A curated list of outstanding books published in 2025, spanning fiction and nonfiction genres. These selected works offer insightful explorations of history, relationships, and the human condition.
My selections for the year's best books lean slightly towards nonfiction, though the novels that made the cut compensate with their breadth and emotional impact. Here are my favorite reads from 2025. One standout novel is set in Nebraska and uses two real weather catastrophes as its backdrop: The 'Black Sunday' dust storm of April 14, 1935, which choked people in a moving wall of dust, and the Republican River flood a month later.
The central figure is a 'Prairie Witch' who heals her clients through a unique method, described in the book. The author is considered America's own Prairie Witch of a writer, who unearths memories from our national unconscious and draws us into our history with her spellbinding writing style. Another noteworthy historical novel, taking place in Ohio, spans from before World War II to the end of the 20th century, focusing on the interwoven lives of two married couples. The story begins with Margaret Salt, a striking redhead, entering a hardware store where Cal Jenkins works and demanding he turn on the radio due to the news of Germany's surrender. Overwhelmed, Margaret kisses Cal, and Cal, who is happily married with a new child, reciprocates the kiss. This novel explores how chance encounters shape our lives, from intimate moments to World War II sea battles. A highly anticipated book makes the wait worthwhile. Sonia, a college student in Vermont, yearns for her native India. Her depression makes her vulnerable to a visiting painter, a true art monster. Meanwhile, Sunny leaves India to work in New York, though he can't escape his formidable mother. This novel, almost 700 pages, explores themes of exile and displacement from one's homeland, family, and even one's sense of self. The multi-layered plot shifts between Delhi, New York, Italy, Goa, and Mexico. This is a novel of ideas, intertwined with a complicated love story that incorporates enough coincidences to keep a reader engrossed
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Maureen Corrigan's 10 favorite books of 2025 — with plenty for nonfiction loversFresh Air's book critic says her picks tilt a bit to nonfiction, but the novels that made the cut redress the imbalance by their sweep and intensity. Karen Russell's The Antidote was her favorite.
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