The Best (and Most Overrated) Books of 2024

Which subpar books actually warrant writing a bad review? Do best sellers usually live up to the hype? And how does our relationship with technology affect the publishing industry? Kara sits down with two of her favorite book critics, Dwight Garner of The New York Times and Becca Rothfeld of The Washington Post, to discuss the best and worst books of 2024. The trio debates standout books and notable disappointments, the craft of book reviewing, and the best way to experience a great book. They also explore the importance of best-seller lists, how concerned we should be over the rising tide of book censorship, and which books from 2024 could end up becoming forever classics. Books mentioned includes (listed alphabetically):

What Are Children For? On Ambivalence and Choice, Anastasia Berg & Rachel Wiseman

Boswell’s London Journal 1762-1763

Believe Nothing Until it is Officially Denied: Claud Cockburn and the Invention of Guerrilla Journalism, Patrick Cockburn

D'Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths

Carson McCullers: A Life, Mary V. Dearborn

You Dreamed of Empires, Álvaro Enrigue

James, Percival Everett

When the Clock Broke, John Ganz

The Upstairs Delicatessen, Dwight Garner

Small Rain, Garth Greenwell

Lesser Ruins, Mark Haber

Alphabetical Diaries, Sheila Heti

A Few Words in Defense of Our Country: The Biography of Randy Newman, Robert Hilburn

Splinters, Leslie Jamison

Howl's Moving Castle, Diana Wynne Jones

Creation Lake, Rachel Kushner

Liars, Sarah Manguso

We Who Wrestle With God, Jordan B. Peterson

Intermezzo, Sally Rooney

The Extinction of Experience: Being Human in a Disembodied World, Christine Rosen

Things Are Too Small, Essays in Praise of Excess, Becca Rothfeld

Knife, Salman Rushdie

I Heard Her Call My Name, Lucy Sante

The Rebel’s Clinic, Adam Schatz

The Politics of Cultural Despair, Fritz Stern

Hillbilly Elegy, J.D. Vance

Questions? Comments? Email us at on@voxmedia.com or find us on Instagram and TikTok @onwithkaraswisher Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices