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The week of September 23, 2025 Fall is the season of apples and books. “I read a book one day and my whole life was changed.” ― Orhan Pamuk From The New Life2006 Nobel Literature Prize Winner The approach of autumn means many things. It is the school season. The football season. The time of apples and cider and holidays. In the south, it is the end of the hurricane season. In the mountains, it is the beginning of the leaf season. And in the book world, it is the Book Prize season. The winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature will be announced on October 9, one of the few events in the book world to inspire actual odds-making and betting. The Booker Prize just announced it’s short list, which includes Saou Ichikawa’s Hunchback, a Southern indie bookseller favorite and this week’s "Book Buzz" book. The National Book Foundation has published its long list for the 2025 National Book Awards. Once again, many of the titles on the list will be familiar to SBR readers because they are beloved by Southern booksellers: Flashlight by Susan Choi, One Day Every Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad , and We Do Not Part by Han Kang are also books that have been "buzzed" on SBR. But here are some of the other books on the NBF long list that may have slipped under readers’ radar (although not that of indie booksellers); Sisters by Jonas Hassen Khemiri (Fiction) The Corruption of Hollis Brown by K. Ancrum (Young Adult) The New Economy by Gabrielle Calvocoressi (Poetry) Sad Tiger by Neige Sinno, Natasha Lehrer (trans.) (Translated Literature) Things in Nature Merely Grow by Yiyun Li (Nonfiction) |
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Read This Now! Recommended by Southern indies… |
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The Story of My Anger by Jasminne Mendez Hispanic & Latino, Poetry, Young Adult Fiction Jasminne Mendez teaches an important tale of standing up for what you believe in and against those who seek to bring you down. The heroine, Yuliete Lopez, holds a strong sense of justice, thanks in part to the activism efforts of her older brother. She and her friends work diligently to raise awareness about the discrimination she has faced in theater, and protest the banning of books at the school. Reviewed by Molly Reinhardt, Main Street Books in Davidson, North Carolina |
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A Guardian and a Thief by Megha Majumdar Adult Fiction, Fiction, Immigration, India, Literary, World Literature An extremely well-written novel set in near-future India, as climate change has decimated the country at all levels. A family is attempting to follow the Dad, who has already been accepted with a work Visa in the United States. Megha Majumdar provides us with a story about how far a mother will go to provide for her child in dire circumstances and how we might judge others while avoiding our own mirror. It is a timely novel that weaves in how policies and politics abroad can also derail your best-laid plans. Reviewed by Jim Clemmons, Sundog Books in Santa Rosa Beach, Florida |
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What We Can Know by Ian McEwan Adult Fiction, Fiction, Immigration, India, Literary, World Literature I’m gonna need a minute after this one. This book has me questioning every motive of every person I’ve ever met. Even if I haven’t met you, you’re included in my scrutiny if I’ve read about you, seen a picture of you or been made aware of your existence. I have more questions than answers right now. WHAT ACTUALLY CAN WE KNOW?!?! Reviewed by Amanda Kirkland, G. J. Ford Bookshop in St. Simons Island, Georgia |
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We Love You, Bunny by Mona Awad Adult Fiction, Fiction, Literary
A September Read This Next! Title Awad, in this perfect follow-up to a masterful weird-girl gory cult favorite, has once again crafted the perfect campy bloody celebration of striking prose, gorgeous characters, and sardonic horror. Not only is this sequel the perfect addition to its sibling, but it, frankly, outshines it by cracking open the minds of our beloved quartet of intriguingly odd female villains and introducing the oh-so-f*cking lovable point of view of their very first creation. This book had me fully geeked out over a perfectly silly bunny-human hybrid and an inanimate toy horse. Like, seriously, I was in utter raptures while reading about the fate of a sensitive bunny man and his toy pony and his trusty axe. Like, work. Mona Awad, you are The Diva. Reviewed by Joshua Lambie, Underground Books in Carrollton, Georgia |
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Bookseller Buzz |
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Hunchback by Saou Ichikawa  I wrote it in a month-long spurt, and sent it to the publisher. I didn’t do any research for the book, but I drew upon years of personal experience, and the history of disabled people that I studied at university helped me, too. I was conscious that it was special in the sense that I knew Shaka was a protagonist of a kind that hadn’t been written before.”
