Lan Samantha Chang
[isbn]
Lan Samantha Chang's Family Chao is a captivating retelling of The Brothers Karamazov. Set in small-town Wisconsin, it's centered on the family that runs the Chinese restaurant and their hopes, frustrations, secrets, and passionate, foundational disagreements. Part whodunit, part courtroom drama, part great American novel, Family Chao is filled with difficult characters making understandable choices and actions — and... (read more)
Recommended by Michelle C.
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Pam Mu�oz Ryan
[isbn]
Newbery Honoree Pam Muñoz Ryan returns with a new story for middle readers! Solimar is a princess newly gifted with magic and she must put her powers, courage, and compassion to the test to save her kingdom beset by a greedy king and the endangered butterflies that also call it home. An entrancing and empowering journey from one of the genre’s most beloved voices.
Recommended by Sarah R.
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Mariana Enriquez, Megan McDowell
[isbn]
Enriquez's short stories are fantastically macabre and suffused with menace. A dead child haunts the living, an ancient evil suffocates its host with anxiety and dread, a teenage obsession turns murderous. Like the best gothic fiction, the darkness of the real-world bleeds into the supernatural and leaves the reader off-kilter.
Recommended by Emily B.
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Olga Tokarczuk
[isbn]
Don't be intimidated! The Books of Jacob isn't a novel, it’s a world inhabited by a panoply of indelible characters. Are you a history buff? A lover of masterful world building? A spiritual seeker? An appreciator of deft, clever translation? Read this book. 900 pages is somehow almost too short.
Recommended by Emily B.
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Julie Otsuka
[isbn]
In The Swimmers, Julie Otsuka captures the anxiety and stress that so many people experience from living in this precarious modern age. She then shows how unexpected cracks in our protective layers can destabilize our lives, and our relationships. The Swimmers surprised me, unsettled me, and moved me with its portraits of mothers and daughters, aging, memory, and love.
Recommended by Adam P.
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Emily St. John Mandel
[isbn]
Emily St. John Mandel's Sea of Tranquility really surprised me. Like so many other people, I read and loved Station Eleven, but I wasn't prepared for the sparse poetic style of her new novel. I read this in one afternoon a couple months ago, and haven't been able to get it out of my mind since.
Recommended by Adam P.
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Jack Meggitt Phillips, Isabelle Follath
[isbn]
This hilarious new tale will absolutely be considered a classic in a decade's time. I wish I was an elementary school teacher so I could read it aloud to kids, because I know it will be burned into their core memory like Matilda and The BFG were burned into mine.
Recommended by Stacy W.
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Tillie Walden
[isbn]
Hope you like to cry. I don't think I've ever actually sobbed over a book before, and I can't accurately explain why this one made that happen. I feel like if I tried to explain it in words it would just come out as incoherent babble. Pencil in a good cry and read this.
Recommended by Stacy W.
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Genzaburō Yoshino
[isbn]
Buy one copy of this book for yourself and one copy for every child in your life. I would argue that How Do You Live? is perhaps a perfect book. It's wholesome, it's kind, and it thinks critically. It just makes better people. It's wonderful to experience Copper's stories followed by his uncle's philosophical journal entries. You witness the concepts that will ultimately form an undoubtably good person. This book explores so much... (read more)
Recommended by Jun L.
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Akwaeke Emezi
[isbn]
In this standalone prequel to Emezi’s masterful, award-winning Pet, we see the revolution that shaped Jam’s mother, Bitter, and turned the town of Lucille into a supposed utopia. The best speculative fiction holds a mirror to modern society, and Emezi unflinchingly reflects the contemporary struggles of Black Americans, the queer community, and other marginalized groups in their insightful, poetic writing.
Recommended by Madeline S.
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Matthew Forsythe
[isbn]
Mina has some suspicions about the “squirrel” her father brings home one day as a surprise. Will she be able to convince her trusting father that squirrels don’t have pointy ears and very cat-like eyes? Matthew Forsythe is vying for a top spot amongst my favorite picture book makers. His deadpan humor, the colors, the dramatic irony of it all: picture-book-perfect.
Recommended by Sarah R.
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Matt Haig
[isbn]
What If?
The question that keeps us up at night. What if you had moved out of that town, or taken that job? What if you had followed your heart? What life would you be living then? The Midnight Library may have the answer. Beautifully honest, this story lingers with you long after the final page.
Recommended by Taylor W.
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Rachel Smythe
[isbn]
Thought Greek mythology was tired? Think again. Rachel Smythe tells an age-old romance in a cleverly modern way. My early Greek mythology obsession has been completely reignited. I read it first as a free webtoon and now it's on its way to becoming a Netflix animated series. Worth every bit of hype surrounding it!
Recommended by Stacy W.
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Phu Vuong, Isa Enriquez
[isbn]
An accessible sword and sorcery in the vein of Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Dragon Prince. This original tale will appeal to audiences across age boundaries and without a saturated magic system or strong focus on messaging. Adventure and action in its purest form. I need an animated series IMMEDIATELY.
Recommended by Stacy W.
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Charles Yu
[isbn]
I've been in dire need of a book like Interior Chinatown for quite some time. As an Asian American, it's nice to have something that, to me, feels so straightforward and unapologetically blunt about our circumstances. Subtlety is awesome, but sometimes you're fed up and need the catharsis of exposing and berating all of your frustrations. It's like taking a moment to go off and scream where nobody can hear you. It's like rehearsing an... (read more)
Recommended by Jun L.
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Sigrid Nunez
[isbn]
"What draws the reader to the novel is the hope of warming his shivering life with a death he reads about, said Benjamin." Page 210, What Are You Going Through.
Another stunning, pleasingly meandering dive into life (and dying) from the author of The Friend. The intimate close-up quality of the narration, as if the author is your vulnerable and spiky best friend, gives the novel a Rachel Cusk vibe. But really, it's a Sigrid... (read more)
Recommended by Kevin S.
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Antwan Eady
[isbn]
Author Eady's language is poetic, and illustrator Zhang's artwork is fluid and dancing, in this picture book about Nigel, who has big dreams he shares with the moon but is afraid to share with his earth-bound friends. A beautiful story about self-acceptance and the support and love of good parents.
Recommended by Gigi L.
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Mark Budman, Susan ONeill, Ellison Alcovendaz
[isbn]
In this collection of short fiction about the immigrant experience, the voices of forty authors become a chorus, each hitting different notes, but all singing the same song about the human will to find and build community.
Recommended by Keith M.
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Paige Vanderbeck
[isbn]
This book was the first book I ever read on the subject of green witchcraft and I absolutely recommend it to anyone considering the green path. It is both insightful and fun and also doesn't read too much like a textbook. Overall very helpful, I still remember and use the information I read here even a few years later.
Recommended by Aster A.
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Yoko Ogawa and Stephen Snyder
[isbn]
This story is terrifying. I love it so much. The oppressive memory-wiping police state is soul crushing. But, despite literally having their memories taken day by day, the characters of this book don't lose themselves. Forget large, heroic displays of rebellion for a minute, because that's not what you should expect from this book. It's not a story made to focus on rebellion. It's a story made to focus on the perseverance of our humanity within... (read more)
Recommended by Jun L.
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John Okada, Ruth Ozeki, Lawson Fusao Inada
[isbn]
This is perhaps one of the greatest books for understanding the turmoil and frustration that lies beneath Japanese American culture. I think John Okada puts forth a lot of emotion and sentiment that non-Japanese people simply wouldn't be cognizant of otherwise. I read this book and feel a deep catharsis as the characters and narration echo an anger that I thought was just my own. The life between American and Japanese can be agonizing. This book... (read more)
Recommended by Jun L.
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Kyrie McCauley
[isbn]
This book grabbed me from the first line of chapter one. My father's mental illness made parts of my upbringing chaotic and I related to a lot in this novel. Powerful and painful. Heartbreaking and haunting. A deep exploration of domestic violence and a beautiful reminder that there is a sunrise waiting for you tomorrow.
Recommended by Rose H.
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Sequoia Nagamatsu
[isbn]
My goodness, this book. Set aside any misgivings you might have about reading a pandemic novel during a pandemic. These gracefully interconnected narratives have their roots in familiar territory, but their branches arc and sprawl beyond the world we know into the far reaches of Sequoia Nagamatsu’s imagination. The result is an immersive, tender, life-affirming book that left me both wonderstruck and — much to my surprise — comforted.
Recommended by Tove H.
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Martha Wells
[isbn]
I absolutely loved this book. If like me, you love anything set in space, give this one a try. I’m a sucker for a good space opera/Western, and this is the best one I’ve read. Don’t let its short length and deceptively simple plot fool you, All Systems Red is full of action, heart, and surprising depth. “Murderbot” may not technically be human, but they could easily fool me. It’s the perfect book — whether you’re an avid reader, a... (read more)
Recommended by Charlotte S.
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Taisia Kitaiskaia, Katy Horan
[isbn]
This beautiful deck is as helpful as it is pretty. It will speak to you honestly, but not too bluntly, and direct you where you need to be. This is a great deck and even better for literature and art enthusiasts.
Recommended by Aster A.
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Roger Fouts
[isbn]
This book will break your heart and then put it back together again.
Recommended by Milo D.
