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In today’s episode, I am chatting with Hadley Leggett. Hadley writes layered book club fiction exploring truth in shades of gray. Her winding career path has included degrees in medicine, biochemistry, Spanish, and science journalism, as well as a ten-year stint as a stay-at-home mom. After moving all over the United States during her childhood, she now lives in Seattle with her husband and three children, as well as her parents, three cats, and an ever-rotating troop of foster kittens. Hadley’s first novel, All They Ask Is Everything, is her love letter to the messiness of motherhood and will be published by Lake Union in August 2024. 

Episode Highlights:

• Hadley's Career Journey: Learn how Hadley transitioned into medical writing and how thinking outside the box helped her leverage her unique skillset.
• Motherhood’s Messiness: We discuss the societal pressures on mothers, emphasizing that while we ask more of them, basic support systems are often lacking. We also explore realistic motherhood, the highs and the lows.
• Finding Community: Hadley shares the importance of creating a supportive network, whether it’s among friends or within writing communities.
• Book Flight of Book Club Fiction: Discover Hadley’s perspective on book club fiction—books that strike a balance between genre/mainstream writing and literary fiction. Her book flight features 3 books in this genre that focus on portraying realistic motherhood.

This is such a fantastic episode on the reality of motherhood, I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

Connect with Hadley Leggett:

• Instagram
• Substack
• Website
• Purchase All They Ask is Everything

Books and authors mentioned in the episode:

• Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
• The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty
• Nancy Drew by Carolyn Keene
• The Babysitter’s Club by Ann M. Martin
• Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid
• All the Colors of the Dark by Chris Whitaker
• By Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult

Book Flight

• If I Lose Her by Brianne Sommerville
• Cutting Teeth by Chandler Baker

Ready for a monthly literary adventure? We now have the BFF Book Club. Join us each month to explore a new book. After reading, connect with fellow book lovers and meet the author in a live interview! Can’t make it live? Don’t worry—we’ll send you the recording. You can find all our upcoming book club selections HERE. 

Support the show

Be sure to join the Bookish Flights community on social media. Happy listening!

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In today’s solo episode, I’m sharing actionable tips, personal goals, and an exciting new reading challenge to help you make 2025 your best reading year yet. Whether you’re aiming to read more, discover new authors, or simply have your best reading year yet, this episode is packed with inspiration for all readers.

Episode Highlights:

• Why reading matters.
• Set reading intentions:
  • What genres or topics are you curious to learn more about?
  • Is there an author’s backlist you were hoping to explore?
  • Do you want to read to relax? To learn? To challenge yourself?
• Practical strategies for building a consistent reading habit.
• How audiobooks can transform your reading life.
• The value of joining a reading community like the BFF Book Club. 😉
• Tracking your progress.
• Details about the 2025 Bookish Flights Reading Challenges for adults and kids.

Join the 2025 Reading Challenge:

This year, we’ve created a fun and flexible challenge to inspire your reading journey.

• Adults: Complete 12 prompts for 12 books.
• Kids: Complete 8 prompts with a fun coloring progress tracker!

Resources Mentioned:

• The BFF Book Club – Join here.
• Episode 116: Do Audiobooks Count as Reading?
• StoryGraph and Goodreads
• Bookish Flights’ book flight database with fiction, non-fiction, and children’s book recommendations. 

Get Involved:

• What’s your reading goal for 2025? Share your plans with me on social media 
  • Instagram
  • Facebook 
• Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast for more bookish inspiration and leave a review if you enjoyed the episode!

Thank you for tuning in to Bookish Flights! Let’s make 2025 your best reading year yet!

Ready for a monthly literary adventure? We now have the BFF Book Club. Join us each month to explore a new book. After reading, connect with fellow book lovers and meet the author in a live interview! Can’t make it live? Don’t worry—we’ll send you the recording. You can find all our upcoming book club selections HERE. 

Support the show

Be sure to join the Bookish Flights community on social media. Happy listening!

