Show Notes
Come for the Crested Grebes, stay for the conspiracy theories! This time around on the podcast we check in with our own book-prize judge Sarah as her current Book Tube judging comes to an end, we get into the difficulty of discussing short story collections in book clubs, and broach the topic of the "glacially beautiful" in literature. Sharon provides a raft of Irish Writers for March, and Eric reads books debunking conspiracy theories, and a novel about the end of the home video rental era. Oh, and also… cats! Books discussed include: Long Time, No See by Dermot Healy Bliss Montage by Ling Ma Minka and Curdy by Antonia White Seven Steeples by Sara Bayme Wild Embrace by Anja Murray Trust the Process by Will Sommar Republic of Lies by Anna Merlan Last Days of Video by Jeremy Hawkins Cozy: Magical Bakery Mysteries by Bailey Cates TBR: Song for a New Day by Sara Pinsker James by Percival Everett
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Happy Spooky Season! That means this is our Annual Spooky Season Reading Episode, so break out some Halloween candy and dig in. We talk about folk horror, classic horror, horror comedy and more. Come for the horror, stay for the shocking realization that our reading tastes and habits shift and evolve over the years! Books discussed include: Starve Acre by Andrew Michael Hurley The Rednexorcist by Frank Sloane (Grady Hendrix) Paperbacks from Hell by Grady Hendrix Midnight Pleasures by Robert Bloch Dwellings by Jay Stephens Salem's Lot by Stephen King Ocultos by Laura Perez Mapping the Interior by Stephen Graham Jones TBRs: The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne Restoration by Ave Barrera trans. by Ellen Jones and Robin Myers
We're back! After a break, Sharon, Sarah, and Eric are back behind the microphones to bring you episode 33 of Shelf Motivated. Come for the book chat, stay for continued discussion of a movie that Sarah says was better than the book! Here's a hint… we've been talking about this book on the pod since 2024! Sharon explores the darker end of the cozy spectrum, Eric reads one of the most popular books of the year, Sarah reads about kids books, and retired killers (not in the same book…don't worry). All this and more! Books Discussed:
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Happy Spooky Season! This year on the Shelf Motivated Spooky Season Spectacular Special we get into a few classics of American horror from the 1970s, some folk horror, some horror anthologies, and a few British books that are horror adjacent. Come for the horror, stick around to hear Sharon talk about literary fiction that has ghosts, and Sarah take one of her all-time favorite writers to task! Break out the candy!
Even if you aren't a comics reader, come for the graphic novel chat, stay for the dive into a hyper-local figure who changed the face of comics and publishing forever! This time on the pod we sit down with MLPL Clerk Chris Lutes and talk all things graphic novels and comics. Chris is a graphic artist and has had experience in comic shops and bookstores before coming over to Library Land… and he gave us homework!