Best Books of 2024
These are the most consequential books I read in 2024. Most of them were published in 2024, but a couple are a little older. Of the many books I read in 2024, these books have the potential improve reader’s understanding of the world. As these titles suggest, a big focus in 2024 was learning how best to help young people learn to navigate the world – Jonathan Haidt, Abigail Shrier, Melissa Kearney, and Yuval Levin each contribute to this ongoing conversation.
The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt
Haidt’s book drew great attention when it was released this year because he writes a data driven account of two phenomenon: Smartphones are bad, and parenting is off the rails.
More specifically, Haidt contends these two issues have created what he calls a “great re-wiring” of childhood. Instead of a play-based childhood, smartphones and poor parenting have created a screen-based childhood that is causing a massive decline in the mental health of young people.
You can read our full review here and Purchase the Book.
Bad Therapy by Abigail Shrier
Bad Therapy asks a simple question: Why has the generation (Gen Z) that has had the most mental health counseling also suffering from the worst mental health of any generation in history?
Answering this question, Shrier dives deep into data and research to understand how mental health professionals may inadvertently be causing much of the anxiety, depression, and other issues we see in Gen Z. Like Haidt, she pulls no punches when it comes to helicopter parenting.
The Two Parent Privilege by Melissa Kearney
The Two Parent Privilege makes a strong, data driven case for family. Kearney demonstrates why two parent households remain essential to the succuss, both individually and corporately.
Kearney gives us not one, but many reason why it’s essential to pour into our families. The numbers, as she demonstrates, don’t lie. Children benefit from two parents – emotionally, financially, intellectually, and in other ways. A recent Wall Street Journal article concluded that the more time parents spend engaged with their children, the more confident and capable those children will be as adults.
Buy the book here and read our review.
American Covenant by Yuval Levin
The United States Constitution has the ability unify our nation, according to scholar Yuval Levin. His book will not only revive your sense of American greatness, but it also instructs us on the amazing virtues found within our system of government. Levin’s book is readable and instructive.
If you could use a refresher on how our Constitution and system of government work, there is no better book than American Covenant. But, Levin’s work is not just about the functions of government, it’s about our interactions, our discourse, and the American way of life. His objective is to help see not only how our government should operate, but how we can each participate positively in the process.
Purchase the book here.
The Boys in the Boat by Daniel J. Brown
The Boys in the Boat embodies the American spirit. Brown tells the story of a University of Washington rowing team that defies all the odds to make it to the 1936 Olympics and take gold. A multitude of plot lines – personal stories, World history, the art of rowing – converge with an epic ending.
The centerpiece holding Brown’s book together is his writing. It’s not easy bringing together various disciplines and genres, but Brown nails it.
Buy the book or read our review.
There were many other wonderful titles read during 2024, but these stand out because they have the potential to make a difference in the way each of us sees the world. For more book suggestions, visit the bookshelf.