Grant Ginder is the author of THIS IS HOW IT STARTS and DRIVER'S EDUCATION. He received his MFA from NYU, where he teaches writing. He lives in Brooklyn.A few summers ago, on the train back to the city from a wedding, a friend of Grants pulled out three bottles of pinot grigio which he had managed to snag from the reception, and which they proceeded to finish in about forty-five minutes. And, as the train winded its way toward Manhattan, the friend turned to Grant with glossy eyes and said Okay, guys, people we hated at the wedding: go. The next day, Grant started writing.
We Are Gathered Here Today (2026) Bobby Finger "Bobby Finger, one of our funniest, most insightful writers, has far and away written his best novel yet. We Are Gathered Here Today is a hilarious and all-too-accurate send-up of the wedding-industrial complex. It's also a profoundly moving meditation on what it means to commit--to life, to friends, to love, to hope--and how we uphold the duties we have to ourselves and each other. Reading Finger's book is like listening to a once-in-a-lifetime wedding speech: the only thing that will stop you from laughing are your tears."
Wasp's Nest (2026) Kat Stoddard "While it may take a nod from The Philadelphia Story, Wasp's Nest stands on its own as a hugely engaging comedy of manners. The prose is crystalline and the dialogue is screen worthy, but what's most impressive is Kat Stoddard's gift for digging deep into her characters' souls and dissecting their desires. The result is a keen examination of love in all its modern and messy complexities and a tremendously entertaining debut."
The Golden Boy (2026) Patricia Finn "Patricia Finn has constructed something miraculous - an immersive, profoundly moving story about friendship, marriage, betrayal, and redemption that spans across generations and oceans. She writes with a philosopher's deep wisdom, and a screenwriter's talent for satisfyingly messy characters and wholly gripping plots. Combine all of that with the fact that The Golden Boy is also very, very funny, and what you've got is a novel that's about as perfect as they come."
Hot Desk (2025) Laura Dickerman "Hot Desk is pure, grade-A, reader's delight. Dickerman's satire of the publishing industry across decades is pitch-perfect, revealing all of its blindspots and absurdities. But beneath all the laughs (and they're a lot of them) are serious and important questions about legacy, friendship, and who gets the right to tell a story. It's the sexiest, funniest book party you'll be invited to this year, and I promise you don't want to miss it."
The Sunflower Boys (2025) Sam Wachman "The Sunflower Boys is a stunning debut. An exquisitely rendered story of self-discovery, it's also a testament to the power of love and loyalty in the face of a savage war. Wachman's writing is exactly what we need right now: a shot of hope, delivered straight to the heart."
Songs for Other People's Weddings (2025) Jens Lekman and David Levithan "Consider me David Levithan and Jens Lekman's new number one groupie. Songs for Other People's Weddings is a hilarious, heartfelt, and tremendously wise exploration of love in all its beguiling and bittersweet absurdity. And like the best kind of pop songs, you'll still be thinking about it long after it's done."
Hazel Says No (2025) Jessica Berger Gross "I wolfed down Hazel Says No in two giddy sittings. With the Blums, Jessica Berger Gross has created one of contemporary fiction's great new families - a cast of characters whose struggles are resonant, hilarious, and poignant as they struggle to assimilate to their new lives. It's a big hearted and expertly crafted debut, one that celebrates the beauty of home, no matter where you happen to find it, and the power that comes with finding your voice."
Storybook Ending (2025) Moira Macdonald "I sat down to start Storybook Ending and before I knew it a hundred pages had passed. Moira Macdonald's novel is just that good - wildly clever, funny, and filled with enough Princess Bride and Nora Ephron references to melt my cold Millennial heart. It's also a heartwarming homage to books and the people who cherish them - a celebration of a story's power to fill our lives with hope. romance, and community. I loved it."
Food Person (2025) Adam Roberts "Food Person is a debut that's about as perfect as they come. Roberts takes everything you think you know about the food world and turns it on its head, whipping up a hilarious and slyly moving novel about ambition, friendship, and souffles gone awry. Get ready for a riotous romp."
