About Chris Wolak: Books have always been an important part of my life, but it wasn’t until I discovered Dracula in a Scholastic catalog that I fell in love with reading. When I asked my local bookseller if there were more vampire novels, he recommended Salem’s Lot. 

Over the next decade, whether working in factories, hospitals, or serving in the Marines, I spent many lunch breaks and after-work hours reading novels by Stephen King, Pat Conroy, and Patricia Cornwell.

Reading eventually led me to college, graduate school, and teaching English. When a friend recruited me to work at Borders, my reading life exploded. During the twelve years I worked as a bookseller, I developed a passion for reading new genres. After working as a clerk in academic and public libraries, I finally took the leap to pursue my long-time dream of becoming a librarian. In 2023, I earned my MLIS degree from Simmons University.

Originally from Chicago, I moved to the Connecticut Shoreline in December 2013. When I’m not reading, I like to kayak, explore nature, and hang out with my writer wife, Laura, and our two dogs, Beatrice Dashwood and Buddy Fitzwilliam. You can also find me writing about books, libraries, and history on my blog: chriswolak.com.

About Emily Fine: Most of my adult life has been spent wishing I had been working with or around books. Alas, I have spent a lot of time in the business sector with an emphasis in the delicious world of restaurants. I love to read all sorts of books but my sweet spot is a book that somehow combines my love of words and food: a chef memoir, work of fiction with recipes, or a good old fashioned cookbook.

In 2015, I relocated from Ohio to Connecticut so that I could live by the Long Island Sound and pursue my love of kayaking and paddleboarding. My other non-bookish interests include spending time with my two adult children, cooking, taking long walks, swimming, watching movies, and traveling. Although I’d really rather be reading or going on a Biblio Adventure with my buddy Chris!

How we met: We were attending a book event hosted by Ann Kingman and Michael Kindness – the hosts of the podcast Books on the Nightstand (which is no longer being recorded but you can check out www.booksonthenightstand.com to hear previously recorded episodes) – called Booktopia. This was in May of 2015. We were told by mutual friends that we had both relocated to the same town – Guilford, Connecticut. We didn’t actually meet at the book event but later in July of 2015. We became fast friends and started a friendship that includes lots of chatter about books and frequent literary adventures together. We thought it would be fun to share our mutual love of all things books. So, in December of 2016 – the Book Cougars podcast was born!