JULY 2025

This month, we're thrilled to share the winners of the eleventh annual FIRECRACKER AWARDS. These awards, given by the Community of Literary Magazines and Presses (CLMP), honor the best independently published books of fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry and the best literary magazines in the categories of debut and general excellence. You can download shelf talkers for these titles here!

• Mirror Nation by Don Mee Choi (Wave Books; 9781950268931), a poetry collection "exploring memory, loss, and grief inside the system of capitalist nation-states," received the 2025 Firecracker Award in Poetry.
• Obligations to the Wounded by Mubanga Kalimamukwento (University of Pittsburgh Press; 9780822948360), a short fiction collection that "expertly capture[s] the complications of queerness, family, dislocation, and culture," received the 2025 Firecracker Award in Fiction.
• Low: Notes on Art & Trash by Jaydra Johnson (Fonograf Editions; 9798987589076), an essay collection that "pays a finely hewn attention to that which our wasteful, capitalistic society discards," received the 2025 Firecracker Award in Creative Nonfiction.

Summer is here! To help bookstores and libraries encourage summer reading, we’ve put together this roundup of 12 YA novels to feature during July and August—and year-round.

August is Women in Translation Month, and to celebrate, we've put together a roundup of 12 fiction, poetry, and nonfiction titles written and translated by women! We hope you'll spotlight these books—all published by indie presses—in your bookstore next month and year-round.

We spoke with James Loop, publicity director of World Poetry Books, in our latest spotlight on an independent publisher. He says, "Our publishing program focuses on emerging translators, underrepresented languages, and authors whose titles are English-language debuts."

July is Disability Pride Month, and we're excited to share a roundup of 10 fiction, poetry, and nonfiction titles—all from independent literary publishers—for the occasion!

Discover poetry, fiction, and nonfiction that published last month from independent literary publishers—including Dzanc Books, EastOver Press, Sheila-Na-Gig Editions, Tupelo Press, and more.

Carla Hayden, the former Librarian of Congress who was fired by Trump, has been hired by the Mellon Foundation as a senior fellow. Ricky Maldonado will be stepping down from his position as President and Executive Director of the Academy of American Poets on July 17. Publishers Lunch reports on the Supreme Court ruling that parents can opt their children out of classes using LGBTQ+ books on religious grounds. Publishers Weekly reports that a federal judge in California has ruled that using legally acquired copyrighted books for AI training constitutes fair use but downloading pirated copies for permanent storage violates copyright law. NetGalley has launched a consumer marketing platform called Booktrovert. Publishers Weekly reports that Hachette Book Group and the Stable Book Group have announced the formation of Stable Distribution, a new distribution company targeting independent publishers in North America. The New York Times reports that Lapham’s Quarterly is now attached to Bard College and will begin its revival with a website and podcast. The Associated Press reports that nearly a million books from Harvard University’s library and troves of materials held by the Boston Public Library are being released to tech companies for AI training.