Five of the best music books of 2025
From an enraging indictment of Spotify to Del Amitri frontman Justin Currie’s account of Parkinson’s and a compelling biography of Tupac Shakur, here are five titles that strike a chord
Five of the best science fiction books of 2025
An eco-masterpiece, icy intrigue, cyberpunkish cyborgs, memory-eating aliens and super-fast travel sends the world spinning out of control
The best poetry books of 2025
From Seamus Heaney’s collected poems and Simon Armitage’s animal spirits, to prizewinners Karen Solie and Vidyan Ravinthiran
All My Precious Madness by Mark Bowles review – a deliciously sweary, prize-winning monologue
The actor Paul Hilton brilliantly inhabits the character of a ranting working-class academic in this debut novel
Chosen Family by Madeleine Gray review – a vibrant ode to best friends and queer loves
The author of Green Dot returns with a masterful tale of unconventional friendship and family
The best memoirs and biographies of 2025
Anthony Hopkins and Kathy Burke on acting, Jacinda Ardern and Nicola Sturgeon on politics, plus Margaret Atwood on a life well lived
Five of the best young adult books of 2025
LGBTQ+ activism, online alter egos, feminist trailblazers and more
The five best romance books of 2025
A tricky age gap, a dose of wedding day drama, literary love affairs, office rivals and the sexy side of Brexit
Alice: Return to Wonderland review – a wonderfully eccentric new rabbit hole to go down
Alice is a boring grownup at the start of this intelligent and catchy Christmas musical – then she’s whisked off to Wonderland again
Five of the best sports books of 2025
From the trauma and triumphs of Olympic cyclist Bradley Wiggins to the secret life of a match fixer
The best science and nature books of 2025
From the threat of superintelligent AI to the dangers of overdiagnosis; plus the evolution of language and the restless genius of Francis Crick
Ms Holmes and Ms Watson – Apt 2B review: mysterious case of the joke-cracking Sherlock
This riff on Arthur Conan Doyle’s detective stories has flashes of promise but its comedy and purpose never land
The best history and politics books of 2025
The revolutionary spirit in politics and architecture; histories of free speech and civil war; plus how the Tories fell apart and Starmer won
The best graphic novels of 2025
Alison Bechdel and Joe Sacco return; plus Black Country cowboys, vengeful gods and an angling classic reimagined
Dreamers review – deep sense of empathy powers emotionally vivid refugees’ drama
A traumatised Nigerian woman seeking asylum in Britain meets a kindred spirit in Joy Gharoro-Akpojotor’s evocative tale