News in January 2021

News in January 2021

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Robert Jones, Jr.’s monumental debut novel THE PROPHETS is a featured pick for the Book of The Month Club, and the Amazon Debut Spotlight Pick. It has also been featured on the New York Times’ list of “13 Books to Watch for in January,” The Washington Post's “10 Books to Read in January,” TIME's “10 New Books You Should Read in January,” BuzzFeed’s “19 New Historical Fiction Books We Think You’re Going To Love,” Electric Literature's “27 Debuts to Look Forward to in the First Half of 2021,” and the Independent UK’s “Books to Look Out for in 2021.” Lastly, the New York Times profiled Jones Jr. before the book’s release, and in its first week of publication, Danez Smith wrote a glorious review for the New York Times Book Review. G.P. Putnam’s Sons published THE PROPHETS on January 5, 2021.

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Buzz is ramping up for Gabriela Garcia’s glorious debut novel, OF WOMEN AND SALT, in advance of its April release. Named in most-anticipated lists from Cosmopolitan, the Washington Post, Barnes & Noble, Refinery29, Electric Lit, Goodreads, CNN, Literary Hub, and many more, the book was also chosen by bestselling author Roxane Gay as her June book club pick for 2021. Flatiron Books will publish the book on April 6, 2021.

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Sharon Stone’s memoir was named by O, the Oprah Magazine as one of the “55 Most Anticipated Books of 2021.” They write: “Brutally honest, restless and questing, Stone bravely grapples with her own imperfections with courage and candor.” Knopf will publish the book on March 30, 2021.

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Time Magazine, The Washington Post, and Essence Magazine named CONCRETE ROSE, Angie Thomas’s prequel to her bestselling THE HATE U GIVE, as one of the most anticipated books of 2021. Balzer + Bray will publish the book on January 12, 2021.

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The New York Times, Time Magazine, Lit Hub, and O, the Oprah Magazine named LET ME TELL YOU WHAT I MEAN, Joan Didion’s latest collection of essays, as one of the most anticipated books publishing in 2021. Knopf will publish the book on January 26, 2021.

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The LA Times named Kate Zambreno’s DRIFTS as one of the “Best Books That Got Lost in the Noise of 2020,” writing: “The too-often underestimated Zambreno has written a novel about the wanderings of a writer’s mind — her mind — as it tries to pin down a slippery new idea and turn pinballing mental ramblings into something as concrete as a hardback book. If this sounds distant and remote, do not fear: DRIFTS is as embodied as novels come, practically vibrational as its narrator snatches her ideas out of the air and turns them into, well, DRIFTS.” Riverhead Books published the book on May 19, 2020.

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Electric Lit named Jakob Guanzon’s ABUNDANCE as one of “27 Debuts to Look Forward to in the First Half of 2021.” They write: “Abundance takes a critical and unsentimental look at the harsh effects of poverty in a country that’s seemingly teeming with abundance.” Graywolf Press will publish the book on March 2, 2021.

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HOW TO SLOWLY KILL YOUSELF AND OTHERS IN AMERICA by Kiese Laymon received a glowing review from The New York Times Book Review. They write: “By adding six rich new essays, deftly curating seven from the original book, and reworking the chronology, [Laymon has] made a once solid collection superb. Ever-present throughout HOW TO SLOWLY KILL YOURSELF AND OTHERS IN AMERICA is the blues ethos of stating and confronting the brutal facts of life and of placing a high premium on style, improvisation and excellence.” Scribner published the book on November 10, 2020.

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Daniel Riley’s second novel, BARCELONA DAYS, was named one of the “Best Books of 2020” by the New York Post. They write: “An erupting Icelandic volcano grounds all flights in and out of Europe, leaving American couple Whitney and Will with plenty of time to parse their relationship and various mistakes while they drink and eat their way through Barcelona. If you miss travel, this is the book for you.” Little, Brown and Company published the book on June 23, 2020.

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Debut novelist Daniel Loedel’s stunning first book, HADES ARGENTINA, continues to gather fervent praise in its lead up to publication. The novel merited comparison’s to Dante’s Inferno and the works of Camus in a stunning review from the Los Angeles Times. The book was also named on best-of lists from Electric Lit, Literary Hub, and The Millions, among other outlets. Riverhead Books will publish the novel on January 12, 2021.

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Following her critically acclaimed debut NEON IN DAYLIGHT, Hermione Hoby’s sophomore novel, VIRTUE, has received two stellar endorsements. THE SCIENTISTS author Marco Roth raves: “In pearlescent prose, Hermione Hoby presents the struggles of a creative class caught between beauty and duty, on the eve of its dissolution.” Meanwhile, TRICK MIRROR author Jia Tolentino calls the book “both a sumptuous portrait of all-consuming attraction and a compassionate indictment of shallow social conscience. I loved this novel, and sank deep into its radiance and rot.” Literary Hub has also named VIRTUE as one of its “Most Anticipated Books of 2021.” Riverhead Books will publish the novel on July 20, 2021.

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Becky Cooper’s WE KEEP THE DEAD CLOSE hit a flurry of year-end lists over the holidays, earning Best-of-2020 status from Book Riot, Vogue, BuzzFeed, and Bustle, among others. Literary Hub also recommends the audiobook, read by Cooper herself, saying: “Cooper’s well-researched, suspenseful, and empathetic account is true crime at its finest.” Grand Central Publishing published the book on November 10, 2020.