Month: May 2021

First Tuesday of May Megalist!

Post author By Liberty Hardy
Post date May 3, 2021

Sponsored by Counting Down with You by Tashie Bhuiyan.

When Karina Ahmed’s parents go abroad to Bangladesh for four weeks, she expects some peace and quiet. Instead, she gets roped into a fake-dating scheme with her school’s resident bad boy, Ace Clyde. Tutoring him was already crossing a line, but pretending to date him? Out of the question. But Ace does everything right—he brings her coffee in the mornings, impresses her friends without trying, and even promises to buy her a dozen books a week. Though Karina agrees, she can’t help but start counting down the days until her parents come back and things return to normal.

Happy Tuesday, readers! It’s another amazing day in Bookland. There are approximately a zillion new releases out today, give or take a few. And I am so excited for you to read so many of them. Damn it feels good to be a reader! Me, I’m an eeeeeeeeeeeee reader. (Sorry, not sorry.) Why do I make you a megalist each month? Because books are not just my job, they’re my life. They’ve gotten me through many hard times and brought me so much joy, so I like to give you as many options as I can to help you find the books that do that for you, too. (Also, check out this amazing “Books Saved My Life” shirt from Uncle Bobbie’s.)

I did get a chance to read several of today’s books, but there are still soooo many more on this list that I can’t wait to get, like On Juneteenth by Annette Gordon-Reed, The Secret Talker by Geling Yan, and Ariadne by Jennifer Saint. And as with each first Tuesday megalist, I am putting a ❤️ next to the books that I have had the chance to read and loved. You can also hear about several new releases on this week’s episode of the All the Books! Danika and I discussed Great Circle, Luck of the Titanic, Sorrowland, and more. Okay—everyone buckled in? Get ready to click your little hearts out, because here come the books! – XO, Liberty

P.S. If you’re not busy tonight, come hear me interview Aidan Truhen about his new book!

Realm Breaker by Victoria Aveyard ❤️

Meet Cute Diary by Emery Lee

Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead ❤️

Last Gate of the Emperor by Prince Joel Dawit Makonnen and Kwame Mbalia

Negative Space (SFWP Literary Awards) by Lilly Dancyger

The Parted Earth by Anjali Enjeti

An Ordinary Age: Finding Your Way in a World That Expects Exceptional by Rainesford Stauffer

On Juneteenth by Annette Gordon-Reed

Sacrifice: A Gold Star Widow’s Fight for the Truth by Michelle Black

Billionaires by Darryl Cunningham

Seven Demons by Aidan Truhen ❤️

Living in Data: A Citizen’s Guide to a Better Information Future by Jer Thorp

Nothing Personal: An Essay by James Baldwin

The Girl Who Died by Ragnar Jonasson

The Hummingbirds’ Gift : Wonder, Beauty, and Renewal on Wings by Sy Montgomery

The Glorious Guinness Girls by Emily Hourican

Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon ❤️

Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest by Suzanne Simard

The Secret Talker by Geling Yan

Albert and the Whale: Albrecht Dürer and How Art Imagines Our World by Philip Hoare

Luck of the Titanic by Stacey Lee ❤️

Films of Endearment: A Mother, a Son and the 80s Films That Defined Us by Michael Koresky

Stranger Care: A Memoir of Loving What Isn’t Ours by Sarah Sentilles

Find You First by Linwood Barclay ❤️

Monkey Boy by Francisco Goldman

Remake the World: Essays, Reflections, Rebellions by Astra Taylor

The Premonition: A Pandemic Story by Michael Lewis

Let’s Talk About Hard Things by Anna Sale

Living Nations, Living Words: An Anthology of First Peoples Poetry by The Library of Congress, Joy Harjo

My Time Will Come: A Memoir of Crime, Punishment, Hope, and Redemption by Ian Manuel

Arsenic and Adobo (Tita Rosie’s Kitchen Mystery #1) by Mia P. Manansala

Seeing Sideways: A Memoir of Music and Motherhood Part of: American Music by Kristin Hersh ❤️

Mergers and Acquisitions Or, Everything I Know About Love I Learned on the Wedding Pages by Cate Doty

Better Than the Movies by Lynn Painter

The Dead Husband by Carter Wilson

Excuse Me While I Ugly Cry by Joya Goffney

African Europeans: An Untold History by Olivette Otele

The Mysteries by Marisa Silver

The Siren by Katherine St. John

Firebreak by Nicole Kornher-Stace ❤️

Bad Lawyer: A Memoir of Law and Disorder by Anna Dorn

Sunshine Girl: An Unexpected Life by Julianna Margulies

The Ones We’re Meant to Find by Joan He ❤️

Secrets of Happiness by Joan Silber

The Renunciations: Poems by Donika Kelly

Leda and the Swan by Anna Caritj

Second Place by Rachel Cusk ❤️

A Lonely Man by Chris Power

The Newcomer by Mary Kay Andrews ❤️

Take Me Home Tonight by Morgan Matson

Ariadne by Jennifer Saint

Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir

Summer on the Bluffs: A Novel (Oak Bluffs) by Sunny Hostin

When You Get the Chance by Tom Ryan and Robin Stevenson

The Secret to Superhuman Strength by Alison Bechdel ❤️

Finding Junie Kim by Ellen Oh

The Most Beautiful Girl in Cuba by Chanel Cleeton

Pop Song: Adventures in Art & Intimacy by Larissa Pham

Family Law by Gin Phillips

Rooted: Life at the Crossroads of Science, Nature, and Spirit by Lyanda Lynn Haupt

The Bookshop of Second Chances by Jackie Fraser

Hurricane Summer by Asha Bromfield

Maybe Maybe Marisol Rainey by Erin Entrada Kelly

Hour of the Witch by Chris Bohjalian ❤️

Prom House by Chelsea Mueller

The Black Ghost by Monica Gallagher, Alex Segura, Marco Finnegan

The Woman with the Blue Star by Pam Jenoff

Things We Lost to the Water by Eric Nguyen

The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave

It Had to Be You by Georgia Clark

Everybody: A Book about Freedom by Olivia Laing

Just Last Night by Mhairi McFarlane

Eartha & Kitt: A Daughter’s Love Story in Black and White by Kitt Shapiro with Patricia Levy

Thank you, as always, for joining me each week as I rave about books! I am wishing the best for all of you in whatever situation you find yourself in now. – XO, Liberty

Giveaways

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Post author By Natalia Heroux
Post date May 3, 2021

We’re giving away five Mother’s Day gift sets by Potter Gift to five lucky Riot readers!

Enter here for a chance, or click the cover image below!

Here’s what it’s all about:

Check out these great gift ideas for your book-loving Mom this Mother’s Day! Gorgeously illustrated, Ex Libris by Pulitzer Prize–winning literary critic Michiko Kakutani shares 100 thought-provoking essays about books that help illuminate today’s world. Let language-loving Moms show off and sharpen their grammar skills with the irresistible card game, Stet!, from the bestselling author of Dreyer’s English. And last but not least is a beautifully designed journal for recording and remembering everything about their book club, including titles read, themes covered, and even that favorite bottle of wine sipped during the fun.

Kissing Books

Age-Appropriate Steam

Post author By P.N. Hinton
Post date May 3, 2021

From the World of Romance

I was scrolling through Twitter, as I often do, and discovered a new to me romance related topic floating in the ether. I couldn’t find the source of it though, and by the time it entered my Twitter-sphere it had morphed into numerous requests for more “steamy scenes” in YA.

Which gave me a huge pause, as the requests were coming from the adult fans and not the young adults themselves.

I love YA, and books from that category regularly enter my reading rotation. But, I am personally not comfortable with steamy scenes in my YA. There are very specific YA series and authors that I won’t read because I know they’re in there, and that I’m not going to like it. Now, I’m not naïve in believing that real life teens don’t participate in those types of activities. However, with the age I am and the decade I’m approaching, I’m also perfectly okay stating that I don’t want to read about it.

This is not shaming anyone for liking anything in YA. There are a lot of damned good books coming out weekly in the category. I would’ve given my eyeteeth (whatever those are) to have some of these books as options when I was a young reader; the first thing that pops to mind is Elise Bryant’s Happily Ever Afters.

