Bad On Paper

Whether you’re a library reader, a used bookstore connoisseur, or just buy books faster than you read ‘em, this episode is for you! We’re chatting about the backlist books (AKA books released over 1 year ago) on our TBR.    Olivia’s List Saint X by Alexis Schaitkin (2020) Seawife by Amity Gaige (2020) Godshot by Chelsea Bieker (2020) The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai (2018) Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler (1993) Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver (1998) Migrations by Charlotte McConaghy (2020) Ghosts by Dolly Alderton (2020) Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid (2019)   Becca’s List Greenlights by Matthew McConaghey (2020) Early Morning Riser by Katherine Heiney (2021) Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason (2020) Bel Canto by Ann Patchett (2001) The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue (2020) Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro (2005) Happy All The Time by Laurie Colwin (1978) Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin (1956) American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld (2008) Summer of ‘69 by Elin Hilderbrand (2019) or Summer People (2003) Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors (2022)   Listener Reccomendations The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai (2018) The Country Club Murders (Book 1 The Deep End by Julie Mulhern) The Cave Dwellers by Christina McDowell Wrong Place, Wrong Time by Gillian McCallister The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal  Lady Tan’s Circle of Women by Lisa See Geek Love by Katherine Dunn The Good Part by Sophie Cousens  Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore The Nine Lives of Rose Napolitano by Donna Freitas   Obsessions Becca - Maybe Happy Ending musical Olivia - Walks + Merlin bird ID app   What we read this week Becca - Maggie; Or A Man and a Woman Walk Into A Bar by Katie Yee (7/24) Olivia - She Used To Be Nice by Alexia LaFata (8/12), The Colony by Annika Norlin   This Month’s Book Club Pick - Audition by Katie Kitamura (have thoughts about this book you want to share? Call in at 843-405-3157 or email us a voice memo at badonpaperpodcast@gmail.com)   Sponsors Quince - Go to Quince.com/bop for free shipping on your order and 365 day returns Wayfair - Shop a huge selection of outdoor furniture online at wayfair.com   Join our Facebook group for amazing book recs & more!  Buy our Merch! Join our Geneva! Order Olivia’s Book, Such a Bad Influence! Subscribe to Olivia’s Newsletter! Order Becca’s Book, The Christmas Orphans Club! Subscribe to Becca’s Newsletter!  Follow us on Instagram @badonpaperpodcast. Follow Olivia on Instagram @oliviamuenter and Becca @beccamfreeman.    

It’s Three Things time! We’re covering topics from Olivia’s family parasocial obsession, spin-off books, sleep routines, party snacks, and more!    Olivia’s Things Standout Book Covers of 2025 The Today Show Hosts’ Impact on Boomers What snacks would you be excited to find at a party?   Becca’s Things What book characters do you want to read a spinoff about? Glennon Doyle’s week on Substack Sleep Routines   Obsessions Becca - Forever 31 Olivia - Four Seasons   What we read this week Olivia - Ravishing by Eshani Surya, The Return of Ellie Black by Emiko Jean Becca - The Art of Vanishing by Morgan Pager     This Month’s Book Club Pick - Audition by Katie Kitamura (have thoughts about this book you want to share? Call in at 843-405-3157 or email us a voice memo at badonpaperpodcast@gmail.com)   Sponsors Nuuly - Take $28 off your first month at nuuly.com with code BOP Cozy Earth - Head to cozyearth.com and use code BOP for 40% off best-selling sheets, pajamas, and more.   Join our Facebook group for amazing book recs & more!  Buy our Merch! Join our Geneva! Order Olivia’s Book, Such a Bad Influence! Subscribe to Olivia’s Newsletter! Order Becca’s Book, The Christmas Orphans Club! Subscribe to Becca’s Newsletter!  Follow us on Instagram @badonpaperpodcast. Follow Olivia on Instagram @oliviamuenter and Becca @beccamfreeman.  

So excited to talk about our April Book Club Pick, Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy! We went into this book without much context and loved experiencing this literary mystery. We discuss what genre this book falls in, our feelings on climate fiction, the real-life inspirations behind this books, and of course the many twists and turns of the mystery plotline.   Obsessions Becca - Wegmans Cannoli chips and dip Olivia - Daffodils   What we read this week Becca - Anatomy of A Breakthrough by Adam Alter, Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy   This Month’s Book Club Pick - Audition by Katie Kitamura (have thoughts about this book you want to share? Call in at 843-405-3157 or email us a voice memo at badonpaperpodcast@gmail.com)   Sponsors Cozy Earth - Go to cozyearth.com and use code BOPBOGO Wayfair - This summer, get outside with Wayfair at wayfair.com Master Class - Our listeners get a discount of at least 15% off any annual membership at masterclass.com/bop   Join our Facebook group for amazing book recs & more!  Buy our Merch! Join our Geneva! Order Olivia’s Book, Such a Bad Influence! Subscribe to Olivia’s Newsletter! Order Becca’s Book, The Christmas Orphans Club! Subscribe to Becca’s Newsletter!  Follow us on Instagram @badonpaperpodcast. Follow Olivia on Instagram @oliviamuenter and Becca @beccamfreeman.

