Welcome to Check Your Shelf! This is your guide to help librarians like you up your game when it comes to doing your job (& rocking it).
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Libraries and Librarians
- (Trigger warning) Florida library director Leroy Hommerding was murdered over the weekend while opening up the library for a book sale. We’ve now had two news items about librarians being murdered in less than 2 months, and I am not okay about this.
- eBook pricing is causing a significant drain on library budgets.
- A shrunken materials budgets for Philadelphia libraries = longer wait times for patrons.
- Chicago unveils two new libraries in housing developments next week.
- July 2019 will be listed as Booklist’s Graphic Novels in Libraries month.
- ALA Midwinter galley roundup. (This feature will require you to create a free account with Library Journal in order to access, if you don’t already have one.)
- If these Bookflix displays don’t spark your imagination, nothing will.
- Finland’s flagship library is so popular, they’ve almost run out of books.
- The top 10 books of 2018 according to this Book Rioter’s public library.
Book Adaptations in the News
- Get ready for an adaptation of Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng, starring Julia Roberts!
- Bill Skarsgard (It, Castle Rock) and Eliza Scanlen (Sharp Objects) join the cast of The Devil All the Time.
- Anne Hathaway is starring in the remake of The Witches. Whether or not her performance is as traumatic and nightmare-inducing as Anjelica Huston’s in the original film remains to be.
- A&E partners with Swoon Reads to develop YA for TV/film.
- Sharon Stone and Cynthia Nixon are starring in Ratched, a prequel to One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.
- WGN America is airing a crime drama miniseries called Gone, based on Chelsea Cain’s book One Kick.
- NBC orders a pilot for Lincoln, based on The Bone Collector by Jeffery Deaver.
- The release date for Where’d You Go, Bernadette has been pushed back.
- Tasha Suri’s Empire of Sand has been optioned for TV.
- Disney is planning a live-action reboot of The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
- The 10 most anticipated book-to-movie adaptations this year, from Publishers Weekly.
- Unfaithful yet awesome book-to-movie adaptations.
Books & Authors in the News
- Beloved Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Mary Oliver passes away at 83.
- Author Sherrilyn Kenyon was in the news after posting on her blog that her husband was slowly poisoning her.
- We have a release date for Children of Virtue and Vengeance by Tomi Adeyemi.
- A first look at Cari Mora, the upcoming novel from Silence of the Lambs author Thomas Harris.
- Karen Pence’s anti-LGBT school to receive 100 copies of the LGBTQ book, A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo, which is based on the Pence family’s own rabbit.
By the Numbers
- Laura B. McGrath takes a deep dive into into the racial demographics of the publishing industry by looking at “comp titles” (comparative titles) to see what new books get selected and prioritized over others. This is REALLY interesting.
- Academy of American Poets receives $2.2 million to support poetry organizations & projects.
- Michelle Obama’s Becoming has had the longest run as Amazon’s #1 bestseller since 50 Shades of Grey.
- The number of independent bookstores in the US increased by 35% over the last year, and more awesome book-related stats.
- Poetry sales in the UK spiked by 12% over the last year, with teenage girls and young women identified as the biggest poetry readers & buyers.
Award News
- YALSA releases its 2019 reading lists for audiobooks, fiction, graphic novels, and quick picks for reluctant readers.
- National Book Critics Circle finalists announced.
- Oscar nominees are listed here, and the response has been mixed.
- Lit Hub sorts award-winning books by state.
Pop Cultured
- Netflix is the first Internet company to join the Motion Picture Association of America.
All Things Comics
- 17 vampire manga series to keep an eye out for.
- What’s anatomy got to do with it?: Drawing women in comics.
Audiophilia
- Library Journal picks the best audiobooks & DVDs of 2018.
- One reader’s experience with transitioning between audio & print for the same book.
- Hallmark is publishing audiobooks now.
Upcoming Books in 2019
- A list of 33 highly anticipated crime novels coming out through March of this year, by yours truly.
- 30 must-read diverse children’s books coming in 2019.
- NPR: 2019 Poetry Preview.
- New York Times highlights internationally published books for 2019.
Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists
- A list of Latinx SFF authors.
- Min Jin Lee suggests 5 books written by women.
- 15 favorite kidnapping thrillers.
- 5 upcoming small press books to keep on your radar.
- 50 of the best nonfiction books for kids.
- January 22nd was World of Fantasy Day at Book Riot, so if you’re looking for fantasy content, check out these lists of African fantasy, epic fantasy from outside the UK, international fantasy comics, Slavic-language SFF translations, werewolf books from around the world, #ownvoices YA fantasy, Harry Potter readalikes, and Middle Eastern & Indian-influenced YA fantasy novels.
- 5 Roxane Gay-approved books to add to your TBR.
- 8 books about parallel universes.
- Reading pathway for Leigh Bardugo.
- Read Harder: A book by an author of color set in, or about, space.
Bookish Curiosities & Miscellaneous
- 2019 Tournament of Books brackets are here!
- If you’re looking for a resource for queer crime writers, author Kristen Lepionka just created one!
- Atria Books announces the launch of Signal Press, which will focus on books about feminism, politics, & social justice.
- Sourcebooks launches three new children’s imprints.
- Drag Queen Story Time protests continue at independent bookstores.
- From Vulture: “The villainous bitch has become the most boring trend in literature.” Agree or disagree?
- This test will estimate how many books you can read in a year.
- Why is Winnie the Pooh called a Pooh, and other important life questions.
- Can we make book recaps a thing? Please?
Level Up (Library Reads)
Do you take part in LibraryReads, the monthly list of best books selected by librarians only? We’ve made it easy for you to find eligible diverse titles to nominate. Kelly Jensen created a database of upcoming diverse books that anyone can edit, and Nora Rawlins of Early Word is doing the same, as well as including information about series, vendors, and publisher buzz.
Thanks for hanging out and I’ll see you again next week!
–Katie McLain, @kt_librarylady on Twitter. Currently reading Force of Nature by Jane Harper.