Best Books of 2015: Your Favorites!

By now, most publications have weighed in with their “Best Books of 2015” lists. While many find them to be great collection development tools, it can be disappointing when our favorite reads have been overlooked.  Let’s chat about our favorite reads for 2015 (2015 publication date only, please). If your favorites received tons of starred reviews and/or inclusion in many “Best of 2015” lists, please let us know! But if you have some favorites that you feel deserve wider recognition, this is your chance to let your fellow librarians know!

While these books are not the only books I would include in my favorites list, these are at the top of the list:

(image taken from Kate Hannigan’s website)

If you need an action-packed historical fiction novel with plenty of humor, gravitas, and a charming aunt-niece relationship, you should definitely read The Detective’s Assistant. Based on the real-life Kate Warne, the first female private investigator, this is a madcap read that will appeal to a wide variety of readers.

(image taken from Macmillan’s website)

My Three Best Friends and Me, Zulay  features Zulay, a bright and spirited African-American first grader. Zulay is working on mastering her white cane with the assistance of an aid; she very much wants to participate in field day races with her friends and fellow classmates. Based on an actual first-grader who is blind, this is an upbeat and realistic look that will inform and inspire readers.

(image taken from Hachette catalog)

Disney Lucasfilm Press launched a dizzying amount of Star Wars books for children this year, including a retelling of the original trilogy written by three fantastic children’s authors. If you think these are your standard junior movie novelizations, you need to investigate these books! Alexandra Bracken launched the trilogy with A New Hope, which looks at the events in the first movie from the points of view from Luke, Han, and Leia. Adam Gidwitz followed with The Empire Strikes Back, which address the reader directly on the Jedi training path and offers an honestly moving overview of Jedi philosophy. Finally, Tom Angleberger (of Origami Yoda fame!) concludes with Return of the Jedi, in which hilarious annotations offer unique insights into the events.

(image taken from Mitali Perkins’s website for the book)

Tiger Boy  is an eye-opening look at the delicate balance between wildlife and humans in a remote Bengal village. When a tiger cub goes missing from its nature reserve, young Neel joins the search in order to protect her from a corrupt real estate developer. Not only does Perkins highlight the conflict between animals and humans, but she also portrays the precious commodities of education in Neel’s village (Neel is studying for a scholarship at a prestigious boarding school, and his entire village is counting on him to win it).

What were your favorite reads in 2015 (published in 2015)? Let us know in the comments!