

Poured Over
Barnes & Noble
Poured Over is a show for readers who pore over details, obsess over sentences and ideas and stories and characters; readers who ask a lot of questions, just like Poured Over’s host, Miwa Messer, a career bookseller who’s always reading. Follow us here for surprising riffs, candid conversations, a few laughs, and lots of great book recommendations from big name authors and authors on their way to being big names. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional bonus episodes on Saturdays).
Episodes
Mentioned books

Mar 6, 2025 • 47min
Karen Thompson Walker on THE STRANGE CASE OF JANE O.
The Strange Case of Jane O. by Karen Thompson Walker is a mesmerizing story about motherhood, memory and complicated family ties based on case notes from Oliver Sacks. Walker joins us to talk about returning to the theme of time in her work, her writing process, her teaching career and more with Miwa Messer, host of Poured Over. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): The Strange Case of Jane O. by Karen Thompson Walker The Dreamers by Karen Thompson Walker The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker Blindness by José Saramago Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro The Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka

Mar 4, 2025 • 56min
Laila Lalami on THE DREAM HOTEL
The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami is an engrossing, dire and dystopian story about authoritarianism, survival and the fight for privacy in a surveillance state. Lalami joins us to talk about the idea that inspired the novel, worldbuilding, creating her characters and more with Miwa Messer, host of Poured Over. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami The Other Americans by Laila Lalami The Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa True History of the Kelly Gang by Peter Carey The Moor’s Account by Laila Lalami

Mar 1, 2025 • 36min
Sarah Jones on DISPOSABLE
Disposable by Sarah Jones is a compassionate examination of the most overlooked people in the United States. Jones joins us to talk about what inspired her to write this book, balancing personal narratives with broader themes, the lasting effects of the pandemic and more with Miwa Messer, host of Poured Over. We end this episode with TBR Top Off book recommendations from Marc and Jamie. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Disposable by Sarah Jones Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich The Fact Checker by Austin Kelley A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin Featured Books (TBR Top Off): Poverty, by America by Matthew Desmond Invisible Child by Andrea Elliott

Feb 27, 2025 • 42min
Sonya Walger on LION
Lion by Sonya Walger is an autobiographical novel detailing the life and loss of her complicated and charismatic father. Walger joins us to talk about writing themes of grief and love, crafting her own experience into fiction, nonlinear storytelling and more with cohost, Jenna Seery. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Jenna Seery and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Lion by Sonya Walger On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy Her First American by Lore Segal Mrs. Dalloway by Virginia Woolf Decline and Fall by Evelyn Waugh Scoop by Evelyn Waugh The Last Samurai by Helen DeWitt

Feb 25, 2025 • 49min
Holly Brickley on DEEP CUTS
Deep Cuts by Holly Brickley is a big-hearted story with an eclectic soundtrack and sentences that'll stick in your head like your favorite lyrics. Brickley joins us to talk about her emotional connection to music, weaving together the lives of her characters, the effects of nostalgia in the novel and more with guest host Allyson Gavaletz. We end this episode with TBR Top Off book recommendations from Marc and Jamie. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Allyson Gavaletz and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Deep Cuts by Holly Brickley High Fidelity by Nick Hornby Normal People by Sally Rooney A Feather on the Breath of God by Sigrid Nunez Featured Books (TBR Top Off): Love is a Mix Tape by Rob Sheffield Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

Feb 22, 2025 • 53min
Matthew Goodman on PARIS UNDERCOVER
Paris Undercover by Matthew Goodman sheds new light on the story of two women who rescued Allied soldiers during World War II and the complicated history that came after. Goodman joins us to talk about his research process, the consequences and challenges of analyzing the past, the cyclical nature of history and more with guest host Chris Gillespie. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Chris Gillespie and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Paris Undercover by Matthew Goodman Eighty Days by Matthew Goodman

Feb 20, 2025 • 36min
Ali Smith on GLIFF
Gliff by Ali Smith is the story of two siblings navigating a dystopian world that feels timely and hopeful amid themes of isolation and identity. Smith joins us to talk about the meaning of the title, the beauty of physical books, creating empathy and understanding through reading and more with cohost Jenna Seery. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Jenna Seery and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Gliff by Ali Smith How to be both by Ali Smith Autumn by Ali Smith The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood Brave New World by Aldous Huxley Metamorphoses by Ovid Theory and Practice by Michelle de Kretser Scary Monsters by Michelle de Kretser The Bee Sting by Paul Murray Skippy Dies by Paul Murray Baumgartner by Paul Auster

Feb 18, 2025 • 47min
Eric Puchner on DREAM STATE
Dream State by Eric Puchner is a story spanning fifty years, with three best friends grappling with life, love, family and climate change set against the Montana terrain. Puchner joins us to talk about what inspired the novel, his writing process, what he loves about storytelling and more with Miwa Messer, host of Poured Over. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Dream State by Eric Puchner To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson Light Years by James Salter North Woods by Daniel Mason The End of Vandalism by Tom Drury Skylark by Dezső Kosztolányi Stoner by John Williams Mrs. Bridge by Evan S. Connell

Feb 15, 2025 • 50min
Sarah Chihaya on BIBLIOPHOBIA
Bibliophobia by Sarah Chihaya reflects on the books that change the way we think about life and literature. Chihaya joins us to talk about these “Life Ruiner” books, the way we connect to stories at different points in our lives, the way our reading shapes us and more with Miwa Messer, host of Poured Over. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Bibliophobia by Sarah Chihaya The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison The Morningside by Téa Obreht Disorientation by Elaine Hsieh Chou Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery Slouching Towards Bethlehem by Joan Didion Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson The Lover by Marguerite Duras A Man of Two Faces by Viet Thanh Nguyen Possession by A.S. Byatt Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison Midnight’s Children by Salman Rushdie The Ferrante Letters by Sarah Chihaya The Days of Abandonment by Elena Ferrante My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante

Feb 13, 2025 • 37min
Eowyn Ivey on BLACK WOODS, BLUE SKY
Black Woods, Blue Sky by Eowyn Ivey delves into the wilderness in this tender, bold and enchanting fable set in Alaska. Ivey joins us to talk about her personal connections to the setting, themes of community and family ties, the complexities of parenthood and more with guest host Allyson Gavaletz. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Allyson Gavaletz and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Black Woods, Blue Sky by Eowyn Ivey The Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey Love Medicine by Louise Erdrich David Copperfield by Charles Dickens Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver The Odyssey translated by Emily Wilson Ulysses by James Joyce The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain James by Percival Everett