Today Maile and I share some game-changing, exciting news for Nooks, make a few embarrassing confessions about how judgy we can often be, and then talk about the books that are impressing us so far this year.

Books Mentioned:

Every Moment Holy by Douglas McKelvey Hell Bent: How the Fear of Hell Holds Christians Back from a Spirituality of Love by Brian Recker I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman The Life of Lucy Gault by William Trevor A Month in the Country by JL Carr Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke The Scout and Barnaby Mysteries by Becca Wierwille The Correspondent by Virginia Evans The Road to Tender Hearts by Annie Hartnett MiddlemanBooks.Store

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Order From Our Bookshop.org Page! Switch from Audible to Libro.fm and support Nooks! Upcoming Book Clubs at Nooks! Nooks' Substack Maile's Substack Shawn's Substack Nooks' Instagram Page Nooks' Events Page

Music by Copcar Karaoke Art by Ned Bustard

*All book links connect you to our Bookshop.org site where our book shop will receive a generous portion of your purchase.

2026, here we come! After a refreshing holiday, we're ready to head into the new year at Nooks. We talk about why this January feels different than last, what makes local bookshops different (from each other and from big box stores), and what we're looking forward to reading in the new year. How do we, as booksellers, choose the books we're going to read?

Books Mentioned:

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens The Comfort of Crows by Margaret Renkl Late Migrations by Margaret Renkl The Country of the Blind by Andrew Leland Brambly Hedge by Jill Barklem The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion by Beth Brower Flashlight by Susan Choi Tom's Crossing by Mark Danielewski The Correspondent by Virginia Evans Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke

Connect with us!

Order From Our Bookshop.org Page! Upcoming Book Clubs at Nooks! Nooks' Substack Maile's Substack Shawn's Substack Nooks' Instagram Page Nooks' Events Page

Music by Copcar Karaoke Art by Ned Bustard

*All book links connect you to our Bookshop.org site where our book shop will receive a generous portion of your purchase.

Winnie Li has given us a road trip book that delves deep into the heart of what it means to be on the road, what it means to live in a post-Covid world, and, perhaps more deeply, what it means to be American.

And we're honored that we get to have a conversation with her, ranging from how she ended up taking a Route 66 road trip to how victims of sexual assault often lose their ability to tell their side of the story. It's a deeply thoughtful conversation with a wonderful author.

Books Mentioned:

What We Left Unsaid by Winnie M Li

Connect with us!

Order From Our Bookshop.org Page! Upcoming Book Clubs at Nooks! Nooks' Substack Maile's Substack Shawn's Substack Nooks' Instagram Page Nooks' Events Page

Music by Copcar Karaoke Art by Ned Bustard

*All book links connect you to our Bookshop.org site where our book shop will receive a generous portion of your purchase.

Maile hates Top 10's so this is not our Top 10 Books of 2025, this is each of us picking five memorable books from the year that we loved probably more than the others. But definitely not a top 10 list. Even if it looks and sounds like one.

Books Mentioned:

Here One Moment by Lianne Moriarty Time of the Child by Niall Williams The Bookshop by Evan Friss Erasure by Percival Everett Finding Me by Viola Davis A Month in the Country by J.L. Carr Fast Like a Girl by Mindy Pelz Monsters by Claire Dederer Heating and Cooling by Beth Ann Fennelly The Elements by John Boyne

Connect with us!

Order From Our Bookshop.org Page! Upcoming Book Clubs at Nooks! Nooks' Substack Maile's Substack Shawn's Substack Nooks' Instagram Page Nooks' Events Page

Music by Copcar Karaoke Art by Ned Bustard

*All book links connect you to our Bookshop.org site where our book shop will receive a generous portion of your purchase.

Claire Dederer wrote a book called, Monsters: A Fan's Dilemma, and in it she wrestles with the question, "What do we do with the art of monstrous men?" What happens when we love a particular book or painter or piece of music only to discover that the creator was actually a terrible human being?

Today we bring in Andi Cumbo to wrestle through this topic with us, and we bring our own favorite monsters into the conversation. What will we do with the art we love that was created by awful people?

Books mentioned during the conversation:

Monsters by Claire Dederer East of Eden by John Steinbeck Lolita by Nabakov Connect with us!

Order From Our Bookshop.org Page! Upcoming Book Clubs at Nooks! Nooks' Substack Maile's Substack Shawn's Substack Nooks' Instagram Page Nooks' Events Page

Music by Copcar Karaoke Art by Ned Bustard

*All book links connect you to our Bookshop.org site where our book shop will receive a generous portion of your purchase.

Today we're joined by Kaitlin Curtice, excited to talk about her new book, Everything is a Story: Reclaiming the Power of Stories to Heal and Shape Our Stories. We explore how stories impact us within Kaitlin's framework of examining stories: liminal, lethal, and loving.

We invited her on to talk about her new book, but we also delve into the book Fast Like a Girl, Kaitlin's diagnosis of PCOS, and how understanding their cycles has been revolutionary for Maile and Kaitlin.

Kaitlin will be at our shop in October! We'd love for you to join us! (Details HERE.)

Books mentioned during the conversation:

Everything is a Story by Kaitlin Curtice Fast Like a Girl by Mindy Pells The Care of the Soul by Thomas Moore Connect with us!

Order From Our Bookshop.org Page! Upcoming Book Clubs at Nooks! Nooks' Substack Maile's Substack Shawn's Substack Nooks' Instagram Page Nooks' Events Page

Music by Copcar Karaoke Art by Ned Bustard

*All book links connect you to our Bookshop.org site where our book shop will receive a generous portion of your purchase.

Today we're talking about some of the challenges our little bookshop is facing these days, and the importance of holding things loosely without embracing a mindset of scarcity. There is freedom in surrender and knowing what your purpose is.

Books mentioned during the conversation:

Angel Down by Daniel Kraus The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton Bigger by Ren Cedar Fuller Connect with us!

Order From Our Bookshop.org Page! Upcoming Book Clubs at Nooks! Nooks' Substack Maile's Substack Shawn's Substack Nooks' Instagram Page Nooks' Events Page

Music by Copcar Karaoke Art by Ned Bustard

*All book links connect you to our Bookshop.org site where our book shop will receive a generous portion of your purchase.

Sara Billups is one of the few people Shawn has ever smoked a cigarette with. She's also the author of a new book, Nervous Systems: Spiritual Practices to Calm Anxiety in your Body, the Church, and Politics. We chat about anxiety, seeking peace, and the fascinating idea of holy indifference.

BTW...Pre-order Nervous Systems from Nooks for 20% off--simply email us at [email protected] and we'll take it from there!

Books mentioned during the conversation:

Nervous Systems by Sara Billups A Non-Anxious Presence by Mark Sayers Teach Us to Want by Jen Pollack Michel Connect with us!

Order From Our Bookshop.org Page! Upcoming Book Clubs at Nooks! Nooks' Substack Maile's Substack Shawn's Substack Nooks' Instagram Page Nooks' Events Page

Music by Copcar Karaoke Art by Ned Bustard

*All book links connect you to our Bookshop.org site where our book shop will receive a generous portion of your purchase.

As Maile and I prepare to celebrate our 26th anniversary, we reflect on the books that have played an outsized role in our lives--dating, marriage, the whole journey--and how our life philosophy and world view has been impacted by certain books.

Books mentioned during the conversation: Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller Watership Down by Richard Adams Watership Down (The Graphic Novel) by Richard Adams Crossing to Safety by Wallace Stegner The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien Ruthless Trust by Brennan Manning The Surrender Experiment by Michael Singer Old Soul by Susan Barker The Elements by John Boyne Everything Sad is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri Good Soil by Jeff Chu Good Material by Dolly Alderton Whalefall by Daniel Kraus Angel Down by Daniel Kraus Connect with us!

Order From Our Bookshop.org Page! Upcoming Book Clubs at Nooks! Nooks' Substack Maile's Substack Shawn's Substack Nooks' Instagram Page Nooks' Events Page

Music by Copcar Karaoke Art by Ned Bustard

*All book links connect you to our Bookshop.org site where our book shop will receive a generous portion of your purchase.

Today we're chatting with Laura Tremaine, long-time host of the podcast "10 Things to Tell You." Where does her profound love for Stephen King's writing come from and what makes his stories so engaging? If you don't love horror but want to read a book by King, where might you start? And why does Laura think women should read more horror?

We also delve into creativity, writing, the vulnerability (and occasional pain) of friendship, and what it's like to write nonfiction about your own life.

A little bit about Laura: From the 10 Things To Tell You podcast came Laura's first book Share Your Stuff. I'll Go First: 10 Questions to Take Your Friendships to the Next Level (2021). Her second book The Life Council: 10 Friends Every Woman Needs published April 2023.

Laura lives in LA with her husband, Jeff, and their two children. She is passionate about 20-minute reading timers, bold lipstick, Stephen King, and chicken wings.

Books mentioned during the conversation: Share Your Stuff, I'll Go First by Laura Tremaine The Life Council by Laura Tremaine Old Soul by Susan Barker 11/22/63 by Stephen King It by Stephen King The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman Dolores Claiborne by Stephen King Misery by Stephen King Billy Summers by Stephen King The Likeness by Tana French In the Woods by Tana French Broken Harbor by Tana French The Witch Elm by Tana French The Little Friend by Donna Tartt Connect with us!

Order From Our Bookshop.org Page! Upcoming Book Clubs at Nooks! Nooks' Substack Maile's Substack Shawn's Substack Nooks' Instagram Page Nooks' Events Page

Music by Copcar Karaoke Art by Ned Bustard

*All book links connect you to our Bookshop.org site where our book shop will receive a generous portion of your purchase.