Welcome to Check Your Shelf. It’s the last month of the fiscal year, and that means my budgets are spent and I’m getting the next few months of book orders ready to go for May 1. I feel so bad for our lone cataloger because as soon as the new fiscal year turns over, all of the collection managers rush in to work and order a gajillion titles through Baker & Taylor first thing in the morning.
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Collection Development Corner
Publishing News
Publishers worry that AI chatbots will cut readership.
New & Upcoming Titles
Dr. Anthony Fauci has sold the rights to his memoir for just under $5 million.
John Grisham is writing a sequel to The Firm, which will be out in October 2023.
Jhumpa Lahiri has a new short story collection coming out in October.
Cover reveal for Angie Kim’s upcoming novel, Happiness Falls! (I’m so excited for this one!!)
Cover reveal for Lauren Groff’s upcoming novel, The Vaster Wilds.
And another cover reveal – this time, for J.M. Coetzee’s upcoming novel, The Pole.
45 swoon-worthy romance novels hitting shelves in 2023.
38 new mysteries and thrillers you need to get your hands on.
Weekly book picks from Crime Reads, LitHub, New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal.
April picks from Barnes & Noble, Epic Reads, Kirkus, New York Times.
What Your Patrons Are Hearing About
Lone Women – Victor LaValle (Essence, LA Times, New York Times, Washington Post)
The New Earth – Jess Row (LA Times, New York Times, Washington Post)
Biography of X – Catherine Lacey (Guardian, NPR)
Romantic Comedy – Curtis Sittenfeld (Guardian, Washington Post)
Hang the Moon – Jeannette Walls (LA Times, NPR)
Ringmaster: Vince McMahon and the Unmaking of America – Abraham Riesman (LA Times, Washington Post)
RA/Genre Resources
How Emily Henry cracked the modern romance novel.
Why are audiences so captivated by locked room mysteries?
On the Riot
A look at J.R. Moerhringer, ghostwriter to the stars.
The best new weekly releases to TBR.
The best books of April, according to Goodreads.
Spring 2023 YA books to add to your TBR ASAP.
Reading pathways for Lucy Score.
Who gets to be the final girl in horror novels and movies?
All Things Comics
Amazon recruits Joe Quesada, former editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics, to develop new and existing comic book projects for adaptation.
Mike Flanagan (director of The Haunting of Hill House, Gerald’s Game, etc.) pitches a Clayface movie to Warner Brothers DC.
The original cast of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World is returning to voice an all new anime series for Netflix.
A Detroit resident uncovers one of the largest, most valuable comic book collections in the country.
On the Riot
8 new LGBTQ graphic novels you don’t want to miss.
The best graphic novels, as chosen by a high school comic book club.
8 doorstopper comics and graphic novels to immerse yourself in.
8 compelling horror manga that will haunt you.
Audiophilia
The 2023 Audie Award winners have been announced.
Brandon Sanderson has moved some of his recent projects off Audible, because “they treat authors very poorly.”
Barnes & Noble shares a list of fan-favorite audiobooks.
On the Riot
8 of the best audiobooks from the first quarter of 2023.
Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists
Children/Teens
Board books about big feelings for babies and toddlers.
Amazing children’s books by Arab and Arab American authors.
Must-read poetry picture books by Black authors.
Adults
15 Black women writers to read ASAP.
6 historical mysteries from around the globe.
8 novels featuring artificial intelligence.
Top 10 stories about wolves.
5 books about magical teachers and mentors.
15 best Book-Tok recommended books to read in 2023.
10 must-read alternate history thrillers.
11 iconic Latina poets.
10 African writers to read this year.
10 atmospheric thrillers perfect for a rainy spring afternoon.
Do you need help finding your next great read? Subscribe to Tailored Book Recommendations for really great reads year-round.
On the Riot
9 thoughtful books for shy kids.
Black girls of YA historical fiction.
3 YA books about vigilante justice.
10 of the best lovers to enemies to lovers romances.
Travel the world with atmospheric reads.
10 swoon-worthy bisexual romance novels.
8 brilliant books by Indian authors set in India.
Black voices in speculative short fiction.
9 twisty suspense novels you won’t be able to put down.
8 of the best romance novels starring a married couple.
9 of the best alternate history books.
8 of the most surreal books ever written.
8 nonfiction books about Appalachia.
10 great books for plant lovers.
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 that includes information about series, vendors, and publisher buzz.
Gilbert and Dini have really taken to snuggling in the basket under our coffee table, and by that I mean Dini is usually in the basket first and Gilbert manages to worm his way in. The best part is that we usually don’t even notice until we look down and see two cats in the basket. Like just now! I just looked in the basket because I was pretty sure Dini had been sleeping in there a few minutes ago, and Gilbert joined him! What snuggly boys I have…
Okay, that’s all I’ve got for today. I’ll pop back again on Friday.
—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.