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What's Up in YA

An Audiobook 46 Years in The Making and More YA Book News and New Books: August 19, 2021

Post author By Kelly Jensen
Post date August 18, 2021

YA Book News

I didn’t realize there had never been an audiobook for Judy Blume’s classic Forever . . . now there is!
If you haven’t yet seen the new Time list of 100 best YA novels of all time, here it is. We’ll dig into this more in next week’s newsletter.
Akwaeke Emezi has a new YA novel, a companion to Pet, hitting shelves soon.
USA Today has profiled a few big YA authors recently, and the last entry in the series is Sabaa Tahir.
More YA (and middle grade and children’s) books you may have missed because we’re still in a pandemic.
A giant roundup of the SFF YA hitting shelves this month.

New YA Books

Hardcover

Cazadora by Romina Garber (series)

Dagger Hill by Devon Taylor

Ebonwilde by Crystal Smith (serires)

The Endless Skies by Shannon Price

How We Fall Apart by Katie Zhao

Living Beyond Borders edited by Margarita Longoria

Moth by Amber McBride

Phantom Heart by Kelly Creagh

Redemptor by Jordan Ifueko (series)

Paperback

If These Wings Could Fly by Kyrie McCauley

Lobizona by Romina Garber (first in a series)

The Scapegracers by Hannah Abigail Clarke (series)

The Secret Runners by Matthew Reilly

Vicious Spirits by Kat Cho (series)

This Week at Book Riot

New and forthcoming YA disability nonfiction.
A huge list of books like Six of Crows.
How many of these nostalgic ’90s teen series do you remember?
Four YA books about races.
Leander ISD in Texas has pulled even more books from their classrooms.
This is a manga-related post but because much of manga has teen appeal, I wanted to include this fascinating look at why manga is so hot right now in North America. It had a huge popularity spike around the time I was working in libraries, then cooled for a while, but it is back!

Never Too Old To Read Young Adult Book Mark

This bookmark tells nothing but the truth. Snag one for $3.

Thanks for hanging out, and we’ll see you on Saturday with some great YA ebook deals.

— Kelly Jensen, @heykellyjensen on Instagram.

Audiobooks

One of My Favorite Audiobooks of the Year AND New Releases!

Post author By Kendra Winchester
Post date August 18, 2021

The Birds of Opulence by Crystal Wilkinson

After listening to a series of “just okay” audiobooks this month, I was ready for something to really blow me away. In came The Birds of Opulence by Crystal Wilkinson. While it first came out in print a few years ago, it wasn’t until just a month or two ago that this incredible novel was released on audio.

The novel begins in the early 1960s in a place called Opulence, Kentucky. There, we meet generations of Black women who have been raising their daughters in the town since anyone can remember. From a surprise birth on a winter’s day to secret love affairs to dramatic funerals, these women see it all.

I especially love Wilkinson’s prose. There’s just something about the way she describes the fields on the family land or the relationship between mother and daughter that had me hanging on every word.

Allyson Johnson narrates the story with her masterful skill. Instead of trying to imitate the Appalachian Kentucky dialect, Johnson just uses touches of dialect here and there to give hints of how the characters might be speaking. It’s the perfect balance of accent, giving listeners a taste of the flavor of the region.

Narrated by Allyson Johnson (Fearing the Black Body: The Racial Origins of Fat Phobia by Sabrina Strings and Citizen by Claudia Rankine)

Recent Releases!

A graphic of the country of In the Country of Others

In the Country of Others by Leila Slimani

When a Frenchwoman falls in love with a Moroccan soldier, she has no idea what’s in store for her. After WWII ends, she moves with her new husband to Morocco, and her new life begins. What she imagined as the adventure of her life soon turns to an incredible disappointment as she is ostracized and isolated. Her biracial daughter faces difficulties of her own as she is teased by classmates for having a French mother. With In the Country, Slimani steps up her game and gives us a one-of-a-kind story that is must listen.

Narrated by Lara Sawalha (A Map of Salt and Stars by Zeyn Joukhadar and The Silence of Scheherazade by Betsy Göksel)

Battle Royal by Lucy Parker

I love a cute story around baking, and Battle Royal does not disappoint. When two former rivals learn that they will both be competing for the opportunity to bake the cake for an upcoming royal wedding, the gloves come off and the competition begins. The two go head to head in the competition, each showing their own personal flare for their craft. But who will be choosen? The classic perfectionist Dominic? Or the one-of-a-kind Sylvie?

