Readers, every time I enter a new title on my To Be Read list, I make a note about why I’m excited to read it. That usually means listing who told me about it, and why they thought I might like it. This makes it easy to see where I get my best book recs, and provides ample opportunity for bookish conversation with friends and fellow readers.
Because I track this info, I know which bookselling friends reliably recommend forthcoming books I end up adoring, and which reading friends give recommendations that land. And I know just how many book recommendations I get from my own podcast. The answer is: A LOT.
a page from my reading journal c. 2017
What Should I Read Next? is my literary podcast dedicated to helping readers go beyond the bestseller list to find books that are exactly right for them. Each week, I invite one reader—whether that’s your mom, your neighbor, your teacher, or your favorite author—to share three books they love, one book they don’t, and what they’re reading now. Then I hand-pick three titles I hope are perfectly matched to their reading tastes.
We always end up swapping stories about the reading life, solving common bookworm problems, and sharing extra titles we can’t help but recommend.
Because tracking my book rec sources has been so valuable to me over the years, incorporating the concept into my forthcoming book journal was a must!
The TBR list in my reading journal is full of titles I first heard about on the show, from our guests—so today I’m sharing recent reads inspired by WSIRN guests.
If any of today’s titles catch your interest, be sure to download the matching episode for even more reading inspiration. Readers, I hope you find an intriguing title—or an entertaining listening experience on this book list.
8 books I read based on WSIRN guest recommendations
This letter written by ancient Greek philosopher Seneca, now published in book form, is over 2,000 years old—and I never would have read it if not for Neil Pasricha's enthusiastic recommendation in Episode 289: A ridiculous plan to read more books. According to Neil, it reads like an ancient motivational speech, yet it's incredibly prescient for today. He said, "it feels and sounds like an email that your best friend sent you today. It really feels that contemporary, telling you to just chill out. Life's not really that short. It's long if you know how to live it." Neil rereads it often and even travels with the slim volume in his suitcase. I appreciated the short 25 pages of stoic wisdom and wrote down a few quotes to remember. More info →
I couldn't resist this new release after Anne Helen Peterson mentioned it in Episode 284: I need an irresistible read this summer. I'd describe it as The Book of Essie meets Olympus, Texas. McKinney's debut novel is set in the insular small town of Hope, Texas where evangelical megachurch pastor Luke Nolan is both revered pastor and local celebrity. But this is really the story of his daughters, Abigail and Caroline, who find themselves at a crossroads when information about their father comes to light and throws their core beliefs into question. Part coming of age story, part family drama, this modern story of community and identity completely drew me in. I can see why it was one of Anne's most anticipated reads of the year. More info →
I considered reading this for ages, but I needed a nudge from Heather Williams in Episode 281: Authors who make you feel seen to finally pick it up. Heather said, "I really like those types of essays that just make you take a beat, think about how you’re living and the choices that you’re making, and I particularly like it when the author isn’t preaching and telling me what I should be doing." In this reflective, incisive essay collection, Jia Tolentino explores her own relationship history with the internet, social media, consumer culture and other distinctly millennial concerns—and in doing so, presents uncomfortable conclusions about our society at large. I enjoyed the way Tolentino expertly combines personal stories, like her time on a reality TV show, with broader musings about society. She doesn't offer easy answers, which makes this collection memorable and highly discussable. More info →
I recommended this all the way back in Episode 17: Smart, slightly eccentric, diverse books with Andi Cumbo-Floyd, and I revisited it recently after my conversation with Cliff Cullen in Episode 256: The perks and pitfalls of omnivorous reading. Cliff is an Octavia Butler completist, having read every single one of her works, and I aspire to do the same. This series—a planned trilogy that was never completed—is the most realistic of Butler's fiction. The setting is California, 2026, where a Black teenager named Lauren struggles for survival in a world gone to pieces, ravaged by climate change and drug abuse of epidemic proportions. Despite the overwhelming and terrifying obstacles she faces, Lauren isn't ready to give up yet, and bands together with a group of fellow travelers to head north in search of rumored safety, with the hopes of founding a colony for her Earthseed religion. Utterly gripping, and a great introduction to Butler's work. More info →
Over the years I've been floored by the superlatives readers use to describe this behemoth of a novel—epic, thrilling, the best book they've ever read. It's appeared in WSIRN show notes many times, but recent guests Hamid Printer (Episode 286: How to find those hidden gems) and Ahtoosa Dale (Episode 279: Read these books when you need a good cry) gave me a well-timed nudge. Both recommended the unabridged version, and Ahtoosa provided a hot tip when we were off mic: to read the audiobook, specifically the version narrated by John Lee. Forty-seven hours later, I finally understand why readers love this tale of a man thrown into prison for a crime he didn't commit and his long quest for retribution. This was wonderful on audio, but I did turn to SparkNotes on a half-dozen occasions for clarity on plot twists. This was A LONG BOOK, and while it won't go down as one of my lifetime favorites, I'm glad I read it. More info →