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K. A. Applegate and Michael Grant and Chris Grine
[isbn]
Any ’90s kid can attest to the iron grip The Animorphs had on readers of our generation. Now, the whole squad, including the original author, is back, this time as a graphic novel series! Got a kid of your own now? Introduce them to The Animorphs and relive this action-packed saga filled with superpowers, alien invasions, love, war, and loss.
Recommended by Stacy W.
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John Scalzi
[isbn]
I've been a Scalzi fan since Old Man's War first came out, so I was super excited to hear he had a new standalone novel set in an Alt-Earth world where Kaiju are real. Similar in pacing and humor to his novel Redshirts, this is pop sci-fi at its very best.
Recommended by Deana R.
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Warren Ellis
[isbn]
I've often thought that nonfiction can tell you about a person, place, or thing, while fiction is more about the relationships between persons, places, and things. This is the rare book that does both. What could be a rather off footnote of a bearded violin player stealing a piece of gum transforms into an incredible meditation on humanity, collecting things, memory, and so much more.
Recommended by Fletcher O.
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Margery Williams
[isbn]
Even as a child, I knew this story was magical. I found it haunting, almost, to realize how deeply powerful love is. To realize how powerful my own love could be. I remember wishing I could tell the little boy and his rabbit not to worry, that their bond will transform an ordinary stuffed animal beyond even their imagination. I deeply appreciate how this story encourages us to love and cherish what we have, for as long as we are lucky to have it.
Recommended by Charlotte S.
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Jessamine Chan
[isbn]
There’s no room for human fallibility in the dystopia of Jessamine Chan’s debut novel, so when Frida Liu — overwhelmed, sleep deprived, and desperate for a moment of reprieve — has a lapse in judgment as a mother, the consequences are swift and dire. Frida’s journey is a harrowing one, and the world she inhabits — where resources that could be used to support people are instead used to monitor, isolate, and punish them — hardly feels far-fetched.... (read more)
Recommended by Tove H.
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Maggie Tokuda Hall, Lisa Sterle
[isbn]
Clever as it is harrowing, Squad is a powerful, feminist thriller with enough bite to contend with adult works in the same genre. Though its tone bears some semblance to teen favorites Riverdale and Mean Girls, make no mistake. Squad is wholly unique and good-for-her horror at its best. Sink your teeth into this one!
Recommended by Stacy W.
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Adam Sass
[isbn]
Imagine telling your parents what you are, and instead of loving and accepting you, they have you kidnapped and sent to a remote island for you to be unmade. That's the all too familiar reality of Connor Major, who endures the horrors of Camp Nightlight, a remote conversion camp for gay teens. As he fights for his freedom and the freedom of his campmates, he begins to uncover sickening truths about Nightlight. And he's bent on revealing them to... (read more)
Recommended by Stacy W.
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Mo Xiang Tong Xiu
[isbn]
The Mo Dao Zu Shi (GDC/MDZS) donghua (Chinese animation) adaptation was my first introduction into Mo Xiang Tong Xiu’s (MXTX) works and it became an instant favorite. The characters are lovable, engaging, and well-developed and nothing is just black and white in MXTX’s novels. She weaves us through the two lives of the protagonist, and along the way reveals the truth of his and other characters’ actions, both good and bad, and how it impacts the... (read more)
Recommended by Tiffany L.
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Alice Hoffman
[isbn]
One of my all-time favorite books and series. Please note, this book is different than the movie but still has all the fun, love, magic, and family that made the film so wonderful. Hoffman’s book makes me want to believe in magic and “love that even time will lie down and be still for." Practical Magic is for fans of magic, love, the journey of finding your own path, and the power of sisterhood.
Recommended by Sydney W.
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Tal Ronnen
[isbn]
Fantastic plant-based restaurant and unbelievably good cookbook. Tal Ronnen, Oprah’s former personal chef and creative mind behind the plant-based brand Kite Hill (try the vegan ricotta), does not disappoint. I am not the only fan. Crossroads Kitchen has a loyal fan base including celebrities such as drummer Travis Barker and actress Susan Sarandon just to name a few. The recipes from this book are often featured in my dreams at night. I highly... (read more)
Recommended by Sydney W.
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Gayle Tzemach Lemmon
[isbn]
This book telescopes and concentrates things I think about a lot: governance, gender and women's liberation, cults and religions, undeclared and "forever" wars… crucially, it isn't just about what happened but about what is possible.
Recommended by Sarah A.
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FLFFLW01
[isbn]
The tabletop RPG your parents were actually worried about. This beautifully designed rule book is your guide the the apocalyptic fantasy world of MÖRK BORG. Be sure to check out the website where you can find extra content made by the community that's approved by the creators and free to download. I wish only to spread the dark gospel and advise you to face the end times with arms wide!
Recommended by Nick K.
