October Book In October, we're so excited to be discussing Aiden Thomas's YA novel Cemetery Boys (Amazon | Bookshop.org) as both our Book Club and Buddy Read pick. We'll have two IG chats in the middle of the month, and then the episode will release on October 27th. Stay tuned to @unabridgedpod for details! Here's the synopsis: "A trans boy determined to prove his gender to his traditional Latinx family summons a ghost who refuses to leave in Aiden Thomas's paranormal YA debu

by Sara Voigt (@meaningfulmadness) On Wednesday, we'll be sharing authors who write either for multiple age groups, genres, or both. We discussed several of our favorite authors on the episode. Here are some other authors who we love who write broadly! Jason Reynolds: It is no secret that here at the podcast, we adore Jason Reynolds. He has a myriad of books written for both upper elementary/middle grade readers and young adult readers. Some of our favorites include The Track

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@teachingtheapocalypse) On Wednesday, we'll be sharing book recommendations for books we've read that surprised us in the best possible ways and turned out to be more than we expected. In keeping with my recent bookish fave posts featuring YA lit and middle-grade recommendations, I wanted to hone in on a few young adult lit and middle-grade books that also brought me unexpected joy because they were more than I anticipated when I started them. B. B.

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Last week, we released an episode recommending some favorite fantasy and dystopian reads. (You can check it out here.) So, I thought I'd zoom in on fantasy for this week's bookish fave. Fantasy is one of my go-to genres. It's there when I need a comfort read, when I want to escape, when I want to challenge myself. Often, fantasy authors are taking on real-world issues under the guise of leaving the real world. While the list of fantasy books I

by Sara Voigt (@meaningfulmadness) After I became a mom, I was always looking for books to pique my kids' interests. As they got older and were moving on to early chapter books, I realized I had two reluctant readers on my hands. What I love about series books for reluctant readers is that once a child loves one book in a series, it is easy for him/her/them to find their next read--the next book in the series! Here are some of the series that my kids have enjoyed over the yea

September Books On September 29, we'll release our Book Club episode focusing on Darcie Little Badger's Elatsoe (Amazon | Bookshop.org), but before that releases, we'll have two IG chats on September 13 and 27 (this is also our September Buddy Read pick!). Stay tuned @unabridgedpod for announcements and updates. Here is the synopsis from the publisher: "A Texas teen comes face-to-face with a cousin's ghost and vows to unmask the murderer. "Elatsoe—Ellie for short—lives in an

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@teachingtheapocalypse) This Wednesday, we share our thoughts about our August Book Club pick, Balli Kaur Jaswal's Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows. (You can join our discussion on Instagram on August 30th if you'd like to talk about that one! Just DM us or email us!) That book had so many amazing threads woven together, but one of them that really resonated with me was the way that generational and cultural differences can be overcome. One of the

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Though I've definitely come to love graphic novels and memoirs, my knowledge still hasn't reached the heights of the kids in my life. So, I thought I would share some of their faovrites as we prepare for our episode release this Wednesday, "Graphic Novel Recommendations." My sons, who are currently 14 and 11, are still huge fans of graphic novels. Often, they find an author whose work they enjoy, and then they run through their entire backlist

by Sara Voigt (@meaningfulmadness) I am so excited to talk about some of my favorite reads from my Beyond the Bookends Reading Challenge, the challenge I picked in addition to our Unabridged Reading Challenge. The thing I love about reading challenges is that they challenge (imagine that!) me to read outside of my comfort zone. My 2021 reading has gone SO much better than my 2020 reading. Here are some of my favorites from my reading challenge so far. Holly Whitaker's Quit Li

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@teachingtheapocalypse) On Wednesday, we're sharing our recommendations for books we couldn't stop reading. Be on the lookout for our book recs when that releases Wednesday! That episode got me thinking about other books that I've found irresistible and that I couldn't stop reading... here are a few that felt that way for me! This is a bit of an eclectic mix, but what they all have in common is that I could not stop reading them! I loved all of thes

