Episode 39: Editors' Choice 2024

Booklist's Shelf Care

It’s that time of the year again, when the Booklist editors gather ‘round the proverbial fire and share some of their favorite reads of the year. Covering everything from our Top of the List titles to personal faves, this episode has a little something for every reader. Here’s what we talked about: Donna: We Loved It All: A Memory of Life. By Lydia Millet. (Adult Nonfiction Top of the List) The Morningside. By Téa Obreht. Martyr! By Kaveh Akbar. My Black Country: A Journey through Country Music’s Black Past, Present, and Future. By Alice Randall. The Light Eaters: How the Unseen World of Plant Intelligence Offers a New Understanding of Life on Earth. By Zoë Schlanger. Annie: Wandering Stars. By Tommy Orange. (Adult Fiction Top of the List) Donna Seaman interviews Tommy Orange for One Book, One Chicago All Fours. By Miranda July. Susan: The Wedding People. By Alison Espach. One of Us Knows. By Alyssa Cole. The Cottage around the Corner. By D. L. Soria. Sarah: A Greater Goal: The Epic Battle for Equal Pay in Women’s Soccer—and Beyond. By Elizabeth Rusch. (Youth Nonfiction Top of the List) Dispatches from Parts Unknown. By Bryan Bliss. Ash’s Cabin. By Jen Wang. Art by the author. (Youth Graphic Novel Top of the List) Feeding Ghosts: A Graphic Memoir. By Tessa Hulls. Art by the author. (Adult Graphic Novel Top of the List) The Puerto Rican War: A Graphic History. By John Vasquez Mejias. Art by the author. The Jellyfish. By Boum. Art by the author. Julia: The House on Yeet Street. By Preston Norton. (Middle Grade Top of the List) Bye Forever, I Guess. By Jodi Meadows. Ronny: That Always Happens Sometimes. By Kiley Frank. Illustrated by K-Fai Steele. (Picture Book Top of the List). The Yellow Bus. Written and illustrated by Loren Long. Kelly: Ariel Crashes a Train, by Olivia A. Cole. (YA Top of the List) The Dark We Know, by Wen-yi Lee. Compound Fracture, by Andrew Joseph White. My Throat an Open Grave, by Tori Bovalino. Heather: Birding with Benefits. By Sarah T. Dubb. Read by Mia Hutchinson-Shaw and Evan Sibley. The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years. By Shubnum Khan. Read by Soneela Nankani. Know Your Newlywed. By Heather Taylor, Hillary Nussbaum, and Elena Armas. Read by Tyler Posey, Mary Mouser, and a full cast. Stars in Your Eyes. By Kacen Callender. Read by André Santana and others. Nothing: John Cage and 4’33”. By Nicholas Day and Chris Rashka. Read by Fred Berman. Onyx & Beyond. By Amber McBride. Read by André Santana. Gender Queer. By Maia Kobabe. Read by Maia Kobabe and a full cast. Tree. Table. Book. By Lois Lowry. Read by Hope Newhouse. And Anita de Monte Laughs Last. By Xochitl Gonzalez. Read by Jessica Pimentel and others. (Adult Audio Top of the List) Better Must Come. By Desmond Hall. Read by Jaime Lincoln Smith. (Youth Audio Top of the List)