Nerdette Book Club is kicking off a new year of reading with Molly McGhee’s debut novel Jonathan Abernathy You Are Kind. Our protagonist, Jonathan Abernathy, is completely subsumed by debt. So, he takes a job editing the bad dreams of middle class workers. It’s a searing critique of late-stage capitalism that also manages to be funny and tender.

Read along with us! The book club will be back on the last Tuesday of the month with a spoilery discussion of the book and two fun guest readers. You can get in on the conversation by recording your thoughts on the book in a voice memo and sending the file to [email protected] by Friday, January 26. Happy reading!

Despite two historic writers’ and actors’ strikes, there was a lot of TV to watch this year. We turned to two TV critics to weigh in on their favorites: The New Yorker’s Inkoo Kang and Vulture’s Kathryn VanArendonk

For links, pics and more details, head to our website!

• Beef (Netflix)
• Reservation Dogs (Hulu)
• Succession (Max)
• Fellow Travelers (Showtime)
• The Bear (Hulu)
• Wrestlers (Netflix)
• For All Mankind (Apple TV +)
• I'm A Virgo on (Prime VIdeo)
• Starstruck (Max)
• Scavengers Reign (Max)
• Deadloch (Prime Video)

To find the best podcasts of the year, we talked to two veritable experts in the form: Leah-Simone Bowen, host of ‘Podcast Playlist’ from the CBC, and Nick Quah, podcast critic for Vulture. In order to make it on their lists this year, both Leah and Nick said shows had to really push the envelope in format or reporting.

From heavy investigations to a show that Nick calls “cotton candy sprinkled with more cotton candy,” here are the best podcasts of 2023. For links, pics and more info, check out our website!

• ‘The Redemption of Jar Jar Binks’
• ‘The Retrievals’
• ‘Slow Burn: Becoming Justice Thomas’
• ‘If Books Could Kill’
• ‘Everything is Alive Presents: The Animals’
• ‘Murder on Sex Island’
• ‘Bloodlines’
• ‘Ghost Story’

We are reflecting on a year of reading by tallying up the books that we just can’t stop thinking about. Two professional readers – Miwa Messer, host of Barnes & Noble’s book podcast Poured Over, and Andrew Limbong, host of NPR’s Book of the Day podcast – join us to share their best of the year lists.

Here are the books mentioned in the episode. For pictures, links and more details, head to our website!

Andrew’s picks:

‘Landscapes’ by Christine Lai

‘Poverty by America’ by Matthew Desmond

‘Roaming’ by Mariko and Jillian Tamaki

‘Ringmaster’ by Abraham Josephine Riesman

Miwa’s picks:

‘Loot’ by Tania James

‘Ordinary Notes’ by Christina Sharpe

‘Open Throat’ by Henry Hoke

‘Chain Gang All-Stars’ by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

Greta’s picks:

‘The Vaster Wilds’ by Lauren Groff

‘The Country of the Blind’ by Andrew Leland

‘The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi’ by Shannon Chakraborty

‘Same Bed Different Dreams’ by Ed Park

Listener picks:

‘The Fragile Threads of Power’ by V.E. Schwab

‘Shrines of Gaiety’ by Kate Atkinson

‘Land of Milk and Honey’ by C Pam Zhang

‘In the Lives of Puppets’ by TJ Klune

‘Monsters’ by Claire Dederer

‘Black River Orchard’ by Chuck Wendig

It’s that time of year where we sit back, relax and reflect on some of the best stuff that came out this year!

First up, we asked Alex Beggs — freelance food writer, former staffer at ‘Bon Appetit’ and all-around friend of the show — to tell us about her favorite cookbooks of 2023.

Here’s Alex’s list. You can find pictures, links and more details at our website!

- ‘More is More’ by Molly Baz

- ‘Make It Japanese’ by Rie McClenny

- ‘More Than Cake’ by Natasha Picowicz

- ‘Sweet enough’ by Alison Roman

- ‘Snacking Bakes’ by Yossy Arefi

- ‘Pulp’ by Abra Berens

- ‘Tenderheart’ by Hetty Lui McKinnon

This week, we're sharing a podcast from our public radio friends KUOW in Seattle. It's called "Text Me Back" and it's all about friendship and making your favorite people laugh, even when this dumpster fire of a world gets you down.

Bestselling writer Lindy West and democracy policy expert Meagan Hatcher-Mays are two award-winning best friends from high school. Each week, Lindy and Meagan will hilariously digest what’s going on in the news, their lives and their text threads with their singular combination of political smarts, embarrassing sincerity, and a truly concerning level of investment in pop culture.

This week, we are asking the important questions about 2024. Like, what plant will we fall in love with? And what body part will be in style? Those are some of the ponderings included in a recent story on next year’s trends in T: The New York Times Style Magazine. We put the co-hosts of ‘Fanti,’ Tre’vell Anderson and Jarrett Hill, to the test. They are also the co-authors of ‘Historically Black Phrases.’ Tre’vell’s recent book is titled ‘We See Each Other.’

Then, Omkari Williams tells us about her new book ‘Micro Activism: How You Can Make a Difference in the World Without a Bullhorn.’ In it, she argues that everyone can be an activist and that working on a small scale can create lasting change.

Nerdette Book Club is back to discuss our November selection, ‘Land of Milk and Honey’ by C Pam Zhang! It’s a novel about survival, privilege, and seeking pleasure at the end of the world.

Our readers this month are Aliza Abarbanel, co-founder and co-editor of ‘Cake Zine,’ an independent print publication exploring society through sweets, and co-host of the podcast ‘This is TASTE,’ and Miriam Kramer, news editor at WPLN in Nashville.

We do get into spoilers in the conversation! If you’re not ready to find out what happens yet, listen to our spoiler-free conversation with author C Pam Zhang in the feed first.

P.S. We have an exciting announcement in the credits! Listen if you want to get started on your 2024 reading list!

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Recommendations:

‘The Menu’

‘Triangle of Sadness’

‘The World Without Us’ by Alan Weisman

‘How Much of These Hills Is Gold’ by C Pam Zhang

‘Gold Fame Citrus’ by Claire Vaye Watkins

‘Breasts and Eggs’ by Mieko Kawakami

Academy Award winning writer, actor, and director Emerald Fennell tells us about her intoxicating new movie ‘Saltburn,’ which is out this week. It’s a British country house thriller about obsession, excess, and desire.

Thanksgiving is almost upon us, so it’s time to get cooking! First, we ask chef Tanya Holland to share some fun, fresh ideas for the big meal. Tanya is the author of three cookbooks, including most recently the gorgeous ‘California Soul.’ You can find the recipes for her stuffed sweet potatoes and brussels sprouts salad at our website!

Since one of the best parts of Thanksgiving is the leftovers, we also talk to Tamar Adler about her cookbook ‘The Everlasting Meal Cookbook: Leftovers A to Z.’