Scientists Who Read

Join us as we chat about this year’s Science And Fiction book Anatomy: A Love Story by Dana Schwartz. We discuss the challenges the main character faces in fulfilling her dream to become a surgeon, and draw parallels to real life historical people who faced similar challenges. Books Mentioned: The Edinburgh Seven: The Story Of The First Women To Study Medicine by Janey Louise Jones References: Mor...

Join us as we chat about our Pride Month theme, queer books past, present and future, and the importance of reading LGBTQIA+ books and authors. Books Mentioned: The Song Of Achilles by Madeline Miller The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt Yellowface by Rebecca F Kuang Below The Edge Of Darkness by Dr Edith Widder We Could Be So Good by Cat Sebastian You Should Be So Lucky by Cat Sebastian Pageboy by Elliot...

In the latest edition of Scientist Who Reads we chat with Molly about being a scientist on maternity leave and adjusting to new challenges. We learn about environmental DNA and the many amazing things it can do, and of course talk about Molly’s favourite books and genres! Find Molly on Instagram here  Books Mentioned: Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi Little Women by Louisa May Alcott Dracula by Bram Stoker...

Join us as we head to Space! And discuss our April book club book Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir. In this episode we chat about our aspirations (or lack thereof) of going to space, attempt to explain time dilation, and of course SPACE MICROBES! Books Mentioned: The Martian by Andy Weir Artemis by Andy Weir References: A few videos on time dilation to watch here and here Immune cell eating bacteria...

In the next edition of Scientist Who Reads we finally get to speak to the romance queen aka Dr Helena Henke (She/Her). We spoke to her about expat and academic nomad life, the importance of diversifying our reads and how they can help us understand experiences other than our own and maybe sometimes even help us discover things about ourselves. And of course, we talk about romance; queer romance, S...

Join us as we try to explain what our May theme really means (it’s very much up to you whether we succeeded), and talk about various other more or less related things. Books Mentioned: Lessons In Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus  The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner The Tenth Muse by Catherine Chung Honey Girl by Morgan Rogers The Martian by Andy Weir Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir The Hitchhiker’s Guide...

Join us for a trip to the depths of the ocean with our March book club book Below The Edge Of Darkness by Dr Edith Widder. We chat about our fascination and fear of the deep sea, the similarities and differences between the different fields of biology, and how cool science is! Books Mentioned: The Martian by Andy Weir References: Pictures of the WASP suit  Pictures of the eye in the sea   Pictures...

In April we’re going to Space! In this episode we discuss whether books set on Earth technically should also fall into this category, our feelings about science fiction, and reminisce about past book club things. Books Mentioned: The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy by Douglas Adams Do Androids Dream Of Electric Sheep by Philip K Dick The Martian by Andy Weir A Day Of Fallen Night by Samantha...

Join us to chat about our February book club read for our Books Squared theme. We discuss dark academia (and what it even is!), colonialism, and the many things this historical fiction can teach us about our world now. Listen to us chat about creating a reading community over on Content And Capable (thanks so much for having us!) Books Mentioned: Yellowface by R F Kuang The Poppy War Trilogy by R...

This month we’re reading and chatting about Zoology! In this episode Mags and Jen chat about animal fiction and non-fiction they love or want to read, and we get some info on future themes and past podcast launches.  Books Mentioned: Shark Heart by Emily Habeck The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa The Cat Who Saved Books by Sôsuke Natsukawa Lessons In Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus Alice’s Ad...

In our first Scientist Who Reads guest episode we are joined by Dr Alice Hesse who speaks about her journey in STEM, becoming a mum while doing a PhD and being a working mum in STEM. She tells us about her favourite books of the past year, how the book club and allowing herself to read the books she wanted to read re-ignited her love for reading, and how books can help us realise things about ours...

In our first book episode of 2024 we chat about our Myths & Legends January book Stone Blind by Natalie Haynes. We discuss how awful and useless gods and heroes can be, who the real monsters of mythology are, and our newfound love for jellyfish. Books Mentioned: Girl, Goddess, Queen by Bea Fitzgerald The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood References: Find out more about Medusa , including all the s...

We’re back with another Theme Talk to chat about our February birthday month theme Books Squared, all the books about books we can think of and want to read, or think you might want to. Books Mentioned: Babel by R F Kuang The Dictionary Of Lost Words by Pip Williams The Bookbinder Of Jericho by Pip Williams The Secret History by Donna Tartt The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern A Discovery Of Witch...

Our January book club theme is Myths & Legends, and with this new episode format we bring you additional book recommendations as well as personal anecdotes related to our theme. Prepare yourselves for talks of legendary past book club reads, stories of our mythology origin stories, and delve into the depths of our TBRs. Books Mentioned: The Song Of Achilles by Madeline Miller Circe by Madeline...

In our final book episode of the 2023 Scientists Who Read season we chat about the ultimate cosy fantasy Legends & Lattes by Travils Baldree. We discuss how we feel about low stakes fantasy, decide we’d definitely visit Viv’s cafe if possible, and learn about our first experiences with coffee. We also wrap up a year of book club books and podcasting, telling you about our favourites and some f...

In this episode we talk about our November book club book Gathering Moss by Robin Wall Kimmerer. We discuss our love for audiobooks, recommend some of our favourites and learn more facts about mosses. Books Mentioned: The Soul Of An Octopus by Sy Montgomery Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer Game Of Thrones The Stormlight Archives Series by Brandon Sanderson Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker...

In this episode we talk about our October translated tale Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo and translated by Jamie Chang. We chat about translated books and what they can teach us about different cultures as well as our own, and Jen and Mags finally get to discuss a book they have different opinions on. Books Mentioned: Blindness by José Saramago Everyday Sexism by Laura Bates  Fix The System...

In this episode we talk about The Immortal Life Of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot, our September book. We talk about the life of Henrietta Lacks, her immortal cells and how they have impacted all of our lives. Whether you’re a scientist or not, we’d love for you to listen to Henrietta’s story. References: Henrietta Lacks’ Story A video on DNA extraction from strawberries  The Role of Telomeres...

In this episode we discuss our August thrilling summer book We Were Never Here by Andrea Bartz. Mags can finally talk about her favourite genre. We learn about the difference between thrillers and mysteries,  what definitely not to do in a friendship and discuss how dark and twisty we like our thrillers. Books Mentioned: The Last House Guest by Megan Miranda This Summer’s Secret by Emily Barr The...

In this episode we talk about our June book, Her Majesty’s Royal Coven by Juno Dawson. Jen and Mags chat about  their love for witches and a book set in the North West of England, and how magical worlds can teach us a lot about the real world. Books Mentioned: The Gender Games by Juno Dawson The Shadow Cabinet by Juno Dawson Queen B by Juno Dawson Support the show Where to find us: Join the Scient...

In this episode we chat about our May Science & Fiction book Lessons In Chemistry By Bonnie Garmus and the many lessons we can learn from Elisabeth Zott  (not just in chemistry), including the many similarities between science and cooking, and why it’s definitely ok to burn the lasagna. We also talk about the similarities and differences between the book and the TV show. Books Mentioned: Honey...

In this episode we discuss our April book club book A Short History Of Tractors In Ukrainian by Marina Lewycka as well as a short history of tractors.  Books Mentioned: Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao References: Pronunciation of Lethe   More on the Ukrainian famine of the 1930s   A summary of A Short History Of Tractors In Ukrainian   A brief h...

Join us for a voyage across the seas as we discuss our March book club book To Kill A Kingdom by Alexandra Christo. In this episode Jen and Mags express their love for sirens, pirate makeovers and draw very sophisticated parallels to Barbie. Books Mentioned: The Once And Future Witches by Alix E Harrow The Immortal Life Of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot Shark Heart - A Love Story by Emily Habec...

In this episode we discuss our February book The Secret History by Donna Tartt. We also provide you with many other book recommendations by authors who have made previous book club appearances and plan a Ninth House and Gilmore Girls crossover.  Books Mentioned: Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi Circe by Madeline...

In our first book episode we go all the way back to our January book club book Love On The Brain by Ali Hazelwood. And let’s just say, as scientists we have a lot to say about this bestselling STEMinist romance. Books Mentioned: The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood Lessons In Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade The Tenth Muse by Catherine Chung Honey Girl by Morgan Rogers Trans...