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Big Books of the Week

Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson (Pamela Dorman), leads holds this week.

Other titles in demand include:

Worthy Opponents by Danielle Steel (Delacorte)

What Have We Done by Alex Finlay (Minotaur)

The Kind Worth Saving by Peter Swanson (Morrow)

A Sinister Revenge by Deanna Raybourn (Berkley; LJ starred review)

The London Séance Society by Sarah Penner (Park Row)

These books and others publishing the week of Mar. 6, 2023, are listed in a downloadable spreadsheet.

Librarians and Booksellers Suggest

Seven LibraryReads and ten Indie Next picks publish this week:

What Have We Done by Alex Finlay (Minotaur)

“One night, five teenagers who grew up together in a group home commit a murder and take off into the rest of their lives. Twenty years later, they each face an assassin sent to kill them. Now the race is on to figure out who is behind the killers. This was a fantastic roller-coaster of a thriller with lots of twists and turns.”—Linda Quinn, Fairfield Public Library, Fairfield, CT

The Kind Worth Saving by Peter Swanson (Morrow)

“Henry Kimball is back—dismissed from his police job and working as a private investigator. Client Joan hires Henry to investigate her cheating husband, but as he pieces together past events, he starts to realize something else may be going on. The ending provides new insight and depth into Henry's life and relationships with lots of twists and turns for mystery readers to enjoy.”—Cari Dubiel, Twinsburg Public Library, Twinsburg, OH

Weyward by Emilia Hart (St. Martin’s)

“Men are always trying to dominate the Weyward women, but they always fail, because the Weyward women can call birds to their aid. This matriarchal clan of witches is almost broken until Kate, who stars in the most recent of the three timelines. Practical Magic meets Margaret Atwood in an unflinching feminist fantasy that is boiling over with rage and loaded with empowerment.”—Jill Minor, Washington County Library, Abingdon, VA

It is also an Indie Next pick:

“An alluring tale spanning 400 years in the lives of three interconnected women. The magical connection unfolds as they each try to break free of the men that want control and the constraints of their time. Feminist and heartbreaking.”—Nissa Moody, Solid State Books, Washington, DC

The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen by KJ Charles (Sourcebooks Casablanca; LJ starred review)

“This poignant romance is an absolute joy! The story incorporates Joss's identity as a biracial Black man but doesn’t make it a hurdle that the romance has to surmount. Gareth's understanding of himself, and his honesty, was really refreshing to read in a Regency. And it has been far too long since there was a landed gentry/smuggler romance!”—Dontaná McPherson-Joseph, Oak Park Public Library, Oak Park, IL

The London Séance Society by Sarah Penner (Park Row)

“Lenna Wickes came to Paris in 1873 to apprentice for Vaudeline D’Allaire, a renowned spiritualist. Vaudeline is called back to the London Seance Society. Lenna joins her to find out who murdered her sister Evie. Can they figure out what happened before they wind up dead too? Penner clearly researched the spiritualism movement of the Victorian era and spun a suspenseful tale.”—Shari Suarez, GDL-Johnson Memorial, Genesee, MI

It is also an Indie Next pick:

“The London Séance Society proves that the sophomore novel can be just as explosive as the first! Penner weaves readers through the dark, mysterious streets of Paris and London in a fast-paced thrill ride. This book is a perfect escape!”—Kelsey Jagneaux, Tombolo Books, St. Petersburg, FL

The Gospel of Orla by Eoghan Walls (Seven Stories)

“Orla manages the best she can with a little sister and an alcoholic dad, but she misses her mother, who died too soon. When she meets a man who seems to have the power of resurrection, she plans to bring him to her mother’s grave, beginning a heartbreaking journey into adulthood and acceptance. Readers of this lyrical debut will wish spunky Orla all the best.”—Katharine Phenix, Boulder Public Library, Boulder, CO

It is also an Indie Next pick:

“Somehow, The Gospel of Orla is simultaneously zany and sincere, tackling both parental loss and a whimsical, yet heart breaking, look at a post-Christianity Jesus. This is a triumphant debut for Walls and makes me excited for his next work.”—Isaiah Scandrette, Folio Books, San Francisco, CA

All That Is Mine I Carry With Me by William Landay (Bantam; LJ starred review)

“The Larkin siblings face years of sadness and questions after their mother disappears. Many speculate their father killed her, but he’s always maintained his innocence. What is the truth? The story spans several decades and features multiple narrators, including the mother. The characters are deftly explored and are very raw and real. For readers of suspenseful fiction and family dramas.”—Cyndi Larsen, Avon Free Public Library, Avon, CT

Seven additional Indie Next picks publish this week:

The Dig by Anne Burt (Counterpoint)

“With a descriptive literary style, Burt keeps you engrossed as this family drama unfolds, based on their immigration history, adolescent awakenings, and social structures that bind them. This would be a great book club pick!”—Tina Greene-Bevington, Bay Books, Suttons Bay, MI

The God of Endings by Jacqueline Holland (Flatiron)

“By the end of the first page, I knew I would follow this narrator anywhere, and I would do it again without hesitation. The suspense of how both storylines play out is perfect, the voice is persuasive and vivid. This is a novel to sink into.”—Gwen Papp, Literati Bookstore, Ann Arbor, MI

The Foxglove King by Hannah Whitten (Orbit)

“I could not get enough of The Foxglove King! Compulsively readable, Whitten’s lush, romantic fantasy is filled with deathly magic and delicious court intrigue. This is the perfect new read for fans of Sarah J. Maas and Holly Black.”—Matilda McNeely, Little Shop of Stories, Decatur, GA

What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez by Claire Jimenez (Grand Central)

“Jiménez’s debut is funny and moving. A Puerto Rican girl living in Staten Island, Ruthy, disappeared on the way home from school. Years later, her sisters think they’ve found her and plan to bring her home. I loved everything about this.”—Rebecca Minnock, Murder By the Book, Houston, TX

The Farewell Tour by Stephanie Clifford (Harper)

“A fun, fictional bio of a country superstar, like Loretta Lynn and Dolly Parton, making her last tour due to health issues. A moving portrait of a woman trying to break through a patriarchal industry and the pratfalls she endured.”—Gerard Villegas, Auntie’s Bookstore, Spokane, WA

The Golden Spoon by Jessa Maxwell (Atria; LJ starred review)

“Imagine The Great British Baking Show with a splash of Agatha Christie murder mystique. Interesting characters, intriguing subplots, and a fun setting kept me turning the pages. This is a book I can put into the hands of any reader.”—Gail Dickson, The Bookstore of Glen Ellyn, Glen Ellyn, IL

Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson (Pamela Dorman)

“A wholly entertaining novel about a blue-blooded Brooklyn family and their reckoning with their privilege and wealth. There is an inevitable relatability to a dysfunctional family who is (mostly) trying their best in the world.”—Courtney Flynn, Trident Booksellers & Café, Boston, MA

In The Media

People’s book of the week is Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton (Farrar). Also getting attention are What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez by Claire Jimenez (Grand Central) and In Memoriam by Alice Winn (Knopf). There is also a Q&A with Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt about her new memoir, Wake Up with Purpose!: What I’ve Learned in My First Hundred Years, written with Seth Davis (Harper Select), and being the team chaplain of the Loyola Ramblers men’s basketball squad. 

The “Picks” section spotlights Daisy Jones & the Six, based on the book by Taylor Jenkins Reid, on Prime Video. Plus, there is a feature on Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, and her new novel, A Most Intriguing Lady (Avon). 

Reviews

NYT reviews The Farewell Tour by Stephanie Clifford (Harper): “A shimmering paean to the deeply flawed American West, which feels real and vital thanks to Clifford’s gift for description”; Happily: A Personal History-with Fairy Tales by Sabrina Orah Mark (Random): “Mark finds that instead of distorting reality, fairy tales bring the absurdity of life into greater focus with grace, humor and gravity. Her essays reveal the lessons they teach us well into adulthood”; In Memoriam by Alice Winn (Knopf): “In Memoriam is the story of a great tragedy, but it is also a moving portrait of young love, and there is often a lightness to the book, even humor. It’s a difficult balancing act, but one that Winn, who is erudite, fast talking and very funny, pulls off”; and War Diary by Yevgenia Belorusets, tr. by Greg Nissan (New Directions): “The big emotional takeaway from War Diary is a sense of abandonment. Belorusets can’t believe that the world is watching these atrocities, right out on Ukraine’s streets, and not stepping in more forcefully.”

The Washington Post reviews Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin (Knopf; LJ starred review), in a series “for people who have already read the book and want to think more deeply about the ending.” 

LA Times reviews Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton (Farrar): “Catton’s big theme is plunder, and her millennial crusaders are as fervent in their protection of New Zealand’s resources as Lemoine is determined to dynamite and exploit them.”

The Guardian reviews Womb: The Inside Story of Where We All Began by Leah Hazard (Ecco; LJ starred review): “Everyone aims to feel ‘maximally at home in her own body’, says Hazard, but arriving there is different each time. In lieu of a map, Womb is an excellent guide.”

Briefly Noted

NYT features author Jenny Odell and her latest book, Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock (Random). NYT also features Guadeloupean writer Maryse Condé and her forthcoming book, The Gospel According to the New World, tr. by Richard Philcox (World Editions).

The Washington Post talks with Debra Lee about her new memoir, I Am Debra Lee (Legacy Lit), her “evolution as a leader, the pressures of BET setting the standard for Black programming, and what happens when business gets personal.”

NYT explores the legacy of mid-century Japanese novelist Osamu Dazai and his resurgence thanks to TikTok. 

USA Today shares details from Paris Hilton’s forthcoming book, Paris: The Memoir, due out from Dey Street next week.

T&C recommends “The 38 Must-Read Books of Spring 2023.”

USA Today shares 5 books for the week. 

CrimeReads suggests 10 new books this week.

The Washington Post reviews “3 engrossing new audiobooks.”

Publishers Weekly rounds up headlines for the week in libraries. 

Authors On Air

NPR’s Weekend Edition Sunday talks with Claire Jimenez about her new book, What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez (Grand Central), “grief, family, and reality TV.”

NPR’s Morning Edition talks with Evan Drellich, Winning Fixes Everything: How Baseball’s Brightest Minds Created Sports’ Biggest Mess (Harper), about his new book and the Houston Astros 2017 cheating scandal.  

Sarah Polley and Miriam Toews won the USC Libraries’ Scripter Award for their adaptation of Toews novel Women Talking. Deadline has the story. The adaptation also won best adapted screenplay at the Writer’s Guild Awards. THR reports.

EW breaks down the differences between the Daisy Jones & the Six book and TV series.

The Bucharest Dossier by William Maz (Oceanview) will get an adaptation. A sequel to the novel is also in the works. Deadline reports. 

Margaret Atwood, Old Babes in the Wood: Stories (Doubleday), will visit with Seth Meyers tomorrow. 

Sarah Ferguson, A Most Intriguing Lady (Avon), will appear on Live with Kelly and Ryan.

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