'Tis the season to start thinking about children's books! What will you buy this year for the young reader in your life? Chris and Annie have some suggestions for you this week, hopefully beyond the old standards--not that there's anything wrong with the old standards! Also, weird moles.

Mentioned this week:
+ Wild Things: The Joy of Reading Children's Literature as an Adult by Bruce Handy
+ Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin
+ Dragons Love Tacos Too by Adam Rubin
+ Dough Knights and Dragons by Dee Leone
+ Franklin's Flying Bookshop by Jen Campbell and Kathie Harnett
+ The Book with No Pictures by B. J. Novak
+ Elephant and Piggie by Mo Willems
+ There's a Monster at the End of this Book by Jon Stone
+ This is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen
+ Vegetables in Underwear by Jared Chapman
+ Little Red by Bethan Woollvin
+ The Ugly Pumpkin by Dave Horowitz
+ Hooray for Hat by Dave Won
+ Boss Baby by Marla Frazee
+ Bossier Baby by Marla Frazee
+ King Baby by Kate Beaton
+ Giraffes Can't Dance by Giles Andreae
+ God's Very Good Idea by Trillia Newbell
+ Big and Small, God Made Them All by Ben Wilder
+ The Story Cure by Ella Berthoud and Susan Elderkin

This episode is brought to you in part by the city of Thomasville. Come join us for Victorian Christmas, our annual celebration of the holiday in the manner of a Victorian street fair! Mark December 14 and 15 on your calendars and learn more here. 

This week's episode is also sponsored by the Paxton House, a historic bed and breakfast in downtown Thomasville. Make a reservation at their website above and follow them on Instagram here!

Thanks, as always, to Forlorn Strangers for the use of our theme music. Learn and listen more here.

Listen to a full back catalogue of our show here, and, if you're interested in some exclusive content like our side-podcast Unpopular Opinions, consider supporting us on Patreon here. 

Because of the Thanksgiving holiday, we're coming to you a couple days early! Spend time with us, and then spend time with your loved ones. Best of both worlds. This week, Annie and Chris talk about food books, cookbooks, and how feasting structures our lives. Also, bedbugs.

Featured this week:
+ The Comfort Food Diaries by Emily Nunn
+ Cooked by Michael Pollan
+ Sex, Economy, Freedom and Community by Wendell Berry
+ Voracious by Cara Nicoletti
+ A Homemade Life by Molly Wizenberg
+ Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J. Ryan Stradal
+ The City Baker's Guide to Country Living by Louise Miller
+ Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin
+ Dough Knights and Dragons by Dee Leone
+ Supper of the Lamb by Robert Farrar Capon
+ Bread and Wine by Shauna Niequist
+ Of Mess and Moxie by Jen Hatmaker

Follow Joy the Baker here. (Or Drake on Cake here.)

This week's episode is sponsored by the Paxton House, a historic bed and breakfast in downtown Thomasville. Make a reservation at their website above and follow them on Instagram here!

Thanks, as always, to Forlorn Strangers for the use of our theme music. Learn and listen more here.

Listen to a full back catalogue of our show here, and, if you're interested in some exclusive content like our side-podcast Unpopular Opinions, consider supporting us on Patreon here. 

Sometimes we talk about old books like they're sacred and have nothing to do with what we're reading day to day, but new books and old books both speak to us, don't they? And sometimes they speak to each other. This week, Chris and Annie discuss some of their favorite classics and their favorite new books as if they are cousins. Of the kissing variety?

For instance, if you like To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, check out Rabbit Cake by Annie Hartnett.

If you like One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, you may enjoy Stay With Me by Ayobami Adebayo.

If you like The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, you may enjoy The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie.

If you like Little Women by Louisa May Alcott, you may enjoy My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante.

If you like The Catcher in the Rye by J. D. Salinger, you may enjoy The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky.

If you like The Giver by Lois Lowry, you may enjoy Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn. 

If you like In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, you may enjoy American Fire by Monica Hesse.

If you like The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, you may enjoy Blankets by Craig Thompson.

If you like The Joy of Cooking by Irma S. Rombauer, you may enjoy Delancey by Molly Wizenberg.

If you like A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith, you may enjoy The Boston Girl by Anita Diamant.

November 25 is Small Business Saturday! Come visit us at the Bookshelf and see all of our small business friends. If you can't come to Thomasville that weekend, support your local businesses!

Thanks, as always, to Forlorn Strangers for our theme music. Listen to more here. 

If you'd like to gain access to our exclusive content, consider supporting us on Patreon here. 

Full episodes of our show are available here.

It's a week later than usual, but it's a brand new month, which means it's time for a reading recap, our monthly feature in which Annie and Chris briefly review what they read this month. October was long, but we read some great books!

Annie read:
+ Thanks, Obama by David Litt
+ Sunburn by Laura Lippman
+ Unbelievable by Katy Tur
+ Turtles All the Way Down by John Green
+ Fire Sermon by Jamie Quatro
+ Tell Me Three Things by Julie Buxbaum
+ Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

Chris read:
+ Pregnant Butch by A. K. Summers
+ Are You My Mother? by Alison Bechdel
+ The First Bad Man by Miranda July

Also mentioned:
+ Who Thought This Was a Good Idea? by Alyssa Mastromonaco
+ Looking for Alaska by John Green
+ The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Thanks, as always, to Forlorn Strangers for the use of our theme music. Check out their website here. 

Find a full back catalogue of our show here. If you're interested in our exclusive bonus content like Unpopular Opinions or our weekly newsletter, you can learn more on our Patreon site. 

Why do so many readers seem to be afraid of short stories? Annie and Chris chat with author and professor CJ Hauser about how short stories are different from novels, how to approach a collection, and why book clubs should embrace shorts.

Stop worrying and love the short story! 

Mentioned this episode:
+ The Collected Stories of Grace Paley
+ Selected Stories: Andre Dubus
+ Flannery O'Connor: The Complete Stories
+ We're in Trouble by Christopher Coake
+ Fortune Smiles by Adam Johnson
+ Emporium by Adam Johnson
+ Later, at the Bar by Rebecca Barry
+ Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout
+ Everything Ravaged, Everything Burned by Wells Tower
+ CivilWarLand in Bad Decline by George Saunders
+ One More Thing by B. J. Novak
+ Music for Wartime by Rebecca Makkai
+ Difficult Women by Roxane Gay
+ Awayland by Ramona Ausubel
+ Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado

CJ's favorite collections:
+ Nine Stories by J. D. Salinger
+ Bear Down, Bear North by Melinda Moustakis
+ St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves by Karen Russell

Annie's favorite collections:
+ St. Lucy's Home for Girls Raised by Wolves by Karen Russell
+ Fortune Smiles by Adam Johnson
+ A Good Man is Hard to Find by Flannery O'Connor

Chris's favorite collections:
+ No One Belongs Here More Than You by Miranda July
+ Sorry Please Thank You by Charles Yu
+ CivilWarLand in Bad Decline by George Saunders

Learn more about CJ and find links to her writing on her website. 

Thanks, as always, to Forlorn Strangers for our intro music. You can check them out at their website. 

This episode is sponsored in part by Fontaine Maury, a branding and design firm with offices in Thomasville and Tallahassee. Check them out at their website. 

You can find full episodes of our show on our website. You can support us on Patreon here.