

The Stacks
Traci Thomas
The Stacks is your one stop shop to talk books and reading. Guests will join the host, Traci Thomas for lively discussions about books and the ways they have shaped their lives, and they way we all understand culture, race, politics, and more. The last Wednesday of each month Traci and guest will break down a book in detail as part of The Stacks Book Club. Make sure to check the website www.thestackspodcast.com for more details, including upcoming The Stacks Book Club picks.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Apr 9, 2025 • 39min
Ep. 366 The Evolution of “Girl Power” with Geri Halliwell-Horner
This week, we’re joined by Geri Halliwell-Horner, also known as Ginger Spice from the Spice Girls. She discusses her second installment in the Rosie Frost series, Rosie Frost: Ice on Fire. Determined to learn her family history with Bloodstone, Rosie must discover what she’s really made of as a new danger puts her new home and all she that she loves at risk. Halliwell-Horner also shares her journey from pop music sensation to middle grade novelist, and how her relationship with the phrase, “girl power,” has changed over the years.The Stacks Book Club pick for April is Blessing the Boats: New and Selected Poems 1988–2000 by Lucille Clifton. We will discuss the book on April 30th with Tiana Clark returning as our guest.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website:https://www.thestackspodcast.com/2025/4/9/ep-366-geri-halliwell-hornerConnect with Geri: Instagram | Tiktok | FacebookConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | SubscribeSUPPORT THE STACKSJoin The Stacks Pack on PatreonTo support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.Purchasing books through Bookshop.org or Amazon earns The Stacks a small commission.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Apr 2, 2025 • 1h 7min
Ep. 365 The Poets that Make Me Understand Myself with Tiana Clark
This week, we're kicking off National Poetry Month with poet and essayist Tiana Clark. Tiana's newest collection, Scorched Earth: Poems, explores themes of heartbreak, identity, and radical self-acceptance. In this conversation, Tiana reflects on what it means to be vulnerable in poetry, how she approaches the lyric “I,” and what she looks for when reading other poets’ work.The Stacks Book Club pick for April is Blessing the Boats: New and Selected Poems 1988–2000 by Lucille Clifton. We will discuss the book on April 30th with Tiana Clark returning as our guest.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website:https://thestackspodcast.com/2025/4/2/ep-365-tiana-clarkConnect with Tiana: Instagram | Website | TwitterConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | SubscribeSUPPORT THE STACKSJoin The Stacks Pack on PatreonTo support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.Purchasing books through Bookshop.org or Amazon earns The Stacks a small commission.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Mar 26, 2025 • 1h 5min
Ep. 364 They Were Her Property by Stephanie E. Jones-Rogers — The Stacks Book Club (Tembe Denton-Hurst)
It’s The Stacks Book Club Day, and we’re discussing They Were Her Property: White Women as Slave Owners in the American South by Stephanie E. Jones-Rogers with returning guest Tembe Denton-Hurst. We highlight the moments in the book that really stood out to us, from the brutality to the pervasiveness of slavery, and consider how white women have been protected by—and complicit in—the building of the American economy. We also reflect on the role of academic books and how we engage with them as readers.Be sure to listen to the end of today’s episode to find out what our April book club pick will be.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website:https://thestackspodcast.com/2025/3/26/ep-364-they-were-her-propertyConnect with Tembe: Instagram | Website | TwitterConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | SubscribeSUPPORT THE STACKSJoin The Stacks Pack on PatreonTo support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.Purchasing books through Bookshop.org or Amazon earns The Stacks a small commission.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Mar 21, 2025 • 15min
Unabridged: We’re in a Gender Straitjacket with Emily St. James
*Patreon- and Substack-only bonus episode teaser, click here for the full episode*In this episode of The Stacks Unabridged, we’re joined by author and critic Emily St. James to discuss her new book, Woodworking. We explore the recent evolution of anti-trans legislation, what it tells us about the current political moment, and trans rep in pop culture. Plus, Emily offers us her entries into the trans literary canon.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website:https://www.thestackspodcast.com/unabridged/2025/3/21/tsu-44-emily-st-jamesConnect with Emily: Instagram | BlueskyConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | SubscribePurchasing books through Bookshop.org or Amazon earns The Stacks a small commission.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Mar 19, 2025 • 1h 2min
Ep. 363 Gender and Genre Are the Same Word with Torrey Peters
This week, we’re joined by author Torrey Peters to discuss her new book, Stag Dance: A Novel & Stories, a collection that explores the complexities of desire, identity, and gender. Torrey shares how she freed herself to write after the success of her debut novel, Detransition, Baby, discusses her thoughts on the relationship between gender and genre, and what she finds most exciting about writing trans stories.The Stacks Book Club pick for March is They Were Her Property by Stephanie E. Jones-Rogers. We will discuss the book on March 26th with Tembe Denton-Hurst returning as our guest.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website:https://thestackspodcast.com/2025/3/19/ep-363-torrey-petersConnect with Torrey: Instagram | WebsiteConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | SubscribeSUPPORT THE STACKSJoin The Stacks Pack on PatreonTo support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.Purchasing books through Bookshop.org or Amazon earns The Stacks a small commission.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Mar 12, 2025 • 1h
Ep. 362 Colonialism Is Not an Abstraction with Omar El Akkad
This week, we’re joined by author and journalist Omar El Akkad to discuss his new book, One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This, which serves as a powerful reckoning with what it means to live in a West that betrays its fundamental values. Omar shares how writing nonfiction compares to his novels, how he anticipates and thinks about potential criticism, and what it means to resist despair in the face of empire.The Stacks Book Club pick for March is They Were Her Property by Stephanie E. Jones-Rogers. We will discuss the book on March 26th with Tembe Denton-Hurst returning as our guest.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website:https://thestackspodcast.com/2025/3/12/ep-362-omar-el-akkadConnect with Omar: Instagram | TwitterConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | SubscribeSUPPORT THE STACKSJoin The Stacks Pack on PatreonTo support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.Purchasing books through Bookshop.org or Amazon earns The Stacks a small commission.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Mar 5, 2025 • 1h 4min
Ep. 361 Reading Black Writers Gave Me Heritage with Tembe Denton-Hurst
This week, we’re joined by Tembe Denton-Hurst, staff writer at New York Magazine’s The Strategist and author of the novel Homebodies. Tembe shares why she thinks it is important to read in community with others, how seeing herself on the page changed her life, and the popular book she can’t stand.The Stacks Book Club pick for March is They Were Her Property by Stephanie E. Jones-Rogers. We will discuss the book on March 26th with Tembe Denton-Hurst returning as our guest.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website:https://thestackspodcast.com/2025/3/5/ep-361-tembe-denton-hurstConnect with Tembe: Instagram | Website | TwitterConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | SubscribeSUPPORT THE STACKSJoin The Stacks Pack on PatreonTo support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.Purchasing books through Bookshop.org or Amazon earns The Stacks a small commission.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Feb 26, 2025 • 1h 4min
Ep. 360 Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov — The Stacks Book Club (Ira Madison III)
It’s The Stacks Book Club Day, and we’re unpacking Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov with returning guest Ira Madison III. This literary classic is widely studied, but why? We explore what makes this novel a classic, why it’s still taught today, and what Nabokov wanted readers to take away from his most infamous work.There are spoilers on this episode.Be sure to listen to the end of today’s episode to find out what our March book club pick will be.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website:https://thestackspodcast.com/2025/2/26/ep-360-lolitaConnect with Ira: Instagram | WebsiteConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | SubscribeSUPPORT THE STACKSJoin The Stacks Pack on PatreonTo support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.Purchasing books through Bookshop.org or Amazon earns The Stacks a small commission.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Feb 19, 2025 • 58min
Ep. 359 It’s Rooted in Our Past with Rebecca Nagle
This week, journalist and activist Rebecca Nagle joins us to discuss her debut book, By the Fire We Carry: The Generations-Long Fight for Justice on Native Land. We discuss her decision to expand her podcast, This Land, into a book, the deliberate erasure of Indigenous people in the United States, and how she approaches the idea of "objectivity" in journalism.The Stacks Book Club pick for February is Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov. We will discuss the book on February 26th with Ira Madison III returning as our guest.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website:https://thestackspodcast.com/2025/2/19/ep-359-rebecca-nagleConnect with Rebecca: Instagram | TwitterConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | SubscribeSUPPORT THE STACKSJoin The Stacks Pack on PatreonTo support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.Purchasing books through Bookshop.org or Amazon earns The Stacks a small commission.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Feb 14, 2025 • 17min
Unabridged: Kendrick’s “Great American Game” with David Dennis Jr.
*Patreon- and Substack-only bonus episode teaser*In this episode of The Stacks Unabridged, author and ESPN writer David Dennis Jr. joins us to break down Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show. We get into the performance itself, the layers behind it, and how it fits into his ongoing beef with Drake. Plus, we discuss the reaction to the show and what it says about Kendrick’s place in music and culture.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website:https://www.thestackspodcast.com/unabridged/2025/2/14/tsu-43-david-dennis-jrConnect with David: Instagram | TwitterConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | SubscribePurchasing books through Bookshop.org or Amazon earns The Stacks a small commission.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.


