First Novelists 2005: Summer Dreams, Fall Feast

By Barbara Hoffert with Ann Burns -- Library Journal, 10/1/2005

In case you missed it, Elizabeth Kostova's The Historian was the big debut of last season, but it wasn't the only one. Dave King's The Ha-Ha, Curtis Sittenfeld's Prep, and John Twelve Hawks's The Traveler also hit the charts, proving that you don't have to have Historian-like sales to be a winner. Indeed, big houses are often thrilled when a debut racks up 25,000 copies in sales, and after quickly dispensing with just a few thousand copies of Maggie Anton's Rashi's Daughters, little Banot Press was positively cheering. Whatever the sales, the books on this list all drew critical interest as well as reader enthusiasm—so watch for the follow-ups.

AMICK, STEVE. The Lake, the River, and the Other Lake. Pantheon. ISBN 0-375-42350-8. $25. Amick's lake overfloweth: as LJ's reviewer opined, his tale of social complexities in small-town Michigan is "amazingly rich and colorful and flows so smoothly that one's only regret might be that the novel has to end." A Book Sense pick in June, this work was taken to heart especially by Midwesterners, and Amick got a nice push when the New York Timesasked him to write a "Summerscape" editorial recalling the sun-kissed days of his youth. (LJ4/1/05)

ANTON, MAGGIE. Rashi's Daughters. Bk 1: Joheved. Banot. ISBN 0-9763050-5-4. $15.95. Good news for a small press with a terrific title: this account of an 11th-century Jewish woman who dares to study the Talmud sold out of its first printing of 3000 copies two months before publication, and the second printing is disappearing fast. No surprise there; LJ's reviewer declared this book "extraordinary." The first in a trilogy. (LJ web exclusive)

AW, TASH. The Harmony Silk Factory. Riverhead: Putnam. ISBN 1-57322-300-X. $23.95. Who's the "Next Best Writer" according to Detailsmagazine? British novelist Aw, born of Malaysian parents in Taiwan and eventually brought up in England, where he graduated from Cambridge. This tale of a son's relationship with his scoundrel father racked up plenty of other accolades: it was a Discover Great New Writers, Borders Original Voice, and Book Sense pick; a nominee for Quality Paperback Book Club's New Voices Award; and a long-listed candidate for the Booker Prize as well. (LJ 2/15/05)

BAKOPOULOS, DEAN. Please Don't Come Back from the Moon. Harcourt. ISBN 0-15-101135-4. $23. There's not just a moon in Bakopoulos's heaven but also stars—four stars, that is, from Peoplemagazine. Did all the fathers in one of Detroit's working-class neighborhoods really abscond to the moon? No one knows for sure, but the result is "gorgeous, painful, and exquisitely written" (Boston Globe). (LJ 11/15/04)

BOYDEN, JOSEPH. Three-Day Road. Viking. ISBN 0-670-03431-2. $23.95. "Joseph Boyden may be the best Canadian novelist you've never heard of, but all that's about to change," proclaimed the Times-Picayune last spring. Indeed. Featuring two Cree Indians serving in a Canadian battalion during World War II, this "exceptional tale of hell barely survived" (LJ 5/15/05) was recommended by Isabel Allende for the TodayBook Club. It's also made best sellers lists in the author's homeland. The Times-Picayune connection? The author spends part of his year in New Orleans, and though his adopted city is now deeply threatened, his talent seems secure.

CUTLER, JESSICA. The Washingtonienne. Hyperion. ISBN 1-4013-0200-9. $23.95. For Cutler, it was just a few quick steps from Capitol Hill aide with a scandalous blog to ex–Capitol Hill aide with a scandalous blog to first novelist with over 30 reviews or features in publications ranging from Vanity Fair (a half-page "Fanfare" entry) to the Village Voice (check out the "Lusty Lady" column). No, this is not Jane Austen, but even the Washington Post's venerable Jonathan Yardley concedes that this juicy tale of sleeping with the pols is "lively, funny, and agreeably in-your-face." (LJ 6/15/05)

ERIAN, ALICIA. Towelhead. S. & S. ISBN 0-7432-4494-X. $22. Towelhead. It's the derisive name given to Arab Americans by young Jasira's new classmates. It's also the name of a first novel described as "sexy" by both Elleand the New York Times and "poignant" by sources as varied as Washington Post Book World, Rocky Mountain News, and LJ. (Other descriptions include "moving," "sophisticated," and "compelling.") Both Discover Great New Writers and Book Sense gave it a nod, and Six Feet Under creator Alan Ball has optioned it for film. (LJ2/15/05)

HORNBACHER, MARYA. The Center of Winter. HarperCollins. ISBN 0-06-019226-7. $23.95. Hornbacher isn't new to writing—she made her name with Wasted, a scary memoir of anorexia and bulimia—and her fiction debut was much anticipated. Focusing on a family coping with a father's suicide after his son is institutionalized, it turned out to be "a gripping tale…of triumph and survival" (LJ 1/05). Certainly, it was a triumph for the author, who received uniformly glowing reviews.

KING, DAVE. The Ha-Ha. Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-15610-8. $23.95. A ha-ha is actually a sunken fence, but one can safely assume that this novel will not sink out of sight. The reviews were eye-catching, enthusiastic readers put the book on several local best sellers lists, a second printing was ordered, rights were sold to four countries, Washington Post Book World rounded it up with seven other novels dubbed best of the season, and Warner Brothers bought the film rights. An astonishing vote of confidence for a novel whose protagonist, injured in Vietnam, can neither speak nor write. (LJ 11/1/04)

KINSKY, NATALIE. Chloe Does Yale. Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-15610-8. $23.95. "A dynamite debut novel," proclaimed Cosmopolitan of this work from the former sex columnist of the Yale Daily News. This little succès de scandale got mentioned everywhere, from Marie Claire ("10 Best To Do") to the Chicago Tribune's Red Eye magazine and has just gone back for a second printing. (LJ11/1/04)

KOSTOVA, ELIZABETH. The Historian. Little, Brown. ISBN 0-316-01177-0. $25.95. The shadow of Dracula loomed large over this summer's reading. A few critics huffed that Kostova's modern-day tale of chasing the undead could be slow going, but it hit the top of most best sellers lists anyway and after five printings is verging on nearly one million copies in print. And that's just in English; with rights sold to 33 countries, The Historianis becoming a worldwide event. Too bad several of its characters are librarians who suffer unhappy fates, but as the author explains, "They're endangered because they're so close to the source of learning." (LJ 6/15/05)

MARTINEZ, MICHELLE. Most Wanted. Morrow. ISBN 0-06-072398-X. $23.95. "First-time novelist Martinez joins Linda Fairstein in the ranks of prosecutor-turned-author, and she brings real-life detail and emotion to this thriller," observed LJ's reviewer (LJ2/15/05). Clearly, this work has wide appeal: it was a Book Sense selection, a Romantic Times magazine top pick, and a favorite of the Murder and Mayhem Bookclub. With the author set for a 12-city tour for her next novel, The Finishing School, her future in the book business seems secure.

MILLER, ADRIENNE. The Coast of Akron. Farrar. ISBN 0-374-12512-0. $25. Miller's certainly got connections: she's literary editor of Esquire. But good connections get one only so far; the book's the thing. This tale of shifting family allegiances came in for mostly strong praise; it was called "that rare piece of 'literary fiction' with real page-turning power" (Connecticut Post) and also "campy, complicated, and almost unnervingly professional" (Los Angeles Times Book Review). And there were lotsof other reviews. (LJ 4/1/05)

OWENS, SHARON. The Tea House on Mulberry Street. Putnam. ISBN 0-399-15265-2. $15. This charmer about the proprietors of a Belfast tea room was a best seller in the author's native Ireland and made the New York Times's extended best sellers list as well. It also popped up in numerous roundups, from the Boston Globe to the Chicago Tribune to the Seattle Times, with headlines like "The Latest Escapist, Romantic, Hilarious Chick-Lit Titles." (LJ 2/1/05)

OYEYEMI, HELEN. The Icarus Girl. Nan A. Talese: Doubleday. ISBN 0-385-51383-6. $23.95. Having written this novel before the age of 19, Nigerian-born Oyeyemi—now living in Britain—sailed forth on the wings of much publicity. Would she crash like Icarus? Fortunately not. Though the occasional reviewer pointed out that the hype was a bit much, most saw real strengths in this story of a biracial child who forges a very unusual relationship on a visit to her mother's homeland in Africa. A second printing brought available copies to 35,000. (LJ 5/1/05).

RABOTEAU, EMILY. The Professor's Daughter. Holt. ISBN 0-8050-7506-2. $24. "My father is black and my mother is white and my brother is a vegetable." This observation sums up the life situation of Emma, "the professor's daughter," in language that reveals the power and poignancy of Raboteau's first novel. With this work, which got a boost when Elle declared it a "Must Read" and O: The Oprah Magazine recommended it "from our shelf to yours," Pushcart Prize winner Raboteau clearly "lives up to her promise" (Bookpage). (LJ 2/15/05)

ROOSEVELT, KERMIT. In the Shadow of the Law. Farrar. ISBN 0-374-26187-3. $24. Perhaps Roosevelt wanted a break from teaching law at the University of Pennsylvania when he sat down to write his first fiction, which proved to be "both a legal thriller and a first-rate legal comedy of manners" (LJ 4/15/05). Reviews were widespread, appearing in both the mainstream press and legal publications, and the book subsequently sailed through four printings. More good news: it has just been optioned for television.

SITTENFELD, CURTIS. Prep. Random. ISBN 1-4000-6231-4. $24.95. "Have I got a debut for you," declared Sittenfeld's publicist some months ago, and she was right. This prickly tale of life at posh prep school Ault has traveled through 14 printings, totaling close to 200,000 in print, and resided on the New York Timesbest sellers list for nine weeks. And it's not just about rich kids partying: "What is of interest, and why Prepdeserves pride of place on any summer recommended reading list, is the incisive and evenhanded way in which Sittenfeld explores issues of class"(New York Times Book Review). (LJ12/04)

TWELVE HAWKS, JOHN. The Traveler. Doubleday. ISBN 0-385-51428-X. $24.95. Twelve Hawks may famously live "off the grid," but his technosleek tale of the spiritual Travelers and the Harlequins who defend them does not. After an unusual and very prominent sales pitch—that black cover with the blue shades seemed to be everywhere—this book found itself on numerous best sellers lists (e.g., the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal) and went through a second printing to reach nearly 200,000 copies. (LJ5/15/05)

VANTREASE, BRENDA RICKMAN. The Illuminator. St. Martin's. ISBN 0-312-33191-6. $24.95. Vantrease served as a school librarian for much of her life, but at age 60 she came upon a new career: successful novelist. A "remarkable" work about 14th-century England (LJ 3/1/05), this debut has attracted attention both at home and abroad. Book Sense proudly touted it last March, and rights have been sold to ten countries.

WILLIG, LAUREN. The Secret History of the Pink Carnation. Dutton. ISBN 0-525-94860-0. $19.95. "Chock-full of romance, sexual tension, espionage, adventure, and humor" (LJ 11/15/04), this debut about a French Revolutionary–era spy to rival the famed Scarlet Pimpernel received a spate of good reviews. Fortunately, the sequel (The Masque of the Black Tulip) is on its way in January.

YELLIN, TAMAR. The Genizah at the House of Sherper. Toby. ISBN 1-59264-085-0. $19.95. A British biblical scholar is led to Jerusalem after finding a mysterious book that once belonged to her great-grandfather, and the result is "warm and engrossing, rich with historical detail and unmet yearning" (PW). The result was also good for the publisher, which can boast 10,000 copies sold—a big number for this small but ambitious press. (LJ 3/1/05)