Book Gang

Head to the Arctic with Nathaniel Ian Miller and discover the true story that inspired his debut, The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven, for our final episode of 2025.

For our final episode of 2025, we’re bringing forward a beloved conversation from the Book Gang archives with debut novelist Nathaniel Ian Miller, discussing his magical winter read, The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven, and the enduring pull of a great winter story with found-family themes. This episode originally aired for patrons in 2023, and it felt like the perfect moment to share it more widely, along with some gentle reflections from this year, including YOUR best book club book of the year.

In this funny conversation, we discuss:

• 📚 Writing at the edge of the world: How Nathaniel’s participation in the Arctic Circle Expeditionary Program—partly born out of the very real cost barriers of research—became foundational to this charming book’s atmosphere and authenticity.
• 📚 The freedom of a “fictional memoir”: Why Sven’s story demanded a looser, more intimate form, how his character surprised Nathaniel as the novel evolved, and why this mid-thirties coming-of-age story feels as expansive as the frozen landscape itself.
• 📚 How real historical events anchored the characters and scenes in this story: From writing morally complex moments that challenged the author’s own convictions to rethinking the historical role of women in polar narratives, Nathaniel unpacks the layered choices that give Sven’s world its depth.

📚 BONUS BOOK LIST: Don't miss this week's celebration of winter reads- 25 Impeccable Winter Books to Savor by the Firelight. Patrons will receive printable checklists for their next visit to the library!

Nathaniel Ian Miller is the author of the critically acclaimed debut novel The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven, longlisted for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize and translated into five languages. A former journalist for newspapers across New Mexico, Colorado, Wisconsin, and Montana, he now lives with his family on a farm in Vermont. The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven and Red Dog Farm, his second novel, are both available on store shelves now.

Download Today's Show Transcript

Buy Me a Coffee - I'm grateful for your support this year!

NEW BOOK LIST: 25 Impeccable Winter Books To Savor By the Firelight

2026 MomAdvice Book Club Books (All 12 Selections)

Brick For Your Phone

Hamnet Movie Trailer

How to Read a Book by Monica Wood

The Memoirs of Stockholm Sven by Nathaniel Ian Miller 

Mosquitoland by David Arnold 

NYT Review

Sundays with Writers: Mosquitoland by David Arnold

London Seance Society by Sarah Penner 

Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner 

The Birthday Boys by Dame Beryl Bainbridge

Expeditionary program at Arctic Circle

Salomon Andree

The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle by Matt Cain 

A Woman in the Polar Night by Christiane Ritter 

Refiners Fire by Mark Helprin 

Power of One by Bryce Courtenay 

Borstal Boy by Brendan Behan 

Office Space Flair

Wanny Woldstad

Svalbard’s Daughters

John Franklin’s Canadian expedition

Bookshop.org pays a 10% commission on every sale and matches it with 10% to support independent bookstores.

Join the Book Gang Patreon

Connect With Nathaniel Ian Miller on Instagram or his Website

Connect with Amy on Instagram, TikTok, or MomAdvice

Get My Happy List Newsletter

Get the Daily Kindle Deals Newsletter

Get ahead of 2026’s biggest releases this year. We highlight ten must-read backlist books from authors with upcoming titles, so you have your best library day.

What could be better than a discussion on 2026’s biggest releases? We wanted to do something fun (and genuinely helpful) to help you plan next year's TBR. Today, Jessica Bearak is back, and she’s bringing her idea to pair readers with books we don’t want slipping through the cracks. We’ve gathered ten brilliant backlist titles from authors with major books arriving next year, so you can reserve your library holds, fill your Kindle, and feel delightfully ahead of the curve before celebrating their next book. Think of it as your literary pre-game for the year ahead.

In this fun conversation, we discuss:

• 📚 A literary pre-game you can actually use: Jessica and I kick things off with the ten major 2026 releases we’ve got our eyes on—so you can start plotting your reading year long before the hype machine starts spinning.
• 📚 Backlist gems to read while you wait: We pair each upcoming title with a backlist book you can grab right now at your library or favorite bookstore, giving you something delicious to dive into while you count down to release day.
• 📚What the buzzy lists missed: We close by chatting about the standout books we think deserved more end-of-year attention—because great reads don’t always make the roundups, and we’re here to fix that.

