From the Front Porch

264 || March Reading Recap

Today, Annie recaps all the books she read in March.

The books mentioned in today’s episode are available at The Bookshelf:

• Most Likely by Sarah Watson

• Our Stop by Laura Jane Williams

• Weather by Jenny Offill

• Jo & Laurie by Margaret Stohl & Melissa de la Cruz

• Untamed by Glennon Doyle

• A Good Marriage by Kimberly McCreight

• The Silent Treatment by Abby Greaves

• Not Like the Movies by Kerry Winfrey

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations. 

This week, Annie is reading Friends & Strangers by J. Courtney Sullivan.

If you liked what you heard on today’s episode, tell us by leaving a review on iTunes. Or, if you’re so inclined, support us on Patreon, where you can hear our staff’s weekly New Release Tuesday conversations, read full book reviews in our monthly Shelf Life newsletter, follow along as Hunter and I conquer a classic, and receive free shipping on all your online orders. Just go to patreon.com/fromthefrontporch.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.

263 || March Madness, Indeed

Annie is joined this week by her husband, friend, audiobook listener, and fellow basketball enthusiast Jordan Jones. The NCAA tournament may have been canceled -- a true tragedy in the Jones’ house -- but they’re still debating The Bookshelf’s bestsellers in their annual March Madness episode. They hope their conversation brings a little light and levity to what’s been a stressful couple of weeks. 

• Where the Crawdads Sing vs. Educated

• The Dreamers vs. The Other's Gold

• Nickel Boys vs. Furious Hours

•  I Miss You When I Blink vs. When You Read This

• All This Could Be Yours vs. The Dutch House

• Evvie Drake Starts Over vs. The Lager Queen of Minnesota

• Ask Again, Yes vs. Daisy Jones & The Six

• Stars of Alabama vs. The Dearly Beloved

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations. 

This week, Annie is finishing Untamed, the new memoir by Glennon Doyle. Jordan just finished Out of the Silent Planet by C.S. Lewis.

If you liked what you heard on today’s episode, tell us by leaving a review on iTunes. Or, if you’re so inclined, support us on Patreon, where you can hear our staff’s weekly New Release Tuesday conversations, read full book reviews in our monthly Shelf Life newsletter, follow along as Hunter and I conquer a classic, and receive free shipping on all your online orders. Just go to patreon.com/fromthefrontporch.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week. 

262 || Playlist Meets Booklist: Spring

Annie is joined by Robbie Hopkins, a former literature teacher, avid reader, and frequent Bookshelf customer. Today, the two are previewing some spring titles that should be on your radar, but it’s being done a little bit differently—literature meets music.

Tap or click here for the full Spotify playlist.

The books mentioned in today’s episode can be purchased online from The Bookshelf:

• Separation Anxietyby Laura Zigman

• All Adults Here by Emma Straub

• Don't Overthink It by Anne Bogel

• The Silent Treatment by Abbie Greaves (preorder—released 4/7)

• The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel (preorder—released 3/24)

• How Much of These Hills Is Gold by C. Pam Zhang (preorder—released 4/7)

• Perfect Tunes by Emily Gould (preorder released 4/14)

• Siri, Who Am I? by Sam Tschida (preorder—released5/5)

• After the Last Border by Jessica Goudeau (preorder—released 4/28)

• Afterlife by Julia Alvarez (preorder—released 4/7)

• Deacon King Kong by James McBride

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.

This week Annie is reading Most Likely by Sarah Watson, the creator of The Bold Type. 

If you liked what you heard on today’s episode, tell us by leaving a review on iTunes. Or, if you’re so inclined, support us on Patreon, where you can hear our staff’s weekly New Release Tuesday conversations, read full book reviews in our monthly Shelf Life newsletter, follow along as Hunter and I conquer a classic, and receive free shipping on all your online orders. Just go to patreon.com/fromthefrontporch.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.

261 || Backlist Book Club, Vol. 7: March

This week Annie and guest, Hunter McLendon of @shelfbyshelf, bring you the first Backlist Book Club of 2020. The discussion revolves around Geraldine Brooks' March.

All of the books discussed today can be purchased from The Bookshelf:

March by Geraldine Brooks

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Louisa May Alcott: A Personal Biography by Susan Cheever

The Second Mrs. Hockaday by Susan Rivers

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.

This week Annie is reading The Office by Andy Greene and Hunter is listening to The Dutch House by Ann Patchett on Libro.fm.

If you liked what you heard on today’s episode, tell us by leaving a review on iTunes. Or, if you’re so inclined, support us on Patreon, where you can hear our staff’s weekly New Release Tuesday conversations, read full book reviews in our monthly Shelf Life newsletter, follow along as Hunter and I conquer a classic, and receive free shipping on all your online orders. Just go to patreon.com/fromthefrontporch.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.

260 || February Reading Recap

This week Annie recaps the books she read in February, all of which can be purchased on our website, www.bookshelfthomasville.com:

My Eyes Are Up Here by Laura Zimmerman

Writers & Lovers by Lily King

Layoverland by Gabby Noone

March by Geraldine Brooks

The Office by Andy Greene

The Holdout by Graham Moore

Here for It by R. Eric Thomas

Handle with Care by Lore Ferguson Wilbert

Dumplin’  by Julie Murphy

Live from New York by James Andrew Miller and Tom Shales

Do You Mind if I Cancel by Gary Janetti

Defending Jacob by William Landay

The Body in Question by Jill Ciment

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.

This week, as mentioned in today’s episode, Annie is finishing up Here for It by R. Eric Thomas.

If you liked what you heard on today’s episode, tell us by leaving a review on iTunes. Or, if you’re so inclined, support us on Patreon, where you can hear our staff’s weekly New Release Tuesday conversations, read full book reviews in our monthly Shelf Life newsletter, follow along as Hunter and I conquer a classic, and receive free shipping on all your online orders. Just go to patreon.com/fromthefrontporch.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.

259 || Literary Therapy, Vol. 1

Today, Annie is diving into listeners’ bookish dilemmas with some literary therapy. Topics include romance novels, tackling nonfiction, genre shame, and, of course, Little Women. Pretend Annie is coming to you live from Seattle, because she is Annie Jones, and she is listening.

Want to leave a voicemail for the next round of Literary Therapy? Email podcast@bookshelfthomasville.com, or leave a voicemail here.

Bossy Pants by Tina Fey

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling

I'll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara

The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule

You Never Forget Your First by Alexis Coe

Dead Wake by Erik Larson

The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson

Inheritance by Dani Shapiro

Wild Game by Adrienne Brodeur

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

Know My Name by Chanel Miller

I Miss You When I Blink by Mary Laura Philpott

Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson

Americana by Bhu Srinivasan

An American Marriage by Tayari Jones

Picking Cotton by Jennifer Thompson-Cannino

27 Dresses by Jesse Russell

Olive Again by Elizabeth Strout

The Essex Serpent by Sarah Perry

10 Blind Dates by Ashley Elston

What to Say Next by Julie Buxbaum

Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy by Ann Boyd Rioux

March Sisters by Kate Bolick, Jenny Zhang, Carmen Maria Machado & Jane Smiley

Meg and Jo by Virginia Kantra

From the Front Porch is a weekly podcast production of The Bookshelf, an independent bookstore in South Georgia. You can follow The Bookshelf’s daily happenings on Instagram at @bookshelftville, and all the books from today’s episode can be purchased online through our store website, www.bookshelfthomasville.com.

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.

This week, Annie is reading Handle with Care by Lore Ferguson Wilbert.

If you liked what you heard on today’s episode, tell us by leaving a review on iTunes. Or, if you’re so inclined, support us on Patreon, where you can hear our staff’s weekly New Release Tuesday conversations, read full book reviews in our monthly Shelf Life newsletter, follow along as Hunter and I conquer a classic, and receive free shipping on all your online orders. Just go to patreon.com/fromthefrontporch. We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.

BONUS: Winter Institute 2020

SURPRISE! We know it’s Tuesday, but we thought you’d enjoy this bonus episode of FTFP, where Annie and Olivia debrief about Winter Institute, an annual conference held for members of the American Booksellers Association.

Here’s a link to “Reinventing Retail: The Novel Resurgence of Independent Bookstores,” by Ryan Raffaelli.

Some books Annie brought home:

The Fixed Stars by Molly Wizenberg

The Harpy by Megan Hunter

Saving Ruby King by Catherine Adel West

A Good Family by A.H. Kim

Broken People by Sam Lansky

Small Game Hunting at the Local Coward Gun Club by Megan Gail Coles

The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix

Siri, Who Am I? by Sam Tschida

From the Front Porch is a weekly podcast production of The Bookshelf, an independent bookstore in South Georgia. You can follow The Bookshelf’s daily happenings on Instagram at @bookshelftville, and all the books from today’s episode can be purchased online through our store website, www.bookshelfthomasville.com. 

