List Challenges
Movies Books Travel Food Other
Trending
New
Popular
Sign In
 Make a List Browse Lists Search Lists Leaders Help / Contact Newsletter

The Most Reviewed Essay Collections of the Past Five Years

"It's good policy to keep a book of essays handy for those nights when you want to read but need something of a more digestible length. Sometimes you just can't switch those gears required for novel reading. Sometimes it's just a matter of time or of mood.

The essay form has its own kind of craft and discipline; it provides a specific kind of self-contained reading experience. It's not easy to do. Humor writing, especially, is a lot more complicated than it looks. A collection of good essays is a work of art all its own.

In an effort to find the really good stuff, we've collected below the essay collections that have generated the most reviews and discussion threads from Goodreads regulars."
Read More
95 users · 800 views
 
from goodreads.com · made by AnnaBoots
avg. score: 2 of 51 (3%)
required scores: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 
type to search

How many have you read?

Page 1 of 2
The Anthropocene Reviewed (John Green)
The Anthropocene Reviewed
1
John Green
Trick Mirror (Jia Tolentino)
Trick Mirror
2
Jia Tolentino
We Are Never Meeting in Real Life (Samantha Irby)
We Are Never Meeting in Real Life
3
Samantha Irby
Intimations (Zadie Smith)
Intimations
4
Zadie Smith
These Precious Days (Ann Patchett)
These Precious Days
5
Ann Patchett
Wow, No Thank You (Samantha Irby)
Wow, No Thank You
6
Samantha Irby
Thick (Tressie McMillan Cottom)
Thick
7
Tressie McMillan Cottom
The Collected Schizophrenias (Esmé Weijun Wang)
The Collected Schizophrenias
8
Esmé Weijun Wang
Notes to Self (Emilie Pine)
Notes to Self
9
Emilie Pine
One Day We'll All Be Dead and None of This Will Matter (Scaachi Koul)
One Day We'll All Be Dead and None of This Will Matter
10
Scaachi Koul
Almost Everything: Notes on Hope (Anne Lamott)
Almost Everything: Notes on Hope
11
Anne Lamott
I Miss You When I Blink (Mary Laura Philpott)
I Miss You When I Blink
12
Mary Laura Philpott
South and West: From a Notebook (Joan Didion)
South and West: From a Notebook
13
Joan Didion
They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us (Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib)
They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us
14
Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib
The Book of Delights (Ross Gay)
The Book of Delights
15
Ross Gay
How to Write an Autobiographical Novel (Alexander Chee)
How to Write an Autobiographical Novel
16
Alexander Chee
Let Me Tell You What I Mean (Joan Didion)
Let Me Tell You What I Mean
17
Joan Didion
Southern Lady Code (Helen Ellis)
Southern Lady Code
18
Helen Ellis
Feel Free: Essays (Zadie Smith)
Feel Free: Essays
19
Zadie Smith
Look Alive Out There (Sloane Crossly)
Look Alive Out There
20
Sloane Crossly
What My Mother and I Don't Talk About (Michele Filgate)
What My Mother and I Don't Talk About
21
Michele Filgate
No Time to Spare: Thinking About What Matters (Ursula K. Le Guin)
No Time to Spare: Thinking About What Matters
22
Ursula K. Le Guin
How Do We Know We're Doing It Right (Pandora Sykes)
How Do We Know We're Doing It Right
23
Pandora Sykes
I Like to Watch (Emily Nussbaum)
I Like to Watch
24
Emily Nussbaum
Vesper Flights (Helen MacDonald)
Vesper Flights
25
Helen MacDonald
Well-Read Black Girl (Glory Edim)
Well-Read Black Girl
26
Glory Edim
American Like Me: Reflections on Life Between Cultures (America Ferrera)
American Like Me: Reflections on Life Between Cultures
27
America Ferrera
Too Much and Not the Mood (Durga Chew-Bose)
Too Much and Not the Mood
28
Durga Chew-Bose
A Little Devil in America: Notes in Praise of Black Performance (Hanif Abdurraqib)
A Little Devil in America: Notes in Praise of Black Performance
29
Hanif Abdurraqib
How to Stay Sane in and Age of Division (Elif Shafak)
How to Stay Sane in and Age of Division
30
Elif Shafak
White (Bret Easton Ellis)
White
31
Bret Easton Ellis
No One Asked for This (Cazzie David)
No One Asked for This
32
Cazzie David
Girlhood (Melissa Febos)
Girlhood
33
Melissa Febos
Goodbye, Again (Jonny Sun)
Goodbye, Again
34
Jonny Sun
Dead Girls (Alice Bolin)
Dead Girls
35
Alice Bolin
Having and Being Had (Eula Biss)
Having and Being Had
36
Eula Biss
Call Them by Their True Names (Rebecca Solnit)
Call Them by Their True Names
37
Rebecca Solnit
X (Chuck Klosterman)
X
38
Chuck Klosterman
Conversations on Love (Natasha Lunn)
Conversations on Love
39
Natasha Lunn
The Source of Self-Regard: Selected Essays, Speeches, and Meditations (Toni Morrison)
The Source of Self-Regard: Selected Essays, Speeches, and Meditations
40
Toni Morrison
Page 1 of 2
Click books you've read
Lists Similar to 'The Most Reviewed Essay Collections of the Past Five Years'
Goodreads' 60 Most Reviewed New Books of the Past Five Years
Goodreads' 60 Most Reviewed New Books of the Past Five Years
16,333
60
48 Top-Rated Poetry Collections From the Past Five Years
48 Top-Rated Poetry Collections From the Past Five Years
60
48
The Most Reviewed Historical Fiction of the Past Three Years
The Most Reviewed Historical Fiction of the Past Three Years
383
36
Discover 96 Great Short Story Collections From the Past Three Years
Discover 96 Great Short Story Collections From the Past Three Years
29
96
60 Most Popular Books From the Past Five Years on Goodreads
60 Most Popular Books From the Past Five Years on Goodreads
3,229
60
Goodreads Readers' Top Books Published in the Past Five Years
Goodreads Readers' Top Books Published in the Past Five Years
1,078
60
Goodreads - The 40 Most Popular Mysteries of the Past Five Years - 2020
Goodreads - The 40 Most Popular Mysteries of the Past Five Years - 2020
613
40
Favorite Books Read and Reread in the Past Five Years
Favorite Books Read and Reread in the Past Five Years
562
131
Books E Has Read in the Past Five Years
Books E Has Read in the Past Five Years
525
276
21 Books From the Past Five Years Every Woman Should Read
21 Books From the Past Five Years Every Woman Should Read
487
21
100 of the Most Popular YA Books of the Past Five Years
100 of the Most Popular YA Books of the Past Five Years
546
100
The 56 Most Beloved Young Adult Series of the Past Five Years
The 56 Most Beloved Young Adult Series of the Past Five Years
330
56
The 78 Most Popular Horror Novels of the Past Five Years
The 78 Most Popular Horror Novels of the Past Five Years
320
78
The Most Popular Horror Novels of the Past Five Years
The Most Popular Horror Novels of the Past Five Years
267
72
The 60 Most Popular Horror Books of the Past Five Years
The 60 Most Popular Horror Books of the Past Five Years
261
59
Books I've Read in the Past Five Years 2016 - 2020
Books I've Read in the Past Five Years 2016 - 2020
259
182
The Top Historical Mysteries of the Past Five Years
The Top Historical Mysteries of the Past Five Years
159
21
100 Must Read Essay Collections
100 Must Read Essay Collections
422
99
The Best Essay Collections of All-Time
The Best Essay Collections of All-Time
175
25
Book Riot's 50 Must-Read Contemporary Essay Collections
Book Riot's 50 Must-Read Contemporary Essay Collections
132
50
10 Must-Read Essay Collections by Women
10 Must-Read Essay Collections by Women
122
10
Pieces of Mind: 30 Great New Essay Collections
Pieces of Mind: 30 Great New Essay Collections
99
30
9 Essay Collections Feminists Must Read in 2020
9 Essay Collections Feminists Must Read in 2020
93
10
Annie's Top 10 Essay Collections
Annie's Top 10 Essay Collections
62
10
48 Reader-Approved New Essay Collections
48 Reader-Approved New Essay Collections
55
48
Five Years of Five-Star Books
Five Years of Five-Star Books
967
683
Five Star Books From the Last Five Years
Five Star Books From the Last Five Years
882
210
Five Years of Five Star Books
Five Years of Five Star Books
424
62
5 Years of Short Story Collections
5 Years of Short Story Collections
26
45
The Times' 50 Best Novels of the Past 50 Years
The Times' 50 Best Novels of the Past 50 Years
22,211
50
All Similar Lists
Newsletter · Help/Contact · Privacy · Copyright Claim   © 2025 App Spring, Inc. · This product uses the TMDb API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDb.
Seen It - Movies & TV 
Android & iOS
Seen It is a new app from the creators of List Challenges. You can view movies and shows in one place and filter by streaming provider, genre, release year, runtime, and rating (Rotten Tomatoes, Imdb, and/or Metacritic). Also, you can track what you've seen, want to see, like, or dislike, as well as track individual seasons or episodes of shows. In addition, you can see the most watched/liked stuff amongst your friends. Learn more at SEENIT.FUN