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The Soulmate Equation by Christina Lauren leads holds this week. Two LibraryReads and three IndieNext picks publish this week. The June issue of Entertainment Weekly arrives with the “Summer Books Special.” People's book of the week is The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz, which also gets reviewed. The Hachette Group releases a diversity update for 2020. The British Book Awards were announced with Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell, Troubled Blood by Robert Galbraith, and Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens winning top fiction honors. Shuggie Bain by Douglas Stuart won best overall book of the year. The Ockham New Zealand Book Awards were announced, as were the 2021 Guggenheim Fellows. Plus, the Analog Award for Emerging Black Voices has launched. Finally, Evelyn Waugh’s house is on the market for $7.6M.

From a Joint Release: Clarivate, a global leader in providing trusted information and insights to accelerate the pace of innovation, today announced a definitive agreement to acquire ProQuest.

The 2021 African Speculative Fiction Society (ASFS) Nommo Awards longlists are announced and the 2020 & 2021 Robert E. Howard Foundation Awards finalists are out. Posthumous success for Richard Wright’s The Man Who Lived Underground. Interviews with the following authors: Jon Mooallem of This is Chance!: The Great Alaska Earthquake, Genie Chance, and the Shattered City She Held Together, Nora Zelevansky of Competitive Grieving, Julian Rubinstein of The Holly: Five Bullets, One Gun, and the Struggle to Save an American Neighborhood, and Morgan Harper Nichols of How Far You Have Come. Jessica Seinfeld announces a new cookbook Vegan, At Times. Queen Latifah’s Flavor Unit Entertainment joins with Jim Henson Company on the adaptation of The Conductors by Nicole Glover.

The 33rd annual Triangle Awards winners and 2021 Firecracker Award finalists are announced and Trevor Shikaze has been named the first winner of n+1’s Anthony Veasna So Prize. 21st Birthday by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro, The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave, Project: Hail Mary by Andy Weir, Killing the Mob: The Fight Against Organized Crime in America by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard, and The Premonition by Michael Lewis top the best sellers lists. Colin Kaepernick announces the Oct 12 release of a book he has edited and published, Abolition for the People: The Movement for a Future Without Policing and Prisons and Carmen Maria Machado writes about the challenges around her latest book In the Dream House. Tawny Kitaen revealed that she was working on an autobiography in an appearance before her death.

On the morning of Monday, May 10, the three New York City library systems reopened 53 branches for computer use, limited browsing, and in-person reference. Later that day, the leaders of all three systems testified at a New York City Council executive budget hearing to call for support in the face of the $10.34 million in budget cuts to the three library systems in Mayor Bill de Blasio’s proposed FY22 executive budget—a number that could rise to as much as $22.2 million if City Council declines to re-up its yearly commitment.

Smith College and Kansas State reopen libraries after extensive renovations and Brooklyn, East Asheville, and the Carnegie Library of Pittsburg unveil substantial remodels.

LeVar Burton launches a new book club on the Fable app, with James Baldwin, Octavia Butler, and Jesmyn Ward as the first three featured authors. Abu Dhabi International Book Fair announces its 2021 programming. Ruth Gilligan wins the Ondaatje prize with The Butchers' Blessing. The London Book Fair International Excellence Awards were announced, along with the CAMEO Awards, UK Book Blog Awards, and the 2021 Doug Wright Awards. Elliot (owner of Barnes and Noble) will acquire Paper Source; B&N CEO James Daunt will oversee both companies. Billie Eilish and Alison Bechdel get attention. Regina King will direct and produce the feature adaptation of Bitter Root, the Image Comics series created by David F. Walker, Sanford Greene, and Chuck Brown. Plus, Lisey's Story and The Green Knight get trailers.

The U.S. Book Show, a three-day virtual conference will run from May 25-27 and includes a library track. Oprah Winfrey and Keanu Reeves are among speakers. The 2021 Aurora Awards ballot has been announced, with titles nominated by members of the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Association. Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Billie Eilish get reviewed. Barry Jenkins speaks about directing Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad and Brit Bennett discusses adapting The Vanishing Half for HBO. Plus, Jodi Picoult brings Covid19 to the stage and Michael Lewis’s The Premonition gets big screen treatment.

Despite the proven benefits, strategic planning services can be cost-prohibitive, particularly for small and rural libraries. The process itself can also feel daunting, making it easy to defer. Library Strategies, a consulting group of The Friends of the Saint Paul Public Library, in partnership with Montana State Library, has designed a program to address those barriers.

Rhody Radio, a collaborative podcast project of several Rhode Island libraries, has become a popular long-term programming outlet. The twice-weekly podcast, produced by library staff and community members, captures conversations, lectures, book reviews, and performances by Rhode Islanders; it is available 24/7 on rhodyradio.org and platforms such as Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry leads holds this week. There are three LibraryReads selections and four Indie Next selections arriving this week. The People "Picks" book of the week is Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead and While Justice Sleeps by Stacey Abrams picks up steam. The 2021 Christian Book Awards were announced along with the Pinnacle award going to Max Lucado. The 2021 Maine Literary Awards finalists were also announced. Paul Theroux's new book Under the Wave at Waimea will be adapted as a series. Plus, Jodi Picoult has a new pandemic-inspired book out in November.

Even before the pandemic, outdoor spaces on library grounds were trending. Now, although the vaccine rollout is well underway, it will likely be fall at the earliest before most libraries resume indoor programming. What was a nice-to-have luxury has become the only game in town.

From the FCC: The Federal Communications Commission today unanimously adopted final rules to implement the Emergency Connectivity Fund Program. This $7.17 billion program, funded by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, will enable schools and libraries to purchase laptop and tablet computers, Wi-Fi hotspots, and broadband connectivity for students, school staff, and library patrons in need during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Whether gardening, sending up a rocket, or savoring an art exhibit, taking programs outdoors lets libraries offer in-person connection in line with COVID safety protocols.

