Booklist Reader: ‘Before, During, and After: The American Revolution’

As young readers confront the meaning of America’s 250th birthday this year, it’s important to allow them to see the wider picture beyond the familiar roster of “founding fathers” that fill the pages of history textbooks. ALA’s Booklist has selected 16 books that offer a rich variety of perspectives on the decades leading up to the American Revolution, the important events of America’s fight for independence, and the early days of the new nation as it wrestled with what life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness mean in practice.

Book Review of the Week: ‘In the Blood’

For this installment of our weekly book reviews from Booklist, the American Library Association’s nationally distributed book and media review publication, we have Diego Báez’s review of “In the Blood” by Carl Phillips.

Booklist Reader: The Legacy of Jane Goodall

Jane Goodall (1934–2025) advocated ardently for the preservation of the living world right up to the end of her extraordinarily courageous, creative, giving, and enormously influential life. She transformed wildlife studies through her groundbreaking work with chimpanzees, then expanded her conservation efforts to encompass all the planet’s plants and animals. These books recommended by ALA’s Booklist encapsulate Goodall’s legacy in the work of scientists and others deeply inspired and guided by her knowledge, wisdom, and convictions.

Book Review of the Week: ‘A Splintering’

“[A] raw, unflinching portrait of feminine rage, gender constraints, class resentment, and the corrosive pull of worldly ambition.” For this installment of our weekly book reviews from Booklist, the American Library Association’s nationally distributed book and media review publication, we have Andrienne Cruz’s review of “A Splintering” by Dur e Aziz Amna.

Book Review of the Week: ‘Book of Lives: A Memoir of Sorts’

“Atwood’s voice is always magical….” For this installment of our weekly book reviews from Booklist, the American Library Association’s nationally distributed book and media review publication, we have Milena Durek’s review of the audiobook of “Book of Lives: A Memoir of Sorts” by Margaret Atwood.

Book Review of the Week: ‘The Unconscious: A Cultural History from Hippocrates to Philip K. Dick and Beyond’

For this installment of our weekly book reviews from Booklist, the American Library Association’s nationally distributed book and media review publication, we have Tony Miksanek’s review of “The Unconscious: A Cultural History from Hippocrates to Philip K. Dick and Beyond” by Antonio Melechi, first published January 27, 2026, at Booklist Online.