Tabla de contenidos para Booklist, Vol. 121, No. 19/20, June 2025 en Booklist

Allison Escoto, head librarian and director of reading programs at the Center for Fiction in Brooklyn, and the chair of the 2025 Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence Selection Committee, had some questions for this year’s winner of the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction, Kevin Fedarko. Here’s their conversation. Escoto: One of the most captivating facets of A Walk in the Park is the progression from being a story about the “outrageous hubris” of two hapless people to being an immersive examination of the natural world. Did you set out to write it this way or did it expand organically? Fedarko: Given how truly hapless my companion, Pete Mc-Bride, and I were from the very inception of our journey, there was never a moment when it wasn’t painfully clear…

Allison Escoto, head librarian and director of reading programs at the Center for Fiction in Brooklyn, and the chair of the 2025 Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence Selection Committee, had some questions for this year’s winner of the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction, Percival Everett. Here’s their conversation. Escoto: You’ve described James as being “in conversation” with the classic that inspired it. What made you want to have this conversation now? Everett: To tell the truth, I don’t know. Had I thought of this novel sooner, I would have written it sooner. However, it might be a completely different work, for better or worse. I think the covert attack on historical accuracy and the current anti-intellectual atmosphere of the country must have played into my coming to it.…

Reading about upright characters full of moral fortitude and clear ethical boundaries can be exhausting. Who wants all that good-guy stuff, when learning about the less-than-good-guy is so much more interesting? At least that’s the case with these fantasy novels that feature heroes (regardless of gender) who are slightly less than heroic. Instead, they’re morally complex (or “morally gray” in the parlance of romance and romantasy), conflicted, often infuriating—and oh-so-fun to read. A Darker Shade of Magic. By V. E. Schwab. 2015. Tor, $25.99 (9780765376459). In this ingeniously clever tale, a gifted young man has a respectable job carrying correspondence between the rulers of three parallel Londons—one rich in magic, one fighting to control magic, and one where magic no longer exists—with a sideline in smuggling artifacts between cities. When…

From the silly (cats on the moon! An adorable pup who travels on a rainbow beam!) to the heartfelt (smart and capable kids proving to their parents they can handle anything, even a deep-space engineering crisis) to the quietly weird (talking stars; interstellar mail delivery), the following sf adventures will satisfy a range of space-obsessed middle-graders looking for soaring imagination and inventive world-building in an intergalactic package. Astronautical! By Brooklin Stormie. Art by the author. 2025. 248p. Annick, paper (9781773219424). Gr. 3–6. Brothers Max and Lari are on a mission to rescue their father amid the floating pieces of their exploded planet, but in the course of their journey, Lari starts exhibiting some oddly celestial behavior. The Adventure Time–like energy is well matched by the bold, blocky artwork, which sharply captures…

Adult The Ascent. By Allison Buccola. Read by Carlotta Brentan. 2025. 12hr. Books on Tape, DD (9780593950166). In this tense psychological thriller, Lee Burton is desperate to outrun a past tied to a vanished cult known as the Fifteen. When a stranger shows up claiming to be her long-lost sister—and holding the answers Lee has spent years chasing—Lee is faced with a choice: take a leap of faith or risk unraveling her carefully constructed life. Established audiobook narrator Brentan brings her vocal talent and adds the atmospheric haze. Brentan delivers a gripping performance, expertly capturing Lee’s mounting anxiety and fragile grip on reality. Her steady pacing and subtle tonal shifts heighten the suspense as Lee’s secrets are revealed. Cults have long fascinated readers, and this twist-filled thriller is sure to…

High fantasy through an Indigenous lens, a revisit of Black American history as horror, a multicultural haunted house, time travel, and an orc-led cozy are among the subjects explored in the best and mostwanted sf/fantasy and horror on audio from the last two years. —Heather Booth The Book That Wouldn’t Burn. By Mark Lawrence. Read by Jessica Whittaker. 2023. 23hr. Books on Tape, DD (9780593675717). The first installment of The Library Trilogy introduces, through Whittaker’s careful rendering, a vast array of characters sure to charm and captivate. Bookshops & Bonedust. By Travis Baldree. Read by the author. 2023. 8hr. Macmillan Audio, DD (9781250910776). Baldree shares how everyone’s favorite coffee-loving orc learned to appreciate books. The author is a talented and animated fantasy narrator sure to ensorcell and delight. The Buffalo…

