Our best books coverage concludes with YA, featuring Libba Bray.

On this episode of Fully Booked, Libba Bray joins us to discuss Under the Same Stars (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, Feb. 4), one of Kirkus’ Best Young Adult Books of 2025. “Three groups of teens are connected by a painful decades-old mystery,” Kirkus writes in a starred review, calling this riveting work of historical fiction “a breathtaking journey that will leave a lasting impression on readers’ hearts and minds.”

Bray is the New York Times–bestselling author of the Gemma Doyle trilogy (A Great and Terrible Beauty, Rebel Angels, The Sweet Far Thing); the Michael L. Printz Award–winning Going Bovine; the Los Angeles Times Book Prize finalist Beauty Queens; andthe Diviners series. Originally from Texas, she makes her home in New York City.

Here’s a bit more from our starred review of Under the Same Stars: “In 1940s Germany, best friends Sophie and Hanna believe in the magic of the Bridegroom’s Oak, which is said to help people find true love. Hopeless romantic Sophie, in particular, takes comfort in the protection of the Dodauer Forest where the oak grows—until World War II becomes a violent reality that tests not only the girls’ friendship but also their conceptions of duty and justice. In 1980s West Berlin, preppy American transplant Jenny is a fish out of water—until she meets German punk Lena, who urges her to rebel against society’s expectations. And in 2020 Brooklyn, Miles is trying to adjust to the radical changes brought on by Covid-19. When his best friend, Chloe, is gifted with her grandmother’s scrapbook, the pair uncover a trail of secrets linked to long-ago disappearances. Bray’s immersive third-person narrative seamlessly navigates past and present, weaving together themes of power, remorse, forgiveness, and hope.…Through the lens of these young people’s lives, Bray emphasizes how much we’re connected, offering a powerful depiction of transformative storytelling as an act of resistance and a harbinger of the future.”

Bray and I talk elevator pitches, political resistance, braided narratives, the beauty of the first edition of the book, the writing process, comfort movies, karaoke, and much more.

Then young readers’ editor Laura Simeon joins us to discuss the making of this year’s best books list.

LAURA’S PICKS:

Butterfly Heart by Moa Backe Åstot, trans. by Agnes Broomé (Em Querido)

Death in the Jungle: Murder, Betrayal, and the Lost Dream of Jonestown by Candace Fleming (Anne Schwartz/Random)

Legendary Frybread Drive-In: Intertribal Stories, ed. by Cynthia Leitich Smith (Heartdrum)

The Secret Astronomers by Jessica Walker (Viking)

Silenced Voices: Reclaiming Memories From the Guatemalan Genocide by Pablo Leon (HarperAlley)

Rebis: Born and Reborn by Irene Marchesini, illus. by Carlotta Dicataldo, trans. by Carla Roncalli Di Montorio (First Second)

K-Jane by Lydia Kang (Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins)

Angelica and the Bear Prince by Trung Le Nguyen (Random House Graphic)

The Singular Life of Aria Patel by Samira Ahmed (Little, Brown)

THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS:

The Tale of the Wicked Old Woman and the Very Nice ‘Beast’ of Crouch End by Lance Lee, illus. by Nathalie T. Retivoff

A Widow’s Fire by Diane Pike Heiler

Future-Focused Wealth by Melissa Cox

Fully Booked is produced by Cabel Adkins Audio and Megan Labrise.