"Now nowhere on earth is unaffected by the climate crisis," said journalist and author Gaia Vince (Nomad Century) during the Frankfurt Book Fair's opening press conference Tuesday morning.

With less than 1.5 degrees Celsius of warming, Vince explained, people around the world are already feeling the physical, financial, and social impacts of climate change, whether it be from wildfires, floods, droughts, or rising sea levels. With global temperatures expected to rise by 3-4 degrees Celsius this century, "we must be realists" and embark on a "vast undertaking to adapt to a hotter, more dangerous world." That is something "no country is effectively doing at the moment," she added.

In some parts of the world, "there will be no way to adapt," and large swaths of the tropics, coastlines, and river deltas will become "unlivable for parts of the year." She warned that change won't come gradually: there will be "sudden step changes" where disasters lead to "cascading events" that could wear down resilience and displace the already-displaced.

Gaia Vince (center) at the Frankfurt Book Fair opening press conference, flanked by book fair director Juergen Boos (l.) and Börsenverein chair Karin Schmidt-Friderichs.

These changes will make climate migration "inevitable," Vince said, and in some parts of the world it is "already underway." Surviving climate change, which she stressed "represents a threat to our species," will require a "planned and deliberate migration" of not only people but also capital, industry, and agriculture to northern regions that will remain more habitable. In some places it will mean the expansion of existing cities as well as the creation of "entirely new cities."

Vince called it "an upheaval but also an opportunity," pointing to the benefits that migration can provide. Many northern countries are facing "huge demographic crises" with residents not having enough children, and many economies are already "propped up by immigrants." Planned mass migration "could provide a better world, a better Anthropocene."

She pointed out that for much of human history, migration was not only commonplace but also essential for human survival, and it was only relatively recently that "we've imprisoned ourselves within the idea of nation states and borders." That framework is "incompatible with the reality of climate change," and the scale of this "planetary drama" demands thinking like a "global community." Vince asked: "Can we not grasp the possibility that no one has more right to the safe places of our shared home than anyone else?"

Ideas often seem crazy and impossible, Vince continued, "until they are not." Slavery was once "so fundamental to economies that abolishing it seemed ludicrous," she pointed out, and likened those past arguments to present arguments for keeping fossil fuels.

She acknowledged that change can seem hopeless sometimes, but "it is not." In just the lifetime of the Frankfurt Book Fair, which is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year, there have been massive declines in global hunger and poverty; there are structures in place for global cooperation; and the Berlin Wall is gone.

"Every emergency evacuation, every boat full of refugees, every truckload fleeing disaster represents a failure of imagination, a failure of policy," Vince said. "We could instead plan this movement from planetary danger so that it is a managed transition taking place over decades rather than a crisis."

Though migration is inevitable, people still have choices. Avoiding the subject or refusing to discuss it is itself a choice, one that will create a future where climate events lead to "misery, death, and conflict." A better future can still be chosen, "but first we must talk about what we face and what our choices really are." --Alex Mutter

Inklings Children's Books hosted a grand opening party last Saturday at 106 Mad River Green, Waitsfield, Vt., with live music, a story time, and arts and crafts, WCAX reported, noting that "the goal of Inklings is to provide a space where kids and adults can come for a diverse collection of books."

When he was writing for Disney, Inklings owner Brian Wray had fantasized about owning a bookstore one day. "I was writing children's books, and the more I wrote and went out and shared books at schools and libraries, I really wanted children's books to be my full-time life. So, this is a dream of ours," he said.

Nicole Angel, his wife, has supported him through the lengthy process of creating the new indie. "He would see the reach that it will make in the community and how kids would just come to life through books and that they get really fulfilled and he's, like, let's do this. So here it is," she said.

The store offers a variety of books, which Wray called an important aspect of his vision: "It was really important. We wanted Inklings to have a wide range of books, wide range of subject matter and reading level from board books all the way up to young adult." 

Although it has been a challenge getting the store off the ground, Wray said it was worth it in the end: "The most rewarding part is handing a child a book and seeing their eyes light up. That never gets old."

On Sunday, Inklings posted on Instagram: "Thank you for an amazing first day at Inklings! Our thanks to @vermontproconstruction for creating such a warm, welcoming space. Thanks to @zoes_kitchen_paradise for the delicious cupcakes. And a huge thanks to this amazing community for all of your warmth & support. We are deeply grateful!"

