There Will Be Books

As much of the Midwest braces for a monster winter storm, what better way to pass the time than with some insightful and fun book talk. This week we have a jam packed episode as we discuss Guy Gavriel Kay's novel, "All the Seas of the World," set prop bets for our newest thriller book, and pick a few short stories to tide us over for February. As always, enjoy! Contact Us: Instagram @therewillbboo...

Special episode this week, as we were lucky enough to interview author Dale A. Jenkins and discuss his book "Diplomats & Admirals." Jenkins' book goes in depth on the failed diplomacy between the USA and Japan, and then moves forward to the attack on Pearl Harbor and the book culminates with the Battle of Midway. We both agree this book is full of fascinating facts and conclusions, well worth...

An epic episode this week, in fact it was such a great episode we had to record over 2 nights! In truth, we had technical difficulties but we persevered and made a very good episode. This week we're talking Matt's chili recipe, reading emails, shouting out used bookstores, picking books to read in January, and discussing the great Olga Tokarczuk novel, "Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead."...

Judging from the title you'd guess this was an episode looking back on our year in reading and looking ahead. You'd be partially right. We do discuss those things but we begin with Matt's beautiful mind as he postulates that the term G.O.A.T comes from David Foster Wallace. From there we discuss, Harrison Ford, The Godfather, The Office (David Wallace) and LL Cool J. Sound confusing? Enjoy!!! Cont...

Happy Holidays! We're finishing up the year talking about books we got on Christmas and we review a couple classic holiday movies! We had fun on this one and in classic style Peter thought this was a Patreon episode and Matt thought it was regular....so we decided to release it to everybody! Thanks for listening to us this year and hopefully you continue to check us out in the new year. Enjoy! Con...

In this episode, Peter discusses his peak reading out loud phase, Matt and his mom agree on "All the Pretty Horses," and a new book is added to the TBR. Of course, there's lots more that we discuss, including Peter losing another bet and some early 2023 reading goals. Enjoy! Book added to TBR: The Blithedale Romance by Nathaniel Hawthorne Contact Us: Instagram @therewillbbooks Twitter @therewillbb...

Really the title says it all. We begin with sports talk, where one of us has a good team and the other does not. Is Matt being nice? Then we move onto literary criticism, as we discuss a 1960 Gore Vidal essay on Norman Mailer. And finally, we continue a tradition of picking a holiday movie to watch, this time going back to the 1940's. If you like this type of episode give our Patreon a try and tha...

We're recording this right before Thanksgiving, giving us a chance to stand up for Thanksgiving food! After praising pies and casseroles, we discuss some recent books we've been reading on the side and giving out some gift ideas for the holidays. Finally, we pick our November book. It's a jammed pack episode this week and we hope you enjoyed your holidays with food and books! Holiday Book Recommen...

We took a trip back to our childhoods this week, as we read Alvin Schwartz's classic horror collection "Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark." We discuss what makes a story scary and what kind of stories scare us the most. In addition, we praise the artwork of Stephen Gammell, read aloud selections, and more. Also, please let  us know what your favorite story is from the collection. Enjoy! Conta...

After so many episodes it might be surprising to know we have not done a Shakespeare episode, we change that tonight! We dive into A Midsummer Night's Dream, discuss theories on the play, our history, and experiences with it and a whole lot more. Enjoy! Contact Us: Instagram @therewillbbooks Twitter @therewillbbooks Email willbebooks@gmail.com Goodreads: Therewillbebooks ko-fi.com/therewillbbooks...

We planned on doing a normal book club nomination episode, but somewhere along the way we get very sidetracked! Don't worry we do select an October book and add in some added criteria for reading this months scary selection. We think you'll like it! As for the rest of the episode...Enjoy!! October Book Selection: Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz *Bonus Thriller* Always the First...

We're back with our favorite anti-hero, Harry Flashman. But first, Matt has an important life update about spiders and hedge apples. Once we finish discussing the spiders living below Matt's house, we dive into a rather interesting entry in the Flashman papers. George MacDonald Fraser showcases his skill with plot and characters to deliver a very strong entry in the series. Hope you enjoy the epis...

We begin with our annual tradition of discussing our chances of winning this years MacArthur genius grant. Will this be the year we win? Maybe. We then discuss the new novel from Sloane Crosley, "Cult Classic." Matt puts forth some theories and Peter talks himself into liking the book more. An all-around fantastic episode full of books and genius. Enjoy! Contact Us: Instagram @therewillbbooks Twit...

Maybe it was the terrible Kombucha or the 20 plus books that were nominated, but we went a little long this episode! Join us as we discuss the most nominations we ever had for a book club month and end up with two excellent additions to our TBR. Enjoy! Selections Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov Contact Us: Instagram @therewi...

The concept is simple, draft a fantasy football team by way of book like equivalents. Our enjoyment from this silly game is infinite and this time we brought in friend of the podcast and author, Sam Ernst. Enjoy, Sam's well thought out selections, listen in amazement at the wonderfully bonkers team Matt puts forth, and judge Peter's selection of Moby Dick as head coach.  Contact Us: Instagram...

We're back! Matt starts us off talking about a history of the Roosevelts, specifically detailing how Teddy Roosevelt was not a great guy. And then finally, after months of reading, we're ready to discuss Marlon James' novel "Black Leopard, Red Wolf." Overall, we were conflicted about the novel and go into our thoughts on the story, themes, writing, and more. Enjoy! Books Mentioned: The Wars of the...

We begin with Eugene Vodolazkin's novel, "Laurus," a novel that we both liked and disliked for similar reasons. However we felt, we did feel the novel brings up many interesting topics to discuss and think about. Finally, we're back to nominating books for the August book club. Our selection, joins our yearly tradition of reading the next in the Flashman series.  Overall, a very fine episode...

Peter gives Neil Gaiman another shot after being disappointed over a decade earlier and Matt discusses author as celebrity. It's never a good idea to write off an author on one book and so Matt convinced Peter to give Neil Gaiman another shot. On this episode we're discussing Neil Gaiman's debut novel, Neverwhere. A novel rich in depth, character, and plot. Finally, we discuss the concept of celeb...

This episode has it all, a story from Matt's childhood, Peter starts a new project, and we discuss a fantastic book. The main course for tonight is Robertson Davies' novel, "Fifth Business." The beginning novel of the Deptford Trilogy, we were recommended this novel from our listeners and boy were they right. We break down the plot and the themes and our favorite passages before discussing the fan...

We can't quite believe it but we've hit 100 episodes! To celebrate, we've decided to have a relaxed look back on some of our favorite books, biggest surprises, and Matt's unaired thoughts! Of course it wouldn't be an episode if we didn't go off on tangents but we corral it near the end and pick a July book. Thank you for listening and supporting us and we hope you enjoy the next 100 episodes! Cont...

Tonight we're discussing "Masters of Atlantis" by Charles Portis, a comedic romp full of memorable scenes and hilarious dialogue. Portis is most known for his novel "True Grit" but we discuss why you shouldn't forget reading his comedic novels. Matt discusses his favorite scenes and Peter enjoys the more serious points Portis makes and finally we make the connection between Portis and the Coen bro...

We begin with Matt's stories from vacation and then move into his review of Sally Rooney's novel, "Beautiful World, Where Are You." From there we begin the selection process for our new seasonal book, and with the help of fan nominations, we land on a great choice! Enjoy! Books Nominated: The Once and Future King by T.H. White* Bleak House by Charles Dickens The Books of Jacob by Olga Tokarczuk Tr...

We begin this episode with a mystery that's being troubling Matt for a very long time, who stole his copy of Billy Joel: Greatest Hits Vol 3? From there we jump into the delightful world at Blandings Castle, and discuss "Summer Lightning" by P.G. Wodehouse. Full of hilarious writing, memorable characters, and a prized pig, we discuss why Wodehouse is so beloved and what makes "Summer Lightning" a...

This week's book contains mercenaries, marching armies, treachery, and a dangerous retreat. Part military history and part philosophical study, the "Anabasis" by Xenophon has been studied and enjoyed for a variety of reasons. We delve into how a book written 2,500 years ago can feel so present, and the many interesting things Xenophon has to say about the nature of leadership and military command....

What do you do when you have so many great nominations? You can't just pick one, so pick a few. And that is what we did listener, we know we have a mountain of books we're reading but what's better than adding more great selections?! Hopefully you join us in reading some if not all the books we've added to the TBR. Plus, friend of the pod, Sam Ernst, sent in his fantasy baseball author team and Ma...