Welcome to Check Your Shelf. Y’all, we made it to Daylight Savings Time again! We’re not going to see any temperature changes in the Chicago area for the foreseeable future, but the early darkness has finally been vanquished! I don’t even mind that I’m missing an hour of sleep — the extra daylight is worth it.
Don’t forget that Book Riot is launching a new, in-depth newsletter, The Deep Dive, which features fascinating stories, informed takes, useful advice, and more from experts in the world of books and reading! Subscription is $5/month, and you can subscribe at bookriot.substack.com.
Collection Development Corner
Publishing News
Mattel is forming its own publishing imprint.
Penguin Random House increases starting salaries to $48,000.
AI meets its worst enemy: the U.S. Copyright Office.
New & Upcoming Titles
Simon & Schuster has halted publication of The Book of Animal Secrets: Nature’s Lessons for a Long and Happy Life by David B. Agus due to accusations of plagiarism.
Margaret Atwood is writing a memoir.
Trevor Noah has a new untitled book coming out this fall.
Jason Derulo has a nonfiction book, Sing Your Name Out Loud: 15 Rules for Living Your Dream, coming out in June. It’s an aptly-named book, because I did indeed sing his name in my head when I read the news.
V.E. Schwab is expanding the Shades of Magic series with a new book coming out in October.
Christopher Paolini is returning to the world of Eragon with Murtagh.
E.L. James has a new book coming out in June.
Former Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay explores a life if she had said “no” to The Bachelor in her debut novel, Real Love.
Cover reveal for Ali Hazelwood’s upcoming romance novel, Check & Mate.
Weekly picks from Crime Reads, LitHub, New York Times, USA Today.
March picks from Time, Tor.com (fantasy, horror/genre-bending, YA SFF).
Spring 2023 picks from Autostraddle, Town & Country.
What Your Patrons Are Hearing About
I Am Debra Lee – Debra Lee (Essence, Good Morning America, USA Today, Washington Post)
We Were Once a Family: A Story of Love, Death, and Child Removal in America – Roxanna Asgarian (New York Times, Washington Post)
Old Babes in the Wood: Stories – Margaret Atwood (Vanity Fair, Wired)
The Farewell Tour – Stephanie Clifford (New York Times, Washington Post)
Birnam Wood – Eleanor Catton (LA Times, Washington Post)
Womb: The Inside Story of Where We All Began – Leah Hazard (Guardian, New York Times)
The God of Endings – Jacqueline Holland (New York Times, NPR)
Pineapple Street – Jenny Jackson (Good Morning America, Washington Post)
The Curator – Owen King (New York Times, Tor.com)
RA/Genre Resources
Oscar reading lists for Tár, Elvis, Avatar: The Way of Water, Everything Everywhere All At Once, Top Gun: Maverick.
The novels behind this year’s best adapted screenplay Oscar nominees.
Must-read books that inspired Oscar-worthy films.
A bookish guide to the 2023 Oscars.
A complete guide to all the Bridgerton books in order.
The essential Patricia Highsmith.
The rise of “domestic noir” a decade after Gone Girl.
On the Riot
How might AI like ChatGPT impact the future of writing and books?
The best new weekly releases to TBR.
March picks for romance, horror, queer reads, SFF, mysteries/thrillers/true crime, YA, nonfiction, children’s books.
All Things Comics
Comics retailers navigate a new normal.
The Batman: Caped Crusader animated series is moving from HBO to Amazon.
A manga author with “zero” drawing talent is publishing Japan’s first fully AI-drawn manga.
Here’s an excerpt from Tegan and Sara’s upcoming graphic novel, Junior High.
On the Riot
10 new comics to read in March.
9 excellent new manga releases for March.
Where to start with Shazam comics.
8 of the best manga websites.
Do you need help finding your next great read? Subscribe to Tailored Book Recommendations for really great reads year-round.
Audiophilia
Libro.fm plans an expansion to the UK, Australia, and New Zealand.
Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists
Adults
7 books to celebrate Women’s History Month.
10 must-read books about women in the workplace.
19 great books that capture what it’s like to live with a disability.
Top 10 retold fairy tales.
25 BookTok books that are actually worth the hype.
4 books about living gods working in mysterious ways.
5 novels featuring witchcraft.
10 inspiring Latina writers who paved the way in publishing.
On the Riot
10 books like Legends and Lattes.
20 of the best award-winning fantasy books.
Must-read literature by transgender and non-binary authors.
8 award-winning nonfiction titles you may not have heard of.
20 folklore books from various cultures in the U.S.
8 of the most famous dragons in mythology and books.
10 engrossing books about black holes.
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.
So my sinuses have thankfully decided to behave, but my husband now has my cold, so Dini and Gilbert have been keeping him company. He sent me this photo of Dini while I was at work and if you zoom in, you can see Dini’s adorable little toofies! If only cats could cure congestion and sinus pain…then they truly would be the world’s best medicine.
All right, that’s all for today — I’ll check back on Friday, after I’ve survived my first full week of work since coming back from California. We’ll see if I make it.
—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.