Categories
True Story

Space and Glowing Girls: The Buzzy Nonfiction of BookExpo

Hello, fellow nonfiction aficionados. I’m writing this newsletter having just gotten back from BookExpo in New York City. BookExpo is an annual trade show conference for publishers, authors, booksellers, librarians and other book-adjacent professionals. During the show there are book signings and galley giveaways, as well as presentations, education sessions and panels covering all sorts of trends and issues in the book world.

This is near one of the main entrances for BookExpo. Dad-like dudes were popular this year.

(As a quick informational aside, the conference recently split to address the needs of two different audiences – BookExpo, on Thursday and Friday, is more publishing industry focused, while BookCon, on Saturday and Sunday, is designed more for consumers.)

Sponsored by HarperOne, an Imprint of HarperCollins Publishers

Much advice about achievement is logical, earnest… and downright wrong. In Barking Up the Wrong Tree, Eric Barker reveals the extraordinary science behind what actually determines success. You’ll learn:

  • Why valedictorians rarely become millionaires
  •         How your biggest weakness might be your greatest strength
  •         Lessons about cooperation from gangs, pirates, and serial killers
  •         The Navy SEAL secret to “grit”
  •         How to find work-life balance from Genghis Khan, Albert Einstein, and Spider-Man

By looking at what separates the extremely successful from the rest of us, we learn how to be more like them—and discover why it’s sometimes good that we aren’t.

In my experience, the buzziest books of BookExpo tend to be fiction – some of the longest lines this year were for authors like Jennifer Egan, John Grisham and Celeste Ng, or for celebrities like Chad Michael Murray, Savannah Guthrie, or Isla Fisher.

If you’re excited about nonfiction, you’re generally not going to stand in any really, really long lines (unless it’s a celebrity memoir, but even those seemed more muted this year). That said, there were two nonfiction books that generated quite a bit of excitement, one by a celebrity (of sorts) and the other capitalizing on the popularity of nonfiction in pop culture.

Scott Kelly signed excerpts from his upcoming memoir, ENDURANCE. I was… not smooth when I got to meet him.

My first highlight of BookExpo was getting to meet Scott Kelly, an astronaut who spent a year living on the International Space Station. He was signing samples from his upcoming memoir, Endurance (Oct. 17 from Knopf), and couldn’t have been nicer during his autographing session. He followed up a very, very long line by jumping across the Penguin Random House booth for another signing, this time for his children’s book, My Journey to the Stars.

Kate Moore was very charming during her signing of RADIUM GIRLS. This one is next up on my TBR.

The other book I was pleasantly surprised to see generating a lot of buzz was The Radium Girls by Kate Moore (April 18 from Sourcebooks), a true story of the young women tasked with painting the glowing numerals on watches using a newly-discovered element, radium, around World War I. But as we know now, radium turns out to be incredibly dangerous, setting up a faceoff between the increasingly ill girls and the factory owners who are slowly poisoning them. I suspect the excitement around this book has something to do with the popularity of Hidden Figures, and I hope will lead to more books on women often ignored by history.

I feel like I have a ton more to say about BookExpo and trends in nonfiction, but I feel like this newsletter is getting a little long already. So, I’ll just leave you with five titles that are at the top of my TBR – one that’s out now, and four you can look for later this fall – and a promise to feature some of the other books I brought up closer to their publication date.

Upcoming Books On My Radar (BookExpo Edition)

All Day by Liza Jessie Peterson (April 18 from Center Street) – Poet and actress Liza Jessie Peterson writes about a year spent teaching at Island Academy, the high school for teenagers detained at Rikers Island.

Bored and Brilliant by Manoosh Zomorodi (Sept. 5 from St. Martin’s Press) – Based on an experiment conducted by the Note to Self podcast in 2015, Bored and Brilliant looks at “the connection between boredom and original thinking.”

Crash Override by Zoe Quinn (Sept. 5 from PublicAffairs) – Video game developer Zoe Quinn shared her experiences as a victim in the #gamergate awfulness, and about her work with her advocacy and online-abuse crisis resource, the Crash Override Network.

