Okie Bookcast

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Welcome to Chapter 49!
My guests are Britni Brecheen and Kathryn Lynn - two friends who are launching a new bookstore and cafe in OKC.

Britni has worked in bookstores and libraries for 12+ years and is currently a homeschool mom of two. Kathryn's first job was in a bookstore at the age of 15. They have had many jobs in many places, but reading and writing has been constant, and for them, it all comes back to books.

In our conversation we talk about their vision for the new bookstore and its place in their geographic community, but also the wider bookish community of Oklahoma City. We also get into what led them to want to open the store, the ups and downs of getting the store off the ground, and a brief interlude about time spent in an international jail. You’re going to love hearing about the level of detail with which they are chasing their dream and their passion for books and readers.

Connect with Second Story Books: Instagram | Facebook | Website | Bookshop.org

Our review for this episode comes from blogger, aspiring author, and new mom, Samantha Bailey.  She is a former educator who is taking some time out of the classroom to focus on raising her daughter and working on finishing her works in progress, including a children’s book that will release in 2024.
Samantha is reviewing Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy.

Connect with Samantha: Instagram | Website

Mentioned on the Show:

Frog and Toad - Arnold Lobel
Homegoing - Yaa Gyasi
Shark Heart - Emily Habeck
Babel: Or the Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of the Oxford Translators' Revolution - R.F. Kuang
To Shape a Dragon's Breath - Moniquill Blackgoose
The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame
Treasure Island - Robert Louis Stevenson
Garlic and the Vampire - Bree Paulsen
Garlic and the Witch - Bree Paulsen
Under the Whispering Door - T.J. Klune
Migrations - Charlotte McConaghy

Connect with J: website | TikTok | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
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Music by JuliusH

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Welcome to Chapter 48 of the Okie Bookcast!

My guest is  Susy Smith, author of Ascendant, the new book in her award-winning Asylum series, a set of dystopian novels set in Oklahoma that explore the intricacies of survival, freedom, and the dark side of human nature. In our conversation we talk about her novels and about starting her writing career a bit later in life. We also talk about setting books in Oklahoma, her poetry, and her important work with the Kanza tribe in the area of language learning and retention.

Connect with Susy: website | Facebook | TikTok | Instagram | Twitter

Our review for this episode comes from poet Sydney Aerin. Sydney is a licensed therapist who is passionate about mental health education, disability awareness, and equality for all. You can find Sydney's performance and publication information on her Instagram (@sydneysometimes), including a couple of performances coming later in September at the Sunny Dayz Mural Festival  and Norman Arts in the Wind. You can also hear Sydney perform her poetry in Volume 5 and the upcoming Volume 6 of Behind the Rain, our audio anthology of Oklahoma poetry at okiebookcast.com/behind the rain. 

Sydney is reviewing Love Letters for Women, a poetry collection by another Oklahoma City poet (and Behind the Rain contributor) Kristen Grace.

Connect with Sydney: Instagram

Mentioned on the Show:

Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien
The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins
The Walking Dead - Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore
Robert Frost
Edgar Allen Poe
The Inheritance Games series - Jennifer Lynn Barnes
The Brothers Hawthorne - Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Where the Red Fern Grows - Wilson Rawls
A Wrinkle in Time and A Wind in the Door - Madeline L'Engle
Emily of New Moon series - Lucy Maud Montgomery

Connect with J: website | TikTok | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
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It's the birthday episode of Your Next Great Read!

Hannah and I talk about books we've discovered through the show and have our usual conversations about what we're reading and why you might love it.

We also have a speed round segment of favorite books our listeners read in high school.

Connect with Hannah: website | Twitter | Instagram

Hannah
Boom Town: The Fantastical Saga of Oklahoma City, Its Chaotic Founding... Its Purloined Basketball Team, and the Dream of Becoming a World-class Metropolis - Sam Anderson
Uncle Paul - Celia Fremlen
In My Dreams I Hold a Knife - Ashley Winstead
You Shouldn’t Have Come Here - Jeneva Rose
The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald

J
The Long Walk - Stephen King
All the Sinners Bleed - S.A. Cosby
Remarkably Bright Creatures - Shelby Van Pelt
The Ferryman - Justin Cronin
Les Miserables - Victor Hugo

Connect with J: website | TikTok | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
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Music by JuliusH

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Welcome to Chapter 47! Today I'm joined by 3 of the hosts of the 3 Book Girls podcast - Martha, Magen, and Vonnie. We have a blast talking about their podcast, a ton of books from every genre, and how the 3BG are essentially The Avengers.

Since they review books, I asked Magen to provide the review for this episode and she talks about Love and Other Great Expectations by Becky Dean.

Connect with 3 Book Girls: website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | TikTok

Mentioned on the Show:
Vonnie
Ken Follett
The Pillars of the Earth - Ken Follett
The Burning: The Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921 - Tim Madigan
The Tattooist of Auschwitz - Heather Morris
The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien
Odd Thomas - Dean Koontz

Magen
Ali Hazelwood
Book Lovers - Emily Henry
So This Is Christmas - Tracy Andreen
If This Gets Out - Sofie Gonzalez and Cale Deitrich
Unmasked - Paul Holes
First King of Shannara - Terry Brooks
Shadowhunters - Cassandra Clare

Martha
Stephen King
Dungeon Crawler Carl - Matt Dinniman
Undercurrents - Mary Anna Evans
Small Gods - Terry Pratchett
Children of Time - Adrian Tchaikovsky
Empire of Silence - Christopher Ruocchio
Maeve Fly - C. J. Leede
The Princess of Mars - Edgar Rice Burroughs

Others
Frog Music - Emma Donoghue
The Evening and the Morning - Ken Follet
The Power - Naomi Alderman
Love and Other Great Expectations - Becky Dean

Connect with J: website | TikTok | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
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Welcome to Chapter 46!
My guest is Eileen Hobbs, author of the five books in the The Heath Cousins Series. Eileen grew up in Thailand as the child of missionaries and those experiences have found their way into her work, especially her most recent standalone book, Under the Golden Rain Tree.  Eileen worked and taught at the University of Oklahoma for over 20 years, but is now focused on her writing career. 

In our conversation we talk about Eileen’s work and the inspirations behind her books. We also talk about the importance of character progression in book series, some advice for emerging middle-grade authors, and the fun of getting to interact with students and teachers around her books.
Connect with Eileen: Website | Instagram | Facebook

Jensen Bloom is our reviewer. Jensen is a medical writer and editor who lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In the rest of her time, she enjoys science fiction, humor, movies, and writing children's literature. She loves to travel and would go to outer space if they would let her.
Jensen reviews Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
Connect with Jensen: Twitter | Instagram

Mentioned on the Show:

The Silent Patient - Alex Michaelides
Rizzo and Isles series - Tess Gerritsen
Not a Happy Family - Shari Lapena
Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
The Ginger Tree - Oswald Wynd
The Enchanted April - Elizabeth Von Arnim
Little Women - Louisa May Alcott

Connect with J: website | TikTok | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
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Music by JuliusH

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We've got a special episode of YNGR! Hannah is traveling so I've got a special guest co-host joining me, my friend and sister-in-law, Kami Weems.
Kami and I are joined by author and podcaster, Chad Lehrmann. Chad has written a variety of horror and paranormal novels as well as nonfiction work about education and history.
Connect with Chad: Instagram | TikTok | Author Page

Chad
Chasing the Devil: My Twenty-Year Quest to Capture the Green River Killer by Sheriff David Reichert
In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson
The Eradic By S. Goody
Shattering the Perfect Teacher Myth by Aaron Hogan

Kami
Anxious People by Fredrik Backman
The Pilot’s Daughter by Audrey J. Cole
The Simple Wild by K.A. Tucker
The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

J
Drowning: The Rescue of Flight 1421 by T.J. Newman
The Bomber Mafia by Malcom Gladwell
Kindred by Octavia Butler
The Girl With All the Gifts by M.R. Carey

Connect with J: website | TikTok | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
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Welcome to Chapter 45! For this conversation, I had the joy of sitting down with married authors Will and Julia Thomas.
 
Will is a two time Oklahoma Book Award winner and the author of fourteen Victorian Era mysteries, the Barker and Llewelyn novels. His books have received Shamus and Barry nominations and numerous starred reviews. The latest book in the series - Heart of the Nile - released earlier this year.
Connect with Will: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Julia Bryan Thomas is the author of two contemporary British mysteries (under the name Julia Thomas) and two historical novels. Her WWII-era novel, For Those Who Are Lost, was an Oklahoma Book Award finalist and has been selected by the Library of Congress to represent Oklahoma at the 2023 National Book Festival. Julia’s latest book - The Radcliffe Ladies Reading Club - also released earlier this year.
Connect with Julia: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Mentioned on the show:
Anna Karinina - Leo Tolstoy
Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
A Room of One's Own - Virginia Woolf
Gift from the Sea - Anne Morrow Lindbergh
The Great Gatsby - F. Scott Fitzgerald
The Splendid and the Vile - Erik Larson
Some Danger Involved - Will Thomas
For Those Who Are Lost - Julia Bryan Thomas
A Gentleman in Moscow - Amor Towles
The Secrets We Kept - Lara Prescott
Close to Shore: The Terrifying Shark Attacks of 1916 - Michael Capuzzo
Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania - Erik Larson
Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Connect with J: website | TikTok | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
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Music by JuliusH

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Welcome to the first anniversary volume of Behind the Rain! We've been at this for a year and have had the joy of presenting 56 poems from 31 Oklahoma poets. 

Here's the lineup for this edition of the anthology:

Dream Walking - Rebecca Lemke

• Instagram: @newcrunchymom
• Website: rebeccalemke.com

Bull Headed - Brand Rackley

• Instagram: @brandrackley 

Spider - Jackie Kraft

• Facebook: @jackie.kraft.58

Where--In That Dark Deep--Are You? - David Jennings

• Facebook: @DJennPhotos
• Website: davidjenningsartinphotographyandpoetry.com

Event Horizon - Henbit

• Instagram: @henbits.daffodils

Delivery - Carson Baumann

• Instagram: @carsonsarahh
• Website: kindacraftyokc.com

Red From Roses - Thomas Juarez

• Twitter: @thomasj66714281

Sweat Dreems - Sydney Aerin

• Instagram: @sydneysometimes

Oklahoma City Is: - Lucas Dunn

• Website: There Is Nothing You Can Possess

The National Geographic Article Claims the Spiders Have Dreams - Gary Reddin

• Instagram: @reddinwrites

Shoveling Out - Seth Copeland

• Twitter: @SethTCopeland
• Website: https://neutralspaces.co/seth_t_copeland/

If you'd like to submit a poem for consideration for Volume Six of Behind the Rain (releasing October 13, 2023), visit okiebookcast.com/behindtherain for details. Submission deadline is September 15!

Connect with J: website | TikTok | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
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It's Chapter 44!

My guest is John J. Dwyer, author of The Oklahomans and several other history and historical fiction titles. John grew up in Duncan and taught History and Ethics at Southern Nazarene University from 2006-2021. He also had a successful career in journalism and broadcasting before making the switch to writing books. John’s books have won both state and nationals awards, including the Will Rogers Medallion award for Western literature. When he’s not writing, John is president of the Red River Institute of History and is part of the Oklahoma Gold! radio program and podcast that features colorful and inspiring tales from Oklahoma History.

Connect with John: website | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube | Oklahoma Gold!

Steven Wedel provides our review for this episode. Steven has published 37 books under his own name and two pseudonyms. Steve is an English teacher by day, who previously  worked as a journalist, public relations director, corporate writer, and a lot of other things that didn't have to do with writing. His latest book - First Born - released earlier this summer.  Steven is keeping with our theme of cowboys and history with his review of Deer Run Trail by David R. Lewis.

Connect with Steven: website | Instagram | Twitter

Mentioned on the show:
The Oklahomans (Book 1 and Book 2) - John J. Dwyer
James Michener
Dr. Bob Blackburn
Jerry Bennett
The 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre: A Photographic History Volume 1 - Dr. Karlos K. Hill
Oklahoma Gold! podcast
Winds of War - Herman Wouk
War and Remembrance - Herman Wouk
Lonesome Dove - Larry McMurtry
Horseman, Pass By - Larry McMurty
Pretty Boy Floyd - Larry McMurtry
Michael Wallace
Bob Burke
Washington: The Indispensable Man - James Thomas Flexner
Oklahoma Gold! on Waddy Young
Deer Run Trail - David R. Lewis

Connect with J: website | TikTok | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
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This month, Hannah and I are joined by author and editor Rebecca Inch-Partridge.
Rebecca is an author, an editor, and an avid science fiction fan who grew up imagining a more inclusive world for women writers. Today, she is shaping that reality with the publication of her first YA science fantasy novel, Escaping the Dashia, from Black Rose Writing.

Connect with Rebecca: website | Facebook | Instagram

Connect with Hannah: website | Twitter | Instagram

Rebecca
War Mage, Book 2 of the Spellmonger series by Terry Mancour
The Case for Mars - Robert Zubrin
Trainee - Margaret McGaffey Fisk
Terrier: The Legend of Beka Cooper #1 - Tamora Pierce

Hannah
The Boy From the Woods - Harlen Coben
Fourth Wing - Rebecca Yarros
The Husband’s Secret - Liane Moriarty
Half Resurrection Blues - Daniel Jose Older

J
61 Hours - Lee Child
All the Pretty Horses - Cormac McCarthy 

• Check out Aaron Gwyn's obituary of McCarthy

A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World - C.A. Fletcher
Mort - Terry Pratchett 

• Discworld novels by themes or characters

Connect with J: website | TikTok | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook
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Music by JuliusH