PEOPLE's Best Books of August 2024: Moon Unit Zappa Reflects on Father Frank and More New Reads
Wrap up summer with some of our must-reads
From nightclub-dwelling vampires to deadly online dating — here are PEOPLE's picks for the best books of August 2024.
'Earth to Moon' by Moon Unit Zappa
Moon Unit Zappa's father, the late musician Frank Zappa, was known for his legendary rock songs, but to his daughter, he was often absent throughout her childhood. It wasn't until Frank was diagnosed with prostate cancer that the two began to reconcile their differences. In this touching memoir, Moon looks back on her unconventional childhood, her family's complicated relationships and how she and her father finally began to connect.
'Lady Macbeth' by Ava Reid
Shakespeare never provided much backstory about his infamous villain. But this sharply drawn, hauntingly atmospheric redrawing turns Roscille into a witchy strategist thrust into a world of brutish men and worse circumstances. It’s a departure from the original, but a fun one.
'Red River Road' by Anna Downes
After Phoebe goes missing while Instagramming her solo van trip up Australia’s western coast, sister Katy retraces her path, increasingly fearful that Phoebe’s postings may have led to her death. Katy’s journey, fraught with secrets and terror, unleashes an unstoppable torrent of creepy suspense. — Robin Micheli
'By Any Other Name' by Jodi Picoult
Picoult's latest tells the dual-timeline stories of Emilia Bassano, a real-life woman who some historians have suggested could have been behind Shakespeare’s work, and Melina Green, a fictional modern-day playwright who finds success by using her Black male roommate’s name.
“I don’t know if I believe in reincarnation,” says the author. “But I feel like this is the story that I was meant to tell.”
'We Love the Nightlife' by Rachel Koller Craft
The Stone Cold Fox author returns with more gleeful scheming, this time in London, ca. 1979. British disco queen Nicola meets American party girl Amber and makes her a forever friend — in the way that only a bloodthirsty vampire can do. Decades later the twosome are opening their own club, but since Amber is now secretly planning her escape, outrageous betrayal is on the playlist. Delightfully undead fun. — Marion Winik
'Talking to Strangers' by Fiona Barton
Swipe-right culture goes wrong when Karen Simmons is found dead in a small British town after a night looking for love. In this tense and topical thriller, a detective and a journalist vie to find her killer among anonymous predators online — and risk becoming prey themselves. — Robin Micheli
'Becoming Little Shell' by Chris La Tray
“I’m committed to uncovering the culture of my people,” writes the author as he embarks upon a stirring exploration of his Indigenous ancestry that gets more complicated the deeper he digs. It’s a vital, revelatory story of self-discovery, the history of a people and survival.
'Freedom Is a Feast' by Alejandro Puyana
This sweeping multigenerational saga follows a young rebel in a doomed romance, a single mother and her injured son, all seeking redemption amid upheaval.
'The Volcano Daughters' by Gina María Balibrera
Long-lost sisters are reunited under cruel circumstances until genocide forces them to flee in this lush, imaginative debut with hints of magic.
There Is a Rio Grande in Heaven' by Ruben Reyes Jr.
Mango farmers, puppets, pop stars and cyborgs: This electrifying short story collection about migration and reinvention is not to be missed.
'The Bookshop' by Evan Friss
If you can’t pass a bookstore without stopping, pick this one up on your next trip. It’s a fascinating history of American booksellers and their uniquely important place in society, from Benjamin Franklin’s bookstore in Philadelphia to institutions like New York City’s the Strand to modern favorites like Ann Patchett’s Parnassus Books. A heartfelt, essential love letter to the literary sanctuary of bookstores and the people who run them.
'Mina's Matchbox' by Yoko Ogawa
Spending a year at her wealthy uncle’s estate, Tomoko is enchanted by its quirky inhabitants, particularly lovely, frail cousin Mina, who goes to school on a pygmy hippopotamus. Ogawa evokes the secret crushes and crushing secrets of girlhood with charm and elegance. — Marion Winik
'A Great Marriage' by Frances Mayes
Dara’s grandmother wrote a bestseller about what makes a great marriage, and her parents’ is fairy-tale. But when Dara’s soulmate Austin reveals a shocking betrayal on the cusp of their wedding, Dara flees, and both struggle to reinvent their lives. A moving immersion in love and loss. — Caroline Leavitt
'Worst Case Scenario' by T.J. Newman
An airline pilot has a heart attack midflight, sending the plane crashing into a nuclear power plant and setting off a global crisis. A heartpounder and one of the year’s best thrillers.
'Burn' by Peter Heller
Two men emerge from a remote hunting trip to burned buildings, bombed cars and rampant political violence. Their journey back home reads like a stark, riveting warning.
'Napalm in the Heart' by Pol Guasch, translated by Mara Faye Lethem
In a dystopian world torn apart by violence, one man must balance morality and survival as he acts rashly to protect his mother and find safety. A haunting love story.
'Hum' by Helen Philips
In a near future where climate change alters the landscape, robots called “hums” are ubiquitous. After May loses her job to AI, she earns money by undergoing surveillance-skirting surgery. Then she treats her family to an AI-generated botanical garden experience that takes a sinister turn when the kids wander off, and social media calls May’s parenting into question. A familiar yet distorted world in which a desperate family clings to rare moments of joy. — Wadza Mhute
'Group Living and Other Recipes' by Lola Milholland
Milholland inherited a group house in Portland, Ore., from her hippie parents, keeping their traditions alive with a shifting cast of housemates. An inspiring account of how and why to live a principled life, spiced with Pan-Asian recipes. — Marion Winik
'The Pairing' by Casey McQuiston
Four years after childhood friends and former lovers Kit and Theo explosively break up, they find themselves on the same European food tour. To prove they’re really over each other, they embark on a hookup competition. Grab a snack first—this one’s spicy, sexy and absolutely delicious.
'Wanted: Toddler’s Personal Assistant' by Stephanie Kiser
This smart, fun memoir about nannying for the rich offers a peek into rarefied circles, with incisive commentary on class, race and privilege. There's lots of gasp-inducing tidbits about the lifestyles of rich and famous tots, to boot.
'Plays Well With Others' by Sophie Brickman
Advice columnist Annie loves to judge the other cutthroat parents vying for kindergarten spots— but is she really any better? Funny, relatable fiction for anyone who thinks they're above the fray but still want to read all about it.
'Five-Star Stranger' by Kat Tang
In this heartfelt novel, one man has a long-term gig as a “Rent-a-Stranger” pretending to be a child’s absent father, raising questions on boundaries and commodification. A family love story for the ever-encroaching digital age.
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