My book mail in April has excited me to hit the beach and park this summer and do a lot of outside reading. I am happy to say it was a mix of fiction and nonfiction with quite a few upcoming titles.
Physical Books
Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld
A comedy writer thinks she’s sworn off love, until a dreamy pop star flips the script on all her assumptions—a hilarious, observant, and deeply tender novel from the New York Times bestselling author of Eligible, Rodham, and Prep.
Publication Date: April 4, 2023
I received a gifted copy from the publisher, Random House.
On the Line: Two Women’s Epic Fight to Build a Union by Daisy Pitkin
Synopsis: On the Line takes readers inside a bold five-year campaign led by Daisy Pitkin and Alma Gomez Garcia to bring a union to the dangerous industrial laundry factories of Phoenix, Arizona.
Publication Date: April 4, 2023 (paperback)
I received a gifted copy from the publisher, Algonquin Books.
Small Joys by Elvin James Mensah
Synopsis: An unexpected friendship saves a young man’s life in this moving, utterly charming debut about chosen family, the winding road to happiness, and the grace of second chances.
Publication Date: April 11, 2023
I received a gifted copy from the publisher, Ballantine Books.
Fat Talk: Parenting in the Age of Diet Culture by Virginia Sole-Smith
Synopsis: By the time they reach kindergarten, most kids believe that “fat” is bad. By middle school, more than a quarter of them have gone on a diet. What are parents supposed to do?
Publication Date: April 25, 2023
I received a gifted copy from the publisher, Henry Holt & Co.
Pathogenesis: A History of the World in Eight Plagues by Jonathan Kennedy
Synopsis: A sweeping look at how the major transformations in history—from the rise of Homo sapiens to the birth of capitalism—have been shaped not by humans but by germs.
Publication Date: April 18, 2023
I received a gifted copy from the publisher, Crown Publishing.
Twelve Hours in Manhattan by Maan Gabriel
Synopsis: Bianca Maria Curtis is at the brink of losing it all when she meets Eric at a bar in Manhattan. Eric, as it turns out, is the famous Korean drama celebrity Park Hyun Min, and he’s in town for one night to escape the pressures of fame. Sparks fly as Bianca and Eric spend 12 magical hours far away from their respective lives.
Publication Date: April 18, 2023
I received a gifted copy from Booksparks.
I Am My Country: And Other Stories by Kenan Orhan
Synopsis: A fiercely imaginative debut story collection by “a startling talent who can seemingly do anything” (Anthony Marra) explores the lives of ordinary people in Turkey to reveal how even individual acts of resistance have extraordinary repercussions.
Publication Date: April 25, 2023
I received a gifted copy from the publisher, Random House.
Project 562: Changing the Way We See Native America by Matika Wilbur
Synopsis: A photographic and narrative celebration of contemporary Native American life and cultures, alongside an in-depth examination of issues that Native people face, by celebrated photographer and storyteller Matika Wilbur of the Swinomish and Tulalip Tribes.
Publication Date: April 25, 2023
I received a gifted copy from the publisher, Ten Speed Press.
The Lioness by Chris Bohjalian
Synopsis: A luxurious African safari turns deadly for a Hollywood starlet and her entourage in this riveting historical thriller from the New York Times bestselling author of The Flight Attendant.
Publication Date: May 10, 2023 (paperback)
I received a gifted copy from the publisher, Doubleday.
Who’s Your Founding Father?: One Man’s Epic Quest to Uncover the First, True Declaration of Independence by David Fleming
Synopsis: A centuries-old secret document might unravel the origin story of America and reveal the intellectual crime of the millennia in this epic dive into our country’s history to discover the first, true Declaration of Independence.
Publication Date: May 16, 2023
I received a gifted copy from the publisher, Hachette Books.
Rogue Justice by Stacey Abrams
Synopsis: The #1 New York Times bestselling author of While Justice Sleeps returns with another riveting and intricately plotted thriller, in which a blackmailed federal judge, a secret court and a brazen murder may lead to an unprecedented national crisis.
Publication Date: May 23, 2023
I received an advance reader’s copy from the publisher, Doubleday Books.
In the Blood: How Two Outsiders Solved a Centuries-Old Medical Mystery and Took on the U.S. Army by Charles Barber
Synopsis: The “high-stakes” true story of how an absent-minded inventor and a down-on-his-luck salesman joined forces to create a once‑in‑a‑generation lifesaving product.
Publication Date: May 30, 2023
I received a gifted copy from the publisher, Grand Central Publishing.
Sleeping with the Ancestors: How I Followed the Footprints of Slavery by Joseph McGill Jr. & Herb Frazier
Synopsis: In this enlightening personal account, one man tells the story of his groundbreaking project to sleep overnight in former slave dwellings that still stand across the country—revealing the fascinating history behind these sites and shedding light on larger issues of race in America.
Publication Date: June 6, 2023
I received an advance reader’s copy from the publisher, Hachette Books.
Do Tell by Lindsay Lynch
Synopsis: As character actress Edie O’Dare finishes the final year of her contract with FWM Studios, the clock is ticking for her to find a new gig after an undistinguished stint in the pictures. She’s long supplemented her income moonlighting for Hollywood’s reigning gossip columnist, providing her with the salacious details of every party and premiere. When an up-and-coming starlet hands her a letter alleging an assault from an A-list actor at a party with Edie and the rest of the industry’s biggest names in attendance, Edie helps get the story into print and sets off a chain of events that will alter the trajectories of everyone involved.
Publication Date: July 11, 2023
I received an advance reader’s copy from the publisher, Doubleday Books.
Book of Queens: The True Story of the Middle Eastern Horsewomen Who Fought the War on Terror by Pardis Mahdavi
Synopsis: The untold story of generations of Middle Eastern freedom fighters—horsewomen who safeguarded an ancient breed of Caspian horse—and their efforts to defend their homelands from the Taliban and others seeking to destroy them.
Publication Date: August 22, 2023
I received an advance reader’s copy from the publisher, Hachette Books.
The Stockwell Letters by Jacqueline Friedland
Synopsis: A gripping work of fiction based on the true story of female abolitionist Ann Phillips and her connection to Anthony Burns, a young man who briefly escaped American slavery and rocked the nation with his astoundingly heroic story.
Publication Date: August 29, 2023
I received an advance reader’s copy from the publisher, SparkPress.
NetGalley Approvals
Our Migrant Souls: A Meditation on Race and the Meanings and Myths of “Latino” by Héctor Tobar
Synopsis: A new book by the Pulitzer Prize–winning writer about the twenty-first-century Latino experience and identity. Investigating topics that include the US-Mexico border “wall,” Frida Kahlo, urban segregation, gangs, queer Latino utopias, and the emergence of the cartel genre in TV and film, Tobar journeys across the country to expose something truer about the meaning of “Latino” in the twenty-first century.
Publication Date: May 9, 2023
I received an audio galley from the publisher, Macmillan Audio.
The Rachel Incident by Caroline O’Donoghue
Synopsis: A brilliantly funny novel about friends, lovers, Ireland in chaos, and a young woman desperately trying to manage all three.
Publication Date: June 27, 2023
I received an e-galley from the publisher, Knopf Publishing.
Goodbye Earl by Leesa Cross-Smith
Synopsis: Four women take fate into their own hands in this big-hearted story of friendship, resilience, and revenge on monstrous men, from the award-winning author of Half-Blown Rose.
Publication Date: July 3, 2023
I received an e-galley from the publisher, Grand Central Publishing.
Gone Tonight by Sarah Pekkanen
Synopsis: Catherine Sterling thinks she knows her mother. Ruth Sterling is quiet, hardworking, and lives for her daughter. All her life, it’s been just the two of them. But now, Catherine is ready to spread her wings, move from home, and begin a new career. And Ruth Sterling will do anything to prevent that from happening.
Ruth Sterling thinks she knows her daughter. Catherine would never rebel, would never question anything about her mother’s past. But when Ruth’s desperate quest to keep her daughter by her side begins to reveal cracks in Ruth’s carefully-constructed world, both mother and daughter begin a dance of deception.
Publication Date: August 1, 2023
I received an e-galley from the publisher, St. Martin’s Press.
The Traitor by Ava Glass
Synopsis: British spy Emma Makepeace goes undercover on a Russian oligarch’s superyacht, where she’s one wrong move away from a watery grave, in this electrifying thriller from the author of Alias Emma.
Publication Date: September 19, 2023
I received an e-galley from the publisher, Bantam.
Read Between the Spines 