Wondering what you missed?

Now that we’ve ushered in the new year, media outlets around the globe have published their takes on the best or most defining books of the past year.

Publishers Weekly has its Best Books of 2019; GoodReads’ Choice Awards for 2019 are here; Barack Obama’s favourite books of 2019 appeared on Twitter:

The Telegraph has produced a huge list of 50 best books for the year (though a subscription is required to read beyond No. 50 and No. 49); the Guardian has struck out from the norm by producing a list spanning the decade, not just the last year: From The Big Short to Normal People: the books that defined the decade in addition to its best books of the year list; The New York Times has a list of 10; The Washington Post has a different 10; Good Housekeeping sports an impressive (if slightly daunting) 60… and many many more. And this is without even broaching the proliferation of ‘best books’ threads and posts that can also be found on Twitter.

What’s interesting here is the notable lack of overlap between the lists; even between lists originating in the same country there’s a huge difference in the selections in both fiction and non-fiction categories.

So whether you’re looking for your next literary getaway or are just keen to bring your dinner party repartee up to date, check out some of these lists and crack open your next great read!