The Best Books the McKays Read in 2025

We do a lot of reading around here in the McKay household. Brett and Kate read for both work and pleasure. Our kids read for both school and fun. And we still read a book out loud every night as a family before the kids go to bed. It’s been a part of our nightly routine since they were knee-high to a grasshopper.

Below, Brett and Kate highlight the best books they read in 2025. We also asked Gus (age 15) and Scout (age 12) to share the best book they each read this year. Thanks for the contributions, kiddos.

Brett’s Picks

I read a lot of books to get prepped for podcast interviews and for researching articles on AoM and DB. I sneak in some reading just for fun, too. Since we shifted from doing two podcast episodes a week to one this year, the number of books I read went down significantly. I’d been reading 100+ books a year for over a decade, but probably read more like 60 this year. I’m okay with the reduction; reading that much year after year was becoming a grind. I’ve done more movie watching this year, which has been a pleasant change of pace.

With all that said, I did read (and re-read) some great books this year, and these were my four favorites: