Sponsored by Merci Suarez Can’t Dance by Meg Medina
Dancing makes Merci Suárez almost as queasy as love does, especially now that Tía Inés, her merengue-teaching aunt, has a new man in her life. Unfortunately, Merci can’t seem to avoid love or dance for very long. She used to talk about everything with her grandfather, Lolo, but with his Alzheimer’s getting worse each day, whom can she trust to help her make sense of all the new things happening in her life? The Suárez family is back in a touching, funny story about growing up and discovering love’s many forms, including how we learn to love and believe in ourselves.
Welcome to Check Your Shelf. Pop culture update: the latest obsession in the Horner household is Killing Eve, and I know we’re super late to the bandwagon but HOLY COW, I’M OBSESSED. We only watch 1-2 episodes per night because it’s so intense, but I’m 100% in love.
Collection Development Corner
Publishing News
Simon & Schuster acquires Mike Pence’s autobiography for seven figures. (Not surprisingly, there’s been a lot of pushback.) Vanity Fair has also written more about the Pence book deal and other Trump books in the works.
Powell’s Books and the union representing bookstore workers are in dispute over the status of rehires as the bookstore moves closer to normal operations.
Publishing industry insiders look ahead at post-pandemic opportunities and challenges.
The second annual National Antiracist Book Festival is being held virtually on Saturday, April 24th.
New & Upcoming Titles
Dave Grohl, aka the lead singer of The Foo Fighters and one of the coolest dudes on the planet, is releasing a memoir in October.
The Folio Society is releasing Philip K. Dick’s complete short stories as a limited-edition, four volume set.
60 of the hottest new (and upcoming) mysteries and thrillers.
The best comedy books of 2021 so far.
Weekly book picks from Amazon, Crime Reads, LitHub, and USA Today.
All the new science fiction books coming in April.
What to read this April (beyond the best-seller lists).
5 psychological thrillers to read in April.
What Your Patrons Are Hearing About
Philip Roth: The Biography – Blake Bailey (LA Times, USA Today, Washington Post)
Gold Diggers – Sanjena Sathian (New York Times, NPR, Washington Post)
Paradise Nevada – Dario Diofebi (LA Times, New York Times)
Peaces – Helen Oyeyemi (New York Times, NPR)
Hummingbird Salamander – Jeff VanderMeer (SF Chronicle, Washington Post)
RA/Genre Resources
If you caught the discussion on Twitter about whether or not horror can be set in space (spoiler alert: it totally can), here’s a much more thoughtful thread about genre.
Why Talia Hibbert is the master of modern romance novels.
On the Riot
6 new sophomore novels to add to your TBR this spring.
10 great new April YA books to TBR.
New Spring 2021 YA books for your towering TBR.
Calling a time out on reading for sport. (This was a great piece, and even though I haven’t been frantically trying to up my reading numbers, I haven’t been allowing myself to lose myself in the books I AM reading.)
All Things Comics
The best comics to read in April.
3 great female-centric graphic novels.
On the Riot
20 must-read spacefaring comics and graphic novels.
12 single-volume manga for when you’re short on time and money.
Audiophilia
Keke Palmer is turning her Instagram videos into Amazon Original Stories with Audible.
The winners of the April Earphones Awards.
The top audiobooks of last year, according to Washington Post readers.
5 audiobooks that celebrate trailblazing women.
10 essential audiobooks on urban history, monopoly, inequality, and tech.
On the Riot
7 great mystery and thriller audiobooks.
Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists
Children/Teens
8 incredible novels in verse for tweens.
15 of the most unique magic systems in YA.
22 alternate history YA books.
18 banned YA books, and why they were banned.
Adults
12 of the best books by writers of the Asian diaspora.
12 books that incarcerated people in the US have been banned from reading.
The best female friendships in books.
24 books about summer romance.
The best mythology retellings to read right now.
The best and worst codependent relationships in literature.
On the Riot
Pick-a-path picture books like Choose Your Own Adventure.
6 great books about the outdoors for kids.
5 of the best children’s books about spring.
9 contemporary YA books for food lovers.
Books for a political education and liberation.
8 of the best ecological thrillers for your TBR.
9 African and Asian love stories to fall for.
Second chance romance books to make you swoon.
9 of the best horror short story collections.
8 books about cutthroat academic environments.
4 of the best warm hug books
15 fantasy mystery books for readers craving a magical whodunit.
11 of the best art history books.
5 of the best contemporary memoirs by women.
Level Up (Library Reads)
Do you take part in Library Reads, the monthly list of best books selected by librarians only? We’ve made it easy for you to find eligible diverse titles to nominate. Kelly Jensen created a database of upcoming diverse books that anyone can edit, and Nora Rawlins of Early Word is doing the same, as well as including information about series, vendors, and publisher buzz.
Have a pleasant bookish week, folks. Catch you on Friday.
—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.