It’s not like steamy scenes are unavailable. I know that teenagers have physical relationships in real life, and that having those scenes in some books may make those stories feel more realistic. But there shouldn’t be a demand for these types scenes in YA books just for the sake of having them. And if there are, then the majority of the requests should be coming from young adults.

Around the Web in Romance

News came out this week that Netflix is (finally) adapting a Black romance novel. Hopefully this is a trend that will only increase.

Just in time for AAPI Heritage month, here is a list of some of the most anticipated books by Asian Authors headed our way. I can already hear my bank account sighing in resigned exasperation.

Here is Silvana again shining a light on a trope I didn’t know existed or that I enjoyed. On a personal note, kudos to people who can take care of me when I’m feeling sick. I realized when my allergies attacked me awhile back that I don’t turn into a helpless person when I’m feeling under the weather, but I do get really mean. I’m a tiny ball of sick rage, and I want everyone to feel my pain.

Also in more erotic horror news, this short story came out this week. It made me laugh since I used Jason as an example in one of the last newsletters and now look! I helped to put this out in the world! And, yes, I realize this was already on its way to being live when I wrote it but still…I got a bit of a giddy thrill out of this news.

New Releases & Deals

Here are some of the new releases headed our way this week.

The Girl with Stars in Her Eyes by Xio Axelrod

The Lady Has a Past by Amanda Quick

Like Cats and Dogs by Kate McMurray

The Heartbreaker by Claire Contreras

As for deals, Finding Home Again by Brenda Jackson, The Rakess by Scarlett Peckham, Status Update by Annabeth Albert are all available for $1.99.

And that’s all for now. If you’re not already, feel free to give me a follow as @PScribe801 over on Twitter. See y’all Thursday.

Events

Welcome To Children’s Book Week, Sponsored By ThriftBooks!

Post author By Jenn Northington
Post date May 3, 2021

Sponsored by Millions of books at the best prices. Shop Kids books @ ThriftBooks.com

With millions of titles, ThriftBooks has an endless selection of children’s books at the best prices to fill your child’s imagination…. and their library. From childhood classics to new undiscovered worlds of adventures, there is something for everyone and every budget. And with the ThriftBooks ReadingRewards program, every purchase gets you a step closer to your next free book. Shop ThriftBooks.com today to unleash the pure imagination a world of children’s books has to offer. ThriftBooks.com. Read more. Spend less.

It’s Children’s Book Week, the longest running literacy initiative in the US, and we’re celebrating all week long! We’re talking parents in middle grade fiction, indestructible books (because we know how helpful those are), adaptations, cooking with kids, marginalized main characters, and so much more.

Our coverage begins today and continues through-out the week, so make sure to check back. Here’s to all the kids, and the kids in all of us!

What's Up in YA

Upper YA Books Not About College

Post author By Tirzah Price
Post date May 3, 2021

Sponsored by Flatiron Books, publisher of Anna K Away by Jenny Lee

Set over the course of one unforgettable summer, Anna K and her friends are back! Jenny Lee’s Anna K Away is full of the risk, joy, heartbreak, and adventure that mark the three months between the end of one school year and the beginning of the next. Haters are always gonna hate…but everyone loves a good comeback tour.

Hey YA friends!

One thing that I love to see in recent years is an increase in YA books set after high school. We all know there’s no magical rite that automatically turns you from teen to adult on graduation day, and I think there’s a lot of value in exploring post-high school stories that are still definitely YA stories and not written for adult audiences. I recently wrote an updated post over on the site about some newer YA books set during college, but I wanted to look at some post-high school stories that don’t involve college. Here are four recent-ish releases!

The Marvelous Mirza Girls by Sheba Karim

Noreen is grieving the loss of her aunt and deep into a post-high school slump when she decides to head to New Delhi with her mom for a gap year. There, she meets Kabir, who introduces her to all of the wonders the city possesses and starts to get her out of her slump…but then a scandal erupts and Noreen must figure out where they stand and what it means to love someone.