Emily Van Ark shared a strong recommendation for Becky Chambers's books in Episode 259: The formula for a 5-star read and then Max Lemoine followed up with another push in Episode 262: Books that deliver a little depth, a little distraction. I moved this up my To Be Read list, then our producer Brenna read it and said YOU HAVE TO READ THIS NOW. (Our guests inspire her reading life as well!) I'm so glad I did. This rollicking, big-hearted, constantly surprising space opera told a great story built on big themes—friendship and love, gender and politics, mortality and prejudice in a way that was just plain FUN. I loved these characters and look forward to seeing how the rest of the series unfolds. (Book 4 just hit bookshelves this spring.) More info →
Jennifer Weiner first put this book on my radar when she mentioned it as an all-time favorite in Episode 234: The Recipe for a Delicious Summer Read. After reading The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz for the Summer Reading Guide this year, I needed to see how two near-identical premises compared. (To my surprise and delight, the endings are TOTALLY different.) This twisty 2002 novel features a wannabe author who, despite his pretensions, can't write anything worth publishing. But then his studious roommate dies in a tragic accident, leaving behind a brilliant manuscript that's not only ready for publication, but based heavily on the wannabe author's own life. He lands a literary agent, publishes "his" masterpiece," zooms to the top of the bestseller lists—and only then finds out he's not the only one who knew about his roommate's manuscript. I found the outlandish plot and cheeky tone hugely entertaining. More info →
I tend to read backlist books this time of year, and Anne Helen Peterson's description of this 2003 National Book Award winner intrigued me. In Episode 284: I need an irresistible read this summer, she describes it as a story of longing (her favorite!) and impossible love. The story opens in 1947 with British War hero Aldred Leith arriving in Japan on official business: he's tasked with documenting the aftermath of the Hiroshima bombing, and while on assignment falls in love with Helen Driscoll, a woman 15 years his junior, who is just 16 when they meet. While the story is compelling, what I really loved in this novel was Hazzard's introspective style and carefully crafted structure. I love discovering hidden backlist gems like these through WSIRN podcast guests. More info →
Have you read a book after hearing about it on WSIRN? We’d love to hear about it in the comments!
Anne, I’m curious about the last entry shown in a page of your To Read list. Looks like Bleaker Island, no author listed and I don’t see that as a title on Goodreads. I’m intrigued! Katie
Meredith Monday Schwartz was the one who recommended The Count of Monte Cristo on one of the first episodes and described it on such a captivating way that I had to pick it up! Loved it!
Meredith is one of my favorite sources! I still remember listening to her talk about Louise Penny on WSIRN, though I foolishly wouldn’t pick up Still Life for a long time. Now I love getting recs from her on her Currently Reading podcast.
Salt to the Sea by Ruth Sepetys
I listen to your podcast during my daily walks. Then when a book intrigues me, I post it on my phone notes. I have found SO MANY good reads this way so thank you!
Salt to the Sea was an absolutely great story and I continue to think about the characters long after I’ve read it. I would never have discovered this book on my own without WSIRN.
At least half of my TBR comes from books I’ve heard about on WSIRN. One of the first I picked up was Harry’s Trees which I had never heard of before the show and absolutely LOVED! There have been so many since and I keep adding some after almost every episode.
I found a pristine copy of The Count of Monte Cristo in a collection of donated books in storage at my church. We volunteers were pulling books for summer reading boxes for grade school kids. Our program leader urged me to take The Count home and I’ve been planning to give it a go for a year. I’ve heard several WSIRN recommendations of how very good it is. This is why I love both podcast and website for reading discussions and book recs to enliven my reading life. Thanks, Ann and team for bringing us all together.
There are so many books on my TBR list from listening to the WSIRN podcast and sometimes they all become available from the library at the same time! This is overwhelming and how do we choose to read when you only have 3 weeks to read them all? Beach Read by Emily Henry is currently my favorite book from this year that was mentioned on the WSIRN podcast and I can’t wait to read the authors newest book People we meet on vacation.
I’m sure I’ve read heaps of books that were recommended on your podcasts, Anne! I really need to get better at keeping track of where I hear about books – countless times, when I go to review a great read, I want to credit the podcaster or reviewer or friend who brought the book to my attention, but cannot for the life of me remember who it was 😅
My would be my first YA novel “Salt to the Sea” what an amazing book. I am in my 40s and I would read another YA novel. So we’ll written and the history behind it. Took Anne’s advice didn’t read the Author’s notes till the end. Highly recommend, recommend on WSIRN episode. Love this community!
