Explore every episode of the podcast Books with Betsy
| Title | Pub. Date | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Episode 43 - Insatiable Curiosity with Rebecca Schinsky and Jeff O'Neal | 03 Mar 2025 | 01:05:20 | |
On this episode, Rebecca Schinsky and Jeff O’Neal of Book Riot sit down and talk to me about their reading lives. We talk about their professional work in the world of books, how Oliver Burkeman would feel about my bad bookish habit, and how any book can be interesting if you’re curious enough.
Listen to the Book Riot Podcast Better Living Through Books Newsletter (and the rest of the Book Riot Newsletters!) Jeff and Rebecca Live at Powells!
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: B.F.F.: A Memoir of Friendship Lost and Found by Christie Tate Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin Madwoman by Chelsea Bieker
Books Highlighted by Rebecca & Jeff: Sula by Toni Morrison The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russel The English Understand Wool by Helen DeWitt Lab Girl: A Memoir by Hope Jahren Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes We Ride Upon Sticks by Quan Barry The Street by Ann Petry How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question by Michael Schur The Orchard: A Memoir by Adele Crockett Robertson Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman When Women Were Birds: Fifty-Four Variations on Voice by Terry Tempest Williams Radical Candor: Be a Kick-Ass Boss Without Losing Your Humanity by Kim Scott Conscious Business: How to Build Value through Values by Fred Kofman
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Post-Traumatic by Chantal V. Johnson House of Cotton by Monica Brashears Sipsworth by Simon Van Booy Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens Ingrained: The Making of a Craftsman by Callum Robinson Cabin: Off the Grid Adventures with a Clueless Craftsman by Patrick Hutchinson Life in Three Dimensions: How Curiosity, Exploration, and Experience Make a Fuller, Better Life by Shigehiro Oishi Meditations for Mortals: Four Weeks to Embrace Your Limitations and Make Time for What Counts by Oliver Burkeman Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card The Hobbit: Or There and Back Again by J.R.R. Tolkien The Shining by Stephen King Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover All Fours by Miranda July Passing by Nella Larsen | |||
| Episode 42 - Working on Your Brain with Betsy Kipnis | 24 Feb 2025 | 00:56:01 | |
On this episode, Betsy Kipnis, a multi-hyphenate who loves a wide variety of authors, and I discuss some shared favorites, great Chicago bookstores, and she has some great stories. She discusses books that are multi-sensory and we get spicy about a beloved author.
Barbara Kingsolver’s Recovery Center
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: The Road to the Salt Sea by Samuel Kọláwọlé Fundamentally by Nussaibah Younis
Books Highlighted by Betsy: Black Butterflies by Priscilla Morris How to Say Babylon by Safiya Sinclair The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold Forty Rooms by Olga Grushin The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak The Vegetarian by Han Kang Human Acts by Han Kang Native Son by Richard Wright Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper Lee by Casey Cep Meditations for Mortals: Four Weeks to Embrace Your Limitations and Make Time for What Counts by Oliver Burkeman
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Chocolat by Joanne Harris Annie Bot by Sierra Greer Hum by Helen Phillips The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood Colored Television by Danzy Senna We Do Not Part by Han Kang Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume Rouge by Mona Awad Perfume: The Story of a Murderer by Patrick Suskind The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah Yellowface by R.F. Kuang Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu Breasts and Eggs by Meiko Kwakami Girl in Snow by Danya Kukafka Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis by J.D. Vance Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors, and the Drug Company that Addicted America by Beth Macy Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover The Guest by Emma Cline The Girls by Emma Cline Luster by Raven Leilani The Bean Trees by Barabara Kingsolver The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan There Are No Children Here: The Story of Two Boys Growing Up in the Other America by Alex Kotlowitz Oedipus Rex by Sophocles There are Rivers in the Sky by Eilf Shafak Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellmann In Cold Blood by Truman Capote To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman | |||
| Episode 33 - I'll Crack it Open with Stephanie Majercik | 23 Dec 2024 | 00:56:38 | |
On this episode, Stephanie Majercik, a reader who reads widely, and I discuss our shared tricks for Book of the Month, why passing around books is great, and how her reading chair revolutionized her reading life. We also discuss her book club and the bookish names she has for her collection of house plants.
Read & Run Chicago - The Great Believers
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Creation Lake by Rachel Kushner Good Material by Dolly Alderton
Books Highlighted by Stephanie: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J. Ryan Stradal Shark Heart: A Love Story by Emily Habcek The Book of Doors by Gareth Brown Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson The Midnight Library by Matt Haig People Like Her by Ellery Lloyd Group: How One Therapist and a Circle of Strangers Saved My Life by Christie Tate Bittersweet: How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole by Susan Cain
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie Sleeping Murder: Miss Marple’s Last Case by Agatha Christie Half Broke Horses: A True-Life Novel by Jeannette Walls Hang the Moon by Jeannette Walls BFF: A Memoir of Friendship Lost and Found by Christie Tate Lock Every Door by Riley Sager The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager Little Women by Louisa May Alcott Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough The House in the Pines by Ana Reyes The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain | |||
| Episode 32 - Where Literature is at this Moment with Bernie Lombardi | 16 Dec 2024 | 00:50:03 | |
On this episode, Bernie Lombardi, a professor and researcher, discusses how his popular bookstagram and award lists are intertwined, along with his experiences reading the lists and even getting to go to the final ceremonies of a few awards! We also hear about his new author obsession and a very cool way that he tracks his reading each year.
The Read & Run Chicago Gift Guide
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix Held by Anne Michaels Creation Lake by Rachel Kushner
Books Highlighted by Bernie: Milkman by Anna Burns Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli The Road by Cormac McCarthy We the Animals by Justin Torres The Promise by Damon Galgut Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellman Beautiful World, Where are You by Sally Rooney
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan Atonement by Ian McEwan An Artist of the Floating World by Kazuo Ishiguro The Safekeep by Yael Van Der Wouden Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell Intermezzo by Sally Rooney Prophet Song by Paul Lynch The Bee Sting by Paul Murray Study for Obedience by Sarah Bernstein Orbital by Samantha Harvey James by Percival Everett Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain Martyr! By Kaveh Akbar Blackouts by Justin Torres | |||
| Episode 31 - These are my Trophies with Jenn Moland-Kovash | 09 Dec 2024 | 01:01:18 | |
On this episode, Jenn Moland-Kovash and I discuss our shared interest in thrift-store book sections, the joy of walking around a bookstore and pointing out the books we have read, and her theories about why romantasy is popular. Jenn also gets me on a roll about the difference between book collecting and reading and why sprayed edges mean nothing to me.
The Mail-a-Book program is still alive and well! The Read & Run Chicago Gift Guide
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: The City and It’s Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix Yr Dead by Sam Sax Not my Father’s Son by Alan Cumming Still Life by Louise Penny
Books Highlighted by Jenn: Beartown by Fredrik Backman Us Against You by Fredrik Backman The Winners by Fredrik Backman The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese Pachinko by Min Jin Lee First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston The God of Endings by Jacqueline Holland World of Wonders: In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks, and Other Astonishments by Aimee Nezhukumatathil & Fumi Nakamura Take What You Need by Idra Novey The Art of Losing: Poems of Grief and Healing by Kevin Young Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies that I’ve Loved by Kate Bowler
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Nora Goes off Script by Annabel Monaghan Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor The Color Purple by Alice Walker Iron Lake by William Kent Krueger The Widows of Malabar Hill by Sujata Massey The Abominable by Dan Simmons A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros Shark Heart: A Love Story by Emily Habeck Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins Divergent by Veronica Roth Memphis by Tara M. Stringfellow Martyr! By Kaveh Akbar How to Say Babylon: A Memoir by Safiya Sinclair The Swifts: A Dictionary of Scoundrels by Beth Lincoln & Claire Powell The Wren in the Holly Library by K.A. Linde | |||
| Episode 30 - On the Edge of Heartbreak with Cynthia Okechukwu | 02 Dec 2024 | 01:04:43 | |
On this episode, Cynthia Okechukwu, the founder of Black Girls Read Chicago, and I discuss books that make you cry, her love of hardcover books, and what kinds of audiobooks work for both of us. She also gets to share an incredible story of getting a critical book put into her hands at a young age.
Black Girls Read Chicago Instagram The Read & Run Chicago Gift Guide
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: The City and It’s Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman
Books Highlighted by Cynthia: I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn The Coldest Winter Ever by Sister Souljah The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origins and Spread of Nationalism by Benedict Anderson Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Little House Box Set by Laura Ingalls Wilder Matilda by Roald Dahl Last Summer on State Street by Toya Wolfe Original Sins: The (Mis)Education of Black and Native Children and the Construction of American Racism by Eve L. Ewing Ghosts in the Schoolyard: Racism and School Closings on Chicago’s South Side by Eve L. Ewing Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson Running While Black: Finding Freedom in a Sport that Wasn't Built for Us by Alison Mariella Désir Will by Will Smith & Mark Manson The Meaning of Mariah Carey by Mariah Carey Caucasia by Danzy Senna It by Stephen King The Help by Kathryn Stockett | |||
| Episode 29 - Never Earned a Personal Pan Pizza with Susanna Chapman | 25 Nov 2024 | 01:01:04 | |
On this episode, Susanna Chapman, an illustrator who loves picture books, discusses her career in books, her love for an audiobook mausoleum, and why she loves the beginning of a book. We also destigmatize her concern around her main reading format and she tricks me into answering one of my own questions.
