This Month in Book News (December 2022 + past posts from previous three months)
/This Month in Book News (December 2022)
Many publishing industry websites and journals sum up the year in books. One of the best is Literary Hub, which ran a three-part series on the 50 biggest literary stories of 2022. Here are the news stories that caught my eye this past month and year.
Industry news: HarperCollins union members remain on strike in what is “perhaps the most significant organized labor effort at a U.S. publisher in almost 50 years” per Publishers Weekly. In other major publishing news, the CEO of Penguin Random House (PRH) is stepping down, probably because the publisher was unable to acquire Simon & Schuster in what was arguably the biggest book news of the year (and decade). And the wave of book bans across the country is continuing; sadly, they might increase in 2023 according to The Guardian.
Authors of the year: I don’t think I read this anywhere, but the author of 2022 has to be Colleen Hoover, who has sold more book in 2022 than James Patterson and John Grisham combined, as Forbes reports. The former social worker and mother of three is a sensation not just in the U.S. but also in Ireland, with four books in the top ten. Other notable authors of the year include Salman Rushdie, who released excerpts of his new novel four months after being senselessly attacked, and South Asian writers in general (see below).
Books of the year: Based on 35 lists from 29 publications (ranging from major newspapers like The Washington Post to popular magazines such as People, to respected websites including “Slate”), here is Literary Hub’s Ultimate Best Books List of 2022. I was happy to see at the top of the list Hernan Diaz’s TRUST, which I just started reading and is excellent so far. But as noted last month, the book of the year, at least according to Barnes & Noble, is Bonnie Garmus’s LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY.
Social media platform of the year: Again, this is my take, but for the book industry, the dominant social media platform has to be TikTok, which many credit for Colleen Hoover’s success. As Vulture explains in a comprehensive article about the platform, her “BookTok reign is a game changer.” The social media loser is Twitter, which many writers left after the new CEO was announced.
Words of the year: Merriam Webster chose “gaslighting” as its word of the year. Collins chose “permacrisis.” Dictionary [dot] com chose “woman.” Oxford Dictionaries let the public vote on its word of the year, declaring “goblin mode” the victor. Personally, I’m going to go with "freudenfreude," which the NYT describes as the bliss you feel when someone else succeeds, even if it doesn't directly involve you.
Tastemakers of the year: While the LA Times describes Jenna Bush Hager as book publishing's best friend and the NYT also celebrates Hager as a “publishing kingmaker," The Guardian highlights Reese Witherspoon, pointing out that, “in the social media age, Witherspoon has actually overtaken Winfrey as publishing’s starriest powerbroker, having turned good taste in books into one arm of a media empire.” Maybe they’ll all be equal influencers in 2023.
Literary losses: This round-up would not be complete without noting the authors and others in book publishing we lost this past year. Here’s a list from The Millions. The ones that affected me the most are Barbara Ehrenreich, whose book NICKLE AND DIMED I found eye-opening, and Hilary Mantel since she was so famous and it seemed so sudden.
International book news: While Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues to disrupt the country’s publishing industry, Ukrainian publishers are fighting on. In fact, as Publisher Weekly reports, some Ukrainian publishers are experiencing an increase in sales. It’s been a stellar year for Indian and Sri Lankan writers, who took home the Booker International Prize, the (main) Booker Prize, and this past month, the Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing. According to The Guardian, the double Booker win could signal some welcome change, such as “big western publishing houses wholeheartedly and consciously embracing writing, translated or otherwise, from South Asia.”
Page to screen & stage: Literary Hub’s list of the 13 best adaptations of 2022 includes “Catherine Called Birdy” (based on Karen Cushman’s historical middle grade novel that won a Newbery Honor in 1995) and “Conversations with Friends” (based on the 2017 novel by Sally Rooney). “Matilda the Musical,” a film based on a screenplay of the same name, which is in turn based on the 1988 children’s book by Roald Dahl, started streaming on Netflix on Christmas Day and is “a lot of fun” per CNN. And “Life of Pi,” “an enchantingly theatrical ocean voyage” based on Yann Martel’s Booker-Prize winning novel about an Indian boy who is lost at sea, will be making its way to Broadway in the upcoming months. Enjoyed all these books!
For fun: Interested in solving Cain's Jawbone, the “most fiendishly difficult literary puzzle ever written,” based on the 1930s mystery novel by Edward Powys Mathers? Enter by December 31 (tomorrow!) for the chance to win credit with Unbound Books and, more important, “the glory of knowing you are only the fifth person in all of known history to have solved it,” as Junkee put it. The New York Public Library released its list of the most borrowed books from its library system; aptly, a novel about a (mystical) library is at the top of its list. And here’s a fun piece by The Walrus on the tote bag, or “how a humble bag became a humble brag.”
I hope that 2022 ended with several good reads. Wishing you many more in 2023!
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This Month in Book News - the best books of the year and the word(s) of the year
(Originally posted on November 30, 2022)
Industry news: If you’ve been following the biggest industry news in a decade, you might know that, earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Justice filed suit to block Penguin Random House (PRH) from acquiring fellow Big Five publisher Simon & Schuster (S&S), arguing that the merger would harm competition among publishers and be detrimental to authors. The verdict of “publishing’s trial of the century" came in earlier this month, and the judge sided squarely with the government. In fact, it was a knockout blow to PRH, as Publishers Weekly put it. Stephen King, who testified on behalf of the government, said he was delighted with the outcome; the Author’s Guild was also pleased, as noted in this piece by Publishers Weekly about what’s next for S&S.
In other major industry news, beginning on November 10, union members of another Big Five publisher, HarperCollins went on strike, with the two sides differing over wages and benefits, diversity policy and union protection. As the Associated Press has reported, as of November 28, 150 literary agents have signed a letter in support of the strike, which is ongoing.
Awards: In mid-November, this year’s National Book Award winners were announced, including Pakistani American author Saaba Tahir, whose novel All My Rage received the award for young people's literature. Tess Gunty took home the fiction award for her novel The Rabbit Hutch, which has now been optioned for the screen. The winner of the Scotiabank Giller Prize, a $100,000 literary award given to a Canadian author of a novel or short story collection published in English, was also named this past month.
Controversies: Both the National Coalition Against Censorship and PEN America rejected calls to cancel PRH’s acquisition of a Supreme Court Justice’s memoir by publishing professions, who circulated an open letter. Bob Dylan has apologized for using an autopen to “hand sign” his new book, which is priced at $600 a copy, and his publisher Simon & Schuster is offering refunds. Book Riot takes a deep dive into the controversy surrounding Garth Williams’ 1958 children’s book The Rabbits’ Wedding. Sadly, across the country, books are continuing to be banned, but We Need Diverse Books is doing something about it by launching an initiative against censorship.
Books of the year: The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Wall Street Journal (paywall) have all released their lists of the 10 best books of 2022. Although there doesn’t appear to be much overlap among these lists in terms of fiction, both the New York Times and Washington Post lists include Barbara Kingsolver’s Demon Copperhead and Hernan Diaz’s Trust. Oprah Daily has named its 45 favorite books of the year, and both these titles appear on it, along with another novel I really enjoyed, Charmaine Wilkerson’s Black Cake.
Amazon has also released its list of the 10 best books of the year, with Gabrielle Zevin’s Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow occupying the top spot. Both Barnes & Noble and Australian Bookseller Dymocks have chosen Bonnie Garmus’s Lessons in Chemistry as their book of the year. My book of the year is still Michelle Zauner’s Crying in H-Mart, though this memoir was first published last year.
Word of the year: Merriam Webster’s word of the year is “gaslighting.” Collins Dictionary has chosen “permacrisis.” As for Oxford Languages—for the first time in its history, the public will be choosing its word of the year. The choices are “metaverse,” “IStandWith,” and “goblin mode.” Both Literary Hub and Bartleby endorse “goblin mode,” which refers to “the idea of rejecting societal expectations put upon us, in favor of doing whatever one wants to,” and I also am leaning in that direction. Learn more and vote here by December 2!
Film/TV news: Buzzfeed has released this list of book-to-film adaptations you may have missed this fall, including “Fleishman Is in Trouble” based on the novel by Taffy Brodesser-Akner; I admit I didn’t care for this novel, which is about a Manhattan couple’s divorce, but the movie looks good and features an all-star cast. I did enjoy this piece from The Drift about famous film directors who have also written novels.
For fun: The Joan Didion estate sale took place in mid-November, and hot-ticket items included her iconic Celine sunglasses, which sold for $27,000; in total, buyers paid nearly two million dollars collectively for a piece of her legacy, as the Los Angeles Times reports. You can finally take a selfie with a full-sized statue of Virginia Woolf, as Literary Hub puts it. And if you’re looking for a gift for the bibliophile in your life (or yourself), Buzzfeed says that these bookish products have your name on them— some literally. But as we all know, the best gift you can give anyone this holiday season is a book :)
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This Month in Book News – the winners of the Nobel and Booker Prizes
(Originally posted on November 1, 2022 for October 2022)
Awards: October is typically a big month for book awards, and this past month was no exception. Early in October, the Swedish Academy awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature to French writer Annie Ernaux, who justly deserved the Nobel according to The New Yorker and whose win marked “the ascendancy of the memoir as the leading genre of our time.” In mid-October Sri Lankan-born Shehan Karunatilaka took home the Booker Prize, another win for South Asians (an Indian author won the International Booker Prize in May).
The shortlist for the National Book Award was also announced, with the winners to be named in mid-November. And this year's MacArthur fellows include authors Kiese Laymon and Robin Wall Kimmerer, each of whom received a grant described as an “$800,000, no-strings-attached award to extraordinarily talented and creative individuals as an investment in their potential.”
Milestones: It’s the 100th anniversary of T.S. Eliot’s “The Waste Land,” “the most important poem of the twentieth century” according to Literary Hub. R.L. Stine’s GOOSEBUMPS series is 30. And Tanuja Desai Hidier’s BORN CONFUSED, a seminal work of fiction about Indian American adolescence, has now been in print for 20 years.
Recent releases: John Irving, the acclaimed author of books including THE WORLD ACCORDING TO GARP and CIDER HOUSE RULES, has a new novel out at 80. At 89, Cormac McCarthy, best known for THE ROAD and NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN, has published two new novels. And Barbara Kingsolver, author of such bestselling books as THE POISONWOOD BIBLE, also just released a new novel, but she’s only 67 so is likely just hitting her stride : )
More book news: Following the vicious attack on him at an event in upstate New York, Salman Rushdie has lost sight in one eye and use of one hand, as his agent reported. On a brighter note, literary legends Toni Morrison and Ernest J. Gaines will be immortalized on postage stamps to be released next year. And “Colleen Hoover Followed Her Own Path -- And It Worked" according to the New York Times, reporting that she has sold 20 million books and has set publishing records.
International book news: After she announced her resignation as Britain’s Prime Minister, Liz Truss biographers have been scrambling to revise her biography OUT OF THE BLUE, which is scheduled to release in December. If you’re as curious as I am about new PM (and fellow South Asian) Rishi Sunak, his biography is called GOING FOR BROKE and was released in 2020, but another is sure to be published if he remains in the position long enough.
Famous people in book news: In other news from across the pond, Prince Harry’s memoir has a publication date: January 10, 2023. Royal experts and publishing executives (and undoubtedly the royal family) are speculating over how explosive it will be. Thanks to pre-orders, the memoir, aptly titled SPARE, is already dominating some bestseller lists.
Page-to-screen & page-to-stage: Current or soon-to-be-available literary streaming includes “The School for Good and Evil” based on the young adult fantasy series by Soman Chainani; “Fleishman is in Trouble” based on the humorous Manhattan-set novel by Taffy Brodesser-Akner; and “The Wonder,” which is based on Emma Donoghue’s 2016 novel that takes place in nineteenth century Ireland.
On stage, “The Kite Runner”—based on Khaled Hosseini’s novel of the same name—is continuing its Broadway run until the end of the month. “Wicked”—based on Gregory Maguire’s novel—is still going strong and will turn 20 next year. And Madeleine L’Engle’s A WRINKLE IN TIME is set to be a musical. As Literary Hub notes, in the sixty years since its publication, the classic children’s book has been adapted into not just a feature film and made-for-TV movie, but also a graphic novel, several plays, and even an opera!
