Big Book Energy

Sitting Down With Florida Man

This week, BBE welcomes the Florida Men on Florida Man podcast back to the show. Jennifer sits down with Wayne to discuss Dave Berry’s book, Best State Ever, a heartfelt defense of his beloved state of Florida. 

Episode Highlights

• Sponges. Yes, sponges. We know, you're hooked already.
• The Villages: your favorite quasi-dystopian retirement community.
• When are you considered a Floridian? What about a Mainer?
• The Skunk Ape makes an appearance, which is unsurprising given Jennifer’s Bigfoot obsession.
• Anecdotes on alligators are shared.
• If you're in Florida and want to go to a beautiful park with a lighthouse, check out St. Mark's National Wildlife Refuge.
• What do you think the best state ever is and why? The answers may [not] surprise you.

Connect with Florida Men On Florida Man

• Interesting in learning more about Florida Man? Find them on your favorite podcasting app.
• Or check out their website.
• Or their supremely ~aesthetic~ Instagram.

Support the Pod

• Find BBE on Instagram
• Visit the Bookshop Store
• Buy Me A Coffee!
• Don’t forget to leave us a review if you are enjoying the pod.

*Some of the links above are affiliate links and I will receive commission from any purchases made through them*

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The Never-To-Be-Read List

This week Jennifer gives a [belated] look at her 2021 reading and talks about her reading goals for 2022. Yes, she knows that it is already March.

Paige Presents Webtoons: One of Jennifer’s latest Webtoon obsessions, The Gentle Way follows the Judo practitioner Jun as she learns how to confront her fears and overcome her anxiety. Super cute, romance vibes, but also great lessons on how to live your life bravely and authentically.

Visit the author's Instagram or Patreon if you want more!

Episode Highlights

• Did Jennifer reach her 2021 reading goals of 80 books and reading all the unread books on her shelf? No. No she did not.
• Trying to pick more reasonable goals for 2022 reading.
• Please help Jennifer figure out how to read the books she already owns. Please.
• Jennifer introduces the slightly re-imagined segment: Paige Presents Webtoons

Support the Pod

• Find BBE on Instagram
• Visit the Bookshop Store
• Buy Me A Coffee!
• Don’t forget to leave us a review if you are enjoying the pod.

*Some of the links above are affiliate links and I will receive commission from any purchases made through them*

Support the show

BBE is transitioning to a new phase. One that unfortunately lacks Paige. Tune in to hear about her new adventures, plans for the future, and a wrap up of season 4. Stay tuned for a new phase of BBE where Jennifer will continue to bring you all the bookish content you could hope for!

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Listen along as we take a dive into what some might consider fanfiction. Whether or not it is, we here at BBE loved hearing Captain Wentworth's side of the Persuasion story.

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Paige needed to compensate for the discomfort brought on by reading a spicy romance novel. She went with aliens.

Area 51, by Bob Mayer

• Learn more about the author and his books on his website.
• Want to read about flying saucers and shadowy military ops? Support us by buying a copy from our Bookshop store.

Paige Presents Fun with Comics: Jennifer talks Webtoon Like Wind On A Dry Branch. Click on for some plague, demons, and magic.

Creative’s Corner: For some amazing commentary content and zany original music, check out YouTuber Münecat.

Discussion Questions

• Why did Paige pick this book?
• What did Jennifer think of the alien insanity?
• Do we have any more "wild" sci-fi reads to recommend?
• Given Mayer’s military background, what do we think about the negative depiction of the military in this book?
  • Insert Jennifer talking about Stargate a lot again

Support the Pod

• Find us on Instagram
• Find us on Twitter
• Don’t forget to leave us a review if you are enjoying the pod.

*Some of the links above are affiliate links and we will receive commission from any purchases made through them*

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Bring the Romance: Jennifer’s Fav Spicy Webtoons

Carrying on the trend of our July episode, Jennifer dives into some of her favorite ~spicy~ romance Webtoons. With some incredible stories and art, this is just another reason to download the app and get reading stat.

Some of Jennifer’s fav spicy Webtoons:

• Freaking Romance
• At Arm’s Length
• Let’s Play
• SubZero
• Midnight Poppy Land

Support the Pod

• Find us on Instagram
• Find us on Twitter
• Don’t forget to leave us a review if you are enjoying the pod.
• Check out our Bookshop store!

*Some of the links above are affiliate links and we will receive commission from any purchases made through them*

Support the show

BBE branches out with this month's pick into uncomfortable territory for both Jennifer and Paige (but mostly Paige). Tune in to hear out thoughts on our first Guilty Pleasure Pick: The Kiss Quotient.

The Kissing Quotient, by Helen Hoang

• Learn more about the author on her website.
• Want in on the spice? Grab a copy for yourself on our Bookshop store.

Paige Presents Fun with Comics: Girls of the Wild’s on Webtoon.

Creative’s Corner: Paige serves up an Iceland-inspired podcast: Saga Thing. Hosted by two professors, get an entertaining breakdown of Icelandic literature.

Discussion Questions

• Why did Jennifer choose The Kiss Quotient as a guilty pleasure book?
• I [Jennifer] am dying to know what you [Paige] thought of this book, it is very outside our normal range of reading
• What were your favorite or least favorite spicy moments?

Support the Pod

• Find us on Instagram
• Find us on Twitter
• Don’t forget to leave us a review if you are enjoying the pod.

*Some of the links above are affiliate links and we will receive commission from any purchases made through them*

Support the show

Shame, Shame: An Intro to Guilty Pleasure Reads

In this first episode of BBE Shorts, Jennifer spends some time musing over what “guilty pleasure reads” means to her, and even reveals some of her favs to fall back on when she’s feeling down. She also explores what our listeners think of as guilty pleasure reads and hints at future episodes that dig more into why we feel guilty about reading certain things rather than others.

Some of Jennifer’s fav guilty pleasure reads:

• Any Jane Austen books
• Mr. Darcy’s Diary
• Captain Wentworth’s Diary
• Anything by Eva Ibbotson
• Crown Duel by Sherwood Smith
• Radiance by Grace Draven and company
• Winternight Trilogy by Elizabeth Arden
• Then honestly probably some of my fav webtoons that I read and re-read over again, which I am already planning on mentioning those more in a later episode.
• Interested in any of these books? Some of them are available on our Bookshop store!

Questions Jennifer Asks

• What do I think of when I think of guilty pleasure reads?
• What other genres or specific books do people classify as ‘guilty pleasure’?
• Where does this guilt come from?

Support the Pod

• Find us on Instagram
• Find us on Twitter
• Don’t forget to leave us a review if you are enjoying the pod.

*Some of the links above are affiliate links and we will receive commission from any purchases made through them*

Support the show

As you may remember, we experienced some technical difficulties back in February and weren't able to release our normally scheduled episode. Well, we're back with Tiger's Daughter, for real this time. Tune in to hear our lost episode and what Paige thinks about this Mongol inspired pick.

Mythology & Folklore: Mongolia

Here are the references Paige used for Mongolian mythology:

• http://www.antor.org/mongolia-culture.html
• https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/oi/authority.20110803110143814
• https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erlik
• https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%9Clgen

Paige Presents Fun with Comics: This week, Jennifer raves about the adorable Down To Earth.

The Tiger’s Daughter, K. Arsenault Rivera

• Keep up with the author by visiting her website.
• Interested in the story? Buy a copy for yourself and support the podcast!

Creative’s Corner: want some vintage editions of works by black authors? Maybe a custom curation in your chosen topic? Look no further than Good Books Atlanta, a mother-daughter duo dedicated to providing the best of blackness in literature. You can also check out their instagram!

Discussion Questions

• Have you ever read anything with a Mongol influence?
• What do you think about Shizuka and Shefali’s relationship?
• What is Paige’s perspective on critiques of The Tiger’s Daughter?
  • https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2032356303?book_show_action=true&from_review_page=1
  • https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/1999199519?book_show_action=true&from_review_page=1

Support the Pod

• Find us on Instagram
• Find us on Twitter
• Don’t forget to leave us a review if you are enjoying the pod.

*Some of the links above are affiliate links and we will receive commission from any purchases made through them*

Support the show

For our final bonus episode of this season, our coworker Dianna has come on to talk about Period Power. Let us know what you think! We may have a part 2 in store for you!

Period Power, by Maisie Hill

• Visit the author’s website to learn more about her and her work.
• Purchase a copy for yourself and support the podcast at the same time!

Folio Facts: This month, Paige tackles the witch hunting manual, Malleus Maleficarum, which translates to Hammer of the Witches! Despite an awesome name, this book was written by a terrible dude, Heinrich Krammer, in 1486, and was used to persecute many suspected witches in the centuries that followed. Interested in learning more? Check out this video by the Law Library of Congress on their copy, or this video by Story To Tell.

Discussion Questions

• How do you feel about Eastern/Traditional Chinese Medicines and Hill’s take on a lot of weastern period related medicines? (i.e. the pill)
• Do you feel like her overview in chapter one gave you new, or even surprising information, NOT covered in “sex ed”?
• What are our thoughts on Hill’s recommendation for diet to support our cycle?

Support the Pod

• Find us on Instagram
• Find us on Twitter
• Don’t forget to leave us a review if you are enjoying the pod.

Support the show