The Books We Loved

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The Books We Loved episodes

January 01BONUS: K-Pop Demon Hunters inspired reads
Due to the recent success of the film, K-Pop Demon Hunters, the gals thought it was high time to offer our listeners some K-Pop inspired reading recs! Buckle up, buttercups, and be prepared to impress your friends (and, dare we say, kids) with this K-Pop inspired reading list!
Titles discussed today:
K-pop Confidential, Stephan Lee

I’ll Be the One, Lyla Lee

XOXO, Axie Oh
Somewhere Only We Know, Mauren Goo

I'll love you forever: notes from a K-pop fan, Giaae Kwon

Skylar and the K-Pop Principal, Luan Goldie

Make a Move, Sunny Park!, Jessica Kim

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon (trilogy), Grace Lin

Meesh the Bad Demon, Michelle Lam

When You Trap a Tiger, Tae Keller

BTS: K-pop's biggest headliners, Leslie Holleran
19 min
December 31, 2025So long, 2025--these were our favs!
The girls round out the year by sharing their personal favorite reads of 2025. See below for the booklist.
Olivia's recs:
Atmosphere, Taylor Jenkins Reid

Heart the Lover, Lily King

The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny, Kiran Desai

All the Way to the River, Elizabeth Gilbert

This American Woman, Zarna Garg

Death of the Author, Nnedi Okorafor

Back After This, Linda Holmes

Swept Away, Beth O’Leary
Manda's recs:
No More Chairs, Gill

Everyday Bean (Tiny Bean's Big Adventures, Book #1), Graegin

Frank’s Red Hat, Avery

Max in the Land of Spies (book 1); Max in the Land of Lies (book 2), Gidwitz

We Were Liars (book 1), Family of Liars (book 2), We Fell Apart (book 3), E. Lockhart

The Only One Left, Sager

I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: one woman’s obsessive search for the Golden State Killer, McNamara

The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse (book 1), The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, the Horse, and the Storm (book 2), Charlie Mackesy
42 min
December 24, 2025BONUS: Rob Reiner remembered
Today Olivia and Manda reflect on the cinematic gifts left to the world by the genius, Rob Reiner. Along with each movie mentioned, the girls offer book recs for your reading delight (list below). Happy Holidays!
When Harry Met Sally:
Heartburn, Nora Ephron
The People We Meet on Vacation, Henry (really any Emily Henry book)
Normal People, Rooney
Rachel Incident, O’Donoghue
Eleanor and Park, Rowell
One Day, Nicholls

Misery
Dolores Claiborne, Stephen King
Dream Girl, Laura Lippman
Notes on a Scandal, Heller
Tender, McKeon

Stand By Me
Something Wicked This Way Comes, Bradbury
The Night Circus, Morgenstern
The Outsiders, Hinton
Okay For Now, Gary D. Schmidt
Pop AND Schooled (both were mentioned, but really any Gordon Korman book)

This is Spinal Tap
A Fine Line Between Stupid and Clever: The Story of Spinal Tap
Spinal Tap 2: the end continues (movie rec)
AC/DC: Maximum Rock & Roll: The Ultimate Story of the World’s Greatest Rock-and-Roll Band, Engelheart
I am Ozzy, Osbourne
Hammer of the Gods: The Led Zeppelin Saga, Davis
The Life of Brian (movie rec)
Monty Python bios/memoirs:
Always Look on the Bright Side of Life: A Sortabiography, Eric Idle
So, anyway…, John Cleese
The Pythons Autobiography, The Pythons
French Exit, deWitt

The Princess Bride
Tress of the Emerald Seas, Sanderson
Kill the Farm Boy, Dawson
As you wish: inconceivable tales from the making of the Princess Bride, Elwes
Magicians, Grossman
33 min
December 17, 2025 The Great(?) Gatsby
Today the gals are joined by fellow TPL staffer, Hannah, for a discussion of every high school's favorite assigned book, The Great Gatsby. O
53 min
December 03, 2025Gift giving recs
Looking for some great gift ideas? You've come to the right place! The girls share ideas for all ages, babies to adults. In case you were walking/driving/jogging and couldn't write down the titles, the gals discussed:
When Pigs Fly: a song for dreamers, Sandra Boynton
The Book of Candles: eight poems for Hanukkah Laurel Snyder, illus. by Leanne Hatch
The 13th Day of Christmas, Adam Rex
Once Upon a Kwanzaa, Nyasha Williams
The Amazing Generation, Jonathan Haidt and Catherine Price
The Stolen Songbird Judith Eagle
Brownstone, Samuel Teer and Mar Julia
This American Woman: A One-In-A-Billion Memoir, Zarna Garg
The Life Cycle of the Common Octopus, Emma Knight
Turning to Birds: the power and beauty of noticing, Lili Taylor
Lifeform, Jenny Slate
The Third Gilmore Girl: a memoir, Kelly Bishop
22 min
November 19, 2025 Agatha Christie's The Body in the Library
Today the gals dig into Agatha Christie's novel, The Body in the Library--the second book to feature beloved sleuth extraordinaire, Ms. Marple!
28 min
November 07, 2025BONUS: reader recs just in time for turkey!
Today's quick episode is in response to a request from our listener, Eliza. Don't forget, if you would like us to give you recommendations, shoot us an email at: [email protected]
If You Lived During the Plimoth Thanksgiving, by Chris Newell, illustrated by Winona Nelson

Keepunumuk: Weeâchumun's Thanksgiving Story, written by indigenous authors: Danielle Greendeer (Mashpee Wampanoag), Anthony Perry (Chickasaw), Alexis Bunten (Unangan/Yup'ik), and illustrated by Garry Meeches Sr. (Anishinaabe)

Thank You, Sarah: the woman who saved Thanksgiving, by Laurie Halse Anderson, illustrated by Matt Faulkner

Balloons over Broadway: the inspiring true story of the puppeteer of Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, written and illustrated by Melissa Stewart

Shark Lady: The True Story of How Eugenie Clark Became the Ocean's Most Fearless Scientist, by Jess Keating, illustrated by Marta Alvarez Miguens

Whoosh! Lonnie Johnson’s Super-Soaking Stream of Inventions, by Chris Barton, illustrated by Don Tate

Dancing Through Space: Dr. Mae Jemison soars to new heights, by Lydia Lukidis, illustrated by Sawyer Cloud

Saving American Beach: the biography of African American environmentalist MaVynee Betsch, by Heidi Tyline King, illustrated by Ekua Holmes

A Line Can Go Anywhere: The Brilliant, Resilient Life of Artist Ruth Asawa, by Caroline McAllister illustrated by Jamie Green

Kahoʻolawe : the true story of an island and her people, by Kamalani Hurley, illustrated by Harinani Orme

Fairytales/Folktales native to a culture!
11 min
November 05, 2025 Fun Home
Fellow TPL staffer, Kit, will be joining the girls today to discuss Alison Bechdel's, Fun Home: a family tragicomic, a graphic memoir.
47 min
October 31, 2025 BONUS: 1999's The Mummy
In honor of Halloween, the gals are joined by Director, Emily Dumas, to discuss 1999's The Mummy starring Brendan Frasier and Rachel Weiss. Enjoy this spoooooky episode!
41 min
October 22, 2025 Taylor Swift -- reading through the eras
Whether you're a Swiftie or not, Olivia and Manda will provide you with loads of great book recommendations inspired by each of Taylor Swift's albums. So get your Swiftie swag on, and hunker down for an episode that will give you all the good vibes.
36 min

About The Books We Loved

From the publisher's feed

The Books We Loved is a podcast about revisiting old favorites with an open mind and a new perspective. Despite the title, we won’t be limiting ourselves to books-- movies, music, TV shows, and…