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Fady Joudah, author of the collection […], wins the Jackson Poetry Prize for American poets. Winners of the Tolkien Society Awards are announced. Finalists are also announced for NYPL’s Young Lions Fiction Award and the Jhalak Awards. Nominees for the CrimeFest Awards are out. Actor Viola Davis and her husband are launching a publishing company to champion underrepresented voices. Facing criticism for its response to the war in Gaza, PEN announces plans to review the organization’s work going back a decade.

Winners are announced for the Publishing Triangle Awards for LGBTQIA+ books. Of Cattle and Men by Ana Paula Maia, tr. by Zoë Perry, wins the UK Republic of Consciousness Prize for small press books. The shortlist for the Donner Prize, recognizing the best public policy book by a Canadian, is announced. There’s more reporting on the turmoil surrounding the PEN Awards. Plus new title bestsellers and interviews with Marjane Satrapi and Emily Henry.

Real-life courtroom battles are shared by John Grisham and Jim McCloskey as they detail accounts of wrongful conviction; plus a new Malcolm Gladwell book is on the way. 

Rebecca Yarros will publish a stand-alone novel, Variation, in October. Kemi Ashing-Giwa wins the Compton Crook Award for The Splinter in the Sky. Oren Kessler wins the  Sami Rohr Prize for Jewish Literature for Palestine 1936: The Great Revolt and the Roots of the Middle East Conflict. The Commonwealth Short Story Prize shortlist is announced. The May LibraryReads list arrives, featuring top pick The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton. LibraryReads and LJ offer read-alikes for A Calamity of Souls by David Baldacci. Mick Herron’s Down Cemetery Road and Don Winslow’s City on Fire are slated for adaptations.

This extensive database of previously unaggregated primary-source documents provides a view of the United States government’s documentation of a crucial period in U.S. and Indigenous history. A valuable resource for researchers seeking firsthand reports in U.S. political and military history.

Two memoirs not to miss: one from cooking maven Ina Garten and another from the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.

LJ Best Book author Hailey Piper offers a twist on vampire mythology; plus new books from Kelley Armstrong, Richard Chizmar, and Stoker Lifetime Achievement Award-winner Nuzo Onoh.

A Calamity of Souls by David Baldacci is the top holds title of the week. LibraryReads and Library Journal offer read-alikes for patrons waiting to read this buzziest book.

Stephen A. Marshall’s latest book, Hymenoptera: The Natural History and Diversity of Wasps, Bees and Ants, was one of LJ’s Best Print Reference picks for 2023 and also won the prestigious Dartmouth Medal. LJ invited Marshall to reflect upon the definition of reference, his approach to writing and research, and his fieldwork.

Monika Kim is a second-generation Korean American living in Los Angeles’s Koreatown. She learned about eating fish eyes from her mother, who immigrated to LA from Seoul in 1985. The Eyes Are the Best Part is her first novel.

SFF titles that offer out-of-this-world charm.

A new PEN America report out today, Banned In The USA: Narrating the Crisis, documents nearly 4,000 accounts of book banning in the first half of the current school year. Major publishers have joined Penguin Random House in supporting a suit challenging Iowa’s book ban. Finalists are announced for the  Gotham Book Prize, the Nova Scotia Book Awards, and the Atlantic Book Awards. Washington Post reports on the growing popularity of silent book clubs. Author Robin Cook has two new film/TV projects, including an adaptation of his forthcoming book Bellevue and a procedural featuring his iconic characters Jack Stapleton and Laurie Montgomery.

A Calamity of Souls by David Baldacci leads holds this week. Also getting buzz are titles by James Patterson and Candice Fox, Anthony Horowitz, Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke, and Sara Paretsky. People’s book of the week is My Beloved Monster: Masha, the Half-Wild Rescue Cat Who Rescued Me by Caleb Carr. Salman Rushdie speaks about the attack that almost took his life and writing his new book, Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder. As Robert M. Pirsig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance turns 50 this year, fans will re-create his famous motorcycle ride. Plus, NYT celebrates 100 years of Simon & Schuster.

The winners of the Oregon Book Award are announced, as are the shortlists for the Tolkien Society Awards for excellence in Tolkien scholarship and fandom. PBS News Hour reports on the librarians fighting attempts to ban books. Plus Page to Screen.

Encourage environmentally friendly living with a display full of books that offer ideas on wasting less and helping the planet.

Offer some home decorating inspiration with a display full of beautiful books on how to adorn one’s abode.

The winners of the Whiting Award for emerging authors are announced. Also announced are the shortlists for the Fortnum & Mason Food and Drink Awards for British food writing and the Romantic Novelists’ Association’s Romantic Novel of the Year Awards, the longlists for the League of Canadian Poets Prizes, and the nominees for the Doug Wright Awards for best Canadian comics.

The newest edition of Life+Style features key reads across cooking, crafts, fashion, gardening, interior design, self-help, travel, and more.

The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo is the top holds title of the week. LibraryReads and Library Journal offer read-alikes for patrons waiting to read this buzziest book.

Hollywood and musical memoirs are highlights, along with a memoir about reading and books, science, and the supernatural. 

These collections feature literary observations and reminiscences from Deborah Levy and Steve Wasserman and humorous insights from comedians Randy Rainbow and Jenny Slate.

