Author: Katie McLain

Welcome to Check Your Shelf.

Do we all need to collectively scream into the void together? You have my permission to do so.

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Libraries & Librarians

News Updates

• Corrections departments are turning to private companies to force prisoners to pay to read via tablets.
• Chicago Public Library staff are allegedly asking people to hold off on visiting the library after it reopens because the library’s administrators are implementing an unsafe plan for reopening.
• NYPL is pursuing its curbside options during quarantine.
• The La Crosse (WI) Public Library is offering computer access to patrons by appointment.
• The Michigan National Guard helps save 80,000 items from the flooded Grace A. Dow Memorial Library.

Cool Library Updates

• ALA partners with the Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission to donate 6,000 book sets to public and school libraries.
• Programming through the pandemic.
• Librarians are recruited as COVID hunters.
• The Illinois Prairie District Public Library created an outside obstacle course for passersby.
• This Ohio teen who walked to the library every day for homework help has been accepted to 12 different colleges!
• The NYPL shares its list of 125 kids books that they love.

Worth Reading

• The Toledo Lucas County Public Library created a safety guide designed for libraries during the pandemic.
• Best practices for Little Free Libraries during the COVID outbreak.
• What Hollywood gets right (and wrong) about librarians.

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Book Adaptations in the News

• We’re getting close to an Amazon adaptation of Louise Penny’s Chief Inspector Gamache crime novels.
• Rights have been sold for Celeste Ng’s Everything I Never Told You.
• Reese Witherspoon will be starring in and producing two Netflix rom coms, including one based on Sarah Haywood’s novel The Cactus.
• Netflix is doing a TV adaptation of Anatomy of a Scandal.
• An early look at the upcoming adaptation of The Stand.
• Trailers for I’ll Be Gone in the Dark (documentary); The Alienist, Season 2; NOS4A2, Season 2; and Love, Victor. 
• 8 musicals you may not have known were based on books.

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Books & Authors in the News

• The New York Times asked if Ronan Farrow was too good to be true, and Vanity Fair and the LA Times reported on the response.
• Playright and AIDS activist Larry Kramer dies at age 84.
• The Mat-Su School District board has rescinded its previous vote to remove five books from the high school curriculum.
• J.K. Rowling releases a new serialized kid’s book online, for free.
• Taika Waititi is leading an all-star reading of James and the Giant Peach on YouTube to fund COVID relief efforts.
• There’s going to be a virtual Kidlit Pride conference in June.
• Check out the author lineup for the new virtual TorCon 2020.

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Numbers & Trends

• Print sales fell last week, although they’re still higher than they were this time last year. The New York Times also looks at overall publishing trends and sales since quarantine began.
• The types of books that could flourish in the pandemic era.

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Award News

• The RWA retires the RITA Awards permanently and announces the new Vivian Awards.
• Shortlists for the 2020 Orwell Prizes.
• Shortlist for the 2020 Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction, including one of my favorites, The Satapur Moonstone by Sujata Massey!

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On the Riot

• How libraries are handling summer reading during COVID.

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Enjoy the weekend, everyone. You deserve it.

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.

Welcome to Check Your Shelf, where I am going to try not to talk about curbside services.

If you need a giggle, here’s an example of a criminal living his best life during quarantine – taking selfies with dinosaur skeletons. 

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Collection Development Corner

Publishing News

• Thomas Low, one of the co-founders of Lee & Low Publishing, has died at 78.
• Publishers are unsurprisingly snatching up coronavirus books, from poetry to case studies. But what other types of books are they looking for during the pandemic?
• How the publishing world is staying afloat.

New & Upcoming Titles

• James Patterson and Bill Clinton announce their second book, The President’s Daughter, which is a standalone and not a sequel to The President is Missing.
• Charlie Jane Anders has a YA novel coming out, as well as a nonfiction book/memoir about writing, which Tor.com will publish online, week by week.
• Best international crime novels for May.
• 15 YA books to read this spring.
• Most anticipated YA books for June 2020.
• The New York Times unveils its summer reading picks.
• Most anticipated crime books of 2020: summer reading edition.
• 17 thrillers to speed through this summer.
• 27 of the best books to read in 2020.

What Your Patrons Are Hearing About

• Rodham – Curtis Sittenfeld (New York Times, NPR, USA Today, Washington Post)
• The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes – Suzanne Collins (Entertainment Weekly, New York Times, NPR, Slate)
• These Women – Ivy Pochoda (Entertainment Weekly, NPR)
• Wuhan Diary: Dispatches From a Quarantined City – Fang Fang (New York Times)

RA/Genre Resources

• Genre labels: what makes a book more thriller than sci-fi?
• Tananarive Due talks about black horror.
• A look at how trans representation is changing in YA fiction.

On the Riot

• A deep dive into the secret-keeping romance trope.

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All Things Comics

• Ruby Rose is no longer playing Batwoman.

On the Riot

• 5 comics representing 5 emotions.
• 9 of the best comics featuring F/F relationships.
• Holy bell hooks! 21 books about the women mentioned in the first 6 volumes of Lumberjanes!

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Audiophilia

• Audible is releasing the first unabridged audio version of The Autobiography of Malcolm X, performed by Laurence Fishburne.
• Best audiobooks of May 2020.
• 20 of the best audiobooks to listen to in quarantine.
• 8 sci-fi audiobooks to lose yourself in over a weekend.
• Authors recommend their favorite soothing audiobooks.

On the Riot

• 8 audiobooks under 8 hours, and 9 audiobooks under 9 hours.
• 5 nonfiction audiobooks by Asian American women authors.

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Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists

Children/Teens

• The best children’s books to read at home right now.
• Wired picks some books for kids to read during their very long summer.
• 21 YA books to read during Mental Health Awareness Week.
• 10 YA books that shed light on police brutality.
• 20 books to read after you finish The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.

Adults

• 19 books to read for AAPI Heritage Month.
• 23 guaranteed good mood books.
• 20 books to read in quarantine this summer.
• 6 Muslim authors recommend their favorite Ramadan reads.
• 8 queer historical fiction novels similar to Tipping the Velvet.
• 7 books about cyberspace by women writers.
• 5 back-to-basics cookbooks.
• 7 queer SFF books.

On the Riot

• 6 multicultural Cinderella picture books.
• 35 must-read books about racism.
• 9 rom-com books for foodies.
• I saw a tiger, and the tiger saw a man: 8 books like Tiger King. (Bonus meme here.)
• 6 cookbook authors and their one must-have cookbook.
• 4 books for readers quarantining in dysfunctional households.
• 10 microhistories for this moment.
• 20 free classics you can find on Project Gutenberg.

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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.

Keep on keeping on, everyone. I’ll see you on Friday.

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. We’re almost to Memorial Day weekend. I hope everyone gets a very well-deserved physical, emotional, and mental break.

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Libraries & Librarians

News Updates

• The Chicago Public Library calls staff back to work and plans for a full reopen as of June 1st, although mayor Lori Lightfoot says that no reopening date has been set.
• Fort Worth librarians are calling their older patrons to check and see how they’re holding up. While many are applauding this as a way for libraries to stay in contact with their patrons, it also raises a lot of questions about patron information and privacy.
• Library Journal looks at the massive library worker furloughs and layoffs in response to ongoing closure.

Cool Library Updates

• The Obamas read The Word Collector by Peter H. Reynolds for the Chicago Public Library’s “Live from the Library” series. Oprah and other celebrities will also read for the library.
• A look at how library book clubs have gone virtual during the pandemic.
• Library pen pal programs unite communities during quarantine.
• This North Carolina bookstore owner is giving away new books to keep Little Free Libraries in the community stocked.

Worth Reading

• Don’t leave workers out of the library narrative.
• Essential until we’re not: the disregard for library staff safety. (Full disclosure, I wrote this one.)
• How to move from teen-centered to teen-driven services.
• The ground floor of this Japanese home is a public library.
• Here’s something to brighten your day: a cat that wears elaborate costumes to promote his local library!

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Book Adaptations in the News

• The Percy Jackson series is officially coming to Disney+.
• Ryan Gosling is already set to star in the upcoming adaptation of Andy Weir’s as-yet-untitled new novel.
• Netflix is planning an adaptation of S.A. Chakraborty’s Daevabad Trilogy.
• Ivy Pochoda’s new novel These Women sells rights for a series adaptation.
• Another Harlan Coben novel is coming to Netflix.
• HBO Max is adapting Throttle by Stephen King and Joe Hill.
• Great Expectations is being adapted by the creator of Peaky Blinders.
• AMC has acquired the rights to Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles series and The Lives of the Mayfair Witches series.
• The graphic novel Sweet Tooth is being adapted as a live-action Netflix series, with Will Forte and James Brolin attached to the project.
• 10 book-to-screen adaptations that are perfectly suited to quarantine.

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Books & Authors in the News

• Washington Post created a virtual literary event calendar.
• Indie bookstores across the country are planning digital celebrations for the new Hunger Games novel.
• French author and serial killer expert Stéphane Bourgoin admits that much of his nonfiction work was made up. (This story is bonkers.)
• Judy Mikovits, the disgraced doctor at the center of Plandemic, has a best-selling book on Amazon. I’m not linking to the book here, but I’m mentioning it because inevitably, we’re going to have patrons asking libraries to purchase a copy of her book, and we’ll have to grapple with whether patron access takes priority over providing access to accurate information.
• 6 queer authors on what it’s like to launch their books in a pandemic.

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Numbers & Trends

• Not surprisingly, bookstore sales plunged 33.4% in March. However, print unit sales continue to rise by double digits, two months into the quarantine.
• Editors are apparently shying away from acquiring new dystopian fiction.

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Award News

• There’s controversy stirring around Benjamin Moser’s Pulitzer Prize for Biography for his book Sontag: Her Life and Work, both in terms of the content and the author’s behavior towards women translators and biographers.
• The British Science Fiction Association Awards are announced via video.

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Bookish Curiosities & Miscellaneous

• The Globe Theater faces permanent closure due to COVID 19.
• This Tampa Bay woman is making sure kids get to keep reading, thanks to her book bus.
• A Wisconsin retirement center put out a call for used books and got a flood of donations.
• This new app aims to connect people based on on their reading preferences and location.
• This Paris bookstore reveals the reading habits of its famous historical clientele, including Ernest Hemingway and Gertrude Stein.
• You can download Zoom backgrounds from the Harry Potter Studio Tour at Leavesden Studios. Brb, currently wailing about how I wanna do the studio tour again.

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On the Riot

• Back to borrowing: regaining a love for the library.
• The different types of book formats, explained.
• 6 ways to maximize your reading time during the pandemic.

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Enjoy the long weekend, but please keep social distancing! Keep on keeping on, everyone.

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. How the heck is it already the beginning of another week?

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Collection Development Corner

Publishing News

• Caroline Reidy, president and CEO of Simon & Schuster has passed away.
• The Seattle Review of Books is going on indefinite hiatus.
• The Author’s Guild and National Book Critics Circle send an open letter encouraging media outlets to continue their book coverage.
• Barnes & Noble is slowly reopening.
• Inside the book industry’s battle to stay afloat during the COVID crisis.

New & Upcoming Titles

• Sarah MacLean announces a new romance series centered around a Victorian-era girl gang. Holy cow, this sounds amazing!
• Get a first look at Sandhya Menon’s first adult romance, Make Up Break Up, which will be written under the name Lily Menon.
• Sarah Gailey has a domestic thriller with a sci-fi twist coming out. Um, yes please!
• A first look at Courtney Summers’ upcoming thriller, The Project.
• 5 books you may have missed in April.
• May picks from Crime Reads (psychological thrillers) and Town & Country.
• 13 books feminists should read in May.
• Best spring books from O: Oprah Magazine and Esquire.
• 23 debut novels of 2020 that are too good to ignore.
• Best beach reads of the year.
• Best books of 2020 (so far).

What Your Patrons Are Hearing About

• Dark Mirror: Edward Snowden and the American Surveillance State – Barton Gellman (New York Times, Washington Post)
• The Last Trial – Scott Turow (New York Times, Washington Post)
• Yes No Maybe So – Becky Albertalli (New York Times)
• A Children’s Bible – Lydia Millet (Washington Post)
• My Mother’s House – Francesca Momplaisir (New York Times)
  
• Rodham – Curtis Sittenfeld (New York Times)
• Network Effect – Martha Wells (NPR)

RA/Genre Resources

• A queer author roundtable, including Nicole Dennis-Benn and Garth Greenwell.

On the Riot

• 7 great books by writers of color from the first half of 2020.
• 10 2020 queer women romance books to watch for.
• A reading pathway for Cat Sebastian.
• Book club questions and reading guide for The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead.

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All Things Comics

• How to attend the virtual San Diego Comic Con from home.
• Since Diamond Book Distributors shut down, graphic novel sales from bookstores have risen 43%.

On the Riot

• 5 historical manga.

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Audiophilia

• James McAvoy leads the cast of the Audible adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s Sandman. Add James McAvoy to my personal list of celebrities who I want to read everything to me.
• The best books and audiobooks of 2020 so far.
• Here’s an audio excerpt of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.
• 8 relatable audiobooks that will help you fill the void from missing your best friends.
• Pairing up favorite romance listens.

On the Riot

• 6 audiobooks you won’t believe are narrated by only one person.
• 7 audiobooks under 7 hours.
• 6 audiobooks for Mental Health Awareness Month.
• Put these sci-fi podcasts in your ears.

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Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists

Children/Teens

• The Royal Family’s favorite children’s books.
• 20 vampire novels to read before Midnight Sun hits shelves.
• 32 cinematic YA novels to read while pop culture is on hold.
• 31 YA books to celebrate Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage month.

Adults

• AAPI Heritage Month reading recommendations from Mental Floss and Book Page.
• 50 of the best contemporary novels under 200 pages.
• 11 heartwarming books to make you laugh.
• 9 diverse books set in the American West.
• 10 fascinating celebrity memoirs to dig into.
• 8 books for the eerie days of summer.
• 7 novels about grieving a family member.
• Best vegan and vegetarian cookbooks.
• 7 classics to power through over a weekend.
• 11 books to make you feel like you’re on vacation.
• The 107 (!!!) female authors everyone should have on their bookshelves.
• 5 beauty books by black authors.
• 11 book series and collections to dive into.
• 17 books for people who have a hard time finishing books.
• The things we miss the most, and the books that can help.

On the Riot

• 10 science books for babies and curious kids.
• 20 must-read adult books for YA readers.
• Feel-good romance novels to dive into.
• 10 mystery & thriller authors like Agatha Christie.
• 5 great books for Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.
• 10 cozy culinary mysteries.

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Level Up (Library Reads)

Do you take part in LibraryReads, 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.

Virtual hugs if you need them. Stay safe and healthy.

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter. Currently reading Shamed by Linda Castillo.

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. We’re a little light on news updates for this week, mainly because most of the news right now is about libraries furloughing and laying off employees. It’s been a rough week.

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Libraries & Librarians

News Updates

• The National Library of China is reopening as of May 12th, with a daily cap on the number of visitors.

Cool Library Updates

• Here are the 2020 Library Journal Movers & Shakers.
• Fargo Public Library and North Dakota State University partner to grow vegetables for food pantries.
• Law librarians increase access to the legal system with outreach to public librarians.
• Library pen pal programs can help communities stay connected during quarantine.
• The Library of Congress announces a new project called Citizen DJ, which allows users to sample public audio collections for hip hop music.

Worth Reading

• Ensuring free speech requires more than neutrality. I fully support this article.
• Pushing back against the “Libraries are resilient” narrative.
• Inside a secret library in Syria.

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Book Adaptations in the News

• Oooh! Check out the trailer for Shirley, starring Elisabeth Moss as Shirley Jackson!
• The film version of Hamilton will debut on Disney+ on July 3, 2020, over a full year ahead of its original release date.
• Netflix is adapting Elena Ferrante’s upcoming novel, The Lying Life of Adults.
• The filmmakers behind Doctor Sleep are tackling Stephen King’s novel Revival next.
• Here’s the trailer for The Good Lord Bird, which debuts on Showtime on August 9th.
• Christopher Pike’s Midnight Club is being adapted as a Netflix series.
• The 90’s nostalgia is real…here’s the first teaser trailer for the Netflix adaptation of The Baby-Sitters Club!
• SPOILER ALERT! The ending to the Defending Jacob adaptation is totally different than the book.

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Books & Authors in the News

• Cookbook author Alison Roman takes shots at Chrissy Teigen and Marie Kondo in a recent interview, leading to a huge PR and social media mess.
• And in other news of authors-behaving-badly, Emily Giffin has made a lot of social media attacks on Meghan Markle.
• Haruki Murakami will host a lockdown radio special in Japan.

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Award News

• Jacqueline Woodson and Albertine win 2020 Hans Christian Andersen Awards.
• Finalists for the Best Translated Book Awards are announced.

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Bookish Curiosities & Miscellaneous

• In 2008, these first edition Harry Potter books were almost discarded from a British school library, but now they’re up for auction for thousands of pounds each!
• A neuroscientist explains why pandemic reading is so difficult for a lot of us.

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On the Riot

• 13 pioneering black American librarians.
• The most popular books in libraries, January – March 2020.
• I miss the library: and other thoughts on quarantine reading life.
• 7 weirdly specific libraries and collections from around the world.
• How local literary communities can find strength during social distancing.

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Keep on keeping on, everyone. Be kind to yourselves, and I’ll see you all next week.

Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. I know a lot of libraries are starting to open up in the coming weeks, and you are all in my thoughts.

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Collection Development Corner

Publishing News

• BookExpo and BookCon are going virtual for the end of May.
• Books-a-Million is re-opening most of its stores in the US.
• How authors, booksellers, and publicists are adapting to a virtual literary world.

New & Upcoming Titles

• It’s heeeeere! Publishers Weekly’s Summer Reading 2020 list!
• Josh Malerman announces a collection of short stories and novellas being released in 2021!
• It’s a new Jane Harper novel!
• A look at Kristin Hannah’s next book, The Four Winds, which will be published in February 2021.
• Guns ‘n Roses announce a picture book collaboration with James Patterson called…you guessed it…Sweet Child o’ Mine.
• Chuck Wendig announces his first middle grade novel.
• 17 thrillers to be on the watch for this summer.
• Best books of May from AV Club, Bustle, Entertainment Weekly, Lit Hub, The Millions, O: Oprah Magazine, Pop Sugar, Salon, Time, and Tor.com (fantasy, sci fi, YA SFF, and genre-benders).

What Your Patrons Are Hearing About

• All Adults Here – Emma Straub (Entertainment Weekly, New York Times, USA Today, Washington Post)
• The Book of V – Anna Solomon (Entertainment Weekly, New York Times, Washington Post)
• Warhol – Blake Gopnik (Entertainment Weekly, New York Times)
• Little Eyes – Samanta Schweblin (LA Times, New York Times)
• Big Summer – Jennifer Weiner (USA Today, Washington Post)
• The End of October – Lawrence Wright (New York Times, NPR)

RA/Genre Resources

• The return of the YA vampire (including new releases by Caleb Roehrig and Zoraida Cordova!)
• Take a look at the 2020 Summer Scares programming guide. Becky Spratford at RA For All (and one of the co-sponsors of the program) has more details as well.

On the Riot

• Crying censorship: the ethics of publishing the problematic.
• Brief intro and guide to contemporary Pakistani literature.

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All Things Comics

• How the comic industry is suffering from the pandemic and what its plans are moving forward.
• Disney+ is creating Just Beyond, based on the graphic novel series by R.L. Stine.

On the Riot

• 20 superhero books for kids of all ages.
• 3 of the best graphic novels to help prepare kids for their release back into the wild.
• 8 underrated romance manga.

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Audiophilia

• 5 new fantasy audiobook series.

On the Riot

• Oh be still, my beating heart: Daniel Radcliffe leads an all-star read-along of the first Harry Potter book!
• Andy Serkis will be doing a marathon reading of The Hobbit to raise money for the NHS.
• 5 under 5 and 6 under 6: Audiobooks under 5 and 6 hours for one-day listening.
• 6 of the best audiobooks by Korean American women writers.
• 5 graphic novels and memoirs that are also amazing audiobooks.
• The best-selling audiobooks of all time.

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Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists

Children/Teens

• 18 librarian-approved books for kids of all ages.
• 28 YA comfort reads.
• 9 #OwnVoices YA novels with trans and nonbinary characters.

Adults

• 16 page-turning mysteries that aren’t too dark and gloomy.
• 6 mystery novels inspired by true crimes.
• 7 books by and about Muslim women.
• 17 surprising indie bookstore best sellers.
• Another reading list for fans of Normal People by Sally Rooney.
• 5 books that capture the honest reality of motherhood.
• 8 novels that celebrate unlikeable women.
• 13 hilarious books if you need a good laugh.
• 26 cookbooks by moms, for moms.
• 21 important books that address mental health topics.

On the Riot

• 15 books about shapes for preschoolers.
• 15+ activity books to inspire indoor fun and learning for kids.
• 9 awesome books for kids and adults about Mr. Rogers.
  
• 5 of the best books to read for Star Wars Day (or any day, because I didn’t get a chance to post this list in time for May the 4th).
• 20 must-read poetry collections by queer female poets.
• 20 must-read books for runners.
• Reading recommendations for fans of Cheryl Strayed.
• 5 must-read biographies of women politicians.

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Level Up (Library Reads)

Do you take part in LibraryReads, 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.

Virtual hugs if you need them. Stay safe, healthy, and relatively sane.

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter. Currently re-reading The Good House by Tananarive Due.

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. I have found three families of fluffy baby ducks and geese on my afternoon walks, and today I saw a turtle belly flop into the water! That’s my update for the week.

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Libraries & Librarians

News Updates

• The Boulder (CO) Library Foundation launches a fund to aid furloughed workers.
• OverDrive’s Libby app is now compatible with Sonos speakers.

Cool Library Updates

• Here’s a compilation of best practices and short articles on digital library services to children and teens from around the world.
• Plus more virtual programming ideas for teens.
• The Boston Public Library finds ways to safely serve homeless and recovering patrons through the pandemic.
• South Pasadena (CA) Library installs an ADA-accessible port-a-potty and hand washing station outside the library for patrons who are experiencing homelessness.
• Library programming by phone.
• The NYPL has compiled an album of noises we miss in quarantine, including sounds of the library itself.

Worth Reading

• Libraries adapt amid the pandemic crisis.
• School librarians take the lead during the pandemic.
• If you’re feeling totally drained from all those Zoom meetings, here’s why. (And this explains why I always need to take a serious work break after a meeting ends.)
• Summer reading programming in a pandemic.
• The top 10 books New Yorkers are downloading from the library.
• Libraries you can tour from home.

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Book Adaptations in the News

• Ooooh, here’s a preview for Lovecraft Country, which is produced by Jordan Peele. WANT!!
• Love, Victor, the follow-up to Love, Simon, will air on Hulu on June 19th. You can check out the trailer here.
• Lyssa Kay Adams’ rom-com The Bromance Book Club is headed to Netflix.
• Stephen King’s The Girl Who Loved Tom Gordon is getting a film adaptation.
• My Brilliant Friend has been renewed for a third season on HBO.
• The Lincoln Lawyer is no longer getting a series at CBS.
• The Terminal List by Jack Carr is set for an Amazon adaptation starring Chris Pratt.
• Ralph Fiennes is going to play Miss Trunchbull in the upcoming Netflix adaptation of Matilda. That is…a choice.
• A new trailer for the documentary adaptation of Becoming.

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Books & Authors in the News

• Stephenie Meyer announces the publication of Midnight Sun – it’s really happening this time!
• The Mat-Su School Board President responds to the controversial board decision to remove five books from the high school curriculum.
• The community also speaks out about the Mat-Su School District ban, and the band Portugal. The Man, which is from a town within the Mat-Su school district, said that they will mail a copy of any of the books to any student or parent in the district who wants one.

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Numbers & Trends

• Virtual author events are the next big thing for booksellers.

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Award News

• Colson Whitehead becomes the fourth author ever to win the Pulitzer Prize for fiction twice!
• The 2020 Edgar Awards have been announced!
• Joy Harjo has been named the US Poet Laureate for a second term.
• Ocean Vuong wins the Triangle Award for Fiction.

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Pop Cultured

• Taika Waititi is directing and co-writing a new Star Wars movie, and my husband thinks it should be named What We Do In the Shadows of the Empire.
• We’re getting a live-action Hercules remake, but the bigger question is whether or not they’ll cast Lizzo as one of the Muses, because COME ON! In fact, I want an entire Hercules soundtrack sung by Lizzo, you cowards!
• What do you get when you cross Dr. Seuss and Dr. Dre? YOU GET THIS!
• Disney launches a line of character face masks, where the proceeds will go to a medical supplies charity. (Do I need a Baby Yoda face mask?…….Of course I do!!)

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Bookish Curiosities & Miscellaneous

• Men apparently stop reading books they don’t like long before women do.
• Everything you need to read more while staying at home.
• Readers are coping by rereading.

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On the Riot

• Fascinating and free things available on the Library of Congress website.
• Literary reading series gone virtual.
• How to join a book club online.
• The best feel-good adaptations to stream right now.
• Keep reading aloud to the kids.
• How to find bookish joy in a time of quarantine.
• How to bring an outdoor reading experience indoors. 

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Keep on keeping on, everyone. I’ll see you all next week.

Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.

Welcome to Check Your Shelf, where there will be no news items about murder wasps.

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Collection Development Corner

Publishing News

• Harlequin announces a larger mass market paperback format.
• Taco Bell has its own literary magazine, again proving my theory that the world is a giant Mad Lib, and we’re just living in it.
• For the life of me, I can’t remember if I included a link in a previous newsletter that Barnes & Noble would no longer be carrying magazines. If I did, or if you also heard that news floating around, that is apparently not true, and the article that originally included the information has since been updated.

New & Upcoming Titles

• A preview of Tana French’s upcoming novel, The Searcher! (She swears it’s less depressing than The Witch Elm.)
• Meghan and Harry are working with two journalists on a biography, due out in August.
• Sandhya Menon announced a new novella from the Dimpleverse.
  
• Mona Awad announced her next book.
• Details about Emma Donoghue’s next book, The Pull of the Stars.
• 25 upcoming notable releases.
• May picks from Amazon, Crime Reads, io9, Time, and Washington Post.
• Most anticipated books of the summer.
• 30 LGBTQ YA novels you’ll want to pick up this spring.
• Mystery & suspense titles by women of color to read in 2020.

What your patrons are hearing about

• The End of October – Lawrence Wright (LA Times, New York Times, NPR, Washington Post)
• Little Family – Ishmael Beah (New York Times, Washington Post)
• Girl Gone Viral – Alisha Rai (NPR)
• Little Eyes – Samanta Schweblin (New York Times)
• Take Me Apart – Sara Sligar (USA Today)

RA/Genre Resources

• An in-depth look at racism within the romance industry.
• The state of crime writing in 2020, part 1 and part 2.
• The rise of magical realism in YA fiction.

On the Riot

• A guide to horror sub-genres.

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All Things Comics

• An online auction to help comic book shops raises over $430,000!
• There’s also a campaign going on to raise money for women and non-binary comic book retailers.

On the Riot

• 10 manga featuring black characters.
• 50 must-read comics about friendship.
• 5 comics to help you feel some feels.
• 10 great novels that were adapted into comics.
• 5 comics about awesome mom figures.

