Liz's Book Bar has officially opened in Brooklyn, N.Y., Brooklyn Mag reported.

Owner and author Maura Cheeks (Acts of Forgiveness) welcomed customers for the first time last month. Located at 315 Smith St. in Brooklyn's Carroll Gardens neighborhood, Liz's Book Bar spans 1,500 square feet and sells mostly adult books, along with beer, wine, and coffee.

This spring, Cheeks told Shelf Awareness that her inventory has a strong emphasis on classics, particularly on fiction and nonfiction titles by Black authors that have been overlooked. A small assortment of children's and YA titles are available too.

The store is named in honor of her grandmother, who took Cheeks to plenty of bookstores and helped foster her love of reading and writing. In 2018, Cheeks left a marketing career to concentrate on writing, and since 2021, she's been able to write full time. In 2023, she began seriously looking for a space, and Cheeks learned the basics of running a bookstore and bar by working for a year at Book Club Bar in NYC's East village.

Looking ahead, Cheeks will start hosting a variety of events, including author talks and Paint and Sip nights. She'll also roll out a subscription service, where customers can pay $75 for one hardcover book and a drink per month for three months.

Cheeks told Brooklyn Mag: "I've always wanted to create a public space where people can connect with strangers and neighbors and just hang out. A place that's not home, that's not work, where you feel comfortable just spending time, is really important."

Monkey Wrench Books will host its grand opening celebration on Saturday, August 17, at 214 High St. in Morgantown, W.Va. The Daily Athenaeum reported that the store was originally set to launch last fall, but its opening was pushed back a year due to obstacles such as permitting and funding.

"Largely it was my naivety," said owner Lindsey Jacobs. "This is the first business I've built from the ground up, and so I was very naive about the amount of time that it would take to get in the space and turn it around. We also went a different route and did a lot more demolition and re-imagining of the physical space for the store. So obviously, that took more time." 

She added that she is grateful for the additional time to develop her business: "I want to do it right, and I'm trying to set myself up for success. In retrospect, I'm really glad that it has taken more than a year, because it's allowed me to do things better. It will be a better space because of that."

In addition to new and used books, Monkey Wrench will feature coffee, tea, smoothies, baked goods from local businesses, and gifts. Jacobs said that she hopes the business will also foster community.

"I wanted to create a community space around books, which I love. But also a place where we can organize and challenge each other, and perform mutual aid," she noted. "Every community needs an independent bookstore. I'm super excited to get the bookstore part open, but I'm even more excited about the opportunity to build community using the bookstore." 

The bookstore's name was inspired in part by Edward Abbey's 1975 novel The Monkey Wrench Gang. "The parts about fighting back, and throwing a wrench in the gears of the powers that be. I think the idea of monkey wrenching, which is to say, making things harder for the people that would hurt us or oppress us is a concept that's really important to me," Jacobs observed.

She also attributes the name to her love of collecting quilts, specifically her favorite quilt block, which is referred to as a monkey wrench block: "Monkey wrenching to me is about challenging the status quo and standing up for our neighbors. Fighting as often as we need to fight, and organizing. I wanted to make sure that the name of the bookstore reflected those things which I value."

Christian Jünger (photo: Frank Hanewacker)

Christian Jünger has been named CEO of Penguin Random House Verlagsgruppe, which includes such imprints as Goldmann, Hörverlag, Heyne, Prestel, and C. Bertelsmann. The appointment is effective October 1. Jünger, who will also join PRH's global executive committee, has been managing director of Holtzbrinck's Rowohlt imprint since 2021. Earlier he was head of vendor management in Amazon's book division and started his career as the executive assistant to the CEO of the PRH Verlagsgruppe before moving to Bertelsmann's corporate development and growth regions team.

In an announcement to staff about the appointment, PRH CEO Nihar Malaviya commented: "The unique combination of Christian's experiences in the book industry makes him ideally suited for this role. As managing director at Rowohlt, Christian has not only improved their financial performance; he has also created an environment for collaborative leadership with the other members of their board. He possesses a keen understanding of the retail side of our business." And his appointment marks a return to Bertelsmann and the Verlagsgruppe.

Malaviya added: "On a personal note, when I met with Christian to discuss this opportunity, we immediately connected, and I was drawn to his warm style and strategic approach. Our conversation was ranging and insightful, but what resonated with me the most was how deeply and meaningfully he spoke about the importance of books in our society and our responsibility as publishers to launch diverse views into the world. For Christian, and for me, that is achieved by elevating our creatives--authors and employees--and centering our imprints at the heart of our business. Our autonomous and independent publishers are in the best position to attract and acquire the greatest books, authors, and employee talent, especially when given the resources to flourish. I fully support Christian's vision for strengthening our focus on our imprints while continuing to enhance the central services we can offer."

