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Oprah's Book Club

Oprah selects The Love Songs of W. E. B. Du Bois by Honorée Fanonne Jeffers (Harper: HarperCollins), as her latest book club pick.  OprahDaily has the story.

As expected, the title has gotten a major sales boost and has been moving up the Amazon movers & shakers list since the announcement.  

USA Today has a story, plus a look at all of Oprah’s picks. 

ElectricLit has a conversation with Honorée Fanonne Jeffers "on ancestral legacy and grieving the loss of land."

Reviews

The Washington Post reviews The Madness of Crowds by Louise Penny (Minotaur: St. Martin’s; LJ starred review): “ Its chills don’t come from the icy winter temperatures in Quebec but from the dystopian story line and its uncomfortable reminder of some of the worst days of the pandemic.” And, The Women of Troy by Pat Barker (Doubleday): “Barker’s prose has a plain force more powerful than fancy wordsmithing; she makes these long-ago events immediate.” Also, The Husbands by Chandler Baker (Flatiron): “Her novel implies that no easy answers exist, but she’s written a fun, fast-paced book that at least asks the hard questions.” Plus, Alpha: Eddie Gallagher and the War for the Soul of the Navy SEALs by David Philipps (Crown; LJ starred review): “As a reporter who spent nearly two decades covering the military in Iraq and Afghanistan, I couldn’t help but wonder: Are the SEALs really this incompetent and morally compromised?”

The NYT reviews Constance by Matthew FitzSimmons (Thomas & Mercer): “is about a person, or at least the simulacrum of a person, who investigates her own death. The premise is intriguing, but the murder mystery is possibly the least interesting part of this science fiction romp, a busy action story with moments of unexpected depth.”

LA Times reviews Real Estate: A Living Autobiography by Deborah Levy (Bloomsbury): “It’s Levy’s openness to the quirks and peccadilloes of others — including her best male friend, headed into his third divorce after a dalliance with a much younger woman — that makes Levy’s work so invigorating.”

Briefly Noted

Publishing Perspectives provides the Association of American Publishers (AAP) StatShot, stating that July revenues were “essentially flat”, however YTD revenues were up by 18.1 percent from January through June. 

LA Times looks at the publishing season, after a year of COVID shake-up.

Vanity Fair considers "The State of the Literary Jonathans", and how the book world has changed since Lethem, Franzen, and Safran Foer first arrived on the scene. 

Bitch talks with Nichole Perkins about her new memoir, Sometimes I Trip on How Happy We Could Be (Grand Central; LJ starred review), and the politics of desire.

The Millions interviews Ruth Ozeki about her forthcoming The Book of Form and Emptiness (Viking), due out on September 21st.

Shondaland has a Q&A with Kat Chow, Seeing Ghosts (Grand Central), about "the contradictions of grief."

People previews the forthcoming The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present by Paul McCartney (Liverlight: Norton), including a song list and trailer. The book will publish November 2nd.

PopSugar recommends A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins (Riverhead), and suggests read-alikes Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn (Crown), and The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides (Celadon).

The Rumpus has a first-look and cover reveal for Oscar Hokeah’s debut novel, Calling for a Blanket Dance (Algonquin), due out in July 2022. 

Entertainment Weekly has “The best memoirs to read this fall.”

CrimeReads suggests "August's best debut novels."

NYT offers four books on parenting. 

LA Times offers fall book lists: thrillers, nonfiction, and 30 most anticipated titles.

Vulture suggests “7 Great Audiobooks to Listen to This Month.”

ElectricLit has "10 New Books Written and Translated by Women."

PopSugar offers “spellbinding” new books about witches.

CBC previews "45 Canadian poetry collections to watch for in fall 2021."

Readers recommend summer reading titles for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. 

After 54 years, Dorothy Parker’s remains have returned to New York City. LitHub has the story. 

Authors on Air

NPR’s Code Switch podcast talks with former reporter Kat Chow about her new memoir, Seeing Ghosts (Grand Central), and the long shadow of her mother’s death.

NPR’s Fresh Air discusses Alpha: Eddie Gallagher and the War for the Soul of the Navy SEALs (Crown; LJ starred review), with author and New York Times correspondent David Philipps.

NPR’s All Things Considered talks with Thirii Myo Kyaw Myint about her new book, Names for Light (Graywolf).

Oblivion Song by Robert Kirkman (Image Comics) will be adapted into a feature film with Jake Gyllenhaal set to star.Variety reports.

Disney+ green lights Nautilus, a Captain Nemo Origin Series, based on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Jules Verne’s classic novel. Tor reports.

Marvel releases a first look at Spider-Man: No Way Home. Good Morning America has a story plus the trailer.

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