May 8, 2020
 May 8, 2020Quick Links to Features on Bookreporter.com Reviews | Features | Bookreporter.com Bets On | Upcoming Bets On   We have three new "Bookreporter Talks To" interviews to share with you.  Emma Straub chatted with Carol about her new novel, ALL ADULTS HERE,  Carol had a wonderful conversation with Francesca Serritella, whose debut novel,  ASK AGAIN, YES is now available in paperback, so we thought it would be fun to revisit  Carol talks about this week's Bookreporter update, along with the prize books in our Celebrating Mom! This is a BIG week in publishing, as there are a lot of books out this week that I am excited about. I have had a great time interviewing four of the authors who we are featuring this week, and I am scheduled to speak with another in two weeks. I hope you are enjoying these interviews as much as I am enjoying doing them. Our podcast numbers have been way up, and what’s interesting is that readers are enjoying the older podcasts, as well as the new ones. It’s as if when people discover them, they scroll and listen to earlier interviews, too. Every single older title already has listens in May. I love this! Summer Reading! It’s here. And we all are ready for it. Seriously, just seeing the books we have for you this week made me smile and think "sand" and "getting away." Last week, I interviewed Mary Kay Andrews (also known around the Bookreporter office as MKA) about her new beach read, HELLO, SUMMER, which is set in a Florida beach town. The protagonist is a journalist working at her family’s small-town newspaper. Before writing fiction, Mary Kay wrote for the Atlanta Journal Constitution, so her thoughts on newspapers and newspaper writing are grounded in her own experiences. In our interview, she reflected on what’s happening to journalism today, especially in small towns, and explained her decision to incorporate a mystery into the book. She also talked about what she misses by not being on book tour this year and the isolation of writing. Click here to watch the interview and here to listen to the podcast. Our reviewer Alison Lee calls HELLO, SUMMER "everything you’ve ever wanted in a fun beach read, with a perfect touch of Southern charm. There is drama, romance, politics, family, mystery and an underdog fight. Though fast-paced, you will waste no time getting attached to these lovable characters." This will be a Bookreporter.com Bets On pick; you can read my commentary in next week's newsletter. Staying on the theme of summer, another of this week’s big releases is Jennifer Weiner’s latest novel, BIG SUMMER. I enjoyed it so much that it, too, will be a Bets On selection. Daphne Berg is shocked when her former friend, Drue Cavanaugh, asks if she will be her maid of honor at the society wedding of the summer. Letting Drue back into her life after six years of not talking to each other is risky, but the opportunity to spend the weekend in a waterfront Cape Cod mansion and meet cute single guys is too tempting an offer to pass up. Pamela Kramer has our review and says, “For those of us at home during this pandemic, BIG SUMMER is the epitome of a beach read. Weiner manages to pack all the sounds, smells and tastes of the beach into her story…. But best of all, we love reading about friendship and family. Weiner knows how to make us consider what real friendship is all about and what is important in life.” I will be posting my interview with Jen (which was so much fun; she was in her walk-in closet as we taped it!) on Monday, and my Bets On commentary will run in next week’s newsletter. I also enjoyed talking to Emma Straub about her new novel, ALL ADULTS HERE, where she shared how she worked on balancing the book to be simultaneously heartfelt, witty and relatable. In it, the matriarch of the family has a life-changing aha moment. Suddenly, she sees what she perceives as her past parenting mistakes reeling before her. This as she watches her adult children go through the same moments of parenting with her grandchildren --- and the youngest members of the family may be the ones to put everything in perspective. The book is sharp and fun, and Emma so connects us to the story. We also talked about early motherhood and how those challenges have changed over time. I found myself quoting so many great passages from her book. Click here to watch the interview and here to listen to the podcast. I am not alone in loving it. Jenna Bush Hager selected it as her "Read with Jenna" Today Show Book Club pick for May, and it is this month's Barnes & Noble Book Club selection. It also will be a Bets On pick next week. On Tuesday, June 2nd at 7pm ET, B&N will host a Facebook Live discussion with Emma, who will talk about the book with bestselling author Elizabeth Gilbert. This should be a very entertaining conversation! Also, it was just announced yesterday that MWM Studios is in development on a new untitled series based on ALL ADULTS HERE. Emma and “Girls” writer-producer Sarah Heyward are set to co-executive produce and co-write the series. Rebecca Munro has our review and says, "Combining her signature wit and wisdom with a cast of deeply human characters, this is Straub at her finest, with her sharp eye set firmly on the trials and tribulations of adulthood at any age.... ALL ADULTS HERE is sure to be a hit with Straub's fans and newcomers alike. No author grasps the true meaning of family better than Straub, who is as unflinching as she is compassionate in her renderings of a family as complex and layered as the Stricks." Francesca Serritella’s debut novel is out this week, GHOSTS OF HARVARD. In it, a Harvard freshman seeks to unravel the mystery of her brother's suicide on that campus the previous year. Francesca and I had a wonderful conversation about her own years at Harvard, her research into mental illness and its effect on families, and the ways in which she used mystery and positive emotional moments to engage readers. We also delved into her career as a columnist, as she co-authored a nine-book series of essay collections with her mother, bestselling author Lisa Scottoline, and co-writes a Sunday column entitled “Chick Wit” in The Philadelphia Inquirer. Click here to watch the interview and here to listen to the podcast. Our reviewer Kate Ayers raves, “GHOSTS OF HARVARD is a stunning debut, an intellectually crafted mystery that addresses suicide and its effect on the 'survivors.' This story also takes readers around the stately Harvard campus, one that predates our country, and shows off some of its history --- in truth, a little shocking at points. Francesca Serritella...spent a decade writing this book, the result being a thoroughly enjoyable read and a unique cross-genre experience not to be missed.” I concur with everything that Kate says, which is why it will be a Bets On pick. We will have my commentary next week! Alex George follows up his first two books, A GOOD AMERICAN and SETTING FREE THE KITES, with his much-talked-about third work of fiction, THE PARIS HOURS, which is told over the course of a single day in 1927. The publisher describes the book like this: “Paris between the wars teems with artists, writers and musicians, a glittering crucible of genius. But amidst the dazzling creativity of the city’s most famous citizens, four regular people are each searching for something they’ve lost.” According to our reviewer Cindy Burnett, "THE PARIS HOURS draws readers in and won’t let go until the very end. It is a one-sit read with memorable characters and a glittering setting that will remain with everyone who experiences it for a long time to come." I'm looking forward to reading this book in anticipation of my interview with Alex in a couple of weeks! It’s one of those books that has been on my nightstand, but has been nudged away for interview reading. Thus I scheduled an interview with Alex to be sure I read it. How smart am I? They’re baaaaack! Yes, our Summer Reading contests have returned for a 16th(!) year and will kick off on Tuesday, May 12th at noon ET. On select days through the end of August, we will host a series of 24-hour contests and on each of the contest days award five readers a book that we think is a great summer read. You will have to check the site each day to see the featured prize book and enter to win. We also will send a special newsletter to announce the day's title, along with a Summer Reading Preview newsletter on Monday. Click here to sign up for these dedicated newsletters. Our first three prize books will be the aforementioned BIG SUMMER by Jennifer Weiner, along with MY DARK VANESSA by Kate Elizabeth Russell and THE TURN OF THE KEY by Ruth Ware, a Bets On pick that releases in paperback on Tuesday. You also have a chance to win BIG SUMMER in our current Word of Mouth contest, along with the aforementioned HELLO, SUMMER. Let us know by Friday, May 15th at noon ET what books you’ve read, and you’ll be in the running to win both these “summer” reads. This is your last newsletter reminder to enter our Mother’s Day contest. Five lucky readers will win all seven of our prize books for themselves or the moms in their lives: THE BOOK OF LOST FRIENDS by Lisa Wingate, DAUGHTERS OF SMOKE AND FIRE by Ava Homa, THE ISLAND OF SEA WOMEN by Lisa See (a Bets On selection that is now in paperback), a fully revised and updated edition of JOY OF COOKING, MORE THAN LOVE: An Intimate Portrait of My Mother, Natalie Wood by Natasha Gregson Wagner (which we review this week), SIMON THE FIDDLER by Paulette Jiles (which we will review next week), and THE SWEENEY SISTERS by Lian Dolan. Be sure to submit your entries by this Monday, May 11th at noon ET. To celebrate this very special day for moms, may we suggest you take a look at our Mother’s Day Author Blog series? Six authors --- Marjan Kamali, Dete Meserve, Megan Miranda, Kelly Rimmer, Stephanie Scott and the aforementioned Francesca Serritella --- contributed lovely and heartwarming pieces about reading with their mothers and their own children, and how their mothers inspired them to become readers and writers. We are so grateful to all of this year’s contributors for sharing these wonderful memories with us! I read all of these pieces during the week, and one is better than the next. I highly recommend taking the time to enjoy them. Dete Meserve’s upcoming Kate Bradley mystery, THE GOOD STRANGER, is just one of the books we’re featuring in this month’s New in