Real Friends Who Read Books

What would the teenaged Real Friends buy if they inherited billions of dollars? Whose anagram is Oi Grumpy Fern Area? What does this have to do with The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes? Find the answer to those questions and more in this week's episode!  The Inheritance Games in one sentence: Erica: No shame in the YA game my friends. Courtney: Girl gets billions with a side of some...

Zounds Yeah! (Are we using that right? Somebody please tell us!) This week, The Real Friends head to the theater to ask; “to be or not to be” or some other Shakespearean phrase when we discuss M.L. Rio’s dark novel, If We Were Villains. If We Were Villains in one sentence: Mary Paige:  I have no words, *chef's kiss* on this one. zounds Erica: Eagerly awaiting Courtney’s second pretentious Sha...

Have you ever been duped? If it hasn’t happened to you, chances are, it’s happened to someone you know! This week, we’re talking trust issues in Abby Ellin’s Duped: Double Lives, False Identities, and the Con Man I Almost Married. S P I C Y. CW//The validity of Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny are discussed. People with children beware! Duped in one sentence: Mary Paige: So assume everyones lying....

This week the Real Friends are talking about all things romance as they discuss Talia Hibbert's novel, Get a Life, Chloe Brown. Join in as RFWRB share their own "Get a Life" lists, talk about which steamy terms make them cringe the most and hear a passionate argument for why there should be even more Smudge the cat content throughout this book.   Get a Life, Chloe Brown in one sentence: Erica...

Come join us this week as the Real Friends discuss Amanda Montell’s, Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism.  DISCLAIMER :This book club is in no way sinister (but would love a small cultish following of like minded bookish people). Share this episode with one of your bookish friends! Cultish in one sentence:  Mary Paige: It's a culty world out there. Keep your eyes open and WATCH YOUR BACK...

IT’S HERE. THE DAY ERKS HAS BEEN WAITING FOR. The Real Friends are finally talking about Glennon Doyle’s book, Untamed. Some may even say it’s life-changing. No, that’s not hyperbole. It really might change your life...but that’s all we’re saying here. You’ll have to click play for the rest.  Untamed in one sentence:  Mary Paige: Even though feelings are hard…let yourself feel them becau...

Join RFWRB as they discuss Colleen Hoover's best selling novel, It Ends With Us. Who loves CoHo the most? You'll never guess. Which cookie is the worst kind of cookie? Fig Newtons or Oatmeal Raisin? What is the meaning behind Ryle's name? And what about the name 'Atlas'? You'll find (speculative) answers to all of those ridiculous questions and some serious stuff in between this week on Real Frien...

The Real Friends are back! In this first episode of the new season, RFWRB chats about haunted menstrual cycles, the proper way to care for a historical artifact and so much more as we dive into Sarah Penner's, The Lost Apothecary.  The Lost Apothecary in one sentence: Mary Paige: But why would a historian throw an ancient artifact back into the river- riddle me that Erica: Women don’t support...

In the last episode of the season, RFWRB get into the holiday spirit as they discuss Christina Lauren's, In a Holidaze.  In a Holidaze in one sentence: Erica: Who let the Hallmark channel write a book??? Courtney: Where was the time warping phenomena  when I was not living as my authentic self? COME ON UNIVERSE! MP:  A perfect lighthearted read to put in the christmas mood :) Read a...

Finally, the day that Courtney has long been waiting for! This week, the Real Friends step into the Fae world of Prythian and discuss the first book of the ACOTAR series, A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas.  A Court of Thorns and Roses in one sentence:  Mary Paige:  A magically action packed  spicy romance with fairies??- I’m here for it. Erica: This read like forbidd...

On this weeks episode, the Real Friends dig down deep to talk about the concept of Radical Self Love and all the things that come with it when they discuss Sonya Renee Taylor's, The Body is Not an Apology.  The Body is Not an Apology in one sentence:  Courtney: If you continue to love outwardly and radically, you will see that love reflected back. Mary Paige: Will be taking this all to t...

This week on Real Friends Who Read Books we step into the past to discuss the classic gothic romance novel (although we are all skeptical on the romance part), Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier.  Rebecca in one sentence:  Erks: I’ve said it once, I’ll say it again: you know what’s better than being in a shitty relationship? BEING ALONE!!!!!!!!! Less chance they’ll kill your confidence or wors...

This week you’ve been cordially invited to join the Real Friends as they discuss Stuart Turtons debut whoduntit, The 7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle.  The  7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle in one sentence:  Mary Paige:  the perfect murder mystery- a book I will probably continue to reread to get the fall vibes going Erica: An endless game of Clue, where every night someone reset...

In Evicted, Matthew Desmond follows eight Milwaukee families as they struggle to keep a roof over their heads. Evicted transforms our understanding of poverty and economic exploitation while providing fresh ideas for solving one of 21st-century America's most devastating problems. Its unforgettable scenes of hope and loss remind us of the centrality of home, without which nothing else is possible....

The Real Friends are getting nostalgic in this Vibe Check, talking Scholastic Book fairs and reminiscing on secret elementary school tunnels. What’s your favorite book fair memory? Should the Real Friends host their own book fair? We want to hear from you! Send us your book recs, spicy opinions, or just say hey. DM us on Instagram @realfriends_podcast or send us an email at rfwrbpodcast@gmail.com....

This week, RFWRB talk love, destiny and murder. Curious what the Real Friends would do if they had the chance to find their DNA match? You'll hear all of that (and a bunch more) this week when they discuss, The One by author John Marrs. Get ready to find your match my friends. *dramatically winks* The One in one sentence:  Erica: It’s like if Tinder and 23andMe had a baby, and yes, it’s as te...

The week the Real Friends discuss their first listener request, the continuation of the Ready Player 1 saga, Ready Player 2 by Ernest Cline. The hunt is on once again and we are logging back into the OASIS.  The Real Friends one sentence summary of Ready Player 2:  Mary Paige: This one hurt my brain. Erica: Ready Player One, again! Courtney:  Seriously, someone play D&D with me...

When the technologies we use every day collapse our experiences into 24/7 availability, platforms for personal branding, and products to be monetized, nothing can be quite so radical as… doing nothing. Here, Jenny Odell sends up a flare from the heart of Silicon Valley, delivering an action plan to resist capitalist narratives of productivity and techno-determinism, and to become more meaningfully...

A bookclub podcast where three friends force each other to read books they wouldn't typically read (you know-like a book club). Every other week RFWRB will take a deep dive into one of their picks to discuss the characters, themes and whatever else comes along the way. Check us out on Instagram at @RealFriends_Pod

Two Best Friends. Ten Summer Trips. One last chance to fall in love. Pack your bags. This week we’ll be discussing Emily Henry’s latest novel, People We Meet on Vacation. Here's what the Real Friends thought about People We Meet on Vacation in...one sentence: Erica: Just kiss already, good god Courtney: The one where build up of sexual tension will kill you. MP: The millennial version of When Harr...

Ever wondered what it would like to date a Vampire? Did you love Twilight when you were in high school but wished for more sexy stuff and less staring into each other's eyes with longing? This week The Real Friends talk about it all when they discuss book one of the Sookie Stackhouse series, Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris.   Dead Until Dark in one sentence: Mary Paige: Yet another vampire boo...

This week join the Real Friends as they get mad mad about motherhood, care taking, access to reproductive healthcare and more in the second half of our two-part series on Rage Becomes Her by Soraya Chemaly. Watch Paxton Smith's courageous valedictorian speech here! 

This week the Real Friends get mad with Rage Becomes Her by Soraya Chemaly. We're talking about why we teach women to suppress their anger, the times we've misidentified our own anger, and all the ways it plays out in our lives today.    *TW for sexual assault and harassment; eating disorders and body image issues*   Some light reading from Fast Company (8 min read)   If you wa...

This week the Real Friends delve into the life (and loves) of Evelyn Hugo as they discuss Taylor Jenkins Reid's incredibly entertaining novel, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.  The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo in one sentence: Erica: Evelyn’s got seven husbands but men ain’t shit. Courtney: I typically can see the twist ending before it happens and can you believe that it was a romance nov...

Scott Pilgrim's precious world is about to get rocked. This week, we’ll be discussing Volume 1 of the Scott Pilgrim graphic novel series, Scott Pilgrim’s Precious Little Life, written (and illustrated) by Bryan Lee O’Malley. Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life (Vol. 1) in one sentence: Mary Paige:  Scott Pilgrim's an idiot but a FUN story otherwise. Erica: Took a mediocre man and gave him a...