Categories
In The Club

Days at the Morisaki Bookshop, and More Books to Gift

Welcome to In The Club, a newsletter of resources to keep your book group well-met, well-read, and well-fed.

With us being firmly in the holiday season, I’ve been thinking of some of the best books to gift to people (and myself, let’s be real). Depending on how your book club operates, you may or may not be doing gifts this year, but if you are, I’d suggest looking at other people’s Goodreads to see what they’ve read as a first step.

For whoever you’re gifting books to, I’ve got a couple celebrity memoirs, a sparkling poetry collection, a holiday romance, and more.

Nibbles and Sips

biscuits

Honey Butter Biscuits by homeandbelly

I do love a honeyed biscuit, and these look ridiculous. Listen, these may even replace rolls for tomorrow…

You’ll need:

all-purpose flour, unsalted butter, frozen and grated, baking powder, salt, honey, very cold buttermilk, Honey butter, butter, and honey.

For exact ingredient amounts and instructions, go to homeandbelly’s IG page.


a graphic of the cover of The Woman in Me by Britney Spears

The Woman in Me by Britney Spears

I’m sure you’ve heard about this one in the last month. It’s definitely one of the memoirs to get this year, if you get any of them at all. Or, maybe I should say it’s the audiobook to listen to — if you haven’t heard, Britney Spears recorded most of the audiobook, with Michelle Williams stepping in to do parts that were too traumatic for Britney. And let me tell you, William’s impersonation of JT will have you gagging. If I were him, I’d leave the country.

As far as the contents of the memoir go, it covers about what you would expect: Britney Spears’ life of fame, motherhood, relationships, and more. I grew up listening to Britney and remember trying to learn the choreography of her music videos with my older sister in the early aughts. After her conservatorship, I’m glad to see her have a win.

cover of Promises of Gold by José Olivarez, translated by David Ruano

Promises of Gold by José Olivarez, translated by David Ruano

Now I know a collection of poetry as a gift is not for everyone — even some readers — because a lot of people are still not used to reading it regularly. But even if someone has just an inkling of interest in poetry, I think this National Book Award finalist would make a great gift. Olivarez explores the many forms of love — from romantic to familial and platonic — and how aspects of society complicate it. Even as he examines race, identity, and culture, he still goes back to love, and poet David Ruano provides a Spanish translation to accompany Olivarez’s poems.

cover of Making It So: A Memoir by Patrick Stewart; color photo of the author

Making It So by Patrick Stewart

Another celebrity memoir! I don’t read many memoirs throughout the year, but I feel like they make great gifts if you’re looking for bookish things. I’ve noticed that whenever my non-reader friends ask about books, they usually are more interested in memoirs, so maybe that’s why. In any case, Sir Patrick Stewart’s story starts in Yorkshire, England, and continues to the top of Hollywood — where he starred as Captain Picard in Startrek and Professor Xavier in X-Men — and a knighthood in 2010.

cover of Three Holidays and a Wedding

Three Holidays and a Wedding by Uzma Jalaluddin and Marissa Stapley

Here’s a fun holiday romance that takes place when Ramadan, Hanukkah, and Christmas overlap. It follows Maryam Aziz and Anna Gibson, strangers sitting next to each other on a plane. Maryam is on her way to her sister’s wedding, and Anna to her boyfriend’s wealthy family’s place for the holidays. When the plane experiences severe turbulence, it shakes the women (ha) into confessing some of the things they’ve been holding close to them. An emergency landing leaves them snowed in in the picturesque town of Snow Falls, where the actor Anna has a crush on just so happens to be filming a romance movie. Now, if the two women could just realize what’s in front of them…

cover of Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa

Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa, translated by Eric Ozawa

Books about books just hit different in winter, I think. Here, 25-year-old Takako finds out her boyfriend is marrying someone else and takes up her eccentric uncle’s offer to stay in a small room above the used Tokyo bookstore that’s been in their family for generations. Takako has never been much of a reader, but the books of Morisaki bookshop turn out to be excellent tools for mending broken hearts.

cover image for Barbacoa, Bomba, and Betrayal

Barbacoa, Bomba, and Betrayal by Raquel V. Reyes

I love a good, cozy mystery series during the winter, and this is the third book in the food-centric cozy series Caribbean Kitchen (you don’t need to have read the first). Here, Miriam keeps getting called away — first to her parents’ in the Dominican Republic, where she investigates a possible property vandal, then to Puerto Rico to film a special for Three Kings Day. Two of her friends keep her company in Puerto Rico, but there are mysteries surrounding their boyfriends — one is a telenovela heartthrob who goes missing, and the other is an image of perfection…with a suspiciously large duffle bag of cash. Through pages of delicious food descriptions and African drumming, Miriam will sleuth her way to tying everything together.

We’re here to enrich your reading life! Get to know the world of books and publishing better with a subscription to The Deep Dive, Book Riot’s staff-written publication delivered directly to your inbox. Find a guide to reading logs and trackers, hear about why the bestseller list is broken, analyze some anticipated books, and more from our familiar in-house experts. Get a free subscription for weekly content delivered to your inbox, or upgrade to paid-for bonus content and community features connecting you to like-minded readers.

Suggestion Section

Cozy Reads for the Winter Quiz

The Best Bookish Holiday Sweaters!

Lighthearted Murder Mysteries For the Faint of Heart

Cookbook Showdown: The Best Dinner Roll Recipes, Tested


I hope this newsletter found you well, and as always, thanks for hanging out! If you have any comments or just want to connect, send an email to erica@riotnewmedia.com or holla at me on Twitter @erica_eze_. You can also catch me talking more mess in our In Reading Color Substack as well as chattin’ with my co-host Tirzah Price on the Hey YA podcast.

Until next time,

Erica

Categories
Past Tense

Native American Historical Fiction

Hi, historical fiction fans!

If you’re in the United States and celebrate, Happy Thanksgiving! If you’re not, Happy Almost-End-of-November! I mentioned last week that I think a great way to give back this time of year is by donating to projects supporting Indigenous American communities like The Wôpanâak Language Reclamation Project (which has a 3-star rating on Charity Navigator) or your local food bank to make sure everyone has enough to eat this week when so many of us will eat our fill. And, as always, decolonizing your bookshelf by reading Indigenous authors is a must.

We’re here to enrich your reading life! Get to know the world of books and publishing better with a subscription to The Deep Dive, Book Riot’s staff-written publication delivered directly to your inbox. Find a guide to reading logs and trackers, hear about why the bestseller list is broken, analyze some anticipated books, and more from our familiar in-house experts. Get a free subscription for weekly content delivered to your inbox, or upgrade to paid-for bonus content and community features connecting you to like-minded readers.

Bookish Goods

White infinity scarf featuring royal blue text and illustrations from Maya Angelou's poem "Still I Rise."

“Still I Rise” Scarf from Storiarts

Could there possibly be any better way to stay warm than with the words of Maya Angelou wrapped around your neck? $54

New Releases

The Orphans on the Train Book Cover

The Orphans on the Train by Gill Thompson (November 23, 2023)

At the dawn of WWII, Kirsty moves to neutral Hungary to help at a school for Jewish children. There, she meets Anna, a pupil with whom she becomes fast friends. But when the Nazis invade Budapest, Kirsty and Anna are left to fend for themselves amidst the growing violence. Their friendship guides them, but can it save them from war?

The Butterfly Collector book cover

The Butterfly Collector by Tea Cooper (November 28, 2023)

An orphaned young woman named Theodora hopes to become a nature illustrator, and an aspiring journalist named Verity are connected by a shocking mystery that resonates through the years, from 1868 to 1922. Can Verity solve the mystery of an artist, a maid, and the baby boy who went missing? And what will it mean if she does?

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our  New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

The narrative surrounding Thanksgiving in the United States is one shrouded in racism and colonizer sentiment, so I think it’s always an appropriate time to make sure we’re reading books by and about the Indigenous people of North America. Reading widely is how we get a fuller, truer picture of the world. Here are a few particularly good historical fiction novels by Native American authors to read this November.

The Seed Keeper Book Cover

The Seed Keeper by Diane Wilson

A girl raised by her science teacher father, who tells her stories of their Dakota ancestors, is sent to live with a foster family when her father fails to return from the woods one day. Years later, after years of living with her white husband on his farm, she returns to her childhood home and searches for answers about what it means to be descended from a long line of powerful women who protected their families and a cache of precious seeds through years of hardship and loss.

Daughters of Deer Book Cover

Daughters of the Deer by Danielle Daniel

In the 1600s Algonquin territories, a gifted healer was pressured to marry a French settler to help protect her people. While the daughter they have would’ve been revered for her Two-Spirit nature by the Deer Clan, she’s considered unnatural and dangerous by the French—including her father. Caught between worlds and beliefs, with the powerful dictating their fates, how will these women learn to survive?

A Grandmother Begins the Story book cover

A Grandmother Begins the Story by Michelle Porter

Five generations of Métis women, connected by love and loss, search for answers in themselves and each other as they try to reconnect and move on. It’s a beautiful tale of womanhood, family, intergenerational trauma, and bison.

That’s it for now, folks! Stay subscribed for more stories of yesteryear.

If you want to talk books, historical or otherwise, you can find me @rachelsbrittain on Goodreads, Instagram, and Litsy, my favorite bookish social media.

Right now, I’m reading Your Utopia by Bora Chung. What about you?

Categories
Read This Book

Read This Book…

Welcome to Read this Book, a newsletter where I recommend one book that needs to jump onto your TBR pile! This week, I’m sharing one of my favorite anthologies of the year.

a graphic of a cover of Never Whistle at Night

Never Whistle at Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology edited by Shane Hawk and Theodore C. Van Alst Jr.

When I first heard about Never Whistle at Night, I couldn’t believe the all-star list of contributors, which included authors like Tommy Orange, Morgan Talty, Darcie Little Badger, Rebecca Roanhorse, Cherie Dimaline, and David Heska Wanbil Weiden. Plus, Stephen Graham Jones wrote the perfect introduction for the collection.

Each author does their own take on horror/dark fiction. In one story, a woman favors her son with a higher blood quantum over the other, with terrifying results. In another, a pregnant woman accidentally lets slip that she’s Native, and her husband’s family tells her she must pay the price for having “impure” blood. In another, a man is confronted with the horror of realizing that he’s stolen stories and important teachings from his elders.

Every story centers Native lives and experiences, examining the lived reality of Indigenous peoples in the face of colonialism. What does it mean to be complicit with colonial violence? How best can one honor one’s culture and one’s ancestors? These big questions return over and over in the stories, creating echoing themes throughout the collection.

Of course, all of these authors are just great storytellers. In such a short amount of time, they capture the reader’s attention and keep it through all of the stories’ twists and turns. I still consider myself a bit new to horror, so I am not up to speed on much of the genre’s history and storytelling trends. But, my goodness, I loved listening to this collection. It contains the perfect balance of creepy and terrifying tales. 

An ensemble of Indigenous narrators perform the stories, making each piece stand out on its own as you’re listening. It was a wonderful listening experience, and I can’t recommend it enough. And, if you haven’t already, be sure to check out each author’s other work. They all have a fabulous backlist of stories to discover.

We’re here to enrich your reading life! Get to know the world of books and publishing better with a subscription to The Deep Dive, Book Riot’s staff-written publication delivered directly to your inbox. Find a guide to reading logs and trackers, hear about why the bestseller list is broken, analyze some anticipated books, and more from our familiar in-house experts. Get a free subscription for weekly content delivered to your inbox, or upgrade to paid-for bonus content and community features connecting you to like-minded readers.


That’s it for this week! You can find me over on my substack Winchester Ave, over on Instagram @kdwinchester, or on my podcast Read Appalachia. As always, feel free to drop me a line at kendra.d.winchester@gmail.com. For even MORE bookish content, you can find my articles over on Book Riot.

Happy reading, Friends!

~ Kendra

Categories
Unusual Suspects

Novelist Tess Gerritsen’s neighbors are retired spies. So she wrote about it.

Hello, mystery fans! The “best of” book lists continue with NPR adding their faves of the year, and I’ve collected a few others below. In things to watch, Blue Beetle is streaming on Max, and season two of Julia has started on Max (based on Julia Child’s life, the first season was excellent).

We’re here to enrich your reading life! Get to know the world of books and publishing better with a subscription to The Deep Dive, Book Riot’s staff-written publication delivered directly to your inbox. Find a guide to reading logs and trackers, hear about why the bestseller list is broken, analyze some anticipated books, and more from our familiar in-house experts. Get a free subscription for weekly content delivered to your inbox, or upgrade to paid-for bonus content and community features connecting you to like-minded readers.

Bookish Goods

customizable return address label with a digital image of a book stack that says read more books

Read More Books Address Labels by Bookworm EmilyCromwellDesigns

Time to start sending out all the holiday cards! Here’s a cute return label to spread some bookish love. ($7)

New Releases

cover image for There Should Have Been Eight

There Should Have Been Eight by Nalini Singh

For fans of reunited friend groups, mysterious past deaths, secrets coming out, and remote mysteries set in New Zealand!

Nine years ago, Bea died by suicide. Now, her sister and Bea’s friend group have reunited in a crumbling estate in the New Zealand Alps. Luna, however, has partially accepted the invitation in order to demand Bea’s sister tell her what really happened and why she chose to cremate Bea’s body instead of allowing her friend a proper goodbye. Luna is already going into this reunion dealing with personal issues, including losing her sight and trying to follow her doctor’s advice of accepting what is happening in order to live a full life. Upon arriving at the reunion, her animosity toward Bea’s sister and her paranoia start to crank up when accidents start occurring and people start dying…

If you do audio and can keep track of a full cast of characters, I really enjoyed Saskia Maarleveld’s voice and narration.

(TW main mystery assumed suicide, mentions method/ brief mention past self-harm, suicide attempt/ brief mention rumor of pedophile, no details/ drugging without permission/ ableism)

cover of Gator Country: Deception, Danger, and Alligators in the Everglades by Rebecca Renner

Gator Country: Deception, Danger, and Alligators in the Everglades by Rebecca Renner

For fans of history and true crime, not focused on serial killers!

Nothing exists in a vacuum, so while the crime of this book is alligator poaching, that’s not the only thing this book is about. You also are immersed in the Florida Everglades and its history, power, and politics; get bits of Renner’s life; meet the recruited Florida Fish and Wildlife officer tasked with investigating alligator poaching; and take a dive into learning the man vs the myth of Peg Brown — known as an alligator poaching legend.

Looking for more new releases? Check out our New Books newsletter!

Riot Recommendations

For fans of backlist, I have two great reads from 2019 for two totally different reading moods.

Your House Will Pay cover image

Your House Will Pay by Steph Cha

For fans of character-driven crime novels based on a true crime, family drama, and a wait-for-it element.

Set in L.A. in the early ’90s, you follow two families, with a focus on one member from each family: Grace, the youngest dutiful daughter of a Korean American family who doesn’t understand why her sister doesn’t speak to their mother; and Shawn Matthews, a Black man whose sister was murdered, and who tries his best to help out his cousin’s family while his cousin has been incarcerated.

The Whisper Man cover image

The Whisper Man by Alex North

For fans of multiple points of view, unsolved past cases, part police procedural with part family drama, and fictional serial killers.

Twenty years ago, a serial killer preyed on children in a small town in Featherbank. Now, The Whisper Man sits in prison. Except, when Tom Kennedy and his son Jack move to town, grieving their wife/mom, a child vanishes, and Jack starts seeing things and talking to an imaginary young girl…The two DIs on the case, one who thought he’d originally solved the case, must face the past to see if they had it right the first time…

(TW addiction/ child abuse, murder/ pedophile)

News and Roundups

Read Anne Boyer’s extraordinary New York Times resignation letter.

Book Rioters’ Best Books of 2023

The Best Book Covers of 2023

Best cosy crime to read

NPR: Books We Love

A Breakthrough Clue Might Untangle the Mysterious Death of Edgar Allan Poe

Novelist Tess Gerritsen’s neighbors are retired spies. So she wrote about it.

Pierce Brosnan Is a Hitman With a Big Problem in Trailer for Fast Charlie (Video)

Nicole Kidman Just Let Slip A Big Little Secret About Big Little Lies

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. See 2023 releases and upcoming 2024 releases. Check out this Unusual Suspects Pinterest board and get Tailored Book Recommendations!

Until next time, keep investigating! In the meantime, come talk books with me on Bluesky, Twitter, Instagram, Goodreads, and Litsy — you can find me under Jamie Canavés.

If a mystery fan forwarded this newsletter to you and you’d like your very own, you can sign up here.

Categories
True Story

Nonfiction Audiobooks for Native American Heritage Month

To the Corgis, this week is known as “food week.” A number of delicious smells enter the house on a weekend, and half a week later, I start cooking all of the things, often dropping tasty morsels of green beans and potatoes on the floor. For most of my adult life, I’ve cooked Thanksgiving at home, inviting college students, international grad students, or chosen family to come over and spend time with my spouse, the Corgis, and me. But this year, it’s just the four of us.

Besides learning how to halve all of my recipes written to feed 8-12 people, I’m learning to sit in the quiet, to appreciate the small joy that comes from cooking a meal for my favorite people (errr Corgis?). Whenever I’m cooking, I listen to audiobooks. So today is all about great nonfiction books on audio. But first, new books!

We’re here to enrich your reading life! Get to know the world of books and publishing better with a subscription to The Deep Dive, Book Riot’s staff-written publication delivered directly to your inbox. Find a guide to reading logs and trackers, hear about why the bestseller list is broken, analyze some anticipated books, and more from our familiar in-house experts. Get a free subscription for weekly content delivered to your inbox, or upgrade to paid-for bonus content and community features connecting you to like-minded readers.

Bookish Goods

a photo of a blanket with a moody depiction of a bookshelf, complete with a bookshelf cat

Dark Academia Book Blanket by Ink and Shadow 

This blanket is perfect for a chilly night on the couch reading a good book. There’s even a cat! So cute. $68

New Releases

a graphic of the cover of Critical Hits: Writers Playing Video Games by Carmen Maria Machado and J. Robert Lennon

Critical Hits: Writers Playing Video Games edited by Carmen Maria Machado and J. Robert Lennon

In this anthology, writers explore the impact that video games have had on our lives. From Elissa Washuta to Alexander Chee, each author has their own take on the fantastical world to be explored, all through their TV and computer screens.

a graphic of the cover of Longstreet: The Confederate General Who Defied the South by Elizabeth Varon

Longstreet: The Confederate General Who Defied the South by Elizabeth R. Varon

It’s about that time of year when we all scramble to find and present the best dad books we possibly can. One potential candidate is Longstreet, a biography of a Confederate General who changed his perspective after the war. He went on to push for Black voting rights and led a militia against white supremacists in Louisiana.

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

a graphic of the cover of Crazy Brave by Joy Harjo

Crazy Brave by Joy Harjo, Performed by Joy Harjo

“I loved poetry. It was singing on paper.” In this memoir of her early life, Joy Harjo describes her experience coming into her own as a young woman and as a poet. Harjo, of the Mvskoke/Creek Nation, describes how the stories passed down to her sparked her imagination. She paid close attention to the plants, trees, and animals around her, taking her time to better understand the natural world. On the audio edition, Harjo gives a stunning performance, often singing the poems in the text rather than just reciting them.

aa graphic of the cover of The Fire This Time edited by Jesmyn Ward

The Fire This Time edited by Jesmyn Ward, Performed by Cherise Boothe, Michael Early, Kevin R. Free, Korey Jackson, Susan Spain

Back in 2016, Jesmyn Ward edited this phenomenal collection of essays responding to the ideas in James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time. The collection includes writers like Kiese Laymon, Edwidge Danticat, Honoree Jeffers, Carol Anderson, Jericho Brown, Clint Smith, Claudia Rankine, Isabel Wilkerson, and more. Ward’s essay centers around the idea that knowing where you come from is a privilege that many Black people don’t have. Through the course of the essay, she describes how she bought her parents DNA tests. Her dad found out that he was 51% percent Native American. Eventually, her dad was able to reconnect with his Indigenous heritage by enrolling with the Choctaw of Slidell, Louisiana.

That’s it for this week! You can find me over on my substack Winchester Ave, over on Instagram @kdwinchester, or on my podcast Read Appalachia. As always, feel free to drop me a line at kendra.d.winchester@gmail.com. For even MORE bookish content, you can find my articles over on Book Riot.

Happy Reading, Friends!

~ Kendra

Categories
Giveaways

112123-Nov.EACPushes-2023-Giveaway

We’re partnering with Dragons & Spaceships to give away a Kindle Scribe to one lucky winner!

Enter here for a chance to win, or click the image below!

Here’s a bit more from our partner: Dungeons & Spaceships – For the Fans, By the Fans. We keep a close eye on the horizon of fantasy and scifi books, ensuring you’re the first to know about shifts in the genre, upcoming releases, and author interviews. Step into a realm where magic meets machinery, where dragons soar amongst the stars, and where every week is a new journey. Join the adventure!

Categories
Check Your Shelf

Vibes Like A24

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. So last week, I was trying to come up with Two Truths and a Lie for a staff icebreaker activity, and thanks to some crowdsourcing from my family, I came up with my three statements: 1) I have seen Paul McCartney in concert more times than any other artist, 2) I knew my ABCs forwards and backwards by the time I was 2, and 3) I’ve met the mother of an Olympic gold medalist. (Answer is at the end of the newsletter!)

Collection Development Corner

Publishing News

Entangled Publishing had some “frustrating misprint” issues with the first print run of Rebecca Yarros’ highly anticipated Iron Flame, the sequel to Fourth Wing.

Not surprisingly, AI companies are warning that paying for copyrighted data will hurt their bottom line. Meanwhile, writers and publishers weigh in on how to cope with the rise of AI.

New & Upcoming Titles

John le Carré’s son is writing a new George Smiley novel.

The best books of 2023 from Amazon, Harper’s Bazaar, Kirkus (fiction), Time, Vulture, Washington Post (Top 10, fiction, nonfiction, mystery, romance, SFF, poetry)

The 10 best feel-good books of 2023.

Weekly picks from Crime Reads, LitHub, New York Times.

November picks for Tor.com (YA SFF/horror).

What Your Patrons Are Hearing About

Day – Michael Cunningham (LA Times, New York Times, Washington Post)

Art Monsters: Unruly Bodies in Feminist Art – Lauren Elkin (Vogue, Washington Post)

UFO: The Inside Story of the U.S. Government’s Search for Alien Life Here—and Out There – Garrett M. Graff (LA Times, Vanity Fair)

Eyeliner: A Cultural History – Zahra Hankir (New York Times, NPR)

The Money Kings: The Epic Story of the Jewish Immigrants Who Transformed Wall Street and Shaped Modern America – Daniel Schulman (New York Times, Washington Post)

RA/Genre Resources

Why privilege has always been at the heart of the whodunnit.

The African artists driving a cultural renaissance.

Genre juggernaut: measuring romance.

On the Riot

It’s Book Riot’s Best Books of 2023! And the best BIPOC books of 2023!

10 of the best disability books of 2023.

10 of the best Appalachian books of 2023.

20 of the best picture books of the year.

The best new weekly releases to TBR.

Please stop with the sexist “reverse” tropes in romance.

Triggers, trauma, and true crime.

Our fascination with Greek mythology.

All Things Comics

Amazon is merging Comixology with the Kindle app.

The Washington Post selects the 10 best graphic novels of 2023.

Five Norse-inspired graphic novels and comics.

On the Riot

Stories so nice, they told them twice: 8 comics based on classic books.

8 quietly reflective graphic novels.

Why comic books are like soap operas, or how this Rioter learned to love continuity.

Audiophilia

Audible has a bunch of curated Best of 2023 lists for all of your audio-listening needs.

On the Riot

The best-selling audiobooks of 2023.

We’re here to enrich your reading life! Get to know the world of books and publishing better with a subscription to The Deep Dive, Book Riot’s staff-written publication delivered directly to your inbox. Find a guide to reading logs and trackers, hear about why the bestseller list is broken, analyze some anticipated books, and more from our familiar in-house experts. Get a free subscription for weekly content delivered to your inbox, or upgrade to paid-for bonus content and community features connecting you to like-minded readers.

Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists

Children/Teens

17 YA books with vibes similar to A24 movies.

YA books about being one of the only BIPOC students in a mostly white school.

Adults

Books for fans of The Crown.

40 books to understand Palestine.

Thrillers featuring natural disasters.

7 therapists recommend books that will make your relationship stronger.

7 novels about characters driven by cravings.

On the Riot

Picture books that tell the truth about the first Thanksgiving.

19 books by Native writers for kids of all ages.

YA books about cooking and baking.

8 absurdist fiction books.

Lighthearted murder mysteries for the faint of heart.

10 insta-love romance books that prove love at first sight is real.

The threat is in these book titles.

8 books about psychological safety.

Scary stories in small towns and big cities.

11 Palestinian fiction reads.

10 poetry books about mental health.

Level Up (Library Reads)

Do you take part in Library Reads, the monthly list of best books selected by librarians only? We’ve made it easy for you to find eligible diverse titles to nominate. Kelly Jensen has a guide to discovering upcoming diverse books, and Nora Rawlins of Early Word has created a database of upcoming diverse titles to nominate as well that includes information about series, vendors, and publisher buzz.

a black and white cat half-laying on a person's lap

Why does Dini look like he’s hanging onto a piece of Titanic wreckage for dear life?

Okay, friends, you made it to the end. And the lie from the beginning of the newsletter was…1. I’ve seen Paul McCartney 3x in concert, but the top award goes to Mumford & Sons (6 times!), and I’m very much hoping to make it 7 next year if they’ll just announce a tour already! But yes, I knew my ABC’s forwards AND backwards by the time I was 2 (still do!), and I met the mother of Evan Lysacek, the 2010 US Olympic gold medalist in men’s figure skating, at a wedding. (My MIL introduced us.) Sadly, Evan Lysacek was not at the wedding, but his mother was very nice and she said she was going to tell him she met one of his fans!

Peace out, everyone, and if you celebrate, I hope you have a peaceful Thanksgiving.

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.

Categories
Giveaways

112023-EACGiveaway-Internal-Giveaway

We’re teaming up with Cearnach Grimm to give away a copy of The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older, The Archive Undying by Emma Mieko Candon, and The Daughters of Izdihar by Hadeer Elsbai to one lucky reader!

Enter here for a chance to win, or click the image below!

Here’s a bit more about our partner: Cearnach Grimm is the creator of the hilariously captivating world of The Runebreakers which garners more than one million social media views per week. He writes fantasy and sci-fi, and revels in D&D. Join and dive deep into the behind-the-scenes of Cearnach Grimm’s writing process and discover new artifacts and characters for your D&D party.

Categories
Swords and Spaceships

A Month of Sequels

Happy Tuesday, shipmates! It’s Alex, and I’ve got some new releases for you and a couple of recent sequels. November is shaping up to be the month of sequels and later series books, so prepare to be reminded that some series you enjoyed aren’t over quite yet! Stay safe out there, space pirates, and I’ll see you on Friday!

We’re here to enrich your reading life! Get to know the world of books and publishing better with a subscription to The Deep Dive, Book Riot’s staff-written publication delivered directly to your inbox. Find a guide to reading logs and trackers, hear about why the bestseller list is broken, analyze some anticipated books, and more from our familiar in-house experts. Get a free subscription for weekly content delivered to your inbox, or upgrade to paid-for bonus content and community features connecting you to like-minded readers.

Let’s make the world a better place, together. Here are two places to start: Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund, which provides medical and humanitarian relief to children in the Middle East regardless of nationality, religion, or political affiliation; and Entertainment Community Fund, which supports entertainment workers who are striking for living wages and a future where humans can continue to create art for each other.

Bookish Goods

serotonin bookends

Metal Serotonin Bookends by BlackDecoration

I’m in the market for bookends these days — or will be soon once my bookshelves and books are delivered from storage — so I’ve been looking. These ones have serotonin molecules because couldn’t we all use a bit more of that this time of year…$75

New Releases

Cover of The Ghosts of Beatrice Bird by Louisa Morgan

The Ghosts of Beatrice Bird by Louisa Morgan

Ever since she was a child, Beatrice Bird was haunted by ghosts. Unfortunately, this ability has only become stronger with time, to the point that the ghosts can now interact with her physically, whether she likes it or not. Trying to find an escape from the ghosts, she decamps from San Francisco to leave her partner and psychology practice behind and heads to a small, isolated island that promises to have only a few cows and nuns as residents. There, she finds a mystery that her ability could potentially solve…but the ghosts are only darker and more violent.

Cover of Warrior of the Wind by Suyi Davies Okungbowa

Warrior of the Wind by Suyi Davies Okungbowa

Sequel to Son of the Storm

After their traumatic escape from Bassa, Lilong and Danso are hiding among a colony of vagabonds at the edge of the Red Emperor’s reach. But there is a bounty on their heads, and Lilong is determined to return the ibor heirloom she liberated to her people, which will involve a long and dangerous journey.

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

November seems to be a month of a lot of sequels, so here are two from previous weeks that we missed!

Cover of Nightbane by Alex Aster

Nightbane by Alex Aster

Sequel to Lightlark

After breaking the curses of six realms and securing the love of two powerful rulers, Isla Crown finds that she would rather spend her time in Lightlark’s haunts instead of dealing with being the leader of two realms. However, no one is interested in letting her have power peacefully, and plenty think she hasn’t earned her place. As secrets from her past unravel, she must choose between responsibilities she doesn’t really want and the direction her heart would take her.

cover of The Tatami Time Machine Blues by Tomihiko Morimi

The Tatami Time Machine Blues by Tomihiko Morimi translated by Emily Ballistrieri

Sequel to The Tatami Galaxy

The unnamed protagonist returns, now confronted with a hellish problem: the only air conditioning unit in his apartment building, which is in his possession, no longer works correctly after his worst friend, Ozu, spilled a soda on its remote. Then, a time traveler from 25 years in the future shows up, and the protagonist hits on the idea of taking the time machine back one day to rescue the AC remote…but in so doing, he discovers the end of the world is coming. And, worse, his secret crush Akashi is going to bring someone else to the upcoming bonfire.

