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<\/a><\/p>\nTennis books were the main topic of conversation in yesterday\u2019s Bounces subscriber chat with Changeover<\/a> author Giri Nathan<\/a>, which we recorded for posterity for everybody to enjoy here. Giri and I talked about his book (which, of course, makes a great gift), and then also got into a rundown of many of my all-time favorites that I dusted off from my shelves, which I will itemize below.<\/p>\n To join our next Bounces subscriber chat live, please become a subscriber!<\/p>\n Because of the dustiness of the particular tennis collection shelf I was plucking from when scouring before the Bounces chat, most of these books are not especially new. A lot of my favorite recent additions\u2014including, notably, Christopher Clarey<\/a>\u2019s new Nadal biography that we did a fun feature on back in May\u2014didn\u2019t show up here since they\u2019re on another shelf, arbitrarily.<\/p>\n So this list isn\u2019t everything and isn\u2019t trying to be, but it\u2019s a lot and hopefully it sparks some ideas, either for those on your shopping lists or for yourself.<\/p>\n Without further ado, here are the named selections, in the order they were discussed in the video above:<\/p>\n A classic of the category about the 1968 U.S. Open semifinal between Arthur Ashe and Clark Graebner, and a major influence on Giri\u2019s Changeover. (Buy on Bookshop<\/a>)<\/p>\n The most acclaimed tennis book of the 21st century, and maybe the tennis book which made the biggest impact on non-tennis audiences. Deserving of the hype. (Buy on Bookshop<\/a>)<\/p>\n Though nowhere close to the commercial success of Agassi\u2019s book, Sharapova used a similar template to write an underrated memoir, which starts particularly strong in her childhood sections in the first third of the book. (Buy on Bookshop<\/a>)<\/p>\n A rare year-on-tour written by a mid-career player herself, Pam Shriver\u2019s book is candid and fun, with a bracing honesty about herself and her peers you wouldn\u2019t get anymore. (Buy used on Amazon<\/a>)<\/p>\n Giri and I are both contributors to The Second Serve, and its gorgeous magazine\u2014Open Tennis\u2014makes a great gift. (Buy on The Second Serve<\/a>)<\/p>\n OK, one fashion accessory: The Second Serve made a couple very fun hats inspired by the best wordsmith on tour now, Daniil Medvedev.<\/p>\n (Buy on The Second Serve<\/a>)<\/p>\n Ted Tinling was a dishy sparkplug and also a huge trove of knowledge about a broad cross-section of 20th-century tennis history; this book stretches from Suzanne Lenglen to Chris Evert. (Buy used on Amazon<\/a>)<\/p>\n John Feinstein\u2019s early-1990s tennis tome is daunting but satisfying, and flows quickly once you take the dive inside. Lots of profiles of key figures at a transitional moment. (Buy used on Amazon<\/a>)<\/p>\n Another year-on-tour book from 2000, this one a popcorny and juicy tale of women\u2019s tennis in a golden age of teen phenoms at the turn of the millennium. Maybe the last great access-driven year-on-tour book. (Buy on Amazon<\/a>)<\/p>\n Michael Mewshaw was a recent Bounces guest as we reviewed Bjorn Borg\u2019s new memoir, and his controversial 1983 investigation into the underbelly of men\u2019s professional tennis remains a standalone pillar of the tennis book landscape. (Buy a used book<\/a> or an eBook<\/a>)<\/p>\n Ahead of her time (and decades ahead of a molehill being turned into mountain ranges), Renee Richards wrote a memoir about becoming the first (and only) trans player in women\u2019s tennis. (Buy used on Amazon<\/a>)<\/p>\n We also shouted-out the forthcoming book by Julie Kliegman<\/a>, Finding Ren\u00e9e Richards, which comes out in August 2026. (Pre-order on Bookshop<\/a>)<\/p>\n The historical graphic novel Suzanne was highlighted as a great gift idea last year on Bounces, and it remains a great choice this year. (Buy on Bookshop<\/a>)<\/p>\n Billie Jean King\u2019s book is a tapestry of tennis and 20th-century American history, putting her tennis and her pioneering into a vivid, textured quilt. I listened to this book as an audiobook read by Billie and loved it. (Listen on Spotify Premium<\/a>)<\/p>\n Though shaped like a coffee table book, this 1988 book is a dense and rich history of early women\u2019s tennis like few other books I\u2019ve found. (Buy on Amazon<\/a>)<\/p>\n This book had an updated version in 2023, Trailblazers, that I have not yet seen, but it\u2019s likely easier to find (it\u2019s also wildly <\/a>cheaper on Amazon<\/a> than elsewhere)<\/p>\n A hidden gem, Grace Lichtenstein embedded on tour in the very nascent years of women\u2019s tennis trying to prove itself as a professional sport. (Buy on Amazon<\/a>)<\/p>\n There\u2019s a lot more to Dylan Alcott\u2019s story than tennis, and his humor comes through vividly throughout in this really funny yet lovely memoir. (Buy on Amazon<\/a>)<\/p>\n A bonus selection mentioned near the end, Li Na\u2019s autobiography has been translated from Chinese into English, shedding light on a tennis journey far different than the typical Western path. (Buy on Amazon<\/a>)<\/p>\n Another classic of early tennis, Gordon Forbes\u2019 diaries about playing on the tour (as it was) before the Open Era really do transport the reader back to a time of tennis that feels prehistoric. (Buy used on Amazon<\/a>)<\/p>\n My sleeper hit book that I probably should talk about more! I wrote the text\u2014and also consulted about the images\u2014for a beautiful coffee table book by TeNeues in 2015 as part of their sports series. Since a new round of printing a few years ago, it\u2019s taken a firm foothold as a fixture near the top of the tennis book charts. It\u2019s a very pretty, giftable book. (Buy on Amazon<\/a>)<\/p>\n And then, of course, a Bounces subscription also makes a nifty gift for any tennis fan!<\/p>\nA “Kingdom of Clay,” Beneath the Surface<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n