You may not have heard, but the Royal Wedding is tomorrow. Of course, there are those among us who would rather spend the day starching underwear than pay it any mind. Whether your objection to these nuptials derives from an opposition to the concept of monarchy, a disdain for finding entertainment in an aristocratic ritual […]
In “The Clues to My Crime,” authors explain the influences behind their latest works of crime fiction. Here, Martin Walker tells us about what inspired his forthcoming novel, A Taste for Vengeance, the latest installment in his Bruno, Chief of Police series, due in June from Knopf. Walker has ten previous Bruno novels to his name, all international […]
Some of the biggest crime fiction is perpetrated by some of the smallest players. We’re determined to shine the spotlight on them before they break out and wreak havoc across the whole country. Read them—before they publish again! Legal Name: Otto Penzler Accomplices: Charles Perry, publisher, and Jane Friedman, consultant […]
Trust me: Linda Wallheim is a sleuth like no other. She’s a devout Mormon, for starters, and the wife of a respected Utah ward bishop. And yet her sense of justice gets her into plenty of trouble, especially in a community so dominated by men-centric rules. She slaps an aging bully who calls his 5-year-old […]
Lynn: Maureen Johnson sets her latest mystery, Truly Devious (2018), at Ellingham Academy, a unique private school in Vermont where all the students have a “spark.” “If interested,” reads the school literature, “[just] get in touch.” Ellingham Academy is famous for more than its unique approach to education: It is the site of a famous, unsolved 1936 kidnapping […]
#MysteryMonth special to The Booklist Reader Jenni L. Walsh is an author of historical fiction. Her two novels, Becoming Bonnie and Side by Side (out on June 5 from Forge Books), imagine the iconic Bonnie and Clyde through Bonnie’s eyes. You can visit her at jennilwalsh.com and follow her on Twitter at @jennilwalsh. When discussing […]
I’m beginning to wonder what N. K. Jemisin’s trophy collection looks like. I met a much-lauded children’s book writer who had one measly National Book Award that he used as a paperweight. Jemisin, however, has won this year’s Nebula Award for Best Novel, making 2018 her third consecutive year of taking home a major science […]
Every weekday we feature a different review on Booklist Online. These reviews are notable for different reasons—they may be starred, or high-demand, or especially relevant to the current issue’s spotlight. We’ve collected the reviews from May 14–18 below. Monday, May 14 The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, by Stuart Turton The Hardcastle family has decided to throw a party […]
Is your book group in a rut? Are folks sick of reading World War II-era historical fiction? Is your attendance dwindling? Maybe it’s time to go rogue. We hosted a live event (sponsored by NoveList) where we gathered some book-group experts to talk about what makes a good selection, how to pick something unexpected for […]
I am an eternal optimist. This tendency to think things will work out for the best is sometimes at odds with my inner curmudgeon, but what can you do? I like to think this conflict keeps my also-inner Pollyanna in check, but sometimes, that Pollyanna is strong. Take, for example, the time my book group […]
Donna Seaman, Booklist Adult Books Editor and co-chair of the SJP Picks selection committee, interviewed Nigerian writer Ayobami Adebayo about her debut novel, Stay with Me, a complex and suspenseful portrait of a besieged marriage—and Sarah Jessica Parker’s third selection for SJP Picks. For more information, visit Book Club Central. DONNA SEAMAN: Stay with Me is […]
Cindy: I felt like Nate the Great or Encyclopedia Brown earlier this school year, when an eighth-grade science teacher surprised me by asking for help with this reader’s advisory mystery stumper: “So, we’re studying Newton’s laws of motion, and I remember an Encyclopedia Brown mystery case story about someone riding in the back of the truck and when the […]
Lynn: Maureen Johnson sets her latest mystery, Truly Devious (2018), at Ellingham Academy, a unique private school in Vermont where all the students have a “spark.” “If interested,” reads the school literature, “[just] get in touch.” Ellingham Academy is famous for more than its unique approach to education: It is the site of a famous, unsolved 1936 kidnapping […]
Lynn: Author Sarah Albee makes it clear right at the beginning of Poison: Deadly Deeds, Perilous Professions and Murderous Medicines (2017) that her book is NOT a how-to manual for murder! Rather, it’s a history with far more than murderous intentions. But what mystery fan doesn’t want the inside scoop on this crime-writer favorite method? Authors from […]
Y’all know My Favorite Murder, right? The super-popular podcast that, through some alchemical magic, blends true crime and comedy as told by two women who do the bare minimum of research and spend as much time detailing personal anecdotes as they do the murders they’re ostensibly covering? MFM has a huge and devoted following—search Etsy […]
Hold the phone, audiophiles: we just received a very exciting press release! The Audio Publishers Association (APA) has announced Audie Award® finalists for Audiobook of the Year and for Excellence in Design, Excellence in Marketing, and Excellence in Production. The winners of the Excellence Awards will be announced at the Audio Publishers Association Conference (APAC) […]
The Audio Publisher’s Association has announced the nominees for the 2018 Audie Awards, honoring excellence in audiobooks and spoken entertainment. Winners will be announced at the Audies Gala at the New York Historical Society on May 31. Congratulations to the distinguished nominees! Below is a complete list of finalists, linked to their Booklist reviews when […]
Without getting too meta, sometimes the juiciest bits of the news are the stories behind the story. With this mix of novels, non-fiction, and wherever Hunter S. Thompson falls between the two, use the buzz from Oscar-nominated film The Post to draw attention to your other journalist-forward titles. All the President’s Men, by Carl Bernstein and Bob […]
“More than half of U.S. women have experienced unwanted and inappropriate sexual advances from men, three in 10 have put up with unwanted advances from male co-workers, and a quarter have endured them from men who had influence over their work situation,” says a new ABC News-Washington Post poll. The stories of harassment and intimidation that […]
John Green’s latest unputdownable YA novel, Turtles All the Way Down, tackles the tough topic of anxiety disorders, specifically Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. As Michael Cart writes in his starred review, ” Green, a master of deeply felt material, handles all of this with aplomb. With its attention to ideas and trademark introspection, it’s a challenging but […]
The Curious Case of the Hemingway MacGuffin Ernest Hemingway may not have written mystery fiction, but you can blame him for a lot of it. It’s possible that, after Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler, no other author has had as much influence on the way would-be tough guys punctuate their crime fiction. (You know. What […]
The May 15 issue of Booklist magazine is now live. Visit Booklist Online, where you’ll find 291 new reviews and eight new feature articles and lists. The articles will be free to all for the next two weeks—to have unrestricted access, you’ll need to log in. If you aren’t yet a subscriber, or do subscribe but haven’t […]
The haggard gumshoe detective / investigator has a long tradition in the annals of science fiction: both sci-fi and mystery found a fanbase through pulp and serial magazines. The titles I’ve collected have gained new life through feature films and streaming series. In them, the distant future presents perhaps the greatest mystery, so bridging that […]
Have you caught royal wedding fever? Are you out of pages in your Harry and Meghan coloring book? Whether you’re an avid scourer of the pages of Hello or just want an excuse to indulge in a novel that will give you the warm fuzzies, it’s time to bust out the watercress sandwiches and the Earl […]
Every weekday we feature a different review on Booklist Online. These reviews are notable for different reasons—they may be starred, or high-demand, or especially relevant to the current issue’s spotlight. We’ve collected the reviews from May 7–11 below. Monday, May 7 Hellbent, by Gregg Hurwitz, read by Scott Brick The third Orphan X thriller finds its hero, […]
#MysteryMonth special to the Booklist Reader CATRONIA MCPHERSON was born in Scotland and lived there until 2010, before immigrating to California. A former academic linguist, she is now a full-time fiction writer, the multi- award-winning and best-selling author of the Dandy Gilver detective stories, set in Scotland in the 1920s. She also writes a strand of award-winning contemporary standalone […]
Encouraging Middle-Schoolers to Choose Books
There’s been a lot of discussion among the librarians I know about what to do with middle-schoolers: they just don’t seem to read as much as they used to. I know that here in Chicago, we have a unique perspective on this situation, since our schools run K–8. In my former school system in Maryland […]
Getting Started with the Global Read Aloud
The 2017 Global Read Aloud kicked off yesterday, and I’m here to help. Author and educator Pernille Ripp founded the program as a way to connect students and teachers from different locales around the topics of books. (Think One Book One School or One Book One City, but on a global scale.) Each year, Ripp […]
TWO TRUTHS AND A LIE: Practice Recognizing Fake News
Cindy: There have been a number of YA fiction books with the title “Two Truths and a Lie,” but we’ve found a creative, informational book for middle-grade students that reinforces evaluating information for truth. Fake news, anyone? Two Truths and a Lie: It’s Alive (2017) by Ammi-Joan Paquette and Laurie Ann Thompson is the first […]
Encouraging Middle-Schoolers to Choose Books
There’s been a lot of discussion among the librarians I know about what to do with middle-schoolers: they just don’t seem to read as much as they used to. I know that here in Chicago, we have a unique perspective on this situation, since our schools run K–8. In my former school system in Maryland […]
Getting Started with the Global Read Aloud
The 2017 Global Read Aloud kicked off yesterday, and I’m here to help. Author and educator Pernille Ripp founded the program as a way to connect students and teachers from different locales around the topics of books. (Think One Book One School or One Book One City, but on a global scale.) Each year, Ripp […]
TWO TRUTHS AND A LIE: Practice Recognizing Fake News
Cindy: There have been a number of YA fiction books with the title “Two Truths and a Lie,” but we’ve found a creative, informational book for middle-grade students that reinforces evaluating information for truth. Fake news, anyone? Two Truths and a Lie: It’s Alive (2017) by Ammi-Joan Paquette and Laurie Ann Thompson is the first […]
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