Booklist Reader

Published by Booklist, an imprint of the American Library Association. Booklist Reader features diverse book and audiobook recommendations, for readers and listeners of all ages. Filled with high-interest, themed lists that showcase books for your family or book discussion group.

From the Publisher

Booklist Reader

Sci-Tech Books • These top sci-tech titles range in subject from the lives of Earth animals to the possibility of extraterrestrial life, and from the essential roles of oceans and a mighty river to the dangers of AI.

Plants • Plants are ubiquitous, from grass to shrubs, flowers, and weeds, inducing many of us to overlook them or take them for granted, even though flora, wild and cultivated, are essential to life on Earth, including the existence of humankind. The books below, many elegantly illustrated, awaken readers to the wonders and munificence of plants as well as the environmental conundrums that endanger them. These works call on us to pay more attention to plants and how we interact with them, and delineate exactly why we need to value and protect the entire sustaining yet imperiled green world.

Time for Crafts & Hobbies • Winter is the ideal season to cozy up with craft projects, and these how-to’s offer technical instructions and inspiration for embroidery, knitting, crocheting, quilting, tufting, and transforming old, tired clothes. There’s even a call for craftivism.

A Good Yarn • Knitters know they can come to the library to check out pattern books and commune with fellow crafters, but there’s also plenty of crafty goodness to offer in the fiction section. Here are a few good yarns: mysteries, romance, and fantasy featuring knitting, plus a fiberarts memoir, sure to appeal to novice and experienced knitters alike (and even those who wouldn’t know a purl from a seed stitch).

December 2024 • The Top Ten Adult Fiction and Nonfiction Chosen Monthly by America’s Library Staff

Holiday Romances • Holiday romances capture all the delight and magic, stress and angst of the season as love is put to the test—until it triumphs as the ultimate gift.

Aurora Palit

What’s Written in the Land • These mysteries, each a quest for personal and social justice, share key elements with Sara Paretsky’s Pay Dirt, from secrets about family landholdings tied to the racist violence of the Civil War to the revelations of historical records, and from the horrors of the opioid epidemic to sleuths under threat and trailer-park life.

Celebrities on Audio • Part of the fun of the audiobook world is spending time listening to famous voices from the big and small screens. These recent audios provide stellar narration, and an additional way to get close to celebrities.

Audio Revivals • Audiobooks have the distinct honor of bringing older titles back into the spotlight with fresh new recordings. These recent releases of old favorites will bring back memories of the first time you encountered these stories and introduce a whole new audience to some excellent storytelling.

PBS Program Highlights

Picture-Book Read-alongs • Winter is always a good time of year to snuggle up with your little one and a beautiful picture book. These listen-along audiobooks provide such opportunities for togetherness with rich soundscapes, music, voices, and great energy to connect your young bookworm to some terrific stories.

Picture Books about Families • Family is a perennial topic in picture books, but these titles do an exceptional job of portraying everything from the simple joys of a day at the pool to the lovably exasperating attention of a little sibling to quiet, meaningful bonds with grandparents.

Body-Positive Picture Books • The past several years have brought a wealth of outstanding picture books that share messages of body positivity with...