Well-Read Episode 105 - Weddings

Well-Read Episode104 - Bridgerton

Well-Read episode #103 - On Re-reading

Well-Read Episode 102 - Immigrant and Refugee Stories

We’re exploring fiction that depicts the immigrant and refugee experience, and we’ll end with what we’re reading this week.

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Ann’s picks:

• How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents by Julia Alvarez (buy from Bookshop)
• Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys (buy from Bookshop)
  – Titanic (film)
  – Ruta Sepetys books
• The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo (buy from Bookshop)
  – The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (buy from Bookshop)
  – Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng (buy from Bookshop)

Halle’s picks:

• Exit West by Mohsin Hamid (buy from Bookshop)
  – Exit West (film)
• The Other Americans by Laila Lalami (buy from Bookshop)
  – Liz Moore books
  – Pachinko by Min Jin Lee (buy from Bookshop)
• The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez (buy from Bookshop)
  – Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare (buy from Bookshop)

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: The Art of Escapism Cooking: A Survival Story, with Intensely Good Flavors by Mandy Lee (buy from Bookshop)
  – Mandy Lee’s Flattening the Bird
  – Lady and Pups (blog)
  – @ladyandpups
• Halle: The Verifiers by Jane Pek (buy from Bookshop)
  – Book of the Month

Well-Read on Facebook
Well-Read on Twitter
Well-Read on Bookshop
Well-Read on Instagram

Well-Read Episode 101- 2022 Spring/Summer Book Preview

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Ann’s picks:

• Comedy Comedy Comedy Drama by Bob Odenkirk (releases March 1) (buy from Bookshop)
  – Mr. Show with Bob and David (TV)
  – David Cross filmography
  – Saturday Night Live (TV)
  – Breaking Bad (TV)
• Atomic Anna by Rachel Barenbaum (releases April 5) (buy from Bookshop)
• The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas (releases May 5) (buy from Bookshop)
  – Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (buy from Bookshop)
  – Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier (buy from Bookshop)
• Renovated to Death by Frank Anthony Polito (releases May 31) (buy from Bookshop)
  – The Grinder (TV)
• The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill (releases June 7) (buy from Bookshop)
  – Sulari Gentill books
• The Crane Wife by CJ Hauser (releases July 12) (buy from Bookshop)
  – “The Crane Wife” (essay by CJ Hauser)
  – From the Front Porch (podcast)
  – Family of Origin by CJ Hauser (buy from Bookshop)
• Love in the Time of Serial Killers by Alicia Thompson (releases August 16) (buy from Bookshop)
• The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna (releases August 23) (buy from Bookshop)
  – The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune (buy from Bookshop)

Halle’s picks:

• Memphis by Tara Stringfellow (releases April 5) (buy from Bookshop)
• The Wedding Crasher by Mia Sosa (releases April 5) (buy from Bookshop)
  – The Worst Best Man by Mia Sosa (buy from Bookshop)
  – Mia Sosa books
• Take My Hand by Dolen Perkins-Valdez (releases April 12) (buy from Bookshop)
  – The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot (buy from Bookshop)
  – Wench by Dolen Perkins-Valdez (buy from Bookshop)
  – Necessary Lies by Diane Chamberlain (buy from Bookshop)
• Book Lovers by Emily Henry (releases May 5) (buy from Bookshop)
  – Emily Henry books
  – As Seen on TV by Meredith Schorr (buy from Bookshop)
  – Nora Goes Off Script by Annabel Monaghan (buy from Bookshop)
  – The Chicken Sisters by K.J. Dell’Antonia (buy from Bookshop)
• This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub (releases May 17) (buy from Bookshop)
  – Emma Straub books
• Acts of Violet by Margarita Montimore (releases July 5) (buy from Bookshop)
  – Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore (buy from Bookshop)
• Upgrade by Blake Crouch (releases July 12) (buy from Bookshop)
  – Blake Crouch books
• Things We Do in the Dark by Jennifer Hillier (releases July 19)
  – Little Secrets by Jennifer Hillier (buy from Bookshop)