📚 BONUS BOOK LIST: Don't miss this week's new book guide! 47 Fresh 2026 Book Releases to Reserve Now. Patrons will receive printable checklists for their next visit to the library!

Jessica is a lifelong book lover who embarked on her literary journey at three, immersing herself in childhood classics like “The Velveteen Rabbit” and “The Phantom Tollbooth.” Jessica actively participates in two in-person book clubs and regularly engages in many online discussions. She has been an invaluable member of the MomAdvice Book Club.

Download Today's Show Transcript

Buy Me a Coffee - I'm grateful for your support this year!

Join the December Book Club TONIGHT at 8 PM ET (James by Percival Everett)

NEW BOOK LIST: 47 Fresh 2026 Book Releases to Reserve Now

Once and Again by Rebecca Serle 

Expiration Dates by Rebecca Serle 

Friends Are For by Wade Rouse 

Magic Season by Wade Rouse 

A Day in the Life of a Book Publicist (Kathleen Carter Episode)

Off the Record by Sara Goodman-Confino 

Don’t Forget to Write by Sara Goodman-Confino 

Score by Kennedy Ryan 

Reel by Kennedy Ryan 

The Kennedy Ryan Phenomenon: Inclusive Narratives with Heart (Kennedy Ryan Episode)

Orson Welles Voodoo Macbeth

Dog Person by Camille Pagán 

The Spectacular Life Lessons from Books About Road Trips with Colleen Oakley (Podcast with Colleen Oakley)

A Dog’s Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron

Stunning Books About Bookstores (Book List)

Life and Other Near-Death Experiences by Camille Pagán 

Meg Shaffer Interview (The Wishing Game)

The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer 

How Braving a Literary Seminar Shaped The Last Story with Meg Shaffer (Interview with Meg Shaffer)

The Book Witch by Meg Shaffer 

The Lost Story by Meg Shaffer 

Cozy Fantasy Books to Lower Your Stress Levels (Book List)

Five by Ilona Bannister 

All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker 

When I Ran Away by Ilona Bannister 

Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline 

The Foursome by Christina Baker Kline 

A Piece of the World by Christine Baker Kline 

35 Books About Twins That Double the Drama (Book List)

Christina’s World painting

Liberty Street by Heather Marshall 

Looking for Jane by Heather Marshall

The Jane Collective 

All You Have To Do Is Call by Kerri Maher 

Ask for Jane

The Janes

Eleanor of Avignon by Elizabeth DeLozier 

With Love From Harlem by ReShonda Tate 

The Queen of Sugar Hill by ReShonda Tate 

Good Joy, Bad Joy by Mikki Brammer 

The Collected Regrets of Clover by Mikki Brammer 

Mad Mabel by Sally Hepworth 

The Burning Side by Sarah Damoff 

The Bright Years by Sarah Damoff 

Sarah Damoff - The Bright Years Podcast Interview

The Sideways Life of Denny Voss by Holly Kennedy

Bookshop.org pays a 10% commission on every sale and matches it with 10% to support independent bookstores.

Join the Book Gang Patreon

Connect With Jessica on Instagram

Connect with Amy on Instagram, TikTok, or MomAdvice

Get My Happy List Newsletter

Get the Daily Kindle Deals Newsletter

Join the 2026 MomAdvice Book Club to explore 12 handpicked novels, enjoy lively author chats, and celebrate a year of stories that inspire and delight.

Get ready to kick off another unforgettable reading year with the 2026 MomAdvice Book Club. In this episode, I’m unveiling my twelve handpicked selections—an extraordinary lineup of novels that challenge perspective and remind us what it means to live bravely and wholeheartedly.

I read widely and intentionally all year so that every MomAdvice pick feels worthy of your time, your library holds, your gift lists, and your precious reading hours. Announcing the selections early means you can gather copies however is easiest for you. Shop the library, used shops, holiday gifting, or straight from your favorite indie bookshop this year.

To discover this year's selections, you can head to today's post, which includes all the details, including the recommended format, the reading mood of the novel, and pacing information. Each description also offers the accompanying reader experience for each book.

I've also uploaded a podcast that goes through each of these books for those of you who prefer an audio experience with some behind-the-scenes details. Please join me on this reading adventure!

