With warmer weather on the horizon and some extra space thanks to spring cleaning, it’s a great time to stock up on new books.
Bestselling authors Isaac Fitzgerald and Jasmine Guillory joined TODAY to share highly-anticipated spring 2021 book picks for, no matter what your age or what genre you love to read. Within these remarkable books you’ll find heartwarming stories of people finding themselves, heartbreaking stories of families struggling to stay together and more.
Jasmine Guillory’s Fiction Pick:
"Honey Girl," by Morgan Rogers
After Grace Porter finishes her PhD in Astronomy, she heads to Las Vegas to celebrate. Once there, she does something wildly out of character: drunkenly marries a woman she’s just met. This massive deviation allows her to take stock of her life and stop considering what she’s supposed to do and start considering what she wants to do.
Isaac Fitzgerald’s Fiction Pick:
"Infinite Country," by Patricia Engel
“Infinite Country” by Patricia Engel tells the story of a family of five split between the United States and Colombia because of a deportation. The novel, which is structured around the family’s youngest member’s race to make it from a correctional facility in the mountains to Bogotá in time for her flight to the United States, gives voice to each member. Engel’s book coalesces into a beautiful story of determination and love.
Jasmine Guillory’s Nonfiction pick:
"Already Toast," by Kate Washington
In this heartbreaking memoir, Kate Washington shares the story of her time acting as caregiver for her extremely ill husband. Through her experience, she exposes the sacrifices that many loved ones have to make to bolster the United States healthcare system.
Isaac Fitzgerald’s Nonfiction Pick:
"Surviving the White Gaze," by Rebecca Carroll
Rebecca Carroll grew up as the only black person in her town, her artistic adoptive parents unprepared to support her as she needed. When she eventually met her birth mother, a white woman, her sense of identity was rocked further. In her new memoir, she shares these stories and how she ultimately created a chosen black family and found a way to heal.
Jasmine Guillory’s Author’s Choice Pick:
"Once Upon A Quinceanera," by Monica Gomez-Hira
Guillory calls “Once Upon A Quinceanera” by Monica Gomez-Hira “a funny, absorbing, joyful, emotional powerhouse of a book. In this Young Adult novel, Carmen Aguilar struggles through an unpaid summer internship and some unpleasant familial obligations which are standing in the way of her finding her happily-ever-after.
Isaac Fitzgerald’s Author’s Choice Pick:
"No One Is Talking About This," by Patricia Lockwood
In “No One Is Talking About This” by Patricia Lockwood, a woman who becomes famous for her viral tweets allows the internet to become more and more a part of her life until she is jolted back offline by a family emergency. Lockwoood’s debut novel is hilarious, incisive, and moving.
Jasmine Guillory’s Kids Pick:
"Laxmi’s Mooch," by Shelly Anand, illustrated by Nabi H. Ali
In “Laxmi’s Mooch” by Shelly Anand and illustrated by Nabi H. Ali, a young Indian American girl learns to appreciate her body hair and heritage after she is teased about having a mustache. Guillory says “the illustrations are gorgeous, and the end will put a smile on your face.”
Isaac Fitzgerald’s Kids Pick:
"Milo Imagines the World!," by Matt de la Peña, illustrated by Christian Robinson
In this picture new book from the Newbery Medal-winning duo, Milo is on a long subway ride with his sister and he passes the time by imagining the worlds of other passengers on the train. When a boy in a suit and nice shoes, whom Milo imagined lived in a castle with a drawbridge, gets off at the same stop as him, he learns people’s lives might not be as easy to predict as he thought.
And, if you're in the mood for a memoir filled with travel, consider "All Abroad: A Memoir of Travel and Obsession," by Geoffrey Weill. The story follows Weill as he embarks on a new journey via an ocean liner from Britain to pursue a job as a travel consultant in New York. Weill's passion for travel and its logistics offers an interesting look at how vacations are really about the journey, and not the destination.
For more book recommendations, check out:
- 10 new, popular histories and biographies to read this Women’s History Month
- Jenna Bush Hager selects 'fresh new novel' for March 2021 book club pick
- Interested in a book or album you saw on TODAY? Here's where to get it
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