2025 Summer Reading List
We are excited to share Maverick Collective’s 2025 Summer Reading List: Better Together. It serves as both a nod to our 2020 community programming at the start of the COVID pandemic, and as a celebration of the enduring idea that relationships – especially among women – are not only essential to our personal wellbeing, but also to how we lead, change systems, raise families, create art, build movements, and heal the world.
We live in a culture that often glorifies individualism — celebrating the solo act, the lone genius, the self-made success. But look closer, and you’ll see a different truth: the most enduring, impactful, and joyful work in the world doesn’t happen in isolation. It happens in community and through connection with others. This means it can be messy and even sometimes painful; but all the more beautiful and powerful.
This year’s Maverick Collective summer reading list is called Better Together. It serves as both a nod to our 2020 community programming at the start of the COVID pandemic, and as a celebration of the enduring idea that relationships – especially among women – are not only essential to our personal wellbeing, but also to how we lead, change systems, raise families, create art, build movements, and heal the world.
As Dr. Vivek Murthy wrote in My Parting Prescription for America, at the end of his tenure as Surgeon General in 2025:
“This is my parting prescription, my final wish for all of us: Choose community.”
His words are a reminder that connection isn’t a luxury – it is a necessity for building resilience, creating meaning, and finding joy.
Whether it’s communities facing injustices and rising into action, sisters-in-arms plotting codebreaking coups, or modern friendships navigating conflict and repair, the books on this list explore the full spectrum of what it means to do life with one another.
Some are deeply personal. Some are grounded in research. Some are fictional and fabulously fun. But each one reminds us: when women come together, magic happens – and so does meaningful change.
Happy reading and have a joyful summer!
P.S. However you dive into this list — with your book club, on your porch swing with a loved one, or curled up solo — we hope this list sparks reflection, conversation, and connection. If you’re purchasing books, we encourage you to support your local bookstore or use Bookshop.org, where all titles are linked and every purchase supports indie shops. Or check out your local library — another essential piece of community care.