More than any other medium, books move through the culture by way of recommendations and word of mouth. We’ve all got that one friend who’s constantly recommending the book they just read. Whether you pay attention depends on the friend, we’ve found. But as a general principle, book recommendations are a Good Thing.
 
Today’s collection is based on this principle. Below we have paired two books for each calendar year going back to 2019. The first book is the winner of the Goodreads Choice Award for Readers’ Favorite in that particular genre and year—basically, the recommendation of millions of Goodreads regulars.
 
Then right next door, Goodreads’ ace editorial squad has recommended a second book from that genre and year—a bonus recommendation from a small pool of people who are drowning in books, personally and professionally, every day.
 
So, for instance, in the general Fiction category immediately below, Alison Espach’s The Wedding People is the 2024 GCA winner for Reader’s Favorite Fiction. The next book—Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar—is our wild card pick among the genre nominees that year. Then comes the 2023 GCA winner, then another wild card pick, and so on down the line…
 
The genre selections here represent some of the most popular categories on Goodreads, and you’ll recognize a lot of popular authors, too. Click on the book cover images for more information about each title, and use the Want to Read button to add interesting leads to your digital shelf.