Why do we love the number three? It equates to TRILOGY! Tune in for summer 2024 updates and to talk about trilogies with us. Do you have a favorite set of 3 we need to try? Share it with us!

Email the podcast at [email protected] or on your favorite social media platform if you have thoughts, comments, or questions for us. @mulberrypubliclibrary

**The trilogies mentioned in the episode are the original trilogy or set of 3. Some have had additional titles, prequels, or novellas added to the story over the years.** 

Trilogies mentioned in this episode:

 Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James
Oedipus Trilogy by Sophocles
Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Divergent  by Veronica Roth
Lord of the Rings by J R R Tolkien
Matched by Ally Condie
Millennium by Stieg Larsson
All Souls by Deborah Harkness
Renegades by Marissa Meyer
Selection by Kiera Cass

 Special (non-trilogy) book mentions:

Concrete Rose & The Hate You Give by Angie Thomas
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

What are we reading now:

A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas
Why We Read: On Bookworms, Libraries, and Just One More Page Before Lights Out by Shannon Reed

The Mulberry Book Drop went on a field trip! We are so excited to share these incredible independent book shops with you. Definitely check them out if you are in the Lakeland, FL area. Listening from afar? Look up shops near you and let us know what you find!

A special thank you to all the owners for sharing their time and love of books with us. What an incredible community! 

Email us at [email protected]  to share your thoughts. We love hearing from fellow readers! We can also be reached on your favorite social media platform. @mulberrypubliclibrary

Lakeland Book Crawl
Bookends 5100 US Hwy 98 N #4, Lakeland, FL 33809
Inklings Book Shoppe 243 N Florida Ave, Lakeland, FL 33801
Pressed LKLD 213 E Bay St, Lakeland, FL 33801
Little Bus Books 1047 E Main St, Lakeland, FL 33801
Bookareaderville 2120 S Combee Rd, Lakeland, FL 33801
Crash Bookshop 3125 US-98 Suite 1, Lakeland, FL 33803
Unbound Bookery 1026 Florida Ave S, Lakeland, FL 33803

What are we reading now:
Funny Story by Emily Henry
Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez

This month we are revisiting The Storygraph. We tried out the Buddy Read feature and… spoiler alert… we LOVED it! Tune in to learn more and see what book we picked for our test run. Reading is fun, but reading with friends is BETTER!!

Email us at [email protected] or on your favorite social media platform if you have thoughts, comments, or questions for us. @mulberrypubliclibrary 

Books mentioned in this episode:
Mother-Daughter Murder Night by Nina Simon
How Long ‘Til Black Future Month by N.K. Jemisen
Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

What are we reading now:
Silent Came the Monster: A Novel of the 1916 Jersey Short Shark Attacks by Amy Hill Hearth
Maybe Next Time by Cesca Major

March feels like the perfect time to look at the books we have read so far this year. The library shelves are filled with amazing titles, new and old. Tune in and learn which ones have made an impression on us.

Email Sarah and Bethany at [email protected] or on your favorite social media platform if you have thoughts, comments, or questions for us.  @mulberrypubliclibrary 

Books mentioned in this episode:

The Winners by Fredrik Backman
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree
Mexican Gothic by Silva Moreno-Garcia
Switchboard Soldiers by Jennifer Chiaverini
A Most Agreeable Murder by Julia Seales
How to Keep House While Drowning: A Gentle Approach to Cleaning and Organizing by KC Davis
The Inmate by Freida McFadden
The One and Only Ruby by Katherine Applegate
The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate
The One and Only Bob by Katherine Applegate
Counting the Cost by Jill Duggar and Derick Dillard

 What are we reading now:

The Busy Body by Kemper Donovan
Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros

Do you track, list, rate, and review your books? We do! We look back at our completed reads daily, so we decided it would be fun to test out a few trackers. Here is what we learned. 

Email us at [email protected] or on your favorite social media platform if you have thoughts, comments, or questions for us. @mulberrypubliclibrary 

Books mentioned in this episode:

Hidden Figures by Margot Lee Shetterly
The Year of Living Biblically by A.J. Jacobs
The Know-It-All by A.J. Jacobs
The Guinea Pig Diaries by A.J. Jacobs
The Housemaid by Freida McFadden
The Housemaid’s Secret by Freida McFadden

What are we reading now:

The Inmate by Freida McFadden
The Lady From the Black Lagoon by Mallory O’Meara

The library is not the only book loving department in the City of Mulberry, so we asked around and made a list for our listeners! Checkout their favorite books and movies… Talk about variety! 

Email us at [email protected] or on your favorite social media platform if you have thoughts, comments, or questions for us. @mulberrypubliclibrary 

 Books mentioned in this episode:
Humble Inquiry: The Gentle Art of Asking Instead of Telling by Edgar H. Schein
The Vampire Vittorio by Anne Rice
The Year of Magical Thinking by Joan Didion
All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood
Jobs for Girls With Artistic Flair by June Gervais
Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson
Bridge to Haven by Francine Rivers
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff
The Bible
Dream Weaver by Sofia Simpson
Woman, Thou Art Loosed! by T.D. Jakes

Movies mentioned in this episode:
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II
Fearless (Jet Li movie)
You’ve Got Mail
Bride Wars
That Thing You Do
Footloose
Dirty Dancing
Top Gun: Maverick
A Walk to Remember
Multiplicity
Sweet Home Alabama
Selena
I Can Do Bad All By Myself

 What are we reading now:
The Rachel Incident by Caroline O’Donoghue
Sisters Under the Rising Sun by Heather Morris

Do you know what an Epistolary Novel is? We are willing to bet you've actually read some. Tune in to learn more about this useful writing tool. 

You can always email us at [email protected] or contact us on your favorite social media platform to continue the conversation. @mulberrypubliclibrary 

Titles mentioned in this episode:

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer

The Lost Girls of Paris by Pam Jenoff 

My Best Friend’s Exorcism by Grady Hendrix

Dracula by Bram Stoker

Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes

Bridget Jones’s Diary by Helen Fielding

We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver

Pretty Guilty Women by Gina LaManna

The Appeal by Janice Hallett

The Christmas Appeal by Janice Hallett

 What are we reading now:

The Twelve Dates of Christmas by Jenny Bayliss

House of Sticks by Ly Tran 

Blanket season is here and that means… Cozy Mysteries! We don’t get to bundle as deep due to the Florida heat, but we DO get to enjoy cozy mystery season. Special thank you to our friend for her amazing list of suggestions too!   

What is your favorite cozy mystery title? Bonus points if it includes a pun! Email us at [email protected] or on your favorite social media platform. @mulberrypubliclibrary 

Titles mentioned in this episode:

The Secret Book & Scone Society by Ellery Adams

Murder with Peacocks by Donna Andrews

A Most Agreeable Murder by Julia Seales

An Appetite for Murder by Lucy Burdette

Peg and Rose Solve a Murder by Laurien Berenson

The Cracked Spine by Paige Shelton

All Fudged Up by Nancy CoCo

The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

The Broken Spine by Dorothy St. James

Finlay Donovan is Killing It by Elle Cosimano

The Number One Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith

Still Life by Louise Penny

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo

What are we reading now:

Good for a Girl by Lauren Fleshman

Siege and Storm by Leigh Bardugo

This month we are talking about LOCAL talent! We have several local authors on our shelves whom we are honored to have worked with and read. Tune in for details about their stories and then drop by the library to checkout a local author today!

Remember, our writer’s club is open to the public and meets each month on the 2nd Monday at 10 AM. Do you have questions or comments about this episode or the events we offer? Contact us! You can reach us at [email protected] or on your favorite social media platform. @mulberrypubliclibrary 

Titles mentioned in this episode:

Star Crossed: The Story of Astronaut Lisa Novak by Kimberly C. Moore

Grant Justice: The Untold Story of the Finest Attorney of a Generation by Robert G. Fegers

Chasing Vegan: Baking Vegan Fun by Mika Altidor & Victor Munoz

The Deadly Prophet by Joseph Lyons

The 100-Hour Pilot by Brian Brogen

Dream Weaver by Sofia Simpson

Terra: An Elemental Series by Sofia Simpson

Stellar Dreams by Autumn McMahan

Scrump and Friends Go for a Swim by Tif E. Boots

Romeo Riley the Series by April M. Whitt

What are we reading now:

True to You by Becky Wade

Shark Heart by Emily Habeck

Fall has arrived! This month we are talking about book slumps and how to get out of them. We’ve all been there. Remember though, we are always here to help you!

Have you ever been in a reading slump? What was the magical book or method that helped you escape? We’d love to hear from you! You can reach us at [email protected] or on your favorite social media platform. @mulberrypubliclibrary 

Titles mentioned in this episode:

The Queen’s Gambit by Walter Tevis
Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
Final Girls by Riley Sager
People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez
Goodnight Beautiful by Aimee Molloy
The Wrong Family by Tarryn Fisher
Educated by Tara Westover
Phyllis Diller's Housekeeping Hints by Phyllis Diller

 What are we reading now:

How to Be Fine: What We Learned From Living by the Rules of 50 Self-Help Books by Jolenta Greenberg and Kristen Meinzer
All Fall Down by Ally Carter