LAMBDA Literary releases a list of May’s Most Anticipated LGBTQ Literature and the 2021 Amazon Canada First Novel Award shortlist is announced. Pulitzer-winning journalist and author Lucinda Franks passes away at 74. Interviews arrive featuring many authors, including Anjali Enjeti of The Parted Earth, Suzanne Simard of Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest, and Torrey Peters of Detransition, Baby. A new book by R. F. Kuang is on the way, to be titled Babel. The House of Marvel and DC Films are looking for Black directors for upcoming adaptation projects.

The 2021 James Tait Black Prize Shortlists and the 2021 Anthony Award Nominees have been announced. Warner Bros. searches for a Black Superman, enlisting author Ta-Nehisi Coates. An ‘Uncensored Library’ in Minecraft protects against cyber censorship and an open letter from members of Britain’s publishing industry raises issues regarding transphobia. Sooley by John Grisham, Finding Ashley by Danielle Steel, Whereabouts by Jhumpa Lahiri, What Happened to You by Bruce Perry and Oprah Winfrey, The Bomber Mafia by Malcolm Gladwell and You Are Your Best Thing by Tarana Burke and Brené Brown top best sellers lists. NYT profiles Stacey Abrams, author of While Justice Sleeps. Tor.com reveals a cover for Kerstin Hall’s Second Spear. An upcoming adaptation of the Red Sonja comic character will star Hannah John-Kamen.

Earlier this spring, in conjunction with a survey of how academic library deans and directors’ perspectives and strategies around equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) and anti-racism have changed over the last year, Ithaka S+R announced that it would launch an anti-racism talent management audit in partnership with library leaders from Binghamton University, NY, and the University of Delaware.

Reese Witherspoon's May book club pick The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave is already in limited series development for Apple TV+ . Hour of the Witch by Chris Bohjalian is B&N May book club selection. Julian Barnes has won the Jerusalem Prize. The 2021 Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year longlist arrives, along with finalists for The 2020 Governor General's Literary Awards, and the shortlist for the Encore Award, including Susanna Clarke's Piranesi. Penguin Random House will reissue Stacy Abrams's first three novels. Sunny Hostin is buzzing for her new novel Summer Bluffs and new inclusive production company.  Stella, the World's First Talking Dog gathers more fans. Plus, Suzanne Simard's memoir, Finding the Mother Tree: Discovering the Wisdom of the Forest gets attention and a film adaptation by Amy Adams.

Most of the time, library promotion involves a lot of announcements like, “We offer homework help” or “We’ve got a new website” or “Come to our program.” These promotions are informative, but they lack the one magical thing that people respond to: emotion.

With the COVID-19 vaccine rollout gaining momentum in the United States, libraries continue the process of reopening. They’ll need to get the word out to patrons about changing hours, resumed services, and in-person events. This product spotlight focuses on marketing platforms for libraries designed to help streamline outreach efforts via social media, email, newsletters, mobile messaging, and more.

Jenna Bush Hager selects Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead as the 'Read with Jenna' May Book Club Pick while GMA picks Olympus, Texas by Stacey Swann for their book pick. May's EarlyWord galleychat is today, to avoid conflict with LJ's Day of Dialog happening on Thursday. The 'Now Read This' Book Club is winding down. The Women’s Prize for Fiction announced its shortlist, which includes books by authors Brit Bennett, Susanna Clarke, and Yaa Gyasi. The 2021 Sunday Times Audible Short Story Award longlist has arrived along with the 2021 Australian Book Industry Awards, the Minnesota Book Awards, and the Oregon Book Awards. Ten Speed Press (Random House) has launched a new imprint, 4 Color Books, with Bryant Terry, who edits Black Food: Stories, Art, and Recipes from Across the African Diaspora due out in October. Laura Hankin will adapt and executive produce her forthcoming novel, A Special Place for Women as a TV series, while Scarface and the Untouchable: Al Capone, Eliot Ness, and the Battle for Chicago will get series treatment by Showtime.  Marvel reveals first taste of Eternals, plus a look at its full upcoming movie slate. 

As the proverbial light at the end of the pandemic tunnel comes into view, so does the discussion around whether a library can require its staff or patrons to have a vaccination in order to enter the building. I’ve spent a good deal of time pondering this question, and while I’m not an attorney and not offering legal advice, there are several things to consider, about this and other related issues.

I’ve been delighted to watch the ambitious program in Ohio in which 137 of the state’s 251 library systems (and counting) have chosen to help distribute about 2 million at-home coronavirus testing kits. At press time, libraries had already distributed nearly 60,000 tests through about 365 locations.

21st Birthday by James Patterson & Maxine Paetro leads holds this week. The People "Picks" book of the week is Three Dreamers by Lorenzo Carcaterra. Six LibraryReads selections and thirteen IndieNext picks arrive this week. Pennie's final pick for Costco is When the Apricots Bloom by Gina Wilkinson. The top ten reader-selected finalists in each category of the 2021 Locus Awards are announced. Connie Willis will MC the awards ceremony in June. The ReLit Award Winners for 2021 are announced and the May 2021 Earphones Award Winners are out at Audiofile. Watchmen creator Alan Moore will publish a five-volume series of epic fantasy novels entitled ‘Long London’ due out in 2024. Plus, a group of authors from around the world have come together to fundraise for Indian COVID relief. 

