News - Book Reviews

News - Book Reviews

VERONA COMICS by Jennifer Dugan
January 31, 2020

VERONA COMICS by Jennifer Dugan has been hailed by Kirkus as “breathlessly sweet.” The site also commends the book for “featuring a racially diverse cast of mainly queer characters” and calls it “a winning choice.” The novel is about two teens whose innocent meet-cute at a comic convention grows more complicated as a feud between their parents, who own rival comic stores, threatens to pull them apart. G. P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers will publish the book on April 21, 2020.

YES NO MAYBE SO by Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed
January 31, 2020

Shelf Awareness describes YES NO MAYBE SO by Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed, a realistic YA contemporary about two teens who spend their summer knocking on doors for a local political campaign and experiencing the voting public firsthand, as "a powerful response to the 'bigotry and hateful rhetoric' that came after the 2016 presidential election." Balzer + Bray will publish the book on February 4, 2020.

THE LOST BOOK OF ADANA MOREAU by Michael Zapata
January 31, 2020

Michael Zapata's debut novel THE LOST BOOK OF ADANA MOREAU has garnered three starred reviews from Book Page, Booklist, and Library Journal, which praise it as "a thrillingly mysterious storyline with a beautiful payoff," "a lush, spellbinding tale," and "a heady literary and genre-bending novel for fans of Jorge Luis Borges, Carlos Fuentes, and Adolfo Bioy Caseres." The novel has also been compared to the works of Gabriel García Márquez and Jesmyn Ward. It was additionally named a most anticipated book of 2020 by The Boston Globe, The Millions, and Columbia Journal. Hanover Square Press will publish the book on February 4, 2020.

THE EXHIBITION OF PERSEPHONE Q by Jessi Jezewska Stevens
January 31, 2020

Jessi Jezewska Stevens's debut novel THE EXHIBITION OF PERSEPHONE Q has received glowing reviews from Booklist, Bookforum, Publisher’s Weekly, and Kirkus. Booklist calls Percy a “quirky and vivid narrator” and says that “the book’s poetic language and realistically absurd characters will keep readers intrigued until the final page." Additionally, Bookforum’s Justin Taylor writes: “Jessi Jezewska Stevens is a promising, persuasive new writer, and I will be surprised if this doesn’t turn out to be one of the strongest debut novels of 2020." The novel has also been named a most anticipated book of 2020 by The Wall Street Journal, Vogue, and Literary Hub. Farrar, Straus and Giroux will publish the book on March 3, 2020.

PROVIDENCE by Max Barry
January 27, 2020

Max Barry’s Providence received a starred review by Publisher’s Weekly, who call it a “terrific sci-fi thriller.” G.P. Putnam’s Sons will publish the hardcover on March 31, 2020.

THE PRETTIEST STAR by Carter Sickels
January 22, 2020

Kirkus gave THE PRETTIEST STAR by Carter Sickels a starred review, effusively writing: “Sickels' characters are painfully flawed and wholly, believably human in their failings. This unflinching honesty, conveyed in finely crafted prose, makes for a memorable and unsettling novel. Powerfully affecting and disturbing.” Hub City Press will publish the book on April 14, 2020.

FIGURE IT OUT by Wayne Koestenbaum
January 13, 2020

Publishers Weekly reviewed FIGURE IT OUT, describing it as an “inventive collection” where “themes of sexuality and gender are pervasive, typically in eye-catching declarations.” Soft Skull will publish the book on May 5, 2020.

January 13, 2020

In a strong review of THE PRETTIEST STAR, Publishers Weekly calls the book “a heartfelt novel” and writes: “Sickels is at his best in his characters’ most painful moments . . . This tragic story of AIDS and violent homophobia stands out by showing the transcendent power of queer communities to make their voices endure through art." Hub City Press will publish the book on April 14, 2020.

THE PLAIN JANES by Cecil Castelluccii and Jim Rugg
January 13, 2020

THE PLAIN JANES received a positive review from NPR Books which called it, “one of those great teen books that transcends its category.” Little Brown Books for Young Readers published the book on January 7, 2020.

FIND ME by André Aciman
December 20, 2019

FIND ME, the sequel to André Aciman’s 2007 bestseller CALL ME BY YOUR NAME, received a positive review from the New York Times Book Review which says, “It is a lyrical meditation on being forced to move to another location after the party’s over, on the Sisyphean task of trying to replicate the magic of young passion.” Farrar, Straus and Giroux published the book on October 29, 2019.