Book Cougars Podcast: Two Middle-Aged Women on the Hunt for a Good Read (Book Cougars)
Explorez tous les épisodes de Book Cougars Podcast: Two Middle-Aged Women on the Hunt for a Good Read
| Date | Titre | Durée | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 06 Dec 2016 | Episode One! | 01:12:08 | |
Chris and Emily introduce their new bookish podcast. | |||
| 13 Dec 2016 | Episode 2 - Top Ten Reads of 2016 and Holiday Gift Ideas | 00:56:19 | |
Chris and Emily discuss their top 10 reads of 2016 and offer some holiday gift ideas | |||
| 20 Dec 2016 | Episode 3 - Emily (meets) Oprah and much more... | 00:55:40 | |
Chris and Emily discuss books and multiple literary jaunts | |||
| 02 Jan 2017 | Episode 4 - 2017 Reading Goals / The English Patient Read Along | 01:04:01 | |
Chris and Emily discuss 2017 Reading Goals and The English Patient Read Along | |||
| 17 Jan 2017 | Episode 5 - Will Schwalbe, Roxane Gay, Kinokuniya and books, lots of books! | 01:12:41 | |
Will Schwalbe, Roxane Gay, Kinokuniya and books, lots of books! | |||
| 31 Jan 2017 | Episode 6 - Dracula, Legally Blonde and open heart surgery... | 00:57:49 | |
Dracula, Legally Blonde and open heart surgery... | |||
| 13 Feb 2017 | Episode 7 - Joint reads of the March trilogy and The English Patient | 01:13:32 | |
Chris and Emily discuss what they've been reading and their biblio adventures. | |||
| 28 Feb 2017 | Episode 8 - Biblio Adventure Bonanza! (and books...) | 01:16:05 | |
Chris and Emily discuss what they've been reading and their biblio adventures. | |||
| 13 Mar 2017 | Episode 9 - Knitted Knockers, Little Free Libraries, Sperm Donation (and books) | 01:17:13 | |
Chris and Emily discuss what they've been reading and their biblio adventures. | |||
| 27 Mar 2017 | Episode 10 - Our top "ten" of all time, or for today, and a book giveaway/raffle | 01:04:31 | |
Chris and Emily discuss what they've been reading and their biblio adventures. We celebrate our tenth episode with our top "ten" books of all time, or for today. Introducing our first raffle for one of our top twenty books. | |||
| 10 Apr 2017 | Episode 11 - History & Hickies and Books & Biblio Adventures | 01:05:42 | |
Chris and Emily discuss what they have been reading and biblio adventures including many joint jaunts. Min Jin Lee's Pachincko wins the award for most talked about book and biblio adventure so far on the podcast. | |||
| 18 Apr 2017 | Episode 12 - Surprise, it's a bonus episode with a super-duper special guest! | 00:31:59 | |
Episode 12 Show Notes
-Biblio Adventure-
Chris and Emily went on a joint jaunt to Rhode Island to hear Bryan Stevenson speak.
Bryan Stevenson is the author of Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption
He is the Executive Director of the Equal Justice Initiative.
Listen to his TED TALK.
He was awarded the 2017 Stowe Prize and will be visiting Hartford, CT in June: https://www.harrietbeecherstowecenter.org/worxcms_published/calendar_page1103.shtml
TO DONATE to the Equal Justice Initiative: DONATE NOW
Michael Kindness made a book recommendation for a release in January 2018:
The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin
Books on the Nightstand was a great podcast about books. Sadly, they are no longer recording but you can listen to past episodes by visiting the website or iTunes.
| |||
| 25 Apr 2017 | Episode 13 - Birds, Dickinson, The Dude Diet, Playboy, Steinbeck (and books) | 00:51:42 | |
Episode Thirteen Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
– Just Read –
Celine – Peter Heller (CW) (EF)
The Impossible Fortress – Jason Rekulak (EF)
Our Short History – Lauren Grodstein (EF) (audio)
Book of Aron – Jim Shepard (EF)
The Leavers – Lisa Ko (CW)
Just Mercy: The Story of Justice and Redemption (CW) (audio)
The Lotterys Plus One - Emma Donoghue (CW) – DNF’d (did not finish, but passed it on to Emily)
– Currently Reading/Listening –
You are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life – Jen Sincero (CW) (audio)
The Women in the Castle – Jessica Shattuck (CW)
The Opposite of Everyone – Joshilyn Jackson (EF)
The Dude Diet Cookbook – Serena Wolf (CW) – Chris wrote about her foray into cooking from this on her blog.
– Biblio Adventures –
April 6 – Chris went to the Mark Twain House to hear Ann M. Ryan discuss The Haunted Mark Twain
April 20th – RJ Julia Booksellers – Jennifer Ackerman author of The Genius of
Emily watched A Quiet Passion – the new film about the life of Emily Dickinson. You can watch the trailer here.
– Upcoming Jaunts –
April 28-29 – Newburyport Literary Festival in Newburyport, MA
April 29 – Independent Bookstore day – GO SHOPPING! Chris is heading to Bookclub Bookstore for their grand opening that day. Emily will be shopping at Jabberwocky Bookshop in Newburyport, MA.
May 5-6 – BOOKTOPIA – at Northshire Bookstore in Manchester, VT
Chris is hoping to see A Quiet Passion – the film that Emily already got to see. Then we can discuss!
On the way home from Vermont we will stop by the Emily Dickinson Museum in Amherst, MA.
AND, Amherst Books in Amherst, MA.
– Upcoming Reads –
Blue Light Yokohama – Nicolás Obregón (EF)
Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk – Kathleen Rooney (CW)
– Also Mentioned –
Upstream – Mary Oliver
Ready Player One – Ernest Cline
Grapes of Wrath – John Steinbeck
Middlemarch – George Eliot
Giovanni’s Room – James Baldwin | |||
| 09 May 2017 | Episode 14 - Leg Cramps, F-Bombs, A Passionate Movie Review (and books) | 00:52:55 | |
Episode Fourteen Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
The Book Cougars had a great shout out on the Reading Envy podcast: check it out
– Just Read –
The Impossible Fortress – Jason Rekulak (CW)
The Opposite of Everyone – Joshilyn Jackson (EF)
You are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life – Jen Sincero (CW) (audio)
– Currently Reading/Listening –
One in a Million Boy – Monica Wood (EF)
Schadenfreude, A Love Story: Me, the Germans, and 20 Years of Attempted Transformations, Unfortunate Miscommunications, and Humiliating Situations That Only They Have Words For – Rebecca Schuman (CW)
Upstream – Mary Oliver (EF)
How to be Everything: A Guide for Those Who (Still) Don’t Know What They Want to Be When They Grow Up – Emilie Wapnick (CW)
Click here for Emilie Wapnick’s Ted Talk
– Biblio Adventures –
April 28-29 – Newburyport Literary Festival in Newburyport, MA
Emily talks about the following authors/books:
Dawn Tripp author of the book Georgia
Monica Wood author of the book The One In a Million Boy
Michelle Hoover author of the book Bottomland
Myfanwy Collins, Nadine Darling, Carla Panciera, Holly Robinson
Andre Dubus III, Ruth Franklin, Richard Russo
Caroline Leavitt author of the book Cruel, Beautiful World
Chris participated in Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon
Chris and Emily talk about A Quiet Passion – the new film about the life of Emily Dickinson. You can watch the trailer here. Chris gives it a thumbs down and Emily gives it a thumbs up.
Independent Bookstore Day – Emily was at Jabberwocky Bookshop. Chris was at the newly opened Bookclub Bookstore & More!
– Upcoming Jaunts –
May 5-6 – BOOKTOPIA – at Northshire Bookstore in Manchester, VT
May 15 – Emily is heading to Powell’s Books in Portland, OR to see David Callahan author of The Givers: Wealth, Power, and Philanthropy in a New Gilded Age
May 24 – Chris is headed back to Bookclub Bookstore & More to see Brianna Dunlap author of Connecticut Valley Tobacco.
– Upcoming Reads –
The Leavers – Lisa Ko (EF)
Into the Water – Paula Hawkins (CW)
Connecticut Valley Tobacco – Brianna Dunlap (CW)
– Also Mentioned –
The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains – Nicholas Carr
James and the Giant Peach / Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – Roald Dahl
Russell Gray blogs at https://www.inkandpaperblog.com/ | |||
| 22 May 2017 | Episode 15 - Booktopia debrief and book recommendations with our guest Ann Kingman | 01:07:33 | |
Episode Fifteen Show Notes
– Biblio Adventures –
Books on the Nightstand debrief with Ann Kingman
Jane Sobel Klonsky – Unconditional: Older Dogs, Deeper Love
Lauren Grodstein – History of Love
Victor Lodato – Edgar & Lucy
Lisa Ko – The Leavers
Kathleen Rooney – Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk
Jason Rekulak – The Impossible Fortress
Jim Shepard – The World to Come: Stories
Peter Heller – Celine
Jessica Shattuck – Women in the Castle
Will Schwalbe – Books for Living
– Ann’s Book Recommendations –
Saints for All Occasions – J. Courtney Sullivan
Chemistry: A novel – Weike Wang (release date 5/23/2017)
A House Among the Trees: A novel – Julia Glass (release date 6/13/2017)
Stay With Me – Ayòbami Adébáyò (release date 8/22/2017)
The Red-Haired Woman: A novel – Orhan Pamuk (release date 8/22/2017)
Norma – Sofi Oksanen (release date 9/5/2017)
An Odyssey: A Father, a Son, and an Epic – Daniel Mendelsohn (release date 9/12/2017)
Endurance: A Year in Space, A Lifetime of Discovery – Scott Kelly (release date 10/17/2017)
– Also Mentioned –
Russell Gray blogs at https://www.inkandpaperblog.com/ and vlogs at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnHIesGYARon0fpRkyBGJoQ
Kathleen Rooney is founder of Poems While You Wait
Jason Rekulak runs the publishing company Quirk Books and he spoke about his book Penis Pokey – look it up!
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara | |||
| 30 May 2017 | Episode 16 - Biblio Adventures galore (and books) | 00:59:11 | |
Episode Sixteen Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Follow up: Kathleen Rooney’s Poems While You Wait – proceeds go to her imprint Rose Metal Press
– Just Read –
Schadenfreude, A Love Story: Me, the Germans, and 20 Years of Attempted Transformations, Unfortunate Miscommunications, and Humiliating Situations That Only They Have Words For – Rebecca Schuman (CW)
Anything is Possible – Elizabeth Strout (EF)
Women Crime Writers: Eight Suspense Novels of the 1940’s & 50’s: A Library of America Boxed Set edited by Sarah Weinman. In A Lonely Place – Dorothy B. Hughes (CW)
Saints for All Occasions – J. Courtney Sullivan (EF)
Red Car – Marcy Dermansky (EF)
books we Just Couldn’t Read (or DNF’d)
Into the Water – Paula Hawkins (CW)
One in a Million Boy – Monica Wood (EF)
Americanah – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (CW)
Blue Light Yokohama – Nicolás Obregón (EF)
– Currently Reading/Listening –
History of Wolves – Emily Fridlund (EF)
Connecticut Valley Tobacco – Brianna Dunlap (CW)
The Gypsy Moth Summer – Julia Fierro (CW)
– Biblio Adventures –
Chris, Emily and their friend Russell had a trifecta visiting Breakwater Books, RJ Julia Bookseller and the Book Barn all in one day!
Chris, Emily and their friend Julia visited the Emily Dickinson Museum while Russell visited Amherst Books.
Emily went to Powell’s Books in Portland, OR both the main store and the store on Hawthorne to see David Callahan author of The Givers: Wealth, Power, and Philanthropy in a New Gilded Age.
Emily saw the outside of the bookstore Another Read Through but didn’t get to visit so there is a reason to go back to Portland!
Emily went to RJ Julia Booksellers to see Cathryn Jakobson Ramin discuss her book Crooked: Outwitting the Back Industry and Getting on the Road to Recovery.
Emily went to RJ Julia Booksellers to see the Connecticut Coalition of Poets Laureate. They performed readings from Laureates of Connecticut: An Anthology of Contemporary Poetry.
– Upcoming Jaunts –
Emily and Chris are planning a joint jaunt to Yale’s Beinecke Library to see an exhibit.
May 24 – Chris is headed to Bookclub Bookstore & More to see Brianna Dunlap author of Connecticut Valley Tobacco.
May 23 – Girls Write Now Awards
May 31-June 2 – Book Expo America
– Upcoming Reads –
Queer, There and Everywhere: 23 People Who Changed the World – Sarah Prager (CW)
The Givers: Wealth, Power, and Philanthropy in a New Guilded Age – David Callahan (EF)
It’s Okay to Laugh (Crying is Cool Too) – Nora McInerny (EF)
– Also Mentioned –
Half of a Yellow Sun – Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (CW)
Maine – J. Courtney Sullivan (EF)
Inside Philanthropy is an online resource to learn Who’s Funding What, and Why
Terrible, Thanks for Asking podcast
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| 13 Jun 2017 | Episode 17 - The Cougars go bicoastal visiting both Portland's in the same week! | 01:30:30 | |
Episode Seventeen Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
– Just Read –
It’s Okay to Laugh (Crying is Cool Too) – Nora McInerny (EF)
Aaron Joseph Purmort’s obituary
Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis – J.D. Vance (CW)
History of Wolves – Emily Fridlund (EF)
Shiver Hitch – Linda Greenlaw (EF & CW)
The Grand Central Baking Book – Piper Davis and Ellen Jackson (EF)
Georgia – Dawn Tripp (EF)
– Currently Reading/Listening –
The Gypsy Moth Summer – Julia Fierro (CW)
Mennonite in a Little Black Dress: A Memoir of Going Home – Rhoda Janzen (EF) (audio)
– Biblio Adventures –
May 23 – Girls Write Now Awards
Awards were given to: Zadie Smith, Sophia Amoruso, Ilana Glazer, Melissa Harris-Perry, Abbi Jacobson
Melissa Harris-Perry’s most recent OpEd in the NY Times
Girls Write Now Anthologies
May 26 – Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore and Russell Library
May 31-June 2 – Book Expo
Conference Sessions from Book Expo:
Adult Editor’s Buzz
The First Amendment Resistance Presented by PEN America
An Evening With Hillary Rodham Clinton
Book Reviews: The Diversity of Race, Ethnicity and Sexual Orientation
Anti Oppression Web Tool
WTF is Happening, Senator Franken
Chris went to her niece’s graduation at Williams College where the commencement speaker was Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche. Listen to it here.
Chris went out West and visited three bookstores:
Godfather’s Books and Espresso in Astoria, OR
Powell’s in Portland, OR
Green Bean Books in Portland, OR
Emily went up to Maine and visited three bookstores (and chased Linda Greenlaw to no avail):
Library Bookstore in Bath, ME
Sherman’s Maine Coast Book Shops and Cafe in Damariscotta, ME
Print: A Bookstore in Portland, ME
– Upcoming Jaunts –
June 14 – Chris will head to RJ Julia Bookstore to see Linda Greenlaw author of Shiver Hitch
June 29 – Emily will head to Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore to see Weike Wang author of Chemistry
– Upcoming Reads –
Foxlowe – Eleanor Wasserberg (CW)
The Standard Grand – Jay Baron Nicorvo (CW)
The Immortalists – Chloe Benjamin (EF)
An American Marriage – Tayari Jones (EF)
– Also Mentioned –
Let the Great World Spin and TransAtlantic - Colum McCann
Silver Sparrow – Tayari Jones
Queer, There and Everywhere: 23 People Who Changed the World – Sarah Prager
Plainsong – Kent Haruf
Honey Paw Restaurant in Portland, OR | |||
| 27 Jun 2017 | Episode 18 - We won a raffle from New York Review Books - yay more books! | 00:59:57 | |
Episode Eighteen Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
– Just Read –
Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body – Roxane Gay (CW)(EF)
An American Marriage – Tayari Jones (EF) release date February 2018
The Gypsy Moth Summer – Julia Fierro (CW)
books we Just Couldn’t Read (or DNF’d)
The Essex Serpent – Sarah Perry (CW)
– Currently Reading/Listening –
This I Believe: Life Lessons – edited by Dan Gediman, Mary Jo Gediman and John Gregory (EF)
New Haven Noir – edited by Amy Bloom (CW) release date August 3
The Immortalists – Chloe Benjamin (EF) release date January 2018
The Tincture of Time: A Memoir of (Medical) Uncertainty – Elizabeth L. Silver (EF)
– Biblio Adventures –
June 14 – Annual Meeting of The Community Fund for Women & Girls of the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven. Guest Speakers: Linda Sarsour and Rebecca Traister
Rebecca is the author of:
All the Single Ladies: Unmarried Women and the Rise of an Independent Nation and
Big Girls Don’t Cry: The Election that Changed Everything for American Women
Look into donating to your local community foundation!
June 14 – Chris went to RJ Julia Bookstore to see Linda Greenlaw author of Shiver Hitch
– Upcoming Jaunts –
June 29 – Chris and Emily will head to Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore to see Weike Wang author of Chemistry
July 7 – Laura Thoma author of Mastering the Art of Self-Expression in conversation with John Valeri at Bookclub Bookstore
– Upcoming Reads –
Jack be Quick – Benjamin Thomas (CW)
Hack-Proof Your Life Now! – Sean M. Bailey and Devin Kropp (EF)
Love and Other Consolation Prizes – Jamie Ford (EF)
– New York Review Books Raffle Booklist –
Agony – Mark Bayer
Wish Her Safe at Home – Stephen Benatar
The New York Stories of Elizabeth Hardwick – Elizabeth Hardwick
In Love – Alfred Hayes
Loving – Henry Green
Don’t Look Now – Daphne Du Maurier
Tolstoy, Rasputin, Others, And Me – The Best of Teffi
The Dud Avocado –Elaine Dundy
Family Lexicon – Natalia Ginzburg
The If Borderlands: Collected Poems – Elise Partridge
During the Reign of the Queen of Persia – Joan Chase
The Continuous Katherine Mortenhoe – D.G. Compton
The Vet’s Daughter – Barbara Comyns
The Farm in the Green Mountains – Alice Herdan-Zuckmayer
The Invention of Morel – Adolfo Bioy Casares
A Month in The Country – J.L. Carr
– Also Mentioned –
The Color Purple – Alice Walker
Winged Obsession: The Pursuit of the World’s Most Notorious Butterfly Smuggler – Jessica Speart
Rachel Porter mystery series – Jessica Speart
My Cousin Rachel – Daphne Du Maurier
Stoner – John Williams | |||
| 04 Jul 2017 | Episode 19 - Our first author spotlight with Laura Thoma | 00:24:11 | |
Episode Nineteen Show Notes
Author Spotlight with Laura Thoma
Mastering the Art of Self-Expression: A Creative Journaling Workbook
You can purchase the book online:
http://www.lulu.com/shop/laura-thoma/mastering-the-art-of-self-expression/paperback/product-23204445.html
You can also purchase the book via Book Club Bookstore & More (860-432-7411):
https://www.bookclubct.com/
Chris and Laura’ business with online classes can be found at: RoadToSuccess.live
They are offering Book Cougar listeners a 30% discount on the Creative Journaling 101 class.