See you, space pirates. If you’d like to know more about my secret plans to dominate the seas and skies, you can catch me over at my personal site.

Categories
The Kids Are All Right

Family Reunions, Good Luck, & More!

Happy Tuesday, kidlit friends! My daughter has three days off this week, plus the weekend, so I need to plan some fun activities. I hope the library is open at least one of those days! We live within walking distance of a library branch and tend to spend days off there when we can.

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This week, I review books about family reunions and two great new releases.

Bookish Goods

Snowy Bookshop Illustration Art Print by ArtOfStephanieMarie

Snowy Bookshop Illustration Art Print by ArtofStephanieMarie

It is a sunny 69 degrees Fahrenheit as I write this in Nashville, and snowy bookshop scenes like this seem straight out of a fantasy novel. Do cities not shut down when it snows? That’s what happens here. Anyway, I just loved this art print nonetheless! $20+

New Releases

Cover of The Good Luck Book by Alexander

The Good Luck Book by Heather Alexander

In the past, I’ve had a few people ask for book recommendations about superstitions for kids, and I’m glad to finally have a good book to recommend! This is a fascinating, brightly illustrated nonfiction for elementary-aged kids and up about international folklore and superstitions. Each page spread covers a new topic. Under “Cats,” readers can explore how the superstitions about unlucky black cats got started, as well as the Japanese Maneki Neko. Under “Trees,” learn about fairies, lucky acorns, and knocking on wood. There are all kinds of things to pour over in this. It would make a great gift.

Cover of Baby Go Bundle by Christensen

Baby Go! Bundle by Vanessa Lee Christensen, illustrated by Audrey Lee

This four-book board book series explores core concepts through international travel, with a birthday celebration as a framing story. Babies travel to South Korea, China, Thailand, and Japan. On their travels, they learn about shapes, foods, colors, and more. Each book also contains words in the language of each country. It’s a really fun board book series.

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

Many of us are having family reunions this week, so I thought I would recommend these picture books about family reunions.

Cover of Dad and Daddy's Big Big Family by Kirst

Dad and Daddy’s Big Big Family by Seamus Kirst, illustrated by Karen Bunting

In this charming picture book, Harper attends a family reunion for the first time. Both her dad and daddy’s family come, and the park is packed with relatives. She befriends her cousin Noah, and the two wonder how the entire family could live together and what that would look like. They also notice the wide variety of families. This is a really sweet, fun read.

Cover of Going Down Home with Daddy by Lyons

Going Down Home with Daddy by Kelly Starling Lyons, illustrated by Daniel Minter

Every year, Lil Alan and his daddy pack up the car and head down to Granny’s house for a family reunion. As a tradition, all the kids share something meaningful at the celebration, which makes Lil Alan nervous this year. He doesn’t know what to share. But as he spends time with his family, he comes up with the perfect way to contribute to the tradition. This is a lovely, beautifully illustrated picture book celebrating the traditions of a Black family.

Cover of Family Reunion by Richardson

Family Reunion by Chad and Dad Richardson, illustrated by Ashleigh Corrin

A Black boy isn’t looking forward to their annual family reunion. He’s dreading the long car ride and trying to make conversation with people he doesn’t know, but as the celebration continues, he finds himself having fun and enjoying time with his family. It’s a fun, rhythmic read a lot of kids will relate to.

Cover of Around the Table That Grandad Built by Hill

Around the Table That Grandad Built by Melanie Heuiser Hill, illustrated by Jaime Kim

This is also a rhythmic read and follows the pattern of “This Is the House That Jack Built.” It follows a young girl as her family prepares for a feast and gathers around the table that her grandfather built. It’s a joyous, inclusive read centering family traditions and meals. It’s perfect for holiday celebrations.

a photo of a child in a forest gathering osage orange pods

We try to take a family hike every Sunday. On last Sunday’s hike, we encountered hundreds of Osage orange seeds. My daughter had a fun time playing with them, and I did a lot of dodging.

If you’d like to read more of my kidlit reviews, I’m on Instagram @BabyLibrarians, Twitter @AReaderlyMom, and blog irregularly at Baby Librarians. You can also read my Book Riot posts. If you’d like to drop me a line, my email is kingsbury.margaret@gmail.com.

All the best,

Margaret