Barack Obama has won the hearts of independent bookstores in his tweet listing his books of the year for 2023. He writes: First up, here are the books I’ve enjoyed reading. If youre looking for a new book over the holidays, give one of them a try. And if you can, shop at an independent bookstore or check them out at your local library.
Novelist Lauren Groff will be particularly gratified by his words. Not only is her novel The Vaster Wilds (Hutchinson Heineman) on his list, the novelist has just opened her own indie bookstore in Gainesville, Flordia.
The former US President 15-strong list of his favourite books of the year includes Booker Prize-shortlisted This Other Eden by Paul Harding (Hutchinson Heinemann), The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride (W&N) and The Maniac by Benjamin Labatut (Pushkin).
Other picks include How to Say Babylon by Safiya Sinclair (Fourth Estate), Chip War by Chris Miller (Simon & Schuster UK) and Humanly Possible by Sarah Bakewell (Chatto & Windus).