Your Favorite Book

Welcome to the Season 4 finale! Our guest is Jean Thompson, author of many novels, former National Book Award finalist, and most recently the author of The Poet's House. This book explores the sordid lives and falsehoods of poets in California through the eyes of a young admirer, a woman entrenched in blue-collar life but fascinated by poetry. The book takes on the blurred lines of mentorship, the elitism of poetry, and the differences between loving writing and writers themselves.

Jean chose a book first and foremost for its prose style, so unique and unlike a great deal of contemporary writing. James Agee's A Death in the Family, his posthumous Pulitzer prize winning masterpiece, takes the simple and magnifies it to Biblical proportions. The death of a family patriarch shatters the suburban ideals within, and we witness the internal and external carnage in one way or another.

This is our season finale, but Your Favorite Book will be back in mid-august with more interviews. Stay tuned!

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Buy Jean's book: https://bookshop.org/books/the-poet-s-house-9798200880980/9781643751566

We're indulging in something fun and delightful today, because that's just what we all need. My guest is Natalka Burian, author of the great new speculative novel THE NIGHT SHIFT, which combines the night life of New York City with the portals and intrigue of a time traveling sci-fi novel. It's fast paced and engaging from the very beginning, and an absolutely fun read. Natalka shares her thoughts on working in the service industry, running a nonprofit, and idolizing NYC from her childhood on a farm. We chat all about From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, and spoiler, we're both absolutely delighted. Don't worry, no spoilers for the book.

Buy Natalka's book: https://bookshop.org/books/the-night-shift-9780778333043/9780778333043

Natalka's tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@natalkaburian?lang=en

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My guest this week is Morgan Talty, author of the debut short story collection NIGHT OF THE LIVING REZ. Morgan shares his insights on his low residency MFA program, his approach to book structure and generating ideas, and his approach to writing intergenerational trauma from a Native American perspective. For this episode, Morgan chose the 1991 novel THE LESSER BLESSED by Richard Van Camp, and we dive into what seems to me to be the anti-YA novel. The book is abrasive and tough to read at times, but altogether unique in its craft and the level of nuance each of its young characters has. As always, no spoilers!

Buy Morgan's book: https://bookshop.org/books/night-of-the-living-rez/9781953534187

Follow the podcast on instagram and twitter @yfbpodcast

In light of recent events, for the first week of airing, my guest and I will be donating a dollar to local abortion funds across several states for every listen this episode gets. You can feel free to spread the word or join me in the fundraising. If you'd like to match a portion of the listens, please reach out to me on instagram or twitter @yfbpodcast

We're chatting about one of the most famous American short stories ever written, "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson. Anna and I chat about how unfortunately timely this story feels, some wonderfully unexpected moments while reading this story, our grievances against long-held American traditions, and so much more. Everything is spoiled, so consider yourself warned! There are also some lighter reading recommendations at the very end, so stay tuned for those.

I'm not much of a romance reader, but I always love reading books that challenge my preconceived notions and break down boundaries. It's why I started this podcast in the first place. My guest is Kristina Forest, who writes romance for adults and young people alike, and today we talk about all things writing craft, summer reading experiences, and so much more. Kristina chose a well-loved Sarah Dessen book, THIS LULLABY, for our discussion and it proved to be a great first foray into Dessen's work for me. As always, no spoilers, although I bet many of you have read THIS LULLABY long before I have!

Buy Kristina's book: https://bookshop.org/books/zyla-kai/9780593407240

Follow the podcast on instagram and twitter @yfbpodcast

Short Story Book Club for June: The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

We're back in the wonderful world of YA, and my guest this week is Jesmeen Kaur Deo, author of TJ POWAR HAS SOMETHING TO PROVE, a book that takes on high school pettiness, Eurocentric beauty standards, and high school debate teams. I personally related on so many levels. Jesmeen and I chat about the intricacies of debate, the joys of writing a headstrong character, and how the choice to remove or leave body hair takes on a whole new meaning to South Asians. 

We switch gears entirely with Kenneth Oppel's AIRBORN, a childhood favorite of Jesmeen's that hearkens back to the adventure novels of yore, with snappy dialogue and a steampunk aesthetic to boot. We talk about the fun of anachronisms, another headstrong protagonist, and the joys of a wonderful audiobook adaptation, as well as so much more. As always, no spoilers!

Buy Jesmeen's book: https://bookshop.org/books/tj-powar-has-something-to-prove/9780593403396

Follow the podcast on instagram and twitter @yfbpodcast

Short Story Book Club for June: The Lottery by Shirley Jackson 

Our guest this week is Joseph Han, the author of debut novel NUCLEAR FAMILY and one of the 2022 5 under 35 National Book Foundation honorees. His novel centers the palpable nature of generational trauma and hope by manifesting it literally, the spirit of an ancestor possessing a descendant, all amongst the backdrop of the longstanding Korean War and a Korean restaurant based in Hawaii.

Joseph chose a book reflecting on similar themes for this episode, THE MAGICAL LANGUAGE OF OTHERS by EJ Koh. This memoir told through the language of translation defies expectation and feels to the reader like a triumph just for its existence. Joseph also shares his thoughts on all things Guy Fieri, what it means to chose the perfect title, and so much more. As always, there are no spoilers for either book in the episode.

Buy Joseph's book: https://bookshop.org/books/nuclear-family-9781640094864/9781640094864

Follow the podcast on instagram and twitter @yfbpodcast

Short Story Book Club for June: The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

We're back in the world of YA literature and we're talking about one of the new greats (if I do say so myself), Mary H.K. Choi. Choi's book YOLK was one of my favorites of the year so far, and EMERGENCY CONTACT, her debut, brings some of the nuanced storytelling, subtlety, and maturity that she showed off in later works. My guest is Grace Shim, whose debut novel THE NOH FAMILY is all kinds of wild, with some of the craziness of Korean dramas and a lot of the cultural critique that can only come from someone intimately familiar. We chat about all things beauty standards, finding the right K drama for you, fangirl moments, and so much more.

Read Grace's Book: https://bookshop.org/books/the-noh-family/9780593462737

Follow Grace on instagram @gkshimwrites

Follow the podcast on instagram and twitter @yfbpodcast

Short Story Book Club for June: The Lottery by Shirley Jackson: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1948/06/26/the-lottery

We're at the end of another month, and we're bringing back a familiar voice for this one. Rena Patel was on the show over a year ago to talk about JULIET by Anne Fortier, but now we're taking on something far darker and foreboding, the short story "Inventory" by Carmen Maria Machado, part of her renowned collection HER BODY AND OTHER PARTIES. This story is wild, y'all. Beautifully crafted, deeply unsettling, and somehow written before COVID. Yeah. We also chat about the differences between playwriting and prose writing, and there are some spoilers for the movie DON'T LOOK UP. Consider yourself warned.

There are spoilers for this one! Read the short story here: https://lithub.com/inventory/

Follow the podcast on instagram and twitter: @yfbpodcast

This was an intriguing one, fellas! My guest is Naheed Phiroze Patel, author of the new novel MIRROR MADE OF RAIN, and she and I chat in detail about former YFB podcast guest Brandon Taylor and his debut novel REAL LIFE. Yes, being a podcast guest is Brandon's only claim to fame, how'd you guess? In all seriousness, this book is a masterclass of carefully crafted scenes, excruciatingly awkward moments, and flat-out beautiful prose. I couldn't put it down. Naheed and I also chat about her book, including writing for an audience in different continents, the possibly ingrained sexism of Karva Chauth, the pros and cons of an MFA program, and so much more.

Books discussed this episode: Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf by Edward Albee, Arlington Park by Rachel Cusk

Buy Naheed's book: https://bookshop.org/books/mirror-made-of-rain/9781951213602

May Short Story Book Club: https://lithub.com/inventory/

Follow the podcast on instagram and twitter @yfbpodcast. Reviews always appreciated!