Author: Liberty Hardy

Welcome to another Monday, my little book eaters. We’re all set for another week of wonderful bookish news and goodies. I feel like my reading has been a bit more hit or miss than usual these last few weeks – I read a few clunkers in a row – but I have still managed to find lots of great things to read. One of which I am sharing with you below!

Whether you’re reading a book or watching a movie or tap dancing to death metal, I hope you’re having a great time, too. Please enjoy the rest of your week, and remember to be excellent to each other! I’ll see you again on Thursday. – xoxo, Liberty

Here’s Monday’s trivia question: When was the New York Review Of Books first published?? (Scroll to the bottom for the answer.)

Deals, Reels, and Squeals! 

Viet Thanh Nguyen announced that there will be a sequel to The Sympathizer, his Pulitzer Prize-winning novel.

Ava DuVernay & Warner Bros Animation are developing Tui T. Sutherland’s Wings of Fire books.

Taika Waititi will write, direct, & produce two animated series based on the works of Roald Dahl for Netflix.

Samantha Shannon announced the fourth book in the Bone Season series.

Rioter Eric Smith announced his next novel: You Can Go Your Own Way.

Snoop Dogg will be one of the producers of the series adaptation of Joe Ide’s IQ.

Rebecca Roanhorse’s short story Welcome to Your Authentic Indian Experience™ is being made into a film.

Truth Be Told, based on the novel Are You Sleeping by Kathleen Barber, has been renewed for a second season at Apple+.

Maura Tierney will join Jeff Daniels in Rust, based on the novel by Philipp Meyer.

A Beauty and the Beast live-action prequel series with Josh Gad and Luke Evans is in development at Disney+.

The Thursday Murder Club, the novel out this fall by Richard Osman, is being made into a film.

Ridley Scott snagged the rights to Bethany Clift’s upcoming comedic dystopian novel I Alone Survive.

Judy Blume’s Wifey is being developed as an HBO limited series.

The Most Dangerous Animal of All has been made into a docuseries.

Book Riot Recommends 

At Book Riot, I work on the New Books! email, the All the Books! podcast about new releases, and the Book Riot Insiders New Release Index. I am very fortunate to get to read a lot of upcoming titles, and learn about a lot of upcoming titles, and I’m delighted to share a couple with you each week so you can add them to your TBR!

Loved, loved, loved:

New Waves: A Novel by Kevin Nguyen (One World, March 10)

I know this is already out tomorrow, but I still wanted to mention it here, because this is such a stellar debut. It’s a quiet, lovely novel about race, grief, friendship, and our digital footprint. Lucas and his BFF Margo did something really stupid one night when they were drunk: they copied all the personal info for users of the social media site where they worked, because Margo was mad she had just been fired. The next day, they swore to never speak of it again. Months later, Margo is struck and killed in a hit-and-run. Margo’s mother wants Lucas to get rid of Margo’s Facebook account, but in looking through Margo’s laptop. Lucas discovers there was a lot he didn’t know about his friend. The novel follows their friendship back and forth as Lucas unravels Margo’s life. I thought it was just excellent.

What I’m reading this week:

Mayhem: A Novel by Estelle Laure

The Last Thing You Surrender: A Novel of World War II by Leonard Pitts Jr.

Not a Gentleman’s Work: The Untold Story of a Gruesome Murder at Sea and the Long Road to Truth by Gerard Koeppel

These Violent Delights: A Novel by Micah Nemerever

The Silence of the White City by Eva García Sáenz

Pun of the week: 

I went to buy camouflage pants yesterday, but I couldn’t find any.

Here’s a cat picture:

Zevon, aka Sir Mixer-Bowl-a-Lot.

And this is funny.

It’s a maniac, maniac on the floor…

Trivia answer: February 1, 1963.

You made it to the bottom! Thanks for reading! – xo, L

Happy Thursday! Please forgive me, but today’s newsletter is going to be a short one, because there is not a ton of news yet this week with all the election stuff going on, and also I am sick in bed with an annoying cold. But at least I have books!

And my 365 Day Movie project update: I had to set this aside for now, but it’s for exciting reasons that I can’t tell you about quite yet. But they are indeed book-related and are going to be taking up more of my time, so I can’t commit to a movie a night. I am happy I watched all the movies that I did, since I usually watch one or two movies a year. Maybe next year I can try again!

Whatever you are doing or watching or reading this week, please remember to be kind to yourself and others. Thanks for subscribing, and I’ll see you again on Monday! – xoxo, Liberty

Trivia question time! Who created the famous children’s character Pinocchio? (Scroll to the bottom for the answer.)

Deals, Reals, and Squeals!

Crazy Rich Asians author Kevin Kwan has a new novel coming in July!

The Magicians series will end with season five.

Sabaa Tahir shared the cover of A Sky Beyond the Storm, the fourth Ember in the Ashes Book.

Rabbit Cake author Annie Harnett announced her next novel.

Colin Kaepernick is starting his own publishing company.

The 2020 Women’s Prize longlist was announced.

Gina Torres will star in a new series that is being described as a reimagining of Dracula.

Darnell “SuperChef” Ferguson is launching his first children’s comic book.

James B. Stewart’s 1992 book Den of Thieves has been optioned for adaptation as a limited series.

Maxim Baldry has been added to the Lord of the Rings cast.

Rebecca Frayn will direct an adaptation of her father Michael Frayn’s novel Spies.

James McAvoy will make his U.S. stage debut in an adaptation of Cyrano de Bergerac.

Book Riot Recommends 

At Book Riot, I work on the New Books! email, the All the Books! podcast about new releases, and the Book Riot Insiders New Release Index. I am very fortunate to get to read a lot of upcoming titles, and learn about a lot of upcoming titles, and I’m delighted to share a couple with you each week so you can add them to your TBR! (It will now be books I loved on Mondays and books I’m excited to read on Thursdays. YAY, BOOKS!)

Excited to read:

The Shadows: A Novel by Alex North (Celadon Books, July 7)

I am so excited about this book, because I thought The Whisper Man was tons of fun, and super-creepy. It’s also set in the shady town of Featherbank, and follows a man who is losing his memory. He is trying to make sense of a decades-old case involving the killing of his friend, and a recent copycat murder. Oh yeah, and the first killer was never caught. Not suspicious at all, nope, not a bit. (These people need to move out of Featherbank, I tell you what!)

What I’m reading this week.

Black Widow: A Sad-Funny Journey Through Grief for People Who Normally Avoid Books with Words Like “Journey” in the Title by Leslie Gray Streeter

The Silence of the White City by Eva García Sáenz

The Baddest Bitch in the Room: A Memoir by Sophia Chang

Empire of Wild by Cherie Dimaline

These Violent Delights by Micah Nemerever

And this is funny.

I have watched this video so many times that I have lost count.

Song stuck in my head:

“Sweater Weather” by The Neighbourhood

Trivia answer: Carlo Collodi.

You made it to the bottom! High five. Thanks for reading! – xo, L

It’s Monnnnnnnnnnday! Welcome to March and another fantastic month of reading. Strap on your hardhat and safety goggles, because I have a LOT of cover reveals to share with you today, as well as some other bookish tidbits. It’s going to be an awesome spring!

Whether you’re reading a book or watching a movie or tap dancing to death metal, I hope you’re having a great time, too. Please enjoy the rest of your week, and remember to be excellent to each other! I’ll see you again on Thursday. – xoxo, Liberty

Here’s Monday’s trivia question: How much did a copy of The Great Gatsby cost when it was first published in 1925? (Scroll to the bottom for the answer.)

Deals, Reels, and Squeals! 

Nicole Kidman’s production company is adapting My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing.

Here’s the first look at Aisha Saeed’s middle grade series about Wonder Woman.

And the first look at Alex North’s follow-up to The Whisper Man.

Here’s the cover reveal for Malorie, Josh Malerman’s sequel to Bird Box.

Edwidge Danticat is the first two-time winner of the $20,000 Story Prize.

Here’s the cover reveal of Every Body Looking by Candice Iloh.

Here’s the trailer for the big screen adaptation of Noël Coward’s comedy Blithe Spirits.

Here’s the cover reveal of Charming as a Verb by Ben Philippe.

Jillian Cantor announced her upcoming Great Gatsby-related novel.

Here’s the cover reveal of Stormbreak: A Seafire Novel by Natalie C. Parker.

Killing Eve actor Kim Bodnia has joined the cast of The Witcher for season 2.

Here’s the reveal of the bloody cover of They Wish They Were Us by Jessica Goodman.

Here’s the first look at Even If We Break by Marieke Nijkamp.

Book Riot Recommends 

At Book Riot, I work on the New Books! email, the All the Books! podcast about new releases, and the Book Riot Insiders New Release Index. I am very fortunate to get to read a lot of upcoming titles, and learn about a lot of upcoming titles, and I’m delighted to share a couple with you each week so you can add them to your TBR!

Loved, loved, loved:

Camping with Unicorns: Another Phoebe and Her Unicorn Adventure by Dana Simpson (Andrews McMeel Publishing, April 7)

It’s been a hot minute since I talked about my love for the Phoebe and Her Unicorn series, so I thought I would remind you that it exists and is excellent! I cannot believe that its already time for the eleventh book, but here we are. Phoebe and her vain unicorn BFF, Marigold Heavenly Nostrils, are a delightful pair, and the illustrations are adorable.

In this edition, school is out and the two besties spend the summer camping and wandering outside, where they meet Alabaster, another unicorn. The humor and cute factor are so high in these books that kids won’t even realize they’re also learning important lessons about things like popularity, friendship, and being true to yourself. 11/10, would read over and over.

What I’m reading this week:

The Baddest Bitch in the Room: A Memoir by Sophia Chang

Empire of Wild: A Novel by Cherie Dimaline

These Violent Delights: A Novel by Micah Nemerever

Alice Knott by Blake Butler

Wow, No Thank You.: Essays by Samantha Irby

Pun of the week: 

Did you hear about those new reversible jackets? I’m excited to see how they turn out.

Here’s a cat picture: 

King Derp of Derpland. (Also, it’s making me giggle how it kind of matches the book cover above the pun.)

And this is funny.

It’s an understandable mistake.

Trivia answer: Two dollars.

You made it to the bottom! Thanks for reading! – xo, L

Happy Thursday! How is your 2020 reading year going so far? It’s impossible to keep up with all the amazing books that are being released, but at least it’s fun to try, right? YAY, BOOKS!

Hmmmm, what else? I had to take a break from Bones because it’s just too silly for me right now. So I started in on the first 30 seasons of The Simpsons on Disney+, because CHALLENGE ACCEPTED. (I was in 8th grade when it premiered, lolsob.) It’s definitely problematic, but it’s also comforting, in a way, to have on in the background, because it reminds me of watching it with my family when I was a kid.

And my 365 Day Movie project update: I watched 10 Things I Hate About You, Wreck-It Ralph, Ralph Breaks the Internet, Rango, Missing Link, The Two Deaths of Sam Cooke, and The Big Sick. I looooooooved Wreck-It Ralph and Ralph Breaks the Internet!

Whatever you are doing or watching or reading this week, please remember to be kind to yourself and others. Thanks for subscribing, and I’ll see you again on Monday! – xoxo, Liberty

Trivia question time! Who wrote the famous line “ships that pass in the night?”(Scroll to the bottom for the answer.)

Deals, Reals, and Squeals!

Loveboat, Taipei by Abigail Hing Wen will be adapted for the screen.

Tony Hale will star in Hulu’s adaptation of The Mysterious Benedict Society.

Deanna Raybourn announced a new series about female assassins.

Book Riot has the cover reveal for The Once and Future Witches by Alix E. Harrow.

Anthony Veasna So has a deal for two forthcoming books with Ecco.

Jane Goodall has a new book coming in 2021.

Ava DuVernay and Victoria Mahoney are adapting Dawn, the first book of Octavia Butler’s Xenogenesis/Lilith’s Brood trilogy.

Unnamed Press revealed the cover of Like a Bird by Fariha Róisín.

First Wives Club has been renewed for a second season.

R.L. Stine is writing a new series based on the Garbage Pail Kids.

The Ex Files by Victoria Christopher Murray is being adapted for Lifetime.

Universal has bought the rights to The Mister by E.L. James.

A.K. Small’s Bright Burning Stars is being made into a series.

The Silence of the Lambs sequel has found its Clarice.

Michael Rooker has joined the cast of Showtime’s adaptation of The President Is Missing by James Patterson and Bill Clinton.

Greg Kinnear will take over as Atticus Finch in Broadway’s run of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird.

Judy Blume’s Summer Sisters will be a Hulu limited series.

Bella Heathcote has joined the cast of the Netflix adaptation of Pieces Of Her by Karin Slaughter.

A new adaptation of A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens is coming to television.

Book Riot Recommends 

At Book Riot, I work on the New Books! email, the All the Books! podcast about new releases, and the Book Riot Insiders New Release Index. I am very fortunate to get to read a lot of upcoming titles, and learn about a lot of upcoming titles, and I’m delighted to share a couple with you each week so you can add them to your TBR! (It will now be books I loved on Mondays and books I’m excited to read on Thursdays. YAY, BOOKS!)

Excited to read:

The Ghost Variations: One Hundred Stories by Kevin Brockmeier (Pantheon, October 6)

TRUE STORY: Last week, I was talking to a fellow Brockmeier fan, saying it had been so long since he released a book that surely we must be due for one soon And the VERY NEXT DAY, I saw a picture of this book on Carmen Maria Machado’s Instagram account. So basically, I wished it into a reality. You’re welcome. I love his writing so much! If you’ve never read him, go check out The Illumination by Kevin Brockmeier or Things That Fall from the Sky to start.

What I’m reading this week.

Wow, No Thank You.: Essays by Samantha Irby

Feast Your Eyes by Myla Goldberg

Destination Wedding by Diksha Basu

Home Baked: My Mom, Marijuana, and the Stoning of San Francisco by Alia Volz

The Price You Pay by Aidan Truhen

And this is funny.

Accurate.

Song stuck in my head:

“The Goonies ‘R’ Good Enough” by Cyndi Lauper

Trivia answer: Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

You made it to the bottom! High five. Thanks for reading! – xo, L

Happy Monday! Welcome to another week of “YAY BOOKS!” If this week is half as good as last week, it’s going to be amazing! I read several wonderful books, one of which I will tell you about today, and I received great news that I can’t wait to share when it’s ready. And most importantly, I discovered that the Gummi Bears cartoon is streaming on Disney+. A+ week, would repeat.

Whether you’re reading a book or watching a movie or juggling lemurs, I hope you’re having a great time, too. Please enjoy the rest of your week, and remember to be excellent to each other! I’ll see you again on Thursday. – xoxo, Liberty

Here’s Monday’s trivia question: What author cowrote the screenplay for the 1956 adaptation of Moby-Dick, alongside the director, John Huston? (Scroll to the bottom for the answer.)

Deals, Reels, and Squeals! 

The Prince and the Dressmaker by Jen Wang is being made into a movie musical!

Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite storyboards are being made into a graphic novel.

Here’s the second trailer for Little Fires Everywhere.

Christoph Waltz will star in a show based on Tom Holt’s satirical office fantasy series.

Dan Brown has a picture book on the way.

Former Knopf assistant editor Zakiya Dalila Harris has sold her debut novel in a seven-figure deal.

Maurene Goo’s YA novel I Believe in a Thing Called Love is getting the adaptation treatment.

Here’s the first look at Mark Oshiro’s Each of Us a Desert.

Game of Thrones alum Kristofer Hivju will join season 2 of The Witcher.

Rainn Wilson has joined the cast of The Power.

Delilah Dawson announced a post-apocalyptic plague thriller.

Dark Harvest set to be turned into a horror film.

Bebe Neuwirth will join the cast of The Flight Attendant, based on the novel by Chris Bohjalian.

Book Riot Recommends 

At Book Riot, I work on the New Books! email, the All the Books! podcast about new releases, and the Book Riot Insiders New Release Index. I am very fortunate to get to read a lot of upcoming titles, and learn about a lot of upcoming titles, and I’m delighted to share a couple with you each week so you can add them to your TBR!

Loved, loved, loved:

Days of Distraction by Alexandra Chang (Ecco, March 31)

I read this recently and it immediately went to the top of my list of favorite books of 2020. It’s a beautiful, heart-crushing meditation on race, family, and relationships. The 24-year-old Asian American narrator struggles each day with many problems, including being unappreciated and overlooked at work; her relationship with her white boyfriend (who still mispronounces her name after five years); and her parents and their tempestuous interactions, even after years of divorce. When her boyfriend moves to upstate New York for grad school, she sees it as a chance to make changes and possibly new beginnings. The narration of Days of Distraction is extremely internal, like a Jenny Offill novel. It’s such a sensitive and smart debut novel, and I can’t wait for everyone to read it. I’m also getting ready to read Minor Feelings: An Asian American Reckoning by Cathy Park Hong, which I have heard from many people is the best nonfiction of the year, and I have a feeling it is going to cover a lot of what was discussed in this novel.

What I’m reading this week:

Destination Wedding by Diksha Basu

Home Baked: My Mom, Marijuana, and the Stoning of San Francisco by Alia Volz

The Price You Pay by Aidan Truhen

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

Last Tang Standing by Lauren Ho

Pun of the week: 

Bad puns…it’s how eye roll.

Here’s a cat picture:

Freddie Purrcury was really pressing his luck this week.

And this is funny.

And speaking of cats…

Trivia answer: Ray Bradbury.

You made it to the bottom! Thanks for reading! – xo, L

Welcome to another Thursday of bookish fun! There’s lots of exciting happenings going on in the world of publishing, and lots of great books heading our way. It’s all so exciting! Am I ever not excited about books? SPOILER: Nope. I love books! That’s why we get along so well. 🙂

Let’s see, what else? I watched a few episodes of Avenue 5, which I didn’t super-love, but enjoyed enough to keep going. It has promise. And my 365 Day Movie project update: I watched Honey Boy, Coco, Moneyball, The French Connection, Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood, Moana, and Frozen. I looooooooved Coco, Moneyball, Once Upon a Time…, and Moana. It was a good movie week for me!

Whatever you are doing or watching or reading this week, please remember to be kind to yourself and others. Thanks for subscribing, and I’ll see you again on Monday! – xoxo, Liberty

Trivia question time! What famous literary character celebrates his birthday on September 22nd?(Scroll to the bottom for the answer.)

Deals, Reals, and Squeals!

The Holdout by Graham Moore is being turned into a Hulu series.

Rick Riordan Presents shared several exciting upcoming titles, including the next Tristan Strong. Rick Riordan also shared the cover for Trials of Apollo 5: The Tower of Nero.

LeBron James is releasing a picture book.

Here’s the trailer for I Am Not Okay With This, based on the graphic novel by Charles Forsman.

Tor.com revealed the details of the next book in Seanan McGuire’s Wayward Children series.

Edward Carey announced his next novel: The Swallowed Man, about Geppetto’s two years in the beast’s belly.

Jennifer Niven’s next YA novel will be released in the fall.

The Saint, based on the 1920s book series by Leslie Charteris, is being adapted again.

The upcoming YA novel All This Time by Mikki Daughtry and Rachael Lippincott has already been snagged for adaptation.

Jeff Bridges will illustrate a children’s book written by his daughter.

And here’s the cover reveal for Common Bonds: A Speculative Aromantic Anthology by Claudie Arseneault, et al.

Book Riot Recommends 

At Book Riot, I work on the New Books! email, the All the Books! podcast about new releases, and the Book Riot Insiders New Release Index. I am very fortunate to get to read a lot of upcoming titles, and learn about a lot of upcoming titles, and I’m delighted to share a couple with you each week so you can add them to your TBR! (It will now be books I loved on Mondays and books I’m excited to read on Thursdays. YAY, BOOKS!)

Excited to read:

The Echo Wife by Sarah Gailey (Tor Books, February 16, 2021)

Yes, we’re in February of 2020, but I am already highly anticipating this thriller from Sarah Gailey, because everything they write is so exciting!

This one is about a scientist who discovers her husband is cheating on her with a younger clone of herself, created from her stolen research. When a confrontation turns deadly, both women are now widows who will have to think fast if they don’t want to spend the rest of their lives in jail.

What I’m reading this week.

Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed

Last Tang Standing by Lauren Ho

The Abstainer: A Novel by Ian McGuire

Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell

And this is funny.

HOT LAVA.

Song stuck in my head:

“Shiny” by Jemaine Clement

Trivia answer: Bilbo Baggins.

You made it to the bottom! High five. Thanks for reading! – xo, L

Welcome back, readers! How is everyone doing? I admit, I have a major case of “OOOO SHINY BOOKS” lately. I have read the beginning-to-middle of twenty-something upcoming books in the last week. Not because they aren’t good, many of them are exceptional, but because I want to read so many things thisveryminute. I keep picking up a new book every time I sit down to read. Which is awesome, but isn’t getting books finished. Sometimes I wish I was still a book monogamist!

I don’t have a ton of news today, but that’s okay. I’m sure you have books to read! Whether you’re reading one book or eleventeen, I hope you’re having a great time. Please enjoy the rest of your week, and remember to be excellent to each other! I’ll see you again on Thursday. – xoxo, Liberty

Here’s Monday’s trivia question: In George Orwell’s Animal Farm, what kind of animal is Boxer? (Scroll to the bottom for the answer.)

Deals, Reels, and Squeals! 

More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera is being made into a series.

Here’s the first trailer for The Green Knight, starring Dev Patel.

Here’s the cover reveal of White Tears/Brown Scars: How White Feminism Betrays Women of Color by Ruby Hamad.

Jessie Mihalik announced her new three-book deal.

Amy Ratcliffe is writing a guide to fandom for kids.

Tiffany D. Jackson has written a picture book.

Jessica Chastain and Eddie Redmayne will star in a big screen adaptation of The Good Nurse.

Lana Condor talked about the third and final To All the Boys film.

Daniel Bruhl will star in an adaptation of All Quiet on the Western Front. (Have you seen his film Goodbye, Lenin? I love that movie.)

Margaret Qualley will star in A Head Full Of Ghosts, an adaptation of the Paul Tremblay novel. (Related: She is in Once Upon a Time…in Hollywood, which I watched this weekend. I thought it was excellent.)

Book Riot Recommends 

At Book Riot, I work on the New Books! email, the All the Books! podcast about new releases, and the Book Riot Insiders New Release Index. I am very fortunate to get to read a lot of upcoming titles, and learn about a lot of upcoming titles, and I’m delighted to share a couple with you each week so you can add them to your TBR!

Excited to read:

Everyday Magic: The Adventures of Alfie Blackstack by Jess Kidd, Beatriz Castro (Illustrator)

If you listen to All the Books!, you know I am a HUGE fan of Jess Kidd. I am wildly jealous that her books are released in the UK before we get them here. And now she has written a children’s book, about a young boy who lives with his witch aunts! WE WANTS THE PRECIOUS. But once again, we have to wait for it. I can’t find any information about physical copies being released in the US yet, but fingers crossed! If Kidd’s children’s book is as good as her adult titles, it’s going to knock our socks off.

What I’m reading this week:

Last Tang Standing by Lauren Ho

The Abstainer: A Novel by Ian McGuire

Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell

These Ghosts Are Family by Maisy Card

Blackwood by Michael Farris Smith

Pun of the week: 

I bought a dictionary and when I got home I discovered all the pages were blank. I have no words for how angry I am.

Here’s a cat picture:

My office assistant is cute but useless.

And this is funny.

Hooray, accomplishments!

Trivia answer: A horse.

You made it to the bottom! Thanks for reading! – xo, L