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Reflecting on a Remarkable Year: Our Top Picks of 2025

As December winds down, we find ourselves reflecting on the year: its challenges, its triumphs, and the stories that carried us through it. 2025 has been a particularly difficult year for many, and yet, the power of storytelling has reminded us of the resilience, courage, and creativity that lives within each of us. At Xolo Books, a proud Latina-owned small business, we’ve been inspired by books that challenge, enlighten, and resonate. Today, we’re celebrating three standout titles that captured hearts and sparked conversation this year.


Defectors by Paola Ramos

In Defectors, Ramos, an award‑winning journalist, uses on‑the‑ground reporting, personal interviews, and sharp insight to investigate a phenomenon that disrupts simplistic assumptions about Latino identity in America. She travels across cities and rural towns, meeting people who defy expectations: Latino conservatives, far‑right supporters, and unlikely voices in political movements.


This book both reports facts and it humanizes stories. Ramos reveals how race, trauma, faith, and beliefs about belonging can lead people to paths long assumed unlikely. For readers seeking to understand the shifting social and political landscape, especially as it touches Latino communities, Defectors is a provocative and essential read. Its empathetic and fearless commentary makes it perfect for book clubs, heated conversations with family, or personal reflection. Check out Paola's newest podcast, The Moment - together with her father, legendary journalist Jorge Ramos, sit down with politicians, artists, activists, journalists, and other top thinkers to tackle the issues of today with raw, unfiltered conversations and a distinctly Latino point of view.




Sisters in the Wind by Angeline Boulley

From the bestselling author of Firekeeper’s Daughter, Sisters in the Wind delivers a gripping, emotionally-charged mystery that crawls under your skin and stays with you. The story follows 18‑year-old Lucy Smith, a foster teen who, after years of instability, learns she is Ojibwe and that there may be family waiting for her. But with truth comes danger: secrets, betrayal, and threats force Lucy to fight for her identity and safety.

What makes this novel stand out is how it blends a fast-paced thriller with meaningful cultural and social commentary. Lucy’s journey is one of survival and of understanding heritage, reclaiming identity, and discovering what “home” really means. For anyone who loves a page-turner with heart, with characters grappling with real-world issues, Sisters in the Wind is a must-read!


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The Message by Ta-Nehisi Coates

In The Message, Coates returns to nonfiction with a powerful meditation on storytelling, identity, and justice. This book weaves together his travels to Dakar, South Carolina, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem. Through these journeys, Coates examines global histories of oppression, memory, and resistance, ultimately arguing that stories matter.

This book is for readers who want more than a story, those who want to feel, question, and reflect. Coates confronts truth, injustice, and moral complexity. The Message offers a space for empathy, critical thinking, and hope. It’s a timely reminder that in a world shaking under political and social pressure, literature can help us reckon with the past and imagine a better future.


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