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From the Library of Congress: The Library of Congress has named Rachael Stoeltje as the new chief of the Library’s National Audio-Visual Conservation Center, which includes the Library’s Packard Campus in Culpeper, Virginia, beginning in January 2025. Stoeltje will oversee the state-of-the-art facility where the Library of Congress acquires, preserves and provides access to the […]
Dave explores NotebookLM’s podcasting feature. NotebookLM is an AI system from Google that lets you create a workspace around documents that summarizes, creates study guides, and much more. One of the features is creating an “Audio Overview” that transforms your notes and documents into a two person podcast. Dave was impressed, see what you think.
The NYT announces the 10 best books of 2024. Reese Witherspoon selects City of Night Birds by Juhea Kim for her December book club. The Last One by Rachel Howzell Hall is GMA’s pick. Target’s pick is Roland Rogers Isn’t Dead Yet by Samantha Allen. Liza Minnelli’s forthcoming memoir, due out in 2026, will be adapted for television. Peter Mackay has been named Scotland’s national poet, and Kate Beaton wins the Jan Michalski Prize for Literature. Marian Keyes’s “Walsh Sisters” books will be adapted for TV in Ireland and the UK. Plus, Oxford University Press selects “brain rot” as its word of the year.
The full-text article linked to below was recently published by Quantitative Science Studies (QSS). Title Open Access Journals Lack Image Accessibility Guidelines Authors Kaitlin Stack Whitney Rochester Institute of Technology Julia Perrone Kent State University Willard Library of Battle Creek Christie A. Bhalai Kent State University Source DOI: 10.1162/qss_a_00338 Abstract In recent decades, there has […]
From the Library of Congress: The Library of Congress has released a groundbreaking online collection of the National AIDS Memorial Quilt Records, making one of the most poignant symbols of the AIDS epidemic in the United States available to a global audience. As the largest communal art project in the world, the AIDS Memorial Quilt […]
From Digital Science: New analysis suggests that open data practice is now on the edge of becoming a standard, recognised and supported scholarly output, globally. As part of the latest in the State of Open Data series, produced by partners Digital Science, Figshare and Springer Nature, direct author-sharing practices have been analysed from a funder, country and institutional […]
Brandon Sanderson’s Wind and Truth leads holds this week. People’s book of the week is Trial by Ambush: Murder, Injustice, and the Truth About the Case of Barbara Graham by Marcia Clark. Jon Ransom wins the Polari Book Prize. LJ's Best Books 2024 arrives, NYT names 100 Notable Books of 2024, and NPR releases their 2024 Books We Love. Costco announces it will stop selling books year-round in stores. Plus, LJ’s December starred reviews.
We celebrate the wondrous activity of reading with this list of 144 titles, books that delighted LJ reviewers, columnists, and editors.
Family stories, trailblazing actors and activists, a wedding crasher, and more populate these engaging novels.
Explore powerful titles by marquee-name and debut authors, a translator, several poets, and short-story scribes.
Real-life historical figures solve and commit crimes, a puzzle master faces an ancient challenge, and an avenging equine rides to the rescue.
Sea dwellers, fortune tellers, tricksters, faeries, roving robots, and other fantastical creatures inhabit the pages of these out-of-this-world novels.
Readers will need to leave the lights on as they devour these tales of terror that are sure to delight.
Eight meaningful, whimsical, philosophical, historical, and fantastical works that are a joy for both reading and viewing.
These volumes’ lyric and reflective lines cry out against oppression, war, and annihilation and praise the complexity and absurdity of human existence.
Moving memoirs, historical accounts, lively performing arts books, and scientific inquiries number among these real-world reads.
Discover the delights of illustrated nonfiction about crafts, travel, cooking, self-help, and gardening.
As much as LJ editors love to read, we also hold deep admiration for book and cover design. Each year we gather to debate how image, text, and color help create the mood of a book and invite readers into the story. These 10 choices represent the standout covers from our best books and highlight trends in jacket design, arresting imagery, and just how important the aesthetics of book art can be.
From Oxford University Press: Oxford University Press (OUP) has named ‘brain rot’ as the Oxford Word of the Year 2024, following a public vote that saw more than 37,000 people worldwide have their say. ‘Brain rot’ was one of the six contenders shortlisted by OUP’s language experts to reflect some of the moods and conversations that have shaped the past year. Selected […]
The preprint linked to below was recently shared on arXiv. Title Suspected Undeclared Use of Artificial Intelligence in the Academic Literature: An Analysis of the Academ-AI Dataset Author Alex Glynn University of Louisville Source via arXiv DOI: 10.48550/arXiv.2411.15218 Abstract Since generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT became widely available, researchers have used […]
Dave explores NotebookLM’s podcasting feature. NotebookLM is an AI system from Google that lets you create a workspace around documents that summarizes, creates study guides, and much more. One of the features is creating an “Audio Overview” that transforms your notes and documents into a two person podcast. Dave was impressed, see what you think.
