Well-Read Episode #74 - Our Favorite Bookish Places

When your eyes need a break from all that reading, why not go to a bookish place? We’re discussing some of our personal favorites this week, and we’ll end with what we’re reading.

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

The New York Public Library (New York, NY)
The Morgan Library & Museum (New York, NY)
Jane Austen books
Charles Dickens books
Hamilton (musical)
Beautiful (musical)
Strand Book Store (New York, NY)
Tana French books
The British Library (London, UK)
Angela Carter books
The Beatles
The Royal Library (Copenhagen, Denmark)
Chicago Public Library (Chicago, IL)
Nashville Public Library (Nashville, TN)
Free Library of Philadelphia (Philadelphia, PA)
Beaufort County Library (Beaufort, SC)
Tempe Public Library (Tempe, AZ)
Tempe History Museum (Tempe, AZ)
Parnassus Books (Nashville, TN)
Ann Patchett books
The Bookshop (Nashville, TN)
Road Sides: An Illustrated Companion to Dining and Driving in the American South by Emily Wallace (buy from Bookshop)
Golden Fig Books (Durham, NC)
The Bookshelf (Thomasville, GA)
From the Front Porch (podcast)
bookshop.org
NeverMore Books (Beaufort, SC)
Patricia Highsmith books
Ripley series by Patricia Highsmith
Edgar Allan Poe books
Big Woods Cabin (Pepin, WI)
Jane Austen Centre (Bath, UK)
Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum (Key West, FL)
Ernest Hemingway books
Karen Blixen Museum (Rungsted Kyst, Denmark)
Tiger Hill (Suzhou, China)
Wake County Public Library (NC) Book Sale

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: Love in Catalina Cove by Brenda Jackson (buy from Bookshop)
  – Beverly Jenkins books
• Halle: The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez (buy from Bookshop)

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Well-Read Episode #73 - Books to Read after Binge-watching

Well-Read Episode #72 - Fiction by Black Authors

We're not experts on advising which books will make you antiracist (please seek those experts out!), but we can use our platform to promote the works of black authors that we've enjoyed. We're committed to reading and talking about more books by diverse authors, and we hope you'll do the same. As always, we end with what we're reading this week.

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson (buy from Bookshop)
How We Fight for Our Lives by Saeed Jones (buy from Bookshop)

Ann’s picks:

• The Sellout by Paul Beatty (buy from Bookshop)
  - Booker Prize
  - The Little Rascals (film series)
  - Song of the South (film)
• Passing by Nella Larsen (buy from Bookshop)
• Hollywood Homicide by Kellye Garrett (buy from Bookshop)
  - The Bling Ring (film)
  - Janet Evanovich books
  - Raymond Chandler books
  - Detective by Day series by Kellye Garrett

Halle’s picks:

• An American Marriage by Tayari Jones (buy from Bookshop)
  - Southern Festival of Books
  - Celeste Ng books
  - Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones (buy from Bookshop)
  - Tayari Jones books
• Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid (buy from Bookshop)
• Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi (buy from Bookshop)
  - Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi (releases September 8) (buy from Bookshop)

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: Lorraine: The Girl Who Sang the Storm Away by Ketch Secor and Higgins Bond (buy from Bookshop)
  - Old Crow Medicine Show
• Halle: The Deep by Rivers Solomon (buy from Bookshop)
  - This American Life (podcast)
  - Drexciya (techno group)
  - "The Deep" (song by clipping.)
  - An Unkindness of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon (buy from Bookshop)

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Well-Read Episode #71 - Beach Reads

With summer just around the corner, it’s time to revisit one of our favorite topics: the perfect book for a long, lazy day by the water. Check out our beach read picks, and find out what we’re reading this week.

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Episode 1 – Beach Reads
The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov (buy from Bookshop)

Ann’s picks:

• The Hurricane Sisters by Dorothea Benton Frank (buy from Bookshop)
  – Dorothea Benton Frank books
• Six Years by Harlan Coben (buy from Bookshop)
  – Myron Bolitar series by Harlan Coben
• Final Sentence by Daryl Woods Gerber (buy from Bookshop)
  – Daryl Wood Gerber books
  – Cheese Shop Mystery series by Avery Aames (pseudonym for Daryl Wood Gerber)

Halle’s picks:

• Beach Read by Emily Henry (buy from Bookshop)
• All Adults Here by Emma Straub (buy from Bookshop)
• Eight Perfect Murders by Peter Swanson (buy from Bookshop)
  – The Chestnut Man by Søren Sveistrup (buy from Bookshop)
  – Agatha Christie books
  – Alfred Hitchcock filmography
  – Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz (buy from Bookshop)
  – The Eighth Detective by Alex Pavesi (releases August 8) (buy from Bookshop)
  – Friends and Strangers by J. Courtney Sullivan (releases June 30) (buy from Bookshop)
  – Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid (buy from Bookshop)

