My 2025 Book List
One of my favorite ways to kick off the New Year is by diving into a new reading list. It’s become a tradition here on the blog to share my book picks at the start of each year—a mix of business insights, inspiring memoirs, thought-provoking nonfiction, and a few captivating novels to round things out.
My 2025 reading list includes business books, personal & intellectual, health & lifestyle, nonfiction & memoir, and fiction.
Reading has a way of shaping how we think, teach, and live. These books have inspired me to reimagine my creative work, challenged me to reflect more deeply, and fueled my own growth as a musician, educator, and entrepreneur. I hope this list inspires you to add a few new titles to your shelf this year.
Let’s get started—happy reading!
21 Books I’m Planning to Read in 2025 As a Musician, Educator & Creative Entrepreneur
*Disclosure: I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post.
Business
The Entrepreneurial Muse: Inspiring Your Career in Classical Music (Jeffrey Nytch)
This book will help you expand your view of potential career paths in classical music. Musician and educator Jeffrey Nytch offers practical strategies to help musicians build a business that aligns with their artistic goals.
Covering core topics such as personal branding, networking, and building an entrepreneurial skillset, the book is tailored to classical musicians and the unique challenges and opportunities they face.
The Freelance Mindset: Unleashing your side hustles for better work, play, and life (Joy Batra)
For many of us, freelancing and side hustles are part of being a musician in the 21st century.
In this new book (published in 2023), Joy Batra shares wisdom and insight into developing a freelance mindset drawn from her decade of freelance experience and interviews with 50+ freelancers. With a focus on cultivating a freelance mindset, it provides valuable tips for music educators and private studio teachers working in the gig economy.
The Long Game: How to be a long-term thinker in a short-term world (Dorie Clark)
It's no secret that we live in a loud, fast-paced world. We’re rushed, overwhelmed, and always behind. So we keep our heads down and focus on whatever’s next on our to-do list.
Drawing from his experience as a journalist, consultant, business school educator, and portfolio careerist, Dorie Clark writes about the value of being a long-term thinker in a short-term world.
Great for entrepreneurs, educators, and creatives alike.
A World Without Email: reimagining work in an age of communication overload (Cal Newport)
I love Cal Newport’s books. In this one (published in 2023), he shares insights into productivity and the way we communicate that I think apply to musicians looking to streamline their professional lives.
Exploring effective strategies for email management, this book offers practical solutions for busy musicians and teachers to help them work more efficiently.
both/and thinking: embracing creative tensions to solve your toughest problems (Wendy K. Smith & Marianne W. Lewis)
As indicated by the name, authors Smith and Lewis challenge binary thinking in this 2022 book for creatives.
Embracing both/and thinking can help musicians and creatives foster flexibility in their work and teaching methods, remain open to new possibilities, and be more adaptable as small business owners.
Personal & Intellectual
A Heart on Fire: 100 meditations on loving your neighbor well (Danielle coke Balfour)
I’ve been following illustrator and entrepreneur Oh Happy Dani (@ohhappydani) on Instagram for a few years now and was excited to see news of her book.
With personal anecdotes and thoughtful insights, this book encourages readers to love their neighbors well, exploring themes of justice, empathy, hope, community, love, consistency, awareness, creativity, honesty, and redemption.
Upstream: selected essays (Mary Oliver)
I enjoyed listening to an interview with Mary Oliver on the OnBeing podcast last year and am looking forward to exploring some of her writing.
In this collection of essays, Mary Oliver explores the deeper currents of life and creativity: the pleasures of artistic work, her curiosity for nature, and the responsibility she feels as a writer “to live thoughtfully, intelligently, and to observe with passion.”
Democracy in Retrograde: How to make changes big and small in our country and in our lives (Sami Sage & Emily Amick)
Sami Sage, cofounder of Betches Media and Emily Amick (@emilyinyourphone) tackle the challenges facing modern democracies with wit, clarity, and a call to action.
Drawing from their expertise in law, media, and civic engagement, this book is both a rallying cry and a practical toolkit for anyone who wants to understand their role in shaping a better future.
P.S. Join for a virtual book club with musicians and creatives this winter as we read and discuss this book. Sign up here >>
The Highly Sensitive Person: How to thrive when the world overwhelms you (Elaine Aron)
I learned last summer that I think I’m a Highly Sensitive Person (HSP). HSPs have an increased or deeper central nervous system sensitivity to physical, emotional, or social stimuli.
This book is the definitive guide. Drawing from her years of research, Dr. Aron delves into what it means to process the world with heightened sensitivity, offering practical strategies for navigating overstimulation, setting boundaries, and thriving in a society that often values toughness over sensitivity.
