The 2025 Libby Award Finalists
The finalists for the 2nd annual Libby Book Awards were just announced February 4th. The awards are chosen by librarians as the books that best ” captivated readers, sparked conversations, and kept us turning pages late into the night.”
The award categories include everything from horror to the trending romantasy. One thing we notice that sets these awards apart from other ones is that it also has a category for Best Cookbook. It also seems like in each category there is at least one book by a nonwhite author, and there are some queer authors here and there.
Below is a sampling from the 20 categories of finalists.
Best Adult Fiction
James by Percival Everett (available in ebook and audiobook)
The God of the Woods by Liz Moore (available in ebook and audiobook)
Playground by Richard Powers (available in ebook and audiobook)
The Women by Kristin Hannah (available in ebook and audiobook)
Long Island Compromise by Taffy Brodesser-Akner (available in ebook and audiobook)
Adult Nonfiction
By the Fire We Carry by Rebecca Nagle (available in ebook and audiobook)
There’s Always This Year by Hanif Abdurraqib (available in ebook and audiobook)
Challenger by Adam Higgenbotham (available in ebook and audiobook)
Revenge of the Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell (available in ebook and audiobook)
The Demon of Unrest by Erik Larson (available in ebook and audiobook)
YA Fiction
Heir by Sabaa Tahir (available in ebook and audiobook)
Ariel Crashes a Train by Olivia Cole (available in ebook and audiobook)
Twenty-Four Seconds from Now by Jason Reynolds (available in ebook and audiobook)
Don’t Let the Forest In by C.G. Drews (available in ebook and audiobook)
Looking for Smoke by K.A. Cobell (available in ebook and audiobook)
Audiobook of the Year
Martyr! By Kaveh Akbar (available in ebook and audiobook)
The Demon of Unrest by Erik Larson (available in ebook and audiobook)
A Letter to the Luminous Deep by Sylvie Cathrall (available in ebook and audiobook)
Women and Children First by Alina Grabowski (available in ebook and audiobook)
Sipsworth by Simon Van Booy (available in ebook and audiobook)
Debut Author of the Year
The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley (available in ebook and audiobook)
Swift River by Essie Chambers (available in ebook and audiobook)
Headshot by Rita Bullwinkel (available in ebook and audiobook)
Martyr! By Kaveh Akbar (available in ebook and audiobook)
I Hope This Finds You Well by Natalie Sue (available in ebook and audiobook)
Best Cookbook
Amrikan by Khushbu Shah (available in ebook)
Noodles, Rice, and Everything Spice by Christina De Witte (available in ebook)
Baking with Pride by Janusz Domangala (available in ebook)
The Bean Book by Steve Sando and Julia Newberry (available in ebook)
Anything’s Pastable by Dan Pashman (available in ebook)
Best Fantasy
Immortal Dark by Tigest Girma (available in ebook and audiobook)
The Bright Sword by Lev Grossman (available in ebook and audiobook)
The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo (available in ebook and audiobook)
A Fate Inked In Blood by Danielle L. Jensen (available in ebook and audiobook)
The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst (available in ebook and audiobook)
The winners of the 2025 Libby Book Awards will be announced on March 5, 2025. To learn more about the awards, visit Overdrive.
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