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Welcome to Check Your Shelf, where the temperature in the Chicago area is below zero, and everything is iced over and miserable. Let’s jump into books because the weather just has me feeling depressed.
Collection Development Corner
Publishing News
Norton Young Readers has teamed up with Accord Literary to bring African authors and stories to the US.
The unbearable whiteness of publishing, revisited.
New & Upcoming Titles
Jhumpa Lahiri has a new book coming out after almost a decade.
Sujata Massey has a new book in the Perveen Mistry series called The Bombay Prince coming out this summer!!
And Angie Kim has a second book coming out!!
Hunter Biden is releasing a memoir about his struggles with addiction.
Michelle Obama is releasing a new edition of Becoming for young readers.
Brandon Taylor announces his next book.
Nicola Yoon’s third book will be coming out this summer.
New book recommendations for Black History Month from Crime Reads, Entertainment Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, New York Times, Publishers Weekly, and USA Today.
Weekly book picks from Booklist Reader, Bustle, Buzzfeed, Crime Reads, The Millions, Shelf Awareness, and USA Today.
February book picks from Barnes & Noble, Bookmarks (SFF), Crime Reads, Entertainment Weekly, Good Morning America, io9 (SFF), Lambda Literary, LitHub, The Millions (general, poetry), O: Oprah Magazine, PopSugar (general, mystery/thriller, romance, YA), Shondaland, Time, Tor.com (fantasy, science fiction, SFF YA), and Washington Post.
10 best debut novelists of 2021.
58 Canadian fiction novels coming out in spring 2021.
Must-read books this spring by Black authors.
What Your Patrons Are Hearing About
Mike Nichols: A Life – Mark Harris (NPR, USA Today, Vogue)
Milk Fed – Melissa Broder (Entertainment Weekly, New York Times)
The Removed – Brandon Hobson (LA Times, USA Today)
How the One-Armed Sister Sweeps Her House – Cherie Jones (New York Times, Washington Post)
My Year Abroad – Chang-rae Lee (LA Times, New York Times)
City of a Thousand Gates – Rebecca Sacks (New York Times, Washington Post)
The Ratline: The Exalted Life and Mysterious Death of a Nazi Fugitive – Philippe Sands (LA Times, New York Times)
RA/Genre Resources
The 2020 Locus Recommended Reading List is out!
On the Riot
12 great February 2021 YA releases to read.
14 new holiday romance novel releases for the post-holiday blues.
An introduction to the wuxia genre.
All Things Comics
A Wakanda Disney+ series is in development, with Ryan Coogler at the helm.
On the Riot
Anime soundtracks to enjoy with your comics.
Audiophilia
Libro.fm has a really, REALLY solid list of audiobooks by Black authors for you to peruse.
February Earphone Award winners are announced.
Celebrity memoir audiobooks that are read by the author.
Weezer wrote a song about Audible. That’s it. That’s the headline.
On the Riot
6 great audiobooks in translation.
6 under 6: Short audiobooks that enhance the reading experience.
Great YA nonfiction on audio.
Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists
Children/Teens
10 books about love for growing readers.
44 YA books you need to read for Black History Month.
14 YA books turning 10 in 2021 that you should read.
11 of the best (and worst) brotherly bonds in YA.
19 YA books about fat acceptance.
Adults
25 books by Black Authors for all ages to add to your reading list.
Ibram X. Kendi’s recommended books to read for Black History Month.
Mysteries by Black women to check out.
An Amanda Gorman-inspired poetry reading list.
15 essential titles about climate change.
11 thrillers set in toxic workplaces.
34 books to cozy up with by a fire.
10 spy novels with women protagonists.
6 books to understand what revolution looks like.
Fantasy heroines that fight systemic oppression.
On the Riot
9 books about mindfulness for kids.
Fearless and fantastic adventure books for kids.
#OwnVoices Black history YA books.
Native and Indigenous YA nonfiction for your TBR.
4 YA books that got this reader through their bipolar disorder.
50 of the best Kindle Unlimited books you can read in 2021.
15 funny romance novels for your TBR.
5 nonfiction books from 2020 that challenge mainstream queer narratives.
10 books like The Vanishing Half.
6 books to check out if you loved Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell.
14 nonfiction titles for every romance.
12 female friendship books for Galentine’s Day.
15 popular Indigenous books from 2020.
8 great queer science fiction books.
13 polar fantasy books to transport you this winter.
9 modern novels about the quarter-life crisis.
Level Up (Library Reads)
Do you take part in Library Reads, 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.
Bundle up, and don’t go outside if at all possible. Catch you on Friday.
—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter. Currently reading Beneath a Ruthless Sun: A True Story of Violence, Race, and Justice Lost and Found by Gilbert King.