DeLillo Novel, Bangladesh Memoir Lead November Book Releases

Don DeLillo has authorized the republication of a 1980s novel written under the pseudonym Cleo Birdwell. The book, titled Amazons: An Intimate Memoir by the First Woman Ever to Play in the National Hockey League, returns to bookshelves after being out of print for decades. DeLillo, who kept the book's authorship secret until 2020, agreed to the release earlier this year. He included a brief preface on a business card that reads: "I don't want to talk about it."

The novel is a comedy set in the world of ice hockey. It predates the current popularity of hockey romance fiction by more than 40 years. Copies were scarce in recent years, contributing to a cult following among readers. The book was originally published under the name Cleo Birdwell, a character who does not exist in the real world.

Tahmima Anam publishes Uprising, a novel set on a river island in Bangladesh. The story focuses on women trapped in prostitution and the children they raise. The narrative is told largely from the perspective of the children. The setting is defined by rising waters caused by climate change. The women are controlled by a cruel madam and men who arrive by boat. A new girl arriving on the island begins to change the situation.

Louise Kennedy releases her second novel, Stations. The Northern Irish author previously spent nearly three decades as a chef before writing. She described the transition to writing as "strangely liberating" in a 2022 interview with NPR. Her debut novel, Trespasses, focused on the fallout of a young love across religious lines. Stations explores a similar theme of romantic struggle but centers on the impact of family history.

Mary Beth Keane publishes Whale Harbor, a novel that follows an Irish father and his sons. The story spans years, seas, and continents. Fresh Air book critic Maureen Corrigan compared Keane to Ann Patchett in a review of Keane's 2019 novel, Ask Again, Yes. Corrigan noted that Keane has the ability to transform domestic tales into universal stories. Keane's new work continues this style with a sweeping narrative structure.

Matt O'Hara, a history professor at the University of California, Santa Cruz, publishes The Flying Death. The book traces the history of curare, a poison used by Amazon tribes in blowdarts. The herbal mixture was also believed to have medicinal properties. The pursuit of these properties began in the 1930s and led to new developments in pharmacology. O'Hara's account includes archival research and details the rivalries that emerged during the quest for a miracle medicine. The book also addresses the often-forgotten role of the tribes in this history.

Daisy Johnson releases Long Wave, her third book. Johnson, a British writer, became the youngest Booker Prize finalist at age 27 for her debut novel, Everything Under, in 2018. She has since published another novel and a short story collection. Long Wave features women whose family bonds are described as broken glass. The prose is spare, and the atmosphere is foreboding, drawing on myth and mystery.