John Green

John Green

Bestselling Author & Literary Curator

Bestselling author known for young adult fiction. Recommends 46 books spanning memoir, art, science, and contemporary literature.

Authors & Thinkers

John Green is a bestselling author best known for novels like The Fault in Our Stars. Beyond writing, he actively curates and recommends books across diverse genres, from memoirs to science writing, sharing thoughtful reading recommendations with a wide audience.

46 Books Recommended by John Green

Ranked by popularity across all reading lists on this site

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#1

by

4 people recommendedrecommended 3x

I truly believe will be remembered as a classic of our time.

I truly believe will be remembered as a classic of our time.

I truly believe will be remembered as a classic of our time.

Also recommended by: Melinda Gates, Gretchen Rubin, Jennifer Lopez

πŸ“–
#2

by

3 people recommended

Just brilliant.

Also recommended by: Melinda Gates, Judy Blume

πŸ“–
#3

by

2 people recommended

[Gets] better every time I read [it].

Also recommended by: Oprah Winfrey

πŸ“–
#4

The Water Will Come

by Jeff Goodell

2 people recommended

A thriller in which the hero in peril is us.

Buy on Amazon β†’

Also recommended by: Stewart Brand

πŸ“–
#5

Immune

by Philipp Dettmer

2 people recommendedrecommended 2x

Fascinating.

Fascinating.

Buy on Amazon β†’

Also recommended by: Tim Urban

πŸ“–
#6

A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor

by Hank Green

recommended 3x

[The author's] brilliant second novel.

[The author's] brilliant second novel.

[The author's] brilliant second novel.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#7

My Wife Said You May Want to Marry Me

by Jason B. Rosenthal

Captures the true boundlessness of love and the absolute heartbreak of loss.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#8

You Are an Artist

by Sarah Urist Green

recommended 3x

Has been a real balm amid the fear, helping me to pay closer attention while making stuff for and with people I love.

Has been a real balm amid the fear, helping me to pay closer attention while making stuff for and with people I love.

Has been a real balm amid the fear, helping me to pay closer attention while making stuff for and with people I love.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#9

Why Fish Don’t Exist

by Lulu Miller

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#10

The Cholera Years

by Charles E. Rosenberg

recommended 3x

Shows how 1832 annd 2020 are not so different.

Shows how 1832 annd 2020 are not so different.

Shows how 1832 annd 2020 are not so different.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#11

The General in His Labyrinth

by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

recommended 3x

[Gets] better every time I read [it].

[Gets] better every time I read [it].

[Gets] better every time I read [it].

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#12

I Am Still Alive

by Kate Alice Marshall

I reread to ease my anxiety.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#13

Ordinary Beast

by Nicole Sealey

recommended 3x

I really need poetry right now, like [this] beautiful book.

I really need poetry right now, like [this] beautiful book.

I really need poetry right now, like [this] beautiful book.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#14

Space Struck

by Paige Lewis

Gives language to the overwhelming anxiety I'm feeling.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#15

The Inexplicable Logic of My Life

by Benjamin Alire Saenz

Might be my favorite [book by this author].

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#16

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

by Benjamin Alire Saenz

recommended 3x

Tender and generous to the reader.

Tender and generous to the reader.

Tender and generous to the reader.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#17

We Are Okay

by Nina LaCour

A poetic meditation on loss that took me right back to those last days of adolescence.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#18

Piecing Me Together

by RenΓ©e Watson

recommended 3x

Genuinely changed the way I think about the role art plays in human life.

Genuinely changed the way I think about the role art plays in human life.

Genuinely changed the way I think about the role art plays in human life.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#19

The King Is Always Above the People

by Daniel AlarcΓ³n

recommended 3x

His stories still astonish me with their precision and their power.

His stories still astonish me with their precision and their power.

His stories still astonish me with their precision and their power.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#20

Calling a Wolf a Wolf

by Kaveh Akbar

Brilliant.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#21

Counting Descent

by Clint Smith

recommended 3x

[To quote the book,] I have always used words to try to convince the world that I am worth something.

[To quote the book,] I have always used words to try to convince the world that I am worth something.

[To quote the book,] I have always used words to try to convince the world that I am worth something.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#22

City of Light, City of Poison

by Holly Tucker

A history book that reads like a thriller.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#23

City of Thorns

by Ben Rawlence

recommended 3x

Follows a handful of refugees over the course of many years living in Dadaab refugee camp.

Follows a handful of refugees over the course of many years living in Dadaab refugee camp.

Follows a handful of refugees over the course of many years living in Dadaab refugee camp.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#24

The Man Who Couldn’t Stop

by David Adam

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#25

This Bloody Mary Is The Last Thing I Own

by Jonathan Rendall

My favorite boxing book ever.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#26

One of Us

by Alice Domurat Dreger

recommended 3x

By far the best nonfiction book ever written about conjoined twins.

By far the best nonfiction book ever written about conjoined twins.

By far the best nonfiction book ever written about conjoined twins.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#27

Round Ireland with a Fridge

by Tony Hawks

One of the funniest things I've ever read.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#28

Playing the Moldovans at Tennis

by Tony Hawks

recommended 3x

Excellent.

Excellent.

Excellent.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#29

The Unthinkable Thoughts of Jacob Green

by Joshua Braff

Great coming of age novel.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#30

The Pox Party

by M.T. Anderson

recommended 3x

One of the best novels of the past decade.

One of the best novels of the past decade.

One of the best novels of the past decade.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#31

Thirsty

by M.T. Anderson

Surprisingly brilliant vampire novel.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#32

Boy Proof

by Cecil Castellucci

recommended 3x

Haunting and beautiful story of this outcast girl.

Haunting and beautiful story of this outcast girl.

Haunting and beautiful story of this outcast girl.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#33

Fly on the Wall

by E. Lockhart

Brilliant feminist reworking of Kafka's metamorphosis.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#34

Leaving Atlanta

by Tayari Jones

recommended 3xBuy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#35

The Untelling

by Tayari Jones

Captures the precariousness of working-class life.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#36

The Golden Rule

by Ilene Cooper

recommended 2x

Has been huge to us in talking to Henry about imagining how other people are feeling.

Has been huge to us in talking to Henry about imagining how other people are feeling.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#37

Show Way

by Jacqueline Woodson

recommended 2x

One of my all-time favorite picture books.

One of my all-time favorite picture books.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#38

The Enormous Room

by E. E. Cummings

recommended 3x

I don't know why this isn't famous.

I don't know why this isn't famous.

I don't know why this isn't famous.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#39

Regarding the Pain of Others

by Susan Sontag

Hugely influential.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#40

Death Comes for the Archbishop

by Willa Cather

recommended 3x

Maybe the most important novel about American religion.

Maybe the most important novel about American religion.

Maybe the most important novel about American religion.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#41

This Blinding Absence of Light

by Tahar Ben Jelloun

A little intense, but it's really really good.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#42

Tyrell

by Coe Booth

recommended 3x

[The author's] first book.

[The author's] first book.

[The author's] first book.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#43

Kendra

by Coe Booth

[The author's first book] is more famous. I like this one just as much.

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#44

The Optimist’s Daughter

by Eudora Welty

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#45

Will You Miss Me When I’m Gone?

by Mark Zwonitzer

Buy on Amazon β†’
πŸ“–
#46

The Last Summer of Reason

by Tahar Djaout

recommended 2x

About a bookstore owner who lives in a country overtaken by extremists who believe that art is evil.

About a bookstore owner who lives in a country overtaken by extremists who believe that art is evil.

Buy on Amazon β†’