One of the most anticipated children’s books of the fall arrives next week, Brian Selznick’s The Marvels (Scholastic). The book’s trailer was created by Selznick himself. A former professional puppeteer, he created the scenes and acted out the story in a month-long process that was featured in the Wall Street Journal.

Selznick isn’t the only one to translate one of his books to the screen. His first, The Invention of Hugo Cabret was adapted by Martin Scorsese for the big screen and Todd Haynes is set to direct the second, Wonderstruck. No news yet on whether The Marvels will follow that path.

On the adult side, marquee authors with books arriving next week are J. D. Robb, Janet Evanovich and Catherine Coulter.

Memoir fans will have a range of titles from well-known names to choose from. One of the inventors of the modern memoir, Mary Karr, is publishing a book about the genre, The Art of Memoir (Harper), Song writer Jewel writes about her troubled past in Never Broken: Songs Are Only Half the Story (Penguin/Blue Rider). On a lighter note, Mindy Kaling takes a humorous look at herself in her second book, Why Not Me? (RH/Crown).

Young adults will receive inspiration from Chelsea Clinton’s It’s Your World : Get Informed, Get Inspired & Get Going! (Penguin/Philomel Listening Library).

For adults, WM. Paul Young, who took an unconventional approach to religion in The Shack, follows up with a novel that is a new take on a Biblical story Eve (S&S/Howard). He is scheduled for The Today Show on September 22.

The titles covered here, and several more notable titles arriving next week, are listed with ordering information and alternate formats, on our downloadable spreadsheet, EarlyWord New Title Radar, Week of Sept. 14, 2015

Media Attention

How’s Your Faith?: An Unlikely Spiritual Journey. David Gregory, (S&S)

Former Meet the Press moderator David Gregory writes about his faith in a book which will be getting a to of media attention, on a wide range of shows, from Bravo’s Watch What Happens Live  with Andy Cohen, an odd venue since the show is generally a Real Housewives celebfest, and CBS Late Show with Stephen Colbert. The media, of course, will be less interested in his faith than finding out more about his ouster from Meet the Press, as evidenced by his interview this week on CBS This Morning.

Peer Picks

Fates and Furies, Lauren Groff, (Penguin/Riverhead)

It seems everyone is on board with this book. People names it their “Book of the Week” in the new issue (“a playful and riveting read that questions whether love can be true when it’s wrapped in falsehoods.”) it is also featured on the upcoming NYT Sunday Book Review cover, (“Lauren Groff is a writer of rare gifts, and Fates and Furies is an unabashedly ambitious novel that delivers — with comedy, tragedy, well-deployed erudition and unmistakable glimmers of brilliance throughout.”)

Starred by all four prepub sources — PW, Kirkus, Booklist, LJ — it is a#1 Indie Next pick and a LibraryReads pick:

“Fates and Furies is a modern portrait of marriage. Lotto Satterwhite is the center, the hub around which all the characters revolve in the first half of the book. In the second half of the book, the lens turns to Lotto’s wife Mathilde, and her side of the lopsided partnership gives us a totally different view. Groff is a master of language. It’s not a gentle read. But it’s magnificent.” — Kelly Currie, Delphi Public Library, Delphi, IN

House of Thieves  Charles Belfoure (Sourcebooks Landmark)

Starred by PW and Booklist, this is both an Indie Next and LibraryReads pick:
“Belfoure’s intriguing novel is set in Gilded Age New York City. John Cross, head of the family, finds an unexpected talent for planning robberies, while his wife and children also discover their inner criminals. The historical details and setting evoke old New York. I enjoyed every minute of their escapades.” — Barbara Clark-Greene, Groton Public Library, Groton, CT

The Scribe, Matthew Guinn (Norton)

LibraryReads:

“A shunned detective is pulled back to Atlanta to solve some brutal murders that seem to be the work of a serial killer. Political intrigue, a fascinating time in this country’s history, and a good old-fashioned murder mystery make this one fascinating read. This book asks the question: when a man has had everything taken away, will he still fight for what is right?” — Kimberly McGee, Lake Travis Community Library, Austin, TX

Sweet Caress: The Many Lives of Amory Clay, William Boyd, (Macmillan/Bloomsbury USA)

Indie Next:

“Boyd’s new novel is the story of Amory Clay, whose father, a troubled World War I veteran, is absent. Amory’s Uncle Greer gives her a camera and teaches her about photography, and it is this gift that allows her to make her own way in the world. As a young woman, she goes to Berlin in the ‘20s, New York in the ‘30s, and then to France during World War II, where she makes her mark as one of the first female war correspondents. Later in life, Amory continues to pursue her passions and dreams as she experiences love, marriage, children, and yet another war. Boyd employs actual photos to accentuate this sweeping tale of a life lived to the fullest, and demonstrates yet again why he is one of our greatest chroniclers of the human heart.” —Cody Morrison, Square Books, Oxford, MS

Tie-ins

Hitting theaters today is the movie adaptation of 90 Minutes In Heaven (Revell, 2004) promoted yesterday by Hoda and KLG on the Today Show, and based on the book by Don Piper.

Also debuting is Wolf Totem by French director Jean-Jacques Annaud. Based on the controversial Chinese novel by Rong Jiang, Wolf Totem, (Penguin Press, 2008), it is reviewed in the NYT today. The NYT also reviewed the book when it was published.

Returning to the small screen next week is the Longmire series, picked up by Netflix after it was dropped by A&E. Based on the character in Criag Johnson’s Longmire Mystery Series, beginning with The Cold Dish (Penguin), the Netflix incarnation is reviewed in the NYT.

This week a new paperback edition of Walter Isaacson’s lengthy bio, Steve Jobs is being released. It is called the “inspiration” for the movie that releases October 16, starring Michael Fassbender, Kate Winslet, Seth Rogen, Jeff Daniels and directed by Danny Boyle with a screenplay by Aaron Sorkin. Apple’s co-founder Steve Wozniak told the BBC this week that he is satisfied with the result (although earlier he objected to his portrayal by Seth Rogen in the movie’s trailer).

For a full list of upcoming adaptations, download our Books to Movies and TV spreadsheet and link to our listing of tie-ins.

The holds leader for next week is the next in Lee Child’s series.

Make Me, Lee Child, (RH/Delacorte Press; BOT)

On the eve of the release of the 20th book in the series, news broke that the second Jack Reacher movie starring Tom Cruise is moving ahead and is now scheduled to premiere in Oct. 2016.

Janet Maslin, who has reviewed many of Child’s books in the daily NYT, considers this one of his best. It is also a LibraryReads pick:

Jack Reacher is back. Jack gets off a train at an isolated town. Soon, he is learning much more about the town, and its residents are learning not to mess around with Jack Reacher. Readers new to this series will find this book a good starting point, and fans will be pleased to see Jack again. — Jenna Persick, Chester County Library, Exton, PA

The titles covered here, and several more notable titles arriving next week, are listed with ordering information and alternate formats, on our downloadable spreadsheet, EarlyWord New Title Radar, Week of Sept. 7, 2015

Advance Attention

Bream Gives Me Hiccups, Jesse Eisenberg, (Grove Press)

This debut short story collection features a 9-year-old restaurant critic and is getting attention largely as a result of the author’s other career as an actor. A profile of the author/actor in the NYT Sunday Book Review reveals that he is reader.

This book may cross over to the small screen. In January, it was announced that Eisenberg had made a deal with Amazon Studios to adapt the stories into a half-hour comedy.

Eisenberg narrates the audio. Below, he reads one of the stories.

Two Years Eight Months and Twenty-Eight Nights, Salman Rushdie, (Random House)

From The Tonight Show to a profile in the New York Times, Rushdie is getting attention for his latest, reviewed in the L.A. Times.

 Peer Picks

The Art of Crash Landing, Melissa DeCarlo, (Harper Paperbacks)

This original trade paperback is the #1 LibraryReads pick for the month,

“At once tragic and hilarious, this book is a roller coaster of a read. You’ll find yourself rooting for the snarky and impulsive but ultimately lovable Mattie. At the heart of this tale is a beautifully unraveled mystery that has led Mattie to her current circumstances, ultimately bringing her to her first real home.” — Patricia Kline-Millard, Bedford Public Library, Bedford, NH

This Is Your Life, Harriet Chance!, Jonathan Evison, (Workman/Algonquin)

Librarians have been fans of Evison ever since his first book and they made this his fourth a LibraryReads pick for the month:

“Harriet Chance receives word that her recently deceased husband, Bernard, has won an Alaskan cruise. Deciding to go on the trip, she is given a letter from her close friend Mildred, with instructions not to open it until she is on the cruise. The contents of this letter shatter Harriet and she begins to reevaluate her life and her relationships.” — Arleen Talley, Anne Arundel County Public Library Foundation, Annapolis, MD

It is also an Indie Next pick.

Black Man in a White Coat : A Doctor’s Reflections on Race and Medicine, Damon Tweedy, M.D, (Macmillan/Picador)

A BEA Editors’ Buzz title, this is on Entertainment Weekly “Must List” in the current issue, “This riveting memoir chronicles Tweedy’s rise from wide-eyed med student to practicing physician, as he’s forced to consider the ways race and health intersect in his patients’ lives — and his own.”

it is also an Indie Next pick:

“Black Man in a White Coat would be an important book no matter when it was published, but in this season of Ferguson and Charleston, when we must assert more loudly and clearly than ever that black lives matter, the book is essential reading. Dr. Tweedy reflects on the issues faced by black professionals as they confront racism in their careers and black patients as they face the inequities of our health care system. This book is introspective and inspiring in a way that a less personal narrative could not be. We owe the author our gratitude for shining a spotlight on these important issues.” —Carole Horne, Harvard Book Store, Cambridge, MA

The Hummingbird, Stephen P. Kiernan, (HarperCollins/Morrow)

Indie Next:

The Hummingbird is a powerful story about the critical role of human empathy in dealing with two important contemporary issues: hospice care and post-traumatic stress disorder. Kiernan’s characters are well-drawn and give unique perspectives on death, trauma, and providing care in difficult times. The Hummingbird is a must-read for all who want to help loved ones die with dignity as well as for those helping veterans achieve normalcy after serving our country. —Phyllis K. Spinale, Wellesley Books, Wellesley, MA – See more at:

Tie-ins

Getting a jump on the holiday weekend, the movie adaptation of A Walk in the Woods starring Robert Redford, Nick Nolte and Emma Thompson opened on Wednesday. New York magazine’s review will disappoint those hoping for a movie that was as funny as Bryson’s 1008 book.

As we head to the fall movie season, several tie-ins are scheduled for publication next week. Movie inks are to our coverage, with trailers.

The Profession of Violence: The Rise and Fall of the Kray Twins, John Pearson, (HarperCollins/William Collins); Movie opens 10/2/15

Room, Emma Donoghue (Hachette, trade pbk, mass mkt., audio);  Movie opens 10/16/15

Trumbo (Movie Tie-In Edition), Bruce Cook, (Hachette/Grand Central);  Movie opens 11/6/15

Brooklyn, Colm Toibin,  (S&S/Scribner); Movie opens 11/6/15

For a full list of upcoming adaptations, download our Books to Movies and TV and link to our listing of tie-ins.

