Essential and Interesting “Best Books of 2025” Lists

From 2008-2022, I aggregated every online year-end book list I discovered into one post.

This year (like last year), I will collect essential and interesting year-end book lists in this post and update it daily.

Please feel free to e-mail me with a magazine, newspaper, or other online list I have missed.

Please consider making a donation or leaving a tip to Largehearted Boy to support posts like these, the author playlists, and much more.

10,000 Birds (favorite bird books)
425 (favorite books)
812filmReviews (favorite books)
828 (Western Carolina booksellers’ favorite books)

Aa (most-loved books)
ABC (best books)
Afrocritik (notable African books)
Air Mail (best books)
Air Mail (best coffee table books)
Albany Times Union (best books)
Alicia Kennedy (favorite books)
All Sports Books (great sports books)
Alta Journal (best books)
Amazon (best books)
Amazon (best children’s books)
Anchorage Daily News (favorite books)
AnOther (best books)
AP (notable books)
Apple (best books)
The Art Newspaper (favourite books)
Artforum (best books)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution (best Southern books)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Georgia authors’ favorite books)
The Atlantic (best books)
The AU Review (best books)
Audible (top audiobooks)
Audiofile (best audiobooks)
Autostraddle (best queer books)
Autostraddle (best queer poetry books)
The AV Club (best music books)

Bank Street Center for Children’s Literature (best children’s books)
Barack Obama (favorite books)
Barnes & Noble (best audiobooks)
Barnes & Noble (best books)
BBC (most scandalous books)
BBC Culture (best books)
BBC History (best history books)
Behavioral Scientist (notable books)
Bethanne Patrick (best books)
Biblioracle (nonfiction)
Big Issue (best books)
Big Issue (best children’s books)
Big Think (best books)
Bill Gates (favorite books)
Black Perspectives (best Black history books)
Bloody Disgusting (best horror books)
Bon Appetit (favorite cookbooks)
The Book Girls Guide (best books)
Book Riot (best books)
Book Riot (best BIPOC books)
Book Riot (best queer books)
Book Riot (most underrated books)
BookBrowse (top books)
Bookclubs (top book club books)
Bookish Beck (best books)
Booklist (adult books)
Booklist (adult books for young adults)
Booklist (books for youth)
Booklist (graphic novels)
BookPage (best books)
Bookreporter (favorite books)
Bookshop (best fiction)
Bookshop (best nonfiction)
Boston Globe (best books)
Boswell Book Company (booksellers’ top books)
British Vogue (best books)
Brittle Paper (notable African books)
Broadsheet (best Australian cookbooks)
Brooklyn Public Library (best books)
Bustle (best books)

California Review of Books (best books)
California Review of Books (best poetry books)
Canadian Architect (best books for Canadian architects)
CapX (best books)
Carlos Fonseca (favourite books)
Catalyst Planet (best books)
CBC (best Canadian books)
CBC (best Canadian fiction)
CBC (best Canadian poetry)
CBC The Current (best cookbooks)
CBS 42 (favorite Alabama books)
Chicago Public Library (best books)
Chicago Review of Books (best books)
Chicago Tribune (best books)
Chicago Tribune (notable cookbooks)
Christian Science Monitor (best books)
Chronogram (favorite Hudson Valley books)
Civil War Memory (favorite history books)
The College Crowd Digs Me (favorite books)
Colossal (favorite books)
Common Sense Media (best books)
Compact (best books)
COMPAS (best books on migration)
Conde Nast Traveler (best books)
The Conversation (best books)
The Conversationalist (best books)
Cosmopolitan (best books)
CounterPunch (best books)
CrimeReads (best books)
Cryptozoonews (best cryptozoology books)
The Culinary Studios (favourite cookbooks)
Cultured (notable art books)
Cynan Jones (favourite books)

Darien Library (best books)
Dazed (best books)
Debutiful (best debut books)
Debutiful (best debut nonfiction books)
Debutiful (best debut short story collections)
Den of Geek (best fantasy books)
Discover Wildlife (best wildlife books)
dsm (best cookbooks)

