Summer 2026 has been one of the busiest and buzziest of the six summers I’ve been managing Edgartown Books — a season stuffed with wonderfully written books that have grabbed the attention of Vineyarders and visitors. Belle Burden’s “Strangers,” Ann Patchett’s “Whistler,” Kathryn Stockett’s “Calamity Club,” and Patrick Radden Keefe’s “London Falling” are only some of the summer’s biggest hits.
Truth is, 2026 is a very good year for books. And as the leaves turn, and the Island empties, the loud book buzz is going to continue.
The first book to look for, even before Labor Day, is “The Disappearers,” by the Booker winner Marlon James. Set in 1980s Jamaica, eight gay men join to put on a play. Attacked by a mob, one is killed — a death which haunts the survivors.
Leaves will still be green, and it won’t yet be officially autumn, when two highly anticipated novels arrive on our shelves.
Probably causing the most chatter is John Green’s return to fiction with his new adult book, “Hollywood, Ending,” about the tension between public and private life, with all its absurdity and glamour, mixed with vulnerability behind the camera’s lens.
Also eagerly awaited for is Emily St. John Mandel’s “Exit Party,” which begins at a glittering Los Angeles party. A guest vanishes into thin air, setting in motion a globe-trotting adventure mixed with sci-fi, and blended with human drama. Both of these are on my “must read” list.
Come October, the winds will blow, and we fear that “something wicked this way comes” — which is a perfect time for the release, from Stephen King and the late Peter Straub, of “Other Worlds Than These,” the final installment of the “Talisman” trilogy, with artwork by Gabriel Rodriguez. King finished the work after Straub’s death with the abundant notes he left behind. Protagonist Jack Sawyer returns to the Territories and Mid-World. For fans of the series, this is a bittersweet finale.
“Yellowface” was the first book by R.F. Kuang that really caught my attention. Author of the “Poppy War” trilogy, “Babel” and “Katabasis,” she returns with “Taipei Story,” not a fantasy but the very poignant tale of Lily Chen, college freshman, off to Taipei to enter an immersive language program. Her grandfather dies while she’s studying, breaking a bridge to the past. Through adventures and misadventures, Lily searches for the meaning of home.
As a chill descends and we look forward to Thanksgiving, the midterms just in the rearview mirror, Rachel Maddow will be out with “The Department of Fate.” Crown, her publisher, describes it as a “revelatory, rollicking trip” through the 150-year history of the Justice Department — the branch of government which has had probably the most influence in shaping us, weathering multiple crises, scandals, and upheavals, mixed with heroic efforts.
LaVar Burton has a memoir coming out in November, “Take My Word for It,” a turn on a phrase he used on PBS’ “Reading Rainbow.” One of my favorite actors, he describes his life from being raised by his mother to playing Kunta Kinte in “Roots,” to Geordi on “Star Trek: Next Generation,” to “Reading Rainbow.” It’s a very human American story. I can’t wait to read it.
Ali Hazelwood caught my attention with “Love, Theoretically,” one of a number of books she’s written with strong, smart heroines. She also has plumbed the paranormal for material, and her “Bound and Unbound” novellas are coming out in a single version this fall. It’s a far cry from her romcoms, but within the wheelhouse she has created with other books like “Mate.” In “Bound,” a grifter and a British professor become entangled when he kidnaps her to replicate a mysterious text. In “Unbound,” Lilit, a 5,000-year-old woman, gets involved with a mortal ER physician, who becomes a pawn when someone starts to hunt her.
“Switzy,” by Emma Cline, follows David, a retiree who’s wandering across Europe on some kind of vague pilgrimage, blending travel writing, memory, regret, and the clarity one finds in old age. It’s on my list.
For those who are looking for good mysteries, there are a couple to take a look at. First, Hank Phillipi Ryan, who has graced our bookstore’s porch for signings, is back with the highly anticipated “Mother Daughter, Sister Stranger,” about the sole survivors of a devastating event.
John Grisham is out with “The French Illusion,” a thriller about a Parisian honeymoon which goes catastrophically wrong. It will probably be one of the fall’s biggest commercial hits.
Min Jin Lee, author of “Pachinko,” returns with “American Hagwon.” Filled with insightful observations of her characters, it follows siblings as they navigate the fallout from the 1997 financial crisis and family expectations.
In a banner year for books, from fading summer to lea-strewn autumn, to curling up with a blanket in winter, there’s a title sure to call you to its pages.
Edgartown Books, 44 Main St., Edgartown; edgartownbooks.com.
