The It Books of April 2026

Summary

Book Riot – The Podcast

Episode: The It Book of April 2026

Hosts: Jeff O’Neal & Rebecca Schinsky
Release Date: April 1, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode is Book Riot's monthly "It Book" episode, where Jeff and Rebecca use a playful knockout tournament format to predict which new release will be April’s "It Book"—the title most likely to become the standout, buzziest book among literary circles and general readers alike. The show provides a lively deep-dive into a wide array of upcoming releases, from literary fiction to debuts, buzzy non-fiction, and genre-bending experiments. Along the way, the hosts discuss trends, adaptation buzz, and which authors are due for a breakout. The episode culminates with the crowning of Patrick Radden Keefe’s London Calling as April 2026's anticipated It Book.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Spring Book Buzz & Draft Teasers

• The hosts reflect on the energizing atmosphere of spring, noting it’s not necessarily stacked with "AAA"-level releases like the fall, but presents a lot of fresh book excitement.
• Rebecca hints at upcoming episodes and the internal process for curating summer picks.

Explaining the "It Book" Process

• Jeff explains the knockout round rules: 10 books are paired off, Rebecca decides which advances, and together they analyze each title’s buzzworthiness, literary merit, and sales/acclaim potential.
• “At the end of the year, we go back through the months and say, check our one. What do we get? A C plus? I mean, I guess we get a 70% hit rate.” – Jeff (03:39)

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The Knockout Tournament Begins

Play-In Round: Maria Semple vs. TJ Klune

• Go Gentle by Maria Semple
  • “Her name is, believe it or not, Adora Hazard, which is maybe too clever by half, but also amazing.” – Jeff (08:23)
  • Stoic philosopher/divorcée protagonist with a coven of like-minded ladies in an iconic NYC building; black market art deal subplot.
  • “This is middle-aged ladycore, and I’m so here for it.” – Rebecca (08:32)
  • Anticipated as a return to form for Semple, whose Where’d You Go, Bernadette is a perennial Book Riot pick.
• We Burn So Bright by TJ Klune
  • Adult novel about a gay couple facing the end of the world (literal black hole incoming); cross-country road trip.
  • Rebecca predicts more sales for Klune, but Semple is “all over the place in interviews and has some literary bona fides” (12:45).
  • Semple advances for its perceived wider literary appeal and adaptation potential.

Short Stories Struggle: Rachel Kong

• My Dear You by Rachel Kong
  • Well-loved by both hosts, but as a short story collection it’s “a hard time in the It Books…so few people read them.” – Rebecca (16:30)
  • Semple’s Go Gentle advances due to genre and buzz factors.

The Emma Straub Face-off

• American Fantasies by Emma Straub
  • A boy band cruise nostalgia novel, sharply observed and commercial, with strong Today Show publicity potential.
  • Rebecca: “I feel like [Maria] Semple has a little more edge. There’s just more possibility of acclaim.” (20:45)
  • Semple's book edges out Straub for potential critical attention.

Xochitl Gonzalez Bright Spot

• Last Night in Brooklyn by Xochitl Gonzalez
  • Literary/social novel set in early 2000s Brooklyn amid gentrification.
  • Rebecca: “I just keep waiting for her to really break out.” (21:52)
  • Both authors on possible year-end lists, but Rebecca’s “spidey sense” tips the round to Gonzalez, who “is more likely to get an award nomination.” (22:55)

Tradwife Time-Travel: The High-Concept Challenger

• Yesteryear by Carol Claire Burke
  • Influencer-tradwife wakes up in 1855, must live the tradwife life for real; film rights pre-sold, Anne Hathaway attached (24:57).
  • Despite skepticism, adaptation heat and commercial buzz earns “Yesteryear” a pass through this round.

Ben Lerner Enters the Arena

• Transcription by Ben Lerner
  • High-concept, cerebral literary fiction; a writer’s tape recorder fails during interviews, narrative gets dreamlike. (28:09)
  • Huge literary anticipation: “If this is not on the long list for the National Book Award, I'll be shocked.” – Rebecca (31:30)
  • Easily advances over “Yesteryear.”

Debut Duel: Abigail Savage Liu

• Livonia Chow Main by Abigail Savage Liu
  • 100-year saga of a Chinese restaurant and family in Brooklyn.
  • Although praised, Ben Lerner’s prestige mows down the competition in this round.

International Booker Buzz: Marie NDiaye

• The Witch by Marie NDiaye (translated)
  • Mediocre witch, abusive marriage, feminist and satirical undercurrents; recently shortlisted for International Booker (35:37).
  • Translation status raises questions about “It Book” eligibility, but the recency of the English translation and TikTok’s openness to translated titles play in its favor.
  • Rebecca gives the edge to NDiaye’s “The Witch,” though with some hesitation (37:38).

Co-Written Genre Meta: Evelyn Clark (V.E. Schwab & Cat Clarke)

• The Ending Writes Itself by Evelyn Clark (V.E. Schwab & Cat Clarke)
  • Meta-mystery: best-selling novelist dies and six authors must finish his manuscript on a Scottish island; knives-out/locked room vibes.
  • “Huge print run…Once Schwab is out there talking about how it’s her, that will move the needle.” – Rebecca (40:22)
  • Both hosts dissect the pros and cons of co-authorship under a pseudonym, ultimately admitting that genre readers are used to pen names.

Memoir Mayhem: Lena Dunham’s Fame Sick

• Candid memoir on illness, fame, and sex. The hosts warily admit: “Lena Dunham sparks discourse just by existing.” – Rebecca (46:23)
• Uncertain on its mainstream appeal, and uneasy with its matchup against genre fiction.

Patrick Radden Keefe, Savoir

• London Calling by Patrick Radden Keefe
  • Narrative non-fiction centering on the mysterious death of a young man and explorations of power, money, and social realities in London.
  • “He’s so reliably good and…he could get some internet juice…He consistently appears on best books of the year lists.” – Rebecca (48:37)
  • Ultimately, London Calling is crowned the It Book of April 2026.

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Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• “This is middle-aged ladycore, and I’m so here for it.” — Rebecca Schinsky, on Go Gentle (08:32)
• “Go gentle will become our first contender here, I think…Maria Semple rings more of the It Book bells.” – Rebecca (13:12)
• “Short story collections have a hard time in the It Books…so few people read them.” – Rebecca (16:30)
• “Emma Straub…her characters are smart. They talk like real people. This is an interesting pairing.” – Rebecca (19:14)
• “Sheil Gonzalez is more likely to get an award nomination.” – Rebecca (22:55)
• “Film rights were sold immediately…Anne Hathaway is attached to star and produce this flippin show.” – Jeff (24:57)
• “If this is not on the long list for the National Book Award, I’ll be shocked.” – Rebecca (31:30)
• “A book called The Witch with a great cover is gonna sell more copies probably than Transcription, though.” – Rebecca (37:21)
• “People love a book about books. Like, I’m tired because of course it’s about a writer, and he’s reclusive and was a genius. But…that’s my personal taste.” – Rebecca (40:39)
• “Hating on Lena Dunham is its own whole internet sport.” – Rebecca (46:28)
• “Patrick, save me.” – Rebecca, upon hearing Patrick Radden Keefe has a new book (47:18)

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Timestamps for Major Segments

• [03:03] — Launch of the Knockout Tournament explained
• [07:44] — Play-in Round: Maria Semple vs. TJ Klune
• [16:09] — Discussing Rachel Kong short stories
• [19:13] — Emma Straub’s American Fantasies
• [21:52] — Xochitl Gonzalez’s “Last Night in Brooklyn”
• [24:09] — Tradwife time-travel in Yesteryear (Carol Claire Burke)
• [28:09] — Ben Lerner’s Transcription
• [33:22] — Debut: Abigail Savage Liu
• [34:34] — International Booker: Marie NDiaye’s The Witch
• [38:51] — Meta-mystery: The Ending Writes Itself by Evelyn Clark (V.E. Schwab & Cat Clarke)
• [43:52] — Lena Dunham’s memoir
• [47:19] — London Calling by Patrick Radden Keefe
• [50:06] — Honorable Mentions
• [54:04] — Bookspotting: “Airport book queen” update

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Honorable Mentions

• The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances by Glenn Dixon – quirky AI literary fiction
• Ghost Town by Tom Perrotta – new release from a perennial favorite
• A Killer in the Family by Amin Ahmad – “Crazy Rich Asians as murder mystery”
• Dear Monica Lewinsky – genre-bending “saint’s biography” take on Lewinsky
• Ada Limón’s Against Breaking – poetry nonfiction
• Small Town Girl by Jane Ann Phillips – memoir-in-essays
• The Correspondent (deluxe edition)
• NOMA chef Rene Redzepi’s book — noted bad timing due to negative press

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Trends and Fun Asides

• The ongoing challenge of short story collections and books in translation breaking out.
• “Tradwife” novels seen as a mini-trend, but not yet with breakout potential.
• The complex effectiveness of co-authored fiction and pseudonyms in the It Book sweepstakes.
• Patrick Radden Keefe seen as a reliable “It Book” author for “the dads—both literal and spiritual.”
• Airport book queen update: Theodora of Golden unseats Evelyn Hugo.

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Conclusion

Book Riot’s April 2026 knockout round showcased the vibrancy and diversity of spring’s literary lineup, balancing highbrow award contenders, commercial genre hits, and quirky debuts. Despite genre stirrings and social media-fueled outliers, it’s narrative non-fiction icon Patrick Radden Keefe’s London Calling that takes the crown, promising wide cultural resonance, year-end best-of-list strength, and classic Book Riot “It Book” energy.

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Next on Book Riot:

• Favorite debuts of the last 5–10 years (Patreon exclusive)
• More Zero to Well Read with a focus on Shakespearean comedies

For book recommendations, feedback, or to suggest your own It Book: [e-mail]

Transcript

[Rebecca Schinsky]

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[Jeff O'Neill]

This is the Book Riot podcast. I'm Jeff o'. Neill.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And I'm Rebecca Schinsky.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And it's April. It's spring. There's like three cherry blossoms on our trees outside are just like pop, pop. Like it's just getting ready to go. We're having 70 degrees on Saturday. I'm gonna roll around, start sneezing here pretty quick. But springing spring is Rebecca. And it's a wonderful month of books. It took me about 11 minutes to get to 10. And so it's a fun month. There's not like a AAA triple A, like a September, but a lot of fun stuff for us to talk about this month.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, I was looking at some titles, doing some catalog research going into the spring because in another couple of weeks we've got to do our draft for the summer season which for us is May through August. And then I realized that I was seeing April titles and tried to like, no, no, look away, look away so that I can be as fresh as possible for it. But you always manage to surprise me even when I know we've got a few shared things that we're looking at.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, there's several things I'm going to throw at you here. It's March madness time a little bit after. But we're gonna have a play in tournament because I have 11 so but we need 10 and 11 are gonna play in which is just really an extra round. I'm just cheating really is what's happening there. Let's see elsewhere over on Zero to well read in the feed right now. You can go listen to us talk about much do about nothing by one William Shakespeare. And the stars of the show there, of course, Beatrice and Benedict who are the original recipe zinger laden courting dueling lovers that I would watch a thousand versions of. It's. It's the, it's the they hate each other but they love fighting each other that launched a thousand versions of this.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

The banter, it's just so good. It's as I'll quote you from the show because Vanessa quoted you in the newsletter for it saying like, I just want this. Will they, won't they word sex. This is all I want in rom coms. And it's just, it's what a fun vibe. We had a great time.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Really, really fun to get to talk about that. If you haven't listened to that show ever, that was a really good time to jump on board. We wanted to do a comedy for Shakespeare and for the second half of our first year we did, of course, Hamlet to begin our Shakespeare experience. And then over the course of time we'll get to a tragedy and a late romance and a history and all the things that go into it. There's will be fun.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

A certain tragedy that was adapted by Baz Luhrman is turning 30 this fall. The adaptation is so we might we've

[Jeff O'Neill]

had occasion to talk about that particular before, but you know, we might be

[Rebecca Schinsky]

doing that one again. We'll see. And if you're new to IT books, this is the monthly feature where Jeff combs the catalogs, comes up with usually 10 interesting new releases and we pit them against each other in a knockout round. So 10 goes up against number nine. Then I decide which ones go forward. And every now and then we argue about which one should actually stay or go. So we arrive at the end at the IT book, the predicted IT book of the month. And then in a couple weeks we'll be doing the hot list and we can see if I was right or not.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And then at the end of the year, we go back through the month and say check our one. What do we get a C plus? I mean, I guess we get a 70% hit rate.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

We got seven out of 10 last year. We felt good about.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, you know, a gentleman. See for us here on the IT books episodes. With that, we're going to take our quick sponsor break and get into the list.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

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[Jeff O'Neill]

So we have a play in tournament here. I guess we'll start with them. There are two that I think are both obliquely referencing Edna St. Vincent Millais, which is nice for me to break that out. But they also are authors I really like who have had one giant hit and then some other stuff. And this is a new book by them. So the first one is Go Gentle by Maria Semple. I think is a version of do not Go Gentle in that Good Night by Anesthesia Vincent Millay. Pardon me. And this one is the main character, Rebecca. Her name is, believe it or not, Adora Hazard, which is maybe too clever by half, but also amazing.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It feels very Maria Semple.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It does. And she is a stoic philosopher and divorcee. I mean, who among us doesn't want to have that as a life goal?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

This is middle aged ladycore and I'm so here for it.

[Jeff O'Neill]

We talked about this with hang with the, with the, with the winter draft or spring draft and she, she applies this to her life where she just wants to relish her teenage daughter being single, being a moral tutor for twin. Two twin boys of an old manly father family. She's even assembled a quote unquote coven of like minded women who live on the same floor in the legendary Ansonia, which I don't. I think it is a real building, but it's also the Arconia. You know, one of these big Upper west side buildings might as well be the Arconia from Only Murders in the Building and Something Happens by black market art deals of all things. You hate to see it, Rebecca.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I don't know, man. I love to see it.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Have you ever stumbled into a black market art deal or all your black market art deals? Intentional.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

You know, I wish that I had stumbled into a black market art deal. I feel like that would be the right flavor of intrigue for me.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And Maria Semple, of course, the writer of one of our favorite books to recommend of all time. Where'd you'd go, Bernadette? Which is a family zany. Go find the mom who ran away story that turned into an okay adaptation with Cate Blanchett, who's good in everything. But the actual book itself is quite wonderful. Gilmore Girls for grown ups is not the worst way of putting. Where'd you go, Bernadette? And I mean, that is no slightest Gilmore Girl. Yeah, I too, I reside in my heart in Stars Hollow. So I'm one of you. But. So that's one. So that's the first one of our two. So anything to say about that before I get into any?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I'm really looking forward to it. The books that Maria Semple has done since Bernadette kind of were not as well received. Bernadette set a very high bar. But this feels like, at least for me, straight up the middle. It's being pitched into the same kind of reader that was into all fours, which I think is fascinating because as far as I can tell, there's not like a sex angle to go gentle. But it is middle aged ladies doing stuff. And as you said, she's assembled her group of friends that she calls a coven. And who among us does not call their group of middle aged lady friends a coven? I am personally guilty of this. Yes, this is. I'm. I feel like I'm having a little trouble being objective about it because this book feels so squarely pitched right at me. I'm very much looking forward to it.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Before you, if you've already started to email me, stop. I know that. Rage, Rage, Die against the dying Light is Dylan Thomas. I've got light related for both. The other one is Edna statements. Belay reference, I think. And this one is We Burn so Bright by one TJ Clune, who of course had a mega bestseller crossover. Kind of a new genre, frankly, of this cozy YA inclusive fantasy fantasy gem of a book. He's had some other stuff come out. But We Burn so Bright is the story of two men who have been together for a long time, multiple years. They are, they're partners in love and life and lo and behold, a wandering black hole kind of wanders into our solar system and we've got a month to live. Oh. And so they go on a road trip to take care of some business which frankly, if, if a black hole is going to envelop the earth, I think you don't need to get your affairs. I don't know. Yeah, I'm okay. It's, it's my tie o' clock as soon as I'm concerned when the black hole cometh. But they go on a road trip from Maine to Washington state to do this. And of course, of this road trip, they encounter all sorts of people who don't believe it's coming that are welcoming it. Kind of a road trip of eschatology here along the end. Sounds like kind of a great time, even as the earth is coming to an end. And it's We Burn so Bright by TJ Klune. So it sounds like a TJ Klune book against sounds like a Maria Semple book, Rebecca. And this is not about our personal taste, except that it always and forever is. Except we try to hold in the bands when we can. Which of those for IT book consideration would you proffer such a good to the rest of the world?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Good job on this play and thank you very much. And this is an adult book, right, Clune?

[Jeff O'Neill]

I think so.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay. Because the other ones are YA's first

[Jeff O'Neill]

print run of half a million copies.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Hey. Okay, the TJ Clune is going to sell more copies, but Maria simple is going to be all over the place in interviews and has some literary bona fides. Yeah, I think there will be more of a publicity push because there are already so many readers ready for TJ Klune. I'm gonna give the edge here to Maria Semple by just really by virtue of being literary fiction.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Because the IT book is about acclaim and sales and will people like it and will there be buzz? And I think we kind of know what a TJ Klune book is at this point, even if he's writing for adults here instead of young adult, where Maria Simple. This could be anything. If it's great, it'll be really, really great. Like when she's in her bag, she's excellent. I'd be surprised about awards contention for either of them, but I think simple has an edge on TJ Klune for that. So it rings more bells. Maria simple rings more of the IT book bells. So Go Gentle will become our first

[Jeff O'Neill]

contender here, I think. I don't know if this matters. We don't really consider this at this stage of the game, generally speaking, but adaptation potential is something in a close. In a close call. Maybe we should look at it. I think this lead character of Adora Hazard, you'd have all kinds of actresses of a certain age clamoring to play this if this is good. On the other hand, I think if the TJ queen is good, you could have a very good pairing there of two guys of a certain age, you know, holding hands in their winnebago shooting through the Arizona desert and trying to beat, you know, Einstein's theory of relativity and all that it portends. So it kind of comes out in the wash. I think it's close. I think they're both very close. I look forward to both of them.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

This is. I think they're both going to be really interesting. And it will be. Maybe there is more likelihood for an adaptation for the Clune than his YA books simply because you don't have to build a whole young adult fantasy world to do them. It's this guy's on a road trip that's not a huge budget. Actually. I'm stoked for that. Let's do it.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Right. Yeah. It's kind of like that one Last of Us episode.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I was.

[Jeff O'Neill]

But. But make it Little Miss Sunshine to some degree. That would be very cool at the same time.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Let's do that.

[Jeff O'Neill]

We Burn So Bright by TT Clune is 176 pages. So it's going to be novella, which is also interesting.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay, what's the hardcover price?

[Jeff O'Neill]

You know, 176. As soon as I closed it down, you asked me the hard it is 48. No, it's a 25.99.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay.

[Jeff O'Neill]

The. The Maria Semple is $30 for probably 350. 384 pages.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

So you get right in the sweet spot.

[Jeff O'Neill]

That's something you want there. Okay, so we're gonna move along. Go gentle. Enters the regular tournament here. And up first it gets to go against something we've talked about a couple times on the show. Authors that are having have books out in the spring that have short story collections out. And this is My Dear you by Rachel Kong. Comes out April 7. Hardcover, 248. Excuse me, 240 pages. I know you're gonna be surprised that this follows a, you know, a bunch of characters facing extraordinary choices in scenarios that range from the everyday to the absurd.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Listen, I love Rachel Kong.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I do too.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And we've both really loved her novels, which are all already like very tight and on the shorter side, she doesn't ever waste a word. I'm really curious about what she'll do with short stories, but I think that just by virtue of being a short story collection, any short story collection has a hard time in the it books.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yes.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Because so few people read them. So few people read them.

[Jeff O'Neill]

What would it take? What does it take? Honestly? Like, what is it? Have we ever had a short story collection emerge? I cannot remember this.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh, as the it book. I don't think so.

[Jeff O'Neill]

No, what would it take, Rebecca?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I mean, I know Salman Rushdie contended last year with four novellas. Yeah, the 12th hour. But that was. He made the 10, but he did not make the it books.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I mean, don't know what it would be.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Maybe like a. A new Jhumpa Lahiri short story collection. Somebody who made their name as a short story.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I love you think that. But that is incorrect. That would not do it.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Join me over here on Wishful Thinking Island.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, you'd have to do like George R.R. martin does. Three more Knights of the Seven Kingdom novels.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Sarah J. Maas's short story Acotar, something like that.

[Jeff O'Neill]

You'd have to remora eel against the whale of a larger ip.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, but like literary short stories are just a hard sell even when an author has an established base. And Kong, I think is solidly mid list. She has established fans.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Kingsolver. But Miranda July.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, King Solver would be interesting. Ann Patchett can sell essays, but I don't think we've ever seen an Ann Patchett short story collection.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Right.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

King Solver would be interesting. I think if anybody big with big commercial crossover potential, it would be her. So this is going to go to Maria Semple.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Like also the COVID of Go Gentle is hot pink and very eye catching. It's going to look great in bookstores.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. A salacious statue, which is not a phrase I think has ever been said in the English language. It also adorns it kind of, it's, it's giving me some like attessa moshfegh vibes. Like they're going for something edgy literary fiction there for Maria Semple, which I think is interesting to see. Okay, so we're moving right along here. I, I'm, I am betting that Emma Straub was stoked to see that there was no namespace pollution for the book American Fantasy. Because you'd think there's already a bunch of books called American Fantasy, but there really would aren't. Emma Straub, of course is, you know, I got to that, of course, and I'm like, what is Emma Straub? Of course a very well known, if not hugely successful on a grand scale of like an Ellen Hildebrand or something like that. She's a little more literary, a little more weird, a little more owner of an indie bookstore in Brooklyn, which she is a little more daughter of a kind of a hard boiled crime writer, which she is. I really like Emma Straub's book. Her new book is American Fantasies. I just Said it's a cruise ship story and the. It's a cruise ship where. It's a cruise for the boy band cruise.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's like New Kids on the Block and then things happen.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Also middle aged ladies doing things, but they're on like a nostalgia cruise for boy bands. Yeah. I think EMMA STRAUB, Like 15 years ago, we would have talked about her as like upmarket chick lit or literary chicklet. Like basically kind of that women's fiction zone. She writes about family, relationships, marriages, friendships. Really fun, tons of heart.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Like 10 of a high concept, like time travel or fantasy. New Kids on the Block boats.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, there will be a high concept. She pulls it off. They're always just a delight to read. Like, this is what I want to read on the beach is Emma Straub. You know, her characters are smart. They talk like real people. This is an interesting pairing. Emma Strav against simple here. Emma Straub also, not for nothing, good friends now with Jenna Bush Hager and makes appearances on the Today show to recommend books. I don't remember if any of her past novels have been read with Jenna picks, but would not be surprised. And even if this one doesn't get picked for Read with Jenna Straub will almost definitely be on the Today show talking about this, getting, like, big publicity. Her books sell, she's well liked. Her writing is well liked. She'll end up in like Goodreads Best of the Year, even if she's not on the New York Times Best of the Year, where simple has more of a chance. I think at some of the highbrow stuff. This is a really tough one.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Can I lead us towards simple? Is that.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, I was gonna say I feel like it's simple. Yeah. I just feel like she has a little more edge. There's just more possibility of acclaim than there is.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I think that's right. I think Emma Tribe would be a lot of fun and really smart. I think I might go. I might do one of those pleasurable.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Ooh.

[Jeff O'Neill]

With the Maria Semple, like, kind of like, you know, running your tooth, your. Your tongue over a cold sore. Like that pleasurable pain and sharpness that comes along with that. It's kind of what I'm looking for with Maria Semple, so I'll go with you there. Another favorite writer of mine, Xochil Gonzales, has a new book out, and this one is really a for me situation because it's about. It's set in the early 20s and it's set in Brooklyn and it's like young knowledge workers doing things now again it is more directly related to you know Latina women this but I was around people who are making their way in the world and I'd be I'm fascinated to see was Ocho Gonzalez does this with it sounds like her kind of peer group living parallel lives in different parts of the gentrifying borough of Brooklyn in the early parts of the 21st century. Another one where straddling the line between commercial fake and lit fix Ojille Gonzalez Rebecca what is your sense of her and her career right now?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I just keep waiting for her to really break out.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Like I know the publisher had a lot of hope for the last one to really.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah the last couple books have felt like oh this might be it. Like this really might be the big Zoshido Gonzalez moment. Award nominated often highly acclaimed like reviewers like her award groups like her she's she does lean more literary There will be like surprising sentence constructions and interesting word choices and the kinds of things that literary readers are looking for. Oh but I think Maria Semple will sell more copies.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. Well so picked the anticipated book book riot lit hub Publishers Weekly USA Today people Electric Lick. Oh this is a really tricky call.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's really hard and I can see either of them go gentle or last night in Brooklyn showing up on like you know, the prestigious end of year lists.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yes.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

So Sheil Gonzalez is more likely to get an award nomination.

[Jeff O'Neill]

You think so? Yeah, I hadn't really thought about that but I think that makes sense.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I think so. And the last book was on at least some long lists for big awards.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Anna Damonte Lash last it was really good and I talked to her for first edition about that. I really like I like both of these authors and I want both of these books to do very well. So I'm also feeling that well.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And there's also like Zoshido Gonzalez we've heard from more recently. Maria Semple might be a new name for some oh great point readers which could be great for them. Like welcome to Maria Semple. Please go back and pick up Where'd you go, Bernadette? I think I'm going to give this one to this round to Zoshido Gonzalez. It just it's a spidey sense.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I I can I can get behind that for sure. Oh yes. This is exciting to be next. I I'm surprising myself as I open my tabs here because I forget which order I didn't I didn't stack the deck this month I should should say and move anything around April 7th. This is next week from Edelweiss. Come on, you're killing me about. Oh, Knopf Yesteryear by Carol Claire Burke. So another high concept where a trad wife influencer sort of wakes up in actual trad wife times in 1855.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And has to figure it out.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Good luck to her. Sounds like an. Is this a horror story?

[Jeff O'Neill]

A gimlet. I'd look at tradition, fame, faith in the grand performance of womanhood. Sounds like a horror story to me.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, yeah. Tradwives are having a moment in fiction. So like, and this is by far not the first one, I think that I'm either. We're not gonna have like a big breakout tradwife novel. We're just having sort of a mini moment of them. I think this is Zoshido Gonzala. Really, I do. I think the tradwife novel, like it might get a momentary bit of buzz.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Wait, can I. Can I give you one bit of information?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Sure.

