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Two days after the 2024 election, public library leaders from across the nation gathered at Richland Library in Columbia, SC, for Library Journal’s annual Directors’ Summit. This year’s program explored the ways public libraries are called upon to respond to complex community challenges and opportunities. From housing insecurity to low literacy rates to political polarization, public libraries are often part of solutions to address the very issues that impact the livability and resiliency of their communities. Together, library leaders sought answers to questions about the role libraries are uniquely positioned to play, where efforts can be best directed to support diverse community needs, and defining a library leadership agenda.

ALA announced the winners of the Youth Media Awards on Monday; Erin Entrada Kelly wins the Newbery Medal for The First State of Being, and Rebecca Lee Kunz wins the Caldecott Medal for Chooch Helped, written by Andrea L. Rogers. Interviews arrive with Bill Gates, Michael Connelly, Lola Kirke, and Mike Miley. Elle asks 21 influencers for their predictions on the the future of book publishing. Plus, Mel Robbins, author of The Let Them Theory: A Life-Changing Tool That Millions of People Can’t Stop Talking About, announces a new tour.

The RUSA Book and Media Awards are announced, including the Notable Books List, Reading List, Listen List, Essential Cookbooks, Dartmouth Medal, and Outstanding References Sources List. Percival Everett’s James and Kevin Fedarko’s A Walk in the Park: The True Story of a Spectacular Misadventure in the Grand Canyon win Andrew Carnegie Medals. Cold Crematorium: Reporting from the Land of Auschwitz by József Debreczeni is awarded the Sophie Brody Medal. The Crash by Freida McFadden leads holds this week. People’s book of the week is Going Home by Tom Lamont. Plus, ALA responds to the U.S. Department of Education regarding book bans.

The finalists for the National Book Critics Circle Awards and the longlist for the Swansea University Dylan Thomas Prize are revealed. Mick Herron wins the Crime Writers Association Diamond Dagger Award for lifetime achievement. Novelists are wondering if their careers will survive without BookTok. Penguin Random House parent company Bertelsmann has agreed to a strategic partnership with OpenAI. Plus, Page to Screen and new spring titles from Martha Stewart, Jeremy Renner, and the Dalai Lama.

The Edgar Award nominees and Audie Awards finalists are revealed. USA Today launches its Winter Book Challenge, a bingo card full of book categories, to help readers stretch and track their reading goals. Christian rom-coms are flourishing. Plus, new title bestsellers.

Chartered by President Abraham Lincoln in 1864, Gallaudet University, in Washington, DC, holds the distinction of being the only bilingual university for Deaf, Hard of Hearing, and other Deaf Disabled students in the world. Consequently, it has the world’s largest archives of materials related to deaf and hard-of-hearing communities, with a mission to preserve “the institutional memory of the University and historic material from the global Deaf community,” according to the Gallaudet website.

“Don’t trust the sanitized versions of history…We’ve got to get to the roots,” writes rapper Chuck D in the foreword to The Transatlantic Slave Trade, a new title from SelectBooks highlighted in this feature. That viewpoint is the guiding compass behind new Black history books on publishers’ lists for spring 2025.  

Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros is the top holds title of the week. LibraryReads and Library Journal offer read-alikes for patrons waiting to read this buzziest book.

As LJ approaches its 150th year helping librarians curate collections, we offer modern reviews of titles published decades and centuries ago. These reviews highlight iconic works and provide professional assessments of classics that have appeared on banned-book lists.