It's the Super Bowl for book lovers: the Tucson Festival of Books! It's the biggest book festival in Arizona, and it's happening at the University of Arizona on March 14 and 15 this year. There are hundreds of authors who will be there, including the headliners Salman Rushdie, Susan Lucci, and R.L. Stine. On this episode, we're joined by public librarian and Tucson-based author Sarah T. Dubb. She has advice if you're going for the first time, and she chats about her new romance book, "Honey Bee Mine." Dubb's first book, "Birding With Benefits," was made into a Hallmark movie!

If you're a fan of 90's rom-coms and cozy love stories, you're in luck! Romance favorite B.K. Borison is out with "And Now, Back to You." It's the second book in her "Heartstrings" series. B.K. joins the podcast to talk about her love of her hometown Baltimore, where the book is set, local news, and classics like "Sleepless in Seattle." 

Every year February is recognized as Black History Month, but there's an Arizona-based bookseller who has made it her mission to highlight Black authors all year long. On this episode we're joined by Petra Sherbin-Fox. She owns The Lit Twis't: the first Black-owned mobile bookstore in the Valley. Petra opened the shop after not being able to find books by authors she was looking for, particularly Black female authors. She joins our host, Whitney Clark, with a list of ten recommendations, including fiction and non-fiction.

That includes the following: 

"Hood Wellness: Tales of Communal Care from People Who Drowned on Dry Land" by Tamela J. Gordon

"A Renaissance of Our Own: A Memoir and Manifesto on Reimagining" by Rachel E. Cargle

"Ride Or Die: A Feminist Manifesto for the Well-Being of Black Women" by Shanita Hubbard

"A Long Song for Ricki Wilde" by Tia Williams

"Reel" by Kennedy Ryan

"Communion" by bell hooks

"Sula" by Toni Morrison

"The Girls Who Grew Big" by Leila Mottley

"Set Boundaries, Find Peace" by Nedra Glover Tawwab

"A Moth to a Flame" by Ashley Antoinette

Valentine's Day is just around the corner! If you're looking for a great romance book, we've got you covered. This week our host Whitney Clark is joined by two Arizona romance authors: Neely Tubati Alexander and Liana De la Rosa, who share their favorite picks. That includes "Honey Bee Mine" by Sarah T. Dubb and "The Magic of Untamed Hearts" by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland. They also talk about their own books, the magic of the Tucson Festival of Books and how the romance author community has grown in the Valley.

It's officially 2026 and we're in for another great year of reading! In this episode we're joined by Ali Jaksich, a book buyer for the Changing Hands Bookstore with locations in Phoenix and Tempe. She chats about how she picks books for the store, how she became a book buyer and how you can read more in 2026. 

From cookbooks, to horror and other fiction reads, here are Ali's most anticipated books of the year: "Operation Bounce House", by Matt Dinniman, "Ending Writes Itself" by Evelyn Clarke, "Crux" by Gabriel Tallent, "And Now Back to You" by B.K. Borison, "Fabulous Bodies" by Chuck Tingle, "Cooking con Claudia: Celebración!" by Claudia Regalado, "A Girl Like Her" by Talia Hibbert, "Chain of Ideas: The Origins of Our Authoritarian Age" by Ibram X. Kendi, "Seasons of Glass and Iron" by Amal El-Mohtar, and "Half His Age" by Jennette McCurdy.

The year has come to an end and it's time to talk about our favorite books of the year! In the final podcast episode of the year, our host Whitney Clark is sharing her favs. Here's a look at her top ten: 

If reading more is one of your New Year's resolutions, it's the perfect time to start or join a book club! This week, we're hearing from the founders of Not Your Average Book Club and The Lonely Girls Book Club. From audio book walks to bookish markets in Arizona and more, their clubs are creating a sense of community that so many are craving right now. They share their tips on how to start a book club, how to choose books for the group, and their favorite reads of the year. 

The holidays are here and no one embodies the holiday spirit more than Valley-based author Karen Schaler. She's out with a new book for the holidays called "A Ruff Royal Christmas." Karen joins the podcast to talk about her books and her work as a screenwriter and former journalist. She helped write the Netflix hit movie series "A Christmas Prince." Karen also chats about the journey of self-publishing and how she started writing movie scripts.

They are one of the original founders of BookTok, and now Cait Jacobs is out with their debut novel, "The Princess Knight." It features a princess who is desperate to win back the prince who broke her heart, so she follows him to his kingdom's military academy. On this week's episode, Cait talks with our host Whitney Clark about how their success on social media led to a publishing deal, the rise of "romantasy" and how they balance mental health challenges while also creating content. 

Temperatures are going down and it's time for Fall reads and books for the holidays! We're joined this week by our friends Melati Parker and Rylie Occhipinto from Wijaya House in Tempe: a bookstore, flower and craft shop! From horror, dark academia and the classics, our host Whitney Clark also has some recommendations as well. A few of the favorites for this season include "Little Women" by Louisa May Alcott, "Something Wicked This Way Comes" by Ray Bradbury, and "The Secret History" by Donna Tartt.