NYPL's Best Horror of the Year Event Is Free Both In Person and Online

 I normally would not post to everyone about an in person event, rather I would just post it on this page (available on the top of the right gutter of every page of the blog). However, this one is not only HUGE but it is also available for free virtually.

This event is the launch for the NYPL's 2nd annual Best Horror of the Year list for 2026 and it is featuring me in conversation with three of the authors appearing on that list-- Deena Helm, Kailee Pedersen, and Saratoga Schaefer. And BONUS-- Pedersen is also an opera singer and she will give a live performance as well. All of this is free in person (tickets limited) and Online to anyone, anywhere.

Click here to get the details, sign up and be there to join us at the 53rd Street Library or online.

But I do want to back up a bit to talk about the reason we are having this event-- the release of the NYPL's 2nd annual Best Horror of the Year list for 2026. I bolded 2nd because this is a big deal. 

Last year, as part of my book tour, I appeared at NYPL with Grady Hendrix, Rachel Harrison, Clay McLeod Chapman, and Victor LaValle. (Details and photos can be accessed here). As part of that event, NYPL staff asked if they could use the event to unveil their first annual Best Horror list.

Now before you are like, what's the big deal, they made a list. I need to back up and explain that NYPL "Best" lists are a big deal. It requires institutional support to add a genre to their "Best" list procedures. In fact, I had the chairs of the committee, Kate and Allison, write me a post about how it all works for 31 Days of Horror last year here.

The launch was such a success (standing room only at the event) that they asked if I would come back and moderate their panel every year, to make it a big event on its own WITHOUT my book and it's authors. I readily agreed because this is a cause for celebration.

The fact that NYPL allowed an official Horror Best List to even happen is amazing. I need you all to understand that in these big libraries, there are a lot of hoops to jump through (because there have to be), and to get Horror to this "Best" level, something they have invested staff time in and actual dollars paid to the presenters, this is something I could have never dreamed of back in 2004 when my first book came out, when all I was doing why trying to justify to libraries what they HAD to have horror books and help horror readers.

Celebrate this with us from ANYWHERE on earth. Click here to be included and get your livestream link. Click here as well to grab a seat before tickets are gone.

Let's all enjoy this moment of celebrating what NYPL has deemed the best horror of 2026. And finally, let's keep our fingers crossed that we get to do it again in 2027. I have already blocked my calendar. 

Using Awards Lists As a RA Tool: National Book Award Edition

This is part of my ongoing series on using Awards Lists as a RA tool. Click here for all posts in the series in reverse chronological order. Click here for the first post which outlines the details how to use awards lists as a RA tool.

  

All thought out this past week, the National Book Foundation released their long lists for the National Book Award, one list per day, ending with Fiction yesterday. Along with my usual reminder to use these lists and their backlists especially to help patrons in a variety of ways, I want to point out the breadth of categories for this award.

Because it has categories in Fiction, Nonfiction, Translated Literature, Poetry, and Young People's literature, the National Book Award can help an extremely wide range of readers by default. 

As a resource, these longlists are extremely useful because of the work put in by the (human) staff at the National Book Foundation. Each category has an entire page that summarizes all of the nominees, even drawing connections between titles. These pages not only give us the longlist titles but also put them in context. This is work that cannot be replaced by AI and I am so grateful for it each and every year.

They also cap off each article for each category with a statement about the number of books that were considered and who the judges for that category are. Here are the direct links to those pages for 2026:

• Fiction
• Nonfiction
• Translated Literature
• Poetry
• Young People's Literature

However, it is not just the range of categories, the nominees in these long lists are also among the most accesible of titles nominated for major awards. The fiction and nonfiction titles, as usual, are solid suggestions for a general audience, they are NOT overly literary or obtuse. And as usual the translated titles are excellent options, especially as interest in translated titles grow and our resources are not keeping up. 

