Totally Booked with Zibby

Rosie Walsh, The One Day You Were My Husband Loss, love, expectations and mystery abound in Rosie Walsh’s latest novel about a woman whose husband vanishes on their wedding night. We spoke about how past traumas inform narratives, the importance of a good first chapter, and more!  Aging Reversal?! Kelly Yang on The Take (and Front Desk !!) My son and I read Front Desk together two summers ago...

I’m obsessed with this novel. Perhaps because I also wrote a book called Forty Love but even though my agent sent it out as the start of the pandemic, it didn’t sell. Which is probably for the best. Jane Costello’s novel is so much better! It’s smart, funny, inspiring, a bit steamy at parts, and page-turning. It centers around a 40-something British woman, a widow, whose only child has just “flown...

Donna Hay  is the ubiquitous cookbook author and lifestyle brand. Her latest cookbook,  Sunshine, Lemons, and Sea Salt, will join the others on my shelf. Hear from Donna in Australia as she discusses her home, her approach to life, her family, and more. Don’t miss her new Disney+ show  Coastal Celebrations. Adeena Sussman  moved to Israel with her husband (hear how  they &...

Dr. Deepika Chopra  teaches us the difference between optimism and positivity, shares her own child’s medical struggles and how she gets through, discusses pregnancy issues, and helps us find the strength we need. If you’ve ever asked, “Why is this happening to us,” then listen in. Dr. Chopra’s book,  The Power of   Real Optimism , is incredibly helpful.  Journalist  Stace...

Kristy Woodson Harvey  spotlights NICU nurses, sports coaches, and a small town in her annual summer novel, this time  Summer State of Mind .  If you’ve ever wondered “how something like this could happen in a town like theirs,” Kristy will pull back the curtain. But don’t worry: as Kristy says, “There are some secrets that come to light through the course of (the book), but you kno...

Pam Sherman took her superpower of inspiring others in acting, speaking, and work to write a helpful handbook to put your best foot forward. As Pam says, "You want to be who you are, wherever you are, in order to ignite your audience.” As a board member of Jewish Women International, Pam supports women, inspires leadership and shows what it takes.  ** Want more? Become a part of my community!...

What if your grandmother got pregnant? That’s the premise behind Laurie Frankel’s witty, escapist narrative about an older woman who takes up with her retirement community next-door neighbor and unexpectedly gets more than she bargained for — much to the dismay of her adult children. We spoke about her complete rewrite of the book ("I do not believe a single sentence remains . . . I opened a new d...

I remember reading  The Help  in 2009 when it came out and absolutely loving it! Back then I was a stay-at-home mom of twins under age two. To think that by the time they graduated high school I’d be interviewing the author is insane; I wouldn’t have believed it.  The Calamity Club  is set in Mississippi in 1933 and spins an immersive tale about strong women who have to get thr...

Dr. Tara Narula gives us a specific recipe in  The Healing Power of Resilience: A New Prescription for Health and Well-Being ,   while editor Jenny Bartoy collects stories of others, like her, who have cut off contact with toxic people, sometimes even parents, in  No Contact: Writing on Estrangement.  Taken together, these two conversations arm us with the tools to get through...

Jessica George takes on female friendship in her sophomore novel  Love by the Book , which follows her hit  Maame,  which we also talked about on the podcast, as does Geneen Roth in her latest book  Love, Finally: Untangling the Knot Between Mothers, Daughters, and Food. One woman made a  huge  difference in Geneen’s healing. (This book is for anyone who has ever been...

Marisa Renee Lee shares her battle with long Covid on top of her other excruciating losses in  Waiting for Dawn: Living with Uncertainty. We spoke at Totally Booked: Live at the Whitby Hotel, where she delighted the crowd with her big laughs, delightful personality, and optimism in the face of devastating circumstances. ** Want more? Become a part of my community! Sign up for Zibby's Highligh...

I had the immense honor of interviewing Rachel Goldberg-Polin about her book When We See You Again . Rachel, USA Today's Woman of the Year and one of the TIME 100, is the mother of Hersh Goldberg-Polin who was kidnapped on October 7th and later executed by Hamas. Her book is raw, beautiful, and important. A meditation on grief, love, and how to get through. Please listen. We spoke in front of 1,20...

Yes, Sally Hepworth and I spoke about her new novel,  Mad Mabel ,  which features an older, quirky protagonist whose neighbor dies in the opening, and the young friend who comes along. But we also spoke about Sally’s recent divorce and how she has been getting through  that . Sally is such a good storyteller that anything out of her mouth is captivating. No wonder her latest book is...

I’ve been a fan of actress and bestselling author  Annabelle Gurwitch  since I first read  You Say Tomato, I Say Shut Up. I’ve interviewed her on my podcast about her last book  You’re Leaving When?  and then got lucky enough to publish her new book,  The End of My Life is Killing Me  through Zibby Publishing — which has now been on the  USA Today  best...

Hear from two amazing women authors who have survived loss and learned to live with it by finding humor in the darkest times. Screenwriter Angela Nissel writes about the loss of her mother — who had been caught up in a deceptive relationship — in  Good Grief, Pass the Bread, Mom is Dead .  Content creator Leslie Harter-Berg shares how she survived the sudden loss of her 30-year-old husba...

Actress  Gina Gershon  takes us through the unexpected, entertaining steps to becoming a star and the attitude it takes to do so in her memoir  Alphapussy: How I Survived the Valley and Learned to Love My Boobs. ** Want more? Become a part of my community! Sign up for Zibby's Highlights , which includes a free weekly newsletter, event livestreams, most anticipated book lists, person...

I touched base with Little Free Library CEO  Daniel Gumnit  about how to promote literacy, why stories are best when shared, and exactly how to bring a Little Free Library to your “neck of the woods.” Learn more  here. ** Want more? Become a part of my community! Sign up for Zibby's Highlights , which includes a free weekly newsletter, event livestreams, most anticipated book lists,...

Bestselling memoirist  Wade Rouse  shares about his first novel,  That’s What Friends Are For,  inspired by “The Golden Girls.” In crafting humorous story lines about four gay friends in later life, Wade explores complex issues ranging from prejudice and discrimination to loyalty and love. We spoke about the book live at Zibby’s Bookshop. ** Want more? Become a part of my commu...

Founder of Nowhere Bookshop is anywhere but nowhere. She’s a guru.  Jenny Lawson  has written book after book about her mental health, obstacles, tips and tricks, using her sense of humor and relatable voice.  How to Be Okay When Nothing is Okay  is my favorite of all her books to date. I dog-earred so many pages with actual, actionable advice. Plus I love following her on soci...

Christina Geist , bestselling children’s book author and brand guru, wrote  Before You Fly Away: Life Lessons from Home,  a beautifully illustrated gift book. It’s chockfull of short thoughts and sayings that Christina put together to help  her  kids out in the world. But really, it’s going to help  all  our kids. And, perhaps, us, too. Stay tuned on my Instagram for...

Australian author Emma Grey’s  The Last Love Note  kicked off Emma’s journey with our publishing house. I read the PDF on a flight when her agent pitched it for my podcast — and fell in love. We acquired the U.S. rights and published it to much acclaim including as picks of Book of the Month Club and Target Book Club. Then came  Pictures of You,  an intense story about coercive...

** Want more? Become a part of my community! Sign up for Zibby's Highlights , which includes a free weekly newsletter, event livestreams, most anticipated book lists, personal essays, and a new essay platform with stories from all of you about what chapters you're in (inspired by my upcoming book Between Chapters: How I Started Over, Took Some Chances, and Found the Plot , 9/22/26). And follow me...

How to Survive in the Woods  by Kat Rosenfield is truly hard to put down. Three friends go in the woods where two of them plot against the third in a love triangle that shape shifts. Kat and I spoke about the book and then moved on to how she finds personal essays performative. (I mentioned that I write them!) Thoughts on our discussion? If you like the idea of hiking (even without moving fro...

Join Blair Glaser as she journeys into herself and goes from NYC and LA to a special yoga retreat in  This Incredible Longing: How I Found My Self in a Near-Cult Experience . (Shout out to Isabelle Fisher Krishana, her cousin.)  If you’ve ever felt lost, start here. ** Want more? Become a part of my community! Sign up for Zibby's Highlights , which includes a free weekly newsletter, even...

Literary ingenue J.R. Thornton takes us into the posh world of Harvard College from dorm rooms and classrooms to parties and more when an outsider gets pulled into the ultra-elite establishment by his roommate  Lucien  and has to decide whether to live by his moral code or go along with the plot.  ** Want more? Become a part of my community! Sign up for Zibby's Highlights , which in...