Recommended

In this bonus episode of Recommended, producer Jenn Northington takes us through the numbers of the past five seasons. BOOKS & AUTHORS DISCUSSED Samantha Irby Jeanette Winterson Ursula Le Guin (Changing Planes, The Left Hand of Darkness) Terry Pratchett (Small Gods) Sarah Waters (Tipping the Velvet, Fingersmith) Dominick Dunne (People Like Us, An Inconvenient Woman) Charlotte Bronte (Jane Eyre, Villette) Octavia Butler (Wild Seed, Lilith’s Brood, Parable of the Sower) Alexandre Dumas (Three Musketeers, Count of Monte Cristo) Sonali Dev Silvia Moreno-Garcia Zen Cho Becky Chambers

In this episode, Wendy Xu recommends Claudia Gray and Tommy Pico recommends A.R. Ammons. This episode is sponsored by Lanternfish Press and HMH. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher. A transcript of this episode is available here. BOOKS DISCUSSED Mooncakes by Wendy Xu and Suzanne Walker Defy the Stars by Claudia Gray Lost Stars by Claudia Gray Uprooted by Naomi Novik Pluto by Naoki Urasawa Feed by Tommy Pico Tape for the Turn of the Year by A.R. Ammons

In this episode, Jeanette Winterson recommends Virginia Woolf and Nafiza Azad recommends Shailja Patel. This episode is sponsored by Lerner Books and Wednesday Books. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher. A transcript of this episode is available here. BOOKS DISCUSSED Frankissstein by Jeanette Winterson Orlando by Virginia Woolf The Well of Loneliness by Radclyffe Hall The Candle and the Flame by Nafiza Azad Migritude by Shailja Patel Fatima Asghar

In this episode, Garth Nix recommends Alexandre Dumas and Silvia Moreno-Garcia recommends Charles Williams. This episode is sponsored by OwlCrate Jr, a subscription box for middle grade readers, and Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu, with Fierce Reads. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher. A transcript of this episode is available here. BOOKS DISCUSSED Angel Mage by Garth Nix The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas, translated and abridged by Lowell Bair Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia The Hot Spot, a.k.a. Hell Hath No Fury, by Charles Williams Dead Calm by Charles Williams

In this episode, Jami Attenberg recommends Patti Smith and Valerie Valdes recommends Diana Wynne Jones. This episode is sponsored by The Dark Lord Clementine by Sarah Jean Horwitz, new from Algonquin Young Readers, and William Morrow Paperbacks. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher. A transcript of this episode is available here. BOOKS DISCUSSED All This Could Be Yours by Jami Attenberg Just Kids by Patti Smith Chilling Effect by Valerie Valdes Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones

In this episode, Sonali Dev recommends Kate Clayborn and Maris Kreizman recommends Dominick Dunne. This episode is sponsored by Tor Teen and Change is the only Constant by Ben Orlin, in Hardcover from Black Dog and Leventhal. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher. A transcript of this episode is available here. BOOKS DISCUSSED Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors by Sonali Dev Love Lettering by Kate Clayborn (January 28, 2020) Slaughterhouse 90210 by Maris Kreizman An Inconvenient Woman by Dominick Dunne

In this episode, Kristen Lepionka recommends Carol Anshaw and Kekla Magoon recommends Pamela F. Service. This episode is sponsored by Queer: The Ultimate LGBT Guide for Teens by Kathy Belge and Marke Bieschke and By Any Means Necessary by Candice Montgomery. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher. A transcript of this episode is available here. BOOKS DISCUSSED The Stories You Tell by Kristen Lepionka Seven Moves by Carol Anshaw Light It Up by Kekla Magoon Being of Two Minds by Pamela F. Service

Alexis Hall recommends Terry Pratchett, Maika Moulite recommends Elizabeth Acevedo, and Maritza Moulite recommends Maria Semple. This episode is sponsored by The Stranger Inside by Lisa Unger and Motherhood So White by Nefertiti Austin. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher. A transcript of this episode is available here. BOOKS DISCUSSED The Affair of the Mysterious Letter by Alexis Hall Small Gods by Terry Pratchett Dear Haiti, Love Alaine by Maika and Maritza Moulite The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo Where’d You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple Ola Shakes It Up by Joanne Hyppolite

In this episode, Jackson Bird recommends Stephen Chbosky and Kim Scott recommends Elizabeth Knox. This episode is sponsored by The Future of Another Timeline by Annalee Newitz and The Infinite Noise by Lauran Shippen. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher. A transcript of this episode is available here. BOOKS DISCUSSED Sorted by Jackson Bird The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky Taboo by Kim Scott The Vintner’s Luck by Elizabeth Knox

In this episode, Jen Wang recommends Wilson Rawls and Courtney Maum recommends Aja Gabel. This episode is sponsored by Pretty Guilty Women by Gina Lamanna and The Years That Matter Most by Paul Tough. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher. A transcript of this episode is available here.

In this episode, Tamsyn Muir recommends Peter Høeg and Keah Brown recommends Casey McQuiston. This episode is sponsored by The Truth Is by NoNieqa Ramos and Yale Needs Women by Anne Gardiner Perkins. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher. A transcript of this episode is available here. BOOKS DISCUSSED Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir Miss Smilla’s Feeling For Snow by Peter Høeg Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco The Pretty One by Keah Brown Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

In this episode, Samantha Allen recommends Ursula K. Le Guin and Lauren Wilkinson recommends Nicholas Mancusi. This episode is sponsored by Stage Dreams by Melanie Gillman and Dear Haiti, Love Alaine by Maika and Maritza Moulite. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher. A transcript of this episode is available here. BOOKS DISCUSSED: Real Queer America: LGBT Stories from Red States by Samantha Allen Love & Estrogen by Samantha Allen The Left Hand of Darkness by Ursula K. Le Guin American Spy by Lauren Wilkinson A Philosophy of Ruin by Nicholas Mancusi

In this episode, Nicole Dennis-Benn and Dr. Jen Gunter each recommend a personal favorite read. This episode is sponsored by The Lymond Chronicles by Dorothy Dunnett and Circe by Madeline Miller. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher. A transcript of this episode is available here. BOOKS Patsy by Nicole Dennis-Benn Here Comes the Sun by Nicole Dennis-Benn The Yellow House by Sarah Broom Heavy by Kiese Laymon Toni Morrison Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout Zora Neale Hurston The Vagina Bible by Dr. Jen Gunter Watership Down by Richard Adams The Plague Dogs and Shardik Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis

In this episode, Nicky Drayden and Helen Ellis talk about books that captured their attention in big ways. This episode is sponsored by William Shakespeare’s Get Thee Back to the Future! and William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Mean Girls by Ian Doescher. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher here. A transcript of this episode is available here. Books Discussed: Temper by Nicky Drayden Nigerians in Space by Deji Bryce Olukotun After the Flare by Deji Bryce Olukotun Southern Lady Code by Helen Ellis Wifey by Judy Blume Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume Forever by Judy Blume Lace by Shirley Conran The Other Side of Midnight by Sidney Sheldon Hollywood Wives by Jackie Collins The Lord Won’t Mind by Gordon Merrick

In this episode, Lori Gottlieb and Nikesh Shukla join us to talk about books that have shaped their own craft. This episode is sponsored by The Five by Hallie Rubenhold and The Fall of Crazy House by James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher here. A transcript of this episode is available here.   Books Discussed: Maybe You Should Talk To Someone by Lori Gottlieb Love’s Executioner by Irvin Yalom The Tennis Partner by Abraham Verghese The Good Immigrant, edited by Nikesh Shukla and Chimene Suleyman If They Come For Us by Fatimah Asghar Us by Zaffar Kunial Ocean Vuong Terrance Hayes Kaveh Akbar The Buddha of Suburbia by Hanif Kureishi Family Life by Akhil Sharma Good Talk by Mira Jacob

In this episode, Elizabeth McCracken and Rincey Abraham talk about favorites that are hard to categorize. This episode is sponsored by In the Key of Nira Ghani by Natasha Deen and Caterpillar Summer by Gillian McDunn. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher here. A transcript of this episode is available here.   Books Discussed: Bowlaway by Elizabeth McCracken The Stone Diaries by Carol Shields The Passion by Jeanette Winterson Signal to Noise by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

In this episode, Swati Teerdhala recommends Alanna: The First Adventure and Mary Norris recommends The War That Killed Achilles. This episode is sponsored by Book Riot Insiders. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher here. A transcript of this episode is available here.   Books Discussed: The Tiger at Midnight by Swati Teerdhala Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce Greek to Me by Mary Norris The War That Killed Achilles by Caroline Alexander

