News in May 2019
News in May 2019
David McCullough’s THE PIONEERS debuts at #1 on the New York Times Bestseller Hardcover Nonfiction List on Sunday, May 26, 2019. In addition, McCullough was interviewed by the Wall Street Journal which says, “[McCullough] has chosen to shine a lantern into the underappreciated corners of American history....'The Pioneers' is the account not just of one Ohio settlement but of myriad such places across America, where innumerable immigrants (as the settlers were known) came to make a fresh start in a strange land. It is a story as resonant today as ever." The book also received rave reviews in Publisher’s Weekly, which says “Popular historian McCullough uses his well-crafted writing style and thorough research to highlight the evolution of the ‘Ohio territory’... The swiftly moving narrative also shines light on the territory’s consistent antislavery position beginning with the 1787 Northwest Territory Ordinance and leading to the first black vote in 1802…a fascinating and well-written look at the Cutler families and the Americanizing of Ohio” and the Missourian which says "'The Pioneers' is an engaging, educational read about a key, but often overlooked, time in America’s history." Simon & Schuster published the book on May 7, 2019.
An essay on the legacy of the works of Thomas Harris and his creation Hannibal Lector was published in the Washington Post by Bill Sheehan. The piece says "The best of Harris's work, and this includes his latest, long-awaited novel, CARI MORA, has just that feeling of absolute, unquestionable reality. Through a combination of elements--a perfectly realized authorial voice, the steady accumulation of terrible details, an empathetic vision of lost and damaged souls--Harris has created a sense of dreadful intimacy that we cannot escape, that forces us to gaze at unthinkable things, and never look away. No one has illuminated this kind of darkness more thoroughly or effectively than Harris. It seems unlikely that anyone ever will." The book was also reviewed in the Wall Street Journal which writes "A less accomplished or ambitious writer might have crafted a worthy thriller with only one or two of the story strands that Mr. Harris weaves; but the several plot elements in CARI MORA are always in fine balance, as befits the work of a unique master still at the top of his strange and chilling form." Grand Central Publishing published the book on May 21, 2019.
Anticipation is building for Demi Moore’s surprisingly intimate and emotionally charged memoir. This week PEOPLE revealed the cover featuring a striking portrait of Moore by photographer Matthew Rolston. HarperCollins will publish the hardcover on September 24, 2019.
IN WEST MILLS, De’Shawn Charles Winslow debut novel, was featured in the New York Times’ Summer Book Preview: 4 Writers to Watch. Writes The New York Times: "In the book, which spans the 1940s to the 1980s, a woman in North Carolina named Azalea 'Knot' Centre battles alcoholism, various estrangements and her fraught romantic relationships with men. One platonic friend, a married man named Otis Lee Loving, stands by her throughout her hard times. " Entertainment Weekly highlighted debut author De'Shawn Charles Winslow in their Meet the Future of Books feature, where they invited "The summer's hottest debut authors to discuss all things literary." Winslow is the author of In West Mills, a novel about a woman named Knot who refuses to live her life based on societal norms. Bloomsbury will publish the book June 4, 2019.
Common’s new inspirational memoir LET LOVE HAVE THE LAST WORD will debut at #15 on the Print Hardcover Nonfiction section in the New York Times Best Sellers list for the week of May 26, 2019. Atria Books published the book on May 7, 2019.
Ted Chiang’s second collection of speculative short stories EXHALATION will debut at #15 on the Print Hardcover Fiction section in the New York Times Best Sellers list for the week of May 26, 2019. Knopf published the book on May 7, 2019.
The LA Review of Books interviewed Maurice Ruffin in a feature titled “De-Melanization Procedure.” In it, they write: “This riotous novel details the farcical lengths this father will go to in order to afford the surgery and save his son from the fate of Blackness while simultaneously hiding his mission from his wife. The novel straddles many modes of storytelling — adventure story, family drama, political satire — but it shines because of the jocular voice of the narrator.” One World published WE CAST A SHADOW on January 29, 2019.
RULES FOR VISITING was featured on The Today Show in the segment Beach Book Bingo: Inside the Summer's Hottest Reads. Isaac Fitzgerald, who selected it, said: “When 40-year-old gardener May receives a surprise windfall of one month of vacation from the university where she works, she decides to visit four old friends, each one from different periods of her life. Through this initially simple and irresistible starting point, Jessica Francis Kane investigates the most universal mysteries of all." Penguin Press published the book on May 14, 2019.
THE OLD DRIFT was featured on The Today Show in the segment Beach Book Bingo: Inside the Summer's Hottest Reads. Isaac Fitzgerald, who selected it, said: “Namwali Serpell's debut novel centers around three families in Zambia over three generations . . . A saga of both a whole nation and of three particular families within it, 'The Old Drift' is thrilling and rewarding, enormous in scope and boundless with riches." Hogarth published the book on March 26, 2019.
Anna Pitoniak’s “smart and stylish” NECESSARY PEOPLE is one of Town & Country’s Best New Books in May. It also made Thrillist and Cosmo’s best summer books lists. Little, Brown will publish the book on May 21, 2019.
Ryan Chapman’s debut novel RIOTS I HAVE KNOWN receives a rave review from Ron Charles at The Washington Post, who calls it “a compact cluster bomb of satire” and promises that: “If you’re part of the Venn diagram that subscribes to N+1 and McSweeney’s, this is the most fun book you’ll read all year.” Additionally, Omnivoracious, the Amazon Book Review, names RIOTS I HAVE KNOWN to its list of Books We Are Talking About. Simon & Schuster will publish the book on May 21, 2019.
Nell Stevens’ irresistible memoir THE VICTORIAN AND THE ROMANTIC has been shortlisted for a 2019 Somerset Maugham Award by the Society of Authors. Doubleday published the US edition on August 7, 2018.