Whether you’re stocking up on stocking stuffers or looking for the best bookish way to get your stuff from Point A to Point B, you’ll love today’s deal. All totes are $12!
Wanna fill your tote with amazing gifts? Pick up our Best Books of the Year box, stocked with four rad reads and three literary items.
Bonus: free shipping on ALL orders in the US.
The Folio Society sent me their new boxed set of Antione de Saint-Exupéry’s The Little Prince, which includes an intro from Pulitzer Prize-winner Stacy Schiff, and the original illustrations restored to their intended colors. It’s beautiful and fancy, and one of you should have it. So I’m giving it away.
Go here to enter for a chance at it, or just click the image below:
Today’s Riot Rundown is sponsored by Imperfect Justice by Cara Putman.
To the world it seems obvious: Kaylene Adams killed her daughter and then was shot by police. Attorney Emilie Wesley believes Kaylene would never hurt anyone and was looking for a way out of an abusive relationship.
Reid Billings thought he knew his sister. He discovers a letter from Kaylene begging him to fight for custody of her daughters if anything should happen to her and tells him to get help from Emilie Wesley.
Thrown together in a race to save Kaylene’s surviving daughter, Emilie and Reid must find the truth—and maybe a future together in the process.
Today’s Riot Rundown is sponsored by New Harbinger Publications.
“Compelling, funny, occasionally heartbreaking, and full of genuine hope in ways that most graphic memoirs never achieve artistically. … Don’t miss this one.”
—Library Journal Starred Review
As a young artist living in Portland, Lacy Davis’s eating disorder began with the germ of an idea: a seed of a thought that told her she just wasn’t good enough. And like ink in water, that idea spread until it reached every corner of her being. This is the true story of Lacy’s journey into the self-destructive world of multiple eating disorders.
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Researchers Investigate What Makes A Poem Popular
Researchers from New York University and the Max Planck Institute for Empirical Aesthetics found that vividness was the best predictor of the aesthetic appeal of a poem. The researchers were investigating what makes a poem aesthetically pleasing, and thereby higher-rated among readers. Four hundred participants read 111 haikus and 16 sonnets, rating the poems on vividness, emotional arousal, emotional valence, and aesthetic appeal, and poems where the reader strongly experienced images while reading ranked highest in their results.
Charlyne Yi Responds To Claims Of Defamation From Former Art Director at Penguin
Over the weekend, writer and actress Charlyne Yi responded to the resignation post Giuseppe Castellano published on his blog, which included a statement that Yi’s allegations of sexual harassment were “defamatory and false.” Giuseppe Castellano resigned from a position as Executive Art Director at Penguin Random House following Yi’s allegations. In response to Castellano’s statement, Yi posted on Twitter screenshots of correspondence related to the night in question, which included an apology for a weak moment, and details about the evening in question.
Bill Gates Recommends His Favorite 2017 Reads
Avid reader Bill Gates wrote about five of the best books he read this year. They included Thi Bui’s graphic memoir about life as a refugee and parent (The Best We Could Do), comedian Eddie Izzard’s memoir (Believe Me: A Memoir of Love, Death, and Jazz Chickens), and 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction recipient The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen. Check out the full list, and his thoughts on each, over at GatesNotes.
Welcome to the first Tuesday of December! I might do some wrap-ups in the coming weeks, but there were still enough awesome books out today that I had some recommendations, and you can hear about several more great books on this week’s episode of the All the Books! Rebecca and I talked about a few amazing books we loved, including Elmet, Roomies, The Last Black Unicorn, and more.
Sponsored by The House on Foster Hill by Jaime Jo Wright
Weaving a tale of mystery and romance, this promising author’s critically acclaimed debut is a dual-time narrative about an abandoned house and two women, a century apart, changed by the deadly secrets it holds. Can they unravel its mystery and find a renewed hope before any other lives—including their own—are lost? “With sharp dialogue and plenty of scares, this is a gripping tale that never loses sight of the light.” –Foreword Reviews
The Girl in the Tower by Katherine Arden
I don’t often recommend sequels, mostly because I am an ardent fan of reading things in order, but this one is just as good as the first, of not better. I’m not going to spoil things by telling you the plot, just that this is a wonderful continuation of Arden’s magical Russian fairy tale story, with gorgeous descriptions and a kickass heroine.