It’s a game of “Is this one better than that one” for critics this week, as they look forward to two big launches on Tuesday. We’ve already looked at the earliest reviews of The Girl in the Spider’s Web (RH/Knopf; RH and BOT Audio; RH Large Print).  People magazine adds theirs online today (the review is not in the new print issue; usually it is the other way around), judging it a worthy successor. That makes the Washington Post the only holdout so far

The other title is Jonathan’s third book, Purity. (Macmillan/FSG; Macmillan Audio). It’s also had several early reviews, which we summarized. Many more have been added since.

Going beyond the cliched adjective “highly anticipated,” Entertainment Weekly ‘s Leah Greenblatt writes, “A new Jonathan Franzen novel arrives only every five or 10 years, and when it does, it feels like a banquet. His books are almost always centered on familial entanglements and identity, but they’re never just that: There are brilliant stand-alone chapters to devour, detours to savor, bitter little scraps to nibble and spit out.”  This one is no exception, says Greenblatt, Objecting to Franzen’s “often shockingly ugly take on women” (although she says he is an equal opportunity insulter, since his “male characters hardly come out unscathed”) and to the novel’s abrupt ending which seems to indicate Franzen tired of his characters, she gives it a B.

The daily NYT‘s Michiko Kakutani, whom Franzen referred to in 2008 as “the stupidest person in New York City,” calls this a “dynamic new novel,” which, “After its somewhat stilted start …kicks into gear, with Mr. Franzen writing with gathering assurance and verve.” Addressing Franzen famous misanthropy, she says he “has added a new octave to his voice … [the] ability here to not just satirize the darkest and pettiest of human impulses but to also capture his characters’ yearnings for connection and fresh starts — and to acknowledge the possibility of those hopes.”

LA Times chief critic David L. Ulin’s is more qualified, saying “The novel is a bit of a mixed bag, largely because of all the plotting, which has never been the author’s strong suit; both The Corrections and Freedom succeed despite, not because of, their narrative contrivances. All the same, it remains compelling to read Franzen confront his demons, which are not just his but everyone’s.”

People magazine makes it their “Pick of the Week,” [not online yet] calling it “Wickedly smart and funny about power and desire, sometimes flabby and contrived yet still irresistible: pure Franzen.”

The titles covered here, and several more notable titles arriving next week, are listed with ordering information and alternate formats, on our downloadable spreadsheet,EarlyWord New Title Radar, Week of Aug. 31, 2015

Consumer Media Picks

The Story of the Lost Child, Elena Ferrante, (Europa Editions)

The cult Italian author‘s final book in her Neapolitan Novels series is featured on the cover of this week’a NYT Book Review.

The writer explains in a Vanity Fair interview that “You Don’t Need to Know Her Name.”

Peer Picks

Did You Ever Have A Family, Bill Clegg, (S&S/Gallery/Scout Press)

There’s a pile-up of excitement for this book, featured at BEA, with stars from all four pre-pub journals, plus picks by Indie Next as well as LibraryReads:

“Clegg’s devastatingly beautiful fiction debut is the portrait of a community in the aftermath of a tragedy. June Reid, the broken woman at the epicenter of the novel, is struggling with a loss so profound that she is unable to see beyond her grief, unaware that it has touched many people. Clegg tells their stories with heartbreaking sensitivity and insight.” — Mary Coe, Fairfield Woods Branch Library, Fairfield, CT

Girl Waits with Gun, Amy Stewart, (HMH)

Also arriving with four prepub stars and picks by Indie Next and LibraryReads:

“When the Kopp sisters and their buggy are injured by Henry Kaufman’s car, Constance Kopp at first just wants him to pay the damages. As she pursues justice, she meets another of Kaufman’s victims, the young woman Lucy. Stewart creates fully developed characters, including the heroine, Constance, who is fiercely independent as she faces down her fears. The time period and setting are important parts of the story as well, providing a glimpse of 1914 New Jersey.” — Maggie Holmes, Richards Memorial Library, North Attleboro, MA

It is also reviewed in the week’s New York Times Sunday Book Review and author Stewart answers the burning question from the L.A Times, “What made Amy Stewart leave garden bestsellers behind for the novel Girl Waits with Gun?” She reveals she has and answer to reviewers’ hopes and is working on anther novel featuring Constance Kopp.

The Gates of Evangeline, Hester Young, (Penguin/Putnam)

Indie Next and LibraryReads

“Journalist Charlie Cates goes to gloomy, swampy Louisiana to write a book about the disappearance of a young child. Her research uncovers family secrets, lies, and clandestine affairs. This first book in a new series is incredibly suspenseful, with a vivid setting, a supernatural tinge, and an intricate plot that keeps you guessing until the end.” — Anbolyn Potter, Chandler Public Library, Chandler, AZ

Jade Dragon Mountain, Elsa Hart, (Macmillan/Minotaur)

Indie Next:

“Hart has written an excellent historical whodunit set in a remote province of Imperial China in 1708. Li Du, a librarian in exile, investigates the murder of an old Jesuit priest a few days before the arrival of the emperor. Full of mythological, cultural, and historical details, Jade Dragon Mountain also offers a fascinating analysis of the period when foreign businessmen began coveting China’s riches, in particular its tea. The plot is tight, the characters and suspects are fully developed, and the story keeps readers guessing with a few extra surprises at the end. I highly recommend this book and I am looking forward to reading more adventures featuring Li Du.” —Pierre Camy, Schuler Books & Music, Grand Rapids, MI

At BEA Shout ‘n’ Share, Kristi Chadwick, Massachusetts Library System said, “The language, the prose is so beautiful it takes you into the story and keeps you going page after page.”

Tie-ins

Hitting theaters today is the movie adaptation of Robert C. O’Brien, Z For Zachariah (S&S/Atheneum, 1975; tie-in edition, Simon Pulse, 8/18/15), reviewed in the NYT today. Concluding on HBO this Sunday is the series Show Me A Hero, based on the book by Lisa Belkin.

Scheduled for publication this week are new trade paperback editions of the six titles in Cassandra Clare’s Mortal Instruments series and the three in the prequel, The Infernal Devices. ABC Family is adapting the series. It is expected to being in early 2016. To fuel fan interest, the official site ShadowHuntersTV.com was launched recently.

For our full list of upcoming adaptations, download our Books to Movies and TV. For tie-ins, link to our catalog on Edelweiss.

Next week the media will continue placing attention on the tenth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina and on journalist Gary Rivlin’s book, Katrina: After the Flood (S&S). Having already appeared on the cover of the 8/9/15 New York Times Book review, an excerpt is featured in this week’s New York Times Magazine. The author is set to appear today on MSNBC’s Hardball with Chris Matthews, this coming Thursday on NPR’s Diane Rehm Show and on CBS Sunday Morning next week.

The titles covered here, and several more notable titles arriving next week, are listed with ordering information and alternate formats, on our downloadable spreadsheet ,EarlyWord New Title Radar, Week of Aug 23, 2015

Holds Leader

X, Sue Grafton, (Penguin/Putnam)

Sue Grafton not only gets marquee billing on the cover of her new book, she appears to not even need a title, just the image of a letter (what a contrast to the cover of her first book from 1982, where the title gets top billing and her name gets near;y equal billing with her main character’s). The twenty-fourth in her series, it gets stars from Booklist, Kirkus, and PW. Booklist says “Grafton has never been better.” Kirkus adds “Grafton’s endless resourcefulness in varying her pitches in this landmark series … graced by her trademark self-deprecating humor, is one of the seven wonders of the genre” and PW says this is a “superior outing.”

Advance Attention

A Window Opens, Elisabeth Egan, (S&S)

As a former magazine and book editor Elisabeth Egan has a leg up on other first-time novelists. Add to that the fact that she once worked for Amazon, an experience echoed by her character’s punishing job at a company called Scroll, and that Amazon’s working conditions have been in the news lately, and you have a formula for strong media coverage. Indeed, Eagan is profiled in the daily New York Times and her novel is reviewed in this Sunday’s NYT Book Review and is a People magazine pick.

It is also an Indie Next pick:

Alice Pearse has just accepted a job with Scroll, (a forward-thinking bookstore) but Susannah, her friend who owns the neighborhood bookstore, asks her, “Would you really work for an operation that will be the final nail in the coffin for Blue Owl Books?” On her first day, Alice must set up meetings with 30 agents and editors and assemble 425 top titles to sell in Scroll’s lounges. The job is in addition to having three children, a dog, a husband in the midst of a career change, parents, siblings, and friends. Alice soon realizes this career may not be exactly what she envisioned and must ask herself, what matters the most? — the very question that many of us ask ourselves every day. A delightful, inspiring, and moving tale that will be a top choice for any book group. —Karen Briggs, Great Northern Books & Hobbies, Oscoda, MI

The Last Love Song: A Biography of Joan Didion, Tracy Daugherty, (Macmillan/St. Martin’s)

Interest in Didion grew with the publication of her memoir about her husband’s death, The Year of Magical Thinking, a National Book Award winner, best seller and the basis for a successful Broadway play, so this first biography of the writer has been eagerly awaited. Reviewing it last week, Entertainment Weekly gave it an A-. It is reviewed, or  more accurately, simply “described” by Michiko Kakutani this week in the New York Times, but the L.A. Times is not a fan, saying the book doesn’t tell us any more than we could learn simply by reading Didion’s own words.

Peer Picks

Best Boy, Eli Gottlieb, (Norton/Liveright)

The Washington Post’s review calls it “An unforgettable novel.” It is an Indie Next pick and the #1 LibraryReads pick for August:

“What happens when someone on the autism spectrum grows up, and they aren’t a cute little boy anymore? Gottlieb’s novel follows the story of Todd Aaron, a man in his fifties who has spent most of his life a resident of the Payton Living Center. Todd begins to wonder what lies beyond the gates of his institution. A funny and deeply affecting work.” — Elizabeth Olesh, Baldwin Public Library, Baldwin, NY

The Nature of the Beast: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel, Louise Penny, (Macmillan/Minotaur)

Supported by a two-page centerfold ad in the NYT Sunday Book review this week, Penny’s latest is an Indie Next pick.:

“Penny scores again with this story of the struggle between the forces of good and evil in the tiny Canadian village of Three Pines. Retired homicide chief Armand Gamache must use all of his detective skills and worldly wisdom to solve the murder of a young boy, an investigation that uncovers a threat to global security. The eccentric citizens of this remote outpost add their own color and knowledge to the unraveling of this complex mystery. This book is a pure delight!” —Sarah Pease, Buttonwood Books & Toys, Cohasset, MA

The Fall of Princes, Robert Goolrick, (Workman/Algonquin)

LibraryReads:

“I loved this novel about the rise and fall of a man in NYC during the 80s, when money was easy to make and easy to spend. What happens when you can get anything you want, and what does it really end up costing you? The story of the people working in the financial industry during that time is interwoven with the reality of AIDS, cocaine and the changes going on in society. So many sentences were so well-written that I found myself stopping to take them in and relish them.” — Jennifer Cook, Cheshire Public Library, Cheshire, CT

The titles arriving next week with the largest announced print runs, 1 million copies each, are both childrens books. The Day the Crayons Came Home by Drew Daywalt and Oliver Jeffers is, of course, the followup to the long-running best seller about the day they left.

Neck and neck with the crayons is  Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes by Rick Riordan (Disney/Hyperion; Listening Library)

Among the well-known adult authors with books arriving next week, Michael Koryta gets props in this week’s NYT Sunday Book Review from “Crime’ columnist Marilyn Stasio for standing out from those authors who “write the same book over and over.” Koryta, “an inventive story teller and a superb stylist, he’s constantly experimenting,” and  his new book, Last Words is “a private eye novel doesn’t read like one.”

The titles covered here, and several more notable titles arriving next week, are listed with ordering information and alternate formats, on our downloadable spreadsheet, EarlyWord New Title Radar, Week of Aug. 17, 2015

Consumer Media Picks

Eileen: A Novel, Ottessa Moshfegh, (Penguin Press)

Featured at BEA’s Editors Buzz Panel this year, this debut (after an award-winning novella McGlue and several short stories)  gets the cover of this week’s NYT Sunday Book Review, calling it “seductive” and a “literary thriller.”

It is also an Indie Next pick:
“Psychological thrillers don’t get any better than this. Moshfegh masterfully captures the inner despair of a young mind filled with vitriol. Through atmospheric and unsettling writing, the cold dreariness of small-town New England seeps into readers’ bones even as Eileen’s twisted view of the world — desperate, angry, and vulnerable — seeps into the reading experience. Creepy, but morbidly funny too, Eileen, both the girl and the book, will be with readers long after the last page is turned.” — Christopher Phipps, DIESEL: A Bookstore, Oakland, CA

It also leads off this week’s Entertainment Weekly Books section, called a “Chilling debut.”

UPDATE: the L.A. Times adds another stellar review to the above and the author appears on NPR’S Weekend Edition Saturday.

Woman With a Secret, Sophie Hannah, (HarperCollins/Morrow)

Since Janet Maslin stepped down as a one of the three book reviewers for the daily NYT as of July, we’ve missed her Friday reviews championing
titles she expected to breakout. We’re still waiting for news on a replacement, but meanwhile, Sarah Lyall steps into the breach today, although for a book that hit shelves last week.

About Sophie Hannah’s new boo, she enthuses, “It has, in common with her other books, a Gordian knot of a plot that untangles bit by bit, like a flower that does not blossom all at once; a strikingly executed and seemingly insoluble crime; a mess of loopy motivations and extreme behavior from guilty and innocent alike; a flawed, difficult heroine; and a great deal of amusing conversation between Waterhouse and his equally odd colleagues.

Born on the Bayou : A Memoir, Blaine Lourd, (S&S/Gallery)

People pick — “a corker of a tale about growing up in Cajun country.”

Entertainment Weekly, “Must List”, #7 — ‘This witty, evocative memoir puts a vivid Southern spin on the classic rags-to-riches tale.”

The author is scheduled to appear on ABC’s Good Morning America on Wednesday, August 19.

We Never Asked for Wings, Vanessa Diffenbaugh, (RH/Ballantine)

People ‘Book of the Week’ — “Single mom Letty Espinosa has always let her mother, Maria Elena, do the work of raising Letty’s two kids. But when Maria Elena suddenly moves back to Mexico, hard-drinking Letty must grow up fast. Diffenbaugh (The Language Of Flowers) deftly blends family conflict with reassurance: Wings is like Parenthood with class and immigrations issues added for gravitas. Take it to the beach.”

Fortune Smiles : Stories, Adam Johnson

This collection of short stories by the  author of the Pulitzer Prize winner, The Oprhan Master’s Son gets double coverage in theWashington Post, with a review which calls the stories “masterful”  as well as a story by Book World editor Ron Charles. It is also reviewed in the NYT Sunday Book Review (“gleefully bleak“).

UPDATE: The author is interviewed on NPR’s Weekend Edition Saturday.

Thug Notes : A Street-Smart Guide to Classic Literature, Sparky Sweets, PhD, (RH/Vintage)

We’ve had Thug Kitchen, now comes Thug Notes, like Cliff’s Notes, but with an edge.

Entertainment Weekly says, “from the mad-successful YouTube channel that puts a streetwise spin on beloved books and plays — stars a fictional professor named Spark Sweets, PhD. … But the project which is the brainchild of a group of comedians and academics, has been so successful at interesting kinds in literature that some schools have taken notice.”

Try this one with your reading groups:

Last Bus to Wisdom, Ivan Doig, (Penguin/Riverhead)

In this week’s NYT Sunday Book Review, the reviewer acknowledges he was worried about having to assess this book by a beloved author who died in April fearing it might not live up to his favorite Doig novels. After all,  “spitting on a fresh-sodded grave is not my idea of a good time.” Happily, however, he reports, this one is “more than not bad. It’s one of Doig’s best novels, an enchanting 1950’s road-trip tale.”

Peer Picks

Everybody Rise, Stephanie Clifford. (Macmillan/St. Martin’s Press)

Word has gotten out on this debut. Holds are five to one in some places. They may continue to grow with the full page ad in this week’s NYT Sunday Book Review, plus the review in the Washington Post, “a smart tragicomedy about a young woman attempting to infiltrate the Primates of Park Avenue crowd.”

It is both an Indie Next and a LibraryReads pick:

“Stephanie Clifford’s debut novel takes us into the world of NYC high society in 2006. Evelyn Beegan, who’s always been on the fringes of the smart set, meets It girl Camilla Rutherford, and her ambition and desire to belong get the best of her. Evelyn’s deceptive effort to keep pace with Camilla wreaks all kinds of havoc with her finances, her family, and her sense of self. With a sympathetic main character and a fascinating look into how the other half lives, this astute tale is irresistible.” —  Anbolyn Potter, Chandler Public Library, Chandler, AZ

The Girl from the Garden, Parnaz Foroutan, (HarperCollins/Ecco)

With starred reviews from PW, Kirkus and Booklist, this is also an Indie Next pick:

“In her accomplished, arresting debut, Foroutan tells a story almost biblical in its basics. People in a mixed, but very religious, clan-determined society in Iran have their lives and roles set out in firmly dictated ways. Conflict ensues when what is prescribed doesn’t happen as it should and when basic human longings for autonomy and a sense of self start to emerge. Foroutan writes of a family’s unraveling in a powerful story that will vividly live on in the reader’s memory and imagination. Brilliant!” —Rick Simonson, The Elliott Bay Book Company, Seattle, WA

Movies/TV

Hitting screens today is the movie Ten Thousand Saints, reviewed in the NYT. On Sunday, HBO debuts the new David Simon series, Show Me a Hero, based on the book by Lisa Belkin, also reviewed in the NYT today.

Five new  tie-ins hit shelves next week, listed below, with links to our latest coverage.

Captive : The Untold Story of the Atlanta Hostage Hero, Ashley Smith, Stacy Mattingly, (HarperCollins/Morrow Paperbacks) — CAPTIVE, Trailer — Movie opens 9/18

The Martian (Movie Tie-In) : A Novel, Andy Weir, mass market — THE MARTIAN, New Viral Teaser — Movie opens 10/2

Big Stone Gap (Movie Tie-in Edition) : A Novel, Adriana Trigiani (RH/ Ballantine)– BIG STONE GAP, Trailer — — Movie opens 10/9

A Walk in the Woods (Movie Tie-in Edition) : Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail, Bill Bryson, (RH/Anchor) — Redford Takes A WALK IN THE WOODS — Movie opens 9/2

Z for Zachariah, Robert C. O’Brien, (S&S/Simon Pulse) — In Production: Z FOR ZACHARIAH – — Movie opens 8/28

For our full list of upcoming adaptations, download our Books to Movies and TV and link to our listing of tie-ins.

YouTube stars had their day at the recently wrapped VidCon. A surprising number of them have ventured in the the old media of books. Coming next week, internet star Felicia Day‘s memoir impresses booksellers, who made it one of their Indie Next picks.

The titles covered here, and several more notable titles arriving next week, are listed with ordering information and alternate formats, on our downloadable spreadsheet, EarlyWord New Title Radar, Week of Aug. 10, 2015

Holds Leaders

Silver Linings: A Rose Harbor Novel, Debbie Macomber, (RH/Ballantine)

Gaining advantage by being published in the midst of season three of the Hallmark series based on Macomber’s Cedar Cove novels starring Andie McDowell, this is the holds leader for the week.

Who Do You Love, Jennifer Weiner, (S&S/Atria)

Kirkus calls this one, “Weiner at her heartstring-tugging best.”

Devil’s Bridge, Linda Fairstein, (Penguin/Dutton)

Featured in a full-page ad in this week;s NYT Sunday Book Review, PW calls it subpar while Booklist says it is “Another solid title … sure to follow its predecessors onto the best-seller lists.”

Media Attention

The tenth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina is coming soon and this week’s NYT Sunday Book Review marks it with a roundup featured on the cover, including Katrina: After the Flood, by Gary Rivlin, (S&S). Closer to the actual anniversary,  the author is set to appear on MSNBC-TV/Hardball with Chris Matthews, August 21 and NPR’s Diane Rehm Show, August 27.

Rivlin presents five surprising facts about the storm in the following video.

Reaching further back in history, the Today Show’s Al Roker is publishing The Storm of the Century: Tragedy, Heroism, Survival, and the Epic True Story of America’s Deadlest Natural Disaster: The Great Gulf Hurricane of 1900, (HarperCollins/Morrow).

Consumer Media Picks

Days of Awe, Lauren Fox, (RH/Knopf)

People “Book of the Week”, Aug 17:

“You can do everything right, yet when tragedy hits, ‘you’re staring at the moonscape that used to be your life.’ Isabel Moore learns this when her best friend, ‘the glorious roller-coaster that was Josie,’ dies on an icy highway. Iz has a loving husband and a good job, but suddenly she’s fact-to-face with dark truths about Josie and herself. As Fox deconstructs the myths of perfect womanhood, her humor and humanity remind us that love’s the only lifeboat through grief.” It’s also reviewed in this week’s NYT Sunday Book Review.

