Five new handsell-favorites have been chosen by SIBA booksellers as the "Read This Next!" list for December. Each book has received multiple (often exhuberantly) positive reviews from Southern indie booksellers.

Read This Next! books are featured in The Southern Bookseller Review and SIBA newsletter, and on SIBA's social media accounts, highlighting the bookseller reviews for each title. Each month's list showcases not only the books receiving the most interesting buzz, but also the wide range of reading championed by SIBA booksellers.

Bookseller Resources:
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What SIBA Booksellers have to say:

Never Ever Getting Back Together by Sophie Gonzales

This is one of my top romances of 2022! Gonzales’ YA books are charming and this new adult romcom is a delight. It has slow burn, hilarious, sapphic joy on every page. Gonzales does a great job with bi representation and she gets better with every book. –Andrea Richardson, Fountain Books in Richmond, VA

The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton

What happens when nature isn’t natural? When in the end, Climate Change is unstoppable? Lily Brooks-Dalton renders a shockingly real depiction of this possibility in the harrowing and beautiful novel The Light Pirate. This story could happen. This story is happening. A must-read. –Laura Simcox, Sunrise Books in High Point, NC

A Wilderness of Stars by Shea Ernshaw

This is an absolute gem of a book! Part science-fiction, part romance, Shea Ernshaw delivers another YA novel that is a delight to read. For lovers of stars and post apocalyptic literature! – Hallie Smith, Main Street Books in Davidson, NC

How Far the Light Reaches : A Life in Ten Sea Creatures by Sabrina Imbler

Wholly original, astonishingly informative, and powerfully written. Imbler describes marine life with reverence and compelling detail, and deftly intertwines the lives of the sea creatures with stories of their own experiences with gender, queerness, and identity. –Sarah Arnold, Parnassus Books in Nashville, TN

My Darkest Prayer by S. A. Cosby

A story where religion, region, karma, and race intersect, Cosby dissects the weight of loss on a person’s moral compass. This novel is full of twists and turns that will leave your jaw on the floor. S.A. Cosby is a force to be reckoned with. –Leo Coffey, Union Ave Books in Knoxville, TN

Current Read This Next! books and what SIBA booksellers have to say about them can always be found at The Southern Bookseller Review