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Katie, Desirae and Sarah talk about their favorite reads of the year. We suggest thrillers, nonfiction, graphic novels and more. Works mentioned: Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus, You Know What You Did by K.T. Nguyen, First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston, America Redux by Ariel Aberg-Riger, All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews, the movie Lady Bird, The Wedding People by Alison Espach, the movie Table 19, and A First Time for Everything by Dan Santat, The Tea Dragon Society by K. O'Neill, and No Cats in the Library by Lauren Emmons Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay
Jo proselytizes about the marvelous medicinal powers of M.W. Craven's Washington Poe novels before Charlotte (10:30) classes up the episode with a recounting of the viral, ugly-cry-inducing Harry Potter fanfiction “Manacled” by SenLinYu. Then the accomplished Sarah Thankam Mathews (28:30) expounds on colonization, anger, Dumbo's opps, and the “short little knife” that is Tayeb Salih's Seasons of Migrations to the North. Also discussed in this episode: Othello, Elif Batuman's The Idiot, Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things, W. Somerset Maughm's The Razor's EdgeSarah Thankam Mathews is the author of All This Could Be Different, which was shortlisted for the Discover Prize, the Aspen Words Literary Prize, and 2022 National Book Award in Fiction. All This Could Be Different was also a New York Times Editor's Choice and named a Best Book of the Year by NPR, Vogue, Vulture, Los Angeles Times, TIME, Slate, and Buzzfeed. Mathews grew up between Oman and India, immigrating to the United States at seventeen.Send questions, requests, recommendations, and your own thoughts about any of the books discussed today to readingwriterspod at gmail dot com. Charlotte is on Instagram and Twitter as @Charoshane. Her most recent book is An Honest Woman: A Memoir of Love and Sex Work. Learn more at charoshane.comJo co-edits The Stopgap and their writing lives at jolivingstone.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Notes and Links to Sarah Thankam Mathews' Work For Episode 198, Pete welcomes Sarah Thankam Mathews, and the two discuss, among other topics, her early reading and writing and experience with multilingualism, contemporary and not-so contemporary writers who left an imprint on her with their visceral work and distinctive worldbuilding, “seeds and fertilizer” for her standout novel, including the vagaries of post-college life and the tragedies and communal love that came with the COVID pandemic, and pertinent themes in her book, like alienation, sexual trauma, “found family” and community building, and problematic capitalism. Sarah Thankam Mathews grew up between Oman and India, immigrating to the US at seventeen. She is author of the novel All This Could Be Different, shortlisted for the 2022 National Book Award and the 2022 Discover Prize, nominated for the Aspen Literary Prize. Formerly a Rona Jaffe Fellow in fiction at the Iowa Writer's Workshop, and a Margins Fellow at The Asian American Writers Workshop, she has work in Best American Short Stories 2020 and other places. A proud product of public schools, she lives in Brooklyn, New York. Buy All This Could Be Different Sarah's Website Sarah's Substack Review of All This Could Be Different from Los Angeles Review of Books At about 1:35, Sarah discusses her current paperback tour and what she's heard about the book from readers and observations she has after a year of publication for All This Could Be Different At about 4:50, Sarah gives background on her early relationship with languages, particularly Hindi, English, and Mayalalam At about 7:30, Sarah discusses early reading that was influenced by living in what she calls a “tertiary” book market; she mentions transformational and formational books like The Bluest Eye and Arundhati Roy's The God of Small Things as books that left her “profoundly rearranged” At about 10:20, Sarah shouts out Jamaica Kincaid's Luck as a helpful companion as she wrote All This Could Be Different At about 12:20, Sarah responds to Pete's question about how Sarah saw her early reading in terms of representation; she points to ideas of visceral pleasure with that reading At about 14:20, Sarah expands on ideas of pathos as a driving force at times as she wrote her book At about 15:30, Sarah cites C Pam Zhang, Isle McElroy, Lydia Kiesling, as some of the many contemporary writers who she admires and is thrilled by At about 17:45, Sarah coins the cool term “proprietary physics” and how Lydia Kiesling exemplifies the phrase At about 19:15, Sarah highlights Cohen's The Netanyahus and Homeland Elegies from Ayad Akhtar At about 20:15, Sarah drops a haunting and amazing fact about publishing from 9/11 At about 20:40, Sarah provides seeds for the book, both in the immediate past and the thought process from the more distant past At about 23:20, Sarah talks about Bed Stuy Strong, a mutual aid organization she started in 2020, and how the “seeds and fertilizer” for the book came from this time At about 29:10, Pete lays out the book's exposition and Sarah responds to why she chose to set the book in 2012 or so At about 32:30, The two discuss the book's pivot point, which happened before the book's main chronology; Sarah expands on the ways in which Sarah's relationships and ethic and view on her previous life in India come from this pivotal and traumatic event At about 37:30, Sarah speaks to the importance of Milwaukee and its history and her knowledge of it, and why she made the setting what it was At about 42:10, Sarah responds to Pete's asking about Sneha's complicated relationship with her parents At about 46:30, Sarah