Zero to Well-Read — “2025 Canon Contenders”

Podcast: Zero to Well-Read (Book Riot)
Hosts: Jeff O’Neal and Rebecca Schinsky
Date: December 2, 2025

Episode Overview

In this insightful and lively episode, Jeff and Rebecca take on the ambitious task of predicting which books published in 2025 might endure to become future literary “canon”—the books readers will still be talking about in 10, 25, or even 50 years. Drawing on their vast reading experience, award trends, reader buzz, and industry insights, the hosts methodically evaluate major titles from the year, reflecting on what gives a book “staying power” and debating what it means for a book to become part of our shared cultural conversation. With their trademark humor and candor, they break down thematic patterns (masculinity, climate, emergence of new genres), highlight bestsellers and literary dark horses, and attempt to whittle down their longlist to a top five. The episode is as much a love letter to reading as it is an exercise in prediction.

Canon Criteria & The Challenge of Literary Endurance

[01:11-04:50]

• The Unpredictability of Literary Immortality

  • Few books published in a given year last more than a decade in public consciousness.
  • “By the time we get to 30 years back, very few of the titles that were popular or award-winning that year are things we talk about at all today.” —Rebecca [02:42]
  • Even "big" books often fade; the “canon” is highly selective and sometimes capricious.

• Selection & Color Coding System

  • Jeff & Rebecca designate potential canon contenders as “green” (likely), “yellow” (possible), or “red” (unlikely/distinctly of their moment).
  • Ten books is their target shortlist, recognizing how rare surviving titles truly are.
  • 2025 is viewed as a “quiet” publishing year with no clear runaway book dominating the discourse.

Discussion of Major 2025 Book Contenders

Literary Award Winners

[06:05-13:01]

• Flesh by David Soloi — Booker Prize Winner

  • Summary: A spare, emotionally distant novel about a Hungarian boy’s alienation and manhood.
  • Rebecca: “It’s hard to sell readers on a book that’s going to make them feel alienated from themselves... even if that’s the thing artistically the author is trying to do.” [09:35]
  • Decision: Yellow — High craft, but perhaps not “special enough” for lasting canon status.

• The True True Story of Raj the Goble and His Mother by Rabi Alameddine — National Book Award Winner

  • Jeff: Likely a great book club book, but “commercial appeal looks pretty limited... 15,000 Goodreads reviews is very low compared to others.” [11:10]
  • Rebecca: “Book club books have a hard time standing the test of time because there are relatively more of them than other types of fiction.” [11:10]
  • Decision: Red — Unlikely to be long-remembered despite critical acclaim.

• One Day Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad — National Book Award Nonfiction

  • Rebecca: “This is a document of the last two years in global history... a time capsule recording the visceral horror many of us in the US and Western world... felt as we bore witness to and were complicit in genocide.” [13:01]
  • Decision: Green — Socio-political “moral indictment” books can endure as historical documents.

Crossover Literary/Genre & Emerging Voices

[16:36-24:41]

• The Slip by Lucas Schaefer — Kirkus Fiction Prize Winner

  • Audacious debut about masculinity and silence in America; compared to Franzen, Roth, Irving.
  • Decision: Yellow — Could surprise, but bets are always long on literary debuts.

• Flash by Flashlight by Susan Choi

  • Multi-decade novel about a disappearance and North Korean intrigue; celebrated but “100 pages too long.”
  • Decision: Yellow — Literary, but divisive; author herself is more canon than the specific work.

• A Guardian and a Thief by Megha Majumdar

  • Near-future Kolkata; family as climate refugees; award finalist and Oprah pick.
  • Decision: Yellow — Literary reputation is growing; could break out further.

• The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai

  • Rebecca: “Desai is so beloved. The Inheritance of Loss has had a 20-year lifespan... [this] will be read by book clubs, live in paperback for decades to come.” [24:41]
  • Decision: Green (Rebecca advocates for it); 20-year gap since her last novel adds anticipation.

Breakout Genre Hits & Book Club Bestsellers

[25:14-33:25]

• The Buffalo Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones

  • Horror novel with critical acclaim and genre breakout; “already has 29,000 Goodreads ratings.” [26:42]
  • Decision: Green — Jones is crossing into "brand name author" territory.

• King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby

  • Godfather-inspired crime epic, set to be adapted by the Obama’s production company.
  • Decision: Yellow — Big hit, but “crime thrillers are really popular, there’s a lot of them... need to be The Godfather or Gone Girl to last.” [28:56]

• Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McGonaghy

  • Literary climate mystery with strong sales and critical attention.
  • Decision: Yellow — Too many elements may prevent lasting impact.

• Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid

  • Lesbians at NASA in the 1980s; TJR is a Booktok institution.
  • Decision: Yellow, but may bump to Green on pure popularity.

• Buckeye by Patrick Ryan

  • Multi-generational Midwest saga, Amazon’s #1 book of the year.
  • Decision: Red — “Saga” books come and go; rarely become canonical.

