by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books)
Here are three books coming out today that I'm excited to read!
Tabitha Carvan's This Is Not a Book About Benedict Cumberbatch: The Joy of Loving Something—Anything—Like Your Life Depends On It (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm)
Description from Publisher:
"Why We Can't Sleep meets Furiously Happy in this hilarious, heartfelt memoir about one woman's midlife obsession with Benedict Cumberbatch, and the liberating power of reclaiming our passions as we age, whatever they may be.
"Tabitha Carvan was a new mother, at home with two young children, when she fell for the actor Benedict Cumberbatch. You know the guy: strange name, alien face, made Sherlock so sexy that it became one of the most streamed shows in the world? The force of her fixation took everyone--especially Carvan herself--by surprise. But what she slowly realized was that her preoccupation was not about Benedict Cumberbatch at all, as dashing as he might be. It was about finally feeling passionate about something, anything, again at a point in her life when she had lost touch with her own identity and sense of self.
"In This Is Not a Book About Benedict Cumberbatch, Carvan explores what happens to women's desires after we leave adolescence...and why the space in our lives for pure, unadulterated joy is squeezed ever smaller as we age. She shines a light onto the hidden corners of fandom, from the passion of the online communities to the profound real-world connections forged between Cumberbatch devotees. But more importantly, she asks: what happens if we simply decide to follow our interests like we used to--unabashedly, audaciously, shamelessly? After all, Carvan realizes, there's true, untapped power in finding your 'thing' (even if that thing happens to be a British-born Marvel superhero) and loving it like your life depends on it."
Why I want to read it:
I heard about this on an episode of From the Front Porch, and Annie B. Jones's description of this book won me over completely. She described it as a consideration of why women's interests are so often overlooked in society, which I think sounds fascinating. And those comps just confirmed my resolution to read this one!
Nina LaCour's Yerba Buena (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm)
Description from Publisher:
"The debut adult novel by the bestselling and award-winning YA author Nina LaCour, following two women on a star-crossed journey toward each other
"When Sara Foster runs away from home at sixteen, she leaves behind the girl she once was, capable of trust and intimacy. Years later, in Los Angeles, she is a sought-after bartender, renowned as much for her brilliant cocktails as for the mystery that clings to her. Across the city, Emilie Dubois is in a holding pattern, yearning for the beauty and community her Creole grandparents cultivated but unable to commit. On a whim, she takes a job arranging flowers at the glamorous restaurant Yerba Buena and embarks on an affair with the married owner.
"The morning Emilie and Sara first meet at Yerba Buena, their connection is immediate. But the damage both women carry, and the choices they have made, pulls them apart again and again. When Sara's old life catches up to her, upending everything she thought she wanted just as Emilie has finally gained her own sense of purpose, they must decide if their love is more powerful than their pasts.
"At once exquisite and expansive, astonishing in its humanity and heart, Yerba Buena is a love story for our time and a propulsive journey through the lives of two women trying to find somewhere, or someone, to call home."
Why I want to read it:
LaCour's work is reliably amazing for me, so I'm looking forward to this foray into adult fiction. While I usually don't love the star-crossed lovers trope, the depth of this description makes me think this one may be okay.
Ebony Ladelle's Love Radio (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm)
Description from Publisher:
"Hitch meets The Sun Is Also a Star in this witty and romantic teen novel about a self-professed teen love doctor with a popular radio segment who believes he can get a girl who hates all things romance to fall in love with him in only three dates.
"Prince Jones is the guy with all the answers--or so it seems. After all, at seventeen, he has his own segment on Detroit's popular hip-hop show, Love Radio, where he dishes out advice to the brokenhearted.
"Prince has always dreamed of becoming a DJ and falling in love. But being the main caretaker for his mother, who has multiple sclerosis, and his little brother means his dreams will stay just that and the only romances in his life are the ones he hears about from his listeners.
"Until he meets Dani Ford.
"Dani isn't checking for anybody. She's focused on her plan: ace senior year, score a scholarship, and move to New York City to become a famous author. But her college essay keeps tripping her up and acknowledging what's blocking her means dealing with what happened at that party a few months ago.
"And that's one thing Dani can't do.
"When the romantic DJ meets the ambitious writer, sparks fly. Prince is smitten, but Dani's not looking to get derailed. She gives Prince just three dates to convince her that he's worth falling for.
"Three dates for the love expert to take his own advice, and just maybe change two lives forever."
Why I want to read it:
Again, those comps! This sounds like a great summer read, and I love the consideration of a future career (author!) and of the college essay. This sounds like a book that would resonate with teenagers.
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