The Last Castle by Denise Kiernan (Sept. 26 from Touchstone) – The Last Castle is the book I decided to pick up on my plane ride home. Kiernan – who previously wrote The Girls of Atomic City – turns her attention to the story of the Biltmore mansion and the end of America’s Gilded Age. It’s a lot of fun so far.

Bunk by Kevin Young (Nov. 14 from Graywolf Press) – Subtitled “The Rise of Hoaxes, Humbug, Plagiarists, Phonies, Post-Facts, and Fake News,” Bunk is a look at the history of the hoax, and its connection to stereotypes, suspicion and race. This one feels substantial and important.

And that’s what I’ve got for this edition! As always, feedback and comments are always welcome. You can catch me on Twitter @kimthedork, Instagram @kimthedork, or via email at kim@riotnewmedia.com. Happy reading!

Categories
Giveaways

Win a Copy of WHO IS RICH? by Matthew Klam!

 

 

We have 10 copies of Who is Rich? by Matthew Klam to give away to 10 Riot readers!

Here’s what it’s all about:

Who Is Rich? is a warped and exhilarating tale of love and lust, a study in midlife alienation, erotic pleasure, envy, and bitterness in the new gilded age that goes far beyond humor and satire to address deeper questions: of family, monogamy, the intoxicating beauty of children, and the challenging interdependence of two soulful, sensitive creatures in a confusing domestic alliance.

Now go here to enter the giveaway, or just click the cover image below:

 

Categories
Swords and Spaceships

Swords and Spaceships Jun 9

Happy Friday, friends. Skynet hasn’t taken over yet, so at least we’ve got that.

cover of Tyrant's Throne by Sebastien de CastellThis newsletter is sponsored by the thrilling final volume in the Greatcoats Quartet, Tyrant’s Throne by Sebastien de Castell.

The King is dead. The Greatcoats, legendary travelling magistrates who once brought justice to the Kingdom of Tristia, are now scattered to the winds and branded traitors. Falcio Val Mond and his best friends, master swordsman Kest and deadly archer Brasti, have been reduced to working as bodyguards. Surviving ducal conspiracies, invading armies, and an ever-shifting tapestry of sinister forces, Falcio, Kest, and Brasti fight for what is right. With just the iconic, tattered leather coats on their backs, the three comrades continue to pursue justice and their ultimate goal: to place their king’s rightful heir on the throne.

Happy Pride Month! Have some:
– Queer fantasy!
– LGBTQ #ownvoices SF/F YA!
– Lesbian/bi fantasy!
– And while I don’t go into it specifically in the review below because there’s just so much to talk about, The Prey of Gods is a delightfully queer, action-packed sci-fi AND fantasy novel that you should add to your list immediately!

What do Frankenstein and the Alien franchise have in common? [Spoiler alert] A whole lot, according to Josh. While I haven’t seen Alien: Covenant yet (only for lack of time, I assure you), I find his argument compelling.

Speaking of humanity meddling with things it shouldn’t, I love this list from Tor.com of books in which hacking — either of tech or people — plays a pivotal role. Many of us have dreamed of mecha suits and body mods and a new AI best friend; why not read about them and all the ways it can go horribly wrong?

If you enjoyed the bejesus out of Wonder Woman, as I did, you probably want some read-alikes! Margaret has compiled a list.

I am not an excerpt reader myself (not enough story!), but I know you are out there and you may be excited to get an early read from Philip Pullman’s Book of Dust.

And now, reviews! Today’s picks could not be more different, and yet I love them both so, so, so much.

