Mary: It’s time once again for YA Book Club, where we share our love of young adult lit by reading the most interesting picks we can find. Today we’re talking about Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White. This apocalyptic tale follows Benji, a 16-year-old transgender boy, as he attempts to escape his claustrophobic religious cult.
Read moreBSG #77: I Thought We Were Solving a Murder / Witches / Interview with Dizz Tate
BSG #77: I Thought We Were Solving a Murder / Witches / Interview with Dizz Tate
Accompany the squad on a potentially misleading adventure that does not actually involve any investigative reporting as we cover Witches by Brenda Lozano (translated by Heather Cleary). We talk about literature in translation, the novel's narrative voices, and some 'high brow feminist shit.' Later in the episode, Kelli interviews childhood friend Dizz Tate, author of Brutes. They discuss their adolescence spent in Florida, the highs and lows of teenage girlhood, and the lasting power of The Virgin Suicides. Plus, they give great advice, especially for people with "no hopes for the future!" Send us any feedback you have to thesquad@booksquadgoals.com, and join us 3/6 for our episode on Knock at the Cabin with special guest Samantha Allen, author of Patricia Wants to Cuddle. Don't forget to read along for our next bookpisode on Johnny Compton's debut novel, The Spite House, on 3/20.
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Read moreOthersode #76: We’ve Touched the Puppet Hole / M3GAN with Grady Hendrix
Othersode #76: We’ve Touched the Puppet Hole / M3GAN with Grady Hendrix
Grady Hendrix, author of How to Sell a Haunted House, joins the Book Squad to talk about the new film M3GAN and all things uncanny valley! Then we chat with Grady about his latest book, haunted dolls, puppet theater, book tour presentations, and what he’s working on now. Catch our next Bookpisode on 2/20 — we’ll be talking about Witches by Brenda Lozano, plus Kelli interviews Dizz Tate, author of Brutes. Then come back on 3/6 for our next Othersode on Knock at the Cabin with special guest Samantha Allen, author of Patricia Wants to Cuddle. Send feedback, questions, and pictures of your creepy childhood dolls to thesquad@booksquadgoals.com!
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Read moreQueer Girl Book Club: Briefly, A Delicious Life
Kelli: Happy New Year! I’m allowed to say that through the end of January, right?
Emily: I say ‘til the end of February. Let people ease into 2023. Haven’t we earned that?
Kelli: We may be a little late, but better late than never, and we are finally ready to discuss Briefly, A Delicious Life by Nell Stevens. I picked this book because we love queer ghost stories here, and I’m also a fan of queer historical fiction (girls kissing but it’s not ALLOWED? Sign me up). This one also sparked my interest in that it’s actually from the perspective of the ghost, which is something we don’t get all that often. Ghost stories are scary because ghosts are unknown, and with that element removed, a ghost story turns into something melancholic rather than horrifying.
How did you feel about the way this book approached ghosts?
Read moreIn This House, We Watched Skinamarink
Mary: Skinamarink was poised to be the hot new horror movie of the moment, if you take TikTok’s word for it. I kept seeing videos touting how scary the film was, or how it was the best in a new wave of analog horror stories. After the youngest member of my D&D party talked about how much he enjoyed it, and after it got a limited release for one weekend in my town, I bought a ticket and went.
It was… not what I expected.
Read moreOur Favorite Things of 2022: The Blog Post
(A24)
If you’ve been a listener of our podcast for a while, you know that we usually do an annual episode where we each list our three favorite pieces of media from the past year. We decided to do things a little differently this year and enter 2023 as haters (check out our Colleen Hoover Hatepisode for more on that), but that doesn’t mean we don’t still love stuff! Read on for our faves of 2022 — and let us know yours, too.
Read moreBSG #76: The Gimlet or the Eye / Cult Classic
BSG #76: The Gimlet or the Eye / Cult Classic
Come along with us on a journey through romances past as we discuss Sloane Crosley’s new novel Cult Classic. We talk about the novel's genre and tone, the writing style, what our protagonist learns, and of course, the mysterious Clive and the Goldonda. Plus, you get to hear us talk about our exes a little. (In every case, it was their loss.) Check your feeds on February 6th for our next Othersode where we’ll discuss M3gan with one of our favorite guests, Grady Hendrix, author of How to Sell a Haunted House. Then read along for our next Bookpisode about Witches by Brenda Lozano on February 20th. Send us feedback about our recent Hatepisode on It Ends With Us to thesquad@booksquadgoals.com or DM us on social! Then, while you’ve got your phone out, go leave us a rating and review on Apple podcasts!
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Read moreOthersode #75: Steampunk Funeral / It Ends With Us Hatepisode w/ Mean Book Club
Othersode #75: Steampunk Funeral / It Ends With Us Hatepisode w/ Mean Book Club
The Squad is coming for the CoHort as they dive into It Ends With Us for a very special Hatepisode. Johnna and Sarah from Mean Book Club join in on the fun and lend some expert hating skills to the ep! The crew discusses all things Colleen Hoover, as well as tired romance tropes, fanfiction, and trendy steampunk flowershops. Do you have what it takes to make it through a whole episode about CoHo? Does the cycle of Hatepisode abuse really end with us? Listen in to find out. Stay tuned for our next bookpisode on 1/23 where we'll discuss Cult Classic by Sloane Crosley, and our next othersode on 2/6 when we'll talk M3GAN with returning guest and author of How To Sell A Haunted House, Grady Hendrix!
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Read moreBSG #75: Homewritten: The Weight of Blood
BSG #75: Homewritten / The Weight of Blood
This holiday season, the Book Squad is heading to prom! Join us and special guests Scott and Amber as we discuss Tiffany D. Jackson's The Weight of Blood. Yes, this is a retelling of Stephen King's Carrie, and yes, we discuss the stories' similarities and differences. We also chat about what it was like going to high school in Georgia. And of course, we talk about racism, sexism, witchiness, creepy dads, and what it means when a Goodreads review seems "homewritten." Did you read The Weight of Blood? What are your thoughts? Be sure to send us some feedback at thesquad@booksquadgoals.com and we'll read it on our next bookpisode. Stay tuned for our next episode: the highly anticipated hatepisode on Colleen Hoover's It Ends With Us, featuring the return of Susan! And after that, read along for our next bookpisode, which will be on Cult Classic by Sloane Crosley. Follow us on social media @booksquadgoals, and visit our website at www.booksquadgoals.com.
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Read moreYA Book Club: Whiteout
Mary: It is officially the holiday season, and we’re beginning the celebrations with Whiteout, a collaboratively written novel by Nicola Yoon, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, and Nic Stone – all STARS of the YA genre!
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