The best books of 2026

This list is part of the best books of 2026.

Join 219 readers and share your 3 favorite reads of the year.

My favorite read in 2026

Book cover of Whistler

Janet L Jones ❤️ loved this book because...

Only Ann Patchett could write a book about death that leaves readers feeling uplifted and at peace. Of course, the central metaphor of the horse was important to me; it showed some of the many ways in which horses bring salvation, redemption, calm in the face of disaster.

  • Loved Most

    🥇 Emotions 🥈 Writing
  • Writing style

    ❤️ Loved it
  • Pace

    🐕 Good, steady pace

By Ann Patchett ,

Why should I read it?

3 authors picked Whistler as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

THE INTERNATIONALLY BESTSELLING NEW NOVEL FROM THE PRIZE-WINNING AUTHOR OF THE DUTCH HOUSE AND TOM LAKE

'Few writers are more adept than Patchett at delineating the collisions between present and past' Observer

'Whistler is top-shelf comfort food, the literary equivalent of pricey ice-cream' Guardian, Book of the Day
__________

When Daphne notices an older gentleman following her around the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, she doesn't expect it to be Eddie - her former stepfather.

Married to her mother for a short time when Daphne was nine, she hasn't seen Eddie for many years; not since the fateful…


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My 2nd favorite read in 2026

The Story of Charlotte's Web

By Michael Sims ,

Book cover of The Story of Charlotte's Web

Janet L Jones ❤️ loved this book because...

I read Charlotte's Web as a child, marveling at the way the animals cooperated with each other and attempted to send messages to the humans in their world. No wonder I grew up to study the interaction between horses and humans, including the ways they communicate and bond with each other mutually. I learned a lot about E B White's life from "The Story of Charlotte's Web," including the ways he began to focus on animal minds that are so very different from human minds, then craft a story that allowed them to use their own forms of communication to bring important messages to those who would listen... or see, in this case.

  • Loved Most

    🥇 Thoughts 🥈 Story/Plot
  • Writing style

    👍 Liked it
  • Pace

    🐕 Good, steady pace
The Story of Charlotte's Web

By Michael Sims ,

What is this book about?

A Washington Post Notable Nonfiction Book for 2011 As he was composing what was to become his most enduring and popular book, E. B. White was obeying that oft-repeated maxim: "Write what you know." Helpless pigs, silly geese, clever spiders, greedy rats-White knew all of these characters in the barns and stables where he spent his favorite hours. Painfully shy his entire life, "this boy," White once wrote of himself, "felt for animals a kinship he never felt for people." It's all the more impressive, therefore, how many people have felt a kinship with E. B. White. With Charlotte's Web,…


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My 3rd favorite read in 2026

Book cover of Demon Copperhead

Janet L Jones ❤️ loved this book because...

In my opinion, Demon Copperhead wins the prize for most original voice this year. Kingsolver places the reader inside the head and heart of a young boy whose needs are immense but resources are scarce. This produces all kinds of emotion and learning, but in an entertaining way that keeps you reading from start to finish. I'm happy Kingsolver didn't preach in this book as she often does in others. The story was enough; it sent her message loud and clear without the need for explicit persuasion about poverty or foster agencies, poor parenting and education, or a better life for a young boy in rural Appalachia. Great book!

  • Loved Most

    🥇 Character(s) 🥈 Immersion
  • Writing style

    ❤️ Loved it
  • Pace

    🐇 I couldn't put it down

By Barbara Kingsolver ,

Why should I read it?

123 authors picked Demon Copperhead as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Demon's story begins with his traumatic birth to a single mother in a single-wide trailer, looking 'like a little blue prizefighter.' For the life ahead of him he would need all of that fighting spirit, along with buckets of charm, a quick wit, and some unexpected talents, legal and otherwise.

In the southern Appalachian Mountains of Virginia, poverty isn't an idea, it's as natural as the grass grows. For a generation growing up in this world, at the heart of the modern opioid crisis, addiction isn't an abstraction, it's neighbours, parents, and friends. 'Family' could mean love, or reluctant foster…


Don‘t forget about my book 😀

A Horse's World

By Janet Jones ,

Book cover of A Horse's World

What is my book about?

The bond between horses and humans is the stuff of legend. Two different beings, two different bodies and brains, yet energy sparks between them. When that energy is captured, it can produce a special union that no other prey and predator animals share.

A Horse's World is the first book of its kind to explore the fascinating science of how horses think, feel, learn, and connect with their human companions. Tracing the story of one fifteen-hundred-pound Dutch Warmblood as he learns how to negotiate the human world, neuroscientist and horse trainer Janet Jones reveals surprising lessons about cross-species communication; deep knowledge about equine learning and perception; evidence of the horse's astounding memory and expressive ability; and scientific insight into the miracle of the horse-human connection.

Book cover of Whistler
Book cover of The Story of Charlotte's Web
Book cover of Demon Copperhead

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