In this episode, Jean Kwok and Sarah Enni talk about books that have influenced their own writing. This episode is sponsored by Book Riot Insiders. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher here. A transcript of this episode is available here.   Books Discussed: Searching for Sylvie Lee by Jean Kwok The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood Girl in Translation by Jean Kwok Tell Me Everything by Sarah Enni The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

In this episode, Laurie Halse Anderson and Mikki Kendall talk about books that have shaped how they write. This episode is sponsored by Internment by Samira Ahmed and TheNOVL, and The Fifth Doctrine by Karen Robards. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher here. A transcript of this episode is available here.   Books Discussed: SHOUT by Laurie Halse Anderson The Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron Sybil by Flora Rheta Schreiber Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll

In this episode, G. Willow Wilson and Zen Cho talk about two of their favorite unreliable narrators. This episode is sponsored by Libro.fm and  CHENDELL: A Natural Warrior by Leslie Landis. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher here. A transcript of this episode is available here.   Books Discussed: The Bird King by G. Willow Wilson The Hunters by Claire Messud The True Queen by Zen Cho Villette by Charlotte Brontë  

In this episode, authors Susan Choi and Peter Mendelsund each talk about a classic that influenced their own work. This episode is sponsored by Libro.fm and TBR. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher here. A transcript of this episode is available here.   Books Discussed: Trust Exercise by Susan Choi The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie by Muriel Spark Moby Dick by Herman Melville Same Same by Peter Mendelsund The Magic Mountain by Thomas Mann

In this episode, author Dhonielle Clayton and bookstore owner Roxanne Coady talk about the books that have stuck with them. This episode is sponsored by Beautiful Bad by Annie Ward and The Huntress by Kate Quinn. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher here. A transcript of this episode is available here.   Books Discussed: The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton Passing by Nella Larsen Don’t Let Me Down by Erin Hosier My Sister, The Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite

In this episode, illustrator Francis Vallejo and romance author Mia Sosa talk about works that have shaped their own craft. This episode is sponsored by our $100 gift card giveaway for Swords & Spaceships and The Chef by James Patterson. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher here. A transcript of this episode is available here.   Books Discussed: Zoom by Istvan Banyai Sula by Toni Morrison Becoming by Michelle Obama Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Today on Recommended, author Waubgeshig Rice and blogger Janssen Bradshaw each talk about a favorite teen novel. This episode is sponsored by our $100 gift card giveaway for Swords and Spaceships. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher here. A transcript of this episode is available here. Books Discussed: Moon of the Crusted Snow by Waubgeshig Rice The Lesser Blessed by Richard Van Camp To All the Boys I've Loved Before by Jenny Han The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han

In this episode, authors Preeti Chhibber and Sarah Gailey tell us about discovering new favorite novels while judging books by their covers. This episode is sponsored by The Familiars by Stacey Halls and 99 Percent Mine by Sally Thorne. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher here. A transcript of this episode is available here. Books Discussed: Lilith’s Brood by Octavia Butler The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern The Enchanted by Rene Denfeld The Godfather by Mario Puzo

We want to hear from you! Take our (very short) survey about Recommended and you'll be entered to win a $50 gift card from Amazon. Visit bookriot.com/recommended50 by Wednesday, December 26, to fill it out!

In this episode, Jane Mount picks The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster and Oyinkan Braithwaite talks Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by We That Are Young By Preti Taneja and Aquicorn Cove, the new graphic novel by Katie O’Neill.

In this episode, Sam Maggs talks about her love for Becky Chambers’ Record of a Spaceborn Few and Ausma Zehanat Khan discusses the impact of Dune by Frank Herbert on her writing life. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Penguin Random House Audio and Ruth Bader Ginsburg by Jane Sherron De Hart.

In this episode, Joseph Fink picks Vacation by Deb Olin Unferth, and Kate Gavino discusses It’s Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Ruth Bader Ginsburg by Jane Sherron De Hart and TBR.

In this episode, Nicole Chung recommends Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers and Becky Chambers recommends Changing Planes by Ursula K. LeGuin. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by The Kingfisher Secret from McClelland & Stewart and Penguin Teen.

In this episode, Kim Stanley Robinson discusses Solar Bones by Mike McCormack and Sonia Faruqi picks Silent Spring by Rachel Carson. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Duchess by Design by Maya Rodale andRuth Bader Ginsburgby Jane Sherron De Hart. You can subscribe to Recommended in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or in your podcast player of choice. The show can also be found on Stitcher here.

