Bookmarked is back! I took a little hiatus from this series because I initially planned to post it bi-weekly, but was struggling to find new book news every other week.

Going forward, Bookmarked will be a monthly roundup of the latest book news instead. And if a particular month is quiet, we’ll just skip it. I still wanted to continue this part of my Substack because unless you’re following niche publishing-industry accounts, it can be difficult to keep up with everything happening in the book world.

So welcome to Bookmarked #4 - your go-to for the latest book news from the literary world 💌

Book To Screen: upcoming book adaptations

Anne Hathaway to produce and star in film adaptation of trad-wife satire

Yesteryear is arguably the buzziest book of 2026 so far, following a trad-wife influencer who suddenly wakes up in the 1800s and has to live the harsh reality of the aesthetic she sells online. It was teased via an Instagram post that Anne Hathaway had bought the rights before the novel was even published.

The novel is being adapted into a film by Amazon MGM Studios with Hathaway producing and starring, and author Caro Claire Burke serving as an executive producer.

Jane Fonda to star in ‘The Correspondent’

After a seven-studio bidding war, Lionsgate will be adapting The Correspondent, a book you may recognise from this year’s Women’s Prize for Fiction shortlist. Jane Fonda will be portraying the novel’s narrator Sybil Van Antwerp, a retired lawyer reflecting on her life, love, and grief through letters.

The Correspondent is the last book I need to read to complete the shortlist, so I’m very curious to see what I think of it.

Male lead announced for Beach Read adaptation - and fans are not happy

Last month it was announced that Patrick Schwarzenegger will be playing Augustus (Gus) Everett in the film adaptation of Emily Henry’s bestselling romance Beach Read. It would probably be the understatement of the year to say this casting announcement was not well received by fans. If you read through the comments on the Instagram post by director Yulin Kuang, you’ll be hard pressed to find a positive one.

Schwarzenegger will be starring opposite Phoebe Dynevor, who was announced as the film’s female lead earlier in the year.

Beach Read is my favourite Emily Henry novel and one of my favourite romance novels, so I can’t be very objective nor emotionally detached when it comes to this adaptation. However, in an attempt to be diplomatic, all I will say is…….it’s not too late to recast!

Trailer for Anthony Bourdain biopic released

Though not explicitly an adaptation, A24 released the trailer for their upcoming Anthony Bourdain biopic Tony this week, inspired by Bourdain’s 2000 memoir Kitchen Confidential (an excellent read, by the way).

The film aims to capture the formative experience and gritty atmosphere of the 1970s culinary scene, which shaped Bourdain’s rise as a celebrity chef. Dominic Sessa, known for The Holdovers, stars as Bourdain in the biopic which is set for release in August 2026.

Lit Talk: the latest from the book world

Pulitzer Prizes 2026: books recognised as winners or finalists

The Pulitzer Prize winners and finalists were announced on Monday, which celebrate excellence in the United States for journalism, arts and letters. Though an American award (many view The Booker Prize as the UK equivalent), I do like to keep an eye on the finalists and winners, as many of my favourite books have won a Pulitzer.

Angel Down by Daniel Kraus won the Pulitzer for Fiction (Audition by Katie Kitamura and Stag Dance by Torrey Peters were finalists) and Yiyun Li’s Things In Nature Merely Grow was awarded the Pulitzer for Memoir or Autobiography (a book I highly recommend).

You can read the full list of winners and finalists here.

Five publishers sue Meta for copyright in AI training

Five major publishers are suing Meta for allegedly pirating their books and articles without permission in order to train their artificial intelligence models.

The lawsuit is part of the ongoing copyright dispute over AI training. Numerous authors, news organisations, artists and other creators have filed copyright infringement claims against companies such as Meta, OpenAI and Anthropic. Meta has denied any wrongdoing.

Author turns down $175k literary prize

Helen DeWitt, author of The Last Samurai, was chosen as one of eight recipients of the Windham-Campbell prize (worth $175k), but turned it down due to the promotional duties required.

DeWitt shared further details in a blog post, stating that receiving the prize money was “contingent on extensive promotion”, including participation in a festival, a podcast, and up to eight hours of filming for promo videos.

Since this news became public, people have come out on both sides of the argument. Some state that promotion is often necessary to help fund theses prizes, while others argue it’s not the author’s job to promote the prize, carry out unexpected commitments, or turn themselves into a media personality.

I think this is a really interesting debate - so would love to hear what you think! The blog post linked above and this article in The Guardian also provides some more context on DeWitt’s situation.

Release Radar: upcoming book releases

• I Want You To Be Happy by Jen Calder (21 May 2026) - A tale of two people searching for meaning and connection in modern times, missing the mark maybe, but still trying. (I received an advance copy of this and really enjoyed it! Definitely one for the Sally Rooney fans).

