My Most Anticipated Spring Books 2021
These books are the ones that I am most looking forward to reading this spring. Some of the books on this list have come out recently and some of them are still coming out within the next few weeks.
Books That Came Out in April
Life’s Too Short by Abby Jimenez(April 6th) I can’t wait to read this book. It is the 3rd book by Abby Jimenez in the Friend Zone series. I love how she writes about these interesting characters that go through real life situation. Not everything is always happy and you can’t help to fall for these characters.
“Vanessa lives life on her own terms — one day at a time, every day to its fullest. She can’t afford to think about whether she has the same fatal genetic condition as her older sister. After all, she has way too much to do, traveling the globe and showing millions of YouTube followers the joy in seizing every moment. But lately, life has been anything but pure joy, and travel has come to an abrupt halt. After her younger step-sister drops off an infant and skips town, Vanessa is housebound — on mommy duty for the foreseeable future and feeling totally out of her depth. The last person she expects to help is her wickedly hot next-door neighbor, Adrian Copeland. After all, she barely knows the guy. But the closer they get, the more she realizes her carefree ways and his need for a life game plan could never be compatible for the long term … not unless one of them is willing to take a drastic leap of faith”
Broken (in the Best Possible Way) by Jenny Lawson (April 6th) I have read all of Jenny Lawson’s book and she is so real. She freely talks about how she suffers from depression. All of the stories that she tells are done with such humor that I am sure that this book will be no different.
“As Jenny Lawson’s hundreds of thousands of fans know, she suffers from depression. In Broken (in the best possible way), she explores her experimental treatment of transcranial magnetic stimulation with brutal honesty. But also with brutal humor: “People do different things to distract themselves during each treatment. I embroider. It feels fitting. I’m being magnetically stabbed in the head thousands of times as I’m stabbing the embroidery myself. I don’t embroider the same patterns my grandmother did. I embroider girls with octopus faces, David Bowie, a flowery bouquet with FUCK YES written in the middle. They let you do anything as long as it’s ‘positive.'” Jenny discusses the frustration of dealing with her insurance company in “An Open Letter to My Insurance Company,” which should be an anthem for anyone who has ever had to call their insurance company to try and get a claim covered. On the lighter side, she tackles such timelessly debated questions as “How do dogs know they have penises?” We see how her vacuum cleaner almost set her house on fire, how she was attacked by three bears, business ideas she wants to pitch to Shark Tank, and why she can never go back to the post office. Of course, Jenny’s long-suffering husband Victor-the Ricky to Jenny’s Lucille Ball-is present throughout. A treat for Jenny Lawson’s already existing fans, and destined to convert new ones, Broken is a beacon of hope and a wellspring of laughter”
Kate in Waiting by Becky Albertalli (April 20th) This author writes amazing Young Adult books that have LGBTQ+ characters. I can’t wait to read this story about a girl who shares the same crushes as her best friend and how that can get messy when true feeling are involved. It brings me back to high school and I can’t wait to read how it all works out.
Two things are true about white teen Kate–she’s always in the ensemble, never the lead, and she and her best friend Andy, who is Black, have always shared unattainable crushes. Both of those things are about to change when Matt Olsson enters the scene. The two crushed on him at an out-of-state theater camp and said their goodbyes, only for him to turn up in their theater room on the first day of school. To make things more interesting, Kate has finally been cast in a leading role in the school’s musical and her love interest is played by none other than Matt. Now, Kate and Andy have to navigate this communal crush, with real feelings involved, and craft some ground rules to help them handle the situation and keep their friendship intact. Told in Albertalli’s typical rom-com style, this book is endearing, charming, and packed with plenty of snark. Reminiscent of Rachel Cohn and David Levithan’s Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List, Albertalli crafts a story that offers an honest and realistic look at high school relationships-romantic and platonic
Anna K Away by Jenny Lee (April 27th) This story is the sequel to Anna K that came out last year. Anna K is a reimaging of Anna Karenina and this story is supposed to pick up where that one left off. I devoured that book last year and been waiting for the sequel since it was announced. I can’t wait to read about what the characters are up to and what will happen to them in this book.
