82K
Downloads
299
Episodes
Perks of Being a Book Lover is a show about books, people who read, and how reading, at its very best, is a social experience. Whether it be a book club, a poetry slam, or the production of a play; words are meant to be shared. Keep up with us on FB.
Episodes
Wednesday Aug 24, 2022
Wednesday Aug 24, 2022
This week we are joined by Shelley Sackier who has had an interesting literary journey. She is a young adult fiction writer who has recently published a book about scotch whisky called Make It a Double: From Wretched to Wondrous: Tales of One Woman’s Lifelong Discovery of Whisky. It is part Scotch history, a love letter to the country itself, and part memoir about how her love for the spirit developed especially after she completed an internship at a Scottish distillery. Over the course of 20 years, it has changed the trajectory of her life. Shelley works as a whiskey educator at Reservoir Distillery in Richmond, Virginia.
You can follow Shelley Sackier on Instagram @shelleysackier or at her website www.shelleysackier.com
For shownotes for any episode go to our website www.perksofbeingabooklover.com.
We are also on Instagram @perksofbeingabookloverpod and on FB Perks of Being a BookLover
Books Mentioned in This Episode:
1- Make it a Double: From Wretched from Wondrous: Tales of One Woman's Lifelong Discovery of Whisky by Shelley Sackier
2- The Monsters of Rookhaven by Padraig Kenny
3- The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier
4- A Season to Taste: How I Lost My Sense of Smell and Found My Way by Molly Birnbaum
5- The Babysitter: My Summers With a Serial Killer by Jennifer Jordan and Liza Rodman
6- The School for Good Mothers by Jessamine Chan
Wednesday Aug 17, 2022
Wednesday Aug 17, 2022
In this week’s episode, we chat with Erin Flanagan, an author whose debut novel Deer Season won a 2022 Edgar Award for Best First Novel; her most recent book that published this past summer is a thriller called Blackout. Blackout revolves around a sociology professor named Maris who begins having blackouts despite the fact that she gave up drinking seven months before and then discovers other women in her community are experiencing the same thing. It’s a bit of a #metoo novel with some speculative science and some vodka thrown in. In addition to being an award-winning writer, Erin is also a creative writing professor at Wright State University in Ohio.
You can follow Erin Flanagan on Instagram @erinlflanagan or at her website; www.erinflanagan.net
For shownotes for any episode at our website www.perksofbeingabooklover.com.
Follow us on Instagram @perksofbeingabookloverpod and on FB Perks of Being a BookLover
Books Mentioned in this Episode:
1- Deer Season by Erin Flanagan
2- Blackout by Erin Flanagan
3- In Defense of Witches: The Legacy of the Witch Hunts and Why Women Are Still on Trial by Mona Chollet
4- Shit Cassandra Saw by Gwen Kirby
5- The Damage by Caitlin Wahrer
6- They Never Learn by Layne Fargo
7- The Case of the Missing Marquess (Enola Holmes #1) by Nancy Springer
8- The Case of the Left-Handed Lady (Enola Holmes #2) by Nancy Springer
Movie Mentioned
1- Enola Holmes - 2020 (Netflix)
TV series mentioned:
1- Severance - 2022 (Apple +)
Wednesday Aug 10, 2022
Wednesday Aug 10, 2022
This week we speak with Cassie Moses, a mom from a small town in Central Kentucky. Cassie grew up in Eastern Kentucky at the Hindman Settlement School where her father was the administrator and where she met and befriended lots of Kentucky artists through the Appalachian Writers Workshop.
Cassie began a book club several years ago with her three daughters, and it has offered a way for her to read books that they’ve selected and have special one-on-one time with each of them to discuss these books while doing something special, like going out for ice cream or lunch. We also spend a few minutes speaking with her oldest child, Riley, who shares some of the great books she’s read with her mom.
You can follow Cassie on Instagram @kybooklady.
For shownotes for any episode at our website www.perksofbeingabooklover.com.
We are also on Instagram @perksofbeingabookloverpod and on FB Perks of Being a BookLover
Books Mentioned In This Episode:
1- Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt
2- Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin
3- Diary of Anne Frank
4- Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley
5- Lovely War by Julie Berry
6- House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
7- Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo
8- Same Sun Here by Neela Vaswani and Silas House
9- The Kingdom of Back by Marie Lu
10- A River Enchanted by Rebecca Ross
11- The Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley
12- Percy Jackson series
13- Ariadne by Jennifer Saint
14- Kaikeyi by Vaishnavi Patel
15- The School for Good Mothers by Jessamine Chan
16- The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson
17- The Book Woman's Daughter by Kim Michele Richardson
18- I'll Show Myself Out: Essays on Midlife and Motherhood by Jessi Klein
Wednesday Aug 03, 2022
Wednesday Aug 03, 2022
This week is a hybrid episode as we slowly creep back into a recording schedule after a nice long summer break. We’ve got Appalachia and Eastern Kentucky on our minds because of the recent catastrophic flooding in parts of the state so we decided that we’d rebroadcast part of an earlier episode with Kendra Winchester, founder of Read Appalachia on Instagram, who champions Appalachian writers on her feed.
But we also had the opportunity to speak this week with Bobi Conn, an Appalachian author and friend of the show who we interviewed in June of 2020 about her debut memoir In the Shadow of the Valley, a raw and unflinching look at growing up in Eastern Kentucky and her dysfunctional family. Bobi has a new novel coming out at the end of August call A Woman In Time that incorporates more family stories she heard about her great grandpa, a moonshiner, and her great grandmother, who held the family together.
Did you know that helping flood victims can be as easy as buying a book? This Saturday, August 6, Carmichaels Bookstore in Louisville KY will donate all profits from book sales from all 3 stores and their website to Eastern Kentucky flood relief funds organized by Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky and the Hindman Settlement School. Their website is www.carmichaelsbookstore.com.
We will be back next week with the true start of Season 7 and an all new episode. Happy Reading!
You can find Bobi Conn on Instagram https://instagram.com/bobiconn/ and her website www.bobiconn.com.
You can find Kendra Winchester @readappalachia and @Kdwinchester
You can find shownotes for any episode at our website www.perksofbeingabooklover.com.
We are also on Instagram @perksofbeingabookloverpod and on FB Perks of Being a BookLover
Books Mentioned in this Episode:
1- A Woman in Time by Bobi Conn
2- In the Shadow of the Valley by Bobi Conn
3- Too Bright to See by Kyle Lukoff
4- Embers on the Wind by Lisa Williamson Rosenberg
5- Finna by Nino Cipri
6- Defekt by Nino Cipri
7- Percy Jackson & The Olympians by Rick Riordan
8- Sabriel by Garth Nix
9- Books by Tamora Pierce
10- Twilight by Stephanie Meyer
11- Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
12- Rise to the Sun by Leah Johnson
13- The Secret Lives of Church Ladies by Deesha Philyaw
14- The Birds of Opulence by Crystal Wilkinson
15- Affrilachia by Frank X. Walker
16- Southernmost by Silas House
17- Black Bone: 25 Years of Affrilachian Poets edited by Bianca Lynne Spriggs and Jeremy Paden
18- Water Street by Crystal Wilkinson
19- Hillbilly Elegy by JD Vance
20- Even As We Breathe by Annette Saunooke Cladsaddle
21- Step Into the Circle: Writers in Modern Appalachia edited by Amy Greene and Trent Thomson
Wednesday Jul 27, 2022
Wednesday Jul 27, 2022
We are taking the month of July off to recharge but will be back with all new episodes in August. But until then, we have some great replay episodes.
This week, we revisit our episode with Melissa Hart, author of Better With Books: 500 Diverse Books to Ignite Empathy and Encourage Self-Acceptance in Tweens and Teens. This book is a wonderful resource that offers book suggestions in various categories, including adoption/foster care, poverty/homelessness, mental health, and physical disabilities. With some schools and libraries censoring what students can find in their stacks, parents may find this book particularly helpful if they want to allow their children to read widely.
Melissa Hart also has a new book coming out in November of this year titled Daisy Woodworth Changes the World about a 13-year-old girl who tries to help her older brother, who has Down Syndrome and adores Special Olympics and men’s fashion, become a YouTube celebrity.
This week’s episode is a nod to back-to-school season when teachers can get books into the hands of kids after a summer of free days, endless video games, and probably too many popsicles. We are joined by Melissa Hart from Eugene Oregon. She is the author of 2 memoirs, a middle grade book, and most recently a great resource for teachers, librarians, and parents called Better with Books: 500 Diverse Books to Ignite Empathy and Encourage Self-Acceptance in Tweens and Teens.
When Melissa’s tween daughter was in elementary school, she dealt with anxiety and depression, and Melissa found a way to help her through reading targeted books together, a practice called bibliotherapy which some studies suggest is effective in the treatment of some forms of depression. But the list of books in Better With Books can also help a young person develop empathy and be more accepting of others who have different experiences from their own such as individuals with physical disabilities, mental health struggles, body image issues, and students from different religious backgrounds.
You can find find Melissa on instagram @wildmelissahart or at her website at www.melissahart.com.
Books mentioned--
1- Better with Books: 500 Books to Ignite Empathy and Encourage Self-Acceptance in Tweens and Teens by Melissa Hart
2- Pinballs by Betsy Ayers
3- What Goes Up Must Come Down by Johanna Hurwitz
4- Sugar by Jewell Parker Rhodes
5- Raymie Nightingale by Kate DiCamillo
6- The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Patterson
7- The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
8- Far From the Tree by Robin Benway
9- Ten Things I Can See From Here by Carrie Mac
10- If I Ever Get Out of Here (audiobook) by Eric Gansworth
11- Flora & Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo
12- Avenging the Owl by Melissa Hart
13- Wild Within: How Rescuing Owls Inspired a Family by Melissa Hart
14- Dune by Frank Herbert
15- Dune Messiah (Book 2) by Frank Herbert
16- Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
17- The Overstory by Richard Powers
18- There, There by Tommy Orange
19- Harry's Trees by John Cohen
20- Wishtree by Katherine Applegate
21- Pax by Sara Pennypacker
22- The One and Only Bob / The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate
23- Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter
24- Watership Down by Richard Adams
Movies mentioned--
1- Dune (October 2021), directed by Denis Villeneuve
Wednesday Jul 20, 2022
Wednesday Jul 20, 2022
This week Carrie and I traveled to record at the Tompkins-Buchanan-Rankin Mansion, which is a Victorian era mansion built in 1871, with 12-foot ceilings, hand-carved wood balusters, and intricately designed colorful wallpapers. It has been preserved and enveloped by the campus of Spalding University and is the location of their School of Creative and Professional Writing and home base for today’s guest, debut novelist Katy Yocom.
Katy’s novel, Three Ways to Disappear, was published in 2019 and has won numerous awards including The Siskiyou Prize for Environmental Fiction. It has also been selected as a Barnes and Noble Indie Book Favorite.
Katy has vivid memories of as a child reading All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot out loud with her mother. It was a short leap to her writing her own book about the intricacies of animal conservation and family bonds.
Katy tells us how her obsession with a set of newborn tiger cubs at the Louisville Zoo 14 years ago started her on the path to write her book, how a suggestion from an astute editor changed the trajectory of her novel, and why she believes much of the riskier and cutting edge literature is being published by small independent presses and how important it is to support them.
Books Discussed in this Episode
1- Three Ways to Disappear by Katy Yocom
2- All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot
3- One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia
4- Severance by Ling Ma
5- The Road by Cormac McCarthy
6- Kindred by Octavia Butler
You can find us on FB, instagram (@perksofbeingabookloverpod) and on our website at www.perksofbeingabooklover.com
Wednesday Jul 13, 2022
Wednesday Jul 13, 2022
This week’s guest, Angela Jackson-Brown, is an award-winning novelist, poet, and playwright. She is also a professor at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana who completed her MFA at Spalding University in Louisville where she is also a member of the creative writing graduate faculty.
Her most recent novel, When Stars Rain Down, was published in 2021 and is a historical fiction story set in 1930s Georgia, and has been nominated for several awards. Angela also has a new novel coming out in July called The Light Always Breaks set in post WW 2 Washington DC that features political and romantic intrigue between a high powered interacial couple. These are stand alone novels but what is cool is that these books’ characters are in the same fictional universe so readers get a chance to reconnect with characters they may have met before.
Angela talks to us about how she uses fiction to write about experiences in her life she wished she’d had, why she started writing plays, and the first book she read as a child that made a big impression on her (and this will surprise you).
You can find Angela on Instagram at @angelajacksonbrownauthor and at her author website angelajacksonbrown.com
Follow us on Facebook at The Perks of Being a Book Lover
Instagram - @perksofbeingabookoverpod
Website at www.perksofbeingabooklover.com.
Books Mentioned in this Episode:
1- When Stars Rain Down by Angela Jackson-Brown
2- The Light Always Breaks by Angela Jackson-Brown
3- The Storyteller: Tales of Life and Music by Dave Grohl
4- Drinking From a Bitter Cup by Angela Jackson-Brown
5- Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
6- Roots by Alex Haley
7- The Color Purple by Alice Walter
8- The Prophets by Robert Jones Jr.
9- To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
10- The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Mysterious Howling by Maryrose Wood
11- Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
12- We Are Not Like Them by Christine Pride and Jo Piazza
13- Girl at War by Sara Nović
14- True Biz by Sara Nović
Movies mentioned
1- Child's Play (1988)
2- The Conjuring (2013)
Wednesday Jul 06, 2022
Wednesday Jul 06, 2022
In this last episode of Season 6, we feature a writer who we had the pleasure of meeting in real life at Carmichael’s Bookstore during a leg of her book tour. Courtney Maum is a celebrated author of literary fiction but her latest book is a memoir about how a return to horse riding in her late 30s helped her rediscover herself. It isn’t uncommon at all for women to lose themselves in their roles as mothers or wives or employees and forget what it is that brings them joy and passion and a sense of fun.
Courtney’s book, The Year of the Horses, follows her through personal losses and professional challenges and her ultimate decision to saddle up and not only ride again but take on a new equine endeavor–polo. Her book has been named "A Best Read for Mental Health" by The Today Show and also appears on Amazon's list of Best Books of 2022.
Books Mentioned in this Episode:
1- The Year of the Horses by Courtney Maum
You can find Courtney Maum on Instagram @cbmaum
FB Courtney Maum and her website courtneymaum.com
Follow us on Facebook at The Perks of Being a Book Lover
Instagram at @perksofbeingabookoverpod
For show notes for any episode, go to our website at www.perksofbeingabooklover.com.
Wednesday Jun 29, 2022
Wednesday Jun 29, 2022
We love independent bookstores and try to feature one each season, but this can be difficult. As small business owners, it is often difficult to carve time out of their weeks to speak with us. So we are always grateful when the stars align and we can make it happen.
This week’s episode features Michelle Haring, owner of Cupboard Maker Books in Enola, PA. She tells us about how she first sold rare books, then more widely used books, then new books. And the bookstore has also joined forces with a local nonprofit to “carry” (yes, we’re putting this in air quotes), adoptable cats. There are three store cats that visitors can always see–Mouse, Annika, and Zak. And what goes better with a cozy book than a cat on your lap (at least in Carrie’s estimation).
Books Mentioned in this Episode:
1- Gone With the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
You can find Cupboard Maker Books on Instagram and FB at Cupboard Maker Books and at their website www.CupboardMaker.com
Follow us on Facebook at The Perks of Being a Book Lover
Instagram at @perksofbeingabookoverpod
For show notes for any episode, go to our website at www.perksofbeingabooklover.com.
Wednesday Jun 22, 2022
Wednesday Jun 22, 2022
This is the time of year when lots and lots of people travel so it makes sense to have a travel memoirist on our show. Kate Wickers is a British writer who has spent 25 years or so writing about her extensive travel experiences and publishing in magazines and newspapers all over the world. When COVID hit, she decided to turn her many travels with her husband and three sons into a collection of essays about what travel has meant to their family and the lessons they’ve learned from the experiences travel has given them.
Her memoir, Shape of a Boy, offers a collection of really great stories that will make any parent who has traveled with children go down their own memory lane to remember both the highs and lows of travel when kids are involved. And we’re not the only ones who think her memoir is pretty awesome. National Geographic Traveller listed it as one of the “9 Best Travel Books for 2022.”
You can find Kate Wickers on Instagram at @wickers.kate and at her website katewickers.com
Follow us on Facebook at The Perks of Being a Book Lover
Instagram - @perksofbeingabookoverpod
For show notes for any episode, go to our website at www.perksofbeingabooklover.com.
Books Mentioned In This Episode:
1- Shape of a Boy by Kate Wickers