Forthcoming Titles Librarians Like!

The Publisher-Librarian Connection

On the first Tuesday of each month, Nora Rawlinson of EarlyWord hosts GalleyChat, an hour long chat (in 140 characters or less) with librarians and other interested parties about the Advance Reader Copies (ARCs) they have been reading.

It is a great way to learn about titles coming out later in the year which customers may want to read or reserve. Here are 21 titles mentioned during the April GalleyChat which took place Tuesday afternoon, 4/7/2015:

Armada by Ernest Cline - a new novel from the author of Ready Player One

The Book of Speculation by Erika Swyler - a librarian, a mysterious book and a curse! Of course this one attracted GalleyChatter attention! :-) 

Circling the Sun by Paula McLain - a new novel from the author of The Paris Wife

Did You Ever Have a Family by Bill Clegg - a debut novel from the author of not one but two bestselling memoirs

Eeny Meeny by M. J. Arlidge - a crime thriller and the Penguin First Flights Debut Author selection for April

Eight Hundred Grapes by Laura Dave - Wine, love, family, secrets and humor - what more could you ask!

Fair Fight by Anna Freeman - debut historical fiction about women's boxing in 18th Century England!

The Fatal Flame by Lyndsay Faye - suspenseful, historical fiction by the author of The Gods of Gotham

A God in Ruins by Kate Atkinson & Brent K. Ashabranner - a companion novel to Atkinson's bestselling Life After Life

A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul G. Tremblay - dark, funny and terrifying; sounds like a great pick for fans of Horror

In the Unlikely Event by Judy Blume - an Adult novel from the popular and beloved author of the YA classic Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret

Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J. Ryan Stradal - a sensory exploration of the Midwest, foodie culture and a mother-daughter relationship; a debut novel

The Library at Mount Char by Scott Hawkins - an epic contemporary fantasy which consider the question of how to remain human if you want to be God?'
The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George - an intuitive bookstore owner prescribes book based on the needs of his customers!

Nature of the Beast by Louise Penney - a new Chief Inspector Gamache mystery!

The Seven Sisters by Lucinda Riley - romantic, historical fiction follows a young adopted woman searching for her past, the first in a new series
Wonder Garden by Lauren Acampora - a debut collection of stories taking a look at the flawed lives of myriad people in the same suburban community 

And some titles coming to the catalog (very ) soon ...

All the Rage by Coutrney Summers - a powerful, new Young Adult novel along the lines of Laure Halse Anderson's award-winning Speak
Signal by Patrick Lee - new title from the author of 2014's HOT thriller, Runner

Slade House by David Mitchell - another decades-spanning, mind-bending novel from the author of 2014's The Bone Clocks; GallyChatters were eager for this one 
Where Women Are Kings by Christie Watson - a heartrending story of family love (both good and bad) amid emotional and cultural tension.

RA Tip: Novels to Film

Coming to the big screen sometime soon ...

Are you a fan of Ernest Cline's offbeat, action-packed debut novel, Ready Player One? Been wondering IF, or more importantly, WHEN Cline's novel might be coming to a theater near you? 

If so, you may want to check out this EarlyWord post about who has been hired to direct the Ready Player One film adaptation! It's not happening right away but what a great choice for director! 


In the meantime, have you tried the audiobook of Ready Player One -- narrated by Wil Wheaton? Yes, that Wil Wheaton, 'Wesley Crusher' of TV's Star Trek: the Next Generation. For a fun listening experience, you might consider the CD or downloadable version.




Interested readers may also want to reserve the forthcoming title Armada - another rollicking adventure from Cline (this time with aliens) due out in mid-July.

Local Area Librarian Honored!

Check out the blog post on BOOKRIOT - Five Book Culture Heroes of 2014 by Brenna Clark Gray. Librarian Scott Bonner of Ferguson Municipal Public Library was chosen as "Book Culture Hero of 2014." The story was also picked up on EarlyWord - Ferguson Librarian Honored.

Ferguson Municipal Public Library (MO)

It is great to see Mr. Bonner and the Ferguson Library recognized for all their good work.

CONGRATULATIONS!! Well done and well deserved!

#libfaves14 Winners Announced on EarlyWord!

Yesterday's post was about the  annual event of library staff tweeting their Top 10 favorite reads for the year. The 2014 'event' ran from December 1 through December 10 and during that time, the tweets using hasttag #libfaves14 were being compiled on EarlyWord to create a full list of titles.

EarlyWord: The Publisher/Librarian Connection

'Votes' were also being counted to determine which favorite title (or titles) were tweeted about the most! The #libfaves14 winners were posted on EarlyWord this morning!

Were the winners one of your favorite reads for 2014?

