Are we in a book affordability crisis? (This week in books)

This week! Books!

I’m still catching up after being out of town for a bit, so just links this week, but I’m hoping to return to a normal blogging cadence next week!

Army of Bots: Deeper Into the Vortex of Nigerian Marketing Scams – Victoria Strauss, Writer Beware

Book Bans Continue to Threaten the Wellbeing of Authors – Karis Rogerson, Electric Lit

Publishing Sales Hit a Wall in July – Jim Milliot, Publishers Weekly

We’re in a Book Affordability Crisis – R. Nassor, Book Riot

How To Be An Author: Book or Books? – Kate McKean, Agents + Books

the mystery of the viral book flyer – Leigh Stein, Attention Economy

65 Essential Children’s Picture Books – The Atlantic

Hybrid Publishing Today Doesn’t Mean Just One Thing. That’s a Problem for Hybrids Seeking Legitimacy – Jane Friedman

The Hunt for the World’s Oldest Story – Manvir Singh, The New Yorker

Don’t Let the Publishing Industry Get You Down (It Happens to the Best of Us) – Maris Kreizman, LitHub –

This week in bestsellers

Here are the top five NY Times bestsellers in a few key categories. (All links are affiliate links):

Adult print and e-book fiction:

1. Gone Before Goodbye by Reese Witherspoon and Harlan Coben
2. Remain by Nicholas Sparks with M. Night Shyamalan
3. Mate by Ali Hazelwood
4. The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown
5. Alchemised by SenLinYu

Adult print and e-book nonfiction:

1. Under Siege by Eric Trump
2. 1929 by Andrew Ross Sorkin
3. How to Test Negative for Stupid by John Kennedy
4. 107 Days by Kamala Harris
5. Poems & Prayers by Matthew McConaughey

Young adult hardcover:

1. Fake Skating by Lynn Painter
2. Bitten by Jordan Stephanie Gray
3. Hour of the Pumpkin Queen by Megan Shepherd
4. Thorn Season by Kiera Azar
5. Hekate: The Witch by Nikita Gill

Middle grade hardcover:

1. The Court of the Dead by Rick Riordan and Mark Oshiro
2. Troubling Tonsils! by Aaron Reynolds
3. War Games by Alan Gratz
4. The Poisoned King by Katherine Rundell
5. The Complete Cookbook for Young Chefs by America’s Test Kitchen Kids

This week on the blog

In case you missed them, here are this week’s posts:

• N/A

And keep up with the discussion in all the places!

• Follow me on Bluesky
• Check out the Bransforums

And finally:

This Bay Area tour is so popular, tickets are usually gone within minutes – Liam O’Donoghue, SFGate – Yes, it’s about a wastewater facility, and yes, it’s worth your time.

Have a great weekend!

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