In search of something good to read? USA TODAY’s Barbara VanDenburghscopes out the shelves for this week’s hottest new book releases. All books are on sale Tuesday.
1. “Cloud Cuckoo Land,” by Anthony Doerr (Scribner, fiction)
What it’s about: From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of “All the Light We Cannot See” comes a kaleidoscopic story that takes place across three different places and times: 15th-century Constantinople, a small town in present-day Idaho and a spaceship in the future.
The buzz: “As the pieces of this magical literary puzzle snap together, a flicker of hope is sparked for our benighted world,” says a starred review from Kirkus Reviews.
This week’s most popular reads: See USA TODAY’s best-selling books list
2. “Believing: Our Thirty-Year Journey to End Gender Violence,” by Anita Hill (nonfiction)
What it’s about: A new manifesto on gender violence – what it is and how to confront it – from the lawyer who gave landmark testimony against Clarence Thomas alleging sexual harassment during his Supreme Court nomination.
The buzz: “Hill’s inspiring personal history, eloquently constructed arguments, and dogged persistence in shining a light on the topic make this an essential look at the fight against misogyny,” says a starred review from Publishers Weekly.
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3. “Unrequited Infatuations,” by Stevie Van Zandt (Hachette, nonfiction)
What it’s about: Van Zandt’s story begins in a suburban New Jersey bedroom and plays out on the largest stages in the world in this memoir that charts his journey as an E Street Band member, activist and “Sopranos” actor.
The buzz: “A pleasure for music fans and one of the best entertainment memoirs in recent years,” says a starred review in Kirkus Reviews.
4. “Calling for Charlie Barnes,” by Joshua Ferris (Little, Brown, fiction)
What it’s about: National Book Award nominee Ferris returns with the story of Charlie Barnes, as narrated by his fabulist son Jake Barnes. Charlie’s life, beset by troubles – cancer, divorce, economic recession and broken dreams – gets a second act courtesy of his storyteller son.
The buzz: “Good old-fashioned faux metafiction about death and family, full of panic and glee,” says Kirkus Reviews.
5. “Black Girls Must Die Exhausted,” by Jayne Allen (Harper Perennial, fiction)
What it’s about: Tabitha Walker is a young Black woman who seemingly has it all: an education, an enviable job as a local news reporter, a boyfriend who’s marriage material and a down payment for a house. Everything is falling into place until she receives a diagnosis that puts her dream of having children in jeopardy.
The buzz: “Touching on issues of professional womanhood, race, and family, the author crafts a novel that is both timely and enjoyable,” says Kirkus Reviews.
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