Like many book lovers, I love seeing how new releases perform every year. The publishing industry never stops, and new books are constantly being released. For the past five years Barnes & Noble has chosen a Book of the Year and for the first time this year, an Author of the Year. Booksellers are asked to nominate books they have loved recommending to customers. Once the list is made, the booksellers are then asked to vote on their favorite. These titles are sure to gain popularity for the authors and to give them a much larger platform to promote future works. Before we get to the winners, let’s take a look at some of the finalists.  

In total, twelve books made the voting roster this year. The finalist included: The Puppets of Spelhorst by Katie DiCamillo, The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder by David Grann, The Story of Art Without Men by Katy Hessel, Yellowface by R. F. Kuang, The Heave & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride, Zilot & Other Important Rhymes by Bob Odenkirk, Chili Crisp: 50+ Recipes to Satisfy Your Spicy, Crunchy, Garlicky Cravings by James Park, The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters, Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross, The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin, Let Us Descend by Jesmyn Ward, and Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros.  

My favorite part of the Barnes & Noble finalists is how diverse the books are. There are a handful of novels, of course, but there are also nonfiction works that span multiple fields and a few children’s books to top it off. This finalist list really showcases the diverse interests and customers Barnes & Noble serves.  

But of course, all competitions have to have a winner. This year’s Barnes & Noble Book of the Year is The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride. Barnes and Noble summarizes the story:  

“In 1972, when workers in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, were digging the foundations for a new development, the last thing they expected to find was a skeleton at the bottom of a well. Who the skeleton was and how it got there were two of the long-held secrets kept by the residents of Chicken Hill, the dilapidated neighborhood where immigrant Jews and African Americans lived side by side and shared ambitions and sorrows. Chicken Hill was where Moshe and Chona Ludlow lived when Moshe integrated his theater and where Chona ran the Heaven & Earth Grocery Store. When the state came looking for a deaf boy to institutionalize him, it was Chona and Nate Timblin, the Black janitor at Moshe’s theater and the unofficial leader of the Black community on Chicken Hill, who worked together to keep the boy safe. 

As these characters’ stories overlap and deepen, it becomes clear how much the people who live on the margins of white, Christian America struggle and what they must do to survive. When the truth is finally revealed about what happened on Chicken Hill and the part the town’s white establishment played in it, McBride shows us that even in dark times, it is love and community—heaven and earth—that sustain us.
Bringing his masterly storytelling skills and his deep faith in humanity to The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store, James McBride has written a novel as compassionate as Deacon King Kong and as inventive as The Good Lord Bird.”  

McBride’s story has touched many and will make a great edition to the B&N Book of the Year alum.  

Barnes & Noble’s first Author of the Year is David Grann. A nonfiction author known for his ability to tell thrilling stories while recounting history. His first book in 2009, The Lost City of Z, was the beginning of an astonishing career that climaxed earlier this year with the release of the blockbuster movie Killers of the Flower Moon starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Lilly Gladstone, which was based off Grann’s book of the same title. His 2023 book, The Wager, was also featured among the finalists for Book of the Year.  

Barnes & Noble have created two great traditions to keep individuals engaged in contemporary releases. I know that as I work through the list of finalists, I will begin to look forward to next year’s nominations. 

Aubrey Roemmich is a Dakota Student Section Editor. She can be reached at [email protected].