Shelf Aware Podcast

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another episode of Shelf Aware! This week, we’re continuing Em’s unit on the Great Detective trope with another of the most famous detectives in literature, Hercule Poirot. Join us as we talk about train murder, hunt for the perfect pair of toad eyes, and 100% stay on topic perfectly without going off on any tangents whatsoever. Recommended Reading: Ace Attorney...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another Morph Monday episode of Shelf Aware! This week, we’re reading yet another Marco POV involving angst about his Yeerk mom. We’ve got stress-induced morphing problems, a useless villain of the week, and a nonsensical plan to take care of said villain. The only good thing about this one is that it intros the next book in the series. Of. Join us next week for...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another episode of Shelf Aware! This week, we’re starting a new unit on garbage girls! After a lengthy discussion on what makes a garbage boy in the Spinning Silver episode, we wanted to see if the trope could be gender swapped. We asked listeners for some suggestions, and you all delivered! Thank you! Our first book we’re covering for the unit is Eleanor Olipha...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another Morph Monday episode of Shelf Aware! This week, we're reading a Cassie POV with the most irrelevant title and confusing tagline. We've also got Arn, Hork-Bajir, and the Bandalites on a whole new (to them) planet. Join us next week for the first book in a new listener-slubmitted unit! A very special thank you to Ben Cope for our theme song! Check out his...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another episode of Shelf Aware! This week we're taking a look at a classic example of a military sci-fi book, Starship Troopers. How will the book compare to the cult classic film? And is there anything Anna can find redeeming about this genre? (Spoiler alert: no.) Join us next week for another Morph Monday! Recommended reading: Remote Control by Nnedi Okorafor...

cw: Torture, self-harm, child abuse, child neglect, bullying Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another Morph Monday episode of Shelf Aware! This week, we've been given a break from the monotonous middle books of the series with this very dark Tobias POV. Tobias struggles with identity and girlfriend problems. All set to a soundtrack written by the Goo Goo Dolls. Join us next week for the second...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another episode of Shelf Aware! This week, we’re starting Em’s brand new unit on the great detective with The Great Detective, Sherlock Holmes. Why doesn’t Em particularly care for this trope? And just what, or WHO, is the real hound of Baskerville? (Spoilers, it’s John Watson, that dumb, loyal creature.) Join us next week for another Morph Monday! Recommended R...

Animorphs: The Separation by K.A. Applegate by Anna and Em

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another episode of Shelf Aware! This week, we’re wrapping up our weird western unit with Territory by Emma Bull. Will this book save the genre for us (it automatically gets points for having more than one woman in it)? Is Anna secretly a horse girl? And honestly, what actually happened at the O.K. Corral? Join us next week for another Morph Monday! Recommended R...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another Morph Monday episode of Shelf Aware! This week, we're reading book #31, The Conspiracy. A Jake POV. And the Morph Fatigue is hitting Anna pretty hard. Will Jake be able to save his older brother from the Yeerks? Or will Jake slide closer to the dark side? And don't worry, our fearless leader IS able to sneak in a cockroach morph. Join us next week for th...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another episode of Shelf Aware! New year, new us: we’re starting Anna’s new unit on military science fiction with the book On Basilisk Station by David Weber. Why was this book over 400 pages long? Does anything actually happen in it? Why is this series 14 books long??! Thank you (I guess????) to Lindsay for the slubmission! Join us next week for another Morph M...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another Morph Monday episode of Shelf Aware! This week, we’re reading book #30 in the Animorphs series, The Reunion. We’ve got a Marco POV that includes a lot of mom angst, questions about disappearing clothing, and Erek actually being slightly useful for once! Join us next week for the first book in Anna’s new military science fiction unit. A very special thank...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to a special holiday episode of Shelf Aware! This week, we’re continuing a series that Anna had hoped they’d left behind in 2018. A series of books based on her least favorite Christmas song. A series of books about Christmas miracles. And blessings. And shoes? That’s right, we’re reading the second book in Donna VanLiere’s Christmas Shoes series, and boy. It’s jus...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another Morph Monday episode of Shelf Aware. This week, the Bandalites are roaring through time, hitting up some brutal battles throughout history, watching their BFFs get killed. I'm sure it'll be NBD. This is a Megamorphs book, after all. Join us next week for a very special holiday episode. Ugh. A very special thank you to Ben Cope for our theme song! Check o...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another episode of Shelf Aware, the podcast where we delve into books outside our comfort zones. This week, we’re closing out Em’s unit on haunted house books with a book about a very tiny, wandering haunted house in the book The Garden of Bewitchment by Catherine Cavendish. Also up for discussion: ponytails, American Girl Doll catalogues, whether or not twins e...

Animorphs: The Sickness by K.A. Applegate by Anna and Em

Dawn in Damnation by Clark Casey by Anna and Em

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another Morph Monday episode of Shelf Aware! This week, we’re reading an Ax POV that is truly a bottom tier Animorphs book. We’re dealing with Moses’ law professor, the worst version of Cassie, and a whole lot of shit. At least there weren't any bug morphs, I guess...? Join us next week for the second book in our listener slubmitted unit on weird westerns. Thank...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another episode of Shelf Aware, the podcast where we delve into books outside our comfort zones. This week, we’re wrapping up Anna’s unit on parallel novels with a classic Sherlock Holmes AU, The Infernal Device by Michael Kurland (thought whether it counts may be up for debate). We’ve got exploding submarines, firework fights in hot air balloons, and, honestly,...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another Morph Monday episode of Shelf Aware! This week, we’re back with another ghostwritten book, but this time it’s our girl Rachel’s POV. We’ve got some wild hijinks, including a Spencer’s gifts, a police shootout, and possibly our new favorite character…? Join us as we discuss the *hidden depths* of this entry in the Animorphs series. Huehue, get it? Depths?...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to a spooOoOoOoky episode of Shelf Aware, the podcast where we delve into books outside our comfort zones. This week we're covering the second book in Em's haunted house unit, and we're proud to announce we've both finally earned our PhDs. Or at least our MAs. Regardless, we're experts in our field, and today's well prepared episode definitely proves that. Join us...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another Morph Monday episode of Shelf Aware! This week we're discussing another surprisingly good Jake POV. We've got lore dumps, we've got new alien races (and a lot of questions about their shopping guild), and we've even got some kissing. Are you #TeamJassie or #TeamCarco? Join us next week for the second book in Em's haunted house unit! A very special thank...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another episode of Shelf Aware, the podcast where we delve into books outside our comfort zone. This week, we're starting a new unit submitted to us by our listened, James! We're blending spec fic and westerns, and we're a little divided on how we feel about it. Whether or not it comes down to the genre specific tropes or this book specifically will remain to be...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another Morph Monday episode of Shelf Aware! This week, we're discussing the first of the ghostwritten books in the series, The Extreme. We've also got some important opinions on The Bachelor and whether or not wind chill is real (we are not taking questions at this time).  Join us next week for the first book in a new listener slubmitted unit!  A very special t...

Welcome back, Literary Slummers, to another episode of Shelf Aware, the podcast where we delve into books outside our comfort zones. This week, we're reading the second book in Anna's parallel novel/flipped perspective unit: Till We Have Faces. Is this one of the first examples of fanfiction? How many names does each character need? And what is the plural of "Jesus"?  Join us next week for another...