New month, new books! Book Light is our curated list of the titles we’re most excited about that are being published in the coming month. (We’ve also got a few thoughts on the perfect books to read in the month of March and on St. Patrick’s Day). Our intrepid team has been exploring the most-anticipated new books for March and here’s what we found. These are the new releases of March, and our picks for the best new books coming in March 2019.
strong women set the tone in the new book releases of march 2019
March is Women’s History Month, and not surprisingly, strong females occupy the majority of the shelf space on the new book release list this month. Writers, filmmakers, free-divers, actors, animators, rock stars, romantics, newcomers, immigrants. And Oprah!
There’s even a new novel billed as Bridget Jones’s Diary meets Americanah. Wow.
But of course there’s still room on the shelf for men: schemers, benefactors, undercover agents. Searchers, saviors, and sinners.
It’s gonna be a great month to get lost in a book.
the best new books coming in march 2019
Here’s our pick of the top new books – novels, essay collections, and non-fiction – that we cannot wait to read. You can pre-order them now if you like.
1.
Feminism for the 99%: A Manifesto by Nancy Fraser, Tithi Bhattacharya, and Cinzia Arruzza. This collection of essays focuses on a philosophy of feminism rooted not just in intersectionality of identity, but also in economic justice. The three authors are the original organizers of the International Women’s Strike. – Publication date: March 5, 2019
2.
Gingerbread by Helen Oyeyemi. The prize-winning, bestselling author of Boy, Snow, Bird and What Is Not Yours Is Not Yours returns with a new novel. Influenced by the mysterious place gingerbread holds in classic children’s stories—equal parts wholesome and uncanny—this is the tale of a surprising family legacy, in which the inheritance is a recipe. – Publication date: March 5, 2019
3.
The Lady from the Black Lagoon: Hollywood Monsters and the Lost Legacy of Milicent Patrick by Mallory O’Meara is a gripping biography of Milicent Patrick, one of Disney’s first female animators. The creator of the iconic monster from Creature from the Black Lagoon, Patrick’s life and legacy had remained a mystery — until now. – Publication date: March 5, 2019
4.
The Island of Sea Women by Lisa See. The fierce free-diving women on the Korean island of Jeju are the subject of this mesmerizing new historical novel. It celebrates these women’s strengths—and the strength of their friendships – Publication date: March 5, 2019
5.
Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls by T Kira Madden. The author brings her sharply funny voice to this memoir. In it, she humanely explores her coming of age as a biracial queer teenager in Boca Raton, Florida. And the climate of abuse and addiction that surrounded her. – Publication date: March 5, 2019
6.
The Silk Road by Kathryn Davis. In her eighth novel, Davis works in archetype and allegory to produce a slim (not even 150 pages!) but resounding book unlike anything you’ve ever read. – Publication date: March 5, 2019
7.
Era of Ignition by Amber Tamblyn. The actress and activist publishes a potent feminist manifesto. In the same spirit as her first novel, it’s lacerating and timely. – Publication date: March 5, 2019
8.
Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid. The author of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is back. This new novel is an “oral history” of a fictional rock band, Daisy Jones and the Six. – Publication date: March 5, 2019
9.
When All Is Said by Anne Griffin. In this debut novel, an 84-year-old man chooses five people from his life, and gives each of them a toast. – Publication date: March 5, 2019
10.
The Altruists by Andrew Ridker is a novel about a scheming father’s plot to win back his children’s inheritance. His late wife had a secret small fortune, which she bequeathed directly to their two kids. When he invites them back to their hometown in the guise of reconciliation, it opens a Pandora’s box of family dysfunction. – Publication date: March 5, 2019
11.
The Volunteer by Salvatore Scibona. The National Book Award Finalist author returns with a novel about a restless young man who is captured during the Vietnam War and pressed into service for a clandestine branch of the United States government. It’s described as “an odyssey of loss and salvation ranging across four generations of fathers and sons.”– Publication date: March 5, 2019
12.
If, Then by Kate Hope Day. This debut “multiverse-theory” novel is set in the quiet haven of Clearing, Oregon. Four neighbors find their lives upended when they begin to see themselves in parallel realities. At first their visions are relatively benign, but they grow increasingly disturbing. When a natural disaster threatens their town, it becomes clear that nothing will ever be the same again. – Publication date: March 12, 2019
13.
Salt Smoke Time: Homesteading and Heritage Techniques for the Modern Kitchen by Will Horowitz, Marisa Dobson and Julie Horowitz. A celebrated young chef brings time-tested techniques to modern home kitchens. Executive chef and owner of New York City’s highly acclaimed Ducks Eatery and Harry & Ida’s, Horowitz is also an avid forager, fisherman, and naturalist.– Publication date: March 12, 2019
14.
Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams. Billed as Bridget Jones’s Diary meets Americanah, this novel tells the tale of Queenie Jenkins. She’s a 25-year-old Jamaican British woman living in London, straddling two cultures and slotting neatly into neither. After a messy break up from her long-term white boyfriend, Queenie seeks comfort in all the wrong places, involving several hazardous men. – Publication date: March 19, 2019
15.
Lot: Stories by Bryan Washington. In Houston, the son of a black mother and a Latino father is coming of age. He’s working at his family’s restaurant, and discovering he’s gay. This eagerly awaited short-story collection, excerpted in The New Yorker to much fanfare, depicts its author’s hometown of Houston with empathy, tragedy, and exceptional specificity. Ultimately, it’s a meditation on what makes a community, a family, and a life. – Publication date: March 19, 2019
16.
Memories of the Future by Siri Hustvedt. The author of The Blazing World returns with a novel about a young Midwestern woman’s first year in New York City in the late 1970’s. The plot turns on her obsession with her mysterious new neighbor. – Publication date: March 19, 2019
17.
The Sakura Obsession: The Incredible Story of the Plant Hunter Who Saved Japan’s Cherry Blossoms by Naoko Abe is really two stories. In the first, we learn about the 1,200 history of the Japanese cherry blossom. In the second, we hear the true tale about the English gardener who saved the iconic tree from extinction. – Publication date: March 19, 2019
18.
A Woman First: First Woman by Selina Meyer is “an intimate first-person account of the public and private lives of Selina Meyer, America’s first woman president.” You’ll recognize the name and the face on the cover if you’ve ever watched or heard of “Veep,” HBO’s razor-sharp satire of Washington DC politics. – Publication date: March 19, 2019
19.
The Path Made Clear by Oprah Winfrey. – Publication date: March 26, 2019
20.
Cheer Up, Mr. Widdicombe by Evan James is a debut novel set at a summer gathering of a large family. Perhaps not surprisingly, it’s filled with dysfunction, secret-spilling and misunderstandings. – Publication date: March 26, 2019
21.
kaddish.com by Nathan Englander. The acclaimed author of Dinner at the Center of the Earth returns with a new novel about a son’s failure to say Kaddish for his father. The son is an atheist in a family of orthodox Jews. When his father dies, it is his responsibility as the surviving son to recite the the Jewish prayer for the dead. He’s supposed to do it every day for eleven months. To the horror and dismay of his mother and sisters, he refuses–thus imperiling the fate of his father’s soul. – Publication date: March 26, 2019
22.
Sing to It by Amy Hempel. The short story writer returns with her first anthology in over 10 years. It includes several single-page vignettes as well as a novella-length work. – Publication date: March 26, 2019
23.
No Happy Endings: A Memoir by Nora McInerny. The host of the popular podcast Terrible, Thanks for Asking returns with further meditations on her messy, bittersweet, and unconventional life. McInerny lost her husband, her father, and her unborn second child in one catastrophic year. In the wake of these unimaginable losses, she shares how she worked to assemble something new “from whatever is left behind.” – Publication date: March 26, 2019
24.
The Twice-Born: Life and Death on the Ganges by Aatish Taseer is part travel book, part extended essay and memoir. It focuses on the high-born Brahmins of the Indian caste system and the ancient language of Sanskrit. However, it also probes questions of modern India and its resurgent nationalism. – Publication date: March 26, 2019
25.
White Elephant by Julie Langsdorf. In this suburban comedy, the “White Elephant” is a newly-constructed behemoth of a house in a quaint town called Willard Park. When its owner cuts down his neighbors’ precious red maple in an effort to make his unsightly property more appealing to buyers, the town becomes a battleground. – Publication date: March 26, 2019
26.
The Other Americans by Laila Lalami. From the Pulitzer Prize finalist, and author of The Moor’s Account, this new novel is set in California. It begins with the suspicious death of a Moroccan immigrant. From there, it weaves together a family saga, a murder mystery, and a love story. All while providing a running commentary on American culture. – Publication date: March 26, 2019
27.
The Old Drift by Namwali Serpell is the debut novel from the winner of the 2015 Caine Prize for African Writing. On the banks of the Zambezi River, there was once a colonial settlement called The Old Drift. Here begins the epic story of a small African nation, told by a mysterious chorus that calls itself man’s greatest nemesis. The tale? A playful panorama of history, fairy tale, romance and science fiction. The moral of the story? To err is human. – Publication date: March 26, 2019
see luxury in a new light
Come and join our community! For a weekly round-up of insider ideas and information on the world of luxury, sign up for our Dandelion Chandelier Sunday Read here. And see luxury in a new light.
ready to power up?
For a weekly dose of career insights, advice and ideas, sign up for our newsletter, Power Up, here.
Join our community
For access to insider ideas and information on the world of luxury, sign up for our Dandelion Chandelier newsletter. And see luxury in a new light.