Friday, September 05, 2008

fall book preview! (aka "what books i have on hold at the library")

So fall book season is upon us once again, and I for one could not be more excited. I've already read several awesome books that are due out soon (thanks to ALA advance copies) that I can highly recommend, but there are also several coming that I'm eagerly awaiting. And for your book-list pleasure, here they are!

The five I've read that I totally loved (some may already be out, even!):

--Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games totally blew my mind. It's a future dystopian thing where teens battle to the death on must-watch reality tv. The heroine is totally compelling and there's even some unexpected friendship and romance. I'm already dying for the sequel to come out.

--On a slightly similar note is Terry Prachett's Nation, which I also enjoyed, and which involves a couple of teenagers trying to rebuild civilization on a destroyed island (not related to the Discworld series).

--Randa Jarrar's A Map of Home about a Muslim girl trying to find her place in the world was also a great read.

--Things go awry for a pair of headstrong newlyweds in 1920s North Carolina in Ron Rash's Serena, which was a pretty intense but great story.

--Goldengrove by Francine Prose is getting lots of deserved buzz.

And finally--the many books I'm psyched for! Lots of notable authors, mysteries, and other fun books are coming down the pike.

Marilynne Robinson and Toni Morrison both have new works coming out, both long-awaited. Julia Glass, author of Three Junes and the totally underrated 9/11 novel The Whole World Over also has a new one due.

Hannah Tinti's The Good Thief is getting TONS of buzz (I even considered actually buying it), as is The Book of Lies by Brad Meltzer, a novel which conflates the Cain and Abel story with Superman's creator. Novel about my Wife technically came out in August, but I haven't read it yet and it looks promising.

There's a couple of cool-looking mysteries coming out too--Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, a bestseller in Europe, is coming out in translation, and Chelsea Cain has written a sequel to Heartsick (which I liked), called Sweetheart.

For more fall books (including non-fiction, which I rarely read and know little about), check out USA Today's fall books calendar. (They also have a list of ten fall books that are sure to be topics of discussion.)

4 comments:

Alicia K. said...

Oh, and pick up the fall TV issue of EW for more on some of these titles--they gave Hunger Games their big review and it's a mostly postive one. Sweetheart and Home also got reviews (not great ones, alas. I'll read them anyway).

pinky pinkerson said...

this post really makes me wish I had more time to read!

Alicia K. said...

At least you have time to read my blog. :)

christinamerge said...

The Hunger Games started off so difficult to get through because of the concept even though it is so compelling. I can't wait to read the reviews, and like you, I really can't wait for the sequel!