Health & Lifestyle
Daily Rituals: Women at Work (Mason Currey)
Steve and I loved reading Mason Currey’s Daily Rituals: How Artists Work in 2023 year (so much so, we made it our Musician & Co. Book Club pick for January 2024).
In this book, Currey details the daily routines of 143 creative women. With stories from various fields, including music, this book offers valuable insights into time management, routines, self-care, and the diligent pursuit of the creative life.
Your Inner Critic Is a Big Jerk and other truths about being creative (Danielle Krysa)
Struggling with self-doubt? Danielle Krysa, a mixed-media artist shares honest, humorous, and relatable insights on silencing the voice of inner criticism that so often keeps us from reaching our full creative potential.
Krysa dismantles myths about creativity while offering actionable steps to overcome procrastination, perfectionism, and fear of failure.
Nonfiction & Memoir
A Year in Provence (Peter Mayle)
I loved Peter Mayle’s book, A Dog’s Life (one of my favorites in 2023) about the dog he adopted in Provence.
In this memoir, he writes a month-by-month account of moving to and settling in Provence—the beauty, quirks, and challenges they experience (including renovating a 200-year-old farmhouse).
They say it’s perfect for armchair travelers—I think it will be a great winter escape!
Be Ready When the Luck Happens (Ina Garten)
Known as the Barefoot Contessa, TV host and business owner Ina Garten shares more about her life outside the kitchen in this brand-new memoir.
Combining humor and heartfelt storytelling, she shares insights about her creative process and her philosophy on life and success.
The Third Gilmore Girl (Kelly Bishop)
Fondly known as Emily Gilmore in the Gilmore Girls (still one of my favorite TV shows of all time), Kelly Bishop recounts stories from her six-decade career on Broadway and in Hollywood.
The book is filled with behind-the-scenes anecdotes, personal and professional stories, life lessons, and reflections on Bishop’s activism, all complemented by personal photographs.
I’m looking forward to reading this memoir!
Beethoven in the Bunker: Musicians under the Nazi regime (Fred Brouwers)
This book uncovers the lives of musicians who lived and worked under the shadow of the Third Reich.
Meticulously researched, Fred Brouwers chronicles stories of survival, courage, and resilience, highlighting how music became both a lifeline and a weapon of propaganda during a time of unimaginable turmoil.
Set at the intersection of art, politics, and humanity, this book reminds us of the power of music in the face of oppression.
Becoming Trader Joe (Joe Coulombe, Patty Civalleri)
Read the fascinating story behind Trader Joes in this memoir-meets-business-book, written by founder, Joe Coulombe. The author shares his innovative approach to retail, his emphasis on company culture, and his philosophy of serving curious, value-conscious customers.
Get inspired by Coulombe’s out-of-the-box thinking, thoughtful leadership, and long-lasting success.
Fiction
Hello, Sunshine (Laura Dave)
What happens when your seemingly perfect life crumbles overnight?
Laura Dave (author of The Last Thing He Told Me, which I loved) offers a compelling exploration of identity, reinvention, and resilience in this book.
With insights into social media culture and a relatable journey of self-discovery, this novel invites readers to reflect on authenticity in a world of curated images.
The Authenticity Project (Clare Pooley)
Some of you may remember that Clare Pooley’s Iona Iverson’s Rules for Commuting was one of my favorite books in 2023.
In this book, a small green notebook passes through the hands of strangers, each prompted to share their most honest thoughts (similar to the plot of the Dash & Lily’s Book of Dares). Pooley reminds us that vulnerability can foster unexpected connections and a deeper sense of community.
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith)
This timeless, coming-of-age tale paints a vivid picture of life in early 20th-century Brooklyn. At its heart is Francie Nolan, a young girl whose love of learning and indomitable spirit shine amidst the struggles of poverty.
A tribute to resilience, education, and the transformative power of creativity. I’ve heard about this book for years, but never read it.
The Paris Novel (Ruth Reichl)
In this book, acclaimed food writer Ruth Reichl (author of Delicious!, one of my favorites from 2020) serves up a delectable blend of culinary exploration and personal growth.
Set in Paris (as the name suggests), this novel follows its protagonist on a journey of rediscovery, blending themes of passion, artistry, and the pursuit of a meaningful life.
A reminder to savor the moments that feed our creative spirits.
Life, Death, and Cellos (Isabel Rogers)
The first in a series of four books, this novel written by cellist Isabel Rogers follows the Stockwell Park Orchestra, an amateur ensemble in South London, through an adventurous and disastrous season: love affairs, the sudden death of their conductor, a stolen cello, and financial hardship.
Will the musicians be able to work together to save the orchestra?
I’d love to hear from you:
Have you read any of these? Let me know. Also, I’d love to know what's on your book list this year!