Episode 221 - Trial by Ambush with Marcia Clark and John Valeri

Book Cougars Episode 221

Episode 221 Show Notes

– Currently Reading –
Imagination: A Manifesto – Ruha Benjamin (CW)
Be Ready When the Luck Happens – Ina Garten (EF)(audiobook)
Advice for New Faculty Members – Robert Boice (CW)
Walking Well: A New Approach for Comfort, Vitality, and Inspiration in Every Step – Michael J. Gelb and Bruce Fertman

– Just Read –
Emily read short stories:
“The Statue and the Bust” from The Collected Short Stories of Shirley Hazzard edited by Brigitta Olubas
“Let the Chips Fall” by Emily Ross from the collection Devil’s Snare: Best New England Crime Stories by 2024 edited by Ang Pompano, Leslie Wheeler, and Susan Oleksiw
“Debris” from the collection A Kind of Madness by Uche Okonkwo
“Good Enough” from the collection A Small Thing to Want by Shuly Cawood

This Cursed House – Del Sandeen (CW)
Shred Sisters – Betsy Lerner (EF) (audiobook)
Armadale – Wilkie Collins (CW)
The New Menopause: Navigating Your Path Through Hormonal Change with Purpose, Power, and Facts – Mary Claire Haver, MD (EF)
Read the recent article about Dr. Mary Claire Haver in the New York Times.
A Little Bit Country – Brian D. Kennedy (CW)
Where They Last Saw Her – Marcie R. Rendon (EF)
What Feelings Do When No One’s Looking – Tina Oziewicz, illustrated by Aleksandra Zajac and translated by Jennifer Croft (CW)
Something, Someday – Amanda Gorman, illustrated by Christian Robinson (CW)

– Biblio Adventure –
Emily went with her daughter Rachel and granddaughter Neena to the Guilford Free Library. Where they picked up a copy Miss MacDonald Has a Farm by Kalee Gwarjanski, illustrated by Elizabet Vukovic.

Chris virtually attended an event via Concord Festival of Authors, “The Scrolls of the Past Burn My Fingers”: Reviving Margaret Fuller with Professors Brigitte Bailey, Leslie Eckel, and Megan Marshall co-editors of the forthcoming Margaret Fuller: Collected Writing (LOA #388).

Chris went to Breakwater Books where the owner gave her a copy of The Lilac People by Milo Todd.

– Upcoming Jaunts –
Emily will be attending the Cherry Bombe member book club of Ina Garten’s memoir Be Ready When the Luck Happens.

On Wednesday, November 20th, Chris is planning to attend an event at RJ Julia’s Booksellers with Karen Olson in conversation with Elizabeth Hobbs and her novel Misery Hates Company: A Novel.

– Upcoming Reads –
Fingersmith – Sarah Waters (CW)
The Tenant of Wildfell Hall – Anne Bronte (CW)
Night Side of the River – Jeanette Winterson (EF)

– Spotlight with Marcia Clark and Our Mystery Man –
You can learn more about Marcia Clark here.
Her new book is Trial By Ambush: Murder, Injustice, and the Truth about the Case of Barbara Graham.
You can learn more about John here.
You can also follow his interviews with mystery authors on his YouTube Channel Central Booking.

– Poem Read by Emily –

Don’t Hesitate by Mary Oliver
If you suddenly and unexpectedly feel joy,
don’t hesitate. Give in to it. There are plenty
of lives and whole towns destroyed or about
to be. We are not wise, and not very often
kind. And much can never be redeemed.
Still, life has some possibility left. Perhaps this
is its way of fighting back, that sometimes
something happens better than all the riches
or power in the world. It could be anything,
but very likely you notice it in the instant
when love begins. Anyway, that’s often the
case. Anyway, whatever it is, don’t be afraid
of its plenty. Joy is not made to be a crumb.

– 4th Quarter Readalong –
A Little Bit Country by Brian D. Kennedy
Please join the online conversation via the Goodreads discussion thread.
The Zoom readalong discussion will take place on Sunday, December 8h at 7:00 pm (ET). Please send an email if you would like to join.

– Also Mentioned –
Viral Justice: How We Grow the World We Want – Ruha Benjamin
Check out the Book Cougars Nonfiction November Video
Indigo by Beverly Jenkins
Drafting the Past podcast
The Return of Martin Guerre by Natalie Zemon Davis
Also by Wilkie Collins: The Woman in White and The Moonstone
Broken Fields by Marcie R. Rendon
O Beautiful by Jung Yun
Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit by Jeanette Winterson
Proof of Guilt: Barbara Graham and the Politics of Executing Women in America by Kathleen A. Cairns

Help support the Book Cougars via our affiliates:
Libro.fm
audiobook platform: Follow this link and use promo code: bookcougars
Shop on Bookshop.org – support the Book Cougars and independent bookstores!

If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. If you would prefer to donate directly, email for instructions.

Join our Goodreads Group!

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Subscribe to our monthly newsletter.

Episode 218 - Playwright Spotlight with Laura Thoma

Playwright Spotlight with Laura Thoma

Episode 218 Show Notes

See the complete list of MacArthur Genius Grant Winners here.

– Currently Reading –
Jane Austen’s Bookshelf: A Rare Bookseller’s Quest to Find the Women Writers Who Shaped a Legend – Rebecca Romney (CW)
Listen to our conversation with Rebecca Romney on Episode 207.
The Mighty Red – Louise Erdrich (EF) (audiobook)
Armadale – Wilkie Collins (CW)

– Just Read –
Emily read two short stories via the Decameron Project:
“Clinical Notes” by Liz Moore
“Recognition” by Victor LaValle

The Perils of Lady Catherine de Bourgh – Claudia Gray (CW)
Long Bright River – Liz Moore (EF) (audiobook)
A Tale of Two Cities – Charles Dickens (CW)
Swan Song – Elin Hildebrand (EF) (audiobook)
That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in American – Amanda Jones (CW) (audiobook)
The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle: An Uplifting and Unforgettable Story of Love and Second Chances – Matt Cain (EF) (audiobook)

– Episode Sponsor –
The Anguish of Alzheimer's: The Years of Mom's Dementia by Ann Watt.
Learn more about Ann Watt here.

– Biblio Adventure –
Chris and Emily co-hosted James R. Benn and his 19th Billy Boyle mystery The Phantom Patrol with Bank Square Books at the Mystic & Noank Library. It was great to see listener Karen (@barkerforbooks) who drove all the way from Maine to attend. Chris and Emily visited the new location of Bank Square Books; Chris bought a copy of The Militia House by John Milas.

Next up was a trip to the Windham-Campbell Literary Festival where they shopped at the Possible Futures Bookmobile. Chris bought a copy of Nigh-No-Place by Jen Hadfield and Emily bought a copy of Hanif Abdurraqib’s There’s Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension.

Chris and Emily attended the grand opening of Montgomery & Taggert, Connecticut’s first Romance Bookstore! They also went to Legacy Theatre to see a production of Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors.

Emily listened to an episode of Kelly Corrigan Wonders with Katie Porter talking about The Great Gatsby.

– Episode Sponsor –
Not Yours to Keep by Zelly Ruskin
Learn more about Zelly Ruskin here.

– Upcoming Jaunts –
On October 9th Chris and Emily are heading to The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, MA and the Montague Book Mill.

On October 8th, Emily plans to attend an event at RJ Julia’s Booksellers with Betsy Lerner and her debut novel Shred Sisters.

– Upcoming Reads –
Trial by Ambush: Murder, Injustice, and the Truth about the Case of Barbara Graham – Marcia Clark (CW)(EF)
The Bookshop: A History of the American Bookstore – Evan Friss (EF)
Slow Horses – Mick Herron (EF)

– 4th Quarter Readalong –
A Little Bit Country by Brian D. Kennedy
Please join the online conversation via the Goodreads discussion thread.
The Zoom readalong discussion will take place on Sunday, December 8h at 7:00 pm (ET). Please send an email if you would like to join.

– Out Now –
The Bog Wife – Kay Chronister
American Scary: A History of Horror, from Salem to Stephen King and Beyond – Jeremy Dauber
The Mighty Red – Louise Erdrich

– Playwright Spotlight with Laura Thoma –
Laura’s play Miss Margaret's Barton Cottage Christmas Surprise will be performed at Drama Works Theatre Company from December 13-21, 2024. You can purchase tickets here.

Learn more about Laura here.

Laura has appeared on previous episodes of the podcast: Episode 19, Episode 66, and Episode 127.

– Also Mentioned –
Download the Romance Bingo Card!
Author Ruha Benjamin and her book Viral Justice
Author Frances Burney
The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
Also by Claudia Gray: The Murder of Mr. Wickham and The Late Mrs. Willoughby
Heft by Liz Moore
Bleak House by Charles Dickens
Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver
Hanif Abdurraqib’s podcast Object of Sound
Also by  Betsy Lerner: Food and Loathing, The Forest for the Trees, and The Bridge Ladies.
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
Happiest Season movie
Under the Christmas Tree movie
Single All the Way movie

Help support the Book Cougars via our affiliates:
Libro.fm
audiobook platform: Follow this link and use promo code: bookcougars
Shop on Bookshop.org – support the Book Cougars and independent bookstores!

If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. If you would prefer to donate directly, email for instructions.

Join our Goodreads Group!

Check out our BookTube Channel and be sure to subscribe!

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter.

Episode 217 - Author Spotlight with James R. Benn

Author James R. Benn

Episode 217 Show Notes

– Currently Reading –
A Tale of Two Cities – Charles Dickens (CW)
Jane Austen’s Bookshelf: A Rare Bookseller’s Quest to Find the Women Writers Who Shaped a Legend – Rebecca Romney (CW)
Listen to our conversation with Rebecca Romney on Episode 207.
That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in American – Amanda Jones (CW) (audiobook)
The Mighty Red – Louise Erdrich (EF) release date 10/1/2024

– Just Read –
Envy – Sandra Brown (CW)(EF) (audiobook)
The Most – Jessica Anthony (EF)
The Gathering – C.J. Tudor (CW)
Demon Copperhead – Barbara Kingsolver (EF) (audiobook)
Out at the Plate: The Dot Wilkinson Story – Lynn Ames (CW)

Emily read two short stories:
“The Miracle Years of Little Fork” by Rebecca Makkai from the collection Music for Wartime and published in Summer 2015 Ploughshares literary magazine. “Why Were They Throwing Bricks?” by Jenny Zhang from the collection Sour Heart and published in Spring 2017 n+1 literary magazine.

– Biblio Adventure –
Chris and Laura continue to rewatch the Harry Potter movies.

Emily had two couch biblio adventures, Slow Horses season four based on the book Spook Street by Mick Herron and she finished Presumed Innocent based on the novel by Scott Turow.

Emily visited the New Canaan Public Library.

– Upcoming Jaunts –
Chris and Emily will be attending portions of the Windham Campbell festival. The Lydia Davis lecture “Why I Write” is available to watch here.  

Chris and Emily are going on a joint jaunt to Chester, CT for the grand opening of Montgomery & Taggert, Connecticut’s first Romance Bookstore!

On October 9th Chris and Emily are heading to The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, MA.

– Upcoming Reads –
Murder in the Smithsonian – Margaret Truman (CW)(EF)
Swan Song – Elin Hildebrand (EF)
Classic’s Club is doing a “sync read” of all of Jane Austen’s novels. Learn more here.

– Out Now –
Death at the Sign of the Rook: A Jackson Brodie Book – Kate Atkinson
So Thirsty – Rachel Harrison
If Anything Happens to Me – Luanne Rice

– Author Spotlight with James R. Benn –
We talk with James R. Benn about his new novel The Phantom Patrol
Learn more about James and his book tour here.

– Also Mentioned –
Download the Romance Bingo Card!
Author Marcie Rendon
Author Cal Newport
Enter the Aardvark by Jessica Anthony
James by Percival Everett
The Chalk Man by C.J. Tudor
David Copperfield by Charles Dickens
Broadstairs in Kent
McNally Jackson booksellers
The New Yorker Magazine
Swann’s Way by Marcel Proust [check out #ProustPilotProject and ]
Why I Write by George Orwell
Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie
Author David Niven
Author J.D. Salinger; The Stranger short story and Catcher in the Rye
Author Jean Conan Doyle
Author Philip Kerr
Author Ian Fleming

Help support the Book Cougars via our affiliates:
Libro.fm
audiobook platform: Follow this link and use promo code: bookcougars
Shop on Bookshop.org – support the Book Cougars and independent bookstores!

If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. If you would prefer to donate directly, email for instructions.

Join our Goodreads Group!

Check out our BookTube Channel and be sure to subscribe!

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter.

Episode 209 - Author Spotlight with Sara Paretsky

Episode 209 Show Notes

Head to this video to see what Big Books we hope to read this summer.

Learn more about Sue Jackson’s Big Book Summer Reading Challenge. Or read her blog post.

– 2nd Quarter 2024 Readalong –
Our first quarter readalong The Awakening: The Dragon Heart Legacy, Book One by Nora Roberts. 

Download the Romance Bingo Card!

– Currently Reading –  
The Awakening: The Dragon Heart Legacy, Book One – Nora Roberts (CW)(audiobook)
I’ve Tried Being Nice: Essays – Ann Leary (EF)
The Editor: How Publishing Legend Judith Jones Shaped Culture in America – Sara Franklin (CW)
This Is How It Always Is – Laurie Frankel (EF)

– Just Read –
The Awakening: The Dragon Heart Legacy, Book One – Nora Roberts (CW) (audiobook)
The House That Horror Built – Christina Henry (CW)
Pay Dirt: A V.I. Warshawski Novel – Sara Paretsky (EF)
To enter the giveaway for Sara’s books including Dead Land, Overboard, and Shell Game, subscribe to our newsletter by June 14th.

Chris & Emily both read a short story in honor of Alice Munro who recently passed away: “Train.” You can read the story online in Harper’s Magazine.

Emily read three short stories:
“From Outside I Could See” and “The Next Husband Game” from the collection The Goodbye Process by Mary Jones. release date 7/30/2024
“Origin Story” from the The Ill-Fitting Skin by Shannon Robinson.  

Chris read a short story called “Ardessa” by Willa Cather. Join Chris’s Willa Cather Short Story project.

– Biblio Adventures –
Emily went to RJ Julia Booksellers to see Our Mystery Man John Valeri in conversation with Tom Straw about his new novel The Accidental Joe: The Top-Secret Life of a Celebrity Chef.
You can read John Valeri’s review of the novel online at Criminal Element.

Chris and Emily went on a joint jaunt to the Acton Public Library in Old Saybrook to see Sandra Yannone read from her new poetry collection The Glass Studio.

Emily went to “On Writing: A Panel Discussion with Authors on Their Craft” hosted by Bank Square Books and Westerly Library. She also stopped in at the newly opened, Martin House Books.

– Upcoming Jaunts –
Chris is heading to Bridgeport, CT to visit Kindred Thoughts bookstore.

Emily is planning to do a watch-a-thon of Presumed Innocent, the film, and the upcoming tv series, based on the novel by Scott Turow.

Emily is looking forward to seeing Kathy Gunst in conversation with Sara Franklin about her book The Editor: How Publishing Legend Judith Jones Shaped Culture in America at Harvard Bookstore on June 4 at 7pm.

On June 5th Chris and Emily are going on a joint jaunt sponsored by the Mark Twain House to see Percival Everett discuss his new novel James. There is a free livestream of the event, register here.

Chris will be attending the 69th Annual Willa Cather Spring Conference from June 6-8, 2024 online via Whova. You can register for it here. 

– Upcoming Reads –
The Women’s Room – Marilyn French (CW)
A Divine Language: Learning Algebra, Geometry, and Calculus at the Edge of Old Age – Alek Wilkinson (CW)
A Discovery of Witches – Deborah Harkness (EF)
The Mystery Guest – Nita Prose (EF)
Someplace Generous: An Inclusive Romance Anthology – edited by Elaine Ellis and Amber Flame (EF)

– Out Now –
My Favorite Thing is Monsters Book Two – Emil Ferris
Service – Sarah Gilmartin
Anna Bright is Hiding Something – Susie Orman Schnall

– Author Spotlight with Sara Paretsky –
Learn more about Sara here.
Pay Dirt is the most recent book in the V.I. Warshawski series.

– Also Mentioned –
Horseman: A Tale of Sleepy Hollow by Christina Henry
Old Crimes: And Other Stories by Jill McCorkle
Regalo Press
The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles by Steven Pressfield
The Maid by Nita Prose
The Black Bird Oracle by Deborah Hark
Black Love Matters: Real Talk on Romance, Being Seen, and Happily Ever Afters by Edited by Jessica P. Pryde
Generous Press
Forever Amber by Kathleen Winsor
Indemnity Only by Sara Paretsky
Sisters in Crime
This is Not Dixie by Brent M.S. Campney
The Seminary Co-op Bookstore
Women & Children First Bookstore
Author Sue Grafton
Bouchercon World Mystery Convention

Help support the Book Cougars via our affiliates:
Libro.fm
audiobook platform: Follow this link and use promo code: bookcougars
Shop on Bookshop.org – support the Book Cougars and independent bookstores!

If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. If you would prefer to donate directly, email for instructions.

Join our Goodreads Group!

Check out our BookTube Channel and be sure to subscribe!|

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter.

Episode 208 - Author Spotlight with Sara B. Franklin

Author Sara B. Franklin

Episode 208 Show Notes

– 2nd Quarter 2024 Readalong –
Our first quarter readalong The Awakening: The Dragon Heart Legacy, Book One by Nora Roberts. The Zoom discussion will take place on Sunday, June 2nd at 7pm (ET), send an email if you would like to reserve a spot. You can join The Awakening Goodreads Discussion anytime and we’ve also created a Goodreads thread for general romance chit chat.

Download the Romance Bingo Card!

– Currently Reading –
The Glass Studio – Sandra Yannone (CW)
Break the Cycle: A Guide to Healing Intergenerational Trauma – Dr. Mariel Buqué (EF)(audiobook)
The House That Horror Built – Christina Henry (CW)
The Phoenicia Diner Cookbook: Dishes and Dispatches from the Catskill Mountains – Chris Bradley, Sara Franklin, and Mike Cioffi (EF)
Head over to Ingredient One for Emily’s conversation about the Lemon Meringue Pie.

– Just Read –
The One-In-A-Million Boy – Monica Wood (EF)
Moby Dick – Herman Melville (CW)
Emily read two short stories:
“Ernie’s Ark” from the collection Ernies’s Ark: The Abbott Falls Stories (audiobook) by Monica Wood.
“Chapter Two” by Antonya Nelson from Best American Short Stories 2013 edited by Elizabeth Strout.  
Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World – Cal Newport (CW)
The Paris Novel – Ruth Reichl (EF)
James – Percival Everett (CW)(audiobook)(narrated by Dominic Hoffman)

– Biblio Adventures –
Chris and Emily went on a joint jaunt to New York City to visit Aunt Ellen and The Ripped Bodice bookstore.

– Upcoming Jaunts –
Emily is heading to RJ Julia Booksellers to see Our Mystery Man John Valeri in conversation with Tom Straw about his new novel The Accidental Joe.

Chris and Emily are going on a joint jaunt to the Acton Public Library in Old Saybrook to see Sandra Yannone read from her new poetry collection The Glass Studio.
Check out our video about Ann Petry, the James Pharmacy, and featuring “the bug” in front of the Acton Public Library in Old Saybrook.

Chris and Emily are planning to attend The Cape Cod Book Festival from November 1-3, 2024.

– Upcoming Reads –
In Memoriam reads in honor of Jenny Colvin from the Reading Envy podcast.
Chris is reading Tides: The Science and Spirit of the Ocean by Jonathan White
Emily is reading: This is How It Always Is by Laurie Frankel
Please join the readalong and share your memories of Jenny on this Goodreads thread.

Neighbors and Other Stories – Diane Oliver (CW)
Wrapped in Red: Thirteen Tales of Vampiric Horror – edited by Jennifer L. Green (CW)
The Secret, Book & Scone Society – Ellery Adams (EF)
The Awakening: The Dragon Heart Legacy, Book One – Nora Roberts (EF)(CW)

– Out Now –
Flyboy – Kasey LeBlanc
The Guncle Abroad – Steven Rowley
Cactus Country: A Boyhood Memoir – Zoë Bossiere

– Author Spotlight with Sara B. Franklin –
Learn more about Sara here and follow her book tour.
Books by Sara:
The Editor: How Publishing Legend Judith Jones Shaped Culture in America release date 5/28/2024
The Phoenicia Diner Cookbook: Dishes and Dispatches from the Catskill Mountains
Edna Lewis: At the Table with an American Original

Read Chris’s blog post about seeing Judith Jones in conversation with Adam Gopnik.

If you’re interested in reading a book written by Judith Jones, Sara recommends starting with The Pleasures of Cooking for One: A Cookbook.

– Also Mentioned –
How to Read A Book by Monica Wood
Ulysses by James Joyce
Mill Town: Reckoning with What Remains by Kerri Arsenault
Dear Life by Alice Munro
Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World by Cal Newport
Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…and Others Don’t by Jim Collins
Delicious! by Ruth Reichl
Shakespeare & Company Bookstore
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Also by Percival Everett: Erasure and The Trees
American Fiction movie
Author Anne Rice
Mystery Writers of America NY chapter
Julie & Julia film
The Tenth Muse: My Life in Foods by Judith Jones
The Diary of Anne Frank
Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle, Simone Beck

Help support the Book Cougars via our affiliates:
Libro.fm
audiobook platform: Follow this link and use promo code: bookcougars
Shop on Bookshop.org – support the Book Cougars and independent bookstores!

If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. If you would prefer to donate directly, email for instructions.

Join our Goodreads Group!

Check out our BookTube Channel and be sure to subscribe!

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter. 

Episode 207 - Spotlight with Author & Rare Book Dealer Rebecca Romney

Rebecca Romney photo credit Dave Pappas

Episode 207 Show Notes

– 2nd Quarter 2024 Readalong –
Our first quarter readalong The Awakening: The Dragon Heart Legacy, Book One by Nora Roberts.  The Zoom discussion will take place on Sunday, June 2nd at 7pm (ET), send an email if you would like to reserve a spot. You can join The Awakening Goodreads Discussion anytime and we’ve also created a Goodreads thread for general romance chit chat.

Download the Romance Bingo Card!

