The New York Public Library (NYPL) has released its list of the best books of 2022. This tradition has been going strong for almost a century and it continues with the help of the librarians and staff that work there.
“One of the biggest strengths of The New York Public Library is the passion, knowledge, and diversity of our librarians and staff,” Emily Pullen, the manager of Reader Services and Engagement said. “Dozens of our most avid book lovers are enlisted each year to assess and select books that reflect the community and patrons we serve, to entice the most reluctant of readers, and excite the most fervent of bookworms.”
NYPL’s Lists of Best Books of 2022
Yes, you read that right, the NYPL has made a bunch of lists aimed at different reading groups. There are books for adults, teens, kids, and even Spanish readers. You can check out some of the books that made the list below.
Best Books for Kids
- Aviva vs. the Dybbuk by Mari Lowe
- Beauty Woke by NoNieqa Ramos, illustrated by Paola Escobar
- Blue: A History of the Color As Deep As the Sea and As Wide As the Sky by Nana Ekua Brew-Hammond, illustratedby Daniel Minter
- Maizy Chen’s Last Chance by Lisa Yee
- Nothing Special by Desiree Cooper, illustrated by Bec Sloane
- Seen and Unseen: What Dorothea Lange, Toyo Miyatake, and Ansel Adams’s Photographs Reveal about the Japanese American Incarceration by Elizabeth Partridge, illustrated by Lauren Tamaki
- Sir Ladybug by Corey R. Tabor
- Swim Team by Johnnie Christmas
- Ten Blocks to the Big Wok: A Chinatown Counting Book (English and Chinese Edition) by Ying-Hwa Hu
- Wednesday and Woof #1: Catastrophe by Sherri Winston, illustrated by Gladys Jose
Mejores Libros para Pequeños (Best books for kids in Spanish):
- A veces, yo soy todo lo que necesito by Juliana Perdomo
- ¡A viajar, semillas! by Lorena Ruiz
- La casita de Esperanza by Terry Catasús Jennings, illustrated by Raúl Coló
- La falda morada de Leo by Irma Borges, illustrated by Francesco Fagnani
- Las gallinas de Sonia by Phoebe Wahl, translated by Laura Piperno and Gema Zamorano
- 9 kilómetros by Claudio Aguilera, illustrated by Gabriela Lyon
- Sábado by Jorge Garza
- Tengo hambre by Menena Cottin
- Una noche sin dormir by Micaela Chirif, illustrated by Joaquín Camp
- Yo no fui by Ana Palmero, illustrated by Alejandra Acosta
Best Books for Teens
- All My Rage: A Novel by Sabaa Tahir
- Hell Followed with Us by Andrew Joseph White
- I Must Betray You by Ruta Sepetys
- I Rise by Marie Arnold
- Messy Roots: A Graphic Memoir of a Wuhanese American by Laura Gao
- Queer Ducks (and Other Animals): The Natural World of Animal Sexuality by Eliot Schrefer, illustrated by Jules Zuckerberg
- So This Is Ever After by F. T. Lukens
- The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School by Sonora Reyes
- The Weight of Blood by Tiffany D. Jackson
Zatanna: The Jewel of Gravesend by Alys Arden, illustrated by Jacquelin de Leon
Best Books for Adults:
- The Genesis of Misery by Neon Yang
- The High Desert: Black. Punk. Nowhere–A Memoir by James Spooner
- A Lady For a Duke by Alexis Hall
- Nettle & Bone by T. Kingfisher
- Path of Totality: Poems by Niina Pollari
- Shutter: A Novel by Ramona Emerson
- Solito: A Memoir by Javier Zamora
- The Song of the Cell by Siddhartha Mukherjee
- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Last Ronin by Kevin Eastman, Peter Laird & Tom Waltz
- Vladimir: A Novel by Julia May Jonas
Libraries Play an Important Role in Society
With the year coming to a close, we are seeing lists being curated by many organizations. There are some that are very highly respected and the NYPL is one of them. We have seen them fight against book banning and help the community as well as the rest of the country by giving them access to banned books.
Libraries are an essential part of our community and they have shown this year that they play a vital role in keeping free speech free. They also have a pulse on what people are reading and what new books they are a fan of.
Conclusion
How many of these books have you read or plan to read in the future? Let us know in the comments below. Until next time, happy reading!
Would love to get a list of book recs/current reads from your IG followers also!
Hmm. I’ll try to see if that turns into an article. I’ll be releasing the ny times list tomorrow and some best book lists in the coming days so a lot going on 😀
Sounds good to me, looking forward to the lists!