It’s a new year, and even if you’re still working your way through your 2025 to-be-read pile, there’s always room to add to your collection with some new books. (Buy another bookshelf if necessary.) 

The first three months of 2026 will see the release of titles by exciting new authors as well as veterans such as George Saunders, Tayari Jones, Helen Garner, Ibram X. Kendi, Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney, Naeem Murr, Heather Ann Thompson, Ian Buruma and Michael Pollan.

You never need an excuse to venture into your favorite local bookstore, but if you’re looking for one anyway, we’ve got you covered: Here are 38 new or forthcoming books to put on your shopping list.

“Call Me Ishmaelle” 

Author: Xiaolu Guo

What It’s About: Author and film director Guo’s latest novel is a feminist reimagining of Herman Melville’s classic “Moby-Dick.” In Guo’s version, the hero is a girl who disguises herself as a boy so she can pursue her dream of being a sailor; she later joins a whaling ship led by Captain Seneca, a free Black man who lost his leg to a whale.

Publication Date: out now

—

“Scavengers”

Author: Kathleen Boland

What It’s About: This debut novel follows Bea, a woman who loses her job as a commodities trader and ventures westward to Utah to reconnect with her irresponsible mother, Christy, who believes she is on the cusp of finding a buried treasure.

Publication Date: out now

—

“Lost Lambs”

Author: Madeline Cash

What It’s About: Cash’s debut novel tells the story of the unraveling of the Flynn family: Catherine and Bud are a couple in a failing open marriage, while their three daughters are all wrestling with their own demons. When one daughter investigates a possibly corrupt billionaire, the family is drawn into a criminal conspiracy.

Publication Date: out now

—

“Jean”

Author: Madeleine Dunnigan

What It’s About: The title character of Dunnigan’s novel, set in 1970s England, is a troubled 17-year-old boy sent to an alternative boarding school, and who falls in love with Tom, a charismatic boy who, unlike Jean, comes from a wealthy background.

Publication Date: out now

—

“Crux”

Author: Gabriel Tallent

What It’s About: Tallent’s acclaimed 2017 novel “My Beautiful Darling” shocked readers with its harrowing account of child abuse. His second book tells the story of Dan and Tamma, two high school seniors who pass the time by climbing boulders in the southern Mojave Desert.

Publication Date: Jan. 20

—

“Football”

Author: Chuck Klosterman

What It’s About: Klosterman is known for his brainy, but accessible, pop culture books, including “The Nineties.” His latest book, scheduled for publication just weeks before the Super Bowl, explains how the sport explains American culture as a whole.

Publication Date: Jan. 20

—

“Rough House: A Father, a Son, and the Pursuit of Pro Wrestling Glory”

Author: Alison Lyn Miller

Author: If you prefer your sports in rings instead of on fields, you might want to check out journalist Miller’s book about Hunter James, a young member of a wrestling family who is determined to become a star himself, training extensively and entering the world of indie wrestling.

Publication Date: Jan. 20

—

“Five Bullets: The Story of Bernie Goetz, New York’s Explosive ’80s, and the Subway Vigilante Trial That Divided the Nation”

Author: Elliot Williams

What It’s About: In 1984, Goetz opened fire on four Black teenagers in a New York City subway, claiming they tried to mug him. This book is an account of the shooting, the trial that ensued, and the aftermath, placing it all in the context of racial tensions in Reagan-era America.

Publication Date: Jan. 20

—

“Escape!”

Author: Stephen Fishbach

What It’s About: Former television executive — and two-time “Survivor” contestant — Fishbach’s debut novel is set in familiar terrain for him. It follows former reality TV star Kent Duvall, who participates in a new show in which people try to survive in a jungle, not knowing they might be pawns in a producer’s scheme.

Publication Date: Jan. 27

—

“Vigil”

Author: George Saunders

What It’s About: Saunders, mostly known as a short story author, published his first novel, the Booker Prize-winning “Lincoln in the Bardo,” in 2017. His new one tells the story of a young woman sent from the afterlife to guide a hateful oil baron through the process of dying — and what comes next.

Publication Date: Jan. 27

—

“The Final Score”

Author: Don Winslow

What It’s About: Winslow, who has gained acclaim with crime novels including “The Power of the Dog” and “City on Fire,” retired from writing, but it didn’t take. He’s back with a collection of six short novels that Stephen King, a longtime fan, called “the best crime fiction I’ve read in 20 years.”

Publication Date: Jan. 27

—

“The Hour of the Wolf”

Author: Fatima Bhutto

What It’s About: A member of one of Pakistan’s most famous political families — her father was the assassinated politician Murtaza Bhutto — Fatima Bhutto’s memoir tells the story of her escape from a toxic relationship, and her subsequent recovery, with some help from her beloved Jack Russell terrier, Coco.

Publication Date: Jan. 27

—

“Fear and Fury: The Reagan Eighties, the Bernie Goetz Shootings, and the Rebirth of White Rage”

Author: Heather Ann Thompson

What It’s About: Another account of the Bernhard Goetz shootings, this one promises new revelations about the case, and digs deep into both Goetz and the teenagers he shot. Historian Thompson won the Pulitzer Prize for “Blood in the Water,” her previous book, about the Attica Prison uprising.

Publication Date: Jan. 27

—

“Every Exit Brings You Home”

Author: Naeem Murr

What It’s About: The long-awaited third novel from Murr follows Jamal “Jack” Shaban, a Gazan immigrant and flight attendant, desperate to have a child with his wife, and who tries to prevent his neighbors from going bankrupt during a financial crisis.

Publication Date: Feb. 3

—

“The People Can Fly: American Promise, Black Prodigies, and the Greatest Miracle of All Time”

Author: Joshua Bennett

What It’s About: In his latest book, poet and MIT professor Bennett looks at the lives and careers of Black prodigies, including Stevie Wonder, Nikki Giovanni, and James Baldwin, exploring how supportive communities provide young geniuses the opportunity to thrive.

Publication Date: Feb. 3

—

“Superfan” 

Author: Jenny Tinghui Zhang

What It’s About: The second novel from Zhang, author of “Four Treasures of the Sky,” follows Minnie, a lonely and traumatized college freshman who becomes obsessed with Halo, a member of the boy band HOURglass who is harboring a dark secret about his past.

Publication Date: Feb. 3

—

“The Copywriter”

Author: Daniel Poppick

What It’s About: Poet Poppick’s fiction debut tells the story of D__, a poet with a day job as a copywriter at a start-up. Feeling that his world is on the verge of collapse, he starts to write in a notebook, penning dreams, fictional vignettes, and other things, in the hopes that it might start making everything make sense.

Publication Date: Feb. 3

—

“The Chosen and the Damned: Native Americans and the Making of Race in the United States”

Author: David J. Silverman

What It’s About: The latest from historian Silverberg, author of the acclaimed “This Land Is Their Land,” explores how racial lines were drawn in North America following the European colonization of the continent, and how those lines continue to resonate today.

Publication Date: Feb. 10

—

“Evil Genius”

Author: Claire Oshetsky

What It’s About: The latest book from Santa Cruz author Oshetsky is set in 1974 San Francisco, where Celia Dent, a 19-year-old woman whose work colleague is slain after an ill-fated love affair. Celia becomes obsessed with the idea of killing for love, and things eventually go too far.

Publication Date: Feb. 17

—

“Cleaner”

Author: Jess Shannon

What It’s About: Shannon (who, her biography notes, “hates cleaning”) makes her literary debut with a novel about a woman who, despite multiple degrees, struggles to find work until she takes a job as a cleaner at a museum. There, she makes the acquaintance of an artist and embarks on a steamy affair.

Publication Date: Feb. 17

—

“So Old, So Young”

Author: Grant Ginder

What It’s About: The latest from Laguna Beach native Ginder, author of “The People We Hate at the Wedding,” traces two decades in the lives of a group of six friends from college, as they reckon with relationships, careers, and aging.

Publication Date: Feb. 17

—

“A Hymn to Life: Shame Has to Change Sides”

Author: Gisèle Pelicot

What It’s About: The world was shocked in 2024 when a French man named Dominique Pelicot was convicted of raping his wife, Gisèle Pelicot, along with more than four dozen men whom he had recruited to assault her. The survivor tells her story of trauma and healing in this memoir. 

Publication Date: Feb. 17

—

“Playmakers: The Jewish Entrepreneurs Who Created the Toy Industry in America”

Author: Michael Kimmel

What It’s About: You might think teddy bears have been around forever, but they were actually created in the early 20th century by Morris and Rose Michtom in Brooklyn. Kimmel’s book tells the story of Jewish toy entrepreneurs, including the Michtoms and the founders of Hasbro and Mattel, in this history.

Publication Date: Feb. 17

—

“American Struggle: Democracy, Dissent, and the Pursuit of a More Perfect Union: An Anthology”

Editor: Jon Meacham

What It’s About: Best known for his biographies of politicians, including Andrew Jackson, Thomas Jefferson and John Lewis, Meacham aims to strike a hopeful note in this collection of documents from American history, including ones that shine light on figures like Abigail Adams, Fannie Lou Hamer, and Barack Obama.

