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 June 18–21 below. Monday, June 18 I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, by Michelle McNamara, read by Gabra Zackman Part memoir, part true crime, and […]
Koko the Gorilla has died. According to my Facebook feed, every 30- and 40-something I know is devastated. I’m devastated. She was such a beautiful and gentle and brilliant creature. Like so many of us, she was a cat lady. Like not so many of us, she got to know celebrities. She taught children (and […]
As the nation turns its attention to the plight of the migrants detained at our borders, now’s a perfect time for readers to immerse themselves in the global migration crisis. The following recommended titles, linked to their excerpted Booklist reviews, explore the horrors migrants must endure both at home and abroad. (Earlier this week, we […]
With summer in full swing, teens deserve lit that’s as cool and refreshing as a jump in the deep end. The following titles all feature a strong swimming motif, and are perfect for young readers trying to beat the heat—or those hiding in the cold, wishing for its return. Aquamarine, by Alice Hoffman This […]
In a season often dominated by explosion-heavy action flicks and Transformers sequels, we look forward to watching these acclaimed novels and memoirs make their silver-screen debuts. Smuggle a paperback in with your movie snacks and head to the theatre for these adaptations. On Chesil Beach (May 18) Ian McEwan wrote the screenplay of his bestselling novella, […]
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 June 18–21 below. Monday, June 18 I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, by Michelle McNamara, read by Gabra Zackman Part memoir, part true crime, and […]
Follow the action at 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia and improve your understanding of the other kind of football. The group-stage games are coming fast and furious at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, and like most sports fans, you’re thinking only one thing: Yes, but what should I read? Fear not, for I have […]
Koko the Gorilla has died. According to my Facebook feed, every 30- and 40-something I know is devastated. I’m devastated. She was such a beautiful and gentle and brilliant creature. Like so many of us, she was a cat lady. Like not so many of us, she got to know celebrities. She taught children (and […]
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 […]
Lynn: Adam Gidwitz’s The Creature of the Pines (2018) introduces Elliot Eisner on his first day at a new school, which has started badly. It’s already three weeks into the school year—surely far too late to make friends. Even worse, the class is on a field trip to Pine Barrens with the terrifying Professor Fauna, whose […]
Lynn: Girls don’t play baseball. It’s impossible to know how often girls yearning to play the national sport have heard that phrase. Well, girls do play baseball, and they have played as far back as the 1890s. Here are two wonderful new books, set in the 1950s, that take on this very subject. In the middle-grade […]
Cindy: Like it does for most of his readers, our admiration for Richard Peck and his writing runs deep. Tributes since his May 2018 death (like this one from Booklist columnist Michael Cart) have mentioned his longevity as a popular writer, and I can attest to that as both a former child and a librarian. […]
This year’s Audie Award winners were just announced at the 2018 Audies Gala, hosted by Award-winning narrator Simon Vance, at the New York Historical Society in New York City. Lincoln in the Bardo—a production that involved a record 166 narrators—took home the award for Audiobook of the Year. You can read our interview with author George Saunders […]
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) […]
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 following books, published this week, received starred reviews in Booklist. Want to read our starred reviews before the books go on sale? Subscribe to Booklist! Adult Fiction The Dependents, by Katharine Dion The Great Believers, by Rebecca Makkai The Mermaid, by Christina Henry The Myth of Perpetual Summer, by Susan Crandall Wicked and the Wallflower, by Sarah MacLean Witchmark, by C. L. […]
Editor’s note: Families are being separated at the border. Children are being held in concrete cages. Young readers who find themselves in better circumstances can learn about the refugee experience through this broad compendium of books, originally published as a two-part list in August of 2017. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for […]
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 June 11–15 below. Monday, July 11 Ghosted, by Rosie Walsh Sarah fell head over heels for Eddie the moment she saw him. A chance […]
LibraryReads has announced its July 2018 selections! Check out the ten titles chosen by librarians below, linked to their Booklist reviews when available. For those of you who prefer to listen rather than read, we’ve hunted down the producers of the audio versions and have provided the ordering information. Please note that we have not yet had time […]
The June 1 & 15 issue of Booklist magazine is now live. Visit Booklist Online, where you’ll find 394 new reviews and 12 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 […]
We here at Booklist are headed to the Big Easy for ALA Annual. Catch us at booth #3431, where you can score Booklist buttons, Book Club Central pins and, as ever, some sweet temporary tattoos. The hungry can munch on tiny chocolate versions of this year’s Carnegie shortlist titles. We’ll be giving away the most recent issue of […]
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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