Sponsored by Lerner Books
The New Mexico Territory. 1861. Grace, a trans runaway from Georgia, has headed west, fleeing conscription into the Confederate Army. But her coach ride makes an unplanned stop when notorious outlaw the Ghost Hawk swoops in, shaking down its passengers and kidnapping Grace. The Ghost Hawk—Flor, to her friends—means to hold Grace for ransom. But when Grace learns about Flor’s plan to crash a Confederate gala, she convinces the outlaw to let her join the heist. In Stage Dreams, acclaimed creator Melanie Gillman brings together two unlikely partners for a rollicking queer adventure full of robbery and romance.
Hello, book lovers!
It’s Liberty Hardy, sitting in these next two weeks while Katie McLain is on vacation. I’m excited to do this, because I am a library brat. My mother was a librarian for most of my childhood, and I spent thousands of hours in our hometown library, reading books while she worked. And then when I got older, also working the desk, shelving, emptying the returns box, straightening the card catalog, and putting plastic jackets on the books, because my mother had no fear of child labor laws. (It was still a good part of it, too, though.)
I always thought I would grow up to be a librarian, but I also thought I would grow up to marry George Michael. Hey, sometimes these things just don’t work out. But I am happy to be working in the book industry and I am happy to be sharing news with you today!
And remember, Katie says: “Starting September 17th, you’ll be getting TWO doses of Check Your Shelf in your inboxes each week on Tuesdays and Fridays! Tuesdays will focus on collection development and book lists, while Fridays will be more about news-y items. Thank you to all you readers who have made this newsletter such a success!!”
P.S. More fun news: be sure to enter Book Riot’s giveaway of the year’s 10 best mystery/thrillers so far!
Libraries & Librarians
News Updates
- Unknown John Locke manuscript discovered in St. John’s College library in Annapolis, Maryland.
- Lynette Noni and Holly Black have won the 2019 Inky Awards, presented by State Library of Victoria, Australia.
- Henrico County Public Library staffers save patron’s life.
- A documentary is being made about The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu.
- Georgetown University has begun its search for candidates to work as the librarian for collections on slavery, memory and reconciliation.
- Aldergrove librarian wins radio station’s RAMdom Acts of Kindness for new books.
Cool Library Updates
- Cleveland Public Library is starting its 10-year, $100M project to improve 27 neighborhood branches.
- The Pacific Island state of Tonga will open its very first public library in October.
- The winners of the 2019 ALA/AIA Library Building Awards.
- No more overdue fines for patrons of the Detroit Public Library or the Idaho Falls Library.
- $1 million renovation at Hershey Public Library to begin in October.
- Site work has started on the planned expansion of the North Conway Public Library.
- The University of Virginia’s “book migration” has started.
Worth Reading
- The most popular under the radar books in libraries: spring/summer edition.
- “The Decline and Evolution of the School Librarian.”
- What if social media platforms were more like libraries?
- “A device that projects interactive light games onto a table is being used in Irish libraries to help people with dementia and autism.”
- Little free libraries are growing in popularity.
- “Could Librarians Be the Superheroes We Need?”
Book Adaptations in the News
- Emily St John Mandel’s upcoming novel, The Glass Hotel, is being adapted for television, with Mandel herself writing the pilot.
- Hulu is already developing the Handmaid’s Tale sequel based on The Testaments by Margaret Atwood, which comes out next week.
- Rooney Mara has joined Guillermo Del Toro’s Nightmare Alley adaptation.
- Kate Mulgrew has joined the cast of Mr. Mercedes.
- Will Poulter has been cast in the lead of the Lord of the Rings series.
- Ursula Le Guin’s Earthsea Cycle is being adapted for television.
- Daniel Henney will play al’Lan Mandragoran in the Wheel of Time series.
- Bruce Holsinger’s new novel The Gifted School will be adapted for television.
Collection Development Corner
New & Upcoming Titles
- Huffington Post: 14 books to add to your fall reading list.
