10 Books That Changed Us
The Persistent's editors and contributors share the books that stayed with them long after the last page.
To be “changed” by a book can mean a lot of things. For some of us, it’s a book that reached us in our preteen years, one that made us feel seen, less alone, or offered a first step into the adult world. For others, the books that changed us were ones we discovered as adults, that made us question our world view or held a mirror up to the human condition.
What’s clear, as editors of The Persistent discovered when we got together to talk about the best books we read in 2025 is that books have a huge impact on our lives. With that in mind, we asked our contributors to tell us which books stayed with them, long after the last page.
For me, reading Judy Blume's “Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret” was a game changer. I still remember the moment my mom gave it to me. I was nine, and already obsessed and worried about things like periods and growing breasts, and it felt as if the characters in this book were reading my insecure tween mind!
— Paula Derrow, features editor
I read "The Dispossessed" by Ursula K. Le Guin in my early 20s, and it changed the way I think about writing, politics, and the world. I recommend this book to my dad's friends who love the rugged individualism of American capitalism and my friends who dream of an anarcho-communist utopia.
— Han Goldstein, social media editor
But wait, there's more Le Guin...
I started reading Ursula K. Le Guin as a teen and never stopped. “The Earthsea Cycle” and “The Hainish Cycle” are my favorites. Almost every book of Le Guin’s opens my eyes on how the world and people in it work, and helps me zoom out and see the bigger picture. I come away from her novels calmer and more hopeful, thinking "Yes we're fucked up as a species but that's how it has always been and always will be."
— Tanya Mozias, contributing writer
It feels so cliche to say “Catcher in the Rye,” but that's the book that finally allowed my 13-year-old self to understand the power of a distinct first-person voice. As a bonus, this is the book that made me want to be a writer.
— Deborah Copaken, contributing writer
So many books have affected me in so many ways, it’s hard to pick just one. Instead, I'll choose an author: Elizabeth Berg. I started reading her novels in the 1990s when I was a teenager and kept going.
Not only have her books been influential in my fiction-writing aspirations but I was lucky enough to attend a women's fiction writing workshop she held in her home in Oak Park, Ill., a decade ago. She cooked for our group of 10 women and gave us feedback on our work.
They say never meet your heroes, but meeting her is a memory I'll forever cherish, and I continue to read every book she writes (there are 32 so far; her newest book: “Life: A Love Story” is out March 17).
— Kathleen Davis, executive editor
I remember reading “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time” by Mark Haddon when I was about 10 years old. It was the first ‘adult’ book I read. Initially my parents weren’t going to allow me to read it as they thought it was too mature for me. It wasn’t until I presented them with a petition, signed by all my classmates who had been allowed to read the book, that they finally let me read it. I remember feeling very grown up, but also learning so much from this one brilliant book.
– Natalie Newsome, illustrator
In many ways, “A Suitable Boy,” a gargantuan read by Vikram Seth, marked my transition from child reader to grown-up reader. My mother and big sister had read it before me, and then it was my turn, and I felt so inner-circle to finally be reading something with enough weight to truly stop a door.
— Francesca Donner, editor-in-chief
I recently read “Flesh” by David Szalai. I had been warned that I might not enjoy it, given its strongly masculine, male-dominated perspective. Yet I was surprised by how much I appreciated the writing and storytelling. The novel made me reflect on how the absence of conscious choices or awareness can shape the course of a life. You might get lucky, but maybe not.
— Hanna Barczyk, illustrator
“Lanark” by Alasdair Gray is what "Ulysses" promises to be, except it’s readable and it actually delivers. A book for all ages of life.
— Holly Baxter, contributing writer
What book has changed you? Send your recommendations to hello@thepersistent.com. We’ll be back with more recommendations next Friday!
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