― Saou Ichikawa and Polly Barton, Interview, The Booker Prize Hunchback by Saou Ichikawa 
Saou Ichikawa graduated from the School of Human Sciences, Waseda University. Her bestselling debut novel, Hunchback, won the Bungakukai Prize for New Writers, and she is the first author with a physical disability to receive the Akutagawa Prize, one of Japan’s top literary awards. She has congenital myopathy and uses a ventilator and an electric wheelchair. Ichikawa lives outside Tokyo. Polly Barton is an award-winning translator and writer. She lives in Bristol, England. |
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Pick a Color by Souvankham Thammavongsa Adult Fiction, Asian American & Pacific Islander, Cultural Heritage, Family Life, Fiction What sorts of communities can you build when the world refuses to see you? Pick a Color reminds me of Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway: a short novel meandering through the happenings of one single day. However, Pick a Color focuses on the microcosm of a quaint nail salon run by quick-witted, wisecracking Lao women, who build profound relationships in a world of privilege and racially-charged power dynamics. In the mind of Ning, the salon’s owner and a retired boxer, the prose reads like a boxing match, all swift jabs and feints. Through Thammavongsa’s incredible storytelling skills, the reader learns the ways in which Ning and her employees makes themselves known, how they tries to find stability in a fast-paced capitalist world. Reviewed by Catherine Pabalate, Epilogue Books Chocolate Brews in Chapel Hill, North Carolina |
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Night People by Mark Ronson Adult Nonfiction, Biography & Autobiography, Memoirs As a fan of his own music, I was intrigued what a book on Ronson’s early days learning how to DJ in 1990s New York would be like. I cracked the (digital) spine and was finished in less than two days, whisked along by the storytelling, name-dropping, nineties nostalgia. Like Questlove’s recent books on hip-hop and music generally, I found myself regularly pausing my reading to listen to songs I either didn’t know or hadn’t heard for years, a soundtrack that added even more to the reading experience. Ronson floats through NYC and the names fly, from Trumps and Diddys to Lennons and Jay-Z’s as he charts his part-fortuitous, part-hard-working rise through the small club DJ scene (some of whose names inadvertently seem like rejected Stefan scenes from SNL: "At the same time, highly exclusive lounges like Wax, Moomba, and Veruka were redefining nightlife…"). His writing style is simple, fun and friendly, making you feel like one of the crew tagging along as he tells of "burning the candle at both ends with a blowtorch," or of a teacher being "the kind of person who’d make you want to graduate and open a sociology store, or whatever it was that sociologists did.."Ending with some poignant self-reflection and a look at the changes in contemporary music (and life generally: "Part of what made our era so special was the absence of surveillance. People were completely in the moment."), I’m already looking forward to the follow-up and Ronson’s shift from record spinner to record maker – it can’t come soon enough for this fellow UK transplant to the US. Reviewed by Doron Klemer, Octavia Books in New Orleans, Louisiana |
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The Forgotten Teachers by Brian Isett Biology, Science & Nature, Young Adult Nonfiction What a gorgeous work of art this book is–filled with deep reverence for the interconnection of life and those forces that have "taught each species a particular piece of the story that unites all of life." Isett and Biçen pull from mystical spiritual symbolism to impart the beauty and importance of their message, creating a tome that has an aura of the ancient, akin to an illuminated manuscript. This is one of those books that will blow open your mind and rearrange your mind, read it now. Reviewed by Hannah DeCamp, Avid Bookshop in Athens, Georgia |
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Make Me a Monster by Kalynn Bayron Occult & Supernatural, Paranormal, Young Adult Fiction  A September/October Read This Next! Kids Title Growing up in a family of morticians, Meka isn’t exactly squeamish about death, but when her world is turned upside down by tragedy, life after death takes on a very different meaning. A Frankenstein reimagining with bittersweet romance and a menacing cult, this is well worth a read. Reviewed by Matilda McNeely, Little Shop of Stories in Decatur, Georgia |
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Scarlet Morning, Book 1: Scarlet Morning by ND Stevenson Adolescence & Coming of Age, Children, Juvenile Fiction, Social Themes This story is beautiful and worth reading for many reasons. What I love most is it feels like a fulfilled promise to our younger selves, quite literally being a story ND Stevenson began writing at the age of 12 years old. They would set it down, forget about it, but eventually come back to it. And you can feel that sense of being young, a bit fearless, a bit brave, and hopeful. I had so much fun with these characters, with this epic adventure of a story, of found family, and mystery, of pirates, and so much more. Reviewed by Morgan DePerno, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, North Carolina |
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Cabin Head and Tree Head (Cabin Head and Tree Head, Book #1) by Scott Campbell Children, Comics & Graphic Novels, Humorous, Juvenile Fiction Ready for adventure? Pack your bags and join Cabin Head and Tree Head as they save the world without losing their heads. The playful comic book-style illustrations paired with hilarious stories will have you falling head over heels with laughter! A truly unique picture book about once-in-a-lifetime friends. Reviewed by Laura Hoefener, Bookmiser in Marietta, Georgia |
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Decide for Yourself Books that appear on PEN America’s list of challenged books. |
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Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas Banned Books, LGBTQ+, Young Adult Fiction Filled with wit, culture, and a wonderful depiction of LGBTQ+ youth, Cemetery Boys was a fast-paced and heartwarming read. I would definitely recommend this to any YA reader! Reviewed by Ashton Ahart, Page 158 Books in Wake Forest, North Carolina |
Southern Bestsellers What’s popular this week with Southern Readers. |
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Clown Town by Mick Herron Adult Fiction, Bestsellers, Espionage, Fiction, Thrillers I loved this book! Clown Town is classic Mick Herron with his evolving cast of Slough House joes. The book collection of a deceased former First Desk is sent to the MI5 library, but there is a book missing, or is it, and is it even a book? And when MI5’s First Desk and a disgraced politician start asking for help, the question becomes who’s playing whom, because “all spies lie.” This fast-paced novel is engaging, surprising, and very well written. Crafted with dry wit and wry comments, this thriller is an absolute pleasure to read. Also, for those needing novel ways to insult their co-workers, look no further than Jackson Lamb – and in this book the invectives are masterful! Reviewed by Lia Lent, Wordsworth Books in Little Rock, Arkansas |
     [ See the full list ] |
Parting Thought “The human species thinks in metaphors and learns through stories.” |
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Publisher:
The Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance /
siba@sibaweb.com |
SIBA | 51 Pleasant Ridge Drive | Asheville, NC 28805
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