Authors Neil Gaiman, Chuck Wendig, Tess Gerritsen, and Mary Robinette Kowal form "DisneyMustPay" task force to pay for outstanding money owed from adaptations done with their work. The 2021 Edgar Award winners and the 2021 ReLit Awards shortlist are announced. Interviews abound with Casey Wilson of The Wreckage of My Presence, Hayley Mills of Forever Young, Maggie Shipstead of Great Circle, Kate Summerscale of The Haunting of Alma Fielding: A True Ghost Story, Vivian Gornick of Taking a Long Look: Essays on Culture, Literature, and Feminism in Our Time, Darryl Cunningham of Billionaires: The Lives of the Rich and Powerful, Cassandra Lane of We Are Bridges, Mary Alice Monroe of The Summer of Lost and Found, Jenny Lee of Anna K Away, and Imbolo Mbue of How Beautiful We Were.

Before the COVID pandemic, Princeton University instructors Joshua Kotin and Irene Small were looking forward to coteaching an undergraduate class, “Language To Be Looked At,” exploring concrete and visual poetry. In concrete poetry, the visual elements of a poem—typography and symbols and their arrangement on the page, as well as the printed matter itself—are critical components of its meaning.

The first Mexican virtual convention of speculative fiction Mexicona, launches Premio Imaginación y Futuro with an awards list. Author Zhao Lei, of The Stars wins the 11th Chinese Nebula Awards and Julia Baird of Phosphorescence wins the 2021 Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIAs). Also, the 2021 Women’s Prize for Fiction shortlist has been announced. More tension for Simon & Schuster as the recent book deals with former members of the Trump administration draw protests. A Gambling Man by David Baldacci, Out of Many, One: Portraits of America's Immigrants by George W. Bush, Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner, and World Travel: An Irreverent Guide by Anthony Bourdain & Laurie Woolever top the best sellers list. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is getting turned into a musical by Florence Welch of Florence + the Machine. Christina Jackson and Y’lan Noel to star in an adaptation of Sam Greenlee’s book The Spook Who Sat By The Door. 

From the Federal Communications Commission: Today, FCC Acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel announced the start date of the Emergency Broadband Benefit Program. As of May 12, 2021, eligible households will be able to enroll in the Program to receive a monthly discount off the cost of broadband service from an approved provider. Eligible households can enroll through an approved provider or by visiting https://getemergencybroadband.org.

W.W. Norton takes Blake Bailey's biography of Philip Roth out of print and cuts ties with the author. Canisia Lubrin wins the 2021 OCM Bocas Prize for Caribbean Literature. The 2020 ReLit Awards shortlist honoring the best Canadian books published by independent presses is out while the Edgar Awards will be announced tomorrow. The June Indie Next List is out and Joshua Henkin's Morningside Heights claims the top spot. The Other Wes Moore will be adapted for the big screen and Netflix releases its summer lineup, including several adaptations. Plus, Gabrielle Union will release a new memoir in September.

Having spent over a decade adjusting to a “new normal” of serials inflation, harsh budget cuts, and a redirection of spending from collections to services, arguably few if any libraries were prepared for the turmoil wrought by a pandemic. We have shifted to a new abnormal. How will libraries survive and thrive after the pandemic subsides? What might our new abnormal look like?

Nominees for the reader-selected 2020 This Is Horror Awards and 2021 Seiun Awards  (the Japanese equivalent of the Hugo Awards) are announced. Danielle Evans has won the 5th annual Joyce Carol Oates Prize. The Royal Society of Literature releases the Ondaatje Prize Shortlist. Stacey Abrams talks about her forthcoming novel, While Justice Sleeps. Alison Bechdel's The Secret to Superhuman Strength arrives next week and Rachel Cusk gets reviewed. Whereabouts by Jhumpa Lahiri continues to get coverage. Amy Tan: Unintended Memoir will premiere on May 3 as part of PBS American Masters series. Plus, Oscars TV ratings hit record-low.

 John Grisham leads holds this week with Sooley. People's book of the week is Little Matches: A Memoir of Grief and Light by Maryanne O’Hara. Nomadland, based on the book by Jessica Bruder nets 'Best Picture' and 'Best Director' Ocsars. The Sheikh Zayed Book Award winners are announced, including Dr. Iman Mersal for her book In the Footsteps of Enayat Al-Zayyat. Two LibraryReads selections arrive this week along with four IndieNext picks. Netflix adaptations of Shadow and Bone, based on the novels by Leigh Bardugo and Things Heard and Seen, based on the book All Things Cease to Appear by Elizabeth Brundage are buzzing. Malcolm Gladwell's new book Bomber Mafia arrives this week. Plus, Martha Stewart will release her 99th cookbook in September.

The International Booker Prize 2021 shortlist, 2021 Stella Award, and 2021 Ignyte Awards Finalists are announced. Vanity Fair provides an excerpt for Stacey Abrams’s new novel, While Justice Sleeps. Justice League Infinity will be digitally released and Spider-Man will air on Disney+. New release dates are announced for Michaela Coel’s Misfits: A Personal Manifesto in September and Ai Weiwei’s 1000 Years of Joys and Sorrows on Nov 2, 2021. Drew Barrymore announces her first cookbook, Rebel Homemaker. HBO Max finds great success in film adaptations of comics and associated titles. New X-Men comics at Marvel. NPR’s Fresh Air features Sacha Naspini’s novel Nives.

Festival of Books features Native American authors Rigoberto González, Danielle Geller, and more. The Wolfson History Prize announced, and Louise Erdrich is named the 2021 Aspen Words Literary Prize Winner. Margaret Wander Bonanno, author of several Star Trek books, dies at the age of 71. Ocean Prey by John Sandford, The Devil’s Hand by Jack Carr, On the House by John Boehner, and Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe top best sellers lists. Covers are revealed for Reckless Girls and Flowers for the Sea. New DC comics to cover new Superman and Supergirl series. The director of Game of Thrones is adapting Stone Junction by Jim Dodge for television.

