- “Blackwood,” Michael Farris Smith, Little, Brown and Company
- “Untamed,” Glennon Doyle, The Dial Press
- “The Glass Hotel,” Emily St. John Mandel, Knopf
- “The Splendid and the Vile,” Erik Larson, Crown
- “The Everlasting,” Katie Simpson Smith, Harper
- “The Last Taxi Driver,” Lee Durkee, Tin House Books
- “Unbelievable” John Shelby Spong, Harper One
- “Valentine” Elizabeth Wetmore, Harper
- “Race Against Time” Jerry Mitchell, Simon & Schusters
- “Stark Villains,” Steve Robertson, Crane
Children and Young Adults
- “Ninth Ward,” Jewell Parker Rhodes, Little Brown
- “The Runaway Bunny,” Margaret Wise Brown, Harper Collins
- “Black Brother Black Brother,” Jewell Parker Rhodes, Little Brown
- “Harold and the Purple Crayon,” Crockett Johnson, Harper Festival
- “River,” Elisha Cooper, Orchard Books
Compiled by University Press of Mississippi
Reported by The Book Mart & Café (Starkville); Lemuria Books (Jackson); Lorelei Books (Vicksburg); Square Books (Oxford)