August Books On August 25, we'll release our Book Club episode focusing on Balli Kaur Jaswal's Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows (Amazon | Bookshop.org), but before that releases, we'll have an IG chat mid-month. (We're working on shuffling our episode order for Season 5!) We'll also have two IG chats about our Buddy Read pick, Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera's YA novel What If It's Us (Amazon | Bookshop.org). Stay tuned @unabridgedpod for announcements and updates. Here ar

by Sara Voigt (@meaningfulmadness) My reading has been going much better in 2021 than in 2020. I have read quite a few books (for me) in this first part of the year, and I have read some that I truly adored. If you look back at my post from last year at this same time, my reading was not going well. At all. I love sharing the books I love, so I wanted to highlight these five books that have been some of my favorites of the year (so far). These aren't necessarily books that we

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) As usual when I set out to create a concise list of something, I struggled with this task, with creating a list of five favorite books that I've read so far in 2021. I've read a LOT of amazing books this year, and I want to tell you about them ALL. But, fear not, I've restrained myself, and I've come up with a list. I won't say that it's the definitive list because there's a great chance that tomorrow, I'll have regrets and wish I'd chosen one

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@teachingtheapocalypse) Phew, I have read some amazing books so far this year! Every year it feels increasingly challenging to pick favorites, and that is proving to be true for 2021. I shared some favorites from my reading challenges so far in my latest Bookish Fave. Here are a few others that I have absolutely loved during the first half of 2021! This list of five favorites so far includes Kacen Callender's Felix Ever After (Amazon | Bookshop.org)

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) On our episode two weeks ago, we all shared mid-year updates on our reading challenges for 2021. As always, I appreciate the ways that taking on these challenges can help to make my reading more intentional, but I also seek balance: sometimes, those lists can stress me out! This year, I've been thrilled with my challenges. I'm doing three: the Tournament of Books (and now Camp ToB, which is in progress), the Unabridged 2021 Reading Challenge (

by Sara Voigt (@meaningfulmadness) On last week's episode, we all share mid-year updates on our reading challenges for 2021. Ashley shared some of her reading challenge favorites in her Bookish Fave last week, so I thought I would follow up with mine! My reading challenges are going SO much better than my 2020 challenges, which if you remember were abysmal. So, I am elated to share with you some of the books that I have loved from my Unabridged 2021 Reading Challenge (which y

July Books On July 7, we'll release our Book Club episode focusing on Jacqueline Woodson's Red at the Bone (Amazon | Bookshop.org), and we'll have an IG chat mid-month. We'll also have two IG chats about our Buddy Read pick, Laekan Zea Kemp's YA novel Somewhere Between Bitter and Sweet (Amazon | Bookshop.org). Stay tuned @unabridgedpod for announcements and updates. Here are the synopses from the publisher: Red at the Bone "Moving forward and backward in time, Jacqueline Wood

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@teachingtheapocalypse) On this week's episode, we all share mid-year updates on our reading challenges for 2021. I'm happy to report that things are going a lot better for me this year! We talk about where we are with the Unabridged 2021 Reading Challenge (which you can still join if you're interested!), and then we share about where we are with our individual reading challenges. I personally chose the Uncorked Reading Challenge with the Uncorked L

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) This week's episode focuses on some YA Lit Recs, which made me think back on my reading over the course of 2021 so far. As I started making lists of my favorite YA reads, I noticed that I've actually read several books that are just perfect for Pride Month. If you're looking to do some intentional celebrating of Pride this month, here are some of my 2021 reads I'd definitely recommend. (For each one, I'm sharing the reviews I posted on IG.) Fa

by Sara Voigt (@meaningfulmadness) No one loves a good beach read like I do. When I think about reading at the beach, I think about fast-paced thrillers, romances that make me swoon, and compelling, plot-driven narratives. Here are six books to put in your beach bag this summer. Emily Henry's Beach Read was a favorite of the pod last summer. We even did a Book Club episode on it! Henry creates an intriguing romance using two flawed—but extremely likable— characters. I LOVED t