Attack of the Best Lists 2025: LitHub's Ultimate Best Books List (and more)

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 2025" coverage [and more backlist best of the year options] you can click here.  

Today I have the list I have been waiting for-- LitHub's aggregation of all the major best lists. From the landing page:

The Ultimate Best Books of 2025 List
Reading All the Lists So You Don’t Have To Since 2017
By Emily Temple 

Happy List Season, children. I hope you’ve been good. Just like every year, I have arrived to present to you the Ultimate List, otherwise known as the List of Lists—in which I read all (or at least many) of the Best Of lists on the internet and count which books are recommended most. 

Is consensus the same as quality? Not always. Is this basically a popularity contest? Sure. But if you want to know which books The Critics are talking about, this is one way to do it. (Three of my own personal favorite books of the year made it to the top five below, which I can only assume means I am either a) boring or b) correct or c) both??) 

This year, I processed 58 lists from 49 outlets, which collectively recommended more than 1,300 different books (…help). 90 of those books made it onto 5 or more lists (weirdly this is the exact same number as last year, despite there being more books recommended in total this year), and I have collated these for you here, in descending order of frequency.

I know I have been doing my Attack of the Best Lists 2025 coverage since late October, but honestly, if you only have time for 1 list, this is it. Temple has done the most focused work of anyone out there. And the results, are RA gold for you. The post she has created seamlessly combines adult fiction, nonfiction, and GNs into one list. Further, she not only does the compiling for you, the sources are listed and linked (!) at the bottom of the page, so you can have DIRECT access to the most influential' best lists, and the aggregation of which titles are on the most lists, with just this one click. It is crowdsourcing, and an end of the year lists resource to dive deeper, all in one place.

And for just a moment, before going further, I need all of you to look at the books appearing on 12 lists because we have Stephen Graham Jones alongside Nobel Prize winner Han Kang! Look this year was not the best overall, but I for one am going to celebrate SGJ being on par with Kang as a win.

Back to more best books coverage on Lit Hub as they also has a few of their own best list content that is worth a look:

• 173 Best Book Covers of 2025
• Lit Hub's 43 Favorite Books of 2025
• 100 Notable Small Press Books of 2025
• The Best Reviewed Nonfiction of 2025 (via BookMarks)
• The Best Reviewed Fiction of 2025 (via BookMarks)
• The Year's Best Literary Podcasts

And I want to especially highlight LitHub's roundup of the 50 Biggest News Stories of 2025 with links to more info on each

Multiple layer of backlist and indexing are also happening in every list, meaning you can embrace "Best" across multiple years. Reminder, "Best" titles have a longer shelf life than the current year. Last year's best titles, even 5 years ago, are great suggestions for a wide swath of readers. LitHub makes it easy, all year long, with their clear, consistent, and accessible tags at the bottom of their posts. All of these tags pull up useful information in reverse chronological order, meaning you decide how far into the backlist you want to dig.

Here are some of the tags that can help you all year long and include easy backlist access:

• Reading Lists (best lists all year long end up here)
• Ultimate Lists (both end of year and summer going back to 2017)

[Also, I wanted to remind people of the extremely useful Best of the Decade lists they made in 2019. Those are also a great "best" resource, one that truly embraces the treasure trove that is the backlist.]

But wait, there is more...

LitHub owns CrimeReads and they have their own Best of 2025 lists (but no useful tags to collection them all. Here are those best lists:

• Best Crime Fiction, Mysteries, and Thrillers 2025
• Best Traditional Mysteries 2025
• Best International Crime Novels of 2025
• Best Horror Fiction of 2025
• Best Noir Fiction of 2025
• Best Debut Crime Novels of 2025
• Best Espionage Fiction of 2025

Attack of the Best Lists 2024: Library Journal

 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 2024" coverage [and more backlist best of the year options] you can click here.

Since I took last week off, there are MANY best book lists to catch up on this week. Today we will begin with one that released this morning! And it is one I played a small part in-- Library Journal's Best Books 2024!

FIND GREAT BOOKS EVERYWHERE

Reading is a resource. It creates community and connections; fuels joy, revelation, and immersion; is company for a quiet afternoon or a quick break; and underpins a life of endless discovery, imagination, learning, and illumination. We celebrate the wondrous activity of reading with this list of 144 titles, books that delighted LJ reviewers, columnists, and editors. These works made us put them down and think—and pick them up again at any free moment. The books on this list drove conversations at work, with friends, with the barista, the dog walker, and the dentist. They are the books that make us happy to be readers. We hope you find these great reads on your library shelves and in your communities, and we hope you find more great reads every day in the year to come.

Illustration by Susanna Harrison

I am very happy to have been part of the team who looked at the year that was and prioritized the reading experience of these titles as we weighed their status as best. It is a refreshing way to look at the "best" tag. As I went through the Horror selection experience over a couple of meetings with my editor and list mate, Melissa DeWild, the conversations we had about all of the titles we considered was enlightening. 

