Get Ready — Titles You Need to Know, The Week of Sept. 8
Among the usual suspects next week, J.D. Robb’s Festive in Death (Penguin/Putnam; Brilliance; Wheeler), a Christmas-themed story featuring detective Eve Dallas, leads in number of holds and copies ordered by libraries. OverDrive Sample
A distant second is Robert B. Parker’s Blind Spot by Reed Farrel Coleman, (Penguin/Putnam; RH Audio; Thorndike) the first in a four-book deal by the Edgar nominee with Parker’s estate. The books feature Parker’s other detective (not the more popular Spenser), Jesse Stone. Coleman is the second author to write Stone novels, Michael Brandman wrote three previous titles. The publisher claims that the Coleman ” takes Jesse Stone back to his introspective roots—restoring some of the contemplative melancholy that first made the Jesse Stone series a hit” but Booklist says this book is more Coleman than Parker and that’s a good thing. OverDrive Sample
Close on Parker’s heels is The King’s Curse by Philippa Gregory, which concludes the Cousins’ War series, the basis for the Starz miniseries The White Queen. The producer hinted in January that it might be followed by a sequel, based on The White Princess. OverDrive Sample
The books mentioned here, plus several other notable titles arriving next week, with ordering information and alternative formats, are listed on our donwloadable spreadsheet, New Title Radar, Week of Sept 8, 2014
Literary Hits
The Children Act, Ian McEwan, (RH/Doubleday/Nan A. Talese; Recorded Books: Wheeler), OverDrive Sample
There’s already a great deal of critical attention for the latest by the author of Atonement. It’s a People “Best Book of the Week” and #3 on Entertainment Weekly “Must List,” reviewed by Mona Simpson in the L.A. Times and by Ron Charles in the Washington Post. The author also has a full round of publicity coming, including interviews on the upcoming NPR Weekend Edition Saturday.
It is also a LibraryReads pick:
“Judge Fiona Maye is at a difficult point in her marriage. Taking refuge in addressing other people’s problems in family court, Fiona extends herself more than usual, meeting a boy whose future is in her hands. McEwan is a masterful observer of human distress. With a simple story and flawed, genuine characters, this novel is poignant and insightful.” — Jennifer Alexander, St. Louis County Library, St. Louis, MO
The Dog, Joseph O’Neill, (RH/Pantheon; RH Audio), OverDrive Sample
After his 2008 literary breakthrough, Netherland. Like that book, this one is also on the Book long list (although the odds are not in its favor. It is currently 12:1). It us the cover of the upcoming New York Times Book Review, “With a consummate elegance, The Dog turns in on itself in imitation of the dreadful circling and futility of consciousness itself. Its subplots go nowhere, as in life. But, unlike life, its wit and brio keep us temporarily more alive than we usually allow ourselves to be.”
In the daily NYT, however, Michiko Kakutani has no patience for it, saying the novel “remains parked inside its sullen narrator’s head — which, we soon realize, is a suffocating place to be.”
Entertainment Weekly gives it an A-.
The author is scheduled to appear on the upcoming NPR Weekend Edition Saturday.
LibraryReads Picks
In addition to The Dog, three more September LibraryReads picks arrive next week.
Station Eleven, Emily St. John Mandel, (RH/Knopf; RH Audio; Thorndike, Dec. 10), OverDrive Sample
“An actor playing King Lear dies onstage just before a cataclysmic event changes the future of everyone on Earth. What will be valued and what will be discarded? Will art have a place in a world that has lost so much? What will make life worth living? These are just some of the issues explored in this beautifully written dystopian novel. Recommended for fans of David Mitchell, John Scalzi and Kate Atkinson.” — Janet Lockhart, Wake County Public Libraries, Cary, NC
The New York Times plans to profile the author next week.
The Distance: A Thriller, Helen Giltrow, (RH/Doubleday; RH Audio), OverDrive Sample
“Imagine a modern-day Robin Hood who deals not in money, but identity. Karla, the protagonist of The Distance, is a tech guru with a conscience, and the security of several nations dependent on her. This nuanced book kept me on the edge of my seat. I cannot wait until the next one comes out.” — Cathy Scheib, Indianapolis Public Library, Indianapolis, IN
The Witch with No Name, Kim Harrison, (Harper Voyager), OverDrive Sample
“In this book, Harrison ends her long-running Hollows series, featuring witch Rachel Morgan, vampire Ivy, and pixy Jenks. Rachel’s come a long way; now, she and her friends attempt the impossible and face their toughest battle yet. Harrison skillfully wraps up many plot points, leaving readers sad that the series is over but satisfied by its ending. Fans will surely cheer Rachel on and shed a tear or two.” — Ilene Lefkowitz, Denville Public Library, Denville, NJ
Potential Sleeper Hit
Neverhome, Laird Hunt, (Hachette/ Little Brown; Blackstone Audio), OverDrive Sample
A hit on GalleyChat, this is also one of three “Sleeper Hit” predictions in USA Today‘s roundup of bookseller’s predictions for the fall. Wendy Bartlett, head of collection development at Cuyahoga P.L, Ohio, recently recommended it to staff, buying extra copies for browsing:
You simply must read this slim and brilliant novel–but read slowly and savor. It’s a subtle story, but a very powerful one that will linger long after you’ve read it. To describe the plot as one in which a woman disguises herself as a Civil War soldier and goes to war is to do it a great disservice. This book is so much more.
With a nod to Gilman’s Yellow Wallpaper, a touch of both Middlesex and Cold Mountain, Neverhome is a pitch perfect symphony—or maybe jazz rendition—about identity, war, and fate. And it’s gorgeously written. Book discussion and prize winner heaven right here.
Media Hits
Off the Sidelines: Raise Your Voice, Change the World, Kirsten Gillibrand, (RH/Ballantine; RH Audio), OverDrive Sample
Listening to the advice in her book’s title, the U.S senator from New York raised her voice this week about sexism in Washington (inspiring a great bit by Jon Stewart on The Daily Show). Gillibrand will appear on Stewart’s show on Tuesday, as well as on several other shows:
NBC Today Show – 9/9
NPR Diane Rehm – 9/10
MSNBC Morning Joe
PBS Charlie Rose – 9/10
The Roosevelts: An Intimate History, Geoffrey C. Ward, Ken Burns, (RH/Knopf)
The companion book to the PBS series which begins 9/14.
Burns is scheduled for appearances on:
NPR All Things Considered – 9/10
NPR Diane Rehm – 9/11
Comedy Central The Daily Show with Jon Stewart – 9/15