I’m envious of your TBR record! I often buy based on recommendations or descriptions, but later when I look at them, I remember nothing and feel no particular interest in reading them, and I go off and get NEW shiny books! I need reminders that all the books I bought were for a reason!
I love the idea of keeping notes on who recommended a certain book and why! I use Goodreads to keep a running TBR list (it’s just so convenient!) but I really wish you could add notes to the entries there. I end up with hundreds of books that I want to read and often have no idea where I got the title. 🙂
Because of numerous recommendations, I started to read the wonderfully immersive books by Rosamund Pilcher. She is such a great writer and I’m glad your podcast turned me in to her.
A general comment – I’ve noticed that you no longer date your postings. I can find an approximate date by checking comments, but I found that knowing when your posts were written helpful. Will you consider adding back the date to your posts? Hope so! Thanks.
I loved Jubilee by Margaret Walker! It was Gone with the Wind from the slave’s viewpoint. Needs to be a movie. Also gave 5 stars to Olympus, Texas and The Downstairs Girl.
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20 comments
Anne, I’m curious about the last entry shown in a page of your To Read list. Looks like Bleaker Island, no author listed and I don’t see that as a title on Goodreads. I’m intrigued! Katie
It might be Bleaker House: Chasing my novel to the end of the world, by Nell Stevens, set on Bleaker Island.
I really loved Nell Stevens other book (memoir, not novel), The Victorian and the Romantic—highly recommend if you liked Bleaker House
Meredith Monday Schwartz was the one who recommended The Count of Monte Cristo on one of the first episodes and described it on such a captivating way that I had to pick it up! Loved it!
Meredith is one of my favorite sources! I still remember listening to her talk about Louise Penny on WSIRN, though I foolishly wouldn’t pick up Still Life for a long time. Now I love getting recs from her on her Currently Reading podcast.
I recently read The House in the Cerulean Sea because I heard about it on your podcast and it may be one of my all-time favorites! Thank you!!
Song of Achilles- you recommended it to Chelsey & Curtis!
Salt to the Sea by Ruth Sepetys
I listen to your podcast during my daily walks. Then when a book intrigues me, I post it on my phone notes. I have found SO MANY good reads this way so thank you!
Salt to the Sea was an absolutely great story and I continue to think about the characters long after I’ve read it. I would never have discovered this book on my own without WSIRN.
Great book read in a few days! I too left a comment about this book!
At least half of my TBR comes from books I’ve heard about on WSIRN. One of the first I picked up was Harry’s Trees which I had never heard of before the show and absolutely LOVED! There have been so many since and I keep adding some after almost every episode.
I found a pristine copy of The Count of Monte Cristo in a collection of donated books in storage at my church. We volunteers were pulling books for summer reading boxes for grade school kids. Our program leader urged me to take The Count home and I’ve been planning to give it a go for a year. I’ve heard several WSIRN recommendations of how very good it is. This is why I love both podcast and website for reading discussions and book recs to enliven my reading life. Thanks, Ann and team for bringing us all together.
There are so many books on my TBR list from listening to the WSIRN podcast and sometimes they all become available from the library at the same time! This is overwhelming and how do we choose to read when you only have 3 weeks to read them all? Beach Read by Emily Henry is currently my favorite book from this year that was mentioned on the WSIRN podcast and I can’t wait to read the authors newest book People we meet on vacation.
I’m sure I’ve read heaps of books that were recommended on your podcasts, Anne! I really need to get better at keeping track of where I hear about books – countless times, when I go to review a great read, I want to credit the podcaster or reviewer or friend who brought the book to my attention, but cannot for the life of me remember who it was 😅
My would be my first YA novel “Salt to the Sea” what an amazing book. I am in my 40s and I would read another YA novel. So we’ll written and the history behind it. Took Anne’s advice didn’t read the Author’s notes till the end. Highly recommend, recommend on WSIRN episode. Love this community!
I’m envious of your TBR record! I often buy based on recommendations or descriptions, but later when I look at them, I remember nothing and feel no particular interest in reading them, and I go off and get NEW shiny books! I need reminders that all the books I bought were for a reason!
I love the idea of keeping notes on who recommended a certain book and why! I use Goodreads to keep a running TBR list (it’s just so convenient!) but I really wish you could add notes to the entries there. I end up with hundreds of books that I want to read and often have no idea where I got the title. 🙂
Because of numerous recommendations, I started to read the wonderfully immersive books by Rosamund Pilcher. She is such a great writer and I’m glad your podcast turned me in to her.
A general comment – I’ve noticed that you no longer date your postings. I can find an approximate date by checking comments, but I found that knowing when your posts were written helpful. Will you consider adding back the date to your posts? Hope so! Thanks.
I loved Jubilee by Margaret Walker! It was Gone with the Wind from the slave’s viewpoint. Needs to be a movie. Also gave 5 stars to Olympus, Texas and The Downstairs Girl.