An interview with Gina Carra of BookPeople

1. What’s your favorite area of your bookstore?

I wholly admit it’s because I helped decorate it, but I find so much peace in the second floor back corner where we have our local artists’ work displayed. The entire wall of art books is papered colorfully and it calms me down to be in that space.

2. What’s the coolest book cover that you like to have facing out on the shelves?

This question is stumping me and I think it’s because of the word ‘cool’! I face out books I’m excited to read but haven’t yet haha I essentially face out my TBR. Right now that’s Heartbreak by Florence Williams because I LOVED The Nature Fix and I’m excited to see the research and care she’s put into the study of heartbreak.

3. If you had a staff pick for a recent new release, what would it be? Backlist pick?

It’s not the MOST recent, but A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske came out in October of last year and I cannot shut up about it. I adored that the main character didn’t have a deep well of magic and had to be technically perfect while his siblings were prodigies who cast with barely a thought. I loved that the two main characters couldn’t stand each other but end up willing to die for each other. I would also die for them.

For backlist, I’m in a constant state of wanting to reread The Great Passage by Shion Miura. It’s the fictionalized making of a dictionary you didn’t know you needed. Each of the characters on this team are so captivated by words and how the way we choose to use them shapes our relationships with those around us. When the main character starts to fall in love and cross references multiple dictionaries to see how they define the word ‘love’, I melted. It’s beautifully poetic and I have all the respect in the world for the translator, Juliet Winters Carpenter, who seamlessly translated this nuanced story about words from Japanese into English.

4. Do you have a strange customer story?

Over the holidays, a customer approached me and asked what the coolest way to take a book off the shelf was. I didn’t understand at first and then they specified that they wanted to take a book in a way that would create the least amount of work for the booksellers to fix afterwards. I insisted it was fine and we were happy to tidy up, but they insisted back that they were truly curious. I was so completely endeared by this sentiment and gave them a little lesson about how taking a faceout copy with another copy behind it would disturb the shelf the least.

5. What author have you been starstruck to meet, or have you gotten to host a fun virtual event?

My first month at BookPeople in 2019 I was at the registers and looked up to see Felicia Day. I had JUST read her memoir, You’re Never Weird On the Internet (Almost), and was so inspired by it but looking her in the eye I was so startled that I could not begin to verbalize how much I enjoyed the book and I accidentally printed her receipt 15 times and had to have a manger come fix my register.

6. What are some misconceptions people have about working in a bookstore?

If you really want a breakdown of this in the funniest way possible, read Skull-Face Bookseller Honda San by Honda. I logically know it’s meant to be an exaggerated comedy, but it’s so painfully accurate that it just feels like being at work to me!

7. What is your least favorite bookstore task? Favorite part about working in a bookstore?

My least favorite thing is when we inevitably pull returns and one of the books that’s been hanging around too long is one I was really rooting for to find a home. Timing is everything and sometimes the right person just doesn’t come in at the right time. Favorite thing about working in a bookstore? I mean, it’s in the question: being in a bookstore. I love being able to just walk over and look at a book I’m curious about. I’ve read so much I wouldn’t have tried before. It’s broadened my horizons permanently and I’m so thrilled by it.

8. Can you recommend an underrated readalike book for one of the store’s top titles? (For example: If your store sells a lot of The Song of Achilles, you might recommend Tin Man.)

I spend way too much time thinking about Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir comps because it’s an impossible task. In line with the queerness so obvious the readers can see it happening though the characters don’t yet and the absolute self indulgent chaos of the story, I’d recommend The Scum Villain’s Self-Saving System by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu.

An interview with Chelsea Bauer of Union Ave. Books

What’s your favorite area of the bookstore?

My favorite area of Union Ave Books is the building. We are in a TVA building from the 1920s so we have big, beautiful windows and interesting architectural details throughout. I think Union Ave is the most beautiful street in Knoxville and it’s a real thrill to walk down it every day.

What’s the coolest book cover that you like to have facing out on the shelves?

I am a big fan of the new Octavia E. Butler re-issues that have been coming out from Hachette. We often have a full shelf of face-out Butler’s in the Science Fiction/Fantasy section.

If you had a staff pick for a recent new release, what would it be? Backlist pick?

GREAT CIRCLE by Maggie Shipstead was my favorite book of 2021. I thought it was just stunning. One of the few dual-timeline books that I didn’t much, much prefer one timeline over the other. It follows an infamous female aviatrix in the early part of the 20th century and an actress playing her in a contemporary film adaptation of her life. It was sweeping and epic and all of my favorite descriptive words for books. I would have happily read 500 more pages.

THREE MEN IN A BOAT (TO SAY NOTHING OF THE DOG) by Jerome K. Jerome is a go-to backlist rec for me. One of the few books that made me laugh in public. It’s three doofuses (and their dog) in a boat on the Thames river in the late 1800s. When you find someone else who has read it, you are instantly bonded, like a secret society that is both slightly selective and extremely silly.

Do you have a strange customer story?

Just today, actually, a man came in straight from 1998 and asked if we had a book about the value of Beanie Babies. He was taken aback when I said we did not.

What author have you been starstruck to meet, or have you gotten to host a fun virtual event?

David Sedaris comes through town about once a year so every time I see him I feel more comfortable giving an opinion on his jacket/culottes combination. I’m currently trying to convince myself that I can keep my cool in front of Hanif Abdurraqib (whom I love) when he’s in town for the music festival Big Ears at the end of March. We are selling books for the literary portion which includes him, Kim Gordon, Saul Williams, Nikki Giovanni, and Patti Smith. Everyone is very excited and overwhelmed!

What are some misconceptions people have about working in a bookstore?

I think people sometimes assume that working in a bookstore is just a hobby. Or that we sit around reading books all day. In reality, a bookstore is a business that has to be run and I’m usually flying around trying to find a computer that isn’t being used so I can throw something on a backlist, finalize a frontlist order, or check in the shipment from UPS.

What is your least favorite bookstore task? Favorite part about working in a bookstore?

I do a lot of the buying and it is so fun trying to guess what is going to sell. I really love finding off-beat publishers or translated fiction to bring in and it’s always a joy when someone takes a chance on something they haven’t heard of before. I also love when a bookish kid comes in that has read everything, it’s such a challenge to find the perfect book for kids that are voracious and it is so satisfying when you do.

Can you recommend an underrated readalike book for one of the store’s top titles?

Anytime anyone picks up one of the regency romances that are so popular right now I always want to shove Georgette Heyer into their hands. They are not steamy, but more than make up for it with witty dialogue and spectacularly sarcastic (and always grey-eyed) love interests. I always warn that they are of their time (mid 20th century) and she’s managed to completely ruin a few absolutely delightful books with her period-typical ignorance. My favorite is FREDERICA: truly well-written children, an older and incredibly grumpy Earl who is always ready with a zinger, and a heroine who blithely ignores everyone and does exactly what she wants. Oh, and there’s a hot air balloon accident. What more could you want?

Chelsea Bauer is Buyer and a bookseller at Union Ave. Books in Knoxville, Tennessee.

An interview with Sarah Arnold of Parnassus Books

What’s your favorite area of the bookstore?

Wherever our shop dogs happen to be at any given moment! We have 5 shop dogs: Sparky, Opie, Lavinia, Marlee, and Barnabus, plus a new shop-dog-in-training, Roxy. I can’t imagine the bookstore without them!

What’s the coolest book cover that you like to have facing out on the shelves?

Destiny Birdsong’s Nobody’s Magic has a gorgeous cover. I feel myself drawn to it every time I see it. Bookseller Ben beat me to picking it as a staff rec, but you can read what he said about it on Musing, our online literary magazine.

If you had a staff pick for a recent new release, what would it be? Backlist pick?

I LOVED The Verifiers by Jane Pek! It’s both a twisting locked-room mystery and an insightful social commentary on the complexities of our data-driven world. I was completely captivated.

I have so many backlist favorites, but one of the books I like to handsell most is Jane, Unlimited by Kristin Cashore. It’s a bizarre, unpredictable read, full of magical realism and explorations of parallel realities. The first part of the book brings Jane to a seemingly unimportant decision, and the five stories that follow detail what would happen if she picked each of the five available options. It’s weird and wonderful, and I’ve never read anything else like it.

Do you have a strange customer story?

Truly so many. Interacting with the public inevitably results in some odd situations. I once had a customer ask me for a nonfiction book about dragons. I asked if she meant a book about mythology and the history of dragon lore. When she said no, I asked if perhaps a book Komodo dragons or lizards was what she was after, but that wasn’t it either. My last-ditch attempt was a couple of guide books to the dragons that appear in fictional series, like Eragon and Harry Potter. She said, “No, real dragons.” I had to give up at that point.

What author have you been starstruck to meet, or have you gotten to host a fun virtual event?

Dolly Parton, without a doubt. She and James Patterson shot a segment about their new book, Run, Rose, Run, for CBS Sunday Morning at Parnassus, and she was absolutely wonderful. Hilarious, kind, charming, everything you’d want her to be and more.

What are some misconceptions people have about working in a bookstore?

Believe it or not, we don’t get to read all day! There’s a lot that goes into working at a bookstore that folks might not realize. From helping customers on the floor, to stocking inventory, to creating social media content, to scheduling events, our staff in the front of the store and in the back office are always busy making sure that our customers have the best experience possible.

What is your least favorite bookstore task? Favorite part about working in a bookstore?

My least favorite task is probably doing inventory. Counting all of those books takes a LONG time. Luckily, we only have to do it once a year! My favorite part is being surrounded by book people all day. Everyone on staff has a unique reading taste, and I love hearing their thoughts on what they’re reading. Our customers are so interesting, and I end up learning just as much from them as I do from my own reading.

Can you recommend an underrated readalike book for one of the store’s top titles?

Ann Patchett co-owns Parnassus, so many of our top titles tend to be hers. A great readalike for Ann’s The Patron Saint of Liars is Agatha of Little Neon by Claire Luchette. Who doesn’t love a good story about nuns?

Sarah Arnold is the Marketing and Communications Manager at Parnassus Books in Nashville.

audience and readers

Tips for building your author community

When writing a book and getting it out into the world, authors are often most focused on finding their audience and readers — rightfully so! But it’s quite important to also find your author community who can provide you with support throughout your incredible journey — and who you, too, can support!

Writing can be isolating work, and authors often find themselves without a community. If you are looking to establish yourself and build relationships with other authors, here are some tips!

Look at commonly used author hashtags on social media to find fellow writers.

Be sure to try looking at #authorsofinstagram #writersofinstagram or #authorsofbooktok #writersofbooktok on TikTok, etc. Check out some videos and see if there are any authors that have similar genres or personalities as you — they might just become your new friend!

Join debut groups.

These groups are great for new authors! You can find them on social media or simply by searching #2022debuts and similar hashtags depending on your pub date! If you are someone who published during the pandemic, it might help to go through #2020debuts to see what that experience was like for other first-time authors.

Connect with authors you admire.

The writers that you connect with don’t always have to be on the same publishing journey as you. Maybe you connect with someone who’s far more established, or maybe they knocked their debut out of the park and you’d love to know how. It never hurts to drop a line to the authors you’re reading that you’ve thoroughly enjoyed, and seeing if they might want to mentor you. At the least, they’ll be flattered you thought of them!

Go to local author events.

Be sure to check out your local indie bookstores and the events they have going on. It’s a great place to meet fellow readers, writers, and of course, the author being featured! Get there a bit early, chat up the people in line to get their book signed — you never know who you might meet.

Attend writer’s workshops.

Just as important as being at a book expo is attending writer’s workshops. While the focus is always your craft, brand, and of course, your writing, everyone else in attendance is looking at theirs. It’s great to connect with and empathize with one another. While you workshop your writing, you’ll be able to learn from the other brilliant writers who have gathered there — and they might just learn something from you!

Follow our Lit Happens blog for more ideas on connecting with other writers and building your author community!

An interview with E. Jean from Enda’s BOOKtique

1. What’s your favorite area of your bookstore?

I have a small store… each section of the store has a personality of me and my customers.

2. What’s the coolest book cover that you like to have facing out on the shelves?

Most Urban Novels / Romance books tend to have the best covers.

3. If you had a staff pick for a recent new release, what would it be?

Just Pursuit: A Black Prosecutor’s Fight for Fairness by Laura Coates (January 18, 2022)

4. What are some misconceptions people have about working in a bookstore?

A misconception people might have about working in a bookstore is that it is boring and mundane, which I believe is the total opposite.

5. What is your favorite part about working in a bookstore?

My favorite part about working in a bookstore is supporting independent authors (hosting events for independent authors).

6. Can you recommend one of the store’s top titles?

Any of Nic Stone’s books are top titles.

Celebrate Black Love with authors J. Elle, Nicola Yoon, Elise Bryant, Alechia Dow and Kalynn Bayron

This Black History Month, celebrate Black Love with powerhouse authors J. Elle, Nicola Yoon, Elise Bryant, Kalynn Bayron, and Alechia Dow in an event hosted by independent booksellers nationwide. (Love your local indie and support them!)

Black heroines shouldn’t exist solely on the pages of stories to fight racism. These bestselling and award-winning authors will discuss what Black Love means to them, why love is so transformative, and why it is important to center love in their stories.

Wednesday, February 2 at 8PM EST / 7PM CST / 6PM MST / 5PM PST

Select attendees will win an exclusive #BlackLove sticker! Enter to receive one here.

PANELISTS INCLUDE:

J.Elle, NAACP Image Award Nominee and New York Times bestselling author of the Wings of Ebony duology, including the masterful finale Ashes of Gold.

Kalynn Bayron, bestselling author of Cinderella is Dead and This Poison Heart, and her anticipated summer release This Wicked Fate.

Alechia Dow, author of The Sound of Stars and the Indie Next Kids Pick winning The Kindred.

Elise Bryant, bestselling author of Happily Ever Afters and the Indie Next Kids Pick winning One True Loves.

Nicola Yoon, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Instructions for Dancing, Everything, Everything, The Sun Is Also a Star, and co-publisher of Joy Revolution, a Random House young adult imprint dedicated to love stories starring people of color.

Interview with Leah Koch from The Ripped Bodice

1. What’s your favorite area of your bookstore?

Definitely the front window. I love designing our window displays, it has become such an area of pride for me and a place to express my creativity. 

2. What’s the coolest book cover that you like to have facing out on the shelves?

This is a great question I don’t think I’ve ever gotten before, and I took a stroll around the store to see what jumped out at me. 

Once Ghosted, Twice Shy by Alyssa Cole is one of my favorites because the models are a real life couple and that’s such a fun tidbit to tell people

The penguin drop caps version of Pride and Prejudice is another, really any of the beautiful collectors editions of Austen.

3. If you had a staff pick for a recent new release, what would it be? Backlist pick?

New release would be The Roughest Draft by Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka. They are a married couple who write together and fun fact … they got engaged at our store! The book is very meta in that it is also about writing partners but they haven’t figured out the romance part yet like Emily and Austin have.

Backlist, I’ll go with An Extraordinary Union by Alyssa Cole which is such an extraordinary (heh) example of what a historical romance novel can achieve.

4. Do you have a strange customer story?

How much time do you have!? People are weird! Guy who wanted us to display his collection of ceramic frogs is definitely a favorite. Not sell them, just display them so people could look at them!

5. What author have you been starstruck to meet, or have you gotten to host a fun virtual event?

I was very starstruck by Deborah Harkness! She is also a professor and makes you just want to impress her so she gives you a good grade!

6. What are some misconceptions people have about working in a bookstore?

That it’s all cutesy and twee and basically one long scene from You’ve Got Mail when it’s much more unpacking boxes and managing inventory and emailing with vendors.

Or, if you’ve watched You, that you’re a serial killer and storing victims in the stock room. 

Also that you have a lot of time to read. We have less time to read!

7. What is your least favorite bookstore task? Favorite part about working in a bookstore?

Least favorite is probably cleaning the bathroom? People like some pretty weird stuff in there (dentures for example).

My favorite part is getting to know people in the neighborhood and literally seeing their lives change and grow. Seeing babies grow up, the excitement of a new dog, hearing about a promising date and then meeting a new partner if the date goes well. It’s so fun to be a part of people’s lives.

Leah Koch is a co-owner of The Ripped Bodice in Culver City, California.

Interview with Kate Czyzewski from Thunder Road Books

1. What’s your favorite area of your bookstore?

My favorite area of the bookstore has to be our children’s section. Though it heavily competes with our movable wooden ladder (so cool!). Nothing makes me happier than when the young children come bursting through the door and run straight back to grab a book they’ve been itching to read. We also have a daily activity table that mirrors our weekly storytime theme. Kids know it is a space just for them and a space where they can be creative. It’s a great feeling to see how much time our families spend there together.

2. What’s the coolest book cover that you like to have facing out on the shelves?

At Thunder Road Books, it’s been important to us to curate books that you may not see in the mainstream everyday. Right now, I love seeing Immortal Axes, Guitars That Rock by Lisa S. Johnson. Our theme is “flicks, books and rock and roll.” Also, during opening weekend, we had a customer special order Booze and Vinyl with us. Now, it’s a staple gift item for the store.  Seeing books that speak so much to the creative vision behind music and art is both aesthetically pleasing and also deep in history!

3. If you had a staff pick for a recent new release, what would it be? Backlist pick?

New release: I can not recommend Mouth to Mouth by Antoine Wilson enough! Jeff Cook, now an art dealer, runs into a former UCLA classmate at the airport. When their flight is delayed, the two decide to grab drinks and catch up. What starts out as a casual, “What have you been up to since college?” quickly becomes Jeff divulging how a life-changing moment altered his path to this day. Jeff, while at the beach one afternoon, comes to the rescue of a drowning man. Unbeknownst to him, the man he saves is Francis Arsenault, world renowned art dealer and begins to insert himself in the life of the art dealer. Obsession, psychological suspense- this one packed a punch!

Backlist pick: There are so many incredible backlist picks I’d love to share with you, but I’d like to share with you a New Jersey author, Julie Maloney, and her book A Matter of Chance. Julie Maloney’s talent lies not only in her development of suspense and engagement, but in her character development. Here is a novel whose secondary characters drew me in just as much as the protagonist. I also loved all the NJ references! Us Jersey gals stick together! Julie’s author event led me to meet Thunder Road Books’ owner, Basil Iwanyk and now I manage the store. I love how much the book community connects with one another!

4. Do you have a strange customer story? 

Oh yes, that I do!  We were awarded the privilege of selling Sir Paul McCartney’s Lyrics book, the exclusive signed and numbered edition. Our store chose to hold an auction and proceeds were donated to our local fire company. In our planning stage for the auction, we had a customer who called, asking for the manager pretty much daily for almost 2 months straight about this book. The mistake we made was telling him who the manager was because that was it. Voicemails and phone calls each day. At one point,  he felt he was so deserving of the book, he shared with us the “visions” he had that Sir Paul McCartney himself felt this book should be his. He gave us quite the entertainment (and at times, frustration) that can be associated with being a retail store!

5. What author have you been starstruck to meet, or have you gotten to host a fun virtual event? 

I have been a long time fan of Fiona Davis. She’s an auto-buy author for me and her works of historical fiction are superb in their research and execution.  I had the pleasure of meeting her in person when she was touring for The Chelsea Girls and again when she toured for The Lions of Fifth Avenue. For her newest release, The Magnolia Palace, Thunder Road Books will be hosting her in February at the Spring Lake Theatre.  We were looking for an author to be her panelist, but some plans changed. I am so honored to be jumping in as her panelist for the evening. To say this is a full circle moment and a dream come true is an understatement. I do not take any of our connections to authors for granted. To be in conversation with an author I have long admired and be able to share the joy of her stories with our readers is something I will forever cherish.

6. What are some misconceptions people have about working in a bookstore?

I love this question! So many of my non reader friends say to me all the time, “It must be nice to sit at work and read all day.” Well, I wish that were the case! Actually, I’ve read less this year since I started working at the bookstore. It brings such joy to be here each day, but it’s also working with our owner, Basil, in running the day to day business. A business has jobs that need to be done, phone calls, invoices, website content, social media tasks, booking events, running to the bank for change!  In order to bring our readers the best titles and recommendations, that takes time, curation and proper ordering. We are still learning as both Basil and I were not booksellers in our previous career paths. He still runs the successful Thunder Road Films and I was a special education teacher for some years. Bookselling has been a learning curve for us and we are continuing to soak up all the advice from fellow booksellers!

7. What is your least favorite bookstore task? Favorite part about working in a bookstore?

Oh my gosh, the BOXES! Getting deliveries is great because you get to see what’s coming out to share with readers, however, during our holiday rush, we carried countless boxes down the street and up the stairs to our office/storage space. I definitely get a physical workout working here. Who would have thought? My favorite part of working at the bookstore is our customers and community. Nothing makes me happier than when a customer comes in and says I absolutely loved that book that you and/or your staff recommended to me. It’s great to be reading along with our community. Now, instead of talking my husband’s ear off about what I’m reading, I have people who want to chat about that everyday! I also love our weekly storytime readings. Reading to children is where my heart will always be. Starting their reading habits at a young age is the greatest gift an adult can give.

8. Can you recommend an underrated readalike book for one of the store’s top titles? 

One of the most incredible books of 2021 was Chris Whitaker’s We Begin at the End. THIS BOOK. Part drama, part mystery, part family saga. This book took my heart and then broke it and then put it back together again. When friends have asked me to describe my “go-to” book genre, I usually say books that leave me a mess and need to put me back together.  We Begin at the End is one that will stay with me for a long time. I felt that way about Wiley Cash’s This Dark Road to Mercy. Released in 2014, it was one of my book club’s first picks and we still talk about it to this day. The story of two sisters whose mother passed away and the girls end up in the care of a court appointed legal guardian. The story is narrated from the girls’ perspective, the guardian, and the father that signed away his parental rights. A vendetta surfaces as more information about the father’s past is uncovered. This one left me in awe and needs to be read more!

Katherine Czyzewski is a store manager and bookseller at Thunder Roads Books in Spring Lake, NJ.

Tips for building mood boards and create brand aesthetics

A big part of author branding is making sure your personal social media and blogging efforts follow a particular theme, or have a certain aesthetic that associates your book with something that readers will notice and in turn, associate with you!

As a blogger myself, my aesthetic has often been described as colorful and coffee-obsessed. I almost always include a coffee mug and some sort of hot beverage in my photos, and I allow my photos to be bright, often including plants and greenery. I’ve had so many readers send me coffee-related posts and gifs from other bloggers, which warms my heart, knowing that they have gleaned something about me and thought of me in context with something I love.

Below, you’ll find tips and tricks for creating your own aesthetic, and opportunities to work on your brand!

Express Yourself

This sounds like it should be obvious, but I have a lot of authors that ask about sharing too much of their personality on social media, wondering if their platform should be book-specific. To that I say, sort of. Of course, we want the book to be present, you are an author! But if there are other things you enjoy, hobbies, professions, etc. – post those things too! They make you unique, and they might attract non-traditional readers who connect with something other than books, and that can open you up to a completely different audience! Don’t be afraid to show YOU without the pen in hand!

Be Consistent

Consistency is KEY, especially in a visual sense. It’s important for readers to see recurring patterns in your posts. For me, it’s the greenery. When friends come over, they always remark that they’ve seen my plants in all of my photos, and are often so excited to see “where the magic happens”. I’ve had friends gift me plants because they know that’s something I really enjoy from how often they appear in my photos. You want your readers to get to know you in that way, and also to create that association for them, so that when they see something that reminds them of you, they are reminded of your books and have the desire to continue reading throughout your career!

Add in a Pop of Color

One of the easiest and most essential pieces of author branding comes down to color, and ensuring that you are using the same colors across your multiple platforms. It comes back to the idea of consistency, but it can be helpful when readers are seeing you in different places that they have an association with! Select colors that resonate with you or are featured on your book cover, and be sure to use those same shades and colors for your website and social media alike!

Presets

In the world of Instagram, presets are quite popular. Presets are essentially filters that you can add to each and every photo you take to ensure that they have a similar aesthetic and appear related and consistent. This can be a simple way to ensure your photos are consistent and appear clean to viewers. The only downside to presets is that you often have to pay for them. They aren’t entirely too expensive, but it is something to consider!

Have Fun

None of this matters if you can’t have a bit of fun with it! Social media and branding, while a great way to connect with your audience, are still personal platforms where you are meant to be yourself. If your creative outlet looks different, allow for it to look different! You know yourself and your brand better than anyone! Don’t be afraid to try something outside of the box, especially if that means you’re going to find enjoyment!

Audiobooks to listen to when driving home for the holidays

It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Or maybe not, depending on what your holiday season looks like. 

For us bookworms, it can be a LOT of stimulation, and not enough time reading! If you’re like me, you recharge alone, meaning that reading time is pretty essential to your ability to fully function with your family. 

It’s also hard to get that quality reading time when you’re driving to and from different houses… or is it? With audiobooks, you can get that quality reading while you commute, or even slip an earbud behind your ear and cover it with your hair during family dinner — hey, I won’t judge!

Regardless of your situation, here are some audiobook recommendations to help you relax and recharge this holiday season!

Call Us What We Carry by Amanda Gorman

Narrated by the queen herself, this profound poetry is bound to entertain as you go from point A to point B!

Formerly titled The Hill We Climb and Other Poems, the luminous poetry collection by #1 New York Times bestselling author and presidential inaugural poet Amanda Gorman captures a shipwrecked moment in time and transforms it into a lyric of hope and healing. In Call Us What We Carry, Gorman explores history, language, identity, and erasure through an imaginative and intimate collage. Harnessing the collective grief of a global pandemic, this beautifully designed volume features poems in many inventive styles and structures and shines a light on a moment of reckoning. Call Us What We Carry reveals that Gorman has become our messenger from the past, our voice for the future.

Follow Amanda on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

These Precious Days by Ann Patchett

This one is also narrated by the author, and an author we know and love! Ann’s newest collection is a stunning exploration of self, and the world around us. 

“Any story that starts will also end.” As a writer, Ann Patchett knows what the outcome of her fiction will be. Life, however, often takes turns we do not see coming. Patchett ponders this truth in these wise essays that afford a fresh and intimate look into her mind and heart.

At the center of These Precious Days is the title essay, a surprising and moving meditation on an unexpected friendship that explores “what it means to be seen, to find someone with whom you can be your best and most complete self.” When Patchett chose an early galley of actor and producer Tom Hanks’ short story collection to read one night before bed, she had no idea that this single choice would be life changing. It would introduce her to a remarkable woman—Tom’s brilliant assistant Sooki—with whom she would form a profound bond that held monumental consequences for them both.

A literary alchemist, Patchett plumbs the depths of her experiences to create gold: engaging and moving pieces that are both self-portrait and landscape, each vibrant with emotion and rich in insight. Turning her writer’s eye on her own experiences, she transforms the private into the universal, providing us all a way to look at our own worlds anew, and reminds how fleeting and enigmatic life can be.

From the enchantments of Kate DiCamillo’s children’s books (author of the upcoming The Beatryce Prophecy) to youthful memories of Paris; the cherished life gifts given by her three fathers to the unexpected influence of Charles Schultz’s Snoopy; the expansive vision of Eudora Welty to the importance of knitting, Patchett connects life and art as she illuminates what matters most. Infused with the author’s grace, wit, and warmth, the pieces in These Precious Days resonate deep in the soul, leaving an indelible mark—and demonstrate why Ann Patchett is one of the most celebrated writers of our time.

Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley

A great audiobook for you and your YA readers in the family! One of the top reads of 2021, and for a good reason!

For fans of Angie Thomas and Tommy Orange, Angeline Boulley’s debut novel, Firekeeper’s Daughter, is a groundbreaking YA thriller about a Native teen who must root out the corruption in her community.

Eighteen-year-old Daunis Fontaine has never quite fit in, both in her hometown and on the nearby Ojibwe reservation. She dreams of a fresh start at college, but when family tragedy strikes, Daunis puts her future on hold to look after her fragile mother. The only bright spot is meeting Jamie, the charming new recruit on her brother Levi’s hockey team.

Yet even as Daunis falls for Jamie, she senses the dashing hockey star is hiding something. Everything comes to light when Daunis witnesses a shocking murder, thrusting her into an FBI investigation of a lethal new drug.

Reluctantly, Daunis agrees to go undercover, drawing on her knowledge of chemistry and Ojibwe traditional medicine to track down the source. But the search for truth is more complicated than Daunis imagined, exposing secrets and old scars. At the same time, she grows concerned with an investigation that seems more focused on punishing the offenders than protecting the victims.

Now, as the deceptions—and deaths—keep growing, Daunis must learn what it means to be a strong Anishinaabe kwe (Ojibwe woman) and how far she’ll go for her community, even if it tears apart the only world she’s ever known.

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Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult

This is one of my favorite books of the year! Jodi Picoult explores the pandemic in a way that shocks readers and educates us on a particular part of the pandemic that we as readers have not otherwise experienced in literature. 

Diana O’Toole is perfectly on track. She will be married by thirty, done having kids by thirty-five, and move out to the New York City suburbs, all while climbing the professional ladder in the cutthroat art auction world. She’s an associate specialist at Sotheby’s now, but her boss has hinted at a promotion if she can close a deal with a high-profile client. She’s not engaged just yet, but she knows her boyfriend, Finn, a surgical resident, is about to propose on their romantic getaway to the Galápagos—days before her thirtieth birthday. Right on time.

But then a virus that felt worlds away has appeared in the city, and on the eve of their departure, Finn breaks the news: It’s all hands on deck at the hospital. He has to stay behind. You should still go, he assures her, since it would be a shame for all of their nonrefundable trip to go to waste. And so, reluctantly, she goes.

Almost immediately, Diana’s dream vacation goes awry. Her luggage is lost, the Wi-Fi is nearly nonexistent, and the hotel they’d booked is shut down due to the pandemic. In fact, the whole island is now under quarantine, and she is stranded until the borders reopen. Completely isolated, she must venture beyond her comfort zone. Slowly, she carves out a connection with a local family when a teenager with a secret opens up to Diana, despite her father’s suspicion of outsiders.

In the Galápagos Islands, where Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection was formed, Diana finds herself examining her relationships, her choices, and herself—and wondering if when she goes home, she too will have evolved into someone completely different.

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Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead 

I mean, it’s Colson Whitehead, do I really need to say more? There’s no doubt you’ll be entertained by this immaculate writer!

“Ray Carney was only slightly bent when it came to being crooked…” To his customers and neighbors on 125th street, Carney is an upstanding salesman of reasonably priced furniture, making a decent life for himself and his family. He and his wife Elizabeth are expecting their second child, and if her parents on Striver’s Row don’t approve of him or their cramped apartment across from the subway tracks, it’s still home.

Few people know he descends from a line of uptown hoods and crooks, and that his façade of normalcy has more than a few cracks in it. Cracks that are getting bigger all the time.

Cash is tight, especially with all those installment-plan sofas, so if his cousin Freddie occasionally drops off the odd ring or necklace, Ray doesn’t ask where it comes from. He knows a discreet jeweler downtown who doesn’t ask questions, either.

Then Freddie falls in with a crew who plan to rob the Hotel Theresa—the “Waldorf of Harlem”—and volunteers Ray’s services as the fence. The heist doesn’t go as planned; they rarely do. Now Ray has a new clientele, one made up of shady cops, vicious local gangsters, two-bit pornographers, and other assorted Harlem lowlifes.

Thus begins the internal tussle between Ray the striver and Ray the crook. As Ray navigates this double life, he begins to see who actually pulls the strings in Harlem. Can Ray avoid getting killed, save his cousin, and grab his share of the big score, all while maintaining his reputation as the go-to source for all your quality home furniture needs?

Harlem Shuffle’s ingenious story plays out in a beautifully recreated New York City of the early 1960s. It’s a family saga masquerading as a crime novel, a hilarious morality play, a social novel about race and power, and ultimately a love letter to Harlem. But mostly, it’s a joy to read, another dazzling novel from the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award-winning Colson Whitehead.

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Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan

This novella is the perfect read for a shorter car ride, and one that is bound to give you ALL. THE. FEELS! 

It is 1985 in a small Irish town. During the weeks leading up to Christmas, Bill Furlong, a coal merchant and family man, faces into his busiest season. Early one morning, while delivering an order to the local convent, Bill makes a discovery which forces him to confront both his past and the complicit silences of a town controlled by the church. Already an international bestseller, Small Things Like These is a deeply affecting story of hope, quiet heroism, and empathy from one of our most critically lauded and iconic writers.

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The Holiday Swap by Maggie Knox

If you’re looking for a HOLIDAY specific read, this is the one for you! Especially if you loved the movie The Holiday!

When chef Charlie Goodwin gets hit on the head on the L.A. set of her reality baking show, she loses a lot more than consciousness; she also loses her ability to taste and smell—both critical to her success as show judge. Meanwhile, Charlie’s identical twin, Cass, is frantically trying to hold her own life together back in their quaint mountain hometown while running the family’s bustling bakery and dealing with her ex, who won’t get the memo that they’re over.

With only days until Christmas, a desperate Charlie asks Cass to do something they haven’t done since they were kids: switch places. Looking for her own escape from reality, Cass agrees. But temporarily trading lives proves more complicated than they imagined, especially when rugged firefighter Jake Greenman and gorgeous physician assistant Miguel Rodriguez are thrown into the mix. Will the twins’ identity swap be a recipe for disaster, or does it have all the right ingredients for getting their lives back on track?

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Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty 

If family drama is your thing (and not particularly your own!), this is the book to give you all of the dysfunctional family vibes. 

If your mother was missing, would you tell the police? Even if the most obvious suspect was your father? This is the dilemma facing the four grown Delaney siblings.

The Delaneys are fixtures in their community. The parents, Stan and Joy, are the envy of all of their friends. They’re killers on the tennis court, and off it their chemistry is palpable. But after fifty years of marriage, they’ve finally sold their famed tennis academy and are ready to start what should be the golden years of their lives. So why are Stan and Joy so miserable?

The four Delaney children—Amy, Logan, Troy, and Brooke—were tennis stars in their own right, yet as their father will tell you, none of them had what it took to go all the way. But that’s okay, now that they’re all successful grown-ups and there is the wonderful possibility of grandchildren on the horizon.

One night a stranger named Savannah knocks on Stan and Joy’s door, bleeding after a fight with her boyfriend. The Delaneys are more than happy to give her the small kindness she sorely needs. If only that was all she wanted.

Later, when Joy goes missing, and Savannah is nowhere to be found, the police question the one person who remains: Stan. But for someone who claims to be innocent, he, like many spouses, seems to have a lot to hide. Two of the Delaney children think their father is innocent, two are not so sure—but as the two sides square off against each other in perhaps their biggest match ever, all of the Delaneys will start to reexamine their shared family history in a very new light.

Will by Will Smith

This beloved actor gives us his life story, and it’s one of resilience. Whoever is riding in the car with you will be glad you brought Will on the road!

Will Smith’s transformation from a fearful child in a tense West Philadelphia home to one of the biggest rap stars of his era and then one of the biggest movie stars in Hollywood history, with a string of box office successes that will likely never be broken, is an epic tale of inner transformation and outer triumph, and Will tells it astonishingly well. But it’s only half the story. 

Will Smith thought, with good reason, that he had won at life: not only was his own success unparalleled, his whole family was at the pinnacle of the entertainment world. Only they didn’t see it that way: they felt more like star performers in his circus, a seven-days-a-week job they hadn’t signed up for. It turned out Will Smith’s education wasn’t nearly over. 

This memoir is the product of a profound journey of self-knowledge, a reckoning with all that your will can get you and all that it can leave behind. Written with the help of Mark Manson, author of the multi-million-copy bestseller The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, Will is the story of how one person mastered his own emotions, written in a way that can help everyone else do the same. Few of us will know the pressure of performing on the world’s biggest stages for the highest of stakes, but we can all understand that the fuel that works for one stage of our journey might have to be changed if we want to make it all the way home. The combination of genuine wisdom of universal value and a life story that is preposterously entertaining, even astonishing, puts Will the book, like its author, in a category by itself.

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