top books

not all of the winners were published in the listed year, because the committee reserves the right to disregard the linear nature of time. they're also listed alphabetically by title, because ranking things is not my thing.

	All the Living and the Dead by Hayley Campbell	did you know that the guy who plays the harmonica in the theme for the The Sopranos also makes death masks? now you do!
i read this collection in a single sitting and sat up for hours furious about how good it was.	The Beast You Are by Paul Tremblay
	Brainwyrms by Alison Rumfitt	one thing Alison Rumfitt is gonna do is publish the most gorgeously fucked up works of horror in any given year.
Ohio is a rotten place.	The Devil All the Time by Donald Ray Pollock
	Doppleganger by Naomi Klein	Klein literally never misses.
can someone please slide this book into Martin Scorsese's mailbox? i just think it would be a really good one for him to adapt...	A Fever in the Heartland by Timothy Egan
	Some Desperate Glory by Emily Tesh	an incredible space adventure that breaks your heart over and over.
impossible to forget or recommend.	Tender Is the Flesh by Augustina Bazterrica
	A Tiny Upward Shove by Melissa Chadburn	it made me cry and grieve for people i've never known.
the system was the monster all along.	We Were Once a Family by Roxanna Asgarian

	Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence by R.F. Kuang	this book creates a world that is both lush and brutal, and it broke my heart. it also offers a fantastic look into the way language and colonialism shape our world.
this book captures the feel of early Stephen King novels in the best possible way.	A Child Alone with Strangers by Philip Fracassi
	The Facemaker by Lindsey Fitzharris	a fascinating deep dive into a period of history that i wasn't familiar with.
this is a great text to start learning about the history of the labor movement in the United States.	Fight Like Hell by Kim Kelly
	Missing From the Village by Justin Ling	unwinds the case of a serial killer that everyone with power ignored.
beautiful and sad. it also reinforced my deep mistrust of the ocean.	Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield
	Red X by David Demchuk	a truly scary book that pairs well with the Missing From the Village.
a book that is equal parts infuriating and heartbreaking. also, Alex Jones and all his apologists can eat shit.	Sandy Hook by Elizabeth Williamson
	Scoundrel by Sarah Weinman	another exemplary piece of crime writing from Weinman.
one of the most gorgeously fucked up books i've ever read.	Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke by Eric LaRocca