Welcome to Check Your Shelf. I’ve recently discovered the scrapbooking corner of TikTok, which has reignited my hyperfixation with junk journals. I think junk journaling is the perfect blend of Katie-interests – it’s an easy form of creative expression, but it’s also an excuse to create an elaborate organization system for my magazine clippings and ephemera! So…that’s how I spent my weekend.
Collection Development Corner
Publishing News
Why bother writing books?: Honest thoughts on the future of publishing.
AI is contentious among writers. So why are some feeding it their own writing?
Authors stand to lose so much from a potential TikTok ban.
New & Upcoming Titles
Rutgers University history professor David Greenberg is publishing a biography of John Lewis.
T.J. Newman has signed a two-book deal with Little, Brown.
Jill Santopolo will be publishing a sequel to The Light We Lost.
Wednesday is getting a YA novelization.
Yellowjackets actress Nicole Maines is publishing a memoir.
Cover reveal for Alan Moore’s novel, The Great When.
Cover reveal for Josh Brolin’s upcoming memoir, From Under the Truck.
Here’s a sneak peek at Rainbow Rowell’s upcoming novel, Slow Dance.
15 indie press books to read this spring.
The recent popularity of pop culture cookbooks.
Weekly picks from Crime Reads, LitHub, Parade, Wall Street Journal.
May picks from Alta, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kirkus, New York Times, People, Time, Washington Post.
What Your Patrons Are Hearing About
Real Americans – Rachel Khong (Datebook, New York Times, NPR, Time, Washington Post)
The Ministry of Time – Kaliane Bradley (Guardian, Washington Post)
Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk – Kathleen Hanna (LA Times, New York Times)
Disability Intimacy: Essays on Love, Care, and Desire – Alice Wong (ed) (LA Times, People)
The Demon of Unrest: A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War – Erik Larson (New York Times)
RA/Genre Resources
The New York Times is taking a page out of NPR’s book and has created a resource that compiles all of their best-reviewed fiction and nonfiction since 2000.
Edgar Award nominees gather for a round table discussion on the state of the crime novel.
Why Australia makes such a good setting for thrillers.
The anti-romance novel reader’s guide to romance novels.
Exploring diverse representation of women in historical mysteries.
Cookbooks have always been political, whether readers knew it or not.
On the Riot
The best weekly releases to TBR.
New May releases for mysteries/thrillers, romance, SFF, horror, nonfiction, children’s books.
The best book club books out in May.
All Things Comics
On the Riot
8 of the best graphic novels and comics out in May 2024.
Audiophilia
“Audible will begin testing a new feature that recommends audiobook titles based on users’ Prime Video viewing activity.”
The May 2024 Earphones Award winners have been announced.
Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists
Children/Teens
The best books for young birdwatchers.
Amazing children’s books by Arab and Arab-American authors.
10 authentic middle grade books about autism.
Adults
5 SFF mysteries you won’t be able to put down.
10 books to read after you finish watching Shōgun.
Strange, sad books about evil mothers.
The best fiction and nonfiction by Asian and Asian American authors.
Crime novels with a sense of place and manners.
5 of the best books about eating.
What to read after watching Fallout.
33 books for every type of mom.
On the Riot
9 memorable Mother’s Day books for kids.
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 Edelweiss has a new catalog dedicated to diverse titles, which is managed by Early Word Galley Chatter Vicki Nesting. Check it out!
This is typically how I look by the end of the work week.
Well, that’s it for today. I’ll be back on Friday!
—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.