The HEATED RIVALRY Precursor Coming Back to Print

Welcome to Today in Books, our daily round-up of literary headlines at the intersection of politics, culture, media, and more.

Books Are Fashionable Again/Forever

A model, a novelist, a professional ballet dancer, a chef, and Sarah Jessica Parker are among the figures in a new Vogue shoot devoted to the art of reading paper books. Chloe Schama writes that the project was “inspired by the increasing number of people who have been bidding goodbye to the pallor-inducing glow of the blue screen in favor of tangible ink and paper” and observes that more people seem to be “wanting to read what your friends are reading instead of what the algorithm serves you.”

It does feel like this is in the air right now, some combination of disillusionment with technology and a desire for more and deeper in-person connection as we continue to recover from the pandemic and return to communal life. I’m sure there are naysayers (probably on Threads) bemoaning the use of books as accessories or status symbols, but I, for one, am happy to see literary life presented as aspirational.

Don DeLillo’s Hockey Romance to Return to Print

I’m hard-pressed to think of a recent headline that has delighted me more than Alexandra Alter’s discovery that Don DeLillo wrote a hockey romance under a pseudonym in 1980. Amazons sounds like a hell of a ride, and now I get to be delighted again because Scribner is bringing it back to print this fall. Prices for used copies spiked after Alter’s article ran in January, and, after much cajoling, DeLillo, who had refused to reprint the book for decades, gave in. The reissue will be published November 17 under DeLillo’s original pen name, Cleo Birdwell. The sub-hed on Alter’s new piece about the reprint says simply, “You’re welcome.” Can’t wait.

Do the Homework

Elijah Wood has never read Lord of the Rings. The actor told Stephen Colbert that he has recently started reading the series—which, come on, that can mean anything—and I would just like to take this opportunity to say that if you’re going to star in an adaptation, you should be required to read the source material. I know we’re down on the idea of public shaming, but can we bring it back specifically for this? If you’re going to take millions of dollars for work based on a book and not do the homework, you should at least be made to feel uncomfortable admitting that in public. Come on, man.

There Are Too Many Books

Can you guess how many new books were published in 2025? Whatever you’re thinking, you probably need to add a zero. Jeff and I dove into the latest data, discussed recent adaptation announcements, and chatted with Louise Erdrich about her new book, Python’s Kiss, on today’s Book Riot Podcast. Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your podcatcher of choice.