Peer Picks

In the Dark Places: An Inspector Banks Novel, Peter Robinson, (HarperCollins/Morrow)

Indie Next Pick:

“In the Dark Places, Robinson’s 22nd Inspector Banks novel, is still rich in the landscape and culture of Yorkshire. Still populated with characters moving through their lives, reacting to events, reaching for experiences, skills, relationships — and justice for victims. Still ingeniously plotted, challenging even the astute reader to keep up through the nerve-racking suspense. Still flush with the musicality of Robinson’s prose and with the love of music that is so much a part of Banks’ personality. And still shaping the story with local history and landmarks so that In the Dark Places, like each Banks novel before it, is unique, yet contributing to a remarkable portrait of modern Britain in all its insularity and diversity.” —Barbara Peters, The Poisoned Pen, Scottsdale, AZ

The Race for Paris, Meg Waite Clayton, (HarperCollins/Harper)

Indie Next Pick:

“The Race for Paris is an action-packed tale of courage, friendship, and love during the grim, final days of World War II. Clayton’s triumphant new novel brings to life the intrepid female journalists who sought to break the limits of the times. While soldiers faced the brutal reality of war, women had to also overcome sexism and legal obstacles simply to do their jobs. Based on real characters and events, The Race for Paris brings a unique perspective to a little-known aspect of history. Gather your book club and prepare for an intense conversation as these characters will haunt you long after you turn the final page!” —Pamela Klinger-Horn, Excelsior Bay Books, Excelsior, MN

Multiply/Divide: On the American Real and Surreal, Wendy S. Walters, (Sarabande Books)

Indie Next Pick:

“In Multiply/Divide, Walters sifts through the weird, quietly horrifying wreckage that structural racism has left behind in everyday American life and presents something like a mythology, but stranger because, of course, it is real, and we have never known life without it. Her prose is as clear as day, her stories are candid, and only a poet could have written a book of essays like this. City by city, over radio waves and under the street, Walters beautifully maps for us what should have been obvious: that nearly all of our heartbreak — and even our joy — is rooted in this mythology.” —Daniel Poppick, BookCourt, Brooklyn, NY

You’re Never Weird on the Internet (Almost): A Memoir, Felicia Day, (S&S/Touchstone)

A YouTube star featured at this year’s VidCon, this memoir is also an Indie Next Pick:
“Day has penned what is sure to be an instant cult classic. By turns funny, insightful, inspiring, and all-too-familiar, she maps her rise from lonely homeschooled girl to internet darling, along the way revealing her struggles, her insecurities, her stubbornness, and, most transparently, her utterly relatable story of finding her way while not fitting in. For anyone who has woken up to realize they are not where they wanted to be, Day’s honest book is for you!” —Anna Eklund, University Book Store, Seattle, WA

For more on YouTube stars and their books, see our earlier story.

Tie-ins

it’s a big week for adaptations in theaters. Finally debuting today is Gillian Flynn’s Dark Places (reviews are not strong, however) as well as The Diary Of A Teenage Girl and an animated version of Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet.

Oddly, both of the movie tie-ins coming out next week are for films that don’t yet have a release date.

A Woman in Arabia : The Writings of the Queen of the Desert, Gertrude Bell, Georgina Howell, (Penguin Classics)

Called “the “female Lawrence of Arabia.” Gertrude Bell was a  Middle East expert who lived with Bedouin tribes and helped the British army find their way in the desert during the World War I. This is the latest of several collections of Bell’s writings is published to coincide with Werner Herzog movie Queen of the Desert, starring Nicole Kidman as Bell with James Franco, Robert Pattinson and Damian Lewis. The U.S. release date has not yet been announced.

The Dressmaker, Rosalie Ham, (Penguin Books)

Called a “revenge comedy,” the movie stars Kate Winslet, Judy Davis and Liam Hemsworth. It is adapted from a best selling Australian novel which is getting its first U.S. release. The film’s U.S. release date has not yet been set, however.

For our full list of upcoming adaptations, see our Books to Movies and TV and our listing of tie-ins.

It may be hard to believe, but next week we head into the fall publishing season. It will be a while before we begin to see multiple marquee name authors dominate . The only one this week is James Patterson with Alert, co-authored by Michael Ledwidge (Hachette/Little, Brown).

But we do have a cornucopia of peer recommendations, eleven titles from Indie Next alone. We’ve highlighted the ones getting the most buzz below and have included them all in this collection.

The titles covered here, and several more notable titles arriving next week, are listed with ordering information and alternate formats, on our downloadable spreadsheet EarlyWord New Title Radar Week of 8/3/15

Advance Attention

The Man Who Wasn’t There: Investigations into the Strange New Science of the Self, Anil Ananthaswamy, (Penguin/Dutton)

isn’t the only way the brain can go wrong. In this book Ananthaswamy examines the many ways the brain can go wrong, including Alzheimer’s  and body integrity identity disorder, or BIID, a which can make a person turn on his own body. .On Fresh Air, 7/28, Ananthaswamy tells Terry Gross the story of a man who had his healthy leg amputates because he had become convinced it wasn’t his own. The book is reviewed in the new issue of Entertainment Weekly, which calls it “a blazingly original excursion through the brain.”

Consumer Media Picks

Villa America, Liza Klaussmann, (Hachette/Little, Brown)

People “Pick of the Week,” 8/10/15 — “In the fictionalized look at 1920s socialites Sara and Gerald Murphy — real life inspirations for F. Scott Fitzgerald’s Tender Is The Night — party central is the Cote d’Azur and the players include novelists, painters and a stoic WW1 pilot Fitzgerald fans may go mad trying to separate truth from fantasy, but Klaussmann’s portrait of a marriage that endured many temptations (including Hemingway!) is intriguing and tender to the bone.”

Trust No One: A Thriller, Paul Cleave, (S&S/Atria)

People pick, 8/10/15 –“Jerry Grey, a thriller writer with early-onset Alzheimer’s, confesses a horrific murder to the police. Or is his jumbled mind just reciting the plot of his first bestseller? And why are cops convinced he really HAS killed someone — a crime he can’t remember? Cleave’s whirligig plot mesmerizes as Jerry fights his decline and tries to put together the pieces.?

Peer Picks

The Marriage of Opposites, Alice Hoffman

Indie Next:
“Hoffman’s newest novel is based on the life of Rachel Pomie Petit Pissarro and her favorite son, Camille, who would become the famed ‘Father of impressionism.’ Growing up in a Jewish refugee community on tropical St. Thomas in the 1800s, strong-willed Rachel dreams of the cool, rainy streets of Paris. Raised by a stern mother and a kind-hearted father, Rachel is forced to marry a widower to save her family’s business and later follows forbidden passions, creating a scandal that turns her community against her. Hoffman fills the pages with the island’s magic and color in this unforgettable tale of what it means to walk the tightrope between tradition and independence, love and logic.” —Julia Sinn, Bookshop Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA

LibraryReads:
“Exquisite… Alice Hoffman’s finest work to date. The Marriage of Opposites is a beautiful love story of a man and woman and a mother and child intricately woven together to capture the author’s true message: Love more, not less.” — Marianne Colton, Lockport Public Library, Lockport, NY

Alice Hoffman talks about the inspiration for the book in the following video:

In a Dark, Dark Wood, Ruth Ware, (S&S/Gallery/Scout Press)

LibraryReads:
“Leonora Shaw is a crime writer who lives a solitary life in London until she receives an invitation to a hen party for a friend she hasn’t seen in nearly ten years. The party takes place in a remote location with spotty phone service. Are you nervous yet? We know from the opening pages that something horrible happens, but just what, and to whom, how, and why will keep readers guessing — and flipping the pages. Recommended for fans of The Girl on the Train.” Vicki Nesting, St. Charles Parish Library, Destrehan, LA

Entertainment Weekly:
“… you’ll find it almost impossible to put this twisting, electrifying debut down … it’s foggy atmosphere and shilling revelations will leave you breathless.” A-

Lord of the Wings: A Meg Langslow Mystery, Donna Andrewsm, (Macmillan/Minotaur)

LibraryReads:
“It’s Halloween in Caerphilly and the town has come up with another festival to bring in the tourists. Meg Langslow is heading up the “Goblin Patrol”, there’s trouble at the Haunted House, and body parts are being found at the zoo. Meg is once again called in to save the day and solve the crime. If you enjoy your mysteries packed with humor and fun, don’t miss this return to Caerphilly with Meg and her zany family and friends.” — Karen Emery, Johnson County Public Library, Franklin, IN

Fishbowl : A Novel, Bradley Somer, (Macmillan/St. Martin’s)

Indie Next:
“Somer uses the unusual device of a goldfish plunging off of a high-rise balcony to tie together the disparate stories of the building’s inhabitants. As our hero, Ian, plummets past floor after floor, he glimpses the lives of the residents — witnessing birth, heartbreak, new love, and all of the pathos and wonder that comprise human existence. Although Ian has only a goldfish’s seconds-long capacity for memory, readers will find themselves returning to the essential truths of Somer’s characters again and again.” —Jill Miner, Saturn Booksellers, Gaylord, MI

The U.K. book trailer is our pick of the week:

Tie-ins

Black Mass: Whitey Bulger, the FBI, and a Devil’s Deal, Dick Lehr, Gerard O’Neill, (PublicAffairs)

Boston crime boss beginning in the early 1970s,, Whitey Bulger wasn’t found guilty of his multiple murders and other crimes until 2013, a verdict greeted by the Hollywood press as providing a convenient ending for the biopic.

Published last year, Whitey Bulger: America’s Most Wanted Gangster and the Manhunt That Brought Him to Justice by Kevin Cullen and Shelley Murphy (Norton, 2/11/13) was featured on NPR’s Fresh Air and described as not only a fascinating story, but “just a great read.”

He was called “Whitey” for his balding white blonde hair, which meant that Johnny Depp had to change his look for the role.

The movie opens 9/18/2015 (for our full list of upcoming adaptations, see our Books to Movies and TV and our listing of tie-ins).

A new trailer was released this week.

The Scorch Trials Movie Tie-in Edition (Maze Runner, Book Two), James Dashner, (RH/Delacorte hardcover; Trade Paperback)

The second movie in the series opens 9/18/15. A third movie, The Death Cure, 2/17/17. For once, it looks like the finale of a series will not be split into two movies.

The second trailer was released last week:

The holds leader among the titles arrive next week is Julie Garwood’s Wired (Penguin/Dutton), one of the author’s contemporary romance/thrillers. UPDATE: It appears that this title has been postponed.B&T’s Title Source now shows the publishing date as July 4, 2017.

Close behind is Badlands by C.J. Box (Macmillan/Minotaur), indicating, along with a print run double the size of his previous title, that Box is gaining a wider audience. Booklist, in a starred review says, ‘If Box isn’t a household name yet, he will be.”

The third holds leader is Paula McLain’s Circling The Sun (RH/Ballantine), a fictionalized bio of aviation pioneer Beryl Markham. It’s also a peer pick, receiving stars from all four trade reivews and selected as a LibraryReads title.

“I couldn’t stop reading this fascinating portrayal of Beryl Markham, a complex and strong-willed woman who fought to make her way in the world on her terms. McLain paints a captivating portrait of Africa in the 1920s and the life of expats making their home there. Highly, highly recommended.” — Halle Eisenman, Beaufort County Library, Hilton Head, SC

The new issue of People chooses it as the “Book of the Week,” describing the subject as a “novelists;s dream.” The Wall Street Journal features it with an excerpt and the author is schedule to appear on NPR’s Weekend All Things Considered on August 1.

The author spoke to librarians at the Penguin Random House breakfast during BEA.

Audio Sample:

The titles covered here, and several more notable titles arriving next week, are listed with ordering information and alternate formats, on our downloadable spreadsheet, EarlyWord New Title Radar, Week of 7/27/15

Consumer Media Picks

Gonzo Girl: A Novel, Cheryl Della Pietra, (S&S/Touchstone)

Della Pietra worked for the original “gonzo journalist” Hunter S. Thompson and this barely fictionalized account of that experience naturally fascinates journalists, so it is getting wide attention. Trade reviews are mostly positive but object, as PW puts it that “it’s an occasional slog to read through pages of druggy non conversation.” LJ offers a very specific recommendation, “For readers curious about Thompson’s lifestyle and fans of eccentric characters and meandering journeys featuring copious amounts of illegal substances,” (try to spot that demographic in your community studies). It is #2 on Entertainment Weekly “Must List: Top 10 Things We love This Week,” high placement for a book, and the author is interviewed in the issue.

Pretty Baby, Mary Kubica, (Harlequin/MIRA)

A People pick, ” …about a 16-year-old homeless girl, a baby and a Chicago mother who is trying to help them . The sense of danger intensifies as mysteries surrounding both the girl and her benefactor slowly emerge. It all builds to a stunning climax involving revelations you won’t see coming.”

Peer Picks

Kitchens of the Great Midwest, J. Ryan Stradal, (Penguin/Pamela Dorman)

We chatted with the author last week as part of our Penguin Debut Authors program.

It is the #1 LibraryReads pick for the month:

“This novel is quirky and colorful. The story revolves around chef Eva Thorvald and the people who influence her life and her cooking. With well-drawn characters and mouthwatering descriptions of meals, Kitchens of the Great Midwest will appeal to readers who like vivid storytelling. Foodies will also enjoy this delicious tale.” — Anbolyn Potter, Chandler Public Library, Chandler, AZ

One of our favorite comments on the book comes from Jen Dayton, Darien Public Library, who said at the BEA Librarians Shout ‘n’ Share program, this book “Will do for cooking what The Art Of Fielding did for baseball.”

The author spoke at the Penguin Random House breakfast during BEA.

Crooked Heart, Lissa Evans, (Harper)

LibraryReads:

“Crooked Heart is a rewarding, addictive read. Orphaned ten-year-old bookworm Noel, sent away to rural St. Albans, finds himself under the reluctant guardianship of Vee, aka Mrs. Vera Sledge. Amidst a chaotic background of bombings and uncertain futures, Vee and Noel gradually form a powerful bond. I recommend this darkly humorous, honest, and complex story. It is book club heaven.” — Janet Schneider, Oceanside Library, Oceanside, NY

It  was on the longlist for the Baileys Women’s Prize.

A movie of Evans’s 2009 novel Their Finest Hour and a Half, is in the works, directed by Lone Scherfig (One Day, An Education).

Book Trailer of the Week

The Fifth House of the Heart. Ben Tripp, (S&S.Gallery)

You shouldn’t judge a book by its trailer, so we’ll add that, besides a great trailer, this book gets a starred review from  PW, “Tripp (The Accidental Highwayman)  melds the modern vampire myth with comic mystery and detective fiction in this intriguing and intelligent horror novel …Though sometimes a touch slow in between action scenes, this deep and terrifying vampire story is as nuanced as it is thrilling.”

Tie-ins

(for our full list of upcoming adaptations, see our Books to Movies and TV  and our listing of tie-ins).

Ten Thousand Saints MTI, Eleanor Henderson

Adapted by the team behind American Splendor, the film stars Ethan Hawke, Asa Butterfield, Hailee Steinfeld, Emile Hirsch, and Emily Mortimer and is set in the hardcore punk scene of Manhattan during the late 80s, on the eve of the Tompkins Square Park riots.

Movie debuts 8/14/2015

A Walk in the Woods (Movie Tie-In) : Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail
Bill Bryson

Bryson is played by Robert Redford. Joining him in his attempt to hike the Appalachian Trail is his old pal Katz, a man even less prepared for the effort than Bryson, played by Nick Nolte (in a role originally intended for Redford’s late friend Paul Newman).

Movie opens 9/2/2015

The well-known names on books arriving next week include Ace Atkins, Alexander McCall Smith and David Rosenfelt. The only book with significant holds, however, is Kathy Reichs’ Speaking In Bones, the 18th in her Temperance Brennan series, which also is a LibraryReads pick for the month (see below).

The media is still focused on Go Set a Watchman — it leads the reviews in the new issues of both Entertainment Weekly (where it gets a D+, one of the lowest ratings we’ve seen. As a comparison, Fifty Shades of Grey got a B+) and People (“On its own, it is a deftly written tale about 1950s bigotry and a young woman coping with the revelation that his father is not the hero she thought he was.”) and is on the NYT  web site “Books” section under the Sunday Book Review, although it doesn’t indicate when it will appear in print.

Below are some of the other titles people will be talking about next week.

The titles covered here, and several more notable titles arriving next week, are listed with ordering information and alternate formats, on our downloadable spreadsheet, EarlyWord New Title Radar, Week of 7/20/15

Consumer Media Picks

Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life, William Finnegan, (Penguin Press)

This combination should catch people’s attention, a surfing memoir by a New Yorker writer who has reported on some heavy duty topics like the civil war in Sudan and drug cartels in Mexico.

Back in 1992, towards the beginning of his 30-year career at the New Yorker, Finnegan wrote a 2-part essay about his experiences as a surfer in San Francisco. As the review in the upcoming NYT Sunday Book Review says, that essay “was instantly recognized as a masterpiece. A wise, ­richly atmospheric account of riding the gelid, powerful gray waves of San Francisco.” Since then, says the reviewer, there have been rumors of a book length memoir. Now that it’s here, it proves worth waiting for and a “cause for throwing your wet-suit hoods in the air.”

Entertainment Weekly also features it (not online yet), with a B+ review, somewhat less than enthusiastic than the NYT because, while the “vivid descriptions of waves caught and waves missed … [are] as elegant and pellucid as the breakers they immortalize …[they start] to blur together once you’ve reached the 50th or so description.”

Movie Star by Lizzie Pepper, Hilary Liftin, (Penguin/Viking)

Liftin, who has had experience as a ghost writer for celebrity memoirs (Tori Spelling, Tatum O’Neal, Miley Cyrus) now writes a novel in the form of a celebrity memoir. On New York Magazine’s 8 Books You Need to Read This July, which says it fictionalizes “the train wreck of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes … Liftin’s sly novel wears its lurid shallowness on its jacket sleeve, and yet her details are careful, funny, and right.” The New York Post‘s “Page Six” has picked up on the Cruise/Holmes connection.

When the Moon Is Low, Nadia Hashimi, (HarperCollins/Morrow)

On Oprah.com’s list of Dazzling New Beach Reads about a woman who is forced to flee Kabul to London with her children, called  “A must-read saga about borders, barriers and the resolve of one courageous mother fighting to cross over.” Listen to the book talk by HarperCollins Director of Library Marketing, Virginia Stanley.

The Other Son, Alexander Soderberg, (RH/Crown)

The sequel to 2013’s The Andalusian Friend is reviewed in the new issue of Entertainment Weekly, which gives it a B+, “Sweden’s latest contribution to the pleasingly grim scandal-lit cannon … astute psych profiles and blood-soaked set pieces …hook readers for the third and final book.”

Peer Picks

Speaking in Bones, Kathy Reichs, (RH/Bantam)

LibraryReads pick:

“This book lives up to the expectations we have for Kathy Reichs. A compelling and dangerous mystery, lots of medical details, and good characterization make this a title that will be easy to recommend!” — Leslie Johnson, Jefferson County Public Library, Lakewood, CO

Love Lies Beneath, Ellen Hopkins, (S&S/Atria)

LibraryReads:

“An intriguing tale of sex, romance and deception. Tara is a brilliant, sexy forty-something. She’s enjoying being single until Cavin, a handsome doctor, enters her exam room. They have a hot and steamy romance but there is much, much more to this story. Ellen Hopkins commands each word on the page from her prose to verse.” — Laura Hartwig, Meriden Public Library, Meriden, CT

Well-known for her teen novels in verse, Hopkins talks about why she turned to prose for this title and how writing teen fiction differs from adult:

Tie-in

The Diary of a Teenage Girl, Revised Edition: An Account in Words and Pictures, Phoebe Gloeckner

The film adaptation of this graphic novel was a hit at the Sundance Film Festival and will arrive in theaters on August 7. The New York Times Magazine interviewed the author when she was working on the graphic novel in 2001, calling her “arguably the brightest light among a small cadre of semiautobiographical cartoonists  … who are creating some of the edgiest work about young women’s lives in any medium.”

Few libraries own the original edition, which is now re-released, with a new introduction by the author (for our full list of upcoming adaptations, see our Books to Movies and TV and our listing of tie-ins).

The title on everyone’s mind is Harper Lee’s Go Set a Watchman, (Harper), but there are several other titles worth talking about that arrive next week, including Ta-Nehisi Coates’s look at race relations in the U.S. today,  Between the World and Me, (RH/Spiegel & Grau). If you want to get away humans, check out the People Pick of the week, Beyond Words: What Animals Think and Feel. For better or worse, however, it seems they are like us.

The titles covered here, and several more notable titles arriving next week, are listed with ordering information and alternate formats, on our downloadable spreadsheet, EarlyWord New Title Radar, Week of July 13, 2015

Holds Leaders

No surprise, the title leading in pre-publication holds this week is Harper Lee’s Go Set a Watchman, (Harper; also note that a Spanish language edition is being released in the U.S.). The number is even higher than the holds that were waiting for John Grisham’s title from last fall, Gray Mountain.

For the other two holds leaders, the word is naked and the color is purple.

Naked Greed, Stuart Woods, (Penguin/Putnam) — Prepub reviews are pretty bad. Booklist says “yet another sub-par entry in the long-running series” and Kirkus says “you can’t help wondering if Woods has set his word processor to auto-type.”

The Naked Eye, Iris Johansen, (Macmillan/ St. Martin’s) — on the other hand, this one gets a strong review from Booklist,”power-up the emotional stakes in this page-turning thriller that cements [main character, special agent Kendra] Michaels’ reputation as a force to be reckoned with”

Advance Attention

Between the World and Me, Ta-Nehisi Coates, (RH/Spiegel & Grau)

In the form of a letter from Coates to his 15-year-old son, this book about racial violence in the U.S. was moved up from its original September publishing date, says the publisher, “in response to the Charleston shooting and a wave of interest in the book spurred by comments from David Remnick, John Legend and others.”

Coates was interviewed today on NPR’s  Morning Edition and the book is reviewed by Michiko Kakutani in today’s New York Times. The book is excerpted in The Atlantic.

More attention is on the way, including:

NBC – Meet the Press – 7/5
NPR / Fresh Air – 7/13
New York Magazine – profile piece – 7/13
CBS This Morning – Interview—7/13
Comedy Central – The Daily Show – 7/23
NBC – Late Night with Seth Meyers—TK

Media Picks

Beyond Words: What Animals Think and Feel, Carl Safina, (Macmillan/Holt)

People “Book of the Week”, 7/27/15 — “In this awe-inspiring book, ecologist Safina explores the rich inner lives of elephants, killer whales, apes and more … Elephants grieve, cradling their dead. An alpha wolf pretends to lose a wrestling match with his cub. A tiger, after humans take his kill, destroys their traps.”

God and Jetfire: Confessions of a Birth Mother, Amy Seek,  (Macmillan/FSG)

People pick — ‘A balm for anyone who’s ever faced an excruciatingly tough decision.”

Bennington Girls Are Easy, Charlotte Silver, (RH/Doubleday)

Oprah Dazzling New Beach Reads — “Like some of the well-to-do gals in Mary McCarthy’s The Group, the heroines of this delightful satire move to New York expecting the city to enfold them like the arms of so many Amherst boys. But as they swiftly learn, reality is as unforgiving of youth as it is of missed rent, and eventually it’s time to grow up.”

Entertainment Weekly gives it just a B-, “Silver can be a clever and even lyrical writer, but her silly, self-absorbed Girls are too-easy targets,” but check your holds, they are growing in some areas.

Peer Picks

Miss Emily, Nuala O’Connor, (Penguin trade pbk. original)

Indie Next:

“Conjure an image of Emily Dickinson: brilliant, but dour and odd? No! In O’Connor’s gem of a novel, Miss Emily is spirited and witty, even brave. Emily befriends Ada Concannon, who was hired as the Dickinsons’ kitchen girl almost immediately after she arrived from Ireland. Their unlikely friendship quickly provides each with solace and strength in a world where women are often marginalized. Later, an act of raw violence will ripple outward, resulting in consequences that neither Ada nor Emily could ever have imagined. O’Connor has written a small, hope-filled masterpiece!” —Christopher Rose, Andover Books, Andover, MA

Good and Cheap: Eat Well on $4/Day, Leanne Brown, (Workman)

This began as a free ebook that went viral. It became so popular that the author began a Kickstarter campaign to publish a print version which went on to be finalist in the IACP Cookbook Awards. Now published by Workman, it is a LibraryReads pick:

“Wow! This is a great looking book. Great for beginners with its details about ingredients and kitchen tools. Best of all, each recipe is made from ingredients that most everyone has; there were only two ingredients in the whole book that I don’t own. This book is just what my doctor ordered, literally. I am a basic cook and like simple and tasty. This book is OUTSTANDING!” — Nancy Chalk, Charlton Public Library, Charlton, MA

NOTE to New Yorkers: According to the NY Post, you need to double the food budget here, “but eating well for less than $10 a day in New York City is still a feat.”

Armada, Ernest Cline, (RH/Crown)

Prepub reviews for this second book after the popular Ready Player One are harsh. Kirkus calls it “A hackneyed sci-fi spectacle” while PW says, “the story becomes more conventional and less imaginative. The plot holes get harder to ignore as the conclusion approaches, but the book’s beginning offers glimpses of Cline’s significant potential.” Bookpage also knocks it, saying “It’s big fun, especially if your idea of fun is sitting around watching your friends play video games while discussing important theories like Sting vs. Mjolnir.”

There are fans, however. It is an Indie Next pick:

“This new work from Cline definitely will not disappoint the myriad fans of Ready Player One. On the contrary, it is another magical, nerdy romp through science fiction and fantasy pop culture where the thing that happens to the hero is exactly the thing every sci-fi lover secretly — or not so secretly — dreams will happen to them! A successful screenwriter, Cline fills this tale with super-cool action, relatable characters, and inventive plots. I loved it!” —Heather Duncan, Tattered Cover Book Store, Denver, CO

The Watchmaker of Filigree Street, Natasha Pulley, (Macmillan/ Bloomsbury)

On this week’s GalleyChat readers called this title a “well-constructed gem!” hoping that  “this wonderful historical fantasy catches on.” It may be doing just that, it is also an IndieNext pick:

“It takes a special talent to have a reader truly suspend disbelief, but Pulley succeeds spectacularly well in this debut. In 1880s London, Thaniel Steepleton is a telegraphist whose life is saved by a very timely pocket watch. When he meets its maker, Keita Mori, his entire life is upended and made more beautiful — and dangerous. The clock is ticking on this new friendship, and Thaniel must use his ingenuity and previously untapped bravery to save Keita’s life and his own future. Fans of David Mitchell and Erin Morgenstern will be intrigued, and I think it’s safe to say that we can expect great things from Pulley.” —Amanda Hurley, Inkwood Books, Tampa, FL

It’s a good thing it’s a long weekend, because we have a very long list of titles for you. We suspect that publishers are cramning books into the pipeline before Go Set a Watchman hits shelves the following week.

Next week, the media will be focused on Jimmy Carter’s memoir, A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety, beginning with  NPR’s Weekend Edition tomorrow, followed by:

• MSNBC-TV/”Morning Joe,” July 7
• MSNBC-TV/”Hardball with Chris Matthews,” July 7
• CNN-TV/”The Lead with Jake Tapper,” July 8
• NPR-Radio/”Diane Rehm,” July 9
• PBS-TV/”Newshour,” July 9
• Radio Satellite Tour, July 10
• ABC-TV/”This Week,” July 11
• CBS-TV/”CBS This Morning,” week of July 13
• AARP Magazine, June/July issue

The leading titles in holds are Nemesis by Catherine Coulter, (Penguin/Putnam) and Code of Conduct: A Thriller by Brad Thor (S&S/Atria/Emily Bestler Books).

The titles covered here, and several more notable titles arriving next week, are listed with ordering information and alternate formats, on our downloadable spreadsheet EarlyWord New Title Radar, Week of 7:6:15

Consumer Media Picks

The Swede, Robert Karjel (Harper)

The publisher clearly thinks this, the Swedish author’s first book in English, is a potential best seller, having spent handsomely for the rights and backing it with a full-page ad in last week’s NYT BR.

Entertainment Weekly featured it as the lede review last week, giving it a strong B+.

The Wall Street Journal interviewed the author in 2013 when Fox picked up the rights for a TV series, under the headline,”Homeland + The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo = ”

Libraries have ordered it cautiously, however, despite a very strong review in Publishers Weekly, “Filled with rich characterization and unforeseeable twists and revelations, this mesmerizing first in a planned series will leave readers gasping for breath”

Among the Ten Thousand Things, Julia Pierpont (Random House)

On Entertainment Weekly‘s “Must List” for this week at #19, it is also also reviewed in the issue, where it gets a straight A.

Forensics: What Bugs, Burns, Prints, DNA and More Tell Us About Crime, Val McDermid, (Grove Press)

On Entertainment Weekly‘s picks of “Brainy & Brilliant Beach Books“– link is to our Edelweiss collection

One Way or Another, Elizabeth Adler, (Macmillan/Minotaur)

On People magazine’s “Summer’s Best Beach Books” from last week— link is to our collection on Edelweiss

Peer Picks

Crooked Heart, Lissa Evans (Harper)

LibraryReads:

“Crooked Heart is a rewarding, addictive read. Orphaned ten-year-old bookworm Noel, sent away to rural St. Albans, finds himself under the reluctant guardianship of Vee, aka Mrs. Vera Sledge. Amidst a chaotic background of bombings and uncertain futures, Vee and Noel gradually form a powerful bond. I recommend this darkly humorous, honest, and complex story. It is book club heaven.” — Janet Schneider, Oceanside Library, Oceanside, NY

NOTE: this was also on the Baileys Women’s Prize for Fiction longlist. A movie of the author’s 2009 novel Their Finest Hour and a Half, is in the works with Lone Scherfig directing  (One Day, An Education)

Maybe in Another Life, Taylor Jenkins Reid (S&S/Washington Square Press, original trade pbk)

Reviewed in People magazine this week, it is also a LibraryReads pick:

“Hannah Martin has just moved back to LA after ending a relationship. Her best friend, Gabby, takes her out to a bar on her first night home. Enter Ethan, the One Who Got Away, and suddenly, Hannah has to decide if she’ll leave with Ethan or Gabby. We follow Hannah after choosing both options, alternating chapters to explore the consequences of each. A must for anyone who loves a hankie with their books!” — Tracy Babiasz, Chapel Hill Public Library, Chapel Hill, NC

Those Girls, Chevy Stevens, (Macmillan/St. Martin’s)

LibraryReads

“Those Girls follows the lives of the Campbell sisters. After running away from their alcoholic father, they find themselves caught in a worse situation when they are kidnapped. As events spiral out of control, they manage to escape and create new lives. This is a tale that will captivate readers and show just how strong the bond between family members can be.” — Annice Sevett, Willmar Public Library, Willmar, Minnesota

Speak, Louisa Hall, (HarperCollins/Ecco)

Indie Next:

“This is an amazingly complex novel that explores humanity, time, memory, communication, love, and the fear of losing what once was. Introducing five different narratives that at first seem unconnected, Hall creates a shimmering spiderweb of a story: delicately crafted, fragile, and infinitely beautiful, uncovering humanity’s most elusive and abstract thoughts. Hall impresses upon the reader the importance of speaking not just in order to move forward, but also in order to retain the past: ‘They are all in me, in the words that I speak, as long as I am still speaking.’” — Nancy Solberg, Odyssey Bookshop, South Hadley, MA

Vanishing Games, Roger Hobbs, (RH/Knopf)

GalleyChat, April:

” In 2013 Roger Hobbs had a hit with the first Jack White title, Ghostman, (even Michiko liked it!) and the second one is—if possible—even more intense. Set in the fascinating location of Macau, ‘Jack’ reunites with his mentor, Angela, to find a missing treasure while trying to stay one step ahead of multiple bad guys. Stephanie Chase, Hillsboro Public Library (OR), said this is “a fast-paced and thrilling high-stakes caper that is enjoyable from start to finish.”

The Last Pilot, Benjamin Johncock, (Macmillan/Picador)

Reviewed this week in People (“Ingeniously plotted, deftly written and engrossing”), this is also an Indie Next pick:

“Filled with dialogue that cuts like a knife, The Last Pilot is a riveting time capsule of a novel that tells the gripping story of Jim Harrison, an Air Force test pilot working at NASA during the glory years of the 1950s. The dangers and magnitude of space exploration pale in comparison to Harrison’s life-on-earth challenges — including the death of his young daughter — which haunt and threaten to destroy him. An emotionally raw, riveting read.” —Susan Hans O’Connor, Penguin Bookshop, Sewickley, PA

The Hand That Feeds You, A.J. Rich, (S&S/Scribner)

On both Entertainment Weekly‘s Summer Reading preview as well as and the Wall Street Journal‘s, it got slapped by an absolutely terrible review from PW, but booksellers went for it an named it an Indie Next pick:

“Morgan is living the good life until the day she returns home to find her fiance mauled to death and her dogs covered in blood. She had rescued her dogs from a shelter, wanting to do something good, and now a man is dead. As time moves forward, the ground under Morgan shifts. She doesn’t understand why her dogs, loving animals, would have done such a thing. And the victim is not all he seemed either — his job, his home, nothing is as he said, and then there is the discovery of other fiances. This edge-of-your-seat mystery has twists and turns that will keep you guessing. A.J. Rich is the pseudonym of award winners Jill Ciment and Amy Hempel, writing as a team.” —Deon Stonehouse, Sunriver Books and Music, Sunriver, OR

The Girl Who Wrote in Silk, Kelli Estes, (Sourcebooks Landmark)

Indie Next:

