Ep 413 - Award Winning Books and Reading Grease

Summary

Podcast Summary: Reading Glasses – Episode 413: Award-Winning Books and Reading Grease

Release Date: May 29, 2025

In Episode 413 of Reading Glasses, hosts Brea Grant and Mallory O'Meara dive into the vibrant world of award-winning literature by BIPOC authors and explore innovative bookish technology. This episode is a treasure trove for book enthusiasts seeking to expand their literary horizons and enhance their reading environments.

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1. Taking on the 2025 Reading Glasses Challenge

The episode kicks off with Brea and Mallory introducing the latest box from the 2025 Reading Glasses Challenge: "Read an award-winning book by a BIPOC author." This challenge aims to encourage listeners to explore diverse voices in literature, providing both enrichment and broadening of perspectives.

Brea Grant [01:05]: "It's so wonderful. It really scratched an itch for me of like, you know, obviously she's not the, you know, it's not a normal wish, but you kind of want it to happen for her."

2. Current Reads

Brea Grant shares her excitement about reading "Sky Daddy" by Kate Folk, a novel that delves into unconventional relationships with a fantastical twist. The story revolves around a woman who believes she's destined to marry a plane, leading to profound and surreal developments.

Brea Grant [00:47]: "It's about a woman who really, in our heart of hearts, believes that she is meant to marry a plane."

Meanwhile, Mallory O'Meara discusses her recent audiobook, "Why We Love and Hate Twilight" by Sarah Elizabeth Gallagher, highlighting its insightful exploration of the phenomena surrounding the Twilight series and its cultural impact.

Mallory O'Meara [02:26]: "It's such a huge part of a lot of people's romance and smut journeys that I feel like I should know about it. It was a really, really fascinating book."

3. Listener Feedback and Discussions

Goodreads Volunteer Librarian Program

A listener named Sarah voices her frustration with Goodreads' reliance on unpaid volunteer librarians. She critiques Amazon's ownership of Goodreads and its implications for volunteer labor.

Sarah [04:32]: "With Amazon's track record of exploiting labor, I'm not surprised that they would extend this to exploiting people who want to do this labor of love."

Brea and Mallory engage in a robust discussion, agreeing with Sarah's stance while acknowledging the personal attachment volunteers may have to the platform.

Mallory O'Meara [05:35]: "I think Sarah's right. It is kind of nuts for Amazon to be like, ah, yes, please, this really important service, do it for free."

Brea Grant [06:34]: "I think it's fine to judge Goodreads and Amazon and totally agree with that."

Road Trip Book Club

Listener Nikki shares her experience of turning a road trip from New York to Florida into a two-person book club, facilitated by discovering a podcast episode. She praises the podcast for reigniting her love for reading post-COVID.

Nikki [06:40]: "Your podcast has given so much joy back to my reading life. Thank you so much."

Audiobook Speed Tips

Listener Rosie offers a valuable tip for audiobook listeners aiming to use audiobooks as a sleep aid. She suggests slowing down the playback speed to help calm the mind and facilitate better sleep.

Rosie [08:38]: "Instead I choose a more sedate book or podcast and listen to it slow down. You can slow your books to about 0.75 speed and I find this helps me to slow my brain and drift off to sleep."

4. Diving into Award-Winning Books

Brea and Mallory discuss the significance of reading award-winning books by BIPOC authors, emphasizing the diversity and quality these works bring to the literary landscape.

Brea's Pick: "Natural Beauty" by Ling Ling Wong

Brea introduces "Natural Beauty", a Lambda Award-winning novel that offers a dark, language-rich exploration of the beauty industry through the lens of a child prodigy pianist.

Brea Grant [15:46]: "It's really hot right now, a woman at the center who is a child prodigy pianist... there's just a lot of interesting twists on this one in particular that I thought were really good."

Mallory's Pick: "The Nickel Boys" by Colson Whitehead

Mallory chooses "The Nickel Boys", a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel that delves into the harrowing experiences within a segregated reform school. She praises Whitehead's ability to handle dark subjects with engaging narrative finesse.

Mallory O'Meara [16:22]: "I'm finally gonna read the Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead. It's a dark book, but Colson Whitehead's writing makes it engaging."

5. Book Tech: Reviewing a 5-Tier Plastic Book Cart

Transitioning to bookish technology, Brea and Mallory evaluate a 5-tier plastic book cart sent to them by a listener. The cart, priced at $27 on Amazon, features tapered shelves and cup holders, aiming to blend functionality with style.

Pros:

• Portability: Lightweight and easy to move around.
• Design: Slim and aesthetically pleasing with practical features like cup holders.

Cons:

• Stability: The plastic build makes it wobbly, especially when empty.
• Shelf Depth: Limited space on lower shelves restricts storage capacity.

Brea Grant [22:13]: "I found it a little confusing and I may have done it wrong. It is a bit wobbly."

Mallory O'Meara [23:58]: "I don't think this is a good cart to store books in, but I think this would be a good cart if you kept it right next to your reading chair."

Ultimately, they conclude that while the cart may not be ideal for heavy book storage, it serves well for organizing reading essentials like teas, lotions, and current reads.

Mallory O'Meara [26:02]: "If you're looking for something to just like keep all of your reading accoutrement, this I think would be great."

6. Solving a Bookish Problem: Handling Battered Books

Listener Felix seeks advice on managing a collection of damaged paperback books, grappling with the emotional attachment versus the practicality of storage.

Felix [28:04]: "Do I turn replacing them into a long term project and recycle them? Do I keep treasuring them?"

Brea and Mallory empathize with Felix's dilemma, offering thoughtful solutions:

• Repairing: Suggesting gluing pages back together to preserve them.
• Displaying: Recommending shadow boxes or creative displays to honor their sentimental value.
• Selective Keeping: Advising to curate the collection based on emotional attachment and aesthetic preference.

Mallory O'Meara [31:33]: "I think they should display them. Like maybe even framed if you want to like preserve them a little."

Brea Grant [32:22]: "If you want to keep them and you like them, it's okay."

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Conclusion

Episode 413 of Reading Glasses seamlessly blends literary discussions with practical advice, engaging listeners through relatable content and interactive segments. Brea and Mallory continue to foster a dynamic community for book lovers, encouraging exploration, preservation, and thoughtful discourse around reading habits and book culture.

For more insights, book recommendations, and to participate in future challenges, listeners are encouraged to connect via email at [e-mail] or follow them on Instagram at Reading Glasses Podcast.

Transcript

[Bria Grant]

Foreign.

[Mallory O'Meara]

You're listening to Reading Glasses, a show about book culture and literary life designed to help you read better. I'm author and book devourer, Mallory o' Meara.

[Bria Grant]

And I'm Bria Grant, filmmaker and e reader. This episode, we're taking off another box from the 2025 Reading glasses glasses Glasses challenge. Read an award winning book by an author of color. Plus, we test out a book cart, which we're looking at right now, that the wind may knock over, and give tips on reading beaten up paperback books.

[Mallory O'Meara]

What are you reading, Bri?

[Bria Grant]

I am reading a book that I've been looking forward to reading. It is called Sky Daddy. Ah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Oh, and I know you told me to read this. I have it on my. I have it on my Libby tbr.

[Bria Grant]

It's by Kate Folk. Kate Folk put out a book of short stories last year that I really, really liked or a couple years ago called Out There. It was one of my favorite books from whatever year that was. Can't remember. But this is about a woman who really, in our heart of hearts, believes that she is meant to marry a plane.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I mean, having seen dating apps, I plane would seem like a good alternative.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, yeah. And she spends all of her money going on planes and flying and she works as a content moderator and she gets invited to a vision boarding night with one of her co workers and things start happening because she makes this vision board and she gets convinced maybe she is going to get to marry this plane. And it is so wonderful. It really scratched an itch for me of like, like, you know, obviously she's not the, you know, it's, it's not a normal wish, but it, you kind of. You want it to happen for her.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Even though it's like Lolita but with a plane. Let me see. Less problematic.

[Bria Grant]

Oh, yeah, but, but oh, oh, it does tell you this in the description. So she is going to marry a plane, but in when they get married, it will go down and it'll be a fiery plane crash. So she will die in the plane crash and that means the plane is in love.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Has she started talking to Nathan Fielder yet?

[Bria Grant]

What are you reading?

[Mallory O'Meara]

I just finished listening to a new audiobook that feels kind of like research for our other show, reading smut. It's called why We Love and Hate Twilight by Sarah Elizabeth Gallagher. And the narrator is Amanda Friday. She's great.

[Bria Grant]

And is that her real name?

[Mallory O'Meara]

I hope so. Okay, imagine it just sounds like a name in like a spy movie.

[Bria Grant]

I love it.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I'm Amanda Friday. Don't worry. Call Amanda Friday. She'll help you out. So it's the whole book about, like, why people went bazongas over Twilight.

[Bria Grant]

And is that the technical term?

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yes, they invented that word for the people who went bazonas over Twilight. And it's just about how. Why people love it so much, like, why it's so problematic, but also, like, why, you know, why a bunch of moms fell in love with this, like, YA series. And like, it's very. As someone. So I read Twilight right before it went huge. I had my shift supervisor at Dunkin Donuts shout out to Amber. She was like, hey, you like werewolves and crap? I read this book. I think you'll love it. And I read it and I really bounced off of it. It wasn't for me. And so I never read any of the other books and I never watched any of the movies. And I, like, remember Twilight Mania happening, but I just, I was not part of it. But it's such a huge part of a lot of people's romance and smut journeys that I feel like I should know about it. It was a really, really fascinating book. A lot of the stuff I thought people were exaggerating about Twilight is real, really wild stuff. And, okay, real wild stuff in there, folks. But I, I loved it. And it's not super long. Definitely worth it, even if you're someone like me that is not a Twilight person but is interested in pop culture. Very worth reading. So I'm reading why We Love and Hate Twilight by Sarah Elizabeth Gallagher. Narrated by Amanda Friday, Sarah Secret Agent.

[Bria Grant]

And I am reading Sky Daddy by Kate Folk.

[Mallory O'Meara]

We want to take a moment to share some listener feedback. Sarah wrote in to say hi. Brian, Mallory, thank you so much for a wonderful podcast. It's truly the highlight of my week. Every week I wanted to write in because I just listened to episode 405 and have thoughts about the Goodreads volunteer librarian program. First of all, I want to be very clear. I am so supportive and appreciative of all the volunteers who are putting their time and effort into helping readers who use Goodreads. And it's wonderful and helpful work and I don't want to diminish that at all. You all rock, Sarah says. At the same time, I am completely incensed at the gall Goodreads has to have a volunteer program at all. Goodreads is owned by Amazon, which has severely neglected Goodreads since acquiring it in 2013 and learning that they are unapologetically relying on the unpaid labor of book lovers instead of Fairly compensating people for their hard work has completely enraged me. With Amazon's track record of exploiting labor, I'm not surprised that they would extend this to exploiting people who want to do this labor of love.

