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.

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Jan 10, 2022
10 min

Five of Jen's Favorite Reads of 2021 (Part 2)

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Oh, friends. We've come to that post that causes me so much joy and so much agony: a list of favorites. My problem is assembling books for a list. Oh no. My problem is narrowing that list because, really, I could go on forever. I'm quoting myself here, from last year's list of five (so far): "So, here's my methodology. I looked back at my monthly wrap-up posts in IG, and I ONLY allowed myself to jot down the titles of my five-star reads." Then

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Jan 3, 2022
6 min

Five of Sara's Favorite Reads of 2021 (Part 2)

by Sara Voigt (@meaningfulmadness) Hello, friends! I can't believe we are here at the end of 2021. My first half of the year was definitely more robust than my last half in terms of reading, but I have been fortunate to read several books in the back half that I have really enjoyed. All of us here at Unabridged have different criteria for these posts. For me, I just look at my last half of the year and pick five of the books that stuck with me. You can find my favorites for t

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Aug 24, 2021
5 min

Pub Day Shout-Outs! for August 24th, 2021 featuring Heller, Barker, and Jeffers

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@teachingtheapocalypse) Here are three books coming out today that I'm excited to read! Peter Heller's The Guide (Amazon | Bookshop.org) Description from Publisher: "The best-selling author of The River returns with a heart-racing thriller about a young man who is hired by an elite fishing lodge in Colorado, where he uncovers a plot of shocking menace amid the natural beauty of sun-drenched streams and forests. 'Peter Heller is the poet laureate of

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Jul 19, 2021
7 min

Some of Jen's Favorite Reads of 2021 (so far)

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

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Jan 18, 2021
8 min

Five of Jen's Favorite Reads of 2020 (Part 2)

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Oh, friends, making book choices never gets easier for me. I had shared so many excellent books in my 2020 mid-year post AND on our 2020 Unabridged Awards Episode that I thought I would have narrowed the list from which to choose. Wow, was I wrong! (Be sure to check our mid-year posts: here's mine, Ashley's, and Sara's.) I read 345 books in 2020, and of those, 28 earned five stars from me, and 92 earned four-and-a-half stars. So, even with the

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Sep 18, 2020
3 min

V. E. Schwab's THE INVISIBLE LIFE OF ADDIE LARUE - An Impossible Choice

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Thanks to Partner NetGalley for the digital ARC of V. E. Schwab’s The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue in exchange for an honest review. The book will be published on Tuesday, October 6, 2020. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is the first book I’ve read by V. E. Schwab . . . I’ll definitely be reading more. What a brilliant, compelling, gorgeous novel. Adeline LaRue, born in France in 1691, is happy in her quiet life with her parents. Her dotin

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Jul 13, 2020
8 min

Some of Jen's Favorite Reads of 2020 (so far)

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) I love my friends, I love my friends, I love my friends. But when we were chatting and decided to do these mid-year, five-favorites-so-far posts, I knew I would be sending a little resentment their way. Only FIVE picks!?! Really? I can't choose just FIVE favorites! I want to include all the things. So, here's my methodology. I looked back at my monthly wrap-up posts in IG, and I ONLY allowed myself to jot down the titles of my five-star reads.

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May 25, 2020
2 min

Building on the Classics: Middle-Grade Reads to Add to Your Shelves

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) We recently had the chance to chat with Jill Hames, director of the James L. Hamner Public Library and host of the Connections podcast. Our agenda? To think about classics--like Gary Paulsen's Hatchet, Wilson Rawls's Where the Red Fern Grows, Mildred D. Taylor's Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, and Fred Gipson's Old Yeller--and develop a list of books that we could recommend to fans of these tried-and-true options. (For the record, we endorse the

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May 22, 2020
3 min

Natalie Jenner's THE JANE AUSTEN SOCIETY - A Warm Hug for Austen Fans*

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Thanks to partner NetGalley for the digital ARC of Natalie Jenner’s The Jane Austen Society in exchange for an honest review. The book releases on May 26, 2020. “I just feel, when I read her, when I reread her--which I do, more than any other author--it’s as if she is inside my head. Like music” (loc. 74). Natalie Jenner’s The Jane Austen Society, historical fiction ranging from 1932 to 1947, is about grief and recovery, greed and sacrifice, s

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May 20, 2020
22 min

126: Plugging into Bookish Communities Online with @readwithtoni from Instagram

In this week's episode of Unabridged, Ashley, Jen, and Sara talk with Toni about the power of developing an online bookish community. Toni--who posts @readwithtoni--shares her own bookstagram journey, what she loves about buddy reads, and the books (like Homegoing and All the Ugly and Wonderful Things) that have resulted in some great conversations. We also each share some great, bookstagram-made-me-do-it reads. Bookish Check In Ashley - Lyssa Kay Adams’s The Bromance Book Cl

