"During the past 15 months of the global pandemic, "some of us have been lonely, others frightened or angry. We're all exhausted. It's been a natural time to appraise how we got to this point of fracture and fragility and how we heal; we want to know who we've been and who we're becoming, and for that we've always turned to books. Which books have foretold the present, lit our paths, warned us back, egged us on? What books stand with us now, reflecting the present?
Our 50 Books for 50 Years list comes from this place of self-reflection, and is inspired by Powell's 50th anniversary year. These 50 books not only show us who we have been as a country and a species and where we are going, but the power of the right words, at the right time, to act as a mirror and a beacon."
- Powell's Books, 2021
