OCTOBER 2020 OCTOBER 2020 OCTOBER 2020 Don’t Miss These New Releases from Revell Fiction This Fall OCTOBER 2020 OCTOBER 2020 SEPTEMBER 2020 Volume 267 Number 31 ISSN 0000-0019 August 3, 2020 F E A T U R E S 21 In the Study, with a Typewriter One hundred years after the publication of Agatha Christie’s first mystery, we look at her life and legacy. 28 History Repeating Turn-of-the-20th-century Spokane, wracked by police violence and social unrest, feels very of the moment in Jess Walter’s new novel. N E W S 4 Waiting Game As Covid-19 continues to spread, many fall events have moved online, and publishers don’t see a meaningful return of employees anytime soon. 6 Big Changes for Publishing in the W3C In a pair of webinars last week, the Worldwide Web Consortium dis- cussed its plans for the future of EPUB. 6 The Print Sales Surge Continues With double-digit increases in all but one category, unit sales of print books rose 20.2% in the week ended July 25 over the comparable week last year. 8 Revell Celebrates 150 Years Originally a publisher of works by evangelist Dwight Lyman Moody, Revell is now a contemporary trade house offering faithful living advice and novels that end on an up note. 12 AAP Releases Its Final 2019 Estimates The association said total industry sales increased 1.1% last year over 2018, to $25.93 billion, with units up 2%, to 2.86 billion. 14 Deals Scribner buy a book about America’s first female astronauts, Matthew McConaughey sells a memoir to Crown, and more. publishersweekly.com facebook.com/pubweekly twitter.com/PublishersWkly VISIT US ONLINE FOR ADDITIONAL NEWS, REVIEWS, BESTSELLERS & FEATURES. Available September 1, wherever fi ne books are sold. redlightningbooks.com “IF YOU’RE WONDERING IF HUMANS WALKED ON THE MOON, IF YOU’VE WONDERED WHERE THE LOST CITY OF ATLANTIS WENT, OR IF YOU’RE WONDERING WHAT YOUR CAT WILL DO BEFORE AN EARTHQUAKE, CHECK OUT WEIRD EARTH. . . . DON PROTHERO LAYS IT OUT FOR US EARTHLINGS—AND IT’S WEIRD.” —Bill Nye, CEO, The Planetary Society C o n t e n t s D E P A R T M E N T S & C O L U M N S 88 Soapbox by Laura Winnick A middle school librarian asks what it means to be a librarian without a library. B E S T S E L L E R S ● Adult Hardcovers 16 ● Adult Paperbacks 17 ● Children’s 18 ● Apple Books 19 ● Smashwords 20 R E V I E W S Fiction 30 General Fiction 34 Mystery/Thriller 38 SF/Fantasy/Horror 40 Romance/Erotica 42 Comics Nonfiction 44 General Nonfiction 49 Lifestyle 54 Religion/Spirituality Children’s/YA 56 Picture Books 58 Fiction BookLife 62 Fiction 77 Children’s/YA 81 Nonfiction 35 Q&A with Ian K. Smith 42 Q&A with ReShonda Tate Billingsley 47 Q&A with Pamela Fuller 31 Boxed Review Inside Story 39 Boxed Review We Hear Voices 57 Reviews Roundup Dino picture books PW Publishers Weekly USPS 763-080 (ISSN 0000-0019) is published weekly, except for the last week in December. Published by PWxyz LLC, 71 West 23rd Street, Suite 1608, New York, NY 10010. George Slowik Jr., President; Cevin Bryerman, Publisher. Circulation records are maintained at ESP, 12444 Victory Boulevard, 4th Floor, North Hollywood, CA 91606. Phone: (800) 278-2991 or +001 (818) 487-2069 from outside the U.S. Periodicals postage paid at New York, N.Y. and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Publishers Weekly, P.O. Box 16957, North Hollywood, CA 91615-6957. PW PUBLISHERS WEEKLY copyright 2020 by PWxyz LLC. Rates for one-year subscriptions in U.S. dollars drawn on a U.S. bank: U.S. $289.99, Canada: $339.99, all other countries: $439.99. Except for special issues where price changes are indicated, single copies are available for $9.99 US; $16.99 for Announcement issues. Extra postage applied for non-U.S. shipping addresses. Please address all subscription mail to Publishers Weekly, P.O. Box 16957, North Hollywood, CA 91615-6957. PW PUBLISHERS WEEKLY is a (registered) trademark of PWxyz LLC. Canadian Publications Mail Agreement No. 42025028. Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to: IMS, 3390 Rand Road, South Plainfield, NJ 07080 E-mail: