Sommaire pour Vol. 5, No.5, January 2026 de Booklist Reader

1. Who is Michael Chessler when he is at home? I’m definitely a homebody. At home, I’m as relaxed as I am capable of being. I need to force myself to relax, which is a bit of a conundrum, but being in my own carefully curated space, surrounded by people I love, is very helpful. I’m an avid cook and baker, and enjoy having friends and family over for a meal. Home is also often my workplace, which—especially given traffic in L.A.—makes me feel very fortunate that I can write in my office, with my dogs nearby encouraging me. They’re both herding dogs, so they’re skilled at keeping me on track. 2. What can you tell us about Mess? I’ve always been interested in the ways people cling to not…

1. Who is Tembi Locke when she is at home? At home, I’m a mom, a wife, a dreamer—savoring quiet moments, cooking with love, and finding joy in the everyday tiny moments of life. 2. What can you tell us about Someday, Now? Someday, Now is an audio original memoir and a deeply personal follow-up to From Scratch. It’s set largely in Sicily and rooted in a season of profound transition—my daughter preparing to leave for college, my own return to Sicily, and the tender reckoning that comes with reimagining life in midseason. It’s about navigating change not with certainty but with curiosity, grief, and hope, and creating an immersive listening experience that invites others to reflect on their own “becoming.” 3. What five words best describe Someday, Now? Immersive.…

Brittle Joints. By Maria Sweeney. Art by the author. 2024. Street Noise. In deft artwork, Sweeney capably relates her experiences of living with a degenerative bone disorder and struggling to navigate the bureaucracy of the U.S. healthcare system. Dr. Werthless. By Harold Schechter and Eric Powell. Art by Eric Powell. 2025. Albatross. With thorough research, including details not often found in other sources, this account of the career of Fredric Wertham is made entertaining thanks to the writing and illustrations. The Giant: Orson Welles, the Artist and the Shadow. By Youssef Daoudi. Art by the author. 2025. 23rd St. In arresting, swirling, cinematic panels, Daoudi gives the larger-than-life figure of Orson Welles a fitting spotlight for his infamous life and career. Ginseng Roots. By Craig Thompson. Art by the author.…

Bob the Vampire Snail. By Andrea Zuill. Illus. by the author. 2025. Random House Studio. K–Gr. 3. After Bob the snail unexpectedly transforms into a vampire, he must figure out the pros and cons of the situation. The Dirt! Wild Life Under the Soil’s Surface. By Lindsey Leigh. Illus. by the author. 2025. Penguin Workshop. Gr. 3–8. Though students likely take soil for granted, this standout overview, featuring cartoon illustrations and a wide-ranging wealth of information, showcases how fascinating it can be. Fairy Door Diaries: Eliza and the Flower Fairies. By Megan McDonald. Illus. by Lenny Wen. 2025. Candlewick. Gr. 1–4. Eliza must help save the flower fairies from a curse in this magical new early chapter-book series. Fascinating Fungi: Nourishers, Killers, Connectors, and Healers. By Karen Latchana Kenney. 2025.…

Fiction Dear Debbie. By Freida McFadden. Poisoned Pen. In the latest from best-seller McFadden, an advice columnist gets fired, which is just the tip of the iceberg: she’s also losing control of her teenage daughters, and her husband is keeping secrets (she knows because she installed a tracker app on his phone). So she decides to get revenge on the men who have done her and her readers wrong. The Final Score. By Don Winslow. Morrow. Winslow may have announced his retirement after City in Ruins (2024), but that hasn’t stopped him from releasing this collection of six all-new short novels featuring a casino heist, an ambitious drug-running teenager, a PI hired to babysit a substance-abusing movie star, a devoted family man who makes a terrible mistake, and more, all…

A Billion Butterflies: A Life in Climate and Chaos Theory. By Jagadish Shukla. 2025. St. Martin’s. Climate scientist Shukla zestfully traces the remarkable trajectory of his life from a village in India to working with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change the year it was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. Care and Feeding. By Laurie Woolever. 2025. Ecco. Woolever spent years working for Mario Batali and Anthony Bourdain and now details her own story in this beyond-absorbing memoir. Gather Me: A Memoir in Praise of the Books That Saved Me. By Glory Edim. 2024. Ballantine. Edim, founder of Well-Read Black Girl, writes vividly and affectingly about the books that inspired and guided her during her challenging early years. How to Share an Egg: A True Story of Hunger, Love, and…

Countdown. By Deborah Wiles. Read by Emma Galvin. 2011. Listening Library. Gr. 5–7. Travel back to 1962 and hear clattering typewriter keys, television jingles, historical speeches, evocative music, even broadcast-news snippets that place listeners in the tense environment that 11-year-old Franny and her family experience during the days surrounding the Cuban missile crisis. Kafka and the Doll. By Larissa Theule. Read by Adam Alexi-Malle. 2021. Listening Library. Gr. 2–4. Based on a true story, this unexpected tale recounts how author Franz Kafka consoled a child who lost her doll by sending her letters recounting the doll’s world travels. Sound effects that illuminate Soupsy’s travels—crunching footsteps and whooshing winds as she summits a mountain peak, Parisian café tunes and clinking dishes as she dines under the Eiffel Tower—are modulated to enhance…

Cabin Head and Tree Head. By Scott Campbell. Art by the author. 2025. Tundra. K–Gr. 3. While only Dog Man has an unusual head in his series, every single character in Campbell’s uproarious collection of stories has something else for a head—TV Head, Taco Truck Head, Planet Earth Head, and so on. The high-energy silliness will delight Pilkey’s readers. The Cosmic Adventures of Astrid and Stella. By Sabrina Moyle. Art by Eunice Moyle. 2022. Abrams/Amulet. Gr. 1–4. Astrid (a unicorn) and Stella (a flying squirrel) bop around the universe in their rocket ship accompanied by a pun-loving robot. Big, brightly colored panels showcase their outlandish adventures encountering planets full of cats, beaches, dreams, and so on, with nonstop jokes to boot. The First Cat in Space Ate Pizza. By Mac…

Older Her Name in the Sky. By Kelly Quindlen. Roaring Brook. Gr. 9–12. Originally self-published a decade ago, Quindlen’s beloved sapphic debut about senior Hannah’s pull between fulfilling expectations and falling for her best friend, Baker, receives a formal release with an additional chapter, to the joy of her admiring fanbase. A Wild Radiance. By Maria Ingrande Mora. Peachtree Teen. Gr. 8–12. Every aspect of the narrative and world surrounding lightning-magic user Josephine is the perfect size for this self-contained queer fantasy reimagining of the War of the Currents from rising star Mora. Middle Basket Ball: The Story of the All-American Game. By Kadir Nelson. Illus. by the author. Little, Brown. Gr. 4–8. Riveting oil paintings of basketball players adorn the pages of this informative, detailed, and thorough history of the…

Nonfiction Arctic Traverse: A Thousand-Mile Summer of Trekking the Brooks Range. By Michael Engelhard. 2024. Mountaineers. Wilderness guide Engelhard chronicles his solo thousand-mile hike along Alaska’s Brooks Range, hauling a 50-plus-pound backpack and relying on supply caches, in this grand and thoughtful adventure in a uniquely spectacular region. Beer, Brats, and Cheese: A Wisconsin Road Trip. By Heather Kerrigan. 2025. Univ. of Wisconsin. Kerrigan and her family traveled Wisconsin in relentless pursuit of beer, brats, and cheese in breweries, brewpubs, taverns, bars, and restaurants, documenting their discoveries in words and photographs. The Last Ride of the Pony Express: My 2,000-Mile Horseback Journey into the Old West. By Will Grant. 2023. Little, Brown. The Pony Express delivered mail from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California in a mere 10 days, but only…

January 2026 The Top Ten Adult Fiction and Nonfiction Chosen Monthly by America’s Library Staff Find out more at www.LibraryReads.org TOP PICK Is This a Cry for Help? Emily Austin (Atria Books) After she learns of the death of her ex-boyfriend, librarian Darcy has a mental breakdown and takes a leave from her job at a public library. With time, therapy, and support from her wife, Darcy returns to work while coping with guilt and book-banning protests. This reflective, heartwarming, and character-driven read delves into grief and identity with care and humor. —Kristin Skinner, Flat River Community Library, MI NoveList read-alike: Mostly Dead Things by Kristen Arnett The Bookbinder’s Secret A.D. Bell (St. Martin’s Press) Lily is in limbo. She loves books and her binding trade, but her father is…

Stories That Inspire Us: January on PBS Books A new year offers fresh beginnings—and with them, new opportunities to rediscover what connects us. This January, PBS Books invites you to explore stories of courage, care, and community through conversations that remind us of our shared humanity. Whether you’re revisiting the birth of our nation, reflecting on the bonds of family, or uncovering the voices that have shaped America’s literary landscape, these programs celebrate the ideas that continue to define who we are—and who we strive to be. Behind the Lens: PBS Books Filmmaker Talk The American Revolution Few stories capture the American spirit like the Revolution that gave birth to it. On January 7, PBS Books presents a powerful Filmmaker Talk featuring Ken Burns, Sarah Botstein, Geoffrey C. Ward, and…

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Alberto Salas Plays Paka Paka con la Papa: Join the Quest with Peru’s Famed Scientist and Potato Expert. By Sara Andrea Fajardo. Illus. by Juana Martinez-Neal. 2025. Roaring Brook. K–Gr. 3. Scientist and environmentalist Alberto Salas scours the Andes Mountains for new potato species to bring to Peru’s International Potato Center genebank in this lyrical biography. And She Was Loved: Toni Morrison’s Life in Stories. By Andrea Davis Pinkney. Illus. by Daniel Minter. 2025. Little, Brown. Gr. 1–3. This poetic, affectionate profile of the late Toni Morrison covers all the highs and lows of her vibrant and influential life in sumptuous verse and dynamic artwork. Jella Lepman and Her Library of Dreams: The Woman Who Rescued a Generation of Children and Founded the World’s Largest Children’s Library. By Katherine Paterson.…