Books That Millennials Will Love

The NBA saw the way its stars had an insurmountable influence on pop culture and the youth, so it’s no surprise that basketball culture has such a stronghold on millennials of all backgrounds. In the Midwest, 90’s basketball culture was unmistakably driven by players such as Michael Jordan, Isaiah Thomas, LeBron James, Dennis Rodman, Shaquille O’Neal, and Kobe Bryant. Abdurraqib not only examines his own childhood, but also recognizes how this sport became a class symbol in urban neighborhoods and suburban settings. Abdurraqib shares an emotional and poetic ride, guiding readers to Ohio as he relives his childhood through his favorite sport.

Here’s a book for readers who love time travel and wish they could travel back to the 1990s. It’s Alice’s 40th birthday, and her life is fine, but it could be better. Sure, she has a good job, but it’s not the perfect job; she makes do with what she has. However, her father is gravely ill, and all she wants is to spend time with him when he was at his best. When she wakes up, she realizes she is back in her childhood home on her 16th birthday. While she is in shock to be back in her teenage body, it’s seeing her father in his younger years and health that startles her the most.

Sophie Gilbert identifies an inflection point in the late 1990s and early 2000s, when the energy of third-wave and “riot grrrl” feminism collapsed into a regressive period of hyper-objectification, sexualization, and infantilization. Mining the darker side of nostalgia, Gilbert trains her keen analytic eye on the most revealing cultural objects of the era, across music, film, television, fashion, tabloid journalism, and more. Girl on Girl is a blistering indictment of the matrix of misogyny that undergirded the cultural production of the early 21st century, and continues to shape our world today.

For millennials, video game culture is both a childhood memory and an adult hobby that many depend on for community. Readers will be enchanted by the friendship between Sadie and Sam, whose lives are connected through video games throughout most of their lives. For Sadie, working in the video game industry has its challenges, including sexism and her romantic relationships. For Sam, it’s not a secret that he has feelings for Sadie, so he doesn’t hesitate to develop a video game with her. Readers will enjoy the friends-to-enemies path Sadie and Sam find themselves on, but the old-school nostalgia of video games will be the real test of time.

Remember that VH1 show, I Love the ‘90s? If you miss laughing at random facts that occurred during one of the best decades in pop culture history, this is a book you must add to your library. Readers will enjoy not only the biggest event of that decade, but also those small moments that you’ve forgotten about. While it’s true that you had to be there to experience some of the epic moments, reading about those highlights is a good way to jog buried memories from yesteryear. From life before 9/11, the rise of the internet, and the golden age of sitcoms like Seinfeld, the ‘90s were a pivotal decade in history.

In the late ‘90s, Maria and Khalil are the quintessential ethnically ambiguous couple, making them “couple goals” for those around them. Both are biracial, and when Maria meets a charming poet, she starts to second-guess her relationship with Khalil and her racial identity. Heartbreaking and darkly comic, New People is a bold and unfettered page-turner that challenges our every assumption about how we define one another, and ourselves.

In the late 1990s, America had already welcomed “America Online” but in countries like China, the concept of the internet created a government escalation known as the Great Firewall. Tracing the last three decades of the Chinese internet’s evolution, journalist Yi-Ling Liu interviews people who risked their lives to access the World Wide Web without Chinese government approval or acknowledgement. With her human-first reporting, this book will remind readers that the internet is a space for everyone, not just those in power.

This book blends the recipe perfectly for a feel-good nostalgia walk down memory lane. Frida is young and finally settled in Paris, where she roams the streets eating fresh, baked Parisian pastries while contemplating her career as a war journalist. The book uses an epistolary format to create the perfect 1990s atmosphere, following Frida as she begins a friendship with a bookseller based in Seattle, Washington. Despite being oceans apart, through their letters, they bond over food, books, and your favorite pop culture moments from millennials’ favorite era.

When most people think about the ‘90s, they think about pop culture. No matter if you were into hip-hop, punk, or just wanted to be seen in the same circles as Hollywood celebrities, the club scene in New York City is what millennials find themselves daydreaming about. This book, a pictorial reference from legendary photographer Gabriel Sanchez, captures New York City’s iconic nightlife scene. Sanchez impresses readers with never-before-seen images from Joan Rivers, Tupac, and more. Sanchez’s images reflect a time when artists, celebrities, and everyone in between could afford to live in the city that never sleeps.

Despite the differences that millennials have with older generations, nothing brings people together like shared experiences. That is exactly what happens when Izzy Chen gathers with her family to celebrate Chinese New Year. Izzy already feels uneasy around her family because she knows she is different. When Magnolia Chen, her unapologetic grandmother, arrives with a beautiful woman and embraces her in front of the entire family, Izzy is stunned, but secretly relieved that she’s not the only queer woman in her traditional, Chinese family. She braces herself as her grandmother shares her life story growing up in the 1990s and the hurdles she’s overcome to live freely.

Here’s a book for every millennial who grew up watching old-school television shows with their grandmothers. On the outside, Miss Hortense seems like a warm and ordinary elder who loves to garden and bake. But Miss Hortense isn’t like her peers. Over 30 years ago, Hottense used her wit and skills to found a network named Parder to help Black investors protect their interests. But as the infamous network grew, Hortense found herself excommunicated by her nemesis and Parder member, Constance. When Constance turns up dead, Hortense must use her legendary wit and knowledge to clear her name and solve the murder of her former colleague.

One of the pivotal memories for millennials is the HIV/AIDS epidemic that ravaged the nation in the ‘80s, when many millennials were born. The aftermath created an environment for homophobia and discrimination. Journalist Linnea Due made it her mission to travel to different parts of America to talk to queer teens about how they navigate society.  Due’s reporting highlights the trauma and humiliation queer teens faced in the ‘90s due to do misinformation and bigotry.

Syd is doing everything she can to make the most out of her life, but she is haunted by her past. Years ago, in her hometown of Pincher, Oklahoma, Syd lived on a reservation with the rest of her Indigenous family and friends. Now it’s 2008, and Syd resides in Rhode Island with her girlfriend as she works as an archeologist for the Bureau of Indian Affairs. When she gets a case that sends her home, she finds the fossils of what appears to be a missing Indigenous woman. To make matters worse, Syd discovers her sister is also missing. While Syd isn’t quick to claim foul play, the history of kidnapping and drug usage in her community leaves her befuddled, forcing her to confront her fears.

Meet Bella Blackthorn, a bookseller who works in a cozy London bookstore with a terrible boss. Belladonna wants to maintain her bookish lifestyle, but her spiteful boss is doing everything possible to run their bookshop out of business. Between work and keeping up with her rituals, she finds herself burnt out, and now her coven wants to convene for her 30th birthday. The last thing she wants is for her coven to know she is losing her magic. But Belladonna gets lucky and lands herself an unlikely mentor just in time to fix things. This book is perfect for readers who love Buffy the Vampire Slayer with Charmed vibes.

Nothing says millennial-coded like this rags-to-riches story, perfect for fans of Sex and the City and Pretty Woman. Tess O’Mara lives a fast life as a public relations professional. But when the year 2000 hits, she finds the perfect Y2K surprise in her bank account: a one-million-dollar balance with her name on it. Sure, Tess knows she didn’t earn this money, but it’s not her fault, right? As Tess treats herself to endless shopping sprees and a new blue Mercedes, the owner of those funds is ready to retrieve their fortune, but Tess doesn’t have it all. Tess flees to Almost, Arizona, where she meets a sheriff whom she is instantly attracted to. But can the small-town sheriff handle the trouble Tess will bring to his town?