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Spring is in full swing, and renewal comes in many guises. Refreshing your to-be-read pile for the season aligns with the season's overall rebirth vibe. If you are looking for new bookshelf additions, May's must-reads include poet Ocean Vuong's third novel, an ode to Marsha P. Johnson's impact on the LGBTQ community and an unflinching look at womanhood in the 21st century.
'The Manor of Dreams'
Young adult author Christina Li makes her adult literary debut with this "modern gothic tale about the battle over a trailblazing 1980s star's crumbling mansion," Time said. After reclusive Hollywood star Vivian Yin dies, her daughters are forced to fight against a mysterious, estranged relative for their mother's estate. The situation worsens when both sides cohabitate in the home. The gothic motif "extends to a series of tremors that shake the house in the present day, and tensions between the families eventually reach a breaking point," said Publishers Weekly. Fans of "Mexican Gothic" by Silvia Moreno-Garcia "ought to take note of this beautiful and haunting novel." (May 6, $20, Amazon; $29, Simon & Schuster)
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'Second Life: Having a Child in the Digital Age' by Amanda Hess
In her first memoir, New York Times critic-at-large Amanda Hess explores what it is like to raise children in our "tech-saturated culture," said Time. She offers a deep dive into the "surreal network of prenatal genetic tests, gender reveal videos and 'freebirth influencers'" that are "shaping a new generation of chronically online caretakers," said Time.
Hess "leaves behind the stale conventions that plague so much parenting writing" and treats "digital culture and the internet as it is: a character in our lives, deserving of our sharpest critical engagement" — but also part of "how we make ourselves at home in the world," said The Cut. (May 6, $27, Amazon; $29, Penguin Random House)
'The Emperor of Gladness'
Poet and essayist Ocean Vuong's second novel, "The Emperor of Gladness," follows the unlikely pair of Grazina, an elderly widow with early-stage dementia, and Hai, the teenager who becomes her caregiver after she saves him from taking his own life. What follows is an ode to second chances, as the pair develops a life-altering bond over the course of a year. It's a "messy but worthy exploration of how hurt and self-deception leaches into everyday life," said Kirkus Reviews. A unique take on the "surprising and cruel ways violence is passed on across generations." (May 13, $21, Amazon; $30, Penguin Random House)
'Marsha: The Joy and Defiance of Marsha P. Johnson'
Transgender activist Tourmaline follows up her 2018 short fictional film about Marsha P. Johnson, a pioneer of gay and transgender rights, with a biography. The book is a "culmination of decades of archiving and sharing Marsha's story and four years of quietly writing," Tourmaline said. The book will explore the historic figure's "powerful life not only as a Black trans activist but also as a mother, lover, friend and so much more," Women said. The biography "captures Marsha's undying revolutionary spirit and lifelong fight, as well as the impact she made on the world." (May 20, $28, Amazon; $30, Penguin Random House)
'Aggregated Discontent'
Cultural journalist Harron Walker delves into many facets of 21st-century womanhood, examining "pinkwashing, girlbossing and other Frankenstein-ass portmanteaus designed to contend with our modern era," Vulture said. The forthcoming essay collection also examines "employment, health insurance and the ways we erase ourselves in order to stay employed and thus have affordable-ish health care." Walker's take, as always, comes "from a better angle, somewhere unexpected yet inevitable when viewed against the whole of culture," the outlet said. "In a time when everyone else is zigging, Walker zags." (May 20, $27, Amazon; $29, Penguin Random House)
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