The Stacks

Lawyer and author James Sexton ( If You're in My Office, It's Already Too Late ) is back on The Stacks to discuss Good and Mad by Rebecca Traister. In her newest book, Traister explains the revolutionary power of women's anger. In our discussion for The Stacks Book Club we talk about intersectional feminism, the 2020 Election, and the power and persuasiveness of Traister's arguments. Today's episo...

The Reckonings made The Stacks favorite books of 2018 , and today we're talking with the author of that essay collection, Lacy M. Johnson. The Reckonings is a meditation on justice and mercy in relationship to some of the most complex issues of the current moment. Johnson joins us to discuss how this collection came to be, what inspired her in her writing, and what snacks she ate along t...

We're talking relationships today on The Stacks with long time divorce lawyer and author James J. Sexton. We discuss James' book If You're in My Office, It's Already Too Late a guide on how- not -to be married. We get some good relationship advice, and some even better book recommendations, plus we talk about our favorite lawyer narratives. You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The...

Friday Black is a genre-bending collection of short stories by debut author, Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah. It tackles the Black experience in America, consumerism, mental health and many other pressing issues of our day. Today on The Stacks, Wade Allain-Marcus ( Insecure , French Dirty , Snowfall ) and Traci attempt to break down the major themes and ideas from these stories for The Stacks Book C...

Today on The Short Stacks we're honored to welcome author of this week's The Stacks Book Club pick, Friday Black , Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah. We talk about his genre-bending short story collection, how the title and cover came to be, and what its like being part of this current moment of exciting and diverse fiction writing. There are no spoilers today. You can find everything we discuss on to...

Its time for another episode of The Stacks. Today our guest is actor ( Insecure , Snowfall ), director ( French Dirty ), and writer ( Grown-ish ) Wade Allain-Marcus. We talk about how TV shows are written, white savior narratives, and connecting with the emotional truth of a story. Plus, we're joined by Wade's chatty dog Tika. You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' Websi...

All You Can Ever Know is an emotional memoir on adoption and identity by Nicole Chung. It is also this week's pick for The Stacks Book Club. We are again joined by author Vanessa McGrady (author of Rock Needs River ) to discuss All You Can Ever Know . We talk about transracial adoptions, adoption mythology, and expectations versus reality. There ar...

Today on The Short Stacks author Nicole Chung joins us to discuss her memoir, and The Stacks Book Club pick, All You Can Ever Know . The book addresses her transracial adoption, her decision to find her birth family, and becoming a mother. Nicole shares with The Stacks the chaotic setting in which she wrote the book, why she felt compelled to tell her story, and much more. Ther...

Today on The Stacks, author and journalist Vanessa McGrady talks with us about her new book, Rock Needs River , a memoir about becoming a mother through open adoption. We also talk about micro-aggressions , dark and twisty memoirs, and some of Vanessa's favorite books about adoption.  You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' Website: https://thestackspodcast...

We are joined again today by actor, Josh Segarra ( Arrow , Sirens , Orange is the New Black ) to discuss Rap Dad by Juan Vidal. A sort of a coming of age story rooted in becoming a parent in the hip-hop culture, Rap Dad is part memoir and part commentary on society. We talk redefining success in relationship to parenthood, intellectualizing religion, and Rap music as...

On today's episode of The Short Stacks we're joined by Anita Devlin, who co-wrote the story of her son's addiction in a joint memoir entitled S.O.B.E.R. Anita's journey through her son's (and co-author) addiction and recovery inspired her not only to write this book, but also to become an advocate and support for others dealing with the reaches of addiction. We discuss her transformation from moth...

Josh Segarra is an actor of both the stage ( On Your Feet ) and screen ( Arrow ,  Orange is the New Black ,  Sirens ) , and today he is our guest on The Stacks. Josh talks with us about acting, how reading fits into his life as a dad, and we go off on a tangent into sports biographies. Get ready for some good book recommendations and a lot a laughs. You can find every...

Today on the podcast we're discussing Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie, and to join us for The Stacks Book Club, is actor, comedian, and podcast host, Tawny Newsome . Home Fire is a modern retelling of Antigone set against the backdrop of fear and anti-Muslim sentiments in modern day London. Shamsie won the Women's Prize for Home Fire in 2018, and we totally understand why. We've got all the spoilers t...

On January 30th, we're discussing Rap Dad by Juan Vidal as part of The Stacks Book Club, and to get you ready for that chat, I talked with Juan about his process in writing Rap Dad , how he finds time to write with four children, and about his favorite rappers. And with all The Short Stacks, there are no spoilers today, enjoy. You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Sta...

We are joined by Tawny Newsome, a modern day renaissance woman. Tawny is known for her work as an actress, comedian, and podcaster. She is the co-host of the Yo, is this Racist? podcast, and The Super Group podcast. Tawny talks with us about racism through her lens as a comedian, reading all the travel memoirs (even the bad ones), and what Leonardo Dicaprio movie is also one of her most beloved bo...

To kick off the new year, we're talking self-help with Don Miguel Ruiz's best selling book, The Four Agreements . Fitness guru and author, Alec Penix joins us for this The Stacks Book Club discussion. The book lays out four pillars to follow in order to live a happier and more free life. There are no spoilers today, so join us for this conversation on personal growth and self love. You can find ev...

Its the last day of 2018, and we're celebrating with our very own wrap up, New Year's Eve show. We brought back friend of the pod, Lauren Fanella (who you might remember from episodes 15 and 16 , where we talked about Reincarnation Blues by Michael Poore). Lauren joins me to talk about each of our top five books from 2018, and the five books we're most looking forward to in 2019. Get your TBR...

We're getting you ready for your mind and body goals in 2019, with our guest celebrity trainer Alec Penix. Alec is the author of a brand new health and fitness book called Seven Sundays . It is a guided 43-day program that focuses on food, sleep, exercise, and spirituality. We also discuss Alec's love of Self-Help Books, reading to learn, and some tips to get you through the holidays. You can...

This week actor Behzad Dabu ( How to Get Away with Murder , The Chi ) joins us again to discuss Teju Cole's novel,  Open City . The book is a meditation on borders, terror, and belonging set against the back drop of a post 9/11 New York City, and centers a Nigerian immigrant as our guide. This week we discuss the book in detail, there are spoilers, however this book is less about plot and mor...

We're talking all things children's books this week on our mini episode with award winning author Jesse Byrd. In addition to writing children's books, Jesse runs his own publishing house ( Jesse B Creative ), and does children's book project management. Jesse's most recent picture book is Real Jungle Tales   and follows a little Native American girl, Zee, who comes up with an ingenious way to...

Today on The Stacks, our guest is actor, producer, and activist Behzad Dabu . Behzad is most well known for his roles on  How to Get Away with Murder  and  The Chi . We talk about plays that are great on the page, representation on screen, and his love of basketball books. You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' Website: https://thestackspodcast.com/2018/12...

Author Aja Gabel is back for The Stacks Book Club conversation this week. We're discussing  If You Leave Me   by Crystal Hana Kim. The book follows one woman, Haemi Lee, her life and relationships during and in the years following the Korean War. Our conversation covers what it means to survive, feminism, war stories, and more. There are spoilers this week, but if you want to get to know...

Its time for our first ever Short Stack! These mini episodes will come out every other Monday, and feature a conversation with an author about their book and writing process. We are thrilled to have author Crystal Hana Kim for this inaugural episode. Crystal is the author of this week's The Stacks Book Club pick,  If You Leave Me . Crystal shares with us where the idea for this book came from...

This week on The Stacks our guest is author Aja Gabel. Aja's debut novel,  The Ensemble , came out in 2018, and she talks with us about writing her book, cover design, which writers inspire her, and why she got a PhD in creative writing. We also talk music prodigies and time machines, which is to say, we talk about a little of everything. You can find everything we discuss on today's show on...

The Bluest Eye is the first novel of Nobel Laureate, Toni Morrison, it is also The Stacks Book Club pick this week. We dissect this American classic and discuss its many themes including race, beauty, love and abuse with Renée Hicks, founder of Book Girl Magic . Our conversation covers the entire book, which means there are a lot of spoilers. Go read the book and then come back and listen. You can...