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Lee Cole
[isbn]
In Groundskeeping, Lee Cole illuminates the building terror of living in America in 2016, the thrill of embarking on life as an artist, the tenderness of new love, the inevitable grief of aging and changing families. So rarely can an author balance all these concerns in a single book, and even more rarely is that book a debut novel.
Recommended by Adam P.
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Sarah J. Maas
[isbn]
I was expecting some spice (four chili peppers) and touch-her-and-you-die trope. I was not expecting the emotional journey this would take me on. This dives into emotional trauma and the importance friendship has on healing. Not to mention these women are BAs who are not afraid to challenge the ideals of others.
Recommended by Mariette E.
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Kate Quinn
[isbn]
Kate Quinn can do no wrong! Quinn brings history to life, immersing the reader into the atrocities of WWII and the important impact women had on its outcome. We feel the joy, love, sorrow and gut-wrenching heartaches of each woman's journey.
Recommended by Mariette E.
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Maria Gainza, Thomas Bunstead
[isbn]
Maria Gainza takes readers on a thought-provoking quest for truths about forgery in an atmospheric neo-noir novel. Just what an artist — and an art market — should aspire to are questions that loom over the narrator’s obsessive quest to learn about a largely unremembered past, and an entirely forgotten artist.
Recommended by Keith M.
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Tricia Levenseller
[isbn]
Ziva sounds like your typical heroine — a talented bladesmith who forges magical weapons — except she also suffers from severe social anxiety. To keep one of her blades out of a ruthless warlord's hands, Ziva flees with the help of her sister, a scholar, and a super sexy mercenary. Both her inner and outer journeys are so compelling — probably because I could relate to her mental turmoil SO MUCH. The characters and representation in this book are... (read more)
Recommended by Carly J.
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Dana Schwartz
[isbn]
The setting: 1800s Edinburgh. The set-up: a lady who dreams of being a surgeon has a chance encounter with a resurrection man just trying to survive. The result? A gothic YA debut that truly has everything: ambition, medicine, murder, romance, science, romance WITH science, and yes, some casual grave digging. Anatomy: A Love Story is clever, thrilling, fun, and gross (in a good way).
Recommended by Sarah R.
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Barbara F. Walter
[isbn]
Walter’s meticulous, urgent analysis of the U.S.’s proximity to civil war — and what war will look like in the age of online radicalism and social media — is terrifying, to say the least. But our country’s slide into anocracy is scary too, and Walter’s ambitious program to resist it provides tentative cause for rallying and resistance.
Recommended by Rhianna W.
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Nita Prose
[isbn]
Meet the Amelia Bedelia of locked-door cozy mysteries. Molly is too literal to navigate social niceties, but she’s an absolutely perfect hotel maid — until she finds the body of a wealthy guest in an executive suite. Zany, adorable, and compelling, The Maid is a real midwinter treat.
Recommended by Rhianna W.
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Tui T. Sutherland and Mike Holmes
[isbn]
I'm so excited for a new volume in the Wings of Fire series! This time Sunny has some big decisions to make as she faces her destiny. I can't wait to see where Tui T. Sutherland and Mike Holmes take the story next!
Recommended by Matt K.
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John Darnielle
[isbn]
John Darnielle has created an intriguing, multilayered novel that interrogates the true crime genre’s highest aspirations and basest instincts. Devil House is a gripping read that raises important questions about what the true costs of salacious stories are, and who pays them.
Recommended by Keith M.
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Xochitl Gonzalez
[isbn]
Olga, a high-powered wedding planner, works to keep her life as controlled as she can — until she meets a man in a bar. If this sounds like a rom-com set-up, it is, but Olga Dies Dreaming refuses to fall into formula. Trump-era American politics won’t allow for a limited perspective.
Recommended by Keith M.
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Jacqueline Woodson and Rafael Lopez
[isbn]
In The Year We Learned to Fly, Rafael López’s elegant, poetic artwork mixes beautifully with Jacqueline Woodson’s elegant, poetic words and spare, yet lush storytelling. The magic in this tale doesn’t just transport the children, it teaches them. And it teaches us. It’s a celebration of spirit, legacy, and love.
Recommended by Gigi L.
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Matt Kracht
[isbn]
Believe it or not, there are dumb birds all over this whole stupid world. In this follow up to The Field Guide to Dumb Birds of North America, you’ll learn to identify dumb birds on every single idiotic continent. Split into helpful categories like show-offs, dork-legs, and murder birds, you’ll become a true expert on these little jerks.
Recommended by Moses M.
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Kathryn Schulz
[isbn]
Kathryn Schulz’s skill at crafting sentences is extraordinary, and she puts that to great use in her deeply affecting memoir about experiencing a terrible loss while simultaneously discovering a new love. Her writing has as much to say about the human condition as her own story.
Recommended by Keith M.
