Yahoo Lifestyle The 25 Best New Book Releases This Week: Nov. 12-18, 2024
Here are the 25 best new book releases this week: November 12-18, 2024. You’ve done all your gift shopping for this season already, right? What?? You haven’t?? Don’t panic. Books make great gift ideas. Heck, you can find a great book for everyone from the titles coming out this week alone.
Don’t believe me? Ask yourself this. Know any fans of the TV show Ted Lasso? How about fans of Taylor Swift? Someone who loves a great mystery or romance? People who enjoy cooking? Folks fascinated by history who might geek out over a book about the history of directions? (Yes, directions.) Fans of nature, wry humor, tinkering in the garage? Yep, we’ve got books coming out this week for all of them. So don’t panic and remember to bring a towel. Let’s get reading. At the head of the Parade are…
The 25 Best New Book Releases This Week: Nov. 12-18, 2024
Courtesy of Dey Street Books, Simon & Schuster
1. Heartbreak is the National Anthem by Rob Sheffield 2. Things Shouldn’t Be So Hard by Beth Garrabrant
Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone offers an impassioned take on the artistic and cultural impact of Taylor Swift and her songwriting and tours with Heartbreak is the National Anthem. At this stage, the only reasonable comparison may be Beatlemania. Check out Parade’s roundup of the best books about Taylor Swift out now!
One of Swift’s favorite artists is photographer Beth Garrabrant. Garrabrant’s work can be seen on Swift’s eight most recent albums (including the re-recordings). At the same time, the artist continued to pursue a long-term project documenting young people in America since roughly 2000. Isolated, brave, coming into adulthood, still a kid–it’s all captured in Garrabrant’s images of kids at prom, the amusement park, alone in their rooms, hanging out with others. You’ll quickly realize why Swift latched onto her talent.
Heartbreak is the National Anthem by Rob Sheffield ($27.99; Dey Street Books) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Things Shouldn’t Be So Hard by Beth Garrabrant ($35; Simon & Schuster) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Related: Goodreads and Parade Pick 26 Books For Native American Heritage Month 2024
Courtesy of Zando–SJP Lit; Farrar, Straus and Giroux; Harper Muse
3. The Story of the Forest by Linda Grant
4. Lazarus Man by Richard Price
5. The Starlets by Lee Kelly and Jennifer Thorne
Author Linda Grant delivers historical fiction with the sweeping story of two Jewish siblings who emigrate from Eastern Europe to England just as World War I looms. Romance, tragedy, war, the horrors of the pogroms, business dynasties and more make this closely observed novel inspired somewhat by Grant’s family story into a page turner enjoying excellent early reviews.
Richard Price is often found in the mystery/thriller section given the subject matter of his work. (Charles Dickens might have been slotted there too, with Oliver Twist, for example.) But Price is acclaimed for observing society as a whole. He does that and more in Lazarus Man, the story of a tenement collapsing in East Harlem, New York in 2008. Price zeroes in on the disaster, then slowly pulls back as he shows the lives destroyed and changed forever, revealing the people, the neighborhood, the city and ultimately all of us.
In The Starlets, it’s the late 1950s and two actors were rivals for the same part in a Hollywood epic…until one of them arrives at an island off Italy just in time to realize she’s been relegated to a supporting role. Not in this story! Their film is a front for some very bad people committing nefarious crimes. With key evidence in hand, the two women must join forces and flee, hoping to stay alive long enough to bring the proof to Interpol or someone who isn’t already corrupt or willing to believe two starlets. This looks like a fun ride and I look forward to the Netflix adaptation.
The Story of the Forest by Linda Grant ($28; Zando–SJP Lit) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Lazarus Man by Richard Price ($29; Farrar, Straus and Giroux) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
The Starlets by Lee Kelly and Jennifer Thorne ($18.99; Harper Muse) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
6. Believe: The Untold Story Behind "Ted Lasso" by Jeremy Egner
Oh, European football. A one-joke premise–indeed, the basis for a TV commercial–became one of the sweetest shows of the past decade. Ted Lasso won over everyone and journalist Jeremy Egner tells the story with this oral history of the show about an American football coach accidentally recruited to lead a soccer team in the UK. Whether you think the series took its fish out of water premise one season too far or you’re hoping the rumours of a fourth season are true, this peek into how it happens will please fans.
Believe: The Untold Story Behind "Ted Lasso" by Jeremy Egner ($32; Dutton) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Courtesy of Dial Books, Flatiron Books, Forever
7. The Davenports: More Than This by Krystal Marquis
8. The Courting of Bristol Keats by Mary E. Pearson
9. Reel by Kennedy Ryan
Krystal Marquis continues her acclaimed series about the independent and bold Davenport sisters, the wealthy center of Black society in Chicago circa 1910. But even these accomplished young women who seemingly have it all must wrestle with challenges in life and love.
Author Mary E. Pearson is a successful YA author making her adult debut with The Courting of Bristol Keats. Our hero is just struggling to keep her sisters and her safe after their parents are dead. Except maybe her father isn’t dead. And maybe he’s fae. And maybe Bristol can rescue him if she’s bold enough to head into the realm of Elfhame.
Novelist Kennedy Ryan offers a new deluxe edition of her Hollywood romance Reel, named by many as one of the best romances of 2021. A Broadway actress gets a chance to shine in a major motion picture about the Harlem Renaissance…until scandal and intrigue threaten to upend her shot at stardom. This updated version of her novel includes a substantial new epilogue.
The Davenports: More Than This by Krystal Marquis ($19.99; Dial Books) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
The Courting of Bristol Keats by Mary E. Pearson ($32.99; Flatiron Books) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Reel by Kennedy Ryan ($18.99; Forever) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
10. Didion & Babitz by Lili Anolik
Joan Didion. Always acclaimed and appreciated. Eve Babitz. A brilliant chronicler of Hollywood who was praised, forgotten, rediscovered, praised, forgotten again and now, praised again. Who knew they were friends? Or perhaps frenemies? Biographer Lili Anolik uses a treasure trove of diary-like letters by Babitz to create a dual biography of these talented, memorable artists.
Didion & Babitz by Lili Anolik ($29.99; Scribner) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Courtesy of Simon & Schuster, Orbit, Harper Voyager
11. Every Arc Bends Its Radian by Sergio de la Pava
12. The Lotus Empire by Tasha Suri
13. Earth Abides by George R. Stewart
I’m putting Every Arc Bends Its Radian along other sci-fi and fantasy novels but this existential detective story could just as easily be slotted under mystery. Or fiction. Or philosophy. A private eye leaves NYC for Colombia, starts searching for a missing woman who may be linked (indeed, is linked) to the most dangerous man in the country, veers off into fantastical realms when not pondering theoretical physics and ends up exploding your head in the best possible way.
We’ve been spoiled with a flood of excellent female authors delivering marvelous fantasy and sci-fi for a number of years now. They have rightly dominated the top awards in the industry. So perhaps the acclaim for the Burning Kingdoms trilogy by Tasha Suri has been a little lost in the shuffle? The Jasmine Throne, The Oleander Sword and now The Lotus Empire have all been praised by one and all. Suri finishes her trilogy off in style, per all the reviews, with Publishers Weekly saying it reaches a “breathtaking crescendo” and Booklist calling it a “delectable conclusion to a landmark epic fantasy series.” Okay, so I’ve got some reading to do!
I am new to the late George R. Stewart, a terrific writer I discovered thanks to the invaluable publisher New York Review Books. (Buy anything they put out that remotely interests you. Anything. Trust me.) NYRB turned me onto Storm, Stewart’s 1941 novel about a storm hitting the U.S. that read like every Alex Haley novel (Airport, Hotel) but much, much better. He followed the storm from its birth way on the other side of the world to the many lives it impacted along the way. Now we have his sci-fi novel Earth Abides, a post-apocalyptic novel acclaimed on its release in 1949. It’s got an introduction by the great Kim Stanley Robinson and is being turned into a TV series debuting this December on MGM+.
Every Arc Bends Its Radian by Sergio de la Pava ($27.99; Simon & Schuster) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
The Lotus Empire by Tasha Suri ($19.99; Orbit) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Earth Abides by George R. Stewart ($19.99; Harper Voyager) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
14. Vanishing Treasures by Katherine Rundell
Author Katherine Rundell is enjoying a smash hit with her acclaimed fantasy novel Impossible Creatures, the story of a mythical realm where creatures like unicorns and centaurs face their final extinction since the magic protecting them seems to be slipping away. Now here is a companion book about the real marvelous creatures of our world today on the brink of extinction. Rundell celebrated their quirkiness and beauty in this book teeming with its own illustrations to capture these rare and vanishing beasts before they’re gone for good. If there’s ever been a one-two punch like this–a fantasy novel and a work of nonfiction about our natural world that taps into the same themes–well I surely can’t think of it.
Vanishing Treasures by Katherine Rundell ($26; Doubleday) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Courtesy of Soho Crime, Grand Central Publishing, Henry Holt and Co.
15. Big Breath In by John Straley
16. To Die For by David Baldacci
17. Deadly Animals by Marie Tierney
Three very different mystery/thrillers for all tastes.
Big Breath In features a new hero: a retired marine biologist facing terminal cancer takes after her late P.I. husband by hunting down a missing child. Murderers, thugs, kidnappers and a queer biker gang pop up along the way.
David Baldacci is always good for a ride, and To Die For features his Travis Devine, a paper pusher turned avenging angel. (It helps he has a dark past including military training.)
And Marie Tierny broke out in the UK by winning the Daily Mail First Novel contest. Now we get to dive into Deadly Animals and its offbeat hero, a 14 year old girl who is really into decomposing bodies (she notes creatures smooshed on the highway and studies them as they fall apart; hey, it’s a hobby). When her classmates start disappearing, she may also be the only one who can track the killer.
Big Breath In by John Straley ($28.95; Soho Crime) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
To Die For by David Baldacci ($30; Grand Central Publishing) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Deadly Animals by Marie Tierney ($29.99; Henry Holt and Co.) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
18. Four Points of the Compass by Jerry Brotton
This popular history tackles a familiar subject–the familiar trope of North, South, East and West–and traces their history and meaning. Why has no culture ever oriented itself towards the West? Why did early Islam revere the South while Hebrew culture prefers the East? And how might GPS change our understanding of the world and our place in it? The more questions it raises and the more we realize we actually have no idea what the answers might be, the more intriguing this book becomes.
Four Points of the Compass by Jerry Brotton ($27; Atlantic Monthly Press) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Courtesy of Voracious, Harvest, Clarkson Potter
19. The Milk Street Cookbook: 2017-2025 by Christopher Kimball
20. The League of Kitchens Cookbook by Lisa Kyung Gross
21. Martha: The Cookbook by Martha Stewart
Three cookbooks from three well-known sources. I am all in on Christopher Kimball and Milk Street (down with ageism!) though I wonder when this annual update is going to become so big they’ll have to break it into two volumes. The League of Kitchens comes from the cooking school in NYC, a place I’d like to send my talented friends who love to cook so I can reap the rewards. And of course Martha. Stewart may not have liked the new documentary about her, but she surely approved of every detail of this, her 100th (!) book.
The Milk Street Cookbook: 2017-2025 by Christopher Kimball ($50; Voracious) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
The League of Kitchens Cookbook by Lisa Kyung Gross ($40; Harvest) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Martha: The Cookbook by Martha Stewart ($40; Clarkson Potter) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Related: Celebrity Book Club Challenge November 2024
22. Blue Sky Through The Window of a Moving Car by Jordan Bolton
This collection of comics is not punchline yucks. Creator Jordan Bolton focuses on the quiet, mundane moments of life with poignancy, insight, and yes humor. Two people at a New Year’s Eve party slip outside just before midnight so they can watch the revelry in the apartment they left and all the others on a block. Two women shopping for furniture are not speaking to one another. A father tells his son he loves him for the first and last time as the son is looking at the blue sky through the window of a moving car. And so on. Each mood piece works on its own but the entire book has a cumulative, powerful effect.
Blue Sky Through The Window of a Moving Car by Jordan Bolton ($19.99; Andrews McMeel Publishing) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Courtesy of Aladdin; Farrar, Straus and Giroux; Candlewick Studio
23. Happy & Sad & Everything True by Alex Thayer
24. My So-Called Family by Gia Gordon
25. King Alfred and the Ice Coffin by Kevin Crossley-Holland; illustrated by Chris Riddell
Three books geared towards kids.
Happy & Sad & Everything True finds our hero Dee in sixth grade, friendless and hiding out in the girls’ bathroom. Then another girl asks her advice, Dee gives it and ir proves helpful and then another girl shows up and asks for advice and before you know it Dee’s got herself a thriving practice as a listener and dispenser of wisdom. And since someone is sending her admiring, anonymous notes, maybe Dee won’t be friendless soon.
My So-Called Family is about the fraught foster care system. Ash has been shuttled from home to home since she was 4, so a middle school class assignment to draw her family tree is impossible and embarrassing and who wants to think about that? Even worse is that her new foster home includes an older boy she doesn’t feel safe around. But Ash feels she has literally no one to turn to with this problem. Author Gia Gordon’s debut is one of the most acclaimed middle grade books of the year.
Finally, King Alfred and the Ice Coffin is an engaging work of storytelling, history and myth, enriched with marvelous artwork by Chris Riddell. A stranger comes to the court of King Arthur and holds them rapt with his story of far-off lands, horse races to win favor, an ice coffin and more. That’s it! A guy shows up at court and tells a tale. But along the way, we see how strangers are treated at this court, King Alfred’s passion for learning and language, how he passes that on to his people and much more. Satisfying.
Happy & Sad & Everything True by Alex Thayer ($17.99; Aladdin) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
My So-Called Family by Gia Gordon ($17.99; Farrar, Straus and Giroux) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
King Alfred and the Ice Coffin by Kevin Crossley-Holland; illustrated by Chris Riddell ($18.99; Candlewick Studio) Buy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Bookshop.org
Related: The 23 Best New Book Releases This Month: November 2024
