Unabridged Podcast

Welcome to Unabridged! Ashley and Jen (shown left to right in the photo) talk books, share recommendations, and celebrate all things bookish. On our blog (see our posts below!) we share bookish faves, pub day shout-outs, show notes, and book reviews.

Want to get more involved? Check out our 2023 reading challenge, join our buddy reads or book club on Instagram, or sign up on Patreon!

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6 days ago
7 min

6+ Classics by Black Authors to Complete the Unabridged Podcast Reading Challenge

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) One of our Unabridged Podcast Reading Challenge categories this year is "Classic by a BIPOC Author." Let me start off by acknowledging that the label "classic" is inherently ambiguous, which means that everyone can define the term as they wish. Now, with that clarified, I thought I'd share a few books by Black authors I've read over the past year or so that I think qualify as classics. (I'll be sharing some recommendations from other authors r

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Apr 27, 2022
7 min

227: Angie Thomas's CONCRETE ROSE - April 2022 Book Club

We are long-time Angie Thomas fans here at Unabridged (check out our episodes focused on The Hate U Give here and its adaptation here), so Ashley, Jen, and Sara were thrilled when we heard she was publishing a prequel focused on Maverick. Concrete Rose is (spoiler alert!) a five-star read for us, so we have a wide-ranging discussion of the book. We also share our pairings, including works by Elizabeth Acevedo, Jason Reynolds, and Laekan Zea Kemp. Bookish Check-in Ashley - Thi

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Sep 28, 2021
4 min

Pub Day Shout-Outs! for September 28, 2021, featuring Aoki, Gray, and Hanson

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Here are three books coming out today that I'm excited to read! Ryka Aoki's Light from Uncommon Stars (Amazon | Bookshop.org) Description from Publisher: "Good Omens meets The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet in Ryka Aoki's Light From Uncommon Stars, a defiantly joyful adventure set in California's San Gabriel Valley, with cursed violins, Faustian bargains, and queer alien courtship over fresh-made donuts. "Shizuka Satomi made a deal with the

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Sep 10, 2021
2 min

Zoraida Córdova's THE INHERITANCE OF ORQUÍDEA DIVINA — A Magical Book Anchored in Reality

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Thanks to partners NetGalley and Atria Books for the digital ARC of Zoraida Córdova's The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina (Amazon | Bookshop.org) in exchange for an honest review. The book is now available for purchase! Zoraida Córdova's The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina begins with a letter. Orquídea Montoya is dying, so she calls her relatives to her home in Four Rivers to claim their inheritance. She’s lost touch with most of them, having d

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Aug 28, 2021
3 min

Featured Books for September 2021

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

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Jul 31, 2021
4 min

Featured Books for August 2021

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

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Jul 14, 2021
2 min

186: Unabridged Hosts The Island Library Podcast

Here at Unabridged, we love listening to other bookish podcasts! Today, we're thrilled to share an episode from our friends Laura and Jodie at The Island Library podcast. On their episodes, Laura and Jo share about the books they've read and debate whether they would take that book along on a deserted island library, where there are ONLY ten precious spots. In this episode, they're discussing Justin A. Reynolds's Early Departures, and they also touch on Reynolds's first book,

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Jun 27, 2021
5 min

Featured Books for July 2021

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

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Jun 22, 2021
4 min

Pub Day Shout-Outs for June 22, 2021, featuring Dave, Heywood, and Clayton+

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@teachingtheapocalypse) Here are three books coming out today that I'm excited to read! Blackout by Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodstone, and Nicola Yoon (Amazon | Bookshop.org) Description from Publisher: "Six critically acclaimed, bestselling, and award-winning authors bring the glowing warmth and electricity of Black teen love to this interlinked novel of charming, hilarious, and heartwarming stories th

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Jun 18, 2021
2 min

Tahereh Mafi's AN EMOTION OF GREAT DELIGHT - A Compelling Character Study

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Thanks to Partner Libro.fm for the ALC of Tahereh Mafi's An Emotion of Great Delight (Amazon | Bookshop.org). This book is now available for purchase. Tahereh Mafi has become one of my favorite YA authors. Whether it's the dystopian Shatter Me series (Amazon | Bookshop.org) or her previous historical YA novel A Very Large Expanse of Sea (Amazon | Bookshop.org), Mafi maintains a brilliant balance between complex characters and compelling plots.

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Jun 14, 2021
12 min

9 YA Books from 2021 to Celebrate Pride Month

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

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May 29, 2021
4 min

Featured Books for June 2021

June Book On May 5, we're so excited to share our Book Club episode focusing on Laura Taylor Namey's A Cuban Girl's Guide to Tea and Tomorrow, which will also be our Buddy Read pick. On June 14th and 28th, we'll have IG chats about the novel. DM us @unabridgedpod to join! Here's the synopsis from the publisher: A Cuban Girl's Guide to Tea and Tomorrow "For Lila Reyes, a summer in England was never part of the plan. The plan was 1) take over her abuela’s role as head baker at

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May 25, 2021
4 min

Pub Day Shout-Outs for May 25, 2021, featuring Bellefleur, Williams-Garcia, and Yoon

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Here are three books coming out today that I'm excited to read! And be sure to check out our review of Remy Lai's Pawcasso (Amazon | Bookshop.org) later today @unabridgedpod—this sweet graphic novel is also being published today! Alexandria Bellefleur's Hang the Moon (Amazon | Bookshop.org) Description from Publisher: "Brendon Lowell loves love. It’s why he created a dating app to help people find their one true pairing and why he’s convinced

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May 4, 2021
4 min

Pub Day Shout-Outs! for May 4, 2021, featuring Bechdel, Harjo, and Oh

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Here are three books coming out today that I'm excited to read! Alison Bechdel's The Secret to Superhuman Strength Description from Publisher: "From the author of Fun Home, a profoundly affecting graphic memoir of Bechdel's lifelong love affair with exercise, set against a hilarious chronicle of fitness fads in our times. "Comics and cultural superstar Alison Bechdel delivers a deeply layered story of her fascination, from childhood to adultho

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Apr 25, 2021
4 min

Featured Books for May 2021

May Books On May 5, we're so excited to share our Book Club episode focusing on Ocean Vuong's On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous. We'll have a Book Club chat on IG about the novel on May 17 at 8:00 PM EST. Then, on April 10 and 24, we'll have IG chats about Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite’s Dear Haiti, Love Alaine. DM us @unabridgedpod to join! Here are the synopses from the publishers: On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous "On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous is a letter from a son to

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Apr 13, 2021
4 min

Pub Day Shout-Outs! for April 13, 2021, featuring Jalaluddin, Stoeve, and Thorne

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Here are three books coming out today that I'm excited to read (plus two more that I've already read!) Uzma Jalaluddin's Hana Khan Carries On Description from Publisher: "Sales are slow at Three Sisters Biryani Poutine, the only halal restaurant in the close-knit Golden Crescent neighbourhood. Hana waitresses there part time, but what she really wants is to tell stories on the radio. If she can just outshine her fellow intern at the city radio

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Mar 27, 2021
3 min

Featured Books for April 2021

April Books On April 7, we're so excited to share our Book Club episode focusing on Eric Gansworth's Apple: Skin to the Core. Then, on April 12 and 19, we'll have IG chats about Jennifer Mathieu's Moxie, and on April 26, we'll discuss the Netflix adaptation!. DM us @unabridgedpod to join! Here are the synopses from the publishers: Apple: Skin to the Core "Apple: Skin to the Core, is a YA memoir-in-verse. Eric Gansworth tells the story of his life, of an Onondaga family living

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Mar 26, 2021
3 min

Kaitlyn Greenidge's Libertie - Historical Fiction that Resonates

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Thanks to Partner Algonquin Books and NetGalley for the digital ARC of Kaitlyn Greenidge’s Libertie in exchange for an honest review. The book will be published on Tuesday, March 30. I jumped on the chance to read an early copy of Kaitlyn Greenidge’s Libertie. I read her first book, We Love You, Charlie Freeman, for the 2016 Tournament of Books, and I thought it was a phenomenal work with a core of historical fiction: it’s thoughtful and thoug

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Mar 23, 2021
3 min

Pub Day Shout-Outs! for March 23, 2021, featuring Boteju, Engle, and Thomas

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Here are three books coming out today that I'm excited to read! Tanya Boteju's Bruised Description from Publisher: "To Daya Wijesinghe, a bruise is a mixture of comfort and control. Since her parents died in an accident she survived, bruises have become a way to keep her pain on the surface of her skin so she doesn’t need to deal with the ache deep in her heart. "So when chance and circumstances bring her to a roller derby bout, Daya is hooked

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Mar 22, 2021
4 min

Meeting the Challenge: Celebrating Author Imprints

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) This year, for the Unabridged Podcast Reading Challenge (find out more here!), we are celebrating author imprints. On Wednesday, we're releasing an episode all about Rick Riordan Presents, but I wanted to spotlight some other imprints you may want to check out. Do you have favorite author imprints? Let us know @unabridgedpod! Rick Riordan Presents Description from the website: "Rick Riordan Presents is one small branch of the Disney-Hyperion P

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