This year, your participation in the book club directly supports the podcast and sustains a space where readers can connect deeply over stories that genuinely matter. Thank you for choosing this space to invest in. I never take it for granted!

Join the 2026 Book Club

Make a One-Time Donation to My Show (SO, SO GRATEFUL THIS YEAR!!)

Connect with Amy on Instagram, TikTok, or MomAdvice

Get My Happy List Newsletter

Get the Daily Kindle Deals Newsletter

Marisa Kashino turns being new to publishing into a superpower, revealing her surprising journey from first draft to the darkly funny thriller, Best Offer Wins.

Being brand-new to publishing turned out to be this author's secret weapon in landing her book deal. This week on Book Gang, we’re stepping into the ruthless, dream-chasing world of real estate with Marisa Kashino, journalist and author of Best Offer Wins. She shares how the freedom from expectations fueled her thriller's creativity and story structure, how her query journey unfolded with unexpected serendipity, and why stepping into fiction opened doors she never imagined… including an adaptation already in the works.

In this heartwarming and hilarious conversation, we discuss:

• 📚 From Reporting to Satire – Marisa shares how years of covering bidding wars, desperate buyers, and high-stakes real estate inspired her darkly funny take on ambition. Writing as Margo allowed Marisa to channel humor, frustration, and sharp social commentary she could never express out loud through Margot's antics.
• 📚 Subtle Social Commentary – Margot's Asian American identity informs elements of this story, and Marisa shares personal experiences that have shaped these plot elements that informed Margo’s choices, her humor, and the unexpected ways readers may connect with her story.
• 📚 A Secret Project Turns Big – Marisa kept her novel under wraps until she secured an agent, and now it’s heading toward an adaptation with 20th TV, Hulu, and Greta Lee attached. She talks about the thrill of sharing this milestone, how her family reacted, and the joy of seeing a private creative project reach the world.

📚 BONUS BOOK LIST: Don't miss this week's companion book list: 23 Dark Comedy Books That Embrace the Absurd. Patrons will receive printable checklists to take on their next visit to the library!

Marisa Kashino spent 17 years as a journalist, most recently at The Washington Post, and wrote long-form features and oversaw home design coverage at Washingtonian Magazine. She grew up near Seattle and earned her degree in journalism and political science from the University of Washington. Marisa lives in the DC area with her husband, two dogs, and two cats. Best Offer Wins is her first novel.

Download Today's Show Transcript

Buy Me a Coffee - I'm grateful for your support this year!

Join the November Book Club TONIGHT at 8 PM ET (Weyward by Emilia Hart)

NEW BOOK LIST: 23 Dark Comedy Books That Embrace The Absurd

Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino

The Writer’s Center

The Shit No One Tells You About Writing

Yellowface by R. F. Kuang

Bad Summer People by Emma Rosenblum

Beef

Austin Taylor - Notes on Infinity Podcast Interview

Lean In by Sheryl Sandburg

Greta Lee

Allegra Goodman - Isola Podcast Interview

Bookshop.org pays a 10% commission on every sale and matches it with 10% to support independent bookstores.

Join the Book Gang Patreon

Connect with Marisa Kashino on Instagram

Connect with Amy on Instagram, TikTok, or MomAdvice

Get My Happy List Newsletter

Get the Daily Kindle Deals Newsletter

Discover the writing hack that Emma Pattee uncovered with a creativity coach, which helped her debut novel, Tilt, transition from her Google Drive to publication.

Emma Pattee, climate journalist and fiction writer, joins the Book Gang podcast to discuss her heartpounding debut novel, Tilt. In Tilt, we follow a pregnant woman through a single, intense day as an earthquake hits Portland, where Pattee blends the chaos of the city with the intimate messiness of her marriage and motherhood journey.

In our virtual walk with Emma through Portland, we explore:

📚 How ADHD and journalism shaped her craft– Emma discusses how a creativity coach helped unlock a new writing system that helped her finally move a project off her Google Drive into a finished book. We discuss the heavy and rarely discussed weight of unfinished projects as creatives.

📚 Reporting meets fiction – As a climate journalist, Emma discusses her research-heavy novel that involved interviews with geologists, seismic engineers, and first responders, worked off real destruction maps and city-planning data, then translated it into the book we hold in our hands now.

📚 Survival, motherhood & climate anxiety intertwined – Tilt uses the impending "Big One" earthquake as a metaphor for Annie's journey to motherhood, where Emma discusses her stream-of-consciousness voice that keeps the reader inside one woman's daylong survival trek and how it intertwines with Emma's personal fears and discoveries.

📚 Bonus Book List – These 23 eco fiction books will have you looking at the world in a whole new way. Marvel at our remarkable connection to nature through this incredible stack. Patrons will receive a printable checklist to take on your next library trip.

Emma Pattee is a climate journalist and fiction writer whose work has appeared in The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, and more. In 2021, she coined the term "Climate Shadow" to describe an individual's potential impact on climate change. Her debut novel, Tilt, is a National Bestseller, NYT Editor's Choice, and recognized by NPR, Time, Vogue, and Bustle as one of the best books of the year. She lives in Portland, Oregon.

Download Today's Show Transcript

Buy Me a Coffee - I'm grateful for your support this year!

Join the November Book Club 11/21 at 8 PM ET (Weyward by Emilia Hart)

NEW BOOK LIST: 23 Eco Fiction Books You'll Love

NEW: 32-Page November Reading Guide & FULLY BOOKED Patron Show

Tilt by Emma Pattee

Hillary Rettig

Alison Larkin - Home of the American Circus Podcast Episode

Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellmann

The Truth About Portland’s Brick Schools Is Scarier Than Fiction

Dr. Katherine Hayhoe

Bookshop.org pays a 10% commission on every sale and matches it with 10% to support independent bookstores.

Join the Book Gang Patreon

Connect with Emma Pattee on Instagram or her Website

Connect with Amy on Instagram, TikTok, or MomAdvice

Get My Happy List Newsletter

Get the Daily Kindle Deals Newsletter

Discover Pagebound, the social reading app by Lucy Zhao & Jennifer Dobak. Learn how to gamify your reading life from quests to forums in today's beginner chat.

Ever wish Goodreads had a heart or deeply desired a buddy read for every book in your book stack? It exists. This week, we're stepping inside Pagebound, the new social reading app built by readers for readers, with co-founders Lucy Zhao and Jennifer Dobak.

This week's "building block" podcast episode is designed to deepen your reading life and provide a behind-the-scenes look at tools you can use to enhance it. Discover how these two women built a no-AI, reader-first platform that's reimagining how we connect through stories online.

In this enlightening conversation, we discuss:

• 📚 The Origin Story: Learn how Lucy Zhao and Jennifer Dobak transformed their shared love of reading into a bold tech venture built from scratch. From late-night coding sessions to their first "scrappy" testers, they share what it really takes to launch a reader-first social platform in an industry long dominated by giants.
• 📚 A Human-Centered Platform: Learn how Pagebound's no-AI promise and book-by-book forum model create genuine connections instead of algorithmic noise. The founders explain why every title deserves its own conversation and how thoughtful design shaped the community from day one.
• 📚 Gamifying the Reading Life: Explore how Pagebound is transforming the way we engage with our books through clever, joy-filled features like reading quests and milestone interactions that encourage active community membership, bringing a sense of adventure back to your reading life.

Lucy Zhao grew up as a cheeky kid, always carrying a book. She studied creative writing and business at the University of Michigan and has spent the last decade leading tech startups and launching products. Her favorite authors include James McBride, Maggie Nelson, and Jonathan Franzen. She lives with her toy aussiedoodle, Libby, and loves ice-cold watermelon slices.

Jennifer Dobak studied Economics, French, and Italian at the University of Notre Dame before becoming a software engineer. When she's not coding, she's hanging out at her local indie bookstore. Her favorite authors include Lauren Groff, Mona Awad, and V.E. Schwab. She's a lifelong writer herself and is currently chasing her dream of finishing her own novel.

Download Today's Show Transcript

Buy Me a Coffee - I'm grateful for your support this year!

Join the November Book Club 11/21 at 8 PM ET (Weyward by Emilia Hart)

NEW: 32-Page November Reading Guide & FULLY BOOKED Patron Show

Pagebound

Follow Book Gang on Pagebound (let's be friends!)

