Jeff talks to rare-bookseller turned fantasy author Oliver Darkshire about his debut work of fantasy, Isabella Nagg and the Pot of Basil. Darkshire's breakout memoir of being an accidental rare bookseller is Once Upon a Tome.

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The Book Riot Podcast Live at Powell’s on July 9th, 2025

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Peter Mendelsund is a writer, book designer, musician, novelist, and painter. And he has two books coming out within just a couple of weeks of each other: Exhibitionist and Weepers. We talk about both in deep, wide-ranging conversation. This is a good one.

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The Book Riot Podcast Live at Powell’s on July 9th, 2025

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Kate McKean joins Jeff to talk about her new book, Write Through It: An Insider's Guide to Publishing and the Creative Life. Kate is a literary agent at the Howard Morhaim Literary Agency and writes the extremely interesting and popular Agents + Books newsletter.

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Discussed in this episode:

The Two Kinds of Book Auctions

The Book Riot Podcast Live at Powell’s on July 9th, 2025

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I am working on a permanent title for this episode format, where I just run through a bunch of books I am interested in that are coming out in the current month. You get the idea.

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Tailored Book Recommendations has the chops to find the right read for your loved one this Father’s Day. Gift TBR today starting at just $18!

Discussed in this episode:

The Book Riot Podcast

The Book Riot Podcast Live at Powell’s on July 9th, 2025

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June new releases are hopping. Jeff talks to Susan Choi about her new novel, Flashlight. Then, Damon Young comes on to talk about his new anthology, That's How They Get You: An Unruly Anthology of Black Humor.

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Tailored Book Recommendations has the chops to find the right read for your loved one this Father’s Day. Gift TBR today starting at just $18!

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Discussed in this episode:

The Book Riot Podcast

The Book Riot Podcast Live at Powell's on July 9th, 2025

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Gretchen Rubin returns to the show to talk about wisdom, aphorisms, and her new book, The Secrets of Adulthood. PLUS: a silent reading challenge coming in June that anyone can do.

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Discussed in this episode:

The Secrets of Adulthood by Gretchen Rubin

Read 25 Day

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Jeff goes over a couple dozen May new releases that he definitely might consider thinking about reading. Then, Book.io co-founder and CEO Joshua Stone comes on to talk about what the blockchain could offer the world of books and reading.

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Jeff talks to Jane Friedman about the new edition of her book, The Business of Being a Writer. She has been writing about the publishing industry for years (and Jeff has been reading her work for years as well), and this book is a guide for writers who don't just want to write, they want to try to make a living. It's a tremendous resource for early-career writers especially, but also has application and relevance for later-stage writers, creatives of all kinds, and people who are interested in how publishing works. The Business of Being a Writer (Second Edition) is out now.

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The Spring 2025 First Edition Giveaway

The Business of Being a Writer by Jane Friedman

Jane's website

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Jeff is joined by one of his favorite writers, Marie-Helene Bertino, and the talk about all five of her books in order, including her new short story collection, Exit Zero.

Marie-Helene Bertino's Beautyland was named a best book of 2024 by Times, Esquire, Lit Hub and many others. Jeff included it on his list of the most recommendable books of the century so far. Her new book, Exit Zero, is available now.

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Jeff talks to Gabe Henry about his new book, Enough is Enuf: Our Failed Attempts to Make English Easier to Spell. For centuries, a series of thinkers, writers, politicians, and bankers have been advocating to make English easier to spell. It hasn't really worked. But the effort is fascinating.

Enough is Enuf is available now wherever books are sold.

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