The Waterstones Book of the Year 2025 shortlist celebrates bold storytelling, emotional depth, and genre-defying creativity—with titles ranging from dystopian epics to lyrical non-fiction and anarchic graphic novels.
Each year, Waterstones booksellers nominate the titles they’ve most loved recommending, and the 2025 shortlist is a testament to the power of books to surprise, provoke, and endure. Here’s a closer look at the fifteen shortlisted works that have captured imaginations across the UK:
Fiction That Resonates
– Suzanne Collins – Sunrise on the Reaping
A return to Panem, this prequel to The Hunger Games explores the 50th Games with chilling precision and emotional weight.
– R.F. Kuang – Katabasis
A “witty descent into the underworld,” Kuang’s latest blends myth, satire, and psychological realism in a genre-bending triumph.
– Arundhati Roy – Mother Mary Comes to Me
A lyrical, politically charged novel that weaves personal memory with collective resistance.
– Natasha Brown – Universality
Longlisted for the Booker Prize, Brown’s follow-up to Assembly deepens her exploration of identity, power, and silence.
– Antonia Hodgson – The Raven Scholar
A gripping historical mystery set in Georgian London, rich in atmosphere and intrigue.
– William Maxwell – So Long, See You Tomorrow
A reissued classic, this quiet masterpiece of memory and regret finds new life among contemporary readers.
– Uketsu – Strange Pictures
A surreal, haunting graphic novel translated from Japanese, exploring grief and imagination.
Non-Fiction That Illuminates
– David Attenborough & Colin Butfield – Ocean
A sweeping, urgent call to protect Earth’s last great wilderness, told through Attenborough’s unmatched lens.
– James Fox – Craftland
A journey through Britain’s vanishing crafts, blending history, artistry, and cultural reflection.
– Tim Siadatan – Padella
A pasta cookbook from the Frome-based chef, celebrating simplicity, flavour, and the joy of making.
– Mel Robbins – The Let Them Theory
A motivational manifesto about boundaries, self-worth, and letting go of control.
Children’s & Illustrated Gems
– Mikey Please – The Café at the Edge of the Woods
A BAFTA-winning animator’s debut picture book, full of whimsy, wisdom, and a hungry ogre named Glumfoot.
– Anna James & Matthew Land – Alice With a Why
A reimagining of Wonderland with a curious twist, blending classic charm with modern sensibility.
– Donut Squad: Take Over the World!
An anarchic graphic novel about donut domination—sweet, silly, and subversive.
– Lucy Steeds – The Artist
Winner of the Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize, this introspective novel explores creativity, isolation, and reinvention.
The winner will be announced on 27th November, chosen by a Waterstones panel. But for readers, the shortlist itself is a treasure trove—each title a doorway into a world worth exploring.
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