[Bria Grant]

But.

[Mallory O'Meara]

But I am pissed. A company so wealthy has absolutely no excuse and should either hire a proper staff to keep books updated or compensate community contributors in some way instead of relying on volunteers to do work that is so important for the service. I know the listener who wrote in said that they became a volunteer librarian to keep their own books in order, which I totally get and respect. Again, no shade or judgment at all towards Goodreads users or librarians. I encourage you to look into volunteering opportunities at places that don't have bucket loads of money that they're dumping into executive pockets at the expense of their workers. Storygraph also has volunteer librarianships that anyone can apply for. Local libraries often welcome volunteers with open arms, and I bet plenty of indie bookstores trying to operate on a shoestring budget would welcome some occasional volunteer help. Over the years, I've realized that I've too often let large, profitable companies extract unpaid labor for me simply because it was something I was excited to do, especially in more creative endeavors or ones that meant a lot to me personally. And I'm still working on realizing my actual worth in time. Volunteering is wonderful, important, and a great way to give back, but I think any company owned by Amazon should be ashamed of themselves for actively asking for unpaid work. And I think Sarah is correct.

[Bria Grant]

I agree, but I also think like, let's not yuck somebody's yum. You know what I mean? Like, if this is the community that's important to you and you've created, worked on this community for years and years, I, I look, I agree, like there are probably, there are many places to volunteer, but you know, if this is what's important to I don't remember who this was, who did this, but I don't want to, I'm not judging somebody.

[Mallory O'Meara]

For, I mean, Sarah said the same thing. Yeah, Sarah's not judging. But I, I, you know, I think Sarah's right. It is kind of nuts for Amazon to be like, ah, yes, please, this really important service, do it for free. Yeah, but totally fine if it makes, if, if you're keeping your own books in order and you like that, sure, fine.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, I agree. And I, I just think, yeah, and I think volunteering is like a personal choice and if you have the time to do it, you should do it where you feel like you are helping your community. And if your community is Goodreads, and that's unfortunate, it's owned by Amazon. But you, you've put a lot of time into it. I'm not gonna judge someone for spending time doing something they enjoy, but I.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Am gonna judge Goodreads.

[Bria Grant]

I think it's fine to judge Goodreads and Amazon. I totally agree with that. I totally agree.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Goodreads. Why are you so beige?

[Bria Grant]

Nikki Ronan said hi Mallory, Bria, My hubs and I are on a road trip from New York State to Florida. We listened to last week's episode and we're really intrigued by Bria's current read vantage point. That wasn't me. That was you.

[Mallory O'Meara]

That was me. People often do that. They think that we're reading each other's books.

[Bria Grant]

We'd run out of things to listen to and he'd already humored me by listening to the ERAS tour playlist. So I thought I'd look look for the audiobook. We couldn't find it available on Libby. Then I remembered we have a premium Spotify and the audiobook was available there. We turned our entire return trip into a two person book club and we really enjoyed it as well. So happy to have stumbled upon your podcast post Covid. I was still in a reading slump and have just started to come out of it in the last year. Your podcast has given so much joy back to my reading life. Thank you so much. That's very nice.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Sharing an audiobook on a road trip is incredible.

[Bria Grant]

Someone else told me recently that that they were about to buy a book and they weren't sure if they'd like it and it was on Spotify Premium so they went and listened to it there instead and they didn't like it so they didn't finish it. Finish it. So I feel like Spotify Premium is really coming. Have you listened to anything on Spotify yet?

[Mallory O'Meara]

No, but I. I get almost all of my audiobooks through Libro FM and Libby. I don't need. That's my other thing is I don't want books on many apps.

[Bria Grant]

Sure.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I want my book apps.

[Bria Grant]

Sure, sure. That makes sense. That makes sense.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Then Rosie wrote in to say Kia ora Mallory and Bria, first I wanted to say thanks so much for your podcast. I love the fun, energetic and non judgmental approach you take to books and reading. I always have fun listening to your show and I feel like I always learn something too. As someone who reads exclusively in audio format, I appreciate that you see that as just as valid as other forms of reading. A tip for audio listeners. I usually listen to books or podcasts to help me calm my mind down and get to sleep. Usually when I listen to a book or podcast I listen to it a little fast. 1.5 ish. But when I'm trying to get to sleep I find that just keeps my mind racing and I keep my heart rate up. Instead I choose a more sedate book or podcast and listen to it slow down. You can slow your books to about 0.75 speed and I find this helps me to slow my brain and drift off to sleep. Hope this helps. That's interesting.

[Bria Grant]

No one ever writes in to say they slowed down their podcast or audiobooks. People will write in. They're like I do three times. But slowing it down is interesting.

[Mallory O'Meara]

We would sound like normal women. If people chipmunks.

[Bria Grant]

We're just normal women.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Normal women.

[Bria Grant]

That's really interesting. If other people slow down their podcast, let us know.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah, I'm very fascinated.

[Bria Grant]

That's fun.

[Mallory O'Meara]

You want to read Rosie's Wheelhouse?

[Bria Grant]

I do Cozy witch romance books, especially Queer Norm. Now that I know that's a thing. Thanks. Or Angry Female Detective books. Always feminist.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Beautiful.

