Join Renee, Nox, Jordy, Mariquita, and UyenThi in a discussion about how they're using books to cope with the state of the world and their own personal crises. You'll hear some of our favorite genres for these times (and they are all wildly different!). Next week, stay tuned for some specific book recommendations!

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This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.

Original music by Amarissa

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MINI POD! Casey is back with another Non-Fiction Nook segment. In order to dive deeper into her current hyperfixation of medieval life and the women who existed in it, Casey shares the non-fiction books that helped illuminate medieval feminism. She also discusses Medieval Times dinner and the personification of virtues!

Books mentioned:

Femina: A New History of the Middle Ages, Through the Women Written Out of It by Janina Ramirez

The Once and Future Sex: Going Medieval on Women's Roles in Society by Eleanor Janega

The Book of the City of Ladies by Christine de Pizan

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This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.

Original music by Amarissa

Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, BlueSky, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.

Mariquita welcomes Sarah Knickerbocker, the host behind Eugene, Oregon's Horrible Bingo, as they discuss shifting the lens on horror to find the threads of feminism, examine how the genre uniquely showcases women's stories, and to untangle why horror fans are so frequently wonderfully queer.

For an extra bonus and to exponentially grow your TBR, check the show notes for more books recommended by Sarah.

Books/Resources Mentioned:

Monsters: A Fan's Dilemma by Claire Dederer

Men, Women, and Chainsaws by Carol J. Clover

Scream With Me: Horror Films and the Rise of American Feminism (1968-1980) by Eleanor Johnson

Other recommended books from Sarah:

It Came From the Closet: Queer Reflections on Horror edited Joe Vallese

Corpses, Fools, and Monsters: The History and Future of Transness in Cinema by Willow Maclay and Caden Gardner

Tell Me I'm Worthless by Alison Rumfitt

Brainwyrms by Alison Rumfitt

Manhunt by Gretchen Felker-Martin

Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado

The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones

House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski

Negative Space by B.R. Yeager

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This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.

Original music by Amarissa

Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, BlueSky, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.

CW: Child death, Miscarriage, Infertility, Blood, Grief, Death of Parent, Dementia

Marlena and Mariquita discuss Mother is Watching, the horror debut by Karma Brown. In this spoiler-free conversation, they explore how the novel uses horror to amplify everyday anxieties around motherhood, bodily autonomy, and identity. Together, they unpack the emotional stakes at the heart of the story, examining how art, obsession, and pregnancy intertwine to blur the line between psychological unease and the supernatural. Along the way, they reflect on the ways domestic life becomes a site of tension, control, and quiet terror and why this chilling read lingers long after the final page.

Books mentioned:

Mother is Watching by Karma Brown

Play Nice by Rachel Harrison

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This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.

Original music by Amarissa

Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, BlueSky, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.

Casey Ballard, long time lover of feminist retellings of classic stories, interviews B.K. O'Connor about her new novel, Eve, a retelling of John Milton's Paradise Lost, that expands on the notion that eternity spent in ignorance is no life to live. Casey and Becky discuss Eve as an intellectual feminist, the bridging of cultures, and why people should still read the classics. .

Books and resources mentioned:

Eve by B. K. O'Connor

Paradise Lost by John Milton

Women Who Run with the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estes

Drawing Down the Moon by Margot Adler

Circe by Madeline Miller

The Chalice and the Blade by Riane Eisler

Thus Spoke Zarathustra by Friedrich Nietzsche

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This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.

Original music by Amarissa

Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, BlueSky, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.

Nox and Shoshana talk about Reality Check, the recent documentary series that revisits America's Next Top Model. They share their experiences watching the show growing up, reflect on the broader reality TV culture of the time, and discuss how these portrayals of women's bodies shaped their perspectives. Along the way, they unpack the complicated mix of nostalgia, criticism, and cultural impact tied to both the original series and the documentary. If you've been thinking about the legacy of ANTM and what it meant to grow up with shows like it, this conversation is for you.

Books and resources mentioned:

RAINN - National Sexual Assault Hotline

NEDA - National Eating Disorders Association

You Wanna Be on Top? A Memoir of Makeovers, Manipulation, and Not Becoming America's Next Top Model by Sarah Hartshorne

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This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.

Original music by Amarissa

Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, BlueSky, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.

Black History Month may be over, but our joy of reading Black literature has no expiration date! In this episode, Renee shares a new-to-her cozy mystery series featuring a Black single mom investigating mysteries around her daughter's school. Then Casey is back with her Non-Fiction Nook segment, this time highlighting books of Black resistance

Books mentioned:

It's Elementary by Elise Bryant

The Game Is Afoot by Elise Bryant

Brooding Over Bloody Revenge: Enslaved Women's Lethal Resistance by Nikki M. Taylor

We Refuse A Forceful History of Black Resistance by Kellie Carter Jackson

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This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.

Original music by Amarissa

Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, BlueSky, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.

Looking for a book club pick that is certain to conjure up good conversation? In this episode, Renee and Mariquita discuss You'll Never Forget Me by Isha Raya. Described as a sapphic thriller akin to Killing Eve, our podcasters are completely divided on this one. Tune into an almost spoiler-free discussion (the spoiler is clearly identified ahead of time!) and let us know if you pick it up for your next book club pick!

Books mentioned:

You'll Never Forget Me by Isha Raya

Support and follow our host and guest!

Follow Renee: Instagram // The StoryGraph // Threads

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This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.

Original music by Amarissa

Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, BlueSky, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.

Marlena is joined by Dr. Kenesma D. John to talk about her novel Hair Diaries: My Hair Evolution, a reflective and visually rich exploration of hair, identity, and Black girlhood. In this spoiler-free conversation, they discuss what inspired John to use hair as the lens for the story, the blend of autobiography and fiction, and her choice to tell Charisma's journey through reflections and illustrated images. Together, they unpack how hair becomes deeply emotional and political, touching on colorism, community, and intergenerational exchange.

Books mentioned:

Hair Diaries: My Hair Evolution by Kenesma D. John, Ph.D.

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Follow Dr. Kenesma D. John: Instagram // Website

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This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.

Original music by Amarissa

Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, BlueSky, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.

MINI POD! In this quick episode, Casey talks about three non-fiction books which have been helpful in her resistance, and maybe helpful to yours! Covering police abolition, disability justice, and eloquent ways to textually fight back when cornered by a hate-spewing Christian Nationalist.

Books mentioned:

We Do This 'Til We Free Us: Abolitionist Organizing and Transforming Justice by Mariame Kaba

Let This Radicalize You: Organizing and the Revolution of Reciprocal Care by Kelly Hayes & Mariame Kaba

Care-Work: Dreaming Disability Justice by Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha

Separation of Church and Hate: A Sane Person's Guide to Taking Back the Bible from Fundamentalists, Fascists, and Flock-Fleecing Frauds by John Fugelsang

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Follow Casey: Instagram

Check out our online community here!

This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.

Original music by Amarissa

Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, BlueSky, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.