ELLE Editors’ Favorite Books of 2022

Celeste Ng’s latest novel Our Missing Hearts tells the story of Bird, a 12-year-old boy navigating a dystopian world consumed by paranoia and groupthink that feels just familiar enough to our present reality to be absolutely terrifying. We find Bird and his father living in an America that has been ravaged by The Crisis—years of economic instability and violence that Americans blamed on China. In an effort to restore normalcy, a decade earlier, the government passed the draconian PACT (Preserving American and Culture Traditions) Act, allowing authorities to remove the children of alleged dissidents, particularly those of Asian descent, from their homes and place them with foster families. At the center of all of this is Bird’s mother, Margaret, a poet turned unintentional activist forced to abandon her family in order to keep it partially intact, and Bird’s quest to find her. The stunning story Ng beautifully weaves is the perfect book for our present moment—a cautionary tale of what happens when fear goes unchecked and of the power of art and brave individuals to bring social change. Ng writes in her author’s note that “it is hard to analyze your own era,” but with Our Missing Hearts, she has nailed it.—Kayla Webley Adler, ELLE Deputy Editor

Full disclosure, I wasn’t the biggest fan of Emma Straub’s previous novels, but This Time Tomorrow tugged on my heart. Her creative take on traditional time-travel tropes will have you frantically turning each page, and reaching for the phone to call your dad.—Claire Stern, Digital Deputy Editor

Don't let the young adult label fool you, this one is for rom-com lovers everywhere. New York Times bestselling author Casey McQuiston's (Red, White, & Royal Blue) third novel tells the story of Chloe Green, whose mission is to be the valedictorian of Willowgrove Christian Academy—whatever it takes. The only person who stands in her way is Shara Wheeler, the seemingly perfect principal's daughter. When Shara goes missing after kissing Chloe and leaves a trail of clues, Chloe becomes hellbent on finding her academic rival. With a rag-tag team of classmates, cryptic puzzles, and about as much pink as humanly possible, Chloe works to uncover the secrets surrounding Shara and, in the process, finds herself. McQuiston's YA debut is a natural and real take on discovering one's identity, proving that the process of finding oneself is a journey worth taking. I cried, laughed, and devoured this one in a day. McQuiston has a winner in Shara Wheeler. Let the scavenger hunt begin.—Sam Maude, Assistant to the Editor-in-Chief

If you're looking for some inspiration—this book is it. It's a historical fiction novel based on the life of entrepreneur Josephine N. Leary, a Black slave from North Carolina who was emancipated in 1865 and focuses on her journey of building a real estate empire. Alexander did an extensive two year investigation process, including combing original documents from the Rubenstein Library at Duke University and visiting Edenton, NC to see Josephine Leary's building, which is still standing all these years later, to creatively tell Leary's story. I was in awe as I read about Leary's drive, tenacity, and resilience.—Danielle James, Digital Beauty Director

Bonnie Garmus' debut novel has been 2022's literary little engine that could. The heartfelt and bitingly funny '50s-set story introduces Elizabeth Zott, a straight-shooting scientist born decades too soon. Workplace harrassment forces her into a TV career where she helps a nation of women recognize their potential. As a first-time novelist in her 60s, Garmus has a story almost as interesting as Zott's. The book was published to good reviews last spring, alongside a fiction slate that included some of the biggest names in books. But as the year continued on, it remained on the best-seller lists long after its peers—it's been on the Times list for 31 weeks. Barnes & Noble named it their book of the year and a New York Times story called it “a book whose success is the stuff publishing dreams are made of.”—Adrienne Gaffney, Associate Editor

Diaz takes a new angle into the story of a dynastic fortune, the inscrutable son who inherits it, and his brilliant wife. Within Trust are four distinct books. One is a novel about the life and times of Benjamin Rask, a mysterious figure in New York society in the early 1900s, and his complicated wife before the pair became became overnight pariahs after profiting on the market crash of 1929. Part two is an effort at autobiography by Andrew Bevel, the man on which Rask was based. The third section gives a whole new perspective on the Bevel story, from a writer with some distance, while the fourth is a whole other thing. It's an artful approach to a traditional story which brings The Lehman Trilogy to mind.—AG