[Bria Grant]

Very wonderful.

[Mallory O'Meara]

So you can email us at reading glasses podcastmail.com if you want a list of all the books we talk about on the show delivered to your inbox every month you can sign up for our newsletter. There's a link in the show notes. Quick bookmark for me. It's pretty far in advance but just for the folks of upstate New York. I am coming to New York this summer. I'm coming coming to the Gilderland Public Library Aug. 22 I think it is. I'll put a link in the show notes. Hot east coast summer for me baby. I am also doing something in New York City but if you are if you run a bookstore in in that area. New Jersey. Boston. I still have never done an event in Boston. If you run a bookstore in Boston. You want me to take the train up?

[Bria Grant]

Fun.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I have never done a book event in my home state.

[Bria Grant]

That's wild.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I would love to. That's what so reach out. But yeah, there'll be a link in the show notes for that email is reading glasses podcast gmail.com if you want a list of all the books we talk about on the show delivered to your inbo every month you can sign up for our newsletter. There's link in the show notes before we talk about award winning books by bipoc authors, we're going to take a Quick break. Reading Glasses is sponsored in part this week by Ancient Nutrition. Folks, for thousands of years, explorers the world over have searched for and told tales of a mythical fountain. You've probably read a book with a fountain, mythical youth fountain in it. People are always looking to restore their youth. They want to cure things. Unfortunately, that is the stuff of fantasy books. But supplements from Ancient Nutrition are designed to be the next best thing. You will not get a talking animal companion or a map or a family tree, but you are going to look good.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. Ancient Nutrition's mission is to create high quality supplements that combine the best of ancient wisdom and modern science. Ancient Nutrition's multi collagen advanced lean supplement contains 10 types of collagen from 10 real food based sources. Ancient collagen does a lot of stuff. It can reduce joint discomfort. It can improve the look and growth of your skin, hair and nails. All those things that just grow and grow.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah. Well, you, you start taking this and it made your hair grow wicked fast, Right?

[Bria Grant]

I have taken collagen in the past and it made my hair grow fast. Yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Wow. That's.

[Bria Grant]

And I have a lot of breakage because I have blonde hair. Look, you can see I have.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Oh, yeah.

[Bria Grant]

I end up with a lot of breakage at the top because I wear blonde hair and I wear it on top of my head. So I constantly am wanting my hair to grow faster.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah.

[Bria Grant]

And collagen is something that has helped with that in the past.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Maybe I should do that because I'm trying to grow out my undercut for the first time in almost 10 years. Oh, wow. And it is the worst thing ever. I have like a reverse mullet. It feels like I have a small animal living on the back of my neck. My hair is like, it's like three inches long back there.

[Bria Grant]

Oh, wow.

[Mallory O'Meara]

And all I want is to just grow fast enough to get back into a ponytail. So right now if maybe you're trying to grow your undercut out or you just want some luscious hair, skin and nails. Right now, Ancient Nutrition is offering 25 off your first order when you go to ancientnutrition.com glasses. That's ancientnutrition.com for 25% off your first order. Ancientnutrition.com glasses. Glasses.

[Bria Grant]

Glasses.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Hey, Sydney, you're a physician and the co host of Sawbones A Marital Tour of Misguided medicine, right? That's true. Justin, is it true that our medical history podcast is just as good as a visit to your primary care physician? No, Justin, that is absolutely not True. However, our podcast is funny and interesting and a great way to learn about the medical misdeeds of the past as. As well, well, as some current not so legit healthcare fads. So you're saying that by listening to our podcast, people will feel better? Sure. And isn't that the same reason that you go to the doctor? Well, you could say that. And our podcast is free? Yes, it is free. You heard it here first, folks. Sawbones Merrell tour of misguided medicine right here on Maximum Fun. Just as good as going to the doctor. No, no, no, still not just as good as going to the doctor, but. But pretty good. It's up there.

[Bria Grant]

Foreign.

[Mallory O'Meara]

This week we're ticking off another box on the 2025 reading glasses, glasses, glasses, Glasses Challenge. Read an award winning book by a bipoc author. What books are we reading for this challenge? Where can you find these books and how can this improve your reading life? Priya, what are the rules? Very important.

[Bria Grant]

You know, we always got to start with the rules.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Start with the rules.

[Bria Grant]

It has to be a real award. Yes, that seems obvious, but I could see how it would be confusing. It doesn't have to be a huge reward, doesn't have to be a Pulitzer, but it has to be a real award and be a winner, not just nominated.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Correct.

[Bria Grant]

Which I. Well, get into it in a second, but I thought mine was just nominated and then it was, oh, there you go. It did a win. It did win.

[Mallory O'Meara]

So a good place to start with this people with a lot of these, these parts on the challenge, people are like, well, how do I find books that I like? Look for awards for types of books that you like. You like horror books. Look at the Bram Stokers or Shirley Jackson Awards, Sci fi, Hugo's Fantasy, Fantasy awards, literary fiction. There's a bazillion of these. The Man Booker, National Book Award, Lambda Literary Awards, etc, so that's a good, a good place to start. This is. So this is not genre based. This is. You can read whatever genre you like.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, yeah. But why do we put this on the challenge, Mallory?

[Mallory O'Meara]

Well, I think it's fun to be like, oh, what am I reading?

[Bria Grant]

Award winning.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Oh, just a Pulitzer Prize winning novel.

[Bria Grant]

Oh, me, award winning.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Oh, you know me just reading the finest literary cutlets the world has to offer. But also we love supporting bipoc authors and we. It's been a while. I don't know. I don't think we've ever done an award winning book as part of the challenge. I can't remember. So this felt like the perfect combo.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, for sure. And what's nice is that, you know, reading award winning book means that you're reading a buzzy backless book. So people have probably read it. It's probably a little bit bigger than another book. And also I kept thinking this has been pre approved as something that might be good.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yes.

[Bria Grant]

You know, so it's been vetted. Now is it necessarily. No, not necessarily something you would like, but it has been vetted.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yes. Yeah. I love a. Awards winning books are awesome because they're almost always out in paperback because they're backlist and they're buzzy. So you know, if you are looking on Fable or storygraph and you want to find a discussion group for them there, because these books are award winners, you. There's probably. There's a higher, higher likelihood of, of, of that being the case. So Bria, what are you reading for this part of the challenge?

[Bria Grant]

I read Natural Beauty by Ling Ling Wong.

[Mallory O'Meara]

When this book came out, I can't remember, but I remember seeing this book and being like, oh, this is a Bria book.

[Bria Grant]

It won the Lambda Award for bisexual fiction in 2024. It came out last year. I mean, it's a kind of a dark take on the beauty industry. I had no idea where I was going. It was really like, it's very language forward. It's very weird fiction. Yeah. You sort of don't know where it's going. It takes a couple turns where you're like, what? But it's very. Also if you liked the substance or something, this is, it's really hot right.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Now with makeup horror, skincare horror.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, yeah. And like female. Specifically sort of like female driven beauty industry horror. And this is exactly that. But it has this woman at the center who is a like a child prodigy pianist. And that made it also really interesting because it's about like her and her dealing with beauty standards, but also like her parents. Something happened to her parents and taking care of them. And like, there's just a lot of like interesting twists on this one in particular that I thought were really good. What did you read or what are you going to read?

[Mallory O'Meara]

I'm finally gonna read the Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead.

[Bria Grant]

Oh, have you not read it yet?

[Mallory O'Meara]

No, I. Oh, I own it. I bought it the year that it came out. And then it's. But it's a, you know, it's a dark book.

[Bria Grant]

It's dark.

[Mallory O'Meara]

It's short though. I know. And I, I have packed it on multiple vacations and then picked it up and be like, I'm not in the mood for something so dark.

[Bria Grant]

Actually, you know what? I'm gonna say it is dark, but for some reason, it doesn't feel as dark.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Really.

[Bria Grant]

It's going to.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Okay.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. Something about Colson Whitehead's writing is that you can take these super dark subjects, but it, to me, it never feels heavy. It always feels like. Like you're still like, yeah, there are books that I've read. I'm like, too dark. Like, this is. It's. It's not like it'll. It's very engaging.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Oh, great.

[Bria Grant]

And, you know, it was one of my favorite books of. Of that year that it came out.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Well, I want to watch the movie Wicked Bad. And I've heard nothing, literally nothing, but, like, glowing reviews of the movie. And I keep holding out because I'm like, no, I want to read the. So I just got to knuckle down, read the fudgeing book.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. Speaking of awards, I feel like that movie was kind of super snubbed. Like. Yeah. I mean, look. And there's only one. You can only have one award. Whatever. That's the problem with awards. Only one person wins.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Right.

[Bria Grant]

But I feel like we didn't talk about that movie enough.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I don't think it got. It didn't get a good. A wide enough of release.

[Bria Grant]

And, you know, and it's. It's strange. It's strange the way it's done, but for me as a filmmaker, I was like.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Because it's shot entirely pov, right?

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. And I was like, did this person reinvent filmmaking? Like, look, there are other examples of this type of filmmaking, but it really blew me away.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Who directed it.

[Bria Grant]

It's this guy's first narrative movie. And I can't believe. Yeah. He's done documentary before. Wow. And I listened to so many interviews with him because I just thought he was really interesting and the way he approached the work based on the book, because the book is also like, like kind of a pov. And the POV is really important in the book.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Gotcha.

[Bria Grant]

Anyway, I'm glad you're reading it.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah. This book won the Pulitzer in 2020. So I'm. I am going to be that person. I want to be like, homie.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, just Pulitzer.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I'm reading a Pulitzer winning novel. Oh, hello, me, me. And like, I. I'm just picturing me in, like, really sunglasses, like, by a pool, drinking a fancy drink, and I'm like, oh, what am I reading? So you can send your thoughts on what you're going to be reading for this part of the challenge to reading glasses podcast gmail.com. before we test out a book cart, we're going to take a Reading glasses is sponsored in part this week by Tea Experience. Tea lovers. And I know there's a lot of glassers who love tea. Listen up. If you have not tried T experience yet, you are missing out. This is a company that makes premium loose leaf teas that are going to make you sipping in style. Me just talking about how I was going to be a fancy person. Reading a pulister book, you know, would be the perfect accompaniment. A fancy tea. Maybe you are just starting out your tea journey like me. I'm not a big tea person or. You've been brewing for years. There is a perfect blend waiting for you. Bria, you want to tell us a little bit more more about teaspirience?

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. They're handpicked loose leaf blends for the best taste and quality. They're expertly crafted. They have balanced flavors, aromas, and health benefits in every sip. It's good for you.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I didn't know that.

[Bria Grant]

It's true. It has all sorts of things in the in it that's good for you. You get energizing blends to calming tea. There's something for everyone. And you made some of these teas and you were just telling me before we even started the podcast.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yes. So I got my box of teas last night and HWB came over and because I'm not a big tea person, so I was like, oh, I like, let's. Let's try one of these. And there's one blend called 40 winks that is like, helps you go to sleep. And you know, I have a really hard time falling asleep. So I made us a big pot of 40 wings tea. Then I iced it.

[Bria Grant]

Oh, I stood.

[Mallory O'Meara]

It was hot. Last night because it's getting hot here in LA. We had refreshing 40 winks iced tea before we went to sleep. Slept like two little babies.

[Bria Grant]

Oh, wow.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Two. Well, maybe large babies. Two large sleepy babies. Sleepy babies. But honestly, it was great. And I was like. Immediately I was like, oh, I want. It's getting hot in la. I want to ice more of these. I got one called Watermelon Cooler. White Peach. Really nice, summery blends.

[Bria Grant]

Great.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah. Very excited.

[Bria Grant]

Those sound amazing. Are you ready to experience premium tea like never before? Head over to T Experience and use code glasses to get 15 off your first order.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Glasses. The Flop House is a podcast where we watch a bad movie and then we talk about it.

[Bria Grant]

Robert Shaw in Jaws and they're trying.

[Mallory O'Meara]

To figure out how to get rid of the ghoulies.

[Bria Grant]

And he scratches his nails and goes, I'll get your ghoulie. He's just standing above the toilet with a harpoon.

[Mallory O'Meara]

No, I was just looking forward to you going through the other ways in.

[Bria Grant]

Which Wild Wild west is historically inaccurate.

[Mallory O'Meara]

You know how much movies cost nowadays when you add in your popped corn and your bagel bites and your cheese fritters, you can't go wrong with a Henry Cavill mustache. Here at Henry Cavill Mustaches, the only.

[Bria Grant]

Supplier, the flop hat.

[Mallory O'Meara]

New episodes every Saturday. Find it at maximumfun.org time to test out some book tech. Advances in bookish technology. This week's book tech was sent to us by a glasser with no name.

[Bria Grant]

No name. There was no name on this.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Riding through a desert, reading in the desert with a glasser with no name. But if this was you and you meant to put a name on it, let us know. But it is a. It's a book cart, but we haven't tested out a plastic cart yet. So this is a five tier rolling cart. The brand is Yee Money.

[Bria Grant]

M U N Y. I don't know.

[Mallory O'Meara]

We'll put this link in the show notes. It's $27 on Amazon. It is plastic. It is fairly. It's actually, it's fairly tall, but it is slim. It is like almost slim. It's like half the width of a regular book card. It's like 30 inches tall. It's only 6 inches deep. And it has tapered shelves. They kind of like come to a point. Like a kids bookshelf. Like a. Like a. Like a picture bookshelf.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

And on top, one of my favorite parts, it's got a couple of cup holders.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. That is nice. Aesthetically, it's nice.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Bria, what did you think of this book cart?

[Bria Grant]

Well, I put this together. Did you assemble it also at some point and unassume.

[Mallory O'Meara]

No.

[Bria Grant]

No.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Okay. This was all you.

[Bria Grant]

I put this together and I found it a little confusing and I may have done it wrong. I will certainly.

[Mallory O'Meara]

It looks right to me.

[Bria Grant]

That I've done. Could have done it wrong. I can't quite figure out how to use this thing because at the bottom the shelves get very thin. Like there's only.

[Mallory O'Meara]

You can only put. They're very. They're spaced together closely.

[Bria Grant]

They're very. Yeah, so. So you can put like maybe one or two DVDs on them. Like that's it. Like, that is It. But then the other parts, they're kind of nice. The cup holders are really nice. The only thing I'll say is that it's a bit wobbly.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Again, it's because. I think it's because it's plastic.

[Bria Grant]

It's plastic. It could be also user error. I think I'm supposed to, like, hammer. It's a little top together. Oh. But I'm gonna say I was not super impressed by this thing.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah.

[Bria Grant]

If it was up against something, I'd feel safer about it, but I don't worry about using it. Put the cup holder.

[Mallory O'Meara]

All right. Live test.

[Bria Grant]

Live test.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah, that's very wobbly.

[Bria Grant]

I don't trust the cup holder.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I think it would be. If you loaded it up with books, that might weigh it down.

[Bria Grant]

Sure. Okay. Yeah, it's totally empty right now. It is really light, so it's easy to move around, which is nice. But for me, this is getting, like, a three out of five pages because I just am like, it's a bit wobbly. It doesn't hold. Like, the bottom. You could put books. So it's like, the bottom is kind of empty, and then there's, like, a really thin shelf. So. And then there's two, like, little basket y shelves, and so you can put quite a few books in those. But the bottom one, I'm like, why do you even have this one? Like, just pull that one out. You know what I mean?

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah.

[Bria Grant]

And you could. You could pull it out. They all kind of go in together. You can reassemble it. What you can't tell is that. Look, let me show you. You can reassemble it in any way you want.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I can see. I can tell Bria is going to live on the show. Reassemble this box.

[Bria Grant]

This.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Oh, yeah. I mean, it's pretty easy to put together.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

You could. You can. You could. If you want to, leave out one of the shelves and make it shorter. Like, if you want it to be the same height as a particular reading chair, that would work.

[Bria Grant]

What do you think? What's your opinion?

[Mallory O'Meara]

So my. My hot opinion is I think this would. I don't think this is a good cart to store books in, but I think this would be a good cart if you kept it right next to your reading chair. Like, if you were just looking for a cart that you can put your. Put your drink down, keep your currently reading books, keep. Keep some yarn that you were knitting with. Like, keep a couple. Like, I. I have a little tray in my. Like, in my living room that's like all the crap that I like having next to me when I'm either reading or watching tv. It's a bottle of lotion. It is a lotion right now. It's amber and oak moss.

[Bria Grant]

Oh my God.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I'm a big oak moss person. It's my favorite smell.

[Bria Grant]

But it's a smell. Yeah. Okay.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Earthy. It's okay, but it's like lotion. Lip balm. My currently reading book.

[Bria Grant]

You're some of the greasing up like a seal every time you're sitting on a read.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Greasing up. That's what, that's big coming from the slugger.

[Bria Grant]

It's true. A greaser knows one greaser when she sees one. A greasy woman knows another one. I see it. I see it. Actually, I'm a dry woman. That's the problem. Takes one at night lately I've just been putting oil on my face. It like a nice oil, but then I'm like, could I put a kitchen oil? Like, would it make a difference?

[Mallory O'Meara]

Like, I mean, I use rosehip oil at night.

[Bria Grant]

I could I use like an olive?

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah.

[Bria Grant]

Is the question.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I can't believe it's not butter.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. Just spray that directly on my face.

[Mallory O'Meara]

We live in the desert.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. It's really dry right now.

[Mallory O'Meara]

It's dry. I need all of my various solves and unguents. I gotta, I gotta be slathered up if I'm gonna be reading. But so if you are, if you're looking for something to just like keep all of your like reading accoutrement, this I think would be great. If you're looking for alternative book storage or like you're looking for a cart to keep a lot of books, I don't think this would work.

[Bria Grant]

Who I think it's for is for kids. I think it's a. Kids, I think coloring books. Kids picture books. Picture books. You could even put coloring books in it. And then in the top put like colored pencils and stuff and markers instead of using it as a pen cup instead of a cup.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Cup, cup for cup cups.

[Bria Grant]

I think that this would be good for that. And then also it falls on a child and they're fine because it's not very heavy.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yes. Yeah. I think. But if you are looking for a cart like the one that I I. Right now I'm using it for notebooks. But I was for a long time using it as my TBR cart. If you're looking for a cart to keep notebooks, 50 books, 40 books. Spend the extra $10 and get the Metal one. But if you're just looking for something to keep, especially a cart that, like, this is not a cart you want to wheel around because it is plastic and flimsy. But if it's staying in the. Staying next to a reading chair or a couch and, you know, you just have your tea and your. Your reading. Reading Grease.

[Bria Grant]

Night.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Grease night.

[Bria Grant]

Grease. Hold on, I gotta put on mine. And then you, like, just slide into bed. Like a slip and slide.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Just like a baby. Like, you know how seals jump up out of the ice and, like, with their arms back? Yeah. That's me getting into listening. When you live in the desert and you're a woman over 30. Gotta grease up. I keep. I. You can tell where I spend time at my. In my house, because there's always a bottle of lotion and lip balm and stuff.

[Bria Grant]

And a grease stain. Yes.

[Mallory O'Meara]

But I'm. I'm gonna give this. If you were using it for this specific purpose, a 4 out of 5 pages. I think I would give it lower if you were trying to store books in there. But I think if you're just looking to keep your night grease in your current book and your tea, I think this works out great. So you can send your book tech ideas to reading glasses podcast gmail.com. now let's solve a bookish problem from one of our listeners. Felix wrote in to say. Hi, Brian, Mallory, I'm sure you get this all the time, but I wanted to thank you guys. Your podcast and your infectious enthusiasm inspires me to read. And the book challenge has been great for my motivation, even if I'm not back to devouring whole novels in a single day like you could when I was a child. Listen, we're never gonna get back there. We all want that. Actually. I don't know. I guess if I, like, became. I don't know, if I became really rich, I would still do this podcast.

[Bria Grant]

That's a testament to the podcast. I. I just don't have the attention span.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I. I do have the attention pan. I'm just busy. Okay. But, I mean, we did the readathon. I got to finish a big book during the readathon. Anyway, that's. We're all. What I'm trying to say, Felix, is we're all trying to get back there. It's hard to believe there's a bookish question you haven't answered multiple times. But out of curiosity, how do you both handle battered or damaged books? I know you both care for your collection fastidiously, so you may not identify with this. But in my room, out of sight, I have a single shelf dedicated to the paperbacks I've damaged over the years, while the better cared folks are stored in the living room. I like this like secret, like Jane Eyre books in the attic deal. Like I keep my, I keep my, I keep my, my secret ripped up books in the back. The paperbacks are primarily beaten up from chucking them in a backpack from middle school to high school. Many of the surviving novels from my middle school years don't have front or back covers. Corners have flaked off. I tape the COVID down at some point. I'm always at a crossroads of what to do with them. The ones that do still have covers have art that's special to me and often that specific cover art isn't printed anymore. Or the books themselves have been out of print for a while and it's hard to find replacements at all. The paperbacks are not fit for display and I don't really want anyone else to handle them, especially the ones printed in the 60s and 70s that I've picked up over the years. However, just storing battered books that I've managed to damage over the years feels like hoarding paper, trash, junk, albeit junk that's close to my heart. Any recommendations from you or the listeners? Do I turn replacing them into a long term project and recycle them? When replaced, do I keep treasuring them? For as long as the glue lasts? Do I just let them go since it's been years since I first read them? That sounds like a romance novel. For as long as the glue lasts.

[Bria Grant]

As long as the glue lasts. Until the glue runs out.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Until the glue runs out. Bria, what do you think Felix should do?

[Bria Grant]

Well, I don't think this is junk. And look, I'm a person who likes to brush it away.

[Mallory O'Meara]

I was actually surprised to hear this from you.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah, I know, I know this sounds like something that you actually really like from the way this email is written.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah.

[Bria Grant]

Do you feel that?

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah, I feel, I think we all.

[Bria Grant]

Emotionally in this email, I don't wanna.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Say we all, but a lot of us have like a book that survived your childhood collection that is disintegrating but you don't wanna get rid of it.

[Bria Grant]

And I like old shit. So battered stuff is more interesting to me than even a new book. But you know, maybe don't listen to me because I do have like old goth shit all over my house and like I do have old stuff. Not a lot, but I do have some old stuff. I think trying to keep Them intact is important if you're gonna keep them though, because that glue from the 60s and 70s, that shit's gon fall apart.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Oh yeah, I can hear it crinkling right now. Yeah, you gotta go disintegrating to dust.

[Bria Grant]

I think you have to make the decision if you're gonna keep them. You gotta go and take them, fix them up, take them to a book repairer or figure out how to do that in real life. There's, I definitely like YouTube videos or something about how to do that. But you need to re glue them. If you're don't like have the pages start to scatter. If the pages are starting to scatter and they're missing, throw that shit away. But if they're still intact and you like them, I think glue them back together and keep them on your shelf. I think like, if you want them and you like them, it's okay. If they don't have a cover, like, I think they'll still survive. You could always put them in something like some sort of container or something so they're not going to get messed up. But if they're, if they have sentimental value to you and you, the way you wrote this email to me, you seem like you really like them. I don't think that you must just feel like you're hoarding. But to me it doesn't sound like hoarding.

[Mallory O'Meara]

No. I mean it doesn't sound like Felix has 15, 000 of these.

[Bria Grant]

No.

[Mallory O'Meara]

In there.

[Bria Grant]

And if you do, write us back because we have different advice.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yes, we do. But I don't, I don't think that this seems like, I mean, they. Felix said there's a single shelf. You know, this is a single shelf. Okay. If this was taking over an entire closet, it would be different.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. Okay. So what do you think?

[Mallory O'Meara]

Feeling said they're not fit for display, but they also said they have specific cover art that's very special for Felix. I think they should display them.

[Bria Grant]

Okay.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Like maybe even framed if you want to like preserve them a little. But like that. Think how cute a shadow box full of these would be.

[Bria Grant]

That'd be fun. Be fun. Or like your favorite ones. That'd be cute.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Like even if they're batter bettered, increased. I agree with you. I think it makes it better. But I think it would be so cute to have like a special shadow box with all these books in there, like stacked on top of each other. Or like if you really, if you want to replace them but you want to keep those covers, like remove all the covers and frame them together in like a. Like a. Not a collage because don't cut them up. But you know. You know how some people. Moms do that thing where they like, they make a quilt out of all your old T shirts.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Like, you could make a big, big poster out of all, like.

[Bria Grant]

That's cute.

[Mallory O'Meara]

All of these book covers. I think it'd be really cool.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. I think there must be a way to display these so that you don't feel like you're hoarding. But. And also because they have sentimental value. I like that idea. Like putting them in a shadow box. Fixing the covers. Yeah. Like, take the time and decide which ones actually have sentimental value for you. So you're there may not. It may not be all of them. Go through them and then. Yeah. Find a way to put them on display.

[Mallory O'Meara]

Yeah. I mean, I still. My copies of. I have multiple copies of my. His Dark Materials books, but my paperback copies are the paperback copies I've had since I was nine years old. And there are lollipop stains on them.

[Bria Grant]

Cute.

[Mallory O'Meara]

There are rips and tears, and those spot. Like, at some point I'm gonna have to have the same thing. But I love them. And even though those are not my reading copies, I treasure them.

[Bria Grant]

Sure.

[Mallory O'Meara]

When I went to Oxford, I brought my copy that my. Of the amber spy glass that my grandfather got me when I was 10 years old.

[Bria Grant]

Wow.

[Mallory O'Meara]

And it was like. Even though it was, like, kind of falling apart, it was really special to like, have that book there. So, like, like, we're. I think you and I are both generally on the get rid of things train, but with. With this, I think we're both aligned. Keep it. Figure out a way to keep it that is aesthetically pleasing and doesn't get rid of the stuff that makes you happy.

[Bria Grant]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Mallory O'Meara]

So if you want us to solve your reader problem, send it to reading glasses podcast gmail.com. as always, want to thank the wonderful mods who run our Discord server and our Facebook group. Remember, you can buy reading glasses totes and shirts and stickers over at our Void Merch store. There's a link in the show notes for that. And if you like the show, you want to do something real nice for us, please rate and review us on the podcast listening app of your choice. It is so great for the show, great for our hearts, and it helps us reach more listeners. You can email us at reading glasses podcast gmail.com. find us on Instagram at Reading Glasses Podcast. Thanks for listening. Thanks for reading Maximum fun. A worker owned network of artist owned shows supported directly by you.