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Reese Witherspoon picks We Were Never Here by Andrea Bartz and Jenna Bush Hager picks The Turnout by Megan Abbott for August book clubs. The 2021 Mythopoeic Awards Finalists are announced. Read-alikes, reviews, and interviews roll in for the buzziest book of the week, Billy Summers by Stephen King. Interviews arrive with Cecily Strong, Tracey Lange, Deborah Copaken, Halimah Marcus, Charlotte McConaghy, Nneka M. Okonaabout, Naomi Hirahara, Melissa Shapiro, Anna Qu, James Lapine, and Sarah Ferguson. Stephenie Meyer’s Midnight Sun and Twilight saga books will be reissued with new covers in 2022. Plus, Mercedes Lackey’s ‘Valdemar Universe’ fantasy series will be adapted for TV.
Fall sweeps in with 133 books that collection development and readers’ advisory librarians will want to know, read, share, and buy.
LJ editors highlight personal favorites among the new slate of fall 2021 books. Selections span romance, biography, suspense, art, gardening, poetry, and more, including key debuts and the return of favorite authors.
Award–winning author and editor Roxane Gay discusses the launch of her new imprint at Grove Atlantic, part of a welcome and necessary change in publishing.
From the first Kennedys and the contributions of enslaved Africans to public monuments and LGBTQ+ life in Washington politics.
B&N's August book club pick is Sandie Jones's The Guilt Trip while Good Morning America picks The Husbands by Chandler Baker. The August 2021 Earphones Award Winners arrive at Audiofile. The 2021 Vivian Award winners were announced, courting controversy. The 2021 New England Book Award (NEIBA) announces finalists. Damnation Spring by Ash Davidson, Something New Under the Sun by Alexandra Kleeman, and Here, Right Matters: An American Story by Alexander Vindman get reviewed. Profiles and reviews of the late Anthony Veasna So continue. Interviews arrive with Chandler Baker, Dolly Alderton, Alexander Vindman, and Sara Kamali. Plus, Reese Witherspoon's company Hello Sunshine sells for $900 million.
LibraryReads and Library Journal offer read-alikes for patrons waiting to read Billy Summers by Stephen King.
LJ ’s first readers’ advisory (RA) survey in eight years found that RA is a growing practice, but librarians want more training and tools to do it better, particularly in genres they don’t read for pleasure. Can crowdsourcing help RA keep up?
Essential titles reviewed in our August 2021 print issue, spanning mystery and suspense, SF/fantasy, social sciences, reference, audiobooks, and more.
Stephen King reigns over holds lists this week with Billy Summers. Three LibraryReads and fourteen Indie Next selections publish this week. People's book of the week is The Turnout by Megan Abbott. The August Costco Connection is out with picks Billy Summers by Stephen King and The Guest List by Lucy Foley. Interviews arrive with Jason Reynolds and Rebecca Donner. Anthony Veasna So's posthumous debut Afterparties gets critical attention.
A vivid tale of adventure and discovery that will draw in all history lovers. Reséndez’s skillful writing is fast-paced, inviting, and descriptive, setting this book apart.
This important book will be useful for students of late 20th-century politics and society, and of the legacy of public interest movements..
PREMIUM
The Secret Staircase
The final installment in Connolly’s series wraps up the mystery of the Barton family. Connolly died in 2020, before she could write books about renovations of the house and village. The descriptions of the house and family life are slow-paced, but the author’s fans will want to finish the series.
The second collaboration between Hawke (A Bright Ray of Darkness) and Ruth (Freaks of the Heartland) is an emotionally complex hard-boiled thriller.
PREMIUM
The Van Gogh Sisters
Buy where fine art, feminism, group biographies of women, or biographies like Steven Naifeh and Gregory White Smith’s Van Gogh: The Life are popular.
Profound and thought-provoking, this work is recommended for anyone who wants to understand the structural inequities of the U.S. educational system.
With this fast-moving, informative, evenhanded, and exhaustive biography, de Visé vividly captures King’s life.
Academic library administrators who hope to promote proactive innovative change in their libraries will find this a valuable read.
PREMIUM
The Postscript Murders
Reminiscent of the work of Golden Age writers like Agatha Christie or Dorothy L. Sayers, Griffiths’s latest will be a hit with listeners who enjoyed Richard Osman’s The Thursday Murder Club or Anthony Horowitz’s Magpie Murders.
PREMIUM
Sensor
Though it lacks the intense, visceral thrill of his best work, the latest manga from prolific creator Ito (Lovesickness) is still a chillingly unpredictable tale of cosmic horror that builds to an apocalyptic, yet strangely hopeful ending.
