Over the last few weeks, we have been talking about giving books as gifts throughout the year. When I spoke at an in-person event recently, I suggested as an example that people who use the library to read books should consider giving books as presents, and there were a lot of nodding heads acknowledging this as a good idea. I am going to take this one step further. Buy the books you love and give them as gifts, and do not wait until the holidays at the end of the year to do this.

In this newsletter, you will find books releasing the weeks of March 30th and April 6th that we think will be of interest to Bookreporter.com readers, along with Bonus News, where we call out a contest, feature or review that we want to let you know about so you have it on your radar.

This week, we are calling attention to our review of DAUGHTER OF EGYPT by Marie Benedict, a sweeping tale of a young woman who unearths the truth about a forgotten pharaoh --- rewriting both of their legacies forever. According to our reviewer Rebecca Munro, “Once again, [Benedict] cements her role as the best of the best in the canon of literature about ignored female icons.”

This Bookreporter.com Special Newsletter spotlights a book that we know people will be talking about this spring. Read more about it, and enter our Spring Reading Contest by Wednesday, April 1st at noon ET for a chance to win one of five copies of THE UNRAVELING OF JULIA by #1 bestselling author Lisa Scottoline, a Bookreporter.com Bets On pick that is now available in paperback. Please note that each contest is only open for 24 hours, so you will need to act quickly!

Typically, for our book group discussions, we toss out ideas about what to read next. And in the last five minutes of the meeting, we nail down a pick. This month, we made a quick selection at the end of the night, choosing a book that someone thought looked interesting and none of us had read before. We have a group text chat, and from what I am seeing, I am not sure if anyone is going to finish the book. We do not require someone to read the book to come to the meeting. There is a lot of bookish conversation even if the assigned book has not been finished or enjoyed.