Eat Your Books (best cookbooks)
Economic Times (favourite books)
The Economist (best books)
Electric Lit (best novels)
Electric Lit (best nonfiction)
Electric Lit (best poetry collections)
Electric Lit (best short story collections)
ELLE (best books)
Emma Straub (top books)
Engadget (favorite books)
Exclaim! (best music books)

The Federalist (notable books)
Financial Times (best books)
Five Books (best books)
Flyleaf Books (best books)
Food Network (best baking books)
Foreign Affairs (best books)
Forks Over Knives (WFPB & vegan cookbooks)
Foundation for Economic Education (best economics books)
Frenchly (best French books)
Frontline Magazine (top fiction)
The Future Cities Project (best books)

Garden & Gun (favorite books)
Gizmodo (authors’ favorite horror, sci-fi, and fantasy books)
GlassTire (favorite art books)
Globe and Mail (best books)
Globe and Mail (best cookbooks)
The Gloss (best books)
Good Food (best cookbooks)
Good Housekeeping (best books)
Goodreads (best books)
Gravetapping (favorite books)
Greater Good (favorite books)
Greater Good (favorite books for educators)
Greenfield Reporter (favorite books)
Grimdark Magazine (best fantasy, horror, and sci-fi books)
The Grind (favourite books)
Guardian (best Australian books)
Guardian (best books)

Harper’s Bazaar (best books)
Harvard Crimson (top books)
Highbrow (best books)
The Hindu (best fiction)
The Hindu (best non-fiction)
History (best new history books)
The History Mom (favorite books)
History Today (books)
Hot Dinners (best London food & drink books)
HotPress (best books)
House & Garden (best cookbooks)
Hyperallergic (best art books)
Hyphen (best books)

The i Paper (best history books)
The i Paper (favorite books)
I Heart SapphFic (top Sapphic books)
Independent (best cookbooks)
Independent (best fiction & non-fiction books)
Indigo (best books)
Irish Examiner (best Cork books)
Irish Examiner (favorite wildlife & environment books)
Irish News (best books)

Jake Wynn – Public Historian (favorite books)
Jezebel (best novels)
Joint Center for Housing Studies (favorite books)

Katie Couric (best books)
KAXE (favorite books)
King County Library System (best books)
Kirkus (best books)
The Kitchn (best cookbooks)
Kitchen Arts & Letters – Matt (best cookbooks)
KPBS (best books)
Kyiv Independent (best Ukraine-related books)

L.A. Taco (best LA-centric books)
LARB Radio Hour (favorite books)
Largehearted Boy (favorite nonfiction)
Largehearted Boy (favorite novels)
Largehearted Boy (favorite poetry collections)
Largehearted Boy (favorite short story collections)
Libby (best books)
Library Journal (best books)
Libro.fm (top audiobooks)
The Lineup (best horror books)
Lit Hub (best book covers)
Lit Hub (favorite books)
Lit Hub (most banned books)
Lit Hub (notable small press books)
Lonnie Palmer (top books on education reform)
Los Angeles Blade (books)
Los Angeles Public Library (favorite books)
Los Angeles Times (best books)
Los Angeles Times (best cookbooks)

Marginal Revolution (best non-fiction books)
The Marginalian (best books)
Marie Claire (best novels)
Medievalists.net (best medieval books)
Men’s Health (best horror books)
Ministry of Pop Culture (best pop culture books)
Minnesota Public Radio (best books)
Minnesota Star Tribune (best fiction & nonfiction books)
Modern Mrs Darcy (favorite books)
Moment (favorite books)
Moment (memoirs)
Mother Horror (top horror books)
Mother Jones (best books)
Ms. (favorite books)