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: Love and Saffron by Kim Fay (buy from Bookshop)
  – Julia Child
  – Sunset Magazine
• Halle: Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi (buy from Bookshop)

Well-Read on Facebook
Well-Read on Twitter
Well-Read on Instagram
Well-Read on Bookshop

Well-Read Episode #100 - Ask Us Anything

Well-Read Episode 99 - The 2022 Reading List

After a year of hard work, we’re happy to share the results of the 2022 Reading List! We’ll share the winners and the shortlist, along with our thoughts. As always, we end with what we’re reading this week.

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Adrenaline

Winner
Razorblade Tears by S. A. Cosby (buy from Bookshop)

Short List
Bullet Train by Kōtarō Isaka (buy from Bookshop)
Never Saw Me Coming by Vera Kurian (buy from Bookshop)
The Push by Ashley Audrain (buy from Bookshop)
Red Widow by Alma Katsu (buy from Bookshop)

Fantasy

Winner
A Master of Djinn by P. Djèlí Clark (buy from Bookshop)

Short List
Black Water Sister by Zen Cho (buy from Bookshop)
The Blacktongue Thief by Christopher Buehlman (buy from Bookshop)
When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain by Nghi Vo (buy from Bookshop)
The Witch’s Heart by Genevieve Gornichec (buy from Bookshop)

Historical fiction

Winner
The Sweetness of Water by Nathan Harris (buy from Bookshop)

Short List
Daughters of Sparta by Claire Heywood (buy from Bookshop)
– A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes (buy from Bookshop)
Leonora in the Morning Light by Michaela Carter (buy from Bookshop)
The Rose Code by Kate Quinn (buy from Bookshop)
A Tip for the Hangman by Allison Epstein (buy from Bookshop)

Horror

Winner
Nothing But Blackened Teeth by Cassandra Khaw (buy from Bookshop)
– The Ring (film)
– The Grudge (film)

Short List
The Death of Jane Lawrence by Caitlin Starling (buy from Bookshop)
My Heart is a Chainsaw by Stephen Graham Jones (buy from Bookshop)
Near the Bone by Christina Henry (buy from Bookshop)
This Thing Between Us by Gus Moreno (buy from Bookshop)

Mystery

Winner
Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala (buy from Bookshop)
– A Deadly Inside Scoop by Abby Collette (buy from Bookshop)

Short List
Grave Reservations by Cherie Priest (buy from Bookshop)
The Jigsaw Man by Nadine Matheson (buy from Bookshop)
Sleep Well, My Lady by Kwei Quartey (buy from Bookshop)
Under Color of Law by Aaron Philip Clark (buy from Bookshop)
– Moonflower Murders by Anthony Horowitz (buy from Bookshop)
– Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz (buy from Bookshop)
– Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano (buy from Bookshop)
– Finlay Donovan Knocks ‘Em Dead by Elle Cosimano (buy from Bookshop)

Relationship fiction

Winner
The Guncle by Steven Rowley (buy from Bookshop)

Short List
Dial A for Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto (buy from Bookshop)
The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams (buy from Bookshop)
Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason (buy from Bookshop)
– Arrested Development (TV)
The Summer Seekers by Sarah Morgan (buy from Bookshop)

Romance

Winner
One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston (buy from Bookshop)

Short List
The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochrun (buy from Bookshop)
The Girl with Stars in Her Eyes by Xio Axelrod (buy from Bookshop)
People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry (buy from Bookshop)
For the Love of April French by Penny Aimes (buy from Bookshop)

Science fiction

Winner
A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers (buy from Bookshop)

Short List
Day Zero by C. Robert Cargill (buy from Bookshop)
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir (buy from Bookshop)
One Day All This Will Be Yours by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Unity by Elly Bangs (buy from Bookshop)
– The Echo Wife by Sarah Gailey (buy from Bookshop)

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: Going There by Katie Couric (buy from Bookshop)
  – The Today Show (TV)
  – The Morning Show (TV)
  – Jennifer Aniston filmography
  – Reese Witherspoon filmography
• Halle: First Comes Like by Alisha Rai (buy from Bookshop)
  – Modern Love series by Alisha Rai
  – A Holly Jolly Diwali by Sonya Lalli (buy from Bookshop)

Well-Read on Facebook
Well-Read on Twitter
Well-Read on Bookshop
Well-Read on Instagram

Well-Read Episode 98: 2021 Superlatives

Well-Read Episode #97 - Our Favorite Books of 2021

Our favorite episode of the year, full of our favorite books of the year. Happy Holidays from your friends at Well-Read!

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Ann’s picks:

• The Chicken Sisters by KJ Dell’Antonia (buy from Bookshop)
• The Girl with Stars in Her Eyes by Xio Axelrod (buy from Bookshop)
• This Thing Between Us by Gus Moreno (buy from Bookshop)
• Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr (buy from Bookshop)
• A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes (buy from Bookshop)
• Horseman by Christina Henry (buy from Bookshop)
  - The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving (buy from Bookshop)
• The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton (buy from Bookshop)
• Moonflower Murders by Anthony Horowitz (buy from Bookshop)
  - Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz (buy from Bookshop)
• Mrs. March by Virginia Feito (buy from Bookshop)
  - Patricia Highsmith books
• Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley (buy from Bookshop)
  - Reese's Book Club

Halle’s picks:

• The Space Between Worlds by Micaiah Johnson (buy from Bookshop)
• Early Morning Riser by Katherine Heiny (buy from Bookshop)
• Arsenic & Adobo by Mia P. Manansala (buy from Bookshop)
  - Tana French books
  - Louise Penny books
• Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake by Alexis Hall (buy from Bookshop)
  - The Great British Baking Show (TV)
  - The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochrun (buy from Bookshop)
  - Battle Royal by Lucy Parker (buy from Bookshop)
  - One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London (buy from Bookshop)
• The Push by Ashley Audrain (buy from Bookshop)
  - Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn (buy from Bookshop)
  - Take It Back by Kia Abdullah (buy from Bookshop)
• The Rose Code by Kate Quinn (buy from Bookshop)
  - Code Name Hélène by Ariel Lawhon (buy from Bookshop)
• The Guncle by Steven Rowley (buy from Bookshop)
  - The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune (buy from Bookshop)
• The Sweetness of Water by Nathan Harris (buy from Bookshop)
• Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason (buy from Bookshop)
  - Fleabag (TV)
  - Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman (buy from Bookshop)
• The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller (buy from Bookshop)

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: Who Is Maud Dixon? by Alexandra Andrews (buy from Bookshop)
  - Elena Ferrante books
  - The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith (buy from Bookshop)
• Halle: The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward (buy from Bookshop)

Well-Read Episode #96 - Books We Can‘t Wait to Read

We didn’t get a chance to do a publishing preview this season, but we wanted to share some books we’re excited to read soon. Ann picks three forthcoming titles and Halle went with books she didn’t have time for this year. And we end with what we’re reading this week!

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Ann’s picks:

• The Maid by Nita Prose (buy from Bookshop)
  – Florence Pugh movies
  – Little Women (film)
• Yerba Buena by Nina LaCour (buy from Bookshop)
  – Nina LaCour books
• Body and Soul Food by Abby Collette (buy from Bookshop)
  – A Deadly Inside Scoop by Abby Collete (buy from Bookshop)

Halle’s picks:

• Olympus, Texas by Stacey Swann (buy from Bookshop)
  – From the Front Porch (podcast)
  – Succession (TV)
• Battle Royal by Lucy Parker (buy from Bookshop)
• Infinite Country by Patricia Engel (buy from Bookshop)

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki (buy from Bookshop)
• Halle: Bullet Train by Kōtarō Isaka (buy from Bookshop)
  – Brad Pitt movies

Well-Read on Facebook
Well-Read on Twitter
Well-Read on Bookshop
Well-Read on Instagram