Let Your Spotify Wrapped Pick Your Best-of-2024 Book for You
One of the best things about the end of every year? Getting to see your Spotify Wrapped and letting it define your personality for the final months of the year. I can’t be the only one who feels this way. If you’re still buzzing off of your Spotify Wrapped list, why not let your music tastes dictate your next book? Here are some of the best books of the year (according to multiple sources), and which one you should read based on your top 2024 album.
Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter:
James by Percival Everett
Beyoncé at the top of your Spotify Wrapped this year? Make sure you’ve read this book. If you love the way Beyoncé reclaimed and reimagined the country music genre in her 2024 album Cowboy Carter, you’ll also appreciate Everett’s reimagining of Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn, told from the perspective of Jim (though really prefers the name James), a Black man fleeing slavery. James has made it onto a bunch of end-of-year best-of lists, including Publishers Weekly and Amazon.
Sabrina Carpenter’s Short & Sweet:
The Pairing by Casey McQuiston
If Sabrina Carpenter’s latest album topped your Spotify Wrapped, you like things to be a little playful, a little sexy, and a little romantic. Check out Casey McQuiston’s super sexy travel romance novel The Pairing, which has been a notable addition on many end-of-year lists, including People. This book follows former lovers Kit and Theo as they tour Europe together and engage in a cheeky little hookup competition.
Charli XCX’s Brat:
The Eyes Are the Best Part by Monika Kim
So you had a Brat summer, and your Spotify Wrapped is reflecting that. You should read The Eyes Are the Best Part by Monika Kim. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. This is the most Brat horror novel of 2024. It’s also the top-rated horror book of the year, according to Goodreads. And of course, with all of this hype, you know it’s also on a bunch of end-of-year lists, including TIME. Not too bad for a debut novel. Very, very Brat. Charli XCX would be proud.
Kendrick Lamar’s GNX:
Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar
GNX was released at the end of November, but it’s already topping your charts? You, my friend, are dedicated, and you need a book to match. GNX has been called a tribute to West Coast hip-hop music and lauded for its authenticity. So pick up a book that feels equally personal, authentic, and poetic: Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar. This book follows Cyrus Shams, a former addict and poet who is obsessed with the idea of martyrs and is desperately searching for meaning in his life. Martyr! is on basically all the lists (including Vox), so you really can’t go wrong with this one.
Your Spotify Wrapped album of the year not on the list above? You’re in luck. You’re still totally allowed to read these top books of 2024. And with all of the great reviews they’re all getting, you’re guaranteed to like at least one of them, if not all. Happy reading to the end of 2024, music listeners!