After the scandal surrounding the tragic death of her first love, Alexis, Anna K’s father takes her to South Korea to “connect with family” but it feels more like exile. Back in the states, all her friends are spending their summers in different ways, but also each needs to face the reality of their relationships in order to move forward in the wake of last school year.
Books That are Coming Out in May
Yearbook by Seth Rogan (May 11th) I can’t wait to read this book. Seth Rogan is hilarious and I have loved watching the movies he has made. He is ridiculous and I can imagine that this book will be laugh out loud fun.
“A collection of funny personal essays from one of the writers of Superbad and Pineapple Express and one of the producers of The Disaster Artist, Neighbors, and The Boys. (All of these words have been added to help this book show up in people’s searches using the wonders of algorithmic technology. Thanks for bearing with us!) Hi! I’m Seth! I was asked to describe my book, Yearbook, for the inside flap (which is a gross phrase) and for websites and s*** like that, so… here it goes!!! Yearbook is a collection of true stories that I desperately hope are just funny at worst, and life-changingly amazing at best. (I understand that it’s likely the former, which is a fancy “book” way of saying “the first one.”) I talk about my grandparents, doing stand-up comedy as a teenager, bar mitzvahs, and Jewish summer camp, and tell way more stories about doing drugs than my mother would like. I also talk about some of my adventures in Los Angeles, and surely say things about other famous people that will create a wildly awkward conversation for me at a party one day. I hope you enjoy the book should you buy it, and if you don’t enjoy it, I’m sorry. If you ever see me on the street and explain the situation, I’ll do my best to make it up to you”
The Anthropocene Review by John Green (May 18th) I am a huge fan of John Green and his writing. His brother and he have a podcast called the Anthropocene Review and this book comes from stories from that. It will be interesting to read something that will be something differently from him.
“The Anthropocene is the current geological age, in which human activity has profoundly shaped the planet and its biodiversity. In this symphony of essays adapted and expanded from his podcast, John Green reviews different facets of the human-centered planet — from the QWERTY keyboard and Staphylococcus aureus to the Taco Bell breakfast menu — on a five-star scale.”
Books That are Coming Out in June
The Road Trip by Beth O’Leary (June 1st) I love books that take place in England. Beth O’Leary has written some of my favorite books of the last few years. I have been eagerly anticipating this book and the plot sounds like it will not disappoint.
Two exes reach a new level of awkward when forced to take a road trip together in this endearing and humorous novel by the author of the international bestseller The Flatshare.
What if the end of the road is just the beginning?
Four years ago, Dylan and Addie fell in love under the Provence sun. Wealthy Oxford student Dylan was staying at his friend Cherry’s enormous French villa; wild child Addie was spending her summer as the on-site caretaker. Two years ago, their relationship officially ended. They haven’t spoken since.
Today, Dylan’s and Addie’s lives collide again. It’s the day before Cherry’s wedding, and Addie and Dylan crash cars at the start of the journey there. The car Dylan was driving is wrecked, and the wedding is in rural Scotland–he’ll never get there on time by public transport.
So, along with Dylan’s best friend, Addie’s sister, and a random guy on Facebook who needed a ride, they squeeze into a space-challenged Mini and set off across Britain. Cramped into the same space, Dylan and Addie are forced to confront the choices they made that tore them apart–and ask themselves whether that final decision was the right one after all.
One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston (June 1st) I love the plot of this book and I can’t wait to read it. It sounds so interesting that one of the characters is from a different time. I loved the first book from this author and can’t wait to read more from her.
Cynical 23-year old August doesn’t believe in much. She doesn’t believe in psychics, or easily forged friendships, or finding the kind of love they make movies about. And she certainly doesn’t believe her ragtag band of new roommates, her night shifts at a 24-hour pancake diner, or her daily subway commute full of electrical outages are going to change that. But then, there’s Jane. Beautiful, impossible Jane. All hard edges with a soft smile and swoopy hair and saving August’s day when she needed it most. The person August looks forward to seeing on the train every day. The one who makes her forget about the cities she lived in that never seemed to fit, and her fear of what happens when she finally graduates, and even her cold-case obsessed mother who won’t quite let her go. And when August realizes her subway crush is impossible in more ways than one, namely, displaced in time from the 1970s, she thinks maybe it’s time to start believing.