What Should I Read Next?

Today Anne chats with Julie Smith, who you may know from her delightful travel blog Drive on the Left. Julie is an enthusiastic reader. She’s also an American expat living in London, and while this sounds awfully glamorous, Anne was surprised to hear that while her London life has its joys, it presents challenges to her reading life as well. Click over to the podcast website for the full list of t...

Today Anne chats with Adam Verner. Adam reads for a living -- literally. When he was a kid and people asked him what he wanted to do when he grew up he’d say read books. So Adam grew up and turned his theatrical background into a job as a professional audiobook narrator. Adam is also one of the few readers who's been decisive/brave/committed enough to choose his three all-time favorite books for t...

Today Anne chats with Amy Johnson, who grew up in a big family in a small town in rural Colorado. (Amy says there were literally more books in her home than people in her town.) These days, Amy lives in Salt Lake City with her family, and describes herself as an ISTJ Type A Upholder. Click over to the podcast website for the full list of titles discussed in this episode, and leave us a comment to...

Today Anne chats with Stacey Loscalzo, a mother of two girls, book reviewer for Great New Books, and former reading specialist in New Jersey, just outside New York City. Stacey always has a book going, and she’s looking for titles that will compel her to READ when she has ten minutes to spare—instead of checking Facebook. Click over to the podcast website for the full list of titles discussed in t...

Today Anne chats with Andrea Griffith, a former medical librarian, mom of two daughters, and independent bookstore owner, and she came to me with a plea: she misses reading at whim, is craving depth, and wants help finding great books that aren't relentlessly new, new, new.  Click over to the podcast website for the full list of titles discussed in this episode, and leave us a comment to let us kn...

Today Anne chats with Kendra Adachi, who you may know from her blog, The Lazy Genius Collective, or her Lazy Genius podcast. She’s a mom of three in North Carolina who wants to find books that are good enough to make her turn off the tv, which is saying something because she loves her tv. Click over to the podcast website for the full list of titles discussed in this episode, and leave us a commen...

Today’s guest is Tim Gardner. Tim's wife Emily contacted Anne and asked if she could do a little literary matchmaking for Tim. They'd both realized that a little reading break at the end of the work day made for a smoother transition between work and home, but he wasn't sure what to read next. They came to the right place. Click over to the podcast website for the full list of titles discussed in...

Today I'm talking with Breanne Mosher, a self-described history nerd and travel lover who lives in Nova Scotia with her family. She documents her family's adventures (with beautiful photos) at This Vintage Moment, where she explores the everyday extraordinary.  Click over to the podcast website for the full list of titles discussed in this episode, and leave us a comment to let us know what YOU th...

Today’s guest is Malisa Price, a mom of two who lives in Raleigh, and she’s a regular reader who does it for the love of it, not for her job, although not that long ago she didn’t consider herself a reader at all. Anne and Malisa talk about her tipping point, her taste, and her attempts to branch out with her reading. Click over to the podcast website for the full list of titles discussed in this...

Today Anne chats with Mallory Rees, who's getting married next month and is looking for good books to take on her honeymoon. Regardless of your marital status, you'll enjoy this one if you love a good pageturner—or if you've ever taken, or want to take, a beach vacation.  Click over to the podcast website for the full list of titles discussed in this episode, and leave us a comment to let us know...

It's finally happening! Today we have a very special episode: Anne is chatting again with six guests from the first ten episodes of the show to find out what they actually did read next. What books did they read? What did they think about them? And what books are they still resisting? Click over to the podcast website for the full list of titles discussed in this episode, and leave us a comment to...

For today’s bonus episode we have a very special guest: Anne chats with her 8-year-old daughter Lucy. Lucy lives in Louisville, Kentucky with her parents and her three siblings. She’s a third grader who loves music, sports, and all kinds of animals, and her picks today are going to remind you about all the books that made YOU first fall in love with reading. Click over to the podcast website for t...

Today's guest is Sarah Russell Giglio. Sarah lives in Shreveport, Louisiana: she’s a newlywed who loves cooking and The Bachelor and Bachelorette, and by day she’s a criminal defense attorney. In this episode, Anne and Sarah talk about big fat books and a few Southern classics.  Click over to the podcast website for the full list of titles discussed in this episode, and leave us a comment to let u...

Today Anne chats with Brian Sztabnik, an English teacher, basketball coach, and podcaster who lives on Long Island with his wife and two sons. Anne and Brian discuss great literary fiction, books about creative pursuits, reading with others, and high school English. Click over to the podcast website for the full list of titles discussed in this episode, and leave us a comment to let us know what Y...

Today Anne chats with Jessica Turner, author of The Fringe Hours and My Fringe Hours. Jessica lives in Nashville with her family, where she works full time outside the home and blogs regularly at The Mom Creative. Of all the guests I’ve talked to, Jessica’s the most consistent with her picks. We have a lot of fun talking about compelling stories and character-driven plots in her favorite genre. Sh...

Today Anne talks with Andrea Cumbo-Floyd, a writer, teacher, editor, and farmer based in Charlottesville, Virginia. ("Sometimes more of one of those than the other," she says.) Andi is the author of Steele Secrets, The Slaves Have Names, and Writing Day In and Day Out: Living a Practice of Words.  Andi and Anne discuss about strong female characters, genre-bending novels, and reading diverse books...

Today Anne chats with Grace Martin, a 12-year-old bibliophile who lives with her family outside Chicago. Grace loves Harry Potter, dystopian novels, and strong plotting and she’s incredibly well spoken about her taste in literature. Anne also chats a bit with Grace’s mom Lara about raising readers and helping kids choose good books for themselves.   Click over to the podcast website for the full l...

Anne chats with Marybeth Whalen and Ariel Lawhon of SheReads.org, an online reading site and book club for women. Under Marybeth and Ariel's leadership, She Reads does a terrific job of highlighting excellent titles you've never heard of.  These women are writers as well as curators and reviewers: Ariel is the author of Flight of Dreams and The Wife, the Maid, and the Mistress. Marybeth is the aut...

Today Anne chats with Caroline Starr Rose. Caroline is a mom, former teacher, and children's author of the novels May B. and Blue Birds. Caroline is based in New Mexico.  Anne and Caroline discuss reading and empathy, Caroline's very favorite genre, why Caroline is so reluctant to talk about books she doesn't like, and her snob-free approach to reading.    Click over to the podcast website for the...

In this episode Anne chats with Ed Cyzewski, author of multiple books including Pray, Write, Grow, Creating Space, Write without Crushing Your Soul, and A Path to Publishing. Anne and Ed discuss memoir, creativity, and how chronic fatigue from sleepless nights (hello, toddlers) can really put a damper on your reading life. Click over to the podcast website for the full list of titles discussed in...

In this episode Anne chats with Cara Strickland, a writer, food critic, and anxious cook who lives in the Pacific Northwest. This episode covers a lot of ground: Anne and Cara discuss singleness, sense of place, British chick lit, book boundaries, and of course, what Cara should read next.    Click over to the podcast website for the full list of titles discussed in this episode, and leave us a co...

In this episode Anne chats with Meredith Schwartz, a self-described Type A, INFJ, and unapologetic listmaker who is trying desperately (and a big compulsively) to hold together all the crazy aspects of her life. There's nothing vanilla about Meredith: she has strong opinions about her reading, which makes for a fabulous conversation.   Click over to the podcast website for the full list of titles...

In this episode Anne chats with Janssen Bradshaw, creator of the blog Everyday Reading, former children's librarian, and modern mother who's raising her three kids to be readers. In this episode Anne and Janssen talk about how Janssen reads books like other people watch television, why Janssen's in danger of having her "real reader" badge taken away, and books with strong narrative drive and excel...

In this episode Anne chats with fellow bookworm Leigh Kramer. In addition to being a full-time book nerd, Leigh is a San Francisco resident, fried pickle connoisseur, and lifetime White Sox fan. Anne and Leigh discuss the "nearly perfect novel" that Leigh adored and Anne hated, the book Leigh read at just the right time, how it drives Leigh crazy that some readers love a book she loathed, and a va...

Anne talks to Preston Yancey about the power of reading, English major favorites, his deep and abiding love for chick lit, and what makes a great YA novel. Click over to the podcast website for the full list of titles discussed in this episode, and leave us a comment to let us know what YOU think Preston should read next! Connect with Preston: Blog | Instagram | Twitter Check out Preston's books: ...