The Librarian Is In (The New York Public Library)

Join us as we embark on our Summer Reading Challenge!

Frank and Gwen break down romance novel stereotypes with fellow NYPL librarian Anne Rouyer. The genre often gets dismissed as fluff, but romance can subvert the traditional confines of gender, power, class, and more. (Gay Regency, anyone?)

Anne's Recommendations

Social Intercourse by Greg Howard

The Wicked and the Wallflower by Sarah Maclean 

Unmasked by the Marquess and It Takes Two to Tumble by Cat Sebastian

My Oxford Year by Julia Whelan (for those who love Me Before You by Jojo Moyes)

Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging: Confessions of Georgia Nicolson by Louise Rennison

And for a non-book recommendation: 'Hiyori's Bed & Breakfast'

How on earth can you read when you have a newborn? Stephanie Anderson—a new mom and a professional book selector for NYPL and the Brooklyn Public Library—comes to talk about the shifting habits of a reader with a new baby. Plus: Frank channels Supernanny! Again.

Book Recommendations: 

Like a Mother: A Feminist Journey Through the Science and Culture of Pregnancy  by Angela Garbes

Cesearian Section: An American History of Risk, Technology and Consequence by Jaqueline H. Wolf

The board books:  Bunny Roo, I Love You by Melissa Marr and Global Babies 

Also mentioned:

The New York Times article on cute aggression—why you want to squish and eat that baby! 

In the Witch Elm by Tana French 

The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman

Happyland by J. Robert Lennon

The films Back to the Future and The Terminator

Angela Garbes' article, "The More I Learn About Breast Milk, the More Amazed I Am"

Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren, illustrated by Lauren Childs

Bull by David Elliott

Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey

Frank and Gwen headed to Philadelphia and brought home the sights, sounds, and book recommendations of the Public Library Association's 2018 conference. Plus, hard-hitting journalism: Is breakfast the most important meal of a librarian's day? 

We're heading back to the '70s this week! Shola Lynch (of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture) joins us to talk about film, art, collecting history, and what it's like to hug Bert from Sesame Street.

Happy New Episode Day! You know how we can tell things are slowly (so slowly!) returning to normal? New York construction! So much construction!

Frank and Rhonda come together for Rhonda's last episode and discuss what they read this week. And New York construction makes an appearance. Over and over and over! 

Our hosts discuss their free read book picks! Frank read We Spread by Iain Reid and Crystal read My Pinup by Hilton Als. 

Crystal and Frank discuss All Quiet on the Western Front as their first book club pick!

Dr. Shayne Figueroa joins Frank and Gwen to discuss books and food nostalgia, Amish soul food (it's a thing!), and how NYC's free school lunch program is attempting to lift an age-old stigma. Plus: Frank's secret childhood eating habits and another guessing-game stumper.​

Frank is feeling all the feelings about a book of experimental prose poetry, Gwen is charmed by a semi-autobiographical YA story, and everyone has "Let It Go" stuck in their heads now. You're welcome!

Join Rhonda and Frank as they discuss their non-book club reading picks this week!

Hello, listeners!  "The Librarian is In" is the New York Public Library's new podcast about books, culture, and what to read next. On this, the very first episode, your hosts Frank and Gwen talk about book shame, their reading origin stories, the glory of Jefferson Market, and why some young people are saying "swell" without irony.  

Our hosts discuss the book they read together, and Crystal says goodbye to the podcast!

Frank updates us on his progress in Anna Karenina and Crystal gives us a new book rec!

Have you ever truly grieved over the loss of someone in a book? Together with Eric Molinsky, host of the Imaginary Worlds podcast, Frank and Gwen dive into the psychology of readers' responses to character deaths. Don't worry, it's not as depressing as it sounds! Maybe!

Guest Star: Eric Molinsky

Eric's podcast, Imaginary Worlds, the "Imaginary Deaths" episode, the fanfiction episode, and the Madeline Miller episode

Some books with deaths we've mourned:

• Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
• Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
• The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
• The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
• The Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin (the Red Wedding is in the third book, A Storm of Swords)

More recommendations:

• "Dr. Who" -- the David Tennant season
• The Song of Achilles and Circe by Madeline Miller
• Sabrina the Teenage Witch (available in many formats at the Library) and Riverdale (always)

Gwen and Frank discover two very different alternate worlds that speak to our present times. Their seemingly mismatched books offer stellar writing and clever takes on fantasy, dystopias and cringe-worthy identity politics. Plus: Frank has some, um... words for the author of his book.

Book Recommendations

Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik

Adjustment Day by Chuck Palahniuk

To prequel or not to prequel? Frank and Gwen debate the new installment of the Hunger Games franchise and two very different books about life in two very different places.

Suggest Hot Topix(TM) or tell us what you think about summer reading! Email podcasts[at]nypl.org or call 507-NYPL-LIB.

We’re going weekly!  One week, Gwen and Frank will talk books, culture, and what to read next. On alternate weeks they’ll welcome a very special guest. Let us know what you think!  This week: mesmerizing short stories, our Margaret Atwood obsession, and creepy/awesome young adult fiction.

Frank and Rhonda discuss Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates.

Frank and Rhonda practice social distancing together (but separately!) to discuss the books they've read this week. We hope everyone is staying safe and healthy during this uncertain time. Settle in for a bit and listen to your favorite librarians discuss what they like to read (and listen to!) when they're stuck at home!

On the show this week: Gwen reads a book that makes her see the world a little differently and Frank gets so lost in his book that time disappears.

Frank and Crystal discuss the books they picked for the mash up of 'pick whatever book you want on a theme' book club episode!

Libraries and activism with Cory Eckert, one of the joint chiefs of Storytime Underground! We go in-depth on libraries as non-neutral spaces and how children's librarians stand up for social justice. Plus: recommendations for romance novels and two brand-new picture books.

Dr. Carla Hayden sits down with Gwen and Frank to discuss what it really means to lead the Library of Congress—which, by the way, isn't only FOR Congress. Plus: lessons she learned from storytime, how she organizes her home library, and the first time she ever saw herself reflected in a book.

Frank and Gwen revisit the recent Booker Prize winner, Lincoln in the Bardo, as Frank gets serious about the afterlife and our understanding of history. Then Gwen turns the studio in a sauna with a gay Regency romance packed with period details and subplots that add depth to the steamy novel.

Wilkommen! Join Frank and Rhonda this week for a little bit of musical theater and their personal book picks. Don't forget to get a copy of next week's Book Club pick - The Argonauts by Maggie Nelson!

What's the opposite of a book slump? We're calling it a flare, and Gwen is on one. She and Frank have a flurry of adult book recommendations, from dystopian novels to innovative science fiction. 

What we are reading now

The Female Persuasion by Meg Wolitzer

Red Clocks by Leni Zumas

Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi

Semiosis by Sue Burke

Neverworld Wake by Marisha Pessl

The Sparsholt Affair by Alan Hollinghurst

This week Crystal and Frank chat with AJ Muhammad, the Head Reference Librarian in the Jean Blackwell Hutson Research and Reference Division of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.  

Frank and Crystal discuss The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones. 

It's almost Election Day. Do you know where your voting rights are? Christopher Famighetti, professor at Jefferson Market University, joins Frank and Gwen for an in-depth convo about voting — and what libraries have to do with it. Plus: a different take on Tolstoy and the surreal films of Luis Buñuel.

This week, it's all in how you look at it. Feminism, space, time, language, aliens and a whole lot more.

Glory Edim, creator of the coolest book club on the Internet, joins Frank and Gwen to discuss book clubs and beyond! They talk about Well-Read Black Girl, empowered storytelling, the potentials and pitfalls of making book recommendations, Black writers in the diaspora and the canon... and focusing on the things that unite us all. Happy new year, friends! 

Frank didn't feel well this week, but he's figuring out to be happy anyway while Gwen dives into cozy Chanukah romance and Kwanzaa picture books. And did we mention Frank didn't feel well?

Gwen can barely contain herself this week when she and Frank are joined by Biz Ellis, one of the hosts of the One Bad Mother podcast, to talk kids and parents and books. And Biz's 6-year-old daughter makes a book recommendation!

Find show notes and more at nypl.org/podcast

It's our third annual Summer Reading Challenge! This year, Frank and Gwen picked America Is Not the Heart, a debut novel by Elaine Castillo, about language and love and revolution and family and the meaning of home—it's about everything, and it's incredible. 

Saraciea Fennell, founder of the Bronx Book Festival, joins Frank and Gwen to talk about bringing this event to the borough and the line-up for this weekend. Plus: how Saraciea found her way into the publishing world, zombies, Jane Austen, and a whole bunch of her favorite children's, YA, and fantasy reads.

Frank and Gwen keep it local this week, from a fashion show at Jefferson Market and Open Book Night with Mid-Manhattan's Elizabeth Waters to a great read about the city's Chintz Age and a karaoke trip around Broadway.

Learn more at nypl.org/podcast

Frank and Gwen announce their return date plus reveal their Summer Reading Challenge

How gay is Sci-Fi anyway? Gwen and Frank welcome Casey Maher, leader of the LGBTQ Sci-Fi Book Crew meetup (held at the Jefferson Market Library)! They discuss everything from technology and gaming to science fiction (of course) right on up to Hemingway.

Join Frank and Rhonda as they discuss The Stories of John Cheever. 

Up for some agony? Frank and Gwen chat about suffering in literature and movies, debate the gender politics of picture books, and hang out with one of our funniest guests ever: Genoveve Stowell, manager of NYPL's new 53rd Street branch.

Learn more at nypl.org/podcast

Join Crystal and Frank as they discuss what they read on their free read episode!

We talk about feminist comics, The Golden Girls, squids and snails, intellectualism, and -- yes -- cloning George Clooney. Plus Frank and Gwen are joined by NYPL's very own Jason Baumann. 

Gwen and Frank are both struggling to find the perfect book this week — and coming up with some ideas about how to do it. Plus: the glory that is Ilana Glazer.

Answer: anything! Frank and Gwen discuss why for-profit businesses cannot and should not take libraries' place in society. Plus, recommendations for two small books that contain very big worlds.

Book Recommendations

Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata

The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating by Elizabeth Tova Bailey

The Autobiography of Red by Anne Carson

Oleg Kagan's opinion piece about how libraries are not companies, and more information about Forbes deleting the original op-ed.

The best way to support this podcast is with a gift to The New York Public Library. Click here to donate.

... or the joy of evolution? Frank's book traces the whole history of humankind and Gwen's is a short narrative about big changes. Plus: You can't talk about joy without talking about Christine Baranski. It's the law.

Book Recommendations 

Speak No Evil by Uzodinma Iweala

Sapiens: A brief history of humankind by Yuval Noah Harari

Non-Book Recommendation

The pure and consuming joy of Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again

Gwen asks, "Is this poem about God?" and Frank is (nearly) brought to tears as they untangle the divine and the bawdy (and naughty) in two John Donne poems. Luckily  Dr. Carolyn Broomhead joins them for some much needed poetry therapy. Together they traverse language, imagery and the backstory of the divine Dr. D.

Want to broaden your reading horizons this year? Librarian extraordinaire Meredith Mann joins Frank and Gwen to debate the pros and cons of annual reading challenges. Plus: secret database magic, sci-fi written by robots, and our favorite British bakers. Get links to the books discussed in the episode at nypl.org/podcast.

To help celebrate Pride month, Frank and Crystal chose Memorial by Bryan Washington from the Recent LGBTQ Reads From Both Familiar and Fresh Voices list!  

Dan Kois is a writer and editor for Slate. His recent book is called "The World Only Spins Forward: The Ascent of Angels in America." It's a collection of oral histories, beautifully arranged by Kois and his co-author, Isaac Butler. Together they interviewed nearly 250 people about the iconic Pulitzer Prize-winning play—directors, producers, and actors from Broadway to small town theatre productions. Kois talks to Gwen and Frank about creating the book, the enduring impact of Angles in America, and getting the inside scoop from Tony Kushner himself.

Children's librarian Louise Lareau joins Frank and Gwen to talk about NYPL's annual Best Books for Kids list and why you should say "underpants" during first-grade storytime. Plus: Eve Babitz, Joan Didion, Zadie Smith, joy, suffering, existentialism, etc., etc.

Rosa Caballero-Li, manager of Ask NYPL, has all the answers! Rosa tells Frank and Gwen about the ins, outs, ups, and downs of the Library's multifaceted reference service, staffed by real-live human people. Plus: a story within a story presents some guessing game twists.

Need assistance? Have a question? Get in touch with Ask NYPL. 

Book Recommendation 

Her Body and Other Parties: Stories by Carmen Maria Machado

Non-Book Recommendations

"Lots of People Love ‘To Kill A Mockingbird.’ Roxane Gay Isn’t One of Them."

The album "Dirty Computer" by Janelle Monae

The best way to support this podcast is with a gift to The New York Public Library. Click here to donate.

Frank and Crystal discuss this month's book club pick: Insurrecto by Gina Apostol. 

Get rowdy with Roxanne Coady, indie bookstore owner and host of the Just the Right Book podcast. Roxanne finds common ground with Frank and Gwen, talking about places where people seek connection and community with books at their heart. 