Publication Date: Feb. 17

—

“A World Appears: A Journey Into Consciousness”

Author: Michael Pollan

What It’s About: Pollan has probed the science behind food in books including “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” and “In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto.” His latest book tackles the heady topic of consciousness from several different perspectives.

Publication Date: Feb. 24

—

“Kin”

Author: Tayari Jones

What It’s About: Jones’s most recent novel, “An American Marriage,” was a literary sensation, winning the Women’s Prize for Fiction and the Aspen Words Literary Prize. Her new one follows Vernice and Annie, best friends from Louisiana whose lives diverge, and who reunite after a tragedy.

Publication Date: Feb. 24

—

“Black Evidence: A History and a Warning”

Author: Candis Watts Smith

What It’s About: Duke University professor Smith’s latest book explores why American society is resistant to believing the voices of Black people in areas that include the law, healthcare, and science, offering a roadmap to a more equitable society.

Publication Date: March 3

—

“Stories: The Collected Short Fiction”

Author: Helen Garner

What It’s About: Garner has gained a reputation as one of Australia’s greatest writers over her 50-year-long career; this new book collects her acclaimed short stories and features an introduction from Jonathan Escoffery, author of the lauded story collection “If I Survive You.”

Publication Date: March 3

—

“Lake Effect”

Author: Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney

What It’s About: Sweeney’s 2016 novel “The Nest” was a bestseller that was also a hit with critics. Her latest book follows two families in late-1970s Rochester, New York, who are affected by an affair that causes a pair of divorces.

Publication Date: March 3

—

“Down Time”

Author: Andrew Martin

What It’s About: Martin showcased his dry wit and gimlet eye in his two previous books, “Early Work” and “Cool for America.” His latest book follows five friends whose lives and relationships are upended by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Publication Date: March 10

—

“Fatherland”

Author: Victoria Shorr

What It’s About: This novel from the author of “Midnight” and “The Plum Trees” follows Josie, whose life is thrown into disarray after her father leaves his family for another woman, and she must work to come to terms with the aftermath of his abandonment.

Publication Date: March 10

—

“Under Water”

Author: Tara Menon

What It’s About: The debut novel from Menon tells the story of Marissa, who forms a friendship with another young woman, Arielle, in Thailand, over their shared love of diving. Arielle dies in a drowning accident, and years later, Arielle reckons with her loss as Hurricane Sandy prepares to batter New York.

Publication Date: March 17

—

“Salt Lakes: An Unnatural History”

Author: Caroline Tracey

What It’s About: Arizona-based author and geographer Tracey considers the more than 100 salt lakes on Earth, many of which are in danger of disappearing; her travel takes her to four continents, where she meets the people who want to save them. Interspersed in the book is her own story of her life as a queer woman.

Publication Date: March 17

—

“Stay Alive: Berlin, 1939-1945”

Author: Ian Buruma

What It’s About: Prolific Dutch author Buruma has more than 20 books, many of them about Asian history and culture. He moves closer to home in his latest, which explores the experience of German Jews living in Berlin during World War II.

Publication Date: March 17

—

“Chain of Ideas: The Origins of Our Authoritarian Age”

Author: Ibram X. Kendi

What It’s About: Professor and historian Kendi’s previous bestselling books include the influential “Stamped From the Beginning” and “How to Be an Antiracist.” His newest title is a history of the racist and antisemitic “great replacement theory,” which has led to several hate-motivated attacks across the world.

Publication Date: March 17

—

“Celestial Lights”

Author: Cecile Pin

What It’s About: Pin made her literary debut in 2023 with the novel “Wandering Souls,” which was nominated for the Women’s Prize for Fiction. Her newest book follows Oliver, who is born the moment of the Challenger disaster, and who becomes a world-renowned astronaut.

Publication Date: March 24

—

“On the Record: Music That Changed America”

Author: Anna Harwell Celenza

What It’s About: Professor and children’s book author Celenza explores music that has made its way to the U.S. Congress, including “The Star-Spangled Banner,” Billie Holiday’s protest song “Strange Fruit,” and Lin-Manuel Miranda’s blockbuster musical “Hamilton.”

Publication Date: March 24

—

“The Adjunct”

Author: Maria Adelmann

What It’s About: “Girls of a Certain Age” and “How to Be Eaten” author Adelmann’s latest book is a novel that follows Sam, a Baltimore adjunct professor who encounters her graduate-school thesis advisor and learns that she might be a character in his upcoming novel.

Publication Date: March 31