Paperback roundups. We're also featuring paperback reprints from such bestselling authors as William Kent Krueger (THIS TENDER LAND), Mary Beth Keane (ASK AGAIN, YES, which is this month’s Target Book Club pick), Sarah Blake (THE GUEST BOOK), and Shari Lapena (SOMEONE WE KNOW); nonfiction titles, including THE GHOSTS OF EDEN PARK: The Bootleg King, the Women Who Pursued Him, and the Murder That Shocked Jazz-Age America by Karen Abbott, SAVE ME THE PLUMS: My Gourmet Memoir by Ruth Reichl, and DAD’S MAYBE BOOK by Tim O’Brien; and paperback originals like THIS IS HOW I LIED by Heather Gudenkauf and TINY IMPERFECTIONS by Alli Frank and Asha Youmans. The latter is a debut novel that I read in January and loved. I feel for debut authors who are publishing during these really tough days. It’s well-written and wickedly fun, so I'm giving it a shout-out. ASK AGAIN, YES released in paperback this week, so I thought it would be fun to revisit my interview with Mary Beth Keane that I did last year. You can watch the video here and listen to the podcast here. Also, on ReadingGroupGuides.com, we are giving away 12 copies of the book to three groups in our “What’s Your Book Group Reading This Month?” contest. To enter, please fill out the form on this page by Wednesday, June 3rd at noon ET. Submit your comments about the audiobooks you’ve listened to in our Sounding Off on Audio contest, and you’ll have a chance to win the audio versions of Michael Connelly's FAIR WARNING, read by Peter Giles and Zach Villa, and Scott Turow's THE LAST TRIAL, read by John Bedford Lloyd. The deadline for your entries is Monday, June 1st at noon ET. Our poll continues to ask which of 25 books releasing this month you’re planning to read. Click here to let us know. We always love hearing about the titles you’re anticipating the most! Yes, I look at the results many times during the week. This week saw the announcement of the 104th annual Pulitzer Prizes. Among the winners were THE NICKEL BOYS by Colson Whitehead (Fiction), SONTAG: Her Life and Work by Benjamin Moser (Biography), and SWEET TASTE OF LIBERTY: A True Story of Slavery and Restitution in America, by W. Caleb McDaniel (History). This is Colson Whitehead's second Pulitzer Prize, following his win in 2017 for THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD. The only other authors who won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction twice were William Faulkner, John Updike and Booth Tarkington. Click here for the complete list of winners and nominees in the Journalism, Books, Drama and Music categories. In addition to the Barnes & Noble, “Read with Jenna” and Target picks, here are some of this month’s other recently announced book club picks:
For more May selections, including the Indie Next and LibraryReads lists, see our “Favorite Monthly Lists & Picks” feature here. News & Pop Culture Reader Mail: Joanne wrote, “As a reading addict who is going through library withdrawal, I’m turning to different forms of reading. I’ve had a Kindle since 2015, but used it mostly for times when I didn’t have room for 16 books in my suitcase or when waiting room boredom was in my future. My husband had been chiding me for reading physical books, telling me that their weight was responsible for my aching wrists. He had also introduced me to 'Libby,' the app used by our library system for borrowing e-books. So imagine my surprise when I came to realize the pleasure of pulling my dusty Kindle off the shelf (fully charged), pushing in the button on the bottom to wake her up, and realizing the joy of all the possibilities open to me. With many others in the same boat, waiting for a hold to come in is the new norm. But it’s fun to navigate my hold shelf or to click through to find out that a favorite is ready to borrow RIGHT NOW! I will always be geeked at having a physical book in my hands, but my little Kindle is helping me navigate this tough time of quarantine without having to give up one of my favorite pastimes." It takes a pandemic to find new ways to read! I LOVE hearing what our readers are doing to keep up their reading habits. Kathryn wrote with ideas for my mother’s birthday: “My daughter and friends just had a 'surprise' party for a friend. Her husband dropped drinks off at the front door, she ordered tacos to be delivered to the five friends, and they told everyone to click onto Zoom at 5pm. And sang 'Happy Birthday' to the girl. They all had funny faces on and their drinks in hand, and had their online party.” Great ideas! John Grisham: I had fun catching some interviews and talks he did this week. Here he talks about Robert Kolker’s HIDDEN VALLEY ROAD, and here he talks to Delia Owens, author of WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING. The latter was a great conversation about books and writing. "Defending Jacob" on Apple TV+: Who else is watching this series? I am enjoying it, and I read a piece about it being a huge hit for Apple TV+. Here’s the trailer for episode five, which drops today. Bad Education on HBO: I caught this film last week, and it was terrific. It’s about a corruption scheme at a high school on Long Island. And I liked it even more when I learned that it was based on a piece that Robert Kolker had written for New York magazine. You know I am a huge fan of his HIDDEN VALLEY ROAD, which was a Bets On selection. "My Brilliant Friend" on HBO: Each episode is better than the one before. I am enjoying this season even more than the first. Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind on HBO: I really enjoyed this documentary narrated by her daughter, Natasha Gregson Wagner. I forgot how many wonderful movies Natalie Wood made. I want to find Splendor in the Grass this weekend and watch it again. I think Hulu has it. The archival footage was terrific. I found the ending section where there is talk about whether or not Robert Wagner killed her as rather awkward as Natasha seems very earnest, but the overall piece was wonderful. I also have been reading chapters of the aforementioned book by Natasha, as I crave knowing more about Natalie’s life now. "Billions" on Showtime: I previewed four episodes, and it’s just so good. One episode is better than the next. And yes, they are so lying and conniving that it’s over the top. Jerry Seinfeld: I watched his comedy special, "Jerry Seinfeld: 23 Hours to Kill", this week. I found it to be slow to start, even with him jumping from the helicopter (which I thought was a stunt double until I watched the ending). But the bit where he talked about marriage and the one where he talked about golf were very, very funny. Ina Garten: She has a new cookbook called MODERN COMFORT FOOD coming in early October, and this week a first recipe was released: Emily Blunt's secret family recipe for English roasted potatoes. This recipe was so popular that it crashed Ina's website! Coronavirus cooking, anyone? Harlan Coben’s "The Woods": I just learned that this new series will be available starting Friday, June 12th on Netflix. Next week, I am interviewing Scott Turow about his new book, THE LAST TRIAL, which releases on Tuesday. I started it and am looking forward to it being my weekend reading! When the pandemic first hit, I had trouble concentrating on reading. My head was all over the place. Now, I am very much enjoying reading time on the exercise bike most mornings. I am pedaling my way through the pages. The flower seeds that I ordered arrived today, so I can get those planted. Tom and I will have our annual discussion about the fact that the planters do not require two, or even three, packages of seeds. I definitely over-seed and then get lectured about choking the plants. When I was ordering, I think I went a bit overboard on the GIANT zinnia seeds. Why do I fear that I bought enough to plant an acre? Seriously, it was late at night. I was panicking as the site said the seeds were running out. Some people order clothes that they need to return late at night. I plan to over-plant! Of course, frigid temperatures are predicted this weekend. I feel like I should be knitting little scarves for all the plants. My mohair scarf is coming along. It’s four inches now; only 66 more inches to go. I am not sure what we are doing for Mother’s Day. We typically celebrate with my mom and Tom’s mom for dinner on Saturday night, and I celebrate with Tom and the boys on Sunday. But this year means all plans are being tossed to the wind. We did have a lovely socially distant celebration with my mom for her birthday. We brought a cake and flowers. I found some deep pink peonies at Whole Foods that were incredibly stunning and had fun arranging them with some irises. Happy Mother’s Day to those who are celebrating! And I am sending special thoughts to those who are new mothers and those who are spending a first Mother's Day, or another Mother's Day, without their mother. I have a number of friends who lost their moms this year, and I am going to be jotting some notes to them. Read on, and have a great week. Carol Fitzgerald (Carol@bookreporter.com)    Featured Review: BIG SUMMER by Jennifer Weiner  BIG SUMMER by Jennifer Weiner (Fiction) - Click here to read more about the book. Click here to read our review. BIG SUMMER will be a Bookreporter.com Bets On pick. Featured Review: ALL ADULTS HERE by Emma Straub  ALL ADULTS HERE by Emma Straub (Fiction) - Click here to read more about the book. Click here to read our review. ALL ADULTS HERE will be a Bookreporter.com Bets On pick. Featured Review: HELLO, SUMMER by Mary Kay Andrews  HELLO, SUMMER by Mary Kay Andrews (Fiction) - Click here to read more about the book. Click here to read our review. HELLO, SUMMER will be a Bookreporter.com Bets On pick. Featured Review:  GHOSTS OF HARVARD by Francesca Serritella (Psychological Thriller/Mystery) - Click here to read more about the book. Click here to read our review. GHOSTS OF HARVARD will be a Bookreporter.com Bets On pick. Featured Review: THE PARIS HOURS by Alex George  THE PARIS HOURS by Alex George (Historical Fiction) - Click here to read more about the book. Click here to read our review.  Announcing Bookreporter.com's Summer will be here before you know it! At Bookreporter.com, this means it's time for us to share some great summer book picks with our Summer Reading Contests and Feature. We are hosting a series of 24-hour contests for these titles on select days through the end of August, so you will have to check the site each day to see the featured prize book and enter to win. We also are sending a special newsletter to announce the day's title, which you can sign up for here. Our first prize book will be announced on Tuesday, May 12th at noon ET. This year’s prize books include:
Click here to read all the contest details and learn more about our prize books.  Bookreporter.com's 15th Annual Mother’s Day is a time to recognize the woman who raised and nurtured us. To celebrate, we're giving you the opportunity to win books for yourself or the special lady in your life in our 15th annual "Books Mom Will Love" contest. From now through Monday, May 11th at noon ET, readers can enter to win one of our five prize packages, which includes seven great fiction and nonfiction titles we think moms will love. This year's featured titles are:
Click here to enter the contest. Bookreporter.com’s 11th Annual  Our Mother's Day Author Blogs are back for an 11th year! Once again, we are excited to be sharing pieces from authors who reminisce about reading books with their moms, or with their own children, and talk about how their moms influenced them to become readers and writers. This year's contributors are Marjan Kamali, Dete Meserve, Megan Miranda, Kelly Rimmer, Stephanie Scott and Francesca Serritella. Our sincere thanks to all six of these authors for sharing their very heartwarming stories with us. Click here to read this year's Mother's Day Author Blogs.    May’s New in Paperback Roundups May's roundup of New in Paperback fiction titles includes THIS TENDER LAND by William Kent Krueger, a magnificent novel about four orphans on a life-changing odyssey during the early years of the Great Depression that shines new light on a pivotal time in American history; Mary Beth Keane's ASK AGAIN, YES, a gorgeous and generous portrait of the daily intimacies of marriage and the power of forgiveness, as two families try to stay afloat amid a resounding tragedy; THE GUEST BOOK, in which Sarah Blake deftly examines the life and legacy of one unforgettable family as they navigate the evolving social and political landscape from Crockett’s Island, their family retreat off the coast of Maine; and SOMEONE WE KNOW, a domestic thriller from Shari Lapena that has two intriguing taglines: Maybe you don't know your neighbors as well as you thought you did and You never really know what people are capable of. Among our nonfiction highlights are Karen Abbott's THE GHOSTS OF EDEN PARK, the epic true crime story of the most successful bootlegger in American history and the murder that shocked the nation; SAVE ME THE PLUMS, trailblazing food writer and beloved restaurant critic Ruth Reichl's memoir about her groundbreaking tenure as editor in chief of Gourmet; THE PIONEERS, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian David McCullough's chronicle of the settling of the Northwest Territory by dauntless pioneers who overcame incredible hardships to build a community based on ideals that would come to define our country; and DAD'S MAYBE BOOK, in which Tim O’Brien shares wisdom from a life in letters, lessons learned in wartime, and the challenges, humor and rewards of raising two sons. Find out what's New in Paperback for the weeks of   "Bookreporter Talks To" Videos & Podcasts In late August 2019, we launched “Bookreporter Talks To,” a video and podcast series where we deliver a long-form, in-depth author interview every week. For years, I have moderated book festivals and author events around the country. But we know that readers often do not live where they can attend an author event. Our goal --- to bring these author interviews to readers, wherever they may be. Watch on video, or listen as a podcast. (The podcasts include audio excerpts.) You can find a list of all of them here. By the way, this follows a long history of The Book Report Network delivering compelling programming to readers. Back in 1997, the company hosted the first online interview with John Grisham, which started a tradition of ongoing interviews with authors. Here are our latest interviews:
Other authors we've interviewed include:
Upcoming interviews include:
Watch our "Bookreporter Talks To" interviews and listen to our podcasts.    More Reviews This WeekTHE LINCOLN CONSPIRACY: The Secret Plot to Kill America's 16th President — and Why It Failed by Brad Meltzer and Josh Mensch (History) - Click here to read an excerpt. MORE THAN LOVE: An Intimate Portrait of My Mother, Natalie Wood by Natasha Gregson Wagner (Memoir) - Click here to read an excerpt. DIRT: Adventures in Lyon as a Chef in Training, Father, and Sleuth Looking for the Secret of French Cooking by Bill Buford (Memoir) THE PALADIN: A Spy Novel by David Ignatius (Thriller) LITTLE EYES written by Samanta Schweblin, translated by Megan McDowell (Fiction) GOLF'S HOLY WAR: The Battle for the Soul of a Game in an Age of Science by Brett Cyrgalis (Sports/Technology) BOUTON: The Life of a Baseball Original by Mitchell Nathanson (Sports/Biography) THE POISON FLOOD by Jordan Farmer (Noir Mystery) THE KING'S EVIL by Andrew Taylor (Historical Thriller)   
Next Week’s Notables:
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