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Our Favorite Books of 2020

Every year we ask our booksellers to do the impossible and pick the book that was their favorite read of the year in each of three categories: fiction, nonfiction, and kids books. Not necessarily their favorite new book—just the one book they picked up and read and loved.

Here are our picks for 2020...

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The Vanishing Half: A Novel Cover Image

The Vanishing Half: A Novel (Hardcover)

By Brit Bennett
$27.00
ISBN: 9780525536291
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Riverhead Books - June 2nd, 2020
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Black Bottom Saints: A Novel Cover Image

Black Bottom Saints: A Novel (Hardcover)

By Alice Randall
$26.99
ISBN: 9780062968623
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Amistad - August 18th, 2020
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Circe Cover Image

Circe (Paperback)

By Madeline Miller
$16.99
ISBN: 9780316556323
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Back Bay Books - April 14th, 2020
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The Pull of the Stars: A Novel Cover Image

The Pull of the Stars: A Novel (Hardcover)

By Emma Donoghue
$28.00
ISBN: 9780316499019
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Little, Brown and Company - July 21st, 2020
Don Quixote Cover Image

Don Quixote (Paperback)

By Miguel de Cervantes, Edith Grossman
$19.99
ISBN: 9780060934347
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Ecco - April 26th, 2005
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The Orchard: A Novel Cover Image

The Orchard: A Novel (Hardcover)

By David Hopen
$27.99
ISBN: 9780062974747
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Ecco - November 17th, 2020
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Michael Kohlhaas Cover Image

Michael Kohlhaas (Paperback)

By Heinrich von Kleist, Michael Hofmann (Translated by)
$14.95
ISBN: 9780811228343
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: New Directions - March 31st, 2020
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Pale Colors in a Tall Field: Poems Cover Image

Pale Colors in a Tall Field: Poems (Hardcover)

By Carl Phillips
$23.00
ISBN: 9780374229054
Availability: In Stock at Publisher - Usually Available in 1-5 Days
Published: Farrar, Straus and Giroux - March 3rd, 2020
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March Cover Image

March (Paperback)

By Geraldine Brooks
$17.00
ISBN: 9780143036661
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Penguin Books - January 31st, 2006
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Black Sun (Between Earth and Sky #1) Cover Image

Black Sun (Between Earth and Sky #1) (Hardcover)

By Rebecca Roanhorse
$27.99
ISBN: 9781534437678
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Gallery / Saga Press - October 13th, 2020
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Lincoln in the Bardo: A Novel Cover Image

Lincoln in the Bardo: A Novel (Paperback)

By George Saunders
$17.00
ISBN: 9780812985405
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Random House Trade Paperbacks - February 6th, 2018
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Magic Lessons: The Prequel to Practical Magic (The Practical Magic Series #3) Cover Image

Magic Lessons: The Prequel to Practical Magic (The Practical Magic Series #3) (Hardcover)

By Alice Hoffman
$27.99
ISBN: 9781982108847
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Simon & Schuster - October 6th, 2020
The Fire Next Time (Vintage International) Cover Image

The Fire Next Time (Vintage International) (Paperback)

By James Baldwin
$13.95
ISBN: 9780679744726
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Vintage - December 1st, 1992
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The Groom Will Keep His Name: And Other Vows I've Made About Race, Resistance, and Romance Cover Image

The Groom Will Keep His Name: And Other Vows I've Made About Race, Resistance, and Romance (Paperback)

By Matt Ortile
$16.99
ISBN: 9781541762794
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Bold Type Books - June 2nd, 2020
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How the South Won the Civil War: Oligarchy, Democracy, and the Continuing Fight for the Soul of America Cover Image

How the South Won the Civil War: Oligarchy, Democracy, and the Continuing Fight for the Soul of America (Hardcover)

By Heather Cox Richardson
$27.95
ISBN: 9780190900908
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Oxford University Press, USA - April 1st, 2020
Ace: What Asexuality Reveals About Desire, Society, and the Meaning of Sex Cover Image

Ace: What Asexuality Reveals About Desire, Society, and the Meaning of Sex (Hardcover)

By Angela Chen
$26.95
ISBN: 9780807013793
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Beacon Press - September 15th, 2020
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Vesper Flights Cover Image

Vesper Flights (Hardcover)

By Helen MacDonald
$27.00
ISBN: 9780802128812
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Grove Press - August 25th, 2020
Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons from the Crematory Cover Image

Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons from the Crematory (Paperback)

By Caitlin Doughty
$15.95
ISBN: 9780393351903
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: W. W. Norton & Company - September 28th, 2015
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The Beauty in Breaking: A Memoir Cover Image

The Beauty in Breaking: A Memoir (Hardcover)

By Michele Harper
$27.00
ISBN: 9780525537380
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Riverhead Books - July 7th, 2020
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The True History of the First Mrs. Meredith and Other Lesser Lives Cover Image

The True History of the First Mrs. Meredith and Other Lesser Lives (Paperback)

By Diane Johnson, Vivian Gornick (Introduction by), Diane Johnson (Preface by)
$17.95
ISBN: 9781681374451
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: NYRB Classics - June 23rd, 2020
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Begin Again: James Baldwin's America and Its Urgent Lessons for Our Own Cover Image

Begin Again: James Baldwin's America and Its Urgent Lessons for Our Own (Hardcover)

By Eddie S. Glaude, Jr.
$27.00
ISBN: 9780525575320
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Crown - June 30th, 2020
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Daily Rituals: How Artists Work Cover Image

Daily Rituals: How Artists Work (Hardcover)

By Mason Currey (Editor)
$25.95
ISBN: 9780307273604
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Knopf - April 23rd, 2013
The New One: Painfully True Stories from a Reluctant Dad Cover Image

The New One: Painfully True Stories from a Reluctant Dad (Hardcover)

By Mike Birbiglia, J. Hope Stein (Supplement by)
$28.00
ISBN: 9781538701515
Availability: In Stock at Publisher - Usually Available in 1-5 Days
Published: Grand Central Publishing - June 16th, 2020
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Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You: A Remix of the National Book Award-winning Stamped from the Beginning Cover Image

Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You: A Remix of the National Book Award-winning Stamped from the Beginning (Hardcover)

By Jason Reynolds, Ibram X. Kendi
$18.99
ISBN: 9780316453691
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers - March 10th, 2020
In My Garden Cover Image

In My Garden (Hardcover)

By Charlotte Zolotow, Philip C. Stead (Illustrator)
$18.99
ISBN: 9780823443208
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Neal Porter Books - March 24th, 2020
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Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening Cover Image

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening (Hardcover)

By Robert Frost, Susan Jeffers (Illustrator)
$16.99
ISBN: 9780525467342
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Dutton Books for Young Readers - September 24th, 2001
The Moon Keeper Cover Image

The Moon Keeper (Hardcover)

By Zosienka, Zosienka (Illustrator)
$17.99
ISBN: 9780062959522
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: HarperCollins - March 10th, 2020
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What We'll Build: Plans For Our Together Future Cover Image

What We'll Build: Plans For Our Together Future (Hardcover)

By Oliver Jeffers
$19.99
ISBN: 9780593206751
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Philomel Books - October 6th, 2020
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The List of Things That Will Not Change Cover Image

The List of Things That Will Not Change (Hardcover)

By Rebecca Stead
$16.99
ISBN: 9781101938096
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Wendy Lamb Books - April 7th, 2020
One Time Cover Image

One Time (Hardcover)

By Sharon Creech
$16.99
ISBN: 9780062570741
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: HarperCollins - September 8th, 2020
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Legendborn (The Legendborn Cycle) Cover Image

Legendborn (The Legendborn Cycle) (Hardcover)

By Tracy Deonn
$18.99
ISBN: 9781534441606
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Margaret K. McElderry Books - September 15th, 2020
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Six of Crows Cover Image

Six of Crows (Paperback)

By Leigh Bardugo
$11.99
ISBN: 9781250076960
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Square Fish - February 6th, 2018
Crooked Kingdom: A Sequel to Six of Crows Cover Image

Crooked Kingdom: A Sequel to Six of Crows (Paperback)

By Leigh Bardugo
$11.99
ISBN: 9781250076977
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Square Fish - September 4th, 2018
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You Should See Me in a Crown Cover Image

You Should See Me in a Crown (Hardcover)

By Leah Johnson
$17.99
ISBN: 9781338503265
Availability: On Our Shelves Now
Published: Scholastic Press - June 2nd, 2020