This week we celebrate all the special days of June! Want a book rec for Pride month? We have one. What about Juneteenth or Father's Day? We have you covered. And did you know it's National Audiobook Month? It's new to us as well but we love audiobooks so we give you some recommendations for that too. And we throw in one wildcard category - one of those random National Days or Months that always makes you wonder why there needs to be a month for that:)
This is the last episode for Season 8. We are taking a month off for summer family travel and some rest and relaxation. We will be back the late July/ early August with all new episodes. Until then, we will air some of our favorite past episodes in case you missed them the first time around.
Happy Reading!
For show notes for any episode or to contact us, go to our website at perksofbeingabooklover.com. We are also on Instagram @perksofbeingabookloverpod and on FB Perks of Being a Book Lover.
Books Mentioned in this Episode:
1- Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy
2- The Road by Cormac McCarthy
3- No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy
4- Changes: A Love Story by Ama Ata Aidoo
5- Our Sister Killjoy by Ama Ata Aidoo
6- The Scent of a Garden by Namrata Patel
7- The Candid Life of Meena Dave by Namrata Patel
8- The Scent of Burnt Flowers by Blitz Bazawule
9- Fun Home: A Famliy Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel
10- Dykes to Watch Out For by Alison Bechdel
11- And Then the Grey Heaven by RE Katz
12- Lone Women by Victor Lavalle
13- The Changeling by Victor Lavalle
14- Invasion of the Body Snatchers by Jack Finney
15- The Door of No Return by Kwame Alexander
16- The Sweetness of Water by Nathan Harris
17- The Chosen by Chaim Potok
18- Inheritance: A Memoir of Genealogy, Paternity, and Love by Dani Shapiro
19- The Thing About Jellyfish by Ali Benjamin
20- The Soul of an Octopus by Sy Montgomery
21- Phallacy: Life Lessons from the Animal Penis by Emily Willingham
22- The Good One by Polly Stewart
23- On Earth as it is on Television by Emily Jane
Shows/movies mentioned--
1- No Country For Old Men ( 2007)
2- My Octopus Teacher (Netflix, 2020)
Articles Mentioned:
1- Ama Ata Aidoo, Ghanaian writer who was voice of African women, dies at 81
2- The convoluted world of best-seller lists, explained

S8 Ep181 - Catch the June Reading Bug - 6-21-23

Perks of Being a Book Lover is a show about books, people who read, and how reading, at its very best, is a social experience. Whether it be a book club, a poetry slam, or the production of a play; words are meant to be shared.  Keep up with us on FB.

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We will be on a much needed hiatus for the entire month of June and a smidge into July. You will get replays of some of our book recommendation episodes from last year, but toward the end of June, we may have a remix episode where we catch up with a former guest.
This last episode of Season 10 is about a very important topic. Although May is almost over, it isn’t too late to recognize books for Mental Health Awareness month. Carrie and I both know and appreciate that mental health is part of total health. Your brain is a really big, extremely powerful, exceedingly important part of your body. If it ain’t happy, no other part of you is happy either. It’s no different than your kidneys or heart not performing their best. This week we give you some book recommendations, both fiction and nonfiction, that highlight mental health or bring some exposure to mental health issues.
Books Mentioned in This Episode:
1- Being Henry: The Fonz…and Beyond by Henry Winkler
2- Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley
3- Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley
4- And Then, Boom! by Lisa Fipps - A 5 star read recommended by fellow book lover Cassie Sanders @allroadsleadtoausten
5- Starfish by Lisa Fipps
6- Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb
7- The Professor and the Madman: a Tale of Murder, Insanity and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary by Simon Winchester
8- The Sleeping Beauties by Suzanne O' Sullivan
9- Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson
10- Wesley Yorstad Goes Outside by Stephanie Hunter
11- All Fall Down by Jennifer Weiner
12- Homer and Langley by EL Doctorow
13- The Trauma Cleaner by Sarah Krasnostein
14- The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman
15- The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
16- Sylvia Plath: A Biography by Linda Wagner-Martin
17- Anne Sexton: A Biography by Diane Wood Middlebrook
18- The Act of Disappearing by Nathan Gower
19- The Year of the Horses by Courtney Maum
20- Baggage: Confessions of a Globe-Trotting Hypochondriac by Jeremy Hance
21- The Color of Magic by Terry Pratchett
22- Jingo by Terry Pratchett
23- Wyrd Sisters by Terry Pratchett
24- Mort by Terry Pratchett
25- Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
Shows/podcasts mentioned—
1- Barry (HBO, 2018 - 2023)
2- Reservation Dogs (Hulu, 2021 - 2023)
3- Good Omens (Amazon Prime, 2019 - present)
4- Dear Therapists with Lori Gottlieb and Guy Winch - podcast

S10:Ep224 - Mental Health Awareness Month : A Book Rec Episode- 5/29/24

Our website - www.perksofbeingabooklover.com.Instagram - @perksofbeingabookloverpodFacebook - Perks of Being a Book Lover.To send us a message go to our website and click the Contact button.
You can find Nathan Gower at his website www.nathangower.com or on IG @nathan_gower_
Our guest this week is Nathan Gower, a writer with roots in Kentucky, having earned degrees from Spalding University and the University of Louisville. He now serves as a professor of English at Campbellsville University. His debut novel, The Act of Disappearing, publishes on May 28 with Mira Books, an imprint of HarperCollins.
The novel is about a woman named Julia, who her friends call Jules. Julia has been trying to make a name for herself as a fiction writer, but she works at a bar to make ends meet. It is there that she meets a famous older man named Jonathan Aster who gives her a photograph and offers to pay her to tell the story of the woman in the picture: the woman in the photo is jumping off a bridge holding a baby. Julia begins a quest to discover who this woman is and learns about herself in the process.
He also talks to us about how terrifying it was to write a book from a female point of view, how the women in his family inspired this story, and the sci-fi book he just read and thoroughly enjoyed even though he doesn’t like sci-fi.
Books Mentioned in This Episode:
1- The Act of Disappearing by Nathan Gower
2- Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
3- Dead Boy Detectives by Neil Gaiman
4- Out of the Easy by Ruta Sepetys
5- Gumbo Tales: Finding My Place at the New Orleans Table by Sara Roahen
6- The Moviegoer by Walker Percy
7- The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty - A 5 Star Read Recommended by Fellow Book Lover Claire Boswell @clairesbookobsession
8- The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
9- The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas
10- The Man In The Iron Mask by Alexandre Dumas
11- Made for You by Jenna Satterthwaite
12- Johanna Porter is Not Sorry by Sara Read
Entertainment mentioned—
1- Beetlejuice (1988)
2- Beetlejuice (Broadway Across America)
3- Seinfeld (1989- 1998, Netflix)
4- Dark Matter (2024, Apple+)
5- The Dead Boys Detective (2024, Netflix)
6- Locke & Key (2020, Netflix)
7- The Man in the Iron Mask (1998)
Photograph mentioned—time.com/3456028/the-most-bea…h-an-immortal-photo/

S10:Ep223 - The Act of Disappearing with Guest Nathan Gower - 5/22/24

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This week we have our annual summer reading episode with our favorite bookseller, Sam Miller, store manager at Carmichaels Bookstore in Louisville, KY. By this point in our spring season, we are tired, so having Sam on and letting her do the heavy lifting on book suggestions is what we’re about. Sam clues us in to some new fiction, nonfiction, traditional summer reading, mysteries, sci-fi/fantasy, and children’s books you may want to scoop up.
Books Mentioned in This Episode:
1- James by Percival Everett
2- Hamilton by Ron Chernow
3- We All Want Impossible Things by Catherine Newman
4- Sandwich by Catherine Newman
5- Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult
6- By Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult
7- Long Island by Colm Tóibín
8- Brooklyn by Colm Tóibín
9- Peace Like a River by Leif Enger
10- I Cheerfully Refuse by Leif Enger
11- The Summer Pact by Emily Giffen
12- Soldier Sailor by Claire Kilroy
13- Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder
14- Knife by Salman Rushdie
15- The Demon of Unrest by Erik Larsen
16- 1974 by Francine Prose
17- The Backyard Bird Chronicles by Amy Tan
18- Sociopath by Patric Gagne
19- An Unfinished Love Story by Doris Kearns Goodwin
20- The Searcher by Tana French
21- The Hunter by Tana French
22- One Perfect Couple by Ruth Ware
23- Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley
24- Highway 13 by Fiona McFarland
25- This Bright River by Liz Moore
26- God of the Woods by Liz Moore
27- The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley
28- Heaven and Earth Grocery Store by James McBride
29- The Book of Elsewhere by Keanu Reeves and China Miéville
30- Service Model by Adrian Tchaikovsky
31- House on the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
32- Somewhere Beyond the Sea by TJ Klune
33- The Deading by Nicholas Belardes
34- Unicorn Woman by Gayl Jones
35- Eva’s Man by Gayl Jones
36- You Are Here edited by Ada Límon
37- Black Gold by Marguerite Henry
38- The Kentucky Oaks by Avalyn Hunter
39- Bourbonland by Edward Lee
40- Smoke and Pickles by Edward Lee
41- Buttermilk Graffiti by Edward Lee
42- The Gaga Mistake by Emma Straub
43- Julian is a Mermaid by Jessica Love
44- The Squish by Brianna Carzoo
45- The Berlin Letters by Katherine Reay
46- Horrorstor by Grady Hendrix
47- Finna by Nino Cipri
48- The Divorcees by Rowan Beaird
49- I’m Afraid You Have Dragons by Peter S. Beagle
50- The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle
Apps mentioned—Merlin app (birds)