Highly recommended for instruction and liaison librarians at academic libraries. Instruction librarians will especially appreciate the detailed lesson plans, complete with learning outcomes, necessary materials, and more. Readers interested in library instruction lesson plans should also consider Ray Pun and Meggan Houlihan’s The First-Year Experience Cookbook.
PREMIUM
Dust to Dust
The follow-up to Murder at Hotel 1911 is a slow-moving, character-driven story. Keown has created sympathetic, realistic characters, including a young boy on the autism spectrum, and portrays Ivy’s struggles with anxiety. It takes a while for the story to unwind, with all the background Keown reintroduces, so this mystery is suggested only for those who read the series’ first book.
PREMIUM
Crown of Cinders
The sequel to Wings of Fury centers Hera as the mastermind of the battle between the Titans and Olympians. King’s feminist retelling broadens myth with family, fury, and power.
PREMIUM
Sankofa
Themes that Onuzo visited in 2018’s Welcome to Lagos, including unscrupulous politicians, irresponsible journalism, and the yawning gap between rich and poor, feel deeply personal as Anna’s journey unfolds. Though the quest for identity has become a conventional staple of contemporary fiction, it feels fresh and new in Onuzo’s capable hands.
PREMIUM
Intimacies
Few things are more intimate (and terrifying) than the act of being in the world, and Kitamura’s evocative interrogation of our ability to know ourselves and others is reinforced by the strength of her spare, haunting prose.
Ideal for book groups and for readers who enjoyed Taylor Jenkins Reid’s Daisy Jones & the Six, Susan Elizabeth Phillips’s Dance Away with Me, or Nicholas Sparks’s novels.
PREMIUM
You Can Run
Cleveland weaves technology, motherhood, and spydom’s skullduggery into a taut, alluring web. Acclaimed for fiendishly clever plotting, she whips up the story to a breakneck pace, then rewards readers with a knockout ending. Fans of Stella Rimington’s series about MI5 agent Liz Carlyle will thrill to the steely grit and brave hearts of Jill and Alex.
Fledgling artists may have a love-it-or-leave-it approach to the vivid and vibrant aesthetic of the craft projects included in this book, but fans (and there are many) of the company’s glittery artistic vision who want to recreate this sparkling experience for themselves will be delighted.
Cushman never fully demonstrates his argument that Civil War memoirs led to the emphasis on individual actors, rather than the collective people, as the touchstones of Americans’ reflections on their “self” thereafter. Regardless, this deep analysis of the process of creating and selling the memoir’s persona and form adds new insight to the subject of the Civil War memoir. A fascinating tour de force of scholarship.
Mattioli (Joe Galaxy) pushes the raging libidinousness and exaggerated violence found in many classic cartoons to berserk extremes in this thoroughly demented, wildly entertaining dark comedy.
PREMIUM
Another Kind of Eden
Dark backstories linger behind each complex character in this action-packed novel. Readers who first meet Aaron here will want to read previous novels in Burke’s “Holland Family” saga.
PREMIUM
Cajun Kiss of Death
The seventh “Cajun County Mystery” (after Murder in the Bayou Boneyard) wraps up the award-winning series. Fans will want to read this final volume, which resolves the futures of Maggie, Bo, and the other beloved characters from a comforting series that brings Cajun food, culture, and music together.
PREMIUM
The Shaadi Set-Up
Vale’s bittersweet, slow-burn story of lost love and difficult choices is lightened by plenty of humor and charming characters. It will please fans of Jasmine Guillory, Sonali Dev, or Tessa Bailey’s “Hot & Hammered” series of renovation-themed romances.
Blood, loyalty, and lives are gained and lost in the powerful finale of the “Green Bone Saga.” Lee’s series will stand as a pillar of epic fantasy and family drama.
Based on the true story of the 6888th, Alderson’s debut tells of the first women officers in the armed services (also the first Black women to serve, and the only all-Black, female U.S. battalion deployed overseas in World War II). For fans of Hidden Figures and untold stories of heroes and heroines of World War II.
PREMIUM
When Sparks Fly
Readers looking for a good friends-to-lovers or forced-proximity romance will enjoy. Recommended for general purchase.
This is a worthy resource for artisans wishing to expand their knowledge of pottery glazes. Explanations are clear, and the photographs of finished pieces might inspire readers to advance their skills. Experienced ceramists especially will find useful information in this comprehensive work, to take their pottery to a higher level of artistry.
