Where the Crawdads Sing
by Delia Owens

“Not since Pippi Longstocking or The Boxcar Children have I felt so concerned about the wellbeing of an unaccompanied minor. Had she not remained illiterate until age 14, Kya could have really learned a thing or two about civility from Henry, Jessie, Violet, and Bennie. Not Pippi, though. That child was a mess. Beautiful and wrenching.”

My Year of Rest and Relaxation
by Otessa Moshfegh

“Reminiscent of Shel Silverstein’s beloved poem, ‘Sick,’ the reader encounters a sensitive portrait of a consummate shirker. Though we never learn the name of this brave protagonist and narrator, I cannot but think of her as little Peggy Ann McKay, all grown up. A soporific gut punch.”

Long Bright River
by Liz Moore

“Beezus and Ramona tackle the opioid crisis on the gritty streets of Philadelphia. Electrifying.”

The Road
by Cormac McCarthy

“If you once loved the terrifying hell-ride of The Polar Express, you won’t be able to look away from this spare, dystopian trash fire. Captivating.”

The Nickel Boys
by Colson Whitehead

“Guess it just goes to show, you really are known by the company you keep. And even the best among us can sometimes have a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. A marvel.”

The Dutch House
by Ann Patchett

“Families come in all different shapes and sizes. Patchett continues a noble literary tradition of representing the challenges of a blended family, as previously exemplified by such beloved characters as Dawn and Mary Anne of The Baby-Sitters Club and Sarah of the eponymous Sarah Plain and Tall.”

Inland
by Tea Obreht

“This book resurrects the hardscrabble image of frontier life that Laura Ingalls Wilder, the James Frey of her time, softened into one endless revelry of maple candy and Pa’s fiddle playing. Think of this as Little House in the Barren Desert. Also, camels.”

Super Sad True Love Story
by Gary Shteyngart

“More like Diary of a Wimpy Adult, amirite? Hilarious and cringeworthy.”

American Dirt
by Jeanine Cummins

“For grown-up fans of Mark Twain’s racially tone-deaf thrill rides, this book is un-put-down-able. I mean, seriously, don’t pick it up or put it down in public, unless you’ve strategically replaced the dust jacket with the cover from something innocuous, like a Sue Grafton novel. It can be your dirty little secret. Compelling.”

The Overstory
by Richard Powers

“The Giving Tree is back, and he brought all his friends. A true opus.”

Such a Fun Age
by Kiley Reid

“If Ann M. Martin and her legion of ghostwriters got woke and aged the members of the Baby-Sitters Club by 15 years, this would be Jessi Ramsey’s Super Special edition. Resplendent.”