[Jeff O'Neill]

So when this book was sold, the film rights were sold immediately at July 31, 2024.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay.

[Jeff O'Neill]

A half million to 2 million dollar deal with Amazon, MGM, which, you know what it's got in its pocket right now? A little project Hail Mary. And right now Anne Hathaway is attached to star in producing this flippin show.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay, well that's great, except that people who see this book just on a bookstore shelf or like an ad for it online are not going to know that. So this book might have a moment when Anne Hathaway is on screen with it. Although that does make me inclined to think there's a big marketing budget here and Zoshito Gonzalez does not typically get a big marketing budget.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And it's a simple good hook. A tradwife in Florida wakes up in 1855 and has to actually do the thing.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

If it's good, it could be a great time. If it's fine, it will be very.

[Jeff O'Neill]

The early reviews are good.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Boring. Okay,

[Sponsor/Announcer]

today's episode is brought to you by Poetry Magazine. Wishing you a happy Poetry Month. This April book riot fans are invited to celebrate poetry all year long with a special deal. Subscribe to one year of Poetry and receive a free limited edition notebook. Practice makes poetry. And we'd like to offer you a space for your own reflections and creativity. The subscription in includes 10 beautifully curated print issues of Poetry Immediate unlimited digital access via the Poetry Magazine app and the premium Poetry Month notebook. Your subscription to Poetry supports living artists and a living art form which this cutting edge publication has been championing for more than 110 years be a part of poetry's present and future. Subscribe [e-mail] Take note. And take note is one word, so no slashes or spaces there. Again, that's poetrymagazine.org Take note. And thanks again to Poetry magazine for sponsoring this episode.

[Jeff O'Neill]

This episode is brought to you by Fandango. People say fans are too distracted these days, but the truth is, when a great movie hits the screen, you show up. You stay glued, invested, part of the story. And without fans like you, there'd be no cinema magic, no shared moments. So head to fandango.com to get tickets, stream or rent or buy top movies and series. Fandango loves fans. Protein is now at Starbucks, and it's never tasted so good. You can add protein cold foam to your favorite drink or try one of our new protein lattes or matcha. Try it today at Starbucks.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Who. Okay, you know, let's give it to yesteryear. Let's keep it interesting.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I think. I think it has to be at this point. There's a lot of buzz for this book. It's a big, it's like obsolete title, I think, for the. For the spring.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay.

[Jeff O'Neill]

So anyway, what do we have next? Oh. Oh, yes. You know how all the film bros and film ladies too. I think all the film people and film between the gender. Gender fluid film people are all lining up for the Odyssey.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I do. I do know that we are among.

[Jeff O'Neill]

My odyssey comes out April 7th because it's Ben Lerner's new book transcription.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yes. I've been looking at this.

[Jeff O'Neill]

144 pages, which were. I'm paying $25 in hardcover with just dust for pre ordered. I should say announce first print run. Rebecca, do you have any sense of this? You're shockingly good at this. Though I should. I shouldn't be surprised anymore. I could. I would have no idea. And even the number when I saw it surprised me and I was ready to be surprised. Would you like to hazard a guess? I should say this is also the published print run. Grain of salt. Grain of salt. Grain of salt.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Interesting. I mean, Ben Lerner is like, as you're saying, there's a pretty niche audience for him. But you asking me this question makes me inclined to think it's higher than I'm gonna. Than I would normally think. 200,000.

[Jeff O'Neill]

That's a great guess. 150K.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay. Good for him.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Ben Lerner, who I adore and also hate because he grew up about apparently like 25 miles from where I grew up in a Very parallel, you know, young man with vaguely literary aspirations. And he has turned into Ben Lerner. And I am the meat sack you see before you or are listening to before you. Dunno. Fine. But come on. Ben Lerner, one of my. I look forward to him every single time comes out New York Times magazine. He has the blurb of all blurbs, the friends and like the most talented writer of his generation. And this is high concept. The narrator, unnamed narrator I think travels to Providence to conduct an interview with his 90 year old mentor and father of his college friend. And so it's one of these pin been shown like giants and he starts interviewing him and then the. His recorder breaks. Oh and he. I don't know what happens that a dreamlike circumstance. I don't know what this is. I'm looking forward to it. It has a Kubrickian like cover which is like a bar of gold. I think it's supposed to be the back of a smartphone but it looks like the chimp monolith. I don't know what I'm getting into but I'm very very excited at this point.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Tell the people about the hallmarks of a Ben Lerner book since he is kind of a niche.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Well it's. It's high concept, super cerebral literary. Yeah. I mean there's a little bit of. I don't want to get crazy here but there's like some DeLillo things happening. Like there tends to be a concept or a spec fic but also there's a fever pitch and good hearted. I want to say at the same time like this is not a nihilist. Right. This is not Camus or something like this. Like I think this is someone who sees a fallen world and is trying to make the best of it that they can but also has a lot of introspection, let's put it that way, going on at the same time.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah. What an interesting pairing. Now the tradwives against Ben Lerner. I mean short of an Anne Hathaway adaptation, I think Ben Lerner has the edge. Like this will be gets the literary acclamation. There will be rave reviews.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Everyone who reviews books that are literary, have awards aspirations will review and talk about this.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yes. He's just. He's in the awards contention just by virtue of being Ben Lerner.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's a brand new for this book matters and that's rare.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah. If this is not on the long list for the National Book Award, I'll be shocked.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Pages do we matter? I mean I haven't looked. I haven't Done a longitudinal study of page counts and awards, but I feel like it doesn't matter as much.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I don't think it matters. It doesn't matter anymore. Romantasy has done this for us. The people will read really long books.

[Jeff O'Neill]

That's right.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

That's true.

[Jeff O'Neill]

No, but 144, it's a very short 140 short.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

That even better packs a punch. You know, probably not going to get an immediate adaptation announcement. Probably not going to be picked for one of the big book clubs. But like it will be well reviewed in literary circles. People will talk about it. You're not going to be alone lining up to pick up your pre ordered copy on April 7th. I think this goes to Ben Lerner. Like, welcome to the book riot podcast. I couldn't betray you.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Even if I do, I'm gonna. My cup is coming no matter what. You can't do anything to stop my copy from coming. Everyone.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, I'm gonna be reading this next week too. We should talk about it. Fun.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Looking forward to it. All right. I like to throw some debuts in something that's notable getting some buzz here. Today's this month's is a book called Livonia Chow Main by Abigail Savage Liu. It is a 100 year story of a Chinese restaurant. Basically it sounds like so in 1972, tenements on Livonia Avenue in Brownsville burn to the ground, killing someone, displacing others. And the survivors are convinced it's someone named Mr. Wong. And it sounds like this four generations of this family gets mixed up with some other people in this part of Brooklyn over the course of this century. And it sounds like this story. I'm sorry, the restaurant is part of the story for multiple generations. I'm trying not to spoil it for myself. Sometimes they debuts, they give you even extra explanation because they want you to read it. So I do this thing where my eyes just sort of blur out in

[Rebecca Schinsky]

the third paragraph of 5.5 paragraph synopsis. Come on.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Well, there's a couple sentences each. So I love a New York story. Multi generational, multicultural. It's got a really wonderful James McBride blurb, which I'm excited now I'm listening. And in the veins of Happiness Fall and Family Lore. Both books I really liked. I really like Happiness Fall by Angie Kim. So I've never heard of this person. I wish them all the best and I include it here for your consideration. I'm afraid it's going to get mowed down by the Oppenheimer like juggernaut that is Ben Lerner for Those of us who have trifold prescription glasses at this age of our life. But there we are, feeling a little

[Rebecca Schinsky]

personally attacked with the progressive lenses. This sounds like a great time and I love a story that's like years in the life of this building or this place. Notably Daniel Mason really just elevated that with Northwoods. But this sounds really fun, I think. I'm delighted to hear about this as a debut. It was not on my radar. Great catchy title. But Ben Lerner wins in this. In this round.

[Jeff O'Neill]

The next one. I'm never really sure what to do with translations because they were. This one was published more almost 20 years ago. Sharif and I were talking about this recently and I don't remember why. The book is called the Witch by Mary Marie and Jai. And it is a mediocre witch in a small French town trapped in a cruel marriage. And she's trying to pass on her gifts to her twin daughters who. Twin daughters who must make a choice, stay close to the nest and the mother who nurses them or soar away from the dead in claustrophobia. Their selfish father. I like the idea of a mediocre witch. This is a new son to me. So even. Even a witch has some trouble getting out of their stultifying heteronormative relationship. Maria and Jai. I was first exposed to her with a chef, which really blew me away a while ago. Now I she off. She's sort of in the conversation at the margin for the Nobel someday. Not that it matters just to say the kind of like global place she has.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah. As we're recording this just this morning, the shortlist for the International Booker Prize was announced and this is one of the finalists.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, I saw that. I'm glad you name drop that. I was about to do that to you, but you did it right back to me.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

You've got awards, acclaim already. I mean, she's in the conversation for the Nobel someday. The idea of a mediocre witch is really fun. And like, not for nothing, TikTok is open to books in translation.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yes.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And stuff that has kind of a twist to it.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I've never known men. You know, this is. This has been out here very much.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Calculation of volume, all of those. I've not read this author before, so. Have you. I don't have a sense of like. Okay. Okay.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I think you should. I think you would like her. I. I think there's 144 pages.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Like, what is the literary experience of her? What should I expect? I'm trying to calculate.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's not like I don't know. I think it's pretty squarely literary fic.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay.

[Jeff O'Neill]

You know, it tends to be a little more evocative. It's also known because it's like the translator matters.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Right.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And I don't know that it's consistent translator. I don't know how this works, but

[Rebecca Schinsky]

we're not in, like, the Hong Kong zone.

[Jeff O'Neill]

No, no, no. Short of that. But it's on the road to Hong Kong, but sort of it feels like it can be a little more playful. Maybe it's because I read the Hong Kong non fiction, where I'm like, whoa, it's actually dark. It thought it was dark. It's actually darker than I think. I think of Marine guys as notably. I don't say she's light, but lighter in touch.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yes.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And this sounds like maybe a satire, this one specifically.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

So now we have her up against Ben Lerner. They're both literary.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Juggernauts. High acclaim. Low book club chances for either.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I agree there.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

High book award chances for beaux.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Very high.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

A book called the Witch with a great cover is gonna sell more copies probably than transcript, though.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Are we namespace pollution with witch books? This is also something of. There's a lot of witch books out now.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

This is a tough one.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Tough, tough.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I think I'm giving the edge to Marie and Jai.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I'm happy with that. Everybody decided. My note would be this book has been out for 20 years, and it's getting an English translation. So does that, you know, evacuate some of the. This is not a title that most Americans even know. Right. Fewer American litfic readers know her than Ben Lerner. They just.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And trans, like, yeah, translation can be tough to sell. But then again, the Tick Tockers are open to it.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Well, wherever you want to go. I'm fine.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I don't know. We might end up re adjudicating this, but let's go on with the witch for now.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Okay. All right. I got this in the mail. The next one. This is another April 7th. April 7th is enormous day. It's a big, huge day. I got this, and I didn't know what it was, and sort of picked it up and put it to the side. And then I was going through, you know, looking at my. My sources for April, and I was like, oh, whoa. So is that a sign of anything? I just put that to you here. So the book is. The ending writes itself by Evelyn Clark. Except it's not written by Evelyn Clark. It is written instead by two people.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay.

[Jeff O'Neill]

V E Schwab.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh, yes.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Ever heard of her?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Mm.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And a longtime friend and screener, Cat Clark, that they should write a book together. So it's a. Evelyn Clark is a portmanteau of people. A joint pseudonym. Yeah.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I have been seeing this pop up in a lot of places. I had missed that it was V. E Schwab, and Clark.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Let me do the synopsis for People. It's a meta mystery because the protagonist, Arthur Fresh, is one of the world's bestselling novelists, and he's a reclusive genius, right? And six authors are invited to spend a weekend on his private Scottish island. And Arthur Fletch is dead. So it's a little, you know, proofs out, manuscripts out, knives out, vibes here, pens out. And they have to. They have 72 hours to finish Fletch's last great work, and then they get something. There's, like, a prize or something going on. Is this amazing, or am I tired just thinking about it right now? Rebecca, I put it to you.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Well, I think it all depends on how good the book is, because it could be great. Turns out this is a great concept. Probably not like mainstream award nomination contenders.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I mean, you could do those things. Yeah.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I mean, I think this knocks Ben Lerner and Marie and Jai out of contention.

[Jeff O'Neill]

250,000 copy. First print run here.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah. Huge print run. And once Schwab is out there talking about how it's her that's gonna be. That will move the needle. That's a big deal for readers. She has such a devoted fan base. The COVID of this is also great. People love a book about books. Like, I'm tired because, of course, it's about a writer, and he's reclusive and he was a genius. But that's my personal stuff, just my personal taste. I think this one has the edge now. That's. Yeah, a lot of possibility there. It'll sell.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Is this a demerit that I can think of about one other book that matters that was written by two people? Oh, it's a weird game.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Well, maybe, except that it doesn't have two people's name on the COVID Is

[Jeff O'Neill]

that better or worse? This is no. 1. Is this two people? Is this less than the sum of its parts?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Like, the genre readers are familiar with this. This is only weird to us because we most mostly exist in literary fiction. But, like, genre readers are down with, like, there's pen names all over the place. It's two people writing as one. This person uses this name when they write mysteries, but this other name when they write romances, like, I don't think.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Well, riddle me this, Batgirl. If this was by V. E Schwab, it sells three times as many copies. Because now we have to go through the clutter of. Wait, this. I mean, in all respect to their friend, and I'm sure they had a great time, but for our purposes, I'm trying to be right. I'm not trying to be fair.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Like, if you're Ve Schwab's agent on the day she calls up and is like, I'm gonna write this book. Here's the pitch. And you're like, this sounds great. We're gonna sell a billion of them. And she's like, and I'm writing it with my best friend. And we're gonna put a different name

[Jeff O'Neill]

and we're gonna use this replacement. Replacement level. Pseudonym.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, that's a bummer. I think it'll still do fine. Real quick talk potential there.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I did a quick things that just. If I could think of. Written by two people.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Number one on my list is Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. And I'm so sorry to bring that up, but that's just. I think in terms of literature that's sold and people like, Good Oven is number one. Guernsey literary and potato peel Society. That was finished by someone else. Right.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It was like a mother, daughter situation.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Mother, daughter kind of situation there. Amal El Mohtar had a co writer and I cannot remember his name off the top. Max Gladstone. I just looked it up. So that's one. And I'm out. Rebecca. Those are the three. I was like, what else is there?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's not common in fiction.

[Jeff O'Neill]

No, but I think, is it common elsewhere?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I mean, non fiction. Lots of co writers.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, but Name 1.Name 5. Robins.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Don't put me on the spot. Just, I direct you to like, the catalogs filled with non fiction.

[Jeff O'Neill]

No, my point is like, that they just don't write like it's. Actually, I think that's indicative that you just. Oh, yeah, that one. Right. Like.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Right. Yeah.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's not trusted in child, I guess.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Preston, that's a good one.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I. I can't podcast bookriot.com if I'm really.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Sierra Simone and Julie Murphy write some romances together.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. That is not evidence in your favor if there's a bunch of these. That people. I'm just thinking that two people with a pseudonym is a huge demerit in the it book status of this book. Huge.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

All right, well, it's. It's carrying the current round.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Anyway, I did nothing. All my. All my entreaties were for nothing.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

The pitch for it is still great.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. And who's it by? I don't know. Two people. Okay. I am not someone. I like it when people try hard. I'm just gonna say that out loud.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Anne Hathaway, James Franco stuff. James Franco, put that aside. But the try hard theater kid, I. I like those people. People want to make art. They want to put in the world all the time. Give a damn.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yes.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And so I do not have any residual Lena Dunham stink. I'm looking forward to her memoir, Fame Sick, and It comes out April 28th. It's Random House, and it's a rowdy, frank reflection on illness, fame, sex, and everything in between. Dunham can write. She's a super interesting person. Having said that, I have no idea where the zeit. Where the Zeitgeist is at on LD here. Right. Rebecca, do you have any sense of this?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I don't know. She's been reappearing on some stuff recently.

[Jeff O'Neill]

She had a show. She had a series that people liked.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yes. Yeah. Oh, and I watched that. Yeah, she produced and was like a minor character. I don't remember my list in front of me.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Tough look for Lena Dunham's Q rating right now.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I guess I think this is a great moment to be a famous woman putting out a memoir that deals, frankly, with issues like sex and bodies. Because of the Lindy west of it all. Right.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Now we have to talk about them in the Hot List episode, aren't we?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

We are.

[Jeff O'Neill]

The Lindy west book is gonna be on there. There's now think pieces in the New York Dueling Think Pieces. The New York Times about the Lindy west thing.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yep. We're gonna have to talk about it a whole lot.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Dueling Think Pieces was of course, the name of my EP that I put out as a techno artist.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yes. Vanessa and Erica covered the the Lindy west shenanigans on Monday for us. But, yeah, we're gonna have to talk about that. Lena Dunham. I mean, like this. The book will be everywhere. She'll probably give a ton of interviews. If it's deemed to be good, it will go everywhere. Memoirs don't really get book club picks now. I feel like I'm in a weird place with the VE Schwab book up against Lena Dunham as the contenders for it Book of the month. I might need to like you did.

[Jeff O'Neill]

You did this to yourself. I just put. All I did is put him in a doc, man.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I mean, I think I, I might rewind the tape and just give the

[Jeff O'Neill]

monster enough chic to hang yourself with.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

This happens like once a year where I'm like, wait, no, go back to the.

[Jeff O'Neill]

How did we get here?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, how did we get here? This is the nature of the knockout

[Jeff O'Neill]

round and too many sliding doors and now I'm in a dumpster in the back of a Chuck E. Cheese. That's not right.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah. It's like the string theory of pop.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. Really? Yeah. Multiverse.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah. I do feel like I'm in the multiverse. I, I mean, there's a world where the Lena Dunham memoir is the it book of the month and could spark a lot of conversation. She sparks discourse just by existing.

[Jeff O'Neill]

How many juicy gossip nugs is this one going to produce? That's another thought for me.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And people will write about this just to hate on it because that's right. Like hating on Lena Dunham is its own whole Internet sport.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I don't, I don't.

[Jeff O'Neill]

What would be the best zag Lena Dunham could say? Like what, what would be. What would be actually really surprising for her to.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I don't know.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, right.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I mean, like I, I would. I. Having watched Girls and like read other things about her, I would believe just about anything. Which is its own whole statement about Lena Dunham. I don't know about this. I do not know about this.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Let's. Let's just advance. We're gonna hold it in the bands here because we got one more.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh, we have one more.

[Jeff O'Neill]

We have one more. And. And maybe the world's most interesting man can get you out of your jam because Pat and Radden Keefe has a book coming out.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Patrick, save Me.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's London Calling, which I talked about, I believe in Frontless Foy last week because I just listened to it and I couldn't not talk about it. It's his new narrative nonfiction. It centers on a young man, a 19 year old, who jumps, he descends rapidly from a balcony, let's put it that way. In a expensive. From the expensive. It's an expensive apartment that's above the Thames, multiple stories above the Thames. It's found dead a few days later down the river. And it's how did this happen? But also how does it connect to larger forces at work in the world and in London in particular, about money, about policing, about social media, about lying and trying to be some fake it till you make it assumes at some points that you make it. And what if you Don't. What if you just faked it and then someone found out that maybe you were faking it?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Fascinating.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And then maybe. What happened? A family story, a cultural story. But prk. He's probably wearing some sweet drip from J.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Crew author on this list that's been a J. Crew model.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. Also April 7th. Old April 7th is squid game for upmarket commercial and literary non fiction. I mean, does London falling get you out of the skin knot you tied for yourself at this point?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah. Now I can just play an imaginary game where Patrick Ratten Keefe and Ben Lerner are up against each other that I like to have. I think it's Patrick Radden Keefe. Like this is one for the dads, both literal and spiritual. He's. I mean he's. He's so reliably good and he feels like an author to me from like before Internet times. Like he's just really digging into stuff. He tells a great story, the books stand on their own and he could get some Internet juice. Like, you know, it's nonfiction, so it's not going to get a big book club pick, but he could get some award nominations. He consistently appears on best books of the year list. Like when there's an announcement. Announcement that a Patrick Radden Keefe book is coming. They're probably just like saving a spot for it on the New York Times end of year stuff when it happens.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And a Clash reference is a title. Yeah, the dads. The dads now we're not Zeppelin dads anymore. We're Clash dads now.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Love this. I love this for all of us and the dads. And I love it for me because Patrick Raden Keefe has saved me from a weird dilemma entirely of our own construction.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Ours. Ours. Our construction. Interesting.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Sometimes you reorder them to make the. But this was a very interesting round. Like there's so many good books coming out in April that we had a lot of interesting head to heads here even without you intentionally setting them up. I feel good about this. Thank you. Patrick Raden Keefe.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Should I do a couple honorable mentions? Just things that I noted. Just hear something. Other things that are coming out. Tabs you gotta load, man. Come on, Internet, you gotta help me out. Okay, yeah. Let's see here. The Infinite Sadness of Small Appliances by Glenn Dixon. It's Brave Little Toaster meets Wally for the literary set. So basically, when the Internet of things goes sentient and stuff happens when your Roomba, like, you know, has feelings and wants to do things, I'm not sure how I Feel about that.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It sounds a little twee for my taste.

[Jeff O'Neill]

This is for me. If this be magic, the unlikely art of Shakespeare in translation.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I've had this on my radar.

[Jeff O'Neill]

People in different, you know, languages and cultures trying to capture Shakespeare for Shakespeare, but also in a way that makes sense for their own cultures and languages. So that was very cool to see.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Jeff Core.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. Let's see. Feeling about a new Tom Parada right now. Ghost Town. Have you heard about this one?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, I have. I'm always paying attention to a new Tom Parada, but I'm still waiting to, like, is this going to be buzzy? Where are we? The last couple new Tom Paradas have just sort of come and gone, but I'm very much a stand for, like, early 2000s Tom Parada.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I just made up this comp, and I'm not sure it's right because I haven't read this book, but it's called It's a Killer in the Family by Amin Ahmad. I. It's sounding to me like, what if Crazy Rich Asians was a murder mystery?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh, fun.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Killer in the Family sounds pretty cool. A lot of good buzz. It's going to be pretty squarely like, commercial genre crossover, but so. So what?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Great.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Dear Monica Lewinsky. I don't know.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I need more information.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. So this novel is like a biography of Lewinsky. You written in the style of the Lives of Saints, where she's like a saint. Like Saint Monica Lewinsky is like a martyr. It sounds super weird, and I'm gonna read 25 pages in it and let that decide if I'm gonna continue.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I look forward to hearing about how

[Jeff O'Neill]

I do not know. Ada Limone has a nonfiction book about poetry. That's all I need to know. Against Breaking.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's National Poetry Month. Get out there.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It is that for sure. Jane Ann Phillips has a memoir out. Jane Ann Phillips, who won the Pulitzer Prize for Nightwatch in a real surprise. But Jane and Phillips can write a sentence. And I think this is sort of in the Jeanette Winterson, you know, Tara Westover, hardscrabble literary woman growing up story. It's small town girl. She grew up in West Virginia. But it's 22 essays. But it's called a memoir. So I'm not sure if they're pulling an Amy Tan here where it's like, these are 22 autobiographical essays. Let's just call it all a memoir,

[Rebecca Schinsky]

short stories, but we'll call it a novel. That's fine.

[Jeff O'Neill]

So there's that.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay. I mean, a memoir in Essays is not an unheard of thing.

[Jeff O'Neill]

No, not unheard of. I'm just. I'm just saying let's be careful with our nomenclature out there. We don't have any genre fraud. I also want to note that the Correspondent is getting a deluxe edition in April. I thought that all right there as well.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Bought that for my mom last week.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Mm. I think that kind of does it for me. There's some other things, but I think I'm pretty comfortable with this.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's a good.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I don't need to talk about anything. Yeah, it's a good month. It's a lot of fun. Shoot us. Email podcast bookride.com if one of those really is getting you super excited. If there's things that we left off the list at the same time. Oh, the award for the worst timing of a book release. I don't remember the guy's name, but the head chef, like founder of noma, basically. Me too. And the NOMA guide to building flavor is coming out this month.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Rene Redzepi. Yeah.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. Rene Redzepi. I think there's the pub. The publicity hits for that are going to be really few and far surprised.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

They're not just.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I don't mean to make out a joke out of that, but it's just too long.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

That's. That's tough. That is tough. While we're in the it books corner, Jen, I think that we have to crown a new airport book queen.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Oh.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Because I have not. I've stopped seeing Evelyn Hugo everywhere and in airports. Last week it was Theo of Golden all over the place.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Really? More than the correspondence. You see any correspondence?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I didn't see any correspondence out in the wild. I think it's because it's still in hardcover and Theo of Golden is paperback man.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Theo of golden is selling, I think. I don't actually know which one is outsold the other. My sense right now is that Theo golden has sold more than the Correspondent, but the Correspondent, like, is still in hardcover, so it feels like it's still front list. I think you're absolutely right about that. All right, so Theree we go. Bookright.com Listen for our show Nudes. Go to Patreon to listen to our bonus episodes. What's next on the Patreon?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

The next one is we're going to talk about our favorite debuts of the last five to ten years.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Oh, Lord a mercy. I got homework to do.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Huh?

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, I'm behind on that. Go check out zero to well read. Yeah, very much so. Go check out zero to well read. Much ado. And we've got some good ones coming. I mean, they're all good, but we've got some real great ones coming out pretty soon. And I'm reading something for our Friday recording, which me too. I think listeners of this show will be especially glad to know exists and definitely will stay in the can and not be lost to the digital ether.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, we might. Might do a little something special for Patreon members over here. Didn't get a book club conversation a few years ago that they expected, right?

[Jeff O'Neill]

That's right. It's a good one. You know, sometimes. Sometimes you can't catch them all.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's gonna be fun.

[Jeff O'Neill]

All right, Rebecca, thank you so much. Happy April. Happy reading. Happy Spring, everybody.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

You're probably driving, working out or doing chores right now. Quick tip. TikTok isn't just entertainment. It's where I find fast, practical advice for real life. Download TikTok now.