talks about the “absolutely bonkers act” that leads to a misunderstanding between Marina and the smitten Sneha At about 49:40, Sarah gives background on Sneha's boss and how his character evolved in her various drafts At about 51:15, The two discuss the idea of “The Pink House” and its significance At about 54:00, Sarah discusses her book as a coming of age story and her desire to portray deep friendships and love At about 58:40, Pete notes the success of the well-drawn flashbacks and flashforwards and fanboys over the fabulous and eminently memorable last scene and last line of the book, and Sarah describes what the “page [was] revealing to her” as the book's ending morphed At about 1:02:05, Sarah discuss the book as (perhaps subtly) hopeful At about 1:03:10, Pete asks Sarah about future projects At about 1:04:00, Sarah drops some important insights that are useful advice for young (and old) writers At about 1:04:50, Sarah shares contact info, social media, and bookstores where to buy her book, including The Word is Change in Bed Stuy, Brooklyn You can now subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, and leave me a five-star review. You can also ask for the podcast by name using Alexa, and find the pod on Stitcher, Spotify, and on Amazon Music. Follow me on IG, where I'm @chillsatwillpodcast, or on Twitter, where I'm @chillsatwillpo1. You can watch this and other episodes on YouTube-watch and subscribe to The Chills at Will Podcast Channel. Please subscribe to both my YouTube Channel and my podcast while you're checking out this episode. Sign up now for The Chills at Will Podcast Patreon: it can be found at patreon.com/chillsatwillpodcastpeterriehl Check out the page that describes the benefits of a Patreon membership, including cool swag and bonus episodes. Thanks in advance for supporting my one-man show, my DIY podcast and my extensive reading, research, editing, and promoting to keep this independent podcast pumping out high-quality content! NEW MERCH! You can browse and buy here: https://www.etsy.com/shop/ChillsatWillPodcast This is a passion project of mine, a DIY operation, and I'd love for your help in promoting what I'm convinced is a unique and spirited look at an often-ignored art form. The intro song for The Chills at Will Podcast is “Wind Down” (Instrumental Version), and the other song played on this episode was “Hoops” (Instrumental)” by Matt Weidauer, and both songs are used through ArchesAudio.com. Please tune in for Episode 199 with Jared Beloff. He is the author of Who Will Cradle Your Head and the microchap This is how we say “I love you.” He is also a peer reviewer for The Whale Road Review, and his work has been nominated for Best of the Net and the Pushcart Prize. The episode will air on August 15.
Notes and Links to Chloé Cooper Jones' Work Chloé Cooper Jones is a professor, journalist, and the author of the memoir Easy Beauty, which was named a best book of 2022 by The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, TIME Magazine, and was a finalist for the 2023 Pulitzer Prize in Memoir. She was also a Pulitzer Prize finalist in Feature Writing in 2020. She is a contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine, a Whiting Creative Nonfiction Grant recipient and a Howard Foundation Fellow. She lives in Brooklyn, New York. For Episode 197 of The Chills at Will Podcast, Pete welcomes Chloé Cooper Jones, and the two discuss, among other things, her early relationship with reading, writing, seeking beauty, her parents' influences on her world views, formative and transformative writers (and “fun trash” she read), and salient topics from her powerful memoir, such as muses and aesthetes, pop culture and philosophy, bigoted views on women as those with disabilities, and the pertinent trips that Chloé took in seeking beauty, catharsis, and hope. Buy Easy Beauty: A Memoir Chloe's Website Chloe's Pulitzer-Prize Nominated Article for The Verge- “Fearing for His Life” People Magazine 2022 Article about Easy Beauty-“Author Chloé Cooper Jones, Who Has a Visible Disability, On Deciding to Claim Space For Herself and Her Son” At about 1:35, Chloe lets the listener in on her mindset in hearing about her second Pulitzer Prize nomination, including the beauty of combining family pursuits and career At about 6:55, Chloe gives out information regarding where to buy her book, and her contact information, including Greenlight and Books are Magic, and Lawrence, KS' The Raven Bookstore At about 8:45, Chloe talks about her childhood and its focus on beauty as impressed upon her by her parents in their different ways; she calls “having a rich interior life a survival mechanism” At about 13:15, Pete shouts out a short story idea from Chloe's father that was emblematic of his mind At about 14:00, Chloe details some of the reading that excited and challenged her as she grew up, and “the fun trash” too At about 16:40, Chloe lists Diane Williams and Cormac McCarthy, among many others, as formative writers At about 17:30, Pete asks Chloe about David Foster Wallace and some other nonfiction she may have read; she notes how “exciting” his sportswriting was, and Janet Malcolm and John McPhee as other great influences At about 20:20, Chloe shouts out the recently-released and incredibly versatile work of Andrew Leland-The Country of the Blind, Rachel Aviv's work, and Jessamine Chan's School for Good Mothers At about 22:10, Chloe responds to Pete's question about if she felt represented in what she read growing up, and she answers the question using Coming Home as one anomaly At about 26:30, Chloe reflects on the use of the word “disabled” and its myriad meanings At about 28:05, Chloe answers Pete's questions about the balance between disabled people educating others and well-meaning people and possible dehumanizing actions; she cites a telling excerpt from Andrew Leland's book At about 33:30, Pete cites Elaine Scarry and how Chloe connects ideas of processing beauty and ignorance At about 34:15, Pete lays out the structure for the book as based on trips Chloe took, and he and Chloe discuss the importance and circumstances of the first trip chronicled, the trip to see Beyonce at San Siro; Chloe builds on the idea and definitions of “easy beauty” At about 41:55, Pete compliments Chloe's genuine writing about her son and motherhood At about 42:55, Chloe explains the power of Beyonce and her “radical presence” At about 45:50, The two discuss the freeing nature of Chloe's reporting trip to see Roger Federer, which leads to further discussion of how Chloe's melds philosophy and more aesthetic ideals with a more pop(ular) sensibility At about 51:10, Chloe discusses an opening scene from the book that engendered strong feelings for her, as well as pervasive beliefs At about 54:45, Chloe reflects on what was different about her reaction to the above conversation and the phenomenon of “The Neutral Room” At about 56:35, The two discuss the book's “Indifferent Man” At about 59:20, Chloe gives background on her trip to Rome and seeking beauty and connections to her father's philosophies At about 1:04:15, The two discuss Chloe's trip to Cambodia, and she discusses the evolving nature of her research and searching questions, as catharsis and society's desire for witnessing violence become topics At about 1:13:10, Pete notes the emphasis on capitalism in “dark tourism” and the seeming normality of dark tourism sites At about 1:14:35, The two discuss a final scene dealing with perspective and Chloe's mother and a trip to Miami At about 1:19:25, Chloe responds to Pete's question about how she deals with writing on profound and deeply painful and tragic topics At about 1:23:45, Chloe talks about upcoming events and projects, including working with Matty Davis in Bentonville, AR You can now subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, and leave me a five-star review. You can also ask for the podcast by name using Alexa, and find the pod on Stitcher, Spotify, and on Amazon Music. Follow me on IG, where I'm @chillsatwillpodcast, or on Twitter, where I'm @chillsatwillpo1. You can watch this and other episodes on YouTube-watch and subscribe to The Chills at Will Podcast Channel. Please subscribe to both my YouTube Channel and my podcast while you're checking out this episode. Sign up now for The Chills at Will Podcast Patreon: it can be found at patreon.com/chillsatwillpodcastpeterriehl Check out the page that describes the benefits of a Patreon membership, including cool swag and bonus episodes. Thanks in advance for supporting my one-man show, my DIY podcast and my extensive reading, research, editing, and promoting to keep this independent podcast pumping out high-quality content! NEW MERCH! You can browse and buy here: https://www.etsy.com/shop/ChillsatWillPodcast This is a passion project of mine, a DIY operation, and I'd love for your help in promoting what I'm convinced is a unique and spirited look at an often-ignored art form. The intro song for The Chills at Will Podcast is “Wind Down” (Instrumental Version), and the other song played on this episode was “Hoops” (Instrumental)” by Matt Weidauer, and both songs are used through ArchesAudio.com. Please tune in for Episode 198 with Sarah Thankam Mathews (Thungun) who is the author of the novel All This Could Be Different, which was shortlisted for the 2022 National Book Award and the 2022 Discover Prize, and nominated for the Aspen Literary Prize. She is formerly a Rona Jaffe Fellow in fiction at the Iowa Writers Workshop, and a Margins Fellow at The Asian American Writers Workshop.
City Lights presents Priya Guns in conversation with Sarah Thankam Mathews. Priya Guns discusses and reads from her new book “Your Driver is Waiting,” published by Doubleday. This virtual event was hosted by Peter Maravelis. You can purchase copies of “Your Driver is Waiting” directly from City Lights here: https://citylights.com/your-driver-is-waiting/ Priya Guns is an actor and writer previously published in short story anthologies, "gal-dem", "Spring" magazine, and anonymously in "The Guardian". She is a Creative Writing graduate from Kingston University. “Your Driver Is Waiting” is her debut novel. Sarah Thankam Mathews is the author of “All This Could Be Different.” The novel, Mathews' first, was named an NYT Editor's Choice, highlighted on multiple Best of 2022 lists, and shortlisted for the National Book Award. This event was made possible by support from the City Lights Foundation: citylights.com/foundation
On today's episode, we talk to National Book Award finalist Sarah Thankam Mathews about her debut novel, ALL THIS COULD BE DIFFERENT, a warm, dazzling, and profound saga of queer love, friendship, work, and precarity in twenty-first century America. Carolina talks to Sarah about the political engine that drives the book, the shared nuances of the brown queer experience, and the craft elements that bring multi-dimensional stories to life. You can find Sarah at www.smathewss.com | Instagram & Twitter: @smathewss Books mentioned in today's episode: All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Matthews: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/691034/all-this-could-be-different-by-sarah-thankam-mathews/ Lucy by Jamaica Kincaid Open City by Teju Cole: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/29908/open-city-by-teju-cole/ Blue Skinned Gods by SJ Sindu: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/668119/blue-skinned-gods-by-sj-sindu/ Sea Change Gina Chung Hope Andrew Ridker: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/712970/hope-by-andrew-ridker/ Subscribe and follow for more author interviews and book-related content: Books Connect Us: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/books-connect-us/id1059532301 The Taste Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/taste/id1393739959 Marlon and Jake Read Dead People: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/marlon-and-jake-read-dead-people/id1492163935