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han (buy from Bookshop)
  – Jane Austen books
  – To All the Boys series by Jenny Han
  – War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy (buy from Bookshop)
  – To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before (film)
  – To All The Boys: P.S. I Still Love You (film)
• Halle: The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett (releases June 2) (buy from Bookshop)
  – Episode 66: Spring/Summer 2020 Preview
  – The Mothers by Brit Bennett (buy from Bookshop)
  – Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi (buy from Bookshop)
  – Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones (buy from Bookshop)

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Well-Read Episode #70 - Our Favorite Audiobook Narrators

Frequent listeners of the podcast will know that we’re both big audiobook listeners, and we’re sharing some of our favorite narrators and the books that represent their work. As always, we’ll end with what we’re reading this week.

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Audie Awards
The Turn of the Screw by Henry James, narrated by Emma Thompson
Authorized: Love and Romance (podcast)
Reese Witherspoon filmography
Jim Dale audiobooks
Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

Ann’s pick:

• Rosalyn Landor
  – The Mistress of the Art of Death by Ariana Franklin (buy from Bookshop; buy from Libro.fm)
• Juliet Stevenson
  – Juliet Stevenson filmography
  – Emma (film)
  – The Little Red Chairs by Edna O’Brien (buy from Bookshop; buy from Libro.fm)
  – Belgravia by Julian Fellowes (buy from Bookshop; buy from Libro.fm)
  – Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich
• Katherine Kellgren
  – My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton and Jodi Meadows (buy from Bookshop; buy from Libro.fm)

Halle’s pick:

• January LaVoy
  – The Diviners by Libba Bray (buy from Bookshop; buy from Libro.fm)
  – The Diviners series by Libba Bray
• Bahni Turpin
  – The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (buy from Bookshop; buy from Libro.fm)
• Rebecca Lowman
  – Rules of Civility by Amor Towles (buy from Bookshop; buy from Libro.fm)
  – Sisterland by Curtis Sittenfeld (buy from Bookshop; buy from Libro.fm)

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: The Cruel Prince by Holly Black (buy from Bookshop; buy from Libro.fm)
  – The Folk of the Air series by Holly Black
  – Caitlin Kelly audiobooks
• Halle: The Book of Lost Friends by Lisa Wingate (buy from Bookshop; buy from Libro.fm)
  – Animal Farm by George Orwell (buy from Bookshop; buy from Libro.fm)
  – Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate (buy from Bookshop; buy from Libro.fm)

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Well-Read Episode #69 - Little Women

By listener request, we’re doing a deep dive of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women and the new film adaptation! And of course, we’ll end with what we’re reading this week.

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Little Women (2019 film)
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (buy from Bookshop)
Little Women (1994 film)
Little Women (1933 film)
Little Women (1949 film)
Little Women (1978 TV)
Little Women (2017 TV)
Little Women (2018 film)
Florence Pugh filmography
Laura Dern filmography
Big Little Lies (TV)
Susan Sarandon filmography
Christian Bale filmography
“Laurie Isn’t a Good Guy; He’s a Nice Guy (TM)” (Book Riot article)
Gabriel Byrne filmography

Ann’s pick:

• Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy: The Story of Little Women and Why It Still Matters by Anne Boyd Rioux (buy from Bookshop)
  – Ralph Waldo Emerson books
  – Henry David Thoreau books
  – The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain (buy from Bookshop)
  – J.K. Rowling books

Halle’s pick:

• The Lost Summer of Louisa May Alcott by Kelly O’Connor McNees (buy from Bookshop)
• March by Geraldine Brooks (buy from Bookshop)

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: When We Were Vikings by Andrew David MacDonald (buy from Bookshop)
• Halle: All We Ever Wanted by Emily Giffin (buy from Bookshop)
  – Emily Giffin books
  – Emily Giffin’s Instagram
  – Liane Moriarty books
  – Jodi Picoult books

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Well-Read Episode #68 - Out of Our Comfort Zones Part III

One of our favorite episode series is back! We’re stretching ourselves by reading books out of our comfort zones, for better or for worse. As always, we’ll end with what we’re reading this week.

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem, and Madness (TV)

Ann’s picks:

• Magic Bites by Ilona Andrews
  – Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews
  – Fever series by Karen Marie Moning
• Space Opera by Catherynne M. Valente
  – Eurovision Song Contest
  – “Waterloo” by ABBA (song)
• The Duchess Deal by Tessa Dare
  – The Governess Game by Tessa Dare
  – Beauty and the Beast
  – Castles Ever After series by Tessa Dare
  – Beauty and the Beast (film)
  – Episode 18: Out of Our Comfort Zones
  – Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake by Sarah MacLean

Halle’s picks:

• The God Game by Danny Tobey
• Certain Dark Things by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
  – Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
  – Episode 66: Spring/Summer 2020 Preview
• The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix
  – We Sold Our Souls by Grady Hendrix

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: Truly Devious series by Maureen Johnson
• Halle: Pretty as a Picture by Elizabeth Little

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Well-Read Episode #67 - Comfort Reads

With the world in its current state, who doesn't need a comfort read? We're discussing what we look for when we turn to books in difficult times, and we'll end with what we're reading this week.

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Ann’s picks:

• Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz
  - Hercule Poirot series by Agatha Christie
  - Foyle's War (TV)
  - Midsomer Murders (TV)
  - Moonflower Murders by Anthony Horowitz
  - The Sentence is Death by Anthony Horowitz
  - The Word is Murder by Anthony Horowitz
• Northanger Abbey by Val McDermid
  - Jane Austen books
  - Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld
  - Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
  - Edinburgh Fringe Festival
  - Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
  - Val McDermid books
• My Kitchen Year: 136 Recipes That Saved My Life by Ruth Reichl
  - Gourmet Magazine

Halle’s picks:

• The Authenticity Project by Clare Pooley
• Rules for Visiting by Jessica Francis Kane
  - ALA RUSA CODES Reading List
  - Emily Post books
  - Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
• Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating by Christina Lauren

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: The Paris Library by Janet Skeslien Charles (releases June 2)
  - The American Library in Paris
• Halle: The Return by Rachel Harrison

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Well-Read Episode #66 - Spring/Summer 2020 Preview

We’re so excited to talk about the books we’re looking forward to this spring and summer (there are soooooooooo many!) And we’ll finish with what we’re reading this week.

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Public Library Association (PLA) Conference 2020
We Ride Upon Sticks by Quan Barry
Episode 58 – Witches
The Heir Affair by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan
The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan
Episode 63  – Royal Reads

Ann’s picks:

• My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell
• In Five Years by Rebecca Serle
  – Rebecca Serle books
  – Taylor Jenkins Reid books
  – The Dinner List by Rebecca Serle
• Darling Rose Gold by Stephanie Wrobel
  – The Act (TV)
• Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo
  – The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
  – Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature
  – With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo
• Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld
  – Curtis Sittenfeld books
• Mexican Gothic by Silvia Morena-Garcia
• One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London
  – The Bachelor (TV)
• The All-Night Sun by Diane Zinna
  – Midsommar (film)

Halle’s picks:

• The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel
  – Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
• If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarlane
  – Mhairi McFarlane books
  – The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory
• To Have and to Hoax by Martha Waters
  – The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
• The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
  – The Mothers by Brit Bennett
• The Marriage Game by Sara Desai
• I Was Told It Would Get Easier by Abbi Waxman
  – The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman
• Friends and Strangers by J. Courtney Sullivan
  – Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
• Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi
  – Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: Meet Cute by various authors
  – My True Love Gave to Me edited by Stephanie Perkins
  – Sara Shepard books
  – Nicola Yoon books
  – Julie Murphy books
  – We Are Okay by Nina LaCour
  – Episode 60 – Books for December
• Halle: The Holdout by Graham Moore
  – Serial (podcast)
  – O.J.: Made in America (TV)

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Well-Read Episode #65 - Love Stories

In honor of Valentine’s Day, we’re talking about books that grapple with love in all its sweet, messy, delicate, difficult, and wonderful forms. As always, we’ll end with what we’re reading this week.

Books and other media mentioned in this episode:

Ann’s picks:

• Less by Andrew Sean Greer
  – Pulitzer Prize
• The Only Story by Julian Barnes
  – Episode 61 – Favorite Reads of 2019
  – The Graduate (film)
• The Upside of Unrequited by Becky Albertalli
  – Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
  – J.R.R. Tolkein books
  – Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli

Halle’s picks:

• Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf
  – Our Souls at Night (film)
• Normal People by Sally Rooney
  – Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney
  – Normal People (TV)
  – Rooney Mara filmography
  – Joaquin Phoenix filmography
  – Rachel Bilson filmography
  – Bill Hader filmography
• The Lover’s Dictionary by David Levithan
  – 500 Days of Summer (film)

What We’re Reading This Week:

• Ann: Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore by Matthew Sullivan
  – How to Find Love in a Book Shop by Veronica Henry
  – Jenny Colgan books
  – The Tattered Cover
  – Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz
• Halle: Good Talk by Mira Jacob
  – Mira Jacob books

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