by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) In last week's episode, Ashley and I shared some of our favorite books to teach, Stephen King's On Writing and Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God, so I thought I'd offer up a few more favorites. I've been teaching for 27 years, so the circumstances for each are different, but they've all brought my students and me joy at some point in my teaching career. David Baldacci's Wish You Well (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm) Synopsis: "Followi

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@ashley_dicksonellison) As we head into (or have already started!) another school year and many students are going back to school, I wanted to share some powerful middle-grade books that highlight specific school experiences and how protagonists can navigate challenges and obstacles that arise for each of them. I grabbed a couple of my favorites from a blog post I shared a while ago, "Amazing Middle-Grade Books Celebrating Strong Female Characters a

Curated by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) In last week's episode, we share some romances that are perfect for beach or summer reading. I thought I'd share a few more reviews of romance novels I've enjoyed in the past that you could add to your vacation TBR! Book Review of Mariana Zapata's Super-Slow Burn Romances (Jen's review) "So, I know that typically, we choose a single book to review on Fridays, but instead, I want to share FOUR books by one of my favorite new-to-me autho

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) As always, I had an impossible time choosing just five books to include on my "best reads of 2026 so far" list (which is why I cheated, as you'll notice from the graphic). At the time I'm writing this post, I've read 144 books so far this year; I've rated 95 of those books either 4.5 or 5 stars. (Yes, I'm a high rater, but I also do a LOT of self selecting based on previous experiences.) Anyway, I'm going to go ahead and share these fabulous r

Curated by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@ashley_dicksonellison) I've been working on my summer reading TBR stack, and I find our book reviews to be a great place to start when working on new lists! Today I'm sharing several reviews that would be seasonally appropriate for summer as well as ones I'm hoping to read this season. Katherine Center's WHAT YOU WISH FOR - The Pursuit of Joy (Jen's review) (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm) "Katherine Center’s What You Wish For is devoted to the pu

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@ashley_dicksonellison) Here we are with our mid-year updates on favorite reads so far this year! I have to say that, especially compared to last year (which was generally a slow and rather cumbersome reading year for me), I am off to a fun and exciting start this year with lots of great, impactful, and well-loved books that I haven't been able to put down, so that has been amazing. So far in 2026, I've really been following the leads on books that

Curated by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Since we're in the midst of May—the perfect month to dive into some memoirs!—I thought I'd share a few books that we haven't highlighted as much on the blog. Each of these women's stories offers a compelling deep dive into a life that may be very different from our own (one of my favorite elements of reading memoirs!) Click on the title to see the full review. Silvia Vasquez-Lavado's IN THE SHADOW OF THE MOUNTAIN - A Must-Read Memoir a

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Because I think dystopian novels are more relevant than ever, I decided to update this post with a few new dystopian reads that had an impact on me. (New books are marked with an asterisk.) Here's my original introduction: Last week, I finished Laila Lalami's The Dream Hotel (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm). It's one of those books that feels world shifting. Somehow, Lalami is both building a world that isn't possible (yet), a world in which the gove

Curated by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@ashley_dicksonellison) As I said earlier this week, I'm really focused on preparing for summer reading at the moment, and I'm definitely eager to read some romances this summer. (I might be on the lookout for a few thrillers as well, but we'll have to see how things go with that.) I looked back at our book reviews and found several romances that I would like to read this summer. Click on the title to see the full review. Mercedes Helnwein's

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@ashley_dicksonellison) I am eagerly gearing up for summer this year. I know it's just now the beginning of May, so maybe I'm getting a little ahead of myself, but in my opinion, it's never too early to start getting a TBR stack together. (I'm updating this list for the summer of 2026 and wishing you happy summer reading!) And summer starts early here in South Carolina, so we always need to be ready with good books. (Our pool officially opened on Ma

by Jen Moyers ( @jen.loves.books ) Update: It's been four years since I posted this list, and we've circled around again with our Reading Challenge. This year's category is "Book about the environment." Since then, I've continued to read in this area, hoping both to broaden and deepen my knowledge of books I can share with my students . . . and just to learn more. (I've marked new books with an asterisk.) This year's Unabridged Podcast Reading Challenge includes the category

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison ( @ashley_dicksonellison ) Happy spring! I'm circling back to this post from 2021 to highlight some amazing poetry collections to add to your TBR. These days, poetry seems like a beautiful way to stay connected to humanity. One reason I wanted to circle back to this post (in addition to April being National Poetry Month in the US!) is that I've been watching my own daughter develop a fierce love of poetry thanks to her teacher. She's nine years old i

Curated by Jen Moyers ( @jen.loves.books ) One of the greatest joys of reading is discovering voices that open windows into experiences, cultures, and communities beyond your own—and the authors featured in today's post do exactly that. This month, we're spotlighting books by Asian-American, Pacific-Islander (AAPI) authors across a range of genres, all of which would meet the category in this year's Unabridged Podcast Reading Challenge. Whether you're in a reading funk, cravi

by Jen Moyers ( @jen.loves.books ) Since March is Women's History Month, I thought it might be fun to share some recommendations focused on women throughout history. One thing I discovered, as I read through my tracking lists, is that diverse options become much harder to find as we go back in time (particularly books focused on non-white women). That could be a flaw in my personal reading, but I do think available options are scarcer. If you have any recommendations, I'd lov

Curated by Ashley Dickson-Ellison ( @ashley_dicksonellison ) For Women’s History Month, we’re spotlighting books that explore the strength, struggles, and resilience of women. (I'm updating this list in 2026 to add more great recs! The new book reviews are marked with an asterisk.) From poetry that captures the essence of motherhood to retellings of Greek mythology that reframe women’s roles, these stories offer powerful perspectives on identity, history, and empowerment. We’

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison ( @ashley_dicksonellison ) We know many of you are excited about celebrating Middle Grade March by reading lots of middle grade book picks! While I'm not a middle grade expert by any means, I've read quite a few middle grade picks over the last few years, and I'm excited to share some recent favorites with you all. *I'm updating this list for 2026, and my latest recommendations are marked with an asterisk. Also, if you're wanting to read more middle

Curated by Jen Moyers ( @jen.loves.books ) Since we traditionally celebrate love in February, I'm sharing some reviews of YA romances that we've loved. Some of these are mixed with other genres, but all of them include romance as a prominent component, and each of them offers a unique take on romance: Jennifer E. Smith's THE STATISTICAL PROBABILITY OF LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT - An Unabridged Buddy (Jen's review): "Jennifer E. Smith's The Statistical Probability of Love at First S

by Jen Moyers ( @jen.loves.books ) Last month, I focused on an Unabridged Podcast Reading Challenge category, " Book published in the year of your birth ." I thought that this month, I'd focus on "Book from a favorite author's backlist," which was also the subject of an episode last week, episode 306, " Book from a Favorite Author’s Backlist ." I keep a list of authors whose work I want to explore fully, and each of these will be inspiring some of my reading this year. Here a

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison ( @ashley_dicksonellison ) I loved seeing Jen's post about the books she's considering reading from the year she was born for our Unabridged Reading Challenge, and I thought it would be fun to do that as well. I was born in 1981, and there are several iconic books that I did not realize were written that year. To get started, I also used the Goodreads list for the most popular books written in the year of my birth, and it was a helpful way to get a

Just getting started with Unabridged Podcast? Welcome! We're Ashley and Jen, and we are both passionate about books and getting them into...