Beast in the Machine: How Robotics and AI Will Transform Warfare and the Future of Human Conflict. By George M. Dougherty. Aug. 2025. 296p. BenBella, $29.95 (9781637747186); e-book (9781637747193). 623.4. There is seemingly little that artificial intelligence and robots cannot do; they build cars, search the web, collate data, create images, and now join other human inventions as weapons of war. Dougherty chronicles it all in this book, giving vitally needed context to the technology. He traces the history, evolution, and application of AI and robotics in a reader-friendly way while analyzing trends for the “second generation of robotics” and beyond. Beast in the Machine stresses that military applications for this technology already exist and are being used today. Dougherty sees this as a positive in democratic nations because robotic…

These books are recommended by BlueInk Review, a fee-based review service. Every month, BlueInk will compile a list of their favorite self-published titles for Booklist, as a service to librarians hoping to incorporate self-published work into their collections. BlueInk was founded by Patti Thorn, former book review editor of Denver’s Rocky Mountain News, and Patricia Moosbrugger, a literary agent who represents several best-selling authors. The company delivers professional, unbiased reviews of self-published books written by critics drawn largely from major mainstream publications and by editors from prominent publishing houses. Stars reflect the decisions of BlueInk reviewers and editors. Booklist is happy to bring this curated collection of the best in self-publishing for adults and youth to our audience. from Adult Beyond Potential: A Guide for Creatives Who Want to Re-Assess,…

Ancient Mythologies Series. ABDO/DiscoveRoo. Gr. 2–5. (6 titles) Chinese Mythology. By Elizabeth Andrews. 2025. 32p. illus. lib. ed., $23.95 (9781098247027). 299.511. Hindu Mythology. By Elizabeth Andrews. 2025. 32p. illus. lib. ed., $23.95 (9781098247041). 294.51. Slavic Mythology. By Elizabeth Andrews. 2025. 32p. illus. lib. ed., $23.95 (9781098247065). 299.18. West African Mythology. By Elizabeth Andrews. 2025. 32p. illus. lib. ed., $23.95 (9781098247072). 299.62. Early cultures from every part of the world formed their own spiritual beliefs, and the volumes in the Ancient Mythologies series summarize some of these distinct beliefs. Scaffolded chapters with straightforward text introduce each culture’s creation story, prominent gods or deities, other supernatural beings and events, and a few legendary and mythological stories. Chinese Mythology focuses on the five divine emperors who ruled China and became gods when they…

First Day around the World. By Ibi Zoboi. Illus. by Juanita Londoño. June 2025. 48p. HarperCollins/Versify, $19.99 (9780063078888). PreS–Gr. 3. 372.1. What does the first day of school look like? This exuberant picture book shows that it really depends on your location in the world. Starting in Africa with a small house in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where a girl breakfasts on fit-fit and warm coffee with a pinch of salt, lyrical text from Coretta Scott King Book Award winner Zoboi describes typical preparations, clothing, food, transportation, traditions, and learning continent by continent. As Zoboi transitions to a new continent, she signifies a new part of the day, such as classroom instruction in China, lunch in Poland, an after-school snack in Argentina, and bedtime lullabies in Alaska. Although the focus is…

The natural world is a wondrous place. Indeed, some might even say it’s magical. The books below lean into this perspective, encouraging children to get outside and keep their eyes peeled for fairies, gnomes, and more while they’re at it. Alma and the Beast. By Esmé Shapiro. Illus. by the author. 2019. 44p. Tundra (9780735263963). PreS–Gr. 1. Everything in Alma’s world is hairy, from the trees to the mushrooms to Alma herself. But when a mostly hairless beast (a young human girl) wanders into Alma’s yard, a charming adventure unfolds. Shapiro’s worlds, both hairy and human, are warmly imaginative, and young readers will love the idea that an entirely new realm might be accessible simply by climbing the right tree. Backyard Fairies. By Phoebe Wahl. Illus. by the author. 2018. 32p.…

HarperAudio’s How the Boogeyman Became a Poet, produced by Abigail Marks, is the first memoir-in-verse to win the Odyssey Award. It is the story of the poet Tony Keith Jr., the book’s author and narrator, as he comes of age and discovers himself as a young gay Black man and as a poet. Throughout the audiobook, listeners are continually presented with new experiences through the judicious and inventive use of sound and music, all while hearing the relatable, rhythmic story directly from the poet himself. Booklist asked Marks about these creative production choices. Heather Booth: How the Boogeyman Became a Poet is written in verse, which gives it a rhythm and movement before any sound is applied. Can you talk about the process of incorporating music and sound effects into…