Narrated by Billie Fulford-Brown (Jane in Love by Rachel Givney and Act Like It by Lucy Parker)

Redemptor by Jordan Ifueko

The much-anticipated follow up to Raybearer is here! Jordan Ifueko is back to continue Tarisai’s story. Now coming into her own power, our protagonist must choose her own council, those who will help her survive. She knows what her kingdom expects of her, and she’s determined to see it through. But she doesn’t realize that the throne she sits upon represents all her kingdom must answer for. Can Tarisai figure out how to make amends for the sins of her kingdom’s past?

Narrated by Joniece Abbott-Pratt (The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris and Legendborn by Tracy Deonn)

A graphic of the cover of Velvet Is the Night

Velvet Wa s the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

In one of the most anticipated novels of the year, Velvet Was the Night, Silvia Moreno-Garcia takes on a brand new, noir-inspired story. In Mexico City, during the 1970s, Maite works as a secretary who loves reading the latest romance stories in her favorite magazine. She dreams of passion and love, hoping for a life beyond the boring office around her. When her next-door neighbor disappears, she finds herself in the middle of a very real mystery. But what starts out as a search for a missing person soon turns into a full blown scheme involving political dissidents.

Narrated by Gisela Chípe (The Soul of a Woman by Isabel Allende and It Is Wood, It Is Stone by Gabriella Burnham)

A graphic of the cover of The Many Meanings of Meilan

The Many Meanings of Meilan by Andrea Wang

Meilan loves her family of uncles, aunts, and grandparents who all work with her parents at the family bakery, but when the family’s matriarch dies, Meilan’s entire world is turned upside down. Her parents have a disagreement with some of the other family members, and Meilan finds herself far away from her home in Boston. In Rosebud, Ohio, where few people have heard of Boston’s Chinatown, Meilan must learn a whole new world. This is a beautiful story of a Chinese American girl coming into her own in a whole new way.

Narrated by Annie Q (As Many Nows as I Can Get by Shana Youngdahl and Hello (from Here) by Chandler Baker and Wesley King)

Around the Internet

“Your Audiobook Guide to Book Awards” (Libro.fm) – I found this post so helpful as I plan my own “to be listened to” audiobook list.

“To Be Listened To: Fall’s Most Anticipated Audiobooks” (Libro.fm) – I have been so excited for this list! Definitely a must-read line up for any audiobook lover.

Just in case you missed it, there are three new narrators who been inducted into Golden Voices, Audiofile’s lifetime achievement honor.

On Book Riot

“6 Myth Retellings on Audio” – I share some of my favorite myth retellings on audio!

I’d love to hear from you! Drop me a line at kendra@readingwomenpodcast.com or say hi over on Instagram @kdwinchester. For even MORE audiobook content, you can find my articles over on Book Riot.

Happy listening, bookish friends!

~ Kendra

Riot Rundown

081821-BeautifulWorld-RR

Post author By Natalia Heroux
Post date August 18, 2021

081721-FriendsForever-KidLitGiveaway

Post author By Devin Service
Post date August 17, 2021

We’re giving away five copies of Friends Forever by Shannon Hale and LeUyen Pham to five lucky Riot readers!

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

A follow-up to the mega-bestselling Real Friends and Best Friends graphic memoirs, Shannon Hale and LeUyen Pham are back with Friends Forever, a story about learning to love yourself exactly as you are.

Shannon is in eighth grade, and everything keeps changing. Her classmates are starting to date each other, and no matter how hard she tries, Shannon can never seem to just be happy.

With their signature humor, warmth, and insight, Shannon Hale and LeUyen Pham have crafted another incredible love letter to their younger selves and to readers everywhere, a reminder to us all that we are enough.

In The Club

That New Hotness

Post author By Erica Ezeifedi
Post date August 17, 2021

Sponsored by Karma: A Yogi’s Guide to Crafting Your Destiny.

Who really understands the concept of karma? Half the time when people are referencing it, it sounds like some form of revenge. But karma is a much deeper and richer concept than that. As explained by Sadhguru, yogi & mystic, karma means action. Sadhguru turns the tables by showing us clearly that karma is an empowering possibility for taking charge of our lives by choosing how we respond to what is happening to us. With celebrity fans from Will Smith to Tom Brady, this enlightening book offers in depth insights on the concept of Karma and shows how to achieve true happiness.

Welcome to In The Club, a newsletter of resources to keep your book group well-met, well-read, and well-fed. I know not too long ago I was bemoaning it already being August, but now I’m ready for August to be over. It’s still hot and things are in shambles all over the world. At the very least, I can say we’re starting to get the new fall releases! I have a feeling we’re going to start having more time to read again, so these new releases are something to look forward to.

On to the club!

Nibbles and Sips

Being back in Jersey City allowed me to visit one of my favorite ramen places where I could get some Taiwanese popcorn chicken again. The dish takes a little prep work, but it’s super satisfying to pop these marinated and crunchy little bad boys in your mouth as you discuss books. Here are some substitutes if you can’t find or don’t have Chinese five spice.

Now for the books!

New Tings

The Taking of Jake Livingston by Ryan Douglass

As we continue to get to know each other, I’m sure you’ll learn I love fantasy stories, especially involving witchy things and magic, so a Black teenager in Atlanta who can see ghosts and who’s medium powers are burgeoning will always be right up my alley. We meet Jake as he constantly deals with micro aggressions from students and teachers in his very white private school. I like how Douglass constructed the world here. At times it’s grotesque, but it’s also kind of lush and beautiful. Jake comes to be haunted by a white kid named Sawyer who shot up his school before turning the gun on himself. He has to figure out how to get rid of him before Sawyer ruins his life. Some reveals in the second half had me looking like shocked pikachu, and I liked how realistic Jake’s reactions to things were. Dealing with micro aggressions is real and gone are the days where we just grin and bear it. There’s also a cute romance that develops.

Book Club Bonus: Phew, there is a lot to talk about here. There’s a lot to say of child abuse and its long term effects on the child, but also of the parent’s state of mind during the abuse. Are they forgivable?

Fuzz: When Nature Breaks the Law by Mary Roach

When I say I need to read more nonfiction, I’ve always been recommended books by Mary Roach. She is the reigning queen of taking obscure topics, researching them, and making them actually fun to read about. This one is about the conflict that arises when the human and animals worlds collide, but more specifically, when animals commit crimes. Apparently, a few hundred years ago, offending animals would be given representation and put on trial. I mean, that’s more than some people get now *side eyes the justice system*. Roach speaks of her travels across the globe where she consulted wildlife experts, as well as saw firsthand some of the animal offenders. It’s a great addition to the ongoing and needed conversation of humanity’s impact on the world and what we can do to prevent further damage.

Book Club Bonus: The United Nations released a rather damning report on the state of the climate. Discuss how Roach’s book factors into the report. Also, discuss why humans are considered separate from animals. Is there some inherent quality that makes us different?

Sometimes I Trip On How Happy We Could Be by Nicole Perkins

First of all, I love this cover. And the title. And Nicole Perkins. Perkins is a pop culture and social commentator as well as a 2017 Audre Lorde Fellow, a 2017 BuzzFeed Emerging Writers Fellow, and a 2016 Callaloo Creative Writing Fellow for poetry. In other words, sis can write. Through her podcasts and writing, she explores pop culture and desire through a feminist lens. She lays herself bare in this memoir as she explores her life growing up as a Black girl in Nashville, TN and how she struggled with depression, as well as a drug-addicted father. She also talks about self-care and the show Frasier (which I also love).

Book Club Bonus: Discuss how the digital era has affected feminine desire. Has it liberated or stifled it by further objectifying women?

Suggestion Section

In a lil more Olympic related news, soccer star Megan Rapinoe has a book club!

In game show news: Jeopardy decided to be real messy and hire Mike Richards as one of the hosts and not LeVar Burton, to many people’s dismay. I would wager that people are upset because LeVar is wonderful (period) and Mike is a hot mess who has had two lawsuits from his days at The Price is Right. John Oliver also had some shade for the choice. Tsk tsk

As always, thanks for hanging out! If you have any comments or just want to connect, send an email to erica@riotnewmedia.com.

Today In Books

Stephen Graham Jones Wins Multiple Shirley Jackson Awards: Today in Books

Post author By Emily Martin
Post date August 17, 2021

Megan Rapinoe Announces Literati Book Club

Professional soccer player and activist Megan Rapinoe has announced an exclusive book club with Literati. Rapinoe’s book club, called The Call In, will feature books that tackle important issues impacting the world today, like racism, immigration, transgender rights, body positivity, addiction, and more. “Reading is a powerful educational tool that allows us to connect directly to someone’s experience—even through fiction. I want this book club to open readers’ minds and hearts to one another, and I want everyone to see and feel how truly connected we all are,” says Rapinoe. “I hope readers will be inspired by the authors and stories that I select. I hope that people who join my club will create change in their own lives as a result. My call to action is for each of us to shift the ground that is beneath us.” Rapinoe has chosen the club’s first book for September: #MeToo founder Tarana Burke’s Unbound: My Story of Liberation and the Birth of the Me Too Movement.

Stephen Graham Jones Wins Multiple Shirley Jackson Awards

The winners of the Shirley Jackson Awards have been announced! Author Stephen Graham Jones has won multiple awards this year: The Only Good Indians won for best novel, and The Night of the Mannequins won for best novella. The Shirley Jackson Awards are voted upon by a jury of professional writers, editors, critics, and academics. In a pre-recorded ceremony on Sunday, August 15, all of the winners were announced. The other winners were The Attic Tragedy by J. Ashley-Smith for best novelette; “Not the Man I Married” by R. A. Busby for best short fiction; Velocities: Stories by Kathe Koja for best single-author collection; and Black Cranes: Tales of Unquiet Women, edited by Lee Murray & Geneve Flynn, for best edited anthology. You can watch the full ceremony here.

Judy Blume’s Forever is Finally Becoming an Audiobook

Forty-six years after its original publication, Judy Blume’s cult classic Forever is finally becoming an audiobook. The new audiobook will be narrated by actress Caitlin Kinnunen, and it will be available on September 14. Kinnunen was hand-picked by Judy Blume herself to narrate the novel, after the author heard Kinnunen’s narration on another audiobook. “Getting to read this beautiful book by Judy Blume is a true honor,” says the Tony Award-nominated actress. “Her work is timeless and this story is still as impactful as the day it was first published. I cannot wait for today’s generation to discover these characters and fall in love with them for the first time.”

6 Myth Retellings on Audiobook

Love mythology? Here are six ancient Greek mythology retellings that span the globe, from modern day Korea and Nigeria, back to ancient Greece. And they’re all available on audio!

The Kids Are All Right

Kidlit Deals for August 18, 2021

Post author By Tirzah Price
Post date August 17, 2021

New Releases: A Smattering of Books

Post author By Alice Burton
Post date August 17, 2021

Against White Feminism: Notes on Disruption by Rafia Zakaria

Described as a “radically inclusive, intersectional, and transnational approach” to women’s rights, written by an American Muslim woman, attorney, and political philosopher. This centers women of color and is a “counter-manifesto to white feminism’s global, long-standing affinity with colonial, patriarchal, and white supremacist ideals.” This is part of a literature of recent work that notes the importance of decentering white women — particularly upper middle class white women — from feminism and from being seen as the de facto leaders of the movement.

Dirty Work: Essential Jobs and the Hidden Toll of Inequality in America by Eyal Press

This makes you reexamine or even just examine what we can take for granted, but which comes at the price of someone else’s safety, physically and, I’m gonna say it, spiritually. It looks at jobs that “society considers essential but morally compromised,” like drone pilots, prison guards, and slaughterhouse workers, and how the majority of Americans are shielded from the ethically troubling work we expect unnamed others to do.

The Middle East Crisis Factory: Tyranny, Resilience and Resistance by Iyad El-Baghdadi, Ahmed Gatnash

While Afghanistan borders the Middle East, this short (less than 250 pages) read can maybe be something of a background on the region for those of us shielded from the on-the-ground realities of what is happening. El Baghdadi and Gatnash “tell the story of the modern Middle East as a series of broken promises. They chart the entrenchment of tyranny, terrorism and foreign intervention, showing how these systems of oppression simultaneously feed off and battle each other.”

I Left My Homework in the Hamptons Cover

I Left My Homework in the Hamptons: What I Learned Teaching the Children of the One Percent by Blythe Grossberg

This feels a little like the vibe of The Nanny Diaries, but instead of a nanny, it’s a tutor. They’re still talking about “the inner circle of New York’s richest families” though, so if you’re looking for something escapist and to I guess learn some kind of thing about how it’s hard to be rich (but probably not that hard), here y’go. It’s under 200 pages!

For more nonfiction reads, check out the For Real podcast which I co-host with the excellent Kim here at Book Riot. If you have any questions/comments/book suggestions, you can find me on social media @itsalicetime. Until next time, enjoy those facts, fellow nerds.

Unusual Suspects

Mysteries To Make You Laugh

Post author By Jamie Canaves
Post date August 17, 2021

Sponsored by Preston & Child’s new Pendergast novel, Bloodless.

Agent Pendergast takes on a bizarre and gruesome case: in the ghost-haunted city of Savannah, bodies are found with no blood left in their veins—sowing panic and reviving whispered tales of the infamous Savannah Vampire. As the mystery rises along with the body count, Pendergast and his partner, Agent Coldmoon, race to understand how—or if—these murders are connected to an infamous skyjacking, and together they’ll uncover not just the answer…but an unearthly evil beyond all imagining. It’s a case like no other in the new installment of Preston & Child’s #1 New York Times bestselling series.

Hello mystery fans! I was going to do true crime this week (don’t worry I will soon) but honestly it feels like many people need something to read for an escape and hopefully a laugh. So I put together funny mysteries, with different humor, and different types of mysteries to hopefully hit as many reader tastes as possible.

Dial A for Aunties (Aunties #1) by Jesse Q. Sutanto

If you like comedy of errors, big messy families full of love, food, and some romance, this will delight you. It starts with a very ill-advised setup date that ends in accidental murder (you won’t feel bad!) and the family that is trying to cover it up while throwing a lavish wedding. Gotta hide the cooler with the body!

Secrets Lies & Crawfish Pies cover image

Secrets, Lies, & Crawfish Pies (Romaine Wilder #1) by Abby L. Vandiver

Before Vandiver (under the name Abby Collette), published A Deadly Inside Scoop, she had this cozy series which follows a returned home medical-examiner who gets stuck solving a murder with Auntie Zanne, who owns a funeral home and is the zany funny kind of side character always leading them into trouble.

The Spellman Files (The Spellmans #1) by Lisa Lutz

Here’s an entire family of PIs that are ridiculous, do not understand personal boundaries, and are always finding trouble. The series focuses on the middle child, who is in her ’20s, and is filled with dark humor and shenanigans. I don’t want to be a member of this family but I would like to be a neighbor–far enough to not be a target–to just sit back and watch for all the entertainment and laughs.

(TW alcoholism/ suicide attempt mentioned/ molestation incident mentioned)

Finlay Donovan Is Killing It cover image

Finlay Donovan Is Killing It (Finlay Donovan #1) by Elle Cosimano

If you’re a fan of funny inner monologues and ridiculous situations, this is a lot of fun. Donovan is having a really hard time: her ex-husband is being a jerk; she has two young kids and her babysitter is missing; and she’s not only past due on all bills—she’s also past due on handing in her manuscript. So when a coffee house patron hears her recount the plot to her book and thinks she’s actually a hired hit woman and tries to hire her, Donovan briefly thinks well, it is a lot of money…

(TW date raper/ stalker)

A Bad Day for Sunshine (Sunshine Vicram #1) by Darynda Jones

This is another series where ridiculous things happening keeps the series feeling light. For starters, Vicram literally becomes the Sheriff of Del Sol, New Mexico without her knowledge. How? Her parents entered her in the election. So now she’s back home, with a young daughter, the mystery of her teenage kidnapping still circling, her childhood love, and all the ridiculous people she deals with. If you’re a fan of Stephanie Plum, Kinsey Millhone, and Gilmore Girls, you’ll love this series.

(TW past child suicide thoughts and attempt, detail/ past date rape, kidnapping)

From The Book Riot Crime Vault

Getting Gritty: 11 Authors like David Baldacci

Thought I’d share the last funny mysteries newsletter I wrote in 2018.

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. See upcoming 2021 releases. Check out this Unusual Suspects Pinterest board and get Tailored Book Recommendations!

Until next time, keep investigating! In the meantime, come talk books with me on Twitter, Instagram, Goodreads, and Litsy–you can find me under Jamie Canavés.

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