The Barnes & Noble Book of the Year
Chosen by Our Booksellers, for Our Readers
2023 Barnes & Noble Book of the Year
Shop NowFrom the author of Deacon King Kong and National Book Award winner The Good Lord Bird comes the Barnes & Noble 2023 Book of the Year, The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store, a stunning novel about a small town and the bonds of community that are formed between marginalized groups in order to survive.
Learn more about The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store on Poured Over: The B&N Podcast and read more about James McBride on B&N Reads.
2023 Barnes & Noble Author of the Year
Learn MoreDavid Grann
David Grann is the inaugural recipient of the Author of the Year award from Barnes & Noble in 2023, celebrating his impressive array of achievements that began in 2009 with The Lost City of Z and extended into 2023 with The Wager and the film adaptation of Killers of the Flower Moon. Grann’s writing style, mixing thriller-like stakes and riveting history, solidifies him as one of the literary world’s essential nonfiction voices.
Learn more about The Wager on Poured Over: The B&N Podcast and read more about David Grann on B&N Reads.
David Grann is the inaugural recipient of the Author of the Year award from Barnes & Noble in 2023, celebrating his impressive array of achievements that began in 2009 with The Lost City of Z and extended into 2023 with The Wager and the film adaptation of Killers of the Flower Moon. Grann’s writing style, mixing thriller-like stakes and riveting history, solidifies him as one of the literary world’s essential nonfiction voices.
Learn more about The Wager on Poured Over: The B&N Podcast and read more about David Grann on B&N Reads.
Learn More About Our Book of the Year Picks
Read MoreFinalist: The Puppets of Spelhorst
Shop NowThe magical mind of Kate DiCamillo paired with Julie Morstad’s gorgeous illustrations makes for an unforgettable narrative about five puppets intent on changing their lot in life.
Read more in B&N Reads.
Finalist: The Wager
Shop NowThis seamless slam-dunk of epic history-telling from the author of the bestselling Killers of the Flower Moon is an 18th-century puzzle of high seas intrigue, a fateful shipwreck, mutiny and a real-life "Lord of the Flies" descent into mayhem, culminating in a gripping courtroom battle where opposing truths hang in the balance. Rousing, engrossing and such a ride!
Learn more on Poured Over: The B&N Podcast.
Finalist: The Story of Art Without Men
Shop NowIn this long-awaited publication, we finally learn about the other half. Katy Hessel completely rewrites our understanding of art history, starting with Plautilla Nelli, the first known Florentine female Renaissance artist, through basically yesterday. This is a mind blowing, incredibly important and fantastic read.
Learn more on Poured Over: The B&N Podcast.
Finalist: Yellowface
Shop NowFrom the bestselling author of Babel and The Poppy War trilogy, Yellowface is a masterful interrogation of white privilege and cultural appropriation within the publishing industry that will stick with you long after you've finished the last page.
Learn more on Poured Over: The B&N Podcast.
Finalist: Zilot & Other Important Rhymes
Shop NowWho better to deliver the goofy gospel than Emmy Award-winning and New York Times bestselling writer and comedian Bob Odenkirk and his daughter, illustrator Erin Odenkirk. This will delight readers young and old and anyone who isn’t boring…or striving to be less boring.
Finalist: Chili Crisp
Shop NowThe sheer multitude of possibilities that chili crisp presents as an ingredient have never been as comprehensively explored as they are here. James Park is a master of said multitude and he’s here to spread the joy of chili crisp to one and all. This is one condiment with so much delicious potential.
Finalist: The Berry Pickers
Shop NowA profoundly moving novel told from the alternating point of view of two siblings, this is the story of a Mi’kmaq girl gone missing and the lasting effect it has on her family. Inspired by family stories and written in exacting prose, this gorgeous narrative will linger long after you put it down.
Learn more on Poured Over: The B&N Podcast.
Finalist: Divine Rivals
Shop NowSweeping and romantic, Divine Rivals is the explosive kick off to a new series from Rebecca Ross. Pick up this inventive and harrowing story about two young journalists and a war that has the fate of mankind hanging in the balance.
Finalist: The Creative Act
Shop NowThe Creative Act sits at the intersection of self-help and spirituality. With his extraordinary career in the music business, Rick Rubin has plenty to say about the art of being an artist and what it takes to be truly creative. We love the gorgeous cover design.
Finalist: Let Us Descend
Shop NowJesmyn Ward is always brilliant, and this is no exception. Equally devastating and uplifting, this is the story of both slavery and Black American reclamation of the South. Told with gorgeous, lyrical prose, it will satiate any literary appetite.
Learn more on Poured Over: The B&N Podcast.
Finalist: Fourth Wing
Shop NowA young scribe is thrust into an elite war college for dragon riders where the only rule is graduate or perish. An addictive fantasy with epic levels of spice and world-building.