All 13 of "Good Morning America's" Book Club Picks Are Page-Turners
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
Good Morning America's book club, Cover to Cover, launched in October 2019 with the book Dominicana by Angie Cruz.
The book club showcases "diverse and compelling" authors, and features fiction and nonfiction picks.
Here are all 13 books chosen so far, including the most recent: Memorial by Bryan Washington.
We're living in the golden age of celebrity book clubs. TODAY's Jenna Bush Hager highlights literary page-turners; Reese Witherspoon's picks often become her next movie or TV adaptations; and Oprah chose her 86th book club pick not too long ago.
Launched in the fall of 2019, Good Morning America's book club is one of the newest additions to the high-profile book club pack. Officially called Cover to Cover, GMA's book club is devoted to "showcasing diverse and compelling authors telling both fiction and nonfiction stories." The hosts of GMA, including Robin Roberts, show off their own passion for reading in monthly interviews with authors.
So far, GMA's book club has highlighted books across genres, from sweeping historical novels, beach reads, books about the immigration experience, YA fantasy epics, books with feminist backbones, and ones that you should read with your own book club. Below, we're highlighting all 13 picks.
Memorial by Bryan Washington
Memorial is an unconventional love story. Though Benson and Mike are technically the book's central couple, they're apart for most of the story. Mike travels to Japan to see his dying father just as his mother is traveling to stay with them in Texas, leaving her in Benson's care. "At the tender heart of the book are families—natal and improvised, lost and recuperated—and the rituals that bind them," O's earlier review of Memorial said.
Speaking to Good Morning America, Washington shared his excitement at the news. "I'm so thrilled to be able to say that my novel, Memorial, is the next 'GMA' Book Club pick. It's a rom-com and it's a dramedy, and its characters navigate the intersections between queerness and race and class," Washington said.
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
The Midnight Library is a book written for book lovers. Matt Haig, the bestselling author of How to Stop Time, returns with another magical and thought-provoking tale.
The book is set in a mythical library, where every book contains the narrative of a different world that could have been. Nora Seed finds herself flipping through all of the lives she could have led. As she travels through the realities present in the Midnight Library, Nora reevaluates what is important to her—and what she'd been paying attention to instead.
Fifty Words for Rain by Asha Lemmie
Asha Lemmie, 26, started writing her debut novel Fifty Words for Rain when she was 16. The epic is set in post-war Japan, where a half-Black, half-Japanese girl named Nori navigates a society that won't ever accept her. Her mother is a Japanese aristocrat and her father, an American soldier. She finally finds a community after her half-brother, Akira, the heir to his family fortune, reaches out to her.
"It's a story about love, family, duty, identity and finding hope in the smallest of places," Lemmie told GMA. "This story means so much to me as someone who struggled with a sense of identity, and I hope it resonates with everyone trying to find where they belong.”
The Lions of Fifth Avenue by Fiona Davis
The Lions of Fifth Avenue is a book written for book lovers. Fiona Davis, author of New York-set historical novels like The Chelsea Girls, returns to another moment in the city's history—this time, the iconic public library in the year 1913, during a series of book thefts.
"It's set at the New York Public Library and it's about a family that lives in an apartment deep inside the building, an apartment that actually existed. It's about the magic of the written word and the power of women's voices, and it's dedicated to some of my favorite people: librarians," Davis told GMA.
Sex and Vanity by Kevin Kwan
Kevin Kwan, author of the irresistible Crazy Rich Asians trilogy, highlights a new group of characters with an abundance of money and a dearth of self-awareness in this romp of a novel. Sex and Vanity is a modern-day adaptation on E.M. Forster's Room With a View, following Lucie Churchill, the daughter of a white father and an American-born Chinese mother. She finds herself torn between two men—one who will appease her American family, and one who intrigues her.
"It's a summer escape full of travel, food, fun and fashion," Kwan told GMA. "The outrageous characters will make your crazy families seem almost normal."
