Shelf Motivated

Join us as we discuss Fall and Winter reading, our takes on what gets published when, and some of Sarah's least favorite things about how books look.

Sarah discusses:

• The Bee Sting by Paul Murray
• The Fraud by Zadie Smith
• Let Us Descend by Jesmyn Ward
• Rouge by Mona Awad

TBR:

• Dracula by Bram Stoker Paperbacks From Hell series, particularly The Nest of Nightmares by Lisa Tuttle

Eric discusses:

• The Last Devil to Die (A Thursday Murder Club book) by Richard Osman

TBR:

• Julia by Sandra Newman
• Prophet Song by Paul Lynch
• The 272 by Rachel Swarns
• Secret Hours by Mick Herron

Sharon discusses:

• Covid Reads:
• The Hopkins Manuscript by R.C. Sherriff
• Landscapes of the Detectorists edited by Innes M. Keighren and Joanne Norcup
• Akenfield by Ronald Blythe
• I Could Read the Sky by Timothy O'Grady and Steve Pyke

TBR:

• Return to Akenfield: Portrait of an English Village in the 21st Century by Craig Taylor
• Fortnight in September by R.C. Sherriff

Briefly Mentioned:

• The Lion and the Unicorn: Socialism and the English Genius by George Orwell
• Wifedom by Anna Funder
• Orwell's Roses by Rebecca Solnit
• Backlisted podcast

You know what they say... “Genre, genre, genre!” Well, OK, maybe nobody is saying that, but on this episode, we discuss genre, A LOT! Come for the genre, but stick around for a check-in on Sarah’s Book Tube judging, multiple literary trips to Italy, the book-as-object and how disgruntled book people get about certain things publishers do (“that should be illegal!”), analog and digital, and who gets described as “a long-winded Elizabeth Strout.” Books discussed include: Grove: A Field Novel by Esther Kinsky Roman Stories by Jhumpa Lahiri Angel of Oblivion by Maja Haderlap Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant by Anne Tyler Winter Love by Suyin Han Divine Days by Leon Forrest At the Café by Errico Malatesta The Revenge of Analog by David Sax The Last Days of Video by Jeremy Hawkins Hiss Me Deadly by Miranda James

This episode we discuss what kinds of books we read most, A Christmas Carol, reading to our partners, and our ever-growing to-be-read lists. Books include Rock Crystal: A Christmas Story by Adalbert Stifter (translated by Marianne Moore), True Biz by Sara Nivoc, A Killing in Costumes by Zac Bissonnette, The Great Beanie Baby Bubble by Zac Bissonnette, Twelve Nights by Urs Faes (translated by Lee Searle), The Evenings: A Winter's Tale by Gerard Reve (translated by Sam Garret).

Sarah, Sharon and Eric discuss strategies on how to read outside your comfort zone. Eric treats us to a beautiful reading from Sarai Walker's Cherry Robbers, and Sharon discusses the magic of folklore.

Eric

• The Cherry Robbers by Sarai Walker
• The Taliban Cricket Club: a Novel by Timeri N. Murari
• The Kebab Kitchen Mysteries by Tina Kashian
• The Year of Reading Dangerously by Andy Miller

Sarah

• Frontlist--Once Upon a Tome: The Misadventures of a Rare Bookseller by Oliver Darkshire
• Backlist--Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel
• TBR--Whale by Cheon Myeong-Kwan, translated by Chi-Young Kim

Sharon

• The Other Irish Tradition Edited by Rob Doyle
• Wild: Tales from Early Medieval Britain by Amy Jeffs
• Orlam by PJ Harvey

Also Referenced:

Backlisted Podcast

BBC Countryfile Magazine Plodcast

Raised on Radio Interview with PJ Harvey on her book Orlam- YouTube

Summer Reading is drawing to a close. On this episode we talk whaling, nature writing, southern gothic novels, and housecats. We discuss some exciting to-be-reads, and as always, a cozy mystery.

Books discussed in this episode:

Sharon

• On Lighthouses by Jazmine Barrera trans. by Christina McSweeney
• The Outermost House by Henry Beston
• The Whale by Philip Hoare
• TBR- Soundings by Doreen Cunningham

Sarah

• The Lion in the Livingroom by Abigale Tucker
• The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell - Robert Dugoni
• TBR - The Murderer by Roy Heath

Eric

• The Violent Bear It Away - Flannery O'Connor
• Wise Blood - Flannery O'Connor
• Cozy- Apple Cider Slaying by Julie Ann Lindsey
• TBR - The Notebooks 1936-1947 by Victor Serge