Need a Gift For Dad? PEOPLE Picks 20 Books That Will Top His TBR List This Holiday Season

Mar. 15, 2025

Three dad books PEOPLE staffers are reading and gifting in 2024.Photo:Hogarth; Avid Reader Press; Simon & Schuster; William Morrow Cookbooks

Hogarth; Avid Reader Press; Simon & Schuster; William Morrow Cookbooks

The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!

Whether you need a gift for your dad, your co-parent or a favorite father in your life, one of these is sure to fit the bill. Here are the books PEOPLE staffers are giving — and hoping to get — this holiday season.

01of 20

‘Long Island Compromise’.Random House

Random House

Carl and Ruth Fletcher’s grown children have everything money can buy, but each one is a complete mess — and now the family’s fortune is in peril. This farcical, entertaining drama about generational trauma will make a dad happy his own family isn’tthatmessy.

Buy Now

02of 20

‘A History of the World in Twelve Shipwrecks’.St. Martin’s Press

St. Martin’s Press

Dive deep into what shipwrecks tell us about mankind’s history with underwater archeologist David Gibbins. Sure to give dads lots of fun facts to share around the dinner table or on those long car rides.

03of 20

‘Hitler’s People: The Faces of the Third Reich’.Penguin Press

Penguin Press

From a renowned Nazi scholar and author of the acclaimedThe Third Reich Trilogy —as well as over two dozen other volumes on Europe and its recent past — comes this book that focuses on the faces of the Nazi movement. Thoroughly engrossing and a must-read for history buffs.

04of 20

‘Anything’s Pastable: 81 Inventive Pasta Recipes for Saucy People’.William Morrow Cookbooks

William Morrow Cookbooks

You may know the James Beard Award-winning podcast host ofSporkfulfrom his obsessive quest to create a new pasta shape. Now he’s doing the same for sauce in this fun, original cookbook. Get ready to revolutionize Spaghetti Night.

05of 20

‘Reagan: His Life and Legend’.Liveright

Liveright

The politically minded dad will devour this definitive tome that reveals the “man behind the mythology.” And at almost 900 pages, it should keep him busy all winter long.

06of 20

‘The Future Was Now: Madmen, Mavericks, and the Epic Sci-Fi Summer of 1982’.Flatiron Books

Flatiron Books

The summer of 1982 was a banner one for sci-fi. These eight films were released in a period of six weeks:E.T., Tron, Star Trek: Wrath of Khan, Conan the Barbarian, Blade Runner, Poltergeist, The ThingandMad Max: The Road Warrior. They all hit the silver screen at basically the same time, changing the genre and Hollywood forever. If he’s a fan of even one of these films, this deep dive is a fun and fascinating read.

07of 20

‘A Walk in the Park: The True Story of a Spectacular Misadventure in the Grand Canyon’.Scribner

Scribner

Whether he plans a national park trip every summer to check another one off the list or admires our nation’s wild treasures from afar, he’ll have a blast with this epic jaunt through the Grand Canyon.

08of 20

‘The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu: And Their Race to Save the World’s Most Precious Manuscripts’.Simon & Schuster

Simon & Schuster

The title says it all: Dads who love reading and championing literacy for others will also delight in this punchy historical account.

09of 20

‘Meditations’.CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform

CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform

Dad can’t stop thinking about the Roman Empire? This book of meditations and musings from the Roman Emperor is an essential addition to any collection.

10of 20

‘Framed: Astonishing True Stories of Wrongful Convictions’.Doubleday

Doubleday

11of 20

‘The Talented Mr. Ripley,’ ‘Ripley Under Ground,’ ‘Ripley’s Game’.Everyman’s Library

Everyman’s Library

If he loved Netflix’sRipley, the three books that launched Tom Ripley’s story are must-reads. The series that changed the mystery genre forever follows the ingeniously dark psychopath and takes us inside his sinister mind.

12of 20’Crime Novels of the 1960s: Nine Classic Thrillers’Crime Novels of the 1960s: Nine Classic Thrillers.Library of AmericaA boxed set makes a great gift because its pleasures last awhile, and it makes a lovely visual addition to any library. Fans of the crime genre will be wholly and happily immersed in these classic thrillers.Buy Now

12of 20

‘Crime Novels of the 1960s: Nine Classic Thrillers’

Crime Novels of the 1960s: Nine Classic Thrillers.Library of America

Library of America

A boxed set makes a great gift because its pleasures last awhile, and it makes a lovely visual addition to any library. Fans of the crime genre will be wholly and happily immersed in these classic thrillers.

13of 20

‘Godwin’.Pantheon

Pantheon

Fans ofTed Lassoand soccer fanatics in general will love this novel about a pair of brothers who travel the world in search of an African soccer prodigy. It’s rounded out with lots of adventure and details about both the business and pleasure of soccer.

14of 20

‘Great Expectations’.Hogarth

Hogarth

15of 20

Bloomsbury Publishing

Film and theater buffs will absolutely inhale this account of how Edward Albee’sWho’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?changed American theater forever, then became a classic 1966 film starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. How the scorching play became a movie classic — and its stars' own tumultuous marriage — is one of the most exciting stories about classic cinema.

16of 20

‘Jimmy Breslin: The Man Who Told the Truth’.Crime Ink

Crime Ink

Jimmy Breslin knew everybody. He profiled JFK’s gravedigger and elicited letters from the Son of Sam during the serial killer’s reign of terror, making his newspaper columns appointment reading. This biography looks back at it all in vivid detail.

17of 20

‘The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder’.Doubleday

For dads who lovedKillers of the Flower Moon, pick up this epic tale from the same author that takes place on the high seas and in the highest courts. It’s a story of shipwreck, survival and savagery that reveals what really happened on a ship that washed up on the coast of Brazil in 1742.

18of 20

‘The Sopranos Sessions’.Abrams Press

Abrams Press

19of 20

‘Challenger: A True Story of Heroism and Disaster on the Edge of Space’.Avid Reader Press; Simon & Schuster

Avid Reader Press; Simon & Schuster

This detailed account of the 1986 Challenger space shuttle tragedy is not just for space lovers — it reads like a thriller. Perfect for anyone who remembers that fateful day, or just loves stories about space in general, it’s a true page-turner.

20of 20

‘A Father’s Fight: Taking on Alex Jones and Reclaiming the Truth About Sandy Hook’.Diversion Books

Diversion Books

On December 14, 2012, Robbie Parker’s daughter Emilie was murdered at Sandy Hook Elementary, and it changed Robbie’s life and the country forever. But the next day, conspiracy theorist Alex Jones went on air claiming the shooting was a hoax. This is the David and Goliath story of what happened next. It’s a stunning emotional testament to one father’s drive in the face of extreme grief and adversity, and not to be missed.

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer , from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

source: people.com