UPDATE:

After more than a year of uncertainty and threatened legal action, on April 8 the Biden administration stopped the sale of the Seattle National Archives, reversing the Office of Management and Budget's previous approval of the facility's sale in 2020. Selling the 10-acre property would have resulted in moving valuable records far from the tribal and regional communities that routinely accessed them.

From Brooklyn Public Library: After Derek Chauvin murdered George Floyd last summer, BPL stood in solidarity with millions of protestors around the nation who stood up against injustice. Today, that resistance achieved, if not justice, accountability.

Kathy Wang's Impostor Syndrome gets buzz as a summer must-read. Emilia Clarke wrote a comic book and signs on to Marvel’s Secret Invasion at Disney+. Simon & Schuster refuses to cancel Pence memoir despite worker protests. Alyssa Collins is awarded the Octavia E. Butler Fellowship. George W. Bush speaks on his new book Out of Many, One: Portraits of America's Immigrants. Plus, The Hollywood Reporter kicks off the inaugural series "THR Talks" with Roxanne Gay and Andra Day in conversation.

The American Library Association launched two relief funds at the beginning of April. The $1.25 million ALA COVID Library Relief Fund will offer grants of $30,000–$50,000 to public, school, academic, and tribal libraries across the United States and U.S. Territories that have been affected by pandemic-influenced budget contractions. The ReMember Fund will ensure that ALA members financially impacted by COVID-19 can maintain their membership.

At the University of Waterloo, after a year of transitioning content for instruction online, we have had the opportunity to iterate, moving beyond our initial efforts to a more cohesive and intentional instructional design and delivery. Looking back on the last 12 months, we have arrived at six principles that we have used, informally and formally, to guide our practice. 1) Streamline; 2) Be flexible; 3) Be kind; 4) Good enough is good enough; 5) Build comfort; and 6) Don’t get attached.

Vartan Gregorian, president of the New York Public Library (NYPL) from 1981–89, died on April 15 at age 87. Gregorian took leadership of the library during the tail end of the fiscal crisis that pushed New York City to the brink of bankruptcy and left NYPL facing a $50 million deficit, helping restore the library to solvency through substantial fundraising efforts and advocacy.

The uncut version of Richard Wright's The Man Who Lived Underground finally gets a release and reviews. The LA Festival of Books continues this week. Dutton releases a posthumous interview with Eric Jerome Dickey for the release of his final novel The Son of Mr. Suleman.  Katherine Heiny shines with Early Morning Riser and Michelle Zauner's Crying in H Mart continues to get attention. Elizabeth Acevedo will release her first novel for adults in 2023 while Michaela Coel will publish debut novelin September. Downton Abbey 2 will hit theaters in December. Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse gets a new trio of directors at the helm, and Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings gets a new trailer. Plus, a reported $2M book deal for Justice Amy Coney Barrett.

A Gambling Man by David Baldacci leads holds this week. The LA Festival of Books kicks off with awards. Simon & Schuster won't distribute book by officer who shot Breonna Taylor. Four Indie Next picks publish this week. Michelle Zauner's memoir, Crying in H Mart, is out this week. Godzilla vs. Kong has another monster weekend, and Oscar coverage begins in earnest. The May issue of Entertainment Weekly arrives, and the People "Picks" book of the week is The Good Sister by Sally Hepworth.  Plus, Agatha Christie’s Wallingford home is on the market for £2.75m.

The new trailer for Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad gets a great deal of coverage for a May 14 release. The Jhalak Prize for Book of the Year by a Writer of Color and Sheikh Zayed Book Award shortlists are announced. Also, the 2021 Helen & Kurt Wolff Translator’s Prize shortlist is announced. Oprah Winfrey’s upcoming book tour and April 27 release of new book What Happened to You makes news. Terry Crews discusses the new audiobook Stronger Together, co-written with his wife with lessons from his life and marriage. Phoebe Robinson, author of Please Don't Sit On My Bed In Your Outside Clothes, speaks about the lack of diversity in publishing. A television series based on Greyboy: Finding Blackness In A White World is being developed. Concerns are being raised about a police officer’s book regarding the killing of Breonna Taylor. Lastly, there is an interview with Lawrence P. Jackson, author of a biography on Chester B. Himes on the importance of Black crime writers.

Lizabeth (Betsy) Wilson, vice provost for digital initiatives and dean of university libraries at the University of Washington (UW), recently announced that she will retire on June 30. Wilson has served as dean since 2001; in 2013 she took on the vice provost role as well, leading the libraries’ strategy on digital scholarship, data stewardship, and open access. The network of 16 libraries—one of the largest academic research libraries in North America, with the largest collection in the Pacific Northwest—serves UW’s Seattle, Tacoma, and Bothell campuses and Friday Harbor Laboratories.

The 2021 RWA Vivan Finalists are announced by the Romance Writers of America. Also, the 2021 Whiting Award Winners are announced. Good Company by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney and Broken Horses by Brandi Carlile top the best sellers lists. News breaks about the “Bridgerton effect” on the romance genre and an adaptation of Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens. Prince Philip’s Century by Robert Jobson gets an early release. The Root shares newly released books that could help readers heal from trauma. There is a cover reveal of Far From the Light of Heaven by Tade Thompson. Lauren Hough talks about Leaving Isn’t the Hardest Thing and Morgan Jerkins talks about Caul Baby.

