Best of the Best Books 2022

Once again, Friends of HCL has pored over the most popular best-of lists for the definitive top ten fiction and nonfiction titles of the year. Peruse the best of the best picks below, alphabetical by author. Looking for more reading inspiration? Check out HCL staff picks for adult fiction, nonfiction, and youth titles. Season’s readings!

Fiction

Book cover of Trust by Hernan Diaz

Trust

Hernan Diaz

An unparalleled novel about money, power, intimacy, and perception, told through an intricate web of nested plotlines.

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Book cover of The Candy House by Jennifer Egan

The Candy House

Jennifer Egan

From one of the most celebrated writers of our time comes a novel about memory and the quest for authenticity and human connection. A follow up to the Pulitzer Prize-winning A Visit from the Goon Squad.

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Book cover of If I Survive You by Jonathan Escoffery

If I Survive You

Jonathan Escoffery

A major debut, blazing with style and heart, that follows a Jamaican family striving for more in Miami. An introduction to Escoffery, a profound generational storyteller.

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Book cover of The Rabbit Hutch by Tess Gunty

The Rabbit Hutch

Tess Gunty

Set over one sweltering week in July and culminating in a bizarre act of violence, The Rabbit Hutch is a savagely beautiful and bitingly funny snapshot of contemporary America. Winner of the National Book Award.

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The dark blue cover of Signal Fires by Dani Shapiro, featuring a silhouetted pine tree with two figures standing below.

Vladimir

Julia May Jonas

Propulsive, darkly funny, and wildly entertaining, Vladimir perfectly captures the personal and political minefield of our current moment, exposing the grey area between power and desire.

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Book cover of Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

Demon Copperhead

Barbara Kingsolver

The legendary novelist returns with a modern-day update of David Copperfield, set in the mountains of southern Appalachia.

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Book cover of Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel

Sea of Tranquility 

Emily St. John Mandel

As human and tender as it is intellectually playful, Mandel’s novel of time travel and metaphysics builds on her wildly successful previous works, Station Eleven and The Glass Hotel.

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Book cover of Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng

Our Missing Hearts

Celeste Ng

From the bestselling author of Little Fires Everywhere, a new dystopian novel about the power of art, the legacies we pass on to our children, and our ability to survive a broken world with hearts intact.

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Book cover of The Furrows by Namwali Serpell

The Furrows

Namwali Serpell

A bold exploration of memory and mourning that twists unexpectedly into a story of mistaken identity, double consciousness, and the wishful—and sometimes willful—longing for reunion with those we’ve lost.​​​​

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Book cover of Tomorrow, and Tomorrrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow

Gabrielle Zevin​​

Spanning thirty years and multiple locations, a dazzling and intricately imagined novel that examines the multifarious nature of identity, the redemptive possibilities in play, and above all, our need to love and be loved. From the author of The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry.

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Non-Fiction

Book cover of Strangers to Ourselves by Rachel Aviv

Strangers to Ourselves

Rachel Aviv

The acclaimed, award-winning New Yorker writer offers a groundbreaking exploration of mental illness, illuminating the startling connections between diagnosis and identity.

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Book cover of Ducks by Kate Beaton

Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands

Kate Beaton

This nonfiction graphic narrative, set in Canada’s oil sands, is an untold story of our neighbor to the north: a country that prides itself on its egalitarian ethos and natural beauty while simultaneously exploiting both the riches of its land and the humanity of its people.

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Book cover of Also a Poet by Ada Calhoun

Also a Poet: Frank O'Hara, My Father, and Me

Ada Calhoun

In reckoning with her unique heritage, as well as providing new insights into the life of one of our most important poets, Calhoun offers a hopeful meditation on parents, children, and artistic ambition.

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Book cover of Easy Beauty by Chloé Cooper Jones

Easy Beauty

Chloé Cooper Jones

From Pulitzer finalist Chloé Cooper Jones, a groundbreaking memoir about disability, motherhood, and the search for a new way of seeing and being seen.

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Book cover of Stay True by Hua Hsu

Stay True

Hua Hsu

A coming-of-age story that details both the ordinary and extraordinary, Stay True is a bracing memoir about growing up, friendship, grief, and the solace that can be found through art.

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Book cover of Constructing a Nervous System by Margo Jefferson

Constructing a Nervous System

Margo Jefferson

In her new memoir, Jefferson fuses the criticism that she is known for, fragments of the family members she grieves for, and signal moments from her life into a wildly innovative work of depth and beauty.

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Book cover of The Song of the Cell by Siddhartha Mukherjee

The Song of the Cell

Siddhartha Mukherjee

From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Emperor of All Maladies, an exploration of medicine and our radical new ability to manipulate cells.

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Book cover of The Revolutionary: Samuel Adams by Stacy Schiff

The Revolutionary: Samuel Adams

Stacy Schiff

Celebrated as one of the most influential biographers of our time, Schiff (Cleopatra, The Witches: Salem, 1692) returns with the rollicking story of America’s most elusive founding father.

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Book cover of Lost & Found by Kathryn Schulz

Lost & Found

Kathryn Schulz

This marvelous work of nonfiction is part memoir, part guidebook to sustaining wonder and gratitude in the face of loss and grief. Award-winning author Schulz writes with humor, curiosity, and tenderness.

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Book cover of An Immense World by Ed Yong

An Immense World

Ed Yong

A tour of the radically different ways that animals perceive the world that will fill you with wonder and forever alter your perspective, from Pulitzer Prize–winning science journalist Ed Yong.

​​​Hold at HCL

 

If you didn't spot a title on this list that you're itching to get your hands on, create a personalized reading list in collaboration with Hennepin County Library professionals. You can fill out this form to receive custom recommendations tailored to your interests and favorite books!