The Fastest Drummer: Clap Your Hands for Viola Smith Pre-Order Dragonflies of Glass: the True Story of Clara Driscoll and the Tiffany Girls
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley The City and It’s Uncertain Walls by Haruki Murakami How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix
Books Highlighted by Susanna: Dim Sum Palace by X. Fang Twenty Questions by Mac Barnett & Christian Robinson This One Summer by Mariko Tamaki & Jillian Tamaki Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White Priestdaddy by Patricia Lockwood Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst & Ray Cruz The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz The Bear & The Moon by Matthew Burgess & Catia Chien I Talk Like a River by Jordan Scott & Sydney Smith Fish is Fish by Leo Lionni Daughters & Rebels by Jessica Mitford Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown Where Butterflies Fill the Sky: A Story of Immigration, Family, and Finding Home by Zahra Marwan It Came From the Trees by Ally Russel This Book is Anti-Racist: 20 Lessons on How to Wake Up, Take Action, and Do the Work by Tiffany Jewel & Aurelia Durand Life’s Too Short to Pretend You’re Not Religious by David Dark Exvangelical & Beyond: How American Christianity Went Radical and the Movement That’s Fighting Back by Blake Chastain How to Be An Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi The People’s Plaza: Sixty-Two Days of Nonviolent Resistance by Justin Jones Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams & William Nicholson After the Fall by Dan Santat Roaming by Jillian Tamaki & Mariko Tamaki
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen Snail and Worm: Three Stories about Two Friends by Tina Kügler The Crossover by Kwame Alexander & Dawud Anyabwile Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney Winnie-The-Pooh by A.A. Milne The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats Seeing, Saying, Doing, Playing by Taro Gomi Somebody’s Daughter by Ashley C. Ford Spinning by Tillie Walden On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong The Napping House by Audrey Wood & Don Wood Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë East of Eden by John Steinbeck The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck Big Friendship: How We Keep Each Other Close by Aminatou Sow & Ann Friedman The Woman in Me by Britney Spears I Was Their American Dream: A Graphic Memoir by Malaka Gharib It Won’t Always Be Like This: A Graphic Memoir by Malaka Gharib My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshefgh The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin The Comfort of Crows: A Backyard Year by Margaret Renkl Late Migrations: A Natural History of Love and Loss by Margaret Renkl Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña & Christian Robinson Milo Imagines the World by Matt de la Peña & Christian Robinson The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein Ulysses by James Joyce The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster & Jules Feiffer | |||
| Episode 28 - Intellectually Affectionate with Annette LaPlaca | 18 Nov 2024 | 01:00:29 | |
On this episode, Annette LaPlaca, a self-proclaimed church lady who loves mysteries and thrillers, discusses her career in editing, how she developed a love of reading in her children, and why it’s ok to have a lot of books. We also discuss the moral and empathetic benefits of a murder book and why people shouldn’t shy away from them.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Dearest by Jacqui Walters Ghostroots by ‘Pemi Aguda Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix
Books Highlighted by Annette: Cry the Beloved Country by Alan Paton A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers Okay for Now by Gary D. Schmidt The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey The Schwa Was Here by Neal Shusterman The Storied Life A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin The Unconsoled by Kazuo Ishiguro
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis Matilda by Roald Dahl 1984 by George Orwell One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn Leap Over a Wall by Eugene H. Peterson The Kingdom, the Power and the Glory: American Evangelicals in an Age of Extremism by Tim Alberta Puritan Pleasures of the Detective Story by Erik Routley Nancy Drew: The Secret of the Old Clock by Carolyn Keene Eight Cousins by Louisa May Alcott Peace Like a River by Leif Enger I Cheerfully Refuse by Leif Enger Case Histories by Kate Atkinson The Man Who Was Thursday: A Nightmare by G.K. Chesterton Little Women by Louisa May Alcott The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle Many Waters by Madeleine L’Engle Freaky Deaky by Elmore Leonard The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan Haidt Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne The Cat Who Could Read Backwards by Lilian Jackson Braun Moby-Dick by Herman Mellville Trust by Hernan Diaz The Chosen by Chaim Potok Life After Life by Kate Atkinson The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt Life of Pi by Yann Martel Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey Miss Pym Disposes by Josephine Tey The Schwa Was Here by Neal Shusterman Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin Silas Marner by George Eliot Middlemarch by George Eliot Emma by Jane Austen The Keeper of Lost Causes: The First Department Q Novel by Jussi Adler-Olsen The Troubled Man by Henning Mankell Father Brown: The Essential Tales by G.K. Chesterton Mindhunter: Inside the FBI’s Elite Serial Crime Unit by John E. Douglas & Mark Olshaker The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro An Artist of the Floating World by Kazuo Ishiguro | |||
| Episode 27 - Nobel Prize in Reading with Amie Medley | 11 Nov 2024 | 01:01:37 | |
On this episode, Amie Medley, who loves a long book, discusses her big reading project, which is reading every author who has won a Nobel Prize in Literature, and what she has discovered through that endeavor. We also discuss the ups and downs of book clubs, the benefits she finds from ereaders, and her love for a book that I can’t help but roll my eyes at.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Ghostroots by ‘Pemi Aguda Nora Goes off Script by Annabel Monaghan Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
Books Highlighted by Amie: Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace The Color of Law: A Forgotten History of How Our Government Segregated America by Richard Rothstein The Night Watchman by Louise Erdrich Tom Lake by Ann Patchett Faith, Hope, and Carnage by Nick Cave and Seán O’Hagan Satantango by László Krasznahorkai Beloved by Toni Morrison Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel North Woods by Daniel Mason Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin 2666 by Roberto Bolaño Books of Jacob by Olga Tokarczuk The Art of Happiness by the Dalai Lama
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: The Wonderful Flight to the Mushroom Planet by Eleanor Cameron Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White The Trumpet of the Swan by E.B. White A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’Engle Animal Farm by George Orwell The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway Gilead by Marilynne Robinson Jack by Marilynne Robinson Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson Crossroads by Jonathan Franzen The Empusium: A Health Resort Horror Story by Olga Tokarczuk The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante Erasure by Percival Everett Exit West by Mohsin Hamid Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesamyn Ward Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson The Mighty Red by Louise Erdrich Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe Verity by Colleen Hoover The Melancholy of Resistance by László Krasznahorkai The Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolaño M Train: A Memoir by Patti Smith The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami | |||
| Episode 26 - Challenging for Some, Liberating for Me With Cat Shieh | 04 Nov 2024 | 01:02:50 | |
On this episode, Cat Shieh, a Caliornian transplant to Chicago and former ethnic studies professor, discusses her hesitancy when people ask for recommendations and recommend books to her. She’s not afraid to drink the haterade, give a hot take, and make me guess what her answer is going to be to my questions. We talk about sad books (about reality) and some of our shared pet peeves about the reading world.
Here is the Claudia Rankine excerpt that Cat read on the episode.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Ædnan by Linnea Axelsson, trans. Saskia Vogel Catalina by Karla Cornejo Villavicencio
Books Highlighted by Cat: High on the Hog: A Culinary Journey from Africa to America by Jessica B. Harris NYC Basic Tips and Etiquette by Nathan Pyle A Problem From Hell: America and the Age of Genocide by Samantha Power Hold These Truths by Jeanne Sakata Red State Revolt: The Teacher’s Strike Wave and Working-Class Politics by Eric Blanc Pruitt-Igoe by Bob Hansman Transgender 101: A Simple Guide to a Complex Issue by Nicholas Teich White Kids: Growing Up with Privilege in a Racially Divided America by Margaret Hagerman The Wind Done Gone by Alice Randall The Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Everything I Learned, I Learned in a Chinese Restaurant: A Memoir by Curtis Chan Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine I Was Their American Dream: A Graphic Memoir by Malaka Gharib Authentic Mexican: Regional Cooking from the Heart of Mexico by Rick Bayless Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer Braiding Sweetgrass for Young Adults: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk about Racism by Robin Diangelo Ghosts in the Schoolyard: Racism and School Closings on Chicago’s South Side by Eve L. Ewing Strange Planet by Nathan W. Pyle How to Be An Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi We Want to Do More Than Survive: Abolitionist Teaching and the Pursuit of Educational Freedom by Bettina Love Serve the People; Making Asian America in the Long Sixties by Karen L. Ishizuka & Jeff Chang Dear America: Notes of an Undocumented Citizen by Jose Antonio Vargas The Latinos of Asia: How Filipino Americans Break the Rules of Race by Anthony Christian Ocampo | |||
| Episode 25 - Be a Dear, Unflip Your Dogears with Jennifer Moe | 28 Oct 2024 | 01:01:52 | |
On this episode, Jennifer Moe, a professor and former bookseller, discusses her love for books that fully envelop the reader in a setting. We reminisce about our adventures with Twilight, our shared love for library magazines, and when it might be ok to leave a note or two in a library book. She also gives some
Preorder Nobody’s Perfect, the book in which Jennifer has a chapter.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: My Friends by Hisham Matar Shred Sisters by Betsy Lerner Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo
Books Highlighted by Jennifer: The Man Who Ate the 747 by Ben Sherwood The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn The Giant’s House by Elizabeth McCracken Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling Open Book by Jessica Simpson Educated by Tara Westover Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov Cosmic Connections: Poetry in the Age of Disenchantment by Charles Taylor
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Twilight by Stephenie Meyer Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen Still Life: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel by Louise Penny Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens Becoming by Michelle Obama Girl, Wash Your Face by Rachel Hollis All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr | |||
| Episode 24 - Always Been a Fan of a List with Ian Gillham | 21 Oct 2024 | 01:05:54 | |
On this episode, Ian Gillham, @criticalgayze on Instagram, and I discuss our shared love of book lists, book awards, and reading these lists. We also discuss Ian’s Substack project focusing on the Pulitzer Prize and how it has morphed throughout the years. Also, stick around for some hot takes about super popular books!
Here is the link to Ian’s Substack so you can follow along with his prize project.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: My Friends by Hisham Matar Colored Television by Danzy Senna Summerdale by David Jay Collins
Books Highlighted by Ian: Say Hello to My Little Friend by Jennine Capó Crucet Any Person is the Only Self by Elisa Gabbert Wolfsong by T.J. Klune A Psalm for the Wild Built by Becky Chambers Biography of X by Catherine Lacey Devil House by John Darnielle The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon Confessions of the Fox by Jordy Rosenberg The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky Gilead by Marilynne Robinson Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza by Gloria Anzalúda
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: All Fours by Miranda July The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochrun The Hardy Boys: The Tower Treasure by Franklin W. Dixon How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell & Emily Arnold McCully A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket & Brett Helquist The Giver by Lois Lowry Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix & Cliff Nielsen Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury Brave New World by Aldous Huxley Sag Harbor by Colson Whitehead A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman This Strange Eventful History by Claire Messud Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange Night Watch by Jayne Anne Phillips Same Bed Different Dreams by Ed Park Wednesday’s Child: Stories by Yiyun Li Trust by Hernan Diaz Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver Good Talk: A Memoir in Conversations by Mira Jacob The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers James by Percival Everett Pudd’nhead Wilson by Mark Twain Blake; Or the Huts of America by Martin R. Delany, Sandra M. Grayson, & Patty Nicole Johnson Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain Martyr! By Kaveh Akbar Telephone by Percival Everett Orbital by Samantha Harvey 11/22/63 by Stephen King The Long Walk by Stephen King The Institute by Stephen King The Shining by Stephen King Matrix by Lauren Groff Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff The Vaster Wilds by Lauren Groff Chain Gang All Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah The Running Man by Stephen King A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara | |||
| Episode 41 - Completely Booked with Jordan Hernandez | 17 Feb 2025 | 01:00:40 | |
On this episode, Jordan Hernandez, who organizes the book community Completely Booked and I discuss what diverse books means to her, how to curate a feed that provides diverse options, and so many amazing book recommendations. If you want to join Completely Booked, you can send Jordan a DM on Instagram to get added to the email list!
Follow Completely Booked on Instagram
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Less by Andrew Sean Greer The Road to the Salt Sea by Samuel Kọláwọlé
Books Highlighted by Jordan: The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas Year of Yes: How to Dance it Out, Stand in the Sun and Be Your Own Person by Shonda Rhimes Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams James by Percival Everett Sisters in Arms by Kaia Alderson Notes From a Young Black Chef by Kwame Onwuachi Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson The Beauty of Your Face by Sahar Mustafah
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Sky Full of Elephants by Cebo Campbell Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee In the Country We Love: My Family Divided by Diane Guerrero Nuclear War: A Scenario by Annie Jacobsen On the Come Up by Angie Thomas This Could Be Us by Kennedy Ryan Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan Can’t Get Enough by Kennedy Ryan Black Buck by Mateo Askaripour This Great Hemisphere by Mateo Askaripour Isaac’s Song by Daniel Black Don’t Cry for Me by Daniel Black The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese Finding Me by Viola Davis Speak: Find Your Voice, Trust Your Gut, and Get from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be by Tunde Oyeneyin More Than Enough: Claiming Space for Who You Are (No Matter What They Say) by Elaine Welteroth You Are a Badass(r): How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life by Jen Sincero Bridget Jones’s Diary by Helen Fielding Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration by Isabel Wilkerson A Manual for Cleaning Women: Selected Stories by Lucia Berlin | |||
| Episode 23 - Genre Promiscuous with Nina Li Coomes | 14 Oct 2024 | 01:01:52 | |
On this episode, Nina Li Coomes, who was once described as genre promiscuous by a professor, discusses her traumatic early reading experiences, and how her identity as a writer has developed. We also discuss some shared favorites, how much she loves a hate-read, and why it can be good to read books you might not like.
Click here to support Eman Alhaj Ali, the writer in Palestine that Nina has been working to support.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Invisible Child: Poverty, Survival, and Hope in an American City by Andrea Elliot Trust by Hernan Diaz My Friends by Hisham Matar Pink Slime by Fernanda Trías, trans. Heather Cleary
Books Highlighted by Nina: How to Write an Autobiographical Novel by Alexander Chee Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones Earthlings by Sayaka Murata The Swimmers by Julie Otsuka A Play for the Living in the Time of Extinction by Miranda Rose Hall The Covenant of Water by Abraham Verghese In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex by Nathaniel Philbrick
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas Grimm’s Fairytales by Grimm Jacob and Wilhelm The Queen of the Night by Alexander Chee The Searcher by Tana French In the Woods by Tana French The Best Possible Experience: Stories by Nishanth Injam The Aeneid by Virgil The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka When the Emperor Was Divine by Julie Otsuka Moby-Dick by Herman Melville Outlander by Diana Gabaldon The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood Homeland: Dungeons & Dragons: Book 1 by R. A. Salvatore The Magicians by Lev Grossman The Duke and I: Bridgerton by Julia Quinn Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly | |||
| Episode 22 - A Little Bit of Everything with Leah @DishingonBooks | 07 Oct 2024 | 01:02:10 | |
On this episode, Leah, @Dishingonbooks on Instagram, and I discuss our shared love of intense reads, how to find more books that open up the world, and her love for the Women’s Prize. We also give a lot of recommendations for books that are not for everyone but hit both of us in just the right spot.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: I Was a Teenage Slasher by Stephen Graham Jones Orbital by Samantha Harvey Invisible Child: Poverty, Survival, and Hope in an American City by Andrea Elliot Trust by Hernan Diaz
Books Highlighted by Leah: The Street by Ann Petry On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong Sharks in the Time of Saviors by Kawai Strong Washburn Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica, trans. Sarah Moses The People in the Trees by Hanya Yanagahara Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie Piranesi by Susanna Clarke The Prophets by Robert Jones, Jr. The Color Purple by Alice Walker The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller A Little Life by Hanya Yanagahara The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky Men we Reaped by Jesmyn Ward Girls Burn Brighter by Shoba Rao The Alternatives by Caoilinn Hughes All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood Caste: The Origins of Our Discontent by Isabel Wilkerson
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: The Babysitters Club by Ann M. Martin Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews Little Girl Lost by Drew Berrymore Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach Intermezzo by Sally Rooney Little Rot by Akwaeke Emezi Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty by Akwaeke Emezi Little Eyes by Samanta Schweblin, trans. Megan McDowell Bright I Burn by Molly Aitken Entitlement by Rumaan Alam Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam White Tears by Hari Kunzru Earthlings by Sayaka Murata Yr Dead by Sam Sax Nuclear War: A Scenario by Annie Jacobsen The 1618 Project: A New Origin Story by Caitlin Roper, Irena Silverman, et al Four Hundred Souls: A Community History of African America, 1619-2019 by Keisha N. Blain & Ibram X. Kendi The Warmth of Other Suns: The Epic Story of America’s Great Migration by Iasbel Wilkerson | |||
| Episode 21 - The Story Sits in Your Bones with Sam Luchsinger | 30 Sep 2024 | 00:59:37 | |
On this episode, Sam Luchsinger, an eclectic reader and artist, talks about their love of picking up whatever strikes their interest, beautiful book covers, and the joy of reading children’s books into adulthood. They also discuss their love of graphic novels and some tips on how to get into the format that might feel a little overwhelming.
Books mentioned in this episode:
If you want to get ahead and join us at Off Color Book Club: October 15 - Trust by Hernan Diaz November 19 - Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro January 21 - The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai
What Betsy’s reading: Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe I Was a Teenage Slasher by Stephen Graham Jones Orbital by Samantha Harvey Invisible Child: Poverty, Survival, and Hope in an American City by Andrea Elliot
Books Highlighted by Sam: Griffin and Sabine: An Extraordinary Correspondence by Nick Bantock Moby Dick by Herman Melville Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe The Brendan Voyage: Sailing to America in a Leather Boat to Prove the Legend of the Irish Sailor Saints by Tim Severin All My Puny Sorrows by Miriam Toews Swing Low: A Life by Miriam Toews Skunk and Badger by Amy Timberlake and Jon Klassen Brazen: Rebel Ladies who Rocked the World by Pénélope Bagieu The Winter Fortress: The Epic Mission to Sabotage Hitler’s Atomic Bomb by Neal Bascomb The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa The Curve of Time by M. Wylie Blanchet
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien Little Women by Lousia May Alcott Bimwili and the Zimwi by The Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle The Bells of London by Ashley Wolff Sloth’s Birthday Party by Diane Redfield Massie The Brave Brushtail Possum by Diane Redfield Massie The Empress of Salt and Fortune by Nghi Vo A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo Siren Queen by Nghi Vo The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin Clever Girl: Jurassic Park by Hannah McGregor Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond Productivity Culture by Jenny Odell The Forgetting Room by Nick Bantock If We Were Villans by M.L. Rio The Secret History by Donna Tartt Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail by Cheryl Strayed The Magicians by Lev Grossman Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate Underland: A Deep Time Journey by Robert MacFarlane Runes of the North by Sigurd F. Olson Twists of Fate by Paco Roca The Essential Dykes to Watch Out For by Alison Bechdel Wrinkle inTime: The Graphic Novel by Hope Larson and Madeleine L’Engle Perpetua’s Journey: Faith, Gender, and Power in the Roman Empire by Jennifer A. Rea and Liza Clarke March by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, et al. Belonging: A German Reckons with History and Home by Nora Krug | |||
| Episode 20 - Based in Reality with Jordan Cross | 23 Sep 2024 | 00:49:05 | |
On this episode, Jordan Cross, a resource librarian for a large interior design firm, discusses her love of audiobooks, books that are based on something true, and how memoirs about hard topics are important and meaningful. She also brings a topic to the show that I hadn’t thought to ask about!
The big list of books from NPR - best of the year since 2013!
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe Mister Magic by Kiersten White The Faculty Lounge by Jennifer Mathieu
Books Highlighted by Jordan: The Flight Attendant by Chris Bohjalian The Shining by Stephen King The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn I’m Glad my Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy Know my Name by Chanel Miller Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage Night Film by Marisha Pessl The Huntress by Kate Quinn All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller Work in Progress by Leanne Ford & Steve Ford
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner and L. Kate Deal Kristy’s Great Idea (the Baby-Sitter’s Club #1) by Ann M. Martin A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle Left Behind the Kids by Jerry B. Jenkins and Tim LaHaye A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket and Brett Helquist To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee 1984 by George Orwell Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly by Anthony Bourdain Let’s Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir by Jenny Lawson 11/22/63 by Stephen King Pet Sematary by Stephen King Tom Lake by Ann Patchet The Dutch House by Ann Patchett Doctor Sleep by Stephen King Dreamcatcher by Stephen King The Push by Ashley Audrain The Glass Castle: A Memoir by Jeannette Walls Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover The Alice Network by Kate Quinn Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty The Green Mile by Stephen King Misery by Stephen King Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple | |||
| Episode 19 - I Can't Put it Down with Kathy Donofrio | 16 Sep 2024 | 00:56:58 | |
On this episode, Kathy Donofrio, an artist from the Chicagoland area, discusses how she came to enjoy reading later in life. She provides some amazing, fun book recommendations, including an impressive laundry list of favorite authors. Also, I finally get to hear the Pope Book story that my mom has been telling me about!
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: God Bless You, Otis Spunkmeyer by Joseph Earl Thomas A Libertarian Walks Into a Bear by Mathhew Hongolz-Hetling The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennet
Books Highlighted by Kathy: Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind by Ann B. Ross Step on a Crack (Michael Bennet) by James Patterson Relic (Pendergast Series) by Preston & Child Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America by Erik Larson The Women by Kristin Hannah The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman The Serpent and the Pearl by Kate Quinn Louisiana Longshot (Fortune Series) by Jana DeLeon
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Kathy’s List of Favorite Authors: Louise Penny Ann B. Ross Annie Hansen C.J. Harris Caleb Carr Catherine Coulter Craig Johnson Daniel Silva David Baldacci David Ellis Donna Leon Harlan Coben J.D. Robb James Patterson Janet Evanovich Jeffrey Archer Kate Quinn Lee Childs Michael Connelly Preston & Child Mitch Albom Robert Dugoni John Grisham | |||
| Episode 18 - I'm a Terrible Reader with Stacy Jeziorowski | 09 Sep 2024 | 00:55:16 | |
On this episode, Stacy Jeziorowski, who is not a terrible reader, discusses her resurgence as a reader after grad school and how thrillers that have kept her on the edge of her seat motivate her to read more. We also discuss our shared favorite, which we both collect, and how amazing the library is as a resource for our lives.
The AI generated holiday romance movie
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Fire Exit by Morgan Talty The Radium Girls by Kate Moore The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennet
Books Highlighted by Stacy: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune The Women by Kristin Hannah Nora Goes off Script by Annabel Monaghan Still House Lake by Rachel Caine Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish and Fritz Siebel Dollface: A Novel of the Roaring Twenties by Renée Rosen The Woman in Me by Britney Spears A Slow Fire Burning by Paula Hawkins The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune The Midnight Library by Matt Haig Crying in H Mart: A Memoir by Michelle Zauner Educated: A Memoir by Tara Westover The Glass Castle: A Memoir by Jeannette Walls A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson None of This is True by Lisa Jewell The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah Send for Me: A Novel by Lauren Fox | |||
| Episode 17 - Book Clubs will Save the World with Allison Yates and Fernanda Wetzel | 02 Sep 2024 | 01:05:36 | |
On this episode, Allison Yates and Fernanda Wetzel come on to talk about their organization, Read and Run Chicago, a book and run club that features specific books with coordinated runs in Chicago. They describe how accessible their organization is, open to anyone who might be interested in participating, and we get to talk about some incredible books that feature information and stories that open and affirm experiences that have been historically ignored.
Read and Run Chicago Fall Event Calendar Allison’s Small Pack Camping Chair
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Vampires of El Norte by Isabel Cañas Koresh by Stephan Talty The Stranger Upstairs by Lisa M. Matlin
Books Highlighted by Allison and Fernanda: The Alice Network by Kate Quinn The Change by Kirsten Miller The Midnight Library by Matt Haig A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara The Idea of You by Robinne Lee Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teaching of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer Wordslut: A Feminist Guide to Taking Back the English Language by Amanda Montell Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado Perez Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi Letters from Cuba by Ruth Behar The Push by Ashley Audrain
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Temper by Layne Fargo The Women by Kristin Hannah Lady Tan’s Circle of Women by Lisa See Come as You Are: The Surprising New Science that will Transform Your Sex Life by Emily Nagoski The Hundred Year House by Rebecca Makkai Fieldwork: A Forager’s Memoir by Iliana Regan All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr Yellowface by R.F. Kuang Erasure by Percival Everett I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez | |||
| Episode 16 - Library Superuser with Emily McClanathan | 26 Aug 2024 | 00:58:46 | |
On this episode, Emily McClanathan, a Chicago Public Library superuser, discusses her love of character-driven stories and excellent prose. She also talks about how reading has helped her become a better writer, as she writes both book reviews and theater reviews in Chicago. We get into some shared loves and Emily gets to share a hot take about a book she thinks is overrated.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: The God of the Woods by Liz Moore Horror Movie by Paul Tremblay Headshot by Rita Bullwinkle
Books Highlighted by Emily:: The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America’s Shining Women by Kate Moore Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield The Secret Diaries of Charles Ignatius Sancho by Paterson Joseph Nerd: Adventures in Fandom from This Universe to the Multiverse by Maya Phillips My Mess is a Bit of a Life: Adventures in Anxiety by Georgia Pritchett Born to be Mild: Adventures for the Anxious by Rob Temple Once Upon a Tome: The Misadventures of a Rare Bookseller by Oliver Darkshire Everybody’s Favorite: Tales From the World’s Worst Perfectionist by Lillian Stone One in a Millenial: On Friendship, Feelings, Fangirls, and Fitting In by Kate Kennedy This is Not a Book About Benedict Cumberbatch: The Joy of Loving Something - Anything - Like Your Life Depends on It by Tabitha Carvan The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation by Kristin Kobes Du Mez Pure: Inside the Evangelical Movement That Shamed a Generation of Young Women and How I Broke Free by Linda Kay Klein
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. The Murder of Mr. Wickham by Claudia Gray Better the Blood by Michael Bennett Return to Blood by Michael Bennett Any Human Heart by William Boyd Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen The Eye of the World: Book One of the Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan David Copperfield by Charles Dickens Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkein Zorrie by Laird Hunt Wolf Hall by Emily Mantel Schindler’s List by Thomas Keneally Washington Black by Esi Edugyan | |||
| Episode 15 - Percival Everett Fan Club with Ben Ustick | 19 Aug 2024 | 01:00:02 | |
On this episode, Ben Ustick, the taproom manager at Off Color Mousetrap and I discuss some of our shared favorite books, the excellence of contemporary fiction, and his goal to read Percival Everett’s entire oeuvre this year. Get ready to be shocked yourself when you hear the book that shocked Ben. If you want to visit us at Off Color Book Club, check my instagram for the information on the next meeting!
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: The God of the Woods by Liz Moore Horror Movie by Paul Tremblay
Books Highlighted by Ben: True Biz by Sara Nović Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank The Hustler by Walter Tevis The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai Less by Andrew Sean Greer Victim by Andrew Boryga
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. The Firm by John Grisham A Time to Kill by John Grisham The Client by John Grisham The Chamber by John Grisham Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster Different Seasons: Four Novellas by Stephen King The BFG by Roald Dahl The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams Erasure by Percival Everett James by Percival Everett Telephone by Percival Everett I Am Not Sidney Poitier by Percival Everett The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger The Monkey Wrench Gang by Edward Abbey Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah Trust by Hernan Diaz The Color of Money by Walter Tevis The Queen’s Gambit by Walter Tevis Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer The Perfect Storm: A True Story of Men Against the Sea by Sebastian Junger | |||
| Episode 14 - Information is Meant to be Shared with Mawuli Grant Agbefe | 12 Aug 2024 | 00:43:02 | |
On this episode, Mawuli Grant Agbefe and I discuss his love for fascinating non-fiction, including one of my absolute favorite books ever that he recommended to me in January! We also discuss our shared love of being readers in Chicago, based on the gorgeous places to read and the incredible resource the Chicago Public Library is.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: The Nix by Nathan Hill The Extinction of Irena Rey by Jennifer Croft Sociopath: A Memoir by Patric Gagne
Books Highlighted by Mawuli: The Official Preppy Handbook by Jonathan Roberts, Carol McD. Wallace, Mason Wiley, and Lisa Birnbach The Deficit Myth: Modern Monetary Theory and the Birth of the People’s Economy by Stephanie Kelton Grace Will Lead Us Home: The Charleston Church Tragedy and the Hard, Inspiring Journey to Forgiveness by Jennifer Berry Hawes Mean Girl Feminism: How White Feminists Gaslight, Gatekeep, and Girlboss by Kim Hong Nguyen Ordinary Notes by Christina Sharpe Your Face Belongs to Us: A Secretive Startup’s Quest to End Privacy as we Know it by Kashmir Hill How the Word is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America by Clint Smith Bullshit Jobs: A Theory by David Graeber
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. How the Other Half Banks: Exclusion, Exploitation and the Threat to Democracy by Mehrsa Baradaran Take Ivy by Shosuke Ishizu and Toshiyuki Kurosu His Name is George Floyd by Toluse Olorunippa and Robert Samuels Columbine by Dave Cullen The Only Plane in the Sky: An Oral History of 9/11 by Garrett M. Graff | |||
| Episode 40 - Character Studies with Jocelyn Aspa | 10 Feb 2025 | 00:55:22 | |
On this episode, bookstagrammer and journalist Jocelyn Aspa and I discuss books with extensive character development, how everything makes us cry, and why we gravitate towards books with low ratings on Goodreads. We also discuss how we determine books to pack on a trip which can be a little extra.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Devil is Fine by John Vercher Original Sins: The (Mis)education of Black and Native Children and the Construction of American Racism by Eve L. Ewing
Books Highlighted by Jocelyn: 4 3 2 1 by Paul Auster Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica, trans. Sarah Moses A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara Same as it Ever Was by Clarie Lombardo The Prettiest Star by Carter Sickels A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot by Mikki Kendall
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: There’s a Nightmare in my Closet by Mercer Mayer Normal People by Sally Rooney The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon The Secret History by Donna Tartt My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo The Wedding People by Alison Espach Notes on Your Sudden Disappearance by Alison Espach The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai Fire Exit by Morgan Talty Night of the Living Rez by Morgan Talty Orbital by Samantha Harvey American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis Maeve Fly by C.J. Leede | |||
| Episode 13 - Book Hunting with Tanima Kazi | 05 Aug 2024 | 01:00:21 | |
On this episode, Tanima Kazi, a writer (get her novel here!) who loves language, shares her love of romance novels, favorite parts of her favorite books, and how her day job helps her build ideas for her own writing. She describes how books speak to her and even shares excerpts from her favorite books.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: The Nix by Nathan Hill Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange The Exvangelicals: Loving, Living, and Leaving the White Evangelical Church by Sarah McCammon Sociopath: A Memoir by Patric Gagne
Books Highlighted by Tanima: Circe by Madeline Miller Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert How to Order the Universe by María José Ferrada, trans. Elizabeth Bryer Siddartha by Herman Hesse The Death of Mrs. Westaway by Ruth Ware Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity by Julia Cameron How to Escape an Arranged Marriage in High Heels by Tanima Kazi Elinor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman Addicted by Zane Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert On the Road by Jack Kerouac
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. The Babysitters Club by Anne M. Martin Are You There God? It’s me, Margaret by Judy Blume Confessions of a Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella Wedding Night by Sophie Kinsella Rachel’s Holiday by Marian Keyes Watermelon by Marian Keyes This Charming Man by Marian Keyes London Seance Society by Sarah Penner Jezebel by Megan Barnard Becoming by Michelle Obama Know My Name by Chanel Miller Vengeance by Zane | |||
| Episode 12 - Establishing Empathy with Mike Finucane | 29 Jul 2024 | 01:09:52 | |
On this episode, Mike Finucane, a campus minister at a high-school in St. Louis, and I discuss how books can help develop empathy. He also gives a great tip from his dad about how to tackle a large non-fiction text. We also confirm that collecting books shouldn’t be considered a bad habit if you love it. We talk about a lot of really intense books but I hope that our discussion will inspire readers to do a deep dive into some of the topics.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: The Nix by Nathan Hill The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon
Books Highlighted by Mike: Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke Stories of Your LIfe and Others by Ted Chiang Exhalation by Ted Chiang The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh An American Summer: Love and Death in Chicago by Alex Kotlowitz Just Mercy by Brian Stevenson The Shawl by Cynthia Ozick Gilead by Marilynne Robinson The Broken Earth Trilogy by N.K. Jemisin Tattoos on the Heart by Gregory Boyle City of Bohane by Kevin Barry The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden World Around Us by Ed Yong
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky The Power Broker: Robert Moses and the Fall of New York by Robert A. Caro The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary by Robert Alter Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain How Green Was My Valley by Richard Llewellyn Great Expectations by Charles Dickens God Knows by Joseph Heller Catch-22 by Joseph Heller Your Duck is My Duck: Stories by Deborah Eisenberg Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty by Patrick Radden Keefe Rogues: True Stories of Grifters, Killers, Rebels and Crooks by Patrick Radden Keefe The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin There are No Children Here by Alex Kotlowitz The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan | |||
| Episode 11 - A Series of Series with Rachel Kilthorne | 22 Jul 2024 | 00:51:17 | |
On this episode, Rachel Kilthorne, a self-processed nerd’s nerd, discusses her love of both fantasy novels and going deep on a subject in non-fiction. She names many series and discusses how she determines when to re-read or when to let go of a series. I also get to go on a soapbox rant about reading diversely, especially in genre fiction.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: The Nix by Nathan Hill The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon Woodworm by Layla Martinez We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer
Books Highlighted by Rachel: The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones The Wayfarer Series by Becky Chambers The Sabriel Series by Garth Nix Our Share of Night by Mariana Enriquez Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk The Secret Life of Groceries: The Dark Miracle of the American Supermarket by Benjamin Lorr Doppelganger: A Trip Into the Mirror World by Naomi Klein The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.A. Schwab A Council of Dolls by Mona Susan Power Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood His Majesty’s Dragon by Naomi Novik Babel by R.F. Kuang Saga by Brian K. Vaughn American Wolf: A True Story of Survival and Obsession in the West by Nate Blakeslee The Dresden Files Series by Jim Butcher The Dark Forest by Cixin Liu The Power Worshippers: Inside the Dangerous Rise of Religious Nationalism by Katherine Stewart Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. The Wheel of Time Series by Robert Jordan The Essential Calvin and Hobbes by Bill Watterson The Sandman by Neil Gaiman Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood by Marjane Satrapi Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir Death Valley by Melissa Broder The Pisces by Melissa Broder The Dark Tower Series by Stephen King The First Law Trilogy by Joe Abercrombie A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin The World We Make by N.K. Jemisin Chain-Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah Blackouts by Justin Torres The Rabbit Hutch by Tess Gunty Zorrie by Laird Hunt The End of Drum-Time by Hanna Pylväinen The Midnight Library by Matt Haig The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss The Poppy War Trilogy by R.F. Kuang Yellowface by R.F. Kuang Erasure by Percival Everett The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman Gathering Moss: A Natural and Cultural History of Mosses by Robin Wall Kimmerer The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World by Robin Wall Kimmerer | |||
| Episode 10 - Weird Does Not Translate to Screen with Rachel Rolland | 15 Jul 2024 | 00:47:45 | |
On this episode, Rachel Rolland, a hobby-enthusiast, discusses her love for weird books, including two authors with a decently large backlist that I’ve never heard of. We discuss how a book about accounting can help investigate the way we see the world, how some books just shouldn’t be adapted to screen, and her love for the bookstores where she worked.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: The Nix by Nathan Hill The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon No One Can Know by Kate Alice Marshall None of This is True by Lisa Jewell
Books Highlighted by Rachel: Milkman by Anna Burns Cat’s Cradle by Kurt Vonnegut A Song of Ice & Fire by George R.R. Martin Animal Farm by George Orwell Watership Down by Richard Adams The Book Thief by Markus Zusak Keeping the House by Ellen Baker 13 ½ Lives of Captain Blue Bear by Walter Moers The City of Dreaming Books by Walter Moers Then We Came to the End by Joshua Ferris Less by Andrew Sean Greer Les Miserables by Victor Hugo Double Entry: How the Merchants of Venice Created Modern Finance by Jane Gleeson-White
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte Hamlet by William Shakespeare Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen The Big Over Easy: A Nursery Crime by Jasper Fforde Shades of Grey: The Road to High Saffron by Jasper Fforde Jonathan Strange & MR Norrell by Susanna Clarke Piranesi by Susanna Clarke The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon Dune by Frank Herbert Grant by Ron Chernow Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut Mother Night by Kurt Vonnegut Catch-22 by Joseph Heller The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence by Amy Sedaris | |||
| Episode 9 - I'm Already Traveling Somewhere with Monika Janas | 08 Jul 2024 | 00:54:41 | |
On this episode, Monika and I discuss her love of fantasy, she mentions so many series, some longer than others, and we share the joy of staff picks in an indie bookstore. We also talk about the magic of airplane reading and how amazing Libby can be. If you are interested in the Reddit thread Monika mentions, you can find that here.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: The Nix by Nathan Hill Exhibit by R.O. Kwan The Return of Ellie Black by Emiko Jean Bear by Julia Phillips The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon
Books Highlighted by Monika: The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon The Mistborn Series by Brandon Sanderson The City & The City by China Miéville To Shape a Dragon’s Breath by Moniquill Blackgoose The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan Persuasion by Jane Austin Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir Legends and Lattes by Travis Baldree Brave New World by Aldous Huxley 1984 by George Orwell War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou Blood, Sweat, and Pixels: The Triumphant, Turbulent Stories Behind How Video Games are Made by Jason Schreier Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder Twilight by Stephanie Meyer The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins The Divergent Series by Veronica Roth The Maze Runner Series by James Dashner The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkein The Witcher Series by Andrzej Sapkowski The Stormlight Archive Series by Brandon Sanderson Becoming by Michelle Obama Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance by Barack Obama Seveneves by Neal Stephenson A Day of Fallen Night by Samantha Shannon Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin Too Like the Lightning: Book One of Terra Ignota by Ada Palmer | |||
| Episode 8 - Poetry that Blows the Door off your Brain with Anna Deem | 01 Jul 2024 | 00:45:52 | |
In this episode, Anna Deem, a high school English teacher in Chicago, and I discuss how seasons of life change our reading habits, her love of poetry, and our definitive shared overrated book. We also discuss the influence of the Beat generation on her writing and end with some excellent recommendations for books she enjoys with her 4-year-old daughter.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Dune by Frank Herbert The Nix by Nathan Hill Incidents Around the House by Josh Malerman Sisters of the Lost Nation by Nick Medina
Books Highlighted by Anna: The Stranger by Albert Camus Native Son by Richard Wright The Crown Ain’t Worth Much by Hanif Abdurraqib Naked Lunch by William S. Burroughs, Jr. Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner Just Kids: An Autobiography by Patti Smith Anthropology of an American Girl by Hilary Thayer Hamann Howl by Alan Ginsberg
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Fast Times and Ridgemont High by Cameron Crowe (out of print) The Nineties: A Book by Chuck Klosterman Junky by William S. Burroughs Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace Promises of Gold by José Olivarez The Breakbeat Poets: New American Poetry in the Age of Hip-Hop edited by Kevin Coval, Quraysh Ali Lansana, and Nate Marshall Selected Poems of Anne Sexton by Anne Sexton The Collected Poems by Sylvia Plath Very Good Hats by Emma Straub and Blanca Gómez Dress-Up Day by Blanca Gómez Taylor Swift: A Little Golden Book Biography by Wendy Loggia and Elisa Chavarri | |||
| Episode 7 - Speed Reading with Nuns with Mo Smith | 24 Jun 2024 | 00:49:23 | |
On this episode, Mo Smith, the person I know who reads the most, and we discuss her experiences as a very early reader in school, a book habit that stuns me a little, and she gets to gush about her amazing backyard pool at her home in Las Vegas.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Dune by Frank Herbert The Only One Left by Riley Sager
Books Highlighted by Mo: Circle of Friends by Maeve Binchy Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough On the Clock: What Low-Wage Word Did to Me and How it Drives America Insane by Emily Guendelsberger Arsenic and Adobo (Tita Rosie’s Kitchen Mystery #1) by Mia P. Manansala Not My Father’s Son: A Memoir by Alan Cumming A Life in Parts by Bryan Cranston
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. The Black Echo (Harry Bosch Series #1) by Michael Connelly Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez Verity by Colleen Hoover The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah Beartown by Fredrik Backman A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman | |||
| Episode 6 - The Lynn Painter Book Club with Sarah Sabet | 17 Jun 2024 | 00:52:57 | |
On this episode, Sarah Sabet and I discuss Scandi-Crime, how her book club fell in love with Lynn Painter, and we have an extended conversation about a fantastic organization that, unfortunately, neither of us have had a chance to connect with: @readandrunchicago on Instagram!
