The Book Report: Ron Charles’ picks from 2025

By Ron Charles, Washington Post book critic

2025 offered a feast of great books. To help you build your endless reading list, here are five titles we particularly enjoyed over the past 12 months:

Lucas Schaefer’s first novel, “The Slip” (Simon & Schuster), won the Kirkus Prize for Fiction this year. The story takes place in and around a boxing gym in Austin, Texas, where two lonely teenagers are eager to remake their identities wherever that might take them.

This sweaty comedic masterpiece addresses our most pressing social debates and delivers a knockout blow.

Read an excerpt: “The Slip” by Lucas Schaefer

“The Slip” by Lucas Schaefer (Simon & Schuster), in hardback, e-book and audio formats, available via Amazon, Barnes & Nobles And Librairie.org

lucasschaefer.com

Susie Dent’s first novel, “Guilty by definition” (‎Sourcebooks Landmark), features a dictionary publisher in Oxford who begins receiving strange messages about the long-ago disappearance of his sister.

As she follows these clues, she finds herself immersed in literary mysteries and unsolved parts of her past. Readers who enjoy wordplay as much as suspense should check out this clever mystery.

Read an excerpt: “Guilty by Definition” by Susie Dent

“Guilty by definition” by Susie Dent (‎Sourcebooks Landmark), in hardcover, e-book and audio formats, available via Amazon, Barnes & Nobles And Librairie.org

Susie Dent on Instagram

“Black Moses: a saga of ambition and the struggle for a black state” (Riverhead Books), by Caleb Gayle, traces Edward McCabe’s rise through Kansas and the Oklahoma Territory as black migrants sought land, safety, and power during the Jim Crow era.

Facing hostile politics and violent resistance, McCabe fought for community and self-determination, and Gayle presents this fraught landscape to reveal a crucial but long-obscured chapter in the fight for freedom.

Read an excerpt: “Black Moses” by Caleb Gayle

“Black Moses: a saga of ambition and the struggle for a black state” by Caleb Gayle (Riverhead Books), in hardback, ebook, and audio formats, available via Amazon, Barnes & Nobles And Librairie.org

calebgayle.com (Official website)

Karen Russell “The Antidote” (Knopf) is a novel of dazzling originality which oscillates between fable and history.

This wild storm of a tale set in Depression-era Nebraska follows a prairie witch and a high school girl drawn into a tumultuous western epic about the tragedies and ambitions of Manifest Destiny.

Read an excerpt: “The Antidote” by Karen Russell

“The Antidote” by Karen Russell (Knopf), in hardback, e-book and audio formats, available via Amazon, Barnes & Nobles And Librairie.org

karenrussellauthor.com

That of Rick Atkinson “The Destiny of the Day: The War for America, from Fort Ticonderoga to Charleston, 1777-1780” (Crown), the second volume in his planned trilogy, chronicles the American Revolution with compelling narrative momentum.

Between battles and diplomacy, it brings Washington, Franklin and their rivals to life while tracing the nation’s struggle for independence. The result is an immersive work of history just in time for America’s 250th birthday.

Read an excerpt: “The Destiny of the Day” by Rick Atkinson

“The Fate of the Day: The War for America, from Fort Ticonderoga to Charleston, 1777-1780 (Volume Two of the Revolution Trilogy)” by Rick Atkinson (Crown), in hardback, ebook and audio formats, available via Amazon, Barnes & Nobles And Librairie.org

Historian Rick Atkinson (Official website)

Rick Atkinson explains how the US military came to be – and how a free nation came to be (“Sunday morning”)

That’s all for the book report. It’s been a lot of fun talking to you about great books over the past year. Here are many more in 2026.

My name is Ron Charles. Until next time, keep reading!

For more information:

For more reading recommendations, check out our library of previous Ron Charles Book Report features: