Categories
The Stack

How About Some Horror Comics?

Okay, so it’s a little too warm to be hiding under the covers, but that chill up your spine is sure to be welcome as the weather gears up for another season of warmth and sunshine!

Want to make your book club the best club? Sign up for our In the Club newsletter. In the Club will deliver recommendations for the best books to discuss in your book clubs. From buzzy new releases to brilliant throwbacks, the books highlighted in this newsletter will drive your book club discussions. We’ll also share some book club-friendly recipes and interesting bookish updates from all over. If you become a paid subscriber, you get even more recommendations, plus community features. In other words, we’ll keep you well-met, well-read, and well-fed. Sign up today!

Bookish Goods

A bracelet made of black and white beads with two spiral charms

Uzumaki Junji Ito Inspired Bracelet by PrettyPossumTreasure

This lovely accessory evokes the unnerving imagery and black-and-white art that make Ito’s work so memorable. $12

New Releases

Next Stop cover

Next Stop by Debbie Fong

After her brother’s death and her family’s move to a new town, Pia is really struggling. She puts all of her hopes on a road trip that ends at a special lake that supposedly has mystic powers. Maybe the lake can solve Pia’s problems…or maybe the trip itself, and the friend she travels with, hold the true answers.

Curie Society Eris Eternal cover

The Curie Society: Eris Eternal by Heather Einhorn, Adam Staffaroni, Anne Toole, and Sonia Liao

Picking up where The Curie Society left off, Eris Eternal follows a group of young female science geeks as they travel to France to find out who has poisoned a brilliant scientist. Can they stop the culprit and make science more accessible for everyone?

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter!

Riot Recommendations

Today’s Riot Rec theme is: horror! Why wait for October when you can read these terrifying comics right now?

Specs cover

Specs by David M. Booher and Chris Shehan

This one is for all the kids who ever read a comic and were tempted by the ads for ridiculous, cheap gimmicks. When bullied loners Ted and Kenny find a pair of x-ray specs that contain real magic, they are, of course, excited — and quickly tempted to use their newfound power in all the wrong ways.

Two Graves Vol 1 cover

Two Graves Volume One by Genevieve Valentine, Annie Wu, and Ming Doyle

Death is supposed to escort souls from the land of the living to the realm of the dead. And yet, when it comes to Emilia’s soul, he can’t seem to let her go. And so the two embark on a treacherous road trip that will have momentous consequences for everyone involved.

A white Havanese looks into the camera, her front paws balanced on the frame of an unmade bed

Look, here is my dog Poppy to protect you from all the scary horror comics! Assuming she doesn’t run to hide behind my legs instead…

~Eileen

Categories
Check Your Shelf

In Da Publishing Club

Welcome to Check Your Shelf. I’m still enjoying the wave of Cillian Murphy fandom after the Oscars, so I’m rewatching Red Eye and being transported back to high school, when I thought this movie was the pinnacle of cinematic achievement. Before Thomas Shelby, there was Jackson Rippner.

Collection Development Corner

Publishing News

“The gigification of publishing” — an analysis of Authors Equity’s publishing model.

Human translators are not convinced that AI will ever be able to adequately translate literature.

New & Upcoming Titles

50 Cent is publishing a financial heist novel, which is not a sentence I ever expected to write.

NFL coach Bill Belichick is reportedly shopping around a business book.

John Grisham is publishing his first nonfiction book in 18 years.

Jean Hanff Korelitz is publishing a sequel to The Plot, titled (fittingly) The Sequel.

Here’s a first look at Christine Blasey Ford’s new memoir, One Way Back.

Mary L. Trump has written a memoir about her late father, called Who Could Ever Love You?

Here’s an excerpt from Stephen Graham Jones’ final installment in the Indian Lake trilogy: The Angel of Indian Lake.

Cover reveal for Sum 41’s Deryck Whibley memoir, Walking Disaster.

6 recent and upcoming haunted house novels.

The best books of 2024 (so far).

The best & most anticipated mysteries and thrillers of 2024 from Elle and Goodreads.

Weekly book picks from Crime Reads, LitHub, New York Times.

April picks from Barnes & Noble (adults, teens, children).

What Your Patrons Are Hearing About

James – Percival Everett (Datebook, NPR, Vulture)

The Morningside – Téa Obreht (Entertainment Weekly, New York Times, Washington Post)

The Divorcées – Rowan Beaird (New York Times, Washington Post)

RA/Genre Resources

Talking Dune: books and movies.

Two decades in, Holly Black (the queen of faerie fantasy) is doing just fine.

On the Riot

The best new weekly releases to TBR.

What is fabulism?

The best recent mysteries for your book club.

Want to make your book club the best club? Sign up for our In the Club newsletter. In the Club will deliver recommendations for the best books to discuss in your book clubs. From buzzy new releases to brilliant throwbacks, the books highlighted in this newsletter will drive your book club discussions. We’ll also share some book club-friendly recipes and interesting bookish updates from all over. If you become a paid subscriber, you get even more recommendations, plus community features. In other words, we’ll keep you well-met, well-read, and well-fed. Sign up today!

All Things Comics

Everything you need to know about Heartstopper Season 3.

Audiophilia

Heyyyy! It’s my Read or Dead cohost, Kendra Winchester, featured on AudioFile’s Behind the Mic podcast!

Book Lists, Book Lists, Book Lists

Children/Teens

11 picture books about spring.

Libros en Español: authentic Spanish picture books.

YA reads trending on BookTok.

Adults

The 25 best historical fiction novels of all time.

29 of the most emotionally charged books ever, according to readers.

8 books featuring Colombian protagonists.

8 dark science mystery novels.

6 books to prepare you for April’s total solar eclipse.

8 great novels featuring time travel.

4 books to help you better understand modern China.

Nordic speculative fiction in 5 novels.

7 stories of robot-human relationships.

6 ghost stories from across Latin America.

5 of the best books about the Victorians.

16 monster romance books to make you gasp.

Romantic thrillers to keep you on the edge of your seat.

On the Riot

Taylor Swift lyrics as YA book titles.

9 of the best villains in literature.

The 10 best Hugo Award winners to check out.

8 of the most polarizing romance novels ever written.

10 mystery and crime novels featuring queer ladies.

8 nonfiction books that SFF fans will love.

Softer scares in these “light” horror novels.

Helpful books about sleep and rest.

10 fresh urban fantasy books and series.

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!

a brown tabby cat with its paw stretched onto a person's arm

Jonesy loves to have a paw on us at all times, just to make sure we don’t think about running off.

—Katie McLain Horner, @kt_librarylady on Twitter.

Categories
Read This Book

Read This Book…

Welcome to Read This Book, a newsletter where I recommend one book that should absolutely be put at the top of your TBR pile. Recommended books will vary across genre and age category, including shiny new books, older books you may have missed, and some classics I suggest finally getting around to. Make space for another pile of books on your floor, because here we go!

Want to make your book club the best club? Sign up for our In the Club newsletter. In the Club will deliver recommendations for the best books to discuss in your book clubs. From buzzy new releases to brilliant throwbacks, the books highlighted in this newsletter will drive your book club discussions. We’ll also share some book club-friendly recipes and interesting bookish updates from all over. If you become a paid subscriber, you get even more recommendations, plus community features. In other words, we’ll keep you well-met, well-read, and well-fed. Sign up today!

Today’s pick is a translated graphic novel from a Spanish comic artist.

Book cover of Us with an illustration of two pink women with flowers in their hair leaning their foreheads together and smiling with their eyes closed

Us by Sara Soler, lettering by Joamette Gil, and translated by Silvia Perea Labayen

This graphic novel is a memoir about a very specific time in the author’s life. It is the story about when her girlfriend, Diana, came out as trans and how they navigated their relationship and her transition together. They decide to share their story so that folks can have some insight into one version of the reality of transitioning. Every trans person has a different story and so, Sara and Diana are sharing theirs.

I am completely biased in my love for this graphic novel because so much of it mirrors my and my wife’s experience. Yes, of course there are difficult things to deal with, like coming out to folks (for both of us!) who may not be as accepting as hoped for. There’s misogyny and transmisogyny and transphobia and homophobia and all the things that can scare people into staying in the closet. What this comic also captures, though, is some of the absolute joy that occurs as well. The joy that happens when your girlfriend tries on gender-affirming clothing. The happy surprise when grandparents understand more than you had expected them to. The warmth that happens when some of your close friends embrace you both fully as your authentic selves. There is also the awkwardness of coming out to various people. It’s never “one-and-done.”

The comic is written from not only a place of sharing, but also offers educational bits on transgender folks and transitioning. It’s a really good example of what can happen in some relationships, especially when the people involved want to stay together. It can take a lot of learning, unlearning, and inner work that some people aren’t prepared for or aren’t interested in doing.

It is an absolutely lovely comic that doesn’t shy away from the hard stuff while also highlighting the good stuff. There’s always more good stuff than expected, and it’s really important to keep that at the forefront.


That’s it for now, book-lovers!

Patricia

Find me on Book Riot, the All the Books podcast, Bluesky, and Instagram.

Find more books by subscribing to Book Riot Newsletters.

Categories
Giveaways

032524-MarchEACPushes-2024-Giveaway

We’re teaming up with Dragons & Spaceships to give away the choice of an eReader (Nook Glowlight Plus, Kobo Libra 2, or Kindle Paperwhite), to one lucky winner!

Enter here for a chance to win, or click the image below!

Here’s a bit more from our sponsor: Dungeons & Spaceships – For the Fans, By the Fans. We keep a close eye on the horizon of fantasy and scifi books, ensuring you’re the first to know about shifts in the genre, upcoming releases, and author interviews. Step into a realm where magic meets machinery, where dragons soar amongst the stars, and where every week is a new journey. Join the adventure!

Categories
Bookish Goods

Bookish Good of the Week: March 24, 2024

Retro Taylor Moon Comfort Colors Shirt

Retro Taylor Moon Comfort Colors Shirt by CUSTOMHANDMADEGIFTT

We love a good pun, and this t-shirt delivers in that arena and more: fans of Taylor Swift and Sailor Moon are eating big time with this! Sizes go up to 3x and there are a lot of colors to choose from. $19+

Categories
Giveaways

032324-MarchEACPushes-2024-Giveaway

We’re teaming up with Penguin Random House to Get Offline and Unwind! Enter for a chance to win a weekend retreat, books, wellness goodies, and more!

Enter here for a chance to win, or click the image below!

One grand prize winner will receive $1,000 towards a weekend reading retreat plus a bundle of books and wellness products to help you escape and unwind. Read on for the full list of prizes!

ONE Grand Prize Winner: $1,000 towards a reading retreat plus a collection of 10 books and a bundle of wellness products! Including:

FIVE Winners:
A collection of 10 wellness and escapist reads and a bundle of wellness products!
FIFTY Winners:
One free book from Penguin Random House!

Categories
Kissing Books

Romantasy Recs

Welcome, or welcome back, to the Kissing Books newsletter. I’m PN Hinton, your guide to all things romance-related. Thanks for taking the time from your day to give this a read! I hope that this newsletter helps to brighten up your day just a little bit more.

Want to make your book club the best club? Sign up for our In the Club newsletter. In the Club will deliver recommendations for the best books to discuss in your book clubs. From buzzy new releases to brilliant throwbacks, the books highlighted in this newsletter will drive your book club discussions. We’ll also share some book club-friendly recipes and interesting bookish updates from all over. If you become a paid subscriber, you get even more recommendations, plus community features. In other words, we’ll keep you well-met, well-read, and well-fed. Sign up today!

