Here are 7 books that The Incredible Winston Browne fans have personally recommended if you like The Incredible Winston Browne. Book DNA is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of Lessons in Chemistry

Lisa Brandt Author Of Little Voices

From my list on women overcoming personal obstacles.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve always been interested in what drives people, their passions, and whether or not they’ve gone after them. I love it when something inspires them to emerge from a dormant state and give it their all. Show me a person who graduates from college at 85 or skydives at 99. Those people are inspiring! People go through the most incredible situations and use them as fuel for their lives. I funneled all of this into my latest novel. It’s a universal story that’s singular only to the person going through it. We can all take something positive away from this type of story.

Lisa's book list on women overcoming personal obstacles

Lisa Brandt Why Lisa loves this book

I can probably find a way to put this novel into every book category there is – I love it that much!

Elizabeth Zott is a brilliant chemist in the 1960s, a time when society accepted that only men could be brilliant or chemists. But through a series of opportunities and her defiance in the face of attempts to marginalize her, Elizabeth becomes a de facto leader of a small but mighty group of women who change their circumstances and thereby begin to change the world. 

By Bonnie Garmus ,

Why should I read it?

97 authors picked Lessons in Chemistry as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK • Meet Elizabeth Zott: a “formidable, unapologetic and inspiring” (PARADE) scientist in 1960s California whose career takes a detour when she becomes the unlikely star of a beloved TV cooking show in this novel that is “irresistible, satisfying and full of fuel. It reminds you that change takes time and always requires heat” (The New York Times Book Review).

A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The New York Times, Washington Post, NPR, Oprah Daily, Newsweek, GoodReads

"A unique heroine ... you'll find yourself wishing she wasn’t fictional." —Seattle Times


If you love The Incredible Winston Browne...

Book cover of December on 5C4

December on 5C4 by Adam Strassberg,

Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!

On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…

Book cover of The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife

Bethany Staer

From Bethany's 3 favorite reads in 2025.

Unknown Author Why Bethany loves this book

“Love is . . . about picking someone up and never, ever putting them down again, no matter how heavy things become.”
― Anna Johnston, The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife

“Grief was love with nowhere to go.”
― Anna Johnston, The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife

“Fred woke with a start. Or possibly a fart.”
― Anna Johnston, The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife

Humour

By Anna Johnston ,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

“A funny, heartfelt story about found family and seeing the silver lining in life. Fans of A Man Called Ove and Remarkably Bright Creatures will especially enjoy this new novel.”—Library Journal

A zany case of mistaken identity allows a lonely old man one last chance to be part of a family in this warm, life-affirming debut novel.

Frederick Fifewas born with an extra helping of kindness in his heart. If he borrowed your car, he'd return it washed with a full tank of gas. The problem is, at age eighty-two, there's nobody left in Fred's life to borrow from, and…


Book cover of All Creatures Great and Small

Norah Esty Author Of A Long Way from Anywhere

From my list on taking on a new adventure.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a lifelong weirdo, I’m intrigued by nonstandard choices. When I was eleven, slightly precocious (and slightly obnoxious), I dropped out of school—with the support of my parents, and against the advice of everyone else. After a year of homeschooling, I started attending university. This was the first in a sequence of unusual decisions. Some worked out better than others! I continue to wonder what motivates a person to step off the well-trodden, well-lit path. When is conventional advice likely to lead to fulfillment, and when should it be modified or ignored outright? I love a story (like these five) where someone tries something completely different.

Norah's book list on taking on a new adventure

Norah Esty Why Norah loves this book

A few years back, my husband and I were forced to do some impromptu, middle-of-the-night sheep obstetrics.

We never would have had the nerve if we hadn’t spent the previous winter curled up reading everything James Herriot ever wrote. Which, in turn, we wouldn’t have done if his writing wasn’t so appealing!

I loved the various and variable characters (human and animal) that populate his memoir about working as a country vet in Yorkshire, and I learned a lot, vicariously, about pre-antibiotic veterinary practices.

Comfort reading at its best. (Both ewe and lamb survived.)

By James Herriot ,

Why should I read it?

10 authors picked All Creatures Great and Small as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 3, 4, 5, and 6.

What is this book about?

A tie-in to the PBS Masterpiece series and Christmas special, available on streaming and home video.

All Creatures Great and Small is first volume in the multimillion copy bestselling series. Delve into the magical, unforgettable world of James Herriot, the world's most beloved veterinarian, and his menagerie of heartwarming, funny, and tragic animal patients.

For fifty years, generations of readers have flocked to Herriot's marvelous tales, deep love of life, and extraordinary storytelling abilities. For decades, Herriot roamed the remote, beautiful Yorkshire Dales, treating every patient that came his way from smallest to largest, and observing animals and humans alike…


If you love Sean Dietrich...

Book cover of The Year Mrs. Cooper Got Out More: A Great Wharf Novel

The Year Mrs. Cooper Got Out More by Meredith Marple,

The coastal tourist town of Great Wharf, Maine, boasts a crime rate so low you might suspect someone’s lying.

Nevertheless, jobless empty nester Mallory Cooper has become increasingly reclusive and fearful. Careful to keep the red wine handy and loath to leave the house, Mallory misses her happier self—and so…

Book cover of A Girl Named Zippy: Growing up Small in Mooreland, Indiana

Ann Aikens Author Of A Young Woman's Guide to Life: A Cautionary Tale

From my list on funniest memoirs with advice for a happy life.

Why am I passionate about this?

Raised when unsupervised kids roamed freely in the woods, my friends and I became adept at finding fun. My 20s were spent in New York in the 1980's zeitgeist of exploration and excess. A lifelong fan of comedy, I worked at the Comedy Cellar, where I booked and watched countless standup comics. Later, I left NYC’s glamor for Vermont’s nature. Since then, my Vermont newspaper column, "Upper Valley Girl," has amused and astonished (and possibly appalled) readers with humor and candor. Ever adventurous to the point of risk, making awful mistakes, and enduring impossible people, I learned limits the hard way. I advise young people not to do the same. 

Ann's book list on funniest memoirs with advice for a happy life

Ann Aikens Why Ann loves this book

A captivating memoir that I could not put down. The mesmerizing cover! The story of a happy child growing up in a happy family in the Midwest that is somehow riveting! I was hooked from the get-go.

As someone who used to book comics in NYC, I admire anyone who can do brilliant clean humor. I wouldn’t call her a humor writer. She’s just a fantastic writer. I do not re-read books, but I do re-read this gem to feel sane and awed and to laugh. It reminds me of simpler times and that there are good, genuine people in this messy world.

By Haven Kimmel ,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked A Girl Named Zippy as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

When Haven Kimmel was born in 1965 in Mooreland, Indiana, was a sleepy little hamlet of three hundred people. Nicknamed "Zippy" for the way she would bolt around the house, this small girl was possessed of big eyes and even bigger ears. In this witty and lovingly told memoir, Kimmel takes readers back to a time when small-town America was caught in the amber of the innocent postwar period--people helped their neighbors, went to church on Sunday, and kept barnyard animals in their backyards.

To three-year-old Zippy, it made perfect sense to strike a bargain with her father to keep…


Book cover of You Are My Sunshine: A Story of Love, Promises, and a Really Long Bike Ride

Jayne Jaudon Ferrer Author Of Hayley and the Hot Flashes

From my list on entertaining stories about relationships.

Why am I passionate about this?

I grew up in a small town, with wonderful librarians who introduced me to books I remember fondly to this day. The Flicka, Ricka, Dicka series, the Bobbsey Twins, Trixie Beldon, Nancy Drew, and, of course, Little Women shaped my love for stories about relationships and the simple pleasures of daily life. Whether it’s a mystery or a memoir, I want interesting interactions between the main characters, meaty descriptions of daily activities and affairs, and, of course, a happy ending. As I’ve gotten older, I like books with older protagonists; those are hard to come by—one reason I wrote a novel about the adventures of five middle-aged girlfriends!

Jayne's book list on entertaining stories about relationships

Jayne Jaudon Ferrer Why Jayne loves this book

I can’t remember when I’ve enjoyed a book this much.

Sean is a brilliant writer, and funny as all get out. We share a love of the South, a love of words, a fear of snakes, and an aversion to traffic. As I read, I earmarked nearly a dozen passages I shared with family and friends, like,Covid cases climbing like decisions at a Billy Graham crusade” and “I have nothing against fog machines and stage lights, but ordering a Starbucks in a church lobby just feels wrong."

His account of his and his wife’s bicycle trek down the Great Allegheny Passage and the C&O Canal Towpath trail put to rest once and for all any aspiration I harbored about walking the Appalachian Trail. Some things are better read about!

By Sean Dietrich ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked You Are My Sunshine as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A laugh-out-loud funny true story of a loving relationship, a grand adventure, and a promise kept.

It was only a few years after the starry-eyed young couple got married when scary news threatened to take the wind out of their sails. But Sean Dietrich's wife, Jamie, wouldn't let it. She dared to hope for and plan for a great big adventure, and she made him promise to do it with her. For love and the promise of biscuits along the way, Sean--who was never an athlete of any kind--undertook the bike ride of a lifetime and lived to talk about…


Book cover of Prime of Life

Jayne Jaudon Ferrer Author Of Hayley and the Hot Flashes

From my list on entertaining stories about relationships.

Why am I passionate about this?

I grew up in a small town, with wonderful librarians who introduced me to books I remember fondly to this day. The Flicka, Ricka, Dicka series, the Bobbsey Twins, Trixie Beldon, Nancy Drew, and, of course, Little Women shaped my love for stories about relationships and the simple pleasures of daily life. Whether it’s a mystery or a memoir, I want interesting interactions between the main characters, meaty descriptions of daily activities and affairs, and, of course, a happy ending. As I’ve gotten older, I like books with older protagonists; those are hard to come by—one reason I wrote a novel about the adventures of five middle-aged girlfriends!

Jayne's book list on entertaining stories about relationships

Jayne Jaudon Ferrer Why Jayne loves this book

I’m always looking for books about older protagonists; this one is set in a nursing home, so many of the characters are seriously older, but the main character is an endearing, middle-aged janitor and his interactions with the residents made this book a hard one to put down.

Ben’s obsession with numbers and patterns figures throughout the whole story, as does a previous life he’s attempted to leave behind. His relationships with various residents, a local podiatrist, and a woman from his past keep the story fast-paced and funny, but there’s an intriguing undercurrent of solemnity and a wonderfully satisfying surprise ending that left me with a big smile on my face.

By P D Bekendam ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Prime of Life as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Is a simple life too much to ask for?

Ben thinks the retirement home where he works should be called “Heaven Can Wait a Little Longer While I Golf” instead of Heritage Gardens. But who asked him? He’s just the janitor, after all. Of course, his inept boss, the cantankerous residents, and even his attractive podiatrist friend don’t know one important thing about him: he was recently a cardiothoracic surgeon, not a broom-pushing custodian.

Ben is in search of a stress-free life with a little freedom from the past thrown in. But will it be that simple to escape who…


If you love The Incredible Winston Browne...

Book cover of The Duke's Christmas Redemption

The Duke's Christmas Redemption by Arietta Richmond,

A Duke who has rejected love, a Lady who dreams of a love match, an arranged marriage, a house full of secrets, a most unneighborly neighbor, a plot to destroy reputations, an unexpected love that redeems it all.

Lady Charlotte Wyndham, given in an arranged marriage to a man she…

Book cover of Will the Circle Be Unbroken?: A Memoir of Learning to Believe You're Gonna Be Okay

Jayne Jaudon Ferrer Author Of Hayley and the Hot Flashes

From my list on entertaining stories about relationships.

Why am I passionate about this?

I grew up in a small town, with wonderful librarians who introduced me to books I remember fondly to this day. The Flicka, Ricka, Dicka series, the Bobbsey Twins, Trixie Beldon, Nancy Drew, and, of course, Little Women shaped my love for stories about relationships and the simple pleasures of daily life. Whether it’s a mystery or a memoir, I want interesting interactions between the main characters, meaty descriptions of daily activities and affairs, and, of course, a happy ending. As I’ve gotten older, I like books with older protagonists; those are hard to come by—one reason I wrote a novel about the adventures of five middle-aged girlfriends!

Jayne's book list on entertaining stories about relationships

Jayne Jaudon Ferrer Why Jayne loves this book

Hard to imagine a memoir about suicide can be entertaining but, honestly, it was.

Sean Dietrich’s father shot himself when Sean was a child. The book is a roller-coaster ride of emotions Sean experiences as he comes to terms with that event. While the backdrop of the story is that sad beginning, the details of Sean’s life lived along the way are often funny.

His description of math and why he hates it is downright hilarious: “Math is one of those things the good Lord allowed on this earth to remind mankind that the devil is real,” that paragraph begins. Sean details his journey from being a high school dropout to becoming an award-winning, hugely popular author and columnist with brute honesty, a distinctly Southern perspective, and a wit that puts him right up there with Will Rogers.

By Sean Dietrich ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Will the Circle Be Unbroken? as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

From celebrated storyteller "Sean of the South" comes an unforgettable memoir of love, loss, the friction of family memories, and the unlikely hope that you're gonna be alright.

Sean Dietrich was twelve years old when he scattered his father's ashes from the mountain range. His father was a man who lived for baseball, a steel worker with a ready wink, who once scaled a fifty-foot tree just to hang a tire swing for his son. He was also the stranger who tried to kidnap and kill Sean's mother before pulling the trigger on himself. He was a childhood hero, now…


Book cover of Lessons in Chemistry
Book cover of The Borrowed Life of Frederick Fife
Book cover of All Creatures Great and Small

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