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
One of the breakout novels of the summer, The Vanishing Half is the story of twin sisters from a small Louisiana town who take rapidly different trajectories after moving to New Orleans in the '60s. Desiree Vignes loses touch with her sister, Stella, who decides to marry a white man—and pass as a white woman herself.
"The question at the center of the book is really 'What makes me, me?' and 'What makes you, you?' and I think that those are questions that we are all constantly thinking about. So I hope that The Vanishing Half leads you to think about them in a different way," Bennett said. Want a head start? Read some of The Vanishing Half here.
The Book of V by Anna Solomon
In The Book of V, the lives of three women across the ages exhibit striking parallels—and ultimately come together in a twist that we are not going to spoil.
"I think a lot of readers will find some part of themselves in this book. Whether you relate most to the headstrong Esther, who doesn't want to become queen, or Vivian Barr, a senator's wife torn between following conventions and breaking free, or to Lily, a contemporary mother of two struggling to figure out what she even wants, you'll recognize and root for the characters in this book," Solomon told GMA.
Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore
Every year, Oona wakes up a different, random age. She lives her life literally out of order, learning about the choices she's made after she's already made them. Think 13 Going on 30, but even more chaotic.
"I know the whole world feels like it's out of order right now, and social distancing is tough, but join GMA's Book Club and we’ll all feel less isolated as we get lost in this uplifting story," Montimore told GMA.
In Five Years by Rebecca Serle
What would you do if you caught a glimpse of how your life would look in five years—and you were shocked by what you saw? Dannie Kohan gets a brief gift of foresight in this thought-provoking rom-com. Straight-laced and headed on a clear path, Dannie comes to find that her life is radically different than she'd planned. The novel is interested in the choices we make, and the people we choose.
"The novel is about the real meaning of love and friendship and the bonds that tie us all together," GMA said of In Five Years.
Long Bright River by Liz Moore
The modern heroin epidemic serves as the backdrop for this taut thriller, an emotional and family-driven version of the police procedural. Growing up in a troubled household, Mickey and Kacey are more than sisters—they're each others' rocks.
So what happened? Now adults, Mickey is a police officer in Philadelphia, and Kacey is living on the streets. When Kacey goes missing, Mickey uses her connections to track her down. OprahMag.com called Long Bright River "equal parts literary and thrilling." Good Morning America agreed, describing it as "at once heart-pounding and heart-wrenching: a gripping suspense novel that is also a moving story of sisters, addiction, and the formidable ties that persist between place, family, and fate."
Children of Virtue and Vengeance by Tomi Adeyemi
Tomi Adeyemi's propulsive YA novels are set in a fictional African kingdom where magic is real—but forbidden by a powerful autocrat. In the first novel, Children of Blood and Bone, teenage Zelie returns magic to her people. In the second, she deals with the often gruesome aftermath of her decision. As magic runs amuck, lives are lost. Speaking to OprahMag.com, Adeyemi called her book "a billboard for epic Blackness."
"The captivating fantasy, infused with rich West African culture, digs deep past the boundaries of imagination with a strong woman character at the helm," Robin Roberts said on Good Morning America. "I could not put down Adeyemi's debut book and same with the wonderful sequel."
The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell
"My main incentive when I'm writing a book is that I want to write a book that the reader can't put down, that they're gripped by, that they want one more chapter, one more chapter, one more chapter," Jewell told Good Morning America.
The Family Upstairs is no exception. Libby inherits her parents mansion, only to find that the house harbors a gruesome history. Switching between past and present, The Family Upstairs keeps you gripped until both strands come together in one climax.
Dominicana by Angie Cruz
When Ana Ruiz is 15-years-old, her life changes forever. Her parents make a decision to have her marry a wealthy restaurant owner who will take her far away from her home in the Dominican Republic, and to an apartment in the United States. This lyrical coming-of-age tale about a child bride is sure to raise questions about familial obligation, immigration, the fight for freedom, and how women can gain independence within a system working against them.
"The book is so important to me because it was inspired by my mother," author Angie Cruz said in a message that aired on TV. Good Morning America made a themed Spotify playlist to accompany your reading experience.
For more stories like this, sign up for our newsletter.
You Might Also Like
