What Should I Read Next?

Break out the wrapping paper, because our yearly WSIRN holiday recommendation episode is here! Listeners wrote and called in to let us know who they wanted to give the gift of reading to this Winter, and today, Anne is joined by Holland Saltsman of The Novel Neighbor in St Louis to recommend the perfect titles for your distractable teens and tweens, reluctant-reader spouses, impossible-to-buy-for parents, and that friend who seems to have already read everything.

Click over to the podcast website for a list of books mentioned in this episode: http://whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/210

NOTE FROM ANNE: Here's a dissenting opinion on Malcolm Gladwell's newest from Traci Thomas of The Stacks Podcast. I recommended this to Jamie in episode 209 but really wish I had seen this post first and would have to say Traci changed my mind.

To give yourself the gift of more What Should I Read Next become a supporter on Patreon! Supporters get bonus episodes, behind the scenes looks at how the podcasts are made, and livestreams with Anne and WSIRN's producer, Brenna.

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Today’s guest is Jamie Freeman, a reader who was led to audiobooks by her favorite true crime podcasts… and has since made serious space in her life to read with her earbuds in. 

Anne and Jamie chat about spine-tingly crime nonfiction, historical romance, their favorite audiobook narrators, and tackle a frequently asked question: how to get into an audiobook when you’re finding it hard to focus. 

Click over to the podcast website for a list of books mentioned in this episode: http://whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/209

You can find Jamie on Instagram @jamie.of.all.trades

If you want more What Should I Read Next become a supporter on Patreon! Supporters get bonus episodes, behind the scenes looks at how the podcasts are made, and livestreams with Anne and WSIRN's producer, Brenna.

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Charlie Lovett joins Anne to discuss the enduring power of not only stories but the books themselves, how books connect people of all ages, and of all times, how we can preserve literature for future generations, the joy of a book as a physical object, the art of literary forgery, marginalia, symbolism, and much much more.

Anne met Charlie along with 150 other readers at the ever-charming bookstore Bookmarks NC in Winston-Salem, North Carolina as part of an event for the Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club, where members learn to read better, together, and one of the many things we do is read a core selection together every month, and then meet on video to discuss it at the end of the month, often with the author. Our October selection was Charlie’s novel The Bookman’s Tale*, and not only did Charlie join us, but for the first time ever, we got to have our author chat in person.

*Don't worry, this conversation is spoiler-free.

Click over to the podcast website for a list of books mentioned in this episode: http://whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/208

If you want more What Should I Read Next become a supporter on Patreon! Supporters get bonus episodes, behind the scenes looks at how the podcasts are made, and livestreams with Anne and WSIRN's producer, Brenna.

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This week's guest is Jennifer Pai, a reader with a particular soft spot for anything that could might be called spooky. Whether it’s thrilling suspense, witchy fantasy, or outright horror, she’s here for it.

Anne and Jennifer chat about atmospheric reads, sleeper hits, gleefully enjoying books other people hate, and the perfect October reads to pair with a comfy blanket and mug of hot cider. 

Click over to the podcast website for a list of books mentioned in this episode: http://whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/207

If you want more What Should I Read Next become a supporter on Patreon! Supporters get bonus episodes, behind the scenes looks at how the podcasts are made, and livestreams with Anne and WSIRN's producer, Brenna.

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Jerrell Everett is serious about creating her ideal reading life. When Jerrell had kids and found herself picking up books less and less, she took action to maintain her reading life by enforcing a routine. And when she decided it was time to branch out from her comfort zone of nonfiction and introduce more novels into her rotation, she took action again… by reaching out to WSIRN for help. 

Today, Jerrell and Anne chat about parenthood, complex family stories, the tricky task of avoiding book hangovers, and much more.

Click over to the podcast website for a list of books mentioned in this episode: http://whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/206

You can connect with Jerrell on Instagram @jerrelleverett

If you want more What Should I Read Next become a supporter on Patreon! We're sharing the full interviews we did with the past guests featured in our special 200th episode. Supporters also get bonus episodes of One Great Book, behind the scenes looks at how the podcasts are made, AND occasionally they get to save the day like last week's guest Addie who jumped in when we had a scheduling issue and needed to record immediately!

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Readers, sometimes podcasting doesn’t go as planned. Schedules conflict, last-minute emergencies strike, the flu sneaks up on us, Anne loses her voice during pollen season… and any of those situations can end with a guest cancelling their recording at the last-minute. That happened recently here at What Should I Read Next HQ, and we needed someone to record on short notice, RIGHT AWAY, to avoid a hole in our release schedule.

Luckily there was an obvious answer — tapping into our Patreon community. We asked who would be available to record within 48 hours. Enter Addie Yoder, self-described “farm wife”, who needed book recommendations to fill her time during harvest season. We couldn’t imagine a more fall-appropriate guest! 

Today, Addie and Anne chat about libraries that aren’t free, books that lend us a little distance from real life when we need it, and the best time of year for a happily-ever-after.

Click over to the podcast website for a list of books mentioned in this episode: http://whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/205

You can follow Addie’s farm and reading life on Instagram @addie.yoder

If you want more What Should I Read Next become a supporter on Patreon! We're sharing the full interviews we did with the past guests featured in our special 200th episode. Supporters also get bonus episodes of One Great Book, behind the scenes looks at how the podcasts are made, AND occasionally they get to save the day! Join Addie and all of the other delightful readers over on Patreon.

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Today Anne talks books with David Krohse, an Iowa reader who’s woven a love of literature into all aspects of his life — the waiting room of his chiropractic practice, the bar with a group friends, and quality time spent with his wife. David loves larger than life nonfiction, especially if it reads like an intense thriller, so Anne is hooking him up with exactly that. 

Click over to the podcast website for a list of books mentioned in this episode: http://whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/204

You can join David's Inspired Book and Brew Crew on Facebook!

If you want more What Should I Read Next become a supporter on Patreon! We're sharing the full interviews we did with the past guests featured in our special 200th episode. Supporters also get bonus episodes of One Great Book, behind the scenes looks at how the podcasts are made, and invites to special events like our Fall Book Preview!

More fun book recommendations happen on our Instagram feed where we use the hashtag #readerrecs to gather your recommendations for a reader who's looking for a little literary inspiration.

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In today’s episode, Anne talks with Emily Carter about a genre they both used to think they were too smart to be reading. When Emily entered a season when she was busy and stressed, and she discovered that the genre she’d once categorically dismissed was full of books that were exactly what her lackluster reading life needed.

Fellow repentant "book snobs" will relate to this conversation about what we miss out on as readers when we seal ourselves off from whole sections of the bookstore, how our misperceptions can be corrected with the help of our fellow readers, and how we can take smart chances on books outside our readerly comfort zones. 

Click over to the podcast website for a list of books mentioned in this episode: http://whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/203

You can connect with Emily on her blog: https://thesecondarrowblog.wordpress.com

If you want more What Should I Read Next become a supporter on Patreon! We're sharing the full interviews we did with the past guests featured in our special 200th episode. Supporters also get bonus episodes of One Great Book, behind the scenes looks at how the podcasts are made, and invites to special events like our Fall Book Preview!

More fun book recommendations happen on our Instagram feed where we use the hashtag #readerrecs to gather your recommendations for a reader who's looking for a little literary inspiration.

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

In today's double-feature, Anne chats books with sisters Mia & Micah. But unlike most of our episodes with multiple guests, they aren’t looking to find titles they’ll enjoy together. Mia & Micah already read the same books frequently, so we’re looking to individualize their reading lives with totally separate recommendations. 

Mia is looking to introduce a little romance to her bookshelves… without leaving her comfort zone of action and adventure behind. Meanwhile Micah battles a classic middle-sibling problem... all her books end up being hand-me-downs, so she’s looking for a good mystery novel (or better yet, a series) that’s exactly suited to HER taste first and foremost. 

Click over to the podcast website for a list of books mentioned in this episode: http://whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/202

Get another double feature of What Should I Read Next by becoming a supporter on Patreon at patreon.com/whatshouldireadnext! Right now we're sharing new interviews with past guests to hear if they loved or hated Anne's recommendations and of course, what they are reading now.

If you didn't catch our producer Brenna's Instagram takeover during our 200th episode celebration @whatshouldireadnext, be sure to check out the highlights! Her listener Q&A that gives you a fun look at how each episode comes together.

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Today, Brian Eichenberger dives straight into a hotly debated issue, discussing horrible books that taught him and Anne lessons they still think about allllll the time. Brian is the kind of reader who wants to chew on big ideas, follow characters from childhood to old age to see what makes people tick, and who loves big juicy family sagas. But he also has a taste for the unusual, so Anne recommends 3 titles that hopefully hit more than one target.

Click over to the podcast website for a list of books mentioned in this episode: http://whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/201

You can follow Brian on Twitter @beichen22, and check out his podcast Story Guys at wearethestoryguys.com/podcast or anywhere you listen to podcasts.

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