In this episode, John Jennings talks about Octavia Butler’s Wild Seed, and R.F. Kuang picks The Buddha In the Attic by Julie Otsuka. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Penguin Random House Audio and Home and Away by Candice Montgomery.

In this episode, Nic Stone recommends The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides and Ryan North recommends Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by The Rule of One by Ashley Saunders and Leslie Saunders, and We That Are Young By Preti Taneja.

In this episode, Sara Gran recommends Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov and Greg Pak recommends The Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Kill the Queen by Jennifer Estep and The Witch of Willow Hall by Hester Fox.

In this episode, Gretchen Rubin recommends Christopher Alexander’s A Pattern Language and Cynthia Leitich Smith recommends Apple in the Middle by Dawn Quigley. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Vampires Like It Hot by Lynsay Sands and TBR.

In this episode, Rebekah Weatherspoon recommends If the Dress Fits by Carla de Guzman and Dessa recommends A Heart-Breaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Vampires Like it Hot by Lynsay Sands and Zora and Me: The Cursed Ground by T.R. Simon.

Rin Chupeco picks The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas and Grady Hendrix picks Ulysses by James Joyce. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Rule by Ellen Goodlett and Merci Suárez Changes Gears by Meg Medina. A transcript of this episode is available here.

Jasmine Guillory picks Betsy and Joe by Maud Hart Lovelace, and historical novelist Amy Stewart talks Canteening Overseas by Marian Baldwin This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Hollywood Dead by Richard Kadrey and The Fall of Gondolin by J.R.R. Tolkien.

In this episode, Karina Yan Glaser recommends Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor and Alyssa Cole recommends To Find You by Cerece Rennie Murphy. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Book Riot Insiders and Annotated. A transcript of this episode is available here.

In this episode, Caitlin Doughty recommends The Denial of Death by Ernest Becker and Sherry Thomas recommends The Legends of the Condor Heroes by Louis Chan. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by our $500 YA Giveaway and Book Riot Insiders.

In this episode, Julie Murphy recommends Twilight by Stephenie Meyer and Kevin Kwan recommends People Like Us by Dominick Dunne. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Book Riot Insiders and Annotated.

In this episode, Walter Mosley recommends Roger Zelazny's Nine Princes in Amber and Doree Shafrir recommends Camille Perri's When Katie Met Cassidy. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Book Riot's Best of the Year YA Giveaway and the Annotated podcast.

This week we talked to Victor LaValle about Kenzaburō Ōe’s A Personal Matter and V.E. Schwab about Fingersmith by Sarah Waters. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Mae V. 1 & Series 2by Gene Ha and Green Almonds by Anaële Hermans, illustrated by Delphine Hermans.

This week on Recommended, Lauren Groff discusses Sleepless Nights by Elizabeth Hardwick and Zoraida Córdova raves about Blanca and Roja by Anna-Marie McLemore. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Book Riot Insiders and Annotated.

In this episode, Ellen Oh recommends The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan and Cat Sebastian recommends Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Frolic Media and Annotated.

In this episode, Madeline Miller recommends Troilus and Cressida by William Shakespeare, and Sabaa Tahir recommends The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Penguin Random House Audio and our bookstore gift card giveaway.

In this episode, Rebecca Roanhorse recommends Erika Wurth's Buckskin Cocaine and Finn Murphy recommends George Orwell's 1984. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by The Wormworld Saga Vol. 1: The Journey Begins by Daniel Lieske and All the Little Lights by Jamie McGuire.

In this episode, Sylvain Neuvel recommends Michael Crichton's The Andromeda Strain and Tayari Jones recommends Alice Walker's Meridian. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Annotated and Book Riot Insiders.

In this episode, Sandhya Menon recommends Sophie Kinsella's The Undomestic Goddess and Alexander Chee recommends Anne Carson's Plainwater. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Furyborn by Claire Legrand and Penguin Random House Audio.

In this episode, Seanan McGuire recommends Sarah Rees Brennan's In Other Lands and Rumaan Alam recommends Louise Fitzhugh's Harriet the Spy. This episode of Recommended is sponsored by Oothar the Blue by Brandon Reese and To Kill a Kingdom by Alexandra Christo. 

Ready your earbuds: Season 2 of Recommended starts next Wednesday, May 16!