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Big Books of the Week

Simply Lies by David Baldacci (Grand Central) leads holds this week. It is also the April Loanstars top pick. 

Other titles in demand include:

Where Are the Children Now? by Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burke (S. & S.)

The Wager by David Grann (Doubleday)

Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club by J. Ryan Stradal (Pamela Dorman)

City of Dreams by Don Winslow ( Morrow)

These books and others publishing the week of Apr. 17, 2023 are listed in a downloadable spreadsheet.

Librarians and Booksellers Suggest

Four LibraryReads and four Indie Next picks publish this week:

The Fiancée Farce by Alexandria Bellefleur (Avon)

“Bellefleur is back with a frothy, adorable, heartwarming romance. Tansy has been lying to her family about having a girlfriend just so they’ll get off her back. Her fake girlfriend, Gemma, happens to be a real life cover model for romance novels who shows up at a wedding Tansy is attending! Gemma surprises Tansy by going along with the ruse since she needs a fiancée in order to inherit her grandfather’s company. Save this story for whenever you need a pick-me-up!”—Cari Dubiel, Twinsburg Public Library,Twinsburg, OH

It is also an Indie Next pick:

“In all her books, Bellefleur gives well-loved tropes a fresh point of view and honors what makes romance so special. The perfect book for anyone who wants a sapphic, spicy, laugh out loud romance with great characters and plenty of T-Swift!”—Rachel Johnson, Content Bookstore, Northfield, MN

Symphony of Secrets by Brendan Slocumb (Anchor)

“In 1920s NYC Fred Delaney is about to be kicked out of his jazz combo when he meets Josephine Reed, who helps him improve. In the present day, Bern Hendricks, an expert on composer Delaney, is asked to look over a manuscript of a lost symphony. However, questions about attribution arise. This is a suspenseful book that will be fantastic for discussion.”—Joan Hipp, Florham Park Public Library, Florham Park, NJ

Sisters of the Lost Nation by Nick Medina (Berkley)

“Anna Horn wants to know why young girls are disappearing on the reservation. When Anna's sister Grace goes missing, Anna and the tribe seek answers to the disappearances and discover that the tribe's difficulties are linked to the past. This mix of mythology and horror that deals with unsolved disappearances of Indigenous girls and tribal lore is a gripping read.”—Theresa Coleman, Indianapolis Public Library, Indianapolis, IN

The Haunting of Alejandra by V. Castro (Del Rey; LJ starred review)

"Alejandra is a stay-at-home mother. Depressed because her life isn't what she thought it’d be, she consults a curandero: a folk healer and licensed therapist. She soon discovers the visions she’s been having are tied to her ancestors' experiences. Castro has an innate ability to get into the head of her characters, while weaving together multiple plotlines and time periods."—Chloe Waryan, Chicago Public Library, Chicago, IL

Three additional Indie Next picks publish this week:

The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder by David Grann (Doubleday)

“The Wager is filled with the most questionable aspects of human nature, but is also a nod to the strength of spirit as it pertains to survival. This book is dramatic, well-researched, and perfect nonfiction that reads like fiction.”—Stuart McCommon, Novel., Memphis, TN

If We're Being Honest by Cat Shook (Celadon)

“Shock, awe, and hilarity at a funeral start off this highly original novel. Serious topics are treated with a light enough hand to entertain, and strong characters, surprises, and intriguing family dynamics make this a great choice.”—Patience Allan-Glick, Hills & Hamlets Bookshop, Chattahoochee Hills, GA

Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club by J. Ryan Stradal (Pamela Dorman Books)

“J. Ryan Stradal captures so much about small town life and families in his stories. Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club was like sitting down at The Club back in my hometown. There’s comfort and delicious food on every page.”—Terri LeBlanc, Swamp Fox Bookstore, Marion, IA

In The Media

People’s book of the week is The Last Animal by Ramona Ausubel (Riverhead). Also getting attention are Silver Alert by Lee Smith (Algonquin), and Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club by J. Ryan Stradal (Pamela Dorman). A “New in Paperback” section highlights Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez (Berkley; LJ starred review), The School for Good Mothers by Jessamine Chan (S. & S.; LJ starred review), and I'll Be You by Janelle Brown (Random). 

The “Picks” section spotlights The Last Thing He Told Me, based on the book by Laura Dave on Apple TV+. There is a feature on Questlove, Music Is History (Abrams; LJ starred review), including his latest passion project, The Rhythm of Time, written with S. A. Cosby (G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers). Plus, Miranda Lambert, Y'all Eat Yet?: Welcome to the Pretty B*tchin' Kitchen (Dey Street), shares recipes from her family’s kitchen. 

Reviews

NYT reviews The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder by David Grann (Doubleday): “It’s the kind of inspiring chronicle that would make for a rousing maritime adventure. But this is a David Grann book, and so he gives us something more.” LA Times weighs in: "Maybe you get seasick at the thought of a seafaring novel; make an exception in this case. The Wager will keep you in its grip to its head-scratching, improbable end."

NYT also reviews Chita: A Memoir by Chita Rivera (HarperOne): “One role she never played, this upbeat memoir makes clear — the victim.”; The Forgotten Girls: A Memoir of Friendship and Lost Promise in Rural America by Monica Potts (Random): “Potts blames a variety of systemic failings for Darci’s fate: gender violence, poor health care, a depressed rural economy and rampant underemployment.”; Stalking Shakespeare: A Memoir of Madness, Murder, and My Search for the Poet Beneath the Paint by Lee Durkee (Scribner): “Somehow, one forgives the madder moments for the sheer brio of the writing, the sting of the jokes and the razor-edge of the historical insights. When it is good, it is really that good.”; My Cousin Maria Schneider: A Memoir by Vanessa Schneider, trans. by Molly Ringwald (Scribner): “Maria Schneider is presented with both her faults and her charms. In that way, this is a generous account of a rare and complicated cinematic star.”; Invisibility: The History and Science of How Not to Be Seen by Gregory J. Gbur (Yale Univ. Pr.): “Gbur’s interest in invisibility fiction is chiefly scientific in nature. He is more concerned with descriptions of fictional invisibility mechanisms than in the ways authors use the concept to examine themes of free will, desire and fear of the unknown.”

The Washington Post reviews The Society of Shame by Jane Roper (Anchor): “The Society of Shame is often clever and inventive, charged with plenty of zingers, railing against Big Tampon.”

The Guardian reviews The Memory of Animals by Claire Fuller (Tin House): “Close attention to the world around her has always been a magnetic strength of Fuller’s work.”

The Star Tribune reviews Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club by J. Ryan Stradal (Pamela Dorman): "Stradal is a genius at world-building. And his is a pleasant world filled with charming folk such as those you might encounter in a Lorna Landvik novel. But there's sadness, as well, as though the inhabitants are making do in a world that sometimes disappoints."

Datebook reviews Monsters: A Fan's Dilemma by Claire Dederer (Knopf): "In seeking to solve the ethical dilemma of art, she argues, we approach the problem as consumers, and that’s “an inherently corrupt role — because under capitalism, monstrousness applies to everyone."

Briefly Noted

The Age Book of the Year 2023 announces its shortlists.

April’s EarlyWord GalleyChat spreadsheet is available now. 

Penguin Random House changes “unacceptable prose” in P.G. Wodehouse’s ‘Jeeves And Wooster’ books. Deadline reports. 

Scribner launches a new poetry program. Publishers Weekly has details.

Eirinie Carson discusses her new memoir, The Dead Are Gods (Melville House), with Shondaland. 

The Millions talks with Johannes Lichtman, Calling Ukraine (S&S: Marysue Rucci; LJ starred review), about “humor, small talk, and cultural attitudes.”

Molly Ringwald talks with The Washington Post about translating the new book, My Cousin Maria Schneider: A Memoir by Vanessa Schneider (Scribner).

USA Today shares 5 new books for the week. 

CrimeReads suggests 10 new books this week. 

The Washington Post book critics recommend their current reading.

NYT suggests 12 books to read right now. 

Vulture has 6 new books for April. 

ElectricLit shares "7 Novels Overgrown with Plants."

Page Six offers a preview of Britney Spears’s forthcoming memoir, written with Sam Lansky. 

NYT explores the legacy of The Tale of Genji, while its Tokyo bureau chief discusses how she approached each of its several translations.

Authors On Air

David Grann talks about his new book, The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder (Doubleday), with NPR’s Morning Edition. 

Questlove and S. A. Cosby talk about their new children’s book, The Rhythm of Time (G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers), with NPR’s Weekend Edition Sunday. 

NPR’s Morning Edition reports on how several runners trained for the Boston Marathon while listening to audiobooks.

People has an interview with Kelly Fremon Craig, on the pressure of bringing Judy Blume’s Are You There God, It’s Me Margaret, to the big screen. 

Laura Dave discusses her book, The Last Thing He Told Me (S. & S), and its new movie adaptation, with CBS Sunday. 

U.S. Representative Katie Porter, I Swear: Politics Is Messier Than My Minivan (Crown), will visit The View today.

Dr. Will Cole, Gut Feelings: Healing the Shame-Fueled Relationship Between What You Eat and How You Feel (Rodale), visits with Drew Barrymore. 

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