The Ultimate 2025 Reading Guide: PART 1
I asked 30 of the chicest readers I know what we should be reading this year. Here's what they said...
As the new year chugged its way into view, I asked 30 of the most well-dressed, well-traveled, and, of course, well-read people I know for the single book that we should all read in 2025. These are their recommendations — PART ONE! Part two will follow close on its heels tomorrow, so stay tuned, and HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Without further ado…
The Scremes Report 2025 Reading List
Aaron Kurlander, writer of the food newsletter Type 1, recommends you read Natural Beauty by Ling Ling Huang.
“In the age of Ozempic, RFK Jr., mommy bloggers and Luigi Mangione, this book beautifully tackles the topic of beauty ideals and the lengths we go to in the pursuit of perfection. It's suspenseful, smart, and sinister and I loved it!”
Alana May Johnson, writer of the newsletter Alanaland, recommends The Girls by John Bowen.
“I recommend kicking off 2025 with this low-key, morbidly funny little gem reissued by McNally Editions. The charming Edward Gorey cover couldn’t be more perfectly paired with the text. A delight!”
Alex Arthur, host of the reading and comedy series The Thing Is…, recommends Letters to a Young Poet by Rainier Maria Rilke.
“My favorite teacher, Lora Zane, gifted our class with the task of completing Letters To A Young Poet in the summer before our freshman year of college. The book is a collection of letters written by Austrian poet Rainer Maria Rilke to a young officer in the Military Academy called Kappus between 1902-1908 or something. Kappus had come across Rilke's poems in school and were the impetus behind his decision to leave the academy in order to pursue a career in writing and so, on the presuppose of an unpredictable future in the arts, Kappus decides to write Rilke for advice. Letter's To A Young Poet is small and dense. A comfort re-read of mine. Full of advice for not only any artist but any one. I recommend the fairly new Damion Searls edition which includes not only Rilke's letters but Kappus' as well (which former editions never included). Scream.
“Let everything happen to you
Beauty and terror
Just keep going
No feeling is final” - Rainer Maria Rilke
How beautiful is that!”
Anna Dorn, author of Perfume and Pain (Simon & Schuster, 2024) broke my rules and recommends THREE BOOKS!
“I'm going to violate the rules and pick three books I recommend for 2025 because I've read too many knockouts. First is Paradise Logic by Sophie Kemp—about an aspiring notary and waterslide commercial actress on a feverish quest to be the greatest girlfriend of all time. The second is Sky Daddy by Kate Folk—about a loner moderator for a video-sharing platform who is destined to fulfill her erotic fantasy of dying in a plane crash. And the third is Soft Core by Brittany Newell—about an ex-academic and current stripper on a dreamy journey through the San Francisco sexual underground to find her missing ex-boyfriend.”
René Bennett, author of Hymnal for Catastrophe (Mouthfeel Press, 2024), and editor of Let’s Stab Caesar, recommends Confessions of a Mask by Yukio Mishima.
“It's about a sexually tormented boy named Kochan (much like Mishima himself, a figure perhaps even more symbolic and complicated than his books), who is delivering a confession about his sinful buried self, in a twisted and much hornier rendition of the Confessions of Saint Augustine. The language of Mishima's writing is exquisite, even as he writes about violent martyrdom and perilous masculinity. The entire oeuvre of queer theory/sexuality studies/Judith Butler collapses into dust at the mercy of this book.”
Sophia Takvorian, the other half of Let’s Stab Caesar, recommends 1Q84 by Haruki Murakami.
“Don’t let its 1,318 pages intimidate you like it initially did me. While it came out in 2009, 1Q84 still remains as contemporary as ever: magnetic, mysterious, and lusciously written. My cousin bought this book for me as a Christmas gift at my request. I’ve never successfully read such a long book, but 2025 is all about intentionality, pacing ourselves, caring about the details, and scaling up our goals to match our aspirations.”
William O’Connor, writer of the travel newsletter Getting Around, recommends Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt.
“In this era of digital nomadism, I can’t think of a book more appropriate than Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. Magazine writer John Berendt accomplishes what so many of us dream of doing — moving somewhere gorgeous and immediately being pulled into its stranger-than-fiction society.”
Ochuko Akpovbovbo, writer of the culture newsletter As Seen On, recommends If An Egyptian Cannot Speak English by Noor Naga.
“This was the book that made me realize I needed to start a book club. Some novels begged to be discussed. It's such a short book — only about 200 pages — but packs a punch in terms of thematic exploration, character development, and form. It's truly something. I recommend it to everyone.”
Layla Halabian, co-editor of the literature newsletter Language Arts, recommends Open Throat by Henry Hoke.
“Open Throat is a magical and deeply moving novel with a narrator unlike any other: a queer, starving mountain lion living under the Hollywood sign. Frisky, funny, and lovable, our lion observes the residents of "Ellay" and his rapidly changing environment with so much tenderness that it'll break your heart. I read it in one dizzying sitting.”
Sophia June, the other half of Language Arts, recommends In Tongues by Thomas Grattan.
“I read this perfect gay panic book over the course of a couple days, where I was transported to the beautiful world of 2000 Gowanus, where 20-something Gordon has just arrived after an impulsive move from the Midwest following a breakup. Gordon does what any fledgling youth in the Big Apple does: He starts walking dogs, and soon is enveloped into the lives of two of his clients, an older, prominent gay couple who thrust him into the NYC art world. Think: cruising in Prospect Park, chosen families™, Christian fundamentalism, and 9/11.”
Angela Black, co-editor of Notch Magazine, recommends Just Kids by Patti Smith.
“Just Kids carries you and cradles you through an astonishingly candid journey that illuminates how true art is born. Pairs well with Malbec in a corner cafe just after sunset. Enjoy <3”
Sasha Landauer, the other half of Notch Magazine, recommends A Postcard for Annie by Ida Jessen.
“These are stories of women trying with their whole might to untangle that which is knotted. Jessen's prose is whetted to find its mark. I read one paragraph aloud to my mother in an act of small violence. Try to guess which.”
Ben Bradbury, co-founder of Reading Rhythms, recommends The Art of Peace by Morihei Ueshiba.
“I love wisdom that fits in my pocket. Ueshiba’s musings on living peacefully are suitably cryptic, waiting to be unpacked in a mindful moment. A great reminder that we could all use more peace in our lives.”
Twitter’s Audrey Horne, writer of the Substack of the same name, recommends Brat by Gabriel Smith.
“I devoured this book in one go sitting on the Amtrak from DC to New York and enjoyed every minute. Gabriel writes from the heart in the most engaging way, illustrating grief in a way that is never flamboyant or self-indulgent, but clear and honest and a joy to read.”
Mikey Friedman, founder of Page Break, recommends Make Sure You Die Screaming by Zee Carlstrom.
“Buckle tf up!!! This unruly debut novel comes out in April and it's a certified banger. A nonbinary ad agency burnout is on a wild road trip (in a stolen car) from Chicago to Arkansas to find their problematic Trump-loving father, who's gone missing. It's messy, relatable, heartfelt and joyfully unpredictable. Maybe we'll read it on PAGE BREAK ;)”
And that’s the end of Part 1!
Come back tomorrow for 15 more recommendations from more stylish readers.
In the meantime, you can shop the entire list here.
xoxo -Scremes