Ways and Means (2024) Daniel Lefferts "Art, politics, late-stage capitalism, throuples: how is it possible for Ways and Means to cover so much ground, and so effortlessly? Lefferts writes with a satirist's eye, but never loses his compassion for his characters, or the harrowing world in which they - and we - find ourselves. This is a remarkable debut by a major new talent."
Greta & Valdin (2024) Rebecca K Reilly "I can't remember the last time I read a book that was as genuinely and uniquely funny as Greta & Valdin. But it's also so much more than that. Reilly's voice is wise and full of life, and her observations about queer love, heartbreak, and the complexities of family are poignant without ever succumbing to sentimentality. This is a wholly original, laugh-until-you-ugly-cry-on-the-subway debut."
The Christmas Orphans Club (2023) Becca Freeman "I dare you to read The Christmas Orphans Club and not want to spend every single holiday of your life--Christmas or otherwise--with Hannah, Finn, Priya, and Theo. Freeman's writing is filled with wit and insight, and her dialogue crackles. Beneath the abundant humor and charm, though, is a thoughtful exploration of friendship, tradition, and the challenges of growing old. What a gift of a debut!"
Excavations (2023) Kate Myers "Halfway through this book I was ready to pack my bags, throw away my laptop, and hop on a plane to Greece--Kate Myers is just that good. With Excavations, she's whipped up a sun-drenched romp with some of the most lovable misfits that I can remember--a story that's as much about learning from the past as it is about upending it. It's an exuberant, soaring debut, and I can't wait to see what she dreams up next."
Social Engagement (2023) Avery Carpenter Forrey "I can't remember the last time I read a book that so perfectly captures the humor, absurdity, and anguish of how we live now. Avery Carpenter Forrey's prose will cut you to the bone - it's wickedly funny, and keenly observant about matters ranging from real estate to Instagram to the perils of the wedding industrial complex. This is an astounding debut."
Dykette (2023) Jenny Fran Davis "Dykette is hilarious, smart, and has (in my humble opinion) the best opening scene of any novel I've read in ages. I don't think I'll ever look at the Grinch--or bathtubs--in the same way again."
Best Men (2023) Sidney Karger "Best Men takes the reins of the rom com and reinvents the genre in a thoroughly modern way. Karger's debut is inventive, hilarious, and satisfying; it's also a keenly-observed portrayal of love and friendship. This is a hilarious, heartfelt, charmer of a book."
Love and Other Scams (2023) Philip Ellis "With a sharp eye for detail and some of the funniest dialogue I've read in a long, long time, Philip Ellis has managed to give me the debut didn't know I needed: a heisty romp of rom-com that brilliantly skewers marriage, class, and love. He's the real deal, and so is his brilliant book."
Amazing Grace Adams (2023) Fran Littlewood "I can't remember the last time I read a novel with such unbridled enthusiasm. Amazing Grace Adams is a raw, uproariously hilarious portrait of parenthood, love, and family; it's also a profound examination of the way language can both save us and fail us when we need it the most. I'd walk across London on the hottest day of the year with Fran Littlewood-hell, I'd walk anywhere with her. I'm begging you: read this book."
The Widow (2022) Kaira Rouda "I tore through this book in two breathless sittings. With The Widow, Kaira Rouda has given us a political thriller that's ingeniously structured and packed full of razor sharp observations about the machinations of Washington power couples. It's smart, timely, and wickedly fun. You won't be able to put it down."
How to Fall Out of Love Madly (2022) Jana Casale "How to Fall Out of Love Madly fearlessly explores three women's shifting desires and the systems that do--and do not--constrain them. Casale is a master observer, and she renders the frustrations and joys of everyday life in piercingly clear prose. She is also mordantly funny."
