I’m breaking with tradition and using my Friday Reads post to talk about the three books on the short list for the 2026 One Book One Nebraska selection. We wanted to give a short overview of each book, some author information, and include comments by the readers on the selection committee. The winner will be announced Saturday, November 15th at the Nebraska Celebration of Books literary festival’s awards ceremony. Let us know which book you would pick to be the next One Book One Nebraska read, or nominate a book to be considered for 2027.

Our Souls at Night, Kent Haruf. Vintage Books/Penguin Random House, 2015. Genre: Fiction

Set in contemporary Colorado, Haruf has crafted a love story between a widow and her widower neighbor. Life has given them a second chance to find happiness despite the nosiness of the townsfolk and a lack of support from family members.  Readers found it consistent with Haruf’s previous novels. One evaluator described this love story as “genuine.”

Haruf authored six novels. He previously lived in Lincoln while teaching at Nebraska Wesleyan. He was a finalist for the National Book Award, the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, and the New Yorker Book Award. He died in 2014. The book was published posthumously and was adapted into a film.

Lisa Kelly previously reviewed this title for Friday Reads, and you can read that review here.

The Antidote, Karen Russell. Knopf, 2025. Genre: Fiction

Set in western Nebraska in the 1930’s, Russell’s novel includes two actual events—the Black Sunday dust storm and the flooding of the Republican River.  The main character is the Antidote who magically handles memories. The novel includes a variety of interesting characters whose lives intersect in dramatic ways. One evaluator noted that the book “has lots of good topics for discussion.”

Russell has authored six books of fiction. She was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in 2012 for her novel Swamplandia!  She also received the Shirley Jackson Award and the 2024 Mary McCarthy Prize.  The Antidote is on the long list for the 2025 National Book Award for Fiction. Russell lives in Portland, Oregon.

Rod Wagner previously reviewed this title for Friday Reads, and you can read that review here.

Nebraska: Under a Big Red Sky, Joel Sartore. Nebraska Book Publishing, 1999. Genre: Photography/Nonfiction

This is Joel Sartore’s second book. It contains photographs of Nebraska from every section of the state. Compiled early in his career, it was prompted by his desire to show others the full range of his home state. Photos range from Sandhill cranes to the Sower to small town sports to rodeos to Carhenge to Memorial Stadium–to mention just a few.  One  committee member liked both the photos and Sartore’s humor, adding “I think there could be some good discussions about living in Nebraska.”

Joel Sartore lives in Lincoln, Nebraska and has been a contributor to National Geographic as well Audubon Magazine, Time, Life, and Newsweek. In 2021, he was inducted into the International Photography Hall of Fame and Museum and received the Ansel Adams Award for Conservation Photography from the Sierra Club. He was named the 2025 Nebraskan of the Year by Lincoln’s Rotary Club.