2025 was a landmark year for readers. So, as our team sat down to figure out what would make our annual list, we struggled to narrow down our favorites into what you see here.

Across this iteration of the “Best Books We Read” list, you’ll find stunning debuts, illuminating biographies, open-hearted memoirs, and urgent calls for action. But across all the genres, topics, and styles, one shared trait connects all of these books: Unforgettable, confident writing.



**The Edge of WaterBy Olufunke Grace Bankole Tin House Books

The Edge of Water was hands down my most memorable read of 2025. Olufunke Grace Bankole’s hauntingly gorgeous prose pierces the veil between the material world and the mystic, creating this unforgettable story of motherhood that crosses continents and three generations of women with incredible finesse. It’s an unforgettable novel in every sense of the word, as I continuously shifted between “how did she write this” and “how did she make me cry again?” — Michael Welch, Editor-In-Chief


One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against ThisBy Omar El Akkad Knopf

*One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This *not only brutally explains and describes the disillusionment so many progressive people in the US are feeling right now, but also was prescient within months, as the famine finally seemed to break through and cause a mainstream outpouring of dismay and distress. This book is not only the manual for how the crisis in Palestine has been covered by the media, discussed by politicians, and dismissed, but also how liberals will continue to go through cycles of committing to inaction until it’s too late. — Leah von Essen, Contributor


**Death of the AuthorBy Nnedi Okorafor William Morrow

I loved Death of the Author by Nnedi Okorafor! It’s such a beautiful sci-fi and lit-fic book that straddles both genres without feeling forced. On her main character, Zelu: I always appreciate a main character who is hard to love at times (i.e., difficult, temperamental, even self-sabotaging), and this one delivered, along with a moving story weaving together family life, migration, and this feeling of forever being the odd one out. — Reema Saleh, Daily Editor


**SacramentBy Susan Straight Counterpoint

*Sacrament *was a late 2025 read for me, and I’m glad I finished it in time to make this list! Susan Straight’s latest follows a group of nurses working at an ICU in San Bernardino during the summer of 2020, who are forced to live in a RV camp to avoid getting their families sick. I imagine I’m not alone when I say that I’m not usually keen to revisit that time period in fiction, but Straight masterfully explores the interwoven intricacies of the moment—tackling race, class, gender, and the ways in which care was complicated and challenged in America. *Sacrament *is *the *COVID pandemic novel. But if you’re hesitant with reckoning with that time again, I promise you Straight’s brilliant cast of characters and beautiful, rageful drama will make it worth your time. — Michael Welch, Editor-In-Chief


Tilt By Emma Pattee S&S/Marysue Rucci Books

The writing in *Tilt *is amazing. The way the story hits you immediately and doesn’t let you go. You are in it for the long haul. There is so much in the 240 pages. So much emotion, loss, grief, memories. It is unforgettable. — Karen Bellovich, Daily Editor


**Paper GirlBy Beth Macy Penguin Press

Part memoir of growing up in a small town in Ohio and part sociological study of our current political moment, this book by former journalist Macy draws a direct line from the downfall of local newspapers and the de-emphasis on the importance of education to the splintered and conspiracy-theory riddled society in which we all now find ourselves. As a former small-town Ohioan myself, I was absolutely riveted to this book, often putting it down only to shout “YES THAT’S EXACTLY IT.” I haven’t read anything in the last year that not only explained where we are now in such profound terms, but also gave me hope for the future. — Greg Zimmerman, Daily Editor


**Sour CherryBy Natalia Theodoridou Tin House Books

Sour Cherry by Natalia Theodoridou was unlike anything else I have read this year—and maybe ever. Not the happiest read, and a bit suspenseful at times, but it is so kind and gentle with its themes and characters that I could not put it down. — Hannah Korbel, Contributor


**Nothing Compares to You: What Sinéad O’Connor Means to UsEdited by Sonya Huber and Martha Bayne Atria/One Signal Publishers

*Nothing Compares to You *is a lovely tribute to the iconic signer and dedicated activist Sinéad O’Connor, featuring writing from authors like Neko Case, Prochista Khakpour, and Chicago’s very own Megan Stielstra. It’s a beautiful celebration of a visionary artist who fiercely fought for a better future for all. — Michael Welch, Editor-In-Chief


**WoodworkingBy Emily St. James Crooked Media Reads

I loved so many books this year, but the one I recommended the most was Woodworking by Emily St. James. It’s a stunning, heartbreaking, hopeful book about two trans women from different generations who happen to cross paths at school. It speaks to the challenges and gifts of visibility and the importance of community, no matter what that looks like. This story changed me. — Jen St. Jude, Editor-At-Large


**Original Sins: The (Mis)education of Black and Native Children and the Construction of American RacismBy Eve L. Ewing One World

It’s Eve Ewing so this was always going to be a banger. An incredibly thorough and accessible look at the racist history of the US public education system through its treatment of Black and Native American children that, once finished, asks us what we’re going to do to transform this harmful institution. The citations are also the best I’ve ever read. — Ariana Valderrama, Contributor


