This Week In Books
May 4, 2023 Edition
Is a beloved children’s classic really the tale of an overbearing mother? Are adult readers dumbing themselves down with YA books? Did Mama Cass really choke on a ham sandwich? Is a good man hard to find? All these questions–and more– answered in this edition of the TWIB!
Turns Out PEN Isn’t Mightier: PEN America canceled their 2024 awards ceremony due to numerous authors withdrawing their books from consideration. We are sad to note that since last week’s update, they have also canceled their World Voices Festival. Suzzanne Nossell, PEN’s president, had this to say after the announcement: "The perspective that engaging with those who hold a different point of view constitutes an impermissible act of legitimization negates the very possibility of dialogue. It also betrays the essence of PEN’s charter and mission to dispel hatreds and engage writers and literature as a catalyst for empathy and a bridge toward common ground.” Whether it was because of a lack of participating authors or for the safety of those who remained, the result is the same: an event that was meant to be a safe space for all voices, regardless of viewpoint, is shuttered. There’s nothing funny about this situation. The literary world suffers when we stifle dissent, whether through book bans or cancelation of events. No one wins here. Literally.
Love You Forever…but In A Creepy Way?: The 1986 children’s novel Love You Forever is making a splash on social media this week as a mom blogger in New York took to her keyboard mocking the beloved children’s book. In it, she claims the mother who rocks her baby to sleep at night takes on a creepy vibe as she later rocks her teenage son, and even later breaks into her grown adult son’s house to rock him while he sleeps. Of course, many have defended the beloved classic tale saying it, like all children’s books, should not be taken literally. In no small part because the intent of the story is to show how hard it is to let our babies go…and also how they must let us go when our time comes. I’ll split the difference and argue that grandbabies are the solution.
A Good Man Is Hard To Find: Open Culture posted a rare recording of Flannery O’Conner reading her famous short story A Good Man Is Hard To Find. It’s as good a time as any to remind you that “Wildcat,” the Flannery O’Conner movie made by Maya and Ethan Hawke, is set to release:
Move Over Silent Book Clubs: A coffee shop in England opens its doors at 5am on the first Wednesday of every month for an exclusive clientele: writers. For four hours, once a month, writers can come and work in silence with coffee and snacks. Sounds like heaven. Any bookstores near me want to follow suit?
Book Thieves Are Pushkin the Boundaries: There has been an alarming uptick of rare book thefts from libraries around Europe. Specifically books by Russian author and poet, Alexander Pushkin. Pushkin is a national hero for Russians, a veritable Russian Shakespeare. The pattern is always the same. Thieves will disguise themselves as researchers and spend days studying the rare 19th century books. It isn’t until later that librarians find that the tomes have been stolen and replaced with high quality fakes. What at first seemed like isolated events are now viewed to be a vast coordinated effort to return the literary treasures to their homeland–by theft and subterfuge. Enforcement agencies across Europe are on the case to catch the thieves. But the books are likely never to be recovered, along with millions of dollars in losses.
Shardlake: Author CJ Sansom died a few days before the Disney+ adaptation of his novels was released. His bestselling Shardlake series follows the intrigue of disabled lawyer Matthew Shardlake in Tudor England. We are sorry to hear of his passing but pleased that his work will live on in the stories he told. And that we get to enjoy them in a new way. Here is actor Arthur Hughes talking about the importances of disabled actors playing the part of disabled characters:
A Book Nerd’s Paradise For Sale: A 30 room former youth hostel in England, filled to the brim with over 120,000 books, is for sale. For a mere 1.5 million pounds you could be the owner of the property which also includes a two bedroom caretaker’s cottage and garden. Imagine owning the best BB&B (book bed and breakfast) possible! Who knows what hidden treasures could be found in that library. Never mind, I want this estate. How much cash are you willing to lend me?
Easy Readers: Harper Collins commissioned a report with Nielson in the UK that shows a huge number of adults are reading YA books, with 28% being over the age of 28. With a sensational headline of “More than a quarter of readers of YA are over the age of 28,” the author questions whether adults are seeking the comfort of YA because reading stories designed for a younger audience is easier. This seems like an unfair assumption. How about a good book is a good book no matter its intended audience? Or, as C.S. Lewis, our patron saint of children’s books once said: “When I was ten, I read fairy tales in secret and would have been ashamed if I had been found doing so. Now that I am fifty, I read them openly. When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up.”
The Ham Sandwich Was A Lie: Owen Elliot-Kugel the daughter of Cass Elliot, the famous singer from The Mamas and The Papas, has written a memoir about her mother: My Mama, Cass. Turns out, Mama Cass did not die from choking on a ham sandwich–fat shaming was a convenient way to protect her legacy from the rumors of a drug overdose. We are so interested to get a more in-depth look into the life of this renowned folk-rock vocalist.
Real Americans Is Everywhere: Rachel Khong’s new novel Real Americans released this week to much fanfare. Receiving glowing coverage in The New York Times, Time Magazine, NPR, LitHub and Washington Post, the book is also a Read With Jenna & Barnes & Noble Book Club pick. Most authors would be delighted with one of those nods but this book got it all. And we couldn’t be happier for her! There are few things we love to see more than a novel sweeping the trades. It’s clear that Real Americans has set publishing’s heart aflutter but what we really want to know is whether that kind of buzz works on readers. Are you following the reviews? Or do you want a recommendation from a friend? What convinces you to “add to cart?”
The Man Who Pays The Rent: Judi Dench has co-written a book, Shakespeare: The Man Who Pays The Rent, about how she built her career around Shakespeare. Dench has played every single female role written by the playwright during her long and illustrious career. She is so familiar with the bard’s work that she has affectionately nicknamed him “the man who pays the rent”. Here she is on CBS Sunday morning talking about it all:
Deep Dive: See below for all the extra deep cuts of this week’s book news.
Paul Aster honored by other writers after his death this week at age 77.
YA author Ranson Riggs announces new fantasy book series.
The Hunting Wives movie adaptation.
Remembering Tom Wolfe author of The Right Stuff and A Man In Full.
Colleen Hoovers Verity to be adapted to film
And Colleen Hoover loves Blake Lively in It Ends With Us.
Organizations stepping in to fill the void left by SPD’s sudden closure, presses still in the lurch.
Turtles All The Way Down adaption released this week, here is John Green’s interview with Terry Gross in 2017 about his own battle with OCD.
Author TJ Newman causes a commotion by jumping publishing houses.
Catch Up with Ariel over at
where you can read one of her short stories.See what Marybeth is up to at
.
Another great edition of This Week in Books - thank you! I particularly enjoyed reading about the theft of the Pushkin (and other Russian authors) books from libraries around Europe. I could easily see a literary mystery being written about these thefts. I would read it! Regarding the children’s book Love You Forever, this book holds a special place in my heart. In the late 80s, I was a divorced Mom with a small son. I was also the manager of a bookstore at the time. I can’t tell you how many copies of Love You Forever that I sold! There has always been a copy of this book on our bookshelf at home. Growing up, my son knew how much the book meant to me as a Mom. So, right before he married, he gave me a new copy of the book which he inscribed with a very heartfelt message for me. Now that I’m in my 70s and my son is in his 40s, the book’s message has come full circle for us. If someone finds the book “creepy” that’s their prerogative. But the bond between the mother and son depicted in the book still resonates for me today.