Bookish Goods

picture of Romantasy Starter Mug

Romantasy Starter Pack Mug by OpalandJuneShop

The text on this mug may indicate that it is specifically geared for newbies to the subgenre. However, it is perfect for a romantasy reader of any level. After all, who doesn’t love having a hot beverage with their current read? $20.00

New Releases

cover of Maya's Laws of Love

Maya’s Laws of Love by Alina Khawaja

After a lifetime of bad luck in love, Maya agrees to an arranged marriage. On the flight to Pakistan to meet her future husband, she’s seated next to grumpy Sarfaraz. After the plane gets stranded in Switzerland, the two become travel companions and unlikely friends on the journey to their final destination. Soon, deeper feelings develop, leaving Maya to wonder if finding the perfect man mere days before her marriage to someone else is even further proof of her lack of luck in love.

cover of Cover Story

Cover Story by Rachel Lacey

When there is a concern that there is someone stalking Hollywood’s leading lady Natalie, she quickly agrees to extra security. Her only request is that it be kept under wraps. Enter Taylor, bodyguard to the stars, fresh off a three-month recovery period. She is eager to get back into the field and agrees to act as Natalie’s bodyguard under the guise of being her girlfriend. However, as the fake relationship develops, real feelings blossom between the two women.

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

Romantasy is certainly having its time in the spotlight right now. Last year, it was even given its own category in the Goodreads Choice Awards. And, while that is arguably a very divisive move, it was also a necessity. If we’re being honest, there should also be separate sub-categories for historical, contemporary, and paranormal genres as well, so that there is a chance for multiple standout romances to be recognized.

I digress.

Whether you’re looking to dip your toes in that genre or are already a seasoned reader, here are some books for your reading consideration.

Night for Day by Roselle Lim

Night for Day by Roselle Lim

Exes Ward and Camille are reunited at a job interview and quickly discover that the sparks are still there. When they both get the position, albeit on opposite shifts, they take that as a sign to try again. After their respective first shifts, the two are imprisoned, kept in separate locations, and can only speak to one another in the brief moments before dawn. They will need to find a way to to break free and get their happily ever after, while simultaneously avoiding being caught in the middle of a battle between gods.

cover of How to Love Your Elf

How to Love Your Elf by Kerrelyn Sparks

While traveling through elven country, an attempt is made to ambush and kidnap Princess Sorcha. However, Sorcha is far from a shrinking violet and immediately fights back against her would-be captors. She receives assistance in defeating the villains from a mysterious thief known only as the Woodsman. The two are immediately at odds, yet he agrees to accompany her and her companion to safety. Throughout the remainder of the journey, an attraction starts to simmer between the two that refuses to be ignored, leaving them to wonder what will happen at its end.

I’d say his audition went well, wouldn’t you?

If you’re a fan of medical romances, then this list is perfect for you.

And it’s always a good time for a Sapphic romance.

And that is all she wrote for today, y’all. I’ll be back in your inboxes on Monday and in the meantime, you can find me posting over on Instagram under @pns_bookish_world. Until then, happy reading and stay hydrated.

Categories
Book Radar

HEARTSTOPPER Season 3 is On Its Way and More Book Radar!

It’s Monday, Book Friends!

How was your weekend? Did you watch Irish Wish with me? If so, I would love to hear your thoughts. I gave it three enthusiastic stars, which I think is a really great rating for a Netflix rom-com, tbh. I’m all in for the Lindsay Lohan Netflix rom-com era. Let’s have more!

Okay, as much as I would love to make a whole newsletter about Lindsay Lohan, you’re here to talk books. So let’s talk books.

Book Deals and Reveals

we are all ghosts in the forest book cover

SciFiNow has revealed the cover of Lorraine Wilson’s We Are All Ghosts in the Forest, designed by Jo Walker. It’s out from Solaris on November 7.

My birthday month just got even more exciting, everyone. Heartstopper season 3 is coming to Netflix in October! You can read all the details here.

And more good news for fans of series adaptations. House of the Dragon is coming back to HBO for a second season on June 16. HBO has dropped two trailers for the new season, one focused on Rhaenrya and one on Alicent.

More cover reveals! Check out the cover of Rejection by Tony Tulathimutte. It’s out on September 17.

And here’s the cover of Tamara Jerée’s sapphic paranormal romance A Wolf Steps in Blood. It’s coming on April 16.

Two-time Coretta Scott King Award-winner Sharon Draper has two books out this fall. Her middle grade novel Out of My Dreams will be released from Simon & Schuster this September. And, her debut picture book Bella Ballerina is out from Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books this fall, too. Check out the covers for both upcoming books.

Here’s the trailer for the upcoming adaptation of Harold and the Purple Crayon. It’s coming to theaters on August 2.

Lorrie Moore won a National Book Critics Circle Award for fiction for I Am Homeless if This Is Not My Home. You can see more details about the awards, which were given out last Thursday, here.

Book Riot Recommends

Hi, welcome to everyone’s favorite segment of Book Radar called Book Riot Recommends. This is where I’ll talk to you about all the books I’m reading, the books I’m loving, and the books I can’t wait to read and love in the near future. I think you’re going to love them too!

Want to make your book club the best club? Sign up for our In the Club newsletter. In the Club will deliver recommendations for the best books to discuss in your book clubs. From buzzy new releases to brilliant throwbacks, the books highlighted in this newsletter will drive your book club discussions. We’ll also share some book club-friendly recipes and interesting bookish updates from all over. If you become a paid subscriber, you get even more recommendations, plus community features. In other words, we’ll keep you well-met, well-read, and well-fed. Sign up today!

Prepare Your Shelves!

immortal pleasures by v castro book cover

Immortal Pleasures by V. Castro (Del Ray, April 16)

You’re probably looking at the cover of V. Castro’s latest and thinking, “Wow, this book looks scary as hell, but also sexy.” And if that’s the vibe you get, then the cover designer really did their job, because that’s exactly what you can expect from Immortal Pleasures. This super hot vampire novel is coming at you in April, so prepare your shelves.

Immortal Pleasures is the dark and twisted tale of an ancient Aztec vampire who travels the modern world avenging conquered peoples, reclaiming their stolen artifacts, and returning them to their homelands. The vampire was once known, in her mortal life, as La Malinche. She was a Nahua woman who translated for the conquistador Cortés. 

Now she has been reborn as Malinalli. Malinalli’s hunt for revenge sends her to Dublin, where she searches for stolen Aztec skulls that are connected to her own past. But while thirsty to avenge her people, Malinalli is also hungry for something more. And, in Dublin, she finds something unexpected — two mortal men who speak to Malinalli’s other desires in different ways.

What I’m Reading This Week

the band book cover

The Band by Christine Ma-Kellams

Thornhedge by T. Kingfisher

Dead Girls Walking by Sami Ellis

Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera

Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides

Monday Memes

This is a constant struggle for me. Does anyone else feel the same?

And Here’s A Cat Picture!

calico under a tray in bed

Now that my husband is back home, we have this tray set up for him so he can get on his computer in bed, but Cersei has decided this tray is actually her tent. Her little cat fortress. I thought it was very cute and wanted to share with all of you!

All right, friends. That’s a wrap on Monday’s Book Radar. Thanks so much for hanging out. See you Thursday?

Emily

Categories
The Fright Stuff

Creepy Apartments? Actually, Yes, Please!

It’s Monday, which means it’s Fright Stuff time, horror fans! I know I always say this, but this is truly the best day of the week, because I love talking about horror. You know what else I love? Horror stories about weird apartment buildings. I just read one I loved, so I thought this would be a great opportunity to share this horror subgenre with all of you! Enjoy!

Want to make your book club the best club? Sign up for our In the Club newsletter. In the Club will deliver recommendations for the best books to discuss in your book clubs. From buzzy new releases to brilliant throwbacks, the books highlighted in this newsletter will drive your book club discussions. We’ll also share some book club-friendly recipes and interesting bookish updates from all over. If you become a paid subscriber, you get even more recommendations, plus community features. In other words, we’ll keep you well-met, well-read, and well-fed. Sign up today!

Bookish Goods

tannis root charm necklace

Rosemary’s Baby Tannis Root Charm Necklace by Fantasia Trinkets

Speaking of weird apartment buildings…we can’t talk about this genre without talking about the most iconic of them all…the weird, witchy, Satan-worshipping apartment dwellers in Rosemary’s Baby by Ira Levin. I mean, if you are getting ready to birth the spawn of Satan, you really shouldn’t try to do it without this gorgeous and super demon-friendly Tannis root pendant necklace. It starts at $21, but can you put a price on Satanism?

New Releases

the angel of indian lake book cover

The Angel of Indian Lake by Stephen Graham Jones

I’ve been hyping this one up for some time, and it’s here this week! Hooray! We’re finally getting the final chapter in Stephen Graham Jones’ Indian Lake Trilogy. Four years after the events of the first novel, our heroine Jade Daniels has returned to Proofrock, Idaho, to rebuild her life after protecting her friend Letha and her family all those years ago. It’s also a chance for one final confrontation, to face the Lake Witch and end the curse once and for all.

diavola book cover

Diavola by Jennifer Thorne

I’m so obsessed with this cover! My copy just came in the mail, and I was immediately like, “Oh yes, this is top-tier horror novel cover design stuff right here.” But also, this story sounds soooo creepy, and I can’t wait to dive in. This is a story about a family vacation gone very, very wrong. The Pace family has planned a vacation in a remote villa in Monteperso. But, for Anna Pace, who has always felt like an outsider in her family, this is all way too much family time. And now, to make matters worse, she keeps hearing strange noises at night, and the villagers approach the family with unsettling warnings about the villa’s violent past.

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

nestlings book cover

Nestlings by Nat Cassidy

Okay, let’s get into it. The book that inspired the theme for this whooole newsletter this week. Nestlings by Nat Cassidy is such an intense, spine-tingling story about an apartment unlike any you’ve seen before. And while this one definitely has Rosemary’s Baby vibes, trust me that it goes in surprising new directions. A difficult birth has left Ana paralyzed. Meanwhile, her husband Reid is working a thankless job for people he loathes. So, when the couple wins a lottery for an affordable apartment in one of New York’s most preeminent apartment buildings, they think they’ve finally gotten some good news. But it quickly becomes apparent that something sinister is going on in this building.

The Graveyard Apartment by Mariko Koike

The Graveyard Apartment by Mariko Koike

I know I have recommended this one before, but I have to bring it up again because, if you’re looking for apartment horror, you have to read The Graveyard Apartment. You would think an apartment building right next to a grave would be an immediate no-go; but for the young married couple in this novel? This seemed like the perfect location to move in with their young child. But then strange things start happening here, and one by one, people start moving away. Eventually, the young family is all alone in this giant, creepy apartment…or are they?

And that’s all for today! We’ll do this all again next Monday. Until then, you can follow me (and message me) on Instagram at emandhercat. Sweet dreams, horror fans!

Categories
The Kids Are All Right

Baseball, Lucille Ball, And More Great Kids’ Books!

Happy Sunday, kidlit friends! Tennessee is having some wild fluctuations in temperature. Yesterday, I woke up and it was 25 degrees Fahrenheit. Right now it’s 70. Sheesh, make up your mind, spring.

Want to make your book club the best club? Sign up for our In the Club newsletter. In the Club will deliver recommendations for the best books to discuss in your book clubs. From buzzy new releases to brilliant throwbacks, the books highlighted in this newsletter will drive your book club discussions. We’ll also share some book club-friendly recipes and interesting bookish updates from all over. If you become a paid subscriber, you get even more recommendations, plus community features. In other words, we’ll keep you well-met, well-read, and well-fed. Sign up today!

Today, I review books about baseball as well as two fantastic new releases.

Bookish Goods

Library Love Vinyl Sticker by SprinklesStudios

Library Love Vinyl Sticker by SprinklesStudios

My local library branch was closed for repairs for several months and has now reopened. It makes me all the more appreciative of libraries and library staff! It’s one of my favorite places to be. $4

New Releases

Cover of Lucy!: How Lucille Ball Did It All by Amy Guglielmo & Jacqueline Tourville, illustrated by Brigette Barrager

Lucy!: How Lucille Ball Did It All by Amy Guglielmo & Jacqueline Tourville, illustrated by Brigette Barrager

This charming picture book biography captures the life and personality of the fabulous Lucille Ball. From a young age, Lucy showed a penchant for making people laugh. However, girls in 1914 weren’t supposed to be so silly. When her father died, Lucy and her mom moved in with relatives who frowned upon Lucy’s antics, but soon, they were able to move in with her caring grandparents, who loved laughing with Lucy. It was hard for Lucy to break into films and shows, but she kept at it and succeeded because of her willingness to be silly and stand out. This picture book biography is a great way to introduce readers to the actress, comedian, and producer.

Cover of Amma's Sari by Sandhya Parappukkaran, illustrated by Michelle Pereira

Amma’s Sari by Sandhya Parappukkaran, illustrated by Michelle Pereira

This is a beautiful picture book homage to saris and heritage. Shreya loves her mother’s saris; they’re so colorful and comforting. But when they’re in public, people stare at them and Amma’s colorful saris, which makes Shreya uncomfortable. When she asks Amma why she always wears saris, Amma tells her stories of their ancestors. The illustrations are vibrant and lovely.

For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.

Riot Recommendations

Major League Baseball season has begun, so I thought I would round up some baseball-themed children’s books for kids who love the sport.

Cover of Smarty Marty Takes the Field by Amy Gutierrez, illustrated by Anika Orrock

Smarty Marty Takes the Field by Amy Gutierrez, illustrated by Anika Orrock

Marty loves baseball and watches her brother play at every game, strategizing and offering feedback. This earns her the nickname of Smarty Marty. When both the coach and assistant coach need to take a week off, they ask Smarty Marty to serve as a coach for the game that Saturday. At first, the boys on the team don’t want to accept her and follow her instructions. But her superior baseball knowledge soon puts them in line. This picture book is inspired by the first female coach in Major League Baseball history, Alyssa Nakken.

Cover of Contenders: Two Native Baseball Players, One World Series by Traci Sorell, illustrated by Arigon Starr

Contenders: Two Native Baseball Players, One World Series by Traci Sorell, illustrated by Arigon Starr

I confess I do not know much about baseball’s history, so pretty much everything in this picture book was new to me! It tells the story of the first time two Native American baseball players played against one another in a World Series, which happened in 1911. Charles Albert Bender, Al, grew up on the White Earth Reservation in northwestern Minnesota and, at seven, went to an Indian Boarding School with other Ojibwe children from his reservation. He learned to love baseball by watching older boys play during the summer. John Tortes Meyers, Jack, learned to play baseball on his Cahuilla nation’s reservation in Southern California. This picture switches back and forth between their lives until that 1911 game.

Cover of Warrior on the Mound by Sandra W. Headen

Warrior on the Mound by Sandra W. Headen

This middle grade historical fiction takes place in 1930s North Carolina, where Jim Crow laws led to segregation and racial tensions. Twelve-year-old Cato loves baseball and plays on his town’s Black Little League team. He dreams of joining the Negro League. His team practices on a derelict field while the white kids get a brand-new baseball field. The kids get curious and decide to play on the new field. When they’re caught, the town erupts in racial tensions, and the two teams will have a play-off to decide who can use the new field.

Cover of Get a Grip, Vivy Cohen! by Sarah Kapit

Get a Grip, Vivy Cohen! by Sarah Kapit

This is not the first time I’ve reviewed this one on here, but it’s a fantastic epistolary middle grade. Vivy Cohen is a Jewish autistic girl who loves baseball. When her mom says she can’t join a baseball team, she writes to her baseball hero, Black Major League star pitcher V.J. Capello, and amazingly, he writes back and coaches her on how to perfect her knuckleball throw. Vivy catches the eye of a little league coach and joins the team, but the other kids on the team aren’t always nice to her.

Marian climbs tree branches, the kids are all right

We had a bit of a sad discovery on a walk last week. The HOA had decided to cut down our favorite neighborhood tree. It was a great big pine, one we often played beside.

If you’d like to read more of my kidlit reviews, I’m on Instagram @BabyLibrarians, Twitter @AReaderlyMom, Bluesky @AReaderlyMom.bsky.social, and blog irregularly at Baby Librarians. You can also read my Book Riot posts. If you’d like to drop me a line, my email is kingsbury.margaret@gmail.com.

All the best,

Margaret Kingsbury