Oh, how I wish #44 had still been our president the last four years. Not the least because then he probably wouldn’t have had time to write A Promised Land, his current bestseller (and tops on my TBR list). I have nothing against Obama’s huge post-presidential success – remember how lovely it was to have a literate leader? – but I do have a slight grudge against his bestsellerdom. The runaway success of his latest is supposedly adding to the pandemic supply chain issues that have complicated publishing recently – creating paper shortages and backups at printing plants. Now I hear that my own A Cat on the Case may be delayed because of these industry-wide issues.
The paper copies, due to ship on January 26, may now be delayed by weeks – shipping as late as Feb. 23. (This is the IndieBound link for those who want to shop local.) We – me and my publisher Polis Books – are hoping that’s an outside estimate, and they may ship weeks earlier. Plus, as of today, it looks like the kindle and other ebook formats will come out on time – and there’s an audiobook in the works! But for those of us who like to hold a hardcover, well… this endless winter just got a few weeks longer.
(A quick tip: If you’re looking RIGHT NOW for some light-hearted fun for these dark times, I recommend Andrew Shaffer’s Obama/Biden mysteries, Hope Never Dies and Hope Rides Again. Especially now.)