The Prey of Gods by Nicky Drayden

cover of The Prey of Gods by Nicky DraydenImagine if American Gods by Neil Gaiman, Zoo City by Lauren Beukes, and All the Birds In the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders contributed DNA towards a headstrong, rambunctious child — that child would be something like The Prey of Gods. It’s set in South Africa in a near-future where life is generally pretty good, which is exactly the problem for a demigoddess who feeds on fear. But then a new illegal drug on the market, advances in genetic engineering, and the burgeoning sentience of a household robot introduce just enough entropy into the system to give her a chance to change things up — and humanity is not going to love these changes. Which is the point, as far as she’s concerned…

Drayden blends mythology with mitochondrial DNA, explores the intersections of faith and artificial intelligence, and packs enough action into this novel to rival a Marvel movie. Her characters (of which there are several, voicing alternating chapters) are flawed and all too human, and just as in real life that is both their strength and weakness. I alternately wanted to shake them and cheer them on, which is of course the best possible combination. Drayden also manages to balance child and teenage narrators with adult narrators without ever losing the flow or the pacing of the novel, which is a rare feat indeed.

I can basically guarantee that if you pick up this book, you will never look at a DNA sequence (or a crab and/or porpoise) the same way again, and I will be throwing it at everyone who comes anywhere near me asking for a sci-fi/fantasy recommendation.

The Crystal Cave by Mary Stewart

cover of The Crystal Cave by Mary StewartIt was probably inevitable that after watching King Arthur: Legend of the Sword, I would reread Mary Stewart. Arthuriana in all its manifestations has been a love of mine since I first watched The Sword in the Stone, which led me to T.H. White, which led me to The Dark is Rising, which led me to The Pendragon Cycle, which led me to Persia Woolley and Marion Zimmer Bradley, which led me to Geoffrey of Monmouth once I got to college … you get the idea. But the series that I always go back to, the one I actually still own, is Mary Stewart’s Arthurian Saga.

The Crystal Cave starts, naturally enough, with Merlin. And this is a Merlin with powers, but they’re not the flashy powers of, say, your Gandalf-type wizard. Instead it’s the power of Sight, true-seeing passed down from his mother. Add to that an education and the resourcefulness that being a bastard without an acknowledged father develops in a child, and you’ve got a formidable figure indeed. Telling the story of Merlin’s childhood up through Arthur’s conception, Stewart weaves a historical novel touched briefly by fate and the gods, but ultimately centered around the actions of men. It’s a quiet and powerful start to an extraordinary series, one that I will keep rereading for years to come.

And that about wraps it up! If you need more sci-fi/fantasy chat in your life, check out our newly launched podcast SFF Yeah!, hosted by yours truly and my fellow geek Sharifah. If you need even more reading recommendations of any kind, you can find me and Amanda at the Get Booked podcast. May the odds be ever in your favor!

Categories
The Stack

060817-SSSW-The-Stack

Today’s The Stack is sponsored by The Spectacular Sisterhood of Superwomen by Hope Nicholson, published by Quirk Books.

Think comic books can’t feature strong female protagonists? Think again! In The Spectacular Sisterhood of Superwomen you’ll meet the most fascinating exemplars of the powerful, compelling, entertaining, and heroic female characters who’ve populated comic books from the very beginning. With vintage art, publication details, a decade-by-decade survey of industry trends and women’s roles in comics, and spotlights on iconic favorites like Wonder Woman and Ms. Marvel, The Spectacular Sisterhood of Superwomen proves that not only do strong female protagonists belong in comics, they’ve always been there.

Categories
Riot Rundown

060817-ADarkSoDeadly-Riot-Rundown

Today’s Riot Rundown is sponsored by A Dark So Deadly by Stuart MacBride.

A gripping standalone thriller from the Sunday Times No. 1 bestselling author of the Logan McRae series. DC Callum MacGregor’s career was going pretty well until he covered up a mistake to protect his pregnant crime-scene tech girlfriend. Now, Callum’s stuck on a squad with all the other misfits—the officers no one else wants, but who can’t be fired—never likely to get within reach of a decent case again. That is, until they accidentally get handed the biggest murder investigation the city of Oldcastle has ever seen. When a mummified body is found in the local garbage dump, the top-brass assume pranksters have stolen it from a museum. But as Callum and his colleagues investigate, it starts to look less like student high-jinx and more like the work of a terrifying serial killer…

Categories
Giveaways

Win all 10 Jason Bourne Books!

 

We have a prize pack of all 10 Jason Bourne novels to giveaway, plus three other winners will win a copy of the new Jason Bourne book, The Bourne Initiative.

Here’s what it’s all about:

Jason Bourne is one of the most popular and compelling characters in contemporary fiction. Originally created by bestselling author Robert Ludlum, the Jason Bourne series was later adapted into films that have become modern classics. Now, New York Times bestselling writer Eric Van Lustbader carries on Jason Bourne’s story with a new novel about the rogue secret agent who has lost his memory…

Go here to enter the giveaway, or just click the cover image below:

Categories
Audiobooks

New Releases, Audie Award Winners, and More

Happy almost-officially summer, audiobook lovers!

First, huge thanks to everyone who sent me suggestions for my road trip with a sci-fi lover! I’m compiling all your fabulous recommendations now and I’ll put them in the next newsletter (to recap: I’m taking a road trip with a dude who pretty much exclusively reads sci-fi and am looking for audiobooks that will be palatable to both of us).

Sponsored by Audiobooks.com, your source for Audiobook Month giveaways and deals!

Want free audiobooks? Celebrate Audiobook Month this June with a premium giveaway every Thursday, brought to you by Audiobooks.com! Plus, members can access 2-for-1 offers, exclusive sales and bundled deals all month long. Listeners can stream books live or download for offline listening, and enjoy great features like sped-up narration, sleep timer and custom bookmarking. Plus, Audiobooks.com integrates with CarPlay, Android Auto, Sonos and tvOS for easy listening in your car and home. Create your account for free and get started today!

Audiobooks have been on the minds of Book Riot contributors recently–-in the past week we’ve had several helpful audiobook posts: everything from audiobooks for new listeners to instructions for lending Audible books with an old smartphone.

Book Riot Round-up of Audiobooks Posts

Lending Audible Books With an Old Smartphone: How one audiobook listener gets around the impossibility of lending out audiobooks.

5 Best Audiobooks for New Listeners: Queen of audiobooking Rachel Smalter Hall Audiobooks are more popular than ever, but “reading” with your ears is a learned skill. Where do you start? Rachel suggest 5 of the best audiobooks for new listeners.

Awesome Audiobooks Read By Actors: Y’all know I love a good narrator and rioter Susie agrees. The actors-as-narrators do these excellent books justice in the audiobook format. Give them a listen!

Hilarious non-fiction Audiobooks to Power Your Summer Road Trip: These ten hilarious nonfiction audiobooks will entertain your brain while you drive.

As for me, I’ve never been in the middle of several audiobooks at once, but that’s where I find myself. See, I got the audio copy of Roxane Gay’s new book, Hunger, and so I had to stop listening to all the audiobooks I was in the middle of and immediately settle into Gay’s brilliant collection of very personal essays.

New Releases (descriptions in quotes via publisher)

When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon; narrated by Sneha Mathan

This charming YA novel was released on May 30th but somehow I missed it. I read the print book, however, and absolutely loved it. From the publisher’s description:

“Now that Dimple Shah has graduated, she’s ready for a break from her family – especially from Mamma’s inexplicable obsession with her finding the Ideal Indian Husband. Ugh. But Dimple knows that her mother must respect that she isn’t interested in doing that right now – otherwise she wouldn’t have paid for her to attend a summer program for aspiring web developers, right?

Rishi Patel is a hopeless romantic, so when his parents tell him that his future wife will be attending the same summer program as him – during which he’ll have to woo her – he’s totally onboard. Because as silly as it sounds to most people in his life, Rishi believes in the power of tradition, stability, and being a part of something much bigger than himself. Although their parents hadn’t planned suggesting the arrangement so soon, when their kids signed up for the same summer program, they figured why not?”

The Weight of Lies by Emily Carpenter; narrated by Kate Orsini

“Reformed party girl Meg Ashley leads a life of privilege, thanks to a bestselling horror novel her mother wrote decades ago. But Meg knows that the glow of their very public life hides a darker reality of lies, manipulation, and the heartbreak of her own solitary childhood. Desperate to break free of her mother, Meg accepts a proposal to write a scandalous, tell-all memoir.

Digging into the past – and her mother’s cult classic – draws Meg to Bonny Island, Georgia, and an unusual woman said to be the inspiration for the book. At first island life seems idyllic, but as Meg starts to ask tough questions, disturbing revelations come to light…including some about her mother.

Soon Meg’s search leads her to question the facts of a decades-old murder. She’s warned to leave it alone, but as the lies pile up, Meg knows she’s getting close to finding a murderer. When her own life is threatened, Meg realizes the darkness found in her mother’s book is nothing compared to the chilling truth that lurks off the page.”

Magpie Murders by: Anthony Horowitz; narrated by Samantha Bond, Allan Corduner

“When editor Susan Ryeland is given the manuscript of Alan Conway’s latest novel, she has no reason to think it will be much different from any of his others. After working with the best-selling crime writer for years, she’s intimately familiar with his detective, Atticus Pünd, who solves mysteries disturbing sleepy English villages. An homage to queens of classic British crime such as Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers, Alan’s traditional formula has proved hugely successful. So successful that Susan must continue to put up with his troubling behavior if she wants to keep her job.

Conway’s latest tale has Atticus Pünd investigating a murder at Pye Hall, a local manor house. Yes, there are dead bodies and a host of intriguing suspects, but the more Susan reads, the more she’s convinced that there is another story hidden in the manuscript: one of real-life jealousy, greed, ruthless ambition, and murder.”

The Ministry of Utmost Happiness written and narrated by Arundhati Roy

“In a graveyard outside the walls of Old Delhi, a resident unrolls a threadbare Persian carpet. On a concrete sidewalk, a baby suddenly appears just after midnight. In a snowy valley, a bereaved father writes a letter to his five-year-old daughter about the people who came to her funeral. In a second-floor apartment, a lone woman chain-smokes as she reads through her old notebooks. At the Jannat Guest House, two people who have known each other all their lives sleep with their arms wrapped around each other, as though they have just met.

A braided narrative of astonishing force and originality, The Ministry of Utmost Happiness is at once a love story and a provocation – a novel as inventive as it is emotionally engaging. It is told with a whisper, in a shout, through joyous tears, and sometimes with a bitter laugh. Its heroes, both present and departed, have been broken by the world we live in – and then mended by love. For this reason they will never surrender.

How to tell a shattered story?

By slowly becoming everybody.

No.

By slowly becoming everything.”

Audiobook News/Links for Your Ears

The 2017 Audie Awards  – which honor the best in spoken word entertainment – were announced last week. Check out the winners by category below, explore the full list of nominees, or let them know what you think on Twitter @audible_com.

The One Novel You Need To Listen To on Audio: OK, can someone listen to this and tell me if it’s too scary for me?

Finding Your Audiobook Voice: The author of The Mighty Franks on the peculiar pleasures of writing his memoir—and then recording himself reading the whole thing aloud.

Ben Aaronovitch interview: Cityread, Doctor Who, audiobooks, Peter Grant

Talking Book Center Awarded Grant: Talking Book Center awarded grant from United Way of Greater Augusta

Best Audiobooks for a Silent Road Trip: I don’t have kids, but if I did, you can be damn sure I would be all about whatever it takes to distract them during car trips…and everything else.

How to Get Alexa to Read You a Kindle Book: Someone mentioned this in the last Insider’s Audiobook Chat (every second Thursday of the month at 1 PM EST. #shamelessplug) and I have never heard such a compelling reason to get an Alexa-doodybob.

Thank you again for all your lovely recommendations and I promise I’ll get that list going ASAP. Feel free to say hey whenever (Twitter: @msmacb, email katie@riotnewmedia.com). Hope you have a great week!

~Katie

Categories
What's Up in YA

061217 What’s Up in YA?: Jennifer E. Smith’s Latest YA Goes to Hollywood, Free Audiobooks, & More YA News

Welcome back, YA lovers!

This week’s edition of “What’s Up in YA?” is sponsored by The Evaporation of Sofi Snow by Mary Weber.

From award-winning author Mary Weber, comes a story of video gaming, blood, and power. As an online gamer, Sofi Snow battles behind the scenes of Earth’s Fantasy Fighting arena. Her brother Shilo is forced to compete in a mix of real and virtual blood sport. When, a bomb shatters the arena, Sofi thinks Shilo’s been taken to an ice-planet – Delonese. Charming playboy Miguel is a Delonese Ambassador. He’s built a career on secrets and seduction. When the bomb explodes, the tables turn and he’s the target. The game is simple: Help the blackmailers, or lose more than Earth can afford.

 

Grab yourself some ice cream, some tea, or any other comfort comestible of choice and let’s catch up with all the YA news that’s fit to post.

 

Thanks for hanging out and we’ll see you back here next week with a really exciting interview with a long-time Book Riot and YA reader favorite.

— Kelly Jensen, @veronikellymars

Categories
The Kids Are All Right

Children’s Books Buzz at BookExpo and SLJ’s Day of Dialog

Hey Kid Lit Fans!

Whew! I am still recovering from the excitement of Book Expo and School and Library Journal’s Day of Dialog, both of which were great fun. So many books to look forward to!

Sponsored by The Book Scavenger series by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman

Calling all book lovers, puzzle solvers, and treasure hunters! Don’t miss The Unbreakable Code, the sequel to the bestselling novel Book Scavenger. Perfect for readers of all ages, Shelf Awareness says, “Fans of Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library will appreciate the abundant literary allusions.” Join the hunt—start reading now!

At Book Expo, I noticed that Wishtree by Katherine Applegate (author of Newbery award winning book The One and Only Ivan) was one of the most anticipated books for the fall (September 26, 2017, Feiwel & Friends). The publisher set up an area where people could write their wishes on leaf-shaped sticky notes and put it inside the knothole of a cardboard tree. For every wish submitted, the publisher will donate a copy of the book, which was such a sweet idea. I got in line early at Book Expo (I may have scheduled my entire day around getting this book!), had my copy signed, and read the entire book that night. Katherine Applegate’s story is so gorgeous and timely, and fans of her work will not be disappointed.

Another popular book was A Time to Act: John F. Kennedy’s Big Speech by Shana Corey and illustrated by R. Gregory Christie (published on April 4, 2017, NorthSouth Books). This book is the story of JFK and the impact of his landmark speech and the Civil Rights Act of 1964. R. Gregory Christie is the illustrator of the stunning Freedom in Congo Square, a Newbery Honor book in 2017, and his illustrations in A Time to Act are just as evocative and gorgeous.

Over in the Scholastic Booth, there was a lot of excitement for the next installment of The Baby-Sitter’s Club graphic novel, Dawn and the Impossible Three (September 26, 2017). This fifth book in the series continues Ann M. Martin’s incredible legacy and is illustrated by Gale Galligan. The previous four in the series were done by Raina Telgemeier, but it appears that the series is in great hands with graphic artist Gale Galligan.

Jason Reynolds was one of the stars of the week. Check out this ENORMOUS banner! The second book in his track series, Patina, will be released on August 19, 2017 by Atheneum. I cannot wait!

School and Library Journal’s Day of Dialog, which was held on May 31st, was a terrific librarian-only gathering. Keynote speakers included Gene Luen Yang, National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature and author of American Born Chinese and the Secret Coders series; Megan Whalen, author of Thick as Thieves from the Queen’s Thief series; and Kwame Alexander, Newbery award winning author of The Crossover and author of the upcoming book Solo.

Gene Luen Yang was charming and awesome. He spoke about his Reading Without Walls challenge, which encourages readers to explore books of diverse voices, genres, and formats.

I don’t have space to talk about all the amazing Day of Dialog panels, but I did want to share that I was on a middle grade panel with the legendary Katherine Paterson, and she signed my copy of Jacob Have I Loved! She was so gracious and kind, which confirmed my belief that children’s book writers are the best people on the planet.

New Releases!

I’ve read so many awesome books this week!

Green Pants by Kenneth Kraegel, a picture book published in March by Candlewick Press, is the cutest story of a boy named Jameson who only wants to wear his green pants. No other color will do. When he is invited to be in his cousin’s wedding, he learns that he has to wear a tuxedo – and it is not green. What will Jameson do? Can he make the switch?

Have you followed Candlewicks’ Instagram account? How cute is this photo where the Candlewick team wore green pants to celebrate this book release?

Chelsea Clinton’s newest picture book, illustrated by Alexandra Boiger, is called She Persisted: Thirteen American Women Who Changed the World. It features legendary women in history like Harriet Tubman, Helen Keller, Clara Lemlich, Nellie Bly, Virginia Apgar, Maria Tallchief, Claudette Colvin, Ruby Bridges, Margaret Chase Smith, Sally Ride, Florence Griffith Joyner, Oprah Winfrey, and Sonia Sotomayor. A terrific and informative book about the women who broke barriers and changed history.

A fantastic new non-fiction book that I read this week is called A Dog in the Cave: The Wolves That Made Us Human by Kay Fryenborg, published in March by HMH. Did you know that the first human domestication of dogs was 26,000 years ago? And did you know that dogs and grey wolves are almost identical in their genetic make-up, so much that they can interbreed? I learned so much from this book, and was blown away by the evidence that humans and dogs evolved together over history to their mutual benefit.

The graphic novel If Found… Please Return to Elyse Gravel is available now, published by Drawn and Quarterly. I absolutely loved this book, which is basically a copy of Elyse Gravel’s sketchbook filled with funny creatures, drawing tips, and words of encouragement for the budding artist. The message reminded me of the wonderful picture book The Book of Mistakes by Corinna Luyken.

I just finished reading The Best Man by Richard Peck out loud to my nine-year-old daughter. It was the third time I read this book, released by Dial Books last September. It just won an honor for the E.B. White Read Aloud Awards. It was the perfect bedtime read aloud for us; we laughed and cried while reading it, and every time I finished a chapter my daughter would hold her breath, hoping I would read another chapter. Now that is an indicator for a wonderful book!

Backlist Bump!

My husband and I have been reading Ramona and Her Father by Beverly Cleary as a bedtime read aloud to our seven-year-old daughter. That book explores such genuine emotions, especially the feelings of financial insecurity. It’s such an enduring classic and every chapter touches my heart. It’s still so relevant forty years after it was first published.

 

Other books I read out loud recently to both of my daughters was
The Search for Delicious and Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt. Oh, the beautiful language in those books! These were perfect bedtime readings because the lyrical language was soothing and almost meditative. This was nice for my older daughter in particular, who needs time to let her brain settle down after a long day. Both of my kids loved these stories, which speaks their timelessness and wisdom. Have you read these books lately?

I was browsing the picture book section of my local library, and I came across A Hole is to Dig by Ruth Krauss, with pictures by Maurice Sendak. Oh, how I loved reading this book to my kids when they were younger! It is a small, compact book, so it was a perfect size to put in my bag when we were on the subway. We must have read this book hundreds of times, and I never tire of the words or the illustrations.

 

And for those of you who want more book recommendations…

Check out my list of 100 must-read middle grade books for the summer!

Also, climate change. We have a children’s reading list for that.

 

That’s it for this week! I’d love to hear from you about the children’s books you’re reading and enjoying. Find me on Twitter at @KarinaYanGlaser, on Instagram at @KarinaIsReadingAndWriting, or email me at karina@bookriot.com. Until next week!

xo,
Karina

Izzy exploring all the bookish goodies I brought home from BookExpo and SLJ’s Day of Dialog

Categories
Unusual Suspects

Not-to-be-Missed Mystery Comics

Hi fellow mystery fans! This week I’ve rounded up some great comic volumes that are perfect for mystery fans. If you’re not a comic reader (I highly recommend giving them a try!) and would like to dip your toes into the world of comics but don’t even know where to begin, here’s a glossary of basic terms that Swapna Krishna put together. Also, keep in mind that many bookstores and libraries now carry volumes (usually about 5 single comic issues bounded together) so they’re easier to get your hands on if you don’t have (or are overwhelmed by) a comic book store. There are also digital comics that you can also purchase from many stores or even checkout from many libraries! Anyhoo, these are some recent reads that satisfy both my mystery loving heart and my comic loving heart.

Sponsored by Blackout by Marc Elsberg.

When the lights go out one night, no one panics. Not yet. The lights always come back on soon, don’t they? Surely it’s a glitch, a storm, a malfunction. But something seems strange about this night. Across Europe, controllers watch in disbelief as electrical grids collapse. There is no power, anywhere.

A former hacker and activist, Piero Manzano investigates a possible cause of the disaster. The authorities don’t believe him, and he soon becomes a prime suspect himself. With the United States now also at risk, Piero goes on the run, desperate to uncover who is behind the attacks. After all, the power doesn’t just keep the lights on—it keeps us alive.

For Nancy Drew fans!

Goldie Vance Vol 1 by Hope Larson, Brittney Williams, Sarah Stern: Goldie’s dad manages a Florida resort, and at sixteen Goldie is determined to one day become the in-house detective for the hotel–she’s currently technically the valet but really can’t help meddling and solving cases for the real in-house detective. While I’m not sure I’d want to stay at a hotel that needs a detective on the payroll, I love everything about this comic, from Goldie’s mom working as a live mermaid (I so miss Pushing Daisies) to Goldie drag racing! I especially love the retro feel to it.

For procedural fans!

The Beauty Vol 1 by Jeremy Haun, Jason A. Hurley, John Rauch: This starts with a really interesting concept: what if there was an STD that would make you our society’s “ideal” beautiful? In other words, becoming beautiful is the side effect of this STD. In the graphic novel it seems society is now split between those who’ve intentionally become “infected” in order to be gorgeous  (the majority) and those disgusted by the idea or trying to stop it. There also seems to be this not-so-tiny issue where the beauties seem to just be blowing up. Like, exploding people. So maybe there is more to this STD than just becoming beautiful? That’s what Detectives Foster and Vaughn are trying to figure out. Throw in corrupt politicians and big bad pharma and you’ve got an interesting case!

Unique and clever!

My Favorite Thing is Monsters by Emil Ferris: 10-year-old Karen Reyes is trying to navigate through uptown Chicago during the ’60s without a dad, a mom who’s sick, an artistic brother usually in trouble, and a community of different ethnicities living together. Reyes is clever, intuitive, artistic (this is her graphic diary after all) and obsessed with monsters–so much so, she identifies as one. When an upstairs neighbor is murdered, Reyes puts herself on the case.  Ferris has created a page-turner that takes you into Reyes’ home life, community, and the murder victim’s past while also forcing you to linger on each page to catch every single detail in this wonderfully drawn graphic novel. Each page looks like Reyes sketched out her day, thoughts, memories, and nods to pulp magazines and b-movie horror in her school notebook, and it’s perfect.

I leave you with:

After the hit of Big Little Lies novel and HBO adaptation it’s no surprise there’s more of Liane Moriarty’s work in the adaptation pipeline: Blake Lively will exec produce and star in The Husband’s Secret.

At EW author’s explain how their characters (many detectives) got their names.

At Book Riot Charley Macron recommends 5 True Crime Comics That’ll Keep You Up at Night.

AND in super exciting news for podcast listeners starting June 9th Book Riot will have a mystery/thriller podcast Read or Dead  hosted by fantastic Rioters Rincey Abraham and Katie McLain. You can subscribe now to not miss the first episode and listen to their introduction podcast.

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf.

Until next time, keep investigating! And in the meantime come talk books with me on Twitter and Litsy— you can find me under Jamie Canaves.