- Fodors: 16 travel books to read this fall.
- Refinery29: The best books to read in September.
- Hello Giggles: 11 best new books to read in September.
- The most popular books on Goodreads published in September 2019.
- Barnes and Noble: The best scifi and fantasy books of September 2019.
- Popsugar: 20 best books of September 2019.
- Bustle: 35 new books out in September 2019.
- The New York Times: 17 new books to watch for in September 2019.
- Chicago Review of Books: The best books of September 2019.
- Vox: The 12 most anticipated books of fall.
- Ms.: Reads for the rest of us: September 2019.
- Time: The 42 most anticipated books of Fall 2019.
Books & Authors in the News
- Amazon breaks the embargo for The Testaments.
- Dorothea Benton Frank dies at 67.
- Jade Sharma dies at 39.
- Lara Prescott on writing the fall’s biggest debut novel, The Secrets We Kept.
Award News
- The 2019 Booker Prize shortlist has been announced.
- The 12 nominees for the Scotiabank Giller Prize.
- IFPDA Foundation announces annual grants and book award.
Pop Cultured
- The trailer for Just Mercy with Jamie Foxx and Michael B. Jordan has arrived.
- Here’s the trailer for the third season of Anne with an E on Netflix.
- Here’s Hailee Steinfeld as Emily Dickinson in the new trailer for Dickinson, debuting this fall on Apple TV+.
- Here’s Meryl Streep in the trailer for The Laundromat, based on Jake Bernstein’s non-fiction book Secrecy World.
- And here’s the trailer for The King with Timothée Chalamet and Robert Pattinson, inspired by Shakespeare’s Henry work.
- Here’s the first official trailer for Edward Norton’s adaptation of Jonathan Lethem’s Motherless Brooklyn.
All Things Comics
- Nic Stone is writing a Black Panther novel about Shuri, to publish next year. And former Rioter Preeti Chhibber is writing about the Avengers!
- Moon Girl And Devil Dinosaur to be an animated series for the Disney Channel.
- A Ms. Marvel series in the works for the upcoming streaming service DisneyPlus.
- The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl cosplay.
- 10 of the coolest techie women in comics.
- 5 comics to read in September.
- 28 comics to watch for in September.
- DC Comics may be introducing a Black Caped Crusader.
- New comics coming to Marvel Unlimited in September.
- The best new manga of September 2019.
Audiophilia
- Audible agrees to delay parts of disputed captions program.
- Independent science fiction and fantasy publisher Baen Books partners with audiobook company RBmedia for an audiobook program.
- “Charting the Changes in Spanish Audiobooks.”
- Libro.fm names Top 14 audiobooks for Fall.
Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists
Children/Teens
- 4 of the best September 2019 YA releases.
- 6 YA books about teens and technology.
- 6 of the best epic YA fantasy novels.
- 18 favorite middle grade books about friendship.
- 10 2019 children’s book recommendations from children’s bookstores.
- Time traveling books for young readers.
Adults
- 3 great memoirs involving animals.
- 20 of the best post-apocalyptic books of 2019.
- 15 hugely entertaining books like Crazy Rich Asians.
- September 2019 celebrity book club picks.
- Diversify your sci-fi with these 11 books.
- Immigrant tales to read and embrace.
- The all-time best science fiction books for gamers.
- Top 10 books about fake news.
- Every summer reading list Barack Obama has shared over the last ten years.
Bookish Curiosities & Miscellaneous
- Bill introduced to create Toni Morrison Day.
- Which sf/dystopian book should you read next?
- September 2019 horoscopes and book recommendations.
- 101-year-old woman releases her first book of poetry.
- The new trend of illustrated romance covers.
- Preparing for the price increase on books and paper goods.
- Politics & Prose sells nearly 17,000 books at 2019 National Book Festival.
- “Why are all the motherhood memoirs so white?”
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 joining me today! I’ll see you next week.
–Liberty, @franzencomesalive on Instagram