An all-ages bookstore called Bear's Books is opening soon in Macon, Ga., the Telegraph reported.

Bear's Books will reside at 835 Forsyth St. in Macon, and store owner Margaret Harrington has a soft opening planned for October 20 followed by a grand opening celebration to be held the weekend of November 3-5.

Harrington has been hosting monthly events since founding Bear's Books roughly a year ago, and she hopes to expand those offerings once the bookstore opens. On October 17 she will host a discussion of Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus, and on October 21 middle-grade author Hope Stark will do a book signing at Bear's Books.

She told the Telegraph that she wants to empower readers and make them feel welcome regardless of what they like to read. "I feel like it is something to do for pleasure and enjoyment. You shouldn't have to worry about being ashamed of what you're reading, if that makes sense."

Prior to creating Bear's Books, Harrington worked as an educator for about 20 years. She holds in MFA in creative writing and is a lifelong reader. The bookstore's name is based on her childhood nickname, which was given to her by her next-door neighbor.

After one of Harrington's parents passed away and another was diagnosed with dementia, she realized that "there'll come a day when nobody calls me Bear anymore." By naming the store Bear's Books, she found a "neat way for me to keep that nickname and keep that connection to my parents who inspired so much of this."

New York City's Bronx Bound Books, which launched in 2019 with a website and community events schedule before adding a mobile bookstore earlier this year, has expanded its operations with a new kiosk in the Mall at Bay Plaza in the Bronx, near Co-Op City, PIX-11 reported. 

"It serves our community. The goal is to open a brick-and-mortar in the neighborhood," said owner Latanya DeVaughn while celebrating her grand opening.

In a Facebook post, DeVaughn wrote: "THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT! We're so excited that Bronx Bound Books has expanded into a new kiosk at The Mall at Bay Plaza! Why? Because we know that having a physical space to further engage with our community is crucial. The kiosk is an expansion for Bronx Bound Books that allows us to host literacy and author events, bringing authors directly to our community! The kiosk is a hub for literacy, community engagement, and a celebration of diverse voices. 

"And at the same time, we're bringing literacy and books directly to you with our book bus around the Bronx and beyond. This is all happening because of your incredible support! We're so thankful for all of the love and help we've received so far. See you at our kiosk!"

Maurice Leitch, the radio drama producer, dramatist, and author whose novel Poor Lazarus won the Guardian fiction prize in 1969, died September 26. He was 90. The Guardian reported that his first novel, The Liberty Lad (1965), anticipated the Troubles in Northern Ireland: "Though it is not overtly political, The Liberty Lad reflects the deteriorating social and moral climate in the fictional Protestant mill village of Kildargan, with its damp terrace houses, its industrial decline and prevailing sense of poverty and malaise, all complicated by sectarian undertones."

This was followed by Poor Lazarus (1969), Stamping Ground (1975), and Silver's City (1981), which won the Whitbread Prize, then eight more novels including his last, Gone to Earth (2019). He also wrote two collections of stories and a novella. 

Among Leitch's radio plays, Flutes (1984) and A Shout in the Distance (1999) were among those set in Northern Ireland and broadcast on Radio 4. The radio dramatization of Silver's City (1995) starred Brian Cox and James Nesbit. For 12 years he was editor of Radio 4's Book at Bedtime. His TV plays included Guests of the Nation (1983), an adaptation of Frank O'Connor's short story, starring Timothy Spall.

The poet Michael Longley recalled traveling with Leitch, recording participants in an amateur talent program: "I was between jobs and worked briefly as Maurice's floor manager, the cheerleader for country-and-western songsters and backwoods comedians--characters who would have fitted into one of his marvelous Ulster-based novels."

In 1970 Leitch left Belfast for London, continuing to work for BBC radio as a drama producer, but he "never uprooted himself entirely from Antrim and Belfast, and a Northern Irish element found its way into most of his novels, even if it is just an exuberant Ulster couple heading for Wiltshire in a camper van, as in Burning Bridges (1989)," the Guardian wrote, adding: "While he had admirers in many other places, and in 1998 was appointed MBE, he was far from being a household name in his birthplace. Perhaps that was due to his abrasive approach to the ills of Northern Ireland--he was never averse to throwing a spanner in the works--and his outspoken knack for tackling difficult subjects head-on."

Sales rep Karl Krueger is retiring after 30 years with Penguin Random House covering the New England territory. His final appointment at Wellesley Books, Wellesley, Mass., was last Friday, and the store celebrated him with flowers, candy, and treats.

Buyer Lorna Ruby said, "His boss asked if I had any words to share for a testimonial when Karl was approaching his 30th anniversary and this is what I said: 'I have worked with Karl since his Putnam days (I started my buying career at Lauriat's in 1989) and he has always been a joy to work with. Smart, friendly, honest, funny--he knows his books, loves a good greeting card, and is a cheerleader for every bookstore (and author) out there. He is open, curious about the world, and caring about everyone in his book circle. He embodies everything that is right and good about the book business.' "

Pictured: Krueger with the Wellesley Books staff who've known him the longest: (from l.) buyer Lorna Ruby; Krueger; Betty Sudarsky, bookseller and book group leader; Sally Weitzen, bookseller.

Posted on Instagram yesterday by Two Birds Books, Santa Cruz, Calif.: "Some fun new books out today... drop by to check out what's new! (And yes, we still have some of these cozy skull caps Mr. Bones is modeling in stock!)."

"Books that will bewitch you!" That's the sidewalk chalkboard message at Broadside Bookshop, Northampton, Mass.,which noted: "Does it get any better than October in the valley?? Tell us--what is your perfect autumn read? Broadside Booksellers need to know!"

Annie Krege, formerly marketing intern at Astra Books for Young Readers, has joined Scholastic as trade sales assistant.

The Secret of the Dragon Gems by Rajani LaRocca and Chris Baron (Yellow Jacket/Little Bee Books).

Tomorrow:
Good Morning America: Alice Faye Duncan, author of Coretta's Journey: The Life and Times of Coretta Scott King (Calkins Creek, $18.99, 9781662680045).

Book TV airs on C-Span 2 this weekend from 8 a.m. Saturday to 8 a.m. Monday and focuses on political and historical books as well as the book industry. The following are highlights for this coming weekend. For more information, go to Book TV's website.

Saturday, October 21
3:45 p.m. Ned Blackhawk, author of The Rediscovery of America: Native Peoples and the Unmaking of U.S. History (Yale University Press, $35, 9780300244052).

4:50 p.m. Jon Lauck, author of The Good Country: A History of the American Midwest, 1800-1900 (OU Press, $26.95, 9780806190648).

Sunday, October 22
8 a.m. Jim Davis and Michael Graham, co-authors of The Great Dechurching: Who's Leaving, Why Are They Going, and What Will It Take to Bring Them Back? (‎Zondervan, $29.99, 9780310147435). (Re-airs Sunday at 8 p.m.)

10 a.m. Ryan J. Reilly, author of Sedition Hunters: How January 6th Broke the Justice System (‎PublicAffairs, $32.50, 9781541701809). (Re-airs Sunday at 10 p.m.)

2 p.m. Jack Bender, author of I Am Sorry: Art and Apologies (Flashpoint, $17.95, 9781959411321), at the 2023 Printers Row Lit Fest in Chicago, Ill.

2:40 p.m. Jena Friedman, author of Not Funny: Essays on Life, Comedy, Culture, et Cetera (Atria/One Signal, $27.99, 9781982178284), at the 2023 Printers Row Lit Fest in Chicago, Ill.

3:24 p.m. David Masciotra, author of I Am Somebody: Why Jesse Jackson Matters (‎Bloomsbury, $17.95, 9781350400542), at the 2023 Printers Row Lit Fest in Chicago, Ill.

4:04 p.m. Julia Keller, author of Quitting: A Life Strategy: The Myth of Perseverance--and How the New Science of Giving Up Can Set You Free (Balance, $29, 9781538722343), at the 2023 Printers Row Lit Fest in Chicago, Ill.

5 p.m. Bethany Allen, author of Beijing Rules: How China Weaponized Its Economy to Confront the World (‎Harper, $32.99, 9780063057418).

6:45 p.m. Daniel Baer, author of The Four Tests: What It Will Take to Keep America Strong and Good (Avid Reader Press/Simon & Schuster, $28, 9781668006580), at Politics and Prose in Washington, D.C.

Winners have been named for the 2023 Forward Prizes for Poetry, which this year include a new category: best single poem--performed. Run by the Forward Arts Foundation, the awards are sponsored by Bookmark Content. 

Jason Allen-Paisant's Self Portrait as Othello won the £10,000 (about $12,175) Forward Prize for Best Poetry Collection. Chair of judges Bernardine Evaristo said: "An exhilarating and propulsive read that sweeps through several European cities that become subject to the black male gaze, changing what is seen and who is heard. Playful, intimate and allusive, these poems interrogate masculinity and history, experiment with the myth of Othello, mourn absent fathers, and offer us a refreshing mash-up of languages that regenerate poetry so that it feels freshly minted."

Momtaza Mehri's Bad Diaspora Poems took the £5,000 (about $6,090) Felix Dennis Prize for debut collection. Evaristo commented: "An exceptional debut collection that reinvigorates ideas around diaspora, migration and home. Wide-ranging and ambitious, her poetry shimmers with erudition and linguistic exquisiteness, while also having an emotional heart. Drawing on global cultures, Mehri is a truly transnational poet of the twenty-first century whose words pulsate out into the world-at-large."

Malika Booker's "Libation" topped the £1,000 (about $1,215) best single poem--written category, and Bohdan Piasecki 's "Almost Certainly" won the £1,000 best single poem--performed prize.

Selected new titles appearing Tuesday, October 24:

Let Us Descend: A Novel by Jesmyn Ward (Scribner, $28, 9781982104498) follows an enslaved girl in the American South.

The Secret: A Jack Reacher Novel by Lee Child and Andrew Child (Delacorte, $28.99, 9781984818584) is the 28th Jack Reacher thriller.

Christmas and Other Horrors: An Anthology of Solstice Horror, edited by Ellen Datlow (Titan Books, $27.99, 9781803363264) contains work from Stephen Graham Jones, Garth Nix, Josh Malerman and more.

Julia: A Novel by Sandra Newman (Mariner, $30, 9780063265332) is a retelling of 1984 from the perspective of Julia.

The Woman in Me by Britney Spears (Gallery, $32.99, 9781668009048) is the memoir of the pop music star.

How to Know a Person: The Art of Seeing Others Deeply and Being Deeply Seen by David Brooks (Random House, $30, 9780593230060) looks at how to foster deeper interpersonal connections.

Emperor of Rome: Ruling the Ancient Roman World by Mary Beard (Liveright, $39.99, 9780871404220) explores the hardest job in Ancient Rome.

The Pioneer Woman Cooks--Dinner's Ready!: 112 Fast and Fabulous Recipes for Slightly Impatient Home Cooks by Ree Drummond (Morrow Cookbooks, $32.50, 9780062962843) ranges from seafood casserole to personal pizzas.

No Brainer by Jeff Kinney (Amulet, $14.99, 9781419766947) is the 18th Diary of a Wimpy Kid book.

The Bigfoot Queen by Jennifer Weiner (Aladdin, $18.99, 9781481470803) is the third and final book in her middle-grade the Littlest Bigfoot series.

Once There Was a Bear by Jane Riordan and A.A. Milne, illus. by Mark Burgess and Ernest H. Shepard (Dutton, $22.99, 9780593461914), is a Winnie-the-Pooh prequel collection written and illustrated in the styles of A.A. Milne and Ernest H. Shepard.  

Paperbacks:
King of Greed by Ana Huang (Bloom Books, $17.99, 9781728289748).

Iris Kelly Doesn't Date by Ashley Herring Blake (Berkley, $18, 9780593550571).

Forever Under the Mistletoe: A Novel by Debbie Macomber (Mira, $9.99, 9780778334026).

The Last Close Call by Laura Griffin (Berkley, $9.99, 9780593546734).

Dating Can Be Deadly: An Amish Matchmaker Mystery Book 5 by Amanda Flower (Kensington, $8.99, 9781496737489).

From last week's Indie bestseller lists, available at IndieBound.org, here are the recommended titles, which are also Indie Next Great Reads:

Hardcover
Our Strangers: Stories by Lydia Davis (Bookshop Editions, $26, 9798987717103). "Lydia Davis is in a rare arena of master short story writers. She celebrates language, never using an unnecessary word. Just perfect sentences, unexpected images, and stories that make you laugh and cry and stay with you forever." --Gayle Shanks, Changing Hands, Tempe, Ariz.

Company: Stories by Shannon Sanders (Graywolf Press, $27, 9781644452516). "Members of a big, multigenerational Black family--with branches bohemian and bourgeois--live vibrantly in this debut collection of fiction. Linked together in a glittering chain of language, their stories create a treasured heirloom." --James Crossley, Madison Books, Seattle, Wash.

Paperback
A Merry Little Meet Cute: A Novel by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone (Avon, $17.99, 9780063222595). "What do you get when Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone co-write a rom-com? You get the story of an adult film star and a former bad-boy boybander in a Hallmark-style holiday movie. It's a sex-positive, body-positive romance full of good cheer!" --Cathy Berner, Blue Willow Bookshop, Houston, Tex.

For Ages 0 to 8
Rosie Runs by Marika Maijala, trans. by Mia Spangenberg (Elsewhere Editions, $19.95, 9781953861603). "A captivating tale of freedom for a racing dog named Rosie, told with beautiful rhythm and perfect read-aloud pacing for toddlers and early elementary listeners alike. Fluid illustrations invite the viewer to run right beside Rosie." --Julie Rowan-Zoch, Old Firehouse Books, Fort Collins, Colo.

For Ages 10+
I Am Kavi by Thushanthi Ponweera (Holiday House, $18.99, 9780823453658). "Though written about a time and place far removed from today's young American readers, this beautiful novel in verse has themes that are immediately relatable. Don't we all want to fit in? Kavi does, even if it requires bending the truth." --Suzanna Hermans, Oblong Books, Rhinebeck, N.Y.

For Teen Readers
Bring Me Your Midnight by Rachel Griffin (Sourcebooks Fire, $18.99, 9781728256153). "Griffin does it again: A perfectly-mixed potion of the modern and the magical. Bring Me Your Midnight is the fast-paced, witchy reading-slump antidote we need!" --Sophie Robinson, The Briar Patch, Bangor, Maine

[Many thanks to IndieBound and the ABA!]

The Second Chance Year by Melissa Wiesner might appear to be a warm and fuzzy romantic comedy about a Brooklyn pastry chef who gets a life do-over after she loses her job, her boyfriend, and her self-esteem all at once. However, as this briskly paced story unreels, readers will be pleasantly surprised when the plot swells with deeper, more thought-provoking implications.

Thirty-year-old Sadie Thatcher is emotionally strung-out. Unable to control her "big mouth," she loses her job at an exclusive restaurant after she defends a line cook who was reamed out by an unfair, unmerciful boss over a bad batch of pâté. Sadie's chronic outspokenness also leads to the breakup of her three-year relationship with her beau, Alex. Suddenly single, homeless, and forced to take a job as a barista, Sadie ends up living in the spare bedroom of her brother's nerdy loner best friend since grade school; Jacob Gray, also 30 years old, is an overachieving electronic-music composer, "introverted and uptight."

Months later, on New Year's Eve, Sadie is devastated to learn that Alex is celebrating on a "tropical island with a pretty blond woman who looks fantastic in a bikini." But when a loyal friend--and former coworker--coaxes depressed Sadie into attending a New Year's party, things take a wild turn. A fortune teller with a crystal ball reluctantly grants Sadie one wish. With nothing to lose, Sadie impulsively wishes for a "second chance," the opportunity for a do-over on the past year of her rotten, miserable life.

On New Year's Day, Sadie awakens to find that her wish has come true: she's re-living the past year and every experience that upended her life. This time, however, Sadie is enlightened from the future. Will the replay year transpire the same as before? Or will the second-chance choices that Sadie makes lead to a sweeter, more fulfilling life?

Wiesner (It All Comes Back to You; His Secret Daughter), a top-notch storyteller, puts a fresh, fun spin on a classic set-up. A self-aware, flawed, quirky heroine--with a strong supporting cast; a slow-burning, opposites-attract romance; and well-drawn scenes that tackle issues of feminism and workplace microaggressions--makes for a delightful seriocomic read that dynamically explores the what-ifs of life. --Kathleen Gerard, blogger at Reading Between the Lines

Shelf Talker: The Second Chance is a fresh, dynamic rom-com about a jilted, down-on-her-luck pastry chef whose wish for a do-over on a horrible year of her life comes true.