Roxanne's Book Recommendation

My Sister, the Serial Killer  by Oyinkan Braithwaite 

Also mentioned:

A Drinking Life by Pete Hamill

Lucky by Alice Sebold

Bastard Out of Carolina by Dorothy Allison

The Curse of Bigness: Antitrust in the New Guilded Age by Tim Wu

The Common Good by Robert Reich

Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor E. Frankl

Embers by Sándor Márai

You can visit Roxanne's bookstore, RJ Julia, in Madison, Conneticuit and check out one of their events. And definitely have a listen to her podcast Just the Right Book for more book recommendations and interviews with a wide-range of authors and guests. (Including Frank and Gwen!)

All the complexities of the city so nice, they named it twice! Frank goes deep into nostalgia territory, digging up childhood memories, classic accents, and urban anxieties. Gwen follows with a real-life tale of greed and gumption at a famed NYC hedge fund. 

This week, Gwen and Frank take on books ranging  from the collapse of modern civilization to a murder "how-done-it" told exclusively from the point of view of a perspicacious fetus. 

Get the full list of books discussed at www.nypl.org/podcast.

Against his better judgment, the producer of the Librarian Is In joins Gwen and Frank to talk books, tattoos, and how the podcast came to be.

Frank and Crystal discuss Velvet Was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia.

Hi all! Thanks for joining us. This week is our inaugural book club episode! As they mentioned last episode, Frank and Rhonda picked Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin off the NYPL's 125 Books We Love list to read and discuss. We hope you had the chance to read along too. So without further ado - click "play" and be transported to 1950s Paris...

Happy new year! Christopher Platt joins Gwen and Frank to talk about hate crimes, privacy and transparency, and how to start a revolution from your local library. Plus: Project Gutenberg reads, our technological future, and our crush on Carla Hayden.

Spoiler alert: They barely exist! Frank and Gwen talk to librarian and advocate Angie Manfredi about the missing fat kids (and adults) in literature, the importance of body diversity in books, and the danger of creating a monolith of marginalized voices.

New NYPL librarian Jenny Chisnell joins the show to talk artist books, The New York Book Fair, and enough of her extraordinarily varied interests and recommendations that Gwen and Frank are immediately exhausted!

Find links to the books discussed and back episodes at www.nypl.org/podcast.

This week Gwen and Frank tackle wonderlands, "What Girls are Made Of," mid-life crisises, and no easy ways out...

This week we're revisiting Frank and Crystal's book pick from June: Light From Uncommon Stars. We'll be back next episode with some fabulous guests to cloose out 2022! 

Go behind the scenes at BookOps, the Library's special secret spy agen— er, the "technical services" unit. Also: the Helen Ellis/Shirley Jackson/Anita Brookner triumvirate, Frank's shocking Harry Potter confession, and more.

Join Crystal and Frank this week as they discuss their free read book picks!

IS Margaret Atwood a bad feminist? Yeeeeeesh, we don't know. Frank and Gwen talk about the allegations against Aziz Ansari and then, thankfully, move onto books: nonfiction about young immigrants from El Salvador and a novel about a sci-fi dating experiment. Also, help us out by taking our survey at nypl.org/podcastsurvey!

This week it's Frank and Gwen's turn in the hot seat. They recently joined the Books on the Subway Podcast with Hollie and Rosy for a discussion about all things books and libraries, and we're bringing you that episode this week. Make sure to check them out at www.booksonthesubway.com. 

Books and reading are the foundation of any library but your local librarian is doing so much more: computer help, test prep and yes, even knitting. This week, Gwen and Frank talk to Erin Horanzy, an Adult Programming Librarian at NYPL's Francis Martin Library in the Bronx. Enjoy!

We want to hear from you! Please share your thoughts with us in this short survey: www.nypl.org/podcastsurvey

Frank and Gwen are all about feminist texts this week. They go back in time with the classic short story, "The Yellow Wallpaper" — which is also NYPL's newest Insta Novel — and then hit the present (hard) with "Red Clocks." In between, there's a beautiful picture book for kids. Plus: Frank figures out a literary puzzle.

Frank and Crystal discuss their book pick: Light From Uncommon Stars!

This week we take you back to our first-ever live show, recorded in Frank's very own Jefferson Market Library! Gwen and Frank talk to Eric Klinenberg, sociologist and author of a new book about libraries and social infrastructure. Plus: the audience offers an invaluable assist during the guessing game.

Guest Star: Eric Klinenberg

Palaces for the People by Eric Klinenberg

More of his work in our catalog and on his website

$2.00 a Day: Living on Almost Nothing in America by Kathryn Edin

Books by Barbara Ehrenreich

O Cafe in Greenwich Village (and pão de queijo)

The triumph and tragedy of Jim Thorpe, the difficulty of Henry James, and the ferocity of Emily Dickinson and Camille Paglia. Bonus: Barbra Streisand's underground wonderland!

Frank and Gwen are joined by Julia Pistell, co-host of the Literary Disco podcast! We play multiple rounds of guess-the-book, talk about whaling ships and virtual reality and Garfield Minus Garfield, and offer a bazillion book recommendations.

Gwen and Frank take on "Cat Person," the New Yorker story that turned the Internet upside down, and make some book recs based on its tone and subject.

Get a full rundown of episodes and links to the books discussed at www.nypl.org/podcast.

Gwen and Frank tackle one book that feels comforting and homey; one that's distinctly unsettling; and one that's somewhere in between. Plus: A stranger on the train helps us deconstruct the genius of J-Patt.

Book Recommendations

Your Duck Is My Duck: Stories by Deborah Eisenberg

The Farm by Joanne Ramos

Also mentioned:

Mary Poppins Returns

Emily Blunt and the rest of the cast going down the bathtub slide!

Everything Doris Day

Gwen is so moved by one of the three poems she brings to the studio that she can't even read it (she tried!). And Frank is transported by a novel about a marriage in Nigeria he can't NOT talk about it.  Plus: the perils of social media and why Frank feels he is pretty much free of FOMO. 

Frank's Book Recommendation 

Stay With Me by Ayobami Adebayo

You can also listen to the author discuss this book on the NYPL podcasts here.

Gwen's Poetry Recommendations 

“Airplanes” by Maggie Smith, in the Spring/Summer issue of Ninth Letter 

“Ghazal: America the Beautiful” by Alicia Ostriker, and the Dear Poet video series of her reading her own work

"Wild Geese" by Mary Oliver 

Frank and Crystal discuss their free read book choices.

Join Crystal and Frank as they discuss what they read this week!

Aminatou Sow, writer and co-host of the popular podcast "Call Your Girlfriend," talks with Gwen and Frank about poetry, the mental treadmill of the Internet, and her childhood best friend: the librarian. 

Book Recommendations

Looking for Lorraine: The Radiant and Radical Life of Lorraine Hansberry by Imani Perry

Magical Negro by Morgan Parker

If They Come for Us by Fatimah Ashgar 

Feminism Is for Everybody: Passionate Politics by bell hooks

Also mentioned: 

Microsoft Encarta '95

PEN15

"won't you celebrate with me" by Lucille Clifton 

"Final Notations" by Adrienne Rich can be found in her collection, An Atlas of the Difficult World

Gwen's quest to learn more about Carol Channing took both her and Frank to a place where divas and dames truly reign- Broadway! Plus: Frank's book taps into the cultural obsession with visiting the past (repeatedly) to figure out the future, leading us into the arms of "Russian Doll" creator Natasha Lyonne. 

Book Recommendations 

Nothing Like a Dame: Conversations with the Great Women of Musical Theater by Eddie Shapiro

The Heavens by Sandra Newman

Non-Book Recommendations 

Check out the new Netflix series "Russian Doll," and you'll obsess over it too!

And watch "Happy Death Day" for more time loops, laughs and life on other planes.

Greek mythology and contemporary fiction join forces this week! Gwen and Frank read two books that make readers ask, what would you do—or, what should you do?

Book Recommendations: 

Golden Child by Claire Adam

Circe by Madeline Miller

The audiobook of Welcome to the Goddamn Ice Cube: Chasing Fear and Finding Home in the Great White North  by Blair Braverman

Also mentioned:

A House for Mr. Biswas by V.S. Naipaul

Mythology by Edith Hamilton

The Odyssey , translated by Emily Wilson

On the Come Up by Angie Thomas

Here Come the 123s!  by They Might Be Giants, and also please watch the amazing video of the "Never Go to Work" song (guaranteed to change your life for the better)

Gwen goes nuts for an alt-history about hippo ranching (IT COULD HAVE BEEN A REAL THING!), and Frank goes nuts for a memoir by incomparable actor and role model Gabourey Sidibe.

Amanda Nelson, managing editor of Book Riot and host of BR's own book recommendation podcast, joins Frank and Gwen to discuss book recommendations. (What else?)

Find show notes and more at nypl.org/podcast

Gwen and Frank share books recs for bedtime—good reads for kids of all ages and one read that's definitely for grown-ups only... Plus, if you're at the Public Librarians Association Conference in Philadelphia (March 22nd-23rd) come find Frank and Gwen for even more talk about reading recs, pick up some podcast swag and share what books are stacked up on on your bedside table!
Friday March 23rd at 11am and 2pm in the PLA Press Room in the Convention Center, 3rd level, Room 303 A.

This week Crystal and Frank broke with their track record of very serious novels to read a fun memoir by the well known and VERY glamorous Mariah Carey.  

It's the first-ever Reading Challenge episode! Gwen and Frank assigned books to each other to read and discuss on the air. Hijinks ensue...

Join Frank as he welcomes YA librarian Susen Shi to discuss great new YA books. Rhonda will be back next week and she and Frank will be discussing our next 125 Books We Love book pick!

Third time's the charm! Gwen and Frank join the fine folks from the Overdue podcast to discuss Ken Kesey's 1962 novel, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

We're 100 episodes old! Frank and Gwen mark their centennial by responding to listener messages and revisiting some favorite themes. Plus: a list of our favorite episodes for new (or new-ish) listeners.

This week Gwen and Frank wander wondrously through the wonderland of Dance led by the dazzling Linda Murray, Lead Curator of the Jerome Robbins Dance Division of NYPL's Library for the Performing Arts.  So, let's boogie! Get links to everything discussed in this episode at www.nypl.org/podcast.

Audre Lorde and Pat Parker were close friends who fought fiercely for social justice. In this episode, Frank and Gwen discuss a powerful book of letters between the two Black feminist poets. 

Book Recommendation

Sister Love: The Letters of Audre Lorde and Pat Parker 1974-1989, ed. by Julie Ensure

More by Audre Lorde and Pat Parker:

The Complete Works of Pat Parker, ed. by Julie Enszer

Zami: A New Spelling of My Name by Audre Lorde

The Collected Poems of Audre Lorde  includes the poem "Power" mentioned in the epsiode.

I Am Your Sister: Collected and Unpublished Writings of Audre Lorde  includes the essay "There is No Heriarchy of Oppression"

Actor Sharon Washington joins us to talk about her one-woman play "Feeding the Dragon," based on her experience growing up inside a New York Public Library branch in the 1970s. She tells us about her childhood in the library after hours, and what it's like to share her story on stage. Plus: horror movie recs, and getting judgy on "Law and Order."

Margaret H. Willison, a.k.a. The Coolest Funniest Pop-Culture-iest Librarian Ever, joins Gwen and Frank this week for the ultimate high/low-culture episode.

nypl.org/podcast

Join Frank and Rhonda as they discuss what they read this week!

This episode is brought to you by our soon-to-be-rival podcast, dreamed up by YA librarian Crystal Chen—who's also this week's guest! All rights reserved by her! We talk musicals, poetry, what it really means to create a list of "best" books, and professional development for library staff members.

Book Recommendations

NYPL's Best Poetry Books (and our most recent best books lists)

Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder, and One Man's Fight for Justice by Bill Browder

Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief by Lawrence Wright

Bad Blood  Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou

Kiss Number 8 by Colleen A.F. Venable

Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino

Also recommended:

The Woodstock Library in the Bronx

ASMR, or autonomous sensory meridian response

"VEEP" and "Crazy Ex-Girlfriend"

Your hosts wax rhapsodic about two of their mainstay favorite authors. Plus: Gwen takes "cozy intellectual" suggestions from a listener's email and Frank discovers a YouTube celebrity crush. 

Gwen gets fired up about reading—you guessed it—new fiction this year, while Frank dips into the backlist of a new favorite author. Plus: New Year's resolutions, The Bachelor, and the best short stories of 2018.

Book Recommendations

Best American Short Stories 2018, ed. by Roxane Gay

The Mere Wife by Maria Dahvana Headley

Encocylopedia Britannica's quick summary of "Beowulf"—or check out lots of versions of the actual poem from the Library

Non-Book Recommendations

• The panel Gwen is speaking on at ALA Midwinter: “So You Want to Podcast." Come say hi!
• Vice
• Nina LaCour's podcast, Keeping a Notebook 
• The Bachelor

What's the opposite of a book slump? We're calling it a flare, and Gwen is on one. She and Frank have a flurry of adult book recommendations, from dystopian novels to innovative science fiction.