What Should I Read Next?

Today we are celebrating our 400th episode by sharing a collection of your questions, stories, and favorite What Should I Read Next? moments.

A few weeks ago, we asked for your input, and our team had such a great time reading through your responses. Today, Anne is joined by Modern Mrs Darcy Co-Host and Contributor Shannan Malone in reading through your submissions one by one and sharing memories, laughs, unexpected discoveries, and more. Thanks so much to each of you who makes it possible for us to create a podcast where we get to talk books every single week—we're so grateful to be here. 

We mention a whole bunch of past episodes during today's conversation, and we've collected that list, along with the books discussed today, over on our show notes page. Find that at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/400.

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Each of Sonya Dutta Choudhury's three book clubs fills a unique space in her reading life, and today she's joining Anne to chat about her home library, what she's looking for in her books these days, and what she calls the DNA of book clubs.

Sonya is a writer, journalist, and former banker who splits her time between Mumbai, India and the Himalayan town of Manali. She's typically reading multiple titles at once, but she doesn't like to feel too regimented in her reading, preferring to keep the door open for something new that will surprise and delight her.

That said, Sonya's interested in bringing some structure to her reading life, especially when it comes to rereading: she often finds herself easily distracted by new to her books that catch her eye, and would love to spend more time with old favorites. Anne offers Sonya some ideas to bring rereading back into her regular reading rhythm.

Find the full list of titles discussed today and leave your recommendations for Sonya on our show notes page, at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/399.

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After a satisfying summer of reading the twisty thrillers and entertaining books she really enjoys when the temperatures rise, Melanie Steimle is ready to discover some transitional books for the fall reading season.

Melanie lives in Utah, where she enjoys cake decorating and her favorite adjacent bookish hobby: keeping close track of her reading in her book journal and associated spreadsheets (and looking forward to her end-of-December book stats review.)

While Melanie feels confident about the types of books she's looking for this time of year, she'd love some help finding specific titles that fit this reading preference. Melanie's looking for more literary picks than she typically reads in the summer, but she's not quite ready for the heftier and often darker reads she enjoys in the winter. She'd love Anne's help in bridging this gap and creating a fall reading list featuring titles that will deliver an immersive, highly discussable reading experience.

Find the full list of titles discussed today and leave your suggestions for Melanie on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/398.

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Today's conversation will whet your appetite for a good read, as Anne talks cookbooks and culinary reading with cookbook author and book lover Bri McKoy.

In today's show, Anne and Bri talk about the art of reading and writing cookbooks and the kitchen lessons Bri's distilled into her new release, The Cook's Book. They also put a fresh spin on book flights by pairing some favorite novels with their perfect food or drink partners.

Listen in and take a look at this delicious genre from a new perspective. Connect with Bri at her website, and find the full list of titles mentioned today on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/397.

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You're invited to experience a taste of our Patreon community! For today's episode, we've selected two recent bonus episodes that our patrons especially enjoyed, and bundled them together for you to hear.

Our bonus episodes come in a variety of formats, and today you'll hear examples of two of these: first, we're sharing a recent Industry Insights bonus episode where Anne takes you behind the scenes of the world of bestseller lists, from what they mean and how they're compiled, to why it matters for your reading life.

After that, you'll hear a recent episode from our Dear Book Therapist series, where Anne addresses vexing, bookish conundrums submitted by our patrons, like how to deal with overflowing TBR lists, how to get out of a reading rut, or just navigating big changes in your reading life.

You'll also hear a few words from several current patrons sharing what they love most about being a part of our Patreon community.

Join us on Patreon to unlock over 200 bonus episodes and help support our show, and find the full list of titles mentioned in today's show notes at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/396.

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Today's guest grew up with a deep love for science fiction and fantasy. While his reading tastes have broadened as an adult, he's still drawn to stories that come with a bit of magic.

Sai Sion recently moved from New Orleans to Austin, Texas, where he enjoys his career as an actor and podcaster. He's found that reading helps him to make sense of what's happening in his life off the page, too, and he'd love Anne's help in discovering new reads to match the next chapter of his life journey. He's also eager to add more non-Western authors to his reading list. Anne delivers a round-up of recommendations that will hopefully spark some new magic in Sai's reading life.

Connect with Sai and find the full list of books mentioned today at our show notes page, at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/395.

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In what's become a bit of a tradition, members of our team are pairing up on today's episode to share the summer reads we've loved this year and talk about what summer reading means to each of us.

From the titles we haven't been able to stop thinking about to the tropes and trends of our summer reading picks, today's episode features nine of our team members doing one of the things we all love most—talking books and reading.

Today's episode features an especially long list of books, and you'll find the full list of every title mentioned today over on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com.

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Today Anne is joined in conversation with Shana Ferguson, a NYC-based stage manager with a particularly bookish concern: she doesn't often feel like a "real" reader. Of course, we think any kind of reader is a "real" reader, so Anne couldn't wait to encourage Shana on her personal reading journey.

Shana loves her work backstage, and in her downtime you’ll often find her baking or drinking tea. Sometimes she’ll also have a book in her hands, but as the daughter of dedicated readers, Shana’s struggled at times to have a firm grasp on her own reading identity.

Shana would love Anne's support in getting some new insight on her reading life, and she's also eager to reconnect with the genres that she loved when she was a younger and more habitual reader: historical fiction, sci-fi, and fantasy. Anne's hopeful Shana feels like a “real" reader after their talk today, and comes away with a short stack of titles she’s excited to read next.

See the full list of titles mentioned today at our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/393.

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Memoir is a well-loved genre for so many readers, and today Anne is joined by R. Eric Thomas to talk about the wise, sobering, hilarious, and heartbreaking sketches in his own works, as well as some of the memoirs they each love best.

You may know R. Eric Thomas from his works Here For It or Congratulations, The Best is Over! (a 2023 Summer Reading Guide pick) which just released today. Anne couldn't stop thinking about this collection of essays, and today she and Eric enjoy a delightful conversation about his work, the art of storytelling, embracing midlife, and so much more.

We've included links to Eric's website and Instagram account, as well as the full list of titles discussed today, at our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/392.

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For many guests, picking three favorite reads is a struggle, but today's guest Annie McCloskey has a unique way of tracking her all-time favorites.

Between her beloved book clubs and her well-stocked home library, Annie is quite happy with her reading life. She's been a long-time listener who's always wanted to be on the podcast and today that conversation is happening!

Anne and Annie talk about what reading looks like in Annie's life right now, the types of titles she'd love to read more of, and the mini summer reading guide Annie creates each year for the readers in her circle. Annie would love some picks that may surprise her, and Anne delivers a roundup of recommendations.

See the full list of all the titles mentioned today and leave a comment with your recommendations for Annie at our show notes page. You'll find that link at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/391.

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