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WSIRN Ep 27: Books good enough to make you turn off the tv (even if you love tv)

It’s Tuesday, which means a new episode of What Should I Read Next!

Today’s guest is Kendra Adachi. You may know Kendra from her blog, The Lazy Genius Collective, or her Lazy Genius podcast. She’s a mom of three in North Carolina who wants to find books that are good enough to make her turn off the tv, which is saying something because she loves her tv.

What Should I Read Next #27: Books good enough to make you turn off the tv (even if you love tv)

Books discussed in this episode: 

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The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Till We Have Faces by C. S. Lewis
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
Atonement by Ian McEwan
A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
We’re All Damaged by Matthew Norman
Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
Red Rising by Pierce Brown
The Man in the High Castle by Philip K. Dick
Before the Fall by Noah Hawley
Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde
Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

Also mentioned:

• Ep. 1: Books that inspire crying jags and sleepless nights (in the best sense) with Jamie Golden
• Ep. 6: Books for book nerds, author backstories, and simple stories told well with Tsh Oxenreider
The Modern Mrs Darcy 2016 Summer Reading Guide
How busy people make time to read by Laura Vanderkam

28 comments

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  1. Cindy McMahon says:

    This happened to me last night. I’ve been listening to the audio CD of “The ExPats” by Chris Pavone, and it got so good I had to check out a paper copy from the library, so I could read it on the couch (instead of watching TV)! I am still only halfway through, and I just saw that the book only has 3.5 stars on Amazon, but I’m loving it. Very fun and suspenceful!

  2. Dotty says:

    I can’t believe you haven’t read The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo series!!! You HAVE to put it on your reading list!

    • Jocelyn says:

      I really don’t get why people love these books so much. For me there are many better mystery novels, this one not credible at all. And I also feel like the author is writing fan-fic for his main character. He’s just in love with her/obsessed with her and she is unreal. And the story itself is just unpleasant and ugly. Yes, murder mysteries/crime books reveal the ugly side of humanity but the good ones also show us our redemption. Yes the world is going to be cleansed by a flood but look … there is a chance you could be on the ark.

  3. Mary says:

    I absolutely adore your podcasts, Anne! Your guests are always so interesting. The conversations are truly wonderful. I love being able to eavesdrop. I thank you many times over for your work and dedication! A pure joy!

  4. Denise says:

    Would love to hear your thoughts on the literary phenomena called Helen Oyeyemi. Simply cannot get enough of her work. Boy,Snow,Bird? Masterful storytelling, worthy of every award it received. What is yours, is not yours? Not for everyone, but how absolutely captivating for those who appreciate beautiful writing. She is a true treasure. The Bronte’s are smiling.

  5. True confession and I am sure I am not alone in this, I often daydream about my 3 books I love as if I am on the podcast. So I was delighted that Kendra chose one of my 3 with The Night Circus, I was nodding my head with her thoughts. As a side note, I would have also chosen Rebecca as one of my three as well.
    Anne, Tuesday is so much easier to get up and get ready for work when I know that I have a new episode to download and listen to on one direction of my commute.
    So grateful!

  6. Donna Hampton says:

    I have been seeing (and interested in) Before the Fall in many different places including MMD’s reading list but when I saw it in the department store immediately after listening to today’s excellent podcast I knew it was meant to be and snatched it up! I can’t wait to hear what Kendra thinks!

  7. Nancy Smith says:

    I really enjoyed this podcast because I follow Kendra’s blog as well. Before the Fall just got bumped up my TBR list. I am glad you suggested Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen. It was a fun read and is also set in North Carolina where I live – as does Kendra.
    Thanks for your blog and podcasts. You have fantastic suggestions and keep my reading life fun.

  8. Jules Q says:

    Dead on suggestion for Thursday Next series for Kendra! We are kindred spirits with The Night Circus and I’ve loved Thursday Next since her beginning. It was super fun to hear Kendra’s giggles of delight as you explained the premise. I can’t wait to hear her thoughts. Thanks for a great episode with one of my fave bloggers!

  9. We read Til We Have Faces in my graduate Counseling Psychology program. It was pivotal to my own healing. It was not an easy read though, so I read it outloud to my husband. He usually fell asleep because he likes the sound of my voice 🙂

  10. Dale Power says:

    Well, I loved The Night Circus but even more and completely different was My Name is Resolute by Nancy Turner. I could not put it down. She also wrote These is My Words which is another page turner. Loved the history but also the story of a woman who not only survives but learns to thrive through her life. Probably the two best books I’ve read in several years.

  11. Elisabeth says:

    Thank you so much for recommending the Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde. He has been one of my favorite authors for years, but not very many people seem to know who he is. So I love that his Thursday Next series is getting some love!

  12. Ani says:

    Oh I would definitely recommend reading Rebecca if you are a lover of the movie! The movie is fantastic, but went through an extreme ego battle between Hitchcock and David O. Selznick while in pre-production that kind of diluted the drama in the last third of the novel. If you’ve found the movie romantic and thrilling, I would say the book is even more so!

  13. Theresa says:

    Another great episode. I love your podcasts and listening to you and your guests talk about books. I have two pages of books I want to now read in my reading journal. Yes, that’s a good thing. One can never have to many books or friends. Keep the episodes coming.

  14. Heather says:

    Loved this episode…I just started The Eyre Affair on the weekend so was happy to hear some thoughts on it! The Night Circus didn’t work for me, but I think I need to give it another try because that was a long time ago! I can totally relate to having a big pile of good books around!

    • Jocelyn says:

      The Night Circus didn’t work for me either and neither did another book that became super popular which is very similar, Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell. I read Garden Spells a few months ago and it was okay (it was the Southern aspects that I liked the most) but a book I loved is Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel.

  15. Wyndi says:

    I have some catching up to do on the podcasts, so I listened today on my walk. I was SO EXCITED about the recommendation of The Eyre Affair, that I had to stop my walk, find it on the amazon app, and add it to my wish list … I’ve been in a Bronte state this year. I’ve read Jane Eyre and The Madwoman in the Attic. I am currently reading Wuthering Heights. Jane Steele is sitting on my to-be-read pile, along with The Wild Sargasso Sea.

  16. Sally says:

    I’m very late to this thread, so I’m not sure if Kendra will see it. I’ve just recently discovered Anne’s podcast, and I’ve been binging on episodes. So far, Kendra’s taste is closet to my own. As I was listening, I was just finishing Iain Pears’s latest novel “Arcadia.” I loved it and thought it might work for Kendra, too. I’m also reading “Word Exchange,” which might have been mentioned in episode 27 (forgot to check). I love the premise of “Word Exchange,” but the author seems a little lost on how to manage the middle of her book. Thanks for the podcast, Anne! And I’ll be checking out Kendra’s blog. I used to have a blog in that wheelhouse (called Good Enough Woman), but it’s gone dormant. Happy reading!

  17. Cristina Duarte Ferreira says:

    I’m enjoying the podcast very much. I’ve been binge listening from no. 1.
    I just have to say that I loved A Clockwork Orange. I read the English versions, which I was told is different from the American one.

  18. Brooke says:

    Hi Modern Mrs. Darcy,
    Oh man, did I LOVE the Night Circus. What a great recommendation. If Harry Potter is a G and PG rated tale, the Night Circus oscillates between PG-13 and occasional R. I found it to be the darker, more sensual and lush cousin to J.K Rowling’s series. Hence, why I have read it three times.

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