
The Book Pile
A podcast where comedians tell you about books so you never have to read! (Now including fiction!) Kellen does standup; Dave writes ads; together they highlight lessons from the world’s best books--and some of the worst. New episode every Monday!
Latest episodes

Aug 15, 2022 • 23min
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
If you like murder mysteries AND Costco, then you will love these 10 murders for the price of one. Today we cover Agatha Christie at her best. Plus, Kellen hates a snack mentioned in this book and Dave makes fun of Thomas Jefferson (too soon?).*To buy the book, And Then There Were None, or listen to it free on Audible AND support the podcast, click here!https://amzn.to/3rU824k*TheBookPilePodcast@gmail.com*Kellen Erskine has appeared on Conan, Comedy Central, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, NBC's America's Got Talent, and the Amazon Original Series Inside Jokes. He has garnered over 50 million views with his clips on Dry Bar Comedy. In 2018 he was selected to perform on the “New Faces” showcase at the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal, Quebec. Kellen was named one of TBS's Top Ten Comics to Watch in 2017. He currently tours the country www.KellenErskine.com*David Vance's videos have garnered over 1 billion views. He has written viral ads for companies like Squatty Potty, Chatbooks, and Lumē, and sketches for the comedy show Studio C. His work has received two Webby Awards, and appeared on Conan. He currently works as a writer on the sitcom Freelancers.

Aug 8, 2022 • 23min
The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
If you are someone who thinks following dreams is bad, prepare to spit out your drink. The Alchemist is a book about following your own personal legend. It’s based on the alchemists of old who successfully turned lead into nerve damage. Plus, Dave apologizes for being a cynic and Kellen showboats by speaking 2 seconds of Portuguese.*To buy the book, The Alchemist, or listen to it free on Audible AND support the podcast, click here!https://amzn.to/3OBlvXp*TheBookPilePodcast@gmail.com*Kellen Erskine has appeared on Conan, Comedy Central, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, NBC's America's Got Talent, and the Amazon Original Series Inside Jokes. He has garnered over 50 million views with his clips on Dry Bar Comedy. In 2018 he was selected to perform on the “New Faces” showcase at the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal, Quebec. Kellen was named one of TBS's Top Ten Comics to Watch in 2017. He currently tours the country www.KellenErskine.com*David Vance's videos have garnered over 1 billion views. He has written viral ads for companies like Squatty Potty, Chatbooks, and Lumē, and sketches for the comedy show Studio C. His work has received two Webby Awards, and appeared on Conan. He currently works as a writer on the sitcom Freelancers.

Aug 1, 2022 • 25min
Doing Good Better by William MacAskill
Want to do as much good in the world as possible, but you don’t have a comedy podcast? Today’s book is about how to use data to make the biggest positive impact on the world. Plus, Dave wants you to know his net worth in Jet Skis and Kellen goes hard after the pogo sticking crowd.*To buy the book, Doing Good Better, or listen to it free on Audible AND support the podcast, click here!https://amzn.to/3q8OMzt*TheBookPilePodcast@gmail.com*Kellen Erskine has appeared on Conan, Comedy Central, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, NBC's America's Got Talent, and the Amazon Original Series Inside Jokes. He has garnered over 50 million views with his clips on Dry Bar Comedy. In 2018 he was selected to perform on the “New Faces” showcase at the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal, Quebec. Kellen was named one of TBS's Top Ten Comics to Watch in 2017. He currently tours the country www.KellenErskine.com*David Vance's videos have garnered over 1 billion views. He has written viral ads for companies like Squatty Potty, Chatbooks, and Lumē, and sketches for the comedy show Studio C. His work has received two Webby Awards, and appeared on Conan. He currently works as a writer on the sitcom Freelancers.

Jul 25, 2022 • 23min
Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein
There are two ways to make it as a children’s author: tell kids the world is magical (Rowling, E.B. White), or tell kids the world is horrifying (Roald Dahl, The Brothers Grimm). Shel Silverstein tells kids the world is both magical and horrifying. Plus, Kellen wants people to stop copying Picasso and Dave gets philosophical about chaos.*To buy the book, Where the Sidewalk Ends, or listen to it free on Audible AND support the podcast, click here!https://amzn.to/43Ky2fr*TheBookPilePodcast@gmail.com*Kellen Erskine has appeared on Conan, Comedy Central, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, NBC's America's Got Talent, and the Amazon Original Series Inside Jokes. He has garnered over 50 million views with his clips on Dry Bar Comedy. In 2018 he was selected to perform on the “New Faces” showcase at the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal, Quebec. Kellen was named one of TBS's Top Ten Comics to Watch in 2017. He currently tours the country www.KellenErskine.com*David Vance's videos have garnered over 1 billion views. He has written viral ads for companies like Squatty Potty, Chatbooks, and Lumē, and sketches for the comedy show Studio C. His work has received two Webby Awards, and appeared on Conan. He currently works as a writer on the sitcom Freelancers.

Jul 18, 2022 • 23min
Decisive by Chip Heath and Dan Heath
As humans, we all sometimes struggle with bad decision-making: confirmation bias; overconfidence; marrying and settling down in the suburbs with a spouse and family and corporate job and the white picket fence and slowly wondering over 40 years… “Is this it? Is this all there is?” Well in today’s book, Chip Heath and Dan Heath help you make better choices! Plus, Dave has some advice for literary heroines deciding to get married in their teens, and Kellen finds a new definition for the word “boomer."*To buy the book, Decisive, or listen to it free on Audible AND support the podcast, click here!https://amzn.to/47bNwfo*TheBookPilePodcast@gmail.com*Kellen Erskine has appeared on Conan, Comedy Central, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, NBC's America's Got Talent, and the Amazon Original Series Inside Jokes. He has garnered over 50 million views with his clips on Dry Bar Comedy. In 2018 he was selected to perform on the “New Faces” showcase at the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal, Quebec. Kellen was named one of TBS's Top Ten Comics to Watch in 2017. He currently tours the country www.KellenErskine.com*David Vance's videos have garnered over 1 billion views. He has written viral ads for companies like Squatty Potty, Chatbooks, and Lumē, and sketches for the comedy show Studio C. His work has received two Webby Awards, and appeared on Conan. He currently works as a writer on the sitcom Freelancers.

Jul 11, 2022 • 27min
The Shining by Stephen King
Listen, I bet Stephen King saved a lot of money on family trips once he convinced his kids that hotels are incredibly horrifying. (Like how he wrote Cujo to avoid buying them a dog.) Today we review the horror classic The Shining. Also, Kellen discusses this book with his years of boiler-repair experience and Dave owes his brother Josh an apology.*To buy the book, The Shining, or listen to it free on Audible AND support the podcast, click here!https://amzn.to/3rT87oR*TheBookPilePodcast@gmail.com*Kellen Erskine has appeared on Conan, Comedy Central, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, NBC's America's Got Talent, and the Amazon Original Series Inside Jokes. He has garnered over 50 million views with his clips on Dry Bar Comedy. In 2018 he was selected to perform on the “New Faces” showcase at the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal, Quebec. Kellen was named one of TBS's Top Ten Comics to Watch in 2017. He currently tours the country www.KellenErskine.com*David Vance's videos have garnered over 1 billion views. He has written viral ads for companies like Squatty Potty, Chatbooks, and Lumē, and sketches for the comedy show Studio C. His work has received two Webby Awards, and appeared on Conan. He currently works as a writer on the sitcom Freelancers.

Jul 4, 2022 • 29min
The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien
You know those guys who wear wedding rings made out of rubber so they don’t accidentally get a fracture? I can’t help thinking if Frodo wore one of those he would still have all his fingers. Today’s book concludes the epic Lord of the Rings saga. (It also concludes our running joke of never actually finishing a book series.) Plus, Dave thinks the ring would reveal troubling things about his personal character, and Kellen probably tells his kids Gollum is alive enjoying a happy life somewhere.*To buy the book, The Return of the King, or listen to it free on Audible AND support the podcast, click here!https://amzn.to/3KkRA3g*TheBookPilePodcast@gmail.com*Kellen Erskine has appeared on Conan, Comedy Central, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, NBC's America's Got Talent, and the Amazon Original Series Inside Jokes. He has garnered over 50 million views with his clips on Dry Bar Comedy. In 2018 he was selected to perform on the “New Faces” showcase at the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal, Quebec. Kellen was named one of TBS's Top Ten Comics to Watch in 2017. He currently tours the country www.KellenErskine.com*David Vance's videos have garnered over 1 billion views. He has written viral ads for companies like Squatty Potty, Chatbooks, and Lumē, and sketches for the comedy show Studio C. His work has received two Webby Awards, and appeared on Conan. He currently works as a writer on the sitcom Freelancers.

Jun 27, 2022 • 22min
Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
Here at The Book Pile, we get a lot of fan mail asking, “Hey, when are you going to do more books about dictators? We, your fans, all love dictators.” Well today you’re in luck! Persepolis is a memoir about life under an oppressive government, for all our hardcore dictator fans (tator-tots, they call themselves). Plus, Dave wishes he had learned history better and Kellen gets called fat by some people in Brazil.*To buy the book, Persepolis, AND support the podcast, click here!https://amzn.to/3Ohd428*TheBookPilePodcast@gmail.com*Kellen Erskine has appeared on Conan, Comedy Central, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, NBC's America's Got Talent, and the Amazon Original Series Inside Jokes. He has garnered over 50 million views with his clips on Dry Bar Comedy. In 2018 he was selected to perform on the “New Faces” showcase at the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal, Quebec. Kellen was named one of TBS's Top Ten Comics to Watch in 2017. He currently tours the country www.KellenErskine.com*David Vance's videos have garnered over 1 billion views. He has written viral ads for companies like Squatty Potty, Chatbooks, and Lumē, and sketches for the comedy show Studio C. His work has received two Webby Awards, and appeared on Conan. He currently works as a writer on the sitcom Freelancers.

Jun 20, 2022 • 28min
Contagious by Jonah Berger
If you have some kind of product you want to spread to the world, check out this podcast, unless your product is Nazis. In Contagious, Jonah Berger gives great tips for improving word-of-mouth. Plus, Kellen name drops the Today Show many times, and Dave has great news about Baby Shark.*To buy the book, Contagious, or listen to it free on Audible AND support the podcast, click here!https://amzn.to/3OA7b1u*TheBookPilePodcast@gmail.com*Kellen Erskine has appeared on Conan, Comedy Central, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, NBC's America's Got Talent, and the Amazon Original Series Inside Jokes. He has garnered over 50 million views with his clips on Dry Bar Comedy. In 2018 he was selected to perform on the “New Faces” showcase at the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal, Quebec. Kellen was named one of TBS's Top Ten Comics to Watch in 2017. He currently tours the country www.KellenErskine.com*David Vance's videos have garnered over 1 billion views. He has written viral ads for companies like Squatty Potty, Chatbooks, and Lumē, and sketches for the comedy show Studio C. His work has received two Webby Awards, and appeared on Conan. He currently works as a writer on the sitcom Freelancers.

Jun 13, 2022 • 42min
LIVE! THE ROAST OF Twilight: Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer
A live podcast! In which we make fun of the 3rd Twilight book! In a mean-spirited way! Come for the laughs, the drama, the sexism, the dull-eyed vapid characters. Stay for all the imprinting. Plus, Kellen tells a personal story about doing comedy in a cave, and Dave wants the fans to know that, like Edward, his lips are also “marble hard."*To buy the book, Eclipse, or listen to it free on Audible AND support the podcast, click here!https://amzn.to/43Jx0jW*TheBookPilePodcast@gmail.com*Kellen Erskine has appeared on Conan, Comedy Central, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, NBC's America's Got Talent, and the Amazon Original Series Inside Jokes. He has garnered over 50 million views with his clips on Dry Bar Comedy. In 2018 he was selected to perform on the “New Faces” showcase at the Just For Laughs Comedy Festival in Montreal, Quebec. Kellen was named one of TBS's Top Ten Comics to Watch in 2017. He currently tours the country www.KellenErskine.com*David Vance's videos have garnered over 1 billion views. He has written viral ads for companies like Squatty Potty, Chatbooks, and Lumē, and sketches for the comedy show Studio C. His work has received two Webby Awards, and appeared on Conan. He currently works as a writer on the sitcom Freelancers.