Furthermore

On the last day of 2019, Kiley Reid's debut novel, Such a Fun Age was released to the world. Though it racked up pretty good sales in January, buzz in the literary world propelled it to be our best seller come February. I chat with Music Therapist Jasmine Edwards about this all too timely novel, the tough work she's been doing in hospitals during the pandemic, and the most important question; did we delve, or shelve it?

Thanks so much for listening to Furthermore! What's the best first chapter of a book you've ever read? Please stay safe and healthy out there. Head over to our Instagram, @Furthermorepodcast to comment and let me know what books you'd like to see Furthermore tackle. Keep Reading!

Season 2 continues with January 2020’s bestseller, Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson. After the holiday rush it’s always interesting to see what book emerges as the front runner in the new year. NYU classmate Ethan Loewi and I dive into this darkly funny book about combustible children. Reviews were mixed on this one. Some people loved it, others put it down halfway through. Did Ethan and I delve in, or did we shelve it? Thanks so much for listening to Furthermore! What book did you begin your year with? Please stay safe and healthy out there. Head over to our Instagram, @Furthermorepodcast to comment and let me know what books you'd like to see Furthermore tackle. Keep Reading!

Furthermore Season 2 kicks off with an episode devoted to reading in Quarantine. I'm joined by (possibly) Furthermore's biggest fan and longtime friend, Mike Barefield, to discuss a book Mike never finished: Catch-22. One of my favorites, Mike and I talk a few other books he's got kicking around on his shelf, what our quarantines have been like in different states, and Joseph Heller's best known work. Did Mike delve in, or shelve it? 

(What difference does that make!?)

Thanks so much for listening to Furthermore! What book did you pick up but never finish? Please stay safe and healthy out there. Head over to our Instagram, @Furthermorepodcast to comment and let me know what books you'd like to see Furthermore do.

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When the country went on lockdown and I found myself without access to my store's bestsellers, I looked for other ways to keep things interesting here at Furthermore. Dabbling in TV and... whatever 50 Shades of Grey was, I decided it was time to go back to something more comforting. Something nostalgic. A part of shared childhoods across the world. 

Then, as so many things are so likely to do nowadays, this episode got harder. 

The intention was to start a Harry Potter retrospective, where myself and 7 other guests read the first 50 pages of each book in the series, decide if we would shelve it or delve in, and find a small piece of a book series that meant so much to us. 

J.K. Rowling then went ahead and made some transphobic comments, something she's done before. Jess, a previous guest on this episode and all around insightful and kind human being, reached out me. We decided to have a conversation about how damaging Ms. Rowling's comments are. It's nothing new from her but still disappointing. Trans people across the world deserve to be recognized for who they are. 

Harry Potter is bigger than all of us. I still believe that reliving the first 50 pages of these books Furthermore style can bring some joy into what has become a confusing and frustrating year in so many ways. Please enjoy the first in our Harry Potter retrospective!

Thanks so much for listening to Furthermore. Find us on instagram at @Furthermorepodcast. What Hogwarts house are you?? Let us know there and remember:

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It's the second Episode of Furthermore Firsts! Today I'm examining the infamous first episode of Parks and Rec, Amy Poehler's hilarious sitcom that ran for 7 seasons. It's a show that was often recommended to me with the caveat that I could skip the first season. Why? Was it really that bad? Does that mean the first episode is worth skipping altogether as well? Furthermore Firsts takes a look at the very first episode of Park and Rec.

Thanks for listening to Furthermore! Don't forget to check out our Instagram page, @Furthermorepodcast.

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In the inaugural episode of Furthermore Firsts, I take a look at the pilot episode of sitcoms or other old TV shows worth checking out. Family Guy kicks us off, as a solo Andy goes back to when he was a teenager to look at Seth MacFarlane's still running cartoon sitcom. I aim to answer three questions about the show's first episode:

1. How does the pilot represent the rest of the series?

2.Is it a good episode?

3. Based on this first episode, would I delve in or shelve it?

A nostalgic trip leads me to see what about Family Guy changed over the years; why am I so much less enamored with it now than I used to be? Was it always nothing more than a cutaway clip show? Would I rewatch?

Thanks for listening to Furthermore! Don't forget to check out our Instagram page, @Furthermorepodcast. 

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In need of something to break the boredom, Episode 05 guest Andrea and I tackle the classic of all classics, E.L. James' 50 Shades of Grey. Did we even make it to the sexy parts? Could this surprise us? Andrea and I discuss how much of this book's popularity came down to intrigue and how much was the book's worth. We hope you will join us on this journey through the deep dark world of inexplicable books. 

Thanks so much for listening to Furthermore! Let us know- did you read this when it was popular? Do you have a 9 year old named Christian or Anastasia? Please stay safe and healthy out there. Head over to our Instagram, @Furthermorepodcast to comment and let me know what books you'd like to see Furthermore do.

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Furthermore is back from our little hiatus! With a new baby girl at Furthermore HQ, we're back with December's bestseller, Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo. The joint winner of this year's Booker Prize, an award it shared with Episode 09's book, The Testaments, this novel took off at the end of the year and became a high seller at the store. As strange as it feels in the midst of social distancing and the scary world we now share with Covid-19, it's good to be back. What did my guest, former coworker and still Writer/Bookseller Zarina, and I think of Evaristo's bestseller? Did her fast paced, London smart prose catch us? Did we delve in, or shelve it?

Thanks so much for listening to Furthermore! There's so much more to come. Please stay safe and healthy out there. Head over to our Instagram, @Furthermorepodcast to comment and let me know what books you'd like to see Furthermore do. 

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There are too many Fantasy worlds in books to choose from. When it comes to TV, everything seems to be chasing the void that Game of Thrones left behind. So, when something that was first a book, then a video game, and now a TV show catches on in popularity, it's time for Furthermore to take notice. And who better to take on a fantasy realm than our very first guest, Katie Bockino! 

We compare Andrzej Sapkowski's The Last Wish, which Netflix recommends as the companion piece to the show, to Episode 1 of the new series.  How does Gerault stack up from book to show? Which moves faster, better, and with more stakes? Katie and I tackle it all and decide which we would rather delve into, and which we would shelve. 

Thanks for listening and thank you to Katie for coming back to jump into our first Fantasy book of the podcast. What are some of your favorite fantasy books?

Remember to find us on Instagram, @furthermorepodcast and go check out Furthermore artist Max Farinato at maxfarinato.com.  Happy Leap Day- thanks for making Head to Head month such a blast. What Head to Head episodes would you like to see in the future?

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