Emil Ferris grew up during the turbulent 1960s in Chicago, where she still lives, and is consequently a devotee of all things monstrous and horrific. She has an MFA in creative writing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.

The International Booker Prize shortlist and PEN America Literary Awards longlists are announced. Civil rights attorney Ben Crump will write a series of crime novels. How To Solve Your Own Murder by Kristen Perrin and Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra go head-to-head for a chance to be named the new Fallon Book Club pick. Earlyword’s April GalleyChat roundup arrives. Ina Garten previews her forthcoming memoir, Be Ready When the Luck Happens. Renée Zellweger will return as Bridget Jones in a new adaptation, Bridget Jones: Mad About the Boy, based on the novels by Helen Fielding. 

Two books that explore the talent, creativity, and deep appeal of the Fab Four.

Richly detailed worldbuilding and inspiration from the Persephone myth all lend to a layered, immersive storyline in Sangoyomi’s debut.

Coryell’s engrossing bent comedy isn’t afraid to delve into scathing and frank analyses of modern dating culture, American classism, and serial killer fixation, while still being a thrilling read with twists throughout. 

This genre of feel-good fiction has been a hit in Japan and South Korea. Share these English-language translations with patrons on a display shelf.

Comics play to their strengths this season, stressing layout and mood while also supporting reader interests in works of horror and adaptation.

The daughter of Mama Cass Elliot of the Mamas & the Papas and Blondie guitarist Chris Stein share life stories centered in sound.

The Carol Shields Prize for Fiction shortlist and the Plutarch Award longlist are announced. Heinz Janisch and Sydney Smith win Hans Christian Andersen Awards. NYPL announces 21 winners of its national teen writing contest on the freedom to read. Interviews arrive with Doris Kearns Goodwin, Percival Everett, Lauren Wesley Wilson, and Anne Lamott. Dolores Redondo’s “Baztan” novel series will be adapted for television. And Raymond Pun is elected to the ALA presidency for 2025–2026.

It’s National Library Week, and ALA releases a list of the top 10 most challenged books of 2023, along with the “State of America’s Libraries Report 2024.” The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo leads holds this week. Also buzzing are books by John Sandford, Megan Miranda, Yulin Kuang, and Amanda Montell. People’s book of the week is Table for Two: Fictions by Amor Towles. James Patterson, The Secret Lives of Booksellers and Librarians: True Stories of the Magic of Reading, and librarian Mychal Threets discuss book bans, bookstores, and libraries with USA Today. The Ondaatje Prize releases its 2024 longlist.

The winners of the British Science Fiction Association Awards and the Sheikh Zayed Book Awards are announced. The shortlist is announced for the Stella Prize. Horror novel sales have boomed recently. BookTok-favorite romance novelist T L Swan launches a publishing venture. Plus a report from PLA.

Reese’s Book Club selects Claire Lombardo’s The Most Fun We Ever Had as its next read. Hotline by Dimitri Nasrallah is the 2024 pick for the One eRead Canada book club. This year’s Independent Bookstore Day will be held on April 27. Fantasy novelist Sharon Green has died at age 79.

Claire Jiménez wins the 2024 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction for What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez. The Windham-Campbell Prizes are announced. Remembrances arrive for writer John Barth, who has died at age 93. Justice Anthony M. Kennedy will publish a two-part memoir this fall, and Joan Baez will publish her first book of poetry later this month. LitHub reports on the fallout from the collapse of Small Press Publishing. LibraryReads and LJ offer read-alikes for Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez. 

All the September 2024 Prepub Alerts in one place, plus a downloadable spreadsheet of all titles from every post.

Bethany Jacobs wins the Philip K. Dick Award for These Burning Stars. The Chesley Award winners are announced, as are Audiofile’s April 2024 Earphones Award winners. April book club picks include The Husbands by Holly Gramazio (Read with Jenna), Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez (GMA), and I Cheerfully Refuse by Leif Enger (B&N). Don Winslow discusses his new novel, City in Ruins, and why it will be his final book. TV adaptations are on the way for Alexandra Tanner’s Worry, and Liza Palmer’s Family Reservations.

Lee’s latest is a tender and sexy romance that foodies will absolutely devour. A great read for fans of commoner-and-royalty storylines, such as Alyssa Cole’s “Reluctant Royals” series.

National Library Week is celebrated during April, and these multitalented authors have also worked in libraries. Recognize them with a display!

A believable, timely, edge-of-one’s-seat thriller involving climate change and a virus...it’s disaster on a grand scale.

Dragon, witches, and myths abound this month, and there's even a Pride and Prejudice retelling set in space.

Several paranormal romances, featuring wolves, witches, and ghosts, and holiday stories set during Christmas and Hanukkah are out this month.

Ranging from cozy to dangerous these romances set in fantasy worlds offer magical artifacts, swordsmen, pirates, and life-and-death choices.

Collections to celebrate National Poetry Month. Slip into blossom season and savor sound, lyric, and line.

In Chandrasekera’s newest, the characters’ journey through fantastical worlds across millennia is reminiscent of This Is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone. Recommended for fans of ambitious speculative fiction that tackles systems of oppression in fresh ways.