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May 19, 2020
4 min

Pub Day Shout-Outs! May 19, 2019 featuring Collins, Henry, Santos

By Sara Voigt (@meaningfulmadness) Suzanne Collins's The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes: A Hunger Games Novel Description from Publisher: "Ambition will fuel him. Competition will drive him. But power has its price. "It is the morning of the reaping that will kick off the tenth annual Hunger Games. In the Capitol, eighteen-year-old Coriolanus Snow is preparing for his one shot at glory as a mentor in the Games. The once-mighty house of Snow has fallen on hard times, its fate

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May 15, 2020
3 min

Justina Ireland's DREAD NATION--Historical Fiction with a Twist

by Sara Voigt (@meaningfulmadness) Welp, this book is definitely a bit out of my wheelhouse. Justina Ireland's book Dread Nation is a young-adult, historical fiction novel with a (BIG) twist set right after the Gettysburg battle in the American Civil War. During the Gettysburg battle, something remarkable happens, and the fallen soldiers rise up from their deaths to become the undead (called shamblers in the book and are akin to zombies). The shamblers are able to infect othe

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May 12, 2020
5 min

Pub Day Shout-Outs! May 12, 2020 featuring Homa, Kamp, Thomas

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) I had such a hard time choosing only three books to highlight today--I've included a few more at the end, but do yourself a favor and check out the full list of books being published today. Ava Homa's Daughters of Smoke and Fire Description from Publisher: "Set in Iran, this extraordinary debut novel takes readers into the everyday lives of the Kurds. Leila dreams of making films to bring the suppressed stories of her people onto the global st

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May 11, 2020
2 min

A Fork in the Road: 9+ Works of Alternate History

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Last week, we released our Book Club episode focusing on Katharine McGee's American Royals, a book that questions what would have happened if George Washington had accepted the offer to become King instead of President. Alternate histories like this one can be an intriguing way to explore what matters to us and what decisions in our history have been most important. (They're also just fun!) Ta-Nehisi Coates's The Water Dancer - Check out my re

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Mar 31, 2020
3 min

Pub Day Shout-Outs! March 31, 2020 - Chang, Hadlow, Mafi

Here are three books coming out today that I (Jen) am excited to read! Alexandra Chang's Days of Distraction Description from HarperCollins: "The plan is to leave. As for how, when, to where, and even why—she doesn’t know yet. So begins a journey for the twenty-four-year-old narrator of Days of Distraction. As a staff writer at a prestigious tech publication, she reports on the achievements of smug Silicon Valley billionaires and start-up bros while her own request for a rais

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Mar 30, 2020
1 min

Roots of INTERNMENT: Perspectives on Internment during World War II

Samira Ahmed's Internment was our Unabridged Buddy Read for March and Book Club Pick for April. Our episode releases this Wednesday, April 1. In the novel, the protagonist and her parents are taken--in the near future--to an internment camp for Muslim citizens of the United States that is located near Manzanar. Frequently, Ahmed references WW II internment camps like Manzanar as historical context for her novel. Here are other sources--some own voices and some not--that provi

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Feb 26, 2020
2 min

114: Read Alike Ideas and Lit Circles - I Think the Risk Is Worth the Reward

In this episode, we're discussing the benefits of using Read Alikes within book clubs and within the classroom. We touch on some of our favorite YA lit books, such as Angie Thomas's The Hate U Give, as well as classics like Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451. We talk about strategies for making read alikes work and ways to manage the difficulties in order to reap the rewards of exploring a variety of books centering around one theme. Bookish Check In Jen - Jojo Moyes’s The Giver o

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Feb 17, 2020
3 min

Love Is in the Air: Even More Romance Recommendations!

Last week, on episode 112, we talked about some favorite love stories, including Alyssa Cole's A Princess in Theory and Linda Holmes's Evvie Drake Starts Over. I (Jen) could not, however, bear to stop there. As an avid romance reader, I didn't want to leave out contemporary romance authors like Penny Reid or historical romance favorites Lisa Kleypas and Courtney Milan (who also writes contemporary romances!). So, here are a few more recommendations for your TBR stack! Selecte

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Jan 22, 2020
2 min

Welcome - Introduction and Overview

Just getting started with Unabridged Podcast? Welcome! We're Ashley, Jen, and Sara, and we are teachers and podcasters who are passionate about books. We have four kinds of posts here on our blog. On Mondays, we post about our Bookish Faves, on Tuesdays we do Pub Day Shout-outs, on Wednesdays our episodes drop, and on Fridays, we post book reviews. (Be on the lookout on Thursdays, too; we sometimes have an extra post then!) There are many ways to connect with us! In addition

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Dec 6, 2019
2 min

Daniel José Older’s THE BOOK OF LOST SAINTS -- Jen's Review

"They came in boats and airplanes, armed with false documents and holy terror and a grinding wariness of what they would find. . . . They came and left behind family members clutching photographs, and promises to send money and frequent letters and powdered milk or vacuum cleaners or whatever it was impossible to find that year. . . . Each brought along a cord that stretched all the way back to the island and when they slept, each prayed the cord would send along news from ho

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