If you loved Little House on the Prairie as a kid, you might be wondering, "Was there anything problematic about those books?" We're here to breakdown the entire book - the good, the bad and the (very) ugly.

What happened to Jack the dog? Does Pa have an undiagnosed mental illness? And does bread & molasses actually taste good (yes, we're doing a good old fashioned taste test)?

Click here to read Reading Racism: Or, How I'm Learning to Wrestle with "Little House on the Prairie"

Emily also references the book, The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls.

Books We've Read Recently -
Abigail - The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins
Emily - Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliett

Be sure to subscribe, leave us a review, and follow us on Instagram @readirectpodcast. 

Today we're discussing two books - one fiction and one non-fiction - with our very special guest, Emma Wright!

We're talking all about Daisy Jones & The Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid and Making Rumours by Ken Callait. That means we're covering rock and roll, drug use, rumors, scandals, affairs, love, longing and more.

If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to leave us a 5-star review and follow along on Instagram @readirectpodcast.

Read: How Fleetwood Mac Influenced Daisy Jones & The Six

Books We've Read Lately:
Emily - Delirium by Lauren Oliver
Abigail - The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman
Emma - Love in Color by Bolu Babalola 

Today we're doing a deep dive Book Club episode on Spare by Prince Harry!

We have been DYING to talk about this book, so excuse the lengthy run time on this one, but we had THOUGHTS. Many, many thoughts.

Avoid this episode if you're a Harry and Meghan hater (we are emphatically not) or if you are such a fanatic over the royal family that you will not forgive some biographical/historical errors (there are a few). Also, a disclaimer that we're taking Prince Harry at his word for this episode, and while of course there are many sides to every story, we're focusing on his side.

With all of that being said, we hope you'll enjoy this episode. If you didn't read the book, this is a great, chaotic summary of the best parts (in our humble opinions). If you read the book, and were dying to talk about it as much as we were, consider us your internet BFFs and just talk back to us in your car or on our Instagram @readirectpodcast.

Abigail mentioned the Tik Tok account, @matta_of_fact, so there's the link to that.

Books we've read recently:
Peeta's Games by igsygrace
The Paris Apartment by Lucy Foley

If you have thoughts, head over to our Instagram to let us know! And if you liked the show, be sure to leave us a 5-star review on Apple Podcasts. We love you! 

Today we're talking all things dystopian books! From The Handmaids Tale to The Hunger Games, Station 11 to Delirium, dystopian books have certainly captured our attention over the years. We're doing a deep dive into dystopian books - where they originated, why they became so popular in YA fiction in the early 2000s, and their lasting legacy. 

Books Mentioned:

• We by Yevgeny Ivanovich Zamyatin
• 1984 by George Orwell
• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
• Divergent by Veronica Roth
• Delirium by Lauren Oliver
• Matched by Ally Condie
• The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood
• Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel
• The Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler
• The Giver by Lois Lowry
• Truesight by David Stahler 
• Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
• Uglies by Scott Westerfield

Read more about dystopian books: 

• Why is dystopia so appealing to young adults?
• Why Teens Find the End of the World So Appealing
•  Why the YA dystopian craze finally burned out

Books we've been reading lately

• Abigail: Anon Pls by Deuxmoi
• Emily: The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen

We all make New Year's Resolutions, but we don't always stick to them! Did you make reading more a goal for 2023? Are you looking for our tips, tricks and suggestions to stay on track?

Whether you want to read more books, diversify your reading, join a book club or start a book podcast this year, we've got the episode for you. Maybe you're a numbers girl (like Emily) or you prefer qualitative goals (that would be Abigail), but either way we have some advice for you.

Mentioned this episode:
Online Reading Tools:
https://www.thestorygraph.com/
https://www.goodreads.com/

Libby (online library tool):
https://www.overdrive.com/apps/libby

If We Were Villians by M.L. Rio:
https://bookshop.org/p/books/if-we-were-villains-m-l-rio/8476867?ean=9781250095299

Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese:
https://bookshop.org/p/books/hester-laurie-lico-albanese/17856048?ean=9781250278555

If you enjoy the podcast, be sure to leave a review for us on Apple Podcasts! You can also follow us on Instagram @readirectpodcast. 

Today we're joined by a very special guest, Stephanie Edwards aka @bookstagrammarian, to recap this year in books! We're highlighting some of our favorite books we've read this year, and looking forward to new releases coming in 2023. 

Books Mentioned: 

Abigail: 

• The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah
• Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat by Samin Nosrat
• Lily and the Octopus by Steven Rowley 

Emily: 

• Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reed
• The Secrets we Kept by Lara Prescott
• The Appeal by Janice Hallett 

Stephanie: 

• Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmut
• The Blue Bistro by Elin Hildebrand
• Acts of Violet by Margarita Montimore
• The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
• If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio

In 2022: 

• "You Just Need to Lose Weight" by Aubrey Gordon
• Love, Theoretically by Ali Hazelwood
• Another Life by Kristin Hannah
•  Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun by Elle Cosimano
• Nine Liars by Maureen Johnson 
• A Tempest at Sea (Lady Sherlock #7) by Sherry Thomas
• The Last Confessions of Mara Dyer and Noah Shaw by Michell Hodkin (WILL THIS EVER COME OUT?? Unknown.) 

Today, we're giving you gift ideas for the book lover in your life! Or, even if they don't love books as much as we do, you'll still find ideas!

Gift Guide Mentions

• Tu Casa, Mi Casa by Enrique Olvera
• From Crook to Cook by Snoop Dog
• 30- minute One Pot Meals by Joanna Cismaru 
• Great British Bake Off 
• I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jeanette McCurdy
• Miss Me With That by Rachel Lindsay
• Yes Please by Amy Pohler
• In the Shadow of Man by Jane Goodall
• The Body Keeps the Score by Dr. Bessel Van Der Kolk 
• The Wisdom of Your Body by Dr. Hillary McBride
• Group by Christie Tate
• Falling Upward by Richard Rohr
• Native by Kaitlin Curtis
• The Little Book of Hygee by Meik Wiking
• Dessert Person by Claire Saffitz
• What’s for Dessert by Claire Saffitz
• Maid by Stephanie Land
• Educated by Tara Westover

Books We’ve Been Reading 

• The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath 
• The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz

Today we're doing a deep dive of all things Love on the Brain by Ali Hazelwood! We're discussing our favorite swoon-worthy moments, the book's biggest reaches, our thoughts on the ending and whether we think the main couple would stay together in the end.

We'd love to hear your thoughts on this book and episode, so head over to our Instagram and let us know what you think! 

Books we've read recently:

• Abigail - Reminders of Him by Colleen Hoover
• Emily - River Woman, River Demon by Jennifer Givhan

As we're getting ready for Thanksgiving, we're discussing the families we'd want to spend the holiday with. Who would sit at the kids table? Who would cause the drama? And most importantly, who would be staging a play with all the cousins?

We'd love to spend Thanksgiving with the Pevensies in Narnia or in Palm Springs with Gay Uncle Patrick. 

Books We've Read Recently: 

• Me and White Supremacy (Abigail)
• Tell Me Everything (Emily) 

And if you want to make the mac & cheese recipe Emily was referencing (it's delicious), you can find it on TikTok at this link. 

If you enjoyed the podcast, be sure to subscribe for new episodes! And you can follow us on Instagram at @readirectpodcast.

Today we're talking all about tropes in Romance books! Fake dating, enemies to lovers, one bed, we'll cover it all. 

Books mentioned: 

• The Love Hypothesis 
• Book Lovers
• Funny You Should Ask
• Love and Other Words 

What we've read recently: 

• Skin of the Sea
• The Wife Upstairs

Follow us on Instagram at @readirectpodcast!