The Best Memoirs: The 2025 NBCC Autobiography Shortlist, recommended by May-lee Chai
The last year has been one of the best for autobiography and memoir in recent memory, says May-lee Chai, chair of the judging committee for the National Book Critic Circle Prize for Autobiography. Their 2025 shortlist includes a posthumous memoir by Alexei Navalny, former leader of the opposition in Russia, and a travel memoir with a surrealist twist.
SCIENCE FICTION Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
“I’ve read it three times, I think it’s wonderful…The book opens with the main character, Ryland, waking up from a stasis sleep on a ship with no idea who he is or how he’s got there”—Natasha Pulley, novelist
NONFICTION BOOKS Silent Spring by Rachel Carson
“The book speaks to not just an important issue…but how we can all make changes in our communities and in our societies”—John Kerry, former US Secretary of State
CLASSIC ENGLISH LITERATURE The Complete Works of Jane Austen (1775-1817)
“Oh! it is only a novel! … in short, only some work in which the most thorough knowledge of human nature, the happiest delineation of its varieties, the liveliest effusions of wit and humour are conveyed to the world in the best chosen language”—Northanger Abbey
NONFICTION BOOKS Ukraine’s Nuclear Disarmament: A History by Yuri Kostenko
“His argument is not that Ukraine should have kept nuclear weapons, but that Ukrainians were forced to give them up without getting proper guarantees of the country’s independence”—Serhii Plokhy, historian, Harvard University
SPY THRILLERS Karla’s Choice by Nick Harkaway
“This is the book of the year for me, he’s knocked it out of the park”—Shane Whaley, host, Spybrary podcast
NEW LITERARY FICTION We Do Not Part by Han Kang
“We Do Not Part deals—obliquely—with the long shadow of the Jeju massacres…during which an estimated 30,000 were killed by government forces”—Cal Flyn, deputy editor, Five Books
ECONOMICS BOOKS
“If you read just one economics book in 2024—and perhaps if you just read one economics book in your life—it should be this book…How Economics Explains the World is a relatively short and easy read”—Jason Furman, economist, Harvard University
TOP ‘ROMANTASY’ BOOKS to get you started
“A word of warning—these books are real page turners and you’ll find yourself reading until the early hours of the morning”—Francesca Martin, journalist
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ROMANTASY A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah Maas
“This is one of the most popular book series in the world of romantasy—and with good reason”—Francesca Martin, journalist
AI BOOKS ChatGPT-4 offers its own opinions on artificial intelligence “These books offer valuable insights into the development, challenges, and future prospects of AI”—ChatGPT-4, AI chatbot
THE BEST BOOKS FOR KIDS A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket
“What the books…do so well is to make you feel, even if you’re happy for a bit, there’s…something nasty waiting for you around the corner”—Jack Meggitt-Phillips, children’s author
HISTORICAL FICTION The Kindly Ones by Jonathan Littell
“This book has knocked everything else I’ve ever read about the Second World War out of the park”—Graham Hurley, WWII historical novelist
SCIENCE FICTION The Best Sci-Fi Books of the Past Decade, a round-up by Sylvia Bishop
“Fans vote every year for the best of sci fi and fantasy, in both the Hugo Awards and the Nebula Awards”
THE BEST NOVELS
The best novels about American history Literary scholar Bernard T. Joy talks us through five novels that challenge the reader to reckon with the complexity of the past—from colonial times to the end of the 20th century.
SCIENCE FICTION
Five of the best ‘hard’ sci-fi novels, as recommended by Adrian Tschaikovsky “If you’re writing with the left wall of actually fitting in with the science, then that pushes you into interesting territory.”
MILITARY HISTORY British military historian Sir Antony Beevor on the best books on World War II
“Goebbels was a diabolical genius. He saw that hatred was not enough and you had to combine hatred with fear if you were going to get the maximum killing potential out of your followers”
FANTASY
The Best Fantasy Novels of the Last Decade
Our fantasy and sci-fi editor Sylvia Bishop looks at the fantasy books that won Hugo and Nebula Awards in the last ten years.
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