We thought it was time for a good ol’ catch-up! We have much to cover, including (but not limited to) writing updates, new journaling habits, career developments, travel plans, spring hobbies, and MORE!    Highly recommend reading What is Glitter by Caity Weaver in the New York Times   Obsessions Becca - Soeos White Peach Candy Olivia - He Wasn’t Man Enough by Toni Braxton   What we read this week Olivia - This Book Will Bury Me by Ashley Winstead, The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai, Elsewhere by Alexis Schaitkin, The Dream Hotel by Laila Lailami Becca - Quicksilver by Callie Hart   This Month’s Book Club Pick - Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy (have thoughts about this book you want to share? Call in at 843-405-3157 or email us a voice memo at badonpaperpodcast@gmail.com)   Sponsors Quince - go to quince.com/bop to get free shipping and 365-day returns Better Help - Visit BetterHelp.com/BADONPAPER today to get 10% off your first month Wayfair - Get renovating with Wayfair at Wayfair.com   Join our Facebook group for amazing book recs & more!  Buy our Merch! Join our Geneva! Order Olivia’s Book, Such a Bad Influence! Subscribe to Olivia’s Newsletter! Order Becca’s Book, The Christmas Orphans Club! Subscribe to Becca’s Newsletter!  Follow us on Instagram @badonpaperpodcast. Follow Olivia on Instagram @oliviamuenter and Becca @beccamfreeman.  

This week, we're talking about rejection, failure, and how two guests dealt with them! First, we’re talking to New York Times best-selling author Andrea Bartz about navigating rejection on submission, and the daily rejections entailed in living a creative life. Then, we’re talking to Azora Zoe Paknad about shuttering her business and going back to the corporate world.    You can read more from Andrea in her newsletter, Get It Write, and her books The Spare Room, We Were Never Here, The Herd, and The Lost Night. Her latest novel, The Last Ferry Out, is out May 20.    Read more from Azora in her newsletter, First Rodeo. You may also remember our episode from 2020 about starting her eco-friendly e-commerce marketplace, Goldune.   Obsessions Olivia - Butter Pecan Iced Coffee at Dunkin Becca - The audiobook Anatomy of a Breakthrough by Adam Alter   What we read this week Becca - Audition by Katie Kitamura, Filthy Rich Fae by Geneva Lee Olivia - Old Money by Kelsey Miller (Out September 30!)   This Month’s Book Club Pick - Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy (have thoughts about this book you want to share? Call in at 843-405-3157 or email us a voice memo at badonpaperpodcast@gmail.com)   Sponsors Wayfair - Get renovating and head to Wayfair.com.   Join our Facebook group for amazing book recs & more!  Buy our Merch! Join our Geneva! Order Olivia’s Book, Such a Bad Influence! Subscribe to Olivia’s Newsletter! Order Becca’s Book, The Christmas Orphans Club! Subscribe to Becca’s Newsletter!  Follow us on Instagram @badonpaperpodcast. Follow Olivia on Instagram @oliviamuenter and Becca @beccamfreeman.  

Long time, no things! We’re excited to dive into the random topics on our minds lately, from shows we’re watching, movie news, the celebrity quiz we’re positive you didn’t see coming, and more!   Becca’s Things Casual Viewing Content (inspired by this N+1 Article), specifically The Night Agent and Running Point Applying body lotion (Olivia thinks the Necessaire Body Serum is worth a try!) Are you a Bird or a Potato?   Olivia’s Things Project Hail Mary Movie News at Cinemacon Your Favorite Bookstores! (Becca’s - McNally Jackson, Books are Magic, East City Bookshop, Beacon Hill Books, Trident Booksellers, Powell’s, Back Cove Books | Olivia - Buxton Village Books, Daunt Books, Rare Birds Books, Kinderhook Books, McNally Jackson, Tombolo Books) Pinterest Feed Tours   Obsessions Olivia - Pen Pals Podcast Becca - Learning French (on Duolingo)   What we read this week Becca - Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall, Great Big Beautiful Life by Emily Henry (Out April 22), Jane and Dan at the End of the World by Colleen Oakley Olivia -    This Month’s Book Club Pick - Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy (have thoughts about this book you want to share? Call in at 843-405-3157 or email us a voice memo at badonpaperpodcast@gmail.com)   Sponsors Quince - Go to Quince.com/bop for 365-day returns, plus free shipping on your order. Wayfair - Shop the best selection of home improvement online at Wayfair.com   Join our Facebook group for amazing book recs & more!  Buy our Merch! Join our Geneva! Order Olivia’s Book, Such a Bad Influence! Subscribe to Olivia’s Newsletter! Order Becca’s Book, The Christmas Orphans Club! Subscribe to Becca’s Newsletter!  Follow us on Instagram @badonpaperpodcast. Follow Olivia on Instagram @oliviamuenter and Becca @beccamfreeman.  

Have you ever wondered how a bookstore runs? We think about it all the time, and we are so thrilled to get the scoop from the owner of Liz’s Book Bar in Brooklyn, and author of Acts of Forgiveness, Maura Cheeks!   We chat with Maura about her dreams of opening a bookstore, what the opening process entails, how Liz’s Book Bar stands out, the book selection process, and how she published her first novel and opened Liz’s Book Bar in the same year.   A book frequently purchased at Liz’s Book Bar is Scorpionfish by Natalie Bakopoulos.    Obsessions Becca - Ken Leung being miles on Lost and Eric in Industry. (anti-obsession of Fruit Riot Sour Candy Grapes) Olivia - The Severance Season 2 Finale    What we read this week Olivia - The Favorites by Layne Fargo Becca - Can’t Get Enough by Kennedy Ryan (out 5/13)   This Month’s Book Club Pick - Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy (have thoughts about this book you want to share? Call in at 843-405-3157 or email us a voice memo at badonpaperpodcast@gmail.com)   Sponsors Nuuly - Get $28 off your first month at nuuly.com with code BOP. Cozy Earth - Visit CozyEarth.com and use code BOP for 40% off.   Join our Facebook group for amazing book recs & more!  Buy our Merch! Join our Geneva! Order Olivia’s Book, Such a Bad Influence! Subscribe to Olivia’s Newsletter! Order Becca’s Book, The Christmas Orphans Club! Subscribe to Becca’s Newsletter!  Follow us on Instagram @badonpaperpodcast. Follow Olivia on Instagram @oliviamuenter and Becca @beccamfreeman.  

It’s time to discuss our March book club pick: Deep Cuts by Holly Brickley! We talk about which timeline we gravitated toward most through the story’s 8-year span, the unique relationship dynamic between Percy and Joe, what makes a romance literary, and more!   More Literary Romances Talking at Night by Claire Daverley  Shark Heart by Emily Habeck Normal People by Sally Rooney Beautiful World, Where are You by Sally Rooney This Is a Love Story by Jessica Soffer   Obsessions Relationships by Haim Adolescence on Netflix   This Month’s Book Club Pick - Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy (have thoughts about this book you want to share? Call in at 843-405-3157 or email us a voice memo at badonpaperpodcast@gmail.com)   Sponsors Macmillan - Download the audiobooks for Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy and The Sirens by Emilia Hart wherever audiobooks are sold. Quince - Go to Quince.com/bop for 365-day returns, plus free shipping on your order.    Join our Facebook group for amazing book recs & more!  Buy our Merch! Join our Geneva! Order Olivia’s Book, Such a Bad Influence! Subscribe to Olivia’s Newsletter! Order Becca’s Book, The Christmas Orphans Club! Subscribe to Becca’s Newsletter!  Follow us on Instagram @badonpaperpodcast. Follow Olivia on Instagram @oliviamuenter and Becca @beccamfreeman.  

Music is on our minds (especially with our music-focused March book club pick, Deep Cuts by Holly Brickley) and so today we’re discussing our musical references from different eras of our lives!    You can listen to the full playlist of all of our favorites here.    Obsessions Becca - Duolingo Max Olivia - Jackie and Shadow    What we read this week Olivia - The Ghostwriter by Julie Clark, The Three Lives of Cate Kay by Kate Fagan, The Art of Vanishing by Morgan Pager (Out July 1) Becca - Greenlights by Matthew McCoughnahey   This Month’s Book Club Pick - Deep Cuts by Holly Brickley (have thoughts about this book you want to share? Call in at 843-405-3157 or email us a voice memo at badonpaperpodcast@gmail.com)   Sponsors Better Help - Visit BetterHelp.com/BADONPAPER to get 10% off your first month.   Join our Facebook group for amazing book recs & more!  Buy our Merch! Join our Geneva! Order Olivia’s Book, Such a Bad Influence! Subscribe to Olivia’s Newsletter! Order Becca’s Book, The Christmas Orphans Club! Subscribe to Becca’s Newsletter!  Follow us on Instagram @badonpaperpodcast. Follow Olivia on Instagram @oliviamuenter and Becca @beccamfreeman.  

This week, we asked listeners in our Facebook Group for categories to share our top 3 rankings! We cover (almost) everything, from food to books to pop culture and more!   Food Trader Joe’s products Becca - taco seasoning; hold the cone; pastry pups Olivia (Costco remix) - Rotisserie chicken, Costco Pizza, Carbonara Buldak Ramen, Built Bars Fast food orders Becca -McDonald’s (Chicken Selects), Shake Shack, Dunkin’ (Sausage Egg and Cheese Wake Up Wrap) Olivia -  McDonald’s (2 Cheeseburgers, extra pickles), Auntie Anne’s (Pretzel Bites), Starbucks Dips Becca - Chili’s salsa, Hillstone Spinach & Artichoke Dip, Spicy Feta Olivia -  Helluva Good Onion Dip, mom’s spinach dip in bread bowl, Chili’s ranch Plane Snacks Becca - Mini pretzels, Twizzlers, peanut butter crackers Olivia - Gardetto's, Cheez Its, Peanut M&Ms   Books: Romance Becca - The Idea of You by Robinne Lee, The Royal We by Heather Cocks & Jessica Morgan, People We Meet on Vacation by Emily Henry Olivia - Talking at Night by Claire Daverley, Shark Heart by Emily Habeck, Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley Heller  Thriller Becca - Verity by Colleen Hoover, First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston, All These Beautiful Strangers by Elizabeth Klefoth Olivia - The Push by Ashley Audrain, Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra, Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn  Books that deserve the hype Becca - The People We Keep by Alison Larkin, Musical Chairs by Amy Poepell, A Sky Painted Gold by Laura Wood  Olivia - We All Want Impossible Things by Catherine Newman, Rainbow Black by Maggie Thrash, Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino  Books to recommend  Becca - The Idea of You by Robinne Lee, Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern Olivia - Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, The Wedding People by Alison Espach, The Husbands by Holly Gramazio Book-to-Film adaptations Becca - Crazy Rich Asians, The Devil Wears Prada, The Summer I Turned Pretty S1 Olivia - Gone Girl, The Martian, Pride & Prejudice 2005   Pop Culture: Newsletters to receive Becca - As Seen On (Ochuko Akpovbovbo), Gossip Time by Allie Jones, Galley Brag by Ezra Kupor Olivia - The Composite by Jordan Bogeegean, Morning Person by Leslie Stephens, Literary Leanings by Michelle Martin Formative celebrity crushes Becca - Leonardo DiCaprio, Paul Walker, Joshua Jackson Olivia - Ashton Kutcher, Sean Faris, Robert Pattinson Karaoke Songs Becca - Hero by Enrique Iglesias, Never Ever by All Saints, Spice up Your Life by the Spice Girls  Olivia - Goodbye, Earl by the Chicks, 2 a.m. by Anna Nalick, How To Save a Life by The Fray TV Romance Plotlines: Becca - Olivia+Fitz+Jake love triangle in Scandal, Blair Waldorf + Chuck Bass in Gossip Girl, Connell + Marianne in Normal People Olivia - Nick+Jess on New Girl, Emma+Dexter in One Day, Priest+Fleabag in Fleabag Reality TV Shows: Becca - RHONY, NYC Prep, Laguna Beach Olivia - RHOSLC, RHOOC, Below Deck   Misc Things to do when you need a reset Becca - Take a walk, go to bed early and don’t set an alarm, journal Olivia - Let my phone die, take a shower, journal Candle scents Becca - The New Savant Summer Splendor, Brooklyn Candle Company Apple Cider, Hotel Lobby Candle Signature Olivia - Anything that doesn’t smell like cologne Late 90s/early 00s beauty products Becca - Hard Candy lip gloss, Stila Kitten Sparkle Powder, Clinique Black Honey Olivia - Dream Matte Mousse, Lancome Juicy Tube, Clearasil Face Pads   Obsessions Becca - Paradise on Hulu Olivia - Gap Barrell Overalls   This Month’s Book Club Pick - Deep Cuts by Holly Brickley (have thoughts about this book you want to share? Call in at 843-405-3157 or email us a voice memo at badonpaperpodcast@gmail.com)   Sponsors Quince - Go to Quince.com/bop for free shipping on your order and 365-day returns. Wayfair - Give your home the refresh it needs at Wayfair.com   Join our Facebook group for amazing book recs & more!  Buy our Merch! Join our Geneva! Order Olivia’s Book, Such a Bad Influence! Subscribe to Olivia’s Newsletter! Order Becca’s Book, The Christmas Orphans Club! Subscribe to Becca’s Newsletter!  Follow us on Instagram @badonpaperpodcast. Follow Olivia on Instagram @oliviamuenter and Becca @beccamfreeman.