Well-Read

Well-Read Episode 118: Read-alikes for Taylor Swift songs (with a special guest!)

Halle thought it wasn’t possible to love a Taylor Swift-themed episode any more, until her sister Heather joined in as a special guest! (Ann was there too, as a casual fan.) Listen in for book pairings for some of our favorite T.Swift songs, along with general Swifty gushing and the books we’re reading this week.

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Taylor Jenkins Reid books
Red (Taylor Swift album)
Fearless (Taylor Swift album)
1989 (Taylor Swift album)
“Blank Space”
Reputation (Taylor Swift album)
“…Ready For It?”
“The Man”

Ann’s picks:

• An American Marriage by Tayari Jones (buy from Bookshop) and “exile (feat. Bon Iver)”
  – Justin Vernon/Bon Iver
  – “Death By a Thousand Cuts”
• Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano (buy from Bookshop) and “Bejeweled”
  – Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich

Halle’s picks:

• The Idea of You by Robinne Lee (buy from Bookshop) and “Enchanted” and “Dress”
• Someday Maybe by Onyi Nwabineli (buy from Bookshop) and “Bigger Than the Whole Sky”
  – Midnights (Taylor Swift album)
  – Forever, Interrupted by Taylor Jenkins Reid (buy from Bookshop)

Heather’s picks:

• The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid (buy from Bookshop) and “august”
  – “This Love”
  – “Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince”
• Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice from Dear Sugar by Cheryl Strayed (buy from Bookshop) and “Dear Reader”
  – Dear Sugar column on The Rumpus
  – Dear Sugars (podcast)

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: Bleeding Heart Yard by Elly Griffiths (buy from Bookshop)
  – Harbinder Kaur series by Elly Griffiths
  – The Stranger Diaries by Elly Griffiths (buy from Bookshop)
• Halle: Beautiful Little Fools by Jillian Cantor (buy from Bookshop)
  – Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese (buy from Bookshop)
  – The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (buy from Bookshop)
• Heather: Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid (buy from Bookshop)
  – Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid (buy from Bookshop)
  – Daisy Jones & The Six (TV)
  – “Anti-Hero”
  – Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason (buy from Bookshop)

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Well-Read #117 - Reading From Our TBRs

It’s back…..our occasional episode where we pick books for each other from our massive “to be read” shelves! Listen to what we liked – and what we didn’t! – and find out 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)
  – Good Morning America Book Club
  – The Maid (film)
  – Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman (buy from Bookshop)
  – Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus (buy from Bookshop)
  – Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin (buy from Bookshop)
  – Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt (buy from Bookshop)
  – Goodreads Choice Awards
  – Book of the Month Club
  – The Verifiers by Jane Pek (buy from Bookshop)
• The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden (buy from Bookshop)
  – The Winternight Trilogy by Katherine Arden
• Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid (buy from Bookshop)

Halle’s picks:

• The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy by Megan Bannen (buy from Bookshop)
  – You’ve Got Mail (film)
• The Last Chance Library by Freya Sampson (buy from Bookshop)
  – The Lost Ticket by Freya Sampson (buy from Bookshop)
• Yerba Buena by Nina LaCour (buy from Bookshop)

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: Kiss Her Once for Me by Alison Cochrun (buy from Bookshop)
  – The Charm Offensive by Alison Cochrun (buy from Bookshop)
• Halle: The Museum of Ordinary People by Mike Gayle (buy from Bookshop)

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Well-Read Episode #116 - Collecting and Organizing our Books

Well-Read Episode 115 - Romances for People Who Don’t Read Romance

With Valentine’s Day around the corner, we have some ideas for romance novels, even if you’re not a romance reader. As always, we’ll end with what we’re reading this week.

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

James Patterson books
Elin Hilderbrand books
Danielle Steel books
Colleen Hoover books
David Mitchell books

Ann’s picks:

• People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry (buy from Bookshop)
  – Emily Henry books
  – Book Lovers by Emily Henry (buy from Bookshop)
  – ALA RUSA CODES The Reading List – the committee we reference all the time
  – Beth O’Leary books
• The Bodyguard by Katherine Center (buy from Bookshop)
  – Victoria Christopher Murray books
  – Tracie Peterson books
  – Shelley Shephard Gray books
  – A Holly Jolly Diwali by Sonya Lalli (buy from Bookshop)
• Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake by Sarah MacLean (buy from Bookshop)
  – Love By Numbers series by Sarah MacLean

Halle’s picks:

• The Duchess Deal by Tessa Dare (buy from Bookshop)
  – Bridgerton (TV)
  – Bridgertons series by Julia Quinn
  – Beauty and the Beast
  – Eloisa James books
  – Pop Culture Happy Hour (podcast)
  – The Duke and I by Julia Quinn (buy from Bookshop)
  – Whitney, My Love by Judith McNaught (buy from Bookshop)
• Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez (buy from Bookshop)
  – Abby Jimenez books
  – The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez (buy from Bookshop)
• Ayesha at Last by Uzma Jalaluddin (buy from Bookshop)
  – Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (buy from Bookshop)
  – Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal (buy from Bookshop)

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley (buy from Bookshop)
  – The Guest List by Lucy Foley (buy from Bookshop)
  – Rear Window (film)
• Halle: Delilah Green Doesn’t Care by Ashley Herring Blake (buy from Bookshop)
  – Bright Falls series by Ashley Herring Blake

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Well-Read Episode 114 - Resolutions and 2022 Superlatives

Well-Read Episode 113 - Our Favorite Books of 2022

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

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Ann’s picks:

• The Ballad of Perilous Graves by Alex Jennings (buy from Bookshop)
  - N.K. Jemisen books
  - Marlon James books
• Babel, Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution by R.F. Kuang (buy from Bookshop)
• Book Lovers by Emily Henry (buy from Bookshop)
• The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill (buy from Bookshop)
  - Anthony Horowitz books
• Mika in Real Life by Emiko Jean (buy from Bookshop)
• Love in the Time of Serial Killers by Alicia Thompson (buy from Bookshop)
• Small Angels by Lauren Owen (buy from Bookshop)
• The It Girl by Ruth Ware (buy from Bookshop)
  - Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister (buy from Bookshop)
• The Marlow Murder Club by Robert Thorogood (buy from Bookshop)
• Deep Water by Patricia Highsmith (buy from Bookshop)

Halle’s picks:

• Nora Goes Off Script by Annabel Monahan (buy from Bookshop)
• The Verifiers by Jane Pek (buy from Bookshop)
• Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin (buy from Bookshop)
  - Young Jane Young by Gabrielle Zevin (buy from Bookshop)
  - The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin (buy from Bookshop)
  - Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin (buy from Bookshop)
• We All Want Impossible Things by Catherine Newman (buy from Bookshop)
• Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi (buy from Bookshop)
  - Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi (buy from Bookshop)
• The Crane Wife: A Memoir in Essays by C.J. Hauser (buy from Bookshop)
  - "The Crane Wife" by C.J. Hauser (essay from The Paris Review)
• All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir (buy from Bookshop)
• Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid (buy from Bookshop)
• Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus (buy from Bookshop)
  - Julia (TV)
  - The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (TV)
• Great Circle by Maggie Shipstead (buy from Bookshop)
  - The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towels (buy from Bookshop)
  - The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert (buy from Bookshop)

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: Look Closer by David Ellis (buy from Bookshop)
• Halle: Georgie, All Along by Kate Clayborn (buy from Bookshop)

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Well-Read Episode 112 - Holiday Books

The holidays are here! We’ve got some books to get you in the festive spirit, and we’ll share what we’re reading this week.

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Halle’s Instagram

Ann’s picks:

• The Mistletoe Murder and Other Stories by P.D. James (buy from Bookshop)
  – Adam Dalgliesh series by P.D. James
  – Agatha Christie books
• Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris (buy from Bookshop)
  – “The SantaLand Diaries” by David Sedaris on NPR
• A Holly Jolly Diwali by Sonya Lalli (buy from Bookshop)

Halle’s picks:

• One Last Gift by Emily Stone (buy from Bookshop)
• Holiday Romance by Catherine Walsh (buy from Bookshop)
  – People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry (buy from Bookshop)
• The Holiday Swap by Maggie Knox (buy from Bookshop)
  – The Princess Switch (film)
  – The Holiday (film)
  – The Parent Trap (film)
  – All I Want for Christmas by Maggie Knox (buy from Bookshop)

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: Babel by R.F. Kuang (buy from Bookshop)
  – The Secret History by Donna Tartt (buy from Bookshop)
  – Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke (buy from Bookshop)
  – Charles Dickens books
  – The Poppy War series by R.F. Kuang
• Halle: All the Dangerous Things by Stacy Willingham (buy from Bookshop)

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Well-Read Episode 111 - Defining Confusing Genres

Well-Read Episode 110 - Halloween!

Well-Read Episode 109 - Books about Chronic Illness

This week, we’re responding to a listener request to talk about books with characters who live with chronic illnesses. As always, we’ll end with what we’re reading this week.

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Ann’s picks:

• Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman (buy at Bookshop)
  – Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason (buy at Bookshop)
  – National Book Award
  – Neal Shusterman books
• The Devil in Silver by Victor LaValle (buy at Bookshop)
• Let’s Call It a Doomsday by Katie Henry (buy at Bookshop)

Halle’s picks:

• Luster by Raven Leilani (buy at Bookshop)
  – Queenie by Candice Carty-Williams (buy at Bookshop)
• Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert (buy at Bookshop)
  – Seven Days in June by Tia Williams (buy at Bookshop)
• Fortune Favors the Dead by Stephen Spotswood (buy at Bookshop)
  – Pentecost and Parker series by Stephen Spotswood

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: Death by Bubble Tea by Jennifer J. Chow (buy at Bookshop)
  – Mimi Lee Gets a Clue by Jennifer J. Chow (buy at Bookshop)
• Halle: Battle Royal by Lucy Parker (buy at Bookshop)
  – The Great British Bake Off (TV)
  – Junior Bake Off (TV)
  – Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake by Alexis Hall (buy at Bookshop)

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