Koelbel Staff Picks: September 2025Like this list

9 items

• Kpop Demon Hunters

  Soundtrack From the Netflix Film

  Add Kpop Demon Hunters to your for later shelf

  This is by far one of the best soundtracks I've heard in a while! It's subtle, powerful, and intricate all at the same time. -Hannah

• Anji Kills a King

  Leikam, Evan

  Add Anji Kills a King to your for later shelf

  If you love scrappy young women, horrible found families, or being doomed by the narrative, give this one a shot! It is a solid opener for a new dark fantasy series that follows Anji, a laundress that murders the king on page one and has to deal…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Evangelic Girl Is a Gun

  Yeule, 1997-

  Add Evangelic Girl Is a Gun to your for later shelf

  When Yeule dropped softscars, I was obsessed with that album nearly all of 2023. They embraced a shoegazy bubble-gum pop sound with a dark underbelly. And now they're back, further honing that sound into a fine knife's edge, perhaps leaning further…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Harriet Tubman: Live in Concert

  A Novel

  Bob the Drag Queen

  Add Harriet Tubman: Live in Concert to your for later shelf

  Have you ever wondered what it would be like if historical figures came back to life in the modern world? What if Harriet Tubman sought you out and demanded you help her write a rap album about her journey to free slaves on her own terms? Imagine…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Bear

  Shaloshvili, Natalia,

  Add Bear to your for later shelf

  Tired of saccharine and moralistic picture books imploring young children to share? If so, consider Bear. Shaloshvili pairs minimal words with evocative language and reminds us how it is, actually, sometimes very challenging to be a good neighbor.…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Girl on Girl

  How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves

  Gilbert, Sophie

  Add Girl on Girl to your for later shelf

  As a girl of the generation discussed, reading this felt like repeated body blows. Kirkus calls it "essential cultural criticism," and I have to agree! The audiobook is narrated beautifully by the author. -Kelsey

• London Falling

  Cornell, Paul

  Add London Falling to your for later shelf

  The Shadow Police series from Paul Cornell is one of my favorites in the urban fantasy genre, along with Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch. Both authors wrote for the Doctor Who television series. Based in London, a small specialist police team…Read moreRead more of this annotation

• Don't Trust Fish

  Sharpson, Neil,

  Add Don't Trust Fish to your for later shelf

  This picture book raised some really good points - don't trust fish. -Ellie

• The Last Secret Agent

  My Life as a Spy Behind Nazi Lines

  Latour, Pippa, 1921-2023,

  Add The Last Secret Agent to your for later shelf

  This is a fabulous true story of the last surviving WWII secret agent. At 102 years old, she finally tells her story of her incredible childhood in South Africa, how she became part of Britain's secret agent network, and the near misses she had as a…Read moreRead more of this annotation