The 2021 Hugo Award Finalists are announced including Best Novel. Rep. John Lewis’ Carry On: Reflections for a New Generation will be released on July 13, almost a year after his death while Richard Wright's The Man Who Lived Underground, will finally come out in its original form on April 20th.  J.K. Rowling will release a new children’s book, The Christmas Pig in October. Natalie Portman will headline HBO's adaptation of Elena Ferrante's The Days of Abandonment and The Triumph of Nancy Reagan by Karen Tumulty continues to get attention. Plus, Bridgerton is renewed for two more seasons.  

The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) 2021 virtual conference, taking place April 13–16, started off on a strong note with Tressie McMillan Cottom’s opening keynote. Her thoughts on how to center human rights and justice within an academic framework gave attendees much to think about as they continued on to the many panels, sessions, exhibits, and other offerings.

Jason Reynolds is set as the inaugural Honorary Chair of Banned Books Week. Fourth Estate and William Collins will introduce a modern classics list featuring titles from Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Anthony Doerr, and more. Ottessa Moshfegh’s next novel, Lapvona, will be published by Penguin next summer. Oscar-winning director Ron Howard and actor Clint Howard announce The Boys: A Memoir of Hollywood and Family, to be released in October. AC/DC singer Brian Johnson’s memoir The Lives of Brian drops this fall. Frank Marshall and director Barry Sonnenfeld will partner to adapt Perestroika in Paris by Jane Smiley into a 2D animated feature.  Joe Cornish will direct the adaptation of Mark Millar’s comic Starlight and Truman and Tennessee: An Intimate Conversation will hit theaters on June 18th. Plus, a review of World Travel: An Irreverent Guide, in which the NYT asks "How Do You Write an Anthony Bourdain Book Without Anthony Bourdain?"
 

Restorative justice is broadly defined as an approach to repairing and addressing harm done within a community. It can also be understood as a practice that emphasizes the importance of every voice being heard when harm is done, in order to repair the holistic well-being of the person harmed, the person responsible for the harm, and the community impacted by the offense. These methods are used proactively and are foundational in creating systemic change within any organization.

Ocean Prey by John Sandford tops holds this week. Four LibraryReads selections arrive along with one IndieNext pick. The Orwell Prize Longlists are revealed. Ma Rainey's Black Bottom and Nomadland continue to garner film awards.  John Boehner's memoir On the House: A Washington Memoir gets attention and Paula McLain's When the Stars Go Dark is People's 'Pick of the Week.' 

The New York Public Library announces the Young Lions Fiction Award finalists, the Guggenheim Fellows of 2021 are announced, and the PEN America Literary Award Winners were celebrated last evening. Emma Cline, Sarah Shun-lien Bynum, Stephen Graham Jones, and Elizabeth McCracken get focused attention. Vanity Fair writes more about the Pence book deal and the other Trump books that are in the works. Nine new adaptations hit screens this weekend and into the week ahead. A trailer is out for The Woman in the Window.

Internships and practicums are important to learning and jobseeking. During COVID, LIS programs and students have had to get creative at a distance.

The Hill We Climb by Amanda Gorman tops the bestseller lists. EarlyWord’s April GalleyChat is posted. S. & S. plans to publish Mike Pence’s autobiography. He now has a two-book deal. The April Earphones Awards are out, as are the April Loan Stars picks. Torrey Peters discusses the Women’s Prize nomination. Granta offers "The Best Of Young Spanish-Language Novelists 2." Worldcon moves to December. There is cast news for the Apple TV+ adaptation of Sarah Perry’s The Essex Serpent and Amazon is adapting The Peripheral by William Gibson.

On April 5, the American Library Association (ALA) released its annual State of America’s Libraries Report —this year focusing on the COVID-19 pandemic and how public, school, and academic libraries stepped up to meet patrons’ and communities’ needs. Issued during National Library Week, April 4–10, the report features snapshots of libraries throughout the United States—highlighting the ways they’ve adapted to the changes, restrictions, budget contractions, and opportunities created by the pandemic—and includes a list of the Top Ten Most Challenged Books of 2020.

Deesha Philyaw wins the 2021 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction for The Secret Lives of Church Ladies. Northern Spy by Flynn Berry is the April Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick. ALA released the Top 10 Most Challenged Books this week offering a sobering snapshot of censorship in America.  Brandi Carlile's memoir Broken Horses continues to get raves while Dave Grohl will release a memoir in October. Viet Thanh Nguyen’s Pulitzer Prize winning The Sympathizer will be developed as a TV series with Park Chan-wook to direct. Plus, a rare 1938 Superman comic sells for record breaking $3.25M.

Where in our origin story and with what force did our foundation crack so deep that, without even realizing it and with just one breeze, we crumbled down on top of ourselves, unable to get back on our feet? We can’t shake ourselves and stand up again, and even if we could, we are not what we used to be before the collapse. – from I’ll Be Strong For You

The Today show's 'Read with Jenna' book club pick for April is Good Company by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney. James McBride's Deacon King Kong wins inaugural Gotham Prize. The City We Became by N.K Jemisin wins the British Science Fiction Association Award for best novel. Helen Oyeyemi gets attention with her new novel, Peaces. Rachel Kushner is back with a book of essays, and Godzilla vs. Kong is still smashing records. Fonda Lee writes about ARC's and equity. Readers are picking up Hemingway again with six of his novels in the top 20 Amazon Movers and Shakers. Plus, HBO announces "The Iron Anniversary," a month-long celebration in honor of the 10th anniversary of the premiere of A Game of Thrones. 

On March 29, Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp announced that it will acquire the Books & Media segment of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH), which will be operated by one of its subsidiaries, HarperCollins Publishers. For a cash purchase price of $349 million, HarperCollins, one of the “big five” U.S. publishing companies, has significantly added to its backlist by acquiring the consumer publishing business. HMH has stated that it will transition to focus exclusively on K–12 education and digital sales.

Life's Too Short by Abby Jimenez tops the holds lists this week. The 2021 Anisfield-Wolf Book Award Winners have been announced, including Deacon King Kong by James McBride. Eight LibraryReads picks arrive this week along with five Indie Next selections. People picks Red Island House by Andrea Lee as its book of the week.  Jenny Lawson gets 4 stars from USA Today. Philip Roth: The Biography gets reviewed. Haruki Murakami's First Person Singular comes out this week. Viola Davis and the late Chadwick Boseman earn SAG awards for Ma Rainey's Black Bottom. Plus, Pennie's final pick before retiring, Remember by Lisa Genova, is in April's Costco Connection.

Jackie Gosselar is a Systems and Discovery Services Librarian at the University of California, Berkeley. They shared their experience as a bisexual, nonbinary librarian, and provided some insight into the value of being part of an organizational culture that makes space for all identities.

Ebony magazine publishes “From ‘Sula’ to ‘Luster’: Fiction’s New School of Black Woman Heroines.” Diana Gabaldon announces she has completed her ninth Outlander book, Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone. More April book picks arrive: Oprah Daily offers poetry selections, EW names great romances from March, and Elle showcases an early look at Matrix by Lauren Groff. Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney, Good Company, and Jenny Lawson, Broken (in the best possible way), get attention. 

The challenge for libraries is, first, to obtain and spend federal funding, and second, to parlay that temporary help into a permanent paradigm shift. The new equipment will outlast the emergency. It is up to library leaders to document its ongoing impacts, so that when breakage and age take their inevitable toll, funders will find it unthinkable not to replace and upgrade the gear.

Public libraries are seeing success with virtual murder mysteries, which vary in format from Zoom events to text-based games to videos.

Eternal by Lisa Scottoline leads this week’s best sellers list. The winners of the American Academy of Arts and Letters Literature Awards are announced. April best books list begin to arrive. Beautiful Things: A Memoir by Hunter Biden gets more focused attention. Oprah interviews Richard Wright's grandson about The Man Who Lived Underground. Randall Park will adapt the graphic novel Shortcomings by Adrian Tomine.

On March 16, the University of California (UC) and scientific publisher Elsevier announced a transformative agreement that will enable universal open access publishing in Elsevier journals for all UC research, control costs at a sustainable level, and support the university’s transition from paying for subscriptions to paying for open publishing of its research. The four-year agreement, which went into effect on April 1, is the largest of its kind in North America to date.

The Booker International Longlist 2021 has been announced. Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead is the top Indie Next pick for May. Of Women and Salt by Gabriela Garcia is the GMA April Book Club pick. John Lewis’s posthumous new graphic novel, Run: Book One will come out in August, while Good Company by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney arrives next week. Plus, Ken Follett's The Evening and the Morning has been optioned for series development.

As early as December 2020, many were advocating for library workers to be included in early distribution categories. Even in the absence of broad recategorization, however, some library leaders have effectively lobbied to have staff across their entire systems vaccinated. Using a range of strategies, they have ensured that their state or local health department officials understand that library workers fill essential, public-facing roles, and are cared for accordingly.

HarperCollins plans to buy Houghton Mifflin’s Trade Publishing Unit. The Sheikh Zayed Book Award Announces its 2021 Shortlist. Of Women and Salt by Gabriela Garcia continues to get attention. Philip Roth: The Biography is out. Senator Tammy Duckworth, Every Day is a Gift, inspires. Netflix releases the Shadow and Bone trailer. Plus, Starz cancels Neil Gaiman's American Gods.

'The Red Book' by James Patterson and David Ellis tops this week's holds list. Two LibraryReads selections arrive this week along with three Indie Next selections. Festival Days by Jo Ann Beard is People's 'Pick of the Week.'  Tributes pour in for Beverly Cleary and Larry McMurtry. George R.R. Martin signs a massive deal with HBO. Scholastic pulls book by Dav Pilkey for 'passive racism'. Libertie by Kaitlyn Greenidge gets attention. Plus, Sarah Maas, A Court of Silver Flames, will adapt her series for Hulu.

The National Book Critics Circle Awards are announced. Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell wins for fiction. Island on Fire: The Revolt That Ended Slavery in the British Empire by Tom Zoellner wins for nonfiction. The Dublin Literary Award 2021 Shortlist is announced as is the shortlist for The Swansea University Dylan Thomas Prize. O: The Oprah Magazine has a report on the censorship history Richard Wright’s The Man Who Lived Underground, Native Son, and Black Boy. A new edition of Lord of the Rings will include art by J.R.R. Tolkien. New booklists arrive and there is a great deal of casting news for forthcoming adaptions.

Carmen Maria Machado wins the Rathbones Folio Prize for In the Dream House: A Memoir. In more award news, the 2021 PEN America Literary Awards Career Achievement Winners are announced, the shortlist is out for the 2021 Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction, and the Producers Guild of America honors the book-based Nomadland with its top prize. Another adaptation, The Queen's Gambit, also wins. Speaking of winning, Win by Harlan Coben starts at No. 1 on both the NYT Best Sellers list and the USA Today Best-Selling Books list. Liane Moriarty’s forthcoming Apples Never Fall has already sold adaptation rights.

When Bernard “Bud” Barton was hired as the Chief Information Officer (CIO) for the Library of Congress in September 2015 he was faced with the Government Accountability Office’s list of 31 recommendations to overhaul and modernize the library’s IT infrastructure. Five years later, those recommendations have been implemented. LJ caught up with Barton to discuss his team's work, and what’s ahead as the Library of Congress continues to modernize its IT.

