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2025 Carnegie Medal Finalist Previews with PBS Books

Booklist’s Editor in Chief and Adult Books editor Donna Seaman teamed up with PBS Books to celebrate the six extraordinary 2025 Finalists for the Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction! Watch now as Donna and PBS Books National Director Heather-Marie Montilla discuss these outstanding books that captivate, inspire, and challenge your perspective. Watch now!

 

Booklist Review of the Day

Song of a Blackbird
written and illustrated by Maria van Lieshout

​The power of art to inspire hope and resistance to tyranny is embodied in the titular blackbird, who swoops through the journeys of two brave girls living in two separate time periods.




Reviews in This Issue

Current Features

Trend Alert: Cults on Audio
by Shellie Zeigler

​In recent years, there has been a surge of interest in books exploring the world of cults, spanning fictional narratives and deeply personal memoirs. These works shed light on the psychological mechanisms of control, the allure of charismatic leaders, and the devastating impact of unwavering devotion—all highly charged elements that come through clearly on audio.

photo of Christine Feehan10 Questions for Christine Feehan
By John Charles

Christine Feehan is the #1 New York Times best-selling author of the Carpathian series, the GhostWalker series, the Leopard series, the Shadow Riders series, and the Sea Haven novels, including the Drake Sisters series and the Sisters of the Heart series. She also writes standalone thrillers set in the California backcountry.

Spanish Sure Bets for Adult Readers
by Sara Martínez

​As we welcome the new year, we recommend nuevos libros for your Spanish readers. The nonfiction and fiction titles below—books that will challenge, inspire and entertain—were all released at the end of 2024 and this month (Resetea tu menopausia). 

Essentials: Engaging Series for Emerging Readers
by Christine Hartman Derr

​Chapter book series offer emerging readers the benefit of continuing to spend time with their favorite characters. Whether a reader is reluctant or always has their nose in a book, these series offer the opportunity to keep laughing, learning, and adventuring with beloved characters.

High-Demand Read-alikes: Widows’ Memoirs on Navigating Grief and Life
by Donna Seaman

In Memorial Days, Pulitzer Prize–winning novelist Geraldine Brooks describes in striking detail the shock of her seemingly healthy husband’s sudden death and her eventual journey to properly mourn on remote and beautiful Flinders Island, Australia. The other memoirs gathered here also tell gripping stories of loss, grief, and a new embrace of life.

Trade Secrets: The Printz Award as a Readers’ Advisory Tool
by Allie Stevens

As we eagerly await the 2025 Youth Media Awards and the announcement of a new set of Printz Award titles, revisiting some previously selected titles can reveal larger trends, helping to direct readers’ advisory and collection development around periods of high demand for specific books.

Shelf Care logoShelf Care #39: Editors’ Choice 2024
By Susan Maguire

​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.

photo of Sonora Reyes10 Questions for Sonora Reyes
By John Charles

Born and raised in Arizona, Sonora Reyes is the author of The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School and The Luis Ortega Survival Club. They write fiction full of queer and Latinx characters in a variety of genres, with current projects in both kidlit and adult categories.

Digital Editions

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