• John of John by Douglas Stewart (21 May 2026) - The story of a young man’s return home and how the bonds of family life are torn by the weight of expectation.

• Land by Maggie O’Farrell (2 June 2026) - A story of buried treasure, overlapping lives, ancient woodland, persistent ghosts, a particularly loyal dog, and how, when it comes to both land and history, nothing ever goes away.

• Whistler by Ann Patchett (2 June 2026) - A story about how family, memory and love endures, Whistler paints an intimate portrait of how the feeling of being known by one other person, even for a short period of time, can change everything.

Thanks for reading this edition of bookmarked!

Welcome to bookmarked #3 - your go-to for the latest bookish news from the literary world.

Book To Screen: upcoming book adaptations

Channel 4’s adaptation of ‘Trespasses’ coming later this year

Louise Kennedy’s 2022 novel Trespasses (which was shortlisted for the 2023 Women’s Prize for Fiction) is being adapted into a TV series by Channel 4, due to be released later this year.

Set in 1970s Northern Ireland during The Troubles, the story follows Cushla, a young Catholic teacher/barmaid (played by Lola Petticrew) and her forbidden love affair with Michael, a married Protestant barrister (played by Tom Cullen). It will also star Gillian Anderson as Cushla’s sharp, alcoholic mother Gina, and is being adapted for the screen by Ailbhe Keogan (a writer on Apple TV+’s Bad Sisters).

You can watch the teaser trailer for the series here.

Lit Talk: the latest from the book world

Hungarian author wins Nobel Prize for Literature 2025

Last week, the Nobel Prize for Literature was awarded to László Krasznahorkai for his ‘compelling and visionary oeuvre that, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art’.

Krasznahorkai is known for his ‘difficult and demanding postmodern’ novels, which often include themes of melancholic dystopia. I personally haven’t read any of his work, so if you have, let me know where to start!

A stamp for human-written books

In response to AI slop increasingly seeping into the book world, a UK start-up is launching an ‘Organic Literature’ certification to verify and label human-written works. The project will involve stamps being placed on books to verify they’ve been written by a human, not AI, similar to the ‘Human Written’ stamp which Faber placed on Sarah Hall’s 2025 novel Helm.

Books By People have initially partnered with a small group of independent publishing houses, with plans to expand globally in 2026.

2025 Booker Prize shortlist announced

The shortlist for the 2025 Booker Prize was announced at the end of September, which features 3 authors shortlisted for the first time and a previous Booker Prize winner. The shortlisted titles are Flashlight, The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny, Audition, The Rest of Our Lives, The Land in Winter, and Flesh

I’m mainly including this item because much to my surprise, I have now finished reading the entire 2025 Booker Prize longlist (!!) – so a post all about that will be coming soon.

Release Radar: upcoming book releases

• Book of Lives - Margaret Atwood (4 Nov) – A memoir (of sorts) by Maragret Atwood, where she unfolds the story of her life, linking key moments to the books that have shaped our literary landscape.

• The Dinner Party - Viola van de Sandt (4 Nov) - Franca organises and hosts a dinner party where everything she once was and everything she now is comes together and she feels like she might implode.

• Chosen Family - Madeleine Grey (29 Jan) - a queer literary novel about the lifelong, intense friendship between two women, Nell and Eve.

Thanks for reading this edition of bookmarked!

Welcome to bookmarked #2 - your go-to for the latest bookish news from the literary world!

Book To Screen: upcoming book adaptations

Emerald Fennell’s Wuthering Heights adaptation receives negative reaction at test screening

In case you haven’t heard, Emerald Fennell, director and writer of Saltburn and Promising Young Woman, is adapting Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights for her next project. News around the adaptation has garnered polarising reactions since it was first announced - from its director, to the casting of Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi as the leads, and the historical inaccuracies of the costumes.

But now this has extended to the first test screening of the film, which took place in Texas this week. Reportedly, audience reactions were very mixed, with one audience member calling the film ‘aggressively provocative and tonally abrasive’, which has allegedly been ‘stripped of emotional nuance and full of salacious detours that serve shock value’. Audience members claim it is full of ‘hyper-sexualized imagery’ and ‘suggestive textures’, clearly more explicit than any other previous adaptations.

Obviously you have to take test screenings with a pinch of salt, but it doesn’t sound like Brontë purists nor fans of the book will be very happy with the adaptation. Modernised adaptations can work with certain classic material, but I don’t think it will with Wuthering Heights.

Netflix’s Pride and Prejudice announce star-studded cast

Along with posting an exclusive first look at the upcoming limited series of Pride and Prejudice, Netflix also revealed the supporting cast - with a lot of names you’ll surely recognise.

It had previously been announced that Emma Corrin and Jack Lowden will star as Elizabeth Bennet and Mr Darcy, with Olivia Colman as Mrs Bennet. New names recently released include Louis Partridge (known for Enola Holmes and Olivia Rodrigo’s boyfriend) as Mr Wickham, Jamie Demetriou (Stath Lets Flats) as Mr Collins, Daryl McCormack (Bad Sisters) as Mr. Bingley, and Fiona Shaw (Killing Eve, Fleabag) as Lady Catherine de Bourg.

The six-part series has now started production, which has been written by Dolly Alderton (!!) and will be directed by Heartstopper’s Euros Lyn.

I’m Glad My Mom Died adaptation on the rocks

The Apple TV+ adaptation of Jennette McCurdy’s best-selling memoir I’m Glad My Mom Died (which was featured in bookmarked #1) has been left in the lurch by director Jason Reitman, who has left the project because of creative differences with McCurdy.

Due to Jennifer Aniston’s schedule, who is set to star as McCurdy’s mother, the producers reportedly only have two weeks to find a new director before the project is put on hold or dropped by Apple TV+ entirely.

Lit Talk: the latest from the book world

2025 Booker Prize longlist announced - with some controversy

The longlist for the 2025 Booker Prize was announced last week, featuring 13 novels which include a previous Booker winner, two debut novelists, and authors representing nine nationalities across four continents.

But 2025 Booker judge Sarah Jessica Parker has sparked some controversy over a longlisted author Claire Adam, whose debut novel Golden Child was published under SJP’s imprint and is being adapted by her production company. However, it’s been revealed that Parker disclosed this connection and the other judges concurred with Adam’s place on the longlist, so it seems to be a simple case of clickbait controversy.

I’m tentatively planning to read and review the whole longlist this year (at time of writing I’ve read 4 of them), depending on how long it’ll take me to get my hands on all the books.

Lucy Steeds’ ‘The Artist’ wins Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize

Lucy Steeds recently won the 2025 Waterstones debut fiction prize for her novel The Artist, which was also long-listed for the 2025 Women’s Prize for Fiction. A panel of booksellers chose the winner, using input gathered from Waterstones staff members throughout the UK.

The book, set in 1920s Provence, explores themes of creativity, obsession, and freedom through the intertwined lives of a reclusive artist, his niece, and a young journalist. It was praised by judges for its ‘atmospheric, sensory prose’. I got sent an arc of this ages ago but still haven’t got around to it - but I’ll definitely be reading it soon.

Hachette Acquires Joe Biden’s Memoir for $10 Million, less than Obama and Clinton’s

Hachette will publish former US President Joe Biden’s memoir about his time in the White House. The advance for his presidential memoir is significantly lower than those of his predecessors — Bill Clinton sold his memoir My Life for $15 million, while Barack and Michelle Obama set a record for their memoir deal that was reportedly around $65 million.

I have read Barack Obama’s presidential memoir A Promised Land and Becoming by Michelle Obama (the latter of which I recommend much more), but I won’t be reading this one. Sorry Joe.

Release Radar: upcoming book releases

• Ruins by Amy Taylor (12 Aug) - A couple whose affair with a young Greek woman over the course of a summer in Athens threatens to crack their relationship wide open.

• I Write to Find Out What I am Thinking (Collected Non-Fiction) by Joan Didion (14 Aug) - An omnibus edition of Didion's collected nonfiction, containing her final four books: The Year of Magical Thinking. Blue Nights, South and West, and Let Me Tell You What I Mean.

• Loved One by Aisha Muharrar (14 Aug) - After the sudden death of her longtime friend and former love, Gabe, Julia embarks on a global journey to collect his scattered belongings.

• Ruth by Kate Riley (21 Aug) - The arc of a woman's life in a devout, insular community challenges our deepest assumptions about what infuses life with meaning.

• Sweetener by Marissa Higgins (28 Aug) - A messy lesbian novel following two exes who turn to online dating after their dramatic split — only to end up seeing the same woman.

Thanks for reading this edition of bookmarked!

Welcome to the first edition of bookmarked - a monthly (or bi-weekly, TBD) post where I fill you in on the latest bookish news from the literary world. It’ll include updates on upcoming book adaptations, current discourse in the book space, and some book releases to put on your radar.

Let’s get into it.

Book To Screen: upcoming book adaptations

New cast members announced for Vladimir adaptation

Netflix are adapting one of my personal favourite novels Vladimir by Julia May Jonas into an eight-episode series, with Rachel Weisz and Leo Woodall set to star.

Jonas will write and executive produce the series, alongside Sharon Horgan (living legend) who you may know from TV shows such as Bad Sisters, Catastrophe, and Motherland. Sadly they haven’t set a release date for this yet - all we know is that it’s currently in development.

The Shards adaptation now at FX

Bret Easton Ellis’ autofictional thriller The Shards is now being produced by Ryan Murphy at FX, with model/actress Kaia Gerber set to star. Ellis had initially tried to adapt the novel at HBO, where he was set to write and executive produce the series, but this adaptation never got off the ground (rumour has it due to creative differences between Ellis and HBO, and by rumour I mean a Reddit thread).

The original plan was for The Shards to have three seasons of 10 episodes each, although this may now change. I’m very curious to see how they’ll adapt this and what they’ll be able to get away with on TV (if you’ve read the book, you’ll know what I mean).

Jennifer Aniston to star in ‘I’m Glad My Mom Died’ TV series

Jennette McCurdy’s best-selling memoir I’m Glad My Mom Died is being adapted into a TV series at Apple TV+, starring Jennifer Aniston. The series will be made up of 10 episodes, which will be written, executive produced and showrun by McCurdy and Ari Katcher. Once again Sharon Horgan is also attached as one of the producers, so I have high hopes for this one.

Daisy Edgar Jones leading Sense and Sensibility adaptation

After a teasing Instagram post on Daisy Edgar Jones’ profile, it was announced that she’ll be playing the protagonist Elinor Dashwood in an upcoming adaptation of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility.

Esmé Creed-Miles has recently been cast to portray Marianne Dashwood. The adaptation remake will be directed by Georgia Oakley, with producers Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner returning after working together on two previous Austen adaptations - Pride and Prejudice (2005) and Emma (2020). Looks like I will have to finally read Sense and Sensibility now!

Lit Talk: the latest from the book world

Fallout from The Salt Path continues

In case you missed it, a reporter from The Observer recently dug into the dodgy past of Raynor Winn, author of the best-selling memoir The Salt Path, which has raised suspicion about the truthfulness of the book. It’s been alleged that Winn misrepresented some key facts - including the severity of her husband’s medical diagnosis, the couple’s financial situation, and even whether they actually completed the long-distance walk that the book centres around.

Since then, booksellers across the UK have offered refunds for purchases of The Salt Path and paused pre-orders for Winn’s upcoming book On Winter Hill, which Penguin has also delayed the publication of. The controversy has sparked a lot of debate around memoir-writing and authenticity, with discussions around whether memoirists should be permitted to ‘embellish’ for the sake of entertainment. I personally think not, unless you want to be called a liar on the evening news.

Using books in AI training declared ‘fair use’

Two book authors recently filed lawsuits against AI companies who have allegedly trained their systems using authors’ work. For both cases, judges ruled that the companies training their AI with authors’ books is ‘fair use’, particularly as this training was used for products that aren’t direct competitors of the books themselves.

In response, a range of authors, including ‘romantasy’ writer Victoria Aveyard, have been posting TikTok time-lapses of themselves writing and editing their books, pushing back against the rising prominence of AI-generated (or at least assisted) books by demonstrating their authentic writing processes.

Release Radar: upcoming book releases

• Seduction Theory by Emily Adrian (12 Aug 2025) - A campus novel about a long marriage being derailed during a hot summer at a prestigious American university. Described as ‘for fans of Conversations With Friends and Vladimir’ aka me.

• My Brilliant Friend: The Four Volumes by Elena Ferrante (7 Oct 2025) – To celebrate the 10 year anniversary of the Neapolitan quartet being completed, Europa Editions are releasing the four novels in one volume. Do I have room for this on my bookshelf? No, but I want it anyway.

• Dead and Alive by Zadie Smith (30 Oct 2025) - Another essay collection from the mind of Zadie Smith, which will examine a range of subjects, including musings on artists, writers, movies, and Glastonbury.

• Flat Earth by Anika Jade Levy (6 Nov 2025) - A debut about a young woman struggling with the artistic success of her more privileged, beautiful best friend, while trying to make her own art and find fulfilment in late capitalist America. Billed as ‘Renata Adler’s Speedboat for the TikTok generation’, which I still haven’t read, but I understand the vibes.

• London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City, and a Family’s Search for Truth by Patrick Radden Keefe (7 April 2026) - An account of a family devastated by the sudden death of their 19 year old son, only to discover that he had created a secret life which drew him into the dangerous criminal underworld of London. This one sadly isn’t coming out until next year, but it was announced on Instagram this week and I’m already counting down the days.

Thanks for reading this edition of bookmarked!