Molly is a truly sweet and sheltered 25-year-old who loves her job as a hotel housekeeper. She reads situations incredibly literally and is left without a social translator after her grandmother dies. Molly is an easy target for manipulation and when a hotel guest is killed, she's set up to be the top suspect. It's a fun mystery, yes, but Prose's loving depiction of her characters creates true emotional depth.—AG

When you finish Dress Code, you’ll realize the impact of fashion is so much greater than even those most committed to it could ever imagine. It aces tracing the expected path of demonstrating the ways clothing reflects politics, sexuality, and society, but her brilliance is in giving fashion its due credit for actually shaping culture itself. In the hand of Hyland, one of ELLE’s own, topics easily dismissed, like influencers, normcore, and millennial pink (a term she actually coined), are treated with dignity and analyzed as true documents of life today.—AG

I’m a little biased with this pick since I interviewed Akwaeke earlier this year, but this really was one of my favorite books of 2022. After a woman named Feyi loses the love of her life in an accident, she’s ready to start dating again. What follows is a heartfelt and entertaining romance filled with hookups, tropical vacations, and the joys of starting over.—Julianna Ukiomogbe, Assistant Editor

I spent a glorious afternoon this summer reading through On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous author Ocean Vuong’s compact new collection of poems, Time Is A Mother, which is as gut-wrenching as anything we’ve come to expect from the visionary. A meditation on grief and resilience after the loss of his mother, the book can easily be read in one sitting, but I'd recommend taking it slow—or at least bookmarking the poems you’d best like to revisit, as you’ll certainly feel called to do after turning the last page.—Lauren Puckett-Pope, Associate Editor

I love a good memoir. There’s something so fascinating about getting a little peek into the life of someone who has been so ubiquitous in pop culture. Viola Davis leaves it all on the page. From her childhood growing up in poverty to her experience attending Juilliard, you get a little bit of everything. If you’re a film buff, you’ll love reading about her artistry and how she approaches her craft. Celebrity memoirs are definitely hit or miss, and I’m so elated that this is a hit.—JU

In Jessamine Chan's debut novel, Frida Liu is a mother who has a bad day and finds that one single act of poor judgment while parenting is enough to send her to an institution where she must prove a bad mother can turn good or risk losing her daughter forever. But as Frida soon learns, there is no such thing as being “good” in a system stacked against her and other moms like her. Chan’s world might be dystopian, but the themes she hits on—state separation of parents and children, judgment and “perfect” parenting, and a mother’s unending love—are very much relevant to our present.—KWA

Jill Gutowitz’s collection of essays on “the mainstreaming of queer women in pop culture” is hilarious, sharp, and yet deeply personal. She offers touching, intimate reflections on self-discovery and coming of age amidst analyses on the impact of Britney Spears’ “I’m a Slave 4 U” music video or that masochistic social media trend of begging a celebrity to “step on me/run me over with a car/punch me in the face.” Come for the laughs and Taylor Swift references; stay for the “Most Important Sapphic Paparazzi Photos in Modern History” (which of course includes the snap of Cara Delevingne and Ashley Benson carrying a sex bench into their home).—Erica Gonzales, ELLE.com Senior Culture Editor

Fiona and Jane is a collection of stories about a pair of Taiwanese American girls and longtime best friends, told from their alternating perspectives; but it feels more like a continuous narrative of their relatable yet complex friendship. From facing the messiness of adolescence together to growing apart (but never really losing touch) as adults, Fiona and Jane’s intertwined story is one of lasting love, family, and forgiveness.—EG

Former Vanity Fair and New Yorker editor Tina Brown is back on the royals beat, and her latest volume, The Palace Papers, is a dishy but deeply researched look under the hood of the House of Windsor. If you loved her Princess Diana biography, The Diana Chronicles, you'll find just as much to relish here: thoughtful commentary on the future of the monarchy; a full accounting of the romances between Prince William and Prince Harry and their wives; the true impetus behind “Megxit”; and so much more. With Brown's signature dry wit and keen eye, The Palace Papers is an essential primer for anyone with even a passing interest in what's going on across the pond—and, more importantly, why it matters.—LPP