Saturday Miscellany—7/13/24

I don’t know everything that’s going on during Self-Published Author Appreciation Week (July 21st-27th), but from what I’ve seen/heard from Witty & Sarcastic Book Club and Sue Bavey–and what I’ve got in store–you’re going to want to make some room on your TBRs, folks. Mine has already grown just in preparation.

Odds ‘n ends about books and reading that caught my eye this week. You’ve probably seen some/most/all of them, but just in case:
Where Is All the Sad Boy Literature?—”‘Sad girl lit’ is everywhere, but young men are glaringly absent from the contemporary canon of popular authors writing about sex and intimacy. Could that be about to change?”
How to pick the perfect book to read on a plane—There’s some really solid advice here (I hate flying enough that I only focus on the first one, but well-adjusted readers might appreciate the rest)
The Second Coming of the Sports Novel—never been a sportsball kind of guy, but a good sports novel has always clicked with me.
History’s Footnotes—in case you were interested in the practice…(really a lot more interesting than you’d think at first blush)
The Rise of Cozy Fantasy
Die Laughing: Humor in Serial Killer Novels
IF JACK REACHER COULD SING trailer—a trailer for the upcoming documentary for the Jack Reacher-inspired album from a couple of years ago. Really looking forward to this.
American dream turns to nightmare in new, Springdale-set crime thrillertitle—a quick interview with Eli Cranor about his new book.
Open Book: Justin Taylor—I don’t think I’d heard of Justin Taylor or his latest book before, but after stumbling across this interview, I’m anticipating getting to know the both of them
Lev Grossman Takes His Time—I’d been eager to get my hands on Grossman’s take on Arthur already, but this profile has amped that eagerness up.
M.W. Craven gives a brief account of his recent brush with AI-generated fiction
If you haven’t seen it this week, there’s some new (renewed) discourse on indie publishing numbers. Some people—like Michael Roberti, Krystle Matar and C.M. Caplan—have been sharing their numbers to show. Check— out the replies and others doing that, too. Some fascinating reading.
One more dip back into the morass of Twitter where, Marie Sinadjan kicked off a thread of books with original songs/soundtracks
Are you reading right?
Summer’s One Must Read Book 2024—Carol, from Reading Ladies, has come up with a great list of Summer Reading recommendations from 20 bloggers (19 of them are worth listening to, and the other accidentally had a good recommendation)
Guest Book Review from a Teen Reader: Hamlet—I always enjoy reading this particular Teen Reader’s take on his reading. This time, he’s got a great post on a play you just might have heard of.
Bookshop.org’s Social Media poster (who is the best (only?) reason to check Threads) had a great Movie Pitch for a You’ve Got Mail remake. I’d chip for the Kickstarter…

To help talk about backlist titles (and just for fun), What Was I Talking About 10 Years Ago Week?
Takedown Twenty by Janet Evanovich—Nunc hoc in marmore non est incisum
The Girl with the Windup Heart by Kady Cross
Skin Game by Jim Butcher—the opening paragraph contains the phrase, “You’ve got about a year ’til Peace Talks comes out.” Excuse me while I go laugh myself into unconsciousness for a minute…
The Martian by Andy Weir—talking about The Martian and Skin Game in the same week? I was having fun…
I also mentioned the releases of Tail of Vengeance by Spencer Quinn, The Competition by Marcia Clark, and Landline by Rainbow Rowell

This Week’s New Releases that I’m Excited About and/or You’ll Probably See Here Soon:
Itching Against Ignorance by E.N. Crane—Cyn and Winnie are back for more madcap mystery fun in their 8th novel. (I’m only 6 behind!)
All This and More by Peng Shepherd—there’s sort of a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure vibe to this novel about a Reality Show Contestant who gets to use Quantum Technology to rewrite her life’s mistakes. This is going to be a good one