Episode 78 - Absolute Freaks with Taylor Thornburg
On this episode, Taylor Thornburg, multi-media creator and fan talks about how to plug in to the local literary scene, his connection to physical media, and how he loves authors that are just entirely out of the box. We also talk about a lot of the great benefits of the Chicago reading life.
Agathe, 6:00 p.m. to 7:27
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading:
Katabasis by R.F. Kuang
Flashlight by Susan Choi
Books Highlighted by Taylor:
Ubik by Philip K. Dick
In Praise of the Stepmother by Mario Vargas Llosa
White Cat, Black Dog by Kelly Link
Lapovona by Ottessa Moshfegh
My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante
Gravity’s Rainbow by Thomas Pynchon
Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page.
Other books mentioned in this episode:
Herscht 07769 by Lázló Krasznahorkai
Schattenfroh by Michael Lentz
The Instructions by Adam Levin
The Möbius Book by Catherine Lacey
Bluets by Maggie Nelson
The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
Frindle by Andrew Clements
Severance by Ling Ma
Bliss Montage by Ling Ma
Shadow Ticket by Thomas Pynchon
All Fours by Miranda July
My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh
Eileen by Ottessa Moshfegh
Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace
Chain Gang All Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
North Woods by Daniel Mason
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Episode 77 - Book Club - Little Eyes
On this episode, Lorna Sherry and Cara Sandlass join me to discuss the most recent Off Color Book Club book, Little Eyes by Samanta Schweblin.
My Book Club Guide
If you’re interested in joining the Off Color Book Club in November, we will be meeting on Tuesday, November 18th to discuss Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar. All are welcome!
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Episode 76 - TMSH with Tina of TBR, etc.
On this episode, Tina of TBR, etc., talks about how being an active book person in multiple internet formats affects her reading life, her favorite genre acronym, and we go deep into the world of reading trackers. We also talk about her viral moment this past summer when she broke an AI-related book story.
Books to Read if You Liked Unknown Caller
Books With Covers We Hate and Why We Read Them Anyway
Tina TBR, etc Instagram
TikTok
Tina Books | TBR, etc. - YouTube
Book Talk, etc.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading:
It’s Not the End of the World by Jonathan Parks-Ramage
Hot Air by Marcy Dermansky
Little Eyes by Samanta Schweblin
Books Highlighted by Tina:
Look Closer by David Ellis
Hush Little Baby by R.H. Herron
Next of Kin by Kia Abdullah
One Yellow Eye by Leigh Radford
Red Clay by Charles B. Fancher
Dominion by Addie E. Citchens
Saving Noah by Lucinda Berry
Nobody Knows You’re Here by Bryn Greenwood
When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page.
Other books mentioned in this episode:
The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager
We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer
Nestlings by Nat Cassidy
Mary by Nat Cassidy
King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby
Razorblade Tears by S.A. Cosby
All the Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby
The Nix by Nathan Hill
When the Wolf Comes Home by Nat Cassidy
Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy
Play Nice by Rachel Harrison
Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
The Humans by Matt Haig
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab
Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab
All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood
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Episode 75 - Alchemize it Into Art with Rebecca Tucker
On this episode, Rebecca Tucker, who is working on writing her own fantasy novel, talks about how reading was incentivized for her at an early age but had ups and downs in her reading later in life. We also talk about some great fantasy novels and I make a claim about a book I believe will be considered one of the great memoirs.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading:
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones
It’s Not the End of the World by Jonathan Parks-Ramage
Books Highlighted by Rebecca:
When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill
The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon
The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones
Modernist Woman Poets
Eurydice by Sara Ruhl
Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan
The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel van der Kolk
I’m Glad my Mom Died by Jenette McCurdy
The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang
Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Melinda Lo
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page.
Other books mentioned in this episode:
Red Rising by Pierce Brown
Katabasis by R.F. Kuang
The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien
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Episode 74 - Make Me Hallucinate with Eirien
On this episode, Eirien, author of The Riven War, discusses her love of fantasy, including a classic series that I really believe is underrated. She also talks about her first moment understanding the power of a book, how she looks for books that speak to her more than popularity, and how being a slower reader can actually be a benefit.
Get The Riven War here!
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading:
The Secret History by Donna Tartt
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones
Books Highlighted by Eirien:
Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg
The Witcher Blood of Elves by Andzrej Sapowski
Dune by Frank Herbert
The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis
The Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde
All books available on my Bookshop.org episode page.
Other books mentioned in this episode:
Till We Have Faces by C.S. Lewis
The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
Marley & Me by John Grogan
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
Frankenstein by Mary Shelly
Books with Betsy is a podcast that celebrates the reading life of all readers. Each week, Betsy interviews a different person about their reading life. Listen for book recommendations, reading tips, and to join in the joy that reading brings. And remember, anyone who reads is a reader.
New Zealand