News in April 2023

News in April 2023

28th April, 2023

Ramona Ausubel’s THE LAST ANIMAL continues to receive fantastic attention following its publication. Ausubel was interviewed by Scott Simon for NPR, and by Sarah Neilson for Shondaland, who calls the novel "[a] tender, funny, and fascinating imagining of a family grieving, of women rebelling against the status quo (or their mother), climate grief, and ultimately what it means to care for one another and this planet we share.” The novel was also reviewed by Shelf Awareness, where the reviewer raves: “[W]ondrous…a fantastical journey into the kind of life that may or may not be possible after death, and the equally fantastical experience of becoming a woman in a world of men…The setting of THE LAST ANIMAL is strikingly recognizable yet laced with magic, a place where things Ausubel's characters can barely imagine exist just beneath the surface of everyday life, but the things they want most remain ever out of reach. This, combined with Ausubel's evocative prose, gives the novel a perpetual sense of longing.” Literary Hub published a personal essay by Ausubel titled “Falling in Love with a Dog and the World.” Lastly, the book was included in roundups from Oprah Daily, The Center For Fiction, and Literary Hub. Riverhead Books published the novel on April 18, 2023.

28th April, 2023

NPR gave Monica Brashears’ HOUSE OF COTTON a stellar review, calling it "an incredible debut that announces the arrival of a unique voice in contemporary fiction" and “peculiar and slightly surreal, but also dazzling, full of surprises, and told with a voice that's unpredictable and, more importantly, that lingers.” Flatiron Books published the novel on April 4, 2023.

28th April, 2023

Eileen Myles was interviewed for Cultured Magazine about A “WORKING LIFE.” Cultured writes: “Eileen Myles is a poet. And not just any poet, but one that has restlessly and playfully continued to reinvent the role of the public intellectual with their eager, polychrome odes to living and bouncy, conversational reading style. Myles's poetry is best understood as an itch—for a sense of home in the world around them—and an expansion of the seemingly banal to the globally relevant. Their newest book of poems, A ‘WORKING LIFE,’ is out this week and speaks to the ‘sweet accumulation’ that makes up a poet's practice and life. CULTURED sat down with the writer…to talk about the importance of a first draft, finding freedom in transit, and essential writing instruments.” Literary Hub also published a craft talk given by Myles at NYU’s MFA Creative Writing Program in February 2023 on “Discovering the Poetic Core of Everyday Life.” Grove Pres published A “WORKING LIFE” on April 18, 2023.

28th April, 2023

Literary Hub and Debutiful published excerpts from Tyriek White’s WE ARE A HAUNTING on its much anticipated publication day. The New York Times also featured the novel on its roundup of newly published books. Astra House published the book on April 25, 2023.

21th April, 2023

THE LAST ANIMAL by Ramona Ausubel published this week to a whirlwind of media attention. The book received a lovely review from Book Page, where reviewer Lauren Bufferd writes: "THE LAST ANIMAL whizzes around the planet—from the steppes of Siberia to the shores of Iceland to a remote alpine village—with a dizzying, almost madcap speed, but at the novel’s heart are the deep ties between mother and daughters, sister and sister, human and animal...Ausubel crafts this moving story with wit and depth, allowing readers to witness a family drawn together by both loss and a sense of wonder at an ever-changing planet.” A review from Jason Heller for NPR praises: “[THE LAST ANIMAL] soars where so many other books about family dynamics simply coast…Ausubel brings deep emotional truth to her work of dramatic fiction…THE LAST ANIMAL instantly injects Ausubel's telltale zing…Splicing wit and wisdom, THE LAST ANIMAL is a bright-eyed meditation on what animates us, biologically as well as emotionally — but most of all, familially.” A fantastic review from Meredith Maran for the LA Times raves: “Love it I did. Devour it I did. Recommend it to everyone, I do…Ausubel is a supernaturally gifted writer whose heart, soul, wit and intellect are evident in every wacky setting, character and plot line she weaves. Few authors can do what she does, seemingly effortlessly: spin saucy yet kind-spirited social satire while exploring a multitude of topical and archetypal subjects — all within a single work, all in sentences that sing…Classic Ausubel, THE LAST ANIMAL is many things. A mother-daughter love story. A global-warming warning. A fabulist fantasy. A sci-fi eco-scheme. A coming-of-age duet. A feminist critique of workplace misogyny. A study of grief…Forget everything you think you know about your reading tastes, sink into her weird world and prepare to fall in love with a 4,000-year-old baby mammoth.” The book was featured on The New York Times Book Review Shortlist, alongside glowing praise: "Sustained sorrow…underpins Ramona Ausubel’s new novel, THE LAST ANIMAL…The book also manages to be a mirthful romp of chicanery and derring-do.” Ausubel was interviewed by Jane Ciabattari for Lit Hub, who writes: “Ramona Ausubel is a master at creating distinctive young female characters…[A]n intense portrait of family dynamics that undergirds a speculative narrative that is just on the verge of real, and also filled with hope.” Meanwhile, a review by Heller McAlpin for The Christian Science Monitor praises: "A wild and woolly global escapade about unbounded scientific experimentation…[and] a hairy but cuddly beast of a novel that sheds life lessons, some heartwarming, many sticky with sentiment…Ausubel’s conclusion is clear: Nurture the earth and your dreams, but don’t forget to nurture your family.” BuzzFeed Books published an exclusive excerpt of the novel ahead of its publication, and USA Today featured the book as a "Must-Read Book of the Week." The book was also included in roundups from BookRiot, Electric Lit, and Lit Hub. Riverhead published the book on April 18, 2023.

21th April, 2023

Monica Brashears was interviewed by The 19th about HOUSE OF COTTON, and “about utilizing the conventions of fairy tales, horror and Gothic literatures to tell a specific story about Southern Black women’s identity and pain in relation to their own bodies.” The book received a gorgeous review from Sara Beth West for Nashville Scene, who raves: "Lush and gorgeous — and evidence of a new and decisive talent in Monica Brashears...Brashears employs language like a knife, cutting and shaping with remarkable dexterity, and the result is a wonderwork of a first book. This is a novel that sweats and broods, a story where something fretful is always boiling just under the surface." HOUSE OF COTTON also received shoutouts from the New York Times Morning Newsletter, Tor.com, and the Book Riot Podcast. Flatiron published the book on April 4, 2023.

21th April, 2023

A "WORKING LIFE" by Eileen Myles published this week to critical acclaim. The book received a wonderful review from Publishers Weekly: "With just a few words per line, [Myles'] poems move down the page quickly, the language dashed off and immediate, as though keeping pace with the poet’s mind...While at times, these poems can present as random and rapidly scribbled, there are rewards here for the readers who stick with them, revealing the joys of a life built out of thinking, dreaming, and making." Vulture featured the book on its list of “6 New Books You Should Read This April,” praising: "A ‘WORKING LIFE’ takes you where Myles feels like, for however long they feel like it, and in whichever direction. This is harder than it looks. The ease of Myles’ lines — the way words break in two to calibrate rhythm and speed, or how the number of words per line expand and single out to play around with tension — belie great skill. But the difference between poets isn’t just style; it’s personality, or one’s outlook on life. Myles’s is one of the most distinctive, and insightful." Myles was also interviewed for WNYC's "All of It with Alison Stuart." Grove Press published the book on April 18, 2023.

21th April, 2023

Oprah Weekly included De'Shawn Charles Winslow's DECENT PEOPLE on a list of “8 New Mysteries to Die For,” praising it as “elegant.” Atlanta Magazine included the book on its “Spring Reading” round-up of new releases by Atlanta based authors, calling it a “sweeping novel.” Lastly, The New York Public Library chose it as one of its Spring 2023 Staff Picks for Adults, where NYPL Associate Director of Public Programs Aidan Flax-Clark raves: “If you love murder mysteries, Winslow's second novel is a fresh take on an old form.” Bloomsbury Publishing published DECENT PEOPLE on January 17, 2023.

21th April, 2023

TAKE WHAT YOU NEED received a wonderful review from The New Republic. Reviewer Kristen Martin writes: "Novey upends familiar platitudes on our country’s divisions in an odd novel about the ways that the people and places we love can become enigmas to us, and the ineffable impulse to make art…Grappling with the mysteries we present to one another, Novey pushes back against the fairy tales we’ve told ourselves about polarizing places like Appalachia, spinning a far more artful story." Viking published the book on March 14, 2023.

14th April, 2023

The paperback edition of THE DAWN OF EVERYTHING by David Graber and David Wengrow debuted at #8 on The New York Times Bestseller list for Paperback Nonfiction for the week of April 23, 2023. The book also appeared on The New York Times’ Paperback Row, lauded as “hefty [and] irreverent.” Farrar, Straus and Giroux published the hardcover edition on November 9, 2021, and Picador published the paperback on April 4, 2023.

14th April, 2023

TAKE WHAT YOU NEED by Idra Novey is one of The Wall Street Journal's "Best Fiction for Spring 2023" picks. Viking published the book on March 14, 2023.

14th April, 2023

THE LAST ANIMAL by Ramona Ausubel received a wonderful review from Ron Charles in The Washington Post. He writes: "If you could cross Anne Tyler’s novels with strands of DNA from Michael Crichton’s thrillers, you might produce this new book by Ramona Ausubel. From a taxonomic point of view, THE LAST ANIMAL is a sweet, poignant descendant of JURASSIC PARK...The paradox that this novel confronts with such tender sympathy and humor is how to love the time we have left." Riverhead Books will publish the novel on April 18, 2023.