'The Lyrics' is the 2021 Barnes & Noble Book of the Year!

The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present is the 2021 Barnes & Noble Book of the Year 
Booksellers chose Paul’s treasure trove spanning sixty-four years.

Barnes & Noble, with bookstores in every state across the United States, today announced that the booksellers chose Paul McCartney’s The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present  as the winner of Barnes & Noble’s 2021 Book of the Year.

"I’m beyond honoured to receive this recognition.  My team and I are extremely proud of The Lyrics and it means so much to us that you like it as much as we do.  Thank you to all the amazing team at Barnes & Noble in helping to launch the book." - Paul

“The Lyrics is an extraordinary book. It is stunningly beautiful and a masterpiece of book design,” said Barnes & Noble CEO, James Daunt. “Paul McCartney has fashioned, through the explorations of his songs with the poet Paul Muldoon, a fascinating insight into his life and creative genius. No wonder the booksellers of Barnes & Noble have hailed this magnificent and deeply original book.”

In this extraordinary book, with unparalleled candor, Paul recounts his life and art through the prism of 154 songs from all stages of his career - from his earliest boyhood compositions through the legendary decade of The Beatles, through Wings and his solo career to the present. The Lyrics is the closest to a memoir we can expect to see from Paul McCartney and the definitive gift not only for every Beatles fan this year, but for bibliophiles and everyone interested in the culture of the last 65 years.

“We are ecstatic and extremely honored that The Lyrics has been selected as the 2021 Barnes & Noble Book of the Year. It’s a magical match of a legendary songwriter, who has cherished the written word his entire life, and a great bookseller that is devoted to serving America’s thriving book culture” said Robert Weil, Editor-in-Chief and Publishing Director of Liveright Publishing.

James Daunt will be in conversation with Paul McCartney on Barnes & Noble’s  YouTube Channel to discuss The Lyrics this evening at 7:00PM ET.

This year Barnes & Noble booksellers around the country nominated their top books from 2021, which were narrowed down to eight titles by a selection committee, including Mr. Daunt. The Lyrics was then voted on by booksellers as the 2021 Book of the Year. Here is what booksellers had to say about the winner:

“As a musician, The Lyrics i_s incredibly special to me. The Beatles have been so influential in my life and to be able to see behind the scenes and into the mind of Paul McCartney is something very cool! This is the type of book that won't just live on my coffee table as a gorgeous representation of the music I love, but it will live in my mind as I happily hum some of the greatest music ever written long after I've finished reading”_ – Scarlet R, Fairfax, VA

“Perfection, achieved. This collection is a true benchmark for showcasing the kaleidoscopic history of one of our greatest musical souls.” – Marc C, Cincinnati, OH

“The Lyrics _is like Paul McCartney took all the scraps of paper where he wrote down little ideas and then connected the dots for each of us to see how something so simple as a scrap of paper can become the greatest music of any generation. It is something that I will be pouring over for years to come. It's a gift to me but it would be a great gift to any Beatles fan.”_- Michele L, New York, NY

“A beautifully made book - perfect for any Beatles lover. It's filled with photos, handwritten lyric sheets, and personal anecdotes about the songs Paul wrote. Read about the bus tour the Beatles took with Roy Orbison while they were writing 'From Me To You' and he was writing 'Pretty Woman'. Or read about the first time Paul played 'Hey Jude' to John and Yoko. It's just an amazing collection of memorabilia and memories spanning more than 60 years of songs from the one and only Paul McCartney.” -  Joe M, Frederick, MD

Customers can find the Book of the Year and Book of the Year Finalists at their local Barnes & Noble and on BN.com. They can also join the conversation on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook, using hashtag #BNBoTY and #PaulMcCartneyTheLyrics.