Gays Reading

Host Jason Blitman talks to Eliana Ramage about her debut novel, TO THE MOON AND BACK, this month’s Reese’s Book Club pick. Highlights include:💭 many childhood ambitions📚 Reading Rainbow contest trauma 🌈 the intersection of queerness and Cherokeeness🧜🏻‍♀️ comparisons to The Little Mermaid Jason is then joined by Guest Gay Reader™️ M.L. Rio, who shares what she’s been reading, gives Shakespeare beginner recommendations, and talks about her new book, HOT WAX.Eliana Ramage holds an MFA in fiction from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. She has been a Lambda Literary fellow and writer-in-residence, a Harpo Foundation Native American Residency Fellow at Vermont Studio Center, a Tin House Scholar, and a Kimmel Harding Nelson resident. A citizen of the Cherokee Nation, she lives in Nashville with her family.M.L. Rio has been an actor, a bookseller, an academic, and a music writer. She holds an MA in Shakespeare studies and a PhD in English literature. She is the author of the internationally bestselling novel If We Were Villains, the USA TODAY bestselling novella Graveyard Shift, and Hot Wax. She never stays in one place for long, but keeps her books, records, and four-legged sidekick in south Philadelphia.Support the showBOOK CLUB!Sign up for the Gays Reading Book Club HERE October Book: Middle Spoon by Alejandro Varela SUBSTACK!https://gaysreading.substack.com/ MERCH!http://gaysreading.printful.me WATCH!https://youtube.com/@gaysreading FOLLOW!Instagram: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanBluesky: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanCONTACT!hello@gaysreading.com

In this *spoiler free* conversation, host Jason Blitman talks to author Alejandro Varela, about his book MIDDLE SPOON, the October Gays Reading Book Club pick with Allstora.MIDDLE SPOON unpacks what happens when you’ve got the husband, the kids, the bougie life… AND you’re going through a breakup with your boyfriend. Provocative, witty, and deeply human—this one’s not afraid to challenge the so-called “rules” of love.Alejandro Varela’s debut novel, The Town of Babylon, was a finalist for the National Book Award. His short story collection, The People Who Report More Stress, was one of Publishers Weekly’s best works of fiction in 2023, a finalist for the International Latino Book Awards, and longlisted for the Aspen Literary Prize, the Story Prize, and the PEN/Jean Stein Book Award. Varela is an editor-at-large of Apogee Journal, holds a master’s degree in public health, and is based in New York.What do you get when you join the Gays Reading Book Club?Curated book delivered monthly to your door (at a discount!) – the books we’d call “accessibly literary”30% Off Allstora’s websiteAccess to the book club “Kiki” to talk about the booksExclusive author Q&AsAllstora donates a children’s book to an LGBTQIA+ youthThis club exclusively supports LGBTQIA+ authorsAnd more!Support the showBOOK CLUB!Sign up for the Gays Reading Book Club HERE October Book: Middle Spoon by Alejandro Varela SUBSTACK!https://gaysreading.substack.com/ MERCH!http://gaysreading.printful.me WATCH!https://youtube.com/@gaysreading FOLLOW!Instagram: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanBluesky: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanCONTACT!hello@gaysreading.com

Get ready to add to your ever-growing TBR (we're sorry!) because Gays Reading is kicking off the new series What Are You Reading?. On this episode, Jason talks to the host of Bookends, the CBC's literary podcast, Mattea Roach, to learn about what they've been reading recently.About Bookends: the CBC's literary podcastWhen the book ends, the conversation begins. Mattea Roach speaks with writers who have something to say about their work, the world and our place in it. You’ll always walk away with big questions to ponder and new books to read.Support the showBOOK CLUB!Sign up for the Gays Reading Book Club HERE October Book: Middle Spoon by Alejandro Varela SUBSTACK!https://gaysreading.substack.com/ MERCH!http://gaysreading.printful.me WATCH!https://youtube.com/@gaysreading FOLLOW!Instagram: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanBluesky: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanCONTACT!hello@gaysreading.com