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros The Resort by Sarah Ochs Annie Bot by Sierra Greer Dune by Frank Herbert The Husbands by Holly Gramazio
Books Highlighted by Sarah: The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett The China Garden by Liz Berry The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett by Annie Lyons The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson The Girl who Played With Fire by Stieg Larsson And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie Better Than the Movies by Lynn Painter Devil’s Trill: A Daniel Jacobus Mystery by Gerald Elias The Art of Gathering: How we Meet and Why it Matters by Priya Parker
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochrun I’m Traveling Alone by Samuel Bjork The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis Dinosaurs Before Dark by Mary Pope Osborne Becoming by Michelle Obama Atonement by Ian McEwan Faust by J.W. Von Goethe Fellow Travelers by Thomas Mallon The Chestnut Man by Soren Sveistrup Last Summer on State Street by Toya Wolfe Gaybash by David Jay Collins | |||
| Episode 5 - Yummy Trash with Francesca Musumeci | 10 Jun 2024 | 00:59:32 | |
On this episode, Francesca Musumeci and I discuss the wealth of indie bookstores we have in Chicago, how school can make reading less fun, and why it’s important to read what you like. She also tells some pretty great stories about her years working at Half-Price Books, including a hilarious mystery request from a customer that she manages to solve.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: His Name is George Floyd by Robert Samuels and Toluse Olorunnipa Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros Victim by Andrew Boryga Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
Books Highlighted by Francesca: Chain Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah World War Z by Max Brooks The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai Verity by Colleen Hoover The Push by Ashley Audrain Columbine by Dave Cullen Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls by T Kira Madden
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. The Once and Future King by T.H. White The Iliad by Homer To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee The Mothers by Brit Bennett The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix Marlena by Julie Buntin The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway The Woman in Me by Britney Spears High on Arrival by MacKenzie Phillips The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid Story of the Eye by Georges Bataille Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder The School for Good Mothers by Jessamine Chan The Body of Evidence Series by Christopher Golden The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins Queen Bees and Wannabes by Rosalind Wiseman The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway | |||
| Episode 4 - Cuckoo Bananas Thrillers with Erin Jacobo | 03 Jun 2024 | 00:45:09 | |
On this episode, Erin Jacobo and I discuss a lot of really juicy thrillers, her love of a heart wrenching story, and why romance just doesn’t work for us. She also tells some great stories about her family and their connection with reading, and we learn how much she has influenced my reading life!
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: His Name is George Floyd by Robert Samuels and Toluse Olorunnipa Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra
Books Highlighted by Erin: The Cartographers by Peng Shepherd The House in the Cerulean Sea by T.J. Klune Lock Every Door by Riley Sager Kill for Me, Kill for You by Steve Cavanaugh We Were Never Here by Andrea Bartz Yellowface by R.F. Kuang Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir One Italian Summer by Rebecca Searle Winter Street by Elin Hildebrand The Other Black Girl by Zakiya Dalila Harris The In-Between: Unforgettable Encounters During Life’s Final Moments by Hadley Vlahos Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants by Ann Brashares Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech The Pact by Jodi Picoult My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt Final Girls by Riley Sager Erasure by Percival Everett In Five Years by Rebecca Searle 28 Summers by Elin Hildebrand The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner | |||
| Episode 39 - Soft Heart, Thick Skin with David Jay Collins | 03 Feb 2025 | 01:01:25 | |
On this episode, indie author David Jay Collins and I discuss his work writing books in and about Chicago, how he keeps going by honoring his characters, and the unique ways that he connects with his readers. We also discuss his reading life, including a current fast from horror content which blows my mind!
Order any of David’s books from his website Where you can see David in 2025!
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Lilith by Eric Rickstad A Great Country by Shilpi Somaya Gowda Just Want You Here by Meredith Turtis
Books Highlighted by David: The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster Billion Dollar Loser: The Epic Rise and Spectacular Fall of Adam Neumann and We Work by Reeves Wiedeman Dry. A Memoir by Augusten Burroughs The Death of the Artist: How Creators are Struggling to Survive in the Age of Billionaires and Big Tech by William Deresiewicz The Man With the Golden Arm by Nelson Algren The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: John Adams by David McCullough A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens Great Expectations by Charles Dickens Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens | |||
| Episode 3 - A Safe Place to Have Bad Feelings with Tim Mueller | 27 May 2024 | 01:03:24 | |
A Safe Place to Have Bad Feelings with Tim Mueller Episode 3
On this episode, Tim Mueller and I discuss his passion for collecting books, comics, and other physical media; the magic and abundance of a used bookstore; and how the darkest kinds of books can develop the most empathy. Also, Tim recommends a host of underlooked books that you probably haven’t heard of (I sure hadn’t!).
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Ghosts in the Schoolyard by Eve L. Ewing Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra Victim by Andrew Boryga
Books Highlighted by Tim: Frankenstein by Mary Shelley Docile by K.M. Szpara The Forever War by Joe Haldeman Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman The Cook by Harry Kressing Strange Angel by George Pendle The Mirage by Zay N. Smith and Pamela Zekman (out of print) The Monster Show by David J. Skal
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkein The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson Books by Stephen King:
The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix Portnoy’s Complaint by Phillip Roth Out There Screaming: An Anthology of New Black Horror edited by Jordan Peele Man in the High Castle by Phillip K. Dick High Rise by J.G. Ballard Paperbacks from Hell by Grady Hendrix Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin Deliverance by James Dickey | |||
| The Beauty of Escaping into a Book with Carolyn Latshaw | 20 May 2024 | 00:53:59 | |
The Beauty of Escaping into a Book with Carolyn Latshaw Episode 2
On this episode, Carolyn Latshaw and I discuss her love of classics, select ones at least, the joy and difficulty of getting absolutely swept up into a book, and a slew of great book recommendations that are a little unusual! Listen for a huge revelation on Carolyn’s part about one of her favorite books.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: The Gathering by C.J. Tudor Punk Rock Karaoke by Biana Xunise The Nineties by Chuck Klosterman
Books Highlighted by Carolyn: The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro Outlander by Diana Gabaldon The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger The Aeneid by Virgil To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee Watership Down by Richard Adams Catch-22 by Joseph Heller The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa Elektra by Sophocles Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand Achilles by Elizabeth Cook How to be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. The Babysitters Club by Ann M. Martin Ducktales by Janette Oke (out of print) California Diaries by Ann M. Martin (out of print) The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis Jonathan Livingston Seagull by Richard Bach Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston Gods and Generals: A Novel of the Civil War by Jeff Shaara Snow Country by Yasunari Kawabata Great Expectations by Charles Dickens Franny and Zooey by J.D. Salinger The Odyssey by Homer The Iliad by Homer Cat Heaven by Cynthia Rylant Lord of the Flies by William Golding The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald Revolutionary Suicide by Huey P. Newton The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Malcom X and Alex Haley A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking by Susan Cain | |||
| Bathing in Darkness with Sam Wilmes | 13 May 2024 | 00:47:11 | |
Bathing in Darkness with Sam Wilmes Episode 1
On this episode, Sam Wilmes and I discuss reading dark books including Stephen King, horror, and dark literary fiction. We find her book ick, a new-to-me source of books, and books that connect anxiety and depression and humor.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel A Better World by Sarah Langan The Nineties by Chuck Klosterman
Books Highlighted by Sam: The Shining by Stephen King It by Stephen King Please Kill Me by Legs McNeil and Gillian McCain Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne Hyperbole and a Half by Allie Brosh House of Sand and Fog by Andre Dubus III Know My Name by Chanel Miller
Other Books Mentioned in the Episode: All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. By Kristen Hannah:
By Chuck Klosterman
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin We are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler I’m Glad my Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn Dark Places by Gillian Flynn The Woman in the Window by AJ Finn The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins Townie by Andre Dubus III The Garden of Last Days by Andre Dubus III By Hunter S. Thompson
By Samantha Irby
Broken (in the Best Possible Way) by Jenny Lawson I’m Judging You by Luvvie Ajayi Little Troublemaker Makes a Mess by Luvvie Ajayi Jones Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss Outlaws of America: The Weather Underground and the Politics of Solidarity by Dan Berger | |||
| Episode 38 - Ate it Up with Ree @Read_withRee | 27 Jan 2025 | 00:47:12 | |
On this episode, Ree @Read_withree on instagram, discusses her love for thrillers and mysteries. We also talk about a shared favorite author, the joy that book people can bring, and how to make bookstagram a place of enjoyment.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: There is a Rio Grande in Heaven by Ruben Reyes, Jr. Nuclear War: A Scenario by Annie Jacobsen
Books Highlighted by Ree: Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby The Passengers by John Marrs Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan Goodnight Beautiful by Aimee Molloy So Let Them Burn by Kamilah Cole The Housemaid by Frieda McFadden Pretty Girls by Karen Slaughter
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Night of the Living Dummy (Goosebumps #1) by R.L. Stine Holes by Louis Sachar Vampires Don’t Wear Polka Dots by Marcia Thornton Jones Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby Legendborn by Tracy Deonn Oathbound by Tracy Deonn The Chestnut Man by Søren Sveistrup A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros The Only One Left by Riley Sager | |||
| Episode 37 - All Print, All the Time with Leah Rachel von Essen | 20 Jan 2025 | 01:02:39 | |
On this episode, Leah Rachel von Essen, whose job is books, and I discuss our shared love of translated literature, especially genre fiction from other countries, and our shared love of reading and walking. She also talks about her very entertaining experiences with the library as a child and shares about her current work with Chicago Books to Women in Prison.
Find Leah’s posts about books in translation here More information about how to support Chicago Books to Women in Prison
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Sky Full of Elephants by Cebo Campbell Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands by Kate Beaton Witchcraft for Wayward Girls by Grady Hendrix
Books Highlighted by Leah: This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin The Neapolitan Novels by Elena Ferrante, trans. Ann Goldstein The Book Thief by Markus Zusak Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafor Chain Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah The Broken Earth Trilogy by N.K. Jemisin The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa, trans. Stephen Snyder Eve Out of Her Ruins by Ananda Devi, trans. Jeffrey Zuckerman Palestine +100 ed. Basma Ghalayini They Will Drown in Their Mother’s Tears by Johannes Anyuru, trans. Saskia Vogel The Waves by Virginia Woolf Who’s Afraid of Gender by Judith Butler The Death and Life of Great American Cities by Jane Jacobs
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson Wanderlust: A History of Walking by Rebecca Solnit The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai Freedom by Jonathan Franzen To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf | |||
| Episode 36 - Reading Helps Me Figure it Out with Shakia Perry | 13 Jan 2025 | 01:02:08 | |
On this episode, Shakia Perry, a very creative book lover who creates amazing book-related experiences for friends and family, discusses how she loves fiction to get into the messiness of other people. We also discuss our love for the library, reading pretty much wherever, and how much Libby can stress you out.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai All Fours by Miranda July
Books Highlighted by Shakia: Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid A Love Song for Ricki Wilde by Tia Williams Reel by Kennedy Ryan Saving Noah by Lucinda Berry Little Rot by Akwaeke Emezi Perfect Peace by Daniel Black Someday, Maybe by Onyi Nwabineli Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid Mrs. Wiggins by Mary Monroe I’m Glad my Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy Soothe Your Nerves: The Black Woman’s Guide to Understanding and Overcoming Anxiety, Panic, and Fears by Dr. Angela Neal-Barnett
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Kristy’s Great Idea by Ann M. Martin The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner The Coldest Winter Ever by Sister Souljah Love & Whiskey: The Remarkable True Story of Jack Daniel, His Master Distiller Nearest Green, and the Improbable Rise of Uncle Nearest by Fawn Weaver Curvy Girl Summer by Danielle Allen The Final Revival of Opal and Nev by Dawnie Walton The Teacher by Frieda McFadden Isaac’s Song by Daniel Black The Housemaid by Frieda McFadden It Ends with Us by Colleen Hoover Will by Will Smith & Mark Manson Bits and Pieces: My Mother, my Brother, and Me by Whoopi Goldberg Finding Me: A Memoir by Viola Davis Sky Full of Elephants by Cebo Campbell | |||
| Episode 35 - Best of 2024 Part 2 | 06 Jan 2025 | 01:27:54 | |
On this episode, past guests of Books with Betsy and I share our favorite books of 2024! Listen to hear about lots of great 2024 books and the excellent backlist we got to this year.
Books mentioned in this episode:
Betsy’s Top 11 Books (in no particular order): Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe The Reformatory by Tananarive Due Enter Ghost by Isabella Hammad Ordinary Notes by Christina Sharpe My Friends by Hisham Matar Punk Rock Karaoke by Biana Xunise Headshot by Rita Bullwinkle Shred Sisters by Betsy Lerner We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer Chain Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah James by Percival Everett
Books Highlighted by Guests: Sam Luchsinger The Biography of X by Catherine Lacey The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows by John Koenig Wellness by Nathan Hill Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice Moon of the Turning Leaves by Waubgeshig Rice Francesca Musumeci Tranny: Confessions of Punk Rock’s Most Infamous Anarchist Sellout by Laura Jane Grace One of Our Kind by Nicola Yoon Nestlings by Nat Cassidy Cynthia Okechukwu Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler Parable of the Talents by Octavia Butler Last Summer on State Street by Toya Wolfe Rachel Kilthorne The Expanse Series by James S.A. Corey There’s Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension by Hanif Abdurraqib Anyone’s Ghost by August Thompson The Age of Deer: Trouble and Kinship with our Wild Neighbors by Erika Howsare The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas Annette LaPlaca The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride On Getting Out of Bed: The Burden and Gift of Living by Alan Noble Slough House by Mick Herron Mind’s Eye by Hakan Nesser The Penderwicks on Gardam Street by Jeanne Birdsall Allison Yates Cuba: An American History by Ada Ferrer Iris Kelly Doesn’t Date by Ashley Herring Blake The Secret Life of Groceries: The Dark Miracle of the American Supermarket by Benjamin Lorr The Age of Magical Overthinking: Notes on Modern Irrationality by Amanda Montell The Color Purple by Alice Walker Jenn Moland-Kovash Shark Heart: A Love Story by Emily Habeck Take What You Need by Idra Novey The Husbands by Holly Gramazio The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World by Robin Wall Kimmerer Unreasonable Hospitality: The Remarkable Power of Giving People More Than They Expect by Will Guidara Just For the Summer by Abby Jimenez Mike Finucane A Swim in a Pond in the Rain: In Which Four Russians Give a Master Class on Writing, Reading, and Life by George Saunders The Best Minds: A Story of Friendship, Madness, and the Tragedy of Good Intentions by Jonathan Rosen Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer Come, Have Breakfast: Meditations on God and the Earth by Elizabeth Johnson Couldn’t Keep it to Myself: Testimonies from our Imprisoned Sisters ed. Wally Lamb Carolyn Latshaw The Bridge on the Drina by Ivo Andric That Time I got Drunk and Yeeted a Love Potion at a Werewolf by Kimberly Lemming All The Pretty Horses by Cormac McCarthy Nathan Hale’s Hazardous Tales by Nathan Hale Monika Janas Ink Blood Sister Scribe by Emma Törzs Chain Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah When Among Crows by Veronica Roth The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells Elantris by Brandon Sanderson Tim Mueller The Thirteen Ways we Turned Darryl Datson into a Monster by Kurt Fawver Helliconia Spring by Brian Wilson Aldiss The Room by Hubert Selby The Terror by Dan Simmons Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry | |||
| Episode 34 - Best of 2024 Part 1 | 30 Dec 2024 | 01:34:01 | |
On this episode, past guests of Books with Betsy and I share our favorite books of 2024! Listen to hear about lots of great 2024 books and the excellent backlist we got to this year.
Books mentioned in this episode:
Betsy’s Best Categorically (books that…): Shocked me: How to Sell a Haunted House by Grady Hendrix None of This is True by Lisa Jewell The Night House by Jo Nesbø Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra Made me Cry: North Woods by Daniel Mason The Bee Sting by Paul Murray Underrated: God Bless You, Otis Spunkmeyer by Joseph Earl Thomas Witness by Jamel Brinkley Victim by Andrew Boryga Fire Exit by Morgan Talty Recommend Widely: Erasure by Percival Everett Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar Hard to Recommend: Yr Dead by Sam Sax Sisters of the Lost Nation by Nick Medina Made me Think About my Life Differently: When Crack Was King: A People’s History of a Misunderstood Era by Donovan X. Ramsey Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman
Books Highlighted by Guests: Mawuli Grant Agbefe: Opposable Thumbs: How Siskel and Ebert Changed Movies Forever by Matt Singer Having and Being Had by Eula Bliss Your Face Belongs to Us: A Tale of AI, a Secretive Startup, and the End of Privacy by Kashmir Hill Mean Girl Feminism: How White Feminists Gaslight, Gatekeep, and Girlboss by Kim Hong Nguyen We Refuse: A Forceful History of Black Resistance by Kellie Carter Jackson Mapping the Stars: Celebrity, Metonymy and the Networked Politics of Identity by Claire Sisco King Sam Wilmes: Such Kindness by Andre Dubus III We Spread by Iain Read We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell The Haunting of Alejandra by V. Castro Amie Medley: Crossroads by Jonathan Franzen Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel North Woods by Daniel Mason The Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolaño Tanima Kazi: The Lantern of Lost Memories by Sanaka Hiiragi One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig Two Twisted Crowns by Rachel Gillig Home is Where the Bodies Are by Jeneva Rose The Perfect Marriage by Jeneva Rose Stacy Jezerowski: We Solve Murders by Richard Osman Beautiful Villain by Rebecca Kenney Sarah Sabet: Klara & The Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro Atonement by Ian McEwan Men Have Called Her Crazy by Anna Marie Tendler The Housemaid by Frieda McFadden The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen Anna Deem: The Nix by Nathan Hill Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk by Kathleen Hanna Cat Shieh: Give Me Space But Don’t Go Far: My Unlikely Friendship with Anxiety by Haley Weaver Bullshit Jobs: A Theory by David Graeber Just Us: An American Conversation by Claudia Rankine The Message by Ta-Nehisi Coates I Want to Die but I Want to Eat Tteokbokki by Baek Sehee Mo Smith: The Truth About Melody Browne by Lisa Jewell The Lightning Bottles by Marissa Stapley The Third Gilmore Girl by Kelly Bishop All The Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker Is She Really Going Out With Him? by Sophie Cousens Leah @Dishingonbooks: Nuclear War: A Scenario by Annie Jacobsen Grief is For People by Sloane Crosley Clean by Alia Trabucco Zerán James by Percival Everett A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole Emily McClanathan: Babel by R.F. Kuang Relinquished: The Politics of Adoption and the Privilege of American Motherhood by Gretchen Sisson Mean Spirit by Linda Hogan A Well-Trained Wife: My Escape from Christian Patriarchy by Tia Levings | |||
| Episode 50 - How to Raise a Reader with Mary Hopper Welander | 21 Apr 2025 | 00:52:21 | |
On this episode, my mom, Mary Hopper Welander, and I discuss shared reading memories from my childhood, how much the library has impacted both of our reading lives, and how her reading life has changed in retirement. She also gives some great advice about how to develop a love of reading in your child.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: On the Calculation of Volume (Book 1) by Solvej Balle Moms Like Us by Jordan Roter
Books Highlighted by Mary: The Beautiful Mystery by Louise Penny Bel Canto by Ann Patchett A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles Pachinko by Min Jin Lee Trust by Hernan Diaz Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson The Women by Kristin Hannah Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John Le Carré A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle Come, Have Breakfast: Meditations on God and the Earth by Elizabeth A. Johnson The Cloister Walk by Kathleen Norris
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell The Cat Who Could Read Backwards by Lilian Jackson Braun The Black Wolf by Louise Penny The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis My Name is Barbara by Barbara Streisand Animal Farm by George Orwell Political Theology Based in Community by Marty Tomszak Rules of Civility by Amor Towles The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles The Personal Librarian by Marie Benedict Good Dirt by Charmaine Wilkerson Gilead by Marilynne Robinson A Swiftly Tilting Planet by Madeleine L’Engle Many Waters by Madeleine L’Engle | |||
| Episode 49 - Read Everything All the Time with Alayna Mills | 14 Apr 2025 | 01:01:55 | |
On this episode, Alayna Mills, a college writing teacher, discusses their love for reading everything all the time, by incorporating reading into all parts of their day. We also talk about their wide reading preferences, we get deep on a few specific books, and we find a shared notebook of book prize stress.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: On the Calculation of Volume (Book 1) by Solvej Balle Audition by Katie Kitimura Chain Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
Books Highlighted by Alayna: The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver Martyr! By Kaveh Akbar A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab What If We Get it Right: Visions of Climate Futures by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson Rejection by Tony Tulathimutte On the Calculation of Volume (Book 1) by Solvej Balle The Road to the Country by Chigozie Obioma Brotherless Night by V.V. Ganeshananthan An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe Oye by Melissa Mogollon Several People Are Typing by Calvin Kasulke Ghosts by Dolly Alderton Exalted by Anna Dorn Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond What My Bones Know: A Memoir of Healing from Complex Trauma by Stephanie Foo
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee by Dee Brown Prodigal Summer by Barabara Kingsolver The Dance Tree by Kiran Millwood Hargrave The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver The Details by Ia Genberg Hunchback by Saou Ichikawa Dune by Frank Herbert All Fours by Miranda July Heir by Sabaa Tahir All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir Ice Planet Barbarians by Ruby Dixon Morning Glory Milking Farm by C.M. Nascosta Perfume and Pain by Anna Dorn Calling a Wolf a Wolf by Kaveh Akbar Poverty, By America by Matthew Desmond | |||
| Episode 48 - A Community of Problematic Characters with Bre @Brezzylovesbooks | 07 Apr 2025 | 00:54:53 | |
On this episode, Bre @Brezzylovesbooks, a therapist who also runs the Raleigh chapter of Well-Read Black Girl, and I discuss our shared love of book communities, problematic characters, and why romance isn’t our reading preference. I also give a rare TV recommendation!
More info about Well-Read Black Girl in Raleigh Well-Read Black Girl Raleigh Instagram
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Reservoir Bitches by Dahlia de la Cerda On the Calculation of Volume (Book 1) by Solvej Balle
Books Highlighted by Bre: Small Worlds by Caleb Azumah Nelson The Love Songs of W.E.B. DuBois by Honorée Fanonne Jeffers Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie Two Parts Sugar, One Part Murder by Valerie Burns Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson There There by Tommy Orange Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis-Benn Someplace Generous: An Inclusive Romance Anthology ed. by Amber Flame & Elaina Ellis Girl, Gurl, Grrrl: On Womanhood and Belonging in the Age of Black Girl Magic by Kenya Hunt
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Frog and Toad are Friends by Arnold Lobel The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats Whistle for Willie by Ezra Jack Keats Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri Heavy by Kiese Laymon Pushout by Monique Couvson The 1619 Project by Nikole Hannah-Jones Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange Before I Let Go by Kennedy Ryan | |||
| Episode 47 - Political Intrigue with Trevor Dykes | 31 Mar 2025 | 00:55:34 | |
On this episode, Trevor Dykes, a fantasy reader who has written his own fantasy saga, and I discuss how he fits in reading as a father of two young kiddos, what piques his interest in a fantasy, and how much of a commitment some of the long series are. We also get into the difference between the second in a trilogy versus the second in a series - there’s a difference!
Get Trevor’s Book, Titan’s Garden Crimson Wolf here! Support my Open Books fundraiser
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Anita De Monte Laughs Last by Xochitl Gonzalez The Three Lives of Cate Kay by Kate Fagan Hunchback by Saou Ichikawa
Books Highlighted by Trevor: Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson Thrawn (Star Wars) by Timothy Zahn The Boyfriend by Frieda McFadden The Rage of Dragons by Evan Winter Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson The Passengers by John Marrs Conversations with God: An Uncommon Dialogue by Neale Donald Walsch
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Red Rising by Pierce Brown A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony SNicket The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi A Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros Jade City by Fonda Lee Storm Front by Jim Butcher | |||
| Episode 46 - The Struggle for Good with Maggie Brennan | 24 Mar 2025 | 01:01:41 | |
On this episode, Maggie Brennan, a loyal member of the Off Color Book Club, and I discuss the retellings she will always read, how being an oldest sister impacted her reading life, and the way that her Irish family has impacted her reading life. She also talks about her favorite fantasy and sci-fi and how these genres can tell stories that reflect our reality.
Support my Open Books fundraiser
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Kingdom of No Tomorrow by Fabienne Josaphat Before the Mango Ripens by Afabwaje Kurian Fundamentally by Nussaibah Younis
Books Highlighted by Maggie: The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas The Daughters of Temperance Hobbes by Katherine Howe Bride of the Tornado by James Kennedy In the Time of the Butterflies by Julia Alvarez Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins Genesis of Misery by Neon Yang On Chesil Beach by Ian McEwan Somebody’s Daughter by Ashley C. Ford The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Kindred by Octavia Butler Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler Parable of the Talents by Octavia Butler Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen Trust by Hernan Diaz White Tears by Hari Kunzru The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins | |||
| Episode 45 - TBR Snowball with Deedi Brown | 17 Mar 2025 | 00:59:57 | |
On this episode, Deedi Brown, who runs The Booker of the Month book club, and I discuss the crossover love of literary fiction and genre, getting sucked in by award lists, and how being more involved in books turns into a snowball!
Get more information about Booker of the Month Club
Support my Open Books fundraiser
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin Kingdom of No Tomorrow by Fabienne Josaphat Fundamentally by Nussaibah Younis
Books Highlighted by Deedi: An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir Crescent City Series by Sarah J. Maas The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller The Actual Star by Monica Byrne The Spear Cuts Through Water by Simon Jimenez Hollow Kingdom by Kira Jane Buxton Fed is Best: The Unintended Harms of the “Breast is Best” Message and How to Find the Right Approach for You and Your Baby by Christie del Castillo-Hegyi, B. Jody Segrave-Daly, & Lynnette Hafken Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Wisdom of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Choosing to Run by Des Linden, Bonnie D. Ford The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellmann Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo Lenny by Max Porter The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James Disappearing Earth by Julia Philips Trust Exercise by Susan Choi Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange This Strange Eventful History by Claire Messud Playground by Richard Powers Bel Canto by Ann Pachett The Tiger’s Wife by Téa Obreht Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros Circe by Madeline Miller Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens | |||
| Episode 44 - Bad Decisions and Good Sex with Meredith Turits | 10 Mar 2025 | 00:57:54 | |
On this episode, Meredith Turits, debut novelist, and I discuss the process of making her book come to life, how amazing her editor is, and the best ways to support friends who are writers. We also discuss her book, Just Want You Here, which I encourage anyone to go pick up!
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading: Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin Madwoman by Chelsea Bieker The Safekeep by Yael Van Der Wouden
Books Highlighted by Meredith: Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier The Wedding People by Alison Espach The Girls of Summer by Katie Bishop Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin The Happy Couple by Naoise Dolan Dead Weight: Essays on Hunger and Harm by Emmeline Cline The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page. Other books mentioned in this episode: Watership Down by Richard Adams East of Eden by John Steinbeck A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis Less Than Zero by Bret Easton Ellis Anthropology of the American Girl by Hilary Thayer Hamann The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer Belzhar by Meg Wolitzer Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka Girl in Snow by Danya Kukafka The God of the Woods by Liz Moore The Wayside by Caroline Wolff Alone with You in the Ether by Olivie Blake Exciting Times by Naoise Dolan | |||