Acts of God. By Kanan Gill. Aug. 2025. 381p. Blackstone, $28.99 (9798874830946). Dr. Krishna, the world’s only Genius Category 3, has fallen from dizzying heights and is now working on a minor project under the supervision of a mere Genius Category A (the lowest category; still a genius). Secretly, he’s obsessed with continuing his forbidden research into universe simulations—each one ends at the same point in the distant past, sometime in the twenty-first century. P. Manjunath, a chaotic and only occasionally competent detective, is always entangled in the end of Dr. Krishna’s simulations. In the current one, he and his assistant Heng are about to go to Copenhagen. Manjunath has a feeling that something is about to happen there, and as it turns out, he’s right. Dr. Krishna, meanwhile, is…

Adult Model Five Murder: A Sci-Fi Noir. By Tan Juan Gee. Art by the author. June 2025. 64p. Silver Sprocket, paper, $15.99 (9798886200706). 741.5. When Io, a sentient Rohm Model Five cyborg, sees a being that looks just like him floating dead in space, he returns to his home space station with questions. Io is supposed to be one of only eleven Model Fives, and this one was a private investigator. Io decides to investigate this mystery robot’s origins—and its subsequent demise—but what he ultimately uncovers is a corporate conspiracy that puts his life in danger. This brief story perfectly lives up to its subtitle—“a sci-fi noir”—as a suspenseful, fast-paced, and gritty crime and sf blend with a plot that is easy to follow, even amid the world building and…

Older Readers Avatar Legends: City of Echoes. By Judy I. Lin. July 2025. 320p. Abrams/Amulet, $21.99 (9781419776045). Gr. 7–12. Citizens in Ba Sing Se know not to acknowledge the war beyond the walls. Jin is intimately familiar with the war: having lost her parents, she’s sought refuge with her grandfather, Gong-gong. Now they’re established in the Lower Ring, though Gong-gong pushes Jin to strive for a better life. Jin is fairly content where she is—she spends her time assisting at her best friend, Susu Wen’s, family bakery and tending to Gong-gong’s ailments. But Susu’s alcoholic father makes a bet he can’t settle, and Susu is sent to the Upper Ring to work off the debt. Determined to bring her friend back, Jin takes up suspicious deliveries for the Silver Fangs,…

When it comes to books, epic fantasy typically conjures images of huge, heavy tomes or long, ongoing series, but with the genre invading mainstream pop culture, its influence has seeped into the most unlikely section imaginable: picture books. Much like a hobbit, though, even the smallest books can bear the weight of a large world and a great story. The following picture books take their cues from fantasy tropes, filling pages with heroes and evils, quests and courage, wizards and whimsy, and wide landscapes teeming with mythical creatures and magical mayhem. Bo the Brave. By Bethan Woollvin. Illus. by the author. 2020. 32p. Peachtree (9781682631829). PreS–Gr. 1. All Bo wants is to go monster hunting with her brothers, but after they leave her behind in the castle, she decides to…

From its first moments, A Plate of Hope, this year’s Odyssey Winner for youth, transports listeners into the cultural and culinary life of the great philanthropist José Andrés of World Central Kitchen. Through the judicious and heartfelt efforts of producer Andy Jones for Dreamscape, we hear music, sound effects, and voices that convert this picture-book biography into a sensory feast. Heather Booth: Can you talk about the process of incorporating music and sound effects into the audiobook? Andy Jones: For me, the creative process always begins with the heart of the picture book—the characters, the setting, and the tone. It’s essential to establish a vivid sense of place and remain as authentic as possible, especially with biographical stories. Children are incredibly perceptive, so I approach each project with a deep…

The Devils. By Joe Abercrombie. Read by Steven Pacey. 2025. 25hr. Macmillan Audio, DD (9781250391131). Abercrombie returns with a new series not connected to his previous grimdark fantasy works. While it is perhaps slightly less grim than his previous books, The Devils is still rife with violence, dark humor, excellent prose, and memorable characters evoked vividly by Pacey. A group of church-sanctioned “devils” escort a newly found princess, formerly a street urchin, across Europe to claim her throne. Along the way they are menaced by relatives of the princess and their monstrous minions, who would rather she not do so. The band of devils includes an immortal knight, a cunning rogue, a charming vampire, an outcast werewolf, a disappearing elf, and a recently appointed “leader,” a monk who is in…