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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May 13, 2022
2 min

Julia Glass's VIGIL HARBOR - Speculative Fiction that Hits Close to Home

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Julia Glass's Vigil Harbor (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm) Thanks to partners NetGalley, Knopf Doubleday, and Pantheon Books for the digital ARC of Julia Glass’s Vigil Harbor in exchange for an honest review. The book is available for purchase. I’d read only one of Julia Glass’s prior novels—her debut Three Junes, winner of the National Book Award—when I requested an advance copy of Vigil Harbor. I was drawn in by the synopsis, focused on an isolate

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Jul 16, 2021
3 min

Elizabeth Lim's SIX CRIMSON CRANES - A Young Adult Fantasy Fairy Tale Retelling

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@teachingtheapocalypse) I wanted to read this one from the moment I heard the description, which incorporates a retelling of "The Wild Swans" fairy tale woven in with East Asian folklore and myths. Thank you to NetGalley for my advance copy of Elizabeth Lim's Six Crimson Cranes (Amazon | Bookshop.org) in exchange for an honest review! This brilliant YA fantasy read focuses on Princess Shiori, who at the beginning of the story is worried about her up

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May 28, 2021
3 min

Book Review of Deb Caletti's ONE GREAT LIE - A Stunning Book about Gender and Power

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Thanks to Partners NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the digital ARC of Deb Caletti’s One Great Lie (Amazon | Bookshop.org) in exchange for an honest review. The book will be released on Tuesday, June 1. Deb Caletti’s One Great Lie is a stunning YA novel about gender dynamics and issues of power, perfect for consideration in the aftermath of the #metoo movement. Told in spare, gorgeous prose, the novel focuses on a girl who’s given her drea

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May 14, 2021
3 min

Nicola Yoon's INSTRUCTIONS FOR DANCING - Celebrating the Beauty and Complexity of Love

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@teachingtheapocalypse) I absolutely love Nicola Yoon's work and could not wait to read her latest book! Thank you to partner NetGalley for the ARC of this one; Nicola Yoon's Instructions for Dancing releases on June 1st, so preorder your copy today! The question at the center of this book is a hard one—should we continue to love others even though all love essentially ends in loss? It's a heavy question that resonates throughout this book. As the

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Apr 16, 2021
3 min

Mercedes Helnwein's SLINGSHOT - Not Your Average YA Rom-Com

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Thanks to Partner Wednesday Books and NetGalley for the digital ARC of Mercedes Helnwein’s Slingshot in exchange for an honest review. The book will be published on Tuesday, April 27. Despite its bright and cheery cover, Mercedes Helnwein’s Slingshot is not a sweet YA rom-com. From page one, it defied my expectations. I absolutely loved it. Grace Welles is fifteen and miserable. She attends an undistinguished boarding school paid for by her fa

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Feb 19, 2021
3 min

Safia Elhillo's HOME IS NOT A COUNTRY - Finding a Way to Inner Peace

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@teachingtheapocalypse) Thank you to #partner NetGalley for the advance copy of this book, Safia Elhillo's Home Is Not a Country. This one comes out on March 2nd! In this YA lit novel in verse, teenager Nima explores what her life would be like if she were a different daughter and friend. Living alone with her mom and separated from the homeland where her mother grew up, Nima feels that she doesn't really belong anywhere. She clings to the music and

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Jan 8, 2021
4 min

Randi Pink's ANGEL OF GREENWOOD - The Greenwood Massacre of 1921 from the Perspective of Teens

by Ashley Dickson-Ellison (@teachingtheapocalypse) Randi Pink's Angel of Greenwood was my first full book of 2021, and what a great way to start the year! I was thrilled to see this book, and as soon as I saw that it was historical fiction and covered the Greenwood Massacre that took place in Tulsa, OK, in 1921, I knew I wanted to read it. That event is something I personally knew very little about until well into my adult life, and I was excited to see this important and tr

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Oct 2, 2020
2 min

Christina Lauren's IN A HOLIDAZE - A Fun Holiday Romp

by Sara Voigt (@meaningfulmadness) Things have been tough lately, so I was in the mood for a festive holiday read. In October. Yep. October. So, I requested Christina Lauren’s In a Holidaze, which releases October 6th. Thanks to NetGalley #partner for my free e-galley of this book. You all know what a slow reader I am, and I flew through this book. Talk about the right book at the right time. This Groundhog Day-esque (Yes, I made up that word.) tale about Maelyn (Mae) Jones,

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Sep 23, 2020
6 min

144: Celebrating Global Read Aloud

In honor of the final year of the Global Read Aloud, Unabridged Podcast revisits our episode from last year, in which we discussed Cherie Dimaline's The Marrow Thieves, Padma Venkatraman's The Bridge Home, and Kelly Yang's Front Desk. Join us in celebrating this fantastic program, which highlights books for young people and promotes global collaboration. What have been some of your favorite Global Read Aloud books? Bookish Check-in Ashley - Mark Oshiro’s Each of Us a Desert (

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Jul 31, 2020
2 min

Tehlor Kay Mejia's PAOLA SANTIAGO AND THE RIVER OF TEARS - The Perfect Blend of Middle School and Fo

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Thanks to partner NetGalley for the digital ARC of Tehlor Kay Mejia’s Paola Santiago and the River of Tears in exchange for an honest review. The book will be published on Tuesday, August 4, 2020. Paola Santiago is obsessed with the mysteries of the world: how humans can use algae to reduce fossil fuel use, what it's really like in space, why her mother won't let her get a dog, why her family never has enough money. But most of all, she wants

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Jul 10, 2020
3 min

Katherine Center's WHAT YOU WISH FOR - The Pursuit of Joy

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Thanks to Partner NetGalley for the digital ARC of Katherine Center's What You Wish Forin exchange for an honest review. The book will be published on Tuesday, July 14. Katherine Center’s What You Wish For is devoted to the pursuit of joy. That doesn’t mean it’s always a joyful novel--in fact, it opens with a tragedy that broke my heart. What it does mean is that Center is exploring, on every page, what we can do when it’s tough to be joyful,

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Jun 25, 2020
3 min

Brandy Colbert's THE VOTING BOOTH - Settle in for a One-Sitting Read!

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Thanks to Partner NetGalley for the digital ARC of Brandy Colbert's The Voting Booth in exchange for an honest review. The book releases Tuesday, July 7. Brandy Colbert's The Voting Booth is a perfect YA book. It's socially conscious; features compelling, nuanced characters; and has just the right amount of romance--I was grinning for nearly the duration of the book, which alternates between the points of view of two high school seniors. Marva

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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 21, 2020
4 min

Anna Solomon's THE BOOK OF V - Stunning and Thought Provoking

by Jen Moyers (@jen.loves.books) Thanks to partner NetGalley for the digital ARC of Anna Solomon’s The Book of V in exchange for an honest review. Anna Solomon’s The Book of V, out May 5th, is an astonishing and beautiful novel. Through three parallel stories, Solomon explores the ways that women can fight to define their identities, even in situations when they seem to be powerless. At the heart of the book is the biblical story of Esther, the second wife of the king. Sol

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May 7, 2020
2 min

Sarah Morgenthaler's THE TOURIST ATTRACTION - A Sweet Romance to Brighten Your Day

Happy Pub Week to Sarah Morgenthaler's The Tourist Attraction! Thanks to partner NetGalley for the egalley in exchange for an honest review. This sweet contemporary romance, which came out on Tuesday, was such an easy, happy read. I loved it! The book opens with super-grumpy restaurant owner Graham begrudgingly serving tourists in his restaurant, The Tourist Trap. In wanders Zoey, who has saved for years to finally take a vacation to Moose Springs, Alaska, with her wealthy fr

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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 20, 2019
3 min

Kelly deVos's DAY ZERO -- Jen's Review

Thanks to Partner NetGalley for the egalley of Kelly deVos’s Day Zero in exchange for an honest review. The book released on November 12. “If you’re going through hell, keep going” (loc. 3896). Day Zero, a near-future YA thriller, launches the reader into a frighteningly familiar world dominated by political conflict between two parties. The Opposition focuses on rugged individualism and oppose taxes on the rich, while The Spark embraces identity politics and using government

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Dec 13, 2019
1 min

Matthew Dicks's TWENTY-ONE TRUTHS ABOUT LOVE -- Jen's Review

Thanks to Partner NetGalley for the digital ARC of Matthew Dicks’s Twenty-one Truths about Love in exchange for an honest review. The book released Tuesday, November 19. Dan’s life is out of control. His wife, Jill, yearns to be have their first child. Dan is not so sure. He quit his job as a teacher to open a bookshop . . . which is failing. He has no relationship with the father who left him when he was a child, and he’s overshadowed by his brother, Jake Jr. He has no frien

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Dec 6, 2019
3 min

Shea Ernshaw's WINTERWOOD -- Jen's Review

Thanks to partner NetGalley for the digital ARC of Shea Ernshaw’s Winterwood in exchange for an honest review. The book released Tuesday, November 5. “I am a Walker. I am the thing whispered about, the thing that conjures goosebumps and nightmares” (loc. 131). Evocative. Atmospheric. Beautifully written. Shea Ernshaw’s Winterwood is a gorgeous YA fantasy novel set in a world just next door to our own. Teenager Nora Walker, the Walker (or, perhaps, witch) at the center of the

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Nov 29, 2019
4 min

Kwame Mbalia's TRISTAN STRONG PUNCHES A HOLE IN THE SKY -- Jen's Review

Thanks to Partner NetGalley for the digital ARC of Kwame Mbalia’s Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky in exchange for an honest review. The book released Tuesday, October 15. Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky begins with Rick Riordan’s introduction asking “Can you imagine what it would be like if you could find a book that wove the whole brilliant, beautiful tapestry of West African and African American legend into one magical world?” (loc. 48). This, of course, i

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