Russell, Rachel, and Rachael welcome guest Jess McAllister, Youth Library Services Specialist, to talk about every book ever written and how to read at light speed.

Books we discuss include:

• “Tracker” by Gary Paulsen
• “Amelia Bedelia” by Peggy Parish
• “Frog and Toad” series by Arnold Lobel
• “Howl’s Moving Castle” by Diana Wynne Jones
• “The House in the Cerulean Sea” by T.J. Klune
• “Legends & Lattes” by Travis Baldree
• “The Great Library” series by Rachel Caine
• “Daisy Jones & the Six” by Taylor Jenkins Reid
• “Small Spaces” by Katherine Arden
• “Arlo Finch” series by John August
• “Amari and the Night Brothers” by B.B. Alston
• “Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow” by Jessica Townsend
• “Jurassic Park” and others by Michael Crichton
• “Wolfsong” by T.J. Klune

Russell, Rachel and Rachael discuss our July challenge, books set in another country, and a few extras just for good measure.

Books we discussed include:

• “The Women” by Kristin Hannah
• “Sooley” by John Grisham
• “Convenience Store Woman” by Sayaka Murata, translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori
• “Lady Tan’s Circle of Women” by Lisa See
• “Run Me to Earth” by Paul Yoon
• “City of Thieves” by David Benioff
• “A Man Called Ove” by Frederik Backman
• “What the River Knows” by Isabel Ibañez
• “Birnam Wood” by Eleanor Catton
• “Pirate Latitudes” by Michael Crichton
• “The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind” by William Kamkwamba
• “A Libertarian Walks Into a Bear” by Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling

Russell, Rachel, and Rachael welcome guest Jess Austin, Technical Services Librarian, to talk about 'book joy'.

Books we discussed include:

• “Holy City” by Henry Wise
• “Razorblade Tears” by S. A. Cosby
• “The Which Way Tree” by Elizabeth Crook
• “If the Creek Don’t Rise” by Leah Weiss
• “The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek” by Kim Michele Richardson
• “Broiler” by Eli Cranor (coming July 2, 2024)
• “Don Quixote” by Miguel de Cervantes

P.S. - “Claus: Legend of the Fat Man” by Tony Bertauski - Russell would love if you try it out.

Russell and the Rach(a)els discuss the June reading challenge and what it means to go on an adventure.

Books we discussed include:

• “The Hobbit” by J.R.R. Tolkien
• “The Chronicles of Narnia” series by C.S. Lewis
• “Northwind” by Gary Paulsen
• “This Tender Land” by William Kent Krueger
• “The Call of the Wild” by Jack London
• “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” by Lewis Carrol
• “Anne of Green Gables” by Lucy Maud Montgomery
• “James” by Percival Everett
• “Treasure Island” by Robert Louis Stevenson
• “The Madstone” by Elizabeth Crook
• “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” by Douglas Adams
• “The Vaster Wilds” by Lauren Groff
• “Dungeon Academy: No Humans Allowed!” by Madeleine Roux

Russell, Rachel, and Rachael welcome guest Chrislyn Gardner, Youth Services Librarian, to discuss Summer Reading, literary favorites, and childhood memories.

Books we discussed include:

• “The Rose Code” by Kate Quinn
• “A Chair for My Mother” by Vera B. Williams
• “The Vingananee and the Tree Toad: A Liberian Tale” Retold by Verna Aardema
• “The Monster at the End of this Book (Starring Lovable, Furry Old Grover)” by Jon Stone
• “Each Peach Pear Plum” by Janet and Allan Ahlberg
• “The Berenstain Bears Trick or Treat!” by Stan and Jan Berenstain
• “I Am a Bunny” by Ole Risom and Richard Scarry
• “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” by Judi Barrett
• “Sealed with a Kiss” by Beth Ferry
• “Leonardo, the Terrible Monster” by Mo Willems
• “Big Pumpkin” by Erica Silverman

The reading challenge continues into May with graphic novels. A lot of titles get discussed on the show.
The many, many books we discussed include:

• “Strange Fruit: Uncelebrated Narratives from Black History” by Joel Christian Gill
• “Stamped From the Beginning: A Graphic History of Racist Ideas in America” by Joel Christian, adapted from the novel by Ibram X. Kendi
• “March” by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin
• “MacBeth” by Gareth Hinds - a graphic novel adaptation of the play by William Shakespeare
• “Birds of Prey: Terrifying Talons, Science Comic Series” by Joe Flood
• “Ironheart: Meant to Fly” by Eve L. Ewing
• “Silk: the Life and Times of Cindy Moon” by Robbie Thompson
• “Captain America: The Ghost Army” by Alan Gratz
• “Redwall: the graphic novel” by Brian Jacques
• “The Invasion: The Animorphs Graphic Novel, Book One” by Katherine Applegate
• “The Witches: the graphic novel” by Penelope Bagieu, adapted from the novel by Roald Dahl
• “Animal Farm: the graphic novel” by Odyr, adapted from the novel by George Orwell
• “Kindred: the graphic novel” by Octavia Butler
• “This One Summer” by Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki
• “Roaming” by Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki
• “Pumpkinheads” by Rainbow Rowell
• “Heartstopper” by Alice Oseman
• “Skyward” by Joe Henderson
• “Wings of Fire: the graphic novel, Book One: The Dragonet Prophecy” by Tui Sutherland, adapted by Barry Beutsch
• “Rise of the Dungeon Master: Gary Gygax and the Creation of D&D” by David Kushner
• “Living with Mochi” by Gemma Gene
• “Meal” by Blue Delliquanti, Soleil Ho

Russell, Rachel, and Rachael welcome Riley, the first guest star, to the show to discuss some of her favorite books and tell a few fun stories.

Books we discussed include:

• “Starling House” by Alix E. Harrow
• “Ten Thousand Doors of January” by Alix E. Harrow
• “Midnight Library” by Matt Haig
• “Weyward” by Emilia Hart
• “Storm Front” by Jim Butcher - Dresden Files Book 1
• “Iron Flame” by Rebecca Yarros
• “Black Beauty” by Anna Sewell
• “Because of Winn-Dixie” by Kate DiCamillo
• “We Were Liars” by E. Lockhart
• “A River Enchanted” by Rebbecca Ross
• “Dungeons and Drama” by Kristy Boyce
• “The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue” by Victoria Schwab
• “Claus: Legend of the Fat Man” by Tony Bertauski

Rachael, Rachel, and Russell explore the world of poetry. The Rach(a)els share very moving poems while Russell opts for pirates.

Books we discussed include:

• “The Crossover” by Kwame Alexander
• “Good Different” by Meg Eden Kuyatt
• “The World’s Wife” by Carol Ann Duffy
• “You Better Be Lightning” by Andrea Gibson
• “Where the Sidewalk Ends” by Shel Silverstein
• Nick George the Poet
• “The Rose that Grew from Concrete” by Tupac Shakur
• “For Everyone” by Jason Reynolds
• The Collected Works of Nikki Giovanni
• “The Hill We Climb: An Inaugural Poem for the Country” by Amanda Gorman (read at President Biden’s 2021 inauguration)