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Jason Reynolds and Jason Griffin
[isbn]
Jason Reynolds’s poem about living through the tumult of 2020, about the experience of Black America as life was changing in some ways and maddeningly unchanging in others, is made all the more powerful by being in dialogue with Jason Griffin’s breathtaking art.
Recommended by Keith M.
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Noah Hawley
[isbn]
Curious about where our current sociopolitical trajectory might take us? Brace yourself. Set in a grimly plausible not-so-distant future, Anthem is the literary equivalent of a Netflix binge: nonstop action, wild plot twists, and unanswered questions will keep you turning pages well past your bedtime. A gritty, propulsive thriller that puts America on notice.
Recommended by Tove H.
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Kate Racculia
[isbn]
I had so much fun reading Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts! Racculia has created some of the quirkiest, relatable characters I've ever read; I care about all of them, which makes the book so, so hard to put down. It's smart-fun with streaks of mystery, romance, and just a hint of horror. Pairs well with a cozy blanket, best read on a rainy day.
Recommended by Summer R.
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Lily King
[isbn]
This book is a soothing balm for the anxious, overwhelmed soul. The writing so beautifully captures the beauty and burden of human existence, emotions, and love. It’s not easy to protect your creativity and dreams in our capitalist world. To me, this book was never about the love interests, but rather about Casey learning to love and trust her art, and by extension, herself.
Recommended by Charlotte S.
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Vanessa Len
[isbn]
A blockbuster fantasy debut! Joan’s family are monsters: not-quite-humans that can travel through time by stealing minutes and years off the lives of the mundane. Joan doesn’t learn the family secret until the day her family is murdered by a monster hunter prophesied to bring an end to her kind — who just so happens to be the coworker she’s been crushing on all summer. On the run with a monster from a rival family, Joan is quickly entangled in... (read more)
Recommended by Madeline S.
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Krystal Sutherland
[isbn]
House of Hollow is a culmination of every book I wanted to write, and in turn, every book I wanted to read throughout my life, but was never able to find. I have never read a novel quite so original. It contains every strange detail I have wanted a novel to have, from other worlds and creatures to characters and how their relationships develop beautifully throughout, and still manages so many twists I never saw coming. House of... (read more)
Recommended by Aster A.
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Etaf Rum
[isbn]
This book follows three generations of Palestinian women as they navigate life in modern-day Brooklyn. An emotionally profound read about family, trauma, and loss, but ripe with themes of courage, hope, and the incredible power of reading.
Recommended by Tawney E.
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CA Conrad
[isbn]
Reading CAConrad’s poetry often feels like reading my way back into aliveness itself, and their latest collection, the eco-poetic AMANDA PARADISE: Resurrect Extinct Vibration, is no exception. Emanating from a series of (Soma)tic rituals based on the recorded sounds of extinct animals, its poems shape-shift in playful, creaturely forms, even as they broach complex (and interconnected) traumas, from state violence to the AIDS crisis. The... (read more)
Recommended by Alexa W.
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Hiroko Oyamada and David Boyd
[isbn]
Equal parts Miyazaki and David Lynch. I consumed this short book on a hot summer afternoon and was left in a daze the rest of the week. Much like the main character, I had a hard time grasping what had just occurred but knew full well that it had it's teeth in me.
Recommended by Nick K.
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Maureen Callahan
[isbn]
The modern serial killer you’ve never heard of. This isn’t your average droll retelling of the killer’s crimes, but a compelling recount of the investigation and arrest. Callahan begins with Keyes’s final kill and then goes backwards in time, making you feel like you’re part of the investigation. It’s entertaining and terribly tragic. This has quickly topped my list of true crime favorites.
Recommended by Emily C.
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Inio Asano
[isbn]
Inio Asano is a master of his craft; and personally, I think this series is the pièce de résistance of his large catalog of work. This series is proof of his beautiful and mind-bendlingly challenging creative process of painstakingly redrawing photoshopped pictures of real locations and objects for backgrounds and props in comic panels; creating cute and charmingly surreal characters; and evoking an unending sense of dread as the end of the world... (read more)
Recommended by Wren M.
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Sheila Heti
[isbn]
You may have heard that this novel is different. You may come to it expecting something unlike anything you’ve read before. Even if you feel prepared for it, this novel will astonish and move you. I cannot imagine that there’ll be another book this year that I spend so much time thinking about after I’ve finished it.
Recommended by Keith M.
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Ashlee Bennett
[isbn]
My body has gone through so much trauma in my 30+ years — including bringing my beautiful kids into this world. It had gotten to the point where I no longer loved myself and couldn't even recognize the person I saw in the mirror. I'm currently working through the exercises in this book and am learning to accept my body and love all that it does for me. Page 64 has one of my favorite exercises and deals with how to feel safe in your own skin. It's... (read more)
Recommended by Rose H.
