Hello, star bits! I hope you are all having a wonderful second day of the second half of the year. I had a great weekend, watching birds and squirrels in the yard and reading books. I have been enjoying the Hilo middle grade graphic novel series by Judd Winick (former Real World cast member!) about an alien boy and his Earth friends. I reread The God of the Woods by Liz Moore, too. It is such a tremendous book and possibly my favorite of the year. I wanted to reread it in preparation for its release today, but also because I have recently been seeing it being compared to The Secret History by Donna Tartt. It’s funny, I have read that novel every year since it came out, and I didn’t have that thought the first time I read the Moore. But I can see why it’s being said. It’s definitely going to be recommended for many years to come. It’s an instant classic. (Which is an oxymoron, I know. But still true.)
Now let’s talk about the books out now for new release day! At the top of my list of books to acquire are Masquerade by O.O. Sangoyomi, The Failures by Benjamin Liar, and Evenings and Weekends by Oisín McKenna. On this week’s episode of All the Books!, Danika and I talked about great books we loved that are out this week, including God of the Woods, Cash Delgado is Living the Dream, and The Night of Baba Yaga.
Today, I am doing a round-up of several exciting books from the first Tuesday of July 2024. Below, you’ll find titles (loosely) broken up into several categories to make it easier for your browsing convenience. I hope you have fun with it! And as with each first Tuesday newsletter, I am putting asterisks *** next to the books that I have had the chance to read and loved. YAY, BOOKS!
Fiction
The God of the Woods by Liz Moore***
The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali
Mysterious Setting by Kazushige Abe, Michael Emmerich (translator)
Teddy by Emily Dunlay
Big in Sweden by Sally Franson
The World After Alice by Lauren Aliza Green
The Same Bright Stars by Ethan Joella
The Road to the Salt Sea by Samuel Kọ́láwọlé
The Murmuration by Carlos Labbe, Will Vanderhyden (translator)
The Curse of the Flores Women by Angélica Lopes, Zoë Perry (translator)
Misrecognition by Madison Newbound
The Townsend Family Recipe for Disaster by Shauna Robinson
Welcome to Glorious Tuga by Francesca Segal
The Cliffs by J. Courtney Sullivan
More Days at the Morisaki Bookshop by Satoshi Yagisawa, Eric Ozawa (translator)
Evenings and Weekends by Oisín McKenna
The Entire Sky by Joe Wilkins
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Middle Grade and Picture Books
Shark Night by R. L. Stine
The Ones Who Come Back Hungry by Amelinda Bérubé
Faker by Gordon Korman
First Test Graphic Novel by Tamora Pierce, Becca Farrow
Mystery and Thriller
The Night of Baba Yaga by Akira Otani, Sam Bett (translator)***
Broiler by Eli Cranor
The Haters by Robyn Harding
Breaking the Dark: A Jessica Jones Marvel Crime Novel by Lisa Jewell
May the Wolf Die by Elizabeth Heider
Nonfiction
Woe: A Housecat’s Story of Despair by Lucy Knisley***
The Untold Story of Books: A Writer’s History of Publishing by Michael Castleman
The Secret History of Sharks: The Rise of the Ocean’s Most Fearsome Predators by John Long***
Sharing Space: An Astronaut’s Guide to Mission, Wonder, and Making Change by Cady Coleman
1967: How I Got There and Why I Never Left by Robyn Hitchcock
Romance
Cash Delgado is Living the Dream by Tehlor Kay Mejia
Just Playing House by Farah Heron
The Match by Sarah Adams
The Villain Edit by Laurie Devore
The Love of My Afterlife by Kirsty Greenwood
What’s in a Kiss? by Lauren Kate
Sci-fi, Fantasy, and Horror
Midnight Rooms by Donyae Coles
The Night Ends with Fire by K. X. Song
The Undermining of Twyla and Frank by Megan Bannen
The Gilded Crown (The Raven’s Trade, 1) by Marianne Gordon
Masquerade by O.O. Sangoyomi
Pink Slime by Fernanda Trías, Heather Cleary (translator)***
Briefly Very Beautiful by Roz Dineen
The Failures (The Wanderlands, #1) by Benjamin Liar
Young Adult
The Second Chance of Darius Logan by David F. Walker
We Don’t Have Time for This by Brianna Craft
Not About a Boy by Myah Hollis
Joined at the Joints by Marissa Eller
A Darker Mischief by Derek Milman
This week: I’m currently reading Anyone’s Ghost by August Thompson and The Haunting of Room 904 by Erika T. Wurth. I just finished season eight of my rewatch of The X-Files. I forgot how much I enjoyed Robert Patrick’s performance as the new FBI agent. He didn’t have an easy job, coming into a popular show to replace beloved actors who wanted to leave the series. (Related: Did you know his brother Robert is the lead singer of Filter, and was once a guitarist in Nine Inch Nails?) The song stuck in my head is “Return to the Moon” by EL VY. And here’s a cat photo: This is Farrokh’s pose when he wants you to give him whatever it is you’re eating. He pulls out all the cute for food.
That’s it for me today, friends. I am sending you love and good wishes for whatever is happening in your life right now. Thank you, as always, for joining me each week as I rave about books! See you next week. – XO, Liberty