The Book Case

Stuart Gibbs is this week’s guest and begins what we intend to be a periodic look at children's’ literature, or in the parlance of the day, “kids’ books”. Stuart has five different series of kids’s books in print - all successful, each aimed at the middle grades. His latest Spy School book is just out. Kate and I (grown-up who like to believe) loved it, as did our 12-year-old grandson and nephew, Lang (but then Stuart is his favorite author). To be a successful author of kids’ books we believe you have to be a good writer as well as a bit of a kid yourself. Stuart checks both boxes.Books mentioned in the podcast: Moon Base Alpha Series by Stuart Gibbs Once Upon a Tim by Stuart Gibbs Spy School Project X by Stuart Gibbs Spy School Series by Stuart Gibbs FunJungle Series by Stuart Gibbs Charlie Thorne Series by Stuart Gibbs The Last Musketeer Series by Stuart Gibbs Poached by Stuart Gibbs Encyclopedia Brown Series Donald J. Sobol The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin Bunnicula by James and Deborah Howe Superfudge by Judy Blume The Phantom Tollbooth Norton Juster The BFG by Roald Dahl Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Our author this week is David Koepp. You may not realize it, but you’ve been exposed to David’s writing. Probably many times. Did you see the first two Jurassic Park movies? Spider-Man? Indiana Jones? Mission Impossible? David has worked on the screenplays of some of the most successful movies ever. Indeed, movies he has written have sold almost $2.5 billion in tickets. He also writes novels. “Aurora” is his latest. It’s an enjoyable, and even thought-provoking read. Why write novels when you’re so successful with screen plays? How do the disciplines differ? Which is more rewarding? All good questions. We ask them.Our independent bookstore this week is Interabang Books in Dallas, Texas.Books Mentioned in the Podcast: Cold Storage by David Koepp Aurora by David Koepp The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton The Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. That’s Good! That’s Bad! by Margery Cuyler Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk by Ben Fountain A Queen to the Rescue: The Story of Henrietta Szold, Founder of Hadassah by Nancy Churnin A Girl Named Carrie: The Visionary Who Created Neiman Marcus and Set the Standard for Fashion by Jerrie Marcus Smith River of the Gods: Genius, Courage, and Betrayal in the Search for the Source of the Nile by Candice Millard Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus Trust by Hernan Diaz The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett Artemis Fowl series by Eoin Colfer The Harry Potter Series by J.K. Rowling Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Sidik Fofana has written “Stories from the Tenants Downstairs.” This is his first novel and very much worth a reader’s time. His book is eight interrelated short stories written by residents of a fictional tenement in New York City in a neighborhood going through gentrification. You root for his characters. You identify with their aspirations. But for each of them it is so tough to realize their dreams. For each of them it is so tough to negotiate the realities of every day life. And Sidik knows from whence he writes—for years he has been a New York City public school teacher. Many of his stories, he tells us, come from his kids. “Stories from the Tenants Downstairs” is an excellent book. One small warning—a couple of the stories are written with the voice of the street, but were that not the case, it would not be as authentic. And every inch of this book is authentic. Our independent book store this week is Women and Children First in Chicago—we talk with one of its owners, Lynn Mooney.Books mentioned in the podcast: Stories from the Tenants Downstairs by Sidik Fafana The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao by Junot Díaz Birds of America by Lorrie Moore The Broken Earth Trilogy N.K. Jemisin “Harlem” by Langston Hughes from The Collected Works of Langston Hughes A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway The Odyssey by Homer A Separate Peace by John Knowles Native Son by Richard Wright Trombone Shorty by Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews Easy Beauty by Chloé Cooper Johnson Oh William! By Elizabeth Strout Set Boundaries, Find Peace: A Guide to Reclaiming Yourself by Nedra Glover Tawwab Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals by Oliver Burkeman Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jenny Lawson is a funny writer, but that label doesn’t tell the whole story. In her three books, her "parenthetical ramblings" are hilarious glimpses into her razor sharp wit that keep you laughing long after you put the book down. At the same time, Jenny Lawson deals with deep depression that has her also writing about her struggles - sometimes