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Check Your Shelf

Best-Sellers on Hiatus

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. I can hardly believe I’m typing this on a Friday, because it seems like just a few hours ago I was trudging through a never-ending Friday of ridiculous emails and long desk shifts. And now it’s back to the grind for a whole solid week before Christmas. Thankfully I was able to snag a couple extra days off, but now I just have to plow through the week. Okay, buck up, let’s do this!

Collection Development Corner

Publishing News

USA Today has placed its best-seller list on hiatus after the presiding editor was laid off.

Authors co-host a rally at HarperCollins headquarters in support of striking HC workers.

A product design manager used an AI-powered chatbot to write and illustrate a children’s book, which he’s now selling on Amazon. Naturally, this raises lots of ethical questions.

Amazon is ending print textbook rentals.

How Jenna Bush Hager is becoming publishing’s new best friend.

New & Upcoming Titles

Akwaeke Emezi announces their next romance novel, Son of the Morning.

Cover reveal for Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s upcoming novel, Silver Nitrate, which hits shelves in July!

Here’s the cover reveal for Christina Lauren’s upcoming book, True Love Experiment.

27 new recommended food books, from cookbooks to memoirs.

New LGBTQ+ YA books.

15 books by Black authors to read this winter.

Best of 2022: AARP (cookbooks), Atlantic, BBC, Crime Reads (psychological suspense, critical nonfiction/biography, gothic fiction, traditional mysteries, historical fiction), Hip Latina, Kirkus (YA), Library Journal, LitHub (essays), New York Times (critics picks), New Yorker, Salon, Vanity Fair, Vulture (fantasy, horror, comedy), Wall Street Journal.

103 of the best book covers of 2022.

Weekly book picks from Crime Reads, New York Times, USA Today.

December picks from Vulture.

RA/Genre Resources

Why romance novels are the biggest they’ve been in a decade.

How to read Louise Penny’s Inspector Gamache series in order.

Why read literary biographies?

On the Riot

Best books of 2022: romance, LGBTQ+, SFF.

New weekly releases to TBR.

Reading pathway for Sulari Gentill.

Why horror is such a hard genre to crack.

Nonfiction subgenre primer.

Why you should recommend books that you didn’t like reading.

Should Goodreads users be able to review books before they’re published?

All Things Comics

Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman 3 is not moving forward as the new DC studio heads prepare their multi year plan.

In other DC news, Henry Cavill says he will not return as Superman.

Best comic books of 2022.

10 of the best crime thriller comics.

On the Riot

12 best graphic novels and comics of 2022.

Audiophilia

Best science fiction and fantasy audiobooks of 2022.

Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists

Children/Teens

13 YA books with sequels coming out in 2023.

6 YA books for fans of Colleen Hoover.

24 YA books featuring high-stakes heists.

Adults

5 speculative fiction books featuring tarot.

42 Christmas books to keep you cozy.

5 thrillers about choices and forked paths.

50 of the best horror books of all time.

8 queer fantasy romance books to love.

On the Riot

8 joke books for kids.

YA books for readers who don’t like YA books.

Fun books to read during Hanukkah.

8 unputdownable books about podcasts.

8 books about book clubs.

7 books about codependency to help you better understand the condition.

8 engrossing books with multiple timelines.

8 horror novels about creepy kids.

25 of the best nonfiction books of all time.

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.

black and white cat laying on an orange blanket, looking upside down at the camera

My husband sent me this photo as he was trying to take a nap, but Dini insisted that it was snuggle time. I mean, how can you say no to that sweet face?? Needless to say, there was no nap time for my husband.

Welp, that’s all I’ve got. I’ll check in on Friday, after we’ve pushed through this last week before the holidays. We got this!

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.

Categories
Check Your Shelf

When Living it Up Meant Looking It Up

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. I am exhausted and very much disliking the gray December gloom that has descended on the Chicago area, but I have one thing giving me joy right now, and that is the trailer for the movie 65, which has space action — Adam Driver saving a child and fighting off dinosaurs. It’s Aliens plus Jurassic Park plus Adam Driver, and I am LIVING FOR IT. The universe recognized what I needed right now, and I hope that trailer brings a little joy to some of you as well.

Libraries & Librarians

News Updates

NYC libraries say that Eric Adams’ proposed budget cuts “may push us over the edge.”

The first Washington state library for incarcerated youth is set to open in January.

Worth Reading

What’s more important for the town of McFarland, California? A library or a police station?

Public libraries need partnerships.

Meet the warrior librarians of Ukraine.

Book Adaptations in the News

We Were Liars is being adapted as a series at Amazon.

Don Winslow’s The Border is being adapted as an FX series.

Mike Flanagan’s The Midnight Club is not being renewed for a second season, so he wrote this blog post to show what WOULD have happened in Season 2.

However, in better Mike Flanagan news, he’s been tapped to do an adaptation of Stephen King’s Dark Tower series! Here’s hoping it’s better than the most recent film adaptation.

Reese Witherspoon is reprising her role as Tracy Flick (from 1999’s Election) in the adaptation of Tracy Flick Can’t Win.

Season 2 of Shadow and Bone will be released on Netflix on March 16th.

Season 3 trailer for Jack Ryan.

New trailer for The Pale Blue Eye.

Banned & Challenged Books

What is mis-, dis-, and mal-information?

Kirk Cameron attempts to capitalize on the banned book nonsense by pitching his faith-centered children’s book for public library storytime, and then complaining that fifty libraries have denied his request.

League City Council (TX) passed a resolution to restrict public library content to minors, even though a large majority of the 63 speakers in attendance spoke against the resolution.

A new billboard has gone up in Texas, urging residents to “Ban censorship, not books.”

New York parents have formed a counter organization called Defense of Democracy to push back against Moms for Liberty and other similar groups.

A Hollidaysburg (PA) high school senior was heckled while speaking out against the push to remove Gender Queer at a recent board meeting, and broke down in tears. Just absolutely horrendous behavior from adults who should be ashamed and embarrassed of how they behaved, but obviously won’t be.

Nearly 1,000 people have applied to join a Frederick County Public Schools committee that will review 35 books to decide if they should be removed or not. I just love seeing the expertise of teachers and librarians devalued by opening these decisions to the entire community. /s

Three school board candidates in Catawba County (NC) were just sworn in. These candidates have challenged multiple books in the school libraries, and one of them has admitted she had not read the books that she was moving to ban, but she wanted to make it easier to remove them from school libraries anyway.

The Greenville County (SC) Library System board elected to move the parenting section farther away from the children’s section, and what I appreciate is that the article mentions that this move is based on an “erroneous claim,” and was decided with little discussion.

The Missouri ACLU and a group of students are suing the Independence school district for banning Cats vs. Robots. The book was banned because it features a nonbinary character.

The St. Clair (MO) district pulled The Hate U Give from library shelves. The superintendent said the book “contains significant profanity and violence, and can be read as having an anti-law enforcement agenda. The book does not lend itself to our written curriculum and is not seen as essential to the district’s educational mission.”

