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"Best Of" 2024 Lists

This is the time of year when “Best Of” lists are everywhere. These annual roundups always seem to spark lively discussions among readers as they reflect on their favorite books of the year. Although we at Bookreporter.com don’t have a “Best Of” list of our own, we’ve compiled a number of them for you here. See which of your top picks appear on these lists and which titles you feel should've been included but weren't. Perhaps you’ll even find some books to add to your reading list as we head into the new year!

Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction 2025

The American Library Association (ALA) has selected JAMES by Percival Everett as the winner of the 2025 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction, and A WALK IN THE PARK: The True Story of a Spectacular Misadventure in the Grand Canyon by Kevin Fedarko as the winner of the 2025 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction.

Percival Everett, author of James

When the enslaved Jim overhears that he is about to be sold to a man in New Orleans, separated from his wife and daughter forever, he decides to hide on nearby Jackson Island until he can formulate a plan. Meanwhile, Huck Finn has faked his own death to escape his violent father, who recently has returned to town. As all readers of American literature know, thus begins the dangerous and transcendent journey by raft down the Mississippi River toward the elusive and too-often-unreliable promise of the Free States and beyond. While many narrative set pieces of ADVENTURES OF HUCKLEBERRY FINN remain in place, Jim’s agency, intelligence and compassion are shown in a radically new light.