LPL's Best Books 2025Like this list

67 items

• Dungeon Crawler Carl

  Dinniman, Matt,

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  "The whole ass series. It starts out like a big dumb popcorn flick of a book/series and then slowly transforms into something with real heart and real feelings. Excellently paced and plotted the adventures of Carl and Princess Donut are the best…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Sunrise on the Reaping

  Collins, Suzanne,

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  Recommended by: Mary and Erica "The 50th hunger games, the 2nd quarter quell, and the story of Haymitch Abernathy becoming the victor. This Hunger Games prequel will leave you in tears. I still randomly think about the closing line and get a pang…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• First-time Caller

  Borison, B. K.,

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  Recommended by Kady and Erica "When Lucie’s daughter calls into Heartstrings, a live romance hotline, worried about her mother’s lack of a love life, Lucie becomes a viral sensation. But an offer to cohost the show, and become captain of her own…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Hungerstone

  a Novel

  Dunn, Kat,

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  Recommended by Teagan and Leah "Retelling of Carmilla. Reads like a classic literature novel & well researched for the setting of Victorian England. Everything I could’ve wanted in a Carmilla retelling; sensual, bloodthirsty, and ultimately…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• On Tyranny

  Twenty Lessons From the Twentieth Century

  Snyder, Timothy

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  Recommended by Allison M. and Mary Ann "Definitely the most important book I’ve read this year (3 times in fact, as I took this in as audiobook, full-text novel, and graphic novel). This book explores various ways that individuals can take steps to…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Under the Same Stars

  Bray, Libba,

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  Recommended by Mary Ann and Margo "An interesting murder mystery YA book following teens in 3 different timelines – 1940’s Hitler Youth, 1980’s West Berlin punk movement, and 2020’s Covid lockdown in NYC. I loved the fairytales, the musical and…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Riverine Dreams

  Away to the Glorious and Forgotten Grassland Rivers of America

  Frazier, George, 1966-

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  Recommended by Shirley and Jake V. "Riverine Dreams reads as a prairie river love song. In this inspired and lyrical volume Lawrence-based environmental journalist George Frazier honors wild landscapes and human stewards in our region and fords…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Buffalo Hunter Hunter

  Jones, Stephen Graham, 1972-

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  Recommended by Leah, Kevin, and Polli "If you, like me, are not a Horror reader… let’s talk. The book is an incredible tale, told mainly in journal entries, by three people – a modern day professor, her Lutheran minister great, great, great…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Everything Is Tuberculosis

  the History and Persistence of Our Deadliest Infection

  Green, John, 1977-

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  Recommended by Leah and Mary "Centered around a young tuberculosis patient named Henry Reider, who John Green met in 2019 at the Lakka Government Hospital in Sierra Leone. He expertly tells the story of not only Henry but the history of…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Indifferent Stars Above

  the Harrowing Saga of a Donner Party Bride

  Brown, Daniel James, 1951-

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  Recommended by Danno and Kevin "Wintertime always calls for books about how shitty the cold is. Daniel James Brown may not have eaten anyone, but he sure does talk about it like he has." - Kevin "Like Kevin, in Winter I gravitate toward books of…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• You Dreamed of Empires

  Enrigue, Alvaro, 1969-

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  "A not so faithful retelling of the events surrounding the meeting between conquistador Hernán Cortés and Aztec emperor Mocteczuma II in Tenochtitlan 1519. An absurd, dry, darkly funny, and psychedelic historical fiction. I won’t spoil it except to…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• This Is Happiness

  Williams, Niall, 1958-

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  "If you want to take a slow, charming meander through time and place, this book is for you. If you love Irish storytelling, where wordplay and wit are as important as any plot, this book is for you. Williams transports us to Faha in the 1950s, where…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Bee Sting

  Murray, Paul, 1975-

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  "Interwoven truly intriguing portraits of individual family members as they hurtle towards an ending that will leave you flabbergasted." - Erica

• Heart the Lover

  a Novel

  King, Lily,

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  "Our narrator’s fondest wish is to be a writer, and she will be. She’ll publish stories that weave her life’s great loves and losses, of which there are many, into beloved works of fiction. But before she does any of that, she is just an English…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• What We Can Know

  a Novel

  McEwan, Ian,

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  "This latest work by British author Ian McEwan is an exemplary example of why he is one of modern literature’s most beloved writers. What We Can Know is a masterclass in creating an engrossing plot through the lives of the characters within the…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Wedding People

  a Novel

  Espach, Alison, 1984-

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  "Not just another predictable account of a destination wedding of the ultrawealthy. An absolutely original story featuring characters of surprising depth, perception, and humor." - Randi

• Time of the Child

  Williams, Niall, 1958-

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  "I picked up Williams’ This Is Happiness after a staff recommendation on this list last year, and loved it. Time of the Child is a continuation of sorts, set in the same small Irish town shortly after the events of the previous book, but focused on…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• The Names

  Knapp, Florence,

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  "It reminds me a little of the movie Sliding Doors because it explores the different paths your life can take based on a momentary decision. In this case, it’s the name a battered woman chooses for her son in the name records office in England in…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• There Are Rivers in the Sky

  a Novel

  Shafak, Elif, 1971-

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  "Through three interwoven stories, the book explores themes of water’s power as a historical witness, the displacement of people, and the legacy of the ancient Epic of Gilgamesh. This was beautifully written and inspired me to research more on these…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Bog Queen

  a Novel

  North, Anna,

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  "Bog Queen is a complex mystery rooted in northwestern England offering three female perspectives — revealing the inner-thoughts of a contemporary newly trained forensic anthropologist, a young druid healer from centuries past, and a voice from the…Read moreRead more of this annotation