just to stay alive. She writes of the “monster” that at times takes over her mind. That mind works in wonderous ways - not always helpful to her own well being - but wonderous just the same. Our bookstore this week? Well that’s Jenny Lawson’s too. We talk to Elizabeth Jordon, the general manager of Jenny Lawson’s bookstore, Nowhere Bookshop in San Antonio.Books mentioned in the podcast:Broken (in the Best Possible Way) by Jenny LawsonFuriously Happy by Jenny LawsonLet's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny LawsonTwice 22 by Ray BradburyPet Sematary by Stephen KingHurricane Girl by Marcy DermanskyFlorida Woman by Deb RogersHer Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria MachadoThere, There by Tommy OrangeA Visitation of Spirits by Randall KenanStories From the Tenants Downstairs by Sidik FofanaThe Hakawati by Rabih Alameddine Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Julia Glass burst on the writing scene in 2002 when her first novel, “Three Junes”, won the National Book Award for fiction. Her newest novel “Vigil Harbor” plots current problems such as worldwide virus infections, climate change and increasing political violence as they might increase over the next twelve years, and charts their impact on a small town in coastal Massachusetts. Set in 2034, the novel includes a touch of mystery and the supernatural, and is a most enjoyable read from almost any perspective. On the show, Julia speaks about the ways climate change has shaped the novel, her experience writing with a supernatural twist for the first time, and how the book changed with the Covid-19 pandemic started. Our independent book store for this podcast is Keplers, in Menlo Park, California. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hernan Diaz is an author, essayist, and finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in fiction and the PEN/Faulkner Award. His newest novel, "Trust," has just this week been chosen as a finalist for the Booker Prize - one of the most prestigious of literary prizes. The head of the Booker judging panel said many of this year’s finalists involve “the elusive nature of truth”. That certainly would pertain to “Trust”. The book is intricately plotted, marvelously written, and insightful about the world of finance and the singular relationship Americans have with money. Diaz also talks about his writing process, writing a character with an "obnoxious" point of view, and the thrills and perils of releasing a book out into a world. Our conversation took place just before the Booker nominees were announced, but reading ’Trust" and listening to Diaz will leave you with no doubt that this novel deserves the high honor according it by the Booker judging committee. Our independent book store this week is Market Street Books in Mashpee, Massachusetts, a favorite vacation destination.Books mentioned in the podcast this week: Trust by Hernan Diaz In The Distance by Hernan Diaz A Backward Glance by Edith Wharton Portrait of a Lady by Henry James I am a Bunny by Richard Scarry Horse by Geraldine Brooks Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens The Old Man in the Sea by Ernest Hemingway Emma by Jane Austen Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

J. Ryan Stradal is one of America’s finest young authors. His two novels have been out for some time - both highly acclaimed. Another is releasing next year. “Kitchens of the Great Midwest” was his first with “The Lager Queen of Minnesota” following four years later. Publishers conducted a bidding war for ‘Kitchens' - how rare is that for a first work? And it’s been translated into more than a dozen languages. You can argue over which is the better of the two and we have. Both are excellent. Kate likes ‘Kitchens’. Charlie is partial to “Lager Queen”. While these titles may make them sound like food books, they aren't. For J. Ryan food serves as a way of explaining different aspects of humanity, largely around themes of forgiveness. J. Ryan and Kate have been good friends since their college days (we're talking the ‘90s here folks) and she says she loves to listen to him talk. And laugh. You will too.  