It’s another new month! We know that means that even more books are going to be filling up your TBR list. It can be tough to juggle new releases and all the other books on your list, so let’s make your life a bit easier! Bookshop link for this list can be found here.
Adult Fiction
Counterfeit by Kirstin Chen
In Counterfeit, two Asian American women band together to start an operation selling counterfeit handbags. Ava and Winnie were college roommates. Years later, they reconnect and realize they’re the perfect duo to create a global enterprise that will benefit them both. Billed as a “feminist caper,” fans of heist movies (e.g., Reservoir Dogs, the Oceans series, etc.) should look out for this one at their local bookstore.
Expected Publication: June 7, 2022
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Mother Ocean Father Nation by Nishant Batsha
There’s nothing like a debut! Two siblings are separated due to a military coup in their country. One of them flees to California and the other is forced to stay and deal with the fallout of this horrifying situation. No specific locations are named in this novel which leaves the reader wondering if the story stands in for all those who have subjugated.
Expected Publication: June 7, 2022
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Last Summer on State Street by Toya Wolfe
What’s that? Another debut! Plus, a debut that is being compared to Jacqueline Woodson and Brit Bennett, this one is not to be missed! Set in the housing projects of Chicago in 1999, this novel depicts life in poverty, violence and gangs. Fe Fe navigates this life as a child and reflects on her childhood later in life. It’s also a relatively short read at 200 pages.
Expected Publication: June 14, 2022
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On Rotation by Shirlene Obuobi
Angie Appiah’s life is falling apart. She once had it all — an M.D., a boyfriend, great friends (including her roommate). When she loses all of it in the blink of an eye, Angie is forced to question everything she once knew. Plus, she meets a man who is not quite what she imagined as part of her perfect life, but who steals her heart, nonetheless. Whatever will she do?!
Expected Publication: June 21, 2022
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The Scent of Burnt Flowers by Blitz Bazawule
Bernadette and Melvin flee the American south in the 1960s to escape their new fugitive status. They seek asylum in Ghana where Melvin’s old college friend is the country’s president, Kwawe Nkrumah. An attraction forms between Bernadette and Kwesi Kwayson, a musician performing for the president. As the presidency falls apart, so does Bernadette and Melvin’s relationship.
Expected Publication: June 28, 2022
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Young Adult Fiction
TJ Powar Has Something to Prove by Jesmeen Kaur Deo
I’ve been looking forward to this one for more than a year. TJ Powar and her cousin, Simran, are pitted against each other in a meme that circulates at school. Instead of sitting silently, TJ stops removing her body and facial hair to prove that hairless does not equal beautiful. When her resolve begins to crumble, a wonderful academic rivals to lovers story enters the fray, giving us a romance for the ages.
Expected Publication: June 7, 2022
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This Place is Still Beautiful by XiXi Tian
Margaret and Annalie are sisters, but their similarities end at the parents they share. Growing up in a mostly white small town, the Chinese-American sisters survived in different ways. Margaret threw herself into social issues and Annalie did her best to just fit in. When racism confronts their home, they are torn further apart by the way they react to the incident. An extremely topical book, This Place is Still Beautiful examines an intense subject in a young adult format.
Expected Publication: June 7, 2022
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Home Field Advantage by Dahlia Adler
When the football team that Amber McCloud cheers for loses its quarterback in a car accident, everyone is devastated. To add to a tough time, no one is dealing with his replacement well – Jack Walsh, short for Jaclyn. Amber and Jack fall for each other and Amber must decide whether or not to stand up for the person she’s falling for. A sweet sapphic young adult romance, we’re looking forward to reading this one!
Expected Publication: June 7, 2022
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The Black Girls Left Standing by Juliana Goodman
Beau Willett has big dreams that include getting out of the Chicago projects she’s grown up in. Those dreams are shattered when an off-duty police officer murders her older sister and Beau takes on the responsibility of clearing her sister’s name. Soon enough, she’s in way over her head, uncovering secrets that put her in danger. Beau is left with a choice: how much will she risk?
Expected Publication: June 28, 2022
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Adult Nonfiction
Who is Wellness For?: An Examination of Wellness Culture and Who It Leaves Behind by Fariha Roisin
As wellness has become a commodity to be purchased and sold, Roisin looks at the way this industry has grown and appropriated the healing traditions from around the globe. The ideas sold are taken from Black, brown and Indigenous peoples throughout history and are not packaged to a white audience. Get ready to learn more about yourself and the wellness you depend on.
Expected Publication: June 14, 2022
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How to Raise an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
The long-awaited How to Raise an Antiracist comes out in June. For parents, caregivers, and teachers everywhere, Kendi writes the answer to the question he’s been asked more than once: “How do I raise an antiracist child?” Research and personal narrative are interwoven in Kendi’s special style of writing that readers have come to know and love.
Expected Publication: June 14, 2022
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What did we miss that you are looking forward to? Let us know!