Enter "bookcougarsmeow" during registration. The offer is good until 12/31/17. Here's the link for the class: https://road-to-success.thinkific.com/courses/creative-journaling-101
– Upcoming Adventure –
July 7 – Laura will be at Book Club Bookstore & More participating in a Q&A with John Valeri:
https://johnbvaleri.wordpress.com/2017/07/03/creative-spirit-laura-thoma-on-mastering-the-art-of-self-expression-qa-w-event-details/
– Currently Reading/Listening –
Laura is currently reading: The Right - brain Business Plan: A Creative, Visual Map for Success – Jennifer Lee and Chris Guillebeau
– Also Mentioned –
Mastering the Art of French Cooking – Julia Child and Simone Beck
My Life in France – Julia Child and Alex Prud’Homme
Julie and Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen: How One Girl Risked Her Marriage, Her Job, and Her Sanity to Master the Art of Living – Julie Powell | |||
| 10 Jul 2017 | Episode 20 - Another giveaway! Upcoming Grapes of Wrath Read Along and more... | 00:40:17 | |
Episode Twenty Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
– Giveaway –
To celebrate our 20th episode we are giving away two stacks of books.
In order to enter please email us via our contact page with the message “Giveaway”: https://www.bookcougars.com/contact/
– The 10th emailer will receive –
Shiver Hitch – Linda Greenlaw
The Immortalists – Chloe Benjamin
An American Marriage – Tayari Jones
– The 20th emailer will receive –
The Essex Serpent – Sarah Perry
Little Fires Everywhere – Celeste Ng
Winged Obsession: The Pursuit of the World’s Most Notorious Butterfly Smuggler – Jessica Speart
The Constitution of the United States of America
– Grapes of Wrath Read-Along –
Chris and Emily will be doing a joint read of John Steinbeck’s the Grapes of Wrath. The discussion of the book will be live on August 22nd. If you have any questions or comments you would like us to address, please get in touch via email or social media by August 17th.
– Just Read –
The Immortalists – Chloe Benjamin (EF) release date January 2018
New Haven Noir – edited by Amy Bloom (CW) release date August 3
Mennonite in a Little Black Dress: A Memoir of Going Home – Rhoda Janzen (EF) (audio)
Tokens of Affection: The Letters of a Planter’s Daughter in the Old South – Maria Bryan, Bryan Harford Connell, Carol K. Bleser (Editor) – (CW)
Little Fires Everywhere – Celeste Ng (EF) release date September 12
– Currently Reading/Listening –
The Tincture of Time: A Memoir of (Medical) Uncertainty – Elizabeth L. Silver (EF)
Sherlock Holmes vs. Dracula – Loren D. Estleman (CW)
Stay With Me – Ayòbami Adébáyò (EF) release date August 22
– Biblio Adventures –
Emily watched the BFG based on the Roald Dahl book. Directed by Steven Spielberg.
June 29 – Chris and Emily went to Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore to see Weike Wang author of Chemistry
July 7 – Laura Thoma author of Mastering the Art of Self-Expression in conversation with John Valeri at Bookclub Bookstore
– Upcoming Jaunts –
July 12 – Chris Colfer author of The Land of Stories: Worlds Collide at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT
July 17 – Bill Roorbach author of The Girl of the Lake: Stories at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT
July 29 – Benjamin Thomas author of Jack Be Quick at Bookclub Bookstore
Emily is headed to Long Beach Island, New Jersey where she will visit: The Bookworm and LBI Bookswap
Then she is headed to Quoque, Long Island where she will visit: Open Book and Burton’s Book Store
– Upcoming Reads –
The Farm in the Green Mountains – Alice Herdan-Zuckmayer (EF)
Black Orchid Blues – Persia Walker (CW)
The Going and Goodbye: A Memoir – Shuly Xóchitl Cawood (CW) (EF)
http://www.shulycawood.com/memoir/
Available from the UK Publisher: http://platypuspress.co.uk/thegoingandgoodbye
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-going-and-goodbye-shuly-x-chitl-cawood/1126550596?ean=9780993532191
Book Depository: https://www.bookdepository.com/The-Going-and-Goodbye-Shuly-Xochitl-Cawood/9780993532191
– Also Mentioned –
Episode 90 of Reading Envy where they discuss East of Eden – John Steinbeck
John Steinbeck Museum
Everything I Never Told You – Celeste Ng
McLean & Eakin Booksellers in Petoskey, MI | |||
| 25 Jul 2017 | Episode 21 - Bookswap, Bookworm, Colfer, Roorbach and Twain | 01:01:44 | |
Episode Twenty One Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
– Grapes of Wrath Read-Along –
Chris and Emily will be doing a joint read of John Steinbeck’s the Grapes of Wrath. The discussion of the book will be live on August 22nd. If you have any questions or comments you would like us to address, please get in touch via email or social media by August 17th.
– Just Read –
Stay With Me – Ayòbami Adébáyò (EF) release date August 22
Sherlock Holmes vs. Dracula – Loren D. Estleman (CW)
Chris has a review on her blog: read it HERE
The Going and Goodbye: A Memoir – Shuly Xóchitl Cawood (EF)
Stasi Child (Karin Müller #1) – David Young (CW)
Talking As Fast As I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls, and Everything In Between – Lauren Graham (EF) (audio)
Who Killed Piet Barol? – Richard Mason (EF)
– Currently Reading/Listening –
The Tincture of Time: A Memoir of (Medical) Uncertainty – Elizabeth L. Silver (EF)
Emma – Jane Austen (CW)
A Man Called Ove – Fredrik Bachman (EF)
Island: The Complete Stories – Alistair MacLeod (EF)
Sea Kayaking and Stand Up Paddling Connecticut, Rhode Island and the Long Island Sound - David Fasulo (CW)
– Biblio Adventures –
July 12 – Chris Colfer author of The Land of Stories: Worlds Collide at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT
July 17 – Bill Roorbach author of The Girl of the Lake: Stories at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT
Emily went to Long Beach Island, New Jersey where she visited two bookstores: The Bookworm and LBI Bookswap
Chris visited the Mark Twain House & Museum in Hartford, CT
– Upcoming Jaunts –
Chris and Emily are off on a joint jaunt to the annual Pequot Library book sale in Southport, CT
July 29 – Benjamin Thomas author of Jack Be Quick at Bookclub Bookstore
August 3 – Emily is heading to SpeakUp at Infinity Hall in Norfolk, CT
August 3 – Chris will attend New Haven Noir book launch at The Institute Library in New Haven, CT
– Upcoming Reads –
Grapes of Wrath – John Steinbeck (EF) (CW)
The Going and Goodbye: A Memoir – Shuly Xóchitl Cawood (CW)
Jack Be Quick – Benjamin Thomas (CW)
– Also Mentioned –
History of a Pleasure Seeker – Richard Mason
Stasi Wolf (Karin Müller #2) – David Young
Someday, Someday, Maybe – Lauren Graham’s novel
October Road – a television series that Chris has been enjoying
Chris is participating in Austen in August which will be hosted by https://roofbeamreader.com/
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| 01 Aug 2017 | Episode 22 - Author Spotlight with Shuly Xochitl Cawood | 00:45:26 | |
Episode Twenty Two Show Notes
Author Spotlight with Shuly Xóchitl Cawood
The Going and Goodbye: A Memoir
Shuly’s blog can be found here: http://www.shulycawood.com/blog-1/
About the book and how to purchase it:
http://www.shulycawood.com/memoir/
– Also Mentioned –
The poem “The Writer” by Richard Wilbur
Mary Oliver is one of Shuly’s favorite poets. She suggests her poem “Thirst.”
Shuly also recommends the poet Ada Limón and her book Bright Dead Things.
Shuly is currently reading Mandy Len Catron’s book How to Fall in Love with Anyone: A Memoir in Essays.
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| 08 Aug 2017 | Episode 23 - Chris joins the Criminal Element book review team. Emily reads a steamy poem. | 00:56:32 | |
Episode Twenty Three Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
– Grapes of Wrath Read-Along –
Chris and Emily will be doing a joint read of John Steinbeck’s the Grapes of Wrath. The discussion of the book will be live on August 22nd. If you have any questions or comments you would like us to address, please get in touch via email or social media by August 17th.
– Just Read –
A Man Called Ove – Fredrik Bachman (EF)
The Going and Goodbye: A Memoir – Shuly Xóchitl Cawood (CW)
The Tincture of Time: A Memoir of (Medical) Uncertainty – Elizabeth L. Silver (EF)
Mothers and Other Strangers – Gina Sorell (EF)
– Currently Reading/Listening –
Jack Be Quick – Benjamin Thomas (CW)
Emma – Jane Austen (CW)
The Talented Ribkins – Ladee Hubbard (CW)
Queer, There, and Everywhere: 23 People Who Changed the World – Sarah Praeger (CW)
The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley – Hannah Tinti (EF)
Leavings: Poems – Wendell Berry (EF)
The Gift of Good Land – Wendell Berry (EF)
Intimate Kisses: The Poetry of Sexual Pleasure – edited by Wendy Maltz (EF)
– Biblio Adventures –
Chris and Emily had a joint jaunt to the Pequot Library book sale
July 29 – Benjamin Thomas author of Jack Be Quick at Bookclub Bookstore
August 3 – Chris attended New Haven Noir book launch at The Institute Library in New Haven, CT
August 3 – Emily went to SpeakUp at Infinity Hall in Norfolk, CT
She also visited the beautiful Norfolk Library
Chris wrote a blog post about her visit to the Norfolk Library. Read it here.
– Upcoming Jaunts –
August 10 – Chris will be moderating Sarah Praeger as she discusses her book Queer, There, and Everywhere: 23 People Who Changed the World at Bookclub Bookstore & More
August 15 – Emily is hoping to visit Galaxy Bookshop in Hardwick, VT.
August 19-20 – Chris will be heading to Cather Weekend on Governors Island
August 22 – Emily will be heading to an event sponsored jointly with Bank Square Books and Mystic Museum of Art to hear Camille Aubrey discuss her book Cooking for Picasso.
– Upcoming Reads –
Grapes of Wrath – John Steinbeck (EF) (CW)
The Bright Hour: A Memoir of Living and Dying – Nina Riggs (EF)
The Arrangement – Sarah Dunn (EF)
Glass Houses – Louise Penny (CW)
– Also Mentioned –
Links to where Laura's book Mastering the Art of Self Expression is available:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Art-Self-Expression-Laura-Thoma/dp/1365669653/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501642230&sr=8-1&keywords=mastering+the+art+of+self-expression
BN: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/mastering-the-art-of-self-expression-laura-thoma/1126807579?ean=9781365669651
Lulu: http://www.lulu.com/shop/laura-thoma/mastering-the-art-of-self-expression/paperback/product-23248182.html
And at Breakwater Books and Book Club Bookstore & More
Chris is now reviewing books for Criminal Element. Check out her first review of Stasi Child by David Young.
The Execution of Noa P. Singleton – debut novel by Elizabeth Silver
Empire State Center for the Book – events on Governor’s Island
| |||
| 22 Aug 2017 | Episode 24 - Berry, Cather, Steinbeck and more! | 01:20:28 | |
Chris and Emily discuss their joint read: The Grapes of Wrath. Additionally, Chris went to Governor's Island for a weekend full of Willa Cather wonderment. Emily has news about an exciting project that involves Wendell Berry. A few more biblio adventures and books. | |||
| 01 Sep 2017 | Episode 25 - Our Mystery Man! | ||
John B. Valeri joins Chris and Emily to discuss loads of mystery books with us. Also the books that inspired him to become a reader. | |||
| 05 Sep 2017 | Episode 26 - Prizes, Reading Challenges, New Podcasts, Jaunts and Books! | 00:48:28 | |
Chris and Emily discuss 2017 Center For Fiction First Novel Prize, R.eaders I.bibing P.eril XII (#RIPXII), Our Mystery Man (#MysteryMan), the passing of Louise Hay, three new podcasts, literary jaunts including two upcoming joint jaunts. Oh, and books! | |||
| 12 Sep 2017 | Episode 27 - The American Writer's Museum in Chicago, Illinois | 00:31:59 | |
Chris and Emily speak with Colleen Olson to recap her visit to the American Writers Museum in Chicago, Illinois. | |||
| 19 Sep 2017 | Episode 28 - Maynard, Skulls and Keys, Fangirl or Stalker? | 01:02:39 | |
Chris and Emily discuss their reading and biblio adventures. Including Joyce Maynard, Min Jin Lee, David Allen Richards, Hillary Clinton and more. | |||
| 03 Oct 2017 | Episode 29 - Library Sale Booty, Dewey's 24 Hour Readathon and more | 00:58:56 | |
Episode Twenty Nine Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
– Just Read –
OSS Operation Black Mail: One Woman’s Covert War Against the Imperial Japanese Army – Ann Todd (CW)
Chris reviewed the book on her blog. Read it here.
My Absolute Darling – Gabriel Tallent (EF)
The Blank Wall – Elisabeth Sanxay Holding (CW)
Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone – Brené Brown (EF)
– Currently Reading/Listening –
What Happened – Hillary Rodham Clinton (audio) (CW)
Scary Old Sex – Arlene Hyman (EF)
And Fire Came Down (Caleb Zelic #2) – Emma Viskic (CW)
The Last Chinese Chef – Nicole Mones (EF)
How To Read Water: Clues, Signs & Patterns from Puddles to the Sea – Tristan Gooley (CW)
The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate – Discoveries from a Secret World – Peter Wohlleben (CW)
– Biblio Adventures –
September 15 – Chris and Emily will be heading to the New Haven Public library for a discussion with winners of the Windham-Campbell prize. Check out the winners of the Windham-Campbell prize here.
Panelists:
Too Afraid to Cry – Ali Cobby Eckermann
Liberty’s Exiles: American Loyalists in the Revolutionary War - Maya Jasanoff
Nothings Mat – Erna Brodber
Can You Tolerate This? - Ashleigh Young
September 22-24 – Guilford Free Library Friends of the Library Annual Book and Bake Sale
Chris purchases:
Two Old Women: An Alaskan Legend of Betrayal, Courage and Survival – Velma Wallis
Bead on an Anthill: A Lakota Childhood – Delphine Red Shirt (CW)
They Wrote the Book: Thirteen Women Mystery Writer’s Tell All – Helen Windrath
Outlander: Stories and Essays – Jane Rule
The Professor’s House – Willa Cather
Emily purchases:
97 Orchard: An Edible History of Five Immigrant Families in One New York Tenement – Jane Ziegelman
Who the Hell is Pansy O’Hara?: The Fascinating Stories Behind 50 of the World’s Best-Loved Books – Jenny Bond
Emily visited Jabberwocky Bookshop in Newburyport, MA and Yellow Umbrella Books in Chatham, MA
September 28 – October 1 – Blackstone Library Annual Book Sale
– Upcoming Jaunts –
October 17 – Gabrielle Zevin author of Young Jane Young at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT
October 21 – Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon
– Upcoming Reads –
Death Comes: A Willa Cather and Edith Lewis Mystery – Sue Hallgrath (CW)
Grace – Natashia Deón (EF)
– Also Mentioned –
Article about debut novelist Gabriel Tallent: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/27/books/gabriel-tallent-my-absolute-darling.html
Review of My Absolut Darling: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/29/books/review-my-absolute-darling-gabriel-tallent.html
The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry – Gabrielle Zevin
Chris blog’s at Wildmoobooks.com
| |||
| 17 Oct 2017 | Episode 30 - Our 3rd Giveaway and 3rd Read-along! | 00:58:56 | |
Episode Thirty Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
We have two upcoming read-along’s:
December – The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers.
Send in questions or comments by Dec 7th – we will discuss on December 12th episode.
February – Maurice by E.M. Forster.
GIVEAWAY for our 30th episode is a copy of each of the read-along books noted above.
Please email us at bookcougars@gmail.com to throw your hat in the ring.
– Just Read –
And Fire Came Down (Caleb Zelic #2) – Emma Viskic (CW)
The Last Chinese Chef – Nicole Mones (EF)
The Child Finder – Rene Denfeld (EF)
Sing, Unburied, Sing – Jesmyn Ward (EF)
– Currently Reading/Listening –
Death Comes: A Willa Cather and Edith Lewis Mystery – Sue Hallgrath (CW)
The Leader’s Bookshelf – James Stavridis, R Manning Ancell
Her Body and Other Parties – Carmen Maria Machado (EF)
Peregrine Island – Diane B. Saxton (EF)
– Biblio Adventures –
Chris missed an event with Nelson Demille – his new book is The Cuban Affair.
Chris went to the Yale Bookstore to see Aaron Mahnke discuss his new book The World of Lore: Monstrous Creatures and his podcast Lore.
Emily has been working at the Noah P. Webster Library in West Hartford Library and got the chance to visit the Welles Turner Memorial Library in Glastonbury.
– Upcoming Jaunts –
October 16 – Denise Kiernan author of The Last Castle: The Epic Story of Love, Loss and American Royalty in the Nation’s Largest Home
October 17 – Gabrielle Zevin author of Young Jane Young at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT
October 19 – Anna Quindlen – West Hartford Reads at Town Hall
October 21 – Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon
October 24 – Tisa Joy Wenger author of Religious Freedom: The Contested History of an American Ideal at Yale Bookstore
– Upcoming Reads –
Powers of Darkness: The Lost Version of Dracula – Bram Stoker (CW)
The Pink Marine: One Boy’s Journey Through Boot Camp to Manhood – Greg Cope White (CW)
Bluebird, Bluebird – Attica Locke (EF)
– Also Mentioned –
2017 Connecticut Center for the Book awards
Fiction nominees are:
Back Lash by Chris Knopf
I’ll Take You There by Wally Lamb
Shadows of Paris by Eric D. Lehman
Cajun Waltz by Robert H. Patton
Beneath a Shooting Star by Susan Harrison Rashid
Literary Disco podcast – specifically the two-part poetry episode #112 and #113
Too Afraid to Cry – Ali Cobby Eckermann
Russell Gray – Inkandpaperblog.com
Salvage the Bones – Jesmyn Ward
Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon is coming up on October 21. Check out this hashtag – #30daysofreadathon
| |||
| 31 Oct 2017 | Episode 31 - Happy Halloween! Surprise, Chris reads some Icelandic Dracula... | 00:54:53 | |
Episode Thirty One Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
We have two upcoming read-along’s:
December – The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers.
Send in questions or comments by Dec 7th – we will discuss on December 12th episode.
February – Maurice by E.M. Forster.
– Just Read –
Bluebird, Bluebird – Attica Locke (EF)
Lost Voyage – Pauline Rowson (CW)
Panel from The One Hundred Nights of Hero – Isabel Greenberg (CW)
– Currently Reading/Listening –
That Old Cape Magic – Richard Russo (EF) (audio)
Powers of Darkness: The Lost Version of Dracula – Bram Stoker (CW)
How To Read Water: Clues, Signs & Patterns from Puddles to the Sea – Tristan Gooley (CW)
The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate – Discoveries from a Secret World – Peter Wohlleben (CW)
The Leader’s Bookshelf – James Stavridis, R Manning Ancell
– Biblio Adventures –
Chris took friends to visit some of our local libraries:
Blackstone Library in Branford, CT
Sterling Memorial Library in New Haven, CT
Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library in New Haven, CT
Chris has written reviews of the two Blackstone Libraries on her blog. She has also written about the Beinecke on her blog as well.
Chris ventured to Jaffrey, New Hampshire for a Willa Cather pilgrimage – she is buried there. Additionally, she browsed at Toadstool Bookshop at the Peterborough, NH location.
Chris came across two of her favorite childhood books, two Willa Cather novels and a Gwendolyn Brooks novel:
Saucy – Martha McKeen Welch (CW)
Cannonball Simp – John Burningham (CW)
A Lost Lady – Willa Cather (CW)
My Mortal Enemy – Willa Cather (CW)
Maud Martha – Gwendolyn Brooks (CW)
October 16 – Denise Kiernan author of The Last Castle: The Epic Story of Love, Loss and American Royalty in the Nation’s Largest Home
October 19 – Anna Quindlen – West Hartford Reads at Town Hall
October 21 – Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon
– Upcoming Jaunts –
Chris and Laura are heading to The New York Society Library to see the New York World of Willa Cather exhibit running October 24, 2017 – August 31, 2018.
November 9 – Emily is headed to RJ Julia Booksellers to see David Lebovitz discuss his newest book L’Appart: The Delights and Disasters of Making Paris My Home.
November 14 – Emily is headed to New Castle, KY and will visit The Berry Center.
– Upcoming Reads –
Nightmare in Berlin – Hans Fallada (CW)
Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine – Gail Honeyman (EF)
The Bees – Laline Paul (EF) (audio)
I Know a Secret (Rizzoli & Isles #12) – Tess Gerritsen (CW)
– Also Mentioned –
Darktown – Thomas Mullen
Literary Atlanta Podcast
Ink and Paper Blog
The Perfect Scoop: Ice Creams, Sorbets, Granitas and Sweet Accompaniments – David Lebovitz
| |||
| 14 Nov 2017 | Episode 32 - David Bowie, Espionage, Gravediggers, Willa Cather and more... | 01:12:40 | |
Episode Thirty Two Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
We have two upcoming read-along’s:
December – The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers.
Send in questions or comments by Dec 7th – we will discuss on December 12th episode.
February – Maurice by E.M. Forster.
United for the Troops – if you are interested in donating writing journals to this effort please email us at bookcougars@gmail.com and we will send you the mailing address.
– Just Read –
Death Comes: A Willa Cather and Edith Lewis Mystery – Sue Hallgrath (CW)
Mrs. Fletcher – Tom Perrotta (EF)
The Leader’s Bookshelf – James Stavridis, R Manning Ancell (CW)
The Bone Garden – Tess Gerritsen (EF)
Espionage and Covert Operations : A Global History (The Great Courses) – Vejas Gabriel Liulevicius (CW)
– Currently Reading/Listening –
Sweet – Yotem Ottolenghi and Helen Goh (EF)
David Bowie Made Me Gay - Darryl L. Bullock (CW)
Great American Bestsellers: The Books That Shaped America (Great Courses, #2527) – Peter Conn (CW)
– Biblio Adventures –
Chris went to The New York Society Library to see the New York World of Willa Cather exhibit running through August 31, 2018.
Joint Jaunt to Playhouse on Park to see an adaptation of The Diary of Anne Frank
November 9 – Emily went to RJ Julia Booksellers to see David Lebovitz discuss his newest book L’Appart: The Delights and Disasters of Making Paris My Home. David Lebovitz blog.
Chris went to the new movie adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express (written by Agatha Christie)
– Upcoming Jaunts –
November 14 – Emily is headed to New Castle, KY and will visit The Berry Center.
Bookstores in Montreal – email if you have recommendations!
December 7, 2pm – Join Chris for a Willa Cather birthday celebration at Bookclub Bookstore& More in Windsor, CT
– Upcoming Reads –
What It Means When a Man Falls From the Sky – Lesley Nneka Arimah (EF)
Fodor’s Travel Montreal and Quebec City 2016 – Fodor’s Travel Publications Inc. (EF)
The Heart is a Lonely Hunter – Carson McCullers (EF) (CW)
Hunter Killer: The War with China – The Battle for the Central Pacific (Dan Lenson Novels) – David Poyer (CW)
– Also Mentioned –
Yotem Ottolenghi article in NY Time: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/19/dining/yotam-ottolenghi-sweet-cookbook.html?_r=0
| |||
| 28 Nov 2017 | Episode 33 - Bookshops Galore! | 00:51:13 | |
Chris and Emily went to multiple bookshops! | |||
| 12 Dec 2017 | Episode 34 - Holiday Gift Ideas and Our 3rd Readalong | 01:00:05 | |
Episode Thirty Four Show Notes
We have an upcoming read-along:
– Just Read – – Currently Reading/Listening – – Biblio Adventures – Chris celebrated Willa Cather’s birthday on December 7 at Bookclub Bookstore & More in South Windsor, CT. She is kicking off a quarterly Willa Cather book club starting with My Antonia to be discussed on January 18th at 2:00 at the same bookstore. She also saw the movie Call Me By Your Name based on the novel by André Aciman – Upcoming Jaunts –
– Gift Ideas – Bundle Monster Booklight Clip – Also Mentioned – | |||
| 26 Dec 2017 | Episode 35 - Chris & Emily Discuss Their Top Reads Of 2017 | 01:05:20 | |
Episode Thirty Five Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
We have an upcoming read-along:
February – Maurice by E.M. Forster.
– Just Read –
Chris DNF’d a book: Picnic at Hanging Rock – Joan Lindsay
The Rules of Magic – Alice Hoffman (EF)
Two Old Women: An Alaskan Legend of Betrayal, Courage and Survival – Velma Wallis (CW)
Cove – Cynan Jones (EF)
The Fact of a Body: A Murder and a Memoir – Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich (EF)
– Currently Reading/Listening –
Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers Who Helped Win World War II – Liza Mundy (CW) (audio)
The Selected Letters of Willa Cather – Willa Cather, Andrew Jewell (CW)
Someone – Alice McDermott (EF)
What It Means When a Man Falls from the Sky – Lesley Nneka Arimah (EF)
– Biblio Adventures –
Emily went to both the Guilford Library and the Glastonbury Welles Turner Library
Chris is volunteering and spending time at the Institute Library in New Haven
– Upcoming Jaunts –
Chris is heading to RJ Julia in Madison to see Paul Kix discuss his book The Saboteur: The Aristocrat Who Became France’s Most Daring Anti-Nazi Commando
Savoy Bookshop & Café has a New Year’s Day sale with 25% off everything
Jan 8 – Kelly Corrigan in Conversation with Ariel Levy at the 92nd St Y
– Upcoming Reads –
The Immortalists – Chloe Benjamin (CW)
Getting Unstuck: Breaking Your Habitual Patterns & Encountering Naked Reality – Pema Chödrön (EF) (audio)
– Top Reads of 2017 –
Emily’s favorite reads:
Top Nonfiction
B Corp Handbook: How to Use Business as a Force for Good – Ryan Honeyman (EF)
Favorite Memoirs
Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body – Roxane Gay (EF)
It’s Okay to Laugh (Crying is Cool, Too) – Nora McInerny Purmort (EF)
The Fact of a Body: A Murder and a Memoir – Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich (EF)
Favorite Fiction
The Mothers – Brit Bennett (EF)
News of the World – Paulette Jiles (EF)
Plainsong (Plainsong #1) – Kent Haruf (EF)
Chris’s favorite reads: See Her Blog Post On Gift Ideas
Mastering the Art of Self-Expression & More – Laura Thoma (CW)
Young Adult-ish
Queer, There, and Everywhere: 23 People Who Changed the World – Sarah Prager (CW)
Favorite Mysteries
The Dry (Aaron Falk #1) – Jane Harper (CW)
And Fire Came Down (Caleb Zelic #2) – Emma Viskic (CW)
New Haven Noir – edited by Amy Bloom (CW)
Favorite Fiction
Pachinko – Min Jin Lee (CW)
The Leavers – Lisa Ko (CW)
The Gypsy Moth Summer – Julia Fierro (CW)
Non-Fiction
Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body – Roxane Gay (CW)(audio)
Going and Goodbye: A Memoir – Shuly Xóchitl Cawood (CW)
OSS Operation Black Mail: One Woman’s Covert War Against the Imperial Japanese Army – Ann Todd (CW)
– Also Mentioned –
Libro.fm – audiobook subscription service
Zora Neale Hurston – Barracoon // Their Eyes Were Watching God
Chicago Review of Books
Velma Wallis – Bird Girl & the Man Who Followed the Sun: An Athabaskan Indian Legend from Alaska
Alice McDermott – The Ninth Hour: A Novel // Charming Billy
Road to Success with Laura Thoma
Dave Eggers – What is the What
Jennifer Egan – Manhattan Beach
| |||
| 09 Jan 2018 | Episode 36 - Chris and Emily Discuss Their Reading Goals for 2018 | 00:59:59 | |
Episode Thirty Six Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
Willa Cather Bookclub:
Join Chris on January 18th at 2:00 at Bookclub Bookstore & More in South Windsor, CT where she is kicking off a quarterly Willa Cather book club starting with My Antonia.
We have an upcoming read-along:
February – Maurice by E.M. Forster
Send in questions or comments by March 1st – we will discuss on March 6th episode
– Reading Goals for 2018 –
Emily
1. 52 book reading challenge on Goodreads
2. Read “book of shame” on bookshelf : Shantaram – Gregory David Roberts
3. Clean up Currently Reading shelf on Goodreads
4. Establish a volunteer relationship with a literary organization – read to kids!
5. Read excerpts from the many short story collections on the bookshelf
6. Send cards/letters once/week
7. Work on joint podcasts with authors, other literary podcasts, etc.
8. Go on an epic book related adventure
Chris
1. 52 book reading challenge on Goodreads
2. TBR 2018 reading challenge – hosted by Adam at Roof Beam Reader
Chris blogged about her 12 books here
3. Australian Women Writers Reading Challenge 2018
Chris blogged about her anticipated reading here
4. Willa Cather quarterly book club at Bookclub Bookstore & More
5. One book challenge – Anna in April – reading Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy.
Sponsored by Amanda of Fig and Thistle Books.
6. Write and submit work
– Currently Reading/Listening –
My Ántonia (Great Plains Trilogy #3) – Willa Cather (CW) (100 year anniversary!)
Sweet – Yotem Ottolenghi and Helen Goh (EF)
The Selected Letters of Willa Cather – Willa Cather, Andrew Jewell (CW)
The Heart’s Invisible Furies – John Boyne (EF)
– Just Read –
The Immortalists – Chloe Benjamin (CW)
Someone – Alice McDermott (EF)
Sweetgirl – Travis Mulhauser
Coming to My Senses: The Making of a Counterculture Cook – Alice Waters (EF)
The Opposite of Loneliness: Essays & Stories – Marina Keegan edited by Anne Fadiman(EF)
– Biblio Adventures –
Emily had at home adventures watching the movie Mudbound based on the novel, Mudbound, by Hilary Jordan and starting the series Good Behavior based on the Letty Dobesh Chronicles by Blake Crouch.
We discuss the passing of Sue Grafton author of the Kinsey Millhone series.
Chris adventured to NYC to hunt for Maurice. She walked and came upon a sign: Melville Square, she wrote about the adventure on her blog. Read about it here.
Chris ventured to the North Haven Memorial Library to pick up movies and books. Tragedy struck and her dog ate two of the books:
The Woman on the Stairs – Bernard Schlink
Laureates of Connecticut – edited by Ginny Lowe Connors
December 30, 2017 - Chris met “Our Mystery Man” John Valeri at Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore for a final shop of 2017.
– Upcoming Jaunts –
January 11, 2018 – Chris and Emily are finally taking a jaunt to the Noah Webster House in West Hartford, CT.
January 25, 2018 - Min Jin Lee will be at RJ Julia’s Booksellers in conversation with the Book Cougars!
– Upcoming Reads –
Smilla’s Sense of Snow – Peter Hoeg (CW)
Free Food for Millionaires – Min Jin Lee (CW)
Four Tendencies: The Indispensable Personality Profiles That Reveal How to Make Your Life Better (and Other People’s Lives Better, Too) – Gretchen Rubin (EF)
– Also Mentioned –
The Fact of a Body: A Murder and a Memoir – Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich
The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures – Anne Fadiman
Inside the Wave – Helen Dunmore
Dark Matter – Blake Crouch
Harry Dresden Series – Jim Butcher
The Reader – Bernard Schlink
Pachinko – Min Jin Lee | |||
| 23 Jan 2018 | Episode 37 - Boyne, Cather, Harper, Hoeg, Patel and a Joint Jaunt Re-enactment | 00:40:28 | |
Episode Thirty Seven Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
We have an upcoming read-along:
February – Maurice by E.M. Forster
Send in questions or comments by March 1st – we will discuss on March 6th episode
The 2018 Edgar Awards were announced. Check out the list here – your TBR is about to grow!
– Currently Reading/Listening –
Force of Nature (Aaron Falk #2) – Jane Harper (CW)
Jane Steele – Lyndsay Faye (EF)(audio)
The Selected Letters of Willa Cather – Willa Cather, Andrew Jewell (CW)
Cooking for Jeffrey: A Barefoot Contessa Cookbook – Ina Garten (EF)
Ingredienti : Marcella’s Guide to the Market – Marcella and Victor Hazan (EF)
– Just Read –
My Friend Fear: Finding Magic in the Unknown – Meera Lee Patel (EF)
Smilla’s Sense of Snow – Peter Hoeg (CW)
The Heart’s Invisible Furies – John Boyne (EF)
My Ántonia (Great Plains Trilogy #3) – Willa Cather (CW) (100 year anniversary!)
– Biblio Adventures –
Chris kicked-off the Willa Cather Book Club at the Bookclub Bookstore & More in South Windsor, CT.
Chris and Emily went on a joint jaunt to Whitlock’s Book Barn in Bethany, CT. Chris wrote about it on her blog.
Chris bought two Peter Hoeg books:
History of Danish Dreams
Borderliners
Chris put in another volunteer day at the Institute Library in New Haven, CT.
Feb 17-18 – Pequot Library Mid-Winter Booksale
– Upcoming Jaunts –
January 25, 2018 - Min Jin Lee, author of Pachinko, will be at RJ Julia’s Booksellers in conversation with the Book Cougars!
February 7, 2018 – Emily is taking her gentleman caller to Wesleyan RJ Julia to see Jeffers Lennox discuss his book Homelands and Empires: Indigenous Spaces, Imperial Fictions, and Competition for Territory in Northeastern North America, 1690-1763.
Join Chris on April 19th at 2:00 at Bookclub Bookstore & More in South Windsor, CT for the quarterly Willa Cather book club discussion of The Song of the Lark.
– Upcoming Reads –
Free Food for Millionaires – Min Jin Lee (CW)
The Versions of Us – Laura Barnett (EF)
– Also Mentioned –
Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway – Anna Jeffers
Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear – Elizabeth Gilbert
Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Millennium #1) – Stieg Larsson
The Absolutist – John Boyne
| |||
| 06 Feb 2018 | Episode 38 - A Cookbook Recall - Who Knew?! | 00:58:59 | |
Episode Thirty Eight Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
We have an upcoming read-along:
February – Maurice by E.M. Forster
Send in questions or comments by March 1st – we will discuss on March 6th episode
Information regarding the conversion problem with Sweet by Yotem Ottolenghi and Helen Goh can be found here.
– Currently Reading/Listening –
The Detonator – Vincent Zandri
The Selected Letters of Willa Cather – Willa Cather, Andrew Jewell (CW)
Getting Unstuck: Breaking Your Habitual Patterns & Encountering Naked Reality – Pema Chodron (EF)(audio)
Labor Day – Joyce Maynard (EF)(audio)
Man’s Search for Meaning - Victor Frankel (CW)
– Just Read –
The Arrangement – Sarah Dunn (EF)
Force of Nature (Aaron Falk #2) – Jane Harper (CW)
Jane Steele – Lyndsay Faye (EF)(audio)
Smilla’s Sense of Snow – Peter Hoeg (CW) -- Chris watched the movie Smilla’s Sense of Snow
American Housewife – Helen Ellis (EF)
– Biblio Adventures –
On January 25, 2018 we had the honor of being in conversation with Min Jin Lee, author of Pachinko, at RJ Julia’s Booksellers. The evening was recorded and will appear on an upcoming episode of Just the Right Book Podcast.
Check out Min Jin Lee’s website to follow her paperback tour and various speaking events.
Emily and Chris went on a joint jaunt to hear Patrick Lynch speak about the Long Island Sound and his book A Field Guide to Long Island Sound: Coastal Habitats, Plant Life, Fish, Seabirds, Marine Mammals, and Other Wildlife.
Emily visited Burgundy Books in Westbrook, CT
Emily went to a SpeakUp! storytelling event at Infinity Hall in Hartford, CT.
– Upcoming Jaunts –
February 11th Chris is heading to see a musical in Jaffrey, New Hampshire: “Kindness & Cruelty: Willa Cather in Jaffrey”
Future joint jaunt on February 18 to Willoughby Wallace Memorial Library in Stony Creek to see Amy Bloom speaking about her new book White Houses.
Emily is going with Aunt Ellen to see Eve Ensler’s new play In The Body of the World
February 21st at Guilford Library Chris will be attending the bookclub for the Witness Stones Project
Join Chris on April 19th at 2:00 at Bookclub Bookstore & More in South Windsor, CT for the quarterly Willa Cather book club discussion of The Song of the Lark.
