New Books to Read in May

In this young readers edition of her New York Times bestseller Professional Troublemaker, Luvvie Ajayi Jones uses her honesty and humor to inspire teens to be their bravest, boldest, truest selves, in order to create a world they would be proud to live in.

An exhilarating debut novel following members of a Dominican family in New York City who take radically different paths when faced with encroaching gentrification. A beautifully layered portrait of family, friendship, and ambition, Neruda on the Park weaves a rich and vivid tapestry of community as well as the sacrifices we make to protect what we love most, announcing Cleyvis Natera as an electrifying new voice.

Before she was an award-winning actor and talk show host, Ellen DeGeneres was a little girl in New Orleans. Get to know Little Ellen and the wonderful world she sees in this book of friendship and groovy moves, perfect for kids with big imaginations and even bigger hearts! This joyful picture book promotes empathy and social-emotional learning, with an inclusive voice that encourages kids to be themselves.

Even through the roar and effervescence of the 1920s, everyone in New York has heard of Benjamin and Helen Rask. Together, they have risen to the very top of a world of seemingly endless wealth. But at what cost have they acquired their immense fortune? At once an immersive story and a brilliant literary puzzle, Trust engages the reader in a quest for the truth while confronting the deceptions that often live at the heart of personal relationships, the reality-warping force of capital, and the ease with which power can manipulate facts.

A high-altitude thriller that will take your breath away—Cecily Wong is on her most dangerous climb yet, miles above sea level. But the elements are nothing compared to one chilling truth: There’s a killer on the mountain who is picking them off one-by-one.

Two children’s book superstars—#1 New York Times bestseller Jacqueline Woodson, the author of The Day You Begin, and Leo Espinosa, the illustrator of Islandborn—join forces to celebrate the joy and freedom of summer in the city, which is gloriously captured in their rhythmic text and lively art.

Set during the height of the women’s suffrage movement and with the Great War looming, The Dictionary of Lost Words reveals a lost narrative, hidden between the lines of a history written by men, and the one woman determined to bring that history to light. Inspired by actual events, this highly original story is a delightful, lyrical, and deeply thought-provoking celebration of words and the power of language to shape the world.

From celebrity author Kevin Hart comes the laugh-out-loud highly illustrated sequel to Marcus Makes a Movie about a young boy who has big Hollywood dreams—and the hustle to make it happen. Hart delivers a positive message about being creative, working hard, and learning that sometimes the best dreams are the ones you achieve with your friends.

Mexican Gothic meets Rebecca in this debut supernatural suspense novel, set in the aftermath of the Mexican War of Independence, about a remote house, a sinister haunting, and the woman pulled into their clutches…

The COVID-19 pandemic isn’t over, but even as governments around the world strive to put it behind us, they’re also starting to talk about what happens next. How can we prevent a new pandemic from killing millions of people and devastating the global economy? Can we even hope to accomplish this? Bill Gates believes the answer is yes, and in this book he lays out clearly and convincingly what the world should have learned from COVID-19 and what all of us can do to ward off another disaster like it.

Bestselling author Lauren Wolk (Beyond the Bright Sea, Echo Mountain) returns to World War II-era Western Pennsylvania in this luminous sequel to her beloved Newbery Honor-winning debut, Wolf Hollow.

A brutal, bloody, and at times hopeful history of the vote; a primer on the opponents fighting to take it away; and a playbook for how we can save our democracy before it’s too late—from the former U.S. Attorney General on the front lines of this fight. Full of surprising history, intensive analysis, and actionable plans for the future, Eric Holder lays out how we can become a true democracy where every voice is heard and every vote is counted.

The thrilling prequel to the TikTok phenomenon and #1 New York Times bestseller We Were Liars takes readers back to the story of another summer, another generation, and the secrets that will haunt them for decades to come.

Exiled from Cuba after the revolution, Isabel Perez has learned to guard her heart and protect her family at all costs. After Isabel’s sister Beatriz disappears in Barcelona, Isabel goes to Spain in search of her. Joining forces with an unlikely ally thrusts Isabel into her sister’s dangerous world of espionage, but it’s an unearthed piece of family history that transforms Isabel’s life.

When two unexpected visitors arrive in an insular coastal village, they threaten the equilibrium of a community already confronting climate instability, political violence, and domestic upheavals—a cast of unforgettable characters from the rich imagination of the National Book Award-winning, bestselling author of Three Junes.

Two Black queer best friends face their last day together with an epic journey through Baltimore in this magnetic YA debut by bestselling author of Here for It R. Eric Thomas.

The bicycle is a vestige of the Victorian era, seemingly at odds with our age or smartphones, ride-sharing apps, and driverless cars. Yet we live on a bicycle planet. Across the world, more people travel by bicycle than any other form of transportation. In Two Wheels Good, journalist and critic Jody Rosen reshapes our understanding of this ubiquitous machine, and ever-present force in humanity’s life and dream life—and a flash point in culture wars—for more than two hundred years. It is also an ode to an engineering marvel—a wondrous vehicle whose passenger is also its engine.

The third book in the New York Times bestselling American Royals series is here, and a meeting of monarchs will test everyone’s loyalty to the crown…and their own hearts.

A landmark biography by two prizewinning Washington Post reporters that reveals how systemic racism shaped George Floyd’s life and legacy—from his family’s roots in the tobacco fields of North Carolina, to ongoing inequality in housing, education, health care, criminal justice, and policing—telling the story of how one man’s tragic experience brought about a global movement for change.

Eve has an adoring girlfriend, an impulsive streak, and a secret fear that she’s wasting her brief youth with just one person. So one evening she posts some nudes online. This is how Eve meets Olivia, and through Olivia the charismatic Nathan. Despite her better instincts, the three soon begin a relationship—one that disturbs Eve as much as it enthralls her. In the way only great fiction can, Acts of Service takes between its teeth the contradictions written all over our ideas of sex and sexuality. At once juicy and intellectually challenging, Lillian Fishman’s riveting debut is bold, unabashed, and required reading of the most pleasurable sort.

From “a master of visual and palpable detail” (The Washington Post), comes a lush, immersive novel about three generations of Tuscan artisans with one remarkable secret. Epic in scope and resplendent with the glorious themes of identity and belonging, The Good Left Undone unfolds in breathtaking turns.

From Brooklyn Nine-Nine star Terry Crews, the deeply personal story of his lifelong obsession with strength—and how, after looking for it in all the wrong places, he finally found it.

What if you could take a vacation to your past? With her celebrated humor, insight, and heart, beloved New York Times bestseller Emma Straub offers her own twist on traditional time travel tropes, and a different kind of love story.