Hooked: A Pop Culture Podcast with Mary Carver

Do you know what day it is? It's launch day for my new book, Prayers from the Parking Lot! And since this is a book written especially for busy moms who need a break, that's exactly what I'm talking about in this week's episode. Jen Babakhan, author and curator of the best parenting memes on the internet, joins me to talk about our favorite TV moms—the messy, lovable moms we'd love to give a big i...

Remember last week, when I talked about a superhero series? And a few months before when I talked about a superhero movie? And several weeks before that, when I talked about superheroes yet again? Why am I so obsessed with superheroes? To be fair, it seems like the whole world of entertainment and pop culture is obsessed with superheroes, so I'm not exactly alone. My friend, Tara Cole, is with me...

Have you watched Ms. Marvel yet? My good friend (and friend of the show) Tasha Jun and I got together on The Couch this week to RAVE about our favorite new show. If you're a Marvel fan or a Ms. Marvel fan (or, obviously, both), you're going to love our conversation about everything we enjoyed about this new Disney+ series, our favorite characters, what we think might happen next, and even what we...

If you've ever spent an hour scrolling through apps and skimming reviews in an effort to find a movie your entire family will like, this episode is for you! Yes, we're talking about family movie nights again, this time with a long list of movie recommendations you might not have heard of or perhaps you've forgotten. I'm digging deep into the archives and giving you real-life reviews from my family...

Who else needs a beach vacay right about now? I don't know about you, but the first half of my summer has not been what you'd call ideal. And this week's guest said it's been about the same for her. So we decided to lighten the mood and raise our spirits (or at least escape the things bringing us down) by talking about beach movies.   My friend (and friend of the show) Tori Rask is here to chat ab...

Ughhhhh, this summer has been so stinking hot! Good thing Christmas in July—where we can at least watch snowball fights and ice skating and outright blizzards on the TV—is right around the corner!   Today my friend, friend of the show, and Hooked on Holiday Movies partner Anna Rendell is here to talk about our all-time favorite, watch them every year holiday movies plus all the ways you can celebr...

What do you love reading in the summer? Is Netflix still the #1 streaming service? What shows are your daughters watching right now? Is it okay to quit reading a book if you just don't like it?   I'm answering these questions and more today in volume 6 of Ask the Couch! My friend and podcast coach (and friend of the show), Alana Dawson, is here to grill me—I mean, ask me the questions. And as alwa...

Buckle up, friends. Today's episode is about historical romance novels. My friend (and friend of the show) Rebekah Hoffer is back on The Couch to discuss why I love them and she doesn't. And in the course of this conversation, we do dive into some spicier topics than usual, so head's up that this episode might not be for little ears (and could, in theory, cause one to swoon).   As you might recall...

What's better than reading a good book? Reading a book about books! Or bookstores or publishing or libraries!   Back for this very book-ish episode is my friend (and friend of the show) Amy Clark. Amy is a blogger and the founder of MomAdvice.com, which happens to be a place I write articles for on occasion. She's also the host of the Mom Advice Book Club and my go-to person for book recommendatio...

When I say the words, "the soundtrack of your childhood," what music pops into your head? If you're anything like several members of The Couch community, I'm going to bet your list includes the Beach Boys, 80s or 90s country, and the forbidden Madonna. But maybe yours is different than ours! I can't wait to compare notes.   But first, my brother, candle maker extraordinaire, and friend of the show...

Traditionally, most TV series have aired their final episodes in May. Now with streaming and shorter seasons even on networks and cable, a series finale can come any time of the year. But we're still gonna talk about them now, during this time of the year. Because if I know one thing about The Couch community, it's that most of you love you some This Is Us and, like it or not, your beloved show is...

It's almost summertime, and I don't know about you, but my calendar is already filling up. We've got camps and road trips and when can we go to the pool, Mom? Honestly, it's kind of like putting together a puzzle, as I try to fit in family time and projects for work and goals and chores and, again, when are we going to the pool?   But it's never a chore to fit in movie nights. Because out of all t...

Well, it's 100% summer at my house today but technically it's still spring. So talking about spring cleaning? Totally relevant. And talking specifically about decluttering our digital lives? Super helpful.   I'm not even exaggerating. After recording this episode with my friend Dana White, I have decluttered my watch lists on Hulu, Disney Plus, HBO Max, Prime Video, Peacock, and IMDb. And! (But wa...

The thing about teen TV shows is that they answer some of life's most important questions like, "what happens when a boy meets the world," "did I do that?" and, of course, "Dawson or Pacey?" And that, obviously, is why we're talking about these deeply important works of art today.   Or, my friend Lyndsay Rush and I just love to watch shows about teenagers and we decided it's high time to investiga...

While most of us can admire and look up to superheroes like Wonder Woman or oh, I don't know, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, we can't necessarily relate to them. I mean, I don't know about you, but I was not raised on an island of Amazons, trained to be a warrior, and given accessories that literally deflect bullets.   So while my good friend (and good friend of the show) Jenny Rapson and I have long e...

Have you read the book yet? Is the book better? Can you watch the movie even though it's so different from the book? Watching TV and movie adaptations of books can bring up a lot of questions, and we're answering all of them today.   In today's episode I'm chatting with my friend (and friend of the show) Latasha Ferguson, a speaker, writer, podcast host, educator, and mom. To say she knows a thing...

Why do we love jungle movies so much? And why is Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in all of them?   Okay, so he's not in all of them and, as you'll discover in this episode, our love for jungle movies may or may not be connected to our longing for adventure and significance as well as our infallible sense of self-preservation. Also, you'll discover that when I say "jungle movies," I mean movies where a m...

Thanks to some technical difficulties, this week's episode is a little different than usual. And by "technical difficulties," I mean I caused my own problem. And by "little different than usual," I'm gonna say I mean "a very special episode." Or perhaps I'll let you decide.   Because I did not have a new episode ready for you today, I'm releasing a conversation that was previously for Patreon memb...

Never mind the same plots and tropes. Have you ever noticed that Hallmark movies feature the same actors over and over? Well, my best friend and best friend of the show, Anna Rendell, and I decided to fix that. We're here to make a list of actors we want to see in more Hallmark movies, and we're sure (haha) that the people making the movies are going to pay attention.   Of course, because this is...

Anxiety. Immigration. Foster Care. Multi-generational families. Science fiction fandoms. Teen athletes. LGBTQ teens. Autism. Trauma. These are just a few of the things I've learned about in young adult books—and each reading experience has given me a wider perspective, deeper understanding, and so much more empathy.   This week my friend Jessie Weaver is joining me to talk about YA books that buil...

Have you seen the new Pixar movie, Turning Red ? Even if you haven't watched it yet, I'm guessing you may have heard about it—and some of what you heard might not have been good. Spoiler alert: I disagree with the criticism being thrown at this movie, and we are here to talk about the giant panda in the room today.   First, the basics – Turning Red is an animated kids movie about a 13-year-old gir...

A told B, and B told C, "I'll meet you at the top of the coconut tree." "Whee!" said D to E F G, "I'll beat you to the top of the coconut tree." Chicka chicka boom boom! Will there be enough room?   No, this isn't bedtime stories with Mary. But if you did recognize those words, then you are going to love this week's episode!   Katie Kenny Phillips joins me to talk about our favorite books to read...

Are you a theater nerd? A musical lover? A creative in any way? Or just a big fan of Andrew Garfield and/or Lin-Manuel Miranda? Then, as you may have already guessed from those questions, this episode is for you!   My friends and colleagues (and friends of the show), Anna Rendell and Grace Cho, are here to talk with me about the Netflix original musical, Tick…Tick…Boom! , as well as the creative p...

What have you been watching on TV lately? That is what I'm here to talk about this week, along with my good friend and friend of the show, Kathi Lipp. Kathi is an author, speaker, and my kindred spirit when it comes to TV shows. So when I decided to talk about all the new shows that have come out this year and are coming out in the next month or so, I knew Kathi would be the exact right person to...

Is it possible? Can we call it a comeback?   Today I'm joined by Kerry Frances to talk about romantic comedies and the possibility that they are, indeed, making a comeback. Kerry is an actress, singer, songwriter, and voiceover artist, and she shares her unique perspective with us about the movie industry in general and rom coms in particular.   Of course, because this is The Couch, where side not...