New Yorkers: A City and Its People in Our Time by Craig Taylor
March 23, John Murray Press
Following on from the ground-breaking success of Londoners, Craig Taylor transports us this time to The Big Apple through the words of the very people who live there. This book is an homage to the iconic city, a testament to its resilience and strength and that of its inhabitants. In the face of terrorist attacks, hurricanes, recession, social injustices, and now a pandemic, New York is often at the centre of the storm, yet despite this, the city remains bursting with life and hope. Beautifully crafted through years of careful research by Taylor, meeting with hundreds of New Yorkers as diverse as the city itself, New Yorkers captures the vitality of the city through the true stories of those who experience it in all its grit and splendour. A powerful, irrepressible city, only made stronger by those who keep the concrete jungle alive. - Genevieve
A Little Devil in America: In Praise of Black Performance by Hanif Abdurraqib March 30, Allen Lane
“I was a devil in other countries, and I was a little devil in America, too.” From the New York Times bestselling author of Go Ahead in the Rain: Notes to A Tribe Called Quest comes another wise and meditative collection of essays – this time charting the past and present of Black performance and its immutable impact on American culture. From Sammy Davis Jr. and Aretha Franklin to Wu-Tang and Beyoncé, Remember the Titans to Green Book, Hanif Abdurraqib examines the historical movements and pop-culture moments that continue to shape the US. Allowing the reader to revel in the joy and genius of Black music, dance, and film, whilst also asking us to reckon with the price that has been paid in order to tell these stories, A Little Devil in America is both a celebration of Black art, and a condemnation of the often unforgiving conditions under which it is created. They say that the best writers are poets, and with his unique style combining criticism, lyricism and memoir, Abdurraqib continues to establish himself as one of our greatest contemporary cultural critics. - Bayley
Why Women are Poorer Than Men and What We Can Do About It by Annabelle Williams
March 4, Michael Joseph
Poor pensions. Tampon tax. Workplace belittlement. Limited opportunities. These are just the tip of the iceberg of the harsh realities facing women today. In this honest and startling exposé, Annabelle Williams sheds light on the struggles of modern womanhood, and addresses the crushing truth that the world is unfairly rigged against women and our potential to succeed. However, rather than focusing on the negative, this empowering book shows us how to fix these problems and how to finally end the disparity and inequality between men and women. A must-read this spring and perfect for fans of Elizabeth Gilbert and Elizabeth Day. - Laura
Girlhood by Melissa Febos
March 30, Bloomsbury
Written in a mix of memoir and investigative reporting, Girlhood is an examination of the values and attributes that society deems constitute “being female” and how we can break free of them. By investigating her own perceptions, and how they changed during her transition from girlhood to adulthood, Melissa Febos chronicles her reclamation of the self, alongside the rejection of the values that defined her teenage years. Febos explores how others have learnt to embrace anger, power and pleasure, attributes denied to them since childhood. In her re-evaluation of what it means to be female, she inspires and invites change at a societal and personal level. Febos’ latest powerful and breath-taking collection is a must-read. - Meg
My Broken Language: A Memoir by Quiara Alegría Hudes
June 10, HarperCollins
This inspiring memoir from Quiara Alegría Hudes is an exploration of home, memory, and belonging. Born in Philadelphia to a Puerto Rican mother and Jewish father, and raised in an ailing barrio, Hudes finds herself constantly treated like an outsider. Torn between cultures and lost in language, she discovers the power of observation and through this, the importance of storytelling. A difficult upbringing, coupled with unspoken family secrets, Hudes’ coming-of-age story strikingly narrates how she found her own voice and language in order to tell the stories of the powerful women who surrounded and inspired her. This is a lyrical and poetic telling of cultural collisions, and how one girl found the strength to overcome adversity and become an artist, capturing her truth of the beauty of the world as she knew it. - Genevieve