Books of Interest Part 13: 2025 Summer/Fall Reading Recommendations

For the past few years, we have curated a list of our employees’ favorite reads. In celebration of National Book Lovers Day (August 9), we are excited to be back again with Part Thirteen of our “Books of Interest.”

If you are looking to be captivated by a story or have already binged your way through your streaming watch list, here is a list of eight books recommended by our employees. For those who may not be avid readers, we have expanded this series to include podcast recommendations as well. To check out even more recommendations, here are parts 1-12 of our Books of Interest blog posts: Books of Interest Archives | Stillman 2 Cents.

Lady Tan’s Circle of Women by Lisa See 

Lady Tan’s Circle of Women,” by Lisa See, is a historical fiction novel set-in 15th-century China, centered around Tan Yunxian, a woman who defies societal norms to become a physician. The story explores themes of female friendship, the constraints placed on women in a patriarchal society, and the power of women supporting each other. It follows Yunxian’s journey from an elite family, through an arranged marriage, and into a life where she embraces her passion for medicine and forges meaningful connections with other women, particularly a midwife named Meiling. 

–  Recommended by: Cristy M. 

Night Road by Kristin Hannah

Lexi never really fit in anywhere. Her great aunt has taken her in as a foster child after the long road she’s travelled in and out of the system with her drug addicted mother. On her first day at a new school, she meets Mia Farraday and the 2 girls form an unbreakable bond as neither one has every truly had a friend until they met. Lexi finds herself immersed in the Farraday family with Jude treating her as her own child. The twist, Mia has a twin brother Zach who Lexi finds herself in a bit of a troubling spot with when the 2 fall in love. Luckily for Lexi she doesn’t need to choose between her best friend and her boyfriend. Follow as the 3 navigate senior year of high school and what to come after, will Lexi be left behind as Mia and Zach follow the larger pathways they have in front of them? All of those worries fall to the wayside after a party the kids attend results in an accident. Lexi has been blamed for the death of her best friend in which she takes full responsibility causing her to lose not just her best friend but the love of her life and the family she finally had. Lexi pleading guilty leads to time in prison where she finds herself pregnant, now coping with the loss of everything else and the knowledge that she will be forced to give up custody of her daughter Grace whom she hands to Zach and the Farraday in the hospital before being taken back to prison. Can Jude forgive Lexi? Can Zach be a father, become a doctor and forgive himself and Lexi? Can Lexi forgive herself and cope with the loss of love, motherhood and family? Kristin Hannah has a true talent for words and this book is no exception. I cannot press enough how much this book moved me. I would be doing a disservice if I didn’t recommend this to readers!

–  Recommended by: Lindsey S.

Predictable Success by Les McKeown

No matter what kind of organization you work for, whether it’s your own small business or a global Fortune 100 company, your number one goal is success. Predictable Success takes you step-by-step through a startlingly simple, intuitive, and universal process that shows you how to bring sustained, lasting, predictable success to your organization. Find out where your organization is today and take the uncertainty out of tomorrow as you make the journey towards Predictable Success.

–  Recommended by: Andy W. 

The Boomerang by Robert Bailey  

The president of the United States has terminal cancer. Chief of Staff Eli James, his faithful consigliere and best friend, is one of the few who know. But just as the president’s condition mysteriously improves, Eli’s hit with another blow: his daughter has cancer too. Hell-bent on helping her, Eli turns to Big Pharma’s top lobbyist for advice, but their encounter yields more questions than answers. As he races along a twisted trail to the truth, he stumbles upon a devastating cover-up worth billions of dollars—and millions of lives.

Armed with this deadly secret, Eli goes rogue, fleeing with his family out west. To keep them safe, he forms an uneasy alliance with land baron Nester “the Beast” Sanchez, known for his ruthless power tactics. An epic showdown brews, and it’s the state versus one desperate citizen, willing to risk everything to save his daughter. Can Eli broker a truce with his once allies? Or will there be war in the desert?

–  Recommended by: Jennifer K. 

Throne of Glass series by Sara Maas 

I’m currently reading the Throne of Glass series by Sara Maas. It’s a fantasy series full of storytelling, world building, and romance. It tells the story of a strong female lead who grows up as an assassin who later works to defeat the tyrannical government that destroyed her homeland.

–  Recommended by: Kylie H. 

I Heard You Paint Houses: Frank “The Irishman” Sheeran and Closing the Case on Jimmy Hoffa by Charles Brandt 

A 2004 work of narrative nonfiction written by former homicide prosecutor, investigator, and defense attorney Charles Brandt, it chronicles the life of Frank Sheeran, an alleged mafia hitman who confesses the crimes he committed working for the Bufalino crime family. The title is in reference to, according to Sheeran, the first conversation he had with Hoffa over the phone, where Hoffa started by saying, “I heard you paint houses”—a mob code meaning: I heard you kill people, the “paint” being the blood spatter from the gunshot. Later editions of the book contain 71 pages of back matter largely detailing independent corroboration of Sheeran’s confessions that came to light after the book was first published. The book is the basis for the 2019 film The Irishman, which was directed by Martin Scorsese and starred Robert De Niro as Frank Sheeran.

–  Recommended by: Amanda D. 

Nichijou by Keiichi Arawi

A manga series that is perfectly bizarre. For a title that translates to “ordinary life,” the events that take place are anything but. A grade school mad scientist and her robot high school girl creation. Said robot thinks everyone at school believes she’s normal, but the wind-up key on her back gives it away. A farmer’s son acting like upstanding royalty. A principle battling and suplexing deer. A talking cat. Jokes that just don’t land leading into the most nonsensical situations. Ridiculous fights over food, bean guns, strange mascot heads, and more. Some things are too odd to explain. If you like absurd humor and don’t mind reading comics or manga, give this a try. 10 volumes total.

–  Recommended by: Dakota B. 

A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

It’s a classic easy read of an early 1900’s immigrant family, growing up in New York. The book deals with struggles of the time of poverty, education and gender roles. I’m normally not one for historical fiction, but this book stands the test of time!

–  Recommended by: Jenny R.  

Lore by Aaron Mahnke 

Lore is one of my all-time favorite podcasts! Aaron Mahnke covers many topics in folklore and myth, some very common, and some less so. He does thorough research and brings his findings to the table and presents them in an unbiased way for the listener to make their own opinions. The majority of the tales he covers are pre-2000’s, mostly between 1700 and 1900. Diseases, ghosts, creatures, royalty, vampires, pirates, and more. The podcast has grown, with a book and Amazon Prime series stemming from it. I cannot recommend it enough!

–  Recommended by: Amanda D.  

Brick Immortar by Sam Villareal 

While I originally found this series through his YouTube channel, I have quickly found that the podcast is every bit as good. Sam Villareal has a deep, soothing, matter-of-fact voice, perfect for the subject matter. He generally focuses on preventable engineering disasters, but he does have playlists dedicated to certain types, such as bridges, ships, and DUKW boats. His goal is to share the facts of these events, with primary research coming from NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) event reports. His intent is to make sure people know, as his saying goes, ‘Your safety matters’.

–  Recommended by: Amanda D.