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Happy Monday, my little monchhichis! I have had a stellar couple of days, because I somehow missed that a new season of Bob’s Burgers had started, so I had 10 whole episodes to watch! It was like Christmas came early for me. It’s the little things that are getting me through this year. I also got a new 1000-piece puzzle and I can’t wait to tear into this monster as soon as I’m done writing today’s newsletter. Oh, and books! I’m still reading books of course, let’s not get ridiculous.
Now, for today: I have lots of book news, my cat’s high school picture, puns, and a recommendation for another awesome upcoming 2021 book. Let’s get started, shall we?
Here’s Monday’s trivia question: What was Hemingway’s last work to be published during his lifetime? (Scroll to the bottom for the answer.)
Deals, Reals, and Squeals!
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Tara June Winch’s The Yield won the $80,000 Prime Minister’s Literary Award.
Kid Cudi will produce and star in an adaptation of Brandon Taylor’s Real Life.
Julia Roberts will star in and executive produce, alongside Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine, the Apple limited series The Last Thing He Told Me, based on Laura Dave’s upcoming novel.
Ashton Sanders has secured the rights for A More Unbending Battle: The Harlem Hellfighter’s Struggle for Freedom in WWI and Equality at Home by Peter Nelson.
True Blood may get a television reboot only six years after it ended.
Here’s the cover reveal for Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon.
Akwaeke Emezi shared more information about their upcoming memoir.
Algonquin Books is releasing a YA horror anthology, co-edited by Amparo Ortiz and Yamile Saied Méndez.
Ben Affleck is in talks to star in the George Clooney-directed film The Tender Bar, based on the memoir by J.R. Moehringer.
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Dreamworks is working on an animated Dog Man adaptation, based on the series by Dav Pilkey.
Netflix has landed the new adaptation of Erich Maria Remarque’s All Quiet on the Western Front starring Daniel Brühl.
Disney shared a bunch of news the other day, including details of the adaptation of Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi; an animated Diary of a Wimpy Kid film; and Tony Hale and Kristen Schaal will star in an adaptation of The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart.
And speaking of Disney, Rick Riordan shared the first look at the new logo for the Percy Jackson and The Olympians series coming to Disney+.
Here are more details on the new series in the works based on Lois Duncan’s I Know What You Did Last Summer.
Hulu has renewed The Handmaid’s Tale for a fifth season.
Book Riot Recommends
At Book Riot, I work on the New Books! email, the All the Books! podcast about new releases, and the Book Riot Insiders New Release Index. I am very fortunate to get to read a lot of upcoming titles, and learn about a lot of upcoming titles, and I’m delighted to share a couple with you each week so you can add them to your TBR! (It will now be books I loved on Mondays and books I’m excited to read on Thursdays. YAY, BOOKS!)
Loved, loved, loved:
Yolk by Mary H.K. Choi (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, March 2, 2021)
This holiday season, I feel like I am reading on social media that everyone is just discovering the movie The Family Stone for some reason? Maybe because it is now available to stream. I am also a person who was aware of its existence but had never seen it, so I thought, “Awkward holiday family gathering? I’m in.” But on top of being funny, it’s SO sad. Which just happens to be my favorite combination! I can’t say that I loved the movie, but it sure made me cry a lot.
Which brings me to today’s pick, although this one I most definitely DID love. This book gutted me! Jayne and June Baek are two Korean-American sisters with nothing in common. While June is the perfect daughter with the prestigious career and enviable bank account, younger Jayne is untethered and caught in a downward spiral professionally and personally. Jayne has always been envious of what she sees as her sister’s perfect life: June has an amazing job, globs of money, and the admiration of their parents. It has caused a rift between the sisters, and they haven’t spoken in some time, even though they both ended up in New York City.
But then June reaches out to Jayne, who agrees to meet with her, even though she is sure it will only make her feel worse about her own life. But June doesn’t want to chastise Jayne for her lifestyle or brag about her job: she wants Jayne to know she has cancer. Suddenly, everything changes for both sisters. Together, they will work to help Jayne get the treatment she needs and in the process, begin to both heal.
This book was so sharp and frighteningly realistic, it felt at times like I knew these characters. Choi has beautifully portrayed two complicated lives at a crossroads. It broke my heart so many times, but at the end, I felt healed. Yolk is listed as YA, but like her other wonderful novels, it has adult language and situations, so it’s recommended for older teens if you’re giving it as a gift. (Also, the publisher description reads like this is an insurance scam hijinks book, but that’s such a teeny bit of the story. It’s about family, and doing what’s best for yourself.)
(Content warning for mentions of racism, eating disorders, chemical abuse, cancer, mental illness, and child death.)
What I’m reading this week.
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Filthy Animals: Stories by Brandon Taylor
Composite Creatures by Caroline Hardaker
No Gods, No Monsters by Cadwell Turnbull
A Touch of Jen by Beth Morgan
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
Pun of the week:
Which bear is the most condescending? A pan-duh!
And this is funny:
From the people who brought you True Detective comes Bad Detective.
Happy things:
Here are a few things I enjoy that I thought you might like as well:
- Prep & Landing. Somehow I had never heard of these Christmas specials until this week. They’re adorable! I’m a big fan of the disgruntled Santa’s helper trope.
- Bob’s Burgers. I am rewatching some of my favorite episodes for the fifth time. I love how the show never makes the kids feel bad for being themselves.
- Numberzilla. Still not tired of this game.
- Purrli: This website makes the relaxing sounds of a cat purring.
And here’s a cat picture!
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I’m going to use this for Zevon’s senior portrait.
Trivia answer: The Old Man and the Sea.
Remember that whatever you are doing or watching or reading this week, I am sending you EXTRA love and hugs. Please be safe, and be mindful of others. It takes no effort to be kind. I’ll see you again on Thursday. – xoxo, Liberty