While we’re spending most of this season discussing classic children’s literature, today Chelsey and Sara break from form to share our most anticipated spring book releases. Spring is a busy time in the publishing cycle and we will topple your TBR with feel-good fiction, literary books from favorite writers, and a surprising number of intriguing nonfiction titles, all releasing between late February and early May. Today is all about those new releases, but if you want to hear us offer backlist pairings for these anticipated buzzy titles, head over to our Patreon community to get that bonus content delivered to your podcast feed. To shop for all of the titles mentioned in today’s episode while supporting our show, head to our Bookshop.org affiliate storefront: https://bookshop.org/shop/novelpairings

Together, we’re learning to be better, more critical and thorough readers of classic and contemporary literature. We love discussing books and reading with all of you and hope you’ll join our group of nerdy readers at patreon.com/novelpairings. Annual subscriptions are now available at a discounted price. 

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Books mentioned:

• I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai

• The Neighbor Favor by Kristina Forest

• Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson 

• Birnam Wood by Eleanor Catton

• In Springtime by Sarah Blake

• How to Think Like a Woman by Regan Penaluna 

• Ten Planets by Yuri Herrera

• Lone Women by Victor Lavalle

• Above Ground by Clint Smith

• Cursed Bread by Sophie Mackintosh

• Yours Truly by Abby Jimenez

• Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club by J. Ryan Stradal

• Greek Lessons by Han Kang

• The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny, and Murder by David Grann

• Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley

• Chain Gang All Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

Chelsey and Sara discuss Mildred D. Taylor’s Newberry Award winning novel, Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. We gush about the writing, share our favorite characters, and unpack a few memorable scenes. We also spend some time considering why this book feels like it could be classified as an adult novel and the value it would add to a middle or high school curriculum. And, of course, we each offer a couple of books to pair with this middle grade classic. This conversation is largely spoiler-free, and we encourage you to listen whether or not you’ve read this book recently or at all!

Together, we’re learning to be better, more critical and thorough readers of classic and contemporary literature. We love discussing books and reading with all of you and hope you’ll join our group of nerdy readers at patreon.com/novelpairings. Annual subscriptions are now available at a discounted price. 

Pairings Timestamp: 42:05

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Books mentioned:

• Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor

• To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

• The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead

•  Claudette Colvin: Twice Towards Justice by Phillip Hoose

• Not Without Laughter by Langston Hughes

• Stealing by Margaret Verble

• Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson

• Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson

Also mentioned:

• Profile: Mildred D. Taylor

• Novel Pairings Not Without Laughter episode

Chelsey and Sara discuss The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis and The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman as individual children’s classics and explore the way they are in conversation with each other. We chat about each novel’s philosophical framework, storytelling style, and depiction of childhood, which leads into a larger conversation about the role of Kid Lit in ethical and moral development. We thoroughly enjoyed returning to both of these fantastical stories, but each brought up some big questions for us as readers and new moms. 

Together, we’re learning to be better, more critical and thorough readers of classic and contemporary literature. We love discussing books and reading with all of you and hope you’ll join our group of nerdy readers at patreon.com/novelpairings. Annual subscriptions are now available at a discounted price. 

Pairings Timestamp: 1:07:05

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Books mentioned:

• A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle

• Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

• Babel by R.F. Kuang

• Piranesi by Susanna Clarke

• A Face Like Glass by Frances Hardinge

• The Princess and the Goblin by George Mac Donald

• The War That Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley

Also mentioned:

• Watch clips from the BBC adaptation on YouTube

• Reading The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe with C.S. Lewis

• C.S. Lewis: An Experiment in Criticism

• Phillip Pullman: Far from Narnia

Chelsey and Sara chat about another children’s classic: A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle, reflecting on the difference between reading it as a kid versus our current adult perspectives. We discuss this novel’s unique characters and content, as well as the distinctive nature of the author herself. Allusions abound in this novel, from the biblical to the literary. As part of our exploration of children’s literature, we explore some themes and tropes of children’s literature that will certainly keep coming up throughout this semester as we explore the world of Classic Children’s Literature in your podcast feed and with our Patreon community. 

Together, we’re learning to be better, more critical and thorough readers of classic and contemporary literature. We love discussing books and reading with all of you and hope you’ll join our group of nerdy readers at patreon.com/novelpairings. Annual subscriptions are now available at a discounted price. 

