Welcome to Today in Books, our daily round-up of literary headlines at the intersection of politics, culture, media, and more.
The Best American Novels According to Barnes & Noble
With the 250th anniversary of the United States approaching, some ‘America-centric book lists’ have emerged. Barnes & Noble is the latest to throw its hat in the ring, with a list of American novels curated by American authors. The authors asked to share their Great American Novel range from established, bestsellers (like Ann Patchett, Hernan Diaz, Tananariv Due, Ayad Akhtar, and Min Jin Lee) to debut authors (like Caro Claire Burke, Vincent Yu, and Woody Brown) who have already made an impact. Some authors mention books that aren’t surprising – by “surprising” I mean that they are books that are often required reading in high school (think: the great Gatsby And catch 22). Then there are books by authors who are not often (or ever) included in high school curriculums, such as experimental This is a novel and not another novel Subtle Horrors, by David Markson hill house haunt by Shirley Jackson, and two of my favorite books of all time, Dear And bluest eye By Toni Morrison.
Most Popular Books on Kindle
Most read books on Kindle I was a little surprised. Unless I’ve overlooked something, they’re all written by white people and are best-selling books even outside the Amazon/Kindle ecosystem. Those things were not surprising. i expected current it books first year Cairo by Claire Burke, dungeon crawler carl By Matt Dinniman, reporter by Virginia Evans, and Stranger By Belle Burden—To Make the List. I found the inclusion of books like stripped down by bunny xo (never heard of him, no shade), 1929 by Andrew Ross Sorkin (apparently, people are really interested in learning about the 1929 crash that caused the Great Depression, which I’m not mad at), and the subtle art of not giving a fuck By Mark Manson (Still? Still, No Shadow). Additionally, Kindle readers are still very interested in reading That UK Magical School series.
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The Most Anticipated Books for Summer and Fall by Women, BIPOC Editions
For electric litLucy Yu, author and owner of You & Me Books in Manhattan, has taken over the writing List of Most Anticipated Books by Women of Color From Ro Kwon. The list is a mix of hardcovers and paperbacks coming out this summer and fall, and includes fiction and nonfiction. There are also some children’s books here.
I was already very excited for some of these (I punched an alien and now we’re in couples therapy By Kimberly Laming, taipei story By RF Kuang, True statement from First Lady Freeman By Disha Filyaev, she picked flowers on sunday Yah Yah by Scholfield, and Weavingshaw by Heba al-Wasiti), and has been put on others (hustle, baby By Priya Gans, take what you can By Naima Koster, to god By Esther Yee, Love, Witches, and Wahala by Christine Cowan, and moon without stars by Chanel Miller, and more). I think there are some books that need to be read in 2026 (Dupree’s seven daughters By Nikesha Ellis Williams and relatives By Tayari Jones). Yu connects all the books with common themes she noted: “In these upcoming literary works, I see major commonalities in the themes of comfort, retreat, confrontation, grief, motherhood, and liberation.” Overall, 10/10 list.
Read the 2026 Halfway Check-in Survey in more depth
We’re somehow halfway through the year, and we want to see how your reading challenge is going. My colleague Danica Ellis has conducted a survey, the results of which she will share in two weeks. If you would like to share your progress, please fill out google formsAnd we’ll let you know how your fellow Read Harder Challenge takers are doing.
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