• Instagram
• Facebook
• Website

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In today’s episode, I am chatting with Desiree Petrich. Desiree is a best-selling author, speaker, team development facilitator and host of the Lead with Confidence podcast. She is the founder and CEO of Intentional Action, and her mission is to help teams learn and grow together, and to help you build a life you love by taking control of what you can control. She will share her story of love, loss and leadership to inspire and encourage you to take responsibility for unlocking your full potential. Desiree fully believes that you can have the best parts of your day at home, and at work!

Episode Highlights:

• The Story Behind Her Book, Taking Intentional Action: Desiree shares the journey of founding Intentional Action, the challenges she faced and the pivotal moments that led to her book being published at just the right time. Her mission is to help others create intentional lives, whether through leadership at work or connection at home.
• Navigating Grief and Building Resilience: Desiree reflects on her personal experience of losing a parent, discussing the stages of grief and the tools that helped her cultivate resilience. Her vulnerability and insights provide encouragement for anyone navigating loss.
• Designing a Life with Intention: Discover practical tips and ideas for living intentionally, including the importance of self-education and taking small, meaningful steps toward your goals. 
• Desiree’s Book Flight: Desiree shares her favorite personal development books that have stuck with her long after she’s read them.

Connect with Desiree Petrich:

• Buy Taking Intentional Action
• Instagram
• Podcast
• Website

Books and authors mentioned in the episode:

• Nora Roberts books
• The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
• The Happiness Project by Gretchin Rubin
• The Four Tendencies by Gretchin Rubin
• Outer Order, Inner Calm by Gretchin Rubin
• The Motive by Patrick Lencioni

Book Flight

• Finish by Jon Acuff
• Better Than Before by Gretchen Rubin
• Chasing the Bright Side by Jess Ekstrom

Ready for a monthly literary adventure? We now have the BFF Book Club. Join us each month to explore a new book. After reading, connect with fellow book lovers and meet the author in a live interview! Can’t make it live? Don’t worry—we’ll send you the recording. You can find all our upcoming book club selections HERE. 

Support the show

Be sure to join the Bookish Flights community on social media. Happy listening!

• Instagram
• Facebook
• Website

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In today’s episode, we are chatting with Kate Kennedy. Kate is a mom, wife, sister, daughter, visionary, and a dreamer of big dreams. She’s a writer and a self-described theology nerd with a passion for empowering others to share their stories by bravely sharing her own. Kate’s work focuses on where the church meets the world and the beautiful tapestry of stories within our communities.

In 2018, Kate founded a tuition-free private school for children experiencing homelessness in Atlanta. What began with just 9 young scholars has now grown to serve over 60 scholars—a pivotal chapter in Kate’s personal story and a testament to her belief in stepping out in courage, even without the traditional credentials. Kate is the author of Once Upon a School, which is a story of her journey.

Episode Highlights:

• The Power of Conviction: Kate shares her journey of founding a school for children experiencing homelessness with no formal background in education. 
• Motherhood and Mission: Kate shares her journey from stay-at-home mom to visionary leader, balancing the demands of motherhood while answering a call she couldn’t ignore. Driven by a deep conviction and a need she saw in her community, she took the courageous first steps to create lasting change.
• Gathering Quiet Stories: Kate explores her passion for uncovering the often-overlooked stories within our communities and why they matter.
• Kate’s Book Flight - Memoirs of Women Empowerment: Hear about the memoirs that have inspired Kate, all centering on women’s resilience, courage and the empowerment that comes from sharing our stories.
• Believing in Yourself: Kate opens up about trusting her intuition, taking the first steps toward change and learning that you don’t always need credentials—just a willingness to say “yes.”

Connect with Kate King:

• Facebook
• Instagram
• LinkedIn
• Website

Books and authors mentioned:

• Kathy Izard books
• I Guess I Haven’t Learned That Yet by Shauna Niequist
• Learning to Walk in the Dark by Barbara Brown Taylor
• This is Why We Lied by Karin Slaughter

Book Flight

• Present over Perfect by Shauna Niequist
• The Smallest Lights in the Universe by Sarah Seager
• Leaving C

Ready for a monthly literary adventure? We now have the BFF Book Club. Join us each month to explore a new book. After reading, connect with fellow book lovers and meet the author in a live interview! Can’t make it live? Don’t worry—we’ll send you the recording. You can find all our upcoming book club selections HERE. 

Support the show

Be sure to join the Bookish Flights community on social media. Happy listening!

• Instagram
• Facebook
• Website

Send us a text

Today’s episode is extra special because it's our next BFF Book Club meeting! Each month, we dive into a new book, and today we're welcoming Cindy Steel to chat about her charming rom-com, Faking Christmas.

Cindy was raised on a dairy farm in Idaho. She grew up singing Garth Brooks and Reba McEntire songs at the top of her lungs and learning to solve all of life’s problems when milking cows and driving a tractor—rewriting happy endings everytime. She married a cute Idaho boy and is the proud mother of two wild and sweet twin boys and a baby girl. 

Episode Highlights:

• Behind the Scenes of Faking Christmas: Cindy shares how her husband’s career took them to the location that inspired this book, giving her a chance to revisit the place that stole her heart and bring it to life in her novel.
• The Depth of a Rom-Com: We dive into how Cindy layered complex emotions, like grief, into the story while keeping it filled with hope and humor, creating characters far deeper than what you might expect from a typical romantic comedy.
• Cindy’s Book Flight: Hear about the books that inspired Cindy while writing Faking Christmas, including one character who influenced Miles’ love for reading.

This episode was a blast to record, with a fantastic group of readers who brought thoughtful questions and perspectives to our discussion. Whether you’ve read Faking Christmas or are adding it to your TBR, you’ll love getting this insider look at the story, the characters and the author behind it all.

Connect with Cindy:

• Instagram
• Website

Books and authors mentioned in the episode:

• A Christmas Spark (The Pride and Pranks series) by Cindy Steel
• The One with the Kiss Cam by Cindy Steel
• Rebel Summer (The Falling for Summer series) by Cindy Steel
• Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
• Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
• Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
• The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter
• Is She Really Going Out with Him? by Sophie Cousens

Book Flight

• The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer
• The Bird and the Sword by Amy Harmon
• The False Prince

Ready for a monthly literary adventure? We now have the BFF Book Club. Join us each month to explore a new book. After reading, connect with fellow book lovers and meet the author in a live interview! Can’t make it live? Don’t worry—we’ll send you the recording. You can find all our upcoming book club selections HERE. 

Support the show

Be sure to join the Bookish Flights community on social media. Happy listening!

• Instagram
• Facebook
• Website

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In today’s episode, I am chatting with E.H. Underhill. E.H. is the author of The Solar Storm Chronicles - New Heroes. He is also a Christian, husband and father of three, but to keep the lights on he draws house plans during the day. He is from Plymouth, Massachusetts but currently resides in Central Florida, the setting for his first book. His writings are inspired by his Christian faith and growing up with Star Wars, Marvel and DC. He is now starting his own superhero universe to give an alternative to the mainstream ones that have been injected with politics and toxic secular values. 

E.H. shares his journey of creating a superhero universe that offers a family-friendly alternative to mainstream franchises. We discuss his book The Solar Storm Chronicles - New Heroes, which is recommended for readers aged 12 and up. The level of action and violence is comparable to The Lord of the Rings, making it an exciting yet appropriate read for young teens and families alike. This episode is a must-listen for fans of superhero stories, parents looking for meaningful content for their families.

Episode Highlights:

• E.H.’s Inspiration: How his Christian faith and love for iconic franchises shaped his writing.
• Family-Friendly Superheroes: Crafting a superhero universe with positive, engaging themes for all ages.
• Upcoming Projects: Sneak peeks into the comic books and additional books in The Solar Storm Chronicles trilogy.
• Parenting Wisdom: The importance of curating content for children and allowing them to enjoy being bored.
• Family Adventures: The joy of road trips, camping, and building memories with kids.

Connect with E.H. Underhill:

• Facebook
• Instagram
• Twitter

Books and authors mentioned in the episode:

• The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Warner
• Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
• The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
• American Sniper by Chris Kyle
• Eragon by Christopher Paolini

Book Flight

• The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
• Fate of the Jedi by Aaron Allston
• The Solar Storm Chronicles - New Heroes by E.H. Underhill

Ready for a monthly literary adventure? We now have the BFF Book Club. Join us each month to explore a new book. After reading, connect with fellow book lovers and meet the author in a live interview! Can’t make it live? Don’t worry—we’ll send you the recording. You can find all our upcoming book club selections HERE. 

Support the show

Be sure to join the Bookish Flights community on social media. Happy listening!

• Instagram
• Facebook
• Website

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In today’s episode, I am chatting with Laura Muncie. From a young age Laura loved making art, everything from playdoh models to sea glass murals on her Grandparent’s garden walls. Originally from Scotland, she moved to Germany in 2012, and currently lives in Obertshausen, Germany, near Frankfurt. She is a children’s book illustrator. Her latest book, A Very Merry Muddy Christmas was released in September 2024. This episode is such a delight! Laura shares her path to becoming an illustrator, how she structures her day for maximum magic, and the surprising ways stay-at-home parenting equips us with a treasure trove of valuable skills. Her insights into indie publishing and creative collaboration make this a must-listen for anyone passionate about storytelling and art.

Episode Highlights

• Laura’s Journey to Illustration
• Collaborative Creativity
• Art and Music Pairings
• Stay-at-Home Parenting Superpowers

Connect with Laura:

• Website
• Instagram
• Facebook
• Buy What Love Can Do 

Books and authors mentioned in the episode:

• Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
• The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson, Illustrated by Rafael Lopez

Book Flight

• Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown, Illustrated by Clement Hurd
• I am the Seed That Grew the Tree by Fiona Waters
• Rebel Orkney: Tales of insurrection from Orcadian history by Fiona Grimm and Martin Laird

Episode Introduction

You may have caught the episode introduction from Bookish Flight Alum, Jared Michaud. Jared was featured in Episode 78 and he is here today introducing his latest book, Winternight.

2024 Listener's Choice Book Flight
Vote now for your favorite fiction, non-fiction and children's book of 2024. The books you vote for do not need to be published in 2024, but read in 2024. 

Ready for a monthly literary adventure? We now have the BFF Book Club. Join us each month to explore a new book. After reading, connect with fellow book lovers and meet the author in a live interview! Can’t make it live? Don’t worry—we’ll send you the recording. You can find all our upcoming book club selections HERE. 

Support the show

Be sure to join the Bookish Flights community on social media. Happy listening!

• Instagram
• Facebook
• Website

Send us a text

In today’s episode, I am chatting with Liz Shipton. Lis is a freelance writer, indie author and full-time, off-grid, live-aboard sailor. She is currently sailing around the world with her boyfriend and her dog, turning her real-life adventures into speculative fiction. 

Highlights from the Episode:

• The Thalassic Series: Liz dives into the inspiration and creation of her swashbuckling dystopian water world series. With options for both YA and spicier adult audiences, this series is perfect for fans of bold adventures on the high seas.
• Publishing Insights: Liz about traditional versus indie publishing paths. 
• Sailing and Storytelling: Liz shares her favorite sailing destinations and how they’ve inspired her stories and creative process.
• Liz’s Book Flight: Her curated list features books with strong female main characters (FMCs) and sailing adventures. 

Join us for this adventurous and inspiring conversation that’s sure to ignite your wanderlust and your reading list! Happy listening!

Connect with Liz:

• Website
• Instagram / TikTok / Facebook / Threads
• Patreon

Show Notes
Some links are affiliate links, which are no extra cost to you but do help to support the show.

Books and authors mentioned in the episode:

• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
• Divergent by Veronica Roth
• Satanic Verses by Salmon Rushdie
• Kazuo Ishigiro
• Douglas Adams
• Legendborn by Tracey Deonn
• A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas
• Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

Book Flight

• The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by Shannon Chakraborty
• Swell by Liz Clark
• The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin

Ready for a monthly literary adventure? We now have the BFF Book Club. Join us each month to explore a new book. After reading, connect with fellow book lovers and meet the author in a live interview! Can’t make it live? Don’t worry—we’ll send you the recording. You can find all our upcoming book club selections HERE. 

Support the show

Be sure to join the Bookish Flights community on social media. Happy listening!

• Instagram
• Facebook
• Website

Send us a text

In today’s episode, I am diving into the ongoing debate: Are audiobooks considered reading? We explore the history of audiobooks, the cognitive science of comprehension, their accessibility benefits and the unique experience they provide. Plus, we discuss the powerful role audiobooks play in fostering a love of stories in children. Whether you’re a die-hard audiobook fan or a print purist, this episode offers insight and perspective on why the format matters less than the connection we make with stories.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• The evolution of reading from oral storytelling to modern audiobooks.
• Scientific findings on how the brain processes audiobooks versus print.
• Why audiobooks are a crucial tool for accessibility and inclusivity.
• The immersive literary experience that narrators bring to audiobooks.
• How audiobooks support literacy and foster a love of reading in children.

Mentioned in This Episode:

• Research on audiobook comprehension from the University of California, Berkeley.
• Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling (narrated by Jim Dale)

Book Flight - Family-Friendly Audiobooks Recommendation:

• Poppy by Avi
• The Wild Robot by Peter Brown
• Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White 

Ready for a monthly literary adventure? We now have the BFF Book Club. Join us each month to explore a new book. After reading, connect with fellow book lovers and meet the author in a live interview! Can’t make it live? Don’t worry—we’ll send you the recording. You can find all our upcoming book club selections HERE. 

Support the show

Be sure to join the Bookish Flights community on social media. Happy listening!

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Nicole Frail is the owner of Nicole Frail Edits, a small editing business that offers services to indie and querying authors, publishers, and small business owners. She is also the publisher of Nicole Frail Books, a super small passion-project-based publishing company with a community-focused approach that released its first two titles—As the Snow Drifts: A Cozy Winter Anthology and Another Chance to Get It Right: A New Year's Eve Anthology—under the And You Press imprint this November.

Nicole started her editing career 15 years ago in educational book production before moving to New York City to work at a traditional independent publishing company. 12 years later, after editing more than 500 books and working up to the titles of senior acquisitions editor and lead children's book editor, she turned her focus to taking Nicole Frail Edits from a part-time side hustle to a full-time small business. And somewhere along the way, Nicole Frail Books/And You Press became a reality. Nicole is a board member for Revise & Resub (#RevPit), an editor-led writing community that supports authors by offering editing-focused chats and mini-events throughout the year as well as an annual contest wherein querying authors can win feedback and edits on their full manuscripts from professional developmental editors. 

Connect with Nicole:

• Facebook for Nicole Frail Edits / Instagram for Nicole Frail Edits
• Facebook for Nicole Frail Books / Instagram for Nicole Frail Books

Books and authors mentioned in the episode:

• Trouble in the Stars by Sarah Phineas
• Crash Into Me by Darci St. John
• The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
• Amy, Number Seven by Marilyn Kaye
• The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
• Five Feet Apart by Rachael Lippincott and Mikki Daughtry

Episode Introduction

You may have caught the episode instroduction from Bookish Flight Alum, Jared Michaud. Jared was featured in Episode 78 and he is here today introducing Book 2 of the Energematrice6 series, The Vale of Mystery (The Epimyth). You can find out more about the serie

Ready for a monthly literary adventure? We now have the BFF Book Club. Join us each month to explore a new book. After reading, connect with fellow book lovers and meet the author in a live interview! Can’t make it live? Don’t worry—we’ll send you the recording. You can find all our upcoming book club selections HERE. 

Support the show

Be sure to join the Bookish Flights community on social media. Happy listening!

• Instagram
• Facebook
• Website