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After a family tragedy results in the loss of both father and home, 12-year-old Nora lives with her mother in Manila’s North Cemetery, which is the largest shantytown of its kind in the Philippines today. When her mother disappears mysteriously one day, Nora is left alone. With help from her best friend Jojo and the support of his kindhearted grandmother, Nora embarks on a journey riddled with danger in order to find her mom. Along the way she also rediscovers the compassion of the human spirit, the resilience of her community, and everlasting hope in the most unexpected places.
Welcome to Check Your Shelf, which is once again being brought to you from quarantine. I’m taking regular walks, working from home, and listening to a lot of Mumford & Sons.
Here’s a list of Book Riot’s ongoing COVID-19 coverage. And here’s a list of some of the good news related to COVID-19 that you probably haven’t read about.
Also, I have a redaction from the last issue of CYS. I posted a link from LitHub about the National Emergency Library created by the Internet Archive, which offers access to over 1 million eBooks. What I didn’t realize was that a good portion of this library includes titles by authors who did not consent to sharing their titles. The Authors Guild has written a statement against the the Internet Archive, which you can read here. The original article I linked to has since been taken down, but I wanted to officially redact that last link, and ask that we as library employees do not use or recommend this resource. I deeply apologize to any authors who might have been hurt by me sharing this article.
Collection Development Corner
Publishing News
- A running list of special publisher offers, events, and discounts.
- With Macmillan’s cancellation, the rescheduled Book Expo is looking at a conference without any of the Big 5 publishers.
- Ingram and the Penguin Random House warehouse have both been deemed “essential businesses.”
- Scholastic starts temporary staff reductions.
- Barnes & Noble temporarily closes 400 outlets.
- The Strand Book Store laid off nearly 200 staff in the wake of COVID, and then rehired over 100 staff members after a surge of online orders.
- Publishers struggle with when and how to move publication dates.
- How the coronavirus will change book publishing, both now and forever.
New & Upcoming Titles
- Tana French is publishing a new standalone suspense novel in October called The Searcher!!! For the first time in all this mess, I feel real hope!!
- Isabel Wilkerson, author of The Warmth of Other Suns, is publishing a new book in August called Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents.
- Jim Butcher announces the next book in the Dresden Files.
- Hillary and Chelsea Clinton will have a new book out at the end of March.
- Town & Country picks the must-read books for Spring 2020.
- 23 of April’s most-anticipated YA novels.
- 47 new YA books to support this spring.
- 21 YA romances you need to read this spring.
- 5 urban SFF novels to add to your 2020 TBR.
What Your Patrons Are Hearing About
- The Glass Hotel – Emily St. John Mandel (Entertainment Weekly, New York Times, NPR, Slate, USA Today, Washington Post)
- The City We Became – N.K. Jemisin (New York Times, NPR, Time, Washington Post)
- Hood Feminism: Notes From the Women That a Movement Forgot – Mikki Kendall (NPR)
- Darling Rose Gold – Stephanie Wrobel (Washington Post)
RA/Genre Resources
- Have you read any Japanese crime fiction yet?
- Our obsession with beautiful dead girls is keeping us from addressing domestic violence.
- Readers turn to romance novels in tough times, and the coronavirus is no exception.
- A roundtable discussion on romantic Christian suspense.
All Things Comics
- DC details how comic book retailers will be supported amid the COVID outbreak.
- Diamond Comic Distributors will cease delivery of weekly published comics until further notice.
- DC Comics launches an online at-home activity program called DC Kids Camp.
On the Riot
- Albert Uderzo, creator of Asterix comics, dies at age 92.
- 7 of the best educational comics to give to your kids while they’re learning at home.
- 7 comics similar to Calvin and Hobbes.
- How Marvel missed the mark with its first nonbinary superhero.
Audiophilia
- An expert’s guide to finding and listening to amazing audiobooks while social distancing.
- Libro.fm saw its membership increase by 200% this month.
- Best audiobooks of March.
- Music, podcasts, and audiobooks to enjoy while social distancing.
- Audiobook suggestions for all that “forced family time.”
- Even more audiobook suggestions from The Cut, BuzzFeed, and The Guardian.
On the Riot
- Where to find the best audiobook reviews online.
- 10 of the best audiobook series.
- Audiobook adventures with Animal Crossings: New Horizons.
- Bookish puzzles and audiobooks go hand-in-hand.
- Listening pathway for Ramon de Ocampo.
Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists
Children/Teens
- 14 sweet children’s books about home.
- 20 book series to keep the whole family entertained.
- 29 YA novels with awesome ensemble casts.
Adults
- Entertaining nonfiction to lift your spirits.
- NYPL staff suggest mental health reads during these trying times.
- I like big books and I cannot lie…14 enormous crime novels and 5 massive SFF novels to keep you occupied.
- 100+ books by black women that should be essential reading for everyone.
- 6 debut fantasy novels featuring black women.
- 7 thrillers about female ambition, suggested by Andrea Bartz, author of The Herd.
- 30 books for anyone going through a quarter-life crisis.
- 21 books to put you in a good mood, guaranteed.
- Hang onto hope with these 11 books.
On the Riot
- 7 of the best Disney baby books for showers.
- 6 of the best picture books for children about consent.
- 5 books to get you started with Roald Dahl.
- 13 action-packed series for middle schoolers.
- New York City in children’s and YA SFF.
- 8 of the best magical cities in YA fiction.
- Books for when anxiety makes it hard to concentrate.
- 20 feel-good ebooks unlikely to have long library waitlists. Plus 20 of the best books on Hoopla right now.
- 20 books about forbidden romances.
- 20 must-read books for nature lovers.
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.
Sending virtual hugs to anyone who wants them. Stay safe, healthy, and relatively sane.
Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter. Currently re-reading The Likeness by Tana French.