BOOKED SOLID: A New Canaan Library Podcast for Adventurous Readers Across All Genres

For the first episode of season 7, Kathleen and James visit the windswept island of Shearwater in Charlotte McConaghy's thrilling book, Wild Dark Shore. They discuss the book’s breathtaking setting, how the story explores the themes of climate change and despair, and why hope and community are so important in the face of disaster. Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

Featured Titles:Woodworking by Emily St. JamesBonjour Tristesse by Francoise SaganThe Bloody Chamber by Angela CarterHungerstone by Kat DunnSister Deborah by Scholastique MukasongaThe Library at Mount Char by Scott HawkinsSpent by Alison BechdelAll Systems Red by Martha WellsIs a River Alive? by Robert MacfarlaneWhen the World Tips Over by Jandy NelsonJust for the Summer by Abby JimenezMagnolia Wu Unfolds it All by Chanel MillerThe Unmaking of June Farrow by Adrienne YoungKatabasis by R.F. KuangEverything is Tuberculosis by John Green  Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future. To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

Kathleen, Kat, and James get wrapped up in the mystery of Liz Moore’s thrilling novel, The God of the Woods. Join our hosts for a discussion on how they approach mystery fiction, narrative structure, and the importance of a good reveal. Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

Kathleen, Kat, and James put their heads together and talk about the nonfiction book selection for the season, Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer. The group discusses nature, science, the environment, and the ways in which we see and understand the world. Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

Kathleen, Kat, and James travel through time to discuss Kaliane Bradley’s science fiction romance book, The Ministry of Time. Our hosts talk about genre fiction, out-of-time romance stories, and all the questions they have about time travel ethics, shady government experiments, and the suspicious convenience of having an inadvisable roommate. Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

Kathleen, Kat, and James explore the endless halls of the House and attempt to unravel its secrets in Susanna Clarke’s intriguing fantasy novel, Piranesi. Join our hosts for a discussion on liminal spaces, dark academia, and the ways in which we connect to the world around us. Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

This month, Kathleen, Kat, and James get a taste of Italy with Jhumpa Lahiri’s excellent collection of short fiction, Roman Stories. Join us as we celebrate the Library's Lit Lunch pick with a discussion about the unique strengths of short stories, connection and belonging, and a deeper dive on three of our hosts' favorite pieces from the collection. Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

Kathleen, Kat, and James start the new season with a turbulent journey down the Mississippi River in Percival Everett’s excellent historical fiction novel, James. The group discusses the book’s clever use of language, the bizarre and harrowing situations our heroes find themselves in, and the challenges in retelling an American classic. Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

Featured Titles:Greta and Valdin by Rebecca K. ReillyThe Age of Magical Overthinking by Amanda MontellClear by Carys DaviesEastbound by Maylis de KerangalLand of Milk and Honey by C Pam ZhangThe Bad Ones by Melissa AlbertExordia by Seth DickinsonRemarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van PeltThe Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny and Murder by David GrannThe God of the Woods by Liz MooreMasquerade by O.O. SangoyomiCode-Dependent: Living in the Shadow of AI by Madhumita MurgiaThe Bright Sword by Lev GrossmanSing Like Fish by Amorina Kingdon A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. KingfisherHorror Movie by Paul Tremblay Cue the Sun!: The Invention of Reality TV by Emily Nussbaum Nicked by M.T. Anderson Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future. To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

Kathleen, Kat, and James come face to face with unexpected horrors and unfriendly in-laws in Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s book Mexican Gothic. Join our hosts as they discuss the Gothic novel, the strangling grasp of the patriarchy, and the terror of the fungi kingdom. Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

Kathleen, Kat, and James travel down the Silk Road and encounter con artists, storytellers, and danger around every corner in Daniel Nayeri’s book The Many Assassinations of Samir, the Seller of Dreams. Join our hosts as they discuss unreliable narrators, historical jokes, and the joy of finding a book that works for all ages. Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

Kathleen, Kat, and James read N.K. Jemisin’s The Fifth Season and discover a rich fantasy world full of dark secrets, unsolved mysteries, and the beginning of the end of the world. Kathleen shows off her detective skills by catching a twist before it is revealed, Kat looks at the systems at play, and James struggles with pronunciation. Join our hosts as they discuss fantasy, writing style, and more in this month’s episode of Booked Solid. Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

This month, Kat, Kathleen, and James read the first nonfiction book of the season, Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann. The group discusses the horrific conspiracy that the book documents against members of the Osage Nation in the 1920s, the shocking systems of oppression and exploitation that enabled and outlived it, and the excellent writing and skill of the author in covering such a difficult topic. Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

This month, Kat, Kathleen, and James saddle up to explore a genre that they all rarely read: historical fiction, courtesy of Geraldine Brooks' award-winning novel Horse. Tune in for a discussion about history and commodification, and discover which of the hosts doesn't like horses. Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

This month, Kathleen, Kat, and James venture into the unexplored depths of Julia Armfield’s haunting book, Our Wives Under the Sea. Kat loves the characters, Kathleen is fascinated by the mystery, and James can’t stop thinking about a tragic fateful decision. Join our hosts as they discuss grief, relationships, and the terrible fear and pull of the unknown. Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future. To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

Kathleen and James channel their inner teen detectives and dive into Holly Jackson’s devious YA thriller, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder. This month the discussion focuses on intrepid teen sleuths, the trouble with using homework as an excuse for investigating a murder, and fun with localization. Kathleen is in her element with this murder mystery, while James is lost in the woods. Will he piece together the clues, solve the mystery, and put this season’s final episode behind bars? Find out in this episode of Booked Solid. Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

This month, Kathleen and James travel to Eleanor West’s Home for Wayward Children to discuss the fantasy novella (and murder mystery!) Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire. Listen in as they discuss portal fantasies, found families, and where their magical doors would lead. Will this story steal their hearts? BE SURE to check out this episode to find out! Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

This month, Kathleen and James read the lush and lyrical novel in verse Me (Moth) by Amber McBride. Tune in for a discussion about identity, self-discovery, and spirituality, as seen through the lens of the life cycle of a moth. James and Kathleen love the language, but will the story haunt them just as much as the prose? Find out in this episode of Booked Solid—and stick around for bonus content James recorded against his will. Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.

Kathleen and James welcome special guest Kat to the podcast to discuss R.F. Kuang’s historical fantasy epic, Babel. Tune in for a discussion on empire, colonialism, and revolution, as well as everyone’s favorite bad dad, Professor Lovell. Will James and Kat’s enthusiasm for the book win over fantasy skeptic Kathleen…or will it get lost in translation? Please take our survey to help us make Booked Solid even better! Let us know what you enjoy and what improvements we can make for the future.   To place a hold on any of the titles mentioned in this episode, check out our Booked Solid reading list on the New Canaan Library website.