Hot This Week: March 31

With its acclaimed ensemble cast, American Hustle debuts atop this week's DVD list, while the animated hit Frozen makes it as well. The soundtrack to that film tops the music charts once again, with six new titles making the list for the first time. New titles from Harlan Coben and Terry Pratchett lead the way in fiction this week, while Adam Braun's The Promise of a Pencil (available only from Midwest Tape) is the top new non-fiction title at #2.

DVD

1. American Hustle
2. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
3. Dallas Buyers Club
4. Thor: The Dark World
5. The Counselor
6. Captain Phillips
7. Frozen
8. Free Birds
9. About Time
10. Last Vegas

CD

1. Frozen Soundtrack
2. YG, My Krazy Life
3. Foster the People, Supermodel
4. Skrillex, Recess
5. The Pretty Reckless, Going to Hell
6. Pharrell Williams, G  I  R  L
7. Rick Ross, Mastermind
8. Enrique Iglesias, Sex + Love
9. Lorde, Pure Heroine
10. Taking Back Sunday, Happiness Is

Fiction

1. Missing You, Harlan Coben
2. Raising Steam, Terry Pratchett
3. The Goldfinch, Donna Tartt
4. Power Play, Danielle Steel
5. The Invention of Wings, Sue Monk Kidd
6. Be Careful What You Wish For, Jeffrey Archer
7. The Bootlegger, Clive Cussler and Justin Scott
8. Words of Radiance, Brandon Sanderson
9. Night Broken, Patricia Briggs
10. The Auschwitz Escape, Joel C. Rosenberg

Non-Fiction

1. 10% Happier, Dan Harris
2. The Promise of a Pencil, Adam Braun
3. Killing Jesus, Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard
4. David and Goliath, Malcolm Gladwell
5. Unbroken, Laura Hillenbrand
6. Not Cool, Greg Gutfeld
7. The Future of the Mind, Michio Kaku
8. Lean In, Sheryl Sandberg
9. Things That Matter, Charles Krauthammer
10. You Must Remember This, Robert J. Wagner and Scott Eyman

New Rowling, King Books Set for June

Written by Jon Williams

As we wait for spring to kick into full gear, it’s never too early to start thinking about summer beach reading and audiobooks for long trips. There is a wonderful slate of books scheduled for release later this spring and into the summer, but June looks to be a monster, with highly anticipated new titles coming from two juggernauts of the literary world.

It was recently announced that June 24 would bring The Silkworm by Robert Galbraith. This will be the second crime novel featuring private detective Cormoran Strike. The first Strike novel was last year’s The Cuckoo’s Calling, in which Strike investigated the death of supermodel Lula Landry, the adopted sister of his childhood friend. That book, of course, made news (and jumped to the top of the bestseller lists) when it was revealed that Robert Galbraith was, in fact, the pen name of J.K. Rowling, the wildly famous author of the Harry Potter books. After that series concluded in 2007, she made her first foray into writing for adults with 2012’s The Casual Vacancy. When that book was an automatic bestseller, she decided to use a pen name for her next book in order to see how it would perform on its own merits. That plan was foiled shortly after The Cuckoo’s Calling was published; however, it was drawing rave reviews even before the truth about its authorship was revealed. The Silkworm promises to pick up where the first book left off, with Strike this time investigating the case of an author gone missing before the publication of a devastating tell-all.

Before that comes out, though, June 3 will bring a new novel from Stephen King. Like Galbraith’s crime novels, King calls Mr. Mercedes his first “hard-boiled” detective novel, with his own signature macabre twist. The tale deals with a killer who operates by driving a stolen car into crowds of people, and the retired police officer on the trail to track him down before he can strike again. This is King’s first novel since last year’s Doctor Sleep, the long-awaited sequel to his early classic The Shining, and it kicks off a busy month for the horror master. On June 30, Under the Dome returns to CBS, a show based on King’s 2009 tome about a small town mysteriously trapped under an invisible force field that completely seals them off from the outside world. The second season’s premiere episode was written by King himself. In addition, later this year (November 11) King will publish Revival, a story more typical to his roots in the horror genre.

And of course, this is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of great stories coming out this spring and summer. Are there any titles you or your patrons are particularly excited about? Let us know in the comments section below.

Frozen Continues Its Run of Success

Written by Jon Williams

Disney’s Frozen was released into theaters on November 27, 2013, intended as a delightful holiday treat for the kids. It quickly turned into a phenomenon. It pulled in over $110 million at box offices around the world just during its opening weekend, no mean feat for a film with a $150 million budget. Even more impressive has been the film’s staying power. It was #1 at U.S. box offices three different times, the latest being its seventh week of release, challenging and beating other movies that were more likely blockbusters. As of today, it has earned close to $398 million domestically and over $1 billion worldwide. The movie came out last week on DVD and Blu-ray, where no doubt it will be hugely popular as well.

Frozen’s popularity extends beyond the film itself, though. If you scan our Hot This Week post each week, no doubt you’ve noticed the Frozen soundtrack hovering at or near the top of the music chart since the middle of December. It’s been in the top ten for fifteen consecutive weeks, and at #1 for six of them—including this week. Like the film, the soundtrack has challenged or beaten out albums more likely to be at the top of the charts. Led by the Academy Award winner for Best Song, “Let It Go,” the soundtrack has captured the hearts (and ears) of young ones everywhere—and their parents.

“Let It Go” in the movie is sung by the character Elsa, the snow queen, voiced by Broadway star Idina Menzel. She is joined on the soundtrack by actress Kristen Bell (the character Princess Anna), best known for her recently resurrected role as Veronica Mars, as well as Jonathan Groff (Kristoff) from Glee Josh Gad (Olaf), and Demi Lovato, who performs the single version of “Let It Go.” The soundtrack also features pieces from the score by acclaimed film composer Christophe Beck.

At this early date, the soundtrack is already set to be one of the biggest (if not the biggest) selling CDs of 2014. And for those who just can’t seem to get enough, it is also available in a two-disc deluxe edition that includes 23 additional tracks, featuring demos and outtakes of several songs, plus additional pieces from the score. It has also inspired an edition in the Disney Karaoke series, allowing kids (or whoever) to bring the music home and perform their own renditions.

Needless to say, Frozen fever is at its peak and shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon—especially with news that the hit film is in the planning stages for an adaptation on Broadway. If you don’t have the movie or the music on your shelves, what are you waiting for? Just head on over to our website, where you can find it all, as well as plenty of other always-popular Disney films and soundtracks.

Hot This Week: March 24

Catching Fire holds its spot at #1 for a second consecutive week, while three titles make the list for the first time. The soundtrack to Disney's blockbuster hit Frozen jumps back to music's top position. Three new titles jump to the head of this week's fiction class, with the latest from Danielle Steel, Patricia Briggs, and Jeffrey Archer making their marks. The non-fiction list sees four new titles this week, one at the top and three at the bottom.

DVD

1. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
2. Dallas Buyers Club
3. Thor: The Dark World
4. Captain Phillips
5. The Counselor
6. Free Birds
7. Last Vegas
8. About Time
9. The Best Man Holiday
10. Ender's Game

CD

1. Frozen Soundtrack
2. Rick Ross, Mastermind
3. Aloe Blacc, Lift Your Spirit 
4. Pharrell Williams, G  I  R  L
5. 311, Stereolithic
6. Young Money, Rise of an Empire
7. Lorde, Pure Heroine
8. Sara Evans, Slow Me Down
9. Eric Church, The Outsiders
10. Beyonce, Beyonce 

Fiction

1. Power Play, Danielle Steel
2. Night Broken, Patricia Briggs
3. Be Careful What You Wish For, Jeffrey Archer
4. Words of Radiance, Brandon Sanderson
5. The Goldfinch, Donna Tartt
6. The Invention of Wings, Sue Monk Kidd
7. The Bootlegger, Clive Cussler and Justin Scott
8. Private L.A., James Patterson and Mark Sullivan
9. The Chase, Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg
10. Still Life with Bread Crumbs, Anna Quindlen

Non-Fiction

1. 10% Happier, Dan Harris
2. Killing Jesus, Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard
3. David and Goliath, Malcolm Gladwell
4. Lean In, Sheryl Sandberg
5. Unbroken, Laura Hillenbrand
6. The Future of the Mind, Michio Kaku
7. Things That Matter, Charles Krauthammer
8. Jesus, James Martin
9. You Must Remember This, Robert J. Wagner and Scott Eyman
10. Where Nobody Knows Your Name, John Feinstein

Winter Is Coming

Written by Jon Williams

I can hear the shrieks of frustration over this headline, as News and Views readers look at their calendars. “Wasn’t yesterday the equinox?” I hear you asking. “Isn’t winter finally over?”

In one sense, yes, that’s absolutely true. In another sense, however, the harshest days of winter are still on the horizon. “Winter is coming” are the words of the Starks of Winterfell, one of seven families locked in a war that has swept through the kingdom of Westeros in HBO’s hit series Game of Thrones. The show’s fourth season premieres on Sunday, April 6, at 9:00 p.m.

The first season of Game of Thrones made its HBO debut on April 17, 2011. It quickly won acclaim from viewers and critics alike. The first episode (itself titled “Winter Is Coming”) scored 2.2 million viewers, and that number grew to over three million before the season was over. It was nominated for thirteen Emmy Awards, winning two of them, including Best Supporting Actor for Peter Dinklage, who plays Tyrion Lannister, better known as “The Imp.”

Upon seeing the numbers for the first season’s premiere episode, HBO executives immediately renewed Game of Thrones for a second season, which began on April 1, 2012. That season built upon the critical and commercial success of the first, growing to over four million viewers for the season finale and garnering another eleven Emmy nominations and six wins.

The third season grew to even more notable heights, averaging more than five million viewers for its ten episodes, plus sixteen Emmy nominations and two wins. The ninth episode, titled “The Rains of Castamere,” featured the Red Wedding, one of the most shocking scenes ever shown on television. I won’t give away any spoilers, but those of you who watch—you know what I mean.

The series, of course, is based on bestselling author George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series of fantasy novels. The first season covers the first book, A Game of Thrones (originally published in 1996), from which the series took its name. Likewise, the second season follows the second novel, A Clash of Kings. The third season, however, only covers roughly half of A Storm of Swords; the fourth season, reputed to be the darkest yet, will take on the rest. Two other books in the series have been published: A Feast for Crows and A Dance with Dragons. The sixth book will be titled The Winds of Winter; no release date has been announced, but it’s close enough to completion for Martin to have released excerpts onto the Internet. The series will conclude with the seventh book, A Dream of Spring.

The Game of Thrones series and Song of Ice and Fire books are extremely popular right now. Make sure you have them all on your shelves so patrons can catch up on what’s happening in Westeros in advance of the Season 4 premiere.