Bookstore Explorer

This week, we're joined by author Jonathan Corcoran to discuss his new memoir, No Son of Mine, and his lifelong love of bookstores! In addition to No Son of Mine, Corcoran is the author of the short story collecction The Rope Swing, which was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Awards and long-listed for The Story Prize. His essays and stories have been published and anthologized widely, including in Salvation South, Still: The Journal, Best Gay Stories, and the Oxford University Press textbook, How Writing Works.

Books We Talk About: Sugar Run by Mesha Maren, The Prettiest Star by Carter Sickels, Black Tickets by Jayne Anne Phillips, and Fierce Attachments by Vivan Gornick

This week, we're in Huntington, WV, to visit Cicada Books & Coffee. This family-owned spot was opened in 2018 by mother-daughter duo Dawn Hylbert and Katie Norman, who join me to discuss the store’s history, its place in community, and its unique blend of books, coffee, and art.

Books We Talk About: Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin, Devil House by John Darnielle, Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters, The Devil Takes You Home by Gabino Iglesias, and Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts by Crystal Wilkinson

This week, we're in Mount Airy, NC, known as "the real Mayberry!" The original home of Andy Griffith is now home to Pages Books & Coffee, and owner Cynthia Taylor joins us to discuss the shop. We're also joined by Barb Collins, organizer and promoter of the Writers Roadshow Tour, a new series of events that's bringing authors to rural North Carolina through a partnership between the Northwest Regional Library System and Pages.

This week, we head to Albuquerque, New Mexico, to visit a store that’s been serving its community for 40 years. Co-owner Shannon Guinn-Collins and Store Manager Robert Flippo take us behind the shelves of Bookworks. We discuss the store’s long history, the amazing authors who have passed through its doors, and a recent change to an LLC structure for ownership.

Books We Talk About: Titanium Noir by Nick Harkaway, Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry, We Don't Eat our Classmates by Ryan T. Higgins, Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin, Life After Life by Kate Atkinson, Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley, H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald, The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elisabeth Tova Bailey

This week, we visit Skylark Bookshop in Columbia, MO, named one of 150 bookstores you need to visit before you die. Owner and novelist Alex George discusses the inspiration and mission of Skylark, as well as the city's prominent Unbound Book Festival, which he founded, happening this spring.

Books We Talk About: Splinters by Leslie Jamison, Still Life by Sarah Winman, Now is Not the Time to Panic by Kevin Wilson, and The Book of Delights by Ross Gay.

This week, we visit Hearthside Books & Toys in Juneau, Alaska. Owner Olga Lijó Seráns has owned Hearthside since 2022, but the store has been serving the people of Juneau for nearly 50 years. She takes us through its rich history and how things have been going since she took over.

Books We Talk About: If You Lived Here, I'd Know Your Name: News from Small-Town Alaska by Heather Lende, 90 Short Walks Around Juneau by Mary Lou King, Homestead by Melinda Moustakis, and Jimmy Bluefeather by Kim Heacox

This week, Stan Zimmerman joins the show to discuss his new book, The Girls: From Golden to Gilmore, all about his career writing for such shows as The Golden Girls, Gilmore Girls, Roseanne, and many more. We chat about those and other projects, plus some of his favorite books and bookshops. The Girls: From Golden to Gilmore is available now!

This week, we head to Biddeford, Maine, where owner Michael Macomber shares the story behind Elements: Books | Coffee | Beer. The combination bookshop, bar and cafe has been serving the people of Biddeford for more than a decade and helped usher in a new wave of downtown revitalization. 

Books We Talk About: Destiny of the Republic by Candice Millard and The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon

Beth Merrick of Sunshine Book Co. in Clermont, Florida, discusses her journey from Disney employee to bookshop owner, and offers up some excellent ideas for bookshop events that drive customers into the shop. 

Books We Talk About: A Land Remembered by Patrick D. Smith

First opened in 1972 by Willard Williams and family, The Toadstool Bookshop - currently with locations in Peterborough and Keene -  has been serving the people of New Hampshire for decades. One of its longtime customers was Emerson Sistare, who began visiting The Toadstool at age 7. Today, he owns it. Emerson discusses the history of The Toadstool and what it has been like taking over the reigns of a beloved community institution. 

Books We Talk About: North Woods by Daniel Mason and The MANIAC by Benjamin Labatut.