Top Fiction:

Memory / Komarr / A Civil Campaign (Bujold). What a run Bujuld had with these three novels! ‘Memory’ is a touching meditation on the nature of memory and the pain of supporting a dementia sufferer. ‘Komarr’ is a mystery, and a romance, and a space adventure. ‘A Civil Campaign’ is a rollicking farce that made me laugh so hard and so long, I regularly put the book down to wipe my eyes. Bujold is an unfairly overlooked writer - perhaps because she writes genre fiction. But she’s so versatile, so funny, so warm, that I adore her. You must read Lois McMaster Bujold! You’ll be glad you did!

The Winter of Our Discontent (Steinbeck). A towering masterpiece from one of the greatest writers this country has produced.

Nemesis Games / Tiamat’s Wrath / Leviathan Falls (Corey). Perhaps the greatest American science fiction series gets the conclusion it deserves.

The Dungeon Anarchist’s Cookbook / The Butchers’ Masquerade / The Eye of the Bedlam Bride (Dinniman). Irreverent, horrifying, hilarious, sad, and surprisingly insightful, these three entries in the “Dungeon Crawler Carl” series hooked me so deeply, I forgot to eat. These are the best severed-yet-still-sentient-rubber-sex-doll-head -- related novels I have ever read.

Bookshops & Bonedust / Legends & Lattes (Baldree). These books, which basically created the “cozy fantasy” genre, are so delightful that I’ve been giving copies away to my friends and relatives. If you’re in the market for a book about good people trying to do the right thing, you’ve come to the right place.

Top Nonfiction:

Top Nonfiction ’25:

The Limits of Expertise: Rethinking Pilot Error and the Causes of Airline Accidents (Dismukes, Key). This book may have limited appeal to those outside of my industry, but absolutely everyone involved in airline operations should read it. It should be required. We should hold seminars on it. It’s that good.

A Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave (Douglass). Y’know why we Americans remember Douglass’s name today? This book. Read it.

Astrophysics for People in a Hurry (Tyson). America’s most popular science educator conveys the key questions facing astrophysicists with clarity and brevity.

America is in the Heart: A Personal History (Bulosan). The book for those who want to begin to understand the Filipino immigrant experience in the U.S. during the first half of the 20th Century.

Think Again: The Power of Knowing what You Don’t Know (Grant). An important book about the power of mental flexibility. Reading this book will help make you a better person.

Top Comics:

Star Trek: Lower Decks - Warp Your Own Way (North). This book turns the whole idea of narrative comics on its head. It takes a simple format and premise where no one has gone before.

The Human Target, vol. 2 (King). This is a visually stunning comic that tells a heartbreaking story of love and sacrifice. It’s not the kind of thing I’ve come to expect from Marvel. Color me not just surprised, but astounded and thrilled.

Fantastic Four, vol. 2: Four Stories about Hope (North). We could all use a little hope right about now.

Reckless, vol. 2: Friend of the Devil (Brubaker). As delicious a slice of sunny L.A. noir as you could possibly want.

The Expanse: Dragon Tooth, vol. 3 (Diggle). This finishes the 3-volume Dragon Tooth not just strongly, but triumphantly. Seek out this series!