By Tyler Doster | Contributing Writer 

While everyone is getting ready for the spring semester to end, some might be looking forward to summer blockbusters that are about to hit theaters, going to a music festival with friends or maybe just going on a long vacation. For some, a new book can bring the same satisfaction that going on a vacation brings others. Here’s a look at some of the newest books that will be hitting shelves this spring.

“Not that Bad: Dispatches from Rape Culture” edited by Roxanne Gay

Release date: May 1

Some might know Roxanne Gay from her acclaimed books “Bad Feminist” and “Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body,” the former being a collection of essays discussing culture through a political and feminist lens, while the latter is a memoir that follows Gay’s intimate journey with her own body and her relationship with food and weight. “Not that Bad: Dispatches from Rape Culture,” a collection of essays edited by Gay, addresses what it means to live in the current society as a woman facing routine harassment and aggression with an understanding of possible solutions to these problems. 

“Baccaroon: The Story of the Last ‘Black Cargo’” by Zora Neale Hurston

Release date: May 8

As a newly published work by prolific writer Zora Neale Hurston, who many recognize as the author of “Their Eyes Were Watching God,” this should be considered a major literary event. Hurston traveled to Plateau, Alabama in 1927 and 1931 to interview Cudjo Lewis about his life and to further understand the slavery epidemic America was plagued by even after the Atlantic slave trade was outlawed in the United States. Hurston died in 1960 and this work was previously archived. Now, more than 50 years later, it’s hitting shelves.  

“Florida” by Lauren Groff

Release date: June 5

“Florida” is the most recent novel by acclaimed author Lauren Groff, whose previous novel “Fates & Furies” is a New York Times best-seller that went on to be a finalist for the National Book Award. Though slightly different than the psychological tension and perception-bending page-turner that is “Fates & Furies,” “Florida” will surely bring Groff’s signature style of writing. This collection of short stories that center around navigating life and the mysteries of emotion all take place in Florida. 

“Calypso” by David Sedaris

Release date: May 29

The award-winning humor essayist is back with his newest book that tracks his move to the Carolina coast as he describes what he thought life would be like. Fans of Sedaris’ work might still be reading “Theft by Finding,” a forty-year collection of private writings and journal entries that was published just last year. Fans can also expect something different from Sedaris this time around, as his newest work promises to be his darkest and most personal yet. 

“The Female Persuasion” by Meg Wolitzer

Release date: April 3 

Some might know Wolitzer from her previously published novel “The Interestings,” which follows six teenagers at a summer camp for the arts in the summer after Richard Nixon resigned. Her newest novel, “The Female Persuasion”, follows a young woman named Greer as she is starting as a freshman in college. After hearing an influential feminist speaker discuss the women’s movement, Greer attempts to make sense of the world and her place in it. 

“Air Traffic: A Memoir of Ambition and Manhood in America” by Gregory Padlo

Release date: April 10

Fans of poetry might recognize Padlo’s name from his Pulitzer Prize winning collection of poetry “Digest.” Padlo’s newest work circles around his younger life, including his father’s struggle with addiction after losing his job, leading into his adult life as he discusses race and ambition along the way. Gregory recalls his father’s influence on his life, as well as explains how he used his past to make a path to success for himself.