The Book Lisp with Jon Ryan & Sarah Colonna

Episode: "Green without Envy"
Date: October 13, 2025

Episode Overview

In "Green without Envy," Jon Ryan and Sarah Colonna, the wedded duo behind The Book Lisp, embark on week two of their October book club pick, A.R. Torrey's The Good Lie. Broadcasting remotely (Sarah in a Fort Wayne, Indiana hotel room on comedy tour, Jon at home), the couple dive into a fun, meandering, laughter-filled discussion about the book's themes—without spoilers—while riffing on everything from childhood snacks and relationship dynamics to the mystery of preferred gummy bear colors. If you haven’t listened to this episode, expect true book club energy sprinkled with marital wit, relatability, and their signature A.D.D.-style conversational tangents.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Audiobook Observations & Industry Talk

• Audiobook Editing Oddities
  • Sarah, relistening to The Good Lie on audiobook after speeding through it on Kindle, notices odd editing moments, describing them as “drop ins” where lines feel re-recorded and inserted.
  • Jon doesn’t notice them, likely because he reads half on Kindle and half via Audible during treadmill sessions.
  • Insider Glimpse into ADR (Automated Dialogue Replacement)
    • [02:33] Sarah: “Do you think we call that ADR in the biz?...It’s so weird. You have to go in and literally watch yourself and then match your words and your lips and your cadence so that it doesn’t sound weird when it’s dropped back into the show.”

2. Remote Recording & Tour Life Anecdotes

• Sarah’s Comedy Tour & Hotel Details
  • Sarah stays at “The Bradley” in Fort Wayne, noting its Vera Bradley-themed decor and sharing the perks of performing at comedy clubs that prioritize talented accommodations.
  • [06:36] Sarah: “One thing [the club owner] does...is put all his talent up at the nicest hotels in town, period...One time I try to keep my socks on when I took a shower at a comedy club hotel...”

3. Domestic Life, Patreon, and Eating Habits

• Patreon Promo & Short Story Content
  • Episodes exclusive to Patreon on the 5th, 15th, and 25th. October’s short story is The Situation Ship by Abby Jimenez.
  • November’s main book is Debbie Macomber’s 12 Days of Christmas—Jon’s cozy pick.
• Household & Cat Dynamics
  • Jon misses Sarah and comically rants about being harassed by their cats at night, illustrating their ongoing struggle with pet sleep disruptions.
  • [10:39] Jon: “...I sleep right in the middle of the bed and Ralphie is at my feet...Then Cindy comes and...wants to be pet. Then she goes back...This goes on...10, 12 times...The big fat cat in the middle, Ralphie, he doesn’t give a flying fuck what’s happening.”

4. Book-Inspired Topics: Overprotective Mothers & “Fruit Pizza”

• Fruit Pizza Debate
  • Sparked by the book’s mention of a “fruit pizza,” Sarah and Jon riff on what this could possibly be.
  • Jon’s concoction: pizza crust, Nutella as sauce, topped with fresh fruit.
  • [15:15] Jon: “Girl...It was everywhere when I was in Germany—served at breakfast, on the plane—Nutella was like their ketchup.”
  • Sarah, skeptical, prefers Southern-style fruit salads (with marshmallows), resisting Jon’s Nutella pizza idea.

5. Nostalgic Childhood Snacks Comparison

• Canadian vs. American Staples
  • Jon: “cheese whiz on crackers,” “ants on a log,” “dad’s cookies,” “ketchup chips,” “pizza buns” (Kaiser rolls with spaghetti sauce and toppings).
  • Sarah: English muffin mini-pizzas, mom’s chicken & dumplings, “the snack.”
  • [21:21] Sarah: “She called it the snack, and it was the snack. And she said, ‘Do you want me to make the snack for you?’ And it was an English muffin with pizza toppings.”
  • Both lament modern grocery packaging’s incompatibility with small households.

6. Grocery Store for Two—Business Idea

• Groceries “Not Made for Two People”
  • Sarah and Jon brainstorm an “Only-for-Two” grocery store (with a singles’ bar!).
  • Discuss challenges of buying bread, milk, eggs, and lunch meat in realistic quantities.
  • [26:06] Jon: “...We make a grocery store just for people that are single or married with no kids...with a bar in the middle...a very good networking place for single people...”
  • Sarah: “If you try to steal my business idea, listeners...I’ll track you down and...sue you!” [24:30]

7. Book Themes: Beach Law, Office Candy, and Gender Perceptions

• Beach Bar Law Aspirations – Book Character Discussion
  • Reflecting on Robert (a character in The Good Lie), they discuss the appeal of becoming a “beach bum lawyer.”
  • [33:50] Jon: “I would attend [a daiquiri bar] as a consumer every day until I die. If something ever tragically happens to you, I’m just gonna take all the money we have and just go live in a hut by the beach until I expire.”
• Office Gummy Bears – Candy Deep-Dive
  • Gwen, the book’s psychiatrist, keeps green gummy bears in her office.
  • Jon and Sarah passionately debate proper gummy bear flavors and rankings.
  • [45:02] Jon: “...the pecking order is red, orange, green, yellow, white. All I could see—someone maybe arguing orange over red...but on the gummy bear things, that’s the order.”
  • [46:03] Sarah: “First of all, I can’t read on white first, yellow second. Oh, and then the other three are...whatever’s left.”
• Gender Assumptions in Storytelling
  • Both admit they initially assumed psychiatrist Gwen was a man and dissect their (and readers’) unconscious biases.
  • [39:02] Jon: “At first I thought she was a he, and then I felt sexist for assuming...whatever triggered it made me think it was a male.”
  • [41:16] Sarah: “I actually think the author...knew we’d think it was a man...and was on purpose sort of [giving]—why’d you think it was a man? Just because...?”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Hotel Life:
  • [06:36] Sarah: “One time I try to keep my socks on when I took a shower at a comedy club hotel...”
• On Cat Chaos:
  • [10:39] Jon: “…I sleep right in the middle of the bed and Ralphie is at my feet...Cindy comes and...wants to be pet. ...This goes on...over and over...The big fat cat…doesn’t give a flying fuck...”
• On Groceries for Couples:
  • [24:30] Sarah: "I’ll track you down and…sue you. Because we want to start a business…Why is everything for so many people? Food’s just not made for two people."
• On Gender and Character Perspective:
  • [41:16] Sarah: “...why’d you think it was a man? Just because he’s a successful psychiatrist with his own business?”
  • [39:02] Jon: “I felt sexist for assuming that it was a man.”
• On Candy Priorities:
  • [45:02] Jon: “Red and orange, green, yellow, white. ...if anyone out there in our book list group says that that isn’t amazing, I’m going to make it, want to send it to you. I haven’t even made it yet. I just made this up in my head right now.”
  • [46:03] Sarah: “First of all, I can’t read on white first, yellow second. The other three are...what’s left?”

Important Timestamps

• 00:30 – 02:40: Audiobook quirks & ADR talk
• 03:42 – 06:36: Sarah's comedy tour stories; hotel commentary
• 10:30 – 13:00: Cat chaos; marital/family dynamics
• 13:53 – 16:43: “Fruit pizza” discussion—what is it and Jon’s invention
• 17:26 – 22:36: Childhood snacks; Canadian & Southern American food differences
• 24:08 – 29:25: Grocery shopping dilemmas for two, business ideation
• 33:50 – 36:27: Beach bar lawyer aspiration; vacation dreams
• 38:58 – 42:49: Gender perception and the psychiatrist character
• 43:18 – 48:30: Gummy bear flavor/picking order philosophical divide

Conclusion

In this episode, Jon and Sarah exemplify what makes The Book Lisp charming: genuine chemistry, meandering hilarity, and sharp, relatable commentary, blending book talk with slices of real life. They tease deeper book discussion (spoiler-free for now), keep listeners laughing with their petty spousal squabbles, and involve the “Lispinners” audience with hot takes like: What IS the correct order to eat gummy bears? The episode radiates laidback yet lively book club vibes—and teases juicier, spoiler-filled commentary in upcoming weeks.

Listeners’ Call to Action

• Join the Book Lisp Facebook Group (“The Book Lispinners”) to weigh in on book themes and, crucially, the correct gummy bear flavor hierarchy.
• Check out Patreon for extra episodes and exclusive video content.
• November’s main read is 12 Days of Christmas (Debbie Macomber); the next Patreon short story discussion is Abby Jimenez’s “The Situation Ship” dropping on the 15th.

“Thanks for listening to this nonsense...And we appreciate you!”
– Sarah Colonna, [48:43]