National Post (best cookbooks)
National Review (favorite books)
NetGalley (best books)
The New Arab (standout books)
The New Daily (best books)
New Statesman (best books)
New York Post (favorite books)
New York Public Library (best books)
New York Times (best children’s books)
New York Times (best cookbooks)
New York Times (best hidden gems)
New York Times (best historical fiction)
New York Times (best romance novels)
New York Times (best thrillers)
New York Times (most interesting wine books)
New York Times (notable books)
New York Times/New York Public Library (best illustrated children’s books)
New Yorker (best books)
New Yorker (favorite cookbooks)
New Zealand Listener (best books)
The Next Big Idea Club (best science books)
Nik Sharma (best cookbooks and books on food)
Nordic Watchlist (best Nordic books)
NPR (best books)
NPR (best novels)
NPR (cookbooks)
NPR – Maureen Corrigan (best books)

Observer (best art books)
The Observer (best food books)
The Observer (writers’ best books)
Oprah Daily (best books)
Orange County Register (favorite books)
OurCulture (best books)
OutSmart (must-read queer books)

Parenthetical (top books)
Paris Review (favorite books)
passerby (best books)
Passport (best books)
PEZ Cycling News (best books)
Pioneer Press (best books)
Planetizen (top urban planning books)
The Portalist (best science fiction & fantasy books)
Portland Monthly (best books by Oregon authors)
Powell’s Books (favorite books)
The Progressive (favorite books)
Public Books (best books)
Publishers Weekly (best books)

Reactor (best books)
Reading Matters (favourite books)
Real Simple (best cookbooks)
Red (best books)
Responsible Statecraft (best foreign policy books)
Richmond Public Library (favorite books)
RJ Julia (best books)
Rolling Stone (best music books)
The Root (favorite books by Black authors)
RTE (best Irish books)

Santa Barbara Independent (best books)
Sarah Stager (favorite books)
Saveur (best cookbooks)
Scary Mommy (best books)
School Library Journal (best books)
Science News (top books)
Scientific American (favorite books)
The Scotsman (best books about the outdoors)
The Scotsman (Scottish books)
The Seaboard Review of Books (best books)
SFF Book Reviews (favorite books)
She Reads (best books)
Shelf Awareness (best books)
Shortlist (best books)
Skwigly (essential animation books)
Slate (best books)
Smithsonian Magazine (best books)
South Florida Sun-Sentinel (best mystery novels)
Southern Living (best books)
Spectrum Culture (best books)
The Spinoff (best books)
Sports Collectors Digest (best baseball books)
Spotify (audiobook trends)
St. Louis on the Air (librarians’ best books)
The Straits Times (best books)
The Strategist (best cookbooks)
Style Blueprint (best books)
Swoon (best holiday romance books)

Table (best food memoir books)
Talking About Books (best books)
talkSport (best sports books)
Telegraph (greatest books)
them (best LGBTQ+ books)
Third Place Books (top books)
TIME (best books)
TIME (must-read books)
The Times (best books)
The Times (best children’s books)
Toronto Star (favourite books)
Town & Country (best books)
Treble (great books about music)
Tricycle (favorite books)
The Tyee (best books)

Ultimate Classic Rock (most exciting rock books)
Uncut (top books)
University of Western Australia (best books)
USA Today (best books)

Vanity Fair (best books)
Variety (best music books)
The Verge (best books)
Verso (books)
Vox (best books)
Vulture (best books)
Vulture (best comedy books)

W (best coffee table books)
WAC (top architecture books)
Wall Street Journal (best books)
Wall Street Journal (best books about healthy aging)
Washington Independent Review of Books (favorite books)
Washington Post (best books)
Waterstones (best books)
WBEZ (best cookbooks)
WBUR (best cookbooks)
The Week (best poetry books)
Whitney Matheson (best books)
Winter Is Coming (best fantasy books)
WIRED (best cookbooks)
WIRED (best tech books)
Words Without Borders (best books in (and on) translation)

Xtra* (best queer & trans books)

Yoga Review (most inspiring, insightful, and seriously worthwhile books)

Zikoko (best Nigerian books)

For book & music links, themed playlists, a wrap-up of Largehearted Boy feature posts, and more, check out Largehearted Boy’s weekly newsletter.

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