thanks to you! Now I do need you to tell us once again how you get so much reading done. What is your secret?
My only secret to reading more is doing other things less – which everybody already knows! haha. I do most of my reading in small snatches of time here and there, but somehow it all adds up because I grab those snatches often. 🙂
I think I need to block off time earlier in the day to read before I get sleepy at night. I put it off till later than get too tired. Just had my cataracts removed so now my eyes are much better so no longer have that excuse and want to get back reading more again.
I’ve read a few things lately that are looking beyond Lifespan to healthspan and now joyspan. I like that we’re thinking about getting the most out of the years rather than just the years… if that makes sense.
I loved Happy Days and really like Henry Winkler – glad you reminded me about his memoir! I’m also pretty sure that I heard about the book Traffic quite some time ago and thought it would be interesting to read. Or perhaps another similar book. Anyway – great collection of titles, and good recommendations! Visiting from WOYBS
Hi Lisa, thanks for joining us for #WOYBS. I also enjoyed Being Henry and found it surprisingly candid and humorous. That driving book sounds interesting, who thinks up these types of books?? Another great selection for us!
I read Being Henry and loved it. Wow, a few of these others sound so good…adding them to my list. I do have The Art of Gathering on my list already.