Four Books a Fortnight

Whoa! Hannah and Sam are at Camp, prepping for next episode's visit with Morgan Talty, author of "Night of the Living Rez." In the meantime, they discuss what's going on with short-story collections (do people read them?), Sam's new strategy for books at Camp (he's not bringing any; he's got plenty to choose from), whether people are too transactional with books and plots, how Robert Heinlein nailed 2022 America, and why the Internet is bad for new good books, but is probably responsible for the '90s revival. Is the spectrum of books smaller now, even though there are more books than ever released every year? Also, the book Sam found in the Brussels book shop was Margaret Atwood's "Penelopiad." Which is not a retelling of the Persephone story, but rather the Odyssey.

With talk about:

- "Creatures of Will and Temper," by Molly Tanzer - "On the Road," by Jack Kerouac - "Wonder Boys," by Michael Chabon - "The Woman in the Library," by Sulari Gentill - "Starship Troopers," by Robert Heinlein - "Townie," by Andre Dubus III - "Now Is Not the Time To Panic," by Kevin Wilson - "American Psycho," by Bret Easton Ellis - "Penelopiand," by Margaret Atwood - "The Fellowship of the Ring," by JRR Tolkien

This week, special guest and Hannah's former boss Patty Berg (now at Penguin Random House, she does not really go on 4CHAN, we're pretty sure) joins us to reminisce about the origins of the smash-hit "The Time Traveler's Wife," by Audrey Niffenegger, now a brand-new HBO Max show Sam can't bring himself to watch. Along the way, we seque into the horrors of virtual tradeshows, secret insider stuff about how the publishing biz works (some companies don't do paperbacks?!?), Reddit, and the various books we're reading, including "Winterkeep," by Boston's Kristin Cashore, who writes the best sexy YA novels we've ever read, "The Prince of Tides," which we'd totally forgotten about, and "The Palace Papers" (though you should fast forward through the Andrew chapter). Plus a bunch of other stuff.

This week it's back to just talking about the books we're reading, including "Bloomsbury Girls" and its written and unwritten rules about bookselling (at the Book Shop, the rules are only unwritten). Oh, and we've got an Updike reading! The Ipswich book club did NOT like "Couples" (mid-career, 1996 release it turns out). Kind of a bummer for John who "treats women terribly. They are just bodies," says Hannah. Then we move in to discussions of "They Called Me Number One" (must read, even if it's hard on the soul), "Vacationland" (beach read; we talk about the rules for this, too, which leads to "Grown Ups"), and "Uncommon Measure" (read if you're a musician, for sure, or if you want your kid to be a musician, or if you want to think about why people can't get out of their heads). We finish up with a discussion of the use of the second person universal. Are there books that use it well?

High on the success of our first-ever off-site, in-person event, Hannah and Sam talk about the really excellent "Paradise Falls" and how good Keith O'Brien was at hyping his book up at Channel Marker Brewing, then quickly move into Hannah's panel discussion at the Newbury Literary Festival on grief ("The Guncle!"). Then follows a stirring look at great basketball books for the NBA playoffs, Hannah's like of the "Lessons in Chemistry" audiobook (author Bonnie Garmus is, in fact, the narrator), why Sam can't handle hyperbolic blurbs on books ("The City in the Middle of the Night"), and whether the Book Club is going to embrace Marlon James. Plus some other stuff, like how to get free advance-reader copies from us (which we would never sell!).

Fresh off a Thoreau-down with the Frugal Chariot, spring is in the air for Hannah and Sam, even as they struggle with how to think about authorial intent. Thanks to a prison book group obsessed with the genius of Octavia Butler, Sam is second-guessing his dedication to the text. Has he been missing out? With Twitter and video interviews giving us more and more perspective from the author, how do we change our reading experiences? What happens when authors, like JK Rowling, tell you things about their characters that you can't glean from their writing? Really, though, it's about struggling with how we talk critically about texts. Also: Hear about "Beneficence" (turns out there is, indeed, a town in Maine called Grafton Notch), which somehow takes a detour into Dennis Lehane's "Gone Baby Gone." Can't we just have books where no one dies? And why is May 17 the day that every book is coming out? Such as "The Colony," the discussion of which reminds Sam of "Robinson Crusoe" (though it's unclear if the summary he provides is accurate), which somehow leads to a discussion of Robin Hood and why there isn't ample fanfic of the Robin Hood universe. And don't forget about the Newburyport Literary Festival! Or Record Store Day! (Sponsored by: The Taproom Reading Series!)

Does anyone know which publisher publishes which book? Sam is doubtful, but Hannah provides a good bit of insight from her days in publishing about why the houses — especially the indies — matter. For instance, how else would we get "The Red Zone," a great book about menstruation, without Soft Skull Press? Also: Sam reads "The Tender Bar" and does not believe it, Hannah listens to "Run Rose Run" and falls in love all over again with Dolly Parton, and there is a long discussion on whether 1996 is actually the best year of all time, spurred on by Emma Straub's brand-new "This Time Tomorrow." Plus, a whole lot more!

Sarai Walker ("Dietland") joins us as our second-ever guest to talk about her upcoming release, "The Cherry Robbers," which comes out May 17, and plays on goth themes inspired by the story of Sarah Winchester and Emily Dickinson's creepy poems. Plus, hear thoughts about "The Unwritten Book," by Samantha Hunt, to be released in April, Dan Chaon's "Sleepwalk," which comes out in May, "Murder on Hollywood Beach," released later this month, and a bunch of stuff about the Maine Bookhouse, where Sam found a book from 1939 about Lucky Strike cigarettes, the Newburyport Literary Festival, and much more. Also, Sam accuses Sarai of having a southern accent, but she grew up in California and claims she doesn't have one. You be the judge.