April 29, 2016

Today I attended and moderated a panel at the Random House Open House, the second in a series of events that I have lined up for the next few months where I get to meet up with readers and professionals in the publishing community. As I love both talking to authors and meeting readers, this day afforded me the perfect combo. It was nice to say hi to the readers I know, and to put faces to the names of some of our readers who I have not met, including one who truly is a doppelganger of Ina Garten!

Melanie Benjamin, Dawn Tripp and Helen Simonson were all delightful interviewees as they shared commentary about their work. The title of the panel referenced "women behaving badly," and we explored how each of their characters pushed the limits with who they were and what they did. You can see a picture of us above (Dawn is beside me, then Melanie and Helen). Our time together sped by; I could have talked to them for hours about their work. By the way, I have a baseball cap with the line “Women Who Behave Rarely Make History,” and it always makes me smile as I think about all the people who in 1996 told me that the internet was NOT going to be anything but a passing fancy. To our close to 26,000 newsletter subscribers, you can smile with me!

Note that my latest Bookreporter.com Bets On pick is Dawn’s GEORGIA: A Novel of Georgia O’Keefe, which we previously featured in a review, author talk, and gave away copies of in our Winter Reading contests. I finished the book a couple of weeks ago, and although it released in February, I just couldn’t pass up the chance to feature it in Bets On. Click here for my commentary. By the way, that means that books by all three of the authors who I interviewed today are Bets On selections. Good reading all lined up for you!

Also on today’s program was Debbie Macomber, and I was happy to get a photo snapped with her. We talked knitting; she quickly noted that the sweater and tank top that I was wearing were made with Prism yarn! She told the story of her road to publishing, inspiring the audience with tales of her tenacity. She captivated the room with her story.

Anna Quindlen closed the program, interviewed by Lee Woodruff. Each day, she runs or walks 4-5 miles while thinking through her story lines and clears her day for a day of writing. She also spoke about being at dinner parties where guests are talking public policy and current events that are part of their work, while she is mulling fictional characters and is less apt to contribute thoughts about them. Very humorous. When asked about the books she loved, she gave a shout-out to Elizabeth Brundage's ALL THINGS CEASE TO APPEAR, a Bets On selection. Stephen King also gave it a rave: "Ghosts, murder, a terrifying psychotic who seems normal, and beautiful writing. Loved it." Nice to hear both of these comments.

The entire day was such fun; I only wish that more of you could have been there! We will have lots more about the rest of the program next week, as Rebecca was taking furious notes.

This week, I have been listening to THE THIRD WAVE: An Entrepreneur's Vision of the Future by Steve Case. Steve, who was one of the founders of AOL, takes a look back at the first phase of the Internet, which AOL was a part of; then talks a bit about the second wave, which is all about social media and apps; but then looks ahead to the third wave, which he feels (and I agree with) will have more in common with the first wave as entrepreneurs and big companies partner to develop big ideas to improve life in sectors such as health and education. He talks about how he sees opportunity for creating pockets of creativity and innovation around the country, not just in Silicon Valley, New York and Boston, where most of today’s tech is entrenched.

He has given me a lot to think about and also has led me to some great reminiscing on wave one on AOL, where we got our start. This summer, we will be celebrating our 20th year; what a wonderful ride it has been thus far, and we still are cooking up ideas for the future. For those of you who want to wander down memory lane and remember the sound of dial-up, click above!

Now to this week’s update...

Looking for the perfect summer reading escape? Then look no further than our Women’s Fiction Author Spotlight of Mary Kay Andrews’ latest beach-worthy novel, THE WEEKENDERS. Riley Griggs thinks her summer on the idyllic island of Belle Isle, North Carolina will be glorious, and who can blame her? Unfortunately, though, that is far from the case. The sudden disappearance of her husband leads Riley to turn to her island friends for help and support, but it turns out that each of them has their own secrets. This very well could be a life-changing summer for Riley…but in the worst way possible. I had the pleasure of reading an early copy of THE WEEKENDERS, and MKA (as we call her around the office) has once again written the book you want to start your summer with! If you’d like to be one of the 25 winners who will be selected to read and comment on the book, then be sure to enter here by Thursday, May 12th at noon ET.

DON’T YOU CRY by Mary Kubica (whose first two psychological thrillers, THE GOOD GIRL and PRETTY BABY, were covered extensively on this site when they released) is the latest book we’re featuring in our Suspense/Thriller Author Spotlight. In downtown Chicago, a young woman disappears from her apartment without a trace. The only clue left behind is a haunting letter addressed to My Dearest found among her possessions. Meanwhile, in a small Michigan harbor town, a mysterious woman appears in a coffee shop where 18-year-old Alex Gallo works. Alex’s attraction to this charming and beautiful lady is immediate, and understandably so, but he has no idea how much this seemingly innocent crush will spiral completely out of control. This one is twisty and turny as I have come to expect from Mary! Interested in reading the book and sharing your feedback on it? Then be sure to fill out this form by Thursday, May 12th at noon ET, and you may be one of the 25 lucky readers who will receive a copy.

THE RAINBOW COMES AND GOES: A Mother and Son on Life, Love, and Loss offers a rare window into the precious relationship between mother and son. Although Anderson Cooper has always considered himself close to his mother, Gloria Vanderbilt, his busy career as a journalist affords him little time to spend with her. When she suffers a brief but serious illness at the age of 91, the two resolve to change their relationship by beginning a year-long correspondence of surprising honesty and depth in which they discuss their lives, the things that matter to them, and what they still want to learn about each other.

Reviewer Bronwyn Miller has this to say in her review: "This remarkable little tome is not just for parents and adult children. It’s for anyone who loves someone but wonders how to broach difficult subjects." As I said in last week’s newsletter, I listened to the audiobook and strongly recommend it.

Also, for those of you who would like to know more about Anderson and Gloria, CNN will be airing "Nothing Left Unsaid" at 9pm ET tonight; it’s the documentary that I referenced a few weeks ago that aired on HBO. Check their schedule to see if there will be additional broadcasts.

In 2006, Charles J. Shields published his first biography for adults, and it was a big one: MOCKINGBIRD: A Portrait of Harper Lee. Now, exactly 10 years later, Shields finishes the story of Harper Lee’s life in MOCKINGBIRD: A Portrait of Harper Lee: From Scout to Go Set a Watchman. He has made revisions throughout the book, which has been reframed from the perspective of last year’s publication of GO SET A WATCHMAN (which will be available in paperback on May 3rd) and added a new epilogue.

Bronwyn Miller, who reviewed the 2006 book for us, also has our review of the updated version and says, "Given the limits of information and access, Shields does an admirable job of illuminating a writer who shunned the limelight."

Our new Paperback Spotlight features Jodi Thomas’ latest romance, LONE HEART PASS, which released this week. In this third Ransom Canyon novel, Jubilee Hamilton moves to the run-down Texas farm she’s inherited for a fresh start after a ruined career and relationship. Jubilee hires Charley Collins, an abrasive yet deeply attractive foreman. The two grow increasingly close, but when Charley gets mixed up in a murder investigation, his only protection is the shelter of a man and woman who --- just like him --- needs someone to trust.

There’s still time to enter this year’s Mother’s Day contest. We have nine books and some delightful treats to give away that are perfect for moms. All you have to do is fill out this form by Monday, May 9th at noon ET, and you may win one of our five prize packages.

Monday, May 2nd marks the return of our Mother’s Day Author Blogs! For a seventh year, we’ll be sharing pieces from authors who talk about how their moms influenced them to become readers and writers, along with their own experiences as mothers and their views on motherhood. This year’s contributors include Elizabeth J. Church, Martha Hall Kelly, Viola Shipman, the aforementioned Helen Simonson and Beatriz Williams.

As promised, we’ve posted the winners of our last two Spring Preview contests (for DESIGN FOR DYING and HEX) on the site; you can see them here.

We’ve updated our Young Adult Books You Want to Read feature, reviews we’ve posted on Teenreads.com that we think will appeal to our adult readers. This month’s titles are YOU GOT THIS!: Unleash Your Awesomeness, Find Your Path, and Change Your World by Maya S. Penn (this girl is very inspiring), GIRL IN THE BLUE COAT by Monica Hesse (I loved this book!) and GOLDEN BOYS by Sonya Hartnett.

Do you tend to read more during the week or on the weekend? Take our new poll and let us know! In our previous poll, we asked if you remove the dust jacket (the detachable outer cover) when you read a hardcover book. 45% of you do this all or some of the time, while 40% of you never do. 14% usually read library books (so you can’t remove the cover even if you wanted to), while just 2% don’t read hardcovers.

Our new Word of Mouth contest is up and running! Let us know by Friday, May 13th at noon ET what books you’ve finished reading for your chance to win EVERYONE BRAVE IS FORGIVEN by Chris Cleave and REDEMPTION ROAD by John Hart, both of which we’ll be reviewing next week.

Time is running out to enter this month’s Sounding Off on Audio contest, which ends on Monday, May 2nd at noon ET. Let us know the audiobooks you’ve finished listening to, and you’ll be in the running to win the audio versions of Mary Higgins Clark’s AS TIME GOES BY, read by Jan Maxwell, and Kathleen Grissom’s GLORY OVER EVERYTHING: Beyond The Kitchen House, read by Santino Fontana, with Kyle Beltran, Madeleine Maby and Heather Alicia Simms.

Speaking of audiobooks, we’d like to share with you an excerpt from the audio version of FAR AND AWAY: Reporting from the Brink of Change: Seven Continents, Twenty-Five Years, which released last week, as well as a video of author Andrew Solomon talking about the book. FAR AND AWAY collects Solomon's writings about places undergoing seismic shifts --- political, cultural and spiritual --- as he demonstrates both how history is altered by individuals and how personal identities are altered when governments alter.

This Saturday is Independent Bookstore Day, a celebration of community bookstores that provide readers with homey places to read, unwind and talk about their favorite books. Shopping indie --- not only a cool potential band name --- is a great way to help your local booksellers continue to serve you while boosting your town's morale and providing people, especially teens, with a great place to learn about books. Need more convincing? Click here to see some of the great events taking place nationwide in celebration of Independent Bookstore Day and see how you can get involved.

Mystery Writers of America has announced the winners of this year’s Edgar Awards, honoring the best in mystery fiction, nonfiction and television. Click here for all the winners and finalists.

News and Pop Culture:

Reader Mail: Helen wrote, “Just finished THE STEEL KISS, one of the prizes in your Word of Mouth contest. I don't read many thrillers/crime stories, but this is a fine one. Plot, characters, premise --- all very convincing and with enough twists and quirks to keep me turning the pages and enjoying the way the author worked out this rather complicated situation. I would definitely recommend it! Thank you.”

Carol from Wisconsin said, “Thank you, thank you, thank you for the three lovely books I won in April. Have not read them yet, but am looking forward to it with great anticipation and hope to present them to my book club.”

Change at the top at Barnes & Noble: Len Riggio, the founder of Barnes & Noble, is retiring in September --- the end of an era.

Jason Bourne: See the official trailer for the movie, in theaters July 29th, here.

Paul Simon: Singing after being interviewed by his niece, Emma, at Yale.

Church of Scientology on "20/20": Ron Miscavige sits down with "20/20" tonight to discuss RUTHLESS, the only book to examine the origins of Scientology's current leader and his son, David Miscavige.

Judy Blume Weighs in on Bookselling in Key West: Click here for her thoughts.

"Game of Thrones": I confess to being lost as I watch this show. Seriously lost. I watch every week, and then my husband patiently describes everything that went over my head. He does have thoughts on the fate of Jon Snow; he has not given up on him yet! He also thinks that if I did not multitask, answering and composing email while I watch, I would be able to follow along. Touché on that!

This weekend, Tom is away on a four-day golf trip (I must remember to DVR "Game of Thrones"), so I am going to use the quiet time to work on details for the four programs that I am doing at BookExpo America. I am finishing up the last book that I am reading for interviews. And then I can turn to the growing stack of upcoming books I am salivating to get to.

Last week, we were cleaning the garage and making progress when Greg got a delivery of some vintage items of ship lore from the family of one of the members of the World Ship Society who had passed away. Suddenly, one-quarter of the middle bay of the garage was filled again! He has friends coming by to review these treasures this weekend with an eye on them leaving our house.

Cory and his frat brothers had a very tough week as one of their fraternity brothers died Sunday from a stroke that he suffered the previous Thursday. He was just 23. I thought that strokes were something that only happened to older people, but my research notes that even the young can die in this way, and, in fact, it’s something on the rise.

It’s a lot for them all to process and handle. They have been doing some really wonderful things to honor him, including planning and executing fundraisers to help the families defray their medical expenses. But the week definitely has had a pall over it, and reminded me to live each day to its fullest and to embrace the things you love. You do the same.

Read on, and have a great week...

Carol Fitzgerald (Carol@bookreporter.com)

P.S. For those of you who are doing online shopping, if you use the store links below, Bookreporter.com gets a small affiliate fee on your purchases. We would appreciate your considering this!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Indiebound

• THE ALASKAN LAUNDRY by Brendan Jones
• APPROVAL JUNKIE: Adventures in Caring Too Much by Faith Salie
• BETTER TOGETHER: Because You're Not Meant to Mom Alone by Jill Savage with Anne McClane
• GIRL WAITS WITH GUN by Amy Stewart
• IT TAKES ONE: An Audrey Harte Novel by Kate Kessler
• LILAC GIRLS by Martha Hall Kelly
• RELIANCE, ILLINOIS by Mary Volmer
• A SPOOL OF BLUE THREAD by Anne Tyler
• THE TURNER HOUSE by Angela Flournoy

• During the week
• Over the weekend
• I read equally as much during the week as I do over the weekend.