Debut novelist Daniel Loedel’s stunning first book, HADES, ARGENTINA, published amid a wealth praise this week. The book was named on best-of lists from O Magazine, The Millions, and many other outlets. Loedel also spoke to NPR Weekend Edition’s Lulu Garcia-Navarro about the role of his family’s history in inspiring the book, and Literary Hub published Loedel’s original essay about exploring his Argentine heritage on publication day. Riverhead Books published the novel on January 12, 2021.

CROSSING THE LINE by Kareem Rosser is a Town & Country “Must-Read Book of Winter 2021.” They write: “In this memoir, Rosser, who went on to become captain of the first all-Black team to win the National Interscholastic Polo championship, shares the story of his love of polo, his relationship with his family, and how following a dream changed his life forever.” St. Martin’s Press will publish the book on February 9, 2021.

THE MUTANT PROJECT by Eben Kirksey was featured in The Wall Street Journal article “’Mutant’: An Altered Version—Whether the Coronavirus, Genes or X-Men.” Ben Zimmer writes: “In his new book THE MUTANT PROJECT, the cultural anthropologist Eben Kirksey observes how pop-cultural mutants fuel our understanding of genetic mutation as a source of monstrous possibilities. But even as gene-editing technology raises the potential of human-engineered mutations, Mr. Kirksey notes that everyone is naturally born with some genetic mutations not found in their parents. And we accumulate thousands more mutations over our lifetimes thanks to errors made when DNA is copied during cell division, or when cells are damaged. ‘Strictly speaking,’ he writes, ‘we are all mutants.’” St. Martin’s Press published the book on November 10, 2020.

The New York Times Book Review praises THE REVOLUTION ACCORDING TO RAYMUNDO MATA by Gina Apostol. The reviewer writes: “Virgil should offer libations to the gods in thanksgiving that Gina Apostol writes about the Philippines’ founding stories instead of Rome’s…She writes historical fiction like Hilary Mantel on acid….[a] marvelous welter of Filipino storytelling.” Soho Press published the book on January 12, 2021.

Maurice Carlos Ruffin’s THE ONES WHO DON’T SAY THEY LOVE YOU is featured on Lit Hub’s “Most Anticipated Books of 2021.” They write: “Ruffin follows up on his darkly provocative, critically acclaimed debut novel, WE CAST A SHADOW, with this collection of stories set in and around his native New Orleans. The characters in Ruffin’s stories struggle, in their various ways, to navigate the depths of a great American city too often mythologized for its flamboyant surfaces." One World will publish the book on August 17, 2021.

Maggie Nelson’s ON FREEDOM is on Lit Hub's “Most Anticipated Books of 2021.” They write: "Maggie Nelson is one of the most important contemporary critics and also one of our most thrilling writers in almost every genre. A new work from her is always something to look forward to, but this one sounds particularly essential, examining the complex meanings behind the concept of freedom in ‘four distinct realms: art, sex, drugs, and climate.’” Graywolf Press will publish the book on September 7, 2021.

Olivia Laing's EVERYBODY is on Lit Hub's “Most Anticipated Books of 2021.” They write: "Drawing from complicated historical figures like Nina Simone, Christopher Isherwood, Andrea Dworkin, Sigmund Freud, Susan Sontag, and Malcolm X, Laing charts the longstanding struggle of bodily autonomy, with due consideration of gay rights and sexual liberation movements, feminism, and civil rights. She also grapples with her own experiences with protest and her own approaches to alternative medicine."
W.W. Norton & Company will publish the book on May 4, 2021.

Kiese Laymon's HOW TO SLOWLY KILL YOURSELF AND OTHERS IN AMERICA was reviewed by Jerald Walker for the New York Times. He writes: "I must say, Kie…by adding six rich new essays, deftly curating seven from the original book, and reworking the chronology, you have made a once solid collection superb.” Scribner published the book November 10, 2020.

Rosencrans Baldwin’s EVERYTHING NOW is featured on The Millions’ “Most Anticipated: The Great First-Half 2021 Book Preview.” They write: "Baldwin’s new book charts Los Angeles’s literary canon, its landscapes, spiritual practices, history, and cuisines, and ultimately makes the argument that Los Angeles is best understood—‘functionally, aesthetically, mythologically, even technologically’—as a city-state." MCD will publish the book on June 15, 2021.

BROTHER, SISTER, MOTHER, EXPLORER by Jamie Figueroa earned a starred review from Publishers Weekly. They write: “[T]he novel brims with spellbinding prose, magical elements, and wounded, full hearted characters that nearly jump off the page…This cleverly constructed and deeply moving account enthralls." The book was also featured on The Millions’ “Most Anticipated: The Great First-Half 2021 Book Preview” and Electric Literature’s “Most Anticipated Books of 2021 by Women of Color.” Catapult will publish the book on March 2, 2021.

Dawnie Walton's THE FINAL REVIVAL OF OPAL & NEV is on Elle’s “The 55 Most Anticipated Books of 2021” list, as well as The Millions’ “Most Anticipated: The Great First-Half 2021 Book Preview” and Lit Hub's “Most Anticipated Books of 2021.” The Millions writes: “THE FINAL REVIVAL OF OPAL & NEV features an ambitious literary structure that is rarely seen in contemporary writing…The unique storytelling matches the depth of the theme that the novel aspires to explore: Black women who dare to tell the truth but whose voices are too often repressed." 37 Ink will publish the novel on April 20, 2021.

Gabriela Garcia’s stunning debut OF WOMEN AND SALT is on Elle’s “The 55 Most Anticipated Books of 2021” list, as well Electric Literature’s “Most Anticipated Books of 2021 by Women of Color,” Lit Hub’s “Most Anticipated Books of 2021,” and The Millions’ “Most Anticipated: The Great First-Half 2021 Book Preview.” Flatiron Books will publish the book on April 6, 2021.