"It's been a tough few months. Many of our loyal customers have been laid off from government jobs or hit hard by tariffs and the economic downturn. With the anti-DEI backlash, some of our non-profit partners are hesitant to publicly work with a Black, Asian, queer & disabled-owned business. And like you, we're nervous to walk around the neighborhood with increased police and military presence.

"But we're still here, and we're still fighting. We love D.C., and we believe the Petworth neighborhood can sustain a small business that celebrates diversity and unique perspectives. We're determined to create a 'third space' for our community to discuss great books and issues that impact our city. We're going to do everything in our power to keep our doors open, because we believe there are better days ahead.

"If you'd like to support our work and help us weather this storm, you can donate to Loyalty, or shop for books and Loyalty merch in the store or on our website. If your budget is tight right now, we get it! You can still spread the Loyalty love by attending an upcoming event, supporting us on social media, or telling a friend about us. Thank you for being a subscriber to our newsletter which allows us to reach you beyond the whims of the algorithm. We'll keep fighting, and we thank you for fighting alongside us."

The $15 billion defamation lawsuit filed last Monday by President Trump against Penguin Random House, the New York Times, and four Times reporters was thrown out on Friday by a federal district court judge in Florida, who called the complaint "improper and impermissible" in the form it was submitted, according to the Times. The judge gave Trump 28 days to file an amended complaint.

Judge Steven D. Merryday, appointed by President George H.W. Bush, called the 85-page complaint unnecessarily lengthy and digressive. The Times wrote: "He criticized Mr. Trump's lawyers for waiting until the 80th page to lodge a formal allegation of defamation, and for including, ahead of it, dozens of 'florid and enervating' pages lavishing praise on the president and enumerating a range of grievances... 'A complaint is not a public forum for vituperation and invective,' Judge Merryday wrote. 'Not a protected platform to rage against an adversary.' " He also called the complaint "tedious and burdensome."

The Times noted that the complaint "digressed into lengthy tributes to Mr. Trump, citing his 'singular brilliance' and describing his 2024 election win as 'the greatest personal and political achievement in American history.' " An amended complaint must be 40 pages or less.

A spokesperson for PRH said, "We applaud the judge's decision, which recognizes and dismisses such an 'improper and impermissible' complaint."

A spokesman for the Times commented: "We welcome the judge's quick ruling, which recognized that the complaint was a political document rather than a serious legal filing."

A spokesman for Trump's legal team said: "President Trump will continue to hold the Fake News accountable through this powerhouse lawsuit against the New York Times, its reporters and Penguin Random House, in accordance with the judge's direction on logistics."

The lawsuit alleges that articles in the Times and a Penguin Press book published by two of the reporters were "specifically designed to try and damage President Trump's business, personal and political reputation" and were timed a year ago "at the height of election season to inflict maximum electoral damage against President Trump."

The Times reporters are Peter Baker, Russ Buettner, Susanne Craig, and Michael S. Schmidt. Buettner and Craig's book is Lucky Loser: How Donald Trump Squandered His Father's Fortune and Created the Illusion of Success, which was published September 17, 2024, by Penguin Press. A paperback edition is coming out tomorrow, September 23.

Total net book sales in the first six months of 2025 in the U.S. fell 1.7%, to $6.3 billion, compared to the first half of 2024, representing sales of 1,325 publishers and distributed clients as reported to the Association of American Publishers. In June, net book sales were down 1.3%, to $1.1 billion.

Trade sales were down 2.8%, to $4.3 billion, in the first half of the year. Hardcover sales rose 0.7%, to $1.5 billion, paperbacks fell 8.1%, to $1.5 billion, mass market dropped 29.8%, to $42 million, and special bindings were down 1.5%, to $89.9 million.

In other formats, in the first half of the year e-book revenues were up 2.4%, to $526.7 million, digital audio rose 5.3%, to $500.8 million, and physical audio dropped 35.5%, to $2.7 million.

In major trade categories, adult fiction sales dropped 5%, to $1.6 billion, adult nonfiction fell 3.8%, to $1.2 billion, children's/YA fiction slipped 0.8%, to $871.8 million, and children's/YA nonfiction rose 9.2%, to $202.5 million.

Sales by category for the first six months of 2025:

• University press e-books: $15.4 million, 7.2%
• Children's/YA e-books: $50.3 million, 5.7%
• Digital audio: $500.8 million, 5.3%
• Higher Ed: $1.1 billion, 5.2%
• Adult e-books: $451.2 million, 2.6%
• Children's/YA paperbacks: $477.4 million, 1.3%
• Adult hardcovers: $912.7 million, 1.1%
• Religious hardcovers: $249.1 million, 1.1%

• Children's/YA hardcovers: $381.7 million, -0.3%
• Children's special bindings: $89.9 million, -1.5%
• University press paperbacks: $31.4 million, -2%
• University press hardcovers: $18.1 million, -4.1%
• Religious e-books: $25.1 million, -6%
• Professional books: $212.6 million, -7.7%
• Religious paperbacks: $72.5 million, -7.7%
• Adult paperbacks: $947.7 million, -12.2%
• Adult mass market: $42 million, -29.8%
• Physical audio: $2.7 million, -35.5%

The Book Industry Charitable Foundation has named two booksellers as winners of the inaugural Susan Kamil Emerging Writers Prize, which awards $12,500 to each recipient to provide the aspiring writer-booksellers with the financial support to focus on a full-length manuscript. This year's winners are:

Robin Bruce, a writer, translator, and interdisciplinary artist from Texas, living in northwest Arkansas. Her work spans fiction, poetry, hybrid memoir, screenwriting, visual storytelling, and music, often exploring themes of love, healing, community, and care in the face of limitation and change. She currently works as a bookseller at Pearl's Books in Fayetteville, Ark. Her manuscript is historical fiction.

Emily Newman, owner of Main St. Books in Monroe, Wash. They majored in comparative literature at the University of Washington and spent summers writing plays for the Columbia Gorge School of Theatre. They later taught English in Japan before returning to Washington State. Their manuscript is speculative fiction.

The Susan Kamil Emerging Writers Prize was established by journalist and author Charles Duhigg and his wife, Liz Alter, a professor of biology at California State University Monterey Bay. Binc administers the prize, which is named for Kamil, who was executive v-p and publisher of Random House when she died in 2019. 

Any writer working on a full-length manuscript, graphic novel, or comic who is currently employed at a physical book or comic store in the U.S. and has been for a minimum of three months was eligible to apply.

"More than 150 aspiring writer-booksellers applied for this incredibly generous and life-changing prize," said Binc executive director Pam French. "Congratulations to Emily and Robin and our sincere gratitude to the judges who committed countless hours to reviewing the applications, Charles and Liz, and all the talented finalists." See a list of additional finalists here.

Blue House Books, Kenosha, Wis., is planning an expansion that will include room for more author events, book clubs, craft nights, children's programs, small business collaborations, and more. In a Facebook post, owner Samantha Jacquest noted that the bookstore is "even in the process of getting set up to serve coffee and wine! The new event space will be in our exact same building, which can be accessed through the bookstore or from an exterior entrance on 6th Ave!"

To help finance the expansion, Blue House Books took out an interest-free $15,000 loanwith KIVA, which was fully funded by the community within 15 hours. 

Blue House Books launched as a popup bookstore in 2017, opened a small bricks-and-mortar store in 2020, and after a year moved to a larger space in 2021. When another retail space became available in the building, the bookstore decided to take it.

"Without you all, Blue House Books wouldn't be possible, and we are SO grateful to you!" Jacquest wrote in the Facebook post. "We're so excited to make our space even greater for our incredible Blue House community."

Dan Wickett

Dan Wickett, founder of Emerging Writers Network and later co-founder of the non-profit publishing company Dzanc Books, died September 15. He was 59. In addition to spending the majority of his professional career working as a quality manager at Almetals, one of Wickett's "greatest passions in life was the arts, and he belonged to a large and beloved community in the Metro Detroit and Ann Arbor areas," his obituary noted, adding that he was an avid reader, and both Emerging Writers Network and Dzanc Books "have helped writers get their works out into the world, using the proceeds to fund creative writing initiatives in the metro Detroit community."

Wickett was also one of the organizers and the host of the artist series Brain Candy, which has given local artists the opportunity to share their poetry, short stories, music, and art with the community. "These organizations touched many lives, and none of that would have been possible without Dan," his obituary noted. 