The election is over, and the reactions are emotional and raw. America is still as divided politically and socially as the day before. What’s in store for us as individuals, families and communities? What might the next few years look like for libraries and librarians and those who use and rely on library resources and service?
PREMIUM
The Devil’s Charm
Frampton (Her Adventures in Temptation) starts a new series with this Victorian-set novel that stresses friendship, being true to oneself, and finding appreciation.
PREMIUM
Autism: Your Questions Answered
Well written and useful for teens and caregivers. While there are plenty of materials on autism, few Q&A resources are as teen-oriented as this one.
Fans of Penny’s beloved audiobooks can breathe a sigh of relief, for new series narrator Brassard doesn’t miss a step. This latest trip to Three Pines is well worth the price of admission.
Drawing on both primary sources and academic theory, Maxwell makes a compelling argument that is both relevant and moving. This book will appeal most to advanced readers and researchers interested either in Carson’s life and work or the interplay between queer and environmental theory.
This first-rate in every way guide will have cooks ditching the sweet side of pies in favor of a walk on the savory side.
PREMIUM
The Captain
With wands and plasma pistols, sigils on spacesuits, magic and machines, possessive spaceships and power rangers, this is a chaotically fun space fantasy that revels in its playful and creative energy. Great for fans of Becky Chambers and John Scalzi.
PREMIUM
Ten Indian Classics
This anthology delivers a profound exploration of history, literature, and emotions, but it requires some understanding of India’s many cultures to fully appreciate its depth. Still, it’s a rewarding read for those willing to engage with its complexities and dive into the worlds it explores.
PREMIUM
Ginseng Roots: A Memoir
Thompson fuses lyrical reflections on his childhood with a thoughtful exploration of economic and cultural exchange to create a poignant meditation on labor, family, and the many ways in which global and personal endeavors intertwine, often unexpectedly. A visually rich, emotionally resonant work of true ambition and sophistication from one of the most sensitive storytellers currently working in any medium or genre.
PREMIUM
The Eyes Are the Best Part
Kim’s appalling portrait of rage, grief, and desire will have listeners squirming in their seats. A haunting psychological horror for fans of Oyinkan Braithwaite’s My Sister, the Serial Killer.
The glimpse inside the opulent world of a Russian oligarch is fascinating, with international intrigue ripped from the headlines. Creating compelling apprehension, this suspenseful thriller keeps readers off-balance and unsure whom to trust. Finder achieves a perfect one-sitting read.
PREMIUM
Sacrificial Animals
Readers of Southern gothic writers like Andy Davidson and William Gay will want to visit Stag’s Crossing and experience its fall.
Thompson is an exciting new voice in queer literary fiction, and this is an essential novel to highlight in all collections.
PREMIUM
A Dragon of Black Glass
The penultimate volume of the “Moonfall” series, after The Cradle of Ice, has some exposition lag, but the fast pace of its action sequences will keep epic fantasy readers engaged.
PREMIUM
The World Atlas of Honey
The writing assumes some scholarly knowledge, so readers may need a thesaurus at times, but the creative and descriptive terms will appeal to most readers. The photography and layout of the book make this work absolutely fascinating.
For readers who enjoy the particular pleasures, insights, and discoveries that the essay form offers.
Fans of Elly Griffiths’s Ruth Galloway or Nilima Rao’s Akal Singh will be eager for the next entry in Phillips’s exciting series.
Essential. With vibrant prose and nuanced characters, Iglesias shows why he is a truly original voice in both horror and crime fiction.
PREMIUM
The Killing Plains
Fans of Paula Munier’s wounded protagonist Mercy Carr might appreciate Colly Newland and her struggles.
Caplan highlights a treasure trove of vocalists and creators in this magisterial work that will prove immensely rewarding to serious opera scholars and those studying race relations and sociology in the 20th-century United States.
PREMIUM
Cat’s People
A charming story for animal lovers and readers looking for good in the world or hopeful stories about finding one’s people.
Kennedy’s efforts to find out what happened to Goddard after she faded from public life uncover not only personal details but also an in-depth history of the treatment of women survivors of sexual assault and other crimes. Readers with an interest in police procedure or true crime will find this book fascinating.
Hawkins’s memoir is deeply reflective and transparent about his personal story and family history, sharing the love, restrictions, violence, and trauma he experienced throughout his life as a Black man living in a post–civil rights movement world. This work is vitally important and essential to understanding the magnitude of the impact of racism and violence.
PREMIUM
Charming Devil (Deluxe Edition)
This second “Gilded Monsters” book (after Beautiful Villain, based on The Great Gatsby) is a clever, magical, and sexy twist on Oscar Wilde’s The Portrait of Dorian Gray.
A first-rate, fiendishly clever suspense novel that fans of Lisa Jewell, Megan Miranda, and Laura Lippman will eat up with a spoon.
A distinctive, memorable story that powerfully shows what it takes to survive as a political prisoner in the U.S. Pair with Better, Not Bitter by Yusef Salaam, one of the Central Park Exonerated Five.
Fawcett delivers a perfect new entry in this series, which will enrapture readers with fantastic worldbuilding. A great pick for those who are fans of both Marie Brennan’s A Natural History of Dragons and Jane Austen novels.
PREMIUM
How To Sleep at Night
New York Times publishing-industry correspondent Harris excels at depicting middle-aged people reckoning with their earlier choices and struggling with how they want to live the rest of their lives. Recommended for most fiction collections.
This well-rounded book on the many uses of tinned fish is sure to delight cooks new to this form or long term aficionados.
PREMIUM
The Transit of Venus
A contemplative story that peels back each character’s inner secrets and moral center. For readers of Henry James.
An often-overlooked need gets a gorgeous entry that will inspire solo cooks to make memorable dishes.
Insightful, but not as revolutionary as The Shallows, as Carr is now one voice among many warning about social media.
Charming, funny, and harrowing. Will appeal to readers of many ages, especially those who enjoy grim humor or remember the myriad adventures of their own Barbies.
Anderson (The Remarkable Retirement of Edna Fisher) writes a curmudgeonly immortal protagonist and a (literally) haunting story full of heart; a delightful novel for those who enjoyed Sarah Pinsker’s Haunt Sweet Home.
A beautifully written and gripping narrative with a focus on detail and insight into the people involved.
PREMIUM
Only and Forever
This audio will appeal to listeners seeking a steamy opposites-attract rom-com about big family dynamics, books, and being true to one’s self. Recommended for fans of Elena Armas and Amy Lea.
PREMIUM
Health Literacy and Libraries
A critical exploration of meeting users where they are and creating new pathways to health literacy success. This valuable resource highlights information professionals’ crucial role in helping users acquire health literacy skills to enhance their quality of life, physical well-being, and mental health. Highly recommended for academic libraries, public libraries, and health care institutions committed to improving health literacy.
This quirky, humorous romance is well-written and plotted, and readers will quickly fall in love with its interesting characters. Fans of Olivia Dade’s “Spoiler Alert” series will especially fall for this superfan homage from Danan (Do Your Worst).
A must-purchase for academic libraries with extensive Southern history or women’s studies collections. Public libraries in the South that are interested in regional history or agricultural heritage will also find this title of high interest.
Wang writes a quiet, introspective novel of relationships, family obligations, and resentments that build over time and what makes a family. Highly recommended.
Fans of Heather Morris and Lisa Barr will be captivated by Lending’s story of resilience and romance, a must-have for historical fiction sections.
A great listen that might compel audiences to take a break and gather a deep breath before diving back in.
The informative text and numerous examples of Frank’s work reveal the artist beyond his early, best-known images.
This recommended philosophical exploration of the current human labor cost of AI deepens the conversation around the promise and future of this type of technology.
PREMIUM
Blood Like Mine
A terrifying yet tender tale about the lengths to which one will go to protect those they love.
PREMIUM
So Thirsty
Harrison’s many fans will devour her genre-blending latest, a smart, sexy horror with a lot of heart. Pair with Rachel Koller Croft’s We Love the Nightlife.
PREMIUM
We Speak Through the Mountain
Mohamed’s latest is a quick, thought-provoking listen that brings much-needed lightness to the series, even as grimmer horizons loom ahead.
For fans of Cutter’s descriptions of mutilations and mutations and Grady Hendrix fans looking for something more gruesome, this book breaks a listener’s heart before pulling it out of their chest.
This audio will appeal to listeners seeking a cozy mystery featuring an octogenarian amateur detective and offbeat, amusing characters, including fans of Robert Thorogood, Richard Osman, and Helene Tursten.
This book by an author with solid credentials invites readers to pray, eat unprocessed foods, exercise mindfully, and incorporate self-care into their routines. Readers may disagree with some of Nugent’s assertions, but overall, the advice is sensible.
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