The Booksellers Association has today announced I Fear My Pain Interests You by Stephanie LaCava as Fiction Book of the Month for September, while The Lucky Bottle by Chris Wormell is Children’s Book of the Month.  
 
I Fear My Pain Interests You by Stephanie LaCava is a sensual book about the absurdities of our bodies and the impossibilities of our families. Margot’s on her way to Montana, with blood on her face and a jewelled cigarette case full of pills. She’s fresh from a bad break-up and fleeing the cold comforts of her famous family – legendary punk parents (long since parted in acrimony) and an overbearing matriarch and show business scion of a grandmother. For the first time in Margot’s life the eyes of the world are wholly elsewhere. But a graveyard encounter with a disgraced doctor and the discovery of a dozen old film reels leads to a troubling new subjecthood, as her congenital inability to feel pain puts her centre stage for one man’s desire and ambition. I Fear My Pain Interests You is published by Verso on 27^th September 2022, and is available to pre-order from bookshops on 1^st September.  

Stephanie LaCava said: “Independent bookstores are a stronghold of creative community. I like to go by my local shop weekly to see how the table stacks and window displays shift.  Behind the scenes are people whose work generates ideas that multiply many-fold.”

The Fiction Book of the Month submissions from publishers are read by a panel of booksellers who vote on each title. The BA then collates the votes and the title with the most votes becomes the Book of the Month. The panel for this time comprised members of Bridge Books Dromore, Beverley Bookshop, Forum Books. 

The Lucky Bottle by Chris Wormell is a wonderful adventure story which invites readers to believe in magic, the transformative power of friendship, and hope against all odds. Ten-year-old Jack is stranded on a desert island with no way to escape, but he's been very lucky - he's survived a terrible storm and the mysterious island he’s found himself on has a kindly (if unusual) inhabitant, fresh water and plenty of food. But Jack needs to find his way home, and as he uncovers incredible hidden treasures on the little island, he starts to formulate a plan, one  that will involve witchcraft, terrifying sea monsters and pirates! If Jack's going to succeed, he will need to be very, very lucky. The Lucky Bottle is published by David Fickling Books on 1^st September 2022 and is available to buy in bookshops now.

Author Chris Wormell said: “Independent bookshops are the best because they are all so individual; one never knows what one might find there (I usually find quite a lot and generally leave with a bag full of books!) Invariably they are owned and staffed by people who are passionate about books and so are warm, welcoming places."

Julie Collini, Sevenoaks Bookshop and a member of the section panel, said: “A wonderfully written, fast-paced, page-turner of a story, championing the power of friendship, resourcefulness and a splash of good fortune! I was really rooting for 10-year-old Jack on his quest to find his way back home in this rip-roaring tale of adventure on the high seas with a desert island, colourful pirates, super-scary sea creatures and a ship in a bottle thrown in!”

The Children’s Book of the Month submissions from publishers are read by a panel of booksellers who vote on each title. The BA then collates the votes and the title with the most votes becomes the Book of the Month. The panel for this time comprised members of Baytree Books, Edinburgh Bookshop, Bear Hunt Books and Sevenoaks Bookshop.

Independent bookshops around the UK and Ireland will be promoting I Fear My Pain Interests You and The Lucky Bottle throughout September on social media and instore. The Booksellers Association will be supporting the promotion of the Indie Books of the Month through social media and promotional material.

 
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