Martin Marten contains one of the most unique ideas for a novel that I’ve ever encountered. And Brian Doyle writes it with wit and charm and empathy. I think I have my friend Ellen to thank for this recommendation and I am very appreciative. I absolutely loved every page of the book and will remember it forever.
Small Things Like These weighs in at 114 pages with a small trim size and not many words per page. But it strikes with a force unmatched by any book I have read in a very long time. Recognized by the New York Times as one of the top 100 books of the 21st century, Keegan has written a true tour de force.
As much as I follow lists and Bookstagram and listen to friends’ recommendations, I also love just picking up a random book that catches my eye in a display at my library. I found River Mumma amongst a shelf of books all set in Toronto. Both the cover and title drew me in, and the description tipped the book right into my bag. My instincts proved correct and I was rewarded with a charming and suspenseful story featuring a unique view of my city.
Although Buckeye was on many ‘favorites’ lists at the end of 2025, I feel like it is still somewhat flying under the radar. Many friends to whom I have mentioned it as a favorite in recent months have never heard of it. So let me be (perhaps) the first to tell you that this book is a sweeping, modern classic and not to be missed.
n the handful of books that seem to be everywhere at the moment, Belle Burden’s Strangers surely ranks in the top five. As often seems to happen, when I picked it up and started to read, the book was being discussed everywhere. In Strangers, Burden tells the stunning story of her 20-year marriage and how one morning early in the COVID-19 pandemic, her husband walked out and left her and their children forever.
If you are looking for a fast-paced, suspenseful, witty book for your first beach read of the summer, look no further. This Story Might Save Your Life engaged, delighted and surprised me while also making me laugh out loud. Crum provides many plot twists but I always felt certain she was headed for a satisfying ending when all was revealed.
Ever since reading Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine and then Wicked by Gregory Maguire as a teenager, I’ve been obsessed with novels that reimagine fairytales. Typically, they blend historical fiction with a familiar plot and turn some element of the story on its head. So when Reece Witherspoon announced Lady Tremaine as her bookclub pick for March, I put it on hold at the library immediately. And, wow, this book was just the grown-up version of Cinderella I didn’t know I needed.
I’m not sure why, after having read James and being in awe of it, I didn’t immediately go back and explore Percival Everett’s extensive backlist of books. It took a friend whose opinion I value to encourage me to read The Trees, published in 2021. The Trees is like no other novel I have ever read.
I first encountered Zarna Garg on Amy Poehler’s podcast, Good Hang, which if you want to spend an hour laughing with some of the funniest people in the world, I highly recommend. Garg was the opening act for Poehler and Tina Fey’s comedy tour, and she appeared on the podcast to promote this memoir.
Originally self-published and the author’s first novel, Theo of Golden piqued my interest before I’d even picked it up to read. I love a story about a breakthrough novel that gains its audience because so many friends recommend it to their friends that before you know it, it’s a bestseller.
With her book The Witch Elm, I have officially become a Tana French fan. Mysteries and murder mysteries aren’t usually my go-to genres for reading pleasure. But with major personal upheavals in my life in the past several weeks, The Witch Elm really grabbed—and kept—my attention from beginning to end.
I want to thank one of our most loyal L&L readers, Ellen, for recommending Awake. I hadn’t heard of Jen Hatmaker before reading this book, so it’s unlikely I would ever have picked it up on my own. I’m so glad that I read this captivating book.
I always feel funny reviewing a book long after it was popular but somehow I missed reading it until now. But I decided I needed to review The Song of Achilles in case any of you, like me, sometimes take a decade to read an award-winning book. I read Miller’s second book, Circe, much closer to its release and loved it, so I don’t know why I delayed so long reading The Song of Achilles. But I’m so glad I finally read it.
There are many reasons I almost decided not to review The New Menopause: (1) I come from a generation that believes polite people don’t talk about personal things like menopause. (2) I worried how our male readers would react. (3) I thought that even young women of my co-editor’s generation wouldn’t be interested in something which feels so far off in their future. But I decided in favor of writing the review because I learned more from this book than I have from any book I’ve read in a very long time.
I first heard about Say Nothing on Clint Smith’s Instagram. As the author of one of my all-time favorite works of non-fiction, How the Word is Passed (read review here), I took his recommendation to heart and am so glad.
I really don’t know why I’m so late to the party when it comes to reading Dennis Lehane’s novels. I knew he was a Boston author. Maybe I thought his books contained too much violence. Whatever the reason, I want to make sure our L&L readers don’t make the same mistake I did.
With an author as prolific as Margaret Atwood, I know it’s unlikely I’ll ever read her complete works. And although she is Canadian literary royalty, I hadn’t picked up one of her books in a long time. So when I came across The Year of the Flood in a little free library, I grabbed it, only to discover it was book two of a trilogy!
We’ve read several short story collections and the most recent was Curtis Sittenfeld’s Show Don’t Tell. I’m a big Sittenfeld fan and can recommend her novels, as well as an earlier short story collection, You Think It, I’ll Say It. (read review here) Sittenfeld’s prose is succinct and spot-on as she puts her characters into relatable situations and we observe their very human responses.
Thanks to non-stop social media recommendations and the book’s silly cover design, I didn’t expect The Wedding People to have so much emotional depth or narrative finesse. However, it ended up being my favorite read over the winter holidays. So if you’re like me and get skeptical when a book is ‘too’ popular, don’t let that stop you from reading Alison Espach’s delightful novel.
When a Pulitzer Prize winning playwright publishes her first novel, and that novel is recommended by Lin Manuel Miranda, it doesn’t take long for me to request it from my local library and devour it as soon as it arrives. This slim and poetic debut is heartbreaking and hopeful in equal measure, and certainly not to be missed.
