Welcome to Check Your Shelf. It was an emotional weekend as I said goodbye to my sister-in-law, who is on the road to her new life in Los Angeles. Basically since I’ve known her, she’s lived within a 30 minute radius of Blaine and me, and she was often at our place to watch movies, play Mario Party, or do laundry. And when Covid hit, she and her husband joined forces with us to form our own little pod group, which was an honest-to-God sanity saver. She’s been a great friend, and although Blaine mumbles about her being his little sister, I know it’s like losing a best friend for him, too. Obviously there are holidays and texts and Face Time and online video games, but it’s going to be really sad not to have her around anymore.
So now I’m going to distract myself with books.
Collection Development Corner
Publishing News
One of the country’s oldest Black-owned bookstores, Eso Won Books, is closing.
The relaunched MTV Books unveils its slate of 2023 authors.
HarperCollins teams up with the Trevor Project for a year-long partnership.
A Kickstarter to fund dyslexic-friendly books for adults has just been launched.
New & Upcoming Titles
Jesse Q. Sutanto announces a new book, Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers, which she describes as Knives Out meets Kim’s Convenience.
Marvel Studios executive Victoria Alonso is publishing a memoir.
Actor Rob Delaney is also publishing a memoir.
And Chelsea Handler has a new, untitled memoir coming out.
Reese Witherspoon announces the release of her new picture book, Busy Betty.
Rioter Tirzah Price reveals the cover of the third book in her Jane Austen Murder Mystery series, Manslaughter Park.
Anna-Marie McLemore reveals the cover of her Great Gatsby-themed retelling, Self-Made Boys.
12 new queer books to read this summer.
The best recent science fiction and fantasy.
Weekly book picks from Bustle, Crime Reads, LitHub, and USA Today.
5 psychological thrillers to read in June.
What Your Patrons Are Hearing About
Lapvona – Ottessa Moshfegh (Entertainment Weekly, The Guardian, New York Times)
Jackie and Me – Louis Bayard (New York Times, Washington Post)
Flying Solo – Linda Holmes (USA Today)
We Carry Their Bones: The Search for Justice at the Dozier School For Boys – Erin Kimmerle (New York Times)
Nightcrawling – Leila Mottley (Washington Post)
Moonlight and the Pearler’s Daughter – Lizzie Pook (New York Times)
RA/Genre Resources
Alien and other works that blend science fiction and horror.
On the Riot
New witchy YA reads releasing in 2022.
The best new queer SFF for your TBR.
The best weekly new releases to TBR.
Netflix for book discovery and other problems.
What is the CAWPILE review system?
How are smartphones used in mystery novels?
All Things Comics
Iconic comics artist Tim Sale has died at 66.
Milestone Media looks to bring creators of color into comics.
Lady Gaga is in talks to play Harley Quinn opposite Joaquin Phoenix in the next Joker movie, which is also confirmed to be a musical.
Marvel is developing a Wonder-Man live-action series.
The best manga for kids to marathon over the summer.
On the Riot
How comics discuss mental health.
The most popular middle grade comics, as chosen by students.
Audiophilia
Spotify is bringing its freemium model to audiobooks.
Stephen Graham Jones is releasing an audio-exclusive story: The Babysitter Lives.
8 audiobooks to listen to right now.
3 audiobooks with distinct narration.
On the Riot
Why this reader can’t do nonfiction in print.
10 of the best audiobook narrators.
Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists
Children/Teens
5 picture books to honor Black Music Appreciation Month.
11 YA books to read if you’re yearning for more Heartstopper.
YA queer retellings that might be even better than the classics.
Adults
5 cozy mysteries for HGTV fans and DIY’ers.
8 recommended Kentucky authors.
25 books that highlight the beauty of Indigenous literature.
17 books about the British Royal Family.
Must-read celebrity memoirs.
The best LGBTQIA+ romances.
On the Riot
Summer picture books to make you smile.
15 wildly interesting historical fiction chapter books.
10 queer historical YA novels that reclaim LGBTQ history.
12 books by up-and-coming trans and nonbinary authors.
8 memoirs by LGBTQ elders you need to read.
10 2SLGBTQ+ disabled authors to read this Pride Month.
8 missing people thrillers that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
Outer sights: the best science fiction books you’ve never heard of.
16 books set on the Korean peninsula.
8 immersive historical fantasy books.
11 must-read Filipino sci-fi books.
8 great books with unusual hauntings.
10 sapphic new adult books to read in your 20’s.
8 books about chosen ones who refuse the call.
15 books with pets on the cover.
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 has a guide to discovering upcoming diverse books, and Nora Rawlins of Early Word has created a database of upcoming diverse titles to nominate, as well as including information about series, vendors, and publisher buzz.
I found one photos of Gilbert engaging in one of his favorite activities: being burritoed. I wish my life were that simple sometimes.
Catch you all on Friday!
—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.