From top to bottom, the books listed here (click honorees at the top of the page to reveal the lists and judges) should be owned by every public library and handed out frequently to general readers.

Backlist access of nominees and winners is very easily accessible and pleasant to browse, here as well. Of course, because of the breadth of titles always considered, this backlist access is extremely helpful for displays and suggestions all year long. 

Use the links above to explore the National Book Foundations' excellent web presence and make sure you have all of these titles in your collections.

And note, this is the big first award for 2026 titles. My annual attack of the bests lists is almost here. Start getting ready now.

Booklist's Corner Shelf Newsletter is Live for August 2026

A new issue of Corner Shelf: A Booklist Newsletter for the space where Readers' Advisory meets Collection Development just dropped. You can access the table of Contents and Susan Maguire's Editor's letter below. Or just click here to read the issue in your browser.

And please go here, if you haven't already, to sign up for any of Booklist's newsletters.

Specifically, this issue is packed with useful information and lists, but in general, this is one o fly favorite newsletters. It gathers a wide variety of useful information in one place, and all of it is focused around helping our readers through our collections or direct RA service.

August 2026

• Read ‘n’ Rave 2026: The List
• Fall Audiobook Preview 2026
• Reference Roundup: Summer 2026
• Top 10 Memoirs: 2026
• Excerpts from the Experts: Peacebuilding: A School Librarian’s Journey
• Essentials: Body Horror
• Shelf Care: Looking Back and Looking Ahead with Robert Wedgeworth
•  From the Backlist: Sweet Nothings: Confessions of a Candy Lover, by Sarah Perry

Hello Shelfers,

As you all stick a fork in your summer reading programs (they’re done!), I hope you’re each taking a well-deserved break. This issue of Corner Shelf is a little light, to match the workload you’re able to take on after the library year’s busiest season. We’re looking back a little bit: to ALA Annual, where we co-hosted the ever-popular Read ‘n’ Rave with our friends at LibraryReads; to our not-too-long-ago August issue, which featured the top 10 memoirs of the past year; even further back, to our June Essentials on Body Horror; and even further back than that with a Shelf Care interview with former ALA Executive Director Robert Wedgeworth, who ruminates on a decades-long career. We’re also looking ahead with the Fall Audiobook Preview for all of your preordering/hold-gathering needs. Then we’ve got a roundup of recent reference reviews and an inspiring piece on one librarian’s journey to serving his students with empathy and love.

This is sort of a lot for a “little light” issue, but what can I say, I’m an overachiever. And I know you need that sweet sweet readers’ advisory and collection development content to get you through your week!

Speaking of sweet sweet readers’ advisory and collection development content (with a soupçon of programming thrown in there), Booklist is hosting another series of FREE online workshops, this time centered around **comics**: Comics & Libraries: Resources for Collection Development and Programming. Maybe you have a few comics readers in your library? You’ll want to check these out. The workshops are being held on September 8th, but if you can’t make the live event, a recording will be sent out to all registrants. So sign up today!

Happy reading!

—Susan Maguire
Senior Editor, Collection Development and Library Outreach, Booklist
smaguire@ala.org
@booklistsusan.bsky.social

Best Adaptations of the Century So Far

There are plenty of readalike lists for "The Odyssey," but this is just one example of an ongoing discussion we have at libraries all the time. And that discussion is about book to visual media adaptations. We talk about it in libraries all year long. We have requests for specific books when the movie or TV show comes out. We get the general question about good adaptations. 

You work in a library you know this is a common request. I even have a tag "books into movies" that you can use to see all the times I have written about this topic.

Of course, right now people are all over the Odyssey. But just a few months ago it was all about Hamnet.  Washington rinse, repeat because this cycle never ends. And quite frankly it is great for us at libraries, to have an evergreen topic that we can make displays about.

Back in 2024, I had this Conversation Starter to Display post about how to make a display of the best adaptations, including how to ask your patrons to contribute. 

Well I am bringing that post back into the conversation today because as part of their Best of the Century (So Far) coverage Book Riot didn't just look at the major genres, they also have a category for The Best Adaptations. From the intro to that list:

Book people tend to have big opinions about adaptations. There’s the camp that believes the book is always better, and those brave souls who’ll admit when the opposite is true. There are those who expect an adaptation to strictly adhere to the source material, and those who will quote Merriam-Webster to refute that idea outright. Some are down for the wild, creative, out-there interpretations as long as they’re entertained, and others can find something to appreciate if the project adheres to the spirit of the original text.

The task, then, of selecting the best adaptations of the century so far was a tricky one to start. What does “best” even mean when there’s so much variety in what we expect an adaptation to do? The answer, of course, is nuanced, and we think that’s a good thing. Adaptations can be beautiful interpretations of texts that remain pretty close to the original. They can also breathe new life into beloved works by switching up timelines and settings or making them more diverse (or diverse, period). An adaptation might turn a familiar story completely on its head, subverting tropes and trappings with fresh perspectives.  

 

From the fiercely faithful to the irreverent and anachronistic, we believe a good adaptation is largely in the eyes of the beholder. Behold then, dear reader, our picks for the best adaptations of the century so far.

Click through to see the list, check my 2024 post about how to build this display and include your patrons' voices and opinions, and see all of my posts about adaptations here. Use these resources that I have compiled in one place for you to jump on the current adaptation craze-- The Odyssey-- and offer your patrons more options to scratch their adaptations itch. 

And the best thing about this display is that it is evergreen. You can use it any time of year and people will appreciate it. It is not tied to a specific movie, but rather the long standing conversation about whether or not the book was better.

Best Books of 2026 (So Far) via Book Riot

We are in the midst of the literal dog days of summer and one of the best of the best lists for the first half of 2026 has dropped.from Book Riot. From the introduction:

It’s time to declare The Best Books of 2026 So Far! We looked back at books published between January 1 and June 30 to choose our absolute favorites from the first half of the year, narrowing them down after much consideration, and whispered apologies to the reads that didn’t make the cut. 

It’s been a great year for books and comics, with releases from some of our greatest living writers and exciting new voices for adult, YA, and younger audiences alike. Our favorite literary fiction asks big questions about colonization, resistance, survival, and mortality, as well as about faith, community, and what it means to truly be seen. Our top nonfiction includes a memoir on mental health and homeschooling, an investigation into a mysterious death, and an exploration of the health costs of the digital age. Our genre picks are precisely what you’d expect from a Book Riot “best of” list, featuring swoony romances, epic and cozy fantasy, thrilling whodunits, romps in space, and everything in between. 

We’re pleased to present you with our picks for the best books of 2026 so far. Add them to your TBR, share them with your book club, and settle in for some seriously satisfying reading.

You can read the full Book Riot Best of 2026 (So Far) at this link.

This list is broken down by genre and includes suggestions from across their staff. What I am really enjoying about this list (and every Book Riot best list) is that it is a list by readers for readers. Everything Book Riot does is written for and produced for actual readers. Yes they think about quality (the books they include are well written) but their mission in everything they do is to create content for readers.

Their site is written in a conversational voice, positioning everything for its best reader. The writers are readers in the genres they specialize in. They are always making lists (for all ages of readers) of books you should read if the annotation piques your interest. 

Their best of the year so far list reflects everything I have said above. These are also books here I haven't seen on other lists, even a few I haven't even heard of. These are books you can display proudly on your "Best of the Year So Far" displays. 

Speaking of, I wrote at length about using these lists to create displays and do conversation starters last month here. Combine this post from today with those other prominent lists and the direction on how best to position these books at your library.

Which reminds me, don't forget the backlist of ALL Book Riot best lists which you can access with this link.

Attack of the Best Lists 2026: Half Year Check-In (updated w/ NPR Books on 6/30/26)

This post is part of my year end "Attack of the Best Lists" coverage. To see every post in my "Attack of the Best Lists" coverage [and more backlist best of the year options] you can click here. 

We are past the half way point of June now and "best of the year so far" lists are coming fast and furious. I will link to a handful of them be below but first, why should you care about the "best" books of 2026 when we are only halfway there?

Well, there are many reasons from practical to patron service oriented. 

1. Collection development: these are the books you should have in your collections right now. But also, check all of these authors and see if they have other books, releasing previous to these break-out titles, and make sure you have those too. These best lists are there to identify specific "right now" titles, yes, but also use the lists as a prompt to check for backlist options as well.
2. While you wait lists: you are not the only one seeing the lists. They are from major media sources. People are going to be coming in and asking for many of these books, often in larger number from when they first came out. Are you ready with suggestions while they wait on hold? Readlaikes for the specific titles and/or authors. Past titles by said authors (see point 1). Even just "best" books lists from last year-- click here to see my "Attack of the Best Lists" coverage via posts going back in reverse chronological order.
3. Displays but make them interactive: use the lists below to get those "Best of the Year So Far" displays up and then make it interactive. Click here to see how to ask questions of you staff and patrons and then pu the answers on display. The conversation starter here is "what is the best book you have read so far this year?" Don't worry about if it came out this year or not. That does not matter. We are highlighting the books that have brought people joy over the last 6 months and spreading that happiness by displaying as many of the books as possible. This is not a gatekeeping moment where you go..."but that is a 2023 book." NO ONE CARES. DON'T SQUASH THE JOY. You can start the display with the specific 2026 lists linked below, but then expand the display with your staff and patrons responses to broaden the offerings. 
4. Don't forget to bridge the physical-virtual divide and get those displays and the conversation start questions into your online spaces. Asking the questions on social media is a great option. Having a google form with whatever the current conversation starter question is on your website. Posting a picture of the display on social media and linking to a list of the books in the catalog and even making a list on Libby and linking there. Just figure out ways to make the display and conversation available in the building and in your online spaces because our patrons use all of our services and do not see them as separate. The library is a space to visit a building AND a space on their phones and computers. 
5. For fun: look, June is very busy at the library. As schools let out, people come back to the library in droves. We are running summer reading, increasing programming, and serving larger numbers of people. Celebrating all of the great titles we have already seen in 2026, if just fun. Embrace some fun. Enjoy the conversation around "best go the year so far." As I mentioned in point 3, get everyone in the community participating. It is pure innocent positivity. Everyone can have their say and you can be the one to spread the joy.

Here are a handful of those lists from across the publishing landscape to get you started:

• Amazon's Best of 2026 So Far: landing page. This page leads to MANY categories, providing a variety of options for every reader
• Barnes & Noble's Best Books of 20226 (So Far): landing page
• NPR's Books We Love So Far This Year; tabs for Fiction and Nonfiction at the top
• Audible editors offer a midyear roundup of 2026’s top listens thus far
• A few options from GoodReads which also leaves room for backlist options as they are looking at the most read books of 2026.
• Readers’ Most Read Books of the 2026 Reading Challenge (So Far)
• Readers’ Hit New Books of the Year (So Far): sorted by genre and then ranked within that.
• Book Riot breaks down the most read books on Goodreads in 2026 so far
• NYT Book Review Best Fiction and Nonfiction of 2026 So Far (Gift Link)
• 10 Best Books of 2026 So Far via the BBC

I would also direct you to the January-June 2026 LibraryReads lists as well. Those are best lists from your fellow library workers. Click here for the Archive of every year, with 2026 listed first. In general, the LibraryReads archive is an underused "best list" option. 

Summer Reading 2026: LitHub's Ultimate Summer Reading List

Back in December, I had this post about one of my favorite end of the year Best List-- LitHubs's Ultimate Best Books List. 

What I love about this list is how it crowd sources dozens of major publications' "Best Lists" from all over and totals them all up to see what the most popular "Best" titles are. It gives you a survey of the entire "Best" landscape in an easy snapshot. If you look at that post, you can get current and backlist lists that look at all the lists. While that is a lot of instances of the word list, you get what I mean. LitHub's "Ultimate Lists" are an excellent resource because by definition they are crowd sourced.

That's a general PSA for all of their "Ultimate Lists," but right now I want to focus on the current 2026 Ultimate Summer Reading List.

Author Emily Temple read 25 summer reading lists, which recommended a total of 419 individual books and crunched the numbers. 60 books were mentioned 3 or more times. This is THE summer reading list you need for your patrons because it is comprised of all the lists.

The most lists a book was on was 13 (out of 25) and the Temple includes appears 3 times. You can click here to read The Ultimate Summer 2026 Reading List.

And please scroll to the end to see the links to all of the lists she used to build her "Ultimate" list. Not only do I love a list that cites its sources, but also by making them clickable, you can dig even deeper to find more titles.

Of course, many of these books will be checked out all summer, but many of these authors have older books you can suggest to readers while they wait.

Post this list online and in your libraries as the "Best of the Summer Reading Lists." Put up a sign and then fill the display with Summer Reading titles that are on the shelf. Use titles from previous years (use my Summer Reading tag for help with that). Also include previous titles by the authors on this year's list and readalike titles for the authors.

You have plenty to fill the display. And again, there is no library jail. No one is going to get upset or punish you if you use titles adjacent to this year's specific lists. In fact, just the opposite, When you include 

I feel like a broken record, but it bares repeating. Books do not have to be from this exact summer to be great summer reads. You have plenty to fill the display. No one is going to get upset or punish you if you use titles adjacent to this year's specific lists (as opposed to those literally on them). In fact, just the opposite. When you include titles from this year, previous years, readalikes for those authors, titles that you think would be a great summer read, anything I have posted using the summer reading tag, etc...., people will thank you.

Your patrons want a good book to read over the summer. They have no idea where to start. When you widen the net of option, when you get creative in your "summer reading" marketing, while making sure the books are solid reads, you will draw more readers to your display. When you provide them with a book they end up loving, you have hooked them for life. They will come back for more. They will tell their friends. You have won.

But in order to do that you have to stop being so literal. A great place to start is the backlist. The last few years of Summer Reading hot picks will be on the shelf. They were summer reads in the near past. They are great books that people missed. They are still great reads. Allow them to shine

Speaking of....here is the link to pull up the Ultimate Summer Reading Lists going back to 2022. As well as using my "summer reads" tag.

This is also a great time to use my conversation starter to display posts (and handout with examples) to ask your staff and readers to share this favorite "Summer Reads." Note, I did not say, favorite Summer Reads out in 2026. Keep it broader. Find out what they have loved the most. From that poll, you can not only make a display, but also get some in real time feedback about what your patrons like to read in the summer. And it makes for an easy, interactive display that SHOWS your patrons that you are listening to them. Again use my directions on how to have that conversation here.

Be creative and broad with your "Summer Reading" lists, suggestions, and displays. Include titles from year's past, include other books by the authors on this year's lists, include readalikes for these authors... You get my point. Be as open as possible.

Give people more options that what they see in that one list they saw on that one website. No one is going to "check your math," and be like, "Umm....what list told you this was a "best" summer read." Of course not. They trust you to help them find the books they wouldn't find without you. They expect to fond things at the library they wouldn't see other places. This is where we excel and leave a mark on those we assist with their leisure reading. Embrace it and go for it.

And a great place to start that process is LitHub's Ultimate Summer Reading Lists. 

Booklist's June Issue is the Spotlight on Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror (And Becky wins the Stoker)

I returned from StokerCon late last night. And well, I won a Stoker Award for Long Nonfiction and Tananarive Due won for her essay in the book. You can see al the nominees and winners here. You can watch me accept for Tananarive and myself on the video of the live stream here. Short Nonfiction was the first award of the night, after the keynote and Long Nonfiction was only a few awards later. 

Also, here is the link to my acceptance speech.

Now I have to go hide and send a million emails (only a slight exaggeration)

While I get back to it, I wanted to make sure you all know that Booklist Spotlight's SF/F/H every June and there is a lot of great information available for free-- more than just the Top 10 lists. The issue table of contents is here. I have posted the adult links below and added backlist access.

Spotlight on SF/Fantasy & Horror

• Essentials: Body Horror
• Top 10 SF/Fantasy & Horror 2026: 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022
• Top 10 SF/Fantasy & Horror Debuts 2026: 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022
• Writers & Readers: Reviewing Books Made Me a Better Novelist
• Top 10 SF/Fantasy & Horror on Audio 2026: 2025, 2024, 2023,

Features

• Essentials: AI and Its Potential for Good and Bad
• The Booklist Carnegie Interview Yiyun Li
• The Booklist Carnegie Interview Megha Majumdar
• Talking with Tillie Walden
• Trade Secrets: Updates on the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Disabled
• High-Demand Hot List

Using Awards Lists As a RA Tool: Eisner Awards Edition

This is part of my ongoing series on using Awards Lists as a RA tool. Click here for all posts in the series in reverse chronological order. Click here for the first post which outlines the details how to use awards lists as a RA tool.   

Last week the Will Eisner Comic Industry Award Nominees were announced. From the Awards Landing Page:

Comic-Con is proud to announce the nominees for the 2026 Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards. The nominations are for works published between January 1 and December 31, 2025 and were chosen by a blue-ribbon panel of judges.

Once again, this year’s nominees in 32 categories reflect the wide range of material being published in the U.S. in comics and graphic novels, representing over 170 print and online titles from some 75 publishers, produced by creators from all over the world.

Among publishers, DC Comics has 16 nominations (plus 10 shared), led by Absolute Martian Manhunter with 6 (3 standalone and 3 shared) and Absolute Batman with 5 (2 standalone and 3 shared). Image Comics has 12 nominations plus 9 shared, including 5 for Deniz Camp and Eric Zawadski’s Assorted Crisis Events (3 standalone and 2 shared) and 4 for James Tynion IV and Martin Simmonds’ Department of Truth.

Fantagraphics’ 14 nominations include 3 for graphic memoirs, 3 for U.S. editions of international material, and 3 for archival collections. Abrams imprints account for 9 nominations, spanning eight different categories, while Drawn & Quarterly has 6 nominees, followed by Random House with 5.

Other publishers with multiple nominations include Dark Horse (4 plus 4 shared), Henry Holt (4), First Second (4), VIZ Media (4), Marvel (3 plus 5 shared), and Top Shelf (3 plus 1 shared). Publishers with 3 nominations include Andrews McMeel, New York Review Comics, Pantheon, Peow2, Stacked Deck, and Yen Press. IDW has 2 plus 5 shared, while BOOM! and Oni both have 2 plus 1 shared. Nine companies have 2 nominations each, and another 41 companies or individuals have 1 nomination.

In addition to Absolute Martian Manhunter, Absolute Batman, Assorted Crisis Events, and Department of Truth, works with the most nominations include Jesse Lonergan’s Drome (Best Graphic Album–New, Best Writer/Artist, Best Coloring) and Linnea Sterte’s A Garden of Spheres (Best Graphic Album–New, Best Writer/Artist, Best Painter.

When it comes to creators, Deniz Camp leads the pack with 5 nominations: Best Limited Series (Absolute Martian Manhunter), Best New Series (Assorted Crisis Events), 2 for Best Single Issue, and Best Writer. James Tynion IV follows with 4 nominations, including Best Writer. Those with 3 nominations include Juni Ba, Javier Rodriguez, Jesse Lonergan, Linnea Sterte, Kelly Thompson, and Eric Zawadski. Another 17 creators have 2 nominations.

Named for acclaimed comics creator Will Eisner, the awards are celebrating their 38th year of bringing attention to and highlighting the best publications and creators in comics and graphic novels. The 2026 Eisner Awards judging panel consists of writer Regine Sawyer, librarian Jerry Dear, reviewer/journalist Tiffany Babb, comics retailer Katie Pryde, and comics scholar Randy Duncan.

Voting for the awards is being held online. All professionals in the comic book industry are eligible to vote. Those who voted in 2025 or who registered to vote by May 14 will automatically be invited to fill out the new ballot. The deadline for voting is June 5.

The Eisner Award trophies will be presented in a gala awards ceremony to be held at the San Diego Hilton Bayfront Hotel during Comic-Con on the evening of July 24.

Click here to see the nominees for this year. That page also has the links for past nominees, winners,  judges, and the Hall of Fame. Everything for this, the biggest awards in comics and graphic novels, is all available with one click.

Yes you can use the current slate of nominees for your collection development, but also peruse the last few years of backlist nominees because those comics that were honored, they might be in bound volumes now, meaning you need to add them to your collections as well. 

Graphic novels and comics are great reads any time of year, but as we inch toward Comic Con, interest definitely pique's with those who aren't regular readers. Make it easier for all patrons to find them by pulling them out for display.

Booklist's May 2026 Issue is a Spotlight on Mysteries & Thrillers

May is the best time of year to get up to speed on Mysteries because for years this has been the most popular issue of Booklist, the May spotlight on Mysteries and Thrillers 

Below are the links to the content you can use to get up to speed on the current state of Mysteries and Thrillers. There are best lists and a theme based lists even articles. All focused on some of your most popular books.

Please note, I have added backlist access links as well because when you look at the last few years of best lists, a fuller picture of the genre emerges-- where it has been, where it is now, and where it might be going. Not to mention, you can use the last few years of lists to make a display or post an online list of great Mysteries and Thrillers your readers may have missed.

And don't forget, every issue of Booklist Magazine is a spotlight on a genre or format or topic, making every issue an invaluable resource beyond just the reviews.

Spotlight on Mysteries & Thrillers

Essentials: Holy Whodunits!

Top 10 Mysteries & Thrillers 2026: 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022

Top 10 Mystery & Thriller Debuts 2026: 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022

Trend Alert: Cozies Get a Glow-Up

Manga Essentials: More Detective Manga

Writers & Readers: A Mystery Demanded by Reality

Essentials: Social Media Mysteries

Top 10 Mysteries & Thrillers on Audio 2026: 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022

Features
Listen Up: Sounds Suspicious (unreliable narrators on audio)

Top 10 True Crime Books

High-Demand Hot List

NYT Best Books of the Year (So Far) and Their Enhanced Genre Coverage

The New York Times Books section just released their 2026 Best Books of the Year (So Far) (gift link). I love a few things about this list and all of it comes from the NYT Books sections concerted effort to be more inclusive of all types of books and reading experiences.

First, the list is focused NOT on the quality of writing alone. Yes that matters, but they have proclaimed the mission statement for how they chose these books in the subtitle for the article: "The nonfiction and novels we can't stop thinking about." This statement makes it clear that the reader's experience matters.

Second, and related, in the past, the NYT would pride themselves on picking the most obscure books. It was their badge of honor. The staff of the section has had a major overhaul in the last few years and the results are showing. The NYT Books section and their lists are serious about connecting readers with the best books for them, full stop. And in fact, obscure is now seen as a bad choice, unless the writers believe it has a wide appeal that has been overlook by others.

