Top Editors Out at PRH Amid Restructuring | Book Pulse

In a surprise move, Penguin Random House dismisses two of its top editors, roiling the industry. The Aurealis Awards winners and the Highland Book Prize shortlist are announced. Atria Books will relaunch Washington Square Press as a frontlist hardcover imprint dedicated to literary fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Summer booklists arrive, along with interviews with Kevin Kwan, Daniel Handler, Sebastian Junger, and Michael McDonald. Plus, Washington Post critic Michael Dirda offers 10 rules for reading.

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Awards, News & Events

The Aurealis Awards winners are announced.

The Highland Book Prize announces its shortlist.

Penguin Random House announced the removal of two of its top editors, Reagan Arthur (Knopf) and Lisa Lucas (Pantheon and Shocken), prompting shock and dismay on social media, NYT reports. Publishers Weekly also has coverage. 

Atria Books will relaunch Washington Square Press as a frontlist hardcover imprint dedicated to literary fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.

The U.S. Book Show kicks off tomorrow.

Shelf Awareness highlights a new trade show, BookCAMP 2024, which will run from June 23 to 25.

Reviews

USA Today reviews You Like It Darker: Stories by Stephen King (Scribner; LJ starred review), giving it 3.5 out of 4 stars: “With You Like It Darker, he proves once more that his smaller-sized tales pack as powerful a wallop as the big boys.”

NYT reviews The Second Coming by Garth Risk Hallberg (Knopf): “There is little sense of momentum; the pages never turn themselves. It is so intensely written that it gave me a headache, as if I had been grinding my teeth. I was glad when it was over”; Butcher by Joyce Carol Oates (Knopf): “Oates, as is her wont, succeeds in creating a world that is apart from our own yet familiar, making it impossible to dismiss her observations about twisted natures and random acts of violence”; and In Tongues by Thomas Grattan (MCD): “Those who say that youth is wasted on the young ought to read a coming-of-age novel. In Tongues, Thomas Grattan’s second book, would cure any unwarranted nostalgia.”

Washington Post reviews Once Upon a Time: The Captivating Life of Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy by Elizabeth Beller (Gallery): “The result is an effusive, almost worshipful portrait of a modern-day princess, stripped of agency or nuance”; and Lessons for Survival by Emily Raboteau (Holt): “What will save us? The lesson from Raboteau’s book is that it has to be curiosity, willingness to learn, patience and love—not only for your children and your spouse, but also for nature, even the sparse nature around Spuyten Duyvil Creek, a tidal estuary between the Hudson and Harlem rivers.”

Briefly Noted

Lithub shares 25 new books out this week.

BookRiot has new releases for the week.

NPR previews 20 new books for summer.

The Guardian shares the best paperback releases for May

ElectricLit shares “7 Novels Set on the Internet.”

BookRiot suggests “10 New LGBTQ Books Out This Week To Add To Your Pride TBR.”

The Millions recommends 10 new audiobooks for spring.

Reactor highlights where to find classic woman-authored sci-fi

Vulture suggests 25 of Stephen King’s best stories, and Esquire ranks all 77 of  King’s books.

Washington Post critic Michael Dirda offers 10 rules for reading. 

NYT features author Kevin Kwan and his latest novel, Lies and Weddings by Kevin Kwan (Doubleday).

People has an interview with author Daniel Handler, a.k.a. Lemony Snicket, about his new memoir/writing guide, And Then? And Then? What Else? (Liveright).

NYT talks with Sebastian Junger about his latest book, In My Time of Dying: How I Came Face to Face with the Idea of an Afterlife (S. & S.). 

USA Today highlights actor Daniel Stern’s new memoir, Home and Alone (Viva).

Authors on Air

Musician Michael McDonald discusses sobriety, aging and his new memoir, What a Fool Believes, written with Paul Reiser (Dey Street), with NPR’s Fresh Air. People also has an interview with McDonald.

Dan Churchill, Eat Like a Legend: Delicious, Super Easy Recipes to Perform at Your Peak (HarperOne), will be on GMA tomorrow. 

Stephen Perrine, The Full-Body Fat Fix: The Science-Based 7-Day Plan To Cool Inflammation, Heal Your Gut, and Build a Healthier, Leaner You! (St. Martin's), visits Today.

Charlamagne Tha God, Get Honest or Die Lying: Why Small Talk Sucks (Black Privilege Publishing), will appear on The View tomorrow.

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