The Book News We Covered This Week
This week’s Book Riot roundup highlighted several notable developments in the literary world. Spotify announced a partnership with Bookshop.org to sell physical books in the US and UK via its app, marking a new entry of a streaming platform into book retail. A Pew Research study found Americans’ reading habits have remained unchanged since 2011, contradicting earlier reports of a decline. The round‑up also covered major adaptation news from CinemaCon, the ongoing fight over state funding for Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, and the latest bestseller and Goodreads charts.
Book Review: ‘When We See You Again,’ by Rachel Goldberg-Polin
Rachel Goldberg‑Polin’s new memoir, *When We See You Again*, chronicles the life and tragic death of her son Hersh, one of the “Beautiful Six” Israeli hostages killed in a Gaza tunnel in August 2024. The book intertwines intimate family memories...
![[Video] Sunday Book Review: April 19, 2026, The UC Press Edition](/cdn-cgi/image/width=1200,quality=75,format=auto,fit=cover/https://jdsupra-static.s3.amazonaws.com/profile-images/og.2237_4849.jpg)
[Video] Sunday Book Review: April 19, 2026, The UC Press Edition
Compliance evangelist Tom Fox’s Sunday Book Review highlights four newly released University of California Press titles: "American Peril," "Brand New Beat," "The Ultraview Effect," and "SwiftyNomics." Each book tackles distinct themes ranging from Asian American history and civil rights to...
Ver Pattru: Caught Between One’s Roots and Student Politics
Indira Parthasarathy’s new novel Ver Pattru charts the decline of student activism in post‑Independence Tamil Nadu through the eyes of protagonist Kesavan. The narrative ties the waning political fervor on campuses to the state’s cinematic‑political culture, recalling how film stars like M.G. Ramachandran once reshaped...
My Phantoms Author Gwendoline Riley on Winning $175,000: ‘It Was Unimaginable. I Felt Overwhelmed.’
British novelist Gwendoline Riley received the 2026 Windham‑Campbell prize, a $175,000 award (≈ £135,000) that aims to give writers financial security. The prize, granted to eight authors across genres, is notable for its low‑key selection process and lack of media fanfare....
Thomas McGuane on Decency and Feral Charm
Thomas McGuane discusses his short story “Ordinary Wear and Tear,” focusing on the divergent lives of Carl, a comfortably‑raised lawyer, and Jed, a self‑made, feral‑charming outsider. The interview reveals how memory, unconscious impulses, and class contrast shaped the characters and their...
Book Review: ‘This Vast Enterprise,’ by Craig Fehrman.
Craig Fehrman's new book "This Vast Enterprise" revisits the Lewis and Clark expedition through ten first‑person narratives, expanding the story beyond the famous leaders to include lesser‑known Corps members and multiple Native American voices. The author draws on extensive archival...
SBTB Bestsellers: April 4 – April 17
SBTB released its bestseller list for April 4‑17, highlighting eleven titles that topped affiliate‑driven sales across Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Kobo. The list features a mix of romance, speculative fiction and literary debut works, with Caitlin Rozakis’s *Dreadful* occupying the...
The Dark Heart of the Kidfluencer Industry
The family‑vlogging boom has exposed a hidden epidemic of child exploitation, highlighted by the Ruby Franke scandal and the new book *Like, Follow, Subscribe*. Influencer parents routinely monetize intimate moments for millions of viewers, often earning as little as $100...
Crowds Pack USC Campus on Opening Day of L.A. Times Festival of Books
The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books opened at USC with tens of thousands of visitors, launching what organizers project will be 150,000‑155,000 attendees over the weekend. The 31st edition features more than 550 authors, actors and musicians across eight...
Brooding on Verandas, Slurping Pepsi Max, Carefully Observing the Color of Urine — Across Thousands of Pages, Certain Knausgaardian Tropes...
Karl Ove Knausgaard closed his monumental six‑volume autobiographical saga *My Struggle* in 2011 and immediately launched a new seven‑book series, *The Star* septology, now at over 2,500 pages. The new cycle abandons a single first‑person voice for a choral narrative...
Elitist Critics Condemn Literary “Slop,” But in 50 Years They May Write Redemptive Theories of Such Slop and Cut the...
The article examines the clash between elite literary judgment and the rise of mass‑market "slop"—romantasy, fan‑fiction, and AI‑generated prose—within publishing, academia, and criticism. It highlights how editorial assistants, scholars like Mark McGurl, and independent presses navigate pressures to favor commercially...
After the Mystics
Lauren Kane, managing editor of The New York Review, discusses how medieval religious art—especially the Cloisters’ “Spectrum of Desire” exhibit—reveals a surprisingly erotic and transgressive side to the Middle Ages. Her academic background in religion at Yale Divinity School sparked a...
Gord Magill Wrote the Book Trucking Needed
Gord Magill’s new book, “End of the Road: Inside the War on Truckers,” offers a first‑hand exposé of the trucking industry’s systemic decline. Drawing on three decades behind the wheel, Magill traces deregulation, wage compression, fabricated driver‑shortage narratives, and a...
Ideas Podcast: Overinvested
Nina Bandelj’s new book *Overinvested* examines how modern parents have turned child‑rearing into a high‑stakes financial and emotional venture. Drawing on interviews, national data and decades of parenting literature, she shows that today’s families spend, save and even incur debt to...
Jan Prins’ Book, Freestyle Biomechanics, a Must-Read for Coaches
Jan Prins, Ph.D., a veteran swim scientist and former Indiana University assistant to Doc Counsilman, has published *Freestyle Biomechanics*, a detailed manual that dissects every element of the freestyle stroke. Drawing on elite‑athlete data captured with wearable sensors and advanced motion‑analysis...
The Best Way to Keep Track of New and Upcoming Queer Books
Book Riot’s New Release Index offers a searchable database of upcoming LGBTQ titles, organized by release date and genre. Curators, including the article’s author, add dozens of queer books each month, allowing readers to filter for niche combos like queer...
The Best Way to Keep Track of New Sci-Fi and Fantasy Books
Book Riot’s New Release Index is a curated database that lists upcoming science‑fiction and fantasy titles by release date. Readers can filter by genre, view cover art and descriptions, and add favorites to a personal Watchlist. The tool is bundled...
The Book of Concern
Seth Godin’s new essay, “The Book of Concern,” proposes a simple paper‑based exercise to manage daily urgencies. Readers are instructed to write down any immediate emergency that pulls focus from long‑term goals, then revisit it after two days. If the...
Book Review: ‘How to Be a Dissident,’ by Gal Beckerman
Gal Beckerman’s new book *How to Be a Dissident* weaves biographical sketches of activists—from the 1963 Birmingham Children’s Crusade to the recent fate of Alexei Navalny—into a ten‑chapter guide on the temperament of dissent. Each chapter spotlights a trait such...
Phantom Pass by André M Louw
South African lawyer‑turned‑author André M Louw launches his crime‑fiction debut, *Phantom Pass*, set in the Knysna‑George region. The novel follows rookie detective Josh Holland as he investigates the murder of retired lawyer Mark Whitcombe, whose ties to a controversial environmental project...
Winners and Judges Out of Pocket as £20,000 Writing Awards Appear to Have Closed
The Plaza Prizes, a UK writing competition that pledged a $25,000 (£20,000) prize fund, appears to have collapsed, leaving judges and winners unpaid or disqualified. Booker‑winner Damon Galgut and poet Anthony Joseph say they never received the promised £1,500 ($1,905)...
L.A. Times Book Prize Honorees Toast to Writing's Political Power: 'When People Rise, Empires Always Fall'
The 46th Los Angeles Times Book Prizes ceremony in Los Angeles honored Amy Tan, We Need Diverse Books, and a slate of authors across 13 categories. Highlights included Bench Ansfield’s award‑winning history of arson‑driven urban redevelopment and Karen Hao’s investigative look at OpenAI’s rise. Speakers framed literature...
Portraits of the Artist: Künstlerromane in an Age of Uncertainty
The piece surveys three recent novels—Anika Jade Levy’s Flat Earth, Brandon Taylor’s Minor Black Figures, and Stephanie Wambugu’s Lonely Crowds—as contemporary künstlerromane. It shows how these works transplant the 19th‑century self‑invention narrative into today’s precarious art market, foregrounding financial instability, identity politics, and the performative pressure of...
Triple Murderer Erin Patterson's Estranged Husband Writing His Memoir
Simon Patterson, the estranged husband of convicted triple‑murderer Erin Patterson, is preparing a memoir about his experience. Prosecutors dropped his own poisoning allegations, so they were excluded from her 2023 murder trial that resulted in a minimum 33‑year sentence. Patterson’s...
Science Fiction Books That Imagine the Future Space Economy
A new roundup highlights science‑fiction titles that anticipate the economics of a burgeoning space economy. The list spans classics like *The Expanse* and *The Moon Is a Harsh Mistress* to recent works such as *Delta‑v*, each illustrating how resource scarcity,...
‘Blueprint’: Meritocracy, Pressure and the Making of Indonesian Engineers
Blueprint, a narrative nonfiction by Sylvie Tanaga, chronicles the careers of twenty Indonesian engineers employed by SLB (formerly Schlumberger) across more than 120 countries. The book emphasizes meritocracy as the central force that enables these professionals to earn trust in highly...
Gwendoline Riley Would Prefer You Resist Assuming Her Life Is Like Her Books
British novelist Gwendoline Riley, known for stark domestic tales, has seen a surge in U.S. readership since New York Review Books Classics reissued *First Love* and *My Phantoms* in 2022. The two books, praised for precise dialogue and unflinching portrayals...
Lena Dunham Takes to Her Bed to Promote Her Memoir, “Famesick.”
Lena Dunham launched her second memoir, “Famesick,” with an unconventional bed‑stage event at Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Howard Gilman Opera House. The intimate setting featured co‑star Andrew Rannells and drew about 2,000 attendees, primarily women from Gen X and Gen Z. Dunham...
BookCon Returns After Six-Year Break: Event Organizer on Reservation Rush, Boycott Response and Romantasy Reader Demand
BookCon is back after a six‑year hiatus, with tickets and author‑signing reservations selling out within seconds of release. ReedPop’s Kristina Rogers highlighted the event’s new focus on diversity, inclusivity, and the booming #BookTok community. The convention faces a boycott after...
Did London’s Dirty Money Really Kill a Teenage Fantasist?
Patrick Radden Keefe’s new book *London Falling* expands a 2024 *New Yorker* piece into a tragic true‑crime narrative. It follows the 2019 suicide of 19‑year‑old Zac Brettler, a London teenager who fabricated ties to Russian oligarchs and a £850,000 (≈$1.09 M) bank balance that...
A Genocide Scholar Asks “What Went Wrong” In Israel
Genocide scholar Omer Bartov, a Brown University professor, released his new book *Israel: What Went Wrong?* arguing that Zionism has evolved into an extremist ideology that enabled a genocide in Gaza after the October 7 Hamas attacks. He contends that Israel’s...
Patrick Radden Keefe on “London Falling,” His Book About a Teen-Ager’s Mysterious Life and Death
Patrick Radden Keefe’s latest book, *London Falling*, expands a New Yorker feature about the mysterious death of teenager Zac Brettler. While in London filming the TV adaptation of *Say Nothing*, Keefe learned Brettler had assumed the identity of a Russian oligarch’s...
4 Great New Fantasy Books to Transport You to Bold New Worlds
The New York Times Book Review spotlights Heba Al‑Wasity’s debut fantasy, Weavingshaw, published by Del Rey. The 452‑page novel follows Leena, a refugee who can see ghosts, as she bargains with a supernatural mafioso to save her brother. Set in the gothic...
These Eight Design History Books Will Teach You All You Need to Know About Modernism and Beyond
Wallpaper curates eight essential design‑history books that span from the 17th century to contemporary modernism. The list includes titles highlighting women designers, mid‑century modern pioneers, colour theory, and comprehensive A‑Z surveys of 1,000 classics and five‑century design objects. Each volume...
If You Can’t Wait for Rivals Season 2, You Need to Watch These 5 Addictive TV Shows
Disney+ is expanding its prestige drama slate with *Rivals* season 2, a twelve‑episode continuation of the Jilly Cooper adaptation that earned a 93 percent Rotten Tomatoes rating. The first three episodes drop on May 15, 2026, after the original eight‑part series premiered in...
The First Draft of Cultural History
The Atlantic’s Books Briefing spotlights Lena Dunham’s new memoir *Famesick*, arguing that gossip‑laden memoirs serve as the rough draft of cultural history. The review praises Dunham’s candid, humor‑filled recounting of her privileged Manhattan upbringing, early filmmaking struggles, and Hollywood’s transactional...
