Today Apple updated its Books and Podcasts apps with recognition of the most popular, and Apple’s selection of the best books, audiobooks, and podcasts of the year. There are ten different groups of selections, some just being the most popular items based on Apple’s metrics, and others being Apple’s own subjective favorites. Here’s a subset of Apple’s choices, but be sure to check out the full lists of picks in the Books or Podcasts apps on your Mac, iPhone, or iPad:
Books
- The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
- 28 Summers by Elin Hilderbrand
- Long Bright River by Liz Moore
- Plus 12 more
- Midnight Sun by Stephenie Meyer
- American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
- The Guest List by Lucy Foley
- Plus 22 more
Most Popular Nonfiction Books:
- Too Much and Never Enough by Mary L. Trump
- Untamed by Glennon Doyle
- A Promised Land by Barack Obama
- Plus 22 more
Audiobooks
- Open Book by Jessica Simpson
- Memorial Drive by Natasha Threthewey
- Upstream by Dan Heath
- Plus 12 more
Most Popular Fiction Audiobooks:
- Midnight Sun by Stephenie Meyer
- The Guest List by Lucy Foley
- American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins
- Plus 22 more
Most Popular Nonfiction Audiobooks:
- A Promised Land by Barack Obama
- Untamed by Glennon Doyle
- Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey
- Plus 22 more
Podcasts
Show of the Year: Code Switch from NPR
Apple’s Favorite Podcasts of the Year:
- Rabbit Hole from The New York Times
- Canary from The Washington Post
- How to Citizen with Baratunde from iHeartRadio
- Plus 9 more
Biggest New Shows of the Year:
- Unlocking Us with Brené Brown from Parcast Network
- SmartLess from Will Arnett, Jason Bateman, and Sean Hayes
- Nice White Parents from Serial & The New York Times
- Plus 6 more
Biggest Shows of the Year (for some reason there’s no permalink to this page so I’ll just list more of them):
- The Daily from The New York Times
- Crime Junkie from audiochuck
- Call Her Daddy from Barstool Sports
- This American Life from This American Life
- Armchair Expert with Dax Shepherd from Armchair Umbrella
- My Favorite Murder from Exactly Right
- Unlocking Us with Brené Brown from Parcast Network
- Stuff You Should Know from iHearRadio
- Up First from NPR
These are some great lists, and I’m happy to see Apple highlighting podcasts in particular. Hopefully we’ll see even more year-end lists from Apple in the future.
