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The holiday season is the perfect time to cozy up with a new book. Whether you're looking for something to read or looking for the perfect gift for the literary lover in your life, look no further. Some of your favorite celebrity musicians, actors, and socialites happen to be bookworms and they have great recommendations to consider.
Of course, we have celebs like Oprah and Reese Witherspoon who are known for their celebrity book clubs, but we're diving a little deeper to reveal the books beloved by pop stars like Beyoncé, Shawn Mendes, Dua Lipa, Adele, and more. Keep scrolling to get 15 book recommendations from some of today's biggest stars!
1. Norwegian Wood - Haruki Murakami: Recommended by Harry Styles
When Harry Styles isn't busy making hit albums and selling out arenas, it turns out there's a good chance he's reading. The superstar has recommended many books from Rob Sheffield's music memoir to Joan Didion, but there's one that sticks out above the rest. In a previous interview with Rolling Stone, Styles revealed Norwegian Wood was the first book he couldn't put down. Styles admitted that reading wasn’t really his “thing” until an ex-girlfriend gave him some books. “I felt like I had to read them because she’d think I was a dummy if I didn’t read them.”
2. Klara and the Sun - Kazuo Ishiguro: Recommended by Dua Lipa
Dua Lipa is an avid reader and often takes to Instagram to share her book hauls. Earlier this year she shared her summer reading list with fans. This Nobel Prize-winning dystopian sci-fi novel from British writer Kazuo Ishiguro was the first mentioned on her list. Keep scrolling to check out her other picks.
3. A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry: Recommended by Dua Lipa
4. Swimming in the Dark - Tomasz Jedrowski: Recommended by Dua Lipa
5. On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous - Ocean Vuong: Recommended by Dua Lipa
6. Girl, Woman, Other - Bernadine Evaristo: Recommended by Dua Lipa
7. Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier: Recommended by Taylor Swift
You can't write chart-topping and decade-defining songs without reading at least a little. This 1938 Gothic novel has been a source of inspiration for many artists including filmmakers Alfred Hitchcock and Guillermo del Toro, and of course Taylor Swift. The song 'tolerate it' off her 2020 album evermore was inspired by the two main characters.
8. Shantaram - Gregory David Roberts: Recommended by Shawn Mendes
Since canceling the remainder of his world tour in order to take care of his physical and mental health, Shawn Mendes has had more time to read. He took to Instagram to share this 2003 novel after he read it and dubbed it a "life changer."
9. Untamed: Stop Pleasing, Start Living - Glennon Doyle: Recommended by Adele
Continuing on the subject of "life changers," this best-selling book got rave reviews from none other than Adele. In a lengthy Instagram post, the singer recommended this book to her fans after admitting she didn't know she was "solely responsible" for finding joy in her life until reading this book.
10. What Will It Take to Make A Woman President? - Marianne Schnall: Recommended by Beyoncé
Back in 2016, Beyoncé recommended this 2013 book to all of her fans, but especially the young ones. “I would love for my younger fans to read What Will It Take to Make a Woman President? by Marianne Schnall," she said per People. "It’s a collection of interviews and essays by great women, including Maya Angelou, Gloria Steinem, and Melissa Etheridge. They will inspire you to become a better leader.”
11. Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind - Yuval Noah Harari - Recommended by Lizzo
If you've ever wondered why humans do what we do, this may be the book for you. Lizzo recommended it over the summer while promoting her album Special. She told the Today Show that she enjoys reading psychology books in her free time. She also mentioned the following book in the interview.
12. The Molecule of More: How a Single Chemical in Your Brain Drives Love, Sex, and Creativity - Daniel Z. Lieberman: Recommended by Lizzo
13. Lost & Found - Kathryn Schulz: Recommended by Gwyneth Paltrow
This Pulitzer Prize-winning memoir was shared by Paltrow's Goop Book Club as the first pick of 2022. You can read an excerpt from the book at Goop.com.
14. The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself - Michael A. Singer: Recommended by Miley Cyrus
Miley once tweeted, "reading books so i don't die a famous pop pop dumb dumb" and it seems like she's continued to keep challenging herself through books. In a 2016 interview, Miley revealed that she gave contestants on The Voice this self-help book to help them calm down before live performances.
15. You Can Heal Your Life - Louise Hay: Recommended by Jennifer Lopez
JLo read this 1984 self-help book in her twenties and recommended it to anyone who hasn't read it yet. “One [book] that really helped me in my life and empowered me was a book by Louise Hay called You Can Heal Your Life,” said Lopez. “I read it when I was in my twenties. It made me realize how powerful my thoughts were–what I thought about myself, others, and work. [It also helped me realize] all the things I had to pay attention to and how that created my life. I really encourage you guys to take a look at this book if you’ve never read it!”