That Book

Black Lives Matter. How we're going to do better. Plus books by black authors we're excited to read.  Books mentioned: Toni Morrison, Song of Solomon, The Bluest Eye Brit Bennett, The Vanishing Half Brandon Taylor, Real Life Claude McKay,  Romance in Marseille James Baldwin,  Giovanni's Room Octavia Butler,  Kindred Samuel R. Delany,  The Einstein Intersection N.K. Jemisin, The City We Became Andr...

Updates on everything everyone's reading (and NOT reading, side-eye straight to Thrift Books) in lockdown.  Bookshop.org Thriftbooks.com Trailer for The Pieces I Am, Toni Morrison documentary. Peter Ackroyd's Venice on Audible , narrated by Simon Vance  Books mentioned: The Harry Potter Series, J.K. Rowling; His Dark Materials Trilogy, Philip Pullman; Ducks, Newburyport , Lucy Ellmann ; Slocum's I...

Hannah and Michael shelter in place! We have a dramatic reading from friend of the pod Danielle Steel, a brief stop at W.H Auden's messy apartment and finally lots & lots of book talk--what (and how!) we're reading in these troubled times. ICONIC Danielle Steel interview in the NY Post. Auden was a slob . Smitten Kitchen will save us all. Thrift Books . Sponsor us! Books mentioned: Alison Roman, N...

In this off-season ep we cover the death of Mary Higgins Clark, the American Dirt scandal gripping publishing (and Oprah!), and the death of a giant literary butthole. Because the universe is full of whimsy, there's an Irish angle to all of these stories. Books mentioned: Mary Higgins Clark, Mount Vernon Love Story ; Jeanine Cummins, American Dirt ; Sandra Cisneros, The House on Mango Street ; Son...

Our annual roundup of all the books we read in 2019! We share number of books read (Hannah smokes us all, of course), give out awards, and look ahead to 2020. Links:  NYT 100 Notable books for 2019 Patricia Lockwood on John Updike Taffy Brodesser-Akner on Gwenyth Paltrow/Goop  Books mentioned: Furious Hours, Casey Cep; The Topeka School, Ben Lerner; Fleishman is in Trouble, Taffy Brodesser-Akner;...

Hannah owns Michael so hard he writes this from beyond the grave. Plus, catching up with old friends and old enemies. Resources: NYT Profile , Robert Caro The Goldfinch tanks Susan Orlean on The Real Real Jia Tolentino on Outdoor Voices and The New Me by Hallie Butler Charlotte Higgins in the Guardian on Jack Reacher Books mentioned:  Robert (and Ina!) Caro, The Power Broker; The Years of Lyndon J...

A TBC stuffed full of treats: NYT Bestseller List grifting, a "book curator" to the rich and Goopy, and a roundup of our epic Meryl Season™ including a shocking confession from Hannah. Resources:  NYT on Dave Pelzer Thatcher Wine , book curator to the *stahs* Meryl as star signs . Email us at thatbookpod@gmail.com. Friend us on Goodreads and follow us on Instagram , Twitter , and Facebook .

In our final full ep of the Meryl Season™ we follow Our Lady of the Pod to Monterey, CA, where she's doing the most on Big Little Lies. But before we get there we discuss "Chick Lit" (or should we say "beach reads"?) and do a quick stopover in Australia to visit the works and (extremely boring) life of Liane Moriarty. Books mentioned:  Liane Moriarty: Nine Perfect Strangers, Truly Madly Guilty, Bi...

Michael and Hannah take on Hollywood's cash cow: kid lit! Plus, they take a look at what to do with problematic faves and a deep dive on "boarding" Hollywood stars into movies. Books Mentioned: Roald Dahl, Fantastic Mr. Fox; Matilda; The Witches; Boy Lois Lowry, The Giver; Chasing Blue Lemony Snicket, A Series of Unfortunate Events Resources: On Roald Dahl: New Yorker , BBC . On Fantastic Mr Fox O...

This week we take a ride through the glorious brain of Carrie Fisher: princess of Hollywood, funny person, crank. Meryl played a Carrie-ish person an adaptation of her novel, Postcards from the Edge . Resources for this episode: Carrie's interviews: on Good Morning America , Fresh Air .  Carrie's house . Clip of Meryl being a genius . Postcard From the Edge trailer . Email us at thatbookpod@gmail....

Into the swamp with Meryl we go to discuss Susan Orlean's The Orchid Thief and its wild adaptation, um,  Adaptation . We talk Florida Lit, Florida Men, and authors with money. Books/Authors Mentioned:  Susan Orlean, The Orchid Thief ; Rin Tin Tin, The Library Book;  Carl Hiassen;  Karen Russell, Swamplandia;  Jeff Van Der Meer, Area X Trilogy Movies:  Charlie Kaufmann/Spike Jonze: Adaptation Resou...

Inspired by the 1998 Meryl Streep weepie, One True Thing , Hannah and Michael cough gently into their handkerchiefs and discuss the "Sick Lit" phenomenon, spearheaded by Lurlene McDaniel and her 70+ books about children dying.  Books mentioned:  Lurlene McDaniel, Six Months to Live, Don't Die, My Love, Somewhere Between Life and Death ; Dave Pelzer, A Child Called It ; John Green, The Fault in Our...

Hannah and Michael talk about the UK's answer to Thomas Kinkade, moving with books, and hot takes on literature. Resources: Jack Vettriano Profile in the Independent (2010) NYPL List of New York Books Hot Takes Thread Books mentioned: Robert Caro, The Power Broker Donna Tartt, The Goldfinch Ben Lerner, 10:04 Jennifer Egan, Manhattan Beach Edith Wharton, House of Mirth; Age of Innocence; Custom of...

Michael and Hannah hang with Meryl in Lyme Regis in the 1981 adaptation of John Fowles's 1969 The French Lieutenant's Woman . We are remarkable people! Books mentioned:  John Fowles, The French Lieutenant's Woman, The Collector, The Maggot;  Jean Rhys, Wide Sargasso Sea;  A.S. Byatt, Possession;  Michael Faber, The Crimson Petal and the White Resources: NYT John Fowles obit Months of Meryl . Roger...

Michael and Hannah dive into Nora Ephron's Heartburn and learn that Nora knows what to do . Also: Lillian Hellman remains the worst, Mandy Patinkin gets screwed, and Carly Simon goes wild. Nora on her apartment and her cookbook crushes . Heartburn Clips here and here . The cover of Michael's copy of Heartburn. Books mentioned: Heartburn, I Feel Bad About My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woma...

In this installment of #TheMerylSeason, Michael and Hannah tackle Lauren Weisburger's The Devil Wears Prada and its sequels, and try desperately to master Meryl's iconic affect in the eponymous movie. Plus, a quiz! Research Links: On Lauren Weisburger: here On The Devil Wears Prada (book): here . On The Devil Wears Prada (movie): here. The bag made of hay. Email us at thatbookpod@gmail.com . Frien...

It's over the covered bridge to Madison County, Iowa, the setting for Robert James Waller's The Bridges of Madison County and its (spoiler) exponentially better film adaptation. We cover (ha) tie-in fragrances, Waller's, um, musical career, and the one and only Painter of Light™, all while paying respects to Our Lady of the Pod, Meryl. Resources: Waller interview , background on BoMC , Meryl inter...

Hannah and Michael kick off THE MERYL SEASON with an investigation into Meryl Streep's first appearance on the silver screen, Julia (1977), an adaptation of Lillian Hellman's memoir Pentimento , and her much later turn as Julia Child in Julie & Julia , an adaptation of Child's My Life in France and Julie Powell's Julie & Julia. Resources for this episode: Meryl on Jane Fonda (worth watching!) You,...

Hannah and Michael talk Kalamazoo, old fav Danielle Steel, political book scandals, and the books on offer at the hairport. Books Mentioned: The Mueller Report Melissa Caruso, The Tethered Mage Gary Sinise, Grateful American: A Journey from Self to Service Sally Rooney, Conversations with Friends; Normal People Françoise Sagan, Bonjour Tristesse Ottessa Moshfegh, My Year of Rest and Relaxation Bri...

We're back for another chatty interlude! Michael and Hannah discuss rich authors, romance, real estate, and reading lists. Books mentioned: Jessica Knoll, The Luckiest Girl Alive Alyssa Cole, An Extraordinary Union Harlan Coben, Tell No One Elizabeth McCracken, Bowlaway Kate Atkinson, Transcription Tara Westover, Educated Kevin Kwan, Crazy Rich Asians Jasmine Guillory, The Wedding Date Joan Didion...

Your faithful hosts pop in to talk travel hacks and why it's worth traveling to eighteenth-century England. Plus, a dip into what we're actually reading! Books mentioned: Marlon James, Black Leopard, Red Wolf Samuel Richardson, Pamela Bram Stoker, Dracula Mary Shelley, Frankenstein Saul Bellow, Herzog Choderlos de Laclos, Les Liaisons Dangereuses / Dangerous Liaisons Henry Fielding, Tom Jones and...

We interrupt our hiatus to bring you a special TBC on Dan Mallory, best-selling thriller writer and Olympic-level scammer, whose shenanigans were recently exposed in The New Yorker. Plus we talk LA libraries, mail fails, and (according to Michael) the single most horrifying article published so far in 2019. Links: Robert Caro being brilliant . Watch the scammer: Dan Mallory interview vid. Follow C...

White Whale time! Specifically George Eliot's Middlemarch. Yes, Michael actually read the damn thing and Hannah read it for like the 60th time. Get their feelings about the book, some background on George herself, and a dose of what H & M are *actually* reading. Thank you for a great season two!! Books mentioned: My Life in Middlemarch, Rebecca Mead; The Last Samurai, Helen DeWitt; Lethal White, R...

Michael and Hannah give out superlatives for the books they've read in 2018, and make New Year's Reading Resolutions. Join the fun! Email us at thatbookpod@gmail.com. Friend us on Goodreads and follow us on Instagram , Twitter , and Facebook .

Happy holi-daze people! In this book club ep Michael and Hannah hear your thoughts on Madame de Pompadour and Queen Insta herself, Rupi Kaur. Plus: a poetry scammer , a WILD gift idea , and a new segment! Email us at thatbookpod@gmail.com. Friend us on Goodreads and follow us on Instagram , Twitter , and Facebook .