Indice dei contenuti per Vol. 118, No. 5/6, 11/1/21 and 11/15/21 in Booklist

Letter from the Editor George Kendall In this issue, which is one of the most celebrated and uplifting here at Booklist, we deliver an inspiring collection of features and reviews dedicated to new voices and new ideas in our Spotlight on First Novels. Creativity and originality are underscored throughout, as in Donna Seaman’s “First Novels by and about Poets” (p.42), which explores works of “poet-made or poet-portraying” fiction; and, in the Youth section, Sarah Hunter’s latest installment of Lightning Round (p.76) offers brief but lively interviews with debut authors. There is much more, including the New Series Nonfiction Showcase. As the father of a soon-to-be six-year-old (who loves animals of any sort!), I have a feeling we’ll be checking out the Creatures of the Sea series (p.57) and definitely the…

ADULT FICTION General Fiction 30 Things I Love about Myself. By Radhika Sanghani. Jan. 2022. 352p. Berkley, paper, $16 (9780593335048). Nina Mistry would be the first to tell you that she’s a bit of a mess. She just broke off her engagement, her friend group may be ghosting her, and she’s celebrating her thirtieth birthday alone. After she runs out to get a much-needed birthday treat, through a series of events Nina finds herself instead spending her birthday in jail. Despondent at hitting rock bottom, Nina asks for some reading material to distract her and is given a self-help book about self-love and fixing your life. Thinking it can’t get any worse, Nina decides to take the book’s advice. As she navigates life’s ups (viral fame, new friends) and downs…

Spotlight Top 10 First Novels Family sagas rooted in Africa, America, and Saudi Arabia and tales of an avant-garde rock duo and two West Bank teens are found among the most exceptional first novels of the past year, each exploring complex questions of self, society, and history with vision, empathy, and artistry. —Donna Seaman Black Buck. By Mateo Askaripour. 2021. HMH, $26 (9780358380887). Askaripour’s biting and absurdist first novel stars the only Black employee at a cult-like start-up and sheds light on racism, corporate morality, media bias, gentrification, and many other important themes. Bride of the Sea. By Eman Quotah. 2021. Tin House, paper, $16.95 (9781951142452). Quotah’s gripping tale about a family split between Saudi Arabia and the U.S. portrays Saeedah, Muneer, and their daughter, Hanadji, as they navigate immigration,…

GRAPHIC NOVELS Adult Dungeon: Zenith, v.4; Outside the Ramparts. By Lewis Trondheim and Joann Sfar. Art by Boulet. Tr. by Joe Johnson. Nov. 2021. 96p. NBM, paper, $14.99 (9781681122823). 741.5. There hasn’t been a new U.S. release of Trondheim and Sfar’s beloved, sprawling sword and sorcery series in while now, but this volume sets that right. In the first of this installment’s two stories, Herbert and Marvin want to end their contract with the Keeper, so they’re attempting one last job—and it’s a big one, involving astral projection, a demon, and the headquarters of a powerful order. Boulet’s detailed art, full of careful crosshatching and bold colors, offers an imaginative roster of fantasy creatures and settings that perfectly matches the off-kilter humor and high-key action scenes. Amid the perilous journey,…

Spotlight Top 10 First Novels for Youth This past year was marked by a chorus of new, authentic voices in the kidlit arena, as seen in these outstanding titles reviewed in Booklist between November 1, 2020 and October 15, 2021. —Ronny Khuri Barefoot Dreams of Petra Luna. By Alda P. Dobbs. 2021. Sourcebooks/Young Readers, $17.99 (9781728234656). Gr. 4–6. In 1913, during the Mexican Revolution, 12-year-old Petra leads her family on a journey to safety in America. Dobbs’ wrenching debut illuminates the harsh realities of war and the disparities between the poor and the rich. Between Perfect and Real. By Ray Stoeve. 2021. Abrams/Amulet, $18.99 (9781419746017). Gr. 9–12. Cast as Romeo in a school production, Dean seeks the confidence to come out as a trans guy. Through Dean’s hopeful voice, Stoeve…

Classics Corner Classics Corner highlights new recordings of classic titles. Dark Tales. By Shirley Jackson. Read by a full cast. 2021. 8hr. Books on Tape, DD, $76 (9780593555118). Shirley Jackson’s collection of previously published short stories is the perfect way to get some horror in your life. Many of the stories are set in small towns where secrets threaten the lives of visitors and residents alike, and first-person stories are told with a chilling calm. Each of the production’s four narrators reads multiple tales. They all use distinct voices and are well suited to their selections. Those stories featuring young female protagonists, like “Louisa, Please Come Home,” about a young woman who runs away from home, are eerily read by Karissa Vacker, with her calming, lilting voice. Those featuring more…

Spotlight Top 10 First Novels on Audio Genre fiction and some familiar names feature strongly in this year’s best debut novels on audio, from reviews published in Booklist from November 2020 to November 2021. —Heather Booth Arsenic and Adobo. By Mia P. Manansala. Read by Danice Cabanela. 2021. 9.5hr. Books on Tape, DD, $66.50 (9780593347409). This restaurant-set whodunit and first in a series is elevated by debut narrator Cabanela’s expressive performance. The energy, humor, relationships, and recipes all sparkle and are sure to entice. Faye, Faraway. By Helen Fisher. Read by Sophie Roberts. 2021. 9hr. Simon & Schuster Audio, DD, $19.99 (9781797116051). In the audio version of this reflection on loss and love with a good mix of quirkiness, Roberts’ English accent lures the reader into the tale as if…

ADULT NONFICTION Philosophy & Psychology Unfollow Your Passion: How to Create a Life That Matters to You. By Terri Trespicio. Dec. 2021. 288p. Atria, $27 (9781982169244). 158. Trespicio expands on her popular 2015 TEDx talk, “Stop Searching for Your Passion.” She urges people to do less, act more, and unlearn the “old beliefs and dumb ideas” defining western and patriarchal notions of success and productivity. Each chapter unearths the myths surrounding what it means to be successful and details alternative ways to view passion and personal worth. The book is particularly illuminating when Trespicio draws on her personal experience to introduce each topic and explains how it has informed the way she thinks about passion and success. Trespicio also uses metaphors and cute humor to further clarify her ideas, making…

Spotlight Top 10 Crafts & Hobbies For all the crafters and hobbyists who are seeking hands-on projects that range from meditative to expressive, these exceptional how-tos about needlework and painting, cosplay and hat-making offer opportunities for acquiring new skills and perfecting favorite techniques. —Donna Seaman The Act of Sewing: How to Make and Modify Clothes to Wear Every Day. By Sonya Philip. 2021. Roost, $26.95 (9781611808339). Focusing on garments designed for comfort, Philips concentrates on four elementary pieces and simple techniques, explaining the basics and the fine points and offering many variations. Colour Demystified: A Complete Guide to Mixing and Using Watercolours. By Julie Collins. 2021. Search, $25.95 (9781782217978). Award-winning water-colorist Collins delves into all the different ways hues, shades, and tones can play together as she illuminates various techniques…

YOUTH NONFICTION Older Readers A Face for Picasso: Coming of Age with Crouzon Syndrome. By Ariel Henley. Nov. 2021. 400p. Farrar, $18.99 (9780374314071). Gr. 9–12. 362.4. “Their faces resembled the work of Picasso.” This line, from a French magazine article written about Ariel Henley and her twin sister, Zan, haunts Ariel throughout her affecting and unflinchingly honest memoir. The book is an exploration of Ariel’s—and by extension, her sister Zan’s—childhood, up through the start of college, and the discrimination and ableism they experienced as a result of having a facial disfigurement. Ariel and Zan were born with a rare condition called Crouzon syndrome, which meant they spent their childhoods having recurring invasive, and often life-saving, facial surgeries. Ariel’s first-person perspective, separated into three sections (Before, After, and Healing), is expertly…

YOUTH FICTION Older Readers The Chosen One: A First-Generation Ivy League Odyssey. By Echo Brown. Jan. 2022. 336p. Little, Brown/Christy Ottaviano, $17.99 (9780316310666). Gr. 9–12. Brown’s semi-autobiographical novel is a powerful and vulnerable recounting of a first-generation university student trying to navigate the overwhelming white spaces at an Ivy League institution. First-year Echo has graduated top of her class at her Cleveland high school and has her eyes set on Dartmouth. Despite the naysayers who encourage her to stay closer to home, Echo is accepted to Dartmouth. She is excited for the challenge, and for the whimsical freshman year that the brochures and flyers have promised. Soon, though, she realizes she was sold a false narrative. Although she is an incredibly bright student by her high school’s standards, she is…

Spotlight Lightning Round 2021 Debuts By Sarah Hunter Another year, another group of exciting new authors to celebrate! Read on to get the scoop on these nine writers’ writing habits, influences, and the experience of holding their book for the first time (five out of nine debut authors agree: it’s surreal!). Faridah ÀbíkéÍyímídé Ace of Spades Describe your book in seven words or fewer. Black teens solving crimes and being badass. Plotter or seat-of-your-pants-er? Plotter that often goes off script. Pick one word (or emoji!) that most accurately describes your writing process. This emoji because I feel like I’m always going undercover whenever I’m writing. What was it like holding your book for the first time? Surreal. Who did you write your book for? Black teens first and foremost, especially Black…

Booklist Backlist Poets of Native Nations by Diego Baez There is no such thing as a Native American,” writes Joy Harjo, U.S. poet laureate, in When the Light of the World Was Subdued, Our Songs Came Through (2020), an anthology of poetry by Native writers. Harjo makes the point that terms like “Native American” and “American Indian” tend to carry less importance for poets of Native Nations, who instead identify foremost with tribal affiliations. For these reasons, any list of Indigenous poets will never be comprehensive, or even representative. Consider what follows a mere glimpse into the bright constellation of contemporary poetry by writers who are Inuit, Dine’, Chamorro, and Oglala Lakota, among others. Corpse Whale. By dg nanouk okpik. 2012. Univ. of Arizona, $15.95 (9780816526741). Okpik’s otherworldly first collection…

High-Demand Hot List Look for reviews of these high-demand titles in forthcoming issues of Booklist. With supply chain shortages wreaking havoc on the bookproducing world, it’s more important than ever to pre-order those titles you know patrons will be looking for. Here are a few sure-to-be-popular books coming in early 2022. (How is it almost 2022?) —Susan Maguire The Christie Affair. By Nina de Gramont. St. Martin’s, $27.99 (9781250274618). Feb. 2022. In 1925, a beautiful young woman enters the wealthy world of Agatha Christie and her husband, Archie, but who is she, really? And what does she have to do with Christie’s 11-day disappearance in 1926? Goliath. By Tochi Onyebuchi. Tor.com, $26.99 (9781250782953). Jan. 2022. In a rich mosaic tale of the future described as Samuel R. Delaney meets Emily…

Spotlight Trend Alert First Novels by and about Poets By Donna Seaman Sublime fiction is often described as poetic to reflect the precision, resonance, cadence, and surprise of the language, the use of metaphors, and the vivid pairing of the tangible with the emotional. But does that mean that first novels written by poets are necessarily poetic? What about first novels about poets? These work of poet-made or poet-portraying fiction are lyrical, but also satirical, dramatic, provocative, and profound. Grief Is the Thing with Feathers. By Max Porter. 2016. Graywolf, $15 (9781555977412). One of the most indelible first novels by a poet is Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar. Porter found inspiration for his darkly stunning first novel in a poetry collection published after Plath’s death by her poet husband, Ted Hughes,…

News & Views by Sarah Hunter and Maggie Reagan Book Links Packaged with this issue of Booklist is the November Book Links, which connects children’s literature to the curriculum. This time we’re tackling STEM, with a special eye on environmental science, which means you’ll find annotated bibliographies that explore ecosystems effected by climate change, wildfires, the science of things that live underground, and the surprisingly detailed world of rocks. In interviews, we chat with award-winning authors John Rocco (How We Got to the Moon, 2020) and Jasmine Warga (The Shape of Thunder, 2021). We’re also expanding our graphic-novels coverage—here, through an interview with Alison Wilgus, author of nonfiction graphic novel The Mars Challenge (2020)—and our attention to books that highlight social-emotional learning—in this issue, that’s with a feature on the…

AUDIO Adult Audio Bewilderment. By Richard Powers. Read by Edoardo Ballerini. 2021. 8hr. Books on Tape, DD, $76 (9780593457054). Richard Powers, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of The Overstory, explores the themes of mental illness, science, the environment, and politics in his latest thought-provoking novel. When the school forces Theo to seek treatment for his nine-year-old son Robbie’s outbursts, he turns to a scientist friend of his late wife for an experimental treatment. Living in a turbulent society more interested in profit and power than one boy’s future, Theo fights to save his son. Powers’ novel highlights the conflict between society’s demands and the individual needs of a special child. Without chapter numbers or titles, this novel would typically be difficult for a listener to follow. However, Ballerini’s skillful narration of this…