Salem-South Lyon (MI) library board votes to keep 16 challenged books.

Marathon County Public Library (WI) elects to keep the books Making a Baby and You Be You! The Kid’s Guide to Gender, Sexuality and Family, saying that the educational value outweighed the concerns over sexually explicit material.

Southwest Valley School District (IA) upholds the use of Warriors Don’t Cry in its high school English curriculum.

After contentious debate, St. Marys (KS) city commissioners unanimously voted to renew the library’s lease without restriction through December 2023.

Can we please stop calling Moms for Liberty “advocates?” And stop featuring them as the primary photo for these articles? These so-called “advocates” are searching for “pornographic material” being used in District 11 in Colorado Springs, which often translates to “LGBTQ-inclusive.” Never mind the fact that there was a deadly shooting at a LGBTQ club in Colorado Springs less than a month ago.

Kalispell Public Schools (MT) decide to keep Drama on library shelves.

Washington County (UT) School District removes 14 additional books from libraries after being found in violation of the Sensitive Materials in Schools bill. However, it’s only a small group of parents across the state who are working to ban books in school libraries.

A Cody, Wyoming resident is upset that the high school elected to keep If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo, and is upset with the reasoning that the book is not pornographic, and is instrumental in “helping students learn to be empathetic and compassionate towards those who are different than themselves.”

Crook County Library (OR) is facing pressure to label LGBTQ books and remove them from the children’s section. However, the director explains exactly why this is a bad idea.

The San Juan Capistrano Sheriff’s Department investigated anti-LGBTQ bomb threats made against the Capo Unified School District. This came after a Fox News report of a teacher at the school who allegedly had sexually explicit material in their classroom.

A resident introduced a motion for the Greater Essex County District School Board (ON) to publish a list of all new books being introduced into schools. “Ultimately, none of the other trustees supported the motion.”

Russian stores pull LGBTQ-themed books as Putin signs an expanded “gay propaganda” ban.

Books & Authors in the News

In news that should surprise no one, one of Trump’s political committees bought $48,000 worth of books from Donald Jr.’s publishing company.

Numbers & Trends

These were the most-read books on Goodreads in 2022.

The best-selling books of the week.

A very serious 2023 bookish trend forecast.

Award News

Here are the 2023 Golden Globe nominees.

Noor Naga wins the 2022 Center for Fiction First Novel Prize for If an Egyptian Cannot Speak English.

The 2022 Goodreads Choice Awards have been announced.

The 2022 Kids’ Book Choice Awards have been announced.

Pop Cultured

Continuing with the Theranos/Bad Blood updates, Sunny Balwani was sentenced to nearly 13 years for his role in the Theranos fraud.

Bookish Curiosities & Miscellaneous

How the pandemic affected our approach to reading and interpretation of books.

On the Riot

Getting crafty in the library.

When living it up meant looking it up: this Rioter’s ode to the reference books of yore.

2023 adaptations to get excited about.

John Lewis and Tomie dePaola will be featured on USPS stamps in 2023.

Are books about the pandemic cathartic or stressful? (I vote stressful.)

For a month, this reader started reading their books at the end. (I honestly can’t even comprehend this level of chaos, but to each their own.)

Easy bookish holiday traditions to start this holiday season.

Books we wish we could re-read for the first time.

portrait-style photo of a black cat laying on an orange blanket looking into the distance

I can’t handle how perfect this photo is of Gilbert. Honestly, one of the best ones we’ve ever taken. Behold Gilbert in all of his regal, angelic, sweet-faced glory!

Okay, everyone. I’m out. Check in again next week!

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter. Currently listening to Hokolua Road by Elizabeth Hand.

Categories
Check Your Shelf

Read Harder 2023!!

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. As usual, the holiday season is starting to blow past in a whirlwind of work and general procrastination. I’m going to try to slow things down a little this week, but at least we got our tree up tonight!

Collection Development Corner

Publishing News

HarperCollins addresses the stalled union negotiations and the union responds.

And here’s a look at life on the front lines of the HarperCollins strike.

The murky path to becoming a New York Times best-seller.

The companies that are killing creativity.

A new study in the UK shows that writers’ earnings have plummeted, with women and authors of color being hit the hardest.

New & Upcoming Titles

Publishers Weekly has their most-anticipated adult titles for Spring 2023.

Ben Mezrich is already writing a book about Elon Musk’s Twitter takeover.

St. Martin’s Press bought world English rights to Rachel Kapelke-Dale’s novel The Fortune Seller, which is billed as “Yellowjackets meets The Talented Mr. Ripley.”

Del Rey has purchased world English rights (for six figures!) for Molly X. Chang’s To Gaze upon Wicked Gods and two other books in a planned trilogy.

Here’s the cover reveal for Elliot Page’s upcoming memoir, Pageboy.

Here’s a preview of former FBI director James Comey’s debut crime novel.

Gorgeous cover reveal for historical horror novel The Others of Edenwell by Verity Holloway.

And the cover reveal for A Likeable Woman by May Cobb.

9 new holiday romances to make you holly and jolly.

Best books of 2022 from Amazon, Buzzfeed, Chicago Tribune, Crime Reads (general, espionage), Entertainment Weekly (romances), Guardian (general, mystery/thrillers), Kirkus (middle grade), LA Times (fiction, nonfiction), Library Reads, LitHub, New York Times (crime fiction, historical fiction, poetry, romance, SFF, thrillers, true crime) NPR, Oprah Daily, Slate, Sun Sentinel (mysteries), Time (nonfiction), Vulture, Washington Post (mysteries, humorous romances).

Weekly book picks from Crime Reads, LitHub, New York Times, USA Today.

December picks from Buzzfeed, Gizmodo (SFF), Lambda Literary, Shondaland, Tor.com (fantasy, horror/genre-bending).

The most anticipated YA novels of 2023.

Want to read books from this newsletter? You can, for free! Get three free audiobooks with a trial to Audiobooks.com. Claim your 3 free audiobooks now!

What Your Patrons Are Hearing About

Screaming on the Inside: The Unsustainability of American Motherhood – Jessica Grose (LA Times, New York Times, The Rumpus)

How Far the Light Reaches: A Life in Ten Sea Creatures – Sabrina Imbler (The Guardian, Shondaland, Washington Post)

A Dangerous Business – Jane Smiley (NPR, Shondaland, Washington Post)

Cursed Bunny – Bora Chung (New York Times, Tor.com)

The McCartney Legacy: Volume 1: 1969 – 73 – Allan Kozinn & Adrian Sinclair (Datebook, New York Times)

A World of Curiosities – Louise Penny (The Guardian, Washington Post)

On the Riot

Here’s Book Riot’s best books of 2022!

The best historical fiction of 2022.

And here’s Book Riot’s Read Harder Challenge for 2023!

The best new baking cookbooks to gift.

The best new weekly releases to TBR.

December picks for horror, mysteries/thrillers, romance, nonfiction, children’s books, YA.

