Feminist Book Club: The Podcast

Is this real life? We are honored to be chatting with three amazing authors that we happen to admire so much! Sally chats with Jamie Raines and his wife Shaaba to discuss our November book of the month, The T in LGBT. Then Renee invites KJ Dell’Antonia back on the show to discuss the adaptation of her 2020 book The Chicken Sisters.   The Trans Experience and Allyship (0:22) We’re heading into November, where our book club theme is Trans Voices and our non-fiction book is The T in LGBT. Sally sat down with the author, Jamie Raines, and his wife and collaborator, Shaaba, to talk about the wide range of trans experience, allyship, creating boundaries around social media, and more.   From Page to Screen with KJ Dell’Antonia (20:04) Four years ago, KJ Dell’Antonia’s first novel The Chicken Sisters was a New York Times bestseller and a Reese’s Book Club pick. Now it’s been adapted for television and is currently airing on the Hallmark Channel! Renee chats with KJ about the experience adapting this book, why it resonates, and why Hallmark is the surprisingly perfect place for it. Books/Resources Mentioned The T in LGBT by Jamie Raines (our November nonfiction book of the month!) The Chicken Sisters by KJ Dell’Antonia Renee’s first interview with KJ Dell’Antonia from 2021 Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus Renee’s interview with Bonnie Garmus Playing the Witch Card by KJ Dell’Antonia     Support this episode’s hosts Follow Sally: Instagram // The StoryGraph Follow Jamie: YouTube // Instagram Follow Shaaba: Instagram // YouTube Follow Renee: Instagram // The StoryGraph Follow KJ: Instagram // Substack Get our weekly round-up of blog and podcast content delivered directly to your inbox every Friday here.   Check out our online community here!    This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.   Original music by @iam.onyxrose   Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.  

We’re in the final weeks until the election, so we thought we’d share a few books (and one documentary!) that brought a glimmer of hope to our hearts. Tune in for Mariquita’s review of A Bit Much, Sally’s review of The Inner Mountain, and Ashley’s discussion of the documentary Sacred Soil alongside the book Admissions.   A Bit Much: Relishing Poetry that Recharges Your Heart (0:22) Mariquita reviews Lyndsay Rush’s debut book of poetry, A Bit Much, and discusses why everyone needs to have a little collection that reminds them just what a badass they are.   The Inner Mountain Book Review (4:09) Sally reviews The Inner Mountain by Diane Wang, a motivational book for women in leadership and entrepreneurship. It’s not a perfect book, but it has some great takeaways and is great for a buddy read or small book club. Thanks to The Inner Mountain Foundation for sponsoring this segment.   Black Experiences at Boarding School (9:42) Ashley talks about the documentary Sacred Soil: The Piney Woods Story in tandem with Admissions: A Memoir of Surviving Boarding School by Kendra James about the experiences of Black students in boarding school.    Books/Resources Mentioned A Bit Much: Poems by Lyndsay Rush The Inner Mountain: Discover Your True Spirit, Strength, and Potential by Diane Wang Collective Courage: A History of African American Cooperative Economic Thought and Practice by Jessica Gordon Nembhard It’s Not (All) Your Fault: Self-Help and the Individualization of Oppression by Sharon Podobnik Admissions: A Memoir of Surviving Boarding School by Kendra James     Support this episode’s hosts Follow Mariquita: Instagram  Follow Sally: Instagram // The StoryGraph Follow Ashley: Instagram // Twitter // Website Get our weekly round-up of blog and podcast content delivered directly to your inbox every Friday here.   Check out our online community here!    This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.   Original music by @iam.onyxrose Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.

We all know that books can help us escape the real world and they can also demonstrate how we might show up in the world as our whole selves. This episode celebrates both ends of this spectrum. Sally kicks us off with some of her favorite quick horror novellas, a perfect escape for this time of year. Then Nox tells us about the impact the book Fat Girls Hiking had on her. Finally, Ashley chats with Jayne Allen, author of The Most Wonderful Time, a holiday romcom with depth.   Bite-Sized Fright for Spooky Season (0:21) Novellas are perfect for a sick day, a readathon, or when you are utterly overwhelmed by life and need a quick read to pull you out of reality for a bit. As the weather cools down and we snuggle into spooky season, Sally’s got some short, creepy books for you to check out.   Fat Girls Hiking (6:18) Nox shares a review of Fat Girls Hiking: An Inclusive Guide to Getting Outdoors at Any Size or Ability by Summer Michaud-Skog. Nox discusses how this book impacted her as a fat, disabled, person of color. She shares some parts that really resonated with her and inspired her, as well as a few places that could use a little more depth. Overall, this book is highly recommended!   Identity, Joy, and Travel with Jayne Allen (16:10) In this spoiler-free conversation, Ashley and Jayne Allen discuss Jayne’s novel The Most Wonderful Time, how it is more than a holiday novel, and how through newness and tough conversations, the story comes to life.   Books/Resources Mentioned Haunt Sweet Home by Sarah Pinsker Graveyard Shift by M. L. Rio Night of the Mannequins by Stephen Graham Jones Your Shadow Half Remains by Sunny Moraine Fat Girls Hiking by Summer Michaud-Skog The Most Wonderful Time by Jayne Allen     Support this episode’s hosts Follow Sally: Instagram // The StoryGraph Follow Nox: Instagram // Twitter // TikTok Follow Ashley: Instagram // Twitter // Website Follow Jayne Allen: Instagram  Get our weekly round-up of blog and podcast content delivered directly to your inbox every Friday here.   Check out our online community here!    This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.   Original music by @iam.onyxrose Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.

