From memoir to sport and history, here’s our lookback at this year’s finest reads
For lovers of nonfiction, 2025 has been a great year. For starters, it saw literary giants like Margaret Atwood and Zadie Smith doing us the pleasure of reflecting on everything from childhood to pop culture. Then there was Robert MacFarlane’s eye-opening investigation into rivers, Ian Leslie’s brilliant Beatles book, and Corinne Low’s fascinating deep dive into what makes women feel so stretched both in work and at home. But perhaps most importantly of all, there were also books which had real-world consequences, from Sarah Wynn-Williams’ memoir-cum-Facebook-expose Careless People, to Virginia Roberts Giuffre’s devastating account of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse.
And that is not all. Here’s our pick of the 14 best nonfiction books released this year.
Is a River Alive? by Robert Macfarlane
Macfarlane’s study of rivers as living beings proved one of the year’s most thought-provoking reads. Its mix of travel, environment, politics and personal reflection reframes how many of us think about the natural world, while its urgency feels impossible to ignore.
Hamish Hamilton, £25
Book of Lives by Margaret Atwood
Atwood’s long-awaited memoir met every sky-high expectation, revealing the forces that shaped a literary giant. Her mischievous humour, scientific eye and vivid storytelling turned seven decades of work and life into something electric. Few autobiographies this year felt so rich.
Chatto & Windus, £30
John and Paul by Ian Leslie
In a world of countless Beatles books, Leslie manages the rare feat of making the band’s history feel fresh. By using the songs to unpack Lennon and McCartney’s creative partnership, he offers a precise, revealing portrait of collaboration, and one of the smartest music books of the year.
Faber, £25
Careless People by Sarah Wynn Williams
This insider’s account of life working among the secrecy and chaos of Facebook is nothing short of jaw-dropping. Wynn Williams’ stories of power and dysfunction are by turns depressing and darkly funny; the attempt to silence her only underlines the book’s significance.
Macmillan, £22
Femenomics by Corrinne Low
Low delivers one of the year’s clearest explanations of why so many women feel overstretched at work and at home. Her research puts forth both clear evidence and practical strategies that make this book as eye-opening as it is genuinely useful.
Hodder & Stoughton, £22
Nobody’s Girl by Virginia Roberts Giuffre
Giuffre’s posthumous memoir of the abuse she suffered at the hands of Jeffrey Epstein is painful to read, especially knowing her fate. Having said that, there is a note of hope here, too, given that this book stands as a record of courage that forced long overdue consequences.
Doubleday, £25
Get In by Patrick Maguire and Gabriel Pogrund
This definitive account of Labour’s dramatic return to power will make for an even more interesting read now than it did when it was first released in February. Written with the feel of a gripping chronicle, the authors capture Starmer’s drive, the internal battles and the hard choices that reshaped the party.
Bodley Head, £25
Dead and Alive by Zadie Smith
Smith is as fine an essayist as she is a novelist. Her latest collection on culture, art and public life proves that few writers can frame the present moment with such clarity – and few can so carefully balance intellectual acuity with playfulness.
Hamish Hamilton, £22
Fly, Wild Swans by Jung Chang
Chang’s magnificent return to her family story, first told in the bestselling Wild Swans, is a moving account of exile and ambition. Her portrait of leaving China for Britain in the late 70s, while still trying to stay connected to her mother, illustrates just how much the personal and the political are intertwined.
William Collins, £25
Injury Time by David Goldblatt
Goldblatt turns the state of football into a wider portrait of Britain itself, tracing how the game reflects shifts in class, politics and mood. It is entertaining and convincingly argued, suiting fans of sport and social history alike.
Mudlark, £22
107 Days by Kamala Harris
Harris reflects on an election campaign that began in chaos and unfolded at breakneck speed. Candid and surprisingly gossipy, this book is worth reading for its inside view of a political machine under pressure, and the compromises demanded by momentum.
Simon & Schuster, £25
38 Londres Street by Philippe Sands
Told with his signature blend of memoir, legal drama and political history, Sands’ account of Pinochet’s London arrest and the fight to hold him accountable makes for one of the most compelling history books of the year.
W&N, £25
Going Nuclear by Tim Gregory
Gregory makes a clear, unflinching case for taking nuclear energy seriously in any realistic path to net zero. His explanations of the science, the trade-offs and the public misconceptions keep the debate grounded while the writing itself is lively and engaging.
Your next read
Bodley Head, £25
Finding My Way by Malala Yousafzai
In her second memoir, Malala’s reflections on study, identity, activism and adulthood reveal a person growing up under extraordinary scrutiny from all angles – and someone attempting to build a life beyond global symbol-hood.
W&N, £25