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Grady Hendrix
[isbn]
This was my first introduction to the "horror novel." I was unsure if I would like it, but it did not disappoint! This was a full-blown thriller with twists and turns. With just enough gore to make one shiver.
Recommended by Mariette E.
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Douglas Adams
[isbn]
My favorite book of all time celebrates its 42nd anniversary with a brand-new hardcover edition featuring highly imaginative illustrations. Arthur Dent wakes up to the most eventful Thursday of his life when a fleet of flying saucers arrives to demolish Earth to build a hyperspace bypass. Unbeknownst to him his best friend is an alien, and the two escape the destruction and embark on a wacky adventure that eventually spans five books. The answers... (read more)
Recommended by Joseph P.
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Antoine Wilson
[isbn]
I loved this suspenseful novel, these mysterious characters. Antoine Wilson has created a situation worthy of Hitchcock, or of Highsmith. Mouth to Mouth asks if we can ever know the truth about those we love, or indeed, ourselves.
Recommended by Adam P.
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Peter Bebergal
[isbn]
Perfect for rainy day reading even if you aren't a dungeon master in training, this collection presents a tightly curated sampling of old favorites and hidden gems of the high and pulp fantasy stories of yesteryear. Bebergal's introduction offers a quick look into the early history of Dungeons & Dragons and how Gary Gygax's reading habits shaped his outlook as a game designer and Bebergal's own relationship with fiction and the selected stories.... (read more)
Recommended by Megan S.
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Brandon Taylor
[isbn]
Taking place over a hazy August weekend, Real Life is a pitch-perfect capture of so many things: a Midwestern university town, frustrations and uncertainty in academia, and emotionally charged 30-something dinner parties, to name a few. Biochem grad student Wallace takes a protective, guarded stance in his relationships, and the weekend holds multiple confrontations between and among his friends and labmates that challenge his ability to... (read more)
Recommended by Michelle C.
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Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Katharine K. Wilkinson
[isbn]
I read a lot of books about climate change. They can be depressing, infuriating, and induce apathy over action. All We Can Save is truly the most inspirational book I've read on our climate emergency. The book is full of essays, poetry, and art by a wonderful variety of women who share their passion, creativity, ideas, and hope as they fight for the future. What fantastic collection.
Recommended by Lesley A.
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Ruth Coker Burks, Kevin Carr OLeary
[isbn]
I had been looking forward to this memoir for ages, ever since I first heard the name Ruth Coker Burks. Yes, All the Young Men is about the AIDS epidemic, but it is also about kindness, compassion, and love for other people even when you're afraid or unsure of what it means to be afraid. This book is not for the faint of heart, but as Burks takes you on her journey as she cares for these young men — men exiled by their families — you... (read more)
Recommended by Katherine M.
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Torrey Peters
[isbn]
It's no surprise that there is a lack of diversity in publishing, which is why the #ownvoices movement is paramount in giving authors from underrepresented and marginalized groups a platform to stand on and, finally, some recognition. Enter Torrey Peters's debut novel Detransition, Baby, a beautiful and poignant book about identity, love, motherhood, and the heartbreaking realities of being trans. There is a reason this book is so... (read more)
Recommended by Michelle L.
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Martha Wells
[isbn]
Another year, another Murderbot. With Network Effect, though, we finally get a full novel instead of novella length, wheeeee. Everyone needs to meet the antisocial, snarky AI that just wants to hide away and binge -watch space soap operas, maybe keep an eye on their "not friends," and maybe keep them out of trouble. The Murderbot is still my go to series to push on the World! #Murderbot4ever
Recommended by Mecca A.
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Nicki Pau Preto
[isbn]
I actually read this whole trilogy in 2021 and was thoroughly obsessed with it from start to finish. The world-building is top-notch, the characters are so compelling, and I loved every point of view that was introduced (a rarity for me). These books are that perfect blend of heart-pounding action and heartbreaking personal stakes that I need to really fall in love with a story, and this final installment was so satisfying. Secrets, sibling... (read more)
Recommended by Carly J.
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Maggie Nelson
[isbn]
"Freedom" has never felt so fraught or so complicated as it does in our current moment. In a time when the term is often invoked as an individual right, this book wrestles with the notion that freedom is inseparable from our responsibilities to one another. This is a powerful, rigorous, detailed, nuanced exploration of a concept that is at once central to our self-conception as a society and more misunderstood and misused than any word in our... (read more)
Recommended by Tim B.
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César Aira
[isbn]
The quantal-surreal imagination of Cesar Aira takes on divorce — which is to say, there's an impossible fire, someone stages a coup in a Darwin appreciation club, and a man is literally drenched by love. A treat for fans of Borges and Bolaño, this slim volume opens up infinities.
Recommended by Jennifer K.