Third, and also related, there are genre titles here, and more than one token choice. Genre works can be among the best even when considered across all literature. And this list has genre titles, books that have long queues at your library right now. The inclusion of more genre in the NYT best lists is directly correlated to their increased genre coverage in general. I wrote about this, here, in February when the NYT released their Romance glossary. And then last week, they added a Fantasy column to their regular rotation of Sunday Book Review section genre coverage. They are now regularly covering the most popular genres in fiction and nonfiction, and that coverage has led to the best of those books being added to overall best lists. Knowledge matters. If they are paying writers to cover genre titles, obviously the cream will rise to the top and the very best will be allowed to break through into the over all best conversation, a fact we know well at libraries.

Fourth, the list is not huge. It is focused. If someone wanted to read them all, they could. And they have been adding a feature throughout all of their lists that takes advantage of the fact that many people have a digital subscription to the NYT now. You can click to say you have read a book or that you want to read it and it will be saved in your account. All of this encourages people to find a book that they will actually read. And get ready, because they will come to us to get their copy to read. This is why I have included gift links, so even if you do not have access, you can see these lists.

And I think that is the final thing to say here. The NYT used to be focused on telling us about books you would probably never read. Sure they'd throw readers a bone or two over the course of the year, but they absolutely did not prioritize the reader. Not any more. Now, they want you to read the books they are reviewing, they are covering them and including a wide swath of titles to encourage you to give more titles a try, and they are slowly re-building trust with lists that SHOW they care about all types of books and readers.

With the closing of many newspaper sections that had serious coverage of books, the NYT actively trying to fill in all the gaps. Most libraries have digital access to the paper. Please make sure you are using their Books coverage as one of your regular resources, especially if you haven't visited in a while. And get ready for all of the titles mentioned in their Books coverage (especially the genre and best coverage) to lead to longer holds queues.

PW Summer Reads 2026: An Epic Year Round Resource

The PW Summer Reads 2026 database is now live! Always the first one of the year to pop up, PW's Summer Reads is also one  of the best YEAR ROUND Resources hands down. Why? Well let's start with a screen shot of the main page.

The PW Summer Reads database is more than the sum of its parts, those parts being the wide swath of categories offered. Every genre, nonfiction, and books for kids of all ages, each has their own tab with picks.

As you can see, they also make backlist access of every Summer Reads and year end Best Books list going back to 2012 easily accessible from the top of the page.

Let that sink in.... EVERY SINGLE SUMMER READS AND PW YEAR END BEST LIST IN ONE PLACE. This is AWESOME!

Nowhere will you find a resource that puts this many "sure bet" options in front of you so easily. There are literally hundreds of titles here, at your fingertips, both old and new, that you can confidently suggest to readers immediately. And so many readers. Readers who read across all age levels [down to infants] and in just about every genre. 

And, since every title is annotated, you also have a book talk [or annotation] for each title right there. You don't have to have read the book to suggest it. [Reminder: Use the Words of Others.]

I could keep gushing about how much I love this resource but I would rather you played around with it yourself.

Click through, check out the upcoming titles, but also look back at older titles, read the annotations, check genres you love and those you don't normally read, especially those you don't normally read because you will learn much about the current state of that genre [trends, popular authors] this year and by going back a few years. You can literally watch trends as they happened. You can both get access to some great sure bet suggestions AND brush up on your genre knowledge all in one place.

Spend some time really getting to know this resource. And then use it-- all of it-- including past years and both summer and year end lists-- to make your own lists for your readers. Make displays and lists [online and in the building], make suggested reading lists by genre, by year, by whatever you want. Just embrace the wealth of information available to you with one click and help readers in ways they would not think to help themselves.

Proof reading this post before publishing it, I realize how many times I am repeating myself about using the entirety of the information that PW is making available here, but I also know from years of suggesting this resource to people that you don't always listen to me. And so, I will keep beating this drum of using best lists all year long and especially checking the backlist until I run out of breath [or strength to type].

Go check out this database of "sure bet" reads for any season, and keep it bookmarked for use anytime you need a solid suggestion [especially for those hard to satisfy readers].

It is NOT just for Summer.