The 2023 Ebooks Minnesota Awards

Mystery/Crime: The 13th target (#1)
“Repurposing his life after his wife's death, Russell Mullins joins a private protection company and forms a friendship with his first client, whose suicide compels Mullins' investigation at the side of a former colleague into a dangerous conspiracy.”- Poisoned Pen Press, 2021

Was there ever any doubt? This tension-filled novel will keep you hooked from start to finish as Russell Mullins unravels a conspiracy that resulted in the death of a close colleague. 

Also popular in this genre:  Fifteen Days Without a Head (#3)

Action/Adventure: 96 miles
“During a massive blackout in rural Nevada, two brothers struggle to survive without their self-reliance-obsessed dad and without enough water to cross the desert for help.”- Starscape 2023

I Get winded after walking a single mile. I cannot even comprehend 96. 

Also popular in this genre: The Kite Runner (#27)

Graphic Novel: Mob Psycho (#8)
“Reigen is an exorcist who pretends to be able to rid people of ghosts while paying his student assistant, Shigeo, who possesses real psychic abilities, a small fee to perform the actual work. Sensitive and kind, the awkward Shigeo is exploited by his mentor who knows that the repressed memories the young man has locked away could unleash a psychic storm like nothing either has ever seen before.”- Dark Horse Manga 2020

Manga supremacy. I am glad it’s taking over. As someone who got labeled ‘weird’ for reading manga growing up, I like to think that I walked so this  generation can run. There are many great titles entering the mainstream, and this one is no exception. 

Also popular in this genre: Homer's The Odyssey (#14)

General Fiction: Then I met my sister (#9)
“Summer Stetson has always lived in the shadow of her dead sister, knowing she can never measure up in any way, but on her seventeenth birthday her aunt gives her Shannon's diary, which reveals painful but liberating truths about Summer's family and herself.”- Flux 2018

Make sure to have those tissues ready. 

Also popular in this genre: Dancing In the Rain (#32)

Horror/Fantasy: Berserk deluxe edition. 1 (13)
“Contains the first three volumes of the manga series, "Berserk," which follows Guts, the Black Swordsman, who is marked with an unholy symbol that draws the forces of darkness to him and dooms him as their sacrifice. He refuses to accept his fate and follows a dark, bloodstained path that will lead him to death or vengeance.”- Dark Horse Manga 2020

Definitely not your typical Shonen manga. This one is not for the faint of heart, so proceed at your own risk. My DMs are open if you need to talk. 

Also popular in this genre: Anthony Bourdain's hungry ghosts

Historical Fiction: In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse (#7)
“Teased for his fair coloring, eleven-year-old Jimmy McClean travels with his maternal grandfather, Nyles High Eagle, to learn about his Lakota heritage while visiting places significant in the life of Crazy Horse, the nineteenth-century Lakota leader and warrior, in a tale that weaves the past with the present. Includes historical notes and glossary.”- Amulet Books 2015

Sometimes the answers you seek can only be found by learning where you come from. 

Also popular in this genre: Beloved Child: A Dakota Way of Life (#26)

Young Adult Fiction: As long as we're together (#13)
“Sixteen-year-old Novah loves her six siblings fiercely, but she also feels burdened by her role as one of the oldest children, responsible for parenting the younger kids when her parents are at work. She feels like she's constantly getting the short end of the stick, especially when she is forced to cancel an almost date with her crush, Hailee. But then, her parents are killed in a car accident, and the seven siblings are left on their own. Novah's older sister Ariana has just turned eighteen, so she manages to convince the judge to give her temporary custody of her siblings. Novah will do anything to keep her family together, but soon it starts to feel like an impossible task.”- Scholastic Press 2023

Navigating complex family relationships is something we can all relate to.

Also popular in this genre: The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo: A Novel (#42)

Non-fiction: "All the real Indians died off": and 20 other myths about Native Americans (#8)
“Examines a number of claims and commonly held beliefs about Native Americans and argues that they are false, such as "Columbus discovered America" or the claim that most Indians live on government welfare.”- Beacon Press 2017

Challenging long-held stereotypes is the vital work we all must do to maintain a healthy social fabric. 

Also popular in this genre: Mni sota makoce: The Land of the Dakota (#11), A Good Time For the Truth: Race in Minnesota (#18)