– Upcoming Reads –
White Houses – Amy Bloom (EF)
Kindred – Octavia Butler (CW)
– Also Mentioned –
Connecticut Library Consortium – Cookbook Book Club
Infinite Jest – David Foster Wallace
Worst Bestsellers Podcast
Yum’s the Word Show
Live Lit Story Club
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Willa Cather and the Politics of Criticism – Joan Acocella
Ink and Paper Blog
She Reads
Booktopia – May 4-5,2018 at Northshire Bookstore in Manchester, VT – author line up and registration can be found here.
| |||
| 13 Feb 2018 | Episode 39 - Surprise! A Roadside Meetup with Michael Kindness | 00:32:52 | |
Episode Thirty Nine Show Notes
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
We have an upcoming read-along:
February – Maurice by E.M. Forster
Send in questions or comments by March 1st – we will discuss on March 6th episode
– Recommendations from Michael Kindness –
Ready Player One – Ernest Cline (audio – narrated by Will Wheaton)
The movie trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z-vGWwRF_Qc
Faster Than Normal: Turbocharge Your Focus, Productivity, and Success with the Secrets of the ADHA Brain – Peter Shankman
Need to Know – Karen Cleveland
Educated: Memoir – Tara Westover (release date: February 20, 2018)
Anatomy of a Miracle – Jonathan Miles (release date: March 13, 2018)
Neverworld Wake – Marisha Pessl (release date: June 5, 2018)
Providence – Caroline Kepnes (release date: June 13, 2018)
– Also Mentioned –
Faster Than Normal Podcast
Driven to Distraction: Recognizing and Coping with Attention Deficit Disorder from Childhood Through Adulthood – Edward Hallowell – Edward Hallowell
NY Times Authors Podcast
The Immortalists – Chloe Benjamin
| |||
| 20 Feb 2018 | Episode 40 - Our 4th Giveaway! | 00:37:15 | |
Episode Forty Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
– Our 4th Giveaway –
Another ten episodes means it is time for another giveaway.
These four books will be sent to one lucky listener:
Stay with Me – Ayobami Adebayo
Sweetgirl – Travis Mulahauser
Love and Other Consolation Prizes – Jamie Ford
Saints for All Occasions – J. Courtney Sullivan
In order to enter, please email bookcougars@gmail.com before March 1, 2018.
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
We have an upcoming read-along:
February – Maurice by E.M. Forster
Send in questions or comments by March 1st – we will discuss on March 6th episode
– Currently Reading/Listening –
Chicago Poems – Carl Sandburg (CW)
The Selected Letters of Willa Cather – Willa Cather, Andrew Jewell (CW)
Anatomy of a Miracle – Jonathan Miles (EF)
White Houses – Amy Bloom (EF)
– Just Read –
Labor Day – Joyce Maynard (EF) (audio)
Kindred – Octavia E. Butler (CW)
Kindred: A Graphic Novel Adaptation – Damian Duffy, John Jennings, Octavia E. Butler (CW)
The Best American Mystery Stories 2005 – edited by Joyce Carol Oates (EF)
specifically the story “Until Gwen” by Dennis Lehane – you can read it HERE.
The Trawler – James B. Connolly (CW)
– Biblio Adventures –
Emily went to NYC to see Eve Ensler’s new play In the Body of the World based on her memoir of the same name.
Chris caught up with Our Mystery Man – John Valeri. Keep your ears open he will be appearing on the podcast again soon.
– Upcoming Jaunts –
February 17 – Chris will head to New London, NH to see the musical Kindness and Cruelty: Willa Cather in Jaffrey
February 18th – Emily will be going to the Willoughby Wallace Memorial Library to hear Amy Bloom speak about her new book – White Houses.
February 21st – Chris will be attending the book club for the Witness Stones Project at the Guilford Library where they will discuss Kindred by Octavia E. Butler.
March 1st – Emily is planning a visit to the Savoy Bookshop in Westerly, RI for Cozy Mystery Night featuring Liz Mugavero, Wendi Corsi Staub and Shari Randall hosted by Our Mystery Man – John Valeri! Look for his byline at Mystery Scene Magazine and Suspense Magazine.
– Upcoming Reads –
Maurice – E.M. Forster (CW) (EF)
Tangerine – Christine Mangan (CW)
– Also Mentioned –
The Best of Us – Joyce Maynard
Russell at Ink and Paper Blog
The Drop – Dennis Lehane
The Drop – Michael Connelly
Mystery Scene Magazine
Suspense Magazine
| |||
| 27 Feb 2018 | Episode 41 - A Joint Jaunt with Min Jin Lee author of Pachinko! | 00:44:23 | |
Episode Forty One Show Notes
You can donate to the Book Cougars at Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/BookCougars
Thank you!
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
We have an upcoming read-along:
February – Maurice by E.M. Forster
Send in questions or comments by March 1st – we will discuss on March 6th episode
– Biblio Adventure –
We take you on a joint jaunt to RJ Julia’s Booksellers in Madison, CT!
On January 25, 2018 we had the pleasure of co-hosting Min Jin Lee, author of Pachinko.
The episode also appears on the second half of Just the Right Book Podcast – episode 64.
– Also Mentioned –
Chad Harbach – MFA vs. NYC: The Two Cultures of American Fiction
– Thank You –
Min Jin Lee
Roxanne Coady
Just the Right Book Podcast
Christina Torres
Pat Keogh
| |||
| 06 Mar 2018 | Episode 42 - No Power, No Problem! Our Maurice Read Along Conversation | 01:28:01 | |
Episode Forty Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
– Our 4th Giveaway –
The winner is Sally – entrant #42:
Stay with Me – Ayobami Adebayo
Sweetgirl – Travis Mulahauser
Love and Other Consolation Prizes – Jamie Ford
Saints for All Occasions – J. Courtney Sullivan
Choicemagazinelistening.org – A free talking magazine service.
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
– Currently Reading/Listening –
The Hate U Give – Angie Thomas (EF)
The Selected Letters of Willa Cather – Willa Cather, Andrew Jewell (CW)
Chicago Poems – Carl Sandburg (CW)
Tangerine – Christine Mangan (CW)
– Just Read –
Echo Killing (Harper McClain #1) – Christi Daugherty (CW) (release date March 13)
White Houses – Amy Bloom (EF)
Anatomy of a Miracle – Jonathan Miles (EF)
– Biblio Adventures –
Emily went to the Willoughby Wallace Memorial Library to hear Amy Bloom speak about her new book – White Houses – sponsored by Breakwater Books.
Chris attended the book club for the Witness Stones Project at the Guilford Library where they discussed Kindred by Octavia E. Butler.
Chris and Laura watched the movie October Sky based on the book Rocket Boys by Homer Hickam.
– Upcoming Jaunts –
Chris is going to see the play Murder on the Orient Express
March 12th – Nathaniel Philbrick presents his new book Second Wind: A Nantucket Sailor’s Odyssey in partnership with Bank Square Books at Mystic Congregational Church
March 12th – Chloe Benjamin author of The Immortalists will be at RJ Julia’s in Madison with Jill Santopolo author of The Light We Lost.
April 19th – Chris and Emily are planning a visit to Bank Square Books in Mystic, RI for Cozy Mystery Night featuring Liz Mugavero, Wendi Corsi Staub and Shari Randall hosted by Our Mystery Man – John Valeri! Look for his byline at Mystery Scene Magazine and Suspense Magazine.
– Upcoming Reads –
The Dog Healers: A Novel – Mark Winik (CW)
Broken Girls – Simone St. James (CW)
Big Love: The Power of Living with a Wide Open Heart – Scott Stabile (EF)
Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers Who Helped Win World War II – Liza Mundy (CW)
– 4th Read Along –
Maurice – E.M. Forster (CW) (EF)
The Goodreads Discussion can be found here.
– Also Mentioned –
Thomas Otto – The Readers Podcast and Hogglestock Blog
Joyce Carol Oates – Go Listen to Eric Karl Anderson at LonesomeReader.com (blog) for his A Beginner’s Guide to Reading (video)
Chris has read three Joyce Carol Oates books:
The Accursed
Beasts
Middle Age: A Romance
Night School – C.J. Daugherty
Valiant Ambition: George Washington, Benedict Arnold and the Fate of the American Revolution – Nathaniel Philbrick
Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? – Jeannette Winterson
Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit – Jeannette Winterson
The Well of Loneliness – Radclyffe Hall
The World Broke in Two: Virginia Woolf, T.S. Eliot, D.H. Lawrence, E.M. Forster and the Year that Changed Literature – Bill Goldstein
| |||
| 20 Mar 2018 | Episode 43 - A Jaunt To See Two NY Times Bestselling Authors! | 00:49:42 | |
Episode Forty Three Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
– Windham Campbell Awards –
See the 2018 winners: http://windhamcampbell.org/recipients
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
– Currently Reading/Listening –
Big Love: The Power of Living with a Wide Open Heart – Scott Stabile (EF)
Chicago Poems – Carl Sandburg (CW)
The Selected Letters of Willa Cather – Willa Cather, Andrew Jewell (CW)
Broken Girls – Simone St. James (CW)
Read Chris’s review of the book and enter a giveaway to win the book here.
Cooking for Jeffrey: A Barefoot Contessa Cookbook – Ina Garten (EF)
“16 Bean” Pasta Fagioli recipe here
*Changes made by Emily: Did not puree any of the beans, drained all of them and threw them into the soup whole. Cooked pasta separately and added to each bowl of soup as it was devoured. Put cooked pasta into the individual servings that were put into freezer. Delish – enjoy!
– Just Read –
Tangerine – Christine Mangan (CW)
The Hate U Give – Angie Thomas (EF)
The Light We Lost – Jill Santopolo (EF)
– Biblio Adventures –
On March 12th, Emily went to see Chloe Benjamin author of The Immortalists and Jill Santopolo author of The Light We Lost at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT.
Chris saw the play Murder on the Orient Express at Hartford Stage for her birthday.
Chris visited the Peterborough Town Library in New Hampshire touts itself as the first tax supported library in the country. Literary Monadnock – Peterborough is known as a literary mecca. Read about it here.
Toadstool Bookshop – Peterborough, NH
– Upcoming Jaunts –
University of Nebraska live stream on Our Cather Heritage: Willa Cather’s Modern Relevance.
March 20th – Emily is heading to Providence, RI for the Point Street Reading Series.
Laura & Emma – Kate Greathead
Start Without Me – Joshua Max Feldman
Girls Burn Brighter – Shobha Rao
Only Child – Rhiannon Navin
The Cloister – James Carroll
Emily is heading to Bookshop Santa Cruz on March 26th to see Luis Alberto Urrea discuss his book The House of Broken Angels and on March 28th to see Leslie Karst discuss her book Death Al Fresco
April 4th – Jeff Kinney’s bookstore An Unlikely Story Bookstore & Cafe to see Michael Finkel discuss his book Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit
– Upcoming Reads –
The Dog Healers: A Novel – Mark Winik (CW)
Eats of Eden – Tabitha Blankenbiller (EF)
Wedding Date – Jasmine Guillory (EF)
Goodbye, Vitamin – Rachel Khong (EF)
The $100 Startup: Reinvent the Way You Make a Living, Do What You Love, and Create a New Future and
The Art of Non-Conformity: Set Your Own Rules, Live the Life You Want, and Change the World – Chris Guillebeau (EF)
– Also Mentioned –
Check out Ryan Ludman:
This Charming Rant Newsletter /// Instagram: my.books.my.shelf
His Maurice read along cocktail can be found here
East of Eden – John Steinbeck
All Things Pat Conroy
Live by Night (Coughlin #2) – Dennis Lehane
Chris Guillebeau's podcast is called Side Hustle School
The Readers Podcast
How Reading Changed My Life – Anna Quindlin
i like my body when it is with your
by E.E. Cummings
i like my body when it is with your
body. It is so quite new a thing.
Muscles better and nerves more.
i like your body. i like what it does,
i like its hows. i like to feel the spine
of your body and its bones,and the trembling
-firm-smooth ness and which i will
again and again and again
kiss, i like kissing this and that of you,
i like, slowly stroking the,shocking fuzz
of your electric furr,and what-is-it comes
over parting flesh….And eyes big love-crumbs,
and possibly i like the thrill
of under me you so quite new
| |||
| 03 Apr 2018 | Episode 44 - National Poetry Month, Luis Alberto Urrea and books, lots of books! | 01:02:02 | |
Episode Forty Four Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
It’s National Poetry Month and we are celebrating with a poetry video project.
Check out our Book Tube Channel to see a recitation of a poem every day of April.
– Currently Reading/Listening –
Tornado Weather – Deborah E. Kennedy (CW)
Do Not Become Alarmed: A Novel – Maile Meloy (EF)
The Smart but Scattered Guide to Success: How to Use Your Brain’s Executive Skills to Keep Up, Stay Calm, and Get Organized at Work and at Home – Peg Dawson, Richard Guare (CW)
Chameleon Moon:Poems – Antonia Clark (EF)
Chicago Poems – Carl Sandburg (CW)
The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit – Michael Finkel (CW) (audio)
– Just Read –
The Wedding Date – Jasmine Guillory (EF)
The Selected Letters of Willa Cather – Willa Cather, Andrew Jewell (CW)
Big Love: The Power of Living with a Wide Open Heart – Scott Stabile (EF)
The Paris Spy (Maggie Hope Mystery #7) – Susan Elia MacNeal (CW)
The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit – Michael Finkel (EF)
Educated: A Memoir – Tara Westover (EF)
– Biblio Adventures –
Emily visited several California bookstores:
Books Inc. in Alameda
Rocket Reuse in Alameda
Coastside Books in Half Moon Bay
Bookshop Santa Cruz on March 26th to see Luis Alberto Urrea discuss his book The House of Broken Angels
Chris tried to go to an author event in Stonington, CT but it was canceled. She did, however, come across a nice Little Free Library where she found a copy of Revenge of the Middle-Aged Woman (The Two Mrs Lloyd #1) by Elizabeth Buchan . Everything You Love Will Burn: Inside the Rebirth of White Nationalism in America by Vegas Tenold event she was trying to attend will be rescheduled.
– Upcoming Jaunts –
April 4th – We are heading on a joint jaunt to Jeff Kinney’s bookstore An Unlikely Story Bookstore & Cafe to see Michael Finkel discuss his book Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit
April 7th – Chris is heading to Bookclub Bookstore & More to join John Valeri in conversation with R.C. Goodwin to discuss his new book Model Child
April 7th – Chris won’t be able to make the event with Emily Anhalt discussing her book Enraged: Why Violent Times Need Ancient Greek Myths at The Yale Bookstore but wishes she could.
April 12th – We are going on a joint jaunt to Savoy Bookshop and Cafe for the Reading Across Road Island sponsored event with Angie Thomas and her book The Hate U Give.
April 22nd – Emily is heading to New Haven for the RJ Julia Booksellers sponsored event with Cecile Richards to discuss her new book Make Trouble: Standing Up, Speaking Out, Finding the Courage to Lead – My Life Story.
Her tour is selling out across the country for tickets click here.
April 27-28th – We are considering a joint jaunt to the Newburyport Literary Festival
– Upcoming Reads –
Beyond the Beach: The Allied War Against France – Stephen A. Bourque (CW)
The Library: A Catalogue of Wonders – Stuart Kells (CW)
Up From the Blue: A Novel – Susan Henderson (EF)
The Dispossessed – Ursula K. Le Guin (EF)
How to Love the Empty Air – Christine O’Keefe Aptowicz (EF)
– Also Mentioned –
The Glass Castle – Jeannette Walls
The Wishing Spell Series – Chris Colfer
Ann Hood books:
Morningstar: Growing Up With Books
The Book That Matters Most
The Knitting Circle
| |||
| 10 Apr 2018 | Episode 45 - An Unlikely Visit with Ann Kingman! | 00:36:24 | |
Episode Forty Five Show Notes
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
It’s National Poetry Month and we are celebrating with a poetry video project.
Check out our Book Tube Channel to see a recitation of a poem every day of April.
– Recommendations from Ann Kingman –
The Sandman (Joona Linna #4) – Lars Keppler
Chemistry – Weike Wang
The Girl Who Never Read Noam Chomsky: A Novel – Jana Casale (release date April 17, 2018)
The Only Story – Julian Barnes (release date April 17, 2018)
Warlight – Michael Ondaatje (release date May 8, 2018)
There There – Tommy Orange (release date June 5, 2018)
The Book of Essie – Meghan MacLean Weir (release date June 12, 2018)
Call Me American: A Memoir – Abdi Nor Iftin (release date June 19, 2018)
The Shakespeare Requirement: A Novel – Julie Schumacher (release date August 14, 2018)
– Also Mentioned –
We met with Ann at An Unlikely Story Bookstore & Cafe
The Girl on the Train – Paula Hawkins
The Snowman (Harry Hole #7) – Jo Nesbo
The Hypnotist (Joona Linna #1) – Lars Keppler
War and Peace – Leo Tolstoy
The Unmade World – Steve Yarborough
Dear Committee Members – Julie Schumacher
| |||
| 17 Apr 2018 | Episode 46 - The Stranger in the Woods | 01:07:04 | |
Episode Forty Six Show Notes
It’s National Poetry Month and we are celebrating with a poetry video project.
– Currently Reading/Listening – Dark Matter – Winnie M. Li (CW) The Dispossessed – Ursula K. Le Guin (EF) – Just Read – Do Not Become Alarmed: A Novel – Maile Meloy (EF) The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit – Michael Finkel (CW) (audio) – Biblio Adventures –
Chris and Emily went on a joint jaunt to visit The Unlikely Bookstore & Cafe in Plainville, MA owned by Julie and Jeff Kinney.
April 12th – We are going on a joint jaunt to Savoy Bookshop and Cafe for the Reading Across Road Island sponsored event with Angie Thomas and her book The Hate U Give.
April 19th – Chris will host the second Willa Cather Bookclub at Bookclub Bookstore & More in South Windsor, CT
– Upcoming Reads – Song of the Lark (Great Plains Trilogy #2) – Willa Cather (CW) – Also Mentioned – The Namesake – Jhumpa Lahiri
– Part 2: Author Spotlight – In the last section of this episode we speak with Michael Finkel about his book Stranger In the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit. | |||
| 01 May 2018 | Episode 47 - AngieThomas, Cecile Richards, Jhumpa Lahiri, Domenico Starnone and Willa Cather (of course!) | 01:15:26 | |
Episode Forty Seven Show Notes
For National Poetry Month (April) we celebrated with a poetry video project.
See the full list of the 2018 Edgar Award winners here. Tornado Weather – Deborah Elaine Kennedy Dark Chapter – Winnie M. Li. Lola – Melissa Scrivner Love Idaho – Emily Ruskovich She Rides Shotgun – Jordan Harper The Unseeing – Ana Mazzola Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI – David Grann Chester B. Himes: A Biography – Lawrence P. Jackson New Haven Noir edited by Amy Bloom – Two short stories won Spring Break by John Crowley and The Queen of Secrets by Lisa D. Gray Long Way Down – Jason Reynolds Bolo Books, Kristopher Zgorski – Currently Reading/Listening – Chicago Poems – Carl Sandburg (CW)
– Just Read – Standard Deviation – Katherine Heiny (EF) Sea Creatures from the Sky – Ricardo Cortés (CW) – Biblio Adventures –
Emily went to see Cecile Richards discuss her book Make Trouble: Standing Up, Speaking Out, and Finding Courage to Lead sponsored by Wesleyan RJ Julia.
Chris hosted the second Willa Cather Bookclub at Bookclub Bookstore & More in South Windsor, CT where they read The Song of the Lark. The next date is July 19 at 2:00 where they will discuss One of Ours. Our second joint jaunt was to see a bilingual event with Jhumpha Lahiri and Domenico Starnone moderated by Michael Reynolds, Editor in Chief, Europa Editions at Wesleyan RJ Julia. They were discussing the book Trick (Scherzetto).
