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Welcome to Today in Books, our daily round-up of literary headlines at the intersection of politics, culture, media, and more.
The Independent Press Top 40 Bestselling Books
If you follow our weekly compilations of the bestselling books, you know that this list can get pretty homogenous and predictable, which is why we always shout out books that didn’t make the cut but that you should know about. One point of predictability that’s not immediately apparent, especially to the general reader, is that it’s the same publishers whose books make the list. The Big 5 publishers quite simply have more resources than indie and small presses to push their books to the masses. So I cheered the news that the Independent Publishers Caucus is launching the Independent Press Top 40 Bestsellers, a weekly bestseller list that identifies the top titles in fiction and nonfiction from independent presses “as represented at independent bookstores across the US.” The first lists are out now, and they’re a nice change of pace (though it was chilling to see Charlie Kirk near the top of the nonfiction list and I had to take comfort in Jill Lepore’s We the People above it). One perhaps obvious insight about the Fiction list, specifically, is that you see many more awards winners and finalists than on the usual bestseller lists. You’re much more likely to find the kind of literary and experimental fiction championed by major literary awards from indie presses. For instance, topping the Fiction list is Heart the Lover by Lily King and The True True Story of Raja the Gullible (and His Mother) by Rabih Alameddine, to name a couple. Find the full lists here.
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Because We Collect Notebooks Like We Collect Books
Is there a book lover out there who isn’t similarly in love with journals and notebooks? We’re always on the lookout for the best of them to place on our shelves and by our bedsides, promising ourselves that this notebook will make us more consistent in the practice of journaling. That said, maybe I’m doing you a disservice by sharing about the notebook everyone from celebrities to consumers willing to shell out for a premium product is obsessed with. Louise Carmen notebooks start at around $142. “In this economy?” I cry. As noted in the writeup, these Parisian-made notebooks have become status symbols. Yola Mzizi writes, “They see the products as a way to convey a cosmopolitan and writerly image, aligning with other bookish trends” as the fashion industry loves up on literary culture. Book lovers, we’ve made it. We’re “in.” Who needs a luxury notebook when your whole lifestyle is haute.
A New Celebrity Book Club Enters the Ring
Book Gossip says only a select few, if any, celebrity book clubs sell units, but that isn’t stopping the influential from starting one up, Katie Couric among them. In a post on Katie Couric Media, the journalist, host, and media company founder announced the launch of her very own book club, falling in line with her 2026 resolution to “scroll less, read more.” The first book chosen is one you’ve likely come across, Virginia Evans’ The Correspondent, one of last year’s big bestsellers. Couric will host book club conversations on Substack, and posted all the deets here.
“Pizza Parties Don’t Fix Burnout”: The State of Librarian Mental Health
Reading the results of Kelly Jensen’s survey of library work’s impact on library staff’s mental health made me want to go pick up a fruit basket for the good folks at my local library. Here’s what you can expect in this detailed piece:
I wanted to know how much of a toll the job takes on library workers when I sent out a lengthy survey last summer, from July to August 2025. The survey asked library workers of all backgrounds, experiences, and demographics to get honest about where and how library work intersected with their mental health. Respondents were asked to share their experiences in a free-form style, highlighting what they perceived as the most significant stressors in the field, where and how they’ve managed their mental health in relation to their job, and what kinds of solutions they think would be helpful. Those who took part were welcome to write as much or as little as they’d like.
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