Jessica Goudeau, After the Last Border: Two Families and the Story of Refuge in America, and William G. Thomas III,  A Question of Freedom: The Families Who Challenged Slavery from the Nation’s Founding to the Civil War named winners of the 2021 J. Anthony Lukas Prize Project Awards. NAACP announces winners in the literary category, including Barack Obama, A Promised Land and Walter Mosley, The Awkward Black Man. Paris Review gets an new editor. Variety’s executive editor to pen nonfiction book on reality TV show The Apprentice. NYT interviews Sharon Stone, The Beauty of Living Twice. Plus, Nicole Chung, All You Can Ever Know, writes an essay for Time.

The Audie Award winners are announced and Susanna Clarke’s Piranesi, read by Chiwetel Ejiofor, takes the top prize. More authors speak about anti Asian-American bias. News is out about Susan Orlean’s On Animals. LitHub and Kimpton Hotels partner on a book club for travelers. CBC has read-alikes for Hench. Eater has a guide to 17 cookbooks for Spring.

A former Chattanooga Public Library employee, Cameron “C-Grimey” Williams, was fired after removing weeded library books by conservative authors in early December 2020. A video of the books being burned was posted on Williams’s Instagram account, though the post has since been taken down. Williams stated that his supervisor told him that he could take the books in question, and that he was never informed of library policy to the contrary. However, a hearing on February 5 determined that Williams “violated City and Library policies by improperly removing items from the Library’s collections.”

Discover how to optimize your usage with our user-friendly infographic. Get the most out of your electronic resources by exploring various ways to make your collections more efficient.

The Bounty by Janet Evanovich & Steve Hamilton leads holds this week. Three LibraryReads selections arrive this week along with four Indie Next choices. The April issue of Entertainment Weekly is out. Margaret Atwood, John Grisham, Celeste Ng and others are collaborating on a pandemic novel to be titled Fourteen Days: An Unauthorized Gathering. Variety has the full list of Writers Guild Award Winners, including Netflix’s win in Adapted Longform for The Queen’s Gambit, based on the novel by Walter Tevis.

Many libraries and library organizations have issued statements recognizing and condemning the rise in anti-Asian hate crimes in the United States during the past year.

As voting for the American Library Association (ALA) 2022–23 presidential campaign continues, LJ invited candidates Stacey Aldrich, state librarian at the Hawaii State Public Library System in Honolulu; Ed Garcia, director of Cranston Public Library, RI; and Lessa Pelayo-Lozada, adult services assistant manager at Palos Verdes Library District in Rolling Hills Estates, CA, to weigh in on some key issues pertaining to ALA and librarianship; further information can be found on ALA’s Election Information page.

Library groups, authors, bookstores, and more have been speaking out against a recent rise in anti-Asian hate crimes and the recent murders in Atlanta, including pieces in the L.A. Times by Steph Cha, Your House Will Pay, and Sanjena Sathian, Gold Diggers, and interviews with Cathy Park Hong, Minor Feelings. Forthcoming book news includes Please Don't Sit On My Bed In Your Outside Clothes by Phoebe Robinson, Feels Like Home: A Song for the Sonoran Borderlands by Linda Ronstadt, and Child of Light by Terry Brooks. Joe Pickett, a 10-episode series based on the C.J. Box novels, is in the works. Plus, some adaptations out this week are City of Lies, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier, and The Runaway Bunny.

The Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene Editing, and the Future of the Human Race by Walter Isaacson starts at No. 1 on both the NYT Hardcover Nonfiction Best Sellers list and the USA Today Best-Selling Books list. Other new nonfiction titles debuting on bestsellers lists include Everything Will Be Okay by Dana Perino and How to Do the Work by Dr. Nicole LePera. Forthcoming book news includes the first English translation of Square Enix’s Kingdom Hearts: Character Files, a memoir from renowned sports agent Rich Paul, and a book of essays from comedian and actress Iliza Shlesinger. The shortlist for the New York Public Library's Helen Bernstein Book Award for Excellence in Journalism is up. City Primeval: High Noon in Detroit by Elmore Leonard will be adapted as a series for FX by the creators of Justified, and Warner Bros. and DC Films will adapt the comic Hourman as a feature film. Plus, the American Booksellers Association calls for the break up of Amazon.

On March 17, Ithaka S+R released results from its most recent survey of more than 600 academic library deans and directors across the United States. The report, “National Movements for Racial Justice and Academic Library Leadership,” looks at how their perspectives and strategies around diversity, equity, inclusion (EDI), and antiracism have changed over the last year, as well as their perceptions of COVID-19’s financial impacts on staff and faculty of color.

Oprah's latest Book Club focuses on the four Gilead novels by Marilynne Robinson: Gilead, Home, Lila, and Jack. The April book club pick from BuzzFeed is Of Women and Salt by Gabriela Garcia. Nicole Krauss has won the 2021 Sami Rohr Inspiration Award for Fiction. Actor Benedict Cumberbatch will narrate the audiobook version of Double Blind by Edward St. Aubyn. The forthcoming In the Heights: Finding Home will look at Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Broadway debut. Plus, the NYT speaks with a woman who recently returned a book to the Queens Public Library in New York—it was 63 years overdue.

The April Library Reads list is up, and the top pick is The Intimacy Experiment by Rosie Danan. The Year of Peril: America in 1942 by Tracy Campbell wins the New-York Historical Society’s Barbara and David Zalaznick Book Prize, and the finalists for the Nebula Awards and the Lambda Literary Awards are out. In forthcoming book news, actor Idris Elba is working on several children's books, and Hip-Hop (And Other Things) by Shea Serrano is due out Oct. 5. Shooting Midnight Cowboy: Art, Sex, Loneliness, Liberation, and the Making of a Dark Classic by Glenn Frankel gets a 4-star review from USA Today. Plus, see a trailer for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

With library branches closed or offering limited in-person services during much of 2020, that has often meant shifting to virtual offerings. But many people faced challenges accessing those online resources, according to “Public Libraries and the Pandemic: Digital Shifts and Disparities to Overcome,” a report published this month by New America, a Washington D.C.–based public policy think tank.