PREMIUM
Food Inequalities
Allen aggregates much information and describes pervasive, distressing connections between food and systemic social inequality; the book’s ambitious but unscholarly approach, however, contrasts with such scholarly treatments as Alison Hope Alkon’s Cultivating Food Justice.
For readers seeking a get-it-done training manual, this inexpensive, thorough guidebook offers exceptional guidance without a lot of distraction. Appropriate for all audiences.
PREMIUM
Mom Jeans and Other Mistakes
Readers of this hilarious, heartfelt novel will feel like they’re chatting with their BFF. It dives deep into family issues but keeps readers on their toes as Jude and Lauren deal with what life throws at them.
The definitive story of an American tragedy and a notable cautionary tale of climate change, corporate negligence, and insufficient planning. Highly recommended.
PREMIUM
The 3 M’s of Fearless Digital Parenting: Proven Tools To Help You Raise Smart and Savvy Online Kids
This book may help parents gain confidence as they navigate the sometimes-choppy waters of children’s technology use.
PREMIUM
Ex Libris
Madden (99 Ways To Tell a Story) displays a keen mastery of numerous visual and narrative styles. A formally inventive, deeply emotional tale, reminiscent of Italo Calvino’s If On a Winter’s Night a Traveler.
PREMIUM
Afternoon at McBurger’s
Galvañ presents this speculative fiction novella in oddly angular compositions filled out with bright blocks of pastel and primary colors, making it as visually distinctive as it is emotionally resonant.
Miller’s background as a lawyer in New York brings an authenticity to this intense, intricately plotted thriller. The politics and menacing atmosphere combine in a promising debut.
PREMIUM
The Quicksilver Court
Caruso’s follow-up to The Obsidian Tower expands the detailed worldbuilding and imperial machinations of this magic-steeped empire, while Ryxander continues to grow as a diplomat and heroine.
PREMIUM
Antoni: Let’s Do Dinner
Porowski delivers clear recipes for speedy, tasty food in an attractive book. While there is no shortage of cookbooks on this subject, this resource has enough substance to be worthwhile for anyone seeking weeknight meal ideas and will be particularly appealing to Porowski’s fans.
PREMIUM
A Slow Fire Burning
Hawkins (The Girl on the Train; Into the Water) returns with another novel of psychological suspense, sure to top best-seller lists. She takes seemingly ordinary characters and peers deeply into their complicated lives, skillfully building tension and keeping readers guessing.
PREMIUM
The Free Bastards
A satisfactory conclusion to French’s trilogy, full of all the blood, battles, and profanities readers expect from the Bastards.
Rambo (Tabat Quartet) launches a delightful, action-filled space jaunt, packed with engaging alien species, a bioship that learns emotions, and witty references.
Browsing through this lushly illustrated book is like spending a day exploring secret spaces. Most readers won’t be able to cultivate dream gardens like these, but anyone will be able to find inspiration for their own garden here.
A necessary and compelling read for scholars, activists, and storytellers interested in inclusive revisions to the hero’s canon.
PREMIUM
Be My Ghost
Perry (“Witch City” series) kicks off a character-rich series with this installment, which leaves unresolved Maureen’s mysterious connection to Penelope Gray, for future books. Readers of E. J. Copperman’s “Haunted Guesthouse” mysteries will enjoy this title.
With searing insight, Hill shows how much and how little things have changed since 1991. Her book gives hope, inspires activism, and discourages complacency.
PREMIUM
Freedom’s Song
Sawyer (“Heart of the Prairie” series) captures a yearning spirit associated with the American West in hardworking, earnest characters who strengthen their faith through song and personal introspection. There are few surprises here, but fans of traditional Christian fiction will find much to like.
PREMIUM
The Girl with Stars in Her Eyes
Recommended for fans of heartfelt, slow-burn contemporary romances and listeners interested in rock band storylines, strong women characters, and second-chance love.
Most reference works about Medicare and Medicaid focus on benefits, provider requirements, Medicaid planning and application, health care fraud, or the single-payer concept; this volume sets itself apart, offering a detailed, nuanced look at the debate around public health care. A fascinating, useful book.
A much-needed volume from an adoptee’s perspective; sure to be a must-read for parents who adopt. Recommend alongside Nicole Chung’s memoir All You Can Ever Know.
A helpful and enjoyable read for the growing population of dads at home, in a market saturated with books for moms.
PREMIUM
56 Days
Howard crafts likable characters, witty banter, and clever POV shifts throughout, but readers may need a strong neck to withstand the whiplash of frequent time jumps. This quibble aside, Howard has written an eerie, twisty story ripped from current headlines, in which a global pandemic becomes the foreboding hypotenuse of a dangerous love triangle.
For fans of any of the iterations of the Windsor story; an absorbing biography of important figures that will generate a lot of interest.
In full color, with step-by-step instructions, Irvine’s guide will no doubt inspire hours of fun outside.
Donner’s meticulous research and novelist’s sensibility make for a riveting biography of a remarkable and brave woman; there’s also good insight into the German Resistance. Readers of Erik Larson’s biography In the Garden of Beasts will appreciate Donner’s different perspective on the same historical events and figures. Recommended to all who enjoy engaging narrative nonfiction.
PREMIUM
A Certain Appeal
Readers who enjoy sexy contemporary romance will be charmed by King’s light, irreverent retelling of Pride and Prejudice, set in the New York City burlesque scene.
PREMIUM
Her Perfect Life
Ryan has a sure hand with her page-turning, twisty plotting and complex, multifaceted characters. Readers looking for a fast, thrilling read will love this one.
A unique, beautifully crafted work that will resonate with artists, gardeners, botanists, farmers, growers, agricultural students, and anyone interested in fruit and nut trivia.
PREMIUM
Red Island House
Listeners expecting a traditional novel may not have the patience for Lee’s nonlinear narrative, but those who do will long remember the characters that Lee and Turpin have brought to life.
A devastating story of loss that becomes a story of societal resilience; essential reading for anyone seeking insight on gun violence.
The story of unwed Irish mothers losing their babies to forced adoptions is similar to books and films like Philomena, but Freud’s (Mr. Mac and Me) telling is fresh and moving. The mystery of whether the three women will ever reconnect gives the novel urgency.
Cliff is an expert writer who artfully takes on a complex subject in a comprehensible, entertaining, and humorous manner. He even describes his own childhood attempt to uncover the chemical composition of an apple pie. This fascinating work is highly recommended.
PREMIUM
Men Are Frogs
Suggest this Fairy Godmothers, Inc. sequel to fans of Hallmark movies who want something a little risqué.
PREMIUM
The Seventh Queen
A satisfying conclusion that showcases intriguing characters, epic worldbuilding, and all the political and personal scheming a reader could want.
MacLean’s dedicated fan base will be eagerly awaiting this novel, but it will also appeal to other romance readers who are unfamiliar with her body of work. Highly recommended for general purchase.
Holton’s exhaustive, masterfully written chronicle demonstrates that the Revolution was much more than a movement instigated by the political ideologies of a handful of elite, revered (although flawed) Founding Fathers against the British parliament and king. This book will be pivotal for scholars and requested by American history enthusiasts.
Turrell’s enthusiasm for the topic, as well as his clear and easy-to-understand explanations of the physics involved in nuclear fusion, make this a thought-provoking read for anyone interested in learning about the cutting-edge technology that’s being applied to solving the climate crisis.
Ladau has written an essential resource that readers can refer to at any time, browsing chapters individually or reading straight through. A must for libraries and fans of Disability Visibility, by Alice Wong.
PREMIUM
The Light of Luna Park
This moving debut showcases the power of storytelling behind historical fiction. Armstrong highlights the novelty, frustration, and strength of rebellious action behind a medical marvel we take for granted today. For fans of Kate Moore’s The Radium Girls and Emma Donoghue’s The Pull of the Stars.
PREMIUM
All Her Little Secrets
In her debut thriller, corporate attorney Morris deftly combines a creepy Nazi-esque sect with a murderous plot and rounds out the intrigue with a striking commentary on racism, sexual assault, and misogyny.
PREMIUM
Graveyard Fields
The unconventional heroes of this debut are exaggerated, awkward characters in a story that progresses from tragedy to dark humor. Fans of irreverent crime novels with flawed protagonists will appreciate it.
An important story about the transformative power of the arts, and the generational struggles of being a refugee.
Painful and personal, yet beautiful and necessary, this book deserves to be read for its political significance and literary merit. Burke’s writing shines when she describes finding her voice as an aspiring activist.
PREMIUM
See Jane Snap
Crandell’s (The Jake Ryan Complex) second adult novel is a fast-paced, thought-provoking, often humorous look at the choices we make and their effects on us and the people we care about. For fans of women’s fiction focusing on self-worth and family.
A must-read work of narrative nonfiction that’s highly recommended for readers of memoirs or 20th-century European history.
Thoroughly researched, clearly written, and eye-opening in major and minor ways, this book will be valuable not only to academics but to all readers.
A quick read that encourages accepting uncertainty and imperfect results to build resilience. Will appeal broadly to librarians, particularly those in management and leadership positions.
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