Welcome to Check Your Shelf. I was frustrated to learn this week that Publishers Weekly has recently implemented a paywall that limits non-subscribers to 5 free articles/reviews per month. I have access to the print version of PW at work, but I rely heavily on their online access to put together these newsletters, so this is going to be a pain in the ass moving forward. (As library folks, I imagine many of you are in the same boat as well.)
Make this your most bookish summer yet with personalized reading recommendations from Tailored Book Recommendations! Our bibliologists (aka professional book nerds) are standing by to help you find your next favorite read. Get your recommendations via email, or opt to receive hardcovers or paperbacks delivered right to your door. And with quarterly or annual plans available, TBR has something for every budget. Get started today from just $18!
Collection Development Corner
Publishing News
OpenAI, “mass scraper of copyrighted work,” claims copyright over the logo used by the ChatGPT subreddit. Oh, how the turn tables.
How TikTok Shop ads turned an obscure, inaccurate book about herbal remedies into a bestseller.
The book publishing industry is in crisis, so why is it so hard to talk about the labor that goes into making books?
New & Upcoming Titles
Here’s a peek at Whoopi Goldberg’s new memoir, Bits and Pieces: My Mother, My Brother, and Me.
Kenny G is publishing a memoir this fall.
Priscilla Presley is publishing a new memoir.
We’re getting a new horror novel published posthumously from George A. Romero, and co-written with Daniel Kraus.
Neil Gorsuch is publishing a memoir this summer.
Here’s a new anthology of psychological horror stories, edited (of course) by Ellen Datlow. I WANT.
A look at Alina Grabowski’s novel Women and Children First, which Vogue describes as “a mystery for people who don’t think they like mysteries.”
And here’s a first look at the long-lost novel from Peter Beagle, which is coming out this month.
Cover reveal for Trang Thanh Tran’s latest YA horror novel, They Bloom at Night.
Cover reveal for Ann Hood’s The Stolen Child.
10 new mysteries and thrillers coming out in May.
20 of the most addictive books of 2024 (so far).
Here are the big book club picks for May.
Weekly picks from Crime Reads, LitHub, New York Times.
May picks from Crime Reads (international crime fiction), People, Reactor (fantasy).
What Your Patrons Are Hearing About
Coming Home – Brittney Griner (New York Times, Time, USA Today, Washington Post)
Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk – Kathleen Hanna (Time, Washington Post)
Long Island – Colm Toíbín (New York Times, NPR)
RA/Genre Resources
Against the term “Latin American literature.”
Why we love time travel stories.
On the Riot
New YA books by Asian American and Pacific Islander authors.
The best new weekly releases to TBR.
The best new BIPOC books out last week.
5 new LGBTQ YA and children’s books and 7 new queer books for adults released last week.
12 book club picks for May 2024.
New book club books to celebrate AAPI Heritage Month.
All Things Comics
On the Riot
Horror comics to give you the chills.
Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists
Children/Teens
20 books for kids that celebrate mothers and caregivers.
Adults
116 (!) books to read for Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.
The best books to read for Mother’s Day.
Spicy, sports-themed romance novels to read if you’re obsessed with Challengers.
5 novels to transport you to wild worlds.
9 books featuring fascinating mother-daughter relationships.
7 books to expand your view of the world.
7 heart-wrenching Chinese family sagas.
8 of the greatest campus novels ever written.
6 books featuring killer women.
20 romance novels for fans of Bridgerton.
8 books inspired by Asian mythology.
On the Riot
9 of the best memoirs to read.
10 of the best spy novels to keep you turning the pages.
12 immersive romantic adventure stories to take you away.
10 excellent epic fantasy debuts.
The most popular histories and biographies of the last 10 years.
8 of the best translated historical fiction novels.
7 unforgettable Indigenous historical fiction books.
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!
Look at these two knuckleheads!! They were very excited when the new cat tree we ordered came with not one but TWO boxes for them to sit in! For a few short minutes, there was no fighting and no shenanigans. Just peaceful co-existence.
All right, friends. I’ll be back on Friday!
—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.