Garcelle Beauvais Sets New Memoir ‘Protecting My Peace… at All Costs’ at Audible (EXCLUSIVE)
Actress and author Garcelle Beauvais will release her second memoir, “Protecting My Peace…at All Costs,” as an Audible Original on May 7. The 2024‑2025 release, written and narrated by Beauvais, delves into her decision to leave “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills”...
When I Hear an Australian Politician Announce a Tough New Immigration Policy, I Think Dystopia | Yumna Kassab
Yumna Kassab, a Lebanese‑Australian novelist, reflects on Australia’s contrasting national and migrant narratives. She argues that the country’s self‑portrait of mateship and fairness masks a conditional belonging for migrants, who are expected to assimilate and stay invisible. Recent tough immigration...
Rhode Island Bill Would Mandate More School Librarians
Rhode Island lawmakers are advancing a bill that would require every public school with 250 or more students to employ a full‑time librarian, and schools with fewer than 250 students to have a half‑time librarian. The measure estimates a statewide...
One Great Poem to Read Today: Robert Hayden’s “Those Winter Sundays”
Literary Hub marks the 30th anniversary of National Poetry Month by featuring a daily poem series, beginning with Robert Hayden’s “Those Winter Sundays.” The piece, a quietly tender elegy to the poet’s foster‑father, examines unspoken parental love and late‑life regret....
A Prominent French Publisher Is Dismissed, Alarming Authors and Media Watchers
Olivier Nora, who led Éditions Grasset for 26 years, was abruptly dismissed by parent company Hachette on April 14. Hachette, now owned by Vivendi and controlled by billionaire Vincent Bolloré, installed longtime Bolloré associate Jean‑Christophe Thiery as his replacement. More than 130 Grasset authors...
Hachette Turns In a Solid First Quarter 2026
Hachette parent Lagardère Publishing reported first‑quarter 2026 revenue of €615 million (about $670 million), a 1.1% year‑on‑year decline, primarily due to a 4% drop in the United Kingdom after a record‑setting 2025. In the United States revenue rose 2% on new James...
The Man Who Saw the Future: The Legacy of Cultural Theorist Mark Fisher
Mark Fisher’s 2009 manifesto Capitalist Realism, initially dismissed, has sold over 250,000 copies and been translated into ten languages, cementing his critique of neoliberal permanence. A new experimental documentary, We Are Making a Film About Mark Fisher, was self‑funded by...
The Best Recent Crime and Thrillers – Review Roundup
A new review roundup spotlights five recent crime and thriller titles released in the UK market. Tana French closes her Cal Hooper trilogy with “The Keeper” (≈$21), while debut novelist Emma Garman offers a post‑war London mystery in “The Kindness...
Book Review: An Impassioned Lament for Our Imperiled Wild Forests
Suzanne Simard’s new book, "When the Forest Breathes," expands on her earlier work by documenting how clearcutting devastates forest ecosystems and accelerates climate risks. Drawing on four decades of field experiments across British Columbia, she shows that preserving "mother trees"...
Hey Orwell: Thousands of AI‑written, Edited or ‘Polished’ Books Are Being Sold
A class‑action settlement will force Anthropic, the creator of Claude, to pay up to $1.5 billion for allegedly infringing thousands of authors' copyrights. The article shows how AI chatbots can not only regurgitate content but also imitate an author's distinctive voice,...
The Dog’s Gaze by Thomas Laqueur Review – the Art of the Canine, From Velázquez to Picasso
Thomas Laqueur’s new book, *The Dog’s Gaze*, argues that the canine’s look marks the boundary between nature and culture, giving dogs a unique symbolic role in Western art. He surveys paintings from Velázquez’s *Las Meninas* to Veronese’s *Wedding Feast at Cana*, showing how dogs anchor...
An Extraordinary Book About the Nuremberg Women Casts New Light on History’s Darkest Crimes
Natalie Livingstone’s new book, "The Nuremberg Women," spotlights eight previously overlooked women who played pivotal roles at the 1945‑46 Nuremberg war‑crimes trials. By weaving biography, courtroom testimony and post‑trial reporting, the work challenges the traditionally male‑centric narrative of the trials....
Authors Are Slamming Reese Witherspoon for Telling Followers 'It's Time to Learn A.I.'
Oscar‑winner Reese Witherspoon used an Instagram Reel to tell her followers that women need to start learning artificial intelligence, warning that their jobs are three times more likely to be automated. She cited a small book‑club sample where only three...