Host Jason Blitman talks to Patrick Ryan about his new novel, Buckeye, which is this month’s Read with Jenna Book Club selection. They talk about writing inspirations, father-son relationships, and Ryan's love for pinball. Jason is then joined by Guest Gay Reader, Rabih Alameddine (The True True Story of Raja the Gullible (and His Mother)) his perspective on dealing with trauma, devotion, and forgiveness. Patrick Ryan is the author of the novel Buckeye. He is also the author of the story collections The Dream Life of Astronauts (named one of the Best Books of the Year by the St. Louis Times-Dispatch, LitHub, Refinery 29, and Electric Literature, and longlisted for The Story Prize) and Send Me. His work has appeared in The Best American Short Stories, the anthology Tales of Two Cities, and elsewhere. The former associate editor of Granta, he is the editor of the literary magazine One Story and lives in New York City.Rabih Alameddine is the author of the novels The Wrong End of the Telescope; Angel of History; An Unnecessary Woman; The Hakawati; I, the Divine; Koolaids; the story collection, The Perv; and one work of nonfiction, Comforting Myths. He has won the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction and was a finalist for the National Book Award. He received the Dos Passos Prize in 2019 and a Lannan Award in 2021.Support the showBOOK CLUB!Sign up for the Gays Reading Book Club HERE October Book: Middle Spoon by Alejandro Varela SUBSTACK!https://gaysreading.substack.com/ MERCH!http://gaysreading.printful.me WATCH!https://youtube.com/@gaysreading FOLLOW!Instagram: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanBluesky: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanCONTACT!hello@gaysreading.com

Host Jason Blitman kicks off season 5 with political leader and author Stacey Abrams discussing her latest legal thriller, Coded Justice, the role of AI in healthcare, and what it means to be a professional troublemaker. Later, Jason is joined by Dan Pelosi, beloved for his culinary adventures on Instagram as @grossypelosi, who chats about his new cookbook Let's Party.STACEY ABRAMS is a New York Times bestselling author, entrepreneur and political leader. She served as Minority Leader in the Georgia House of Representatives, and she was the first black woman to become gubernatorial nominee for a major party in United States history.  Abrams has launched multiple nonprofit organizations devoted to democracy protection, voting rights, and effective public policy. She has also co-founded successful companies, including a financial services firm, an energy and infrastructure consulting firm, and the media company, Sage Works Productions, Inc.DAN PELOSI is the Italian meatball making meatballs behind GrossyPelosi, the popular Instagram favorite for all things comfort and food. Approachable and tasty, Dan’s recipes are meant to be shared and celebrated with the ones you love. Dan’s first cookbook, Let’s Eat, was an instant New York Times bestseller, and his Big Italian Sandwich Puzzle is the first-ever deli sandwich jigsaw puzzle (as far as he knows!). Dan is a contributor to New York Times Cooking. He splits his time between Brooklyn and upstate New York, but you can always find him online at @grossypelosi.Support the showBOOK CLUB!Sign up for the Gays Reading Book Club HERE October Book: Middle Spoon by Alejandro Varela SUBSTACK!https://gaysreading.substack.com/ MERCH!http://gaysreading.printful.me WATCH!https://youtube.com/@gaysreading FOLLOW!Instagram: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanBluesky: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanCONTACT!hello@gaysreading.com

THE SUNFLOWER BOYS by Sam Wachman is a terrific debut that delivers exactly the kind of deeply necessary storytelling we need right now. Sam crafts a profoundly moving narrative that tackles urgent contemporary themes with sensitivity and power—yes, it takes place at the beginning of the war in Ukraine in 2022, but it's so much more than that. In this *spoiler free* conversation, Sam shares inspiration for the novel, details about the writing process, and much more. Sam Wachman is a writer from Cambridge, Massachusetts with Ukrainian roots. His short fiction has appeared in Sonora Review, Berkeley Fiction Review, and New England Review. Before writing The Sunflower Boys, he taught English to primary schoolers in central Ukraine and worked with refugee families in Europe and the United States. What do you get when you join the Gays Reading Book Club?• Curated book delivered monthly to your door (at a discount!) – the books we’d call “accessibly literary”• 30% Off Allstora’s website• Access to the book club “Kiki” to talk about the books• Exclusive author Q&As• Allstora donates a children’s book to an LGBTQIA+ youth• This club exclusively supports LGBTQIA+ authors!• And more!Support the showBOOK CLUB!Sign up for the Gays Reading Book Club HERE October Book: Middle Spoon by Alejandro Varela SUBSTACK!https://gaysreading.substack.com/ MERCH!http://gaysreading.printful.me WATCH!https://youtube.com/@gaysreading FOLLOW!Instagram: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanBluesky: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanCONTACT!hello@gaysreading.com

In the season finale of Gays Reading, host Jason Blitman reconnects with author and former college classmate J.R. Dawson to discuss her new novel, The Lighthouse at the Edge of the World. Their conversation explores the book's themes of grief, memory, and navigating life's inevitable transitions—while also diving into debates about ketchup, Chicago-style pizza, and music in their first chat in fifteen years. Later, Jason welcomes Guest Gay Reader Jonathan Capehart, the Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of Yet Here I Am, who opens up about his lifelong relationship with books and reading.J.R. Dawson (she/they) is the Golden Crown award-winning author of The First Bright Thing. Her shorter works can be found in places such as F&SF, Lightspeed, and Rich Horton's Year's Best. Dawson currently lives in Minnesota with her loving wife. She teaches at Drexel University's MFA program for Creative Writing, and fills her free time with keeping her three chaotic dogs out of trouble.Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Jonathan Capehart is a co-host of the morning edition of The Weekend on MSNBC. From 2020 until 2025, he was anchor of The Saturday Show and The Sunday Show on MSNBC. Capehart is Associate Editor at the Washington Post, where he is also an opinion writer. He is also an analyst on The PBS News Hour. Capehart was deputy editorial page editor of the New York Daily News (2002-2004) and served on its editorial board (1993-2000). His editorial campaign in 1999 to save the Apollo Theater earned the board the Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Writing. His memoir Yet Here I Am was published in May 2025.Support the showBOOK CLUB!Sign up for the Gays Reading Book Club HERE October Book: Middle Spoon by Alejandro Varela SUBSTACK!https://gaysreading.substack.com/ MERCH!http://gaysreading.printful.me WATCH!https://youtube.com/@gaysreading FOLLOW!Instagram: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanBluesky: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanCONTACT!hello@gaysreading.com

Brad Summerville, known as @bradboughtabook, is an elementary school teacher and future principal who shares his love for books online. In this mind-expanding conversation, Brad and host Jason Blitman explore a variety of genres, from queer sci-fi to heartwarming romances. They discuss the impact of 90s romcoms on queer literature and the dynamics of male-male romances. They also delve into their emotional connections to stories and the joys of participating in the Gays Reading Book Club, inviting listeners to join their literary adventures.

Host Jason Blitman welcomes author Nicci Cloke to discuss her latest novel and US debut, Her Many Faces. They explore the inspiration behind the book's innovative structure, Nicci's transition from UK to American publishing, and her unexpected background working as an elf. Later, Jason sits down with Guest Gay Reader, author Tess Sharpe (No Body No Crime), discussing her love of 80s action films, the art of crafting rural crime fiction with humor, and what makes her storytelling unique. No Body No Crime is August's pick for the Gays Reading Book Club!Nicci Cloke is the author of eight novels, including two under the pseudonym Phoebe Locke. Her books have been published in twelve languages. She lives in the Cambridgeshire countryside after a decade spent in London, and previously worked as a nanny, a cocktail waitress and a Christmas Elf to support her writing. Before being published, she worked as a permissions manager, looking after literary estates including those of Sylvia Plath, Ted Hughes and T. S. Eliot, and was also communications manager at the Faber Academy.Tess Sharpe was born in a mountain cabin to a punk-rocker mother and grew up in rural California. She lives deep in the backwoods with a pack of dogs and a group of formerly feral forest cats. She is the award-winning author of many books for kids, teenagers, and adults, including Barbed Wire Heart and the New York Times bestseller The Girls I’ve Been.Support the showBOOK CLUB!Sign up for the Gays Reading Book Club HERE October Book: Middle Spoon by Alejandro Varela SUBSTACK!https://gaysreading.substack.com/ MERCH!http://gaysreading.printful.me WATCH!https://youtube.com/@gaysreading FOLLOW!Instagram: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanBluesky: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanCONTACT!hello@gaysreading.com

Host Jason Blitman sits down with Ruben Reyes Jr. to discuss his highly anticipated debut novel, Archive of Unknown Universes, which follows his acclaimed story collection, There is a Rio Grande in Heaven. Their conversation ranges from advocating for the perfect 90-minute movie runtime to how specifics become universal, plus Ruben's late-in-life discovery of musical legends Joni Mitchell and Alanis Morissette. Jason then welcomes Guest Gay Reader Chloe Michelle Howarth (Sunburn), the debut Irish novelist who reveals her unexpected new taste for queer horror fiction and love of translated literature.Ruben Reyes Jr. is the son of two Salvadoran immigrants and the author of There Is a Rio Grande in Heaven. A graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and Harvard College, his writing has appeared in The Boston Globe, The Washington Post, Lightspeed Magazine, and other publications. Originally from Southern California, he now lives in Brooklyn.Chloe Michelle Howarth was born in July 1996. She grew up in the West Cork countryside, which has served as an inspiration for her writing. She attended university at IADT in Dun Laoghaire, Dublin, where she studied English, Media and Cultural Studies. Chloe currently lives in Brighton. Sunburn is her debut novel.Support the showBOOK CLUB!Sign up for the Gays Reading Book Club HERE October Book: Middle Spoon by Alejandro Varela SUBSTACK!https://gaysreading.substack.com/ MERCH!http://gaysreading.printful.me WATCH!https://youtube.com/@gaysreading FOLLOW!Instagram: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanBluesky: @gaysreading | @jasonblitmanCONTACT!hello@gaysreading.com