Pairings Timestamp: 39:10

Books mentioned:

• The Disordered Cosmos: A Journey into Dark Matter, Spacetime, and Dreams Deferred by Chanda Prescod-Weinstein

• Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman

• A Circle of Quiet or The Crosswick Journals by Madeleine L’Engle

• A Wrinkle in Time the Graphic Novel by Madeleine L’Engle & Hope Larson (Illustrator) 

• When You Reach Me by Rebecca Steed

• The Story Of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang

Also mentioned:

• What time is it when you pass through A Wrinkle in Time?

Chelsey and Sara discuss Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. This short, weird, and word play-filled story explores the “slipperiness” of language, the joys and fears of growing up, and the traditions of Victorian schooling. 

In addition to the historical and literary context for this classic, we also enjoyed talking about what it feels like to be a child in a world of rules. Today’s pairings include magical middle grade novels and a cozy light academia fantasy, and we hope you find your next silly, escapist read among them. 

Are you ready for deeper reading in 2023? This spring we’re exploring the world of Classic Children’s Literature in your podcast feed and with our Patreon community. Together, we’re learning to be better, more critical and thorough readers of classic and contemporary literature. We love discussing books and reading with all of you and hope you’ll join our group of nerdy readers at patreon.com/novelpairings. Annual subscriptions are now available at a discounted price. 

Pairings Timestamp: 43:50

Books mentioned (affiliate links):

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

Furthermore by Tahereh Mafi

Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Fairies by Heather Fawcett

Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire

Heartless by Marissa Meyer

A Blade So Black by L.L. McKinney

Silverworld by Diana Abu-Jaber

The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern

Also mentioned:

Adventures in Wonderland (1992-1994)

Chelsey and Sara discuss Langston Hughes’s 1930 novel: Not Without Laughter,  the story of a young boy coming of age in small-town Kansas with his matriarchal family. His mother Annjee works as a maid and cook for a wealthy white family, his grandmother Hager takes in laundry work, and his Aunt Harriet has big dreams of performing. His wandering father, Jimboy makes appearances as does his upper class Aunt Tempy. As a collective, these characters reveal varied philosophies and histories of the Black diasporic experience. 

We expected to enjoy Hughes’ use of language and imagery, but we did not anticipate the rich tapestry of history and themes explored in this  short classic. We hope you take something away from this spoiler-free episode before, during, or after listening, whether you choose to pick up the book or one of our contemporary pairings. These pairings include complex families in fiction, sweeping historical accounts, and blues-y musings on the power of music. 

Are you ready for deeper reading in 2023? This spring we’re exploring the world of Classic Children’s Literature in your podcast feed and with our Patreon community. Together, we’re learning to be better, more critical and thorough readers of classic and contemporary literature. We love discussing books and reading with all of you and hope you’ll join our group of nerdy readers at patreon.com/novelpairings. Annual subscriptions are now available at a discounted price. 

Pairings Timestamp: 29:50

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Books Mentioned:

A Little Devil in America by Hanif Abdurraqib

The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson

The Color of Compromise by Jemar Tisby

Perish by Latoya Watkins

Sweet, Soft, Plenty Rhythm by Laura Warrell

On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong

Links & Things Mentioned:

"Done Made Us Leave Our Home": Langston Hughes's Not without Laughter--Unifying Image and Three Dimensions - R. Baxter Miller (JSTOR)

This spring semester, we are trying something a little different. We hope you all are up for venturing into uncharted territory together as we spend a few months reading Classic Children's Literature! From fantasy to historical fiction to adventure, we will explore the influences of children's stories on contemporary literature. Using our signature literary lens, we intend to reflect on some of our favorite books as young readers while scrutinizing how well they hold up to the modern kid lit canon. 

We will discuss each of these selections on the main feed, but if you'd like to dive deeper into the themes, history, and connections between these texts, consider joining our Patreon community at patreon.com/novelpairings. 

A quick note: we don't share which books are our book club selections for each month, because we haven't chosen them yet! We'll put out a poll on Patreon.

Novel Pairings Spring 2023: Classic Children's Literature 

February: Fantasy 

• Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
• A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
• The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by CS Lewis
• The Golden Compass by Phillip Pullman
• Patreon Lecture: Reading Children's Classics with a Literary Lens

March: Historical Fiction

• Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor
• Catherine Called Birdy by Karen Cushman
• Patreon Seminar: Should Grown-Ups Read Twilight?: The role of children's literature in the adult reader's life

April: Orphans and Scamps

• The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
• Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery
• From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg
• Patreon Lecture: From Alice to Amari: The Hero's Journey in Children's Fiction

May: Books in Translation

• Inkheart by Cornelia Funke
• The Wild Book by Juan Villaro
• Patreon Office Hours

Today we enter the towering stack of “Best Book” lists, but we like to think our annual episode stands out from the crowd. Instead of narrowing down a list of favorites every year, we share superlatives to include a wider variety of genres, themes, and reading experiences in our year end wrap up episode. Check our stories at @novelpairingspod on Instagram for templates to share your 2022 superlatives, and please do not forget to tag us! We would love to see which books you select in each category.

For more superlatives, go to patreon.com/novelpairings. We will share a bonus episode on Friday FULL of more titles we loved this year. 

Podcast episodes mentioned:

Maryanne Wolf and Ezra Klein discuss “deep reading”

All about hyped books

Buzzy summer 2022 books we both read

Books mentioned:

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle ZevinBabel by R.F. Kuang

Bomb Shelter by Mary Laura Philpott 

Book Lovers by Emily Henry

Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver

Trust by Hernan Diaz

Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan

The Many Daughters of Afong Moy by Jamie Ford

Even Though I Knew the End by C.L. Polk

Search by Michelle Hunevan

Portrait of a Thief by Grace D. Li

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus

Weather Girl by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Invisible Storm by Jason Kander

A Ghost in the Throat by Doireann Ní Ghríofa 

The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall

A Dangerous Business by Jane Smiley

Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry

The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo

When We Lost Our Heads by Heather O’Neill

Frankenstein in Baghdad by Ahmed Saadawi

The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green

Dinosaurs by Lydia Millet

Signal Fires by Dani Shapiro

A Certain Appeal by Vanessa King

The Long Answer by Anna Hogeland

The Trees by Percival Everett

Lucy by the Sea by Elizabeth Strout

Recitatif by Toni Morrison

Have I Told You This Already? By Lauren Graham

Now is Not the Time to Panic by Kevin Wilson

Echo Mountain by Lauren Wolk

These Precious Days by Ann Pachett

Slippery Creatures by KJ Charles

Share your own superlatives! Here’s the list:

• Lived up to “the hype”

• Didn’t live up to “the hype”

• Most likely to become a modern classic

• Best surprise

• Biggest disappointment 

• Most comforting/helped through a hard time

• Best characters 

• Best UNlikeable characters

• Kept you thinking the long after reading

• Most discussable

• Best under the radar

• Best audiobook experience

• Book you would recommend to a friend

Join us as we discuss the sumptuous, sexy, and speculative adaptation of The Great Gatsby: The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo. We adored Vo’s language, voice, and inventive storytelling and will give you a heads up for brief spoilers [20:35-25:00]. In addition to classic themes with a contemporary twist, we also discuss what we’ve learned over the course of this adaptation-themed semester in Novel Pairings University. 

We are not offering pairings for this episode, but we highly recommend checking out our popular bonus episodes on classic literature from the 1920s Part One and Part Two.  

If you’ve enjoyed our eclectic and educational content this season, we would love for you to join us for our exciting December and January events in our Patreon community. You can find calendars and details in our newsletter or on our Patreon page. 

To support Novel Pairings:

• Write a review in Apple Podcasts. 
• Subscribe to our newsletter at novelpairings.substack.com
• Join our Patreon community at patreon.com/novelpairings.
• Follow Novel Pairings on Instagram or Twitter. 
• Send this episode to a bookish friend!

Books & Links mentioned:

• The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo
• The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
• The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin
• Beautiful Little Fools by Jillian Cantor
• Nghi Vo on the Poured Over podcast
• Was Gatsby Black?
• Deconstructing the American Dream: Identity and Illusions in Nghi Vo’s The Chosen and the Beautiful

Readers, today we are taking it way back to September 2020 (a lifetime ago!) when we discussed The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. This month’s book club is The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo (a Gatsby retelling) so we’re taking this opportunity to refresh our memories about the plot, characters, and themes of Fitzgerald’s iconic work. We hope you enjoy this blast from the past, and we’re so excited to discuss Vo’s novel with you next week!

Books mentioned:

Chelsey’s Pairings:Let Us Dream by Alyssa Cole The Undocumented Americans by Karla Cornejo VillavincencioThe Diviners by Libba Bray

Sara’s Pairings:The Other Typist by Suzanne Rindell The Affairs of the Falcons by Melissa RiveroSeverance by Ling Ma Coming UpNext Week: The Chosen and The Beautiful by Nghi VoTo support Novel Pairings:

• Write a review in Apple Podcasts. 
• Subscribe to our newsletter at novelpairings.substack.com
• Join our Patreon community at patreon.com/novelpairings.
• Follow Novel Pairings on Instagram or Twitter. 
• Send this episode to a bookish friend!