Rebecca Serle's 6 favorite books about interpersonal relationships
The best-selling author recommends works by J.D. Salinger, Dolly Alderton, and more

- 'The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P.' by Adelle Waldman (2013)
- 'The Catcher in the Rye' by J.D. Salinger (1951)
- 'Good Material' by Dolly Alderton (2023)
- 'The Jessica Darling series' by Megan McCafferty (2001–09)
- 'Nothing to See Here' by Kevin Wilson (2019)
- 'Sylvia's Second Act' by Hillary Yablon (2024)
When you make a purchase using links on our site, The Week may earn a commission. All reviews are written independently by our editorial team.
Rebecca Serle is the best-selling author of "In Five Years," "One Italian Summer," and several young adult novels. In her forthcoming novel, "Expiration Dates," a woman on her 43rd first date receives an unsigned note indicating this guy may be the one.
'The Love Affairs of Nathaniel P.' by Adelle Waldman (2013)
Anyone who knows me knows I will not shut up about this book, which is told from the point of view of Nathaniel P. — a true Brooklyn "sad young literary man." (If you know, you know.) Waldman has a way of writing a man who is both sympathetic and infuriating — and very, very familiar. Buy it here.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
'The Catcher in the Rye' by J.D. Salinger (1951)
Alongside Wuthering Heights, this is one of the two novels that made me want to be a writer. Hemingway's short stories made me see that language didn't have to be "flowery" to be impactful — and Salinger drove this point home. I still marvel at how he can do so much with such brevity. The ability to say what you want to say and get out is a skill I deeply admire. Buy it here.
'Good Material' by Dolly Alderton (2023)
I just finished this book and feel it is in some ways the literary sister (or brother?) of Nathaniel P. Also told from the male point of view, the novel is essentially the anatomy of a breakup in your mid-30s. It's tender and true. There were so many times that I stopped while reading and simply muttered, "Yes." Buy it here.
'The Jessica Darling series' by Megan McCafferty (2001–09)
I have loved Jessica and Marcus — the on-again, off-again couple at the center of this five-book YA series — for what feels like forever. There is no book series I've come back to with more frequency, and after all these years, Jessica still feels like a friend. Buy it here.
'Nothing to See Here' by Kevin Wilson (2019)
I became a lifelong fan of Wilson's with the publication of this novel about the caretaker of twins who burst into flames when agitated. I have read few books that are this inventive and surprising and strange. I love the way Wilson writes magical realism. Buy it here.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
'Sylvia's Second Act' by Hillary Yablon (2024)
This book won't be out until March 12, but I read an advance copy and loved it. It's about a 60-something woman who catches her husband cheating and decides to move to New York City to start over again. Buy it here.
This article was first published in the latest issue of The Week magazine. If you want to read more like it, you can try six risk-free issues of the magazine here.
-
May 31 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Saturday's political cartoons include how much to pay for a pardon, medical advice from a brain worm, and a simple solution to the national debt.
-
5 costly cartoons about the national debt
Cartoons Political cartoonists take on the USA's financial hole, rare bipartisan agreement, and Donald Trump and Mike Johnson.
-
Green goddess salad recipe
The Week Recommends Avocado can be the creamy star of the show in this fresh, sharp salad
-
Green goddess salad recipe
The Week Recommends Avocado can be the creamy star of the show in this fresh, sharp salad
-
Ancient India: living traditions – 'ethereal and sensual' exhibition
The Week Recommends Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism are explored in show that remains 'remarkably compact'
-
6 well-preserved homes built in the 1930s
Feature Featuring a restored 1934 colonial in Arizona and a cold-storage warehouse turned loft in New York City
-
Things in Nature Merely Grow: memoir of 'harsh beauty' after loss
The Week Recommends Chinese-American novelist Yiyun Li's 'devastating' memoir explores the deaths of her two sons
-
Sirens: entertaining satire on the lives of the ultra-wealthy stars Julianne Moore
The Week Recommends This 'blackly comic affair' unfurls at a 'breakneck speed'
-
Mrs Warren's Profession: 'tour-de-force' from Imelda Staunton and daughter Bessie Carter
The Week Recommends Mother-daughter duo bring new life to George Bernard Shaw's morality play
-
Critics' choice: Steak houses that break from tradition
Feature Eight hours of slow-roasting prime rib, a 41-ounce steak, and a former Catholic school chapel turned steakhouse
-
Tash Aw's 6 favorite books about forbidden love
Feature The Malaysian novelist recommends works by James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, and more