Author: Sharifah Williams

This edition of Today in Books is sponsored by Avery / TarcherPerigee, publisher of 50 WAYS TO GET A JOB by Dev Aujla.

A “New” Tolkien Book Will Be Published

J.R.R. Tolkien wrote The Fall of Gondolin while convalescing in the hospital after the Battle of the Somme. His son, Christopher, edited the work, which Tolkien described as “the first real story of Middle-earth.” The story features a reluctant hero, a dark lord, and a big battle narrative. Sounds about right.

The 2018 BTBA Longlist

The Best Translated Book Awards announced the 2018 longlists for fiction and poetry. The longlists feature authors from twenty-five different countries, writing in eighteen languages, and published by twenty-six different presses. They include Remains of Life by Wu Wu He, translated by Michael Berry; The Iliac Crest by Cristina Rivera Garza, translated by Sarah Booker; and, Things That Happen by Bhaskar Chakrabarti, translated by Arunava Sinha.

Cassandra Clare’s New Ebook De-Listed By Amazon

Son of the Dawn, an e-book by Cassandra Clare and Sarah Rees Brennan, was de-listed by Amazon after the company misidentified it as a fraudulent listing. The book was launched as part of Clare’s small-publishing initiative. According to Clare, the explanation she received from Amazon was that they didn’t believe she would self-publish, and assumed the listing was an attempt to impersonate her. The book was taken down on April 6, and relisted the following day.

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This edition of Today in Books is sponsored by Penguin Random House, publisher of No One Ever Asked by Katie Ganshert.

Top 10 Challenged Books Of 2017

The American Library Association released its list of the most challenged books of last year. The list is topped by Jay Asher and Sherman Alexie. The reasons cited for the banning of their books is unrelated to the recent sexual harassment allegations made against both authors. Alex Gino’s middle grade book, George, is on the list for including a transgender child, and The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini was thought to “lead to terrorism” and “promote Islam.” Click here for the full list.

HBO Develops Docuseries Based On I’ll Be Gone In The Dark

A docuseries based on Michelle McNamara’s true-crime book, I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, is in the works at HBO. In the book, McNamara investigates the Golden State Killer, an elusive predator who terrorized California for over a decade. McNamara unexpectedly died in her sleep in 2016; her husband Patton Oswalt said, “HBO taking on this story will advance the passionate pursuit that Michelle shared with dozens of men and women in law enforcement – to solve the mystery of one of California’s most notorious serial killers.”

Bookseller Organizes Protest Against Neo-Nazis

The New York Times wrote a piece on a bookseller who organized a protest in response to a neo-Nazi march through Berlin’s old Jewish quarter. Jörg Braunsdorf decided to act after he witnessed the 2016 neo-Nazi march through the neighborhood where his independent bookstore is located. The Residents’ Initiative for Civil Courage was born in Tucholsky Bookstore thanks, in part, to his leadership.

And don’t forget to enter to win 15 of the year’s best mysteries so far!

This edition of Today in Books is sponsored by My Lady’s Choosing: An Interactive Romance Novel by Larissa Zageris and Kitty Curran, published by Quirk Books.

Nobel Prize In Literature Shaken By #MeToo Resignations

Three members of the Swedish Academy, which hands out the Nobel Prize in Literature, resigned in light of sexual harassment allegations made by numerous women against an unnamed man who has “strong ties to the Academy.” The resignations came after the Academy split ties and funding from the man, and after a meeting to discuss a press statement planned for release next week. Because membership in the Academy is for life and members who quit aren’t replaced until after their death, the Academy’s permanent secretary is looking at revising those rules.

What Happened To VA Teens Sentenced To Read?

Last year, a group of Virginia teenagers were sentenced to read books after defacing a building with hate messages. The building was the historical Ashburn Colored School. The New York Times caught up with one of the sentenced teens, who seems to have reflected on the damage inflicted post-sentencing. “I was wrong, it means a lot to people who were affected by them. It reminds them of the worst things, losing family members and friends,” said one of the teens who read 12 Years a Slave, among other books. Click here to read about the reactions from the community and the authors.

New Online Spanish Language Store Coming To The U.S.

Libros in Español launches on April 15 with a couple thousand physical Spanish language titles. Filipe Silva, the site’s founder and former associate director of Latin American and Spanish-language sales at Penguin Random House, will be selecting all titles for sale on the site. Silva also told Publisher’s Weekly that Libros in Español will serve as a literary agent for Hispanic U.S. authors of works in Spanish starting this autumn.

This edition of Today in Books is sponsored by Someday, Somewhere by Lindsay Champion from KCP Loft.

The Secret Codes Of Elderly Library-Goers

A library assistant shone a light on the secret codes of elderly library-goers through a Twitter thread that went viral. Through another patron, Georgia Grainger discovered that many of the “wee old women” books in her library had the page number 7 marked with pen. When she told her manager about the strange phenomenon, she learned that numerous elderly clientele use (varying) secret codes to mark which books they’ve read. Other Twitter users chimed in with their own code encounters.

New Full-Length Fahrenheit 451 Trailer

HBO dropped a new full-length trailer for its upcoming film adaptation of Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451. The film about the banning and burning of books in a dystopian future stars Michael B. Jordan and Michael Shannon, and premieres May 19 on HBO. Watch the trailer here!

Maggie Smith And More Harry Potter Vets Join Mobile Game Cast

The most recent news about the Harry Potter Hogwarts Mystery mobile game announced that Maggie Smith and other actors from the Harry Potter films, including Warwick Davis as Professor Flitwick, Sally Mortemore as librarian Irma Prince, and Michael Gambon as Professor Dumbledore, will lend their voices to the experience. Huzzah!

This edition of Today in Books is sponsored by Avery / TarcherPerigee, publisher of 50 WAYS TO GET A JOB by Dev Aujla.

The Hate U Give Is Re-shooting With Riverdale Star

Late yesterday, we received word that the adaptation will be re-shot with Riverdale star K.J. Apa who will replace actor Kian Lawley as the protagonist’s boyfriend. Though the film had wrapped up shooting, the switch was necessitated by the discovery of a video that showed Lawley making racial slurs. Angie Thomas’s The Hate U Give is about racism, so that was a “no” for keeping Lawley on the cast.

Man Booker Reverses Decision On Nationality Listing

We have an update on the news about the Man Booker changing long listed author Wu Ming-Yi’s nationality from Taiwan to Taiwan, China. After receiving criticism for bowing to pressure from China, the Man Booker’s organizers announced that they would list the country/territory of authors up for the prize, rather than their nationalities, in the future. Wu’s listing will go back to “Taiwan.” Of the decision, Wu wrote that the “prize has affirmed that the will of literature is based on honesty and freedom.”

Joan Silber Wins PEN/Faulkner Award

Silber won the award for Fiction for her book of linked stories, Improvement. Last month, she also won the National Book Critics Circle fiction prize for Improvement. The story is one told from multiple points of view, circling a single mother living in New York with a boyfriend who conducts a cigarette smuggling scheme.

This edition of Today in Books is sponsored by Dynamite Entertainment, publisher of Pierce Brown’s Red Rising.

Kathryn Hahn To Star In Mrs. Fletcher

HBO ordered a pilot for the series adaptation of Tom Perrotta’s Mrs. Fletcher. Kathryn Hahn will star as Eve Fletcher in the comedy about a mother and son who explore their newfound freedom after the son goes to college. Perrotta will write the pilot and executive produce.

Man Booker Changes Taiwanese Author’s Nationality

The Man Booker came under fire for changing a prize nominee’s nationality. Long listed author of The Stolen Bicycle Wu Ming-Yi posted the news of his nomination and made positive mention of the fact that his nationality was listed as Taiwan, rather than Taiwan, China. About two weeks later, the Man Booker changed the line in response to pressure from Beijing whose stance is that the self-governed island is part of China. People took to Man Booker’s Facebook page to criticize the move. Wu has declined to speak on the subject.

Neil Gaiman Is Bringing Gormenghast Back To TV

Back in 2000, BBC produced a four-part miniseries of Gormenghast, Mervyn Peake’s classic fantasy series about the (super-weird) inhabitants of a crumbling mansion, and now Neil Gaiman is bringing it back to the small screen. Gaiman has been working on the adaptation, originally planned as a film, for a couple of years with the blessing of Fabian Peake (Mervyn’s son).

This edition of Today in Books is sponsored by Flatiron Books, publisher of Oliver Loving by Stefan Merrill Block.

The 2018 Hugo Awards Finalists

From Best Novel to Best Fan Artist, the finalists in each category of the Hugo Awards were announced over the weekend. Those selected for the science fiction and fantasy prize include Ann Leckie for Provenance (Best Novel), N.K. Jemisin for The Stone Sky (Best Novel), Martha Wells for All Systems Red (Best Novella), and Nnedi Okorafor for Binti: Home (Best Novella). If Jemisin, who became the first black person to win the Hugo for Best Novel, wins this year, it will be her third in a row. The winners will be announced at Worldcon in August 2018.

Describe Yourself Like A Male Author Would

In a Twitter thread that went viral, Gwen C. Katz, author of Young Adult novel Among the Red Stars, responded to a male author’s claim that he can write authentic female protagonists. The male author proclaimed his skills as an argument against the need for the #OwnVoices movement. Katz published excerpts from the author’s work illustrating his “expertise” in representing women on the page. The thread turned into a call for women to write themselves as a male author would when podcaster Whit Reynolds proposed the Twitter game. The responses are pure gold.

A Shakespearean Kerfuffle

A Shakespearean scholar is at odds with his peers, claiming his reputation was damaged by people associated with the New Oxford Shakespeare. Professor Sir Brian Vickers said a string of hostile reviews has become a roadblock to the publication of his complete edition of works by Thomas Kyd, and that he has been labeled “controversial.” Vickers used anti-plagiarism software to conclude that Thomas Kyd was the author of three anonymous plays. Of his claims, an editor of the New Oxford Shakespeare said, “I doubt that his conspiracy theories will convince anyone who isn’t already paranoid.”

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This edition of Today in Books is sponsored by Flatiron Books, publisher of Girls Burn Brighter by Shobha Rao.

 Anita Shreve Dies At 71

The author of The Pilot’s Wife and The Weight of Water died of cancer on Thursday. Shreve had announced her illness and cancelled public appearances almost a year ago. “She was such a good friend and she was so generous about other people’s writing,” said friend and novelist Elinor Lipman. “It’s really hard for me to imagine a world without Anita.”

Bringing A Book Fest To The Bronx

Remezcla wrote a piece on Saraciea Fennell who’s working to bring a book festival to the bookstore desert that is the Bronx. Fennell, who grew up in the Bronx and attended Title I public schools, wants to bring the festival she didn’t have as a kid to her neighborhood. She’s currently crowdfunding the project, and Elizabeth Acevedo and Daniel José Older have signed on to serve as the keynote speakers. Click here for the feature and here for the Kickstarter.

VIDA Calls For #SaferLIT

Non-profit feminist organization VIDA asked journals and presses to pledge for #saferLIT. The pledge includes not harassing or abusing anyone, nor being a bystander; publishing work free from bigotry, sexual exploitation, and abuse; and making your office, publication, and events as safe as possible. The organization promised to announce more #saferLIT initiatives as the year progresses.

This edition of Today in Books is sponsored by the New York Times bestselling author of The Secret of Flirting, Sabrina Jeffries.

Amazon Strips Rankings From Romance Titles

As early as March 22, romance authors noticed that their titles were removed from Amazon’s Kindle bestseller list. The policy change has affected ebooks tagged erotica published both independently and by traditional publishers, and effectively prevents the books from showing up very high in searches. There’s speculation that Amazon quietly made the change in anticipation of the FOSTA (“Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act”) bill becoming law.

A Star-Studded Staged Reading Of Between The World And Me

Ta-Nehisi Coates’s Between the World and Me will have its first theatrical reading April 2-3 at New York’s historic Apollo Theater. Moreover, the cast headlining the reading includes Common, Angela Bassett, and Susan Kelechi Watson of This Is Us. GRAMMY-nominated jazz musician and composer Jason Moran will be contributing music to the program.

Debut Author Weike Wang Wins PEN/Hemingway Award

PEN America awarded Wang the $25,000 award for her debut novel, Chemistry. This year’s judges described Wang’s novel about a graduate on the cusp of making life-changing decisions as a “brilliant book” written in “elliptical prose, spare and clean as bone.” Seán Hemingway, Ernest Hemingway’s grandson, will present the award to Wang on April 8 at a ceremony in Boston.

This edition of Today in Books is sponsored by FALLING STAR, a Nashville-set contemporary romance from bestselling author Terri Osburn.

Marlon Bundo Release Angers Indie Booksellers

One independent bookseller called the Amazon-exclusive release of John Oliver’s parody title a “slap in the face.” Oliver’s A Day in the Life of Marlon Bundo, about Mike Pence’s pet rabbit falling in love with another male rabbit, reached the No. 1 spot on Amazon with proceeds going to Aids United and the LGBTQ charity the Trevor Project. Indie booksellers, none of whom had been told about the release, criticized the decision to point viewers to Amazon. The title’s website now directs customers to a range of booksellers. Click here for background on the Marlon Bundo story and to read the publisher’s statement.

Big Authors Call For Man Booker To Drop Americans

Asked whether any author writing in English and published in the UK should continue to be allowed to enter the Man Booker Awards, 99% of Folio Academy members said no. Academy members include authors Margaret Atwood, Ian McEwan, and Zadie Smith. The Rathbones Folio Prize was established to challenge the Booker, and awarded its first prize the same year the Booker opened its awards to any author writing in English.

The Handmaid’s Tale Season 2 Trailer Is Here

And everyone’s talking about how the upcoming season will diverge from existing content in Margaret Atwood’s novel. We all knew it would happen–there’s only so much source material. The Hulu original series, and its actors, won Emmys for the first season. Check out the new trailer for season two here.