Emily worked at the Lucy Robbins Welles library in Newington, CT.
Independent Bookstore Day – Laura will be at Bookclub Bookstore & More with Mastering the Art of Self-Expression, workbook
May 1 – Emily is heading to see Meg Wolitzer discuss her book The Female Persuasion at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT
May 4-5 – Booktopia at Northshire Bookstore in Manchester, VT
Chris is planning to stop at Williams College newly opened bookstore
May 10 – Chris and Emily will take a joint jaunt to the Guilford Library for the Guilford Poets Guild celebration of Guilford High School Poetry Contest Winners. – Upcoming Reads – American Byron: Homosexuality The Fall Of Fitz-Green Halleck – John W.M. Hallock (CW) Poetical Writings of Fitz-Green Halleck – Fitz-Green Halleck edited by James Grant Wilson (CW) American Sea Power in the Old World: The United States Navy in European and Near Eastern Waters, 1865-1917 – William N. Still, Jr. (CW) Courageous Women of the Vietnam War: Medics, Journalists, Survivors, and More – Kathryn J. Atwood – Also Mentioned – Walt Whitman Mary Oliver Gretchen Rubin and her Four Tendencies Quiz Fates and Furies – Lauren Groff Mystic – Noank Library in Mystic, CT Mystic Pizza in Mystic, CT Mystic Pizza the movie Bank Square Books in Mystic, CT David Letterman “My Next Guest” interviews on Netflix O Pioneers! – Willa Cather Ernest Hemingway Unabridged Bookstore in Chicago The Namesake – Jhumpa Lahiri Interpreter of Maladies – Jhumpa Lahiri The Echo Maker – Richard Powers When You Eat at the Refrigerator, Pull Up A Chair: 50 Ways to Feel Thin, Gorgeous, and Happy {When You Feel Anything But} – Geneen Rother When Food is Love: Exploring the Relationship Between Eating and Intimacy – Geneen Roth An Honorable German – Charles L. McCain – Chris reviewed this book on her blog The Shadow Divers – Robert Kurson | |||
| 15 May 2018 | Episode 48 - Jaunt Much? Chris and Emily visit SEVEN bookstores and discuss LOADS of books | 01:00:26 | |
Episode Forty Eight Show Notes Check out the 100 books listed in The Great American Read from PBS. See the Lambda Literary Award information here. – Currently Reading/Listening – The Library: A Catalogue of Wonders – Stuart Kells (CW) Alternate Side – Anna Quindlen (EF) – Just Read – Bite by Bite – Geneen Roth (EF) (audio) Dream More – Dolly Parton (CW) (audio) This Messy Magnificent Life: A Field Guide – Geneen Roth (EF) – Biblio Adventures –
May 4-5 – Booktopia at Northshire Bookstore in Manchester, VT Ariel Lawhon – I Was Anastasia: A Novel Bianca Marais – Hum If You Don't Know the Words Heather Abel – The Optimistic Decade Jonathan Miles – Anatomy of a Miracle Pamela Paul – My Life With Bob: Flawed Heroine Keeps Book of Books, Plot Ensues Peter Swanson – All the Beautiful Lies Robin Oliveira – Winter Sisters Stephen McCauley – My Ex-Life Chris and Emily stopped at Williams College newly opened bookstore.
Emily went to Brooklyn and visited Books are Magic and McNally Jackson Chris went to a local cemetery in Guilford to see Fitz-Greene Halleck’s gravesite.
Chris is going to see an Encore Series show in NYC at the Encore Series. Coming up at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT: May 15, 2018 – Chandra Prasad with her book Damselfly May 16, 2018 – Heather Abel with her book The Optimistic Decade Coming up at Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore: May 25, 2018 – Lisa Ko with her book The Leavers May 26, 2018 –Mark your calendar for World Dracula Day – Upcoming Reads – Bimini Twist (Jane Bunker Mystery #4) – Linda Greenlaw (CW) release date June 26, 2018 Hum If You Don’t Know the Words – Bianca Marais (CW) Bitter Orange – Claire Fuller (CW) release date October 9, 2018 The Other Woman – Sandie Jones (CW) release date August 21, 2018 Something in the Water – Catherine Stedman (CW) release date July 24, 2018 Into the Raging Sea: Thirty-Three Mariners, One Megastorm, and the Sinking of El Faro – Rachel Slade (CW) Dot Journaling: A Practical Guide: How to Start and Keep the Planner, To-Do List, and Diary That’ll Actually Help You Get Your Life Together – Rachel Wilkerson Miller (CW) The Thorn Necklace: Healing Through Writing and the Creative Process – Francesca Lia Block (EF) Sunburn – Laura Lippman (EF) Little Women – Louisa May Alcott (EF) – Also Mentioned – Dolly Parton’s foundation: Imagination Library Leaves of Grass – Walt Whitman The Wife – Meg Wolitzer The Interestings – Meg Wolitzer Modern Lovers – Emma Straub The Vacationers – Emma Straub Jesmyn Ward The Duplass Brothers Emma Visick Book Nook with Vick Mickunas The Echo Maker – Richard Powers American Rust – Philipp Meyer The Son – Philip Meyer | |||
| 22 May 2018 | Episode 49 - Our Mystery Man Returns! | 01:12:20 | |
Episode Forty Nine Show Notes
Our Mystery Man – John Valeri
http://www.johnbvaleri.com/
Twitter: @OyeJohn52
– Books That Are Out Now –
The Woman in the Window – AJ Finn
The Chalk Man – C.J. Tudor
The Wife Between Us – Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen
The Wife – Alafair Burke
Into the Black Nowhere – Meg Gardiner
Look for Me – Lisa Gardner
You Will Be Mine – Natasha Preston
Mister Tender’s Girl – Carter Wilson
Vanished – Karen E. Olson
The Bishop’s Pawn – Steve Berry
Not That I Could Tell – Jessica Strawser
A Date with Murder (Murder She Wrote #47) – Jessica Fletcher, Donald Bain, Jon Land
The Undercover Edge: Find Your Hidden Strengths, Learn to Adapt, and Build the Confidence to Win Life’s Game – Derrick Levasseur
I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer – Michelle McNamara
– Upcoming Releases –
The Word is Murder – Anthony Horowitz release date June 5, 2018
A Stone’s Throw – James W. Ziskin release date June 5, 2018
Little Girl Lost – Wendi Corsi Straub release date July 24, 2018
The Last Thing I Told You – Emily Arsenault release date July 24, 2018
Mystery of Three Quarters – Sophie Hannah release date August 28, 2018
– Upcoming Events –
Crime Conn at Ferguson Library – Saturday, June 23, 2018
John will be starting a Marcia Clark bookclub at Bookclub Bookstore & More starting on July 26 with Guilt By Association
John will be interviewing Emily Arsenault at Bookclub Bookstore & More on August 4, 2018
– Also Mentioned –
Mystery Scene Magazine
Criminal Element
The Strand Magazine
The Snowman (Harry Hole #7) – Jo Nesbo
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo – Stieg Larsson
Typepad – Online writing forum for amateur writers
The Hunt for Red October – Tom Clancy
Writer’s Digest Magazine
Big Brother television series
Is OJ Innocent? The Missing Evidence television series
Breaking Homicide television series
Northshire Bookstore – Saratoga Springs
Marcia Clark Investigates The First 48
The Fix
| |||
| 29 May 2018 | Episode 50 - Our 5th Giveaway and 4th & 5th Readalongs Announced! | 01:03:37 | |
Upcoming Readalongs Little Women – Louisa May Alcott – have comments to us by June 21st March – Geraldine Brooks – have comments to us by July 19th 5oth Episode Giveaway Upcoming Book Release and Event | |||
| 05 Jun 2018 | Episode 51 - BookExpo 2018 - Buzzy Books for the Coming Year! | 00:30:14 | |
Episode Fifty One Show Notes Russell Gray’s Book Tube Channel can be found at https://www.youtube.com/inkandpaperblog – Russel’s Book Recommendations – So Lucky – Nicola Griffith The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Wayfarers #10) – Becky Chambers When I Hit You: Or, a Portrait of the Writer as a Young Wife – Meena Kandasamy – BookExpo Adult Editor’s Buzz 2018 – She Would Be King – Wayétu Moore release date September 11, 2018 There Will Be No Miracles Here: A Memoir – Casey Gerald release date October 2, 2018 Small Animals: Parenthood in the Age of Fear – Kim Brooks release date August 21, 2018 Ohio: A Novel – Stephen Markley release date August 21, 2018
Darius the Great is Not Okay – Adib Khorram release date August 28, 2018 The Girl King – Mimi Yu release date August 28, 2018 Sadie – Courtney Summers release date September 4, 2018 Girls of Paper and Fire – Natasha Ngan release date November 6, 2018 The Similars – Rebecca Hanover release date January 1, 2019
There, There – Tommy Orange (EF) The Real Lolita: The Kidnapping of Sally Horner and The Novel that Scandalized the World – Sarah Weinman (CW) Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone 20th Anniversary Editions with Brian Selznick illustrated covers (EF) Hope Never Dies – Andrew Shaffer (CW) – Also Mentioned – Hild - Nicola Griffith Lets Be Less Stupid: An Attempt to Maintain My Mental Faculties – Patricia Marx Deborah Harkness All Souls Trilogy | |||
| 12 Jun 2018 | Episode 52 - What Does 70 Pounds of Books Look Like?! | 01:07:31 | |
Episode Fifty Two Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
Upcoming Readalongs
Little Women – Louisa May Alcott – have comments to us by June 21st
March – Geraldine Brooks – have comments to us by July 19th
Congratulations to our 5oth Episode Giveaway winner – Jennifer and her daughter Lilly!
Upcoming Book Release and Event
Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy: The Story of Little Women – Anne Boyd Rioux (release date August 21st)
Check out upcoming events for the 150th anniversary of Little Women at Orchard House.
Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle!
– Currently Reading/Listening –
Fatal Crossing (Nora Sand #1) – Lone Theils, Translated by Charlotte Barslund (CW)
Unsheltered – Barbara Kingsolver (EF) release date October 16, 2018
The American Byron: Homosexuality The Fall of Fitz-Green Halleck – John Hallock (CW)
It Happened at Two in the Morning – Alan Hruska (EF)
Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers Who Helped Win World War II – Liza Mundy (CW)(audio)
Little Women – Louisa May Alcott (EF) (audio narrator Lorelei King) (upcoming narrator Justine Eyre) (EF)
– Just Read –
Dream More – Dolly Parton (EF) (audio)
District VIII – Adam LeBor (CW)
From the Wreck – Jane Rawson (CW)
Gift from the Sea – Anne Morrow Lindbergh (CW)
Trench Dogs – Ian Densford (CW) – See other graphic novels being released from Naval Institute Press new imprint Dead Wreckening
– Biblio Adventures –
Chris and Emily went to NYC for Book Expo 2018, May 30-June 1, 2018.
Check out our YouTube videos from Book Expo.
Some authors, imprints, etc. from the week:
Blackwing Pencils
Out of Print Clothing
But That’s Another Story – Will Schwalbe’s podcast
Leigh Bardugo
Wayetu Moore
Rich Benjamin
Susan Orlean
Caroline Fraser
Deborah Harkness
Ibi Zoboi
Sally Field
Tony Kushner
Michelle Obama
Fiona Davis – The Masterpiece, The Dollhouse and The Address
Tommy Orange – There, There
Minotaur Books
Alison Law – Literary Atlanta Podcast
Megan Mullally and Nick Offerman – The Greatest Love Story Ever Told
Abbi Jacobson
Chris Gethard
Len Riggio – CEO of Barnes and Noble
We brought home 70 pounds of books!
– Upcoming Jaunts –
The Book Cougars will be hosting an historical fiction author event in partnership with Bank Square Books at Mohegan Sun on September 27, 2018.
June 16, 2018 Chris will be attending a Behind the Scenes Tour of The Blackstone Library in Branford, CT.
Chris and Emily are hoping to head to the Noah Webster House in West Hartford, CT
June 19, 2018 Emily is planning to see Jennifer Egan, author of Manhattan Beach, sponsored by Bank Square Books.
June 20, 2018 Emily is planning to see Claire Messud, author of The Burning Girl, sponsored by Bank Square Books.
– Upcoming Reads –
The Lost Family – Jenna Blum (EF)
Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly – Anthony Bourdain (EF)
Middlemarch – George Eliot (CW)
Little Women – Louise May Alcott (CW)
– Also Mentioned –
Book Women Magazine
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life – Barbara Kingsolver
Lydia Maria Francis Child
Moby Dick
Autobiography of Malcolm X – Malcolm X, Alex Haley
Hunt for Red October – Tom Clancy
Literary Disco podcast
A Visit from the Goon Squad – Jennifer Egan
The Woman Upstairs
The Thurber House
Adam Bede – George Eliot
Book By Book blog – Sue Jackson – Join her Big Book Summer Challenge
Broad City
| |||
| 26 Jun 2018 | Episode 53 - Chris Talks Bone Fragments AND Our Little Women Readalong! | 01:27:09 | |
Episode Fifty Three Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
Upcoming Readalongs
March – Geraldine Brooks – have comments to us by July 19th
Upcoming Book Release and Event
Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy: The Story of Little Women – Anne Boyd Rioux (release date August 21st)
Check out upcoming events for the 150th anniversary of Little Women at Orchard House.
Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle!
– Currently Reading/Listening –
Why Buddhism Is True: The Science and Philosophy of Enlightenment – Robert Wright (CW)
Providence – Caroline Kepnes
The American Byron: Homosexuality The Fall of Fitz-Green Halleck – John Hallock (CW)
– Just Read –
Unsheltered – Barbara Kingsolver (EF) release date October 16, 2018
Chris DNF’d Fatal Crossing (Nora Sand #1) – Lone Theils, Translated by Charlotte Barslund (CW)
and she attempted to watch an adaptation of Picnic at Hanging Rock
It Happened at Two in the Morning – Alan Hruska (EF)
Code Girls: The Untold Story of the American Women Code Breakers Who Helped Win World War II – Liza Mundy (CW)(audio)
A Place for Us – Fatima Farheen Mirza (EF)
– Biblio Adventures –
Chris met John Valeri, Our Mystery Man, at Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore.
Chris attended Crime Conn at Ferguson Library on Saturday, June 23, 2018
Author panelists included:
China Trade – S.J. Rozan
Katie Torpey
Tom Straw
David Rich
David Handler
James Benn
Jane Cleland
Sacred Cows – Karen E. Olson
Charles Salzberg
Dr. Kristen Hartnett-McCann
Bill Curatolo
Jill Fletcher
Jeff Markowitz
Chris Knopf
Neil Nyren
Gina Panettieri
Sheryl Kayne
June 19, 2018 Emily saw Jennifer Egan, author of Manhattan Beach, sponsored by Bank Square Books at Wheeler Library in North Stonington, CT.
June 20, 2018 Emily and Chris went to see Claire Messud, author of The Burning Girl, sponsored by Bank Square Books. Sadly, the event was postponed.
NYPL event archive of Roxane Gay in conversation with Aja Monet: https://www.nypl.org/audiovideo/live-nypl-roxane-gay-aja-monet-not-bad
– Upcoming Jaunts –
Matthew Dicks will be at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison with his new book Storyworthy: Engage, Teach, Persuade, and Change Your Life through the Power of Storytelling.
Chris and Emily will be heading to Orchard House – the home of Louisa May Alcott.
– Upcoming Reads –
March – Geraldine Brooks (EF)
They May Not Mean To, But They Do – Cathleen Schine (EF)
Sudden Sea: The Great Hurricane of 1938 – R.A. Scotti (CW)
Small Animals: Parenthood in the Age of Fear – Kim Brooks (EF) release date August 21, 2018
– 5th Read Along –
Little Women – Louisa May Alcott (EF) (CW)
The Goodreads Discussion can be found here.
– Also Mentioned –
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life – Barbara Kingsolver
Also by Robert Wright:
The Evolution of God
Nonzero: The Logic of Human Destiny
The Moral Animal: Why We Are The Way We Are: The New Science of Evolutionary Psychology
The Overstory – Richard Powers
Also by Barbara Kingsolver
Bean Trees
Prodigal Summer
The Poisonwood Bible
The President Is Missing – Bill Clinton, James Patterson
The Pilgrims Progress – John Bunyan
Northanger Abbey – Jane Austen
Henry David Thoreau
Margaret Fuller
Hospital Sketches – Louisa May Alcott
| |||
| 10 Jul 2018 | Episode 54 - Reading Through A Heatwave! | 00:52:24 | |
Episode Fifty Four Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Join our Goodreads Group!
Let us know what you want us to choose as the next read along. You can email, tweet or join the discussion on the Goodreads page.
Upcoming Readalongs
March – Geraldine Brooks – have comments to us by July 19th
Upcoming Book Release and Event
Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy: The Story of Little Women – Anne Boyd Rioux (release date August 21st)
Check out upcoming events for the 150th anniversary of Little Women at Orchard House.
Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle!
– Currently Reading/Listening –
The Girl Who Smiled Beads: A Story of War and What Comes After – Clemantine Wamariya and Elizabeth Weil (EF)
One of Ours – Willa Cather (CW)
– Just Read –
Hope Never Dies – Andrew Shaffer (CW)
Providence – Caroline Kepnes (EF)
Women & Power: A Manifesto – Mary Beard (CW)
They May Not Mean To But They Do – Cathleen Schine (EF)
One Possible Life - Hannes Köhler (CW)
The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing – Marie Kondō (CW) (audio)
– Biblio Adventures –
Emily saw Matthew Dicks at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison with his new book Storyworthy: Engage, Teach, Persuade, and Change Your Life through the Power of Storytelling
Chris visited the Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library in New Haven, CT
– Upcoming Jaunts –
Chris and Emily will be heading to Orchard House – the home of Louisa May Alcott – on July 16th
July 19th Chris will be hosting the Willa Cather Book Club at Bookclub Bookstore & More
Emily is planning to attend Savoy Bookshop & Café Harry Potter 20th Anniversary party on July 31st
The Book Cougars will be hosting an historical fiction author event in partnership with Bank Square Books at Mohegan Sun on September 27, 2018.
– Upcoming Reads –
March – Geraldine Brooks (CW)(EF)
Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy: The Story of Little Women – Anne Boyd Rioux (CW)(EF) release date August 21st
The World As It Is: Inside the Obama White House – Ben Rhodes (CW)
The Kiss: Intimacies from Writers – edited by Brian Turner (CW)
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life – Barbara Kingsolver (EF) (audio)
– Also Mentioned –
The new Libby App to download E-books and Audiobooks
Center for Fiction first novel prize list can be found here.
A Place for Us – Fatima Farheen Mirza
There, There – Tommy Orange
Sadness is a White Bird – Moriel Rothman - Zecker
Man Booker Golden 50th Book Award
Poisonwood Bible – Barbara Kingsolver
Willa Cather Novels: My Ántonia, The Song of the Lark, and O Pioneers!
Orchard House Conversation Series
Gwendolyn Brooks Statue in Chicago
57th Street Books
American Writers Museum
Poet Philip Larkin
This Be The Verse
They fuck you up, your mum and dad.
They may not mean to, but they do.
They fill you with the faults they had
And add some extra, just for you.
But they were fucked up in their turn
By fools in old-style hats and coats,
Who half the time were soppy-stern
And half at one another’s throats.
Man hands on misery to man.
It deepens like a coastal shelf.
Get out as early as you can,
And don’t have any kids yourself.
| |||
| 24 Jul 2018 | Episode 55 - Readalong discussion of March by Geraldine Brooks and our visit to Concord, MA | 01:40:23 | |
Episode Fifty Five Show Notes Giveaway! Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle! – Currently Reading/Listening – – Just Read – Emily went to Breakwater Books to see Carl Zimmer discuss his book She Has Her Mother’s Laugh: The Powers, Perversions, and Potential of Heredity July 19th Chris will be hosting the Willa Cather Book Club at Bookclub Bookstore & More Emily watched two movies: July 19th Chris will be hosting the Willa Cather Book Club at Bookclub Bookstore & More July 28th – Dewey’s Readathon September 15th – Chris will moderate a session with Kimberly McCreight, author of the Outliers Trilogy, at Book Club Bookstore & More. – Upcoming Reads – – Readalong – | |||
| 07 Aug 2018 | Episode 56 - Baby, It's Steamy Outside! | 00:56:59 | |
Episode Fifty Six Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Join our Goodreads Group!
Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle!
Please subscribe to our email list here.
– Currently Reading/Listening –
The Prisoner in the Castle – Susan Elia MacNeal (CW)
Buttermilk Graffiti: A Chef’s Journey to Discover America’s New Melting Pot – Edward Lee (EF)
All About Boats: The Evacuation of Manhattan Island on September 11, 2001 – edited by Mike Magee (CW)
The Stars Are Fire – Anita Shreve (EF)
Middlemarch – George Eliot (CW)
– Just Read –
Crazy Rich Asians – Kevin Kwan (CW)
The Masterpiece – Fiona Davis (EF)
– Biblio Adventures –
Emily went to RJ Julia’s Booksellers in Madison, CT to see James R. Benn author of the Billy Boyle series in conversation with Cara Black author of the Aimee Leduc series.
Emily went to Vermont and visited Crow Bookshop in Burlington, VT. She also walked passed, but was unable to go inside, Sherman’s Maine Coast Book Shop in Portland, ME.
Chris went to Chicago and visited the Pritzker Military Museum and Library, American Writers Museum and saw the Gwendolyn Brooks statue. She also visited Anderson’s Bookshops in Naperville, IL and Barbara’s Bookstore O’Hare.
Chris went to Bookclub Bookstore & More to see our Mystery Man, John Valeri, in conversation with Emily Arsenault author of The Last Thing I Told You.
Chris attended the grand opening of That Bookstore in Wethersfield, CT.
– Upcoming Jaunts –
August 8 – Chris will be headed to Bank Square Books to see Wick Griswold & Stephen Jones discuss their book Connecticut Ferries.
August 24 – Institute Library in New Haven is hosting a Library Thing-a-Thon. Help them digitize their catalog!
September 12-14 – Wyndham Campbell Prizes Festival
September 15 – Chris will moderate a session with Kimberly McCreight, author of the Outliers Trilogy, at Book Club Bookstore & More.
September 27, 2018 – The Book Cougars will be hosting an historical fiction author event in partnership with Bank Square Books at Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, CT. Please join us along with Fiona Davis, James R. Benn, Melodie Winnawer and Marie Benedict. You can order your tickets here.
– Upcoming Reads –
The Still Point of the Turning World – Emily Rapp (EF)
Courageous Women of the Vietnam War: Medics, Journalists, Survivors and More – Kathryn J. Atwood (CW)
Mrs. Dalloway – Virginia Wolff (CW)
Song of Kali – Dan Simmons (CW)
– Also Mentioned –
Books Are Magic Bookstore
Smoke and Pickles: Recipes and Stories from a New Southern Kitchen – cookbook by Edward Lee
Reading Envy Podcast
The Book Barn in Niantic, CT
Fiona Davis: The Address and The Dollhouse
Rosemary’s Baby– Ira Levin
A Prayer for Owen Meany – John Irving
Maud Martha – Gwendolyn Brooks
Chris blogs at WildmooBooks
Poster Child: A Memoir – Emily Rapp
The Classics Club
Maurice – E.M. Forster | |||
| 21 Aug 2018 | Episode 57 - Orchard House interviews with Anne Boyd Rioux and Jan Turnquist | 01:11:34 | |
Episode Fifty Seven Show Notes Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle! Please subscribe to our email list here. – Upcoming Readalong – You can participate in the readalong via the Goodreads discussion here. If you want to send us questions or comments please send an email by 8/30/18 to bookcougars@gmail.com. – Just Read – Small Animals: Parenthood in the Age of Fear – Kim Brooks (EF) The Stars Are Fire: A Novel – Anita Shreve (EF)
We took a quick video of the event – see it here. – Interviews from our Joint Jaunt to Concord, MA – Jan Turnquist – Executive Director of Orchard House Smoke and Pickles: Recipes and Stories from a New Southern Kitchen – cookbook by Edward Lee Constance Fenimore Wilson: Portrait of a Lady Novelist – Anne Boyd Rioux For Information about the Little Women Sesquicentennial Celebration: | |||
| 04 Sep 2018 | Episode 58 - Yippee! Meet the Cougars and a GIVEAWAY | 01:00:03 | |
Episode Fifty Eight Show Notes Please subscribe to our email list here. – Currently Reading –
Chris took friends to The Book Barn in Niantic, CT and Salem, MA. September 13, 2018 – Emily is headed to RJ Julia Madison to see Kate Walbert discuss her book His Favorites September 15, 2018 at 2:00 – Chris will be in conversation with Kimberly McCreight at Bookclub Bookstore & More to discuss the third book in the Outliers trilogy: The Collide October 18, 2018 at 2:00 – Chris will be hosting the Willa Cather book club at Bookclub Bookstore & More. The book: Death Comes to the Archbishop September 27, 2018 at 7:00 – Come meet the Book Cougars at Mohegan Sun for a Historical Fiction Panel. Click HERE to purchase your $5 ticket. Panelists are: We are hosting a GIVEAWAY of the four books. Subscribe to our newsletter HERE by September 8, 2018 in order to be entered to win. – Upcoming Reads – – Also Mentioned – | |||
| 18 Sep 2018 | Episode 59 - Learning About Horseshoe Crabs! | 00:53:31 | |
Episode Fifty Nine Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle! AND at Bookclub Bookstore & More.
If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE.
Join our Goodreads Group!
Please subscribe to our email list here.
– Currently Reading –
Scribe of Siena – Melodie Winawer (CW)(audio)
Solemn Graves (Billy Boyle Mystery Series #13) – James R. Benn (CW)
The Odyssey – Homer, translated by Emily Wilson (CW)
The NY Times article discussing the new translation of The Odyssey by Emily Wilson can be found HERE.
– Just Read –
Scribe of Siena – Melodie Winawer (EF)
The Crab from Yesterday: The Life-Cycle of a Horseshoe Crab – John Frederick Waters and W.T. Mars (CW)
Rooted In Deceit (A Greenhouse Mystery #4) – Wendy Tyson (EF)
The Outliers – Kimberly McCreight (EF)
The Scattering – Kimberly McCreight (EF)
The Collide – Kimberly McCreight (CW)(EF)
– Biblio Adventures –
Chris and Emily watched the 1933 film version of Little Women
September 13, 2018 – Emily went to RJ Julia Madison to see Kate Walbert discuss her book His Favorites
– Upcoming Jaunts –
September 15, 2018 at 2:00 – Chris will be in conversation with Kimberly McCreight at Bookclub Bookstore & More to discuss the third book in the Outliers trilogy: The Collide
September 17, 2018 – Joseph Olshan will be at RJ Julia Madison to discuss his new book, Black Diamond Fall.
September 20, 2018 at RJ Julia Madison and October 3 at Wesleyan RJ Julia – Jason Stanley will discuss his book, How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them.
September 27, 2018 – Bill Goldstein will be discussing his book, The World Broke in Two: Virginia Woolf, T.S. Eliot, D.H. Lawrence, E.M. Forster and the Year that Changed Literature, at RJ Julia Madison
September 27, 2018 at 7:00 – Come meet the Book Cougars at Mohegan Sun for a Historical Fiction Panel. Click HERE to purchase your $5 ticket.
Panelists are:
Fiona Davis –The Masterpiece
Marie Benedict – Carnegie’s Maid
James R. Benn – Solemn Graves (Billy Boyle Mystery Series #13)
Melodie Winawer – Scribe of Siena
October 13 – Boston Book Festival
October 18, 2018 at 2:00 – Chris will be hosting the Willa Cather book club at Bookclub Bookstore & More. The book: Death Comes to the Archbishop
– Upcoming Reads –
Solemn Graves (Billy Boyle Mystery Series #13) – James R. Benn (EF)
The Book of Essie – Meghan Maclean Weir (EF)
Strike Your Heart – Amélie Nothomb (EF)
A Winter’s Promise – Christelle Dabos (EF)
Seaweed Chronicles: A World at the Water’s Edge – Susan Hand Shetterly (CW)
Horseshoe Crags and Velvet Worms: The Story of the Animals and Plants That Time Has Left Behind – Richard Fortey (CW)
Behold the Dreamers – Imbolo Mbue (CW)
The Witches: Salem, 1692 – Stacy Schiff (CW)
Labyrinth of the Spirits – Carlos Ruiz Zafon (CW)
– Also Mentioned –
Cara Black
Diane Mott Davidson
The Kate – Katherine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center showing of Little Women
The movie Holiday starring Katherine Hepburn and Cary Grant
Fear: Trump in the White House – Bob Woodward
Fear and Trembling – Amélie Nothomb
Tokyo Fiancée – Amélie Nothomb
Mel’s Bookland Adventures
The Shadow of the Wind – Carlos Ruiz Zafon
The Angels Game – Carlos Ruiz Zafon
The Prisoner of Heaven – Carlos Ruiz Zafon
| |||
| 02 Oct 2018 | Episode 60 - Our Mystery Man Returns & A Mysterious Giveaway! | 01:14:28 | |
| 16 Oct 2018 | Episode 61 - The Libraries, Sleepy Hollow and Upcoming Readalongs! | 00:59:29 | |
Episode Sixty one Show Notes CW = Chris WolakEF = Emily FinePurchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle! AND at Bookclub Bookstore & More.
If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions.
Join our Goodreads Group! Please subscribe to our email newsletter here.
– Readalong’s 8 & 9 –Born A Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood – Trevor NoahHave questions/comments to us by November 8th
Hum If You Don’t Know the Words – Bianca MaraisHave questions/comments to us by December 6th
– Currently Reading –Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right’s Stealth Plan for America – Nancy MacLean (CW)The Best of Us – Joyce Maynard (EF) (audio)Joyce’s editorial in the NY Times can be found HEREGilead – Marilynne Robinson (EF)Ohio – Stephen Markley (EF) – might DNF?
– Just Read –Calypso – David Sedaris (EF) (audio)The Library Book – Susan Orlean (CW)Strike Your Heart – Amélie Nothomb (EF)Bitter Orange – Clare Fuller (CW)Read Chris’s review of the book HEREThe Kiss Quotient – Helen Hoang (EF)The Wife – Meg Wolitzer (EF)The World Made Straight – Ron Rash (EF)
– Biblio Adventures –September 27, 2018 – The Book Cougars hosted three authors at Mohegan Sun. Panelists were:Fiona Davis –The MasterpieceJames R. Benn – Solemn Graves (Billy Boyle Mystery Series #13)Melodie Winawer – Scribe of Siena
Emily visited Edgartown Books in Edgartown, MA.
Chris went to Concord, MA on the 150th anniversary of Little Women. Orchard House had a big celebration. She visited Sleepy Hollow Cemetery and Walden Pond.
– Upcoming Jaunts –October 17, 2018 – Meghan MacLean Weir will be at Wesleyan RJ Julia to discuss The Book of Essie. October 18, 2018 at 2:00 – Chris will be hosting the Willa Cather book club at Bookclub Bookstore & More. The book: Death Comes for the Archbishop
October 20, 2018 – Chris is participating in the next Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon
– Upcoming Reads –Death Comes for the Archbishop – Willa Cather (CW)The Autobiography of Andrew Carnegie – Andrew Carnegie (CW)Dodging and Burning – John Copenhaver (CW)The Devil and Webster – Jean Hanff Korelitz (EF)Readers Advisory Guide to Horror – Becky Siegel Spratford (CW)Sadness is a White Bird – Moriel Rothman-Zecher (EF)(audio)5 Under 35 honoree – read about it HERE.Middlemarch – George Ellott
– Also Mentioned –Unsheltered – Barbara Kingsolver Open Dyslexic fontThe Immortalists – Chloe BenjaminWally LambAt Home in the World – Joyce MaynardAlso by Susan Orlean: Orchid Thief: A True Story of Beauty and Possession and Rin Tin Tin: The Life and the LegendThe Wife - movieThe Female Persuasion – Meg WoliterMalaprop’s Bookstore/CafeMcLean & Eakin BooksellersAtticus BookstoreSerena – Ron RashBilly Boyle – James R. BennGeraldine BrooksPachinko – Min Jin LeeMeg, Jo, Beth, Amy: The Story of Little Women and Why It Still Matters – Anne Boyd RiouxEdgartown Public LibraryAdmission – Jean Hanff Korelitz / the movieBerwyn Public LibraryThe Monk – Matthew LewisLord of the Flies – William GoldingFrankenstein – Mary Wollstoncraft ShelleyThe Color Purple – Alice WalkerThe Bluest Eye – Toni MorrisonBill CleggNational Book Awards | |||
| 30 Oct 2018 | Episode 62 - The Cougars Take Manhattan | 01:00:05 | |
Episode Sixty Two Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle! AND at Bookclub Bookstore & More.
If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions.
Join our Goodreads Group!
Please subscribe to our email newsletter here.
– Readalong’s 8 & 9 –
Born A Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood – Trevor Noah
Have comments to us by November 8, 2018
Hum If You Don’t Know the Words – Bianca Marais
Have comments to us by December 6, 2018
– Giveaway –
We have one copy of Hum If You Don’t Know the Words! Please subscribe to the newsletter by November 5, 2018 to be entered to win. Bonus points if you post a selfie with your favorite read on social media – be sure to #bookcougars.
– Currently Reading –
Eat, Pray, Love – Elizabeth Gilbert (CW)
Mr. Flood’s Last Resort (or The Hoarder) – Jess Kidd (EF)
The Monk – Matthew Lewis (CW)
Kitchen Confidential: Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly – Anthony Bourdain (EF)(audio)
– Just Read –
Death Comes for the Archbishop – Willa Cather (CW)
Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right’s Stealth Plan for America – Nancy MacLean (CW)
Fledgling – Octavia Butler (CW) (Chris wrote a review of the book on her blog. Click HERE.)
Courageous Women of the Vietnam War: Medics, Journalists, Survivors, and More (Women of Action) – Kathryn J. Atwood
The Care and Feeding of an Independent Bookstore: Three Instructive Essays – Ann Patchett (CW)
The Best of Us – Joyce Maynard (EF) (audio)
Not Our Kind – Kiddy Zeldis (EF)
– Biblio Adventures –
Chris saw two movies: Crazy Rich Asians and The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
Emily visited Gramercy Books and Bexley Public Library in Columbus, Ohio
Chris and Emily went to NYC and visited the Frankenstein exhibit at the Morgan Library and attended the Susan Orlean lecture at the New York Public Library where she discussed her new book – The Library Book. (Chris wrote a review of the book on her blog. Click HERE.)
– Upcoming Jaunts –
Chris is heading to LA for some bookish fun.
Emily is heading to That Bookstore – a new independent bookstore in Wethersfield, CT
– Upcoming Reads –
1,000 Books to Read Before You Die: A Life-Changing List – James Mustich (EF)
Eventide and Benediction – Kent Haruf (EF)
Gone So Long – Andre Dubus III (EF)
Five Days at Memorial – Sheri Fink (CW)
Starting From Scratch – Rita Mae Brown (CW)
– Also Mentioned –
Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear – Elizabeth Gilbert
Kindred – Octavia Butler
Parnassus Books
Signature of All Things – Elizabeth Gilbert
Lucy Gayheart – Willa Cather
Plainsong – Kent Haruf
Ruby Fruit Jungle – Rita Mae Brown
Sudden Death – Rita Mae Brown
Shawn the Book Maniac Book Tuber
Reading Envy
| |||
| 13 Nov 2018 | Episode 63 - Born a Crime Readalong and 2018 Holiday Gift Giving | 01:15:50 | |
Episode Sixty Three Show Notes CW = Chris WolakEF = Emily FinePurchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle! AND at Bookclub Bookstore & More.
If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions.
Join our Goodreads Group! Please subscribe to our email newsletter here.
– Readalong #9 –Hum If You Don’t Know the Words – Bianca MaraisHave comments to us by December 6, 2018 // Goodreads discussion page is HERE
– Currently Reading –Eat, Pray, Love – Elizabeth Gilbert (CW)Kitchen – Banana Yoshimoto (EF)Starting From Scratch – Rita Mae Brown (CW)Florida – Lauren Groff (EF)The Craft of Research – Wayne C. Booth, Gregory G. Colomb, Joseph M. Williams, Joseph Bizup, William T. Fitzgerald (CW)Poetry Will Save Your Life – Jill Bialosky (EF)
– Just Read –Mr. Flood’s Last Resort (or The Hoarder) – Jess Kidd (EF)Ohio – Stephen Markley (EF)
– Biblio Adventures –Emily went to Book Trader in New Haven, CT and That Bookstore in Wethersfield, CT.
Chris went on a big adventure to Los Angeles, CA that included stops at:Universal Studios The Wizarding World of Harry PotterThe LA Public LibraryThe Last BookstoreBook Soup
– Upcoming Jaunts –November 14, 2018 Chris would like to visit BookClub Bookstore & More to see Kristin Tsetsi in conversation with Benjamin Thomas. Her book is The Age of the Child.November 15, 2018 Chris and Emily will go on a joint jaunt to Bank Square Books in Mystic, CT to see Jean P. Moore (Tilda’s Promise) in conversation with Cheryl Suchors (48 Peaks). November 29, 2018 at Guilford Library, Emily will go see Andre Dubus III discuss his new novel Gone So Long.
– Readalong #9 –Born A Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood – Trevor NoahGoodreads discussion page is HERE
– Holiday Gift Ideas –· Owl Eyeglasses Holder from Uncommon Goods· Alibabette Editions journals· Utilizing VistaPrint, Zazzle or Shutterfly, make a calendar out of favorite book covers and author photos· Unearth Women Magazine – The 1st Feminist Travel Magazine· Buy someone an E-Reader! · Nice set of markers – Emily has this set from Pentel· Mastering the Art of Self-Expression a creative journaling workbook by Laura Thoma· Shuly Cawood has a new inspirational gift book: 52 Things I wish I could have Told Myself when I was 17· Purchase a complete set of a favorite authors books· Purchase a book for someone that is in a foreign language· Literary Candles· Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle
– Also Mentioned – Also by Lauren Groff: Arcadia and Fates & Furies Alison Law – Literary AtlantaAlso by Stephen Markley: Publish This Book: The Unbelievable True Story of How I Wrote, Sold and Published This Very Book and Tales of Iceland The Library Book – Susan OrleanAlso by Andre Dubus III: Townie, and House of Sand and Fog, and Dirty LoveCarnegie’s Maid – Melodie BenjaminScribe of Siena – Melodie WinawerRussell – Ink and Paper BlogKinokuniya BookstoreThe Going and Goodbye: A Memoir – Shuly Xochitl CawoodLouise Penny | |||
| 27 Nov 2018 | Episode 64 - Our First Book Launch with Shuly Xochitl Cawood! | 01:11:40 | |
Episode Sixty Four Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak
EF = Emily Fine
Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle! AND at Bookclub Bookstore & More.
If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions.
Join our Goodreads Group!
Please subscribe to our email newsletter here.
– Readalong #9 –
Hum If You Don’t Know the Words – Bianca Marais
Have comments to us by December 6, 2018
– Currently Reading –
Becoming – Michelle Obama (CW)(audio)
His Favorites – Kate Walbert (EF)
The Stan – Kevin Knodell, David Axe, Blue Delliquanti (CW)
The Grain Bowl – Nik Williamson (EF)
America: The Cookbook – Gabrielle Langholtz (EF)
– Just Read –
Becoming – Michelle Obama (EF)
Eat, Pray, Love – Elizabeth Gilbert (CW)
Lift and Separate - Marilyn Simon Rothstein (EF)
Starting From Scratch – Rita Mae Brown (CW)
The Proposal – Jasmine Guillory (EF)
The Vampires Heart (A Paranormal Lesbian Romance) – C.M. Blackwood (CW)
Sea Prayer – Khaled Hosseini, Dan Williams (EF)
The Real Lolita: The Kidnapping of Sally Horner and the Novel that Scandalized the World – Sarah Weinman (CW)
– Biblio Adventures –
Sadly, the weather foiled our plans on November 15, 2018. Due to a snowstorm, we were unable to make it to Bank Square Books in Mystic, CT to see Jean P. Moore (Tilda’s Promise) in conversation with Cheryl Suchors (48 Peaks).
Chris and Emily went on a joint jaunt to see the movie Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Chris met up with Our Mystery Man, John Valeri, at Wesleyan RJ Julia in Middletown, CT.
Emily went to Northshire Bookstore in Manchester, VT for small business Saturday.
Chris attended the Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair and also had a chance to walk through the Boston Central Public Library in Copley Square.
– Upcoming Jaunts –
November 27, 2018 Emily would like to visit RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT to see Virginia Sole-Smith discuss her book The Eating Instinct: Food Culture, Body Image and Guilt in America.
December 9, 2018 Chris and Emily will head on a joint jaunt to Concord, New Hampshire to see Louise Penny discuss her new book Kingdom of the Blind. The event is sponsored by the Capital Center for the Arts and Gibson’s Bookstore.
– Upcoming Reads –
Kingdom of the Blind – Louise Penny (CW)
Don Quixote – Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra (CW)
Middlemarch – George Eliot (CW)
Hum If You Don’t Know the Words – Bianca Marais (EF)
The Perfect Mother – Aimee Molloy (EF)
Conversations with Friends – Sally Rooney (EF)
Heads of the Colored People – Nafissa Thompson-Spires (EF)
The Patch – John McPhee (EF)
– Book Launch –
We had a chance to chat with Shuly Xochitl Cawood about her new book, 52 Things I wish I Could Have Told Myself When I Was 17, which is now available in Paperback and Kindle. You can order it HERE.
Shuly’s other book is The Going and Goodbye: A Memoir.
You can learn more about her at https://www.shulycawood.com/.
– Also Mentioned –
Ohio – Stephen Markley
Also by Marilyn Simon Rothstein: Husbands and Other Sharp Objects
Also by Jasmine Guillory: The Wedding Date
Roxane Gay
Also by Khaled Hosseini: The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns
Lolita – Vladimir Nabokov
My Absolute Darling – Gabriel Tallent
A Little Life – Hanya Yanagihara
Russell at Ink and Paper Blog
Vera (Mrs. Vladimir Nabokov) – Susan Smith
Also by Lee Israel: Can You Ever Forgive Me?: Memoirs of a Literary Forger
The Overstory – Richard Powers
Kimberly McCreight
Bookclub Bookstore & More
Also by John McPhee: Oranges
George Saunders
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| 11 Dec 2018 | Episode 65 - Bianca Marais author of Hum If You Don't Know the Words | 01:06:00 | |
Episode Sixty Five Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! – Currently Reading – – Just Read – – Biblio Adventures – Emily went to the Guilford Library to see Andre Dubus III discuss his new novel, Gone So Long. Chris went to the Guilford Library to learn more about the return of black bears in Connecticut. – Upcoming Jaunts – Emily is heading on a big trip to OR, CA and CO. Hopefully there will be some literary adventuring along the way. – Upcoming Reads – – Readalong #9 – Bianca is happy to join your book club discussion. Check out her website HERE. If You Want to Make God Laugh – Bianca’s next book will be available July 16, 2019 – Also Mentioned – | |||
| 25 Dec 2018 | Episode 66 - The World Premiere of the Radio Play: Yours In Words | 02:04:48 | |
Episode Sixty Six Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! – On This Episode – You can contact Laura Thoma by visiting her website HERE. – Also Mentioned – The Creative Entrepreneur: A DIY Visual Guidebook for Making Business Ideas Real – Lisa Sonora Beam The Playwright’s Guidebook – Stuart Spencer Blackstone Public Library – Branford, CT Blackstone Public Library – Chicago, IL MasterClass series The Artist’s Way – Julia Cameron | |||
| 08 Jan 2019 | Episode 67 - We Would Love To Have YOU for Dinner! | 01:05:20 | |
Episode Sixty Seven Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! – Currently Reading – – Biblio Adventures – Emily went on a big adventure that included stops at: We watched some shows: – Upcoming Jaunts – Emily is heading to NYC to see the play Choir Boy written by Terrell Alvin Mccrary January 19, 2019 at RJ Julia in Madison – Dani Shapiro with her new book Inheritance: A Memoir of Genealogy, Paternity, and Love January 28, 2019 – Michael Chabon at Yale University – Upcoming Reads – | |||
| 22 Jan 2019 | Episode 68 - The Widows by Jess Montgomery, Noah Webster House, True Grit and More! | 01:14:30 | |
Episode Sixty Eight Show Notes
CW = Chris Wolak EF = Emily Fine
Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle! AND at Bookclub Bookstore & More.
If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer todonate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions.
Join our Goodreads Group! Please subscribe to our email newsletter here.
– 10th Readalong –
True Grit – Charles Portis
Send in questions or comments by March 28, 2019 – we will discuss on April 2nd episode.
– Currently Reading –
Meditations – Marcus Aurelius (CW)
The Eating Instinct: Food Culture, Body Image and Guilt in America – Virginia Sole-Smith (EF)
The New York Times Best of the Week Series: Monday Crosswords: 50 Easy Puzzles – edited by Will Shortz (EF)
Dot Journaling: A Practical Guide: How to Start and Keep the Planner, To-Do List, and Diary That’ll Actually Help You Get Your Life Together – Rachel Wilkerson Miller (CW)
Die Drie !!! Vorsicht, Strandhaie! – Maja von Vogel – (CW)
– Just Read –
The Lost Man – Jane Harper (CW) (release date 2/5/19)
Clock Dance – Anne Tyler (EF)
Girls on the Line – Aimie K. Runyon (CW)(audio)
– Biblio Adventures –
Chris and Emily went on a joint jaunt to the Noah Webster House in West Hartford and then worked at Noah Webster Library.
This American Life – Episode 664 Room of Requirement is all about libraries – give it a listen!
Emily went to NYC and saw the play Choir Boy written by Terrell Alvin McCraney
– Upcoming Jaunts –
January 19, 2019 at RJ Julia in Madison – Dani Shapiro with her new book Inheritance: A Memoir of Genealogy, Paternity, and Love
January 28, 2019 – Michael Chabon at Yale University
Chris is heading to Chicago and will visit the Newberry Library
– Upcoming Reads –
An American Quilt: Unfolding a Story of Family and Slavery – Rachel May (CW)
Our Prince of Scribes: Writers Remember Pat Conroy – edited by Nicole A. Seitz, Jonathan Haupt
– Author Interview –
Jess Montgomery author of The Widows (Kinship #1)
Authors that have inspired Jess: Sue Grafton, Tony Hillerman, Daniel Woodrell (Winter’s Bone), Lori Roy (Let Me Die in His Footsteps, The Bent Road) The next book from Jess Montgomery: The Hallows (Kinship #2)
You can look for events and the release date of The Hallows at https://jessmontgomeryauthor.com/
– Also Mentioned –
Also by Jane Harper: The Dry and Force of Nature
Stephen Covey
Breakwater Books
Blackwing Pencils
Flatiron Books
Breathing Lessons – Anne Tyler
Make Trouble – Cecile Richards
Roxane Gay
Bastard Out of Carolina – Dorothy Allison
Why Read Moby-Dick? – Nathaniel Philbrick
In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex - Nathaniel Philbrick
Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe –Fannie Flagg
Lillian Boxfish Takes a Walk – Kathleen Rooney
Martin Seay
Alison Law – Literary Atlanta Podcast
Mixbook Photo Co.
Minotaur Press | |||
| 05 Feb 2019 | Episode 69 - A Joint Jaunt to Yale University aka "Searching for Rory Gilmore" | 01:10:14 | |
Episode Sixty Nine Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! Please subscribe to our email newsletter here. – 10th Readalong – True Grit – Charles Portis – Just Read – An American Quilt: Unfolding a Story of Family and Slavery – Rachel May (CW) I Might Regret This: Essays, Drawings, Vulnerabilities, and Other Stuff – Abi Jacobson (EF) Inheritance: A Memoir of Genealogy, Paternity, and Love – Dani Shapiro (EF) The River – Peter Heller (CW)(EF) (release date 3/5/19) Read Chris’s review of the book on her blog French Exit – Patrick Dewitt (EF) A Student of History – Nina Revoyr (CW) (release date 3/5/19) The Best American Short Stories 2018 – edited by Roxane Gay (EF) – Currently Reading – How to Write an Autobiographical Novel: Essays – Alexander Chee (CW) Salt Fat Acid Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking – Samin Nosrat (EF) 11/22/63 – Stephen King (EF)(audio) – Biblio Adventures – Chris visited the Newberry Library while she was visiting Chicago January 19, 2019 at RJ Julia in Madison – Dani Shapiro with her new book Inheritance: A Memoir of Genealogy, Paternity, and Love January 28, 2019 – Michael Chabon at Yale University
Chris stayed close to home and cleaned up her Goodreads TBR list – Upcoming Jaunts – Chris is going to see Roxane Gay at Yale University on 2/5/19 On February 13, 2019 at RJ Julia Madison, Emily is going to see Linda Cohen Loigman, author of The Wartime Sisters, and Jane Healey, author of The Saturday Evening Girls Club, moderated by Robin Kall Chris and Emily are heading to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston – Upcoming Reads – Golden Child – Claire Adam (EF) Wild Bill: The True Story of the American Frontier’s First Gunfighter – Tom Clavin (CW) Jonah’s Gourd Vine – Zora Neale Hurston (CW) Willa Cather Selected Stories – Willa Cather (CW) Willa Cather Short Story Project on WildmooBooks – Also Mentioned – Just the Right Book podcast with Dani Shapiro Celine – Peter Heller Deliverance – James Dickey Heart of Darkness – Joseph Conrad Hell or High Water: Surviving Tibet’s Tsangpo River – Peter Heller Sisters Brothers – Patrick Dewitt The Odyssey – Homer, translated by Emily Wilson Delicious! – Ruth Reichl Elevation – Stephen King Amazing Adventures of Cavalier & Clay – Michael Chabon Dodge City: Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, and the Wickedest Town in the American West – Tom Clavin Their Eyes Were Watching God – Zora Neale Hurston Poet Mary Oliver passed away Mornings at Blackwater For years, every morning, I drank What I want to say is So come to the pond, And live | |||
| 19 Feb 2019 | Episode 70 - Author Spotlight with Virginia Sole-Smith and A Giveaway! | 01:38:21 | |
Episode Seventy Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! Please subscribe to our email newsletter here. – 70th Episode Giveaway – The Eating Instinct: Food Culture, Body Image, and Guilt in America – Virginia Sole-Smith Democracy in Chains: The Deep History of the Radical Right’s Stealth Plan for America – Nancy Maclean The Flight Attendant – Chris Bohjalian Reconstructing Amelia – Kimberly McCreight – 10th Readalong – True Grit – Charles Portis – Currently Reading – The Flatshare – Beth O’Leary (EF) (release date 5/28/19) Think and Grow Rich – Napoleon Hill (CW) – Just Read – Save Me the Plums: My Gourmet Memoir – Ruth Reichl (EF) (release date 4/2/19) Golden Child – Claire Adam (EF) More Than Words – Jill Santopolo (EF)
Chris saw Roxane Gay at Yale University in conversation with Claudine Rankin on 2/5/19 To read Roxane’s essay about her weight loss surgery click HERE Emily watched some book to TV/Movie adaptations: The Sisters Brothers based on the book of the same title by Patrick dewitt The Durrells in Corfu based on the book My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell Chris is watching The Man in the High Castle based on the book of the same name by Philip K. Dick – Upcoming Jaunts – Chris will head to RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT on 2/25/19 to see Pam Huston discuss her new book Deep Creek Emily is heading to Infinity Hall in Hartford on 2/23/19 to see a SpeakUp Storytelling event Chris and Emily are heading to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston on 2/21/19 And one more joint jaunt on 3/5/19 to see a panel including Roxane Gay discussing Writing Trauma at Yale University – Upcoming Reads – An Untamed State – Roxane Gay (CW) Monsoon Mansion: A Memoir – Cinelle Barnes (EF) The Crate: A Story of War, A Murder, And Justice – Deborah Vadas Levison (EF) Can You Ever Forgive Me?: Memoirs of a Literary Forger – Lee Israel (CW) No Traveller Returns – Louis L’Amour, Beau L’Amour (CW) Willa Cather Selected Stories: Flavia and Her Artists – Willa Cather (CW) Willa Cather Short Story Project on WildmooBooks – Author Spotlight – – Also Mentioned – Ryan’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/my.books.my.shelf/ Bridget Jones Diary – Helen Fielding Their Eyes Were Watching God – Zora Neale Hurston Tender at the Bone: Growing Up at the Table – Ruth Reichl Dodge City: Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, and the Wickedest Town in the American West – Tom Clavin The Light We Lost – Jill Santopolo Citizen: An American Lyric – Claudine Rankin Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body – Roxane Gay Cowboys Are My Weakness: Stories – Pam Houston | |||
| 05 Mar 2019 | Episode 71 - Min Jin Lee, JFK Presidential Library, and Riff Raff Bookstore | 01:01:19 | |
Episode Seventy One Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! – 10th Readalong – – Currently Reading – – Just Read – – Biblio Adventures – Chris and Emily went on a joint jaunt to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston On the way home we stopped at Riff Raff Bookstore in Providence, RI. We both bought books: Go, Went, Gone by Jenny Erpenbeck (CW) and Tell Me How It Ends: An Essay in 40 Questions by Valeria Luiselli (EF) Emily went to Infinity Hall on Hartford on 2/23/19 to see a SpeakUp Storytelling event – Upcoming Jaunts – Emily will go to Long Wharf Theater to see a play based on the book Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed On 3/7/19 Chris is heading to the Guilford Library for an historical event, The Witness Stones Project and Harriet Beecher Stowe Center present: Guilford, Slavery, and the West Indian Trade – Upcoming Reads – – Also Mentioned – | |||
| 19 Mar 2019 | Episode 72 - Our Mystery Man Returns with Book Recommendations Galore! | 01:02:38 | |
Chris and Emily catch up with Our Mystery Man - John Valeri - be ready, your TBR lists are going to get very big! | |||
| 02 Apr 2019 | Episode 73 - True Grit Readalong! | 01:16:06 | |
Episode Seventy Three Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! – Currently Reading – – Just Read – – Biblio Adventures – Emily went to Long Wharf Theater to see a play based on the book Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed Chris went to Playhouse on Park to see The Revolutionists by playwright Lauren Gunderson Chris visited Stepping Stones, the home of Bill and Lois Wilson, co-founders of Alcoholics Anonymous Chris discovered a new bookstore in New Haven, CT: Grey Matter Books Chris and Emily went to see the Tolkien: Maker of Middle-earth exhibit at the Morgan Library & Museum in New York City – Upcoming Jaunts – April 26-27, 2019 – The Newburyport Literary Festival May 3-4 , 2019 – Booktopia at Northshire Bookstore April 6th – Dewey’s 24 Hour Readathon – 10th Readalong – – Upcoming Readalong – – Also Mentioned – | |||
| 16 Apr 2019 | Episode 74 - Joint Jaunt to see Kingsolver and Powers, and Emily Eats Her Way Through Philly | 01:01:09 | |
Episode Seventy Four Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! – Currently Reading – – Just Read – – Biblio Adventures – Chris watched A Discovery of Witches based on the All Souls Trilogy by Deborah Harkness Emily took a trip to Philadelphia and visited the University of Pennsylvania Bookstore and Penn BookCenter and also took a picture of the Curtis Publishing Company building. She also had dinner at Zahav and flipped through a copy of Michael Solomonov’s new cookbook, Zahav: A World of Israeli Cooking. Click HERE to read the article about Solomonov in the NY Times. – Upcoming Jaunts – 4/18/2019 – Bank Square Books and the Lagrua Center are co-hosting Mary Norris to discuss her book Greek to Me: Adventures of the Comma Queen. 4/23/2019 – Patricia Marx and Roz Chast will be visiting RJ Julia Booksellers to discuss their book Why Don’t You Write My Eulogy Now So I Can Correct It?: A Mother’s Suggestions. Click HERE to read the article about them in the NY Times. 4/24/2019 – Delia Owens will be visiting RJ Julia Booksellers to discuss her book Where the Crawdads Sing. Note: The event is sold out. 4/24/2019 – Dr. Carla Hayden in conversation with Tracy K Smith at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. Tracy K. Smith is the poet Laureate of the United States and has a wonderful podcast, The Slowdown, where she reads a poem each day. 5/30-6/1/2019 – 64th Annual Willa Cather Spring Conference 6/17-6/21/2019 – The 17th Annual Willa Cather Seminar – Upcoming Reads – – Also Mentioned – | |||
| 30 Apr 2019 | Episode 75 - Biblio Adventure Extravaganza: Roz Chast, Patricia Marx, Mary Norris, Delia Owens, and more! | 01:16:24 | |
Episode Seventy Five Show Notes Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle! AND at Bookclub Bookstore & More. If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! – Upcoming Readalongs – – Currently Reading – – Biblio Adventures – Emily visited Tennessee and North Carolina and caught up with author, Shuly Cawood. She has appeared on two episodes of the podcast: Chris and Emily had a joint jaunt to hear Delia Owens discuss her book, Where the Crawdads Sing, sponsored by RJ Julia Booksellers but located at The Country School, in Madison, CT. Books recommended by Delia Owens: – Upcoming Jaunts – Emily will be attending the Newburyport Literary Festival on April 26-27, 2019 Booktopia 2019 at Northshire Bookstore in Manchester, VT is taking place May 3-4, 2019 Chris and Emily will be attending Book Expo America May 29-31, 2019 – Upcoming Reads – – Also Mentioned – | |||
| 14 May 2019 | Episode 76 - Dr. Carla Hayden, Tracy K. Smith, Kevin Young at the Schomburg Center | 00:57:09 | |
Episode Seventy Six Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! – Currently Reading – – Just Read – Chris watched The Try Guys Test Old Age Body Simulators – Upcoming Jaunts – Chris will be going to the The Flock Theater to see their adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. Chris is heading to an event for The White Mountain: Rediscovering Mount Washington’s Hidden Culture by Dan Szczeny. Check out his website for upcoming events. Crime Conn is at Ferguson Library on Saturday, May 18, 2019 Chris and Emily will be attending Book Expo America May 29-31, 2019 – Upcoming Reads – – Also Mentioned – | |||
| 28 May 2019 | Episode 77 - Minnesota, Land of the 10,000 Little Free Libraries! | 00:56:24 | |
Episode Seventy Seven Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! Sapphira and the Slave Girl by Willa Cather (record date 6/27/19) – Currently Reading – – Just Read – Chris went to the The Flock Theater to see their adaptation of Pride and Prejudice at the Shaw Mansion Chris did a camera flip video for Shawn the Book Maniac’s BookTube Channel – check it out HERE Emily watched the Brene Brown special on Netflix – Upcoming Jaunts – Emily will be going to RJ Julia’s Bookseller in Madison, CT to see Jean P. Moore in conversation with Sande Boritz Berger discuss their books Tilda’s Promise and Split-Level There is a performance of Little Women at The Cherry Lane Theatre in NYC, May 15-June 29, 2019 – Upcoming Reads – – Also Mentioned – | |||
| 11 Jun 2019 | Episode 78 - Book Expo 2019 Recap! | 00:48:28 | |
Episode Seventy Eight Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate Join our Goodreads Group! – Upcoming Readalong – – Currently Reading – – Biblio Adventures – – Upcoming Jaunts – – Upcoming Reads – – Also Mentioned – | |||
| 25 Jun 2019 | Episode 79 - Our Book Expo 2019 Interviews! | 00:57:50 | |
Episode Seventy Nine Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! We have a BookTube Channel – please check it out here, and be sure to subscribe! Tamara – Book Blogger of Traveling With T Robert – BookTuber at barter hordes Elissa Englund Sweet – Event and Marketing Director at Bank Square Books (Mystic, CT) and Savoy Bookshop & Café (Westerly, RI)
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| 09 Jul 2019 | Episode 80 - Sapphira and the Slave Girl Readalong with Jenny Colvin | 00:53:32 | |
Episode Eighty Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. Join our Goodreads Group! – 80th Episode Giveaway – Cheryl and Jean will be our guests on Episode 81. – Readalong with Jenny Colvin of Reading Envy – Be sure to check out Episode 157 of the Reading Envy podcast for our discussion of Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell. – Also Mentioned – James Patterson | |||
| 23 Jul 2019 | Episode 81 - We're Back! Author Spotlight with Cheryl Suchors and Jean P. Moore | 01:11:14 | |
Episode Eighty One Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! We have a BookTube Channel – please check it out here, and be sure to subscribe! – Currently Reading – – Biblio Adventures – Emily did a lot of traveling including: Emily attended a joint event with RJ Julia Booksellers and Meigs Nature Center featuring Bren Smith and his book Eat Like a Fish: My Adventures as a Fisherman Turned Restorative Ocean Farmer – Upcoming Jaunts – – Upcoming Reads – – Author Spotlight – | |||
| 06 Aug 2019 | Episode 82 - Author Spotlight with Fiona Davis | 01:08:14 | |
Episode Eighty Two Show Notes Join our Goodreads Group! – Currently Reading – – Just Read – – Biblio Adventures – Emily made a stop at Traveler Restaurant in Union, Ct 99% Invisible Episode #354 Weeding is Fundamental Emily went to Wesleyan RJ Julia to see Bianca Marais discuss her new book If You Want to Make God Laugh Chris hosted the Willa Cather Bookclub to discuss Sapphira and the Slave Girl. Sadly, Bookclub Bookstore & More has closed its doors, but upcoming quarterly meetings will be at the Wood Memorial Library in South Windsor, CT. South Windsor is the birthplace of Jonathan Edwards, a theologian who is famous for the sermon Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God. Check back, the next meeting of the bookclub will be in October, discussing the The Professors House. Chris took her friend, Janet, to the New York Public Library to see the Walt Whitman exhibit. She also browse Kinokuniya Books. They also did a whirlwind tour of Connecticut bookstores including: Yale Bookstore, Grey Matter Books, Sterling Memorial Library, Beinecke Library, RJ Julia Booksellers, and The Book Barn. Emily watched The Inventor documentary about Theranos Emily went to Savoy Bookshop & Cafe to hear Nancy Burns-Fusaro of Westerly Sun discuss Three Women with author Lisa Taddeo. – Upcoming Jaunts – – Upcoming Reads – | |||
| 20 Aug 2019 | Episode 83 - Chris finishes Middlemarch and Author Spotlight with Linda Kay Klein | 01:10:44 | |
Episode Eighty Three Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! – Toni Morrison – – Currently Reading – – Upcoming Jaunts – – Upcoming Reads – – Author Spotlight – | |||
| 03 Sep 2019 | Episode 84 - Announcing our 11th Readalong! | 01:07:08 | |
Episode Eighty Four Show Notes If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! We have a BookTube Channel – please check it out here, and be sure to subscribe! – 11th Readalong – – Currently Reading – – Just Read – – Biblio Adventures – Chris visited the Wood Memorial Library in South Windsor, CT. This is the new meeting place for the Willa Cather Book Club; they will be meeting at 2:00 on October 17th discussing The Professor’s House. Chris had family in town and went to: Mystic Seaport Museum, Savoy Bookstore and Cafe, New York Public Library. Chris got a new Kaweco Classic Sport fountain pen. Emily hopes to visit Once Upon a Thyme Bookshop in Beavercreek, Ohio. – Upcoming Reads – – Also Mentioned – | |||
| 17 Sep 2019 | Episode 85 - Author Spotlight with Mike Branch | 01:09:24 | |
Chris and Emily talk all things books including their delightful joint jaunt to hear Madeline Miller discuss her book Circe. They also have a chat with writer and humorist Mike Branch. | |||
| 01 Oct 2019 | Episode 86 - Book Recommendations Aplenty with Ann Kingman, John Valeri, and Elissa Sweet | 01:16:02 | |
Episode Eighty Six Show Notes Join our Goodreads Group! We have a BookTube Channel – please check it out here, and be sure to subscribe! – 11th Readalong – – Elissa Sweet – Check upcoming dates for the Bank Square Books Romance Book Club HERE Upcoming Event: KissCon New England October 26, 2019 at 2:00 – Mohegan Sun – John Valeri – – Ann Kingman – – Chris Wolak – – Emily Fine – | |||
| 15 Oct 2019 | Episode 87 - Chris Discovers a Fantastic Debut Mystery Author: Heather Harper Ellett | 00:54:54 | |
Episode Eighty Seven Show Notes – 11th Readalong – – Just Read – – Biblio Adventures – | |||
| 29 Oct 2019 | Episode 88 - Sally Field the AUTHOR | 01:18:05 | |
Episode Eighty Eight Show Notes Join our Goodreads Group! We have a BookTube Channel – please check it out here, and be sure to subscribe! – 11th Readalong – – Currently Reading – Chris watched the movie Late Night Emily watched the first part of Big Little Lies based on the novel by Liane Moriarty Emily went on a jaunt to NYC and saw the Jefferson Market Library and saw the play Sunday by Jack Thorne – Upcoming Reads – | |||
| 12 Nov 2019 | Episode 89 - Min Jin Lee author of Free Food for Millionaires | 00:59:27 | |
Chris and Emily discuss Free Food for Millionaires with author Min Jin Lee. | |||
| 26 Nov 2019 | Episode 90 - Our 2019 Holiday Gift Ideas! | 01:21:21 | |
Episode Ninety Show Notes Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle! We are an affiliate of Bank Square Books and Savoy Bookstore & Café. Please purchase books from them and support us at the same time. Click HERE to start shopping. If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! We have a BookTube Channel – please check it out here, and be sure to subscribe! – 90th Episode Giveaway – enter to win by December 1, 2019 – Currently Reading – – Just Read – – Biblio Adventures – Chris went to see Richard J. King at Bank Square Books to hear him discuss his new book Ahab’s Rolling Sea: A Natural History of “Moby-Dick” . Emily went to Breakwater Books to hear Juliet Grames discuss her book The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna. | |||
| 10 Dec 2019 | Episode 91 - Announcing our 12th Readalong! | 01:09:37 | |
Episode Ninety One Show Notes Join our Goodreads Group! We have a BookTube Channel – please check it out here, and be sure to subscribe! Please subscribe to our email newsletter here. – 12th Readalong – – Just Read – The Great Believers – Rebecca Makkai (EF) – Biblio Adventures – – Upcoming Jaunts – – Upcoming Reads – – Also Mentioned – | |||
| 24 Dec 2019 | Episode 92 - Author Spotlight with Heather Harper Ellett | 01:10:08 | |
Episode Ninety Two Show Notes – 12th Readalong – Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead – Olga Tokarczuk, Antonia Lloyd-Jones (Translator) – Currently Reading –Nothing to See Here – Kevin Wilson (EF) – Just Read – – Biblio Adventures –Emily watched The Great Santini based on the book by Pat Conroy – Upcoming Jaunts –Chris and Emily both hope to see the new Little Women movie directed by Greta Gerwig – Upcoming Reads –The Hollows (Kinship #2) – Jess Montgomery (CW) release date January 14, 2020In West Mills – De’Shawn Charles Winslow (EF) – Author Spotlight –We got a chance to speak with Heather Harper Ellett author of Ain’t Nobody Nobody | |||
| 07 Jan 2020 | Episode 93 - Our Top Reads of 2019 and Author Spotlight with Jess Montgomery | 01:31:28 | |
Episode Ninety Three Show Notes CW = Chris Wolak – 12th Readalong – Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead – Olga Tokarczuk, Antonia Lloyd-Jones (Translator) – Currently Reading –The Hollows (Kinship #2) – Jess Montgomery (CW) release date January 14, 2020The Lady’s Guide to Celestial Mechanics: Feminine Pursuits – Olivia Waite (CW) Epic Solitude: A Story of Survival and a Quest for Meaning in the Far North – Katherine Keith (CW) – Just Read –A Death in the Dessert – Willa Cather (CW) – Biblio Adventures –Chris and Emily went on a joint jaunt to see the new Little Women movie directed by Greta Gerwig – Upcoming Jaunts –Chris is planning to start the Dracula mini-series on Netflix – Chris and Emily Top Reads of 2019 –Tell Me How It Ends: An Essay in 40 Questions – Valeria Luiselli (EF) Why Religion?: A Personal Story – Elaine Pagels (CW) audio – Author Spotlight –Jess Montgomery author of The Hollows (Kinship #2) – Also Mentioned –Tipping the Velvet – Sarah Waters Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle! We are an affiliate of Bank Square Books and Savoy Bookstore & Café. Please purchase books from them and support us at the same time. Click HERE to start shopping. If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! We have a BookTube Channel – please check it out here, and be sure to subscribe! | |||
| 21 Jan 2020 | Episode 94 - Sometimes You Can Biblio Adventure from the Couch! | 00:55:37 | |
Episode Ninety Four Show Notes CW = Chris Wolak – Just Read –Shadows on the Rock – Willa Cather (CW) – Biblio Adventures –Emily started the Modern Love TV series on Amazon Prime based on Modern Love essays from the NY Times, and binged the entire first season of Virgin River on Netflix based on the book series by Robyn Carr – Upcoming Jaunts –January 21 ,2020– Matthew Goodman at the JCC of New Haven discussing his book The City Game: Triumph, Scandal, and a Legendary Basketball Team – Upcoming Reads –Uncle Tom’s Cabin – Harriet Beecher Stowe (CW) – 12th Readalong – Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead – Olga Tokarczuk, Antonia Lloyd-Jones (Translator) – Also Mentioned –Prozac Nation: Young and Depressed in America – Elizabeth Wurtzel Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle! If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! We have a BookTube Channel – please check it out here, and be sure to subscribe! Please subscribe to our email newsletter here. | |||
| 04 Feb 2020 | Episode 95 - Author Spotlight with Matthew Goodman | 01:37:38 | |
Episode Ninety Five Show Notes CW = Chris Wolak – Just Read –Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead – Olga Tokarczuk, Antonia Lloyd-Jones (Translator) (CW) – Biblio Adventures –Chris and Emily went on two jaunts: Chris caught up with Our Mystery Man, John Valeri, at the Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore where she bought two books by Carmen Maria Machado: Her Body and Other Parties: Stories and In the Dream House. Emily went on a quick trip to Philadelphia where she visited: Shakespeare & Co, The Rosenbach, Penn Bookstore, Penn Book Center, The Last Word Bookshop Chris had a couch biblio adventure with a friend watching the Bella Lugosi version of Dracula and also went to bid adieu to our buddy Elissa Sweet at Bank Square Books in Mystic, CT. – Upcoming Jaunts –February 18, 2020 – Chris and Emily are going on a joint jaunt to Northshire Bookstore in Manchester to celebrate the release of Simone St. James new book The Sun Down Motel. – Upcoming Reads –Mayo Clinic on Digestive Health: How to Prevent and Treat Common Stomach and Gut Problems – Dr. Sahil Khanna, M.B.B.S. (CW) – Author Spotlight –Matthew Goodman author of: – 12th Readalong – Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead – Olga Tokarczuk, Antonia Lloyd-Jones (Translator) – Also Mentioned – The River – Peter Heller If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! | |||
| 18 Feb 2020 | Episode 96 - Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead Readalong and Booktopia 2020 | 01:33:32 | |
Episode Ninety Six Show Notes KEY: CW = Chris Wolak and EF = Emily Fine – Just Read –Talking to Strangers: What We Should Know about the People We Don’t Know – Malcolm Gladwell (EF) (audio) – Biblio Adventures –We went on a joint jaunt to see the Broadway production of My Name is Lucy Barton based on the book by Elizabeth Strout. – Upcoming Jaunts –May 1-2 – Booktopia 2020 at Northshire Bookstore in Manchester, VT – Conversation with Dafydd Wood from Northshire Bookstore –Here is the newsletter that shares everything you need to know about Booktopia 2020. Facebook Fans of Booktopia page Dafydd also mentions: – Also Mentioned –Bryan at Still an Unfinished Person Blog Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle! If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! We have a BookTube Channel – please check it out here, and be sure to subscribe! | |||
| 03 Mar 2020 | Episode 97 - Ashley Olson from the Natl Willa Cather Foundation | 01:25:13 | |
– Lucky 13th Readalong – – Currently Reading –The Odyssey – Homer (translated by Emily Wilson) (CW) – Just Read –A Good Marriage: A Novel – Kimberly McCreight (EF) release date May 5, 2020My Unexpected Spy: From the CIA to the FBI, My Secret Life Taking Down Some of the World’s Most Notorious Terrorists – Tracy Walder, Jessica Anya Blau (CW) Old Mrs. Harris – Willa Cather – Biblio Adventures –Emily visited Broadside Bookshop in Northampton, MA Chris and Emily went on a joint jaunt to Northshire Bookstore in Manchester to celebrate the release of Simone St James’s new book The Sun Down Motel where she was in conversation with Jennifer McMahon. They also did some Shirley Jackson fangirling in North Bennington on the way, including the John G. McCullough Free Library. Emily had a couch Biblio Adventure watching Oprah’s Vision 2020 Tour with Michelle Obama Chris visited the Jefferson Market Library and the Elmer Holmes Bobst Library in New York City. – Upcoming Jaunts –March 7 – Nationwide anniversary celebrations of the Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch On May 9, 2020 we will be co-hosting Kimberly McCreight with BOOK CLUB on the Go at Wood Memorial Library in South Windsor, CT. You can preorder the book here. – Upcoming Reads –A Small Thing to Want – Shuly X. Cawood (EF) release date May 3, 2020Girl, Woman, Other – Bernadine Evaristo (EF) – Conversation with Ashley Olson from the National Willa Cather Center – Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle! We are an affiliate of Bank Square Books and Savoy Bookstore & Café. Please purchase books from them and support us at the same time. Click HERE to start shopping. If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! We have a BookTube Channel – please check it out here, and be sure to subscribe! | |||
| 17 Mar 2020 | Episode 98 - Emily Visits Arizona and Chris Takes a Journey Through the Literature of Wales | 01:10:42 | |
Episode Ninety Eight Show Notes – Lucky 13th Readalong discussion– – Currently Reading –One Moonlit Night – Caradog Prichard (translated by Niall Griffiths) (CW) – Just Read – – Upcoming Jaunts – It’s a great time to start a book series, read a book and watch the movie adaptation. Some examples: Tipping the Velvet mini-series Slumdog Millionaire based on the book Q & A by Vikas Swarup – Upcoming Reads – – Also Mentioned – Purchase Book Cougars Swag on Zazzle! We are an affiliate of Bank Square Books and Savoy Bookstore & Café. Please purchase books from them and support us at the same time. Click HERE to start shopping. If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. You can DONATE HERE. If you would prefer to donate directly to us, please email bookcougars@gmail.com for instructions. Join our Goodreads Group! We have a BookTube Channel – please check it out here, and be sure to subscribe! | |||
| 31 Mar 2020 | Episode 99 - You Can't Keep Us Apart! | 00:49:46 | |
Episode Ninety Nine Show Notes – Lucky 13th Readalong discussion– | |||
| 14 Apr 2020 | Episode 100 - Bookstore Owner Annie Philbrick and Author Shuly Cawood | 01:17:11 | |
100th Episode Giveaway | |||