– Currently Reading –  
Moby Dick – Herman Melville (CW)
James – Percival Everett (EF)(audiobook)
A Chance Meeting: Encounters Between American Writers and Artists – Rachel Cohen (CW)
The Phoenicia Diner Cookbook: Dishes and Dispatches from the Catskill Mountains – Chris Bradley, Sara Franklin, and Mike Cioffi (EF)

– Just Read –
Bless Your Heart – Lindy Ryan (CW)
Emily read two short stories:
Vampires in the Lemon Grove” from the collection Vampires in the Lemon Grove: And Other Stories by Karen Russell.
The Bookeeper’s Wife” by Willa Cather.  
You can read Chris’s response to this short story on her blog.
Digital Minimalism: Choosing a Focused Life in a Noisy World – Cal Newport (CW)
How to Read – Monica Wood (EF)
James – Percival Everett (CW)(audiobook)(narrated by Dominic Hoffman)
Pride and Preston Lin – Christina Hwang Dudley (EF)
The Editor: How Publishing Legend Judith Jones Shaped Culture in America – Sara B. Franklin (EF) release date 5/28/2024

– Biblio Adventures –
Chris and Emily both attended virtual events offered via the North Haven Public Library:
“A Literary Examination of Power, and Art” with Xochitl Gonzalez discussing her books Anita de Monte Laughs Last and Olga Dies Dreaming. You can watch the video here.

“The Foods, People, and Innovations That Feed Us – A Sweeping History of Food and Culture” with Smithsonian Curator Paula J. Johnson discussing the book American Table. You can watch the video here.

In celebration of Independent Bookstore Day Chris visited Breakwater Books where she picked up a copy of A Son at the Front by Edith Wharton.

Emily and Aunt Ellen visited Yu and Me Books in Chinatown.

Chris and Emily went to see Caroline Leavitt discuss her new book Days of Wonder at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT.

Chris and Emily both watched the film Shirley loosely based on the novel Shirley by Susan Scarf Merrell.

– Upcoming Jaunts –
Chris and Emily are going on a joint jaunt to visit Aunt Ellen and plan to visit The Ripped Bodice bookstore.

Emily is planning to see the Art Thief which features a heist of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum since she is reading Chasing Beauty: The Life of Isabella Stewart Gardner by Natalie Dykstra.

– Upcoming Reads –
Tap Dancing on Everest: A Young Doctor’s Unlikely Adventure – Mimi Zieman (EF)
Pay Dirt: A V.I. Warshawski Novel – Sara Paretsky (EF)|
8 Lives of a Century-Old Trickster – Mirinae Lee (CW)
Looking for Love in All the Haunted Places – Claire Kann (CW)

– Out Now –
Real Americans – Rachel Khong
Rift: A Memoir of Breaking Away from Christian Patriarchy – Cait West
Daughters of Shandong – Eve. J Chung
When Cicadas Cry – Caroline Cleveland
The Stolen Child – Ann Hood
How to Read– Monica Wood

– Author Spotlight with Rebecca Romney –
Rebecca Romney is a rare book dealer, appraiser, and co-author of Printer's Error: Irreverent Stories from Book History. You can learn more about Rebecca and her work here.
Download a copy of Rebecca’s survey of the history of The Romance Novel in English.

Read “Resisting the Monolith: Collecting As Counter Narrative.”

Learn more about the Honey & Wax Book Collecting Prize; the deadline is June 15, 2024.

Rebecca is currently working on a book called Jane Austen’s Bookshelf!

– Also Mentioned –
The Editor: How Publishing Legend Judith Jones Shaped Culture in America – Sara B. Franklin (EF) release date 5/28/2024
Swamplandia – Karen Russell
Author George Saunders
Author Stephen King
The One-In-A-Million Boy – Monica Wood
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn – Mark Twain
Finn – Jon Clinch
Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen
A Mighty Blaze
Watch our video with Caroline Leavitt and Jenna Blum of A Mighty Blaze.
Watch our video with Caroline Leavitt talking about her novel With or Without You.
Hangsaman by Shirley Jackson
Into Thin Air – Jon Krakauer
The History of Emily Montague – Frances Brooke
Antiquarian Booksellers’ Association of America
Author Frances Burney
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
A Simple Story by Elizabeth Inchbald
Harrington by Maria Edgeworth

Help support the Book Cougars via our affiliates:
Libro.fm
audiobook platform: Follow this link and use promo code: bookcougars
Shop on Bookshop.org – support the Book Cougars and independent bookstores!

If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. If you would prefer to donate directly, email for instructions.

Join our Goodreads Group!

Check out our BookTube Channel and be sure to subscribe!

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter.

Episode 206 - Author Spotlight with Rebecca Rego Barry

Episode 206 Show Notes

– 2nd Quarter 2024 Readalong –
Our first quarter readalong The Awakening: The Dragon Heart Legacy, Book One by Nora Roberts.  Our Zoom discussion will take place on Sunday, June 2nd at 7pm (ET), send an email if you would like to reserve a spot. You can join The Awakening Goodreads Discussion anytime and we’ve also created a Goodreads thread for general romance chit chat.

Download the Romance Bingo Card!

– Currently Reading –  
Moby Dick – Herman Melville (CW)
How to Read – Monica Wood (EF) release date 5/7/2024
Spoon River Anthology – Edgar Lee Masters (EF)
Bless Your Heart – Lindy Ryan (CW)
The Editor: How Publishing Legend Judith Jones Shaped Culture in America – Sara B. Franklin (EF) release date 5/28/2024

– Just Read –
Piglet – Lottie Hazell (EF)
The Stolen Child – Ann Hood release date 5/7/2024
Reflections in a Golden Eye – Carson McCullers (CW)(EF)
Emily read two short stories:
“Touchless Bidet” by Omar El Akkad from the collection Small Odysseys: Selected Shorts Presents 35 New Stories edited by Hannah Tinti
“A Simple Question” from the collection Old Crimes: And Other Stories by Jill McCorkle

– Biblio Adventures –
Chris and Emily went on a Biblio Adventure to New York City but were re-routed due to an earthquake and ended up visiting the Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library in New Haven where they saw current exhibits featuring James Baldwin, Frederick Douglas, and Ollie Harrington. Check out the video with highlights of our day here.