“Loneliness is such a universal experience for so many of us — and I do hope that the book is a balm for that and helps make readers feel less alone…” Gina Chung's debut novel Sea Change explores family ties, grief and growing up through a complicated protagonist that readers will love to root for — and yes, there really is an octopus. Chung joins us to talk about sad girl characters, allowing women to feel anger, how we never stop “coming of age” and more with Poured Over host, Miwa Messer. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Executive Producer Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Sea Change by Gina Chung Chemistry by Weike Wang Pizza Girl by Jean Kyoung Frazier Goodbye, Vitamin by Rachel Khong All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Matthews If I Survive You by Jonathan Escoffery Nuclear Family by Joseph Han Please Report Your Bug Here by Josh Riedel Featured Books (TBR Topoff): Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera
Content Warnings: violence, self-harm, so much blood, sexual violence, we also swear If you really enjoyed this book, we're sorry, you may want to skip this one. A Darker Shade of Magic is a contemporary fantasy novel that's short on background info, long on every trope, and not a series we will be continuing. Our next book discussion will be All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews. You can find it at your local bookstore or library and read along with us. If you want to read along with The Bookstore Challenge 2023, you can find Instagram graphics for your story or grid in this Google Drive folder. You can also join us on The StoryGraph to see what others are reading for each month and get ideas for your TBR: The Bookstore Challenge 2023. Get two audiobook credits for the price of one at Libro.fm when you sign up using the code BOOKSTOREPOD. Website | Patreon
In today's episode, get to know Alyssa Adler and Carolina Meurkens, the new hosts of BOOKS CONNECT US! We chat about what's in store for the new season, how authors portray their origin stories and have fun laughing about what books inspired us growing up (and as adults). All new season of author interviews start Wednesday, April 5!Books In Today's Show:Alyssa's Favorites: Starring Sally J Freedman as Herself by Judy Blume: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/15148/starring-sally-j-freedman-as-herself-by-judy-blume/Educated by Tara Westover: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/550168/educated-by-tara-westover/The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/576782/the-vanishing-half-by-brit-bennett/Fleishman Is In Trouble by Taffy Brodesser-Akner: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/573460/fleishman-is-in-trouble-by-taffy-brodesser-akner/Bras & Broomsticks by Sarah Mlynowski: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/115700/bras-and-broomsticks-by-sarah-mlynowski/Carolina's Favorites:Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/286551/tales-of-a-fourth-grade-nothing-by-judy-blume/This Is How You Lose Her by Junot Diaz: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/289020/this-is-how-you-lose-her-by-junot-diaz/The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/289021/the-brief-wondrous-life-of-oscar-wao-by-junot-diaz/All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/691034/all-this-could-be-different-by-sarah-thankam-mathews/
April's challenge prompt is to read a book recommended to you by a bookseller or librarian. Ideally, you'd ask a bookseller or librarian for one, but also we know there's a lot of reasons you may not want to do that and that's ok! There are other options, like reading something a favorite bookstagrammer or booktok account has recommended, or picking a book off of a recommendation display at the store or library. Or you can take one of our highly specific (to our own tastes) recommendations that we offer to you in this episode. Books Recommended: Fight Night by Miriam Toewes Quartet and After Leaving Mr. McKenzie by Jean Rhys Evil Flowers by Gunnhild Øyehaug Slenderman: Online Obsession, Mental Illness, and the Violent Crime of Two Midwestern Girls by Kathleen Hale The Membranes by Chi Ta-Wei (this is also on Hoopla) The Bay of Noon by Shirley Hazzard The Mount by Carol Emshwiller (this is also on Hoopla) Collision Course: The Classic Story of the Collision of the Andrea Doria and the Stockholm by Alvin Moscow Our next book discussions will be A Darker Shade of Magic by VE Schwab and All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews. You can find them at your local bookstore or library and read along with us. If you want to read along with The Bookstore Challenge 2023, you can find Instagram graphics for your story or grid in this Google Drive folder. You can also join us on The StoryGraph to see what others are reading for each month and get ideas for your TBR: The Bookstore Challenge 2023. Get two audiobook credits for the price of one at Libro.fm when you sign up using the code BOOKSTOREPOD. Website | Patreon
Disclosure: We are part of the Amazon Affiliate/LTK Creator programs. We will receive a small commission at no cost if you purchase a book. This post may contain links to purchase books & you can read our affiliate disclosure here. In this episode, I explore the world of literary fiction and romance, focusing on engaging stories with strong, passionate, and relatable female protagonists. We discuss the evolution of both genres to include more diverse representation and the importance of embracing challenges and personal growth in midlife. We delve into captivating novels like All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Matthews*, Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin*, and The Sentence by Louis Erdrich*. If you're a fan of romance or literary fiction, you won't want to miss this episode filled with compelling stories and unforgettable characters!*Affiliate LinksSHOWNOTES AND BOOK LINKShttp://WhattoReadNextBlog.comCheck out our YouTube Channel;https://www.whattoreadnextblog.com/youtubeMusic from Uppbeat (free for Creators!):https://uppbeat.io/t/hartzmann/sunnyLicense code: 0RDRBKGH6NGQCAXR
Writer and organizer Sarah Thankam Mathews (All This Could Be Different) joins Mira to discuss a brush with mortality in a rip-tide off the California coast, discovering “the sourdough starter of ego death,” and the problems of being an artist under capitalism. MENTIONED: Big Sur, California "How to Escape a Rip Current" What It Is by Lynda Barry I May Destroy You Michaela Coel's Emmy acceptance speech (video, transcript) Sarah Thankam Mathews grew up between Oman and India, immigrating to the United States in her late teens. Her work has been published in Best American Short Stories and she is a recipient of fellowships from the Asian American Writers' Workshop and the Iowa Writers' Workshop. In 2020, she founded the mutual aid group Bed-Stuy Strong. All This Could Be Different, Mathews' debut novel, was named an NYT Editor's Choice, chosen for multiple high-profile Best of 2022 lists, and shortlisted for the National Book Award. For more Thresholds, visit us at www.thisisthresholds.com Be sure to leave a review on your favorite podcast platform! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Hello! Happy New Year! Welcome to season 3!!! Thanks for joining us for another season of this bookish podcast that us four three friends love making so much. And even though Emily's gone and literally moved to France on us, Becky, Kayla, and Libby are excited to be back in “the studio” recording another season for you all. Today, we're chatting about what meal we would choose to eat if we could only eat one meal (for every meal) for the rest of our lives. This of course spirals into whether or not Becky is eating too much raw tuna (the answer is yes). Then we're chatting about some great books, so stick around for another fantastically chaotic season
THROWBACK! Originally released October 31, 2022. We'll be back with new episodes in February 2023! HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!! Today, we're talking haunted house mishaps and embarrassing spooky season stories in general. This episode features one of the funniest miscommunications we've had on the pod in a while, and that's saying something. Then, appropriately, we're talking about some spooky reads including a couple of witch stories (with varying degrees of horror/coziness), and a true-crime-podcast-esque mystery. And don't forget to grab your copy of All This Could Be Different for Libby's November book club! Stay tuned for dates.
In this last installment of The Takeaway Holiday Book Club we speak with Sarah Thankam (Thun-gum) Matthews about her debut novel, All This Could Be Different.
In this last installment of The Takeaway Holiday Book Club we speak with Sarah Thankam (Thun-gum) Matthews about her debut novel, All This Could Be Different.
Time for an end of year wrap up with my Podcast Twin, Malavika Praseed. Malavika is putting her marvelous podcast on hiatus for the time being while she pursues a Master's Degree in Fiction Writing. She is one of my very favorite readers, and I always love catching up with her and finding out what books she loved over the past year, and how she thinks her reading life will change now that she's not running her podcast. As always, it was a great chat, with lots of laughs about serious and not-so-serious books. Follow the Best Book Ever Podcast on Instagram or on the Best Book Ever Website Host: Julie Strauss Website/Instagram Malavika Praseed Instagram/Chicago Review of Books Malavika on Best Book Ever Podcast: Episode 029 Malavika Praseed on “The Heart is a Lonely Hunter” by Carson McCullers Episode 079 Malavika's 2021 End of Year Wrap Up And I went on her podcast once to talk about, you guessed it, My Favorite Book Your Favorite Book Podcast: Howard's End with Julie Strauss Discussed in this episode: National Book Award Long List The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon A Death in the Family by James Agee Ethan From by Edith Wharton The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton William Faulkner Jhumpa Lahiri Jeff Pearlman Carson McCullers Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf Best Book Ever Episode 089 Stephen Pelton on Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf Howard's End by E.M. Forester The Hours movie The Hours by Michael Cunningham The Heart is a Lonely Hunter by Carson McCullers East of Eden by John Steinbeck The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy Why is Santa Claus Erotica Suddenly So Popular? All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews The Pultizer Prize Winners for Fiction, by year Fuckbois of Literature podcast Viviana Valentine Gets Her Man: A Girl Friday Mystery by Emily J. Edwards Chicago Review of Books (Note: Some of the above links are affiliate links. If you shop using my affiliate link on Bookshop, a portion of your purchase will go to me, at no extra expense to you. Thank you for supporting indie bookstores and for helping to keep the Best Book Ever Podcast in business!)
Hello and happy end-of-November! Now that we're moving into the holiday season, if you're in NYC don't forget to stop by Ink 48 Hotel in Hell's Kitchen. The hotel is partnering with the amazing non-profit organization, The Book Fairies, to collect used books to redistribute to underserved communities on Long Island and NYC. Also, don't forget to stop by Libby's fan-club book club meeting this Wednesday at 8pm ET for an All This Could Be Different discussion. This is a very fun episode where we steal one of Andy Cohen's games (since he stole our fishbowl), and we're guessing whether some wild book titles are real or fake. Guess along with us! And then stay tuned for some book talk: we have cannibalism, we have mermaids, we have magical Native essays, and we have the hottest memoir of the year. Thanks so much for listening! You can get your BATC merch here: https://www.booksandthecitypod.com/merch. Browse and shop all the books we've discussed on this episode and past episodes at https://www.bookshop.org/shop/booksandthecity. Check out our website for more information about the fan club, any anything else at https://www.booksandthecitypod.com. You can also subscribe to our newsletter there, and send us a note at booksandthecitypod@gmail.com-------------> Libby's pick: Tender Is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica, translated by Sarah Moses (18:22-34:07) https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Tender-Is-the-Flesh/Agustina-Bazterrica/9781982150921 On Libby's TBR: Nightcrawling by Leila Mottley Becky's pick: Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen (34:08-46:59) https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/609878/skin-of-the-sea-by-natasha-bowen/ On Becky's TBR: Soul of the Deep by Natasha Bowen Emily's pick: White Magic by Elissa Washuta (47:00-56:53) https://tinhouse.com/book/white-magic/ On Emily's TBR: The Dolphin House by Audrey Schulman Kayla's pick: I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy (56:54-1:11:31) https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Im-Glad-My-Mom-Died/Jennette-McCurdy/9781982185824 On Kayla's TBR: The Final Gambit by Jennifer Lynn Barnes Music by EpidemicSound, logo art by @niczollos, all opinions are our own.
Sarah Thankam Mathews is a recipient of fellowships from the Asian American Writers' Workshop and the Iowa Writers' Workshop, and her work has been published in Best American Short Stories. ALL THIS COULD BE DIFFERENT is her electrifying novel of a young immigrant building a life for herself—a warm, dazzling, and profound saga of queer love, friendship, work, and precarity in twenty-first century America. Now let's join Penguin's own Carolina Meurkens in conversation with Sarah Thankam Mathews.
Sarah Thankam Mathews joins Zibby to discuss her dazzling debut novel All This Could Be Different, a 2022 National Book Award Finalist, New York Times Editors' Choice Pick, and Vogue Book Club Pick! Sarah explains her choice of setting (Milwaukee!) and describes her protagonist's desire to be loved and understood as she slowly embraces her queerness. Finally, she talks about her own upbringing in Oman, her early love of books, her tumultuous, mid-pandemic publishing journey, and what it was like to find out about her National Book Award nomination. Purchase on Amazon or Bookshop.Amazon: https://amzn.to/3TnZ4nXBookshop: https://bit.ly/3UuZdqYSubscribe to Zibby's weekly newsletter here.Purchase Moms Don't Have Time to Read Books merch here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
First thing's first, mark your calendars for Libby's November book club. We're reading All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews on Wednesday, November 30 at 8pmET. Hope to see y'all there! On this week's episode, the three of us are chatting about NAMES! Including our own name stories, and what we'd pick for our first names if we could choose. Then, we have a wild assortment of books that are honestly hard to sum up, so you gotta just listen. Thanks so much for listening! You can get your BATC merch here: https://www.booksandthecitypod.com/merch. Browse and shop all the books we've discussed on this episode and past episodes at https://www.bookshop.org/shop/booksandthecity. Check out our website for more information about the fan club, any anything else at https://www.booksandthecitypod.com. You can also subscribe to our newsletter there, and send us a note at booksandthecitypod@gmail.com-------------> Emily's pick: Vita Nostra by Maryna and Serhiy Dyachenko (15:03-31:27) https://www.harpervoyagerbooks.com/book/9780062694614/vita-nostra/ On Emily's TBR: Daughter From the Dark by Maryna and Serhiy Dyachenko Libby's pick: Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy (31:28-46:19) https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250204035/migrations On Libby's TBR: Once There Were Wolves by Charlotte McConaghy Becky's pick: Exalted by Anna Dorn (46:20-56:05) https://www.unnamedpress.com/books/book?title=Exalted On Becky's TBR: The Mad Women's Ball by Victoria Mas Music by EpidemicSound, logo art by @niczollos, all opinions are our own.
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!! Today, we're talking haunted house mishaps and embarrassing spooky season stories in general. This episode features one of the funniest miscommunications we've had on the pod in a while, and that's saying something. Then, appropriately, we're talking about some spooky reads including a couple of witch stories (with varying degrees of horror/coziness), and a true-crime-podcast-esque mystery. And don't forget to grab your copy of All This Could Be Different for Libby's November book club! Stay tuned for dates.
This is the last episode about All This Could Be Different! In this episode, we discuss the ending of the book (0:00-12:12) and then we are joined by the author Sarah Thankam Matthews to talk about the themes of this book. It was SUCH a lovely discussion, what a G E M. Sarah also describes the mission and outcomes of Bed-Stuy Strong. You can learn more about Bed-Stuy Strong on their Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/bedstuystrong/ Next week, we will have a special episode about one of our favorite reads of the year, Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin. The next week, we will dive into our next book club read, Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus. Grab your copy from your local library, a bookstore, or Bookshop.org! We start reading on November 13th! Follow us on Instagram: @booktok_podcast Follow us on TikTok: @booktokpodcast Shop our Bookshop.org storefront: https://bookshop.org/shop/booktok --- Other books mentioned in this episode: Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters The New Me by Halle Butler Jillian by Halle Butler Authors: Jokha Alharthi, Patricia Highsmith Honey & Spice by Bolu Babalola The Midnight Library by Matt Haig Ill Will by Dan Chaon
The debut novel from Sarah Thankam Mathews is a National Book Award finalist. All This Could Be Different tells the story of a young woman trying to make ends meet during the 2008 recession in Milwaukee. Mathews joins us to discuss as part of our series, 2022 Debuts.
In this episode, we are discussing the third section of All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews. Next week, we are finishing the book and we will be joined by a special guest! We also announced our next book club read: Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus. Grab your copy from a local bookstore or Bookshop.org! We start reading on Nov 13th! Follow us on Instagram: @booktok_podcast Follow us on TikTok: @booktokpodcast Shop our Bookshop.org storefront: https://bookshop.org/shop/booktok --- Other books mentioned in this episode: Beartown by Fredrik Backman A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel
OH boy oh boy oh boyyyy we are stressed for our girl S. In this episode, we are discussing All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews. Next week, we are reading pages 154-229. Follow us on Instagram: @booktok_podcast Follow us on TikTok: @booktokpodcast Shop our Bookshop.org storefront: https://bookshop.org/shop/booktok --- Other books mentioned in this episode: One Night on the Island by Josie Silver Matrix by Lauren Groff
This is the first episode of our book club read - All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews! Next week, we are reading pages 78-153. Follow us on Instagram: @booktok_podcast Follow us on TikTok: @booktokpodcast Shop our Bookshop.org storefront: https://bookshop.org/shop/booktok --- Other books mentioned in this episode: Sparring Partners by John Grisham Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus Real Life by Brandon Taylor Matrix by Lauren Groff Lapvona by Ottessa Moshfegh
Welcome to the First Taste Reading Series on the Debutiful podcast feed! Each week, a debut author will read five minutes from their book to kick start your week and whet your appetite with damn good writing. Today, Sarah Thankham Mathews reads from her debut novel All This Could Be Different, which is a finalist for the National Book Award in Fiction. Follow the author: www.smathewss.com/, www.instagram.com/smathewss, and www.twitter.com/smathewss. Follow Debutiful: www.debutiful.net, www.instagram.com/debutiful, and www.twitter.com/debutiful.
“So you know, something that is a big part of my project…is actually this idea that we deserve pleasure. I think that pleasure and care, these are antidotes against various kinds of violence and degradation that we're all beset with. And so for me, when I wrote this novel, I did not write it for a critic at The New York Times, you know. I wrote it for the past version of me. And I wrote for someone who would need to read this, who would be reading this book after work on the subway.” Sarah's Thankam Mathews is making a terrific debut with All This Could Be Different—longlisted for the 2022 National Book Award for Fiction and a finalist for our own Discover Prize—and she joins us on the show to talk about channeling her characters, subverting the coming-of-age novel, challenging the expectations of the immigrant experience, queerness, finding our people and much more with Poured Over's host, Miwa Messer. Featured Books (Episode): Normal People by Sally Rooney Lucy by Jamaica Kincaid Luster by Raven Leilani The New Me by Halle Butler Poured Over is produced and hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. Follow us here for new episodes Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays). A complete transcript of this episode is available here.
Author Sarah Thankam Mathews joins Daniel Ford on the show to discuss her debut All This Could Be Different, which was recently longlisted for the National Book Award. To learn more about Sarah Thankam Mathews, visit her official website and follow her on Twitter and Instagram. Writer's Bone is proudly sponsored by Libro.fm, The Thoughtful Bro, Daniel Paisner's Balloon Dog, and A Mighty Blaze podcast.
In this episode, we are discussing Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica. This was DIVISIVE to say the least! Check the trigger warnings on this book before you dive in. --- UNSPOILED SECTION: 0:00 - 24:06 SPOILED SECTION: 24:07 - 48:15 TALKTOK: 24:07 - end! --- Next Sunday, we start reading our next book club read, All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Matthews! The first episode will cover pages 1-77. Follow us on Instagram: @booktok_podcast Follow us on TikTok: @booktokpodcast Shop our Bookshop.org storefront: https://bookshop.org/shop/booktok --- Other books mentioned in this episode: Real Life by Brandon Taylor The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz When We Were Bright and Beautiful by Jillian Medoff
In this episode, we chat about the last section of Careless by Kirsty Capes. We are then joined by the author to talk more about the themes from this book! Thanks for reading ya'll. Our next book club read is All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Matthews. We start reading on October 2nd! Grab your copy from the library, a local bookstore, or bookshop.org! Follow us on Instagram: @booktok_podcast Follow us on TikTok: @booktokpodcast Shop our Bookshop.org storefront: https://bookshop.org/shop/booktok --- Other books mentioned in this episode: The Nanny Diaries by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus Red Clocks by Leni Zumas Nevada by Imogen Binnie Matrix by Lauren Groff City of Thieves by David Benioff A Certain Hunger by Chelsea G. Summers Bones and All by Camille DeAngelis Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz
Well... that did not go well now did it??? This episode discusses the third section of Careless by Kirsty Capes. Next week we are finishing the book and we'll be joined by Kirsty to talk more about the themes of this book! In this episode, we also announce our next bookclub read - All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Matthews! Grab your copy from a local bookstore or from Bookshop.org! We start reading on October 2nd. Follow us on Instagram: @booktok_podcast Follow us on TikTok: @booktokpodcast Shop our Bookshop.org storefront: https://bookshop.org/shop/booktok --- Other books mentioned in this episode: This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub City of Thieves by David Benioff Beloved by Toni Morrison Boy Parts by Eliza Clark Olympus, Texas by Stacey Swann
Bill McKibben talks about his new book, The Flag, The Cross And The Station Wagon. And Sarah Thankam Mathews tells us about her debut novel, All This Could Be Different. The post Bill McKibben, THE FLAG, THE CROSS and the STATION WAGON & Sarah Thankam Mathews, ALL THIS COULD BE DIFFERENT appeared first on Writer's Voice.
Two author interviews wrapped up in one episode! First, Ashley interviews Tess Gerritsen about her novel, Listen to Me, the latest in the Rizzoli & Isles novel series. The conversation includes Tess' work as an anthropology undergraduate student and as a physician, writing women in power, how she writes victims and survivors, and adapting her story for television. This conversation includes discussion of victims of death and blood. In the second segment, Mariquita talks with Sarah Thankam Mathews about her debut novel, All This Could Be Different. They also talk about how vulnerability and interdependence make us stronger, why the bildungsroman needs to be redefined, and how queer sex scenes can reclaim power. Books mentioned: Listen To Me by Tess Gerritsen All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews Support our guests and hosts: Follow Tess Gerritsen: Website // Twitter // Instagram // Alzheimer's Research Follow Ashley: Twitter // Website Follow Sarah Thankam Mathews: Twitter // Instagram // Website Follow Mariquita: Instagram Beyond the Box: Our weekly round-up of blog and podcast content delivered directly to your inbox every Friday Check out our online community here! This episode was edited by Rah Hernandez and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people. Original music by @iam.onyxrose Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.
This week, Liberty and Danika discuss All This Could Be Different, The Book Eaters, Shutter, and more great books. Follow All the Books! using RSS, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify and never miss a beat book. And sign up for the weekly New Books! newsletter for even more new book news. This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission. For a complete list of books discussed in this episode, visit our website. BOOKS DISCUSSED ON THE SHOW: All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews It Sounds Like This by Anna Meriano The Wild Hunt by Emma Seckel The Honeys by Ryan La Sala Shutter by Ramona Emerson The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean Mercury Pictures Presents by Anthony Marra A Broken Blade by Melissa Blair Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sarah Thankam Mathews reads her story "Rubberdust," backed by an original Storybound remix, and sound design and arrangement by Jude Brewer. Sarah Thankam Mathews grew up between Oman and India, and immigrated to the United States at seventeen. She was a Rona Jaffe Fellow in fiction at the Iowa Writers' Workshop, and a Margins Fellow at The Asian American Writers' Workshop. Her work has been featured in "Best American Short Stories 2020," and her novel, "All This Could Be Different" is forthcoming in 2022. Mathews is also a co-founder of the Brooklyn-based Bed-Stuy Strong, which was formed during the COVID-19 pandemic to help deliver groceries and other resources to people in need. Support Storybound by supporting our sponsors: Norton brings you Michael Lewis' The Premonition: A Pandemic Story, a nonfiction thriller that pits a band of medical visionaries against a wall of ignorance as the COVID-19 pandemic looms. Scribd combines the latest technology with the best human minds to recommend content that you'll love. Go to try.scribd.com/storybound to get 60 days of Scribd for free. Finding You is an inspirational romantic drama full of heart and humor about finding the strength to be true to oneself. Now playing only in theaters. Acorn.tv is the largest commercial free British streaming service with hundreds of exclusive shows from around the world. Try acorn.tv for free for 30 days by going to acorn.tv and using promo code Storybound. Storybound is hosted by Jude Brewer and brought to you by The Podglomerate and Lit Hub Radio. Let us know what you think of the show on Instagram and Twitter @storyboundpod. *** This show is a part of the Podglomerate network, a company that produces, distributes, and monetizes podcasts. We encourage you to visit the website and sign up for our newsletter for more information about our shows, launches, and events. For more information on how The Podglomerate treats data, please see our Privacy Policy. Since you're listening to Storybound, you might enjoy reading, writing, and storytelling. We'd like to suggest you also try the History of Literature or Book Dreams. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sanjena and I discuss her debut novel Gold Diggers, the responsibilities that come with assimilation, conceptual orphans, writing the research problem she encountered into Gold Diggers, her background as a journalist, Mindy Kaling optioning her story for a TV series, and much more. Sanjena’s recommended reads are: All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews Groundskeeping by Lee Cole The Four Books by Yan Lianke Thanks to Caitlin Hamilton Summie for sponsoring this episode. Her book To Lay To Rest Our Ghosts can be purchased here. Support the podcast here. For more information about sponsoring an episode, click here. If you enjoy reading mysteries and want to listen to more episodes, try Hala Alyan, Te-Ping Chen, Kim Neville, Bianca Marais, and Mateo Askaripour. Gold Diggers can be purchased at the Conversations from a Page Bookshop storefront.