From the University of California: The University of California today (March 16) announced a pioneering open access agreement with the world’s largest scientific publisher, Elsevier, making significantly more of the University’s research available to people worldwide — immediately and at no cost.

How are librarians around the world innovating to improve user experience? How can librarians use space design to influence patron behavior? This curated collection of articles and book chapters from Taylor & Francis brings together perspectives from global librarians on important topics and challenges facing librarians today.

Laura Dave is the national and international bestselling author of #1 LibraryReads pick Eight Hundred Grapes, LibraryReads pick Hello Sunshine, and various other novels. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times; O, The Oprah Magazine; Ladies’ Home Journal; Glamour; Redbook; Self; and The New York Observer. 

This project celebrates local authors while promoting libraries as an essential literary and civic hub. In 2020, the collaboration’s inaugural Communities Create Award went to Planting People Growing Justice Leadership Institute, led by Dr. Artika Tyner, for the novel Justice Makes A Difference.

Win by Harlan Coben leads library holds this week. Other titles in demand include Wild Sign by Patricia Briggs, The Dating Plan by Sara Desai, and Not Dark Yet by Peter Robinson. The People "Picks" book of the week is We Begin at the End by Chris Whitaker. In awards news, Blowout by Rachel Maddow won the Grammy for Best Spoken Word Album, and the USC Libraries Scripter Awards, which honor the authors and directors of adaptations, go to Nomadland and The Queen’s Gambit. The Inheritance Trilogy by N.K. Jemisin has been optioned for series development. Plus, information about $135 million in relief funding that the NEH will distribute to libraries, archives, academic institutions, and more. 

Providing accurate and reliable information is a cornerstone of public librarianship, but over the last year librarians have been especially challenged by the pandemic, the election, and the increased visibility of conspiracy theories. Nonetheless, public librarians remain active on the front lines of the fight against misinformation and disinformation and continue to seek out new and more effective ways of helping their patrons apply information literacy principles in their daily lives.

Zack Snyder's Justice League, the four-hour director's cut of the 2017 film based on the DC Comics superhero team, premiers on HBO Max next week. In other news, a feature based on Writers & Lovers by Lily King, a series based on City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab, and a limited series of Fleishman Is in Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner are all in the works. Books getting positive reviews include Her Here by Amanda Dennis, You Don’t Belong Here: How Three Women Rewrote the Story of War by Elizabeth Becke, and The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together by Heather McGhee. Plus, a look at legislation in progress in Maryland regarding ebooks and public libraries.

From The Washington Post: Thirty House and Senate Democrats unveiled a new $94 billion proposal on Thursday to make broadband Internet access more accessible and affordable nationwide, aiming to remedy some of the digital inequalities that have kept millions of Americans offline during the coronavirus pandemic.

The lives and experiences of African Americans past and present in California’s Silicon Valley will be featured in a new collection at Stanford Libraries. Set to debut online later this year, “Histories of African Americans in Silicon Valley” is a project within the university’s Silicon Valley Archives. Dedicated to documenting the scientific and technological innovations that define the Bay Area’s high-tech region, the archive has existed for more than 30 years.

Among the many problems, including daunting refrigeration requirements, difficulty in traveling to centralized sites, and hesitancy driven in part by misinformation, was that most vaccine appointment registration is available only on the internet. And as few know better than librarians, a significant portion of the population lacks the devices, the connectivity, or the skills to use the web. 

Life After Death by Sister Souljah debuts at No. 1 on the NYT Hardcover Fiction Best Sellers list and No. 2 on the USA Today Best-Selling Books list. Other new titles on fiction bestseller lists this week include Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro, Later by Stephen King, and Dark Sky by C.J. Box. Hunt, Gather, Parent by Michaeleen Doucleff and Beyond Order by Jordan B. Peterson are new to the nonfiction bestseller lists. Fulfillment: Winning and Losing in One-Click America by Alec MacGillis, a new release about Amazon, gets positive reviews from the L.A. Times and the NYT, while The Washington Post digs into Amazon's ebook policies and how they're impacting libraries. In awards news, the 2021 Shortlist Finalists for the Joyce Carol Oates Prize are announced, with Danielle Evans, Jenny Offill, Darin Strauss, and Lysley Tenorio up for the $50,000 prize; and the longlist for the Women’s Prize for Fiction is also out. Adaptation news includes series in the works for Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison and The Burning Girls by CJ Tudor.

In a significant show of support, Congress earmarked billions of dollars in recovery funding for academic, public, and school libraries on Wednesday, March 10, as part of President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021. The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) received $200 million, the largest single boost in the agency’s 25-year history. The relief package also includes money for library-eligible programs such as the Emergency Education Connectivity Fund through the FCC’s E-rate program.

The Secret Lives of Church Ladies by Deesha Philyaw wins the 2020 Story Prize, which awards a $20,000 prize to collections of short fiction. Author Norton Juster, best known for The Phantom Tollbooth and The Dot and the Line, has died at age 91. The Off-Broadway opening for Blindness, an immersive audio adaptation of the book by José Saramago, is set for April 2. Adaptations in the works include an animated series based on the graphic novel series Slam! co-creted by Pamela Ribon and Veronica Fish, and a series based on The Wives by Tarryn Fisher. Plus, the Loanstars April list is up, and EarlyWord's GalleyChat for March is out.

From an American Libraries Association Statement: Libraries are eligible for billions of dollars in recovery funding as part of the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) of 2021 passed by Congress on Wednesday, March 10, 2021.