8 authors like Hilary Mantel.

Who was Nora Ephron?

How dice helped this reader tame their TBR.

All Things Comics

James Gunn has issued his first public statement about the future of DC Studios.

The best middle grade graphic novels of 2022.

On the Riot

8 new manga, graphic novels, and comics released this December.

Writerly lessons found in graphic novels and nonfiction.

Audiophilia

Best audiobooks of 2022 from AudioFile, New York Times, Slate.

AudioFile announces the December Earphones award winners.

16 audiobooks that offer life (and language) lessons.

On the Riot

20 of the best audiobooks of all time.

The best audiobook thrillers to listen to this winter.

Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists

Adults

8 schemers and opportunists in literature.

4 atmospheric thrillers with unexpected settings.

8 books meant to unsettle the reader.

A reading list centered around Kingston, Jamaica.

12 romance novels by Latinas to gift your book-loving friends.

5 character-driven mystery novels from European authors.

7 novels that use mystery to examine race.

The best books featuring women in STEM.

On the Riot

Books this Rioter is giving as gifts for the kids in their life.

8 books about birthdays for kids.

21 of the best award-winning sci-fi books.

8 dark academic mystery novels.

9 books in translation from Indonesia.

9 unforgettable prose books written by poets.

8 books for board gamers.

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.

black cat laying on a gray plaid pillow with its front paw stretched out

Before you ask, yes, that’s an optical illusion. Gilbert’s leg is not actually that long and bendy. But he does look rather fancy sitting there, doesn’t he?

All right, friends and neighbors – that’s it for today. Catch you on Friday!

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.

Categories
Check Your Shelf

Remembering Bob McGrath and Christine McVie

Welcome to Check Your Shelf, where I’m doing everything I can to ward off the wave of illnesses sweeping through my coworkers and their families. Masking…it’s not just for COVID!

Libraries & Librarians

Worth Reading

Christmas trees don’t belong in libraries.

Genrify your catalog, not your collection.

How to make the most of in-person conferences.

Book Adaptations in the News

Guillermo del Toro still wants to make an adaptation of Lovecraft’s At the Mountains of Madness.

David Baldacci’s Atlee Pine series is being adapted as a series for Amazon.

New streaming service ITVX is adapting The Confessions of Frannie Langton as a series.

Brett Goldstein wants to make Muppets Pride & Prejudice, with him as Mr. Darcy. I would watch this.

Kevin Wilson’s short story “Grand Stand-In” is being adapted as a TV series.

Take a look at the poster for Knock at the Cabin, which is based on the Paul Tremblay novel The Cabin at the End of the World.

Here’s a first look at the adaptation of Daisy Jones and the Six.

Banned & Challenged Books

The culture war designation is journalistic negligence.

Frisco ISD (TX) board votes to permanently remove five books from library shelves.

Llano County (TX) has paid an attorney more than $25,000 for representation in its pending censorship lawsuit.

Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry has set up an online tip line for parents to report librarians, teachers, and administrators for providing graphic sexual content to minors.

Bow High School (NH) says that Gender Queer is appropriate for the school library. What I find noteworthy is that the principal initially saw how parents could have a concern, but then read the book himself, and realized that the images were appropriate when taken in the context of the whole story.

Darien (CT) school board says that Julian is a Mermaid is appropriate for use in the second grade curriculum.

Donegal School District (PA) librarian quits over guidelines limiting student access to library books.

After 10 months of debate, the Hempfield Area School Board (PA) decides that the best use of their time is to enact stricter book procurement policies, because it’s “a harder standard to challenge and remove a book than it is to stop the book from coming in in the first place.”

The Gettysburg Area School District (PA) is considering enacting a similar policy to the nearby Littlestown Area School District, where students are required to obtain parental approval before checking out books on the American Library Association (ALA) top 100 most challenged list. That is…not the purpose of that list.

Warwick (PA) Parents for Change criticized the school district’s definition of gender and inappropriate library books. One of the attendees at a recent meeting said, “I’m trying to advocate for reality, and if reality comports with Christianity, then, yeah, you can say that I am advocating for a Christian worldview,” and then said Christian principles were being replaced with “wokeanity.” I can’t make this up.

Akron (PA) residents are angered over proposed cuts to the Ephrata Public Library.

Pittsburgh School District unanimously passes a resolution against a bill barring Critical Race Theory.

Loudoun County School Board (VA) recently adopted a new policy that requires advance parental notification of any classroom materials that are deemed to have sexually explicit content.

Pickens School Board (SC) ignored recommendations from two review committees and voted to restrict access to Dear Martin.

A Michigan businessman and his wife donated $100,000 to the Patmos Library to help it stay open, even though they had no ties to the community and had never visited the library before.

Waseca-Le Sueur Library System (MN) has had a challenge to It’s Perfectly Normal.

Marathon County Public Library (WI) voted unanimously to retain two challenged books in the juvenile nonfiction section.

Here’s a recap of a recent library board meeting in Lincolnwood, IL. Lincolnwood declined to remove LGBTQ books from the children’s section.

And here’s a YouTube video of a recent Glenbard Township High School Board (IL) meeting, where a number of people spoke out against “pornography” in the school libraries. This is my husband’s alma mater.

An official in Illinois’ DuPage County GOP and the leader of Illinois Parents Involved in Education has a history of racist social media posts and ties to extremist hate groups. Shocking.

The Dallas Center-Grimes School Board is considering a new plan to handle book ban requests from community members; specifically, they’re looking to revoke the voting rights of the students serving on the reconsideration committee. Naturally, the students are ticked.

How it only took one parent to get all of the graphic novels removed from an Oklahoma school library.

Natrona County School District elects to keep Gender Queer and Trans Bodies, Trans Selves in the library, but they will require a parent’s permission for a student to check them out.

These are the 22 books removed from the Alpine School District (UT).

How expanded parental access to learning materials is impacting Arizona schools and libraries.

A parent’s effort to recall three Salem-Keizer School Board (OR) has failed due to a lack of signatures.

The Proud Boys keep showing up at LGBTQ events.

Books & Authors in the News

After a debut author took to Twitter to describe her lackluster debut book signing, big-name authors like Neil Gaiman, Stephen King, and Margaret Atwood responded with reassurance and commiseration.

Numbers & Trends

The best-selling books of the week.

Award News

LeVar Burton is receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award at the inaugural Children’s & Family Emmys.

The Story of Art Without Men by Katy Hessel is the Waterstones Book of the Year.

Pop Cultured

Bob McGrath, the longtime star of Sesame Street, has died at 90.

And Christine McVie of Fleetwood Mac fame has died at 79. This one hurts…I liked her music even more than Stevie Nicks’s.

Bookish Curiosities & Miscellaneous

“Goblin mode” is the Oxford Word of the Year.

The joy of reading slowly.

On the Riot

Places to look for library lessons.

The controversy of The Rabbits’ Wedding by Garth Williams.

Meet your heroes: a case for reading author biographies.

How cataloging their books taught this Rioter to slow down.

black and white cat sitting in front of a mail organizer

Here’s Dini. While I was at work, he apparently wanted to inform me I still have a lot of mail on the wall to go through. I’LL GET TO IT LATER, DINI.

All right, that’s it for this week. I’ll see you on Tuesday.

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter. Currently listening to Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak.

Categories
Check Your Shelf

Read Yourself Smarter

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. We had our mini golf event on Saturday, and y’all, we had over FIVE HUNDRED people attend! For perspective, our town is a little over 5,000 people, so literally a tenth of the population stopped by on Saturday to play mini golf! We’re pretty sure this is a record for attendance at an in-house event, and we basically tripled our attendance from our first mini golf event four years ago! We are gobsmacked, very pleased, and extremely exhausted. My knees may never be the same from all of the final crafting and mad dashing to set everything up.

Collection Development Corner

Publishing News

More than 150 literary agents have signed a letter to support the HarperCollins workers’ strike. And Maine author Monica Wood has refused to work on her upcoming novel in support of the strike.

More US booksellers are expanding their Spanish-language offerings.

This teen has established their own brick-and-mortar bookstore in Los Angeles!

New & Upcoming Titles

Here’s a preview of Chloe Gong’s adult epic fantasy debut, Immortal Longings.

And here’s a first look at RuPaul’s Drag Race winner Sasha Velour’s memoir, The Big Reveal.

Isabel Cañas is coming out with a new horror novel called Vampires of El Norte. And just look at that cover!!

Ron DeSantis is publishing a book amid heavy speculation about a 2024 presidential campaign.

Celebrate Indigenous literature with these 13 new books by Native writers.

All of the mysteries and thrillers that came out in 2022.

Best books of 2022 from Book Page, Esquire (horror), Kirkus (picture books), NYPL, New York Times (Top 10, Notable Books), NPR, Oprah Daily, and School Library Journal.

Weekly book picks from Crime Reads, LitHub, The Millions, and USA Today.

Best debut crime fiction of November, and the best international crime fiction of November and December.

December picks from AV Club, Book Marks (SFF), Crime Reads, Gizmodo (SFF), New York Times, Popsugar, and The Root.

30 must-read books for Winter 2023.

Most anticipated YA books of 2023.

What Your Patrons Are Hearing About

A Heart That Works – Rob Delaney (New York Times, Shondaland, USA Today, Washington Post)

Butts: A Backstory – Heather Radke (Time, Washington Post)

A Dangerous Business – Jane Smiley (Datebook, LA Times)

On the Riot

20 must-read picture books of 2022.

Best book covers of 2022.

The best weekly new releases to TBR.

New York Times Bestseller List vs. the Best Books of 2022 – how do the two lists compare?

7 book review podcasts for discovering new books.

A new boom of horror from Latin America.

Why is Santa Claus erotica suddenly so popular?

Do main characters need to be likable?

The joy of seeing yourself in literature.

All Things Comics

Disney expands its partnership with Japan’s Kodansha to release more anime originals.

13 of the best DC comics with great LGBTQ+ representation.

On the Riot

6 winter and Christmas manga to read this holiday season.

14 of the most influential superhero comics.

Comics and graphic novels to read when you’re under the weather.

Audiophilia

AudioFile picks their best audiobooks of 2022.

15 audiobooks to listen to while driving.

Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists

Adults

222 of the best books of all time.

10 informative books to help you understand what’s happening in Iran.

5 SFF books about crashed spaceships.

36 cozy and feel-good fantasy and sci-fi books.

15 great reads to honor Native American History Month.

7 books that will make you smarter.

7 genre-defying books by women of color.

Romances for crime fiction fans, and vice versa.

5 SF works about sitting out WWIII.

7 books set in Indiana.

11 mysteries and thrillers that are just so. much. fun.

8 Hanukkah romance novels to light you up.

20 of the best cozy mysteries to curl up with right now.

11 fake relationship romance books.

On the Riot

10 charming holiday and Christmas books for toddlers.

8 excellent YA novels for fans of West Wing.

10 Little Red Riding Hood retellings for all ages.

Queer road trip novels to get you craving a vacation.

10 workplace horror novels.

8 Chinese mythology books.

Unexpected and compelling Biblical retellings.

8 Christmas cozy mysteries for a bloody good holiday.

Holiday mystery books that are not about Christmas.

Grumpy/sunshine duo books for fans of Wednesday and Enid.

8 thoughtful books about monks and monastic life.

8 fantasy novels with word-based or book-based magic systems.

Full meta jacket: 10 nonfiction books about the stories behind books.

Get smarter with these 25 popular science books.

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.

black and white cat laying on an orange blanket with its head tilted

LOOK HOW CUTE DINI IS. BASK IN HIS ADORABLENESS.

Ahem. All right, that’s all I’ve got for today. I’ll be back on Friday.

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.

Categories
Check Your Shelf

A Dramatic Child Gets Her First Library Card

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. Good news! I have a whole tooth again! My new dentist’s office is able to 3D print a crown while you wait, and the whole appointment took a total of two hours. I walked in with half a tooth, and walked out fully toothed. Very impressed!

Libraries & Librarians

Cool Library Updates

Reference behind bars: providing service to the incarcerated.

Book Adaptations in the News

Tess Gunty’s award-winning debut novel, Rabbit Hutch, will be adapted for TV.

Brandy will be reprising her role as Cinderella in the upcoming Descendants’ movie, The Pocketwatch.

Casting updates for A Little Life, Percy Jackson.

Banned & Challenged Books

Correction: I realized I made an error in last Friday’s newsletter: the Owassa School District is in Oklahoma, not Idaho.

Book rating systems are not a solution.

We Need Diverse Books launches a new campaign, #BooksSaveLives, to address the onslaught of censorship.

ACLU of Texas is launching civil rights investigations into policies implemented by Frisco and Keller schools that negatively impact LGBTQ students.

The Akron (PA) borough council is moving to cut funding for the public library, citing financial concerns and concerns over whether the library aligns with the community’s conservative values. I don’t think I need to tell you that that’s not the role of the public library.

Hempfield Area School District (PA) resumes its debate over book policies.

LGBTQ+ books are under fire at the Parkersburg Public Library (WV).

The Epilogue Bookstore and Coffee Shop in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, has started a free library for queer literature.

Salvage the Bones is being challenged in Guilford County schools (NC).

Beaufort County (SC) schools used a local GOP politician’s list to remove books from libraries. Not surprisingly, the politician’s list came directly from Moms for Liberty.

Spartanburg (SC) Public Libraries have removed an undisclosed number of books, and have moved others to restricted areas, but the titles and reasons behind the moves are not mentioned.

There’s dispute over Tennessee’s new textbook law, with some parents saying that the Tennessee Textbook and Instructional Materials Quality Commission has a responsibility to specify exactly what constitutes age appropriate materials, but the Chair said that the Commission is only there to provide guidance, not strict rules or regulations.

Library officials say that the book banning situation in Missouri is “state-sanctioned censorship.”

Willard School Board (MO) votes to keep How It All Blew Up by Arvin Ahmadi in middle and high school libraries, but students at both schools will need parental permission to check it out. Guess what? IT’S STILL CENSORSHIP.

The Patmos (MI) Library will likely close in September 2024 after its two failed millage votes.

A group of Van Meter (IA) parents filed a petition to remove any LGBTQ+ content from the curriculum.

The Carroll Community School District Board of Education (IA) voted to keep Sold by Patricia McCormick in the high school library.

The ACLU urges the St. Marys City Commission (KS) to drop its censorship fight and continue to fund the library. The book at the center of this debate is Melissa, and author Alex Gino spoke out: “It hurts my heart. The implication is that my existence is so monstrous that it should be withheld from children. And what happens is, you end up with adults like me, who didn’t have good role models or good reflections of people like them growing up, and the road does not change who you are, but it makes the road much more painful. And it makes the road a lot more dangerous.”

A look at the book banning movement happening in Oak City, Utah.

Orem Library (UT) removed all of its children’s book displays after Pride Month.

Homer (AK) library board delays a decision on moving over 50 LGBTQ+ books from the children’s section to the adult section.

Kapaa Public Library (HI) faces a challenge to Let’s Talk About It.

Silent censorship of books is an attack on knowledge and open discourse.

How to support LGBTQ+ members in your community.

How to combat LGBTQ book bans in schools.

Books & Authors in the News

Ellen Wittlinger, author of queer YA novels in the ’90s and ’00s, has died.

Simon & Schuster admits that the $600 hand-signed copies of Bob Dylan’s new book, The Philosophy of Modern Song, were NOT actually hand-signed, but were signed using “autopen.” People are now being offered immediate refunds. Bob Dylan has also offered a public apology.

Do authors really use autopen frequently?

Why TikTok is obsessed with this 92 year old murder mystery novel.

Want to read books from this newsletter? You can, for free! Get three free audiobooks with a trial to Audiobooks.com. Claim your 3 free audiobooks now!

Pop Cultured

I can’t believe I forgot to put this in last week, but Elizabeth Holmes was sentenced to 11 years in prison for Theranos fraud.

Rian Johnson says he’s in the early stages of working on Knives Out 3.

Bookish Curiosities & Miscellaneous

Merriam-Webster announces its Word of the Year.

10 tips for discussion at your book club, especially if you didn’t like the book.

On the Riot

Up all night: a dramatic child gets her first library card.

How to join a TikTok book club.

Why book blogs still matter in an age of TikTok.

A history of the Chicken Soup for the Soul story collections.

Why is writing stuck in the paper age?

black cat resting its head on a person's leg

Poor Gilbert…he’s all tuckered out after a vet visit. Good news: diabetes isn’t acting up (our primary concern), and his bloodwork is very good, especially for such an old kitty. Not as good news: he’s developed a moderate heart murmur, so we’re going to take him to a kitty cardiologist. But overall he got a decent bill of health, and now he just wants all the snuggles.

Well, that’s all I’ve got for this week. I’ll check in again on Tuesday.

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter. Currently reading Hide by Kiersten White.

Categories
Check Your Shelf

THE WHITE GUY DIES FIRST

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. Just when I was thinking this might be an uneventful week, I realize that I’ve likely broken one of my back teeth, and now I need to see if I can get an emergency dentist appointment sometime this week. Thank goodness it doesn’t hurt, but teeth stuff wigs me out, and the sooner I can get this taken care of, the better. Blech.

Collection Development Corner

Publishing News

The Penguin Random House/Simon & Schuster merger is dead in the water. Plus, what happens when publishing houses merge?

Inside Amazon’s struggle to deal with an antisemitic film.

BookTok’s racial bias.

New & Upcoming Titles

Joe Ide’s IQ series is set to continue in 2023.

Tor Teen announces a new YA horror anthology called The White Guy Dies First, featuring a collection of stories where…you guessed it…the white guy dies first.

Miranda Lambert is publishing a cookbook.

Tananarive Due did a cover reveal for her upcoming horror novel, The Reformatory. WANT WANT WANT WANT OMG WANT.

Paul Tremblay shares the cover reveal of his upcoming story collection, The Beast You Are.

Here’s the cover reveal and an exclusive excerpt for Samantha Downing’s upcoming thriller, A Twisted Love Story.

Take a look at the cover reveal for Britney S. Lewis’ YA novel The Dark Place, which combines the “emotional resonance of John Green and the surrealist horror imagery of Jordan Peele.”

New York Times100 Notable Books for 2022.

Kirkus shares their best nonfiction picks for 2022, including biographies, memoirs, U.S. history, world history, nature & environment, current affairs, science & medicine, and more!

Best books of 2022 from the New York Public Library.

10 best romance novels of 2022.

Best music books of 2022.

Most anticipated YA books to read in December.

RA/Genre Resources

How romance novels saved this reader who was going through intense emotional struggles.

On the Riot

2023 YA book title earworms. (Click through with caution!)

New holiday romcom books to warm your heart.

The best new weekly releases to TBR.

9 classic types of sci-fi plots.

What makes a good mystery series?

Why are magic users often oppressed in fantasy novels?

All Things Comics

Blade finds a new director and a new writer.

On the Riot

15 short graphic novels for when you just don’t have time to read.

Cozy graphic novels to snuggle up with.

9 iyashikei manga to heal weary hearts.

Audiophilia

The 18 best audiobooks and podcasts of 2022.

On the Riot

20 must-listen audiobooks with Indigenous narrators.

Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists

Children/Teens

Forest-set YA fantasy novels.

Adults

Quick reads to help you reach your reading goals.

6 haunting Native American horror novels.

5 of the best contemporary mystery books.

Turn up the heat with spicy romances!

8 closed door romance novels to make you swoon.

16 delightful holiday romances to make you feel merry and bright.

42 cold weather mysteries and snowy suspense novels.

6 immersive historical fiction sagas.

Want to read books from this newsletter? You can, for free! Get three free audiobooks with a trial to Audiobooks.com. Claim your 3 free audiobooks now!

On the Riot

The best unexpected board books to gift.

The best baby Christmas books.

YA books that take place in a single day.

The most popular UK YA books, as chosen by students.

8 traveling horror novels.

8 queer vampire books.

8 enchanting books about Hades and Persephone.

A reading list about coffee.

9 macabre medical mystery books.

25+ of the best craft books.

8 human migration books to broaden your horizons.

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.

black cat with food crumbs below its eye and caught in its whiskers

I texted this photo to my husband and said “Good grief.” He texted back, “Why good grief? He has an eye goober.” To which I responded, “That’s not an eye goober. That’s food.” And if I was able to share a larger version of the photo, you would see that he also has food caught in his whiskers. We can’t take this old fart anywhere!

All right friends, hopefully by the time Friday’s newsletter comes out, I’ll have a whole tooth again. Chew carefully this week, and I’ll catch you later!

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter. Currently listening to The Good Girls: An Ordinary Killing by Sonia Faleiro.

Categories
Check Your Shelf

The Worst Books Written by Celebrities

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. This newsletter, like this week, is a little shorter than usual due to the holidays, but that’s okay with me! (Sadly the book banning news is not shorter than usual, though.) I hope everyone had a relaxing and rejuvenating holiday with good people and minimal contentious arguments.


Libraries & Librarians

News Updates

Librarians worry that eBook pricing might affect people’s ability to borrow books.

A record $52 million will be going to public school libraries in Wisconsin next year.

Cool Library Updates

Nashville Public Library unveils a limited edition library card featuring Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library! I want one!!

Worth Reading

Meet the longtime librarian being honored at the National Book Awards.

Book Adaptations in the News

Kristen Stewart is making her directorial debut with the adaptation of Lidia Yuknavitch’s memoir The Chronology of Water.

Big Little Lies, Season 3 will not be moving forward in the wake of director and executive producer Jean-Marc Vallée’s death.

Here’s the trailer for the new Netflix animated adaptation of A Christmas Carol.

Want to read books from this newsletter? You can, for free! Get three free audiobooks with a trial to Audiobooks.com. Claim your 3 free audiobooks now!

Banned & Challenged Books

No, books should not have content ratings.

Kelly Jensen’s book Body Talk: 37 Voices Explore Our Radical Anatomy, is one of over 300 books that have been banned in Missouri since August. PEN America has issued a statement rejecting this alarming development.

Freedom to Read advocates warn of the proposed “book rating” bill in Texas and rising book bans in Missouri.

The New York Times wrote about school librarian Amanda Jones’s ongoing struggle against censorship.

Frisco ISD (TX) has released a list of books banned or restricted in school libraries, including Game of Thrones and several books written by Neil Gaiman.

Huntsville (TX) residents are concerned about potential censorship at the library, especially after one patron witnessed a police officer behind the circulation desk telling a staff member “that when the rest of the books they put on reserve come in, he’s going to come back pick them all up and then someone is going to make a decision about whether they can remain in circulation or not.”

An update on the ongoing lawsuit against Llano County (TX) Library System.

In Concord, New Hampshire, a crowd gathers to say “All Are Welcome” to counter a scheduled protest against Drag Queen Story Hour.

The controversial book conversation heats up again at Old Rochester Regional schools in Massachusetts.

The Cheshire (CT) Board of Education heard concerns from parents about certain books being used in the middle school to discuss social justice, including Ghost Boys and Boy21.

The Enfield Congregational, United Church of Christ (CT) held a giveaway of LGBTQ books after a school board member asked the curriculum committee to consider marking these books as “obscene.”

A teacher in Hollidaysburg School District (PA) is being called out for having Gender Queer visible on her desk. Not part of her classroom library. Not being handed out to a student. It was just visible on her desk. Apparently this is considered indoctrination as well.

Chesterfield County (VA) School Board heard from a number of angry parents over allegedly inappropriate materials used in the classrooms.

Sumner County (TN) Commission passed a resolution that says the books A Place Inside of Me and Dragonwings violate state law and should be removed from all libraries in the county. The school board voted to retain A Place Inside of Me, but have not yet scheduled a hearing about Dragonwings.

Onslow County (NC) board members and parents grapple with the school district’s “graphic books” policy.

Notes from a school board takeover — this is what’s happening to the Berkeley County School Board in South Carolina.

South Carolina lawmakers are suing schools over allegations of teaching critical race theory.

Beaufort County (SC) committees will start reviewing 97 challenged books that have been pulled from shelves.

Residents of Greenville County, South Carolina, have formed a coalition to fight ongoing book bans and challenges.

Horry County (SC) parents and teachers sound off about the new increased scrutiny over library books.

Rochester (MN) Public Library takes a stand on the freedom to read.

Angry parents crowd the Hamtramck (MI) school board meeting with complaints over books, many of which the school board says aren’t even being made available to students in the first place.

Ottawa County (MI) resident John Mast said “We’ll pay for this library completely, but we’re not going to pay for it as long as they got them kind of books in there,” in response to the Patmos Library being defunded over LGBTQ books.

St. Joseph Public Schools (MI) elect to keep all 13 formally challenged books in the high school media center.

Dearborn (MI) School District is keeping some of the formally challenged books, but they’ve elected to remove Push and Red, White, and Royal Blue.

Daughters of Smoke and Bone has been moved from Western Middle School (IN) to the high school following a formal complaint.

A Bartholomew County (IN) church congregation is pressuring the public library to remove multiple titles that initially caused a 19 year-old member of their congregation “discomfort.” But of course it’s not related to LGBTQ-issues or banning books, because it never is.

Amidst death threats and ongoing harassment, a University of Chicago professor reschedules her course titled “The Problem of Whiteness.”

Nearly two-thirds of Madison County (IL) voters said that the library shouldn’t advertise drag queen events to minors, in response to two exceptionally popular drag-themed events at the library. However, this measure doesn’t represent any sort of legal standard that the library has to follow.

A Marathon County (WI) budget hearing turned heated after some residents spoke in favor of cutting the public libraries budgets, saying that they’re concerned that their children have been exposed to harmful materials at the library.

Missouri is seeking feedback for their proposed rule, which would require libraries to put policies in place to keep “non-age appropriate books and materials” out of the hands of students, or lose funding.

The St. Mary’s City Commission (KS) is debating whether to renew the Pottawatomie Wabaunsee Regional Library’s lease after the library refused to accept a clause asking it to remove socially, racially or sexually divisive material, including all LGBTQ content.

Natrona County (WY) School District is possibly moving towards a wide-ranging ban on any books with “sexually explicit” imagery.

Cody (WY) School Board voted unanimously to uphold an earlier decision to retain If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo in the high school library.

Owasso (ID) Public Schools’ Board of Education voted in favor of a new requirement that will require every graphic novel to be reviewed by at least three faculty members for “sexually graphic content and extreme vulgarity” before it’s allowed on the shelves. Yet another example of time and resources being wasted on a non-existent problem.

Meridian Public Library (ID) faces backlash for their book collection. The director, in a refreshingly honest response, said, “Shouting out that these things you disagree with are obscene, is patently false. You have the right to object to an item. You have the right to recommend a reconsideration of an item you don’t like. You do not have the right to ban books or segregate access to books you don’t like.”

The conservative book ban movement roils the Millard County (UT) School District.

A Utah mom is upset that 23 “pornographic” books have been returned to Washington County (UT) School District libraries. The article also mentions that all 23 books are featured on the Rated Books website, without mentioning that this website is created directly by Moms for Liberty.

The Homer Library (AK) Advisory Board seeks public input regarding LGBTQ-themed children’s books.

Books & Authors in the News

Award-winning children’s author Marcus Sedgwick has passed away unexpectedly at 54.

A list of 100 Canadian citizens, including Margaret Atwood, have been banned from Russia, in retaliation for Prime Minister Trudeau’s new and ongoing sanctions.

Barnes & Noble has pulled the controversial book Hebrews to Negroes: Wake Up Black America from its shelves.

Numbers & Trends

The best-selling books of the week.

Award News

The 2022 National Book Award winners have been announced!

Dolly Parton receives a whopping $100 million award for The Bezos Award for Courage and Civility. She said, “I try to put my money where my heart is. I will do my best to do good things with this money.”

Katherine Rundell wins the 2022 Baillie Gifford Prize for Nonfiction for Super-Infinite: The Transformations of John Donne.

The 2023 Grammy nominations have been announced.

The shortlist for the 2022 First Novel Prize has been announced.

Bookish Curiosities & Miscellaneous

500 new words are officially allowed in Scrabble, including Jedi, spork, hangry, and fauxhawk.

On the Riot

After 125 years, this is the most-borrowed book from the Brooklyn Public Library.

A rundown of this Rioter’s first library conference.

Pulling back the curtain: reading the journals of someone you admire.

The worst books written by celebrities.

Reading is this Rioter’s coping mechanism at family gatherings.

How do visual readers read nonfiction?


black cat sitting on a gray plaid pillow with a Wii remote between its front paws

About a month ago, I dug out my old Wii U (yes, I still have my Wii U, don’t judge), and last night, Gilbert decided he wanted in on the fun! My husband is away at the moment, and when I sent him this photo, he said, “Oh no. I have to come back home right now, because y’all are clearly having too much fun.”

Okay, friends. I’ll pop into your inboxes again on Tuesday. Enjoy your weekend!

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.

Categories
Check Your Shelf

The Blank Men of Horror and Thrillers

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. This week as I dive into the week’s banned book news, each headline is a reminder of the pervasiveness of the anti-LGBTQ rhetoric that emboldened the shooter in Colorado Springs. The book bans, the anti-trans legislation, the attack on public education, the threats against Drag Queen Story Times…it’s all linked, and it all led to last weekend’s shooting. I am so angry and so sad, and I know that whatever I’m feeling is nothing compared to those of you who have to actively navigate this danger. Friends, I am so sorry that this keeps happening, and I’m so sorry that you have to face it in your personal as well as your professional lives.

Collection Development Corner

Publishing News

The FBI shut down Z-Library, one of the world’s largest online pirated libraries, and BookTok experienced a significant clash between reader and authors.

Amazon makes cuts to its Books business.

TikTok will sell books directly to users via its marketplace.

How publishing is raising money for Georgia’s Senate runoff election.

How to support the HarperCollins union during their strike.

New & Upcoming Titles

Bernie Sanders is publishing a new book, It’s Okay to Be Angry About Capitalism.

Michael Lewis’ next book will focus on crypto exchange FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried, as well as the recent FTX collapse.

Caroline Kepnes announces a fourth Joe Goldberg novel for April 2023.

Mary J. Blige is publishing a picture book in 2023 called Mary Can!

First look at Emily Henry’s upcoming romance novel, Happy Place.

Andrea Bartz has the cover reveal for her next book, The Spare Room.

And here’s the cover for Riley Sager’s upcoming Gothic thriller, The Only One Left!

7 of the best romance novels for the fall.

The best books of the year from Amazon, Esquire (nonfiction), Kirkus (fiction, mysteries/thrillers, book club fiction, historical fiction, romance, SFF, debut fiction, fiction in translation), Time, Washington Post (general, fiction, mysteries/thrillers, nonfiction).

30 most-anticipated books for Winter 2022.

Weekly book picks from Crime Reads, LitHub, The Millions, New York Times, USA Today.

Want to read books from this newsletter? You can, for free! Get three free audiobooks with a trial to Audiobooks.com. Claim your 3 free audiobooks now!

What Your Patrons Are Hearing About

The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Terms – Michelle Obama (New York Times, OprahDaily, People, Time, USA Today, Washington Post).

The Queen: Her Life – Andrew Morton (New York Times, Time, Vanity Fair, Washington Post)

No Filter: The Good, the Bad, and the Beautiful – Paulina Porizkova (New York Times, Shondaland)

How to Survive Everything – Ewan Morrison (New York Times)

Flight – Lynn Steger Strong (USA Today)

Now is Not the Time to Panic – Kevin Wilson (Washington Post)

On the Riot

New and recent YA romances to get you in the holiday spirit.

9 great new queer middle grade books.

The best weekly new releases to TBR.

Reading pathways for Jesse Q. Sutanto.

All Things Comics

On the Riot

YA and middle grade native and Indigenous graphic novels and comics.

7 female superheroes who were better than their male counterparts.

Audiophilia

LeVar Burton will be narrating a new audiobook version of A Christmas Carol, available exclusively on Apple Books.

Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists

Children/Teens

11 YA books without romance.

9 YA books with fierce women leaders like Black Panther.

Adults

10 long-running series to last you through the winter.

4 romance books where the heroine makes the first move.

Cookbooks with recipes that come together in a snap.

9 vegetarian cookbooks that even meat lovers will adore.

8 books about the reality of living with chronic illness.

Books about Princess Margaret, Princess Diana, and Queen Elizabeth II.

11 historical novels about women misbehaving and making history.

5 SFF books about spies and espionage.

7 nautical thrillers above, below, and around the seven seas.

Picks for Jewish Book Month.

10 coffee table books perfect for pop culture fans.

8 romance novels featuring trans women, by trans authors.

What to read during the World Cup.

On the Riot

9 inventive robot books for kids.

10 picture book biographies of authors to show kids how to use their words.

Books about ocean life for all ages.

8 books about drugs, from science to politics.

21 books that went viral on TikTok.

10 of the most popular mystery books on TikTok.

8 amazing works of SFF in translation.

10 of the best sci-fi/horror novels.

42 of the best fantasy novels from the last 10 years.

The blank men of horror and thrillers.

9 of the best Christmas novels.

Twisty romantic duologies to devour.

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.

black and white cat lying on its back, looking up at a person out of frame

Blaine sent me this photo while I was at work…apparently Dini was being very needy and making sure everyone could see how adorable he is!

Okay, friends, I’ll check in again on Friday. Please be kind to yourselves, and I hope you all get to spend time this holiday week with people who make you feel happy and loved and safe.

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.

Categories
Check Your Shelf

Goat Yoga, Libraries, and You

Welcome to Check Your Shelf, where I am watching the Twitter meltdown with a mix of fascination and horror. As much as I hate seeing a workplace driven into the ground in real time, I have to say that reading about Elon Musk has done wonders for my own impostor syndrome.

Libraries & Librarians

News Updates

Concerns linger for libraries after mixed election results.

Arkansas voters have opted to cut the Craighead County/Jonesboro Public Library’s millage in half. The article claims that this measure was added at the 11th hour in response to negative feedback over an LGBTQ pride display in January.

Helena Bonham Carter has been named the first female president of the London Library, the city’s first established lending library.

Cool Library Updates

Goat yoga at the library!

Worth Reading

Resources for helping unhoused patrons.

Libraries vs. the cost of living crisis.

Simple ways to be more inclusive of autistic families.

Creating accessibility in libraries.

How libraries are using TikTok for programming and outreach.

Book Adaptations in the News

Disney is adapting Roshani Chokshi’s A Crown of Wishes into a live-action series.

A new Princess Diaries movie is in the works.

After optioning Maggie Haberman’s Confidence Man months before its publication, Apple has decided not to pick up the adaptation for development.

Amanda Montell’s book Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism is being adapted as a docuseries.

Ewan Morrison’s thriller How to Survive Everything has been optioned for TV.

Shuggie Bain is getting a TV adaptation.

Netflix orders an adaptation of Judy Blume’s Forever.

Universal Pictures has acquired film adaptation rights to Susanna Hoff’s debut novel, This Bird Has Flown. (If you recognize that name, Susanna Hoff was one of the co-founders of The Bangles.)

Casting update for The Sympathizer.

Banned & Challenged Books

There aren’t two sides to the Holocaust debate.

Texas Republicans against critical race theory win seats on the State Board of Education, strengthening the GOP majority. ​​

Keller ISD (TX) has banned books about trans and nonbinary people.

Abilene Public Library (TX) tables a request to move, reclassify, or remove 30 books.

Grapevine-Colleyville ISD (TX) parents held their own book fair after the district refused to work with Scholastic Books, saying that Scholastic wouldn’t give them an inventory of every item being sold ahead of time.

Kerrville (TX) City Council is scheduled to hear a request about disputed library materials which allegedly violate Texas obscenity laws.

Why read a book when you can ban it instead? Inside Florida’s Clay County school district.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower has been removed from the Escambia County (FL) School curriculum.

Over 20 books challenged at Thomas County Public Library (GA).

An anti-critical race theory supporter wins a seat on the Augusta County (VA) School Board.

Virginia governor shuts down a critical race theory complaint hotline because it didn’t get enough complaints. Shocker.

Prince William School Board (VA) is considering parental consent for school-wide book readings.

Madison County (NC) school officials attempt to clear confusion, saying that All American Boys has not been banned from the district, even though a school board candidate said that she felt the book SHOULD be banned.

Wake County (NC) Library system is under scrutiny after adding multiple copies of the transphobic picture book Johnny the Walrus to their collections.

The first sentence of this article from Catawba County (NC) says it all: “Michelle Teague, the grandparent who challenged 24 public school library books this year while admitting she had not read them, is now on the board that sets policy for the system.”

The Wilkes County School Board (NC) has given county school superintendents the authority to immediately remove a book or other educational materials from all schools after it is challenged by a parent, thereby completely bypassing their existing review policy.

Horry County (SC) school board adds committee positions to review possible “inappropriate materials” in the libraries.

Spruce Mountain (ME) school board votes to keep Gender Queer, despite parents appealing the initial decision.

Henrietta Public Library and other upstate New York libraries grapple with efforts to censor children’s books.

Brooklyn Public Library president says “now is a time to act” in the fight against book bans.

A 10th grade lesson at Somers High School (NY) was halted after parents complained about the teacher using the book Me and White Supremacy to teach about racism.

Princeton Public Library (NJ) hosts a panel addressing book banning.

In a heated New Jersey school board race, things get physical.

Hollidaysburg Area School District (PA) discusses adding new language concerning gender identity and preferred pronouns to a school policy, which would prevent teachers from “prominently” displaying materials of a religious, sexual, or political nature in their classrooms, which includes teachers who previously had Pride flags up in their classroom.

The Public Library of Steubenville and Jefferson County (OH) issued a statement in response to patrons asking the library to remove LGBTQ book displays and materials.

Hilliard City School (OH) parents are pushing for school officials to remove multiple books from libraries.

Wood County Commission (WV) hears complaints about the book Julián is a Mermaid being read during storytime at the South Parkersburg Library.

Conservative politics drive the fight for control of Indiana’s school boards. In Hamilton County, several anti-critical race theory candidates win seats on multiple school boards.

The Michigan Library Association defends the Patmos Library, which was defunded over LGBTQ books.

7 books have been removed from Elmbrook (WI) school libraries.

Carroll Community School District’s (IA) material reconsideration committee recommends that Sold by Patricia McCormick should remain in libraries.

Nixa (MO) parents push for nine more books to be removed from the high school library. Six of the titles are by Sarah J. Maas.

The Daniel Boone Regional Library (MO) is preparing to discuss a proposed book challenge rule in the state, which would require libraries receiving state funds to determine what material is “age-appropriate” for children, and restrict minors from accessing some books.

Not book related, but it’s all linked in a horrible circle. Republicans introduce a bill to make it a felony to perform drag shows in Tennessee.

Faulkner County Coalition for Social Justice (AR) held a student walkout at Conway High School over recent policy changes that negatively affect transgender students and critical race theory.

Rapid City Area Schools (SD) are planning to sell the books that were once earmarked to be destroyed.

Wyoming teachers are dismayed by the recent state-sponsored “sexualization of children in schools” event.

A Boise man who was arrested for aggravated assault had also assaulted a transgender employee at the Boise Downtown Public Library prior to his arrest.

Months after the Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District banned critical race theory from classrooms, Cal State Fullerton has told officials that it’s pausing its student teacher placement in the district because the restriction conflicts with the university’s goals of equity and inclusion.

Australian senator Alex Antic accuses the Australian Broadcast Corporation of “grooming” children after Australian drag queen Courtney Act appeared on the Play School program.

Republicans are using attacks on queer people and libraries to rally voters.

Why book bans and voter suppression go hand in hand.

Want to read books from this newsletter? You can, for free! Get three free audiobooks with a trial to Audiobooks.com. Claim your 3 free audiobooks now!

Books & Authors in the News

Hilary Duff slams Ballast Books for announcing plans to release Aaron Carter’s unfinished memoir only 10 days after his death. Since then, the publisher has delayed the publication date indefinitely.

Numbers & Trends

Can BookTok be taken at face value?

The best-selling books of the week.

Award News

Barnes & Noble names Lessons in Chemistry as its best book of 2022.

Voting for the Goodreads Choice Awards has begun!

The Andrew Carnegie Medal shortlist has been announced.

On the Riot

Ideas for running a comic book club in your school library.

How and why this Rioter schedules their reading.

How many books does the average person read?

On bonding with damaged books.

black and white cat sitting on a desk next to a recording microphone

Okay, the cat photo for this issue is a no-brainer. I got set up to record a couple ad spots for the latest episode of Read or Dead, and Dini decided he was going to be the new co-host. I have informed all relevant parties of this change, so if you’re a listener, be prepared for less mystery & suspense discussion, and more demands for treats and Fancy Feast.

All right friends. Please take time to recharge your batteries this weekend. I desperately need to, and my guess is a lot of you need to as well.

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.