Forward into Fall

In the midst of a very hot summer, meteorologically and politically, our look ahead at the fall season promises that books will remain at the center of many debates. From MIT Press's The End of the Wild, on vanishing ecosystems, to a flurry of books about global conflict (by Scott Ritter, Jimmy Carter, Lewis Lapham and others) and several that address ideological differences at home (from the likes of Barack Obama, Bill O'Reilly, Amy and David Goodman), nonfiction will vie for readers' urgent attention. But the season also features a remarkable fiction list, including novels from high-profile returnees Joseph Wambaugh, Thomas Pynchon and Alice McDermott, as well as some surefire brand-name bestsellers—Connelly, Hillerman, Albom, le Carré, Hiaasen and Evanovich. That is, the reading public will be able both to engage and escape—welcome options at any time, but perhaps particularly necessary now.

Computer buffs can check out listings for that category in our September 18 issue, and readers harboring a wanderlust will want to cast an eye on our travel listings (www.publishersweekly.com, Sept. 11). On our Web site now are listings for trade paperback reprints and mass market titles.