Sponsored by Holiday House
For fans of Shouting at the Rain by Lynda Mullaly and The Adventures of a Girl Called Bicycle by Christina Uss. Eleven-year-old Loah is a homebody. While her mother, a noted ornithologist, works to save the endangered birds of the shrinking Arctic tundra, Loah anxiously counts the days till her return home. To Loah’s surprise and dismay, Dr. Londonderry decides to set off on a perilous solo quest to find the Loah bird, long believed extinct. Can Loah the girl spread her sky wings to find the courage and heart she will need to save her own mother?
Welcome to Check Your Shelf. There’s ONE WEEK until the long weekend, and I’m taking a couple extra days off after that. Just keep swimming, just keep swimming…
Collection Development Corner
Publishing News
Skyhorse has acquired Blake Bailey’s recently pulled Philip Roth biography.
Not exactly publishing news, but in the world of gigantic mergers, Amazon is reported to make a $9 billion offer for MGM.
Inside the Simon & Schuster blowup over its Mike Pence book deal.
The Hachette Group released a diversity update for 2020.
The publishing industry is overwhelmingly white. Could unions be the answer?
Here’s the schedule of events for the 2021 virtual TorCon.
New & Upcoming Titles
Dhonielle Clayton and Sona Charaipotra are teaming up again for another YA thriller!! SIGN ME UP.
Stacey Abrams signed a deal for two more political thrillers featuring Avery Keene.
A first look at the cover of Jami Attenberg’s first nonfiction book, I Came All This Way to Meet You: Writing Myself Home.
Ibi Zoboi announces a pub date for her upcoming middle grade novel-in-verse.
8 new and forthcoming books by writers from the Indian diaspora.
22 new books by Asian-American and Pacific Islander authors perfect for mystery fans.
13 new books to read if you have royal fever.
Summer picks from Entertainment Weekly (debuts & thrillers), Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (mysteries), New York Times, and Off the Shelf.
Readers’ favorite books of 2021 so far.
Weekly picks from Bustle, Crime Reads, New York Times, and USA Today.
Barnes & Noble has June reading recommendations for adults and kids/teens.
What Your Patrons Are Hearing About
Dead Souls – Sam Riviere (New York Times, NPR, Washington Post)
Unsettled Ground – Claire Fuller (LA Times, NPR)
Freedom – Sebastian Junger (New York Times, NPR)
Zero Fail: The Rise and Fall of the Secret Service – Carol Leonnig (New York Times, Washington Post)
Phase Six – Jim Shepard (LA Times, New York Times)
RA/Genre Resources
A look at Martha Wells’ backlist, before Murderbot.
Recommended African speculative fiction titles.
Recommendations for science fiction by authors of color.
On the Riot
24 must-read new books of Spring and Summer 2021.
3 new and upcoming diverse YA romances.
Don’t ask this reader what their favorite book is.
All Things Comics
A new Black Panther comics series is launching in August.
What the WarnerMedia/Discovery merger might mean for DC Comics.
Legendary Comics announces a new YA imprint, which will launch with five original comic series.
The best new YA graphic novels to read right now.
On the Riot
5 YA novels turned into comics.
6 of the best nonfiction comics for YA readers.
Audiophilia
Storytel audiobooks will be available on Spotify later this year.
Celebrating the audiobooks of the Women’s Prize for Fiction.
5 reasons to listen to mysteries and thrillers on audio. (Other than because I said so!)
On the Riot
5 fantastic YA audiobooks narrated by Frankie Corzo.
6 audiobooks by Palestinian women.
Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists
Children/Teens
18 YA books to provide small town comfort.
20 YA SFF novels by Asian American authors.
25 of the greatest queer YA books to add to your summer reading list.
Adults
25 must-read books by Asian and Asian American authors.
20 joyful Asian stories you’re going to love.
18 must-read books by Asian American authors.
15 books by Asian Canadian authors.
Books by Colson Whitehead to read after watching The Underground Railroad.
Slow-burn fantasy romances for your TBR.
Novels that aren’t mysteries but are still full of suspense.
7 uninhabitable houses in fiction.
11 books to help you understand the 1960’s.
16 best-selling books to help you be more successful in life.
The best books to read on your first post-vax vacation.
5 SFF books that showcase siblings at their core.
30 fantasy series written by women that will give you a new perspective.
On the Riot
10 great postmodern picture books.
10 great books for young gamers.
3 YA books about teen entrepreneurs.
8 historical YA novels about war.
Must-read books for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month.
11 AAPI-owned bookstores and the books they recommend.
4 Pulitzer Prize nonfiction winners not by white men.
6 historical fiction books set in the 1960’s.
10 great 2020 cozy mysteries to catch up on.
20 must-read novels you may have missed because of the pandemic.
7 of the best nonfiction books from 2020.
Science fiction and fantasy by Palestinian authors.
8 takes on a fantasy of manners.
10 great books about Washington D.C.
Horror in the halls: books at extremely suspect boarding schools.
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.
Catch you on Friday!
—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.