**To the Moon and BackBy Eliana Ramage Avid Reader Press / Simon & Schuster

*To the Moon and Back *is the story of a woman aspiring against all odds to be the first Cherokee woman to go to the moon. I love this book because it’s not a rosy narrative of perseverance. The main character makes mistakes, lots of mistakes, with her single-minded determination to get to the moon while her mother and sister maintain strong ties to their heritage. It’s a complicated, messy, beautiful story. — Elisa Shoenberger, Contributor


**I Gave You Eyes and You Looked Toward DarknessBy Irene Solà Graywolf Press

A beast of a book, more than living up to the dark promises of its title. The fecund sensuality of Solà’s language only serves to highlight the horrors held within these pages, all the misogyny and pain that these ghostly women have had to endure over the years. Like seeing a new mythology being made in real time. — Sara Batkie, Editor-At-Large


The Gloomy Girl Variety ShowBy Freda Epum Feminist Press

Freda Epum’s The Gloomy Girl Variety Show is brilliantly structured as a search for a home, i.e. a safe haven, and examines Epum’s intersectional identities as a Black, disabled, first generation Nigerian American female. Combining poetry, prose, and visual art, as well as cultural criticism, the book is an inventive narrative dealing with mental illness, while also highlighting the urgent need for racial justice. — Rachel León, Managing Director


**The Gales of November: The Untold Story of the Edmund FitzgeraldBy John U. Bacon Liveright Publishing Corporation

The Gales of November is so well written and well researched. It grabs you right away and you can’t put it down. It is a powerful story and an emotional tribute to the lives that were lost. — Karen Bellovich, Daily Editor


**Summer HouseBy Yiğit Karaahmet Translated by Nichols Glastonbury Soho Crime

My favorite book of 2025 was Summerhouse by Yigit Karaahmet because every single twist of this sexy thriller was totally unexpected and wild. So much fun! — Christopher Bigelow, Contributor

See Also


**The HoundingBy Xenobe Purvis Henry Holt and Co.

Xenobe Purvis’ haunting and powerful debut The Hounding is a page-turner of a book about a group of unusual, willful girls in an 18th century village, told from the perspectives of other townsfolk who eventually begin spreading deadly rumors about them. A must read, but avoid looking at the marketing/jacket copy, which should have a spoiler alert. — Elizabeth Niarchos Neukirch, Contributor


**Notes From a RegicideBy Isaac Fellman Tor Books

Fellman is one of our greatest working stylists, and this novel is astonishing: a sophisticated, ambiguous meditation on identity and chosen family, on the wake of history and the worth of art. “Breathtaking” is over-used, but it’s accurate here. — Jake Casella Brookins, Contributor


**All the Water in the WorldBy Eiren Caffall St. Martin’s Press

Eiren Caffall’s debut novel is such a compelling and harrowing climate dystopian story that continually finds beauty and love amidst the horror. It seems strange to say that there’s a lot of hope in a novel about a world in which the sea has swallowed much of the coastline of the United States, but Caffall brings so much tenderness to her characters that you can’t help but awe at their resiliency in the face of the struggles. While climate fiction often has a familiar (and warranted) strain of doom, *All the Water in the World *offers something entirely different—and it’s truly remarkable. — Michael Welch, Editor-In-Chief


**Lonely CrowdsBy Stephanie Wambugu Little Brown and Company

*Lonely Crowds *by Stephanie Wambugu is a brilliant debut from a young novelist, exploring the life of the artist with remarkable, melancholic wisdom. — Philip Janowski, Contributor


The Dissenters By Youssef Rakha Graywolf Press

Youssef Rakha’s The Dissenters is a deeply moving novel, offering a complex portrait of a woman and her shifting roles during political transformation, dealing with power, love, sex, and death. It’s less than 300 pages but reads like a sweeping epic twice that size. — Rachel León, Managing Director


No Stars in Jefferson Park By Maggie Anderson Northwestern University Press

I might be biased here, but I have to say No Stars in Jefferson Park by Maggie Andersen. It’s such a tender memoir of love, loss, and growing as an artist while also being a book-length love letter to the city of Chicago. I love it so much. — Christopher Bigelow, Contributor


What a Time to Be Alive By Jade Chang Ecco

I enjoyed *What a Time to Be Alive *by Jade Chang! It’s probably appropriately appreciated, but my TLDR? It’s funny, tragic, world-wearied, and often surprising as her protagonist Lola comes of age later than most—going from extremely messy 31-year old to ultra-famous internet folk hero overnight. There are snippets of prose that will stay in my back pocket for later. — Reema Saleh, Daily Editor


I’ll Tell You When I’m Home By Hala Alyan Avid Reader Press

I always find Hala Alyan’s work is worth checking out, but this book is one not to miss. Structured as a pregnancy, this memoir deals with Alyan’s path to motherhood via surrogacy, past trauma, and her family’s exile and displacement. It’s lyrical and gorgeous, but also super sharp and deeply moving. — Rachel León, Managing Director