Latest Tbr pile Podcast Episodes

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Myths, Legends and Fables

Marlon and Jake Read Dead People - February 10, 2020 05:00 - 44 minutes
This week Marlon and Jake go back in time-way, way back-and revisit the myths and legends that have terrified and tantalized us for centuries. Gods and monsters. The powerful and the petty. The shape-shifting and the rampantly naked. From ancient Greece and Africa to Jamaica and Ireland, Marlon ...

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Epic Fantasy

Marlon and Jake Read Dead People - February 03, 2020 05:00 - 41 minutes
This week Marlon and Jake venture into fantasy: the imagined worlds of dead writers—from quests and dragons to magic carpets and pregnant kings. As they dive into the works of the giants of traditional fantasy, J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, they discuss the influence both writers had on Marlon'...

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Dead Authors for a Desert Island

Marlon and Jake Read Dead People - January 27, 2020 06:01 - 46 minutes
Marlon and Jake are back-this time to discuss which dead author they'd take with them to a desert island to reread over and over again-as well as which ones they'd happily leave lost at sea. From the Jamaica of Wide Sargasso Sea to the lonely New England of Shirley Jackson, Marlon and Jake get ...

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Literary Grudge Match

Marlon and Jake Read Dead People - January 27, 2020 06:00 - 43 minutes
Marlon and Jake kick off the first episode by taking on some literary giants in a grudge match for the ages. This time it's Charles Dickens vs. Anthony Trollope and Louisa May Alcott vs. Laura Ingalls Wilder in a no-holds-barred royal rumble. The two of them pull no punches, whether they're talk...

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Episode 52 - Marlon James and The Giver of Stars

Read it Forward - January 08, 2020 14:47 - 30 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
Abbe chats with author Marlon James about his novel, Black Leopard, Red Wolf, and his new podcast, Marlon and Jake Read Dead People. He tells listeners about his new American citizenship, having a genre novel nominated for a National Book Award, being promiscuous when it comes to writing fiction...

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Episode 51 - Holly Whitaker and Green

Read it Forward - December 31, 2019 11:39 - 42 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
Abbe talks sobriety with Quit Like a Woman author and sober influencer, Holly Whitaker. If you're thinking about doing dry January, or considering the role alcohol plays in your life, this is a must-listen interview. Abbe also chats with psychologist Kelly McGonigal, and author of The Joy of Mo...

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Episode 50 - Isabel Allende and Saints for All Occasions

Read it Forward - December 24, 2019 11:00 - 31 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this episode, Abbe reviews one book she recently re-read: Saints for All Occasions by J. Courtney Sullivan. She finds that the book definitely holds up to the first time and rediscovers this family of characters all over again. Abbe also sits down with the legendary author Isabel Allende to ...

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Episode 50 - Isabel Allende and Saints for All Occasions

Read it Forward - December 24, 2019 11:00 - 31 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
Abbe sits down with the legendary author Isabel Allende to discuss the Spanish Civil War, the current refugee crisis, Greta Thunberg, and her latest novel, The Long Petal of the Sea.

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Marlon and Jake Read Dead People Trailer

Marlon and Jake Read Dead People - December 18, 2019 17:10 - 55 seconds
Marlon and Jake Read Dead People is a podcast hosted by the Man Booker Prize-winning and internationally bestselling author Marlon James and his editor, Jake Morrissey, Executive Editor at Riverhead Books. In each episode, Marlon and Jake talk about authors—specifically dead authors. Authors t...

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Episode 49 - Abbe and Penguin Random House’s CEO, Madeline McIntosh, Share Their Favorite Books of 2019

Read it Forward - December 17, 2019 23:28 - 27 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
Recently, Abbe Wright, Read it Forward’s Senior Editor, was invited to be in conversation with Madeline McIntosh, CEO of Penguin Random House to talk about a topic they both love. Books! Specifically, what their favorite reads of 2019 were and what books they’re looking forward to giving to frie...

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Episode 48 - Jeff Gordinier and The Glass Hotel

Read it Forward - November 26, 2019 22:15 - 40 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this episode, Abbe talks tacos and rock star chefs with food critic Jeff Gordinier, who has just published his travelogue-cum-memoir, Hungry: Eating, Road-Tripping, and Risking It All with the Greatest Chef in the World. The book details the several years he spent following perhaps the best c...

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Episode 47 - Elissa Altman and The Editor

Read it Forward - November 20, 2019 20:25 - 35 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this episode, author Elissa Altman talks about her memoir Motherland, and her fraught—yet loving—relationship with her own mother. Next, Abbe welcomes fellow podcast host, Alli Hoff Kosik, into the studio to discuss her podcast SSR (Sh*t She Read), as well as re-reading and re-inspecting the...

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Episode 46 - Tiffany Jenkins and The Nickel Boys

Read it Forward - November 13, 2019 03:45 - 36 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In "What Abbe's Reading," Abbe reviews The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead, which was Read it Forward's October Book Club pick. Later, Abbe sits down with comedian and Juggling the Jenkins blogger, Tiffany Jenkins, about her inspiring and harrowing memoir, High Achiever, and why sometimes the t...

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Episode 45 - Meg Wolitzer and The Other's Gold

Read it Forward - November 05, 2019 18:26 - 36 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
Abbe hears from author Meg Wolitzer about her latest book, The Female Persuasion, her mentors (Nora Ephron!), and varying kinds of feminism. Abbe also sits down with novelist Christy Lefteri to talk about the Syrian refugee crisis and how it informs her book, The Beekeeper of Aleppo. Finally, ...

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Episode 44 - Neil Patrick Harris and Normal People

Read it Forward - October 29, 2019 04:08 - 38 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
Abbe chats with actor and author Neil Patrick Harris about magic, Gone Girl, being a bookseller, and the stories he reads with his twins. Oh, and his latest middle-grade series, The Magic Misfits, and his Choose Your Own Autobiography that puts the reader into his life story. She also talks fem...

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Episode 43 - Oyinkan Braithwaite and The Swallows

Read it Forward - October 22, 2019 14:38 - 34 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
Abbe Wright sits down with Nigerian author Oyinkan Braithwaite to discuss her award-winning novel, My Sister, the Serial Killer, about older siblings, and not judging the actions of her characters. Later, Abbe chats with Rob Hart, author of The Warehouse, about setting his book in the undetermi...

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Episode 42 - Deepak Chopra and The Bluest Eye

Read it Forward - October 15, 2019 17:40 - 38 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In the first episode of the fourth season of the Read it Forward podcast, Abbe interviews Deepak Chopra, M.D., about mindfulness and his latest work, Metahuman. Dr. Deepak Chopra is a world-renowned pioneer in integrative medicine and personal transformation, the founder of the Chopra Foundation...

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Episode 41 - Pop Culture Powerhouses Panel with Emily Nussbaum, Taffy Brodesser-Akner, Jia Tolentino, and Linda Holmes

Read it Forward - August 12, 2019 21:08 - 58 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this special episode of the Read it Forward podcast, we invite you to listen to a live-stream of the Pop Culture Powerhouses Panel. This recent event brings together four preeminent voices in cultural journalism as they celebrate their hotly anticipated summer books and discuss the ways in wh...

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Episode 40 - Beck Dorey-Stein and City of Girls

Read it Forward - August 05, 2019 21:29 - 35 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this episode, Abbe talks about her summer vacation read, City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert. Then, she sits down for lots of laughs with author Beck Dorey-Stein to talk about her memoir, From the Corner of the Oval, now out in paperback, Obama, and the power of Craigslist. Finally, Abbe cha...

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Episode 39 - Melissa de la Cruz and Trick Mirror

Read it Forward - July 29, 2019 17:45 - 31 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this episode, Abbe tells us about Trick Mirror, New Yorker writer Jia Tolentino's meditation on culture and her place within it. Then, she sits down with author Melissa de la Cruz about her thriller, The Birthday Girl, and the enduring appeal of the love story between Alexander Hamilton and ...

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Episode 38 - Joanne Ramos and The Chelsea Girls

Read it Forward - July 22, 2019 21:18 - 32 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this episode, Abbe talks about what she's been reading: The Chelsea Girls, a brand new work of historical fiction from Fiona Davis, which takes place in the Chelsea Hotel. Then, she sits down with author Joanne Ramos to discuss her debut novel, The Farm, and what, if any, inspiration she dr...

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Episode 37 - Jasmine Guillory and How Could She

Read it Forward - July 15, 2019 18:34 - 31 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this episode, Abbe tells us about a great summer read about female friendship, How Could She by Lauren Mechling, which Elle, Vogue, and Cosmopolitan also raved about. Then, she sits down with author Jasmine Guillory to talk romance, diverse heroines, and Michelle Obama, as well as her latest...

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Episode 36 - Nic Stone and I Like to Watch

Read it Forward - July 08, 2019 15:16 - 37 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this episode, Abbe binge-reads I Like to Watch by Emily Nussbaum, combining her two loves of reading and TV. Then, she sits down with author Nic Stone about her third YA novel, Jackpot, and why it's important to talk to young people about real issues. Finally, Abbe welcomes Evvie Drake Star...

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Episode 35 - Riley Sager and Very Nice

Read it Forward - July 01, 2019 15:36 - 24 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this episode, Abbe raves about Very Nice by Marcy Dermansky, and the love triangle (love square?) that carries the plot. Then, she sits down with author Riley Sager about his latest thriller, Lock Every Door, and his love of scary movies. Finally, Abbe and colleague Amy Brinker talk about a...

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Episode 34 - Delia Owens and Educated

Read it Forward - June 24, 2019 13:44 - 36 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this episode, Abbe, despite being late to the game, raves about Tara Westover's memoir, Educated. Then, she chats and laughs with author Delia Owens about her novel, Where the Crawdads Sing, elephant behavior, and what it was like to meet fellow southern gal, Reese Witherspoon. She even shar...

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Episode 33 - Taffy Brodesser-Akner and The New Me

Read it Forward - June 18, 2019 14:34 - 33 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this episode, Abbe reviews The New Me by Halle Butler, and the book's relatable, albeit unlikeable, protagonist. Then, she sits down with author and journalist Taffy Brodesser-Akner about her novel, Fleishman is in Trouble, marriage, and Bradley Cooper. Finally, Abbe and author Camille Perr...

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Episode 32 - Dani Shapiro and Next Year in Havana

Read it Forward - June 10, 2019 17:40 - 38 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this episode, Abbe tells us about a work of historical fiction with a dual narrative, Next Year in Havana. Then, she sits down with author Dani Shapiro about her latest memoir, Inheritance, and the power of secrets. Finally, Abbe teams back up with Emma to try and guess celebrity audiobook ...

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Episode 31 - Helen Ellis and The Spies of Shilling Lane

Read it Forward - June 05, 2019 21:44 - 36 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this episode, Abbe tells us about a new WWII-set novel, The Spies of Shilling Lane. Then, she sits down with author, professional poker player, and all-around funny gal Helen Ellis about her new book of essays, Southern Lady Code. Southern Lady Code means: if you don’t have something nice to...

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Episode 30 - Abby Maslin and Ghosted

Read it Forward - May 29, 2019 13:14 - 39 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this episode, Abbe tells us about the perfect paperback to take to the pool, Ghosted by Rosie Price. Then, she sits down with author Abby Maslin and her husband TC about Abby's memoir, Love You Hard, which details TC's brain injury and the way it changed their marriage. Finally, Abbe chats ...

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Episode 29 - Minnie Darke and Something in the Water

Read it Forward - May 20, 2019 16:51 - 30 minutes ★★★★★ - 59 ratings
In this episode, Abbe tells us about the summer thriller she's been enjoying, Something in the Water by Catherine Steadman. Then, she sits down with author Minnie Darke about her novel, Star-Crossed, love, and astrology. Finally, Abbe chats with Sophie and Danielle from the Random House social...