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Dento Hayane
[isbn]
It has The Cat Returns energy. To be honest, this book just makes me happy. It's cute, short, and sweet, and it talks about one of the reasons I love storytelling so much. It's good escapism for when capitalism makes you very, very tired.
Recommended by Seb D.
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Nick McDonell and Steven Tabbutt
[isbn]
After a human-caused a cataclysmic event, a group of animals representing their species meet to decide whether or not to kill and eat the small remainder of humanity. This book has something for everyone: postapocalyptic doom; a charming fable with talking animals (though it's definitely not for children); dark humor; and adventure. For me, the book really shines in the small details about the animals we meet. Each character has a unique voice to... (read more)
Recommended by Amy W.
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Shawn Levy
[isbn]
In A Year in the Life of Death, Shawn Levy’s provocative, insightful book of poetry based on New York Times obituaries from 2016, each poem is a tiny mystery story with the last line revealing its subject. So many made me cry. So many made me laugh. Together, they form a unique history of the 20th century full of fascinating facts, nostalgia, social and political commentary, and, of course, human stories running the gamut from... (read more)
Recommended by Gigi L.
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Olga Tokarczuk
[isbn]
Meet Janina. But please do not forget that she cannot tolerate her own name and that she prefers to name the people around her according to their personalities or physical characteristics. She lives alone in a small, rather remote Polish village maintaining several properties for people who have summer homes there. She dabbles in astrology, translates William Blake, and is an animal lover, and one day her two dogs do not come home. Around the... (read more)
Recommended by Paul S.
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Elissa Washuta
[isbn]
Interwoven with mystical themes it challenges as much as celebrates, White Magic is a layered, structurally innovative memoir. It is many things: a narrative about addiction and what lives beneath it; a map of landscapes, both physical and emotional; an unearthing of generational trauma; a story about feeling lost in a place that’s supposed to be home. Ultimately, heartbreak leads Washuta to find her own authority... as a "powerful... (read more)
Recommended by Ariel K.
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Percival Everett
[isbn]
Set in Mississippi a few decades after the lynching of Emmett Till, deeds of the past come to roost in a way that is beyond twisted and grotesque. Everett's The Trees is a gruesome, horrifying police procedural and supernatural mystery that is truly, and unexpectedly, hilarious. With that being said, it is a poignant, profound, and biting critique of contemporary American society, deeply concerned with the ways in which our history... (read more)
Recommended by Eric L.
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Charlotte McConaghy
[isbn]
Follow the thrilling (and, yes, sometimes painful) story of Franny Stone as she throws herself into the frigid North Atlantic while tracking the last migration of Arctic terns. Why is it the last? Why do you think? Why is Franny using near-superpowers in pursuit of her goal? Wouldn't you? This book is a beautiful and disturbing allegory about the impending fate of our planet.
Recommended by Peter N.
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Becky Chambers
[isbn]
For days after I finished reading this, my heart was brimming with the gentle kindness Becky Chambers infuses into her stories. This little book about two very different souls has so much heart and humanity, and I recommend it to anyone who has ever felt a little lost.
Recommended by Anna B.
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Karelia Stetz-Waters
[isbn]
I’ve read a lot of romance books in the last two years. Like, embarrassingly a lot. Satisfaction Guaranteed is hands down my favorite. Equally steamy and sweet, it tells the story of Cade and Selena and the Portland, Oregon, sex toy shop they co-inherit. I loved it for how real the characters are, their incredible chemistry, and how local author Stetz-Waters makes Portland a tertiary character in this fun and very funny wlw romance.
Recommended by Deana R.
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Virginia Woolf
[isbn]
For anyone who knows me, it should come as no surprise that this is my top choice — I've read Mrs Dalloway every summer (or thereabouts) for over 20 years. And this new annotated edition is like reading it again for the first time. Editor Merve Emre's meticulously researched notes, her critical analysis of Woolf's writing, and all of the photos and illustrations throughout are bound to add something new and fascinating to your reading of... (read more)
Recommended by Gary L.
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Susanna Clarke
[isbn]
This is the kind of book I love: dreamlike and a bit esoteric, all about the ways we exist in the world and relate to each other. I felt myself pulled into these mysterious hallways just as the titular character is, and it stayed with me like the best dreams do.
Recommended by Alice H.
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Joe Posnanski
[isbn]
The Baseball 100 is perhaps the best baseball book I've read. Joe Posnanski makes the less interesting players fascinating (Kid Nichols, Arky Vaughan) and looks at those who've been written to death (Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams) from a new angle other writers haven't delved into. The Baseball 100 gives credit to Black players who never had a shot at the main limelight before Jackie Robinson and brings their stories to life. This... (read more)
Recommended by Jeffrey J.
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Kiyohiko Azuma
[isbn]
Yotsuba and her dad, Koiwai, have a special place in my heart and on my bookshelves. Every character is so funny and loveable, and Azuma's attention to background and texture — from soft pancakes to traffic lights to stray leaves on the street — makes this series feel especially tangible and cozy. His story and style fully embody the manga's tag line, “enjoy everything." (Particularly this volume's chapter, "Rocks"... I cried a little.)
Recommended by Hannah W.
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Preston Norton
[isbn]
One of the best, most original, compelling YA reads I’ve ever had the profound luck to pick up. Hope Cassidy and her sisters, Faith and Charity, have been raised in an ultra-conservative mega-church. When Faith is outed, she runs away to avoid being sent to conversion “therapy,” and Hope finds solace in rock 'n' roll. Channeling her inner Joplin, Hope forms a band with Danny — her newly out, longtime crush — performing anti-establishment... (read more)
Recommended by Madeline S.
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Caitlin Starling
[isbn]
A haunted house, a doctor trapped by the shame of his past, a determined and headstrong heroine, gothic romance, all sprinkled with blood, gore and fantasy elements — literally what is there not to love? This book had everything I could have possibly wanted — and I can't wait to dive into the rest of Caitlin Starling's books now, too.
Recommended by Nicole S.
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Nicki Pau Preto
[isbn]
Phoenix. Riders. Why hasn't this been done before?! I was instantly hooked by this world and its compelling characters. Fans of Throne of Glass will be swept away by the high stakes, personal and political intrigue, and the swoon-worthy romance. The whole trilogy is released, so sit down and prepare for an awesome ride!
Recommended by Carly J.
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Andrea Stewart
[isbn]
With its unique bone shard magic, diverse characters, mysterious creatures (both cute and creepy), The Bone Shard Daughter is the fresh take on epic fantasy I didn't know I needed so badly. Intense personal stakes are balanced by just the right amount of humor to have me voraciously devouring this book!
Recommended by Carly J.
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Kate Depalma
[isbn]
Thirteen special holidays from a wide range of countries are featured in Let’s Celebrate Special Days Around the World by Kate DePalma. A wonderful introduction to world holidays such as the New Yam Festival (Nigeria), Novy God (Russia), Kodomo No Hi (Japan) and Inti Raymi (Peru). Fun illustrations by Martina Pelusu and information-packed pages on traditional food and activities make this picture book perfect for ages six and up!
Recommended by Kim T.
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Thrity Umrigar and Nidhi Chanani
[isbn]
A beautiful and exciting story of the Hindu Festival of Lights from the eyes of Binny as she tells her classmates of the clay lamps (diyas), the delicious sweet pedas and jalebis, and the fireworks of red, gold and green. This is a wonderful picture book by award-winning author Thrity Umrigar, gloriously illustrated by Nidhi Chanani (author/illustator for teen graphic novel Powell’s favorite, Pashmina). Perfect for ages four and up.
Recommended by Kim T.
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Diana Wynne Jones
[isbn]
I don't think I've read from anyone able to paint an atmosphere the same way (or as well) as Diana Wynne Jones. The characters are so lovable, and the character development?? Chef's kiss. This is my favorite place to escape to; I've read it over six times at this point. I'm about five seconds away from writing an entire essay/analysis on why this book is good, but I'll stop here.
Recommended by Seb D.
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Joshua Clover
[isbn]
What a great introduction to a new series! I read this in the same 24-hour period during which I watched the new Todd Haynes-directed Velvet Underground documentary, and what an excellent pairing they made for each other. I loved Joshua Clover's poetic style and exciting observations about Roadrunner. The book took surprising turns (Cornershop, M.I.A.) that now look inevitable in the rearview mirror. I will gladly read any and every book in this... (read more)
Recommended by Adam P.
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Tessa Hadley
[isbn]
If this wasn’t a Tessa Hadley novel, it would be a soap opera: Discontented suburban wife leaves husband for younger man who turns out to be — I won’t spoil it. But since this is a Tessa Hadley novel, any silly sordidness is balanced by the characters’ self-awareness and bullish insistence on seeing things through. Hadley’s midcentury England, like her characters, is full of fascinating contradictions. Still pulling itself out from under World... (read more)
Recommended by Rhianna W.
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Irma S. Rombauer and Marion Rombauer Becker and Ethan Becker and John Becker and Megan Scott
[isbn]
Every kitchen should have a copy of The Joy of Cooking. Need to braise a chicken? Joy will teach you how. Want to make strawberry jam? Joy will lead the way. Craving mapo tofu? Joy’s here for you. John Becker and Megan Scott’s fantastic 2019 update of this culinary classic guides home cooks through flan, sourdough, pad thai, fried chicken, cucumber pickles, escabeche, and... (read more)
Recommended by Rhianna W.
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