Building Block Episode ICYMI: How the Storygraph App Can Enhance

Building Block Episode ICYMI: Get the Most Out of the Libby App (Podcast With the Libby Team)

Building Block Episode ICYMI: Improve Your Reading Focus & Memory (Hacks for Readers With ADHD)

Building Block Episode ICYMI: The Best Reading Hacks for Chronic Pain

Phantasma by Kaylie Smith

Enchantra by Kaylie Smith

The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett

1984 by George Orwell

A Crash Course in Gothic Fiction with Erin Crosby Eckstine

Bookshop.org pays a 10% commission on every sale and matches it with 10% to support independent bookstores.

Join the Book Gang Patreon

Connect with Pagebound on Instagram or their Website

Connect with Amy on Instagram, TikTok, or MomAdvice

Get My Happy List Newsletter

Get the Daily Kindle Deals Newsletter

Take a crash course in Gothic fiction with Junie author Erin Crosby Eckstine as we trace the genre's origins, evolution, and enduring allure.

Erin returns to Book Gang to share what surprised her most about debut life and what she's learned about balancing writing, book promotion, and an ever-growing TikTok community. Then, we dive deep into the eerie, elegant world of Gothic literature — where decaying mansions, stormy moors, and family secrets reflect the darkness within.

If you've ever wondered what makes a book Gothic, how the genre evolved from the 18th century to the present day, or how writers can utilize Gothic techniques to explore contemporary fears, this episode is your guided tour through the creeping shadows, courtesy of a former English teacher.

In this illuminating conversation, we discuss:

• 📚 Debut Surprises: What Erin learned from releasing Junie and how this political moment is impacting visibility, sales, and future book deals for BIPOC authors like her.
• 📚 A Gothic 101 Deep Dive: Erin breaks down the key elements of Gothic fiction, from its origins in 18th-century England to how modern writers are reimagining it today.
• 📚 Erin's Top 5 Gothic Fiction Recommendations: Erin shares her top five picks for your books that include modern Gothic fiction that continue to illuminate today's anxieties — about identity, race, power, and belonging — through atmosphere and suspense.

Erin Crosby Eckstine is an author of speculative historical fiction. Her debut novel, Junie, was selected for the Good Morning America book club. Born in Montgomery, Alabama, Eckstine grew up between the South and Los Angeles before moving to New York City to attend Barnard College. She earned a master's in secondary English education from Stanford University and taught high school English for six years. She lives in Brooklyn with her partner and their cats.

📚 BONUS BOOK LIST: Don't miss this week's TWO companion reading guides to continue your Gothic education: 11 Classic Gothic Novels That Started It All and 30 Modern Gothic Novels That Keep the Candle Burning. Patrons will receive printable checklists to take on their next visit to the library!

Download Today's Show Transcript

Join the November Book Club 11/21 at 8 PM ET (Weyward by Emilia Hart)

NEW BOOK LIST: 11 Classic Gothic Novels That Started It All

NEW BOOK LIST: 30 Modern Gothic Novels That Keep the Candle Burning

Junie by Erin Crosby Eckstine

How Family History & Legacy Shaped Junie (Erin Crosby Eckstine's First Episode on Book Gang)

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

The Secret History by Donna Tartt

The Odyssey by Homer

Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë

The Lives of the Brontës

To Walk Invisible The Brontë Sisters

Kanopy app

Shirley by Charlotte Brontë

Vilette by Charlotte Brontë

The Lilac People by Milo Todd

Brick

Beloved by Toni Morrison

William Faulkner

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas

The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende

Why Is The New "Wuthering Heights" Movie Stirring Controversy?

Saltburn

We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

Our Share of the Night by Mariana Enriquez

Bleak House by Charles Dickens

Bookshop.org pays a 10% commission on every sale and matches it with 10% to support independent bookstores.

Join the Book Gang Patreon

Connect with Erin Crosby Eckstine on Instagram or their Website

Connect with Amy on Instagram, TikTok, or MomAdvice

Get My Happy List Newsletter

Get the Daily Kindle Deals Newsletter

Go behind the scenes with Bindery Books to discover their innovative publishing process, where tastemakers reshape how diverse books are made and sold.

In this week's episode, we sit down with Matt Kaye, cofounder and CEO of Bindery Books, to explore how his multifaceted career—from traditional publishing to Amazon to Patreon—shaped a bold new model for the book world.

Matt shares how the company identifies and empowers their carefully selected Tastemakers who curate, acquire, and co-develop books, offering listeners a rare, inside look at how these partnerships work from manuscript to marketing. Discover how the company tackles its small business challenges and the heartwarming pride that infuses many of its published works, including a project that's even captured the attention of celebrities.

In this enlightening conversation, we discuss:

• 📚 From Publishing to Patreon: Matt Kaye shares his unique publishing background and how he merged the best of all his past work experiences in tech and publishing to inspire Bindery's distinctive hybrid model that leverages influencers into the role of tastemakers.
• 📚 The Tastemaker Model: Discover how Bindery curates its diverse lineup of Tastemakers, their roles in involving fans in the publishing process, and the commissions available for each book sale.
• 📚 A New Author Experience: Matt discusses why writers are thriving under this partnership model, from fairer royalties to hands-on creative collaboration and nimble, audience-first publicity cycles.

📚 BONUS BOOK LIST: Instead of our usual companion list, I'm pointing you directly to Bindery Books this week as a thank you for their participation on today's show! Browse their catalog of offerings and meet the incredible tastemakers shaping each story.

Matt started his career as a book marketer in publishing (Avalon, Wiley, FSG). After earning a Columbia Business School MBA, he joined the Amazon Books team, where he held several tech roles, including VP of Growth at the seed-stage startup Inkshares, Head of Growth and Engagement at Trulia, and, most recently, Head of Product, Design, and Research at Patreon. Matt now serves as cofounder and CEO of Bindery Books.

Download Today's Show Transcript

How the Storygraph App Can Enhance Your Reading Life (Podcast With the CEO)

Get the Most Out of the Libby App (Podcast With the Libby Team)

Join the October Book Club TONIGHT at 8 PM ET (Diavola by Jennifer Thorne)

Bindery Books

Holly Kennedy - The Sideways Life of Denny Vos episode

The Sideways Life of Denny Voss by Holly Kennedy

Audiobrary

The Unmapping by Denise S. Robbins

Of Monsters and Mainframes by Barbara Truelove

Bindery's Pitchfest

This is Not a Test by Courtney Summers

Recipes for an Unexpected Afterlife by Deston J Munden

Meg's Tearoom

Deston Munden

Bookshop.org pays a 10% commission on every sale and matches it with 10% to support independent bookstores.

Join the Book Gang Patreon

Connect with Bindery Books on Instagram or their Website

Connect with Amy on Instagram, TikTok, or MomAdvice

Get My Happy List Newsletter

Get the Daily Kindle Deals Newsletter

Debut novelist Olivia Muenter joins Book Gang to discuss her hit debut, Such a Bad Influence, and the dark side of online fame in her real and imagined worlds.

What happens when your child becomes famous? In Such a Bad Influence, Olivia Muenter pulls back the curtain on the innocent early days of a fictional family's online moment that went viral, to later reveal the insidious nature of the influencer era when fame and fortune find them.

A self-described "recovering influencer," Olivia shares how her debut became a sharp, emotional page-turner and the ways her work as an influencer tied into her more complicated truths in this mixed media thriller.

In this revealing conversation, we discuss:

📚 Unlearning the Influencer Mindset – Olivia shares what it really means to be a "recovering influencer," the habits that were hardest to break, and how her social media past shaped her storytelling voice.

📚 Choosing an Independent Path with Quirk Books – Olivia shares why partnering with a boutique publisher was the right fit for her debut, from the creative freedom it offered to the close-knit collaboration that helped Such a Bad Influence find its perfect audience.

📚 The Hidden Cost of Kid Influencing – Olivia discusses the unsettling realities of children growing up online to create family content and explores how she used her unsent newsletters to craft a mixed media experience for readers, illustrating the struggles long after the cameras stop rolling.

📚 BONUS BOOK LIST: Don't miss this week's fun companion book, 18 influencer books that are as unputdownable as your favorite feed.  Patrons will also receive today's printable checklist to take on their next visit to the library.

Olivia Muenter is a writer, reader, and the co-host of the Bad on Paper podcast. Her first novel, Such A Bad Influence was an instant USA Today Best Seller. Her second novel, Little One, will be published in 2026.

A former fashion & beauty editor and freelance writer, Olivia's work has been published in Glamour, Byrdie, Bustle, Brides, Health.com, Philadelphia Magazine, and more. You can find her most personal writing via her weekly newsletter, where she shares about her life, her work, and everything in between.

Download Today's Show Transcript

NEW BOOK LIST: 18 Page-Turning Influencer Books

Join the October Book Club on 10/24 at 8 PM ET (Diavola by Jennifer Thorne)

Such a Bad Influence by Olivia Muenter

Bad On Paper Podcast

Little One by Olivia Muenter

Shark Heart by Emily Habeck

How Shark Heart Transformed Emily Habeck and Her Readers

Bad Influence

Improve Your Reading Memory and Focus

I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jenette McCurdy

Bookshop.org pays a 10% commission on every sale and matches it with 10% to support independent bookstores.

Join the Book Gang Patreon

Connect with Olivia Muenter on Instagram or her Website

Connect with Amy on Instagram, TikTok, or MomAdvice

Get My Happy List Newsletter

Get the Daily Kindle Deals Newsletter

Author Ashley Jordan joins Book Gang to share her LitUp Fellowship journey to launch her debut, Once Upon a Time in Dollywood, and how fanfiction paved her path.

Ashley Jordan, a Reese's Book Club LitUp Fellow, joins us this week to share the story behind her sparkling debut Once Upon a Time in Dollywood—a romance that pairs laugh-out-loud humor with deeply emotional storytelling.

In this light conversation, we discuss:

📚 From Fanfic to Fellowship – Ashley reflects on how writing The Walking Dead fanfiction taught her the building blocks of writing and how that experience led her to being named a Reese's Book Club LitUp Fellow, complete with her dream mentorship and a writer's retreat that transformed her creative process.

📚 Rewriting the Narrative for Black Women – Through her protagonist Eve, a playwright determined to tell Black women's stories that aren't defined by pain, Ashley explores how joy, ambition, and love can coexist with realism. We discuss why expanding the lens on representation in romance matters now more than ever.

📚 Dollywood, Therapy, and the Soft Boyfriend We Deserve – Ashley shares how setting the story in Dollywood allowed her to capture the magic of Southern charm, how she approached writing therapy with nuance and heart, and why she wanted Jamie—a self-described "cinnamon roll" love interest—to reflect a gentler kind of masculinity in today's romance landscape.

📚 BONUS BOOK LIST: Don't miss this week's juicy companion book list filled with the best books about theater to step behind the curtain with these compelling stories of complex lives, both on and off the stage. Patrons will also receive today's printable checklist to take on their next visit to the library.

Ashley Jordan is a millennial from Atlanta by way of Brooklyn. She attended Spelman College, earning a degree in Psychology and a lifelong appreciation for women's stories. By day, she works in public health, and by night, she's a devoted writer—ever since penning her first short story in second grade.

When Ashley isn't writing or working, she's likely at a Beyoncé concert, rewatching Mad Men, or passionately debating basketball. In 2023, she became a Reese's Book Club LitUp Fellow, an experience that helped shape her journey to publishing Once Upon a Time in Dollywood.

Download Today's Show Transcript

NEW BOOK LIST: 22 Incredible Books About Theater

Join the October Book Club on 10/24 at 8 PM ET (Diavola by Jennifer Thorne)

Once Upon a Time in Dollywood by Ashley Jordan

Lemonade

Celebrating Only One-Bed Moments in Romance (Sarah Adler Podcast)

LitUp

Jasmine Guillory

Bolu Babalola

Tilt by Emma Pattee

Kennedy Ryan

Tia Williams

The Kennedy Ryan Phenomenon: Inclusive Narratives with Heart

Emily Henry

Regina Black

August Lane by Regina Black

Nikki Payne

Danielle Jackson

Meryl Wilsner  

Beverly Jenkins

Bookshop.org pays a 10% commission on every sale and matches it with 10% to support independent bookstores.

Join the Book Gang Patreon

Connect with Ashley Jordan on Instagram or her Website

Connect with Amy on Instagram, TikTok, or MomAdvice

Get My Happy List Newsletter

Get the Daily Kindle Deals Newsletter