These January Books Can Get Us Through Anything

Zibby Owens is a “Good Morning America” ​​contributor. She is the creator and host of the award-winning podcast “Moms Don’t Have Time to Read Books™️”, author and mother of four.

New year, new you? Uh, rather: are we sure it won’t be a repeat of 2020? With the omicron variant of COVID-19 spreading like wildfire around the world, it’s hard to feel anything but caution as 2022 approaches. Luckily, books can get us through any what – they always have. They will delight us, distract us, entertain us and enhance us.

Below are some key titles coming out in January, so grab a book, settle in, and say a prayer things will get better soon. Also, be sure to listen to my podcast “Moms Don’t Have Time To Read Books™️” for more conversations with the authors.

“I Am Because We Are: An African Mother’s Struggle for the Soul of a Nation” by Chidiogo Akunyili-Parr

If you need a dose of courage, read this true story. You will be incredibly inspired by Chidiogo Akunyili-Parr who, like Erin Brokovich, took on a massive male-dominated industry as a woman. In her book, Parr tells the story of fraudulent drug companies whose products have killed millions, including her own sister. She was elected minister and faced assassination attempts. Her own marriage and her family suffered. This heroine tells a truly captivating and inspiring story that you won’t believe is not a novel.

“How to Raise an Intuitive Eater: Raising the Next Generation with Food and Body Confidence” by Sumner Brooks and Amee Severson

Help your kids have a healthy relationship with food and maybe change your own outcome too. It’s time to shed the cloak of diet culture and embrace the intuitive eating that children are born with. This is what parents need to teach their children – and themselves – especially those who want their children to be healthy, confident adults. Isn’t it all? !

“School for Good Mothers” by Jessamine Chan

In this first novel, the protagonist, Frida Liu, is the daughter of Chinese immigrants. Her husband is cheating on her. Things look pretty bleak. But at least she has her daughter. But when the government intervenes, she must prove that she is, in fact, a good mother. This thought-provoking commentary on the pressures of modern motherhood and the lack of community support will entertain you and make you think hard before taking that next phone call when your little one is on the playground.

“Fiona and Jane” by Jean Chen Ho

Two young Taiwanese women navigate between friendship and sexuality in this 20-year-old tale. Living in New York and Los Angeles, Fiona and Jane tell alternate stories about what it’s like to be Asian in America, the bonds of friendship when girls become women, and what loyalty really means.

“Let’s Get Physical: How Women Discovered Exercise and Reshaped the World” by Danielle Friedman

As a die-hard Olivia Newton-John (Sandy!!) fan, I couldn’t wait to dive into this hot pink tome. I learned so much from Danielle Friedman’s own story and the reporting she included. Did you know that women who sweat were frowned upon until very recently? The birth of the fitness movement is chronicled in these pages, including highlights from some industry pioneers and Danielle’s own story. Now excuse me while I get back into the Peloton.

“Seasonal Work: Stories” by Laura Lippman

Psychological short story: This captivating and captivating short story deals with family, marriage and work. This collection from master crime author Laura Lippman has all the ingredients for a decadent, edge-of-your-seat treat.

“The Win-Win Diet: How to Be Vegan and Still Eat What You Love” by Julie Wilcox

It’s a new year, so I had to include a health/diet book. But really, Julie Wilcox’s book is definitely not a diet as our mothers might have labeled it. It is the basis of a plant-based diet designed to strengthen and improve our long-term health.

“The Stars Aren’t Bells Yet” by Hannah Lillith Assadi

As Elle falls into Alzheimer’s disease, she ponders the haze of questions that seem unanswered. How did her husband manage when he never found what he was looking for on their magical island? What happened to this other beautiful man? This matron, in Lyra since World War II, looks back and contemplates unlived lives. Or, maybe, they did.

If you’ve obsessively watched “And Just Like That” like me and are craving stories about female friendships, this book is for you. “Wahala” is a debut novel that follows three Anglo-Nigerian best friends as they deal with impostor syndrome, marriage, life satisfaction, motherhood and more, all revealed when a fourth friend bursts into their triad. (Samantha?!)

“A dream life” by Claire Messud

Did anyone else like “The Emperor’s Children”? This is a new novel from the author of this beautiful work of fiction. Alice Armstrong moved from New York to Australia in the 1970s and felt out of place. An inside story of relationships, deception, and characters living their own dream lives, this beautifully written slim book will not only transport you through the world, but remind you that wherever you go, there you are.

“Manifesto: Never Give Up” by Bernadine Evaristo

He won the Booker Prize. Former President Barack Obama loved it. It was one of Roxane Gay’s favorite books of 2019. “Girl, Woman, Other”, Bernadine Evaristo’s bestseller, reached over a million readers. Now she’s back with a humorous memoir about growing up as one of eight siblings with a Nigerian father and white Catholic mother, her same-sex relationships, and how she founded Grande’s first black women’s theater company. -Brittany.

“The Good Son” by Jacquelyn Mitchard

New York Times #1 bestselling author Jacquelyn Mitchard follows a mother’s agony after her son is convicted of a crime and what happens when he’s released from prison years later . As she faces community outrage and backlash against him, she begins to uncover more and more, giving him too many questions rather than answers.

“Good Rich People” by Eliza Jane Brazier

In this twisted psychological thriller, a wealthy Hollywood Hills couple delight in plotting to ruin the lives of the residents of their guesthouse…just for fun. Demi is the target of their little experiment. But what happens is something neither of them expected.

“I’ll Be There (But I’ll Be Wearing Sweatpants): Finding Real, Unfiltered Friendships in This Crazy, Chaotic World” by Amy Weatherly and Jess Johnson

This hilarious book is an introduction to how to maintain and create friendships in today’s messy reality. Co-creators of the popular “Sister, I Am With You” community, Amy and Jess encourage us all to let go of relationships that aren’t working for us and make true friendships a real priority – a great New Year’s resolution!

“The Hardest Draft” by Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka

Katrina and Nathan are best-selling co-authors who fall out after the smash hit of their book. And yet, they are bound by a contract to produce another book together. Against their will, they return to the same small Florida town where they wrote the first book and end up learning more about themselves, each other, and what it takes to create a final version.