The Project by Courtney Summers

When Bea was 19, her parents died in a car accident and her little sister Lo barely survived. Bea joined The Project, and found solace and family within. But she never spoke to Lo again. Now, Lo is 19 and she’s hoping that she can find her sister. The rumors about The Project being a cult have her on edge, but she’d do anything to track down Bea and find out why her sister abandoned her…even if it means walking right into danger herself.

Permanent Record by Mary H.K. Choi

Pablo is working at a bodega, the overnight shift, when Leanna Smart, worldwide celebrity walks in. At first, he’s kind of stunned, but he plays it cool, and they even banter a bit. When she walks away, he thinks that’s that…but it’s just the start of a strange, electric connection between the two of them that can’t be denied. But she’s Leanna Smart, pop goddess, and he’s just a college dropout who doesn’t know what he wants to do with his life–they can’t possibly make it work, can they?

Watch Over Me by Nina LaCour

Mila has been alone for a long time now, and now that she’s aged out of the foster care system, she needs a place to go. So she accepts a job at a farm in Northern California, where she spends her days working with foster kids and her weekends at the farmer’s market at the closest place to a home she’s ever found. But she knows that she doesn’t quite belong here yet, and there are ghosts (literal and figurative) haunting her. Mira has to confront her past if she’s to find a home in her present.

I hope that you’ll pick up any one of these amazing books! And if you have a recommendation for a great book set after high school, I’d love to hear about it–hit me up on Twitter or Instagram @TirzahPrice!

Happy reading!
Tirzah

Thanks to Flatiron Books, publisher of Anna K Away by Jenny Lee for making today’s newsletter possible!

Read This Book

Read This Book…

Post author By Patricia Elzie
Post date May 3, 2021

What We Don’t Talk About When We Talk About Fat by Aubrey Gordon, creator of Your Fat Friend

Content warnings for discussion of graphic catcalling and sexual harassment, anti-fatness from microaggressions to outright active aggression, discussion of eating disorders and disordered eating, death related to anti-fatness, and use of the word obese (used sparingly and mostly in quotes).

Yes I’m going to use the word “fat” as a descriptor because “fat” is not a bad word. The main focus of this book is on fat justice for very fat people, that is, there are many people who don’t even get basic needs met because they are fat. This happens in so many ways, such as the pay gap between fat and straight size people, lack of public safety due to anti-fat violence, and denial to public spaces.

Anti-fatness is the last “socially acceptable” (sarcasm) way to hate people. Most people are frowned upon for being racist or homophobic but anti-fatness runs rampant and unchecked. This book is not about “wellness” aka repackaged diet culture. It is not about body positivity and loving the body we’re in. It is not even really about body neutrality or fat acceptance or body sovereignty. This book is about fat justice. About including the fattest among us in our social justice movements and about making sure fat people have access to basic things like clothing and equal pay and travel accommodations.

The citations alone are worth the price of admission. I love a well-resourced book, especially to hand over to people who automatically think that being fat is the same as being unhealthy. The author goes in-depth into things like how BMI is a garbage indicator of health (fun fact, it wasn’t even created as such in the first place!), and how there is no solid data illustrating that dieting achieves long-term weight loss. In fact, some conditions associated with being fat may actually be long-term effects of dieting.

If you’re not outraged before you read this book, then you may find flames shooting from your ears by the end of it. I love a book that changes how I see the world and this is absolutely one of those books.

That’s it for now, book-lovers!

Patricia

Find me on Book Riot, the All the Books podcast, and Twitter.

Find more books by subscribing to Book Riot Newsletters.

Riot Rundown

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Post author By Natalia Heroux
Post date May 3, 2021

Sponsored by Best Nerds Forever, published by Jimmy Patterson Books

Being “nerdy” in middle school isn’t a bad thing–I should know! Me and my friends are nerds. Some of us are geeky, but we’re also really funny and never boring. One of my friends is even a jock but not a jerk. We don’t quite fit. But we’re fun. We’re a riot. We’re total chaos. And we own it–until one of us is targeted by a truck driving maniac. It will take all of our nerdiest skills to Sherlock Holmes our way out of one dangerous mess. Never be afraid to unleash your inner nerd!