Backlist bump: The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden
The Vanishing Princess: Stories (The Art of the Story) by Jenny Diski
Love dark, enchanting, honest short stories? Than look no further! This is a vividly imaginative collection about love, sex, loneliness, femininity, and more, perfect for fans of Mary Miller, Heidi Julavits, and Alexandra Kleeman. Sadly, Diski passed away in 2016, but this posthumous offering is perfect.
Backlist bump: Always Happy Hour: Stories by Mary Miller
The Years, Months, Days: Two Novellas by Yan Lianke, Carlos Rojas (Translator)
Lianke has the distinction of being China’s most banned author, but his works of satire are beloved all over the world. The two novellas here are prize-winning masterpieces about humanity and the universe, a dark but gentle look at love and man’s sense of survival in the face of loss and ruin. Quietly bizarre and powerful.
Backlist bump: Dream of Ding Village by Yan Lianke
That’s it for me today – time to get back to reading! If you want to learn more about books new and old (and see lots of pictures of my cats, Millay and Steinbeck), or tell me about books you’re reading, or books you think I should read (I HEART RECOMMENDATIONS!), you can find me on Twitter at MissLiberty, on Instagram at FranzenComesAlive, or Litsy under ‘Liberty’!
Stay rad,
Liberty
Welcome back to In The Club, a newsletter of resources to keep your book group well-met and well-read. Let’s dive in.
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Read the best of the best: The NYT has put out their 10 Best 2017 list. I’m happy to see it’s an inclusive list with stand-outs like Exit West by Mohsin Hamid and Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward. It’s also not just fiction — they evenly split it, with five fiction and five nonfiction titles. They also put out their 100 Notable Books list, in case 10 is not enough for you, also split between fiction/poetry and nonfiction.
HOWEVER. LitHub had some problems with the 100 Notable Books list, and has rounded up a bunch they think should not be missed.
Is your group excited about Harry and Meghan? Here’s a round-up of royalty-themed romances to help you celebrate!
What should be on your group’s radar for 2018? Here’s our recommendations on which upcoming releases to put on hold at your library ASAP.
Wanting to read classics in 2018, but branch out as well? We have a solution! Here are 100 classics in translation! Some will be very familiar, but there are lots you might have missed.
What is flash fiction and should you be reading and discussing it? Our working definition is “basically any story under 1,000 words,” and we think yes. Here’s a list of female writers of the genre to get you started, perfect for busy holiday schedules.
Need some adventures to take your minds off reality? Have some teens in space. I just finished Jade City (so good) by Fonda Lee and had no idea she’d written a YA space opera — to the library, Jeeves!
And that’s a wrap: Happy discussing! If you’re interested in more science fiction and fantasy talk, you can catch me and my co-host Sharifah on the SFF Yeah! podcast. For many many more book recommendations (including the occasional book club question!) you can find me on the Get Booked podcast with the inimitable Amanda.
Your fellow booknerd,
Jenn
More Resources:
– Our Book Group In A Box guide
– List your group on the Book Group Resources page
It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Our 5 Days of Deals are here, and to kick things off (or tee them up…see what we did there), all adult tees are just $20 today!
Plus, we’ve got FREE shipping on all US orders. Get shopping!
This installment of Today in Books is sponsored by A Duke in Shining Armor by Loretta Chase:
The New York Times Selects Its 10 Best Books of the Year
This list is probably the most prestigious media-selected book list of the year, and while I haven’t read all of them, the ones I have read are truly wonderful (Exit West, Priestdaddy, Sing, Unburied, Sing). If you are into literary fiction and non-fiction, then you could do worse than read these chosen 10.
Jenny Slate Writing Book of Feminist Fables
Actress, comedian, and director Jenny Slate signed a deal with Little, Brown for a collection of feminist fables to be published in 2019. The book doesn’t have a title yet, but the description sounds fascinating: “The witty and at times fantastical book imagines the perspectives of other preyed-upon creatures (a deer venturing into a meadow; a globe of fruit plucked from its branch), invites us into the haunted house of her childhood, and celebrates the power of being vulnerable and open, even in the face of rejection and fear.”
4-Year-Old With Inoperable Brain Tumor Receives Hundreds of Books
When her parents found out that she had an inoperable brain tumor, they tried to think of giving her something to make her happy and to sustain her during the trying days of treatment and surgery ahead. So they asked their friends and family to make it known that Lena loves books and that building out her personal library would go a long way. The result? By word of mouth, and word of internet, people from all over heard Len’a story and she has so far received hundreds of boxes of books. Good for you Lena, and best of luck.
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