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.

If you liked what you heard on today’s episode, tell us by leaving a review on iTunes. Or, if you’re so inclined, support us on Patreon, where you can hear our staff’s weekly New Release Tuesday conversations, read full book reviews in our monthly Shelf Life newsletter, follow along as Hunter and I conquer a classic, and receive free shipping on all your online orders. Just go to patreon.com/fromthefrontporch.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here on Thursday.

258 || To All the Boys in Books I‘ve Loved Before

In honor of Valentine’s Day, Annie and her two special guests — Ashley Sherlock, cousin, friend, and former Bookshelf social media guru, and Hunter McLendon of @shelfbyshelf — discuss the book To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han and reminisce about all the literary crushes they’ve had and what literary crushes say about you.

Most of the books discussed today can be purchased from The Bookshelf:

• Looking for Alaska by John Green

• Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling (4th book)

• Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

• An Old Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott

• White Oleander by Janet Fitch

• Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano

• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

• Impulse by Ellen Hopkins 

• Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

• Emma by Jane Austen

• A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

• Normal People by Sally Rooney

• Emily Novels by L.M. Montgomery

• Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay by Michael Chabon

• Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx

• Call Me By Your Name by Andre Aciman

• The Secret History by Donna Tartt

• Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery

• The Perks of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

• The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

• To Kill A Mockingbird by by Harper Lee

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D productions for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations. 

This week Hunter is listening to Flowers in the Attic and Ashley is listening to Such A Fun Age on Libro.fm.

This week, Annie is reading Writers & Lovers by Lily King, and she adores it. 

If you liked what you heard on today’s episode, tell us by leaving a review on iTunes. Or, if you’re so inclined, support us on Patreon, where you can hear our staff’s weekly New Release Tuesday conversations, read full book reviews in our monthly Shelf Life newsletter, follow along as Hunter and I conquer a classic, and receive free shipping on all your online orders. Just go to patreon.com/fromthefrontporch.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.

257 || Books and the 2020 Oscars

Annie and fellow book club member and Oscar enthusiast, Callie Sewell, deep dive the 2020 Academy Awards and what it means for our reading lives.

The books discussed during the podcast can be purchased from The Bookshelf:

• The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt

• Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty

• Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

• The Notebook by Nicholas Sparks

• Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

• I Heard You Paint Houses by Charles Brandt

• Caging Skies by Christie Leunens

• Meg & Jo by Virgina Kantra

• We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter

• Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld

• I Wear the Black Hat by Chuck Klosterman

• March by Geraldine Brooks

• Meg, Jo, Beth, Amy by Ann Boyd Rioux

• A Separation by Katie Kitamura

• State of the Union by Nick Hornby

• The World That We Knew by Alice Hoffman

From the Front Porch is a weekly podcast production of The Bookshelf, an independent bookstore in South Georgia. You can follow The Bookshelf’s daily happenings on Instagram at @bookshelftville, and all the books from today’s episode can be purchased online through our store website, www.bookshelfthomasville.com. 

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D productions for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations. 

This week, Annie is reading -- Super Host by Kate Russo, which will be available June, 9, 2020, and guest, Callie is reading — The Shell Seekers by Rosamunde Pilcher.

If you liked what you heard on today’s episode, tell us by leaving a review on iTunes. Or, if you’re so inclined, support us on Patreon, where you can hear our staff’s weekly New Release Tuesday conversations, read full book reviews in our monthly Shelf Life newsletter, follow along as Hunter and I conquer a classic, and receive free shipping on all your online orders. Just go to patreon.com/fromthefrontporch.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week. 

Episode 256 || January Reading Recap

On this week’s episode of From the Front Porch, Annie recaps all the books she read in January. These can be ordered or pre-ordered through The Bookshelf website:

• We Wish You Luck by Caroline Zancan

• The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy

• Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano

• Saint X by Alexis Schaitkin

• The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel

• We Ride Upon Sticks by Quam Barry

• All Adults Here by Emma Straub

Follow The Bookshelf’s daily happenings on Instagram at @bookshelftville, and all the books from today’s episode can be purchased online through our store website, www.bookshelfthomasville.com. 

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D productions for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations. 

This week, Annie’s listening to Know My Name by Chanel Miller, which you can listen to on Libro.fm.

If you liked what you heard on today’s episode, tell us by leaving a review on iTunes. Or, if you’re so inclined, support us on Patreon.