City of Likes (2022) Jenny Mollen "First things first: I would pay good money to sit at a bar with Jenny Mollen and listen to her hilarious observations about the people around us. And I promise, once you read City of Likes, you would, too. Part comedy of manners, part social satire, Mollen's debut novel is a pitch-perfect rendering of our current Instagrammable age. It's viciously funny, and packed full of heart."
First Time for Everything (2022) Henry Fry "I can't believe First Time for Everything is a debut novel - Henry Fry's voice is just that assured on the page. With Danny Scudd, he's given us a character that will have you rolling on the floor with laughter, right up until the moment where he breaks your heart. This is a book for anyone who has ever felt like an outsider - for all of us who have gone through the joyful, excruciating, and necessary journey of discovering the people we were always meant to be."
Sedating Elaine (2022) Dawn Winter "Sedating Elaine has everything I crave in a novel: a delightfully subversive premise; a narrator with her life in shambles; and a voice that crackles with heart and wit. What really kept me turning the pages, though, was Winter's unexpected and poignant look at loss and grief. I loved this book."
Marrying the Ketchups (2022) Jennifer Close "I love the Sullivans--in fact, I want to be a Sullivan. I want to laugh with them and cry with them and share greasy plates of food with them at long family dinners. Marrying the Ketchups is Jennifer Close at her best: a smart, funny, bighearted novel that proves the remarkable power of family (and French fries) to heal us during truly bewildering times."
Cleopatra and Frankenstein (2022) Coco Mellors "I was in the thrall of this ambitious, surprising novel from the very first page. With razor-sharp dialogue, a keen eye for detail, and a cast of unforgettable characters, Cleopatra and Frankenstein untangles the mess of hope and heartache that love too often leaves in its wake. It's an astounding debut by a wise, assured writer. I can't wait to see what Coco Mellors conjures up next."
The Arc (2022) Tory Henwood Hoen "Whether she's skewering mediocre start-up bros or the absurdities of twenty-first century 'self-care,' there's nothing about the way we live now that escapes Hoen's gaze. A hilarious and thoughtful exploration of love in a culture obsessed with optimization, The Arc is a dazzling debut."
The Portrait of a Mirror (2021) A Natasha Joukovsky "I can’t stop thinking about A. Natasha Joukovsky’s characters. I want to be friends with them, and drink too many Bloody Marys with them; I’m also terrified of what they’d say about me behind my back. The Portrait of a Mirror is a wickedly fun debut—a novel that floats seamlessly between Ovid and dive bars, and that shows us the perils of getting exactly what we want."
The Knockout Queen (2020) Rufi Thorpe "I loved The Knockout Queen. A blistering, brilliant look at friendship and violence, suburbia and class, all told by one of the most observant, engaging narrators I’ve read in a very long time. This book is going to stay with me."
The Editor (2019) Steven Rowley "The Editor will have you weeping tears of joy when it's not quietly breaking your heart. It's a study of mothers and sons, unlikely friendships, and how we go about collecting the scattered pieces of our pasts. It takes guts, humour, and immense talent to write a book like this. Lucky for us, Rowley has plenty of all three."
Tell Me Lies (2018) Carola Lovering "Riveting. With Tell Me Lies, Carola Lovering has given us a keenly observed, no-holds-barred examination of the mistakes we make under the guise of love. If you've ever fallen for the wrong person--and let's be honest, you probably have--this book is for you."
The High Season (2018) Judy Blundell "I tore through this book with the sort of obsessive speed that makes you forget about things like eating and sleeping. On top of tackling tough issues like wealth, family, and class, Judy Blundell treats her characters—be they mothers or daughters, socialites or artists—with more honesty and heart than any writer I know. This isn’t a book that you’ll leave on some beach on Long Island’s North Fork—this is a book you’ll be talking about for a long time to come."
Sociable (2018) Rebecca Harrington "With Sociable, Rebecca Harrington has given us a hilarious, charming, and spot-on satire of the Buzzfeed age. It's impossible not to root for Elinor as she navigates her way through work, love, and Instagram. I tore through this book in a single sitting, and so will you."
