Xiaolu Guo’s A LOVER’S DISCOURSE has been longlisted for the 2021 Orwell Prize for Political Fiction. The prize “rewards outstanding novels and collections of short stories first published in the UK that illuminate major social and political themes, present or past, through the art of narrative.” The Orwell prize shortlists for each category will be announced later this spring, and the winners will be announced on George Orwell’s birthday on June 25th. Grove Press published the novel on October 13, 2020.

THE PROPHETS by Robert Jones Jr. appeared on both the BBC’s and Marie Claire's best-of lists for 2021. The BBC praises: “THE PROPHETS is reminiscent of and inspired by the work of Toni Morrison, its narrative reaching back and forth, as The Guardian writes, ‘wedded to its period but also of our times, exploring the pressing questions that have plagued America since its founding.’” G.P. Putnam’s sons published the book on January 5, 2021.

Jonathan Parks-Ramage’s YES, DADDY earned a starred review from Booklist. They praise: “Antigay crusaders and literary elite both prey on desperate [protagonist] Jonah Keller in this horror-filled tale of exploitation and its aftermath…surrounded by empathetic narration in a story that offers all extremes, from verisimilitude to despair and from a lust for revenge to a longing for home. Fear settles over the reader as they wait for the next blow, making Jonah's story akin to that of the victim in Roxane Gay’s AN UNTAMED STATE (2014).” Houghton Mifflin Harcourt will publish the book on May 18, 2021.

Dawnie Walton’s THE FINAL REVIVAL OF OPAL & NEV is one of Amazon’s picks for best books of the month. NPR praises the book in a rave review, writing: “To say that THE FINAL REVIVAL OF OPAL & NEV is a sly simulacrum of a rock oral history is to acknowledge only the most obvious of this novel's achievements. Walton aspires to so much more in this story about music, race and family secrets that spans five decades. And, all the glitzy, quick-change narrative styles don't detract attention from the core emotional power of her story…It's the kind of overwhelming novel that, like a polyphonic double album back in the day, readers might want to experience more than once to let all the notes sink in.” The novel was also praised as “[a] powerful debut novel” by The Philadelphia Inquirer, and Walton sat down with Entertainment Weekly – where she was once an editor – to discuss “the pop culture of her life.” 37 Ink published the book March 30, 2021.

Janklow & Nesbit Associates is seeking two bright, energetic remote interns for summer 2021. Interns will be offered the chance to develop their reading and analytical writing skills, assist with general office duties, and learn about all aspects of agenting, including the submission process, client care, contracts, subsidiary rights, and more. This is a part-time, remote, paid opportunity. No prior publishing experience is required. Candidates from underrepresented communities are particularly encouraged to apply.

Sharon Stone’s THE BEAUTY OF LIVING TWICE debuted on the New York Times Bestseller list at number 4 in Hardcover Nonfiction and number 3 in Combined Print & E-Book Nonfiction, and on the LA Times Bestseller list at number 3 in Hardcover Nonfiction. Publishers Weekly writes that the book’s “mix of moxie and vulnerability conveys a life well lived, and well examined,” while Library Journal praises it as “[a] welcome memoir of finding your way when life doesn’t go according to plan. Stone’s vulnerability and rediscovery will resonate with many readers.” Lastly, New Republic calls Stone “a good storyteller,” noting that “THE BEAUTY OF LIVING TWICE is a book about Sharon Stone’s life, which makes it a book about how women take on multiple personas when they become very famous, then struggle to keep them in order…Stone is a strong portraitist of the instant in time.” Knopf published the book on March 30, 2021.

Gabriela Garcia’s stunning debut novel, OF WOMEN AND SALT, continues to gather great press in the week following its publication. The book debuted at #13 on the Indie Bestsellers List, and hit best-of roundups from Good Housekeeping, Vanity Fair, Fortune, Book Marks, Publishers Lunch, and Business Insider. Garcia hosted an Instagram Live virtual launch event with HUNGER and BAD FEMINIST author Roxane Gay, and the novel was chosen as Amazon’s Featured Debut Editors’ Pick. An excerpt of the book appeared in Ms. Magazine, People offered a glowing review, and Garcia sat down for interviews with Parade, Electric Literature, Interview Magazine, and Richmond Magazine. Flatiron published OF WOMEN AND SALT on March 30, 2020.

Rutger Bregman appeared on 60 Minutes to discuss a real-life LORD OF THE FLIES that served as the cornerstone for HUMANKIND: a 50-year-old story of “a group of schoolboys stranded on a remote and deserted island for more than 15 months.” Bregman told correspondent Holly Williams: “I just couldn't understand how this had not become one of the most famous stories of the 20th Century. I just couldn't understand it, because it's just extraordinary, six kids on an island for 15 months. And they survived, how?...[I]f tens of millions of children around the globe still have to read LORD OF THE FLIES in school today, I think they also deserve to know about this one time in all of world history when real kids shipwrecked on a real island, because that's a very different story.” Little, Brown, and Company published the book on June 2, 2020.

ELECTION MELTDOWN author Richard Hasen appeared on MSNBC with Chris Hayes to discuss Trump’s deceptive fundraising practices. Yale University Press published the book on February 4, 2020.

Matt Bell’s APPLESEED was featured in the Publishers Weekly article “Twice Told Science: Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror in 2021.” They write that the novel “ponders manifest destiny and climate change using the Johnny Appleseed myth as a starting point,” adding: “‘Folktales and fairy tales are foundational stories,’ says Kate Nintzel, executive editor at Custom House. Writers who incorporate them, she explains, can ‘assume a level of understanding with the reader. It gives you space to play with ideas.’” Custom House will publish the book on July 13, 2021.