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Nat Cassidy is a playwright of off-off-Broadway speculative works that have been well-received by drama critics. He’s also an established actor of stage and television, where he usually plays monsters and villains, including in the shows Blue Bloods, Bull, Quantico, and Law & Order: SVU. He is also the author of the horror novels Mary, Nestlings, and the forthcoming When the Wolf Comes Home (Tor Nightfire). He talks with LJ about the horror genre, his theater background, and indie publishing.

Beautiful Ugly by Alice Feeney is the top holds title of the week. LibraryReads and Library Journal offer read-alikes for patrons waiting to read this buzziest book.

George Lichman fights crime and reads it too.

She has a wonderful talent for situating books within larger contexts and discourses, allowing librarians to understand how different works might fit within their communities.

In reviews that showcase his enjoyment and knowledge of speculative fiction, Matthew accurately and expressively describes plot details and thoughtfully conveys the reading experience, along with offering apt comparisons and read-alikes.

In every review, TJ’s storytelling ability reflects his exceptional talent to capture each book’s premise and get to its core.

The Dublin Literary Award longlist is announced. Jose Ando and Yui Suzuki win Japan’s Akutagawa literary prize, and Shin Iyohara wins the Naoki prize. The Millions releases its “Great Winter 2025 Preview.” LJ recognizes four reviewers of the year. Neil Gaiman responds to misconduct allegations. LibraryReads and LJ offer read-alikes for Alice Feeney’s Beautiful Ugly. Interviews arrive with Rebecca Yarros, Aria Aber, Shane Burcaw and Hannah Burcaw, Jinger Duggar Vuolo, and Marie Kondo. Plus, People shares an excerpt from Suzanne Collins’s forthcoming “Hunger Games” novel, Sunrise on the Reaping, due out March 18.

In reviews that offer insight, invitation, and illumination, these four LJ reviewers showcase the life-affirming work of reading and writing about books.

The winners of the Nero Book Awards are announced. Peter Gizzi wins the T.S. Eliot Prize for his poetry collection Fierce Elegy. Kaya Press receives the Constellation Award. Earlyword’s January GalleyChat spreadsheet is out now. The Giller Prize will feature writers longlisted for the 2024 award in a new online book club. Multiple women accuse author Neil Gaiman of sexual abuse in a new Vulture story. CrimeReads shares an excerpt from Ruth Ware’s forthcoming novel, The Woman in Suite 11, due out July 8. Plus, a new £2 coin in Britain will feature George Orwell to coincide with the 75th anniversary of the author’s death.

Beautiful Ugly by Alice Feeney leads holds this week. Also getting buzz are titles by Robert Crais, Grady Hendrix, Layne Fargo, and Scott Turow. People’s book of the week is I’ll Come To You by Rebecca Kauffman. The Philip K. Dick Award nominees and the Story Prize finalists are announced. Brooke Shields discusses aging and her new memoir, Brooke Shields Is Not Allowed To Get Old. SLJ shares how to help those impacted by the California wildfires. Jim Murphy’s Inner Excellence hits #1 on Amazon after a viral video captured Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown reading it during Sunday’s NFC wild-card game. Plus, NYPL acquires the archive of Jhumpa Lahiri.

Thao Thai’s Banyan Moon wins the Crook’s Corner Book Prize for the best debut novel set in the American South. Winners of the Silvers-Dudley Prizes, for literary criticism, arts writing, and journalism, are announced. Crown, a division of Penguin Random House, has launched Storehouse Voices, a new imprint devoted to elevating Black voices, and Simon & Schuster has announced a new audio-first imprint, Simon Maverick, focused on self-published authors. Publishers Weekly has Barack Obama’s list of his favorite books of 2024. Plus, interviews with Chukwuebuka Ibeh, Stuart Turton, and Tracy Clark.

In a significant decision for the freedom to read, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas recently declared two key sections of Arkansas Act 372—which expose librarians and booksellers to criminal penalties—unconstitutional. Section 1’s criminal penalties for “furnishing harmful items to minors” were deemed overly broad; Section 5’s process for giving decisions on book challenges and appeals to local government officials lacked constitutional safeguards and threatened a chilling effect on library staff and users alike.

Winners of the Pacific Northwest Book Awards are announced. The shortlists for the Westminster Book Awards, for political books and books by UK parliamentarians, are revealed. Jenna Bush Hager, host of the Read with Jenna book club, is starting her own publishing venture with Penguin Random House. Plus interviews with Graham Norton, Jean Hanff Korelitz, and Liz Moore.

Titles not to miss across fiction, nonfiction, and audio.

For those participating in Dry January or anyone looking to consume less alcohol, here’s a tempting array of cookbooks containing ideas for nonalcoholic cocktails.

Start the new year off with a shelf full of inspiration for honing new habits for health, healing, and even fun.

El-Mohtar’s solo debut is a heart-wrenching fairy tale about the bonds of love and family. It’s a murder ballad in book form that will linger long after the final page is turned.

Beg, Borrow, or Steal by Sarah Adams is the top holds title of the week. LibraryReads and Library Journal offer read-alikes for patrons waiting to read this buzziest book.

Beck and Connie are wonderful, delightful characters, and their romance will keep readers turning the pages of the latest from Stein.

The author of Where They Last Saw Her brings back Cash Blackbear in a tragic, unforgiving crime novel that emphasizes the perils of the foster care system for Indigenous children.

On December 9, the American Library Association (ALA) announced that it will receive an approximately $25 million bequest from James W. Lewis, senior vice president and senior relationship manager of the Lewis Group, an investment company within the Washington, DC, office of Merrill Lynch, to fund library school scholarships for students with demonstrated financial needs. The bequest is the largest in ALA’s history.

All the June 2025 Prepub Alerts in one place, plus a downloadable spreadsheet of all titles from every post.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, Joy-Ann Reid, Alyssa Cole, Essie Chambers, and more are nominated for NAACP Image Awards. Oprah picks Eckhart Tolle’s A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose for her 110th book club. Other January book club picks include Kate Fagan’s The Three Lives of Cate Kay (Reese Witherspoon and Target), Emma Knight’s The Life Cycle of the Common Octopus (Read with Jenna and Barnes & Noble), and Karissa Chen’s Homeseeking (GMA and Good Housekeeping). LibraryReads and LJ offer read-alikes for top holds title Beg, Borrow, or Steal by Sarah Adams. Reba McEntire will star in and produce an adaptation of Fannie Flagg’s The All-Girl Filling Station’s Last Reunion. Plus, Eliza Kennedy’s forthcoming novel Lucky Night will be adapted for the stage.

Los Angeles Public Library director John F. Szabo connects with every corner of his adopted city through innovation and compassion.

LitHub releases the list of its most anticipated books of 2025. New year previews also arrive from Electric Lit, BookRiot, and Vogue. Barnes & Noble announces plans to open 60 new stores in 2025. Meta signals an end to its third-party fact-checking program. Diana Gabaldon shares a new Outlander excerpt. Vox examines: “Are men’s reading habits truly a national crisis?” Bestselling thriller author Andrew Pyper has died at the age of 56.

Are libraries the key to living your best life?

Beg, Borrow, or Steal by Sarah Adams leads holds this week. Also in demand are titles by James Patterson and Brian Sitts, Fiona Davis, Danielle Steel, and Alafair Burke. People’s book of the week is Eddie Winston Is Looking for Love by Marianne Cronin. Audiofile announces the January Earphones Award winners. Jenna Bush Hager selects The Life Cycle of the Common Octopus by Emma Knight for her January book club. The film and TV adaptations for Conclave, Wicked, Shōgun, I’m Still Here, and The Penguin win Golden Globes. Plus, what to read in 2025.

Aisha Johnson, associate dean for academic affairs and outreach at the Georgia Institute of Technology Libraries, was named a 2024 Library Journal Mover & Shaker for her work on Sustainable Leadership as a Solution for Representation and Inclusion in LIS: A Bibliography and Toolkit. We recently spoke with Johnson for insights and updates on her work.