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This Month in Book News – Queen Elizabeth II’s Life in Books
(Originally posted on October 1, 2022 for September 2022)
Awards: The shortlist for both the Booker Prize and the Kirkus Awards were announced earlier this month, and the winners of each of these prizes will be named in October. The longlist for the National Book Awards was also announced, and the shortlist will be revealed in October (the winners, in November). The most prominent literary award that will be announced in October, though, is the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature. Literary Hub has already compiled the bookies’ odds, and we’ll find out next Thursday, October 6!
Events: In-person events are back, and the Jaipur Literature Festival - New York kicked off at the National Arts Club on September 13. If you’re in the area, don’t miss the Brooklyn Book Festival, which runs until October 3, and The New Yorker Festival, which takes place October 6-9. The Frankfurt Book Fair, the world’s largest trade book fair for publishing professionals, is also coming up in October.
Industry: As Publishers Weekly reported, 2021 was a Stellar Year for Publishing, and sales rose by $3 billion. At the same time, this trade book magazine poses the question, “Is the Publishing Industry Broken?” and takes a deep dive into crushing workloads and the clash of different generations.
Literary losses: The book world lost a number of renown authors in September, including Barbara Ehrenreich, whose book NICKLED AND DIMED I devoured. Dame Hilary Mantel, who won the Booker Prize twice, first for WOLF HALL and later for its sequel, BRING UP THE BODIES, also passed away. Although I haven’t (yet) read her work, she is said to have had a lavish imagination and beady understanding of power. And legendary literary agent Sterling Lord, who represented author Jack Kerouac, died on September 3, his 102nd birthday.
International news: The biggest international news of September had to have been the passing of Queen Elizabeth II, who “was a genuine bibliophile,” as Publishers Weekly wrote, “having attended Hay Festival three times, including opening the 2021 event, and attending LBF in 2014.” In addition, she was a patron of BookTrust, the National Literacy Trust, and the Royal Society for Literature; presented both the Booker Prize and the Women's Prize for Fiction; and, in 2018, she hosted a reception at Buckingham Palace to mark the Booker's 50th anniversary. Also see this lovely tribute from Penguin UK of Queen Elizabeth II’s life in books.
Milestones: Mary Pope Osborne’s Magic Tree House series has turned 30. Angelina Ballerina, the star of the books written by Katharine Holabird and illustrated by Helen Craig, is “still dancing” at 40. And Margaret Wise Brown’s GOODNIGHT MOON is now 75 years old; interestingly, GOODNIGHT MOON was once banned from the library.
Book bans: Speaking of bans, it’s been forty years since the launch of Banned Books Week, which this year was held September 18-24, and sadly, censorship is on the rise. According to an op-ed in the Washington Post, today's book bans might be more dangerous than those from the past. Some signs of hope: Representative Jamie Raskin and Senator Brian Schatz a introduced a bicameral resolution condemning the wave of book bans and educational gag orders sweeping the country. And Mayor Lori Lightfoot is declaring Chicago a book sanctuary city.
Famous people in book news: Several well-known names are releasing new books—not memoirs (which are expected) or essay collections (more common)—but novels. A novel by Tom Hanks about "colossal, star-studded, multimillion-dollar superhero action film and the humble comic book that inspired it" releases next spring. Former FBI Director James Comey is writing two mystery novels about “real life work” he has done, and the first is also out next spring. And rumor has it that Woody Allen is retiring from filmmaking to work on his novel (but will anyone read it?).
Film: Speaking of Tom Hanks, the teaser (though not the trailer) for his new movie “A Man Called Otto,” is now out. Based on the international bestselling novel A MAN CALLED OVE by Fredrik Backman about a grumpy older man who develops an unlikely friendship with his neighbors, it releases in December. “All Quiet on the Western Front,” a Netflix film adaptation of the acclaimed 1929 World War I novel of the same name by Erich Maria Remarque, releases next week. And “Catherine Called Birdy,” based on the Newbery Award-winning novel by Karen Cushman that I found to be very clever, had a limited release last week and will be available to stream on Prime next week; according to the New York Times, director Lena Dunham “Channels a Voice of a (Different) Generation” (medieval England). Now that the weather is getting chilly, it seems like the perfect time to watch book adaptations—but also read the books they’re based on, of course!