Since J. Ryan’s books have a Midwest setting and flavor we’ve paired him with Ann Woodbeck, one of the owners of Excelsior Bay Books to be found in Excelsior Bay Minnesota, just outside Minneapolis.Books mentioned in this episode: Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J. Ryan Stradal The Lager Queen of Minnesota by J. Ryan Stradal Elsewhere, California by Dana Johnson Jesus' Son by Denis Johnson Oh, the Thinks You Can Think! by Dr. Seuss Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brian Goodnight Loon by Abe Sauer Ficciones by Jorge Luis Borges Pale Fire by Vladimir Nabokov The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald Craft in the Real World: Rethinking Fiction Writing and Workshopping by Matthew Salesses Shoulder Season: A Novel by Christina Clancy Four Dead Horses by K. T. Sparks Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub This is Happiness by Niall Williams The Boy and His Dog at the End of the World by C.A. Fletcher Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Anna Quindlen can write pretty much anything – years of insightful columns for the “New York Times,” wonderful fiction as evidenced by nine widely-read novels, and non-fiction as well. The latest is her plea for all of us to write. “Write for Your Life” is the book. It’s a small volume but it’s message belies its size. Anna Quindlen wants us writing for future grandchildren and great-grandchildren, for our current loved ones, and even for ourselves. Write letters, keep journals, record your own life history – it doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to be personal. She asks her readers: If you could have one piece of writing from someone in your life who’s gone, who would that be? When you answer that, you’ll know why writing is so important. As you write, she argues, it may even bring greater clarity about your own problems and thoughts. After our conversation with Anna, stay for Sharon Davis of Book Bound Bookstore in Blairsville, Georgia, population 616. Talk about an act of faith! Opening a tiny town independent bookstore. Talking to Sharon was at the suggestion of one of our listeners, and we appreciate it. Books Mentioned: Write for Your Life by Anna Quindlen Alternate Side by Anna Quindlen The Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens Pioneer Women: The Lives of Women on the Frontier by Linda Peavy Object Lessons by Anna Quindlen The Holy Bible A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L’Engle The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton Nanaville: Adventures in Grandparenting by Anna Quindlen Grandma Gatewood’s Walk: The Inspiring Story of the Woman Who Saved the Appalachian Trail by Ben Montgomery Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury  One Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseni The Gilded Wolves by Roshai Choksi The Art of Racing in the Rain by Garth Stein The Magnolia Palace by Fiona Davis Kitchens of the Great Midwest by J. Ryan Stradal The Lager Queen of Minnesota by J. Ryan Stradal Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Twelve years ago, Jennifer Egan won a Pulitzer Prize for her novel, “A Visit from the Goon Squad.” It was wildly successful and totally original. Now she has written a companion novel - a continuation, if you will - “The Candy House.” The premise is intriguing and while impossible, it lends itself to many opportunities for Jennifer to write in different styles. The premise is that it has become possible for a person to have every one of their memories, since birth, encapsulated in a box and every one of those memories can be recalled. In fact, a person can get access to someone else’s memories if willing to share their own. Every chapter is written in a different style - but all fit together nicely. Pulling that off, and she does, is literary, a feat of no small proportion. You need not have read “Goon Squad” to enjoy “Candy House.” But listening to Jennifer may well make you want to. This week we take a pause from talking to an independent bookstore. Kate and Charlie discuss what they’ve learned from their first ten podcasts.Books Mentioned: A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan The Keep by Jennifer Egan Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton Lavender's Blue: A Book of Nursery Rhymes by Kathleen Lines and Harold Jones Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt Happy For You by Claire Stanford A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving Charlotte's Web by E.B. White Preston & Child's Agent Pendergast Series The Power Broker By Robert Caro Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James (Yes, Charles Gibson read it. And yes, I am listing it. Sorry, dad.) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What if an app could quantify exactly how happy you are? That's the premise for Clare Stanford's debut novel, "Happy For You," in which a philosopher leaves academia to work as a researcher for"the third-most popular internet company" where she struggles to find belonging as a biracial woman. "Happy For You,' is a funny story of a woman searching for her identity and a satirical commentary on today's h(app)iness-obsessed world. Plus, a conversation with Mitchell Kaplan at Books and Books.Other books mentioned in the pod: The Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolaño The Bernstein Bears Series by Stan and Jan Bernstein Year of Dangerous Days: Riots Refugees and Cocaine in Miami 1980 by Nicholas Griffin Big Trouble by Dave Barry Trust by Hernan Diaz Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices