Six New Books Hit Shelves in November

November 3 marks the release of six new books that provide a shift from the political news cycle. The lineup includes works by Louise Kennedy, Mary Beth Keane, Matt O'Hara, Daisy Johnson, Tahmima Anam, and Don DeLillo.

Louise Kennedy returns with her second novel, Stations. The Northern Irish author previously worked as a chef for nearly three decades before turning to writing. She described the transition to NPR in 2022 as "strangely liberating." The new book focuses on the fallout of a young romance, a theme she also explored in her debut, Trespasses.

Mary Beth Keane publishes Whale Harbor this month. The American writer is known for domestic tales that expand into universal stories. Maureen Corrigan compared Keane to Ann Patchett in a 2019 review of Ask Again, Yes, noting their ability to transform closely observed details into deeper narratives. Whale Harbor follows an Irish father and his sons across years, seas, and continents.

Matt O'Hara, a history professor at the University of California, Santa Cruz, releases The Flying Death. The book details the history of curare, a poison used in Amazonian blowdarts. The herbal mixture was also believed to have medicinal properties. The pursuit of this cure began in the 1930s and spanned continents. O'Hara writes from archival research but presents the story with an adventurous tone. The book highlights the impact on the tribes who were central to the discovery.

Daisy Johnson's novel Long Wave arrives in November. The British writer became the youngest Booker Prize finalist at age 27 when her debut, Everything Under, was shortlisted in 2018. Long Wave continues her style of spare prose and foreboding atmosphere. The story centers on women who carry family bonds that are both loving and menacing.

Tahmima Anam releases Uprising, a novel set on a river island in Bangladesh. The story follows women who were trapped in prostitution by a cruel madam. The narrative is told largely from the perspective of their children. The setting is defined by the rising waters of climate change and the arrival of a new girl who begins to change the situation on the island.

Amazons: An Intimate Memoir by the First Woman Ever to Play in the National Hockey League returns to bookshelves. The book was originally published more than four decades ago. The author is listed as Cleo Birdwell, a pseudonym for American novelist Don DeLillo. He did not publicly acknowledge writing the book until 2020. DeLillo approved the republication earlier this year. The preface consists of a business card with his name and the statement: "I don't want to talk about it."

The releases are scheduled for November 2026. Kennedy, Keane, O'Hara, Johnson, and Anam all have new titles hitting the market this month. The republication of DeLillo's Amazons also lands on shelves during the same period. These six titles offer a mix of fiction and historical nonfiction for readers looking to escape current events.

The books are available for purchase starting this month. Kennedy's Stations and Keane's Whale Harbor are contemporary novels. O'Hara's The Flying Death is a work of history. Johnson's Long Wave and Anam's Uprising are novels. DeLillo's Amazons is a comedy memoir. Readers can find these titles in bookstores and online retailers beginning in November.