The Most Recommendable Books of the Century (So Far)

Summary

Book Riot - The Podcast: Episode Summary Title: The Most Recommendable Books of the Century (So Far)
Release Date: June 18, 2025
Hosts: Jeff O’Neill and Rebecca Schinsky
Location: Powell’s Bookstore, Portland, Oregon

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Introduction

In the June 18, 2025 episode of Book Riot - The Podcast, hosts Jeff O’Neill and Rebecca Schinsky convened live at Powell’s Bookstore in Portland, Oregon, to discuss and recommend what they consider the most recommendable books of the 21st century so far. Steering clear of personal favorites that might not resonate broadly, the duo focused on books that are engaging, widely appealing, and offer meaningful reflections without delving into overly traumatic or niche subject matters.

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Defining "Recommendable"

Rebecca Schinsky (03:14):
"Recommendable is like, it's good and you can recommend it to a lot of people. I think that means it's some. Maybe it's fun to read. It's probably pretty quick. It's engaging and interesting."

The hosts emphasized that recommendable books are those that can be enjoyed by a diverse audience, providing both entertainment and substance without requiring specialized knowledge or risking reader discomfort.

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Top Recommended Books

1. Gilead by Marilynne Robinson (05:31 - 07:35)

Rebecca and Jeff launched their list with Gilead, praising it as a mutual favorite.

Rebecca Schinsky (06:19):
"It's written as letters to his young son about his life, about what he has seen in this small town, what it means to be a person who lives in the world."

The novel’s epistolary format and deep emotional resonance make it a standout, offering profound reflections on life, legacy, and human connections. The upcoming adaptation by Martin Scorsese added to its appeal, signaling broader recognition.

2. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (08:02 - 10:19)

Described as a fantasy romance with stunning world-building, The Night Circus captivated Jeff and Rebecca with its enchanting narrative.

Jeff O’Neill (08:17):
"The writing and world building is just out of this world."

The story’s magical setting—a traveling circus that appears only at night—and its intricate plot involving a centuries-long duel between magicians fascinated the hosts, highlighting its capacity to transport readers into a beautifully crafted fantasy realm.

3. The Book of Delights by Ross Gay (10:20 - 12:03)

Ross Gay’s collection of essays was lauded for its exploration of everyday joys and deeper societal reflections.

Rebecca Schinsky (10:31):
"Ross Gay is a black man. And so one of the essays is about, like, the nod between black men who pass each other on the sidewalk and what that means."

The essays blend personal delight with critical social commentary, making the book both uplifting and thought-provoking. Its suitability for short, daily readings was also highlighted as a plus for busy readers.

4. Pachinko by Min Jin Lee (12:28 - 14:47)

An epic family saga spanning generations, Pachinko was praised for its rich historical context and emotional depth.

Jeff O’Neill (12:45):
"She is not afraid, the author. To put your heart through the ringer without being melodramatic, which can be quite difficult to do."

The novel’s portrayal of the Korean immigrant experience in Japan, combined with its compelling characters and narrative resilience, makes it a powerful recommendation for those interested in historical and cultural narratives.

5. Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. Cosby (14:49 - 16:46)

A high-octane thriller, Blacktop Wasteland centers on a former getaway driver navigating moral dilemmas.

Rebecca Schinsky (15:27):
"She is not afraid, the author. To put your heart through the ringer without being melodramatic."

The book's gripping plot and fast-paced storytelling were highlighted as ideal for fans of mysteries and thrillers seeking something fresh and engaging beyond mainstream options like James Patterson.

6. House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J. Maas (Post-discussion Promotion)

Though primarily a promotional segment, Sarah J. Maas’s latest installment in the Crescent City series was mentioned for its action-packed narrative and expanding fantasy universe, catering to Romantasy enthusiasts.

7. Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel (31:17 - 33:15)

A post-apocalyptic novel blending art and survival, Station Eleven was commended for its poignant exploration of human resilience.

Rebecca Schinsky (31:25):
"It's beautiful. They changed some things from the book, but it's one of the cases where I think the adaptation really adds to the story."

The novel’s focus on a traveling symphony underscores the essential role of art and community in overcoming devastation, making it a heartfelt recommendation.

8. The Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande (33:43 - 36:15)

A productivity book with profound implications, The Checklist Manifesto was discussed for its practical approach to reducing errors through checklists.

Jeff O’Neill (34:30):
"We have all this technology and we don't even need technology. Pen and paper will work."

The hosts emphasized its applicability beyond medical professions, highlighting its value in everyday life and professional settings for enhancing efficiency and creativity.

9. Kitchen Confidential by Anthony Bourdain (36:18 - 38:27)

Anthony Bourdain’s gritty memoir was recommended for its unfiltered portrayal of kitchen life and its influence on modern food culture.

Rebecca Schinsky (36:27):
"It didn't know it at the time, but he was starting a conversation that moved us into, maybe that's not how it should work."

The memoir’s raw honesty and vivid storytelling make it a must-read for anyone interested in the culinary world or seeking an authentic narrative voice.

10. A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles (38:34 - 40:26)

Set in pre-revolutionary Russia, Amor Towles’s novel was praised for its elegant prose and character-driven narrative.

Jeff O’Neill (39:05):
"It's a chronicle of the next few decades. Decades of his life as he lives in this hotel and then lives through by proxy or by hotel suite and room service."

The story of Count Alexander Rostov, confined to a grand hotel, explores themes of resilience and adaptation in a changing world, resonating with readers who appreciate subtle yet profound storytelling.

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Additional Recommendations

Throughout the episode, Jeff and Rebecca also touched upon several other noteworthy books, including:

• The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett: A story exploring identity and family dynamics through the lens of twin sisters who choose different racial identities.

• The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin: A heartwarming tale about a bookstore owner whose life changes with the arrival of a mysterious child.

• The Martian by Andy Weir: Though widely recognized, it was lauded for its engaging mix of science and humor.

• The Emperor of All Maladies by Siddhartha Mukherjee: An insightful biography of cancer, blending medical history with human stories.

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Interactivity and Audience Engagement

The hosts engaged with the live audience, encouraging participation and personal recommendations, thereby enriching the discussion with diverse perspectives. They emphasized the importance of books that not only reflect personal interests but also introduce readers to new and challenging ideas.

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Conclusion

Jeff O’Neill and Rebecca Schinsky concluded the episode by reiterating their passion for recommending books that balance enjoyment with meaningful content. They encouraged listeners to explore the diverse selections discussed, assuring that these books offer enriching experiences suitable for a wide range of readers.

Notable Quotes:

• Rebecca Schinsky (10:31):
  "Ross Gay is a black man. And so one of the essays is about, like, the nod between black men who pass each other on the sidewalk and what that means."

• Jeff O’Neill (34:30):
  "We have all this technology and we don't even need technology. Pen and paper will work."

• Rebecca Schinsky (36:27):
  "It didn't know it at the time, but he was starting a conversation that moved us into, maybe that's not how it should work."

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Recommendation

Whether you're looking to delve into profound family sagas, thrilling mysteries, or insightful non-fiction, this episode of Book Riot - The Podcast offers a curated list of books that are both engaging and broadly appealing. Jeff and Rebecca's thoughtful discussions and enthusiastic endorsements make these recommendations a valuable guide for your next great read.

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For more information and to listen to the full episode, visit Book Riot Podcast.

Transcript

[Jeff O'Neill]

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[Rebecca Schinsky]

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[Jeff O'Neill]

You can Venmo this or you can Venmo that. You can Venmo this so you can Venmo that.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

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[Jeff O'Neill]

Hey everybody, Jeff here as an enticement for you to consider joining us at Pals on July 9, where Rebecca and I and Vanessa Diaz and Keith Mossman from Powell's will be doing the best books of the year so far. 7pm Tickets are $10. Link in the show notes bookright.com Listen, we are putting bringing in front of the Paywall in front of the Patreon Paywall, the event we did earlier this year. The most recommendable books of the century so far so you can hear what it's going to feel like to be in that room. Hope you'll join us. All right, without further ado, here's the show. Guess we're going to do this now. All right, this is the Book Riot Podcast. I'm Jeff o' Neill. I'm Rebecca Schinsky and we're coming to you from Powell's in Portland, Oregon. You know that AI generated applause. Sounds so real. It's really good stuff at this point. So for those of you listening at home, we are live at Pals. We have so many friendly faces and people who are so warmly invited us today. Here's how the night is going to work. We're going to try to remember that we are podcasting for thousands of people and not the folks here. I'm so focused on you guys that I forget that podcast is theater of the mind and we need to talk about what we're actually doing. So I just explained to the crowd here how this is going to work. These are the 20 most recommendable books of the century so far. We stole this from the New York Times, sort of, kind of. And we each submitted our list of 10 to our co worker and she saw if there was any overlap and we had some switches out. We do not know what each other picked. So that's part of the fun here. We're going to go turn by turn. We have our two minute timer. For those of you listening at home, I have asked the people. Boy, show of hands is really going to work on a podcast.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh, yeah. This is really good planning.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. We'll have to give a sort of qualitative description of the hand showing of that. And then we're going to go through and then we might do a little Q and A at the end. That can be related to what we picked or whatever. So if you've got one in the chamber for us, we can move and do a little Phil Donahue. Mike, that's how old I am. Sorry, that's really like carbon dating myself to make a reference like that. All right, with that, Rebecca, we're going to talk about what recommendable means to us and how we kind of went about this.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

So you said we kind of stole this from the New York Times. And I think kind of is the right adjective there because they did, you know, the best books of the century so far. Of course, we did our own versions and we talked about it on the show. But if we think best is not necessarily the same as recommendable and your favorites aren't necessarily the same as recommendable. Like, I see a lot of nodding heads. So I think everybody here is thinking of a book you love that you're like, how the hell would I tell someone else that they need to read this? So those are the ones we're not talking about. Like, that's the whole. There's a whole section of our favorites that we're not going to talk about. Recommendable is like, it's good and you can recommend it to a lot of people. I think that means it's some. Maybe it's fun to read. It's probably pretty quick. It's engaging and interesting. It doesn't have to be easy, but it probably has to have very little to no like, really difficult subject matter or something that would be, you know, painful for people to read or traumatic for them to read. So we're staying in a zone of like, what's not necessarily safe. But what do we think is widely appealing so that maybe you haven't read some of these. But also people who are in this room are pretty likely to be the ones that, like at the holidays, your friends are like, yeah, what book should I read? Yeah, for this person, what book should I read? And we want to help you guys stock up on your selections.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And we're not looking for. Everyone loves a beach read. No beach read. Slander coming out of this mouth, at least into a public microphone. So we want a little more meat on the bone at least. I should speak for myself here. I want you to do a four quadrant kind of thing where it's interesting, you get through the pages and it kind of means something and maybe it does something a little bit different. So it's not going to be just that you can inhale. That's a different kind of recommendation.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

There was a debate in my house about whether the Da Vinci Code should be on this list.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And you lost that argument to Bob. Is that what happened?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Well, I'm not revealing, but it's not.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Did he make a pitch for Master and Commander? Was like, you know, he really didn't. He did not.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Bob did not make a pitch for Master and Commander. I think he knows that's a niche. That's a niche interest.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. And for. Did some of yours. Do you have like. I have got a couple that's like four. It might be recommendable for this kind of person or this kind of reader. So they're not all for everyone? All the time.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yes.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Okay. With all that, would you like to stand up and Vanna white it a little bit over there and see how we can pull one away?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And they're not in any particular order.

[Jeff O'Neill]

So we're just not. No longer they are.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I'm just gonna start. Oh my God, we're starting.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Was this the one?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

No, but we're starting with Gilead. Gilead by Marilyn Robinson.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I can't believe that's to the timer.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay, sorry. Okay, so this is in the category of books that Jeff and I call Old Men Waiting to Die. And it's maybe our mutual favorite book ever. We might get through this two minutes without either of us crying.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I cried beforehand. I compare that.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's set in a small town in Iowa. It's about a pastor of a small church who's in his later in life. He's in his 60s or 70s. He's fallen in love, kind of by surprise with a younger woman. They have a small child and he is realizing and kind of sitting with the reality that he's not going to live for most of this child's life and that his young son is going to know a lot of life in the world without him.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And it's written as letters to his young son about his life, about what he has seen in this small town, what it means to be a person who lives in the world. I'm, like, getting goosebumps thinking I can't look at you. I'm sorry.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's good.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

We're just, like, ripping the band aid off. We're getting this one done first. And I think this book just, like, really sits in everything I want from recommendable because it sounds like Oldman Waiting to Die should be a tough hang. And this is not a tough hang at all. A book written as a bunch of letters can be challenging to get into, but it's super engaging. You sink right into it. A book about a religious person might not be that inviting to everybody, but here you really just have to believe that, like, something in life is sacred or special in some way to tap into it. Man. It's just lovely and beautiful and so readable and will give you or anybody that you recommend it to a lot of opportunity to reflect on your own life. Like, what? What do I want to be able to put in the story of my life at the end? What do you hope your legacy will be for Jeff? It's also in the Fathers and Sons, man.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Rebecca, I swear to God.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I'm so sorry. I really did not know this was gonna be the first one. So that's Gilead by Marilyn Robinson. Won the Pulitzer in 2000.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And it's gonna be a movie directed by. Martin Scacy.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Is doing the whole series. It's the first in a quadrilogy. And Martin Scorsese is directing.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Shoehorning the shootouts in is going to be interesting. Screenwriting problem for that particular book. You didn't do any of the bits. How many people have read this? Has anyone converted?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

We have 19 more of these?

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. Are we out of time? Yeah. Okay, good. I don't have to say anything about that and get choked up and embarrass myself. All right, here we go. I don't know what this is going to be.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay.

[Jeff O'Neill]

All right. The Night Circus by Aaron Morgenstern.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Timer's on.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Timer's on. Anybody read? Who's read this? Wow. Look at all those hands. Okay, we're done.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Good job, everybody.

[Jeff O'Neill]

So the Night Circus came out in 20. I had all my dates, right.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

They came out In a year.

[Jeff O'Neill]

They came out in I think 2011. It is a fantasy romance, which listeners know is my favorite genre. But there's a couple things to recommend it. A, the writing is gorgeous. The setup is this. There are these wizards. Magicians I guess. Is that right? People have read. They're more magicians. They're magicians. Oh, thank you for chiming in on that. And they have been having this like centuries long duel to decide who's the best magician. Because these are what dudes do apparently. Unfortunately, it's a bond measure. Yeah, it really is. And as part of their bet, they decide who can pick an orphan basically at random, train them up and who will then beat the other one. Like they fight to the death over time. Like it's a long term wager. It's not clear what the stakes are. It's just sort of honor. Right. They're kind of bored and I don't want to spoil it, but I'm going to that. The two prodigies figure out what's going on and they fall in love and then they have to deal with what's going on with that. I'm not going to spoil what actually happens, but the world that it's in. The Night Circus is this traveling circus that only appears at night. And it's magic, but the people that visit don't really know it. Maybe this could actually be practical effects, but it's actually, actually magic. The writing and world building is just out of this world. I'm going to apologize to pals for one minute and say it is the single best audiobook I've ever listened to. Narrated by the magisterial Jim Dale. Michelle, my partner will turn it on just to listen to in the middle and like let it wash over her and sort of wash the cares of the world away. How am I doing on time?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

You're almost out.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. And it's just really, really enchanting. So if you're not into having a feeling, it's not for you. So that's really the only demerit against it because you have to have feelings to enjoy it.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Let's check our conversion rates. Now.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Anyone interested in that didn't read it before. Yeah, there we go. Ryan, you gotta read this. If you haven't read this. Oh, come on.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

If you're doing Romantasy now and you have not read the Night Circus, you definitely have to go back.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Alright, you're up next.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay, okay, okay. This one is the Book of Delights by Ross Gay.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Who's read it? There's some hands there. Yeah. Good.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

So Ross Gay is a poet, and one year on his birthday, he decided to write a short essay every day about something that delighted him. And this is a collection not of all of them, but of, I don't know, the ones he liked the most or that he thought hung together as a collection most effectively. Some of them are exactly what the title makes it sound like, you know, like the glories of your neighborhood garden, the fun of a pickup game of basketball. Ross Gay is a black man. And so one of the essays is about, like, the nod between black men who pass each other on the sidewalk and what that means. And so he gets out of the things that are surface level, like, obviously fun, delightful, beautiful, and into deeper issues that he faces in his life because they're only a couple of pages long. You get to drop into that and then step out and process. But that, I think, really real willingness to go into, to share that he sat down every day for a whole year and reflected on something that he saw or experienced is such an invitation to do it yourself and to let the definition of delight be broad and expansive and something beyond, like, hey, guess what? I saw a dog today. Which, like, you know, is wonderful, but he lets it be such a much bigger, beautiful thing. And if you like this one, there is the book of More Delights as well.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Really struggled with the titles for this.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, yeah, he's continued this practice. I've heard him on podcasts talk about, like, people tell him that they developed a delight practice because of it. So just really wonderful. This is like an all timer for holiday gifting.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's a very good recommendation. Also, if you like to do like a few minutes of reading during the day, you know, you can pick up and read one and it's just a couple of minutes. And if. If there are macro conditions that maybe you could use a few minutes of centering yourself every day. Yeah, this might be a good sort of selection for that. Good one. Any we convert anybody that. Who's going to pick that one up? Any ideas? All right. Oh, you moved a lot there. Wow. That's right. Yeah, he's. He's terrific.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I love that for him.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Oh, good. Yay.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

This one I'm mad you got.

[Jeff O'Neill]

This is Pachinko by Min Jin Lee, I think. Actually, did you have this on your list?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, this is one I have.

[Jeff O'Neill]

This is a mutual favorite. So this is a hard one to synopsize.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Epic family saga.

[Jeff O'Neill]

So at Epic family saga, starting in about 1930 in Korea, all the way up into their late 80s in New York City, following multiple generations of one family as they try to live their lives under world historical circumstances. Intergenerational. There's a lot of politics stuff I didn't know about Koreans getting moved out of Korea, coming to Japan, being a subject cast in that situation. But you're really here for the spirit and will of these people. You know, you're gonna cry over a bowl of white rice in one scene in this particular book because you're gonna care so much.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Strong.

[Jeff O'Neill]

So many strong people doing so much to just to eke out a bare existence. And the world building is terrific. The sentences are terrific and the characters are indelible, memorable. And you really want things to go well for them. They don't always. She is not afraid, the author. To put your heart through the ringer without being melodramatic, which can be quite difficult to do. And it really is an education of a sensibility in a worldview that, you know, fiction is as good as this as anything of like dropping you into a world and saying, this is what it was like and what these people are like.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

You don't need Wikipedia to pick up all the history. She does a really lovely job understand where these characters are and what's happening in a moment of history. The most of us in the US Are not educated.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. And the central conflict, really. The main character, her mother has a boarding house and they don't have much and things go badly and she falls in love with. Not fall. That's not right. Thinks she's going to fall in love with. Has an affair with. We get impregnated by sort of an up and coming mobster. And that's complicated, apparently. And it doesn't go well.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Mobster got some eyebrows.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. He really does. Also a wonderful adaptation on Apple. It looks like they spent all the money to get everything looking right. So I can really remember that too. I realized I forgot to ask anyone read that. So we're gonna ignore the second part. I'm out of time, too. You're up next.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

All right.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Pachinko Minjin Lee.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

All right. That one I was mad that you got. But also I'm glad I didn't have to try to explain.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, thanks. Thanks so much for that.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

This is Blacktop Wasteland by S.A. cosby.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Who's read this one? Okay. Only a few. We get to convert some people.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

There's a high ceiling on my conversion attempts here. This is like an edge of your seat thriller. This is the first of his novels. It's About Bug, who is a man who's, like, the best getaway driver on the East Coast. He has come out of prison. He's been out for a little while, and so he's, like, resolved that he's going to stay clean, he's going to be out of the game. And then his former buddies in crime call him back for one last job, and they're going to do a heist on a jewelry store. They need him because he's the best there is. And he's torn. Like, I'm a family man now. I don't want to do this. But also things like, times have been tough and it's tempting, and he knows that he can probably pull this off and that nobody else can pull it off. This sits in our shared favorite category of getting the gang back together.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Getting the gang back together.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Really? It's really fun. It is edge of your seat, like heart in your throat. Are they going to get away with it? What's going to happen? One of those where, like, people are doing bad things and you're rooting for them to get away with the bad things because the author is just so good at writing it. I saw this described as, like, a combination of Ocean's eleven and Drive, and I think that's right for the movie people.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Are you sure that's not gone in 60 seconds? That's not what you described right there.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Well, anyway, yeah, it's really, really great. His next two novels are also terrific. A thriller writer who's on the come up.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, yeah.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

His new book is coming out later this spring, King of Ashes. And the Obamas are adapting that for their production company. So he's doing really well. But this is one of my favorites of the last several years. Like, sat down on a Saturday morning. Could not stop turning the pages.

[Jeff O'Neill]

That's it.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

That's Blacktop Wasteland.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's a really good recommendation for people in your life if you're gifting who like mysteries and thrillers. And maybe they're getting into sort of a James Patterson kind of a rut. You know what I'm talking about here. Sean Cosby is a fresh voice and really exciting and telling different kinds of stories. It reads like they all. You can tear through them.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh, yeah, they're really good.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Super fast, plain reading, too.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay, so how'd I do conversions? All right. If, like me, you love travel as much as you love books, you're into stories that sweep you away and stay with you like a favorite souvenir. Check out Strong sense of Place. It's a podcast that explores the world one destination at a time. Think Morocco, Iceland or New Orleans through five hand picked books that bring each setting vividly to life. You get culture, food, history and the kind of texture that makes you want to buy a plane ticket on impulse and pack a bag. It's not just about geography though, it's also about the atmosphere, the kind of storytelling that lets you hear the music from a street corner in Havana or smell the spices in a Thai market without ever having to leave the comfort of your couch. The hosts, Mel and Dave, are a writer photographer duo with great chemistry and a real curiosity about the world. They're in their seventh season now with more than 60 episodes to dig into, so if your idea of a perfect scape is a great story in an unforgettable place, Strong Sense of Place might just be your new favorite. Listen, subscribe wherever you get your podcasts or head to strongsenseofplace.com.

[C]

Today's episode is brought to you by Avon Books, publishers of Last Night Was Fun by Holly Michelle Emmy Jameson, the only female data analyst for a pro baseball team, lives by three rules. No dating, no sharing personal news at work, and baseball above everything. But when a wrong number text sparks a flirty connection, Emmy's intrigued. Despite her rules, Amy can't deny the instant connection she feels for the stranger on the other side of the screen. Her world turns upside down, however, when her mystery texter turns out to be her arrogant, infuriating co worker Gabe Olsen. But which version of their relationship is real? Their in person rivalry or the deep connection they found in their messages? This is a Stemx sports romance. It's perfect for fans of Ali Hazelwood, Christina Lauren and Abby Jimenez. It includes tropes like workplace rivals to lovers, only one bed, a wrong number exchange, and more. Make sure to check out Last Night Was Fun by Holly Michelle and thanks again to Avon Books for sponsoring this episode. Today's episode is brought to you by Bloomsbury Publishing, publishers of House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J. Moss Bryce never expected to see a world other than Midgard. But now that she has, all she wants is to get back. Everything she loves is there. Her family, her friends, her mate. After a few brief months with everything he ever wanted, Hunt is in the Asterisk dungeons again, stripped of his freedom and without a clue as to Bryce's fate. Now in paperback, House of Flame and Shadow is the third book in the super sexy, action packed Crescent City series from Sarah J. Maas, which reaches new heights as Bryce and Hunt's world is brought to the brink of collapse with its future resting on their shoulders. Like I said before, this is the third book in this super sexy, action packed Crescent City series and it is like, if you're into Romantasy, girl, you haven't read this. See what everyone's talking about. It's super best selling, it's a global phenomenon, and it's now available in paperback. So get into it. Make sure to check out House of Flame and Shadow by Sarah J. Maas. And thanks again to Bloomsbury Publishing for sponsoring this episode.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Great. Okay, anybody? Beautyland?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Another shared favorite author Marie Helene Bertino. I embarrassed myself terribly and I'm not gonna say how, except that I am with Rebecca, because I was like, I was comparing her sales to a different author and we looked at the Goodreads rankings and I was like, do I know anything about anything?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And I was like, I don't.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I don't think she was very kind to me and be like, you might be wrong about that. Which is. I can't believe you thought that was everywhere. Close. She is a one of one and it's hard to really describe the kind of writing she does because they vary so much from book to book. This particular book came out last year and it was with Martyr and James, like our three favorite kind of books of the year. The main character, Adina, she's coming of age in the 1970s. And the conceit of this book is also hard to explain. Well, it's easy to explain, but you don't sound like you know what's going on in the world if you say it. But at some point she realizes that she is a reporter for an alien civilization.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yes.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And she is there to tell aliens what it's like to be a human and how things are going and who Carl Sagan is and why you eat popcorn in movie theaters even though it's the loudest possible choice for something to eat when everyone's supposed to be quiet. Couldn't have been caramels.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

She files her report by fax machine.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, she gets missives by fax machine back and forth. And it's an avenue, I think to do a lot of coming of age novels are trying to do is capture the banal strangeness of just being a person. And like we all kind of have similar experiences and it all feels weird to us all the time. And isn't this weird and this is happening and shouldn't I tell someone about it? And aliens would think this was weird if they got dropped onto Earth Why do we do it this way? Why do we do it this way? And the answer is, we don't really know. And so as she comes of age, she writes a book about this and it becomes a sensation. And that has its own kind of ramification. And then the ending, I really didn't know what the ending was going to do. That's one thing I wondered, like, is this real? Is this a hallucination? Is she going to get beamed up, Scotty, to be part of the whatever? Or is she going to be one of those people that's like, yeah, I got. I got probed by aliens in the 70s and I was like, yeah, whatever, Adina. That's cool, but a really cool read. And I'd recommend to Ameth the Cat's Pajama is another book that she's written. She has a new book coming out, one of our favorites, I wish everyone knew, Bertino. So go buy Bertino if you have credits to spare. So go use that convert anybody on Beauty land? It's a hard one. A few. Oh, I guess. Don't be shy. I put them way up there where I can see them.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay, so I'll reveal my one that there was one copy of and it's her other book. This is maybe the book that on our annual holiday rec shows we've done the most over the years. Like it just comes up forever. So it is 2am at the Cat's Pajamas.

[Jeff O'Neill]

That's really funny, right? Is it in print? It must not be if they've only got one.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's in print and it's in.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Because that's a used copy.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, okay.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Sorry I interrupted.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

We had some like last minute negotiations.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Oh, I see.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

So you can fight over the last one or I'm sure the folks of Houzz will be happy to order you a copy if you want one. So it's set in Philadelphia on Christmas Eve. It's about a nine year old girl whose mother has died recently. And she's greeted that her father is like not taking it very well. And her whole dream in life is to sing on stage at the city's beloved jazz club, the Cat's Pajamas. So she's gonna spend like the whole book takes place on Christmas Eve. She spends that evening as a nine year old girl trying to sneak into a jazz club and get on stage. This story intersects with one of the teachers from her school who's dealing with some stuff. Also the owner of the club who finds out that night that maybe they're gonna have to up Clean, close. And what can he do to try to keep the club open? It is charming as all get out. It's so sweet and so funny. You will read it.

[Jeff O'Neill]

So no aliens either?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

No aliens. It's just kind of perfect. It's a pretty perfect reading experience. It's like reading Stars Hollow for the Gilmore Girls folks. Like if that's.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Oh, that works. Okay, I'm gonna use that one.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Like if that's the vibe. This like close knit kit community. But everybody's kind of a big character and they're gathering around this little girl who wants to do this big beautiful thing, which is kind of preposterous, but she doesn't know that it's a ridiculous thing for a nine year old girl to do. This is just like the most natural thing in the world for her. It's wonderful. And now you can all fight over it. How many of you are going to try to read it?

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. Yeah, okay. Oh, there. Why do you have that? You knew you were going to pick it. I had to have you guys sign it for me.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh my God.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I feel uncomfortably seen. It's your pick.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah. It's like people know.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. They listen to it and for a lot of a long time and we stopped. Well, we still recommend it but there's no read alike for it. People are like, I'd like a book like 2am at the Cat's Pajamas. And my response is so would I. Yeah, yeah.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's impossible. I think that's the only repeat.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Speaking of a one of one. This is the House on the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune. Who has read this particular. Oh, well, you know, then I think technically maybe there's some librarians or other. It's technically middle grade or young adult. Do we know it's. It doesn't matter, right? It doesn't matter. Yeah. Head shaking note, not middle grade, but it's for all ages. My family listened to it on audio, which is terrific. It's one of our favorite books for this reason. It's as warm and affirming as any book you're ever going to read without being syrup. You know that you're going to get sort of emotional diabetes from as you're reading it. The conceit here is that magic beings exist in the world, but they are downtrodden, looked down upon other words for treated shittily.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

You did it.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, that was it. Yeah. There it is. And there are these homes in places where they can go if they do not have a family or they've been outcasts or ostracized or other ways discarded. And there's a person there who becomes the master of the house. Who takes them in and puts them under his literal and figurative wings not to spoil anything, and protects them. And there's some of the characters, right? Are these kids who are kids. They're special. They're trying things. They protect each other. They want the world to be better for them and for everybody else. If you've got family time in your life, when you listen to something, if you're looking for something you can deal with, you know, a fantasy conceit that is quite warm, there's not much action. There's like one scene where maybe something could happen. It's not about like they're going to use their powers and nuke all the bad people. They. That's not what's going to happen here. What is going to happen is we're going to form a found family that you yourself would die for in the house in the Cerulean Sea. So if we've converted anybody on that, I'd like to see that. Looks like a lot of you have read this one already.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

A lot of folks.

[Jeff O'Neill]

A lot of folks on that one.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Let's see.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Ah, yes.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Got the Martian by Andy WE Hands Fist.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Who's read this? This might be the one that most people have read, don't you think?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Think a lot more people have seen the movie than have read the book. So we gotta. Okay, Timer is on. Great. This one's from 2014, I believe. It's about an astronaut who's on a mission to Mars and a dust storm happens and the crew evacuates, but he doesn't make it onto the. The escape pod, whatever that thing is called.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's the ship.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I'm sure James is like, how dare.

[Jeff O'Neill]

You not do this.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

The map.

[Jeff O'Neill]

The Mav. Thank you, Ames.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

He thinks the crew probably died on the way back to Earth. The crew thinks that he is probably dead and he's on Mars for God knows how long. The first sentence of the book, which I did get permission to say in public as well. I'm fucked. So you get the hard science of this guy trying to figure out how he's going to survive on Mars for much longer than he's supposed to be there with many fewer supplies than he's supposed to have. But it's also really, really funny. It's like man versus nature and also man versus himself at the same time. And the way that it's written will just keep you turning the Pages. This may be the last book I stayed up all night to finish. And it went through like wildfire through the book. Right.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It really did.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's also like truly 4 quadrant. I learned in the car on the way here that all four members of Jeff's household have read this independently.

[Jeff O'Neill]

That's right. It's the only book we've all read on our own, so it's interesting.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah. So that's the Martian.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And sneakily, a comedy. It's actually comedy as much as is anything to do. Also good on audio. Sorry, pals. Very good on audio. All right, anyone left that's going to try that? Also a good recommendation for the sort of science, tech, engineering people in your life, if you're looking to give a book that way. What have I chosen?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh, right.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Okay.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh, I should have known.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Jeff. Book time. Bill Bryson, nonfiction writer. People know Bill Bryson or short History of Nearly Everything. This book is the oldest on my list. 2009. No, no, 2003. I'm sorry. So this is really. It's nonfiction. It is a chronicle told in a droll, humorous, amused style of what we now call the Age of Discovery. Though I think we know a little bit more that that's not what we should call this, but of the 19th century, where we were putting together the great scientific disciplines, geology, anthropology, biology, zoology, where you could, like, you know, have, you know, a small landed, you know, piece of land in England that could support you and you'd sort of get on a ship and go somewhere and discover like 50 species. Like, I look at all these things I found, right? Or write about for English people maybe, rather than discover. Or you can be like, hey, look at those rocks. I wonder how they got there. And be the most famous geologist of all time. Because we were just sort of coming out of these religious modes of understanding the world. Like, what if this was put together in a different way completely? And the stories and this spirit of adventure. And for those of us who like. And Rebecca, I know you like this too, to just read about what makes the world interesting. Imagine if you just like walked out your door and you could found entire new fields of scientific inquiry. And Bryson himself is interested and also irreverent about this. Like the silliness of wearing like a three piece suit on a boat in the Amazon, right? And sort of going through those things or, you know, trying to figure out what dinosaur bones are and just sort of wildly speculating without really any reason for believing they are what they are. Really wonderful on audio. And I think for me that the, the, the pinnacle of a kind of entertaining non fiction that a lot of us don't discover until later in life because they don't teach this kind of stuff in school. Right. These books that are informative and fun, but they're not going to show up on like an AP test or help you study for, I don't know, anything else. It doesn't feel like homework. So this, this is a core text to my reading life and so I needed a reason to talk about it. So that's a short. What's the title again? A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson. I'm getting flustered. Yeah. Anybody going to check that out? Yeah, I wondered. Okay. Thank you for humoring me. I appreciate it. Yeah.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

All right. Station 11 by Emily St. John Mandel. It's maybe the one I'm like. Yeah. Who's read it?

[Jeff O'Neill]

Reddit. Yeah. All right, Good job, book people.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

This one is from 2014. Popped again during the pandemic. Partially because it was a pandemic and partially because there was a really excellent HBO adaptation that we can't look at each other while I talk about it, or we will definitely. They both start crying. So it's mostly set 20 years after a really terrible flu has wiped out, like almost everyone on Earth. And we see that happen in the early pages of the book. It starts in Chicago, but when it picks up 20 years later, the main character, Kirsten, has joined a group of traveling performers. They call themselves the Traveling Symphony. And they roam from town to town along like the lakes district of the Midwest performing Shakespeare because you need more than survival to get through life. You need art and connection and beauty and joy. And that's what they're trying to make with each other. But it also has the elements of post apocalyptic dystopia kinds of things. It's really hard to get by. Not everybody is a good person. There are bandits that come for them. You've been living with like the same 15 people for the last 20 years and sometimes you just want to kill.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Each other and sometimes do.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Right. And there are surprising reunions and connections that happen between the characters. But I cannot bring myself to reread this one.

[Jeff O'Neill]

We've been talking about it and can't quite get ourselves in the mental space to do it again.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

If you read the book and you haven't watched the HBO series, it's just beautiful. They changed some things from the book, but it's one of the cases where I think the adaptation really adds to the story. It's more of A transformation of it if you haven't read it. I just really can't recommend this enough. It's a good shot in the arm for like, yeah, art. We need it. And I don't know, maybe in this cultural moment that's a thing that's helpful for you.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Again, I would read some version of that book for the rest of my life. That's the kind of book I kind of always want to be reading to some degree. Oh, okay.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Excellent. Strong.

[Jeff O'Neill]

So some of us read things to try to make ourselves a little bit better. Has anyone read the Checklist Manifesto by Atoga One Day? All right. Look at the real heads out there. I love the Vivek. Yeah, right.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

That's our co worker.

[Jeff O'Neill]

That's our co worker. Vivek. Atoga One Day is a surgeon turned writer. What's the last. What do we need to get.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

We have to call to get Siddhartha Mulkerjee.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, yeah, we need to call. But a surgeon who happens to be a beautiful writer, a smart person, and have his pants all the way on. We kind of hate him, I think, because maybe the most interesting man in the world, he's one of the people out there. But this is a productivity book. When we were first starting Book riot and I was coming out of grad school, I didn't know how anything worked or how to put my life together in a way that could be sustainable and help run a company. And I was looking for things just to get me through the day. And the Check List Manifesto is slight because it's not about a very, you know, involved topic, but it's about using checklists. And that sounds boring. And it is. Except.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

But it's not a history.

[Jeff O'Neill]

But it's not a history of pencils Would read. You did read it. I did read it.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's too.

[Jeff O'Neill]

How much our brains aren't meant for remembering. They are made for thinking, being creative, making connection, analyzing. And this is sort of a stand in for a category of books I could have talked about Getting Things Done by David Allen. Building a Second Brain by Tiego Forte. But of really coming to terms with. We have all this technology and we don't even need technology. Pen and paper will work. You make a checklist for the things, especially the things you do all the time. Because the people who make mistakes are kind of not beginners and they're actually not the experts. They're what most of us are in the messy middle where we think we know enough to remember to put the butter and the cookies rolling right. And not, you know, check off the damn thing as you do it. And it talks about nurses and surgeons and pilots and engineers of all kind that use checklists to make fewer mistakes, but then to free themselves, because they know they're going to get that right, because they check it off to make more interesting connections. So we spend less time just sort of spitting out these routines that we do, and we can really spend the time that humans are good at. And Even the best LLMs aren't are sort of being beautiful, unique, weird creatures that can make stuff that no one else can. So this. This is an important book. I mean, weirdly, an important book to me.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah. It's kind of a canonical shared text. It's one of the things we recommend to coworkers often, because it does. Like, it lets you offload the thinking about process to a checklist. And you can use your brain for the stuff you want to use your brain.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. Recommend it to your co workers. You know, buy it for an office. You don't get it for yourself, but this is one that really can. We're helping people today. We're helping people.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Things that, like, when. If things repeatedly go wrong at work, we're like, is there a chick?

[Jeff O'Neill]

Is there a chick that. For that? Yeah. And half the time there's not.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And then when you make one, it gets better.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It gets better. And like, wow, look at that. Isn't that cool? All right, you're up.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay, let's see. Just to be clear, Rowan didn't forget the butter.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Somebody else.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

We're correcting the record. Rowan did not forget the butter.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I can't get away with anything on my own podcast, people.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

All right. Kitchen Confidential. Anthony Bourdain. Yeah, this one, like, sneaks under the Wire. It came out in 2000. I think it's the oldest book we're going to talk about today. We have all of the food writing that we have today and all of the wonderful travel and food content on TV that we have today because Anthony Bourdain wrote a New Yorker article in 1999 that became this book in 2000. It's, like, swashbuckling and sweet, swaggery, and he talks about the kitchen as a pirate ship. And if you've ever liked Anthony Bourdain on tv, or if you still miss him like I do and you haven't read this, you really need to give yourself the gift of seeing how fully formed that voice was well before any of us were watching him on the Travel Channel. But also, what a marker of a time in restaurant culture and food culture and like kitchen culture. I see your brother is nodding his head. Experience with this, where Bourdain is kind of like, this is the way it's always been and the kitchen is at a terrible place and if you can survive it, you're a pirate. And he didn't know it at the time, but he was starting a conversation that moved us into, maybe that's not how it should work. Maybe you should be able to be a person who loves food and works in kitchens and enjoys restaurant culture and also, like, I don't know, not get smacked at work every day. But the way that it's written is not endorsing it. It's not really celebratory of it. It's just like, drop into this world and come on this wild ride with me. His voice is so fun and really infused with, like, noir writing. He loved noir and crime fiction. You can feel that in here. But I've read this, like several times. There's a great 20th anniversary edition of it from a few years back that's annotated with some of his notes. You can order that special edition as well. So that's Kitchen Confidential, Anthony Bourdain. Any takers?

[Jeff O'Neill]

Probably the only book we're going to talk about that's like, there's a before Kitchen Confidential and after. That's really a marker.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh, yeah.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Anybody read A Gentleman in Moscow? All right. Amor towels. Amor towels.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Tolles.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Tolls every time. The genesis of this one is pretty interesting. He, the author was working in the world of private equity and jetting around the world, and he was at some high end hotel in Dubai. He's like, I saw those people here last time. And then he came back. I saw those people here again. And finally worked up the nerve to ask the concierge, what is the deal? Like, oh, they live in this hotel. He's like, huh, that's weird. I bet I could write a book about that. Why don't we set it in pre revolutionary Russia?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Why not?

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. So the main character here is a gentle person of the Russian aristocracy, which was great in 1911. Starting to suck real bad around 1916. And he had been a frequenter of this hotel in Moscow. And rather than go to the guillotine, he worked some kind of a deal. And actually the details of how he worked this magic escaped me. Oh, they escape you too? Good. I'm glad to hear it is washed over you. But he makes a deal like, I'll just stay in this hotel. You don't have to execute me or send me to Siberia. I'll just live in this hotel. And they're like, cool, let's do that. And it's the chronicle of the next few decades. Decades of his life as he lives in this hotel and then lives through by proxy or by hotel suite and room service. How to live a life in a hotel. But also seeing the world change around him. And he strikes up family ships. I just invented a word.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, you did.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Could we use that? Is that a thing? Family shifts with these people that he encounters, particularly a young girl, and then some other people too, and they come in and come out of his life. And sometimes things go well and badly. But it's a master class in voice. Right. Not a whole lot happens, but you feel like you're in this hotel and you feel like you understand this world. And I think it's sort of what every Wes Anderson move movie wants to be.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh, I think that's fair. I held out on this forever. Like, you recommend it for so long. And when the show came out last year, I was like, fine, I'm gonna read it. I remember Texting Jeff like 30 pages in and be like, okay, I get it.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. The best text you can ever get from someone you work with is, you're right, you're right.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And it just doesn't happen that often. Oh, yeah, we're cooking. This is everything I never told you'd by Celeste Ng.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Anybody? Anybody? Yeah.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Great. This is her debut novel, 2017. I think it's a. It's set in the late 1970s and like a planned upper middle class suburban community in Ohio about a Chinese American family. Their favorite daughter has turned up dead. Her body is found in a local lake. And it's partially mystery of like what happened to this girl that led to her death. It's the parents process of discovering that the story they had about this daughter, that she was popular and happy and was enjoying her life, is really not at all the reality of the life that she was experiencing. How they find that out and what they do with that information is really the heart of it. So you get the like procedural elements, but it has all, all of this additional substance that deals with family and secrets, identity, the immigrant experience, and also who done it, how done it.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, why?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's. It's really great on several levels. One of the best debuts, I think of the last, like 15, like all.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Of a sudden, like she came out, now she's a brand, right? Like she's a name.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

She comes out. I think this was one of the big book clubs.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's a really good book club pick. If you're in a book club and you want something that's like got a little more edge to it or, you know, a mother in law or someone who likes to read the big book club books. This is a cut above generally what gets picked by the Jennas and the Reese's of the world.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah. And there have been several more. Little Fires Everywhere is wonderful. There's a great adaptation of that and Our Missing Hearts is her most recent one. But if you maybe caught on to Little Fires Everywhere and you never went back to everything I never told you. So it's a really strong debut. You guys hear us on some of the shows. Be like, it's a debut novel. It has some.

[Jeff O'Neill]

If you told us it wasn't. If you told us it was our third book, we have totally believed it's.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Very self assured, confident, she knows exactly what she's doing and where she's taking you. And I'm like, I'm like very terrible at guessing what's going to happen in a mystery anyway. But I remember being so surprised about how this one went.

[Jeff O'Neill]

How are we getting down to it?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, a couple more. Oh, I'm surprised by this one. Good.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Well, tell me why. Let's flip it up. We're almost done. Why are you so surprised?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Tell me why. We have not. We haven't talked about this as much when we're doing recommendations for listeners.

[Jeff O'Neill]

So Rumaan Alam's 2020 novel about a family on vacation on Long island in New York and they're renting an Airbnb, beautiful Airbnb. And then something is happening out in the world and they don't know what. Their cell service goes out and the family whose Airbnb it is comes in from the city. It's like we need someplace to be. So they're sort of forced to be in the same spot. They don't know each other, they're suspicious of each other. And the thing that freaks me out about this is I feel like this is what most of us would experience. Some huge horrible thing happening. We'd be together kind of far away from it in a weird place and have absolutely no idea what to do. And we just have to sit tight and wonder and wonder and wait and hope. Like the next mushroom cloud or locust, zombie swarm or whatever's happening doesn't come for us. Or someone who knows what the hell to do says, go in your basement or get out of your. Like, what should my relationship, my basement Be right now in this particular moment. Yeah, right. Where. Where do we need to go? And. And the other thing too. So it's. It's an apocalyptic novel, right? So it has that intention, inherent tension of like, oh, my God, this is crazy.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's like sinister.

[Jeff O'Neill]

But the thing that makes it different is his identification of the dynamics between these people. Like the opening 20 pages of just their family getting ready for vacation. Those of us with families who have done a weekend in an Airbnb. And like, we're so excited. And then like, you're getting ready. Like, I'd rather die than finish this exercise. Right. Like, let's go to the coast. Or like, let's maybe not because we're fighting and how much stuff. And you want to be on your phone and you don't. And like, you go right from something that feels so real, visceral and relatable to the unthinkable. And that whiplash that creates a kind of existential vertigo that's pleasant in a kind of weird ass way, I guess.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Also reads like a house on fire.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And this one. I should say this one. And gentlemen, in Moscow, we say when there's good adaptations.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Notice when I don't mention the adaptation. Oh, I'm sorry. Leave the World Behind. Thank you, Michelle. By Ruman Alam. Because there are people listening on the Internet to this. Thank you.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Did we move any units of Leave the World Behind? Any takers?

[Jeff O'Neill]

There should be more. Hands up for them. There you.

[C]

Today's episode is brought to you by Sony Pictures Classics presenting Jane Austen Wrecked My Life. Now, from the title, you can tell that, yes, it is about Jane Austen, or I should say a Jane Austen lover, but it's also, like, grown. It's a romantic comedy. It's like the perfect little rom com that is bookish when you want to watch a movie when it's rainy.

[Jeff O'Neill]

You know what I mean?

[C]

All right, follow me. So it is a new romantic comedy about a Parisian woman played by Camille Rutherford, who dreams of becoming a successful writer and experiencing true love while attending a Jane Austen writer's residency in England. Jane Austen Wrecked My Life opens only in select theaters in select cities May 23 and nationwide May 30. For more information and tickets, visit janeaustinreckedmylife.com it looks fun. I. I'm gonna go see it. I don't know about you.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I think you should. I think you should.

[C]

Again, check out jane austenrectmylife.com and thanks again to Sony Pictures Classics for. For sponsoring this episode.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

This episode is sponsored by With a Vengeance by Riley Sager. Stick around after the show to hear an excerpt from the audiobook edition provided by our sponsors at Penguin Random House. Audio In Riley Sager's chilling new thriller, With a Vengeance, a story of justice, revenge and what happens when the hunted becomes the hunter, Anna Matheson lures her enemies onto a luxury train to make them pay for what they did to her family. But when one of them turns up dead, justice turns into survival. The clock is ticking. The bodies are piling up. Can Anna catch the killer? Before the train reaches Chicago, Riley Sager is back. With a vengeance. This is one train no stops, a deadly game of survival and revenge. Riley Sager, of course, is the New York Times bestselling author of eight novels, most recently Middle of the Night, the Only One Left, and the House across the Lake. With a Vengeance is narrated by Aaron Bennett and is available now wherever books and audiobooks are sold. Listen now time runs out again. Stick around after the show to hear an excerpt from the audiobook edition of With a Vengeance by Riley Sager.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Craftsman days are here at Lowe's with big savings on the tools you need. Save $100 on the Craftsman V26 Tool Power Tool Combo Kit now at $199. No matter what the project is Craftsman. Craftsman's high quality, high performance products empower you to build on. Stop by your nearest Lowe's store and check out the full line of Craftsman tools today, valid through 618 while supplies last selection varies by location.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

All right, this is my entry in the dad book canon. I'm sorry, I knew this was on both grounds. The Emperor of All Maladies by Siddhartha Mukherjee sits in the club with Atul Gawande of people who are just way more talented than anyone has.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's really sick. It really makes me sick to think of it. I don't like it.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

He's an oncologist. He's a biologist. He writes incredible books. This is the first one. It won the Pulitzer in 2005. It's a biography of cancer. And if you are sitting here going, yeah, lady, I don't want to read a 500 page book about cancer, I promise you. You really do.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Is it the best title of all time? It might be the best title for subject of all time.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yes.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's unbelievable.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's a great title. And he goes into like the history of cancer. How did humans discover this? How did we originally understand it? How has our understanding of cancer evolved and how has our treatment of cancer evolved? Who are the People that made these discoveries. And also because he is a physician and he sees all of that science's impact on humans every day. It's really empathetic and warm and considers the human elements. Like, a lot of times you pick up a 500 page book about cancer and it's just science.

[Jeff O'Neill]

How many have you. You've done a lot of these, right? 500 page books about cancer.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I've tried a few.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Okay. Yeah. All right. This is your number one pick for big books about cancer.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

You pick a big science y book and it's just science. And what makes this one so special is that it's really, really human and grounded and funny. The writing is really lovely. It's not so heady, but you will feel like a genius.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. You will finish it.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

His other books, Song of the Cell. Like, I mean, that's a Whitman title. And he makes these, like, delighted Shakespeare puns in the text. There's probably that stuff in here too. But we weren't doing book podcasts when this came out, so I don't remember it through that lens. But you will learn so much. Your dad will love, love this book. As you know, on the book riot podcast. Anyone?

[Jeff O'Neill]

We all have a little dad in us. Yeah.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Dad is a spirit. We inhabit this. I think this and Bill Bryson are like the ultimate of the dad book cast.

[Jeff O'Neill]

You know, that's that line as good it gets when Jack Nicholson says, like, it makes me feel good about me that I get how special you are. When I'm reading this, I feel better about myself because I'm like, oh, I get that this is awesome.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah.

[Jeff O'Neill]

And that makes me feel better about me.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

So awesome. And I think he really might be the most interesting man in the world.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. In writes a sentence is fine as a flower. Like, it's sickening how good that book is.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It really makes me mad, like, unfair. But I'm really glad that books this this good.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I mean, this is why we do this.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Who's buying this one? No pressure after that.

[Jeff O'Neill]

This. This right here. If I had to pick one for all of us just to like, I said, okay, we're all going to be stuck in this room and you have to read this. And which book will get me killed the least often? It's the God of the woods by Liz Moore. This book came out last summer. My recency bias is showing.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's still hardcover.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I know, right? Set in 1975 and after at a summer camp in the Adirondacks, some content warnings about kids getting killed, which is my Least favorite thing, like maybe the most obvious thing anyone has ever said, but I really don't like to read about it. I don't like them when they're used as, you know, narrative devices and so on and so forth. And this is a thriller, and it's kind of hard to articulate why it's a cut above, and I'm going to take a shot at it and you tell me how right I am. The sense of place is really strong, and she is so good at locating you. Sometimes it's hard to know where you are in one of these books. Like, where's the relationship of the cabin to the cafeteria? And what's the thing up there? For some reason, this one, I really knew where I was. And as my family will attest, my spatial reasoning is a zero.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh, yeah, mine too.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. And we could sort of follow that. So the sense of place was really enveloping. The Adirondacks are not unlike our beloved Pacific Northwest. So if you're here and you can kind of imagine yourself amongst trees, their trees are kind of all the same. You know what you get with the trees.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I've once said trees are not altered the same. How dare you.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, we're going to go outside. I'm going to point at six trees, and if you can name two of them, I'll concede. And so there's a murder and. And there's multiple murders that may or may not be connected. And the other thing she's good at is she knows all the mysteries and murders that you've read, so she knows what you think maybe would happen. And then she knows that you know that she knows what you think is going to happen. Magic. And so suddenly, like, you, you're in this place of kind of feeling like you're jumping up on the trampoline of knowing what's going on. And then I was still surprised.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yep, me too.

[Jeff O'Neill]

At the end. It's very satisfying in an unexpected way. This. I think I have given this book to people in the audience here so that there's no better recommendation for that. But this is my. This is my Swiss army pick of the night. I could recommend this. Almost anybody.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

That's a really good pick.

[Jeff O'Neill]

All right. What are you down to? 2. 1.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

This is my last.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Your last one.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

This is the rare book about books that I love. The storied life of A.J. fikkery by Gabrielle Zevin. Who's read this one? Oh, maybe a third or quarter of folks. So this is set on a fictional island in Massachusetts, kind of A Cape Cod vibe. It's about AJ Fikry, who I believe is about to turn 40 and he is cantankerous and sad. He lost his wife and his unborn child. Life is understandably like bitter and hard for him, but he has really taken it to the extreme. And then one day a two year old is abandoned at his bookstore and changes his life in all the ways that you imagine that having a kid just show up and insist on being part of your life might change it. Especially if you're like a crusty middle aged guy who was pretty committed to being a cranky middle aged guy, thought that was fun.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I mean, who among us spend the.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Rest of his days just being kind of grumpy? Love comes into his life. Like, this is kind of the bookseller whose heart grew three sizes is maybe a way to think about it. And of course it's set in and around a bookstore. All of the chapters, the chapter headings are named after literary work. So for me this works because like it's set in her own.

[Jeff O'Neill]

She actually hates this kind of book. Whether it's a bookstore. It's about a library. I mean, the pandery stuff she really doesn't like so that she's recommending. This is a big deal.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, this is a big deal. If it's like the Book Lovers Book Club on Book Island, I'm like, what are we doing?

[Jeff O'Neill]

We could get a hundred thousand dollar advance for that. Don't give that out for free.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, those books fill me with a, like, come on, book lovers deserve better. And I remember reading this and being like, this is it. This is what?

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's what? This is the book all those books are aspiring to be.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, this is the one. This is the platonic ideal of a book about books that is not just, hey, you love books and let's talk about how that enriches our lives. But the story between the characters is really warm and very charming. This is, I think, maybe the most recommendable of mine. You can give it to just about anybody. Like I could give this to my mother in law for Christmas and not be worried that anything was going to offend her sensibilities. But you can give it to somebody that you think of as, you know, like a more serious reader and they'll find enough substance and like stuff to hang on to to find it interesting.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I've got one more pick. Good job, Rebecca.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Thank you.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I'm giving my kids one book of heads up. We picked some family wrecks that I might run through at the End if they would like to come up and speak with the microphone, they are encouraged and welcome. Rowan's face suggests that that is not going to happen. Ames, might you want to come up here in just a minute, two minutes to think about it? Yeah.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Do you want to hold the timer?

[Jeff O'Neill]

You want to come hold the timer? All right. My last one. Anybody read the Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I was really mad when I had to.

[Jeff O'Neill]

This was on yours, right? Yeah. So this came out in 2020. It's her sophomore novel after the Mothers. The two main characters are twin light skinned black women who are born in a fictional town, I believe Mallard, Louisiana. And it's the story of their lives. They have a hard time, things don't go great and it leads one of them to make the decision because she is so light skinned, to pass as a white person and lead life as a white person. Her sister has a relationship with the darker skinned man, has a kid and so that really not available to. To her if she wants to stay with her family. And so their paths diverge and things happen and then they sort of start coming back towards each other. The other thing that they encounter a lot of other characters who are also negotiating their own identities, trying to figure out, do I have to live as this thing the world says I am? What if I don't? What are the ramifications of that? Don't. Because it does not come without a cost to any character who makes a decision either to stay who you are or to decide to be someone else. I mean, I do not have this experience, but I think most of us do. We know that either decision is a trade off of some kind and they make it. They make a different one. The cast of characters is fascinating. She's a wonderful writer. Never really read anything like this before because there's a. There's a mystery element too as well.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Like what's. How is this going to happen?

[Jeff O'Neill]

How is this going to happen? Is everyone going to be okay? But a combination of page turner, book club, character driven, but also a heart and a head at work. And it rings a lot of bells because that's what we try to do. We ring bells here. So there's a mind. Thank you so much for listening to my picks. I appreciate it.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Thank you.

[Jeff O'Neill]

If you're gonna come, come now. So we're doing family pics. If you want to come up, come up. All right. Ames, you want to talk about yours? You want to say it or you want me to talk about it? I'll do it. You'll do it. Okay. You got to talk into the mic, kiddo. Should I just like stand right here? Hold the mic. Okay.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah.

[Jeff O'Neill]

My first time ever doing this.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Welcome, Ames.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I did not expect that much applause.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

So I picked just a book. I do not know what date this is was written. I picked this up three or four years ago at a small bookstore in Bend. Hyperbole and a half. Anyone ready? Yeah. Lots of hands.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I just saw this in the bookstore.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And I looked at the COVID and said, yes, please, and it definitely delivered. So what it is, it's about the author, Allie Brosh, who is, and just in my opinion, an amazing illustrator.

[Jeff O'Neill]

So it's as close to a stand.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Up comedy skit as you are going.

[Jeff O'Neill]

To get from a book.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

That's a great way to pick a bunch of collected stories.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Some when she's a kid, some when she's adult. They range from the God of cake.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

To dinosaur the goose story.

[Jeff O'Neill]

She's incredibly funny.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

But the thing I think is so.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Recommendable about it is there are a.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Couple chapters like, okay, yeah, time to cry now.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Because she just goes through these incredible life moments and she writes about them really well.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And I think the thing I like most about her is she's super authentic. Like if you went through this, like.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, I could see being that. So, yeah, that's just.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I like it a lot. So, yeah, great job, Ames.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I'm sure there's copies. I didn't give the staff heads up we'd be doing this, but I bet we could find you a copy. And what's the second one? Solutions and Other problems. Is the second one she lives in Bend, I believe. Yeah. All right, kid, what do you got? Fun Desk by Kelly Yang.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Here, I'll hold it up for you.

[Jeff O'Neill]

This book is about a 10 year.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Old girl who her parents work at.

[Jeff O'Neill]

A motel and she manages the front desk.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And it's about her and her family who her parents are both immigrants supporting.

[Jeff O'Neill]

All the immigrants that come to this.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Motel and just figure it out. Figure it out. Yeah. Great job.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. Why do you like it? Can you say why you like it?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay, thanks, Rowan.

[Jeff O'Neill]

A couple of other quick ones. My family did the whole series of The Vanderbeekers of 141st street by Karina Jan Glazer, who was a book writing contributor and still comes, I think from time to time. It's about a family, a mixed race family that lives in Harlem and the misadventures of the children who really should just tell their parents what's going on. But then we don't have a book. You know, that's the way these things go. If you talk to each other. We don't have stories, it turns out, but it's endearing the whole series. I cried the hardest reading a particular character's death that I did, I wasn't ready. We're all sitting on the couch sobbing, looking at each other like, I guess this is great, right? I don't know. The care and feeding of a pet. Black hole.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Rowan sold this to me on the.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Drive by Michelle Cuevas this. It's a young girl, right, Finds a small black hole wandering the streets. Yeah. Her dad works at like NASA or something and escapes from the Large Hadron Collider thing, whatever it's going on. But it's kind of like a dog like creature that it has a personality and all it wants to be is hugged. But you can't hug a black hole because you get sucked into the event horizon and turned into spaghetti, which is a tough beat. And it's really funny and absurd and charming. There's a little bit of hitchhikers, but for six year olds going on with this book, it's pretty great. And then lastly, this is Michelle and I, Rebecca, other people that we know, we've more, we've moved more units of this, I think as a business book. Radical Candor by Kim Scott. And I guess it's kind of coming out of the talk to people, more.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

People talking about more things more of the time.

[Jeff O'Neill]

More of the time. I mean, is it fair to say it changed our lives and businesses 100%. Yeah, it's. It's a very simple idea which is you're honest with people, good and bad. You don't wuss out and not tell people when they've done something poorly. And you also don't shy away from saying great job, do more of that. And you're not a jerk to say you weren't doing that particularly well. There's structures for it. We use it almost every day at work. It's been a lot to us personally. It's meant a lot to Michelle and people she's worked with. And I know what we've got moved a lot of these. So again, it's not going to be like, oh my God, I just enjoy reading this. But like in terms of a book to change your life, Rebecca writes a newsletter called Better Living through Books. And this is like in the Parthenon.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Write about it every month.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Write it about it every month. And those are the picks. We seeded some idea. This is the end of Our formal programming tonight, we're going to do a little Q and A because I know we have some BR POD listeners that may have something they want to ask. If there are no questions, I'm not going to force you to do. Do anything. As always. You have the coupon, please shop. Pals, go buy some books. I think we're available for personal wrecks if you've got an idea. If we're sitting up here so you.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Can of course shop the cart.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Shop the carts there. Does anyone have a question for either of us about the books or the POD or anything else? We do. This is your chance. Yeah, we're gonna run. I'm gonna come to you.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's a good thing that the one with the long legs got the mic without the cords tonight. Is this the first time you've done a live podcast recording? Oh, great question. So in 2015 and 2016, Book Riot hosted a couple weekend long events called Book Riot Live. And we did live versions of the regular news show at those. So it's been 10 years and this is the first time we've done this show in a bookstore setting. So I'm gonna say mostly yes. Mostly yes.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Anybody else want to ask a question? Yeah, I'm coming right up. The guy.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Thank you.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Other than.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Recommend set in Portland. Oh, book set in Portland. We need help.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Portland. I don't know. This might be. We need to crowd.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Anybody?

[Jeff O'Neill]

I don't have one that comes to mind.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Just Jeremy.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Jeremy.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Crying in Hmart Crying in Hmart by Michelle Zahn. That's.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I should have forgot about that.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Patrick.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Patrick Du. Is the librarian is set here. The librarian is.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Okay. Green hat.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Glaciers by. I'm sorry, Glaciers.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Glaciers, yeah, Glaciers by Alexis M. Smith.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's called the Pin House. I'm guessing it's about a forest.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

No, no, it's. It's like short. It's 100 or so pages.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's about.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

A woman who works, I think, actually at house. Like our libraries are old books and.

[Jeff O'Neill]

She also really likes vintage clothes.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's like One Day. Oh, love a One Day Glacier.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I haven't heard of it. It's a new one to me too. Anybody else want to ask us something over here?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Wild by Cheryl Straight Count. Oh, Wild West. Cheryl Straight.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Hello.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

That's Oregon adjacent.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Anybody else? Yeah, take them out.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Favorite but least recommendable book. Oh, I think this is the Toni Morrison conversation. Maybe like Beloved is one of the best things I've ever read. And also, I don't know how you ask someone else to have that Experience, but you'll be glad you did. It's just not something that you can, like, wrap up and put under the tree or in a stocking or give someone for Hanukkah and be like, you're welcome.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, I've thought about this a lot. I mean, most of the books that I like, I think there's something to recommend it. I think. I think the hardest category to recommend if I cheat, which I'll allow to myself, is a book that's about something no one has any reason to care about. So I've been talking about this book called Ingrained by Callum Robinson. He's a Scottish woodworker, and this is about him and his family and small business pivoting from making bespoke high end wooden installations to making tables. And that is a hard pitch that I just gave you to be like, oh, my God.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

But it's like, not just about that.

[Jeff O'Neill]

But it's not about that, but, like, it is also totally about that. But this. I don't understand how he writes these sentences because I don't know if he has any form. It's the sentences. It's a business book. It's a love story. It's a craft book. And I still wouldn't be like, please go read this. I just. I don't know who I give this to. You'd have to be. Unless I, like, found.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I mean, I bought it after you talked about it.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, but you're a soft touch. That's true.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's fair. That's fair.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Any other questions we me get. Oh, Jennifer. Oh, recommendation. Okay. Yeah.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

The Gold Pinch by doctor.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, let's do recommendations. Does anyone. Anything? Someone should have been on here.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah. What did you think we should have listed tonight? I don't know if this should be on there. I was kind of thinking Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Taylor Jenkins Reid's debut novel. I was wondering where those were. But 2024 and I'm a librarian is zero stars. Do not recommend. And every time I give the pitch for that book, people are like, I'm gonna read it. And then I made my book club read it. And everyone loves it. Yeah, tell us. Oh, man. So I think on page one one, the sun explodes. I think it's a Bahama or Caribbean island. You've got your main character who was a tag student, but he's kind of underperformed as an adult. He's got an amazing girlfriend named Mara who's a nurse. She's wonderful. And he's a couple bud lights in and looking out and the sun explodes and then everything kind of goes crazy. And they're resort and the resort is kind of this microcosm of everything because you've got the A building where all the rich people are and Liliana Beachbod by Liliana. She's like a MLM person so she kind of takes charge of everything. And you get the B building where kind of the normal people are. And then you've got the C building where you've got like your New Jersey deli owners and those are the people you want on your side. When the gets real amazing, everything happens. Murder, mayhem. It's just really.

[Jeff O'Neill]

That sounds.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

It's called what Zero Stars. Don't recommend. It's a debut by M.J. wasmer. It's got a really, really cute cover. It's a relatively recent. Cool. Yeah. But I actually was talking about it at a publishing event and the person across from me it's a source books. They're like, oh my God, that's our title. And I'm like, okay, you guys should be like pitching this.

[Jeff O'Neill]

A whole bunch of. They should advertise with a book related publishing company.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

If only. It's the kind of book that you finish and you feel good. Oh, that's the best.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Even though the sun has exploded. Yeah, that's the meaning.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

That's amazing. Other questions or recommendations for the room?

[Jeff O'Neill]

You know that feeling when someone shows up for you just when you need it most? That's what Uber is all about. Not just a ride or dinner at your door. It's how Uber helps you show up up for the moments that matter. Because showing up can turn a tough day around or make a good one even better. Whatever it is, big or small, Uber is on the way. So you can be on yours. Uber on our way.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Get into your body's vitals with the Vitals app on Apple Watch. The Vitals app tracks key overnight metrics so you can spot changes in your health before you feel them. The Vitals app ON Apple Watch iPhone XS are later required. The Vitals app is for wellness purposes only and not for medical use.

[Jeff O'Neill]

If you went on a road trip and you didn't stop for a Big Mac or drop a crispy fry between.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

The car seats or use your McDonald's.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Bag as a placemat, then that. It wasn't the road trip. It was just a really long drive. But participating McDonald's.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh, Jeremy. My question, and I'll give my really quick answer, is what is a book that's being published this year that you're looking forward to reading. And my answer is kind of an absurd one like yours, which is I pre ordered it, which is called the when the moon meets your eye. And it was on Powell's newsletter. What a great title. And it's the moon literally turns to cheese and overnight.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And it's like, what are the implications for the world? And it says that it's like says what's going on for like politicians or stand up comedians or religious people or billionaires. And it's like, how do all these people like come to terms with what's happening from like their own different, different like vantage points of like these different parts of society? That was a really long answer. But what are you looking forward to?

[Jeff O'Neill]

That's a weird thing. Is that what the answer was or just in general, what's going on? Was it supposed to be a weird pick?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh, no, it's whatever. What's coming up? I checked my list, if you need a minute to van.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, do yours.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

So I'm really excited about Harriet Tubman live in concert by Bob the drag Queen, which. What'd you say?

[Jeff O'Neill]

From the traitors.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yes. And the pitch is that it's an alternate present, maybe alternate future when great figures from the past, including Harriet Tubman come back to like tell us we're doing it wrong and how he get us back on track for how he should be doing it. And Harriet Tubman does it by going on like a live rock tour. This is all I know about it.

[Jeff O'Neill]

It's.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

That was like all I need to know about this book. And my other one in like the shinsky wheelhouse zone is a book called Change of habit about a woman who gives up her life with her partner and family and becomes a nun. And I just like tell me everything.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah, the one that, I mean, I've already read it. So one that I really like is coming out. It kind of goes into the hard book to recommend. It's called White white light and it's about phosphorus.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I don't know if you're joking right now.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I'm deadly fucking serious about it. And you'll be too once I tell you about is why phosphorus is important. Phosphorus. I didn't know. I wish we end the show. Is that it? I'm serious. So like this is the kind of thing. This is real. Thank you. This is real. She lives with this all the time, every day. So it's about phosphorus and why it's so important. Did you know the world we're living in is the world built by phosphorus?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I did.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Did you know that the most rare mineral in your body right now, and yours too, is phosphorus? It's the limiting agent of life. It's the thing that determines how much biomass is in the world at any given moment. And in 1864, some English dudes, they're probably in Bill Bryson's book, are like, hey, what's that big white pile of shit over there? And it's literally a big white pile of shit because it's calcified phosphorus. And, like, you know what? If we put this on our corn, we can make more of it. And we avoided famines and built the world we live in. And you enjoy food, don't you?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I do.

[Jeff O'Neill]

You have phosphorus to thank for.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

There's something beautiful when a person is just a hundred million percent himself in a moment.

[Jeff O'Neill]

We're gonna run out of phosphorus before the sun explodes. So anytime you're like, we've got till 3,600 thousand years, give or take 100 years.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

The most Jeff O' Neill you have ever been.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I'm leaning back. I'm comfortable now.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Great. What a gift. You saw it here, folks. You can say you were here when it happened.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Phosphorus is gonna keep you up in there.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

I think this one has a Powell's connection. Alison Bechdel is going to be here. Tell me the date. And I just finished the Secret to Superhuman Strength for the second time. Wonderful.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Tell people what that was about.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

She is about 60, and for every decade of her life, she was into some other fitness thing. And the drawings are just hysterical. She obviously went to Iyengar yoga. Okay. There's straps and blocks and men in shorts. Just hysterical.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Men in shorts is another thing.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

And I've read her other books, too. Thank you so much.

[Jeff O'Neill]

These are graphic novels, and the new one is about how so. She wrote Fun Home, which became a musical and made her wealthier and more famous. And this book, spent, is about the aftermath of being famous and wealthy and a lesbian graphic novelist. And like all the things that come along with being uncomfortable in your own skin. Anybody else want to shout something out? May 29th. May 20th. She's going to be here. Yeah. Terrific. So I'm curious to both of you, as readers, how much do you look for and at what time do you look for fiction and nonfiction that leans into who you already are and how much you lean into people who are unlike who you are?

[Rebecca Schinsky]

That's a great question.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Windows and mirrors question.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah. I really like the way that you phrase that. I don't know that I'm consciously Thinking about I'm in the mood for something that's reflective versus in the mood for something that's a lens on something else. So those are both really important elements of my reading diet and Jeff's as well. It's more. When the right book, like, crosses your threshold, you're like, oh, I want to read that. And sometimes it feels like it's going to really resonate more. Often to me, it will be like, I don't know what this book is going to be. So usually if a book reflects something back to me, it's by surprise. I feel like I seek that out less, but I'm seeking out something that will be different or new or surprising or that I want to learn something else. I think we both lean in that direction.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah. I think we've described it as like, we're kind of explorers when it comes to reading. Like, well, give anything a fair whack on the whole. I don't really do a lot of comfort reading.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Yeah, I don't.

[Jeff O'Neill]

I wouldn't put it that way. But, you know, we've talked about this book, Life in three Dimensions, and it really unlocks something for us, how we understand what we're getting through books, which is trying to explore the full richness of what makes the world world of world. And I live a smallish life, and that's only a very, very small bit of it. And I know what that life is like. So I'm trying to read about really interesting, exciting things like bus.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

No, they fell.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Anybody else before we get out of here? Yeah. Oh, I'm gonna run.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Oh, Jill, this is so exciting.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Jill. Hi, Jill. I believe.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

What a trip to have our friends be in the room for this.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Hi.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

A shout out to short stories. Oh, yes.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Yeah.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

My nomination is at the Mouth of the river of Bees and kish Johnson from 2012. And it's just magical and surreal and strange and kind of unearthly and beautiful. And the last story takes place in Lawrence, Kansas. Excellent. Thank you, Jim.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Lawrence, Kansas. Thank you all so much for coming. Come say hi if you want. Go shop the store.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Buy lots of books.

[Jeff O'Neill]

Buy some books. Thanks to pals. Good. Good evening. Good night. Thank you.

[Rebecca Schinsky]

Thanks so much for listening today. We hope you'll enjoy this excerpt from the audiobook edition of With a Vengeance by Riley Sager, read by Aaron Bennett. Available now wherever books and audiobooks are sold.

[D]

Anna Matheson clears her throat, straightens her spine and steadies her trembling hands. She pictures herself as a statue, rigid and impenetrable. Anything to make her look like she's not afraid, when in truth she's been scared for so long that fear has seeped into her marrow. Still, when she begins to speak, her voice is firm and clear. You know who I am, just as you know why I've gathered you here. If you haven't figured it out yet, you will very soon. Anna pauses just as she'd rehearsed the length, timed to the millisecond to allow any unlikely stragglers to catch up. By now you've recognized each other. Maybe you've even had a chance to chat a bit. Likely long enough to suspect that you've been brought here under false pretenses. That suspicion is correct. The reason for this journey is simple. I'm here to Just Then the train lurches, sending Anna off balance. In the tiny bathroom of her room, she watches her reflections sway in the equally tiny mirror. The first time she'd been on the Philadelphia Phoenix, everything had felt enormous. Not just the room, but the train itself. Every car seemed endless, as if walking the entire length of the train constituted a journey of miles. Then again, Anna had been 11 at the time, and trains loomed large in her life, especially ones run by the Union Atlantic Railroad. Unlike most rail lines of the day, Union Atlantic had been privately owned. Her father had inherited the family business when her grandfather passed away. In another bit of unconventionality, it hadn't relied on an outside company like Pullman to build its cars and locomotives. Union Atlantic designed and manufactured its own in house at a facility in Philadelphia, including the Phoenix. Anna's mother had even designed the interiors, filling them with her favorite fabrics and colors velvet drapes, chenille upholstery, damask walls, all in shades of peacock blue, emerald green, and rich ivory, surrounded by walnut and gold leaf and bronze. After her mother, her brother, and Anna herself, the Philadelphia Phoenix had been her father's pride and Joy. Debuting in 1937, it wasn't the first streamliner train, nor was it the fastest or the most famous, but those superlatives didn't matter. The Phoenix was still a gleaming marvel that offered both jaw dropping speed and unparalleled luxury. Plus, her father loved it, which is the main reason Anna chose it for the night's journey. It serves as a reminder to the others of all that had been taken from her. The train lurches again, this time with purpose. A moment later, someone raps four times on the door. Seamus here to tell her what she already knows? The train is in motion. There's no turning back now. Anna hurries to the door, feeling the train picking up speed beneath her bare feet, a strange sensation that for a second wreaks havoc on her balance and makes her reach for the wall to steady herself. No matter how many times she travels by train, it always takes Anna a moment to navigate that unwieldy combination of standing on solid ground while also being in motion. Train legs, her father had called them. Removing her hand from the wall, she stands in the middle of the room, waiting for her legs to learn how to absorb the gentle rocking of the train. Once they do, she's able to reach for the door, unlock it, and pull it open. As expected, Seamus is on the other side, filling the narrow corridor that runs the length of the car. The windows behind him show nothing but blackness. They are now in the tunnel, on their way out of the city.