PAVE Studios, a media company founded by a former Spotify executive earlier this year, has launched a publishing wing called PAVE Publishing House and entered a co-publishing agreement with Simon & Schuster.

PAVE Publishing House will release print titles as well as audiobooks from new and established authors. Under the agreement with S&S, PAVE titles will be jointly published under S&S's trade imprint, and S&S will be worldwide distributor for all PAVE Publishing House titles.

"PAVE Publishing House is putting storytellers at the forefront with our innovative business model because we understand that when creators succeed, everyone succeeds," said PAVE founder Max Cutler. "By meeting creators' audiences where they are, we're reimagining distribution and capitalizing on the massive podcast audience where monetization is limited to drive more revenue back to creators."

Jonathan Karp, president and CEO of S&S, said: "Max Cutler and his team have consistently been on the cutting edge of new media, and in PAVE we see a dedication to creators that mirrors our focus on centering authors in all we do. Audiobooks continue to be the fastest-growing format in publishing, and PAVE's roots in audio storytelling set us both up for continued growth and success as we work together to bring creators and their stories to the largest possible audience."

PAVE will announce new titles in the coming months.

Barnes & Noble hosted a ribbon cutting and grand-opening celebration last Wedneday, July 3, in its new Weslayan Plaza bookstore at 5510 Weslayan St., Houston, Tex. Author Katherine Center was on hand to cut the ribbon and sign copies of her books. The new location also houses an updated B&N Café.

"Bookstores are such an important pillar in any community, and it's wonderful to see how warmly residents are welcoming the Weslayan Plaza location," B&N noted. "It's been 15 years since we last opened a new Barnes & Noble in the Houston area, and this bookstore will prove to have been worth the wait."

A week earlier, B&N opened its new Rochester Hills, Mich., bookstore in the Hampton Village Shopping Center at 2907 S. Rochester Rd., where author Lauren Roberts cut the ribbon and signed copies of her books.

B&N noted: "We are thrilled to be expanding our presence in Oakland County with the opening of our new bookstore in Rochester Hills. We've seen such growth in the literary community over the last three decades since we opened our first location in Rochester, adding a second bookstore in the Village of Rochester Hills in 2019. When redevelopment forced the closure of our original bookstore last year, we promised to return. Now we have, directly across the street from where we spent the last 27 years."

Adriana Mather celebrated the launch of her latest novel, The Breakup Artist (Blackstone), at The Ripped Bodice Bookstore in Brooklyn, N.Y. She was joined by the novel's illustrator, Booboo Stewart, who is an actor, artist, and musician known for his roles in Twilight, Disney's Descendants, Julie and the Phantoms, Good Trouble, and others.

Kirsty Greenwood

The Love of My Afterlife by Kirsty Greenwood (Berkley) is the GMA Book Club pick for July. Good Morning America commented: "Greenwood's new rom-com novel follows the story of Delphie, a recently deceased woman who died after choking on a microwavable hamburger. She later meets the hottest man in the afterlife waiting room, but after sharing a moment together, the man is abruptly sent back to the land of the living. Delphie scores a second chance at life--and love--so long as she can find her Mr. Right back on Earth and get him to kiss her in the span of 10 days.

""In the novel, the author explores the unique challenges of making friends as an adult, breaking out of lifelong patterns and facing deep-seated fears to find the courage to live a life that's unapologetically loud."

Greenwood is the author of many previous romance novels and lives in London. This is her first U.S. publication.

Linette Kim has joined Chronicle Books as senior manager, school & library marketing and children's publicity.

Tali and the Toucan by Mira Z. Amiras and Chantelle and Burgen Thorne (the Collective Book Studio).

Today:
Fresh Air: Jill Ciment, author of Consent: A Memoir (Pantheon, $27, 9780593701065).

Tomorrow:
Late Show with Stephen Colbert: Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, author of True Gretch: What I've Learned About Life, Leadership, and Everything in Between (Simon & Schuster, $26.99, 9781668072318).

Late Night with Seth Meyers: Whoopi Goldberg, author of Bits and Pieces: My Mother, My Brother, and Me (Blackstone, $28.99, 9798200920235).

Video highlights have been released from Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, the new musical based on John Berendt's 1994 nonfiction book. Playbill reported that the Jason Robert Brown and Taylor Mac production, which began previews at Chicago's Goodman Theatre June 25, officially opens July 8 in the Albert Theatre. Performances continue through August 11.

Rob Ashford is directing, and Tanya Birl is choreographing. The cast is led by Tony winner J. Harrison Ghee as The Lady Chablis; Tony nominee Tom Hewitt as Jim Williams; and Olivier nominee Sierra Boggess as Emma Dawes.

Other cast members include Lance Roberts, Austin Colby, Bailee Endebrock, Shanel Bailey, Jessica Molaskey, Brianna Buckley, Mary Ernster, McKinley Carter, Maya Bowles, DeMarius Copes, Sean Donovan, Jason Michael Evans, Christopher Kelley, Andre Terrell Malcolm, Aaron James McKenzie, Kayla Marie Shipman, and Rory Shirley.

The winners in a dozen categories of the Crime Writers' Association 2024 Dagger Awards were announced July 4 and can be seen here. Among them, the Gold Dagger for Best Crime Novel of the Year went to Una Mannion for Tell Me What I Am and the ILP John Creasey New Blood Dagger was won by Jo Callaghan for In the Blink of an Eye. Lynda LaPlante and James Lee Burke received the Diamond Dagger for Lifetime Achievement in Crime Writing.  

Maxim Jakubowski, chair of the Daggers committee, commented: "Yet another remarkable year of crime writing in which our impartial judges have uncovered a crop of wonderful books. In a year in which many of our 'big beasts' had new books, it's refreshing to see so many new names and talents winning. And a momentous occasion for independent publishers who have swooped on the majority of the awards and, in particular, Faber & Faber, who have achieved a rare double of Gold and Steel Daggers."

In her fourth historical novel, Katharine, the Wright Sister, Tracey Enerson Wood charts the Wright brothers' thrilling (and sometimes harrowing) journey toward mechanical flight, made possible in large part by the efforts and sacrifices of their sister, Katharine. Diving into the loving but complicated dynamics of the Wright family and the scientific, financial, and political challenges facing early aviators, Wood draws a nuanced portrait of a woman determined to support her brothers' dreams, but also hoping for happiness of her own.

Wood (The President's Wife) toggles expertly between three points of view: those of Wilbur, Orville, and Katharine herself, providing their varied perspectives on the highs and lows of their attempts to build and perfect their flying machines. Katharine, while happy to spend long hours poring over blueprints and brainstorming solutions to mechanical problems, must also spend her time managing the Wright household, cooking and cleaning for her brothers and father after her mother's death. She urges her brothers to keep chasing their dreams of flight even as they earn their primary income by fixing and selling bicycles. Intelligent and vivacious, Katharine thrives during her years at Oberlin College and then enjoys her job teaching Latin at a local school, but increasingly, her brothers' projects and their needs take precedence over her own ambitions.

Although most Americans have heard of the Wrights' flight at Kitty Hawk, N.C., Wood fills in the background of how they got there: dozens of failed attempts, countless calculations of wind speed and resistance, and numerous yards of white muslin, which Katharine sourced for her brothers. Wood explores the sometimes tricky dynamics among the siblings: Wilbur's ambition, Orville's social anxiety, and Katharine's inner conflict between pride in her brothers' work and resentment at missing some key triumphant moments. Later in the book, that conflict comes to a head when Katharine begins to wonder if it's entirely too late to pursue her own happiness--or if her family will understand why she needs to.

Wood draws on historical documents and research to immerse the reader in the Wrights' world of Dayton, Ohio, at the turn of the 20th century, sharing details of the music, clothes, food, and social issues of the day. Katharine later becomes involved in the suffragist movement in Ohio, and her brothers--and she--travel across Europe, meeting heads of state and touring iconic cities. Wood's narrative provides a fascinating glimpse into the lives of three clever, hardworking inventors, and a sensitive emotional exploration of one woman's quest to support her brothers--and later to soar on her own. Readers will be swept away by Wood's vivid depictions of early flight, and inspired by Katharine's dedication to stay true to both her brothers and herself. --Katie Noah Gibson, blogger at Cakes, Tea and Dreams

Shelf Talker: Tracey Enerson Wood's fourth novel charts the Wright brothers' journey to successful flight and celebrates the vital contributions of their sister, Katharine.

The bestselling self-published books last week as compiled by IndieReader.com:

1. If We Ever Meet Again by Ana Huang
2. Haunting Adeline by H.D. Carlton
3. If the Sun Never Sets by Ana Huang
4. Love Unwritten by Lauren Asher
5. Twisted Love by Ana Huang
6. Zodiac Academy: The Awakening by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti
7. What Did You Do? by Jeneane O'Riley
8. The Inmate by Freida McFadden
9. Love & Whiskey by Fawn Weaver
10. Hunting Adeline by H.D. Carlton

[Many thanks to IndieReader.com!]