Barack Obama Just Released His Summer Reading List: See Our Top 5 Fiction Picks, Including Ann Patchett’s Latest Novel!
From family sagas to short story collections—here's the best of the new fiction the former president is reading this summer
Key Takeaways
- Barack Obama's summer reading list features five standout family saga picks.
- Ann Patchett's ‘Whistler’ and Tayari Jones's ‘Kin’ both made his top selections.
- The list also includes a Booker Prize winner's latest novel, ‘Vigil.’
Former President Barack Obama is opening up about his favorite summer reads, and we’re focusing on the fiction picks! In a recent X (formerly known as Twitter) post, the 44th president of the United States revealed his 11 favorite new summer reads—both fiction and nonfiction—and they are just as thoughtful and engaging as he is. Among the standout fiction titles? Ann Patchett’s newest novel, Whistler! To discover our five favorite fiction books from Obama’s summer reading list, keep scrolling.
Our favorite new fiction reads from Barack Obama’s summer 2026 reading list
From family sagas to short stories, here are our top five book picks from Barack Obama’s reading list.
‘Kin’ by Tayari Jones
This powerful novel follows two motherless girls, Vernice and Annie, who grow up as neighbors in Honeysuckle, Louisiana, during the Jim Crow era. Though they start in the same small town, their lives take dramatically different paths. Vernice, raised by her aunt, escapes to Spelman College, where she discovers a world of privilege and possibility beyond anything she’d dreamed. Annie, meanwhile, chooses a far more dangerous road—one filled with risk, passion and adventure. As their stories unfold across decades, loyalties are tested and so are the bonds of sisterhood.
What readers are saying: “Tayari Jones has an extraordinary ability to touch your heart and rip tears from your eyes. A wonderful storyteller with a soulful insight, she once again captures extraordinary friendships and truth.”
‘The Things We Never Say’ by Elizabeth Strout
The Things We Never Say centers on Artie Dam, a man living a seemingly perfect double life. By day, he’s a devoted history teacher married for three decades. On weekends, he escapes to his home on the sparkling Massachusetts Bay. But beneath the surface of this idyllic existence, Artie is quietly drowning in feelings of isolation and loneliness. Then one day, a long-buried secret comes to light—a truth so devastating it threatens to shatter everything he thought he knew about his life.
What readers are saying: “Elizabeth Strout never fails to amaze me. This is a perfect character study of a wonderful man, Artie Dam, and how he gets along in life in his later years. His interactions with others and his thoughts are so carefully drawn, you feel like you are in his head. I couldn’t put the book down!”
‘Whistler’ by Ann Patchett
This novel begins after Daphne Fuller unexpectedly runs into her former stepfather, Eddie Triplett, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Eddie was married to Daphne’s mother for just one year when she was 9. Now 53, Daphne hasn’t seen him since one fateful night decades ago changed everything. As they reconnect, they discover that some bonds transcend time. A tender exploration of enduring love and how a single moment can shape a lifetime.
What readers are saying: “Ann Patchett once again proves why she’s a master of character-driven literary fiction. Her writing feels effortless and conversational, making it easy to become completely immersed in Daphne and Eddie’s story.”
‘Vigil’ by George Saunders
From the Booker Prize–winning author George Saunders comes a moving tale about modern America. Jill “Doll” Blaine once again finds herself plummeting towards Earth to usher the latest soul into the afterlife. But this trip is different. Her charge, oil company CEO K.J. Boone, is not going to go easy and soon the two enter into a friendship that could change everything.
What readers are saying: “George Saunders’s writing is, unsurprisingly, superb: playful, sharp, inventive, and often deeply tender. Beneath the absurdity and spectacle runs something profoundly sincere about loss, regret, and the human need for connection.”
‘One Sun Only’ by Camille Bordas
In this collection of short stories, a woman deals with the aftermath of a burglary, a teenager becomes obsessed with the obituaries in a weekly magazine, painters try to figure out what art is good and bad, grandchildren mourn the loss of their grandparents, people deal with love, loss and loneliness and some grapple with the literary while others don’t. It’s a moving collection of tales that only New Yorker contributor Camille Bordas could pull off.
What readers are saying: “This is one of the very best short story collections that I have ever read. The stories were very rich and developed. Each one of them offered something different. There were varying levels of subtlety and nuance that really kept me reading and invested in the stories. I felt that there was a level of reflectiveness and depth that was unexpected. I will definitely be interested in reading more from this author.”
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