S10:Ep222 - Summer Reading with Bookseller Sam Miller - 5/25/24

Our website - www.perksofbeingabooklover.com.Instagram - @perksofbeingabookloverpodFacebook - Perks of Being a Book Lover.To send us a message go to our website and click the Contact button.
May is Audiobook Appreciation Month so this week we suggest to you 10 plus books that give an added dimension when you listen to the audiobook version. And we aren't even entertaining the notion that listening to audiobooks isn't reading. Listening counts!
Books mentioned--
1- The Jinn Daughter by Rania Hanna
2- The Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller
3- Rules for Second Chances by Maggie North (A 5 star read recommended by fellow book lover Shannon Loar @shopcoffeekids
4- Invasion of the Body Snatchers by Jack Finney, narrated by Kristoffer Tabori
5- Taste: My Life Through Food by Stanley Tucci, narrated by Stanley Tucci
6- Nothing is Wrong and Here is Why by Alexandra Petri, narrated by Rebecca Gibel
7- Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson, narrated by Marin Ireland
8- The Assasination of Brangwain Spurge by MT Anderson and Eugene Yelchin narrated by Gildart Jackson
9- Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid, narrated by an ensemble cast
10- A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess, narrated by Tom Hollander
11- Heartbreak: A Personal and Scientific Journey by Florence Williams, narrated by author
12- Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam, narrated by Marin Ireland
13- Ava's Man by Rick Bragg
14-The Speckled Beauty: A Dog and his People by Rick Bragg
15- My Southern Journey: True Journeys from the Heart of the South by Rick Bragg
16- It's All Over But the Shoutin' by Rick Bragg
17- Calypso by David Sedaris
18- Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris
19- Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith, narrated by Bronson Pinchot
20- The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith
21- The Husbands by Holly Gramazio
22- The People of Paper by Salvador Plascencia
Movies and Shows mentioned--
1- Big Night (1996)
2- Stanley Tucci Searching for Italy (CNN)
3- The Hunger Games (2012)
4- The Devil Wears Prada (2006)
5- Daisy Jones and the Six (Amazon, 2023)
6- Leave the World Behind (Netflix, 2023)
7- Ripley (Netflix, 2024)

S10:Ep221 - Audiobook Appreciation Month: A Book Rec Episode - 5-8-24

Our website - www.perksofbeingabooklover.com.Instagram - @perksofbeingabookloverpodFacebook - Perks of Being a Book Lover.To send us a message go to our website and click the Contact button.
We interact with book publicists pretty often, but a few months ago, one of them, Sami Lien, emailed and asked for recommendations about things to do in Kentucky around Derby. She explained that she is in a travel book club; they read books over the course of 12 months about a particular US location and then take a trip to visit. The novel Horse by Geraldine Brooks was the book that inspired this particular trip for their club.
Well, we love books and travel so we had to invite Sami and her book club friend, Marilyn, to be guests on the show. We had a great time learning about the ins and outs of their travel book club and are excited to get to meet them this Friday at a restaurant about an hour outside of Louisville.
If you would like to see the full list of books they read this year preparing to travel to Kentucky and the Derby, you can find the list in the show notes.
Books Mentioned in the Episode:
1- Horse by Geraldine Brooks
2- Relative Strangers by A.H. Kim
3- Once Persuaded, Twice Shy by Melodie Edwards
4- 1984 by George Orwell
5- The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
6- Cannery Row by John Steinbeck
7- East of Eden by John Steinbeck
8- Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
9- Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand
10- South of Broad by Pat Conroy
11- My Reading Life by Pat Conroy
12- Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy
13- Lexington: The Extraordinary Life and Turbulent Times of America's Legendary Racehorse by Kim Wickens
14- Confederates in the Attic: Dispatches from the Unfinished Civil War by Tony Horwitz
15- Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon - A five star read recommended by fellow book lover Caitríona Shannon @these_thats_and_prose
16- Friday Harbor by DC Alexander
17- Blood in the Bluegrass by DC Alexander
18- Mary by Janis Cooke Newman
19- Not My Father's Son by Alan Cumming
20- Norah Goes Off Script by Annabel Monaghan
Shows mentioned--
1- Ripley (Netflix, 2024)
 
The Divine Destinations Reading List for Kentcuky and the KY Derby
1- Horse: A Novel by Geraldine Brooks
2- The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson
3- Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver
4- Seabiscuit: An American Legend by Laura Hillenbrand
5- Groundskeeping by Lee Cole
6- Icy Sparks by Gwyn Hyman Rubio
7- Lincoln by Russell Freedman
8- Water Street by Crystal Wilkinson
9- The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes
10- The Perfect Horse: The Daring U.S. Mission to Rescue the Priceless Stallions Kidnapped by the Nazis by Elizabeth Letts
11- First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston
12- The Patron Saint of Liars by Ann Patchett
13- Horse Crazy: The Story of a Woman and a World in Love with an Animal by Sarah Maslin Nir
14- Lexington by Kim Wickens

S8 Ep181 - Catch the June Reading Bug - 6-21-23

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