Thursday, November 20, 2025

2025’s biggest award-winning books

 
Readworthy by BookBub
This Month's Best New Award Winners
In a sea of outstanding new releases, which literary prize winners and finalists stood out this year? We've rounded up 2025's biggest, buzziest award contenders that deserve a spot on your TBR list.
 
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Book cover for The True True Story of Raja the Gullible (and His Mother) by Rabih Alameddine
This sensational novel from 'a writer with boundless imagination' (NPR) has the book world abuzz
WHY IT'S READWORTHY:
  • The winner of 2025's National Book Award for Fiction and the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction
  • Outside the tiny apartment Raja shares with his elderly mother, Beirut is in turmoil — but Raja's search for love and hope is eternally optimistic
  • "It's a ravishing performance… Skillfully juxtaposes unflinching depictions of war and deprivation with the narrator's joie de vivre" (Publishers Weekly)
Learn more...
Media mentions for The True True Story of Raja the Gullible (and His Mother) by Rabih AlameddineMEDIA MENTIONS:The New Yorker, Time Magazine, NPR, The New York Times/The New York Times Book Review, The Guardian, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Booklist, BookPage, Literary Hub
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AmazonOther formats and retailers
Book cover for Flesh by David Szalay
The winner of this year's Booker Prize is a profound coming-of-age story
WHY IT'S READWORTHY:
  • A finalist for the Kirkus Prize and a Best Book of the Year according to The New York Times, Publishers Weekly, and Kirkus Reviews
  • This haunting portrait of a Hungarian man attempting to overcome shocking childhood trauma "will leave readers in awe" (Publishers Weekly starred review)
  • "There's brilliance on every page. Szalay is an ingenious conductor of time, and of the fates and forces that give shape to a life" (Samantha Harvey, author of Orbital)
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Media mentions for Flesh by David SzalayMEDIA MENTIONS:NPR, PBS, The New York Times/The New York Times Book Review, People, The Economist, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, Financial Times, USA Today, Esquire, Vulture, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, The Guardian, The Times, The Boston Globe, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Literary Hub
GET EBOOK ON:
AmazonOther formats and retailers
Book cover for Buckeye by Patrick Ryan
Amazon's Best Book of 2025 is 'refreshingly timeless' (The New York Times)
WHY IT'S READWORTHY:
  • Jenna Bush Hager calls her September book club pick "a once-in-a-decade novel"
  • Across generations, two Midwestern families find their lives irrevocably transformed by the consequences of a shattering secret
  • Rave reviews from Ann Patchett, Ann Napolitano, and Chris Whitaker, who says, "It's my book of the year. I couldn't love it more"
  • An instant New York Times bestseller
Learn more...
Media mentions for Buckeye by Patrick RyanMEDIA MENTIONS:TODAY Book Club/Read with Jenna, NPR, The New York Times/The New York Times Book Review, People, The Washington Post, Financial Times, The Guardian, Indie Next List, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Booklist, BookPage, Literary Hub
GET EBOOK ON:
AmazonOther formats and retailers
Book cover for One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad
The Guardian praises the National Book Award winner for Nonfiction as 'damn hard to put down'
WHY IT'S READWORTHY:
  • "Exceptionally powerful, as a howl of rage and grief against the status quo must be" (Financial Times)
  • This New York Times bestselling manifesto argues the West has betrayed its own core values with its indifference to the war in Gaza
  • "With precision and passion, [El Akkad] compels readers to close the emotional distance between 'us' and 'them'" (The New York Times)
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Media mentions for One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El AkkadMEDIA MENTIONS:Time Magazine, NPR, The New York Times/The New York Times Book Review, The Washington Post, Financial Times, USA Today, Foreign Policy, Los Angeles Times, The Guardian, Kirkus Reviews, Booklist, The Millions, Electric Literature, Literary Hub
GET EBOOK ON:
AmazonOther formats and retailers
Book cover for Three Days in June by Anne Tyler
The 25th novel from a beloved Pulitzer Prize–winning author is an instant classic
WHY IT'S READWORTHY:
  • This Goodreads Choice Finalist for Fiction and New York Times bestseller "is like reading a hug" (Star Tribune)
  • On the eve of her daughter's wedding, Gail's ex-husband appears on her doorstep…
  • "To read a novel by Anne Tyler is to fall in love" (People)
Learn more...
Media mentions for Three Days in June by Anne TylerMEDIA MENTIONS:Time Magazine, The New York Times/The New York Times Book Review, People, The Washington Post, Good Housekeeping, Los Angeles Times, The Guardian, The Times, The Boston Globe, The Times Literary Supplement, Indie Next List, Library Reads, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Booklist, Literary Hub
GET EBOOK ON:
AmazonOther formats and retailers
Book cover for Mona's Eyes by Thomas Schlesser
Barnes & Noble booksellers across the country crowned this 2025's Book of the Year!
WHY IT'S READWORTHY:
  • Ten-year-old Mona is losing her eyesight — so every Wednesday for a year, her grandfather takes her around Paris to show her as much beauty as possible
  • This sensational international bestseller and "life-affirming narrative" (Booklist) is sure to captivate US readers
  • James Daunt, Barnes & Noble's CEO, raves, "This is a novel for everyone, a gentle, moving tale about family, beauty, and the fleeting moments that make lasting memories"
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Media mentions for Mona's Eyes by Thomas SchlesserMEDIA MENTIONS:People, Parade, The Guardian, The Times, The Boston Globe, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Booklist, Literary Hub
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AmazonOther formats and retailers
Book cover for Every Living Thing by Jason Roberts
An epic scientific rivalry comes alive in this 'enthralling' work of history (Publishers Weekly)
WHY IT'S READWORTHY:
  • 2025's Pulitzer Prize winner for Biography is "an entertaining compendium of fascinating facts" (The Spectator)
  • In the 18th century, two men set out to document every species on Earth. How did their conflicting viewpoints shape our understanding of nature today?
  • "Engaging and thought-provoking… Focused on the theatrical politics and often deeply troubling science that shape our definitions of life on Earth" (The New York Times)
Learn more...
Media mentions for Every Living Thing by Jason RobertsMEDIA MENTIONS:NPR, PBS, The New York Times/The New York Times Book Review, The Economist, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Literary Hub
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AmazonOther formats and retailers
Book cover for James by Percival Everett
This unforgettable 'masterpiece' (Chicago Tribune) earned the 2025 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
WHY IT'S READWORTHY:
  • Reimagines Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from the perspective of Jim, an enslaved man who accompanies Huck Finn down the river
  • "Remarkable… Subversive and thrilling, James is destined to become a modern classic" (Esquire)
  • Also won the 2024 National Book Award for Fiction and the Kirkus Prize for Fiction — and landed a film deal with Steven Spielberg
Learn more...
Media mentions for James by Percival EverettMEDIA MENTIONS:The New Yorker, NPR, The New York Times/The New York Times Book Review, Oprah Daily, The Atlantic, People, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Associated Press, Financial Times, USA Today, Vanity Fair, Esquire, Bustle, Elle, Vulture, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, The Guardian, The Times, The Boston Globe, Variety, Indie Next List, Library Reads, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Booklist, BookPage, Electric Literature, Literary Hub
GET EBOOK ON:
AmazonOther formats and retailers
Book cover for The Compound by Aisling Rawle
The New York Times calls this acclaimed Goodreads Choice finalist 'an Animal Farm for our age'
WHY IT'S READWORTHY:
  • A Good Morning America Book Club pick that's "every bit as addictive as your favorite guilty pleasure… but with all the substance of a literary classic" (Oprah Daily)
  • Twenty contestants arrive on a remote desert compound to compete on a reality show — but the line between winning and making it out alive soon becomes blurred
  • One of 2025's best books, according to Oprah Daily and Good Housekeeping
Learn more...
Media mentions for The Compound by Aisling RawleMEDIA MENTIONS:Good Morning America Book Club, Book of the Month, Time Magazine, The New York Times/The New York Times Book Review, Oprah Daily, People, Harper's Bazaar, Good Housekeeping, Vulture, Forbes, Reactor, Indie Next List, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Library Journal, Booklist, Literary Hub
GET EBOOK ON:
AmazonOther formats and retailers
Book cover for The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
The 2025 Anthony Award went to this 'expertly paced' family mystery (The New Yorker)
WHY IT'S READWORTHY:
  • Don't wait any longer to read one of 2024's biggest novels, which spent months on the New York Times bestsellers list!
  • When a teen girl vanishes from an Adirondack summer camp, it's a disturbing echo of her brother's disappearance 14 years earlier
  • "Breaking free of the spell Moore casts is close to impossible" (The Washington Post)
Learn more...
Media mentions for The God of the Woods by Liz MooreMEDIA MENTIONS:Book of the Month, The New Yorker, Time Magazine, NPR, The New York Times/The New York Times Book Review, Oprah Daily, The Washington Post, Financial Times, USA Today, Vogue, Bustle, Elle, Cosmopolitan, Parade, Los Angeles Times, The Boston Globe, Indie Next List, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Library Journal, Booklist, Literary Hub
GET EBOOK ON:
AmazonOther formats and retailers
Book cover for King of Kings by Scott Anderson
An 'exceptional and important' history of the Iranian Revolution (The New York Times)
WHY IT'S READWORTHY:
  • This groundbreaking, New York Times bestselling narrative history won the Kirkus Prize for Nonfiction
  • The acclaimed author of Lawrence in Arabia unearths the full story behind one of the most consequential events of the 20th century
  • "A must-read for anyone looking to understand the origins of the Middle East's most dangerous regime" (Pulitzer Prize–winning author Joby Warrick)
Learn more...
Media mentions for King of Kings by Scott AndersonMEDIA MENTIONS:The New Yorker, NPR, The New York Times/The New York Times Book Review, The Atlantic, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Los Angeles Times, The Guardian, The Times, Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Booklist
GET EBOOK ON:
AmazonOther formats and retailers
 
  

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