The Kids Are All Right

New Children’s Book Releases for May 4, 2021

Post author By Chelsea Henley
Post date May 2, 2021

Sponsored by Best Nerds Forever, published by Jimmy Patterson Books.

Hey readers! I’m back with another week of new kids books.

Fred Gets Dressed by Peter Brown

In this fun picture book, Fred wanders through his parents’ closet in search of the perfect ensemble. He tries out his dad’s clothes but doesn’t like them so much, so he moves on to his mom’s clothes and gets to dabble in her makeup and jewelry with some help from his parents.

The Bruce Swap by Ryan T. Higgins

One of my favorite picture book series, featuring the grumpy bear Bruce, has a new book this month! In this one, Bruce’s housemates wish that Bruce was more fun, and they’re shocked when their wish appears to come true. But it’s not Bruce after all, but his fun cousin Kevin.

Small Room, Big Dreams: The Journey of Julián and Joaquin Castro by Monica Brown and Mirelle Ortega

This charming picture book biography of Julián and Joaquin Castro takes readers back to the beginning, where they were shaped by their grandmother and mother to become advocates for the betterment of their community.

Hair Twins by Raakhee Mirchandani and Holly Hatam

This sweet picture book follows a Sikh father and daughter in a fun celebration of their hair. In accordance with tradition, both wear it long, and sometimes they’ll even wear it in the same bun and become hair twins.

The Last Fallen Star by Graci Kim

This fun middle grade novel features a sweet, witchy fantasy about two sisters who cast a spell that goes horribly awry. While Hattie is turning 13 and soon to be initiated into their clan, meaning magic of her own, Riley’s adopted and nonmagical and so not allowed to participate. But when Hattie performs a spell to share her magic with Riley, it goes wrong and puts their entire community, and Hattie, in danger.

Finding Junie Kim by Ellen Oh

This middle grade novel follows Junie, a middle schooler dealing with racism in her suburban town. Coping with depression, Junie finds a therapist she likes, and when she’s given a school assignment to interview an elder, her talks with her grandfather about his childhood during the Korean War give Junie new perspective and courage.

Until next week! – Chelsea

Today In Books

Locus Awards Finalists Announced: Today in Books

Post author By Tirzah Price
Post date May 2, 2021

Florence Pugh to Star in Adaptation of Emma Donoghue’s THE WONDER: Today in Books

Post author By Emily Martin
Post date May 1, 2021

Amazon Wins Screen Rights for Akwaeke Emezi’s Novel You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty

In one of the most highly competitive book deals of 2021 so far, Amazon Studios has won a bidding war for the screen rights to Akwaeke Emezi’s forthcoming novel, You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty, which will be published by Atria in 2022. Michael B. Jordan’s production company Outlier Society will develop the adaptation. The story follows a Nigerian aspiring artist in Brooklyn who loses her husband in a tragic accident. She uses her art to grieve the loss of her husband, but as she begins to move forward in her art career and meets a handsome new love interest, she struggles to balance her grief with her desire to move forward in her life.

Florence Pugh to Star in Adaptation of Emma Donoghue’s The Wonder

Academy Award-nominated Florence Pugh is set to star in the big-screen adaptation of Emma Donoghue’s psychological thriller The Wonder. The story is set in the late 1850s and follows an English nurse who journeys to a village in Ireland to observe what people are calling a miracle: a young girl has gone months without food and survived. Sebastián Lelio is directing the project, and Alice Birch is writing the screenplay with Lelio and Donoghue.

Children Read Longer, More Challenging Books During Lockdown, Data Reveals

According to new research, children read longer and more challenging books during the lockdowns over the past year, and many reported that reading made them feel better during long periods of isolation. The report’s author, University of Dundee professor Keith Topping, said, “Having more time to read gave children the chance to immerse themselves in literature. Schools should encourage more reading time now that they are open again.”

8 of the Best Cats in Science Fiction and Fantasy

It’s been a long week, so why don’t we just talk about science fiction with some really good cats in them? Because cats are always good, even when they’re bad.