• Mona’s Eyes by Thomas Schlesser

  • Girl and grandfather see 52 works of art before she loses her vision; “a curio” that could have legs if sales sustain.
  • Decision: Yellow — “If it catches on... it could merit coming back.” [37:08]

• A Man and a Woman Walk into a Bar by Katie Yee

  • Humorous, sharp domestic fiction debut.
  • Decision: Red — “An entrance of a new voice... but doesn’t stand the test of time.” [39:07]

Pop Culture/Adaptation Juggernauts

[40:38-43:47]

• Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros

  • Third in a mega-selling “romantasy” series (4th Wing universe).
  • Decision: Red — Series will be discussed in future (like Twilight, Fifty Shades), but “third book” is not the canonical title.

• Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins

  • Second Hunger Games prequel; “We will be talking about the Hunger Games, not this one.” [42:14]
  • Decision: Red

• The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown

  • New hit with possible brand integration; Rebecca: “If we ever do Dan Brown, it’ll be the first couple, not this one.”
  • Decision: Red

• Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab

  • Massive hit, “toxic lesbian vampires”; does nothing fundamentally new.
  • Decision: Red, though Schwab has a shot at future adaptation-driven canon status.

• Katabasis by R.F. Kuang

  • Literary/genre bending, Dante-inspired; heavily hyped, but underperformed.
  • Decision: Yellow — “Didn’t do any of the things as fully as the fans... wanted.” [49:39]

Notable Nonfiction & Literary Experiments

[50:17-57:41]

• Searches by Vahini Vara

  • Human vs. AI authorship; cutting-edge topic, but perhaps not the defining book on tech.
  • Decision: Yellow — Potential is there, but zeitgeist may move too fast.

• Audition by Katie Kitamura

  • Rebecca: “Such a work of art... Kitamura is an artist and willing to be weird and strange and to push readers...” [53:23]
  • Jeff: “The second part... morphs from... a relationship story to a pretty wild and transgressive mind-warping experience... That’s special and special matters.” [53:23]
  • Decision: Green — Both hosts’ favorite of the year; rare, boundary-pushing literary novel.

• The Wilderness by Angela Flournoy

  • Multi-decade story of Black female friendship, with climate/Butlerian speculative edge.
  • Decision: Green — Level-up from beloved debut; “this is thorny and political, and I like to see a writer embody that space.” [56:37]

• We Do Not Part by Han Kang

  • New from Nobel laureate.
  • Decision: Yellow — Worthy, but “if you’re doing the one episode of Han Kang, you have to do The Vegetarian.” [57:41]

The Final List: 2025’s Potential Canon Contenders

[58:00-58:28]

“We have five greens—One Day Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This, The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny, The Buffalo Hunter, Audition, and The Wilderness. And I think we should leave it there.” —Rebecca [58:02]

Final “Green” Picks for 2025 Canon Potential:

1. One Day Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This by Omar El Akkad (Nonfiction, politics, moral indictment)
2. The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai (Return of a beloved literary voice)
3. The Buffalo Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones (Horror breakthrough into the literary mainstream)
4. Audition by Katie Kitamura (Boundary-pushing literary innovation)
5. The Wilderness by Angela Flournoy (Speculative, Butler-esque, Black women’s lives, climate)

Notable Quotes & Moments

• “Book club books have a hard time standing the test of time... There are relatively more of them than there are of other types of fiction.” —Rebecca [11:10]

• “These books about a historical moment... can stick around. And this is a world-historical event...” —Jeff (re: El Akkad) [14:28]

• “Publishers notoriously play fast and loose with comp titles. Everything has been the next Gone Girl for 20 years.” —Rebecca [16:36]

• “The only knock against it is that... crime thrillers are really popular. There’s a lot of them. You’ve got to be like Gone Girl or The Godfather.” —Rebecca [28:56]

• “It’s rare that we have the same favorite book. We have spent this year arguing over who gets to talk about Audition in the various places.” —Rebecca [53:23]

• “If you’re doing the one episode of Han Kang, you have to do The Vegetarian.” —Rebecca [57:41]

• “5 out of 23 is like a top 22%. Let’s leave it there.” —Rebecca [58:25]

Episode Structure & Thematic Flow

• Setting the Stakes: The immense difficulty of predicting literary immortality; “green/yellow/red” system.
• Award Winners: Parsing critical acclaim vs. reading culture impact.
• Genre Breakouts: Commercial vs. literary success, crossing genres.
• Book Club & Bestseller Zone: The “sanded-off” effect of mass appeal.
• Pop Juggernauts: Canonical series vs. latest installments.
• Boundary-Pushing Literary Fiction & Nonfiction: What truly feels “new,” “special,” or “necessary.”
• Rapid Fire/Closing: Yellows and long-shots, revisiting rules and criteria.

For Listeners: Essential Takeaways

• Most books published each year—even major award winners—fade from the canon quickly.
• Literary immortality depends not just on quality, but uniqueness, adaptability, and a certain ineffable “spark.”
• In 2025, no single book ruled the conversation—reflecting the increasingly fragmented literary world.
• Books that challenge form or document history in unique ways stand the best chance of lasting.
• The 2025 “canon contender” shortlist is smaller than hoped—a sign not of a weak year, but of how exceptional canon books truly are.

For recommendations, debate, and further reading fun, listeners are invited to email the show at zerotowellread@bookriot.com and catch past in-depth book club episodes in the feed.