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RUSA Book & Media Awards

The 2024 RUSA Book and Media Awards were announced Saturday, including the Notable Books List, Reading List, Listen List, Essential Cookbooks, Dartmouth Medal, and Outstanding References Sources List. James McBride’s The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store (Riverhead; LJ starred review) is the winner of the Sophie Brody Medal. 

The 2024 Andrew Carnegie Medal winners are announced, with The Berry Pickers by Amanda Peters (Catapult) winning the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction, and We Were Once a Family: A Story of Love, Death, and Child Removal in America by Roxanna Asgarian (Farrar) winning the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction. USA Today has coverage.

Big Books of the Week

Random in Death by J.D. Robb (St. Martin’s) leads holds this week.

Other titles in demand include:

No One Can Know by Kate Alice Marshall (Flatiron)

The Friendship Club by Robyn Carr (MIRA)

The Clinic by Cate Quinn (Sourcebooks Landmark)

Family Family by Laurie Frankel (Holt; LJ starred review)

These books and others publishing the week of January 22, 2024, are listed in a downloadable spreadsheet.

Librarians and Booksellers Suggest

Five LibraryReads and five Indie Next picks publish this week:

Diva by Daisy Goodwin (St. Martin’s; LJ starred review) *Good for Book Clubs

“Readers get behind the scenes of Maria Callas’s life and her complicated relationships. She’d hoped to marry Aristotle Onassis, but instead he wed Jackie Kennedy. Callas ended up alone, even with all the money and accolades for her phenomenal soprano voice. This fictional portrait takes some creative license, but that doesn't detract from this well-researched portrait of an international superstar.”—Sandra Meyers, Frankford Public Library, DE

The Busy Body by Donovan Kemper (John Scognamiglio Bks.: Kensington; LJ starred review)

“A very talented ghostwriter signs on to help a failed female presidential candidate (shades of you know who!) write her memoir. Their initial work weekend is going well until there is a mysterious drowning next door. The politician feels called upon to investigate, taking her ghostwriter along—a Watson to her Holmes. An enjoyable mystery tale ensues.”—Joan Hipp, Florham Park Public Library, NJ

It is also an Indie Next pick:

“This crazy caper will keep you eagerly turning the pages until the mystery is solved. The funky cast of characters are all-too relatable and their exploits keep getting nuttier until the final reveal. This is a fun, truly entertaining read.”—Sarah Badger, Bright Side Bookshop, Flagstaff, AZ

The Nonfiction Bonus Pick is Who Owns This Sentence?: A History of Copyrights and Wrongs by David Bellos & Alexandre Montagu (Norton)

“Copyright is often defended as an immutable concept handed down through the generations, but this brisk and entertaining history outlines the truth of its complicated history, and illuminates the ways in which it has increasingly been weaponized by contemporary corporations. A gem of narrative nonfiction with wide appeal, bound to be especially savored by anyone with a stake in the future of intellectual property.”—Stephanie Anderson, LibraryReads Board Member

The Bonus Pick is Family Family by Laurie Frankel (Holt; LJ starred review)

“What makes a family a family? The answer, of course, can be complicated. In her usual fashion, Frankel spins a story filled with funny, smart, thoughtful humans who are dealing with this question the best way they can. India Allwood, a well-known actor, responds to a question about her latest film, an adoption story, and the viral response to her answer sends her family and world reeling. Through flashbacks of India’s life, and present-day experiences with her family under siege, multiple voices point the way to an answer that seems simple: a family is whatever you say it is. A great choice for book clubs and for readers who like character-driven novels exploring real societal issues.”—Kelly Currie, LibraryReads Board Member

It is also an Indie Next pick:

“Laurie Frankel is becoming one of my must-read authors. In Family Family, she weaves a complex story around families formed and cemented by adoption. Frankel’s books are gems for handselling; I can’t wait to put this into readers’ hands.”—Jen Geraedts, Beagle and Wolf Books & Bindery, Park Rapids, MN

The Clinic by Cate Quinn (Sourcebooks Landmark)

“Meg enters an exclusive rehab facility undercover after the supposed suicide of her sister. In the process, she exposes some ugly truths about people who profess to have her best interests at heart. Quinn does a terrific job creating quirky characters and keeping readers guessing. The unexpected twists and eerie location make this a great pick for readers in the mood for atmospheric suspense!”—Michelle Meeks, Wetumpka Public Library, AL

Three additional Indie Next picks publish this week:

The Bullet Swallower by Elizabeth Gonzalez James (S. & S.; LJ starred review)

“Based on stories passed down through her family, the author weaves a shimmering tale of a bandido on a mission to avenge his brother’s death. The Bullet Swallower invites us to consider how we—and our families—can repay our karmic debts.”—Victoria Ford, Comma, a Bookshop, Minneapolis, MN

The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett (Atria)

“Sometimes you just need a twisting, British-set mystery—this is the perfect book for that reading mood! It unfolds in layers, told through transcripts and messages, raising questions to the very riveting end.”—Caitlin Doggart, Where the Sidewalk Ends, Chatham, MA

Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar (Knopf)

“Kaveh Akbar is a major new voice in American literature and Martyr! is his tour de force. In a mix of penetrating insight and profoundly funny stories, this entertaining and moving tale holds a mirror up to our society.”—Casey Protti, Bookshop Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA

In the Media

People’s book of the week is Muse: Cicely Tyson and Me; A Relationship Forged in Fashion by B Michael (Amistad). Also getting attention are Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar (Knopf) and Lovers in Auschwitz: A True Story by Keren Blankfeld (Little, Brown). “New in Family Sagas” features Family Family by Laurie Frankel (Holt; LJ starred review), The Storm We Made by Vanessa Chan (S.& S./Marysue Rucci), and The Bullet Swallower by Elizabeth Gonzalez James (S. & S.; LJ starred review).

The “Picks” section spotlights Origin, based on Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson on Neon. There is a feature on gymnast Maggie Nichols and her new memoir, Unstoppable!: My Journey from World Champion to Athlete A to 8-Time NCAA National Gymnastics Champion and Beyond (Roaring Brook). Plus, recipes from Natasha Kravchuk, Natasha's Kitchen: 100+ Easy Family-Favorite Recipes You'll Make Again and Again (Clarkson Potter), and Robert Downey Jr., Cool Food: Erasing Your Carbon Footprint One Bite at a Time (Blackstone).

Reviews

NYT reviews The Lede: Dispatches from a Life in the Press by Calvin Trillin (Random): “New money for old rope, in other words. But it makes sense to have this material in one place, and this book is buoyant and crunchy from end to end”; Disillusioned: Five Families and the Unraveling of America’s Suburbs by Benjamin Herold (Penguin Pr.): “The multiple rotating narratives can feel disorienting, and the results are uneven. But each suburb’s history is engrossing, and Herold, a journalist who has frequently reported on public education, delivers an up-close, intimate account of life there that resounds with broader meaning”; The Showman: Inside the Invasion That Shook the World and Made a Leader of Volodymyr Zelensky by Simon Shuster (Morrow; LJ starred review): “While Shuster’s admiration for his subject is palpable, he never tips over into hagiography”; The Rebel’s Clinic: The Revolutionary Lives of Frantz Fanon by Adam Shatz (Farrar): “Shatz portrays a man whose penchant for ‘rhetorical extremity’ could obscure how horrified he was by the brutality he had seen”; Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar (Knopf): “Like Scheherazade, like all who are fractured and struggling to assemble the pieces, Akbar and Cyrus tell stories—beautiful, tragic, laughing stories—so that the unspeakable will not have the last word”; and Dead in Long Beach, California by Venita Blackburn (MCD): “Told by machines from the future, Blackburn’s idiosyncratic grief novel is as freshly devastating as they come.” Washington Post also reviews: “At its best, the authoritative and bizarre voice of the guides gives the book a playful quality that keeps it buoyant.”

WSJ reviews Optimal: How To Sustain Personal and Organizational Excellence Every Day by Daniel Goleman & Cary Cherniss (Harper Business): “The authors are most convincing when they show how emotional intelligence does, practically, pay off for people and organizations.”

Briefly Noted

American Libraries reports from the 2024 LibLearnX conference.

NYT features poet Crystal Wilkinson’s new book, Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts: Stories and Recipes from Five Generations of Black Country Cooks (Clarkson Potter; LJ starred review).

WSJ asks AI for film, TV and book recommendations.

CrimeReads suggests 10 new books for the week. 

People recommends the best books of the month. 

Elle shares “The Best (and Most Anticipated) Fiction Books of 2024, So Far.”

BBC previews “45 of 2024’s most anticipated books.”

LitHub explores “Why Is March 2024 the Best Month in Years for Books?”

ElectricLit shares “9 Literary Mysteries With a Big Winter Mood.”

Washington Post looks at Ben Rothenberg’s new biography, Naomi Osaka: Her Journey to Finding Her Power and Her Voice (Dutton). 

The Rumpus talks with Zachary Pace about their new essay collection, I Sing To Use the Waiting (Two Dollar Radio).

Actor Anthony Hopkins tells People he is writing his biography. There is no publication date set.

NYT considers Nikki Haley’s three published books.

“Charles O. Jones, Expert on Congress and the Presidency, Dies at 92.” NYT has an obituary. 

“Lev Rubinstein, Russian Poet and a Critic of Putin, Is Dead at 76.” NYT has an obituary. 

Authors on Air

Director Ava DuVernay discusses her new film, Origin, based on Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson, with NPR’s Fresh Air.

Netflix will adapt Harlan Coben’s Missing You and Run Away into a limited series, following the success of its adaptation of Coben’s Fool Me Once. Deadline reports.

Robert McCammon’s Swan Song (Gallery) will be adapted for television, Deadline reports.

Common, And Then We Rise: A Guide to Loving and Taking Care of Self (HarperOne), visits Seth Meyers tonight. Common will also appear on The View tomorrow. 

Robert Downey Jr. & Thomas Kostigen, Cool Food: Erasing Your Carbon Footprint One Bite at a Time (Blackstone), visit GMA today.

Jamie Oliver, 5 Ingredients Mediterranean: Simple Incredible Food (Flatiron), visits GMA and The View tomorrow. 

Crystal Hefner, Only Say Good Things: Surviving Playboy and Finding Myself (Grand Central), visits CBS Mornings tomorrow. 

Arlan Hamilton, Your First Million: Why You Don’t Have To Be Born into a Legacy of Wealth To Leave One Behind (Little, Brown Spark), will appear on Tamron Hall tomorrow. 

Aliza Pressman, author of The 5 Principles of Parenting: Your Essential Guide to Raising Good Humans (Simon Element), visits with Drew Barrymore Tuesday.

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