RA Tip: LibraryReads 2014 Favorite of Favorites Announced

And the winner is ... The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry by by Gabrielle Zevin. 

Zevin's title was the Top Ten pick on the LibraryReads April 2014 list. The novel was described by Beth Mills, of New Rochelle Public Library, New Rochell, NY  

“A middle-aged bookseller mourning his lost wife, a feisty publisher’s rep, and a charmingly precocious abandoned child come together on a small island off the New England coast in this utterly delightful novel of love and second chances.”
To see the complete list of 2014 titles with the most votes check EarlyWord.

The fully annotated list will be posted at www.libraryreads.org on December 1st.

RA Tip: Penguin First Flights

At the District's Discussion Leaders meeting in August, Penguin First Flights was mentioned as a good resource for learning about titles by debut authors. The program is run by Penguin using forthcoming debut titles with monthly live chat sessions hosted by Nora Rawlinson of EarlyWord. 

The titles vary from genre to genre, so one month the book may be a mystery or science fiction and the next month it could be literary fiction or fantasy. The main connection between the books is that they are always forthcoming titles by debut authors. 

A few titles previously introduced in First Flights are: The City of Women by David R. Gillham, The Movement of  Stars by Amy Brill, The Yonahlosse Riding Camp for Girls by Anton DiSclafani, The Thinking Woman's Guide to Real Magic by Emily Croy Barker, Archetype by M. E. Waters, Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng, Dollbaby by Laura Lane McNeal and Five Days Left by Julie Lawson Timmer. As I mentioned before, the debut titles cover a wide range of genres.

The October debut title is Unbecoming: a Novel by Rebecca Scherm - "a thriller about a small-town girl who charms her way into the world of international art fraud." (Penguin) The author chat session for this title will be held October 22 starting at 3:00 PM Central Standard Time.

One of the perks of being a member of Penguin First Flights is receiving an ARC of the next title (for FREE!) in the mail - a month before the live author chat session. This allows participants time to read the book and be prepared for the chat session. NOTE: you are not required to submit comments during the chat, you can just 'lurk' during the session if you wish. This can be handy if you haven't finished the book but would still like to learn about the title and/or the author ... :-)  

Participants receive email reminders ahead of each chat session and also have the opportunity to submit questions about the book (or the author) in advance.

If you are interested in the Penguin First Flights program, click on the link listed under RECOMMEND SITES.

RA Tip: FAVORITE READS FOR 2013!

Library staff from all over have been tweeting their TOP 10 titles for 2013 over the last 10 days. Check out today's post on EarlyWord to see more details about the 3rd Annual #libfaves Tweetfest which ends today at 11:00 PM Central time.

Listing title, author and a description for each title in 140 characters was a challenge but lots of fun. Below are my Top 10 reads for 2013, on Twitter using the hashtag #libfaves13:

# 10 - SCARLET by Marissa Meyer. Love this revamped, futuristic fairy tale series; 2nd book in 'Lunar Chronicles' and sequel to CINDER!!
# 9 - LONGBOURN by Jo Baker, gives the servants view of the events taking place during Austen's Pride & Prejudice!
# 8 - THE RETURNED by Jason Mott, fascinated by Harold & Lucille's joy & grief at the 'return' of 8-yr old son Jacob
# 7 - FURIES OF CALDERON by Jim Butcher, read by Kate Reading; love Dresden Files, how could I have missed this series!
# 6 - A romance: LORD AND LADY SPY by Shana Galen; 1st in fun series about misunderstandings of married 19th Century British spies
# 5 - READY PLAYER ONE by Ernest Cline, read by Wil Weaton. Wheaton's voice is perfect for this & he gets to cite himself too! :-)
# 4 - THE OUTCASTS by Kathleen Kent; a Western alternately follows a prostitute & Texas policeman east towards a meeting in New Orleans
# 3 - THE THINKING WOMAN'S GUIDE TO REAL MAGIC by Emily Croy Barker; 1st in new Fantasy series, D Harkness meets Pride & Prejudice
# 2 - LEXICON by Max Barry; Suspense; secret society of 'Poets' manipulate people via language & persuasion, makes you wonder...

and just tweeted this evening, my favorite read for 2013 ...
# 1 - COLD DAYS by Jim Butcher. Harry Dresden is back from dead; cried at end screaming "Nooooo!" - eager for next book!
 

RA Tip: 2013 National Book Award Finalists Announced

The 2013 National Book Award Finalists were announced just the other day, Wednesday, October 16.

You can find the list of finalists in the Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, and Young People's Literature categories in an article posted by Nora Rawlinson on EarlyWord at: http://tinyurl.com/lc3tf6e

The winners will be announced on November 20.

Just FYI ... I checked the catalog and SCCCLD owns (or has On Order) all of the finalist titles.