“In 1886, a young Chinese woman is forced out of the only home she has ever known in Seattle. Liu Mei Lin must overcome prejudices and terror while struggling to keep the traditional beliefs that are close to her heart. On contemporary Orcas Island, Inara deals with an overbearing father who will throw up every roadblock he can to get her to do what he wants. As Inara prepares to turn a family home into a hotel, she finds an embroidered silk sleeve hidden below a stair step. Wanting to learn more about the sleeve and the figures depicted on it, she begins a search to find out more about the woman who made it. This story is compelling, heart-wrenching, and an absolutely beautiful read.” —Debbie Buck, Vintage Books, Vancouver, WA

Down Among the Dead Men, Peter Lovesey, (Soho Crime)

Indie Next:

“Detective Superintendent Peter Diamond has been called off his current case load to join his boss, Assistant Chief Constable Georgina Dallymore, on an internal investigation. A detective is accused of failing to follow up on DNA evidence that could link her niece to a murder. It’s an ethical violation case, but the evidence came to light three years ago and only now is she being accused. Diamond expects that more is happening than meets the eye. Meanwhile, a teacher from a private girls’ school has gone missing and now the schoolgirl who was looking for her has disappeared as well. It’s going to take a bit of doing to unravel what is happening in Sussex. If you’ve never read an Inspector Diamond book, this one is a great place to start.” —Janice Hunsche, Kaleidosaurus Books, Metamora, IN – See more at:

Bell Weather, Dennis Mahoney, (Macmillan/Holt)

)Indie Next:

“Set in a fantastical 18th century world where rain falls up and color storms wash the land with bright hues, Bell Weather is, at its core, the story of a spirited young woman fighting for the freedom to choose her own path. Although Molly tells the townsfolk of Root almost nothing of her past, readers learn about her childhood with an overbearing governess, a cold father, and a brilliant, cunning brother who will stop at nothing to ensure that he and Molly are together and unbridled. Mahoney has created a marvelous world that readers will want to visit again and again.” —Amelia Stymacks, Northshire Bookstore, Manchester Center, VT

Bull Mountain, Brian Panowich, (Penguin/Putnam)

An Indies Introduce title with as killer quote from Wiley Cash, “Brian Panowich stamps words on the page as if they’ve been blasted from the barrel of a shotgun, and as with a shotgun blast, no one is safe from the scattered fragments of history that impale the people of Bull Mountain.”

Wild Card

As If!: The Oral History of Clueless as told by Amy Heckerling and the Cast and Crew, Jen Chaney, (Touchstone, original trade pbk)

Even with all the titles above, we just had to mention this one. Few libraries have ordered it, but this celebration of the best take ever on Jane Austen is guaranteed to circulate like crazy from the new book shelves.

Leading up to the Fourth of July weekend, The English Spy by Daniel Silva, (Harper) is the holds leader among books arriving next week. Also, arriving is one of tie-ins to Marvel’s big summer release, Ant-man (full list of titles in our collection Upcoming — Tie-ins) and an audio-only title from Stephen King.

The titles covered here, and several more notable titles arriving next week, are listed with ordering information and alternate formats, on our downloadable spreadsheet, EarlyWord New Title Radar, Week of 6:29:15

Media Attention

Drunken Fireworks, Stephen King, read by Tim Sample, (Simon & Schuster Audio; 3 minute excerpt)

Stephen King brought attention to eBooks when he released an eBook-only title, Riding the Bullet. He now brings attention to CBS’s on-demand audio platform by releasing this audiobook-only title. About a fireworks rivalry that gets out of hand, the audio is also available on CD and via audio download.

In early November the short story will be released in print as part of a new King collection, The Bazaar of Bad Dreams (S&S/Scribner; Nov 3).

Media:

•The New York Times, author and narrator interview (upcoming)

• CBS/Play.It, live stream, July 1 and 2

Killing Monica, Candace Bushnell, (Hachette/Grand Central)

Candace Bushnell wrote a series of columns for the New York Observer, which became the book Sex and the City, which became the HBO series starring Sarah Jessica Parker. In Busnell’s new book, she writes about an author of a series of best selling books that becomes a popular TV series starring an actress need SondraBeth Schnowzer. The author ends up being so identified with the character that, well, the title seems to serve as a spoiler.

In multiple interviews, including one with The New York Observer, Bushnell denies that this book bears any similarity to her life or to her relationship with SJP. Not that it much matters; interest in SATC has been dimmed by time and two disastrous movies (even so, Parker recently hinted that a third is on the way. We’ll believe it when we see it). As USA Today indicates, the book has little going for it on its own.

Peer Picks

The Oregon Trail : A New American Journey, Rinker Buck, (Simon & Schuster)

Indie Next #1 Pick:

“Inspired by a family trip in a covered wagon in the 1950s, Rinker Buck and his brother Nick set out by wagon to discover what remains of the Oregon Trail between Missouri and Oregon. Along the way, readers learn about wagon design, mule heritage, and what pioneers needed to endure traveling west in the 19th century. This is also a moving personal story of brotherhood, endurance, and the kindness of strangers. Buck weaves fact, action, and reflection together into a page-turning delight that history buffs and fans of contemporary nonfiction will not want to miss.” —Dick Hermans, Oblong Books & Music, Millerton, NY

Reviewed in the daily New York Times by Dwight Garner, it was also on Entertainment Weekly‘s “Summer Reading Preview,”5/16/15.

In the trailer, author Rinker Buck explains what made him deiced to take such a crazy journey:

The Mountain Story, Lori Lansens, (Simon & Schuster)

One of our GalleyChat picks back in December:

“Lori Lansens’ story of conjoined twins, The Girls, is a perennial library favorite and The Mountain Story (S&S/Gallery), her latest book about a group of strangers who get stranded in the woods above Palm Springs, California, is already receiving attention. Stephanie Chase (Hillsboro, OR, Public Library) said it’s ‘a deeply moving story of survival, and of the choices we make in our lives. Lansens does a wonderful job of weaving in the stories of the four characters, and moving between the current desperate situation and events in the past.’ ”

The Star Side of Bird Hill, Naomi Jackson, Penguin Press

Featured in our Penguin Debut Authors series, this is an Indie Next pick:

“In the summer of 1989, sisters Dionne and Phaedra — aged 16 and 10, respectively — are shuttled from their Brooklyn life to their grandmother Hyacinth’s home in Barbados. Dionne is filled with palpable teenage angst and the desire for romance, while Phaedra prefers to experience the mysteries of Bird Hill with her grandmother. Both girls have a tentative curiosity about their mother’s early life on the island, but it is not until their father shows up unexpectedly that they question their very identities and what it means to be ‘home.’ Reminiscent of Jamaica Kincaid, Jackson’s coming-of-age tale makes Barbados spring from the page with humor, beauty, and heartbreak.” —Amanda Hurley, Inkwood Books, Tampa, FL

The author speaks to librarians, below:

Kiss Me, Susan Mallery, (Harlequin)

LibraryReads:

“As always, Ms. Mallery has given us a fantastic read. As soon as I pick up her titles, I can’t put them down until I have finished them. They are feel-good, heartwarming — I need more synonyms. I love seeing all the previous characters, the friendships and families that have formed since Chasing Perfect came out five years ago. Thanks, Ms. Mallery, for another amazing read.” — Jenelle Klavenga, Marshalltown Public Library, Marshalltown, IA

Some big name authors publish new titles next week, but consumer reviews are focused on a debut collection of short stories. Among the titles chosen by peers are several with a bookish theme as well as a title billed as a “great psychological thriller.”

The titles covered here, and several more notable titles arriving next week, are listed, with ordering information and alternate formats, on our downloadable spreadsheet, EarlyWord New Title Radar, Week of 6/22 (Note:Also included are media tie-ins to the Marvel movie Ant-Man, releasing July 17),

Holds Leaders

This week, the holds leaders in a tight race, are:

Janet Evanovich, Wicked Charms (Random House; RH Audio; RH Large Print)

James Patterson and Howard Roughan, Truth Or Die (Hachette/Little Brown)

Mary Higgins Clark, The Melody Lingers On (S&S)

The Guardian recently called Clark “The anti-Gone Girl” because her heroines are always likable, also noting that, at 88, Clark is not slowing down. She will publish 3 books (Death Wears a Beauty Mask is already out. Coming in November, All Dressed in White, the second in the series with Alafair Burke).

She is also set for media appearances next week:

• NBC-TV/’The Today Show, June 22
• CNBC-TV/‘Closing Bell, June 24
• WNYW-TV/Good Day New York, June 25
• AARP Magazine, June/July issue

Consumer Media Picks

The Cartel, Don Winslow (Random House)

The daily NYT’s critic Janet Maslin picked this as part of the Summer Reading Rreview last month. Today, she follows up with a strong advance review, including this over-the-top line, “The Cartel culminates in a near-symphonic array of lethal coups de grace, written with such hallucinatory intensity that the whole book seems to have turned into a synchronized fireworks display.”

Winslow also wrote Savages, the basis for the movie by director Oliver Stone. So, naturally, there are movie plans, as reported by Deadline, which also noted that this is the first of Winslow’s books edited by Knopf’s legendary head, Sonny Mehta “since he won back Winslow from S&S.”

In the Country: Stories. Mia Alvar, (RH/Knopf)

It’s no surprise to see a collection of short stories reviewed respectfully in the New York Times Book Review (as this one is this Sunday), but it is a surprise to see one featured on both Entertainment Weekly’s “Must List” (and very prominently, at #3, sandwiched between the animated movie Inside Out and the video game Lego Jurassic World) and one of the three titles on People‘s Picks section, saying “In these profound, trenchant short stories centered around the Filipino diaspora, startling truths are revealed.”

China Rich Girlfriend, Kevin Kwan, (RH/Doubleday)

People Book of the Week — ‘Take a Jane Austen novel, combine it with Lifestyles Of The Rich And Famous and set it in the glittering capitals of Shanghai, Hong Kong and Singapore. What have you got? This deliciously fun follow-up to Kwan’s bestselling Crazy Rich Asians. On the eve of her wedding to one of China’s most eligible men, Rachel Chu, a young professor, discovers her birth father — and a new world of unexpected choices. Her story is both field guide to Asia’s uberwealthy echelon and comic satire at its best.”

Entertainment Weekly is less enthusiastic, giving it just a B and comparing it unfavorably to the first book.

Blackout: Remembering the Things I Drank to Forget, Sarah Hepola (Hachette/Grand Central)

A memoir about the hot-button issue of women and alcoholism, expect to hear about this next week, particularly since, as a writer for Salon, the author has media connections. The L.A. Times gives it an advance review, saying it is, “both a riveting coming-of-age story and an important contribution to the growing body of writing about women and drinking” and, “For all the wresting with hard truths, Hepola is a funny writer, and the book is shot through with a black humor that will be familiar to her readers on Salon.com where she is the personal essays editor.” UPDATE: The author appeared on NPR’s Weekend Edition Sunday.

Peer Picks

The Little Paris Bookshop, Nina George, (RH/Crown)

Indie Next and LibraryReads

“Quirky and delightful, Nina George’s book focuses on Jean Perdu, owner of the Literary Apothecary, a floating bookshop. When a new tenant in his apartment building sets in motion events that force Jean to re-evaluate his past, he finds himself floating off down the rivers of France in search of lost love, new love, and friends he didn’t know he needed.” Beth Mills, New Rochelle Public Library, New Rochelle, NY

The Book of Speculation, Erika Swyler, (Macmillan/St. Martin’s)

Indie Next and LibraryReads:

“A roller coaster of a read! This is the story of a librarian from a splintered family with a tragic past who is gifted a mysterious book that leads him to dive deep into his family’s history, all while his present life seems to be falling to pieces around him. If you loved Morgenstern’s The Night Circus or Kostova’s The Historian, this is a book for you.”– Amanda Monson, Bartow County Library System, Cartersville, GA

Death and Mr. Pickwicl, Stephen Jarvis, (Macmillan/FSG)

Indie Next:

“This rollicking great novel, brimming with vivid characters, takes the position that Charles Dickens did not create his first, and arguably greatest, novel on his own. Two historians struggle through documents and incidents, sending the reader through a cartwheel tour of Victorian London. Not only is there the main plot about Dickens and illustrator Robert Seymour, but also back-alley trips to drunken sports clubs, gay meeting places, taverns, and even the courtroom where the prime minister is standing trial. It’s a delightful story, full of wit and sardonic humor, but with true emotion at the heart of it all, which elevates the entire read. A delight!” —Bill Carl, Booksellers on Fountain Square, Cincinnati, OH

The Truth and Other Lies, Sascha Arango, (S&S/Atria)

Indie Next:
“Henry Hayden has it all: loving wife, faithful dog, money, fame, and the respect of those lucky enough to be called his friends. Henry is actually someone who will go to extreme lengths to protect the one thing that truly matters to him: himself. When his mistress tells Henry that she is pregnant, the news sets off a chain of events that causes Henry to commit the biggest mistake of his life and forces him to stay one step ahead of the law. Arango’s novel is twisty, cynical, and brilliant.” —Teresa Steele, Old Firehouse Books, Fort Collins, CO

As Night Falls, Jenny Milchman, (RH/Ballantine)

Indie Next:

“If you want to experience a great psychological thriller, you must read As Night Falls. Sandy has tried to leave her past behind and start a new life, but it comes crashing in on her in a vicious way. Two convicts break into her house, and that is just the beginning of the terror as Sandy must try to face the past and save her family. I could not put this book down!” —Melissa Wade, Vero Beach Book Center, Vero Beach, FL

Amazingly, the holds leader for the week is not E. L. James’s Grey: Fifty Shades of Grey as Told by Christian, (RH/Vintage original trade pbk) but Danielle Steel’s Country (RH.Delacorte; Brilliance Audio; RH Large Print) with Grey a close second. A more distant third is Elin Hilderbrand’s  The Rumor (Hachette/Little, Brown), also a LibraryReads pick. Further down the list is Brad Meltzer’s The President’s Shadow (Hachette/Grand Central) and Jackie Collins’s The Santangelos (Macmillan/St. Martin’s),

The media will be busy with books by media personalities Judd Apatow and Aziz Ansari and several peer recommendations will make you an R.A. guru.

The titles covered here, and several more notable titles arriving next week, are listed, with ordering information and alternate formats, on our downloadable spreadsheet, EarlyWord New Title Radar, Week of 6:15:15

Peer Picks

Pirate Hunters: Treasure, Obsession, and the Search for a Legendary Pirate Ship, Robert Kurson, (Random House)

Both an Indie Next and a LibraryReads pick, it gets chilly shoulder from the Janet Maslin in today’s NYT. Comparing it unfavorably to the author’s earlier Shadow Divers, she goes so far as to say that the best pages of this book are the ones that summarize the previous one.

But our peers have no such issues with it. Indie Next recommendation:

“Kurson, the author of Shadow Divers, follows a team of treasure hunters on their quest for the ultimate bounty of the oceans — a sunken pirate ship from the Golden Age of Piracy — as they race against the clock of international legislation and rival hunters. It quickly becomes clear that these are men who share more than a little in common with the pirates for whom they search. Pirate Hunters reminds us that the daring and romance of piracy’s heroes was good cause to inspire centuries of boyhood daydreams, which are still alive and well today.” —Sara Hinckley, Hudson Booksellers, Marietta, GA

The Precipice, Paul Doiron, (Macmillan/Minotaur)

LibraryReads:

“When two women go missing while hiking a difficult part of the Appalachian Trail, Maine game warden Mike Bowditch helps in trying to determine where the women were last seen. Mike then discovers there is no shortage of people whose behaviors make them suspicious. With a puzzle that keeps the reader guessing, and a main character that you can’t help but empathize with, The Precipice is another home run for Doiron.” — Lora Bruggeman, Indian Prairie Public Library, Darien, IL

My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry, Fredrik Backman, (S&S/Atria)

LibraryReads:

“From the author of one my favorite books of last year, A Man Called Ove, this book packs a similar emotional punch at the end, but has some significant differences. It is told from the point of view of Elsa, a seven-year-old child who loves Harry Potter, fairy tales, and her grandmother. Once I stopped trying to make the story fit my adult view of the world and entered into Elsa’s world, I had a whale of a time.” — Janet Lockhart, Wake County Public Libraries, Cary, NC

The Library at Mount Char, Scott Hawkins, (RH/Crown)

Indie Next:

“Mindblowing, outrageous, and visionary, this is without question the best fantasy I have read in many moons! Hawkins has penned a tale that both opens the reader up to new perceptions of the universe, its creation, and ascendency, and gives the adage ‘absolute power corrupts absolutely’ an entirely singular meaning. He has imagined characters who are simultaneously loveable and despicable and presents them in a way that is both terrifying and darkly funny. Whether or not fantasy is your genre of choice, The Library at Mount Char will amaze you!” —Lynn Riggs, Books & Company, Oconomowoc, WI

Upcoming Media Attention

Sick in the Head : Conversations About Life and Comedy, Judd Apatow, (Random House)

NYT Summer Picks, Maslin, 5/21/15, http://nyti.ms/1FqT4An

A collection of interviews  with comedians that Judd Apatow, the producer of Lena Dunham’s show Girls, began doing when he was in high school, in turn it is generating interviews:

NPR/Fresh Air—6/15
Comedy Central/Daily Show with Jon Stewart—6/15
PBS/Charlie Rose—6/16
NPR/Marketplace with Kai Ryssdal—6/22
NPR/Weekend All Things Considered—TBA

Modern Romance, Aziz Ansari, Eric Klinenberg, (Penguin Press)

Ansari, a hit at Book Con, is primed for his upcoming appearances;

06/16 ABC Good Morning America
06/24 TBS Conan

At the Movies

The hit of this year’s Sundance Film Festival was Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, adapted from the book by Jesse Andrews (Abrams, 2012). Arriving in theaters today, it’s getting strong advance reviews.

Official Site: meandearlmovie.com

A “revised edition”  of the audio is narrated by two of the movie’s stars:

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (Revised Edition)
By: Jesse Andrews
Narrator: Thomas Mann, RJ Cyler and others
Listening Library
Grades: 9-12
6 Hours and 8 Minutes

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (Movie Tie-in Edition)
Jesse Andrews
ABRAMS/Amulet Paperbacks: June 9, 2015
9781419719462, 1419719467
Trade Paperback, $9.95 USD, $11.95 CAD

New books from familiar best selling names arrive next week ) — Barbara Delinsky, Dorothea Benton Frank, Laurell K. Hamilton and Sophie Kinsella, writing a YA novel this time (click on the covers, above, for more information on each) — but none of them have generated long holds lists.

There are gems among the librarian and bookseller picks, including Erika Johansen’s second in the Tearling series. Sure to get media attention is Jimmy Fallon for writing (huh?) a picture book.

The titles covered here, and several more notable titles arriving next week, are listed, with ordering information and alternate formats, on our downloadable spreadsheet, EarlyWord New Title Radar, Week of June 8, 2915

Peer Picks

The Mort are coming! Johansen introduces new characters and enticing bits of history, with the second volume of her intriguing tale of fantasy, mystery and royal politics. Kelsea, the new Tearling Queen, has broken the Red Queen’s treaty and prepares to suffer the consequences as her nation is about to be invaded. Readers will be eager for the final volume in the Tearling saga. — Lucy Lockley, St. Charles City-County Library, St. Peters, MO

Barrows is scheduled to appear on NPR’s Diane Rehm Show next week. Her book is a pick for both Indie Next and LibraryReads:

It is 1938 in a rural West Virginia town and a young woman arrives to write the town’s history. Layla doesn’t really know what to expect from the town, and the town doesn’t know what to make of her. This is the heart of the South, the soul of small towns, where everyone looks out for you and knows your history. Sweet story tailor-made for fans of Billie Letts, Fannie Flagg, Pat Conroy and Harper Lee. — Kimberly McGee, Lake Travis Community Library, Austin, TX

The art of communication is the major theme of this story, and Kallos employs all of its variations — whether spoken nuances and innuendos, written assumptions and dissonance, or the fractured and difficult ways of being known that those with autism experience. This is the story of a marriage, of a father and his son, and of how a man’s childhood shapes his life. Readers will be absorbed, challenged, puzzled, and ultimately satisfied by this wise and soulful book. —Rachel Watkins, Avid Bookshop, Athens, GA

In the Media

Second Life, S. J. Watson, (Harper; HarperAudio; HarperLuxe)

We could create a reading club based just on the books that Reese Witherspoon has optioned. Following in the footsteps of her producing partner, Niclole Kidman, who starred in the a movie of Watson’s 2011 best selling debut, Before I Go To Sleep, Witherspoon is a fan of the author, having recently optioned this, his second book.

Happily Ali After: And Other Fairly True Tales, Ali Wentworth, (Harper; HarperAudio)

#3 on Entertainment Weekly‘s Must List for the week:

In the hilarious follow-up to Ali In Wonderland, the actress and ccomedian takes inspirational tweets as self-improvement mantras in an ill-fated quest for happiness as she approaches the age of 50. Her glass isn’t half full — it’s ’empty and cracked.’

The Jezebel Remedy, Martin Clark, (RH/Knopf; Recorded Books)

One of Entertainment Weekly‘s “10 Great Summer Thrillers” in the new issue:

Clark is, hands down, our finest legal-thriller writer, and this latest, about husband-and-wife attorneys whose client has made a huge pharmaceutical discovery does not disappoint.

Your Baby’s First Word Will Be DADA, Jimmy Fallon, Miguel Ordóñez (Macmillan/Feiwel & Friends; also a board book)

Fallon is scheduled for the Today Show, on Tuesday and more is likely to follow. As far as the picture book itself, it sounds like Kirkus and Publishers Weekly read two different books:

“Plotless and pointless, the book clearly exists only because its celebrity author wrote it”  — Kirkus

“A punchy and deceptively simple story that will make for some fun readalouds” — PW

At the Movies

Opening today, is Testament of Youth based on the 1933 memoir by Vera Brittain, recently released as a tie-in (Penguin). The movie stars Alicia Vikander, Kit Harington, Hayley Atwell and Dominic West.

The  NYT review is more respectful than passionate. “Testament of Youth Recalls the Great War With Little Nostalgia.” The AV Club doesn’t mince words, headlining their review, “Famous wartime memoir Testament Of Youth gets a boring BBC adaptation.”