RandomHouse

A comprehensive and profound treatise on climate. Though much of the information paints a bleak future, I felt inspired to action upon reading. If it’s too much for you, buy it for the person in your life who can handle the darkest truths. This book feels important.  It is my early pick to win a 2019 Pulitzer. I am recommending it to anyone who will listen. - Jason

Chef Kwame Onwuachi partners with Joshua David Stein to present his life on the page rather than in a dish—though we’ve got those too. His early days affected by love and violence, the Bronx and Nigeria, and a lucrative career dealing drugs, Onwuachi shows with reflective and unflinching honesty a journey shaped by family and heritage, and a food-centric destiny embraced with talent and hustle. Fully satisfied, I look forward to the next taste Onwuachi will share. - Jocelyn

I have all of Edna Lewis’s books and cannot recommend them highly enough. In Pursuit of Flavor, her third title, is a celebration of the seasonal cooking she grew up with in the farming community of Freetown, Virginia. With chapters such as From the Gardens and Orchards, For the Cupboard, and The Taste of Old-Fashioned Desserts, Miss Lewis shares memories, timeless recipes, and great tips for getting the most flavor out of food. This new edition features a foreword by acclaimed Savannah chef Mashama Bailey, who used In Pursuit of Flavor as the inspiration for her menu at The Grey. - S.B.

The secret to the perfect steak is in this book. Franklin Steak goes to the source of the many beef options in the market today and explores cattle and meat processing and the various cuts of meat. As a hobby cook I loved this book and have a better understanding of the source of my meat and what truly matters as I cook it. It is a wonderful combination of science, technique, and amazing recipes. - S.L.

Pok Pok Noodles boasts hearty recipes with 30-plus ingredients as well as more relaxed, anything-goes dishes where “virtually any vegetable is welcome.” Not to worry though; Andy Ricker is here to help. He includes tips on sourcing the right ingredients, an extensive vocabulary section, and the suggested utensils and flavor profiles for each recipe. This is an absolutely delicious collection for noodle-lovers like me! - Megan                                     

This gorgeous cookbook by Gabriela Cámara, the acclaimed owner/chef of Contramar in Mexico City and Cala in San Francisco, includes recipes served at her restaurants, but it is essentially a collection of the dishes that she serves her family and friends. From tortillas to tortas, tamales to flan, Cámara (who has a self-described “fanaticism for freshness”) shares recipes that are traditional and also inspired by seasonal ingredients. I love her voice throughout the book (including in her essays on sustainable seafood and her friendship with Diana Kennedy) and anticipate cooking her lush, delicious recipes for years to come. - S.B.

I like to play the part of the perfect hostess but prefer to work smarter, not harder. This is where Hoffman’s book comes in: Now I can just make a pitcher or two of drinks that have amazing flavor and complexity and then sit back and relax for the rest of the evening. With drinks for every occasion, including the one where you get to come home to a ready-made (aged!) drink, this book is a godsend. Take a look. I know what I’ll be bringing to the season’s first barbeque! - Jax

In this thoroughly engaging and delightful memoir, best-selling food writer Ruth Reichl (Tender at the Bone, Comfort Me with Apples), recounts her unexpected tenure as editor-in-chief of Gourmet magazine during the last decade of its existence. I love the ease of Reichl’s writing and her great storytelling skills, whether she is recounting mouthwatering meals, the quirkiness of staff members, or the heaviness of feeding firefighters in the aftermath of 9/11. More than a behind-the-scenes look at the workings of an iconic magazine, this is an endearing and thoughtful exploration of the ways food can bring people together. - S.B.

If decluttering and getting organized keeps making your to-do list and never getting done, these books could be the inspiration you need to move from dreaming to doing. We know and love Gretchen Rubin for her book with the cheery title The Happiness Project, and she’s hooked us again with this one: Outer Order, Inner Calm. Ahhhh, already the invitation is irresistible. Open this book to any page and you’ll get a bite-size tip about how to start. She’s kind, practical, reasonable, and encouraging.

If you’re a “before and after” picture junkie like I am, The Home Edit by Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin will appeal to your visually pleasing style. This book is broken into three simple sections: How to edit the contents of each area, how to set up the organization, and how to maintain the new systems. Shearer and Teplin assure you that if they can do it, you can do it. Seeing page after page of colorful “after” pictures with everything color coded, containers galore, and fancy folding is almost as good as seeing it happen in your own home. Whether you are aiming for a version of minimalism or just need that final push to clean some closets and make life simpler, these two books will get you started and see you through. - Jenny

This companion book to the PBS documentary series (airing in July) tells the stories of the visionaries who helped America complete JFK’s historic moon landing challenge. “Chasing the Moon is so informative and so entertaining that it can easily stand on its own as a popular history of the Space Race. Stone and Andres capture not only the Cold War rivalry and turmoil of the period, but its heady optimism.” —Joseph Kanon