It's fitting that our "odd" month includes an odd recording schedule. Here we are, four days before mid-month, trying to share our progress so far, and the content is...surprisingly rich! Join us, Felicia and Aaron, as we cover some news on new releases and the British Book Awards, move on to discuss our reading progress which is full of assassins and eating-the-rich, share listener recommendation and rapid fires on odd books, and wrap up with a question about Michael Crichton and how to handle an author's conflicting beliefs. It's a packed episode, especially for ten days of reading, and we hope you enjoy it. You can reach us at the outlets below. 

Listener Recommends:

The Secret, Book and Scone Society - Ellery Adams

Parable of the Sower - Octavia E. Butler

Glorious Exploits - Ferdia Lennon

The Authenticity Project - Clare Pooley

The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane - Lisa See

Books Discussed at Length:

Annie John - Jamaica Kincaid

Don't Log Off: Part One - M.F. Adele

Don't Log Off: Part Two - M.F. Adele

Definitely Not - Rae Knight

Lost: Back to the Island - Emily St. James and Noel Murray

Morse - Carter Keane (releasing April 14th)

News:

Felicia - https://www.thebookseller.com/the-british-book-awards/the-british-book-awards-2026 

Aaron - https://www.npr.org/2026/03/09/nx-s1-5738478/darkology-blackface-rhae-lynn-barnes 

Contact:

Email - [email protected]

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/talkbooky/

Felicia's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/10748838-felicia

Aaron's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/27722090-aaron 

It's a new month, so that's a brand-new chance to finish a TBR! Join us, Felicia and Aaron, as we cover some news about boundary-breaking women in Japan and fighting oppression in Ukraine with poetry before we introduce our new theme. Not to spoil it, but it's going to be a weird month. We set up a TBR full of interesting oddities after exchanging a book to push us out of our comfort zones, and we end with question about book settings. Thank you for joining us, and you can reach us at the outlets below. 

News:

Felicia - https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/international/international-book-news/article/99736-bestselling-women-writers-in-japan-defy-clich.html 

Aaron - https://theconversation.com/lines-from-the-frontline-the-poet-soldiers-defending-ukraine-276676 

Contact:

Email - [email protected]

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/talkbooky/

Felicia's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/10748838-felicia

Aaron's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/27722090-aaron 

Another February rolls to a close, and we, mostly, broke the curse of book slumpage (we know that's not a word, but cut us some slack). Join us, Felicia and Aaron, as we halfway celebrate a February of rich reading. We start with some timely news about Black literature recommendations and not-so-timely news about a Shakespeare folio. We move on to books we purchased or were gifted, including some relevant Black literature and some titles that might find their way into our March theme (teaser). The thinner part of the episode then opens with our discussion about books we read and our superlatives for the month, including a lot of disappointments as we read for necessity and grind to a stand-still on books we enjoy, for the most part. Regardless, we have a lot of fun conversations and wrap up with some recommendations that will certainly improve your lives. Thank you for listening, and you can reach us at the outlets below!

Books Discussed at Length:

Vexatious Queen - Brooklyn Cross

The Death of Ivan Ilyich - Leo Tolstoy

James - Percival Everett

Lost: Back to the Island - Emily St. James and Noel Murray

ARCs Introduced:

Morsel - Carter Keane

News:

Felicia - https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/the-read-down/black-authors-on-their-favorite-books-by-black-authors/ 

Aaron - https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cg5n722vj4ro 

Contact:

Email - [email protected]

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/talkbooky/

Felicia's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/10748838-felicia

Aaron's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/27722090-aaron 

The usual book slump of February can't stand up to us this year! Join us, Felicia and Aaron, as we do a mid-month update on our reading progress during the month that usually sends us spiraling into a cave that drains our ability to read until March. Not in 2026...well, at least for one of us! We open with some exciting news about a childhood favorite book getting an aged-up sequel and Booker Prize winner heading to the big screen. Then, we discuss the odd and sprawling range of literature we finished since the 1st, including many classics and a few modern hits, give some rapid-fire recommendations in honor of Black History Month, and wrap up with a timely question about breaking a reading slump with a comfort read. Thank you for listening, and you can reach us at the outlets below. 

Books Discussed at Length:

Their Eyes Were Watching God - Zora Neale Hurston

The Awakening - Kate Chopin

Super Nintendo: The Game-Changing Company that Unlocked the Power of Play - Keza MacDonald

The Yellow Wallpaper - Charlotte Perkins Gilman

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner - Samuel Coleridge

The Pearl - John Steinbeck

The Neighbor Favor - Kristina Forest

Lost: Back to the Island - Emily St. James and Noel Murray

James - Percival Everett

News:

Felicia - https://people.com/fiona-davis-samantha-the-next-chapter-cover-reveal-exclusive-11903556 

Aaron - https://deadline.com/2026/02/lincoln-in-the-bardo-duke-johnson-george-saunders-1236719042/ 

Contact:

Email - [email protected]

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/talkbooky/

Felicia's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/10748838-felicia

Aaron's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/27722090-aaron 

February is usually the slowest month for the Talk Booky duo, but we are meeting it with fierce motivation this year. The regular below-freezing temperatures and requirements to read literature that is over five-hundred years old won't deter us from making the most of this year's Black History Month. Join us, Felicia and Aaron, as we cover some lists of Black literature recommendations, exchange books that are sure to enrich the diversity of our reading, and set up TBRs based on uplifting Black voices during some of the most racially trying times in recent history. We then outsource some strong listener recommendations and end with some (mostly) free resources for literature news and access to reading materials. Thank you for joining us as we put on strong faces and tackle this incredibly necessary theme. You can reach us at the outlets below.

Listener Recommends:

The Help - Kathryn Stockett

The Nickel Boys - Colson Whitehead

A Calamity of Souls - David Baldacci

The House of Eve - Sadeqa Johnson

White Like Her - Gail Lukasik

Just Mercy - Bryan Stevenson

The Other Wes Moore - Wes Moore

James - Percival Everett

News:

Felicia - https://www.bookbub.com/blog/black-history-month-2026?universal=true 

Aaron - https://pangobooks.com/blog/books-for-black-history-month?srsltid=AfmBOorgr7PssAIXKdBZyEIOwCvm9hCVyO8erRSA_xQUh8odnsknVBnK 

Resource Recommendations:

https://booksofbrilliance.com/ 

https://bookoutlet.com/?utm_source=Pmax&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Clue&utm_source=Googleads&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Clue&gad_source=1 

https://electricliterature.com/ 

https://www.gutenberg.org/ 

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/ 

Kindle Unlimited

Libby

Book Club Dates (Cassandra Clare's City of Fallen Angels):

Part One - 2/22

Part Two - 3/16

Contact:

Email - [email protected]

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/talkbooky/

Felicia's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/10748838-felicia

Aaron's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/27722090-aaron 

We may not visit five-star restaurants very often, but this month was full of five-star books. Join us, Felicia and Aaron, as we wrap up a month full of odd and impressive reads. Nostalgia washes over this episode as we revisit the small and mighty hobbits of Tolkien, reminisce about days in front of the TV with thumbs hammering the A-Button to make Mario jump faster, and get lost in...the TV show Lost. We open with some news about 30 books across 30 years and five adaptations that supposedly outshine the novels they are based on, discuss our reads since mid-month, dish out superlatives, and wrap up with a character-driven question. Thank you for listening, and you can reach us at the outlets below.

Books Discussed at Length:

The Hobbit - J.R.R. Tolkien

Tartuffe - Moliere

Oroonoko - Aphra Behn

Accomplice to the Villain - Hannah Nicole Maehrer

Super Nintendo - Keza MacDonald (Link to Purchase: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/super-nintendo-keza-macdonald/1147411650 )

Kitchen Confidential - Anthony Bourdain

The Compound - Aisling Rawle

Lost: Back to the Island - Emily St. James and Noel Murray

The Backyard Bird Chronicle - Amy Tan

News:

Felicia - https://booksofbrilliance.com/2026/01/29/the-30-best-books-of-the-last-30-years/ 

Aaron - https://screenrant.com/book-adaptations-where-movie-is-better-list/ 

Contact:

Email - [email protected]

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/talkbooky/

Felicia's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/10748838-felicia

Aaron's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/27722090-aaron 

We at Talk Booky don't want to say we can predict the future, but this episode makes a good case for us. Join us, Felicia and Aaron, on our pursuit of five-star books to kick off 2026. We are halfway through January with a few hits already. This episode kicks off with some news about Southern literature that breaks stereotypes and YA adaptations that are likely to embrace stereotypes before moving to our TBR progress. This is where things heat up. Aaron already found a five-star read that quite literally fell into his mailbox, and Felicia shed tears for her first two five-star reads of the year. After celebrating, we wrap up with our top five books of 2025 and a fun question about books that intimidate us. Thank you for listening, and you can reach us at the outlets below.

Books Discussed at Length:

We Are All Guilty Here - Karin Slaughter

Things You Save in a Fire - Katherine Center

Folklore Rules - Lynne McNeill

Obstetrix - Naomi Kritzer

Super Nintendo - Keza Macdonald

Apprentice to the Villain - Hannah Nicole Maehrer

Stanzas in America - Gilbert Allen

Kitchen Confidential - Anthony Bourdain

ARCs Introduced:

Super Nintendo - Keza MacDonald

The Body - Behany Morrow

Green and Deadly Things - Jenn Lyons

Hell's Heart - Alexis Hall

Sublimination - Isabel Kim

News:

Felicia - https://electricliterature.com/7-books-that-complicate-stories-about-the-south/ 

Aaron - https://bookriot.com/ya-books-to-film-adaptations/ 

Contact:

Email - [email protected]

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/talkbooky/

Felicia's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/10748838-felicia

Aaron's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/27722090-aaron 

Time to buy a new Sports Illustrated calendar, pack up our sweaters with 2024 slang words like "aura" and "huz" on them, give up on learning what 6-7 means and hope it dies out, and, most importantly, watch that GoodRead's number roll from 452 (or, you know, 30) books read to 0. Join us, Felicia and Aaron, as we cover some news that looks back at 2025 and gives suggestions to plan our 2026 reading before introducing a new theme to motivate us into the new year. We set up our TBRs and end with some predictions for the 2026 award season. Thank you for listening, and you can reach us at the outlets below. Happy New Year!

Listener Recommends:

Thank You for Listening - Julia Whalen

The Book Club for Troublesome Women - Marie Bostwick

Dial A for Aunties - Jess Q. Sutanto

Finding Grace - Loretta Rothschild

The People We Keep - Allison Larken

The Storied Life of AJ Fikry - Gabrielle Zevon

The Stolen Queen - Fiona Davis

The Rose Code - Kate Quinn

Nickel Boys - Colson Whitehead

They Came for the School - Mike Hixenbaugh

News:

Felicia - https://www.elle.com/culture/books/g69874348/best-fiction-books-2025/ 

Aaron - https://bookriot.com/bookish-planner-supplies-2026/ 

Contact:

Email - [email protected]

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/talkbooky/

Felicia's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/10748838-felicia

Aaron's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/27722090-aaron  

Like a famous poet once said, "wake me up when...(December?) ends..." You get the point. Join us, Felicia and Aaron, as we mourn another month of disappointingly slow reading. We open with some political news and a good look-back at 2025 in books, talk about our (mostly) failed time crunch month, including the dirty side of NYC kitchens and more complaints about a Christmas serial killer, award some superlatives, and wrap up with another fun question about literature. Thank you for joining us on this last attempt to meet some TBR goals, and we hope you were more successful. Here's to 2026!

Books Discussed at Length:

The Xmas Day Butcher - Spencer Guerrero

Wynd: The Secret of the Wings - James Tynion IV

Kaiju No. 8 - Naoya Matsumoto

Dinosaurs Before Dark - Mary Pope Osborne

Brigands and Breadknives - Travis Baldree

Those Across the River - Christopher Buehlman

The Lefthand of Darkness - Ursula K. Le Guin

Kitchen Confidential - Anthony Bourdain

A Game of Thrones - George R.R. Martin

News:

Felicia - https://lithub.com/the-ultimate-best-books-of-2025-list/ 

Aaron - https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2025/12/29/beth-macy-the-bestselling-author-of-dopesick-is-running-for-congress-is-she-the-liberal-jd-vance-00703039 

Contact:

Email - [email protected]

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/talkbooky/

Felicia's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/10748838-felicia

Aaron's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/27722090-aaron 

2025 has been horrible. Let's just say it. It's been horrible. Politics have been horrible, gas prices are horrible, meat prices are horrible, war is horrible...look, it's just been horrible. Regardless, we are here. Join us, Felicia and Aaron, as we hold our annual Talk Booky Awards that require use to debate (loosely) for the books that were not horrible (and were actually AWESOME) and make the tough decision on deciding which of those not horrible books is our favorite of the podcast. We also try to set some realistic goals for next year and comfort each other as we cry our way into the new year. Thank you for joining us, and you can reach us at the outlets below.

Contact:

Email - [email protected]

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/talkbooky/

Felicia's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/10748838-felicia

Aaron's GoodRead's - https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/27722090-aaron