In a tribute, Steve Gillis, Dzanc Books co-founder and founding publisher emeritus, posted on social media: "In 2006 ,we started Dzanc Books together. Dan was a book reviewer and I was a young author and we were crazy enough to think we could bring something to the independent press world. Over the last 20 years, we have built Dzanc into a literary publishing house we can be proud of. More important, though, has been the journey. Dan was a wonderful man. Soft spoken, kind, intelligent, never had a malicious word for anyone. To say he will be missed is an understatement. But we will continue his legacy here at Dzanc.

"We will be bringing his wonderful Emerging Writers posts into Dzanc and honor his legacy by continuing to do reviews of worthy writers. His loss is deeply felt by everyone here at Dzanc--especially our editor-in-chief, Michelle Dotter, who worked closely with Dan these last 10 years and considers him a close mentor and friend. In an age all too often driven by egos and false ambitions, Dan was a sweet, well-intended, hard-working, loyal man. A great father, a wonderful friend. The angels are lucky to have you, Dan. You will be missed but not forgotten."

Big Other magazine posted on Facebook: "R.I.P., Dan Wickett, small press hero and literary citizen extraordinaire. Founder of the vital Emerging Writers Network, co-founder of the exemplary Dzanc Books, organizer and host of the great artist series Brain Candy, Dan also wrote hundreds of book reviews, interviewed over a hundred writers, and otherwise supported many artists, literary and otherwise, in innumerable ways. Dan was also a strong supporter of Big Other, and contributed a few pieces for it in its earlier years. Big thanks to Dan. We will, in other words, miss him."

Strand Books in New York City hosted Caroline O'Donoghue (r.) for her YA duology opener Skipshock (Walker Books US). She was joined by good friend and award-winning performer Natasha Hodgson (currently on Broadway in Operation: Mincemeat). Hodgson is also the narrator of the Skipshock audiobook. (photo: Elena Esposito, Strand).

Sweet Home Bookstore, Wetumka, Ala., shared a bookseller video offering advice on "how to catch a book bestie."

"At an indie bookstore, you're not just clicking 'Add to Cart,' " Black Cat Books & Oddities in Medina, Ohio, posted on Facebook. "You're talking to real people who love books (and actually read them); discovering hidden gems, not just the bestsellers; supporting your neighborhood, not a warehouse; helping build a space where stories, ideas, and community thrive; and every purchase? It matters: to us, to local authors, to your town

"Amazon is fast. Barnes & Noble is big. But we're personal. We're passionate. We're part of your community. And we're here because readers like you know that we can build a community together, book by book. Tell us in the comments: Why do YOU love indie bookstores?"

Special Election: Stories by Brock Clarke (Acre Books).

Today:
Morning Joe: Jacinda Ardern, author of Mom's Busy Work (Philomel, $19.99, 9780593692301). She will also appear on ABC's Live Prime with Linsey Davis--and on the Daily Show for A Different Kind of Power (Crown, $32, 9780593728697), too.

Good Morning America: Christian Petroni, co-author of Parm to Table: Italian American and American Italian Recipes from Ponza to the Bronx (Harvest, $35, 9780063378582).

Also on GMA: Edwina Findley Dickerson, author of The World Is Waiting for You: Embrace Your Calling and Manifest the God Dream Over Your Life (HarperOne, $27.99, 9780063424982).

Today: Priscilla Presley, co-author of Softly, As I Leave You: Life After Elvis (Grand Central, $32, 9780306836480).

The View: Matthew McConaughey, author of Poems & Prayers (Crown, $29, 9781984862105).

Watch What Happens Live: Sherri Shepherd, author of The Sunshine Queens (Tommy Nelson, $19.99, 9781400252732).

Fresh Air: Elizabeth Gilbert, author of All the Way to the River: Love, Loss, and Liberation (Riverhead, $35, 9780593540985). 

Late Night with Seth Meyers: Jake Tapper, author of Race Against Terror: Chasing an Al Qaeda Killer at the Dawn of the Forever War (Atria, $30, 9781668079447).

Tomorrow:
CBS This Morning: Brené Brown, author of Strong Ground: The Lessons of Daring Leadership, the Tenacity of Paradox, and the Wisdom of the Human Spirit (Random House, $32, 9781984855749).

Good Morning America: Kamala Harris, author of 107 Days (Simon & Schuster, $30, 9781668211656). She will also appear on the View.

Also on GMA: Melissa King, co-author of Cook Like a King: Recipes from My California Chinese Kitchen (Ten Speed Press, $40, 9781984861924).

WitSec: Inside the Federal Witness Protection Program by Pete Earley and Gerald Shur is being developed for TV at HBO, Deadline reported. From Peter Chernin's Chernin Entertainment, the project will be written by Justin Piasecki (Relay) and David Kob (Foundation). Executive producers are Alex Jackson of Chernin Entertainment, Earley, and Miriam Shur.

The Witsec series "follows a Department of Justice lawyer and a hardened mob hitman, both fed up with the corrupt institutions around them, who form a precarious alliance to convict criminal titans and save lives in the rogue origins of the Witness Protection Program," Deadline noted.

Winners have been announced for the 46th annual American Book Awards, sponsored by the Before Columbus Foundation. Click here to see the 18 awards, which include a lifetime achievement award for John Edgar Wideman, the editor/publisher award for Erroll McDonald at Penguin Random House, and the anti-censorship award for Joy Reid.

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Kate Medina, who retired in June as executive v-p, associate publisher, and executive editorial director at Random House, is receiving the Editorial Excellence Award of the Biographers International Organization, which honors an editor for "outstanding work in the service of biography and literature."

Committee chair Heather Clark said that Medina has "edited Isabel Wilkerson, Jon Meacham, Gloria Steinem, Sandra Day O'Connor, Katherine Boo, Tom Brokaw, E.L. Doctorow, Emma Cline, Anna Quindlen, and Tracy Kidder, among many others."

Meacham added, "Henry James might well have had Kate in mind when he wrote that we should all strive to be someone on whom nothing is lost."

Medina began her publishing career at Doubleday and joined Random House in 1985.

The award will be presented October 7 in New York City.

LibraryReads, the nationwide library staff-picks list, offers the top 10 October titles public library staff across the country love:

Top Pick
Overdue: A Novel by Stephanie Perkins (Saturday Books, $31, 9781250313461). "Ingrid, a librarian in a cozy mountain town, has dated her boyfriend for eleven years. When her sister gets engaged, Ingrid's at an impasse. She and her boyfriend have never dated anyone else, so they decide to take a break and see other people. Ingrid hopes to finally get over her crush, Macon, but things get interesting in this slow-burn romance." --Anna Louise Kallas, Durham County East Regional Library, N.C.

Crafting for Sinners: A Novel by Jenny Kiefer (Quirk Books, $18.99, 9781683694700). "Ruth makes a big mistake by shoplifting from the religious craft store in her small town. Things get messy, and she's trapped and fighting for her life. The rest is a scary bloodbath with clever uses for craft supplies. The zealots are after Ruth and others they deem sinners (gays, atheists, or just non-conformists). This quick read is very scary and super gory." --Kimberly McGee, Lake Travis Community Library, Austin Tex.

The Keeper of Magical Things by Julie Leong (Ace, $19, 9780593815946). "When a new depository is needed for minor magical objects, two seemingly very different women are chosen to lead the mission. Sent to a small depressed village, they develop an unexpected relationship, and magic starts to happen. This was an easy-read romance that will keep readers captivated." --Ron Haislip-Hansberry, Springfield City Library, Mass.

Red City by Marie Lu (‎Tor, $29.99, 9781250885678). "Lu's tale follows two young outsiders with a powerful connection who are brought up to wield both power and magic on opposing sides of a gang war. Both deeply emotional and electrifying, this will remind readers of Fonda Lee and Erin Morgenstern." --Gregg Winsor, Johnson County Library, Mo.

The Women of Wild Hill by Kirsten Miller (Morrow, $30, 9780063282858). "Generations of women in the Duncan family have an important and magical legacy. Three members of the latest generation are going to turn the tide against patriarchal men, reclaiming the planet for the Old One and restoring Earth's balance. Readers will find it hard to put down this magical and fascinating story." --Judy G. Sebastian, Eastham Public Library, Mass

Wreck: A Novel by Catherine Newman (‎Harper, $26.99, 9780063453913). "Rocky is a mom who feels everything to the maximum degree. Her grown children and her dad still occupy most of her waking life. When tragedy strikes, she has to find a balance that will allow her to just breathe and be thankful for the life they have. Written with real emotions and much humor, many moms will relate to this followup to Sandwich." --Linda Quinn, LibraryReads Ambassador, Mass.

Bog Queen: A Novel by Anna North (Bloomsbury, $28.99, ‎ 9781635579666). "The body of a woman is unearthed in Northern Britain in this intricate and engaging atmospheric thriller. It offers three female perspectives that reveal to readers the inner thoughts of a contemporary newly trained forensic anthropologist, a young druid healer from centuries past, and a voice from the wild peat moss bog." --Shirley Braunlich, Lawrence Public Library, Kan.

The Missing Pages by Alyson Richman (‎Union Square & Co., $18.99, 9781454953210). "Harry is tragically lost when the Titanic sinks, having gone back to his cabin to retrieve a treasured book. His mother has the Harry Widener Memorial Library built at Harvard to honor his memory and to house his book collection. Years later, a young woman working at the library while dealing with her own devastating loss starts to notice strange ghostly events in and around the library." --Beth Mills, New Rochelle Public Library, N.Y.

Remain: A Supernatural Love Story by Nicholas Sparks and M. Night Shyamalan (‎Random House, $30, 9798217154043). "Part romance, part ghost story, part murder mystery, this novel's chilling yet heartfelt exploration of the bonds of family is written in the emotionally resonant style of Sparks and infused with Shyamalan’s signature suspense. This is a seemingly familiar tale with a haunting twist." --Cathleen Clifford, Groton Public Library, Conn.

Conform: A Novel by Ariel Sullivan (Ballantine, $30, 9798217090990). "This debut is a fascinating look at a dystopian future based on a strict caste system that relies on fear and heavy indoctrination to maintain peace. Emmaline, a relatable protagonist, is used as a pawn by both sides of a simmering rebellion, but will she settle for this fate? Readers will eagerly await a sequel." --Sara Pietrzak, Frederick County Public Library, Md.

Akwaeke Emezi (Freshwater; The Death of Vivek Oji) builds twists and turns into the plot of Son of the Morning, a propulsive story that brims with sexy scenes and sensual details, as it literally straddles Heaven and Hell--and the mortal Earth between them.

An enigmatic unnamed narrator observes of Emezi's central character, Galilee Kincaid, "I had such plans for her," thus setting up the mystery at the novel's core. Who is the narrator; who is Galilee; and what is the relationship between them? Galilee knows she is not like her "sisters." She feels loved and protected in her all-woman community, by its matriarch as well as by her mother and cousin. But she senses unease from some of the others. "She smells different," says Sage, referring to Galilee's scent of "bones under dead leaves." Bees swarm around her protectively, and she has a gift for healing. Once she turns 25, Galilee sets out for the nearby U.S. city of Salvation to live on her own.

In a yoga class, she meets wealthy Oriakụ and horror writer Bonbon. Oriakụ invites the two to her father's palatial house to view an ancient artifact, but the guards that protect it bar their entry and call in their boss, Helel. Galilee sees him, and the effect is instant and electric. In exchange for allowing her two friends to look at the artifact, Galilee offers Helel a "dance."

What follows is some of the hottest sex put to page, as destiny plays out, and their union leads to the collision of Heaven and Hell. The artifact serves as a gate holding back the demons of Hell, and those demons' escape could mean "holy obliteration" for Lucifer (Helel's true identity) and his princes. Close third-person narratives move among Galilee, Lucifer, and his prince Leviathan, with the occasional intrusion of that unnamed narrator (whose identity is later revealed). Lucifer's princes think Galilee is dangerously close to their leader, and want her dead. The narrator has sent unknowing Galilee to wrap up some unfinished business with Lucifer. Is she fated to be a pawn between these opposing forces, or can she heal them?

Emezi, with whiffs of William Blake, brilliantly reframes questions around Lucifer's fall and its role in the birth of imagination. This breathtaking novel will have readers questioning the definitions of angel and devil, good and evil, right alongside Galilee. Through her relationship to Lucifer, she comes to learn who she is and what she wants. The angels and devils make their cases to win her; her choice could save the world--or destroy it. Only Galilee can free herself and, in so doing, experience her own limitless powers to heal. --Jennifer M. Brown

Shelf Talker: Akwaeke Emezi's breathtaking novel of finding one's identity materializes on an epic scale, as Galilee Kincaid straddles Heaven and Hell to take her rightful place.