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Audiophilia

• Penguin Random House donates audiobooks to prison and hospital radio stations.
• Libro.fm has a great list of poetry audiobooks.
• 8 new romance audiobooks from your favorite narrators.
• 5 debut novels to listen to in quarantine.

On the Riot

• Get free audiobooks for teens all throughout the summer with SYNC.
• 7 of the best audiobooks by Muslim women authors.
• Fast and fabulous audiobooks under 4 hours.

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Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists

Children/Teens

• 22 diverse poetry picture books.
• Asian Pacific American Heritage Month book recs for kids.
• 14 YA novels to read once you’ve finished Normal People.
• 16 books to try based on your most recent favorite show on Netflix.
• 20 books to read to get over a breakup.

Adults

• 6 books by black female authors.
• 11 books if you liked Normal People.
• Seanan McGuire’s personal Top 10 urban fantasy books for adults.
• 10 best book series to reread when you need something familiar.
• 32 short story collections to cure your reading slump.
• Queer comfort reads.

On the Riot

• 11 body positive books for children.
• Feel-good middle grade recs.
• 8 YA thrillers for fans of The Hunger Games.
• Books about whales for all ages.
• 4 pregnancy books worth reading.
• 8 knitting books for short, cute projects.
• Historical fiction picks that don’t take place during WWII.
• Short reads to beat the quarantine gloom.
• Harry Potter readalike recs for adults.
• 13 books like Red Dead Redemption.
• Paranormal cozy mysteries.
• 10 nonfiction titles that will change the way you see books.
• 4 books about caring for aging relatives.

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Level Up (Library Reads)

Do you take part in LibraryReads, 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.

Virtual hugs. Stay safe, healthy, and relatively sane.

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter. Currently reading Winter Counts by David Heska Wanbli Weiden.

Welcome to Check Your Shelf, where we’re going to start hearing a LOT about libraries reopening during the pandemic. I’ll make my position clear right now: libraries should not consider reopening in any form until it is safe for their staff to do so. What that looks like will vary from community to community, but I’m seeing a lot of discussion from libraries that plan to implement curbside services despite extended shelter-in-place orders, and despite COVID cases still being on the rise in their area. I hope these libraries have really good answers as to why they’re risking the safety of their staff like this, because I just can’t think of any.

And now, on with the newsletter.

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Libraries & Librarians

News Updates

• A federal appeals court declares that literacy is a constitutional right.
• ALA announces a virtual option for its canceled annual conference.
• IMLS announces a new research partnership to help support and inform libraries and museums as they consider safe re-opening practices.
• After releasing an initial report that categorized libraries as “low risk” areas of contagion, Forbes has amended their report after getting a LOT of pushback from librarians.
• Despite Texas’ reopening, the Austin Public Library will not open its locations until “it can do so in a manner that does not jeopardize the health and safety of its employees and the community it serves.”
• NYPL may quarantine its books between borrowers in order to make sure they’re not transmitting COVID-19.
• South Sioux City libraries suspend their curbside service because of a COVID spike in their community.

Cool Library Updates

• The Clinton Presidential Library has been turned into a makeshift food bank.
• Here’s a list of the online services and activities being offered by different public libraries in Maine.
• The NYPL challenges people to recreate their favorite book covers at home.
• This Alaska library partnered with a local radio station in order to offer storytime to kids.
• The Library of Congress announces a new app to let people everywhere experience its digital collections.

Worth Reading

• Librarians under pandemic duress: layoffs, napkin masks, and fear of retaliation.
• An open letter to library directors: “I will not reopen the library until I can ensure the health and safety of our staff.”
• Why you shouldn’t be doing curbside service during COVID.
• The martyr complex of librarianship: “Libraries can’t fix everything, not even coronavirus, and I kinda wish we would stop trying.”
• Other (pandemic) duties as assigned.
• Wholehearted librarianship during the pandemic.
• Libraries are the last safe haven during the pandemic.
• Public libraries after the pandemic.
• Five unexpected benefits of eliminating library fines.
• Prepare yourselves…the person cleaning this library put the books back on the shelf in size order.

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Book Adaptations in the News

• Terry Pratchett’s Discworld books are getting “absolutely faithful” TV adaptations.
• Michelle Obama’s Becoming is going to be adapted as a documentary!
• Patrick Ness is working on a Lord of the Flies adaptation.
• Goosebumps is getting another live-action TV series. (But will it live up to the 90’s nostalgia of the original series?!)
• HBO Max and Connie Britton have teamed up for a documentary based on Rebecca Traisters’s best-selling book All the Single Ladies: Unmarried Women and the Rise of an Independent Nation.
• The first Dork Diaries novel is being adapted as a podcast.
• A sequel to the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark film is in the works.
• 39 book adaptations on Netflix.

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Books & Authors in the News

• The Matanuska-Susitna School Board (AK) has removed five books from the elective high school curriculum, including I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and The Things They Carried.

Numbers & Trends

• Here’s a number we don’t want to increase: attempts to remove books from libraries last year rose by almost 20%.
• These are the most popular books people are reading during the pandemic, plus a look at how COVID is changing people’s book buying habits.
• Fanfiction is booming in quarantine.
• The Chicago Public Library reported a 51% increase in eBook downloads compared to the same time period in 2019.
• Male leads in fiction sell 10 million more books on average than female leads.
• 9 publishing trends to take note of.

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Pop Cultured

• A new female-centric Star Wars series is in the works, written by one of the co-creators of Russian Doll.

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Bookish Curiosities & Miscellaneous

• A side-effect of the COVID pandemic? Reading got a lot harder.

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On the Riot

• Ways to connect with your patrons during lockdown.
• How to repair a broken book.
• 13 literary adaptations you can stream for free.
• Airbnb’s bookish virtual experiences.
• Bookish TED talks for when you can’t read right now.

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Keep on keeping on, everyone. I’ll see you all next week.

Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter. Currently reading My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing.

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. How the heck did we get through April so fast when March was a thousand years long?

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Collection Development Corner

Publishing News

• How Bookshop.org has helped indie bookstores take a slice out of Amazon.
• Kensington Publishing is increasing the size of its mass market paperbacks in an effort to increase sales.
• Lambda Literary has put out an urgent call for donations.

New & Upcoming Titles

• Becky Albertalli has a Simonverse novella coming out on June 30th.
• Update on the tell-all book from Michael Cohen, which has yet to be sold to a publisher.
• New & upcoming books from Asian and Asian American authors.
• International crime novels, debut crime titles, and true crime titles for April.
• 11 books to watch for in May.
• 17 most-anticipated YA books to read in May.
• 22 best books to read this summer.

What Your Patrons Are Hearing About

• How to Pronounce Knife: Stories – Souvankham Thammavongsa (New York, Washington Post)
• The Knockout Queen – Rufi Thorpe (Entertainment Weekly, LA Times)
• If I Had Your Face – Frances Cha (Washington Post)
• The Book of Longings – Sue Monk Kidd (Washington Post)
• Coyotes of Carthage – Steven Wright (Washington Post)

On the Riot

• How to make impactful purchases at your indie bookstore.
• The best places to find book recommendations on Reddit.
• An in-depth look at the enemies-to-lovers romance trope.
• A brief tour into the world of cozy mystery authors.

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All Things Comics

• Due to the coronavirus, San Diego Comic-Con has been cancelled for the first time in 50 years.
• Sony is developing a film based on the One Punch Man series.
• 8 comics about being stuck inside.

On the Riot

• 20 of the best graphic novels for teens.
• Get up to speed with this guide to the X-Men characters.

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Audiophilia

• The founder of Audible donated $1 million to launch a new meal delivery service in his hometown of Newark, NJ.

On the Riot

• 5 audiobook memoirs & essay collections written by bi+ women of color.
• New poetry audiobooks to listen to for National Poetry Month.
• How audiobooks helped this reader feel less lonely as a new parent.

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Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists

Children/Teens

• Green books for eco-minded kids and parents.
• 38 YA fantasy worlds to disappear into.

Adults

• Books with happy endings.
• 15 best mystery novels for any mood.
• 27 debut authors to read in quarantine.
• 7 books about living paycheck to paycheck.
• 21 great books from small presses.
• 6 books about women athletes.
• 10 memoirs to keep you company in isolation.
• 24 feminist books to read after watching Mrs. America.
• Required reading list for National Poetry Month.
• 36 great books you may not be aware of.
• 8 novels to make you question reality.

On the Riot

• 7 books for curious kids.
• 12 picture books for Earth Day.
• 8 picture books about nature.
• Picture books about changing seasons.
• Middle grade books that help kids unpack complex conversations.
• 15 of the best nonfiction books for middle graders.
• YA earworm titles to get stuck in your head.
• 6 of the best medieval YA titles.
• Funny self-help books.
• 10 cat behavior books if you’re having trouble adjusting to your new WFH coworkers.
• 5 quarantine reads to keep your inner activist alive.
• Parenting books to help you get through the pandemic.
• 8 awesome short story collections.
• 9 nonfiction books about nature and climate change.
• 5 nonfiction books that challenge COVID-19-inspired racism.
• 10 medieval and medieval-ish mystery novels.

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Level Up (Library Reads)

Do you take part in LibraryReads, 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.

Virtual hugs. Stay safe, healthy, and relatively sane.

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter. Currently re-reading The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton.