Many of the best of this year's books were graced with humor and distinguished by deep dives into American identity. It was also a very good year for deceased authors whose posthumously published books were so much more than mere postscripts to their careers. Rebecca Makkai's The Great Believers -- a sweeping story about the AIDS epidemic of the 1980s and its long aftermath — is my pick for novel of the year.
The Great Believers, by Rebecca Makkai
Lake Success, by Gary Shteyngart
There There, by Tommy Orange
Warlight, by Michael Ondaatje
Washington Black, by Esi Edugyan
Barracoon, by Zora Neale Hurston
The Largesse of the Sea Maiden, by Denis Johnson
I'll Be Gone in the Dark, by Michelle McNamara
Sharp, by Michelle Dean
Heartland, by Sarah Smarsh
For more reading recommendations, visit the NPR 2018 Book Concierge — more than 300 titles, hand-picked by NPR staff and book critics.
Copyright 2021 Fresh Air. To see more, visit Fresh Air.
