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- What we’re reading Wednesday: ‘Carry the One’
- PEN/Faulkner nominees announced
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- A great year for books-to-film
- YOUR most-anticipated books of 2012
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- 1 March 2012
'The Man Without a Face: The Unlikely Rise of Vladimir Putin'
Journalist Masha Gessen fearlessly takes on the life of Vladimir Putin, the autocratic Russian leader who has hijacked his country and its nominal democracy. Big hit at the Frankfurt Book Fair; there are concerns about Gessen's safety once the book has been published. (Riverhead)
- 13 March 2012
'Arcadia' by Lauren Groff
Groff's playful debut, THE MONSTERS OF TEMPLETON, marked her as an author to watch, and we've been waiting to see what she'll do next. Answer: write a coming-of-age story set in a 1960s commune. Might sound trite, but Groff is one of the most imaginative young writers working these days, and we think her spin on this will be something special. (HMH)
- 27 March 2012
'The Unruly Passions of Eugénie R.' by Carole DeSanti
DeSanti is an editor for Viking who has worked with authors like Tracy Chevalier, Beverly Swerling and Deborah Harkness; now she's taking on the novel directly in this sweeping historical saga set during France's Second Empire, just before the Franco-Prussian war.
'The New Republic' by Lionel Shriver
I'm something of a Shriver evangelist, so I couldn't be more pleased to hear that while she's putting the finishing touches on her current project*, a novel she wrote in 1998 will finally see the light of day. Seems that publishing three bestsellers in a row gives you a little more leeway when it comes to choosing difficult material as your subject.
Shriver says The New Republic deals with terrorism "on a peninsula in Portugal which doesn’t exist—I drew it onto the map. I wrote it in 1998 and at that time I had trouble getting American publishers interested in the manuscript. . . . Now in some ways the US cares too much about terrorism and for a long time I felt it would be wrong to publish something that has a sense of humour about the issue. Enough time has gone by for a droll novel to be well received."
- 3 April 2012
'The Beginner's Goodbye' by Anne Tyler
The Beginner's Goodbye is the story of Aaron, a man who loses his wife suddenly when a tree falls on their house.
Aaron and Dorothy's marriage had been affectionate but not particularly passionate, yet once she is gone he finds himself surprisingly adrift—and continues to see his dead wife everywhere he goes. . Can he figure out a way to say goodbye? (Knopf)
- 10 April 2012
'The Cove' by Ron Rash
Ecco's lead title for spring "captures the wondrous beauty of nature and love and the darkness of superstition and fear in this atmospheric and exquisitely rendered novel set in Appalachia during World War I." (Another for my WWI list!) The catalog also promises that it is "as mesmerizing as the brilliant Serena," which is saying something—if you like memorable heroines, 2008's Serena is a novel that is not to be missed. As reviewer Kristy Kiernan put it in BookPage, Serena "has all the markings of a career-making novel, and should firmly establish poet and novelist Rash as a literary star."
- 24 April 2012
'Farther Away: Essays' by Jonathan Franzen
This is a collection of Franzen's essays and speeches over the past five years, exploring themes of literary rivalry, environmental concern and more. (FSG)
- 1 May 2012
'The Newlyweds' by Nell Freudenberger
No, it's not based on the show starring Nick & Jessica. Literary luminary Freudenberger (she was one of the New Yorker's best 20 under 40) follows her impressive debut novel THE DISSIDENTS with a story of a couple who meet online, marry, and then uncover each other's secrets. A modern take on star-crossed romance.
'Are You My Mother?' by Alison Bechdel
This second graphic memoir from Bechdel—whose FUN HOME was a bestseller that made it onto countless best books lists upon its release in 2006—focuses on her brilliant but distant mother, whose life was both an inspiration and a cautionary tale to her equally talented daughter.
'Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake' by Anna Quindlen
Recently, Anna Quindlen has been focusing on fiction—but readers are sure to rejoice when they hear that the former Newsweek and New York Times columnist will be contemplating life once again this May in Lots of Candles, Plenty of Cake (Random House).
- 8 May 2012
'In One Person' by John Irving
This new novel explores the life of a 60-year-old bisexual man and is told in the first person—Irving’s first novel from that point of view since A Prayer for Owen Meany. It's also his first with S&S after leaving longtime publisher Random House.
'Home' by Toni Morrison
The works of Nobel Laureate Toni Morrison go beyond thought-provoking to what could better be called thought-demanding, with their lush prose, deep themes and occasional touches of magic or mysticism. But that's just what readers and critics appreciate about Morrison, who is one of America's most treasured writers. Her next novel, Home, will be published by Knopf on May 8. It's the story of a Korean War veteran who returns to small-town Georgia, disappointed in its racist culture and trying to help his emotionally unstable sister while still recovering from the physical and emotional aftereffects of war.
- 15 May 2012
'The Chemistry of Tears' by Peter Carey
This “portrait of love and loss” from the two-time Booker Prize winner is told from the point of view of a museum curator who throws herself into her job when her secret lover dies suddenly. She finds a 19th-century automaton in a box along with its creator’s diary, and becomes obsessed with uncovering its secrets and its history. (Knopf)
- 22 May 2012
'Canada' by Richard Ford
The first novel in more than five years from Pulitzer Prize-winning author Richard Ford is narrated by 15-year-old Dell Parsons, who flees his Montana home after his parents are arrested for robbing a bank. He ends up on the plains of southern Saskatchewan, taken in by a “charismatic” American who is more sinister than he appears. (Harper)
- 12 June 2012
'The Red House' by Mark Haddon
An dazzlingly inventive novel about modern family, from the author of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time. (Doubleday)
'Heading Out to Wonderful' by Robert Goolrick
(Algonquin) The author of the smash hit A RELIABLE WIFE returns. This time, the setting is 1948 Virginia, and a mysterious man rolls into town with only two suitcases to his name. But it's when he becomes involved with the wife of the richest man in town that things really get complicated.
'Beautiful Ruins' by Jess Walter
Jess Walter's latest is a little lighter than his last two novels—it deals with Hollywood and unrequited love rather than the aftermath of 9/11 or the implications of our financial crisis. The action begins on the coast of Italy in 1962, where a young man glimpses a beautiful actress and falls in love. Fifty years later, he heads to Hollywood to find her. (Harper)
- 19 June 2012
'Mrs Robinson's Disgrace' by Kate Summerscale
From the author of the bestseller THE SUSPICIONS OF MR WHICHER comes another investigation of a famous case that shook the foundations of middle-class Victorian life. This time, it's a divorce scandal. (Walker)
- 10 July 2012
'Gold' by Chris Cleave
We can't wait for Chris Cleave's take on the friendship between two female athletes who, on the eve of the Olympics, must make a choice between their personal and professional goals. (S&S)
- 24 July 2012
'Broken Harbor' by Tana French
From the publisher: In Broken Harbour, a ghost estate outside Dublin - half-built, half-inhabited, half-abandoned - two children and their father are dead. The mother is on her way to intensive care. Scorcher Kennedy is given the case because he is the Murder squad's star detective. At first he and his rookie partner, Richie, think this is a simple one: Pat Spain was a casualty of the recession, so he killed his children, tried to kill his wife Jenny, and finished off with himself. But there are too many inexplicable details and the evidence is pointing in two directions at once. (Viking)
- 31 July 2012
'Where We Belong' by Emily Giffin
A successful TV producer in her 30s sees her life come crashing down when the child she gave up for adoption 18 years ago comes knocking on her door.
- 21 August 2012
'The Devil in Silver' by Victor LaValle
The author of BookPage favorite 'Big Machine' returns with a gripping haunted house story.
'Winter Journal' by Paul Auster
Facing his 63rd winter, internationally acclaimed novelist Paul Auster sits down to write a history of his body and its sensations—both pleasurable and painful.
Thirty years after the publication of The Invention of Solitude, in which he wrote so movingly about fatherhood, Auster gives us a second unconventional memoir in which he writes about his mother's life and death. Winter Journal is a highly personal meditation on the body, time, and memory, by one of our most intellectually elegant writers.
- 2 October 2012
'America Again: Re-becoming the Greatness We Never Weren’t' by Stephen Colbert
(Grand Central) "It’s high time we restored America to the greatness it never lost!" says Stephen Colbert, in his anticipated follow-up to 2007's I AM AMERICA (AND SO CAN YOU).
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Author Archives: Cat, Editorial Assistant
PEN/Faulkner nominees announced
The five nominees for the 2012 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction were announced yesterday. The national award honors the best American fiction each year. Four of the nominees are familiar faces in the literary awards world, but everyone is talking about … Continue reading
Trailer Tuesday: ‘Pure’ by Julianna Baggott
Julianna Baggott‘s Pure is like a combination of all those awesome YA dystopian novels we’ve been reading — but for adults. There are two sides of society after Pure‘s apocalypse. Pressia survives out in the ruined world, her body damaged … Continue reading
Monday contest: The coolest bookshelves . . . ever
Regardless of whether you have a designer’s eye, there’s something—dare I say—sexy about a genius bookshelf. It’s why we drool over book towers, decorating with books and celebrity bookshelves, and why we get so excited to pick our favorite covers … Continue reading
What we’re reading Wednesday: ‘Half-Blood Blues’
Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan Picador USA • $15 • ISBN 9781250012708 Published February 28, 2012 Half-Blood Blues has already received quite a bit of attention. It was a finalist for the 2011 Man Booker and the winner of the … Continue reading
Trailer Tuesday: ‘The Snow Child’ by Eowyn Ivey
Eskimos might have 1,000 words for snow (they don’t, but bear with me), but debut novelist Eowyn Ivey holds her own with The Snow Child. It’s a spectacular tale of a post-WWI Alaskan couple whose wish for a child is … Continue reading
7 questions with . . . Anna Randol
Anna Randol’s debut romance novel, A Secret in Her Kiss, is our Romance of the Month! Major Bennett Prestwood is ordered to Constantinople to act as protector and chaperone to beautiful British spy Mari Sinclair, who isn’t interested in having … Continue reading
Recipe of the week: Silky Chicken Liver Mousse
Cooking columnist Sybil Pratt calls the recipes in The French Slow Cooker, Michele Scicolone’s newest cookbook, “so quintessentially French . . . without mess or stress.” Classic French cooking was never so easy as with Scicolone’s slow cooker! To be … Continue reading
Trailer Tuesday: ‘The Flame Alphabet’ by Ben Marcus
Language can literally kill in The Flame Alphabet‘s horrifying and weird world. Children have the ability to kill their elders simply by speaking to them, and the search for a cure is reminiscent of the twisted scientific experiments of the … Continue reading
Romance: A real, feel-good read
guest post by Larissa Ione Okay, single ladies, raise your hand if you’ve ever seen that tiresome criticism that goes something like this: Single women who read romances will develop unrealistic expectations of men. Ha! And again, ha! Reading romance … Continue reading
Monday contest: ‘Dating the Undead’
Do you wish your valentine were a little bit . . . immortal? Readers who simply cannot deny themselves the forbidden fruit of vamps, werewolves, angels, demons (of all types) and even a zombie or two get the dish on … Continue reading
7 questions with . . . William Landay
Our February Mystery of the Month, Defending Jacob by William Landay, taps into a parent’s worst nightmare. No — worse. Assistant D.A. Andy Barber’s son seems the most likely suspect for a neighbor’s brutal murder. Andy finds himself desperately defending … Continue reading
Publishing’s Tools of Change
The topic on the minds of everyone in publishing these days is the constant change within the industry—eBooks, digital reading devices, Amazon.com vs. Barnes & Noble, etc. The 2012 O’Reilly Tools of Change (TOC) for Publishing Conference in New York … Continue reading
Trailer Tuesday: ‘How Eskimos Keep Their Babies Warm’ by Mei-Ling Hopgood
The Top Pick from our January Lifestyles column is How Eskimos Keep Their Babies Warm by Mei-Ling Hopgood, a fascinating study on the differences in parenting techniques from all over the world. The title alone had me interested—then I read … Continue reading