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.”
Mallery (The Boardwalk Bookshop) knows that happy endings never disappoint. Contemporary fiction and romance readers will love the drama of Jericho’s and Finley’s lives.
This study belongs in social behavioral sciences collections. Ideal for scholars and general readers interested in this current, relevant, and much debated topic. Readers may want to pair this title with Jill Leovy’s Ghettoside, which examines the critical differences between murder investigations of Black victims vs. white ones.
Riveting literary horror superbly realized in audio, highlighted by narrator Graham Halstead, who effectively conveys Hale’s disintegrating mental state. Narrators Toni Frutin, Shiromi Arserio, Jennifer Aquino, and Gary Tiedemann further enhance the audio by giving voice to reporters, interviewees, and medical personnel.
Barber knew everybody in his milieu, and this book reflects that. Scholars will devour this exceptional study, but any music lover will benefit from reading it.