Welcome to Check Your Shelf. I am still in mild recovery from last Friday, when I attended a friend’s wedding and danced a little too enthusiastically. Blaine and I left a little after 9:30, and by the time we got home, I was ready to collapse face-first on the couch. Socializing is hard, y’all. Has it always been this hard?
Don’t forget to check out Book Riot’s newest podcast, First Edition, where BookRiot.com co-founder Jeff O’Neal explores the wide bookish world, and interviews authors such as S.A. Cosby, Khaled Hosseini, Sarah Bakewell, and Yahdon Israel. Subscribe to hear them and stay to hear Book Riot’s editors pick the “it” book of the month.
Collection Development Corner
Publishing News
Publishers and Ingram prepare for a possible UPS strike.
Penguin Random House and IPG both lay off staff.
“There’s an industry-wide mental health crisis:” authors and publishers on why the book sector needs to change.
Why generative AI won’t disrupt books.
New & Upcoming Titles
Barack Obama releases his 2023 summer reading list.
Cover reveal for Patrick Rothfuss’ return to the Kingkiller Chronicles: The Narrow Road Between Desires.
Marianne Williamson delays the release of her book, The Mystic Jesus: The Mind of Love, saying that “it might confuse the market” as she pursues a 2024 Democratic presidential campaign.
Snoop Dogg and fellow rapper E-40 are collaborating on a cookbook called Goon With the Spoon.
The buzziest books of 2023 so far.
30 SFF titles to look forward to in 2023.
Weekly book picks from Crime Reads, LitHub, New York Times, USA Today.
What Your Patrons Are Hearing About
Crook Manifesto – Colson Whitehead (AARP, LitHub, Minnesota Star Tribune, NPR, Seattle Times, Vox, Washington Post)
Silver Nitrate – Silvia Moreno-Garcia (LA Times, New York Times, NPR, USA Today, Washington Post)
No One Prayed Over Their Graves – Khaled Khalifa (New York Times, Washington Post)
RA/Genre Resources
“Does it really matter who wrote it?”: The rise of ghostwritten celebrity fiction.
The forgotten greats of science fiction.
The age of the “feminist American Psycho” has arrived.
How to read all of Michael Connelly’s Lincoln Lawyer books in order.
Why the music memoir is booming.
On the Riot
New sapphic romances for summer.
8 new science books you don’t want to miss.
3 2023 YA novels with punny titles.
The best new weekly releases to TBR.
An A-Z alphabet of science fiction and fantasy authors of color.
10 of the best (and worst) fantasy tropes.
What is “second chance” romance?
20 horror books for people who don’t like horror.
All Things Comics
American Psycho is getting a comic adaptation.
Jim Henson’s Labyrinth is getting a graphic novel adaptation as well.
The Marvels star Iman Vellani is writing a new Ms. Marvel comic.
Cover reveal for Gene Luen Yang and LeUyen Pham’s upcoming graphic novel, Lunar New Year Love Story.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 gets a Disney+ release date.
How we fell head over heels for graphic lit.
10 graphic novels for kids by Asian authors and illustrators.
On the Riot
These romance manhwa need to be on your TBR.
Delighting velocireaders since 2017, Book Riot’s New Release Index will keep you in the know about all the latest books. Start your 14-day free trial today.
Audiophilia
SAG-AFTRA members on strike are still able to work on audiobook productions.
New fiction audiobooks perfect for summer listening.
Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists
Children/Teens
15 YA romance workplace romances.
13 YA fantasy stories that will make you ugly cry.
11 YA mysteries and thrillers set on campus.
Adults
12 of the best books like The Summer I Turned Pretty.
Books to read if you loved The Barbie Movie, from Barnes & Noble and USA Today.
The best summer reads of all time, according to NPR staff.
Readers pick the best tech books of all time.
7 crime books featuring special events going off the rails.
12 Canadian romance books to swoon over this summer.
Time travel stories that explore what it means to be human.
5 books that depict life in the Middle East.
The 50 best mysteries of all time.
Science fiction books that deal with cults and radical fanatics.
8 divine novels inspired by mythology.
10 epic books under 250 pages.
Books to celebrate “Feral Girl Summer” all year long.
On the Riot
Picture books that provide a twist on traditional fairy tales.
9 great chapter books for 4th graders.
10 classic children’s books that you may have forgotten featured disabled characters.
YA books about teens in film.
8 disabled and chronically ill poets to read for Disability Pride Month.
8 anti-beach reads for readers who hate “summery books.”
10 of the best historical science fiction books.
Magical cozy mysteries to enliven your bookshelf.
Books about women’s soccer to read during the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Books with awful taste, but great execution.
8 excellent books to help commemorate summer.
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 has a guide to discovering upcoming diverse books, and Nora Rawlins of Early Word has created a database of upcoming diverse titles to nominate as well that includes information about series, vendors, and publisher buzz.
So, the cats haven’t used this cat bed in about a year. Tonight, Dini decided to give it another try, and Gilbert realized he needed to sleep in that bed RIGHT AWAY. So he squeezed himself in next to Dini; mild fighting ensued, and the two managed to share for about 10 minutes before Gilbert jumped out.
Alrighty, friends. I’ll check in again on Friday. Have a good week!
—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.