Let’s Talk About the Best Books of the Year (So Far)
The Book Review

Let’s Talk About the Best Books of the Year (So Far)

B1IntermediateJuly 24, 202639 min
  • Conversation
  • Arts & culture

The editors at The New York Times Book Review spend almost the entire year discussing, debating and sometimes arguing about the year’s best books. We’re halfway through 2026, which means it’s time for the host Gilbert Cruz and the Book Review editors Joumana Khatib and MJ Franklin to talk about some of the best releases of the year as well as a few hidden gems that captured their attention and affection. Fiction “Whistler,” by Ann Patchett “The Calamity Club,” by Kathryn Stockett “Transcription,” by Ben Lerner “The Keeper,” by Tana Fre...

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Here at The New York Times, we spend almost the entire year discussing, debating, sometimes arguing, the 10 best books of the year.

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0:00

Hello, I'm Gilbert Cruz, and this is The Book Review. Here at The New York Times, we spend almost the entire year discussing, debating, sometimes arguing, the 10 best books of the year. It's really a year-long process. We've been working on this year's list since February, I think.

0:24

But it's summer now. It's halfway through the year, according to the calendar. and I think it's time to talk about some of our best books of the year, parentheses so far. So joining me today to talk about a bunch of the books on our list are two editors of the Book Review,

0:41

very familiar voices on the show. Jumanica T, welcome. Hi, Gilbert. And MJ Franklin, host of our monthly book club episodes.

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