Chris and Emily went on a joint jaunt to Nyack, NY to meet their friend Kate and visit the home of Carson McCullers. They discussed the short story “Reflections in a Golden Eye” and the new Mary Dearborn biography Carson McCullers: A Life over lunch at the Art Cafe. They stopped at the Nyack Library and it’s book sale where Chris picked up a copy of Old Filth by Jane Gardam and Kate snagged a copy of All the Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby. They visited Oak Hill Cemetery to pay respects to Carson McCullers. On the way back to town they found a little free library, then visited both Big Red Books and Pickwick Bookshop.

– Upcoming Jaunts –
Chris and Emily look forward to seeing Caroline Leavitt discuss her new book Days of Wonder at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT on Wednesday, April 24th at 6:00 pm.

Chris is registered for a virtual event featuring Kacy Dowd Tillman discussing her book Stripped and Script: Loyalist Women Writers of the American Revolution via the Congregational Library & Archives.

Emily plans to attend a showing of the film Enchanted April at Madison Theatre based on the novel The Enchanted April by Elizabeth Von Arnim.

– Upcoming Reads –
A Chance Meeting: American Encounters – Rachel Cohen (CW)
Pride and Preston Lin – Christina Hwang Dudley (EF)

– Out Now –
Honor the Dead – Amy Tector
check out our Friday Reads video with Amy
Weird Black Girls: Stories – Elwin Cotman
Dear Wendy – Ann Zhao
The Paris Novel – Ruth Reichl
Days of Wonder – Caroline Leavitt

– Author Spotlight with Rebecca Rego Barry –
We chat with Rebecca about her book The Vanishing of Carolyn Wells.
You can learn more about Rebecca and her books here.

– Also Mentioned –
Hoopla now offers bingepasses!
The One-In-A-Million Boy by Monica Wood
Newburyport Literary Festival
Also by Carson McCullers: The Member of the Wedding and The Heart is a Lonely Hunter
Carson McCullers: A Life by Mary Dearborn
Kurt Vonnegut
“Carson McCullers” by Charles Bukowski
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving
Edward Hopper House Museum & Study Center
Northshire Bookstore in Manchester, VT
Third State Books
“A Penitential Week” by Carolyn Wells
FineBooks and Collections Magazine
Walden by Henry David Thoreau
Murder in the Bookshop by Carolyn Wells

Help support the Book Cougars via our affiliates:
Libro.fm
audiobook platform: Follow this link and use promo code: bookcougars
Shop on Bookshop.org – support the Book Cougars and independent bookstores!

If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. If you would prefer to donate directly, email for instructions.

Join our Goodreads Group!

Check out our BookTube Channel and be sure to subscribe!

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Episode 205 - Author Spotlight with Yulin Kuang

Episode 205 Show Notes

– Giveaways –
Patreon: Bless Your Heart by Lindy Ryan. You have until April 14th to become a Patreon member.

Newsletter Winner: Congratulations to Calloway, who won The Awakening: The Dragon Heart Legacy, Book One by Nora Roberts.

– 2nd Quarter 2024 Readalong –
Our first quarter readalong The Awakening: The Dragon Heart Legacy, Book One by Nora Roberts. 

Our Zoom discussion will take place on Sunday, June 2nd at 7pm (ET), send an email if you would like to reserve a spot. You can join The Awakening Goodreads Discussion anytime and we’ve also created a Goodreads thread for general romance chit chat.

Download the Romance Bingo Card!

– Currently Reading –  
Chris dnf’d The Maiden – Kate Foster (CW)
Emily dnf’d Interesting Facts about Space – Emily Austin (EF)
Moby Dick – Herman Melville (CW)
You Are Here: Poetry in the Natural World – edited by Ada Limón (EF)
Emily read the poem “Canine Superpowers” by Michael Kleber-Diggs
Boats for Women – Sandra Yannone (CW)
Chris read “Providence April 14, 1998”
Piglet – Lottie Hazell (EF)
The Highest Apple: Sappho and the Lesbian Poetic Tradition – Judy Grahn (CW)
Break the Cycle: A Guide to Breaking Intergenerational Trauma – Dr. Mariel Buqué (EF)(audiobook)
Building a Second Brain: A Proven Method to Organize Your Digital Life and Unlock Your Creative Potential – Tiago Forte (CW)
Chasing Beauty: The Life of Isabella Stuart Gardner – Natalie Dykstra (EF)

– Episode Sponsor –
This episode is sponsored by Clitapalooza: Her flower blooms power by Billie Best.
You can learn more about Billie here.

– Just Read –
Wake Up With Purpose! What I’ve Learned in my First Hundred Years – Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt (CW)(audiobook)
You can read Chris’s review here.
Intimacies – Katie Kitamura
Deprog: Volume 1 – Tina Horn, Gab Contreras, Dani Strips, and Lisa Sterle – (CW)
A Baker’s Year: Twelve Months of Baking and Living the Simple Life at the Smoke Signals Bakery – Tara Jensen (EF)
Chris read a preview of River East, River West by Aube Rey Lescure
When Cicadas Cry – Caroline Cleveland (EF) release date 5/7/2024

– Biblio Adventures –
Emily went to RJ Julia’s Bookseller to see Rachel Slade discussing her new book Making It in America: The Almost Impossible Quest to Manufacture in the U.S.A. (and How It Got That Way).

Chris had a lovely conversation with a student at the library about The Birthmark by Nathaniel Hawthorne.

Emily watched the movie Adaptation, about a screenwriter trying to adapt the book The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean.

– Upcoming Jaunts –
Chris has purchased a ticket for the New York International Antiquarian Book Fair taking place April 4-7.

Thank you to a listener who called in to tell us about the movie Shirley a biopic about the author Shirley Jackson, Chris and Emily are both planning to watch it.

Chris and Emily are going on a joint jaunt to Nyack, NY to see the home of Carson McCullers. They are also planning to read the short story “Reflections in a Golden Eye” and the new Mary Dearborn biography Carson McCullers: A Life.

– Upcoming Reads –
Bride – Ali Hazelwood (CW)
The Frozen River – Ariel Lawhon (CW)
The Twilight Garden – Sara Nisha Adams (EF)

– Out Now –
The Sicilian Inheritance – Jo Piazza
The Husbands – Holly Gramazio
Victory Parade – Leela Corman
A Killing on the Hill: A Thriller – Robert Dugoni

– Author Spotlight with Yulin Kuang –
We chat with Yulin about her new novel How to End a Love Story.
You can learn more about Yulin here and here, and be sure to check out her book tour.

– Also Mentioned –
The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Gracy Hendrix
The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien
Indigo by Beverly Jenkins
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin
War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy
Worldly Things by Michael Kleber-Diggs
The Glass Studio by Sandra Yannone
Salmon Poetry Press
Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
Flour Power: The Practice and Pursuit of Baking Sourdough Bread by Tara Jensen
Tara Jensen
Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano
Where the Crawdads Sing – Delia Owens
Into the Raging Sea: Thirty-Three Mariners, One Megastorm, and the Sinking of El Faro by Rachel Slade
The Library Book by Susan Orlean
NaNoWriMo
People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry
North & South Elizabeth Gaskill adaptation with Richard Armitage

Help support the Book Cougars via our affiliates:
Libro.fm
audiobook platform: Follow this link and use promo code: bookcougars
Shop on Bookshop.org – support the Book Cougars and independent bookstores!

If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. If you would prefer to donate directly, email for instructions.

Join our Goodreads Group!

Check out our BookTube Channel and be sure to subscribe!

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter.

Episode 204 - Author Spotlight with Allison Pataki

Episode 204 Show Notes

– 2nd Quarter 2024 Readalong –
Our first quarter readalong The Awakening: The Dragon Heart Legacy, Book One by Nora Roberts.  The Zoom discussion will take place on Sunday, June 2nd at 7pm (ET), send an email if you would like to reserve a spot. You can join The Awakening Goodreads Discussion anytime and we’ve also created a Goodreads thread for general romance chit chat.

Download the Romance Bingo Card!

– Currently Reading –  
Moby Dick – Herman Melville (CW) send an email if you want to join the buddy read
The Women – Kristin Hannah (EF) (audiobook)
The Maiden – Kate Foster (CW)
Mother Grains: Recipes for the Grain Revolution – Roxana Jullapat (EF)
Why We Read: On Bookworms, Libraries, and Just One More Page Before Lights Out – Shannon Reed (CW)
Wake Up With Purpose! What I’ve Learned in my First Hundred Years – Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt (CW)(audiobook)

– Just Read –
Emily read two short stories: “Lot” by Bryan Washington from the story collection Lot: Stories and “Postcards from Heaven” from Reunion Beach: Stories Inspired by Dorothea Benton Frank.
Chris read the short story “Consequences” by Willa Cather from the story collection Uncle Valentine and Other Stories. Learn more about the Willa Cather short story project.  
The Frozen River – Ariel Lawhon (EF)
We Got the Beat – Jenna Miller (CW)
Jenna was featured in an Author Spotlight on Episode 174 talking about her debut novel Out of Character.
Finding Margaret Fuller – Allison Pataki (EF)

– Episode Sponsor –
Mothership: A Memoir of Wonder and Crisis by Greg Wrenn.

– Biblio Adventures –
Chris had a Couch Biblio Adventure watching Mary, Queen of Scots starring Vanessa Redgrave and Mary Queen of Scots starring Saoirse Ronan based on John Guy's biography Queen of Scots: The True Life of Mary Stuart.

Emily took a trip to Wilmington, NC where she tried unsuccessfully to shop at Papercuts Bookshop because it was closed for inventory. She did find two little free libraries where she found Thirteen Moons by Charles Frazier, Intimacies by Katie Kitamura, and Each Peach Pear Plum by Janet and Allan Ahlberg.

Emily went to the North Haven public library where she purchased Lot: Stories by Bryan Washington and Who’s Irish?: Stories by Gish Jen from the Friends of the Library sale and attended a presentation with Linda Civitello author of Baking Powder Wars: The Cutthroat Food Fight That Revolutionized Cooking.

– Upcoming Jaunts –
Chris has purchased a ticket for the New York International Antiquarian Book Fair taking place April 4-7.

Emily plans to attend an event with Anna Quindlen, author of After Annie, in conversation with Beatriz Williams hosted by RJ Julia Booksellers on Tuesday, March 26th at 7:00 pm. Tickets are available here.

– Upcoming Reads –
You Are Here: Poetry in the Natural World – edited by Ada Limón (EF)
Filthy Rich Vampire – Geneva Lee (CW)
Public in Name Only: The 1939 Alexandria Library Sit-In Demonstration – Brenda Mitchell-Powell (CW)
Mary Queen of Scots – Antonia Fraser (CW)

– Out Now –
James – Percival Everett
Memory Piece – Lisa Ko
Next Stop: A Graphic Novel – Debbie Fong

– Author Spotlight with Allison Pataki –
We chat with Allison about her new novel Finding Margaret Fuller.
You can learn more about Allison’s books here.

– Also Mentioned –
Also by Kristin Hannah: Firefly Lane and The Nightingale
Matterhorn: A Novel of the Vietnam War by Karl Marlantes
Women’s Prize for Fiction 2024
New England Quarterly Margaret Fuller Prize for New England Literary Studies
James Tait Black Memorial Prize
American Bloomsbury: Louisa May Alcott, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Margaret Fuller, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Henry David Thoreau: Their Lives, Their Loves, Their Work - Susan Cheever
Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe
Books written by Margaret Fuller include: Summer on the Lakes and Woman in the Nineteenth Century
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Walden and Civil Disobedience by Henry David Thoreau
Nature by Ralph Waldo Emerson

Help support the Book Cougars via our affiliates:
Libro.fm
audiobook platform: Follow this link and use promo code: bookcougars
Shop on Bookshop.org – support the Book Cougars and independent bookstores!

If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. If you would prefer to donate directly, email for instructions.

Join our Goodreads Group!

Check out our BookTube Channel and be sure to subscribe!

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter.

Episode 202 - Author & Editor Spotlight with Jessica Pryde

Episode 202 Show Notes

– Currently Reading –  
The Vanishing of Carolyn Wells – Rebecca Rego Barry (CW) (audiobook)
Between Two Kingdoms: A Memoir of Life Interrupted – Suleika Jaouad (EF) (audiobook)
Indigo – Beverly Jenkins (CW) (audiobook)
Black Love Matters: Real Talk on Romance: Real Talk on Romance, Being Seen, and Happily Ever Afters – Jessica P. Pryde (CW)(EF)

– Just Read –
Emily tried to read two short stories but accidentally read a chapter from the novel That Old Ace in the Hole and the short story “Referential” by Lorrie Moore in The Best American Short Stories 2013 guest edited by Elizabeth Strout.
Vampires of El Norte – Isabel Cañas (CW) (audiobook)
Mrs. Caliban – Rachel Ingalls (EF)
Finding Margaret Fuller – Allison Pataki (CW) release date 3/19/2024
How To End a Love Story – Yulin Kuang (EF) release date 4/9/2024

– Biblio Adventures –
Emily stopped at Breakwater Books expecting to pick up a book for the Gentleman Caller and was surprised to receive a copy of Start Here: Instructions for Becoming a Better Cook by Sohla El-Waylly.

Chris spent a day in Manhattan at the New York Society Library doing research in the archives and searching for books by Sophia Belzer Engstrand. She couldn’t find Wilma Rogers but there was a well-loved copy of Miss Munday. There were also books on the shelf by her husband Stuart Engstrand including The Sling and the Arrow. A highlight of the day was finding a first edition of Emily Dickinson Face to Face.

Chris and Emily had two joint jaunts the first was in Book Cougars HQ chatting with Booktuber Melinda Ott. The second was a trip to Chester, CT to see Chris’s wife, Laura Thoma, read from her work-in-progress at the Chester Arts & Literary Weekend.   

Chris participated in a virtual event with Rebecca Rego Barry about her new book The Vanishing of Caroline Wells : Investigations into a Forgotten Mystery Author sponsored by The Ohio State University’s Rare Books & Manuscripts Library. Rebecca recommended two favorite books by Carolyn Wells: Murder in the Bookshop and Vicky Van.

Emily is looking forward to watching a video with Roxane Gay (The Audacity Newsletter) in conversation with Sohla El-Waylly about her new cookbook Start Here: Instructions for Becoming a Better Cook.

– Episode Sponsor –
If Her Love Was Enough by Catherine Oni

Catherine will be signing books at Bank Square Books in Mystic, CT on Saturday, March 2nd from 1-3pm (ET).

– Upcoming Jaunts –
Chris and Emily are heading on a joint jaunt to An Unlikely Story to meet Jenna Miller author of the new novel We Got the Beat. Wednesday, March 6 at 7PM (ET). She will be in conversation with Alecia Dow, Jennifer Dugan, and Jenny L. Howe.

– Upcoming Reads –
Small Odysseys: Selected Shorts Presents 35 New Stories – edited by Hannah Tinti (EF)
Shark Heart: A Love Story – Emily Habeck (EF)
Church on the Screen – Julie Fitzpatrick (CW)
Moby Dick – Herman Melville (CW) send an email if you want to join the buddy read

– Out Now –
Splinters: Another Kind of Love Story – Leslie Jamison
We Got the Beat – Jenna Miller
Grief Is for People – Sloane Crosley
Thirst – Marina Yuszczuk, translated by Heather Cleary
Summer at Squee – Andrea Wang  

– Editor Spotlight with Jessica Pryde –
We chat with Jess about Black Love Matters: Real Talk on Romance: Real Talk on Romance, Being Seen, and Happily Ever Afters. She recommends the book Well-Read Black Girl edited by Gloria Edim.

Learn more about Jessica here. You can find her writing on Book Riot.

– 1st Quarter 2024 Readalong –
Our first quarter readalong is Indigo by Beverly Jenkins. 

Our Zoom discussion will take place on Sunday, March 3rd at 7pm (ET), send an email if you would like to reserve a spot. You can join the Indigo Goodreads discussion here. We’ve also created a Goodreads thread for general romance chit chat.

– Also Mentioned –
Information about the remote control page turner shared by Sigrid (https://www.instagram.com/hatcherstacks):
This one works on the Kindle App, this one costs $10 more but works on the Kindle, Kobos, and more!
The movie American Symphony
Also by Annie Proulx: Brokeback Mountain and The Shipping News
Dracula by Bram Stoker
Carmilla Sheridan Le Fanu
Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates
The Ice Storm by Rick Moody
Also by Emily Henry: Beach Read and People We Meet on Vacation
Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen
Also by Michael Fink (Episode ): The Stranger in the Woods and The Art Thief

Help support the Book Cougars via our affiliates:
Libro.fm
audiobook platform: Follow this link and use promo code: bookcougars
Shop on Bookshop.org – support the Book Cougars and independent bookstores!|

If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. If you would prefer to donate directly, email for instructions.

Join our Goodreads Group!

Check out our BookTube Channel and be sure to subscribe!

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter.