Best Books of 2024

The books of speakers Annabelle Tometich and Tony Keith Jr. were selected for Best of 2024 picks!

annabelle tometich and The mango tree

Annabelle Tometich’s April 2024 memoir The Mango Tree: A Memoir of Fruit, Florida, and Felony was chosen as a one of The Washington Post’s 50 Notable Nonfiction Books of 2024. The Mango Tree was also chosen by NPR as one of their Best Books of 2024 selections. Here’s what NPR had to say about Annabelle’s writing: “This family memoir begins with a courtroom scene like no other. After a night in jail, Annabelle Tometich’s mom is charged with firing at a man who, she says, was stealing mangoes from the tree in her front yard. Tometich then hits rewind, taking readers back through her Fort Myers, Fla., childhood – with her Filipino American mom and white dad, a couple whose personality differences do not make them stronger together. The writing is both jewel-like and effortless, and Tometich’s memories – some mundane, some extraordinary – are mesmerizing.”

Tony Keith Jr. and how the boogeyman Became a Poet

Every year, librarians and staff at The New York Public Library (NYPL) select noteworthy new books for readers of all ages and recommend them as our Best Books of the Year. These lists continue the Library’s century-old tradition of recommending the best-loved titles published for children each year, and in recent years have expanded to encompass titles for teens and adults, as well as books in Spanish for younger readers. They have always sought to reflect the diversity of New York City's readership and encompass fiction, nonfiction, graphic novels, poetry, and much more. Tony Keith Jr.’s February 2024 memoir in verse How the Boogeyman Became a Poet was selected by NYPL as one of their Top 10 Best Books for Teens in 2024. Here’s a quote from the Booklist review they shared: “His interior monologue exposes his thoughts, conflicts, desires, and emotions as Keith documents taking his SATs and applying for college, tackles senioritis, and shares his tentative explorations of his sexual identity. The book only covers about two years of Keith's life, but his searing honesty and deft wordplay create a vivid impression of this enormously talented and multifaceted writer and performer. Teens will relate to Keith's story and celebrate his conquering of the Boogeyman: his own doubts and fears.”