Please note, this is the LJ Best Horror list. It it is similar to, but not exactly, my personal Horror Best List for 2024. As we look at the genre, only titles that got a star in the Horror category in LJ can be considered. 

The experience of working on this list is very fulfilling. Plus, I had the pleasure of writing all the annotations for the Horror list.

But back to the entire Best Books 2024 portal, I hope you all take away more from these lists than merely which titles are included and which excluded, and rather use them as a jumping off point to consider your own "bests"- both yours and your patrons. Prioritizing the reading experience is such a helpful way to think about which books rise to the top. 

Below are the categories, linked to the lists. Each category is offered as a web page  that you can post and share with your patrons more easily. And there is a bonus category of "Captivating Covers" this year again as well.  [Reminder, we can judge books by their covers]

But first, here are the links to the 2023, 2022, 2021, 2020, and 2019 lists

Again, here is the portal page link, but you can also use the category links below.

• Crime Fiction
• Horror 
• Literary Fiction
• Pop Fiction
• Romance
• SF/Fantasy
• Nonfiction
• Life+Style
• Graphic Novels 
• Poetry

Reminder: Judge a Book By Its Cover

I have posted many times in the past about the importance of using covers as part of our work with readers. From my "Judge a Book By Its Cover" post:

Please, please, please judge a book by its cover. The publishers pay a lot of money to make a cover that sells to book to people as they pass by. They articulate the appeal of the book-- who would most enjoy it-- with images. If they put so much time and effort into the covers, why aren't we using them to make our job easier?

Click here to keep reading that post. Or click here for every post I have tagged "covers" including this article I wrote on Horror cover artists for The Lineup this past Fall.

While I advocate for using covers as a tool when hand selling titles to readers, late last month, I saved this article from Book Riot which opened up a whole new avenue of conversation starter opportunities around covers. 

From the intro to that article entitled, "What Genres and Subgenres Should be Called, Based on Their Covers":

 If you spend time in libraries or bookstores, you’ve probably noticed book cover trends. Maybe you’ve picked up a book because its cover was unique or resembled another book. Maybe you like embossed gold covers or deckle edges.

Or you may think a lot of recent book covers look similar. Many 2020s literary fiction covers have titles in thick, all caps on a bright background. The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett and Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt are two prominent examples of this style. Some readers love this style; some find it overdone or generic.

This 2022 article explains that book designers have difficult and seemingly contradictory tasks: making covers unique but simultaneously attractive to algorithms. Covers often contain hidden details but must also be attention-grabbing, even in thumbnails online. Fitting into an existing trend isn’t necessarily cliché. It’s creative marketing that helps readers find books. 

Publishing trends can become memes. Social media users have compared food packaging to the fonts on Colleen Hoover covers. Many online book lists collect or parody the fantasy title format “A Blank of Blank and Blank.” Some covers of classic books contain blatant spoilers because designers think most readers already know the endings. So, here are some silly genre and subgenre names I made up to fit these cover trends.

Click through to see what the author did. While they claim it is "silly," I think there is not only a lot of truth here, but also much we can use (after the chuckle) to engaging our patrons in conversation about popular books and genre trends. 

At the very least you can use the funny genre titles and put some books that fit the description on display (or in an online list). These cover based displays work extremely well because they subvert what our library users think we are going to say. As I began my column in The Lineup (also referenced above):

Psst…. I have a dark, dirty library secret for all of you. I think we have been doing this column long enough that I can trust you enough to share it with you. Here it is…

I judge books by their covers.

I will give you all a moment to recover from shock, but it is 100% true. And not only do I judge books by their covers, but I train library workers all over the world to do the very same thing.

Now I know all of you probably heard from a librarian or teacher at some point in your childhood, “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” and I am sure some of you have taken this as fact and carried it into your own adult reading life, even passing it on to new generations of readers. Well, I am here to tell you to forget it.

Why?

Well let’s start with this actual fact: Publishers want their books to have a cover that sells the book to its best reader. They need the cover to do the heavy lifting of attracting readers as they walk by...

But they also want them to be the right readers, ones who if they are attracted by the cover, stop and read the back and then decide to buy the book.

If publishers are putting that much effort, money, and thought into the covers of their books, why aren’t we using the covers to help readers find the best book for them as well? It actually seems irresponsible for me, someone whose job it is to match books with their best readers, to NOT consider the covers. A cover can never tell you exactly what will happen in the book, but those covers created by the very best artists can absolutely tell you quite a bit about the feel of the book to follow, setting the tone for the story that follows.

So get out there and shock your patrons by showing them that you too judge books by their covers. They will be excited to see that you are no different than them, yes, but you will also teach them how to make the covers work for them as they choose books to read going forward.

And you can all have a chuckle together. 

Attack of the Best Lists 2023: Library Journal's Best Books Portal

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 2023" coverage [and more backlist best of the year options] you can click here.

Illustration ©2023 Jim Tsinganos

The Library Journal Best Books of 2023 portal is LIVE! From the landing page: 

There are many ways to measure a year—in calendar days, school semesters, anniversaries, or birthdays; at LJ we measure the year in books. Our bibliometric datebook is marked by titles we look forward to for months, books we read in one big, delightful spree, and those we savor, re-read, and share. Every year we convene to ponder our top picks. We talk about what we’re reading, suggest titles to one another, and discuss, with growing excitement and anticipation, selections that we just know will be among our best books. Here are our choices: 149 titles across 15 categories; each a work we have treasured. We are excited that these books exist in the world, waiting to be found or read anew.

I am very happy to have been part of the team who looked at the year that was and prioritized the reading experience of these titles as we weighed their status as best. It is a refreshing way to look at the "best" tag. As I went through the Horror selection experience over a couple of meetings with my editor and list mate, Melissa DeWild, the conversations we had about all of the titles we considered was enlightening. 

Please note, this is the LJ Best Horror list. It it is similar to, but not exactly my personal Horror Best List for 2023. As we look at the genre, only titles that got a star in the Horror category in LJ can be considered. So there are titles I gave a star to in Booklist that did not get a star in LJ or, as is the case with Whalefall, it was a star but in SF. 

The experience of working on this list is very fulfilling even when my absolute favorites are excluded. I also had the pleasure of writing all the annotations for the Horror list.

But back to the entire portal, I hope you all take away more from these lists than merely which titles are included and which excluded, and rather use them as a jumping off point to consider your own "bests"- both yours and your patrons. Prioritizing the reading experience is such a helpful way to think about which books rise to the top. 

Below are the categories, linked to the lists. Each category is offered as a web page  that you can post and share with your patrons more easily. And there is a bonus category of "Captivating Covers" this year again as well.

But first, here are the links to the 2022, 2021, 2020, 2019, and 2018 lists as well. 

Again, here is the portal page link, but you can also use the category links below.

• Crime Fiction
• Horror 
• Literary Fiction
• Pop Fiction
• Romance
• SF/Fantasy
• Short Stories
• World Literature
• Graphic Novel
• Arts & Humanities
• Cookbooks
• Memoir & Biography
• Science & Technology
• Social Sciences 
• Poetry

Attack of the Best Lists 2023: BookPage and Book Riot

 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 2023" coverage [and more backlist best of the year options] you can click here.

Friday I had a post about best lists from the widest possible view, for anyone, even those who aren't big readers. But today, I want to focus on lists that are for committed readers. People who follow the book world a bit more closely. 

To be clear, when it comes to end of year best lists, it is a different audience. And what I do with these posts is to try to help you understand that every best lists has a different audience and you need to use that knowledge to help your readers better. 

If you learn nothing else from my Attack of the Best Lists series it should be this: Best lists are NEVER one size fits all.

The right list, used as a resource for the right type of reader will garner amazing results. The wrong list for that type of reader may still work, but not as well.

Let's start with a resource that most library workers and regular library users know and trust very well-- BookPage.

BookPage is the newspaper that most libraries have available for patrons to take for free at their service desks. They have released their Top 10 books for 2023 in print and online. They have titles for al types of readers, yes, but also, these are books that they know have worked well for a wide swath of each type of reader as well. 

Click here for that list with fiction, nonfiction, adult, YA and MG. It also includes multiple genre choices including one of my top reads of the year, Lone Women by Victor LaValle.

But more importantly, they also have easy access on that page to all of the 2023 lists of best books by genre AND one click access to the lists going back to 2019. This is a one stop shop for you and your patrons to find "best" titles from this year and the recent backlist.

Next up is the unique Best Books list from Book Riot. 

But first, as I have said here on the blog many times, Book Riot is the best resource to see what hard core readers are interested in. Book Riot is the largest independent website focused on readers. All of their content is directed at readers directly. They want to get the most clicks as well, which means their content is purposefully up to date, interesting, and written in a conversational tone. It is exactly what we need to stay on top of the hottest trends because it is their mission to provide the most "clickable" content to readers, meaning they have the time and resources to do this work for us. Everything there is reader focused which dovetails perfectly with RA Service.

Their best books of the year site is made by having each writer, editor, contributor, etc... give one title for their book of the year. Because each person who works for them has a slightly different specialty, the list covers all ages and genres by default. Also they have a commitment to providing diverse voices as part of their policy.

The editors then take all of the titles and allow you, the user of this resource to browse all or to click on tags in a sidebar to help narrow your choices down.

Click here to get started using it for yourself, to build displays, or to help a specific patron.

The only downside to this reader focused resource is that they do not have easy access to past lists on the current year's page. And when I try to search, the same site we have for 2023 is not available for past years. 

However, when I went to Largehearted Boy's Ultimate List of Lists for past years (more on this resource soon), I was able to get into the past Book Riot best lists with ease. I have posted them here for you, so you can have 1 click access from my blog:

• 2022
• 2021
• 2020
• 2019

Kelly Jensen also published her annual Best Book Covers of the year 2023 today. Please click here to see what else I have to say about how covers are a great way to start the RA conversation and that you can absolutely judge books by their covers in order to help readers.

Here is access (again thanks to Largehearted Boy) to the best covers backlists as well:

• 2022
• 2021
• 2020
• 2019

Judging Books By Their Covers Via Me in The Lineup

I am on the record, multiple times, telling you all that you can judge books by their covers, at least when it comes to judging the appeal of a book. You can click here to see the many times I have written about covers and using them as a RA Tool.

My most read "covers" posts are here and here. That second one, refers to Lynne Hansen, the top Horror cover artists out there. After writing that post in 2020, I had the idea to do something more in depth about Horror cover artists. Flash forward 3 years to last week when my third (of four) columns for The Lineup this year posted and is all about Horror illustrators.

While my posts here on the blog about covers are geared toward library workers, this piece in The Lineup is written to readers directly.

Below is the intro and a link to the article. You can click through here or in the link after the intro to read the entire article for free.

Please note, while this is specifically about Horror (with perfect timing for your Halloween displays), you can still use it as a guide for any genre. Just physically telling readers that you judge books by their covers is a great conversation starter. It seems illicit and will break the ice as you drive to have conversations about what they want to read and why. Trust me, I do it all the time. It works. Asking a patron what their favorite book cover is, rather than favorite book, gets their attention immediately. It is unexpected and will signal that you actually want to talk about reading experiences.

And a "Judge a Book By It's Cover" display is an awesome idea, just make sure you are double checking that the books you choose for their good cover are also a great read for a wide audience. The whole, "judging a book by its cover" is not as much of a free for all as it sounds. It is a great entry point, but you still need to do the work and make sure the books should be on display for your patrons. \

Here is the article. I chose independent press titles because a lot of the major presses use in house designers. And true to the paragraph above this one, all of the books are a great read for a general audience. I trust the publishers and the content of these books to be added to your collections.

A Librarian Wants You to Judge These Horror Books by Their Covers

Psst…. I have a dark, dirty library secret for all of you. I think we have been doing this column long enough that I can trust you enough to share it with you. Here it is…

I judge books by their covers.

I will give you all a moment to recover from shock, but it is 100% true. And not only do I judge books by their covers, but I train library workers all over the world to do the very same thing.

Now I know all of you probably heard from a librarian or teacher at some point in your childhood, “Don’t judge a book by its cover,” and I am sure some of you have taken this as fact and carried it into your own adult reading life, even passing it on to new generations of readers. Well, I am here to tell you to forget it.

Why?

Well let’s start with this actual fact: Publishers want their books to have a cover that sells the book to its best reader. They need the cover to do the heavy lifting of attracting readers as they walk by...

But they also want them to be the right readers, ones who if they are attracted by the cover, stop and read the back and then decide to buy the book.

If publishers are putting that much effort, money, and thought into the covers of their books, why aren’t we using the covers to help readers find the best book for them as well? It actually seems irresponsible for me, someone whose job it is to match books with their best readers, to NOT consider the covers. A cover can never tell you exactly what will happen in the book, but those covers created by the very best artists can absolutely tell you quite a bit about the feel of the book to follow, setting the tone for the story that follows.

Which leads us all to this column. Today, I am going to present six of today’s best Horror book illustrators with two example books, titles that you can 100% judge by the superior art gracing their covers. I have spoken to numerous illustrators, authors, and publishers to make sure I have found artists who are both talented and trustworthy.

However, the one disappointment I have encountered throughout this process is the overwhelmingly white and male representation in today’s horror cover art world. In fact, those I spoke to know it is a problem and many have been seeking out more marginalized artists to highlight and support as well. 

Therefore, this article serves two purposes. One: to help you break the taboo and get out there to judge a book by its cover. It’s fun and slightly illicit, and since I have vetted the titles for you, I can promise you that the books will be worth your time. And two: to serve as a call to action for horror artists from marginalized perspectives to reach out, leave a comment, and let us know who you are so the community can help lift you up. Then, as people encounter this article, they can explore your art as well.

Click here to read the full column.

And click here to read all RA for All posts tagged "covers"

Attack of the Bests Lists 2022: Library Journal's Best Books Portal

This post is part of my year end "Attack of the Best Lists" coverage. To see every post in my "Best Books 2022" series [and more backlist best options] you can use the best lists tag. 

Click here to enter the
Best Books 2022 page

From the landing page for the lists:

147 titles across 15 categories to share with readers now and for years to come.

At LJ. we consider best books on many fronts, but mostly we are searching for titles that stop us in our tracks for more reasons than we could possibly articulate. Because that is what great reads do. They overwhelm any criteria we can list and reduce us to "Yes, that, and that too, and even more." Listed here are books we stayed up all night reading and started the day wanting to discuss. Books we read and re-read. together and apart, books that some of us are already re-reading again. We hope you find treasures among these lists and that they make you, and the readers you help every day, stop and say, "Yes, that."

I am very happy to have been part of the team who looked at the year that was and prioritized the reading experience of these titles as we weighed their status as best. It is a refreshing way to look at the "best" tag. As I went through the Horror selection experience over multiple meetings with my editor and list mate, Melissa DeWild, the conversations we had about all of the titles we considered was enlightening. 

I hope you all take away more from these lists than merely which titles are included and which excluded, and rather use them as a jumping off point to consider your own "bests"- both yours and your patrons. Prioritizing the reading experience is such a helpful way to think about which books rise to the top. 

Below are the categories, linked to the lists. Each category is offered as a web page and a PDF that you can post and share with your patrons more easily. And there is a bonus category of "Best Covers" this year was well.

Again here is the portal page link, but you can also use the category links below.

• Crime Fiction
• Horror 
• Literary Fiction
• Pop Fiction
• Romance
• SF/Fantasy
• Short Stories
• World Fiction
• Graphic Novel
• Arts &  Humantieiss
• Cookbooks
• Memoirs
• Science & Technology
• Social Sciences 
• Poetry

Attack of the Best Lists 2022: Best Covers and The Millions' A Year in Reading

This post is part of my year end "Attack of the Best Lists" coverage. To see every post in my "Best Books 2022" series [and more backlist best options] you can use the best lists tag. 

Two of my favorite, non traditional, best lists were just released and BOTH are favorites because they take the idea of what is "best" and look at it differently. And let me tell you, when we talk about the most useful resources for readers this time of year, those that attack the "best" idea from a different angle are the "best" resources for you to use to delight and surprise your patrons.

The first is the annual round up of Book Riot writers' favorite book covers of 2022. This list includes my personal favorite, Vagina Obscura by Rachel E Gross which I gave a star review in Booklist to here.

Now many of you may be confused, asking, Becky, how the heck can a cover help me match books with readers. Well, they can, and this is a topic I have written about many times. You can see all of the times I have written about using covers as a RA tool with my "covers" tag, here, but if you want the summary post, click here.

In general, covers make for a great conversation starter. You can not only use the book and its cover as a prop to talk about what the publisher wants you to know about the book based on the images, but you can also use the blurbs, appeal language, all of the words they also include on the cover and the inside cover flap to book talk a title. 

And, when you use the books on the "best" covers list, they have already been declared "best," by someone for some reason. Your readers don't care what that reason is, they just want to know someone thinks this book is worth their time. It helps them to narrow down the vast universe of books into a smaller list, one they can manageably peruse. And remember, some people are more visual learners, so this consideration of the cover will greatly appeal to them. 

Next up, the 18th installment of The Year in Reading from The Millions. I love the Year in Reading and I wrote about why at length last year. You can click here (or see below) for my reasons which include how to use it to help readers. But first, visit the landing page for this year's series. The editor makes some general comments about the process and trends that will emerge across the essays as they are introduced. And like every year, the landing page ends with easy access to every previous installment.

Here is the post from last year, however, please note, I changed the links to go to 2022.

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2021

Best Books 2021: A Year in Reading 2021 via The Millions

One of my favorite end of the year, "best" events is The Millions' annual essays on "A Year in Reading."

They ask a diverse list of writers, most of them "up and coming" or a little under the general radar to write an essay for which the only requirement is that it is on the topic of their personal year in reading. The result is an enjoyable series of essays that are united by theme but vary in style and content.

The archive of every essay from throughout the years is accessible on the current year's page [scroll down].

These "A Year in Reading" pieces are fun to read. Any reader will enjoy perusing these essays because they are all personal accounts of what reading meant to the author in the year that just passed. Yes there are lists of books, but it is through the author's exploration of why they chose these titles, what they meant to that person, and just in general, what reading meant to them in their life over the past year that these essays viscerally communicate the power of reading. And reading about others being positively effected by the act of reading is a joy for all readers to read. [So many "reads" in that sentence.]

However, besides the personal joy you will get from reading this, there are also tangible RA and Collection Development elements to these essays.

First, there is the training you get on appeal, and why different readers like different books. One of the hardest things to get practice on in our field, is hearing readers talk about what they like to read and why. We need to gather voices from across all experiences in order to have more examples of why people like the books they like. The more examples we have experience with, the more easily we can help readers as they approach us with their inquiries. It also allows us to think more broadly about readalikes, which is one of the drums I beat frequently. This archive is a treasure trove of dozens of readers sharing their feelings on appeal.

Second, and most obvious, the lists of books that come out of the series. These are not all books that came out in 2021. These are simply the books other authors read in 2021. You will expose yourself to many titles you either haven't heard of or haven't thought about in a while, through these essays. You can even turn the entire series itself into a display using the books. "A Year in Reading" can be your title. Make a quick note about the source of the display topic and then fill it with all of the books. Use past year's titles if you run out. It will be inclusive, diverse, and whole collection by default. And, make it interactive by asking patrons to add their "Year in Reading" titles. How can they add? Up to you. If it is an online display [pic on Instagram or a Facebook discussion, eg] they can use the comments. If it is an in library display, they can use a post-it to add a title to the display or a board, or put a slip into a box. Whatever you do to make it interactive, you can then use the additional titles to extend the display and make it more local.

And third, the authors that are chosen to participate themselves are a great resource. As I mentioned above, The Millions tends to ask a diverse group of up and coming authors from across the entire landscape of writing today. Use this series to discover new authors, both to add to your collections and to suggest to patrons.

Remember to think outside of the "best" box if you want your patrons to really notice and understand how you help them to discover books they would never find on their own. Yes, we need to have the more traditional "best books" displays up, but make room for some less traditional displays that not only capture those "end of the year" feels, but also, allow them to participate in a more meaningful way.

Judge a Book By Its Cover and Make it Work For You

As I foreshadowed with Monday's post, this was a wonky work week for me. As I traveled  to pick up my daughter, help her move stuff to storage, and flew back I was also working. I had 2 work related meetings, one of which is an on-going and I am heartened [a word I used a lot in our meeting] that it will lead somewhere good for all of us library workers. Seriously, I haven't been this optimistic about the work Robin and I are doing, well....ever. More after/during ALA annual.

I am home again, but off to a half day System Board meeting today and then we begin some much needed family time. But before I disappear again until Tuesday, I thought today would be a good time to talk about covers. Why? Well, I have been thinking about covers a lot recently because Summer Reading is upon us, and displays are the best way to capture the attention of adults who are looking for a chance to read a book for fun over the Summer. And what makes a great display? It is NOT fancy decorations or props. It is the covers of the books themselves.

Nothing sells a book better than its cover. Publishers pay a lot for those covers. Their main job is to draw the right reader to it. Look, I know it doesn't always work out. Sometimes the cover is not a good representation of what is inside the book. But interesting covers will draw readers to the display, and once there, they will pick up the book, read the flap, and maybe look at others.

At StokerCon I was chatting with the wonderful human and talented artist Lynne Hansen. She was thanking me for calling out her gorgeous covers in some of my reviews. I told her she was welcome, but that honestly, a great cover can make a patron pick up a book and when a really good book gets a fantastic cover, I want every library worker to know about it so that they not only buy it, but they also put it on display.

Check out Lynne Hansen's website for examples of her excellent covers.

I have also written many posts about how to use covers as a resource for working with readers. Click here for every post I have tagged "covers." But if you want  the cliff notes version, I have this popular post, "Make Those Covers Work For You" which also links to my oldie but goodie post, "Judge a Book By Its Cover."

When we all return Tuesday, Summer Reading will be in full swing and multiple small and easy to stock displays are going to help you get through. Remember: covers that attract attention are your displays' best decoration and advertisement.

Make them work for you.

I am back Tuesday with a regular schedule, and June is a busy month of many presentations, 8 days at ALA, and my June Horror Review column drops in Library Journal. And it is a good one. Not to mention the July 1 odor Genre Preview which  is the LJ Cover Story that month. Looking at all of those upcoming events, I am glad I took some time off from blogging because there is a lot going on here all summer. I used to see a slow down in training over the Summer due to staff being swamped with Summer Reading, but now with just about every library embracing virtual, that is not the case any longer.

Speaking of, if you want me to train your staff in July or August, I have virtual only slots available, and honestly, my Fall in person is filling up. I am currently looking at the possibility of doing 3 separate state library association conferences this Fall and another regional RA conference event in a 4th state [that one is definite]. Many of these are not on my appearance calendar yet because contracts are not signed. If you want in person, it might be too late, but virtual, that I can fit in. Let's talk. Contact me to get scheduled. Pricing here.

Enjoy the long weekend.

Resource Alert: The Great First-Half 2022 Book Preview Is More Useful Than You May Think.

One of my favorite tools came out recently, The Great First-Half 2022 Book Preview via The Millions.

This is a comprehensive, and yes, a bit overwhelming, list of all of the titles, coming soon, that you MUST know about. Of course if you do collection development you can use this list to start filling your carts for future purchases, but please do not underestimate how helpful this list is even if you do not have any collection duties.

In fact, it is one of my favorite resources to help readers at the desk. How? Well, here are some of the ways I use the current list, and backlist versions of their "most anticipated lists." And please note, cross reference this post with my post on Curbside Patrons and Discovery to include these ideas, lists, and conversation starters in your socially distant RA work too.

Collection Development: As I mentioned above, this is the most obvious reason to use these lists. You can go through them to learn about the most anticipated titles and get them on order. This list is especially helpful at identifying midlist gems. Titles that the editors think will gain traction but may not have the largest marketing plans and/or from lesser known authors. Even if they don't end up becoming break out hits, the fact that these editors identified them early is enough reason to have them in our library collections. The midlist are often some of our best "sure bets," titles we can suggest to readers with confidence ones that they would not know about with out us. They are also more likely to be on the shelf. Ans don't forget previous "most anticipated lists." Those are books you somebody probably ordered, are a great options, are probably on the shelf waiting for their next reader, and have an annotation right there for you to use to handsell.

Displays: New books get their own display space, but what about great titles from the last 1-4 years that are in your collections, smashed between other books, not being highlighted, but are still a great option. We are always looking for ways  to get our high interest, backlist titles out in front of patrons. Well, these lists are just what you and your patrons are looking for. There are so many titles, from so many years that you could go through them one at a time. Make a display [or online lists with catalog links and in building traditional displays] by year. For example, flashback to 2018's hottest books. And then put all the ones you own out and watch them fly off the shelves. Make it interactive by asking people what their favorite read from 2018 was and then make a second display of patron [and staff] picks from 2018. Then feature another year. Do one a month. Patrons will LOVE  IT. And your administration and board will also love it because your backlist will be circulating. Most of our investment collections-wise is in our backlist. Think about it; we have more older titles than newer ones. Help that backlist shine, collect data on the increase in circulation, and then get it into Board reports. Everybody wins!

Conversation Starter: I alluded to this above as a way to engage patrons in a conversation about their favorite books of "yore" for display, but in general these lists are a great conversation starter, at the desk or online. And even more especially, on Goodreads. Why? Because if you get a library account and ask your patrons questions about their favorite books from 2018 on Goodreads, they can just go to their shelf and see what books they gave the most stars to that year. They are already in the space where the answers to your questions are. You could also start this convo on other social media platforms and link to the Goodreads conversation too. Those who use Instagram, post pictures of your physical displays and start a conversation about that year on that platform. There are many possibilities to start conversations about lesser known titles here.

Booktalks: One of my main mantras as I encourage more staff to actively participate in RA Service is to remind people that they can and should use the words of others as they suggest books to potential readers. These lists are all fully annotated, with a prepared soundbite that you can share with patrons. Obviously you  want to share books you own, but there is no excuse to not hand sell these titles if they are in your collections. You start by saying it was a hot title in, for example, 2019, and then read the blurb. If they seem interested you can pull the physical book or look up reviews on NoveList [professional opinions] and Goodreads [regular reader opinions] for more information. But the hardest part of your job-- finding a high interest title that is readily available and having something well thought out to say about it-- well that is done for you with these lists.

Covers: Finally, the least important reason I love this resource but a nice bonus, the cover is right there with the book's entry. Covers tell us a lot about a book [I have discussed it  many times and you can click here to read more on how to use covers in your service to readers] and having the cover in front of you before you pull the book is extremely helpful.

Please check out this year's and past year's previews and use them to make your job easier and your patron's happier.

Best Books 2021: Covers!

This post is part of my year end "Attack of the Best Lists" coverage. To see every post in my "Best Books 2021" series you can use the best lists tag.  

I am a huge proponent of using Covers as part of our regular RA Service. Click here for all of my posts on the topic.

Two of my favorite year end Best Covers lists just came out. And there is some overlap too.

• Best Covers of 2021 via Book Riot [chosen by staff]
• 101 of the Best Books Covers of 2021 via LitHub [chosen by book designers]

One of the biggest reasons I enjoy including "best covers" in my annual year end "best" discussions is because it acknowledges those who take in information better through images. 

When we are thinking about how we help readers, we need to be cognizant of all of the different ways people learn. We want to cater to ever possible patron. This is why we include graphic novels and audio book lists in our "best discussions." But there is a still a stigma around using covers to judge a book.

Sharing best books as judged by their best covers will attract different readers. It will allow another entry point for our patrons to find a good read for them. It will allow us to be more responsive. And, it will give us another "best" category through which to offer as wide a range of reading options as possible. 

Rethink your own cover bias by looking at the Book Riot and LitHub lists, especially the LitHub list because they asked graphic designers to give discussion points about WHY these covers are so effective.

As a "words" person who is graphically challenged I look forward to this list every year, especially the explanations. Also note, LitHub has a regular "book covers" beat which you can follow with this link.

Covers matter. People are paid a lot of money to make them. Authors reply on them to project the appeal of the book to a potential reader. Don't underestimate the importance of the book cover in your regular service to readers.

