The readers’ advisory librarian’s weekly update, from a scan of more than 100 blogs, newsletters, magazines, newspapers and television. This blog is brought to you by the Reader’s Advisor Online, the subscription database based on Libraries Unlimited’s Genreflecting Advisory series. We’d love to hear from you. Feel free to comment on any of our posts, or contact us here.
By Cindy Orr
This Week In Books
We have some really fun books on our lists this week! In our Most Wanted Mashup (look to the right), some new titles have appeared at the top of the bestseller lists for the first time. There’s Devil May Care by Sebastian Faulks, Blood Noir by Laurell K. Hamilton, and Shadow of Power by Steve Martini in the fiction category, plus Jill Bolte Taylor’s My Stroke of Insight and Matt Taibbi’s The Great Derangement in nonfiction. I saw Matt Taibbi on John Stewart’s The Daily Show, and his book sounds hilarious. Taibbi joined several fringe conspiracy-theory groups and writes about his bizarre experiences (including a crowd trying to literal barf up demons with Pastor Hagee of John McCain fame). Sounds like just the thing for the summer.
As always on Mondays, take a look at the entry directly below this one for our weekly New, Noteworthy and No-Brainers list of books to be released in the next seven days. The hottest ones promise to be the new James Patterson, Jackie Collins and Jeffery Deaver in fiction. Douglas Preston of The Codex fame has a new one called The Monster of Florence, which sounded great when he talked about it on NPR’s Science Friday, and tennis player Pete Sampras has A Champion’s Mind. Don’t forget to take a look at the full list below for many more new titles.
Our Under the Radar list this week is Election Fiction, which somehow just felt appropriate, and even though you may be tired of the campaigning, these books are great light summer reading anyway. Look to the right and scroll down to see that one. Lots to read, even though most of it is by brand name authors. Personally, I’m enjoying Netherland by Joseph O’Neill. So far I’d say it’s deserving of all the great reviews it’s received. And now on to the news of the week.
BEA Report
Library Journal has published their report on BookExpo America from the librarian’s point of view. Book Expo is the largest book conference of the year, and was held in Los Angeles this time. Watch the blog this week for a report from one of our intrepid reporters on what it was like to attend.
UK Study Shows That Book Covers Count
Not that that’s a surprise to any of us, but the study showed that 30% of readers said that book covers affected their choice of what books to read. Younger women age 17-34 seemed most susceptible to cover art. Get those books turned face out!
BookSense Becomes IndieBound
Booksense, the ten-year-old marketing program from independent booksellers, has evolved and has a new name – IndieBound. The transition will take place on July 1. The useful BookSense features, such as the independent stores bestseller list and BookSense Picks will continue, but it is hoped that IndieBound will become a brand that is recognized for what BookSense was—independent bookstores. “IndieBound.org will rally passionate readers around a celebration of independent stores and independent thinking. It’s about reaching out, and it’s pride in your bookstore and in your community.” I don’t know that IndieBound means anything more to the average reader than BookSense did–maybe less. Why not just say Independently Owned Bookstores? But then, that’s just me.
Watch for a Flood of Bush Tell-Alls
Now that Scott McClellan’s book has made him so much money, the New York Post’s gossip columnist swears that she’s hearing about all kinds of insider books being proposed all over New York. McClellan’s made a ton of money—his book was on back order until this week at Amazon—but we’ll see if there’s any left for the rest of the rats who’ve abandoned ship.
Costco’s June Pick
According to Shelf-Awareness, Costco’s June pick will be Through a Glass Darkly by Karleen Koen. Pennie Clark Ianniciello, Costco’s book buyer, says that she realizes that historical fiction is not everyone’s cup of tea, but “this is the book that will change your mind.”
Publishing Industry Fragile, Says The Economist
“Publishing has only two indispensable participants: authors and readers. As with music, any technology that brings these two groups closer makes the whole industry more efficient—but hurts those who benefit from the distance between them.” The article goes on to discuss how Amazon has hurt the entire industry. So with the economy in trouble, will libraries become busier as they have traditionally done in earlier decades with bad times? Or will the Internet be enough? Seems to me that free books and movies would be a big attraction.
Amazon Feud With Hachette Affects Sales
So The Economist (see above)talks about how Amazon’s technology is affecting the industry. Here’s another factor throw into the mix to consider for the future: who controls the sale? Amazon UK and Hachette are arguing about the terms of sale between them, and according to The Bookseller, Amazon has removed Buy New buttons from some of Hachette’s key titles, such as Stephen King’s Duma Key in order to apply pressure on the publishing company to come to terms. And yes, it is affecting sales
That’s all for this week. Take a look at the lists below as various sources list their summer reading choices, and other organizations announce their award nominees and winners. For our prediction of Summer Fiction Blockbusters, click here. Enjoy…and see you next Monday for the next set of lists and the latest RA Run Down. In the meantime, don’t forget to check back for our RA tips and genre explorations as well as our new Friday feature called Trains, Planes and Lanes, which lists titles spotted in our travels.
Lists
NYPL’s 25 Books to Remember from 2007
Reading List for the Poolside MBA
USA Today’s Summer Reading
The 2008 Dagger Awards
Mystery Strumpet’s Peachy-Keen Guide to Beach Books (from BookSlut)
Writers Recommend Books for the Presidential Candidates’ Reading Lists
Barry Award Nominations
Anthony Award Nominations
Salon’s Summer Reads
Neal Wyatt’s Summer Suggestions Historical True Crime
PEN American Beyond Margins Awards
Authors
Lee Child interview
Alan Furst Interview
Elmore Leonard
Susan Orlean Interview - audio
