10 headline-inspired books for March’s top news stories
The one thing almost all of us are reading? The news. Whether good or bad, it always finds us on social media, on the TV at the gym, in our favorite podcast. But there’s much more to the story than a ten-word headline, or even the full article. If you’ve ever thought, “I want to know more about that,” there’s a well-researched and fact-checked book that can satisfy your curiosity, keep you informed, or help you dig a little deeper.
To gain a wider perspective on what’s happening in the news, here are a few book recommendations, straight from librarians, that connect with recent headlines (as of March 2026).
For this post, we grabbed the headlines from Ground News, which offers balanced news from multiple perspectives from local and international sources, comparing headlines across the political spectrum. If you’re looking for a news platform that cuts through the bias, you may be able to find it right in Libby! Here’s where you can find Ground News* and other Extras in Libby.
All headlines are from Ground News as of March 17, 2026.
March 2026 Headlines
Oscar Wars
by Michael Schulman
A lively history of the Academy Awards, focusing on the brutal battles, the starry rivalries, and the colorful behind-the-scenes Hollywood drama.
📰 Headline: One Battle After Another wins Best Picture at the 2026 Oscars
The Nights Are Quiet in Tehran
by Shida Bazyar
A captivating, polyphonic novel of one family’s flight from and return to Iran.
📰 Headline: Iran's new supreme leader vows to keep blocking Strait of Hormuz in first statement
King of Kings
by Scott Anderson
A stunningly revelatory narrative history of the Iranian Revolution, one of the most momentous events in modern times.
Targeted: Beirut
by Jack Carr
This nonfiction series examines the devastating terrorist attacks that changed the course of history, beginning with the 1983 Marine barracks bombing in Beirut.
📰 Headline: Lebanon's latest conflict brings rare public backlash against Hezbollah as war flares again
Astrophysics for People in a Hurry
by Neil deGrasse Tyson
While you wait for your morning coffee to brew, for the bus, the train, or a plane to arrive, this essential book will reveal just what you need to be fluent and ready for the next cosmic headlines: from the Big Bang to black holes, from quarks to quantum mechanics, and from the search for planets to the search for life in the universe.
📰 Headline: Meteor Identified as Likely Cause of Boom Heard Across Cleveland Today
The Wealth of Nations
by Adam Smith
A treasured classic of political economy. First published in March of 1776, Adam Smith wrote the book to influence a special audience—the British Parliament—and its arguments in the early spring of that year pressed for peace and cooperation with Britain’s colonies rather than war.
📰 Headline: From 1776 to 2026: Adam Smith's lessons for the global economy
Who Cooked Adam Smith's Dinner?
by Katrine Marcal
A kind of femininst Freakonomics, this book charts the myth of economic man—from its origins at Adam Smith’s dinner table, its adaptation by the Chicago School, and its disastrous role in the 2008 Global Financial Crisis—in a witty and courageous dismantling of one of the biggest myths of our time.
If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies
by Eliezer Yudkowsky
The scramble to create superhuman AI has put us on the path to extinction—but it’s not too late to change course, as two of the field’s earliest researchers explain in this clarion call for humanity.
📰 Headline: Most AI chatbots will help users plan violent attacks, study finds
Apple
by David Pogue
In time for Apple’s 50th anniversary, CBS Sunday Morning correspondent David Pogue tells the iconic company’s entire life story: how it was born, nearly died, was born again under Steve Jobs, and became, under CEO Tim Cook, the most valuable company in the world. The book features full-color photos, new facts that correct the record and illuminate its subversive culture, and fresh interviews with the legendary figures who shaped Apple into what it is today.
📰 Headline: Apple launches new ‘Hello Apple’ Instagram account
The Breath of the Gods
by Simon Winchester
An urgently-needed portrait across time of that unseen force—unseen but not unfelt—that respects no national borders and no vessel or structure in its path. Wind, the movement of the air, is seen by so many as a heavenly creation and generally a thing of essential goodness. But when it flexes its invisible muscles, all should take care and be very afraid.
📰 Headline: High winds cause power outages, property damage and at least 1 death as wild March weather blows in
*Not offered by all libraries. Check in Libby to see what’s available to you.
**Title availability may vary.
Published Mar 17, 2026
Annie Suhy
Annie Suhy is the editor of Libby Life. When she’s not working, practicing yoga, or petting cats, she’s doing paint-by-numbers and buying more plants. An avid poetry fan, her favorite collection is The Splinter Factory by Jeffrey McDaniel. She is an Aries.