40 Books Every Music Lover Should Read

Are you a music fan? These fiction and nonfiction books are sure to satisfy your desire to rock and read a fantastic story.

1

A Visit from the Goon Squad

This book a visit from punk rock’s rich history intertwined with a web of enthralling characters.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
2

Ready Player One (Movie Tie-In)

For readers who enjoy 80’s pop culture references, video games, and dystopian showdowns.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
3

High Fidelity

A story about music and breakups; the winning combination.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
4

Talking to Girls About Duran Duran

The key to her heart is through her ears.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
5

Porcelain

When Moby wasn’t a legendary, world-renowned DJ, he was struggling to beat the odds in a NYC club scene.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
6

How Music Got Free

Learn about the secret history of the music industry.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
7

Jagger

For music lovers to learn about the elusive rocker in a whole new light.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
8

Autobiography

One of the most influential music icons in history also has a unique writing talent.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
9

Station Eleven

A dystopian tale for symphony music lovers.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
10

Reckless

Chrissie is so cool. She’s funny, honest, and just plain awesome in her autobiography.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
11

In the Pleasure Groove

Because this list wouldn’t be complete without more than one Duran Duran book.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
12

Unfaithful Music & Disappearing Ink

Music lovers know the radio, radio will take you to the other end of the telescope.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
13

M Train

Patti Smith is a vision, and we’d read her daily meditations, well, daily.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
14

Under the Big Black Sun

Travel back in time to the beginning and evolution of the Los Angeles punk rock scene.

Buy

Audible audiobooks.com audiobookstore.com Google Play Store iBooks Kobo Libro.fm
15

The Sun & The Moon & The Rolling Stones

A fresh perspective on the Rolling Stones, told by the co-creator of HBO’s new music series, Vinyl.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
16

Billie Holiday

Critically acclaimed jazz writer and musician, John Szwed, gives fans a biography as well as a reflection on Billie Holiday’s special life.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
17

Just Listen

Teenage romance sparked by a music obsession.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
18

The Commitments

When working class Irish kids form a band, you’re committed to reading about it.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
19

The Fortress of Solitude

Love music? Love coming of age novels? Here you go.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
20

The Piano Teacher

Claire Pendleton goes to Hong Kong to work as a piano teacher.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
21

This Is Your Brain on Music

Why do humans have a special relationship with music? This book tells us what music can teach us about the brain, and what your brain can teach us about music.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
22

The Walrus and the Elephants

John Lennon’s story of music and politics is a poignant reminder that music is love and love is peace.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
23

Man on the Run

Deeply revealing and detail rich, this McCartney biography is an illuminating look at the life of a rock icon.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
24

Waging Heavy Peace

“I think I will have to use my time wisely and keep my thoughts straight if I am to succeed and deliver the cargo I so carefully have carried thus far to the outer reaches.” –Neil Young, from Waging Heavy Peace

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
25

Bob Dylan in America

The answer, my friends, is blowing through the pages of this book.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
26

A Freewheelin’ Time

On that note, this memoir is playing a song for you in the jingle jangle mornings of the 1960’s folk music scene in NYC.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
27

Neil and Me

Explore the life of Neil Young through his father’s eyes.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
28

The James Brown Reader

James Brown’s life through the eyes of writers from four decades.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
29

Hunger Makes Me a Modern Girl

Music makes Carrie a modern rockstar.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
30

The Soloist

Renne was once one of the world’s greatest cellists, and years later, two events change his life drastically.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
31

Audrey, Wait!

After Audrey dumps her ex-boyfriend Evan, he writes a song about her that propels her into stardom.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
32

A Life in Letters

A selection of Mozart’s letters, translated into English, complete with notes, linking commentary and chronology.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
33

Songbook

“All I have to say about these songs is that I love them, and want to sing along to them, and force other people to listen to them, and get cross when these other people don’t like them as much as I do.” —Nick Hornby, from Songbook

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
34

There Goes Gravity

From Led Zeppelin to Eminem and Patti Smith to Kanye West, this book’s an insider’s behind-the-scenes look at the major personalities of rock and roll.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
35

The Loser

A fictional story about the relationship between piano virtuoso Glenn Gould and two of his fellow students.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
36

Love Is a Mix Tape

The mix tape is the symbol of first love and epitome of romance. (What do teenagers do now, make mix-Spotify playlists?)

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
37

Where She Went

Music continues to flourish in the anticipated sequel to the moving story, If I Stay,

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart
38

This Song Will Save Your Life

This audiobook is about how music brings people together.

Buy

Audible audiobooks.com audiobookstore.com Google Play Store iBooks Kobo Libro.fm
39

Musicophilia

Oliver Sacks explores the place music occupies in the brain and how it affects the human condition.
Dave Hill Doesn’t Live Here Anymore

Dave Hill combines incredibly sultry guitar skills with an impeccable comedic timing to create a memorable performance.

Buy

Amazon Barnes & Noble Books A Million Hudson Booksellers IndieBound Powell’s Target Walmart

Find other titles in

🌿 Wellness & Beauty Picks

🎧 Music Discovery

Discover New Music on Spotify
Independent artists, fresh releases & songs worth hearing.

📻 KPIU Radio

Tired of hearing the same songs everywhere? Discover independent artists, fresh music & global sounds before everyone else does.

Music Discovery • Independent Artists • Global Sounds

Share the Post:

Related Articles

BOOKS

Why Indie Authors Approach Writing Like a Business

best books for a healthy lifestyle A woman enjoying a peaceful moment while reading a book outdoors, representing how the best books for a healthy lifestyle can support mental health, emotional well-being, and mindful living.

BOOKS

8 Best Books for a Healthy Lifestyle (Mind, Body & Emotional Well-Being)

Stack of romance novels and reading glasses on a bed, representing the best enemies to lovers books

BOOKS

Enemies to Lovers Books: 10 Best Reads We’re Obsessed With Right Now

Illustration of open book and stacked books with title "The Importance of Reading: 7 Reasons It Still Matters in the Digital Age" by Pump It Up Magazine

BOOKS

The Importance of Reading: 7 Reasons It Still Matters in the Digital Age

Person reading a psychology book in a relaxing flower bath with tea and fruit on a wooden tray.

BOOKS

12 Bestselling Books That Contain More Knowledge Than a Psychology Degree

BOOKS

Wide Awake? E-Books That Will Keep You Company Through the Night