Books to Gift to the Pop Culture Enthusiasts in Your Life

There's something for everyone: the spiritually inclined, the rom com fans, the intellectuals, the feminist-minded, the psychedelic-curious, and more. Plus: book tour news!

If you’ve got pop culture nerds on your gifting list, or you just want to pick up a new book for yourself to read over holiday break, here are a few of my recommendations for culture-related books that will change your mind, lift your spirits, and show you how pop culture can make you a better person:

The Dharma of The Princess Bride by Ethan Nichtern

One of the greatest modern Buddhist minds weighs in on one of the greatest films of all time. What more could you ask for?

I’ll Have What She’s Having by Erin Carlson

My friend and colleague Erin Carlson has written several books about movie history, and you should read all of them! But her first, about the films of Nora Ephron, gives me particularly warm holiday vibes. But not too warm; you’ll learn that Ephron was wonderfully complex and prickly at times while making her gold-standard rom coms, When Harry Met Sally, Sleepless in Seattle, and You’ve Got Mail. All of these films have major sequences set during the holidays, so cue them up and then dig into Erin’s book, or give it to a friend to do the same.

The Male Gazed by Manuel Betancourt

Betancourt combines personal reflection and rigorous analysis of the pop culture he’s consumed throughout his lifetime to consider the ways male bodies and sexuality are presented for consumption. He has a unique perspective as a queer millennial who grew up in Colombia and went to college in Canada before moving to the United States, but his observations are universal insofar as we have all been strongly influenced by the ways that men have been portrayed. The startling part is how little this has been considered, likely because cis-hetero male is considered “regular,” the default, hardly worth noticing. But The Little Mermaid’s sexy King Triton, telenovela men, the guys of Saved by the Bell, and RuPaul’s Drag Race queens, among other examples, have absolutely had an effect on how we all see men, desire, and ourselves, and they deserve the serious—but still fun to read—treatment they get here.

Mary and Lou and Rhoda and Ted

Sex and the City and Us and

When Women Invented Television

By … Me!

I’ve got something for every feminist pop culture junkie! Mary and Lou and Rhoda and Ted dives into the history of The Mary Tyler Moore Show as the first series to use multiple female writers’ real-life experiences in scripts in the 1970s. Sex and the City and Us explores the explosive phenomenon that Sex and the City became in the ‘90s and 2000s by depicting single professional women’s lives honestly, if with a large helping of glamor. And When Women Invented Television examines the lives of four women who were among several female creative pioneers in early television: Gertrude Berg, who created, wrote, produced, and starred in TV’s first successful family sitcom; Irna Phillips, who’s responsible for the entire soap opera genre; Hazel Scott, the first Black person to host a national, primetime show; and Betty White, one of the first daytime talk show hosts and the producer/creator/star of her own sitcom.

A Really Good Day by Ayelet Waldman

Waldman shares her transformative journey with microdosing LSD to combat her longtime, intractable mood difficulties. Waldman is always a delight to read, and she makes the experience of psychedelics accessible here thanks to her funny, vulnerable writing. The perfect way to get a better understanding of what all the microdosing fuss is about. (I wrote about this and other psychedelic-related books in a recent post.)

The Woman in Me by Britney Spears

Sometimes sad, but always fascinating and revelatory, Spears’ memoir is ultimately a meta redemption story: The book’s mere existence is a massive step for a woman who has been systematically silenced, particularly during her 13-year conservatorship under her father’s tyrannical control. I wrote extensively about this book already, so please check that out if you’re interested. As I wrote then: “While her story is an extreme one, a reverse fairy tale of sorts, it contains lessons for us all—to me, most importantly, about telling your own truth, setting boundaries, and speaking up for your own rights, even if that means people won’t like you as much. This is a lifelong struggle for me, and I can’t imagine how hard it is when judgement comes not from one disapproving look from a friend or a boss, but instead from Diane Sawyer, tabloid covers, and millions of people laughing at how ‘crazy’ you must have been to shave your head.”

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My forthcoming book So Fetch: The Making of Mean Girls (And Why We’re Still So Obsessed with It), out in January, is also available for pre-order (and gift-giving … who doesn’t love the promise of a bonus gift arrival in January?). I’ve also got some events planned and would love to see you all!

January 17, 7:30 p.m., Brooklyn: So Fetch launch party at Good Judy. Time culture reporter Moises Mendez and I will show some clips and talk behind-the-scenes stories as well as the film's impact on internet and LGBTQ+ culture, and undoubtedly dish about the new musical movie as well. As a bonus, we can stick around the bar afterwards for their famous piano sing-along night!! This is guaranteed to lift your January spirits.

January 31, 7 p.m., Toronto: Join me and comedian Monica Heisey (Really Good, Actually; Schitt’s Creek) with HotDocs for a nostalgic, behind-the-scenes look at Mean Girls on its twentieth anniversary. We’ll be joined by local cast members Jan Caruana, Chris "Nice wig, Janis, what's it made of?" Anton, Stefanie "I Wore Army Pants and Flip Flops" Drummond, and David "Glen Coco" Reale for some exclusive dirt on what really went down on the set of this modern classic..

February 7, Woodstock, NY: So Fetch book event at Tinker Street Cinema, with books from The Golden Notebook. We’ll show some clips and I’ll talk Mean Girls, in the movies and in real life, with author Sari Botton.

March 6, 6 p.m., Chicago: Clips and discussion at the American Writers Museum.