Collection Development Bonanza: The Millions' Most Anticipated: The Great First-Half 2021 Book Preview

I was going through my saved draft  posts  and, lo and behold, I had saved the wonderful Great First-Half 2021 Book Preview from The Millions, but had forgotten to blog about. Today I fix that.

This is a comprehensive, and yes, a bit overwhelming, list of all of the titles, coming soon, that you MUST know about. Of course if you do collection development you can use this list to start compiling your carts for future purchases, but please do not underestimate how helpful this list is as you help readers at  the desk.

Here are some of the ways I use the current list, and backlist versions. And please note, cross reference this post with my post on Curbside Patrons and Discovery to include these ideas, lists, and conversation starters in your socially distant RA work too.

Collection Development: As I mentioned above, this is the most obvious reason to use these lists. You can go through them to learn about the most anticipated titles and get them on order. This list is especially helpful at identifying midlist gems. Titles that the editors think will gain traction but may not have the largest marketing plans and/or from lesser known authors. Even if they don't end up becoming break out hits, the fact that these editors identified them early is enough reason to have them in our library collections. The midlist are often some of our best "sure bets," titles we can suggest to readers with confidence ones that they would not know about with out us. They are also more likely to be on the shelf.

Displays: New books get their own display space, but what about great titles from the last 1-4 years that are in your collections, smashed between other books, not being highlighted, but are still a great option. We are always looking for ways  to get our high interest, backlist titles out in front of patrons. Well, these lists are just what you and your patrons are looking for. There are so many titles, from so many years that you could go through them one at a time. Make a display [online lists with catalog links and in building traditional displays] by year. For example, flashback to 2017's hottest books. And then put all the ones you own out and watch them fly off the shelves. Make it interactive by asking people what their favorite read from 2017 was and then make a second display of patron [and staff] picks from 2017. Then feature another year. Do one a month. Patrons will LOVE  IT. And your administration and board will also love it because your backlist will be circulating. Most of our investment collections-wise is in our backlist. Help it shine, collect data on the increase in circulation, and then get it into Board reports. Everybody wins!

Conversation Starter: I alluded to this above as a way to engage patrons in a conversation about their favorite books of "yore" for display, but in general these lists are a great conversation starter, especially online. And even more especially, on Goodreads. Why? Because if you get a library account and ask your patrons questions about their favorite books from 2018 on Goodreads, they can just go to their shelf and see what books they gave the most stars to that year. They are already in the space where the answers to your questions are. You could also start this convo on other social media platforms and link to the Goodreads conversation too. Those who use Instagram, post pictures of your physical displays and start a conversation about that year on that platform. There are many possibilities to start conversations about lesser known titles here.

Booktalks: One of my main mantras as I encourage more staff to actively participate in RA Service is to remind people that they can and should use the words of others as they suggest books to potential readers. These lists are all fully annotated, with a prepared soundbite that you can share with patrons. Obviously you  want to share books you own, but there is no excuse to not hand sell these titles if they are in your collections. You start by saying it was a hot title in, for example, 2018 and then read the blurb. If they seem interested you can pull the physical book or look up reviews on NoveList [professional opinions] and Goodreads [regular reader opinions] for more information. But the hardest part of your job-- finding a high interest title that is readily available and having something well thought out to say about it-- well that is done for you with these lists.

Covers: Finally, the least important reason I love this resource but a nice bonus, the cover is right there with the book's entry. Covers tell us a lot about a book [I have discussed it  many times and you can click here to read more on how to use covers in your service to readers] and having the cover in front of you before you pull the book is extremely helpful.

Please check out this year's and past year's previews and use them to make your job easier and your patron's happier.

A Deep Dive into Book Cover Design

I am a huge proponent of not only judging books by their covers but also of actively using them to help readers. You can use my "covers" tag to see all my  posts on this  topic, but in particular, take a look at this post from July for more details on how to make book covers work for you [it links to this older post that contains even more info on how to assess a book's main appeal from its cover].

I use covers as I help readers often, and today I came upon an article in Literary Hub entitled "The Unexpected Politics of Book Cover Design: Jenny Bhatt on Subverting Gender and Class Stereotypes with Design" where author Bhatt explains in detail exactly why the cover of her new story collection, Each of Us Killers, [out this week] looks the way it does and why that is important. I found the article fascinating and it made me think about my previous posts on the topic, so I figured I would pass both on to you.

Bhatt's in depth, almost play-by-play analysis of  the cover construction process, while specific for her book, will make you take a second look at every book cover, and as I have said in the past, judging a book by its cover is an awesome RA tool. The publisher  spent a lot of time and money on that cover, they want it to  tell you something about what is inside  that  cover, and you should "listen" to them.

Don't forget, Literary Hub has regular discussions about and monthly round ups of covers which you can access anytime with  this link.