Renee and Mariquita didn’t know what they were getting into when they decided to discuss the book One of Our Kind by Nicola Yoon. Tune into this discussion for an overview of Yoon’s first adult novel, a thriller in the vein of The Stepford Wives, but stick around for Renee and Mariquita’s experience being humbled by Black readers’ reviews.   Books/Resources Mentioned One of Our Kind by Nicola Yoon The Stepford Wives by Ira Levin Rosemary’s Baby by Ira Levin The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein Do Better by Rachel Ricketts Renee’s interview with Rachel, author of Do Better Goodreads review from Cydney     Support this episode’s hosts Follow Renee: Instagram // The StoryGraph Follow Mariquita: Instagram  Get our weekly round-up of blog and podcast content delivered directly to your inbox every Friday here.   Check out our online community here!    This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.   Original music by @iam.onyxrose   Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.  

Ashley and Mariquita discuss the book Rebels with a Cause: Reimagining Boys, Ourselves, and Our Culture by Niobe Way. They touch on topics of masculinity, the crisis of connection, and ways in which boys can create better pathways towards mental wellness. You may also hear them pontificate on why childless cat ladies exist.   Other resources mentioned: Miami Dolphins star Jaelan Phillips: Let’s not stigmatize vulnerability from men   Support this episode’s hosts Follow Ashley: Instagram // Twitter // Website Follow Mariquita: Instagram  Get our weekly round-up of blog and podcast content delivered directly to your inbox every Friday here.   Check out our online community here!    This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.   Original music by @iam.onyxrose   Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.  

Join Sam, Mariquita, and Ashley for a roundtable discussion on one of our favorite books of the year, Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe. They discuss the themes of motherhood, sex work, addiction and recovery, as well as the narrative perspective of Margo herself. Don’t let the heavy topics fool you – this book is hilarious, warm, and full of heart.    Support this episode’s hosts Follow Sam: Twitter // Instagram  Follow Mariquita: Instagram  Follow Ashley: Instagram // Twitter // Website Get our weekly round-up of blog and podcast content delivered directly to your inbox every Friday here.   Check out our online community here!    This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.   Original music by @iam.onyxrose Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.

While we love a good fluffy book, there’s just something about diving deep into a specific subject. At FBC, we know we can do that through both fiction and non-fiction. In this episode, Nox shares a non-fiction book about reproductive health that opened her eyes to how much learning she has to do. Then Renee talks to Monique Roffey about femicide in the Caribbean in her new book Passiontide.    It’s Not Hysteria: A Review (0:21) Nox discusses It’s Not Hysteria by Karen Tang, an important (and gender-inclusive!) book about the reproductive system. Tune in to hear why this book was so meaningful to her and how it empowered her to learn more.   Femicide in the Caribbean (10:50) Renee chats with Monique Roffey, author of the new book Passiontide, about femicide in the Caribbean. Passiontide is a fictional novel inspired by women’s protests in Trinidad after a Japanese steel pan player was murdered in 2016. Monique shares startling statistics about the murder of women globally but particularly in Trinidad and why it was so important to her to write about this issue.   Mentioned in this episode: It’s Not Hysteria by Karen Tang, MD, MPH Passiontide by Monique Roffey The Mermaid of Black Conch by Monique Roffey The Web of Meaning by Jeremy Lent The Living Goddesses by Marija Gimbutas Support this episode’s hosts and guests: Follow Nox: Instagram // Twitter // TikTok Follow Renee: Instagram // The StoryGraph Follow Monique Roffey: Instagram Today’s episode is sponsored by Gretchen Sisson, author of Relinquished: The Politics of Adoption and the Privilege of American Motherhood. Your support helps keep feminist media independent!   Get our weekly round-up of blog and podcast content delivered directly to your inbox every Friday here.   Check out our online community here!    This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.   Original music by @iam.onyxrose Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.

It’s the week after Labor Day when it still feels like summer but we’re starting to get the itch for fall. So today’s episode celebrates this liminal space. First, Ashley shares her thoughts on summer blockbuster films led by women. Then Renee shares her five must-read BIPOC thriller authors and her favorite books by each one.    Twisters: A Female Led Summer Blockbuster (0:21) Ashley shares her thoughts on the film Twisters, which amplifies women in STEM and a female-centered story, plus the impact of woman-led films during this summer blockbuster season.   Five BIPOC Thriller Authors for Fall (9:04) Gillian Flynn gave us the unreliable narrator and female rage, Jordan Peele gave us white supremacy as the real horror, and these five BIPOC authors weave all of these elements together to create books you’ll never want to put down. Grab your favorite sweater and your chai latte, and tune into Renee’s review of these must-read thrillers.   Mentioned in this episode: Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn When No One is Watching by Alyssa Cole One of Us Knows by Alyssa Cole My Sweet Girl by Amanda Jayatissa You’re Invited by Amanda Jayatissa Island Witch by Amanda Jayatissa Like a Sister by Kellye Garrett Missing White Woman by Kellye Garrett White Horse by Erika T. Wurth The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas Vampires of El Norte by Isabel Cañas Support this episode’s hosts and guests: Follow Ashley: Instagram // Twitter // Website Follow Renee: Instagram // The StoryGraph Today’s episode is sponsored by Gretchen Sisson, author of Relinquished: The Politics of Adoption and the Privilege of American Motherhood. Your support helps keep feminist media independent!   Get our weekly round-up of blog and podcast content delivered directly to your inbox every Friday here.   Check out our online community here!    This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.   Original music by @iam.onyxrose   Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.  

We’re not sure what this episode says about us as a team, but we like gross shit and we look up to rebels. In the first segment, listen in as Rah and Mariquita tell one another about some books they love that just gave them the ick. Then stick around for Sam’s review of Rebel Girl by Kathleen Hanna. Somehow Kathy Acker is name dropped twice in this episode and that just feels right.   We Like to Feel Grimy: Books That Gross Us Out (0:22) Join Rah and Mariquita as they dive into the books that leave us feeling, well... gross. These are the reads that make you say, “What the f***?” or leave a lingering, unsettling feeling long after you’ve turned the last page. Please note that many of these books do come with content warnings, so please take care of yourself and check the warnings before diving into the book.  Rebel Girls: Kathleen Hanna’s New Memoir and the People She’s Inspired (21:26) Sam talks about Kathleen Hanna’s new memoir, Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk, and how it is darker, deeper, and more insightful than its cover might lead you to believe. This bookand the review mention sexual assault.   Mentioned in this episode: Kittentits by Holly Wilson (tune into our discussion on the podcast here) Earthlings by Sayaka Murata The Guest by Emma Cline Raw Dog by Jamie Loftus Tender by Beth Hetland Chlorine by Jade Song Cursed Bunny by Bora Chung Blood and Guts in High School by Kathy Acker We Are Never Meeting in Real Life by Sam Irby (or really anything by Sam Irby) Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder Rebel Girl by Kathleen Hanna Riot Grrrl History Support this episode’s hosts and guests: Follow Rah: Instagram // TikTok // The StoryGraph Follow Mariquita: Instagram  Follow Sam: Twitter // Instagram  Today’s episode is sponsored by Gretchen Sisson, author of Relinquished: The Politics of Adoption and the Privilege of American Motherhood. Your support helps keep feminist media independent!   Get our weekly round-up of blog and podcast content delivered directly to your inbox every Friday here.   Check out our online community here!    This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.   Original music by @iam.onyxrose Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.

Sometimes our contributors just want to tell you about the delightful books they’ve read recently, so tune in for four book reviews on some recent releases.   What’s in this episode: The Backtrack by Erin LaRosa, reviewed by Mariquita (0:21) Loud: Accept Nothing Less Than the Life You Deserve by Drew Afualo, reviewed by Renee (3:25) Creation Lake by Rachel Kushner, reviewed by Sam  (11:45) The Coven by Harper L. Woods, reviewed by Mhairie (15:30) (Trigger warnings: dubious consent, forced feeding, graphic violence, rough and explicit sexualcontent, forced proximity, betrayal, references to past abuse inc child abuse and reactions to triggering stimuli, knife violence, blood, physical harm to the FMC, bullying, murder, death of a parent, death, confinement.)   Support this episode’s hosts and guests: Follow Mariquita: Instagram  Follow Renee: Instagram // The StoryGraph Follow Sam: Twitter // Instagram  Follow Mhairie: Instagram Today’s episode is sponsored by Gretchen Sisson, author of Relinquished: The Politics of Adoption and the Privilege of American Motherhood. Your support helps keep feminist media independent!   Get our weekly round-up of blog and podcast content delivered directly to your inbox every Friday here.   Check out our online community here!    This episode was edited and produced by Renee Powers on the ancestral land of the Dakota people.   Original music by @iam.onyxrose   Learn more about Feminist Book Club on our website, sign up for our emails, shop our Bookshop.org recommendations, and follow us on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest.