What Should I Read Next?

With so many books to choose from, committing to re-reading books you've already enjoyed can feel like a particular challenge. Today's guest, Rosalynn Tyo, deeply appreciates re-reading and wants to do more of it, but regularly finds herself distracted by new releases or unread titles. She's excited to get Anne's help with this bookish conundrum.

Rosalynn loves cultivating deep and long-term relationships with the books she loves, but with so many new titles showing up at her local library and bookstore, she's looking for techniques to help her resist the siren song of the unread pile, and identify the much-loved titles that would be deeply gratifying to revisit.

Along with tackling Rosalynn's re-reading list today, she and Anne also chat about Rosalynn's recent intergenerational book pilgrimage to Prince Edward Island, the land of Anne of Green Gables. If you've ever been inspired to visit this bookish destination, you're in for a treat.

Readers should know that in this episode we touch on the death of a spouse and unexpected widowhood. If that sounds like it would be upsetting for you to listen to right now, you may want to save this episode for the future. You'll find the full list of titles discussed today at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/370.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Here at WSIRN HQ, we love a great independent bookstore, and it's always especially fun when an indie bookseller joins Anne to talk books and bookstore business. Today, the book party is bigger than ever: Anne is chatting with three booksellers all about what's happening in the bookstore world lately.

Joining Anne today are Holland Saltsman, owner of the The Novel Neighbor in St Louis, Missouri; Abbigail Glen, creator of Shelves, an online and pop-up bookstore based in Charlotte, North Carolina; and Annie B Jones of The Bookshelf in Thomasville, Georgia. If these names sound familiar, that's because you've heard from each of them on the podcast before. Today, they're back to talk with Anne about what’s been happening in their bookshops since we last spoke. Plus, we'll talk about the titles they're reading, loving, and sharing with their customers these days.

Find the full list of titles mentioned today at our show notes page, whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/369.

Previous episodes with these booksellers:

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What's a reader to do with a stack of book recommendations that have left her feeling dissatisfied? Today Anne is talking with Mollie Hedgecock (she/her) and sharing some ideas for how Mollie can discern which recommendations are right for her.

Like many readers, most of Mollie's recommendations come from social media and her friends, but she's realized her tastes just don't align with a lot of these choices. The problem is, Mollie's not sure what she should be looking for, so Anne's here to help Mollie identify her reading personality and decide whether the books her friends suggest are likely to be titles she'll love, too.

See the full list of titles discussed in today's episode and leave your suggestions for Mollie over at our show notes page, whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/368.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today Anne is in conversation with Keren Form, a self-professed nerd, dedicated board gamer and a fan of fast-moving stories with big themes.

This episode originally aired back in 2019 as Episode 193, Rolling the dice on your next read, and was selected by our Patreon community as a guest favorite to bring back this week. Plus, Anne is sharing an update on what Keren did read next and how her reading (and gaming) life is going these days.

While Keren has a particular love for sci-fi and fantasy, our conversation today is full of entry points for readers of all genres. We talk about a bunch of titles that will appeal to fans of historical fiction, YA romance, crime drama, or any good story with high stakes.

Today we're also asking for your help in choosing Anne's next read. Listen in to hear her share three books she's loved, one that hasn't worked for her, and what she's reading lately. Once you have a suggestion ready, give us a call at 502-627-0663 by February 24th to leave a voicemail telling us your name, what you think Anne should read, and why.

See the full list of titles and games mentioned in today's episode over on our shownotes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/367.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

When authors and readers come together, it's always a good time, and today's episode is no exception.

Today, we're sharing our recent Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club conversation with Brendan Slocumb, who joined us in January to discuss his musical thriller (and our January 2023 book club pick), The Violin Conspiracy. 

You might recognize Brendan from Episode 351, Book Club Favorites: LIVE from Bookmarks! as part of that excellent panel discussion with Tia Williams, Andrew Sean Greer, and TJ Klune.

Today, Brendan is back to chat with Anne, our Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club Community Manager, Ginger Horton, and our Book Club co-host, Shannan Malone. Our conversation today covers a whole range of topics, from music to comic books, and of course we ask about Brendan's recent reads and his future novels. Whether or not you've read (or want to read) The Violin Conspiracy, you'll love listening in to our (spoiler-free!) conversation today. 

Find the list of titles and other resources mentioned today in our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/366.

If our conversation with Brendan today has you thinking more, please, we'd love to have you join us for ALL our author chats over in the Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club, our gathering spot for readers of all ages, and home to classes, conversation, and community. Come on over and say hello.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today's guest has a superpower we've never heard before: she can smell a book and know whether it was published in the U.S. or the U.K.!

London-based Claire Handscombe (she/her) spent a decade in Washington DC as a bookseller, a chapter she remembers fondly. These days, she's as much a book-lover as ever, but she's struggling with a common challenge: overcoming a short attention span and endless distractions. How can Claire get back to reading the literary fiction she loves?

Anne has ideas for Claire, and shares some laugh-out-loud titles that might be perfect for reading right now, as well as comfortable reads that will keep Claire fascinated all the way to the end.

Find the full list of titles mentioned today on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/365-episode, and connect with Claire on Instagram and Twitter.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With so many books to choose from, it's easy to miss out on some stellar titles. Today, Anne is joined by Andrew Limbong (he/him) to talk about some of the best books you may have missed in 2022.

When he's not reading, Andrew's a reporter for NPR's Culture Desk and host of their Book of the Day podcast, so he's no stranger to book-talk. Join Andrew and Anne as they reflect on some of their favorite recent under-the-radar titles, and preview some of the great reads 2023 has in store.

See the full list of titles mentioned today at our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/364

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What do you do when you're used to reading dozens of books a year, but lately you've barely managed a handful of titles each year?

Texas-based pilot and business owner Jada Graff (she/her) is here to get Anne's help in answering that question today, because her reading life has gotten way off course.

In 2018 Jada stopped teaching English and donated all of her books. Since then, she's been trying to thoughtfully rebuild her library, but she's struggling to find books that will hold her interest once she gets home from the bookstore. Anne's here to give Jada some ideas to rebuild her book stamina and help find her next favorite reads from among the options already on her home shelves.

See the full list of titles discussed today at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/363.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Knox McCoy and Jamie Golden from The Popcast join Anne to celebrate the 7th anniversary of What Should I Read Next!

Since Anne started What Should I Read Next back in 2016, she's spoken to so many book lovers, from well-known authors to readers just like you. Today we'll look back at how it all began and how we got to where we are, recalling the roles Knox and Jamie played in helping launch the podcast, and sharing some stories you may not have heard before. Along the way, of course, we'll talk about the books we're loving (and hating) lately. 

See the full list of titles discussed today over at our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/362.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Choosing the best books of a year is always a fun challenge, so today we're flipping the focus and shining a light on Anne's reading life in 2022.

In today’s episode, Anne's talking about a selection of the books she loved most in 2022, as well as the themes that showed up most often in her reading life over the past year.

Join us as Will (Executive Producer of WSIRN and Anne's husband) takes the host's chair and invites Anne to take a deep dive into the titles that really stood out in 2022, and why she loved them. See that full list of titles and other links mentioned today at our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/361.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices