Required Reading

It's my podcast and I'll do the entire Vampire Academy series if I want to. And I do. Liz Wiest returns to discuss book three: SHADOW KISS!! Listen to our episodes on book ONE and TWO ! Check out Liz's traveling film festival! Follow the show! Follow Erin!

Writer and podcaster David Murto joins me to discuss the science fiction Newbery winning classic: A WRINKLE IN TIME by Madeleine L'Engle! Meg and Charles Wallace Murry go on a multi-dimensional space and time travel journey to find their father and prevent It and the oncoming Darkness. Listen to David's podcast Forgotten Video Store - Erin did an episode! Follow the show! Follow Erin!

Director and actress Jenny Lester joins me to discuss the 1995 film NOW AND THEN (directed by Lesli Linka Glatter) all about four women who reunite to recount one very special summer from their childhood. Jenny has a movie coming out soon that was directly inspired by Now and Then: check it out ! Follow Jenny! Follow the show! Follow Erin!

I can't explain it but Agatha Christie is the perfect author for September. Rebecca Thandi Norman joins me to discuss Agatha Christie's THE MURDER OF ROGER ACKROYD featuring the inimitable Hercule Poirot! Listen to Rebecca's podcast Book Imprint (it is this show's fraternal twin, really truly, my guy) and her Agatha Christie podcast Tea & Murder ! Follow Rebecca! Follow Erin! Follow the show!

Zannah is back and so is Fablehaven! We return to the magical creature nature preserve with book two The Rise of the Evening Star! Siblings Kendra and Seth must return to Fablehaven to help their grandparents stop the evil Society of the Evening Star in their quest to gather special magical artifacts. Listen to our episode on book one of the series! Listen to Zannah's other episodes on The Iliad a...

Lauren Badillo Milici returns to discuss Flowers in the Attic THE MOVIE from 1987! Listen to Lauren's episode on the novel Flowers in the Attic! Follow Lauren! Follow the show! Follow Erin!

Jess is back for a fourth time with one of the most famous children's books of all time! Listen to Jess' past episodes on The Tale of Desperaux , The Nightmare Before Christmas , and The Host! Follow Jess ! Follow Erin ! Follow the podcast !

It's a movie episode! Kevin T Porter returns to discuss horrifying 80s classic Return to Oz! Listen to Kevin's episode on Artemis Fowl! Listen to Kevin's episode on Wayside School is Falling Down ! Follow Kevin ! Listen to Kevin's Good Christian Fun (Erin's been on a few episodes, oooo....) Follow Erin!

You can hear me smiling in this episode! The magical Kyle Selig (Welcome to Flatch...ever heard of it?) joins me to discuss book two in The Hardy Boys series, The House on the Cliff! Gosh, golly, this is a good one! Follow Kyle! Watch Welcome to Flatch ! Follow Erin !

Just in time for the new movie - Madeline North returns to discuss The Odyssey! Check out The Iliad with Zannah Schorer or Madeline's past episodes covering The Princess Bride , Eragon , and Jane Eyre ! Follow Madeline ! Follow Erin!

Sam Walt Jones returns to discuss the 16th Goosebumps book ONE DAY AT HORRORLAND by RL Stine from 1994. Listen to Sam's first episode covering The Golden Compass ! Listen to more Goosebumps episodes! The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb Stay Out of the Basement Monster Blood Say Cheese and Die The Horror at Camp Jellyjam Welcome to Camp Nightmare Follow Sam! Follow Erin!

Writer and podcaster Phillip Iscove joins me to discuss the 1979 vampire classic, BUNNICULA by James and Deborah Howe, a rabbit tale of mystery about a dog who can eat chocolate, a well-intentioned well-read cat, and a Snoopy-like bunny that drains vegetables of color. Today vegetables, tomorrow the world! Listen to Phillip's podcast ! Follow Phillip ! Follow Erin !

Lizzie Logan returns to discuss Scott O'Dell's Newbery Award winning book THE ISLAND OF BLUE DOLPHINS. Based on a true story, when Karana's entire village leaves their island to escape raiders, she is left to fend for herself for over a decade. Listen to Lizzie's podcast Hoax! Listen to Lizzie's first episode of the podcast about Rachel Cohn's POP PRINCESS ! Follow Erin!

It's RL Stine's world and we're just living it. I'm back on another solo Goosebumps episode covering book 5 of the original series. Check out some of our previous Goosebumps episodes: The Horror of Camp JellyJam Stay Out of the Basement Welcome to the Dead House Monster Blood

Zannah Schorer returns to discuss one of the oldest stories ever told: THE ILIAD! And yes, there will be an episode about the Odyssey soon. Follow Zannah ! Listen to their episodes about The Tail of Emily Windsnap and Fablehaven ! Follow Erin!

Writer and podcaster Josh Corey ( Welcome to Flatch ) joins me to discuss literary legend Beverly Cleary and her novel THE MOUSE AND THE MOTORCYCLE. The story? Well, it's really very simple: boy meets mouse, and they both love motorcycle. Check out Josh's new podcast FROM WRITER TO FIGHTER! ! Follow Josh on Instagram ! Follow Erin!

It's winter break at the Vampire Academy and Liz Wiest and I are sinking our TEETH into the sequel Frostbite. From Richelle Mead and the pivotal year of 2008, Frostbite follows the increasingly treacherous world of St Vladimir's Academy and the broader Pacific Northwest as royal vampire families are being eliminated by the bad guy vampires. Listen to our episode on book one ! Follow Liz ! Follow E...

Kate Hagen (SVP, The Black List) joins me to discuss Stephen King's classic novel of teen girl rage: CARRIE! High school outcast Carrie gets her period for the first time, and also telekineses. It ends poorly. Follow Kate ! Listen to Kate talk BABY BOOM on Ticklish Business ! Check out our previous Stephen King episode: Misery with Enor Bishop ! Follow Erin ! Support the show !

It's Slenderman...before Slenderman...This week writer Lev Francesca AKA Lisco2000 joins me to discuss a book no one has ever heard of (probably) Malice by Chris Wooding - a novel combining graphic novel and prose and miscellaneous documents to tell the story of a graphic novel that's really pulling kids in. Follow Lev ! Follow Erin! Support the show !

This week comedian Tocarra Elise joins me to discuss her favorite revenge classic: THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO by Alexandre Dumas! After 14 years of wrongful imprisonment, sailor Edmond Dantes transforms himself into the Count of Monte Cristo in order to exact revenge on those who imprisoned him. Follow Tocarra's Library and check out her work on the Getty kid's podcast If Objects Could Talk! Suppor...

What is a witch if not a woman by a pond? This week Courtney Young joins me to revisit everyone's favorite book from 4th grade: THE WITCH OF BLACKBIRD POND! In colonial America, Kit Tyler leaves Barbados to come to her aunt's family in Connecticut but finds herself quickly under suspicion by the Puritanical community. A girl who's a little bit different? Must be a WITCH!! Check out Courtney's work...

Can you believe it took this long to get to Ray Bradbury? Better late than never as this week incredible video essayist and writer Mel Thomas joins me to discuss THE MARTIAN CHRONICLES - a science fiction novel-in-short-stories about human colonization of Mars. Follow Mel! Follow Erin ! Support the podcast !

We're back! Erin got laid off and then went on vacation, but now we're back! We as in the royal we. Madeline North also returns to discuss Charlotte Bronte's 1847 classic: JANE EYRE. And we also talk a lot about Wuthering Heights. It can't be helped! Jane Eyre follows orphan Jane from ages 10-20 as she escapes a cruel home to go to an even crueler boarding school, then becomes a governess, falls i...

Welcome to 2026 and welcome to the VAMPIRE ACADEMY where we are horny, confused, and Catholic. Writer Liz Wiest joins me to discuss Richelle Mead's 2007 novel. The plot is complex but it's girls at an academy for vampires. You get the gist. Follow Liz ! Follow Erin! Support the show!

Folks, it's episode 100. Professor Carly O'Brien returns for her fourth episode (first time a guest has made it to four episodes, a historic one indeed) to cover a play that fundamentally shaped who I am as an artist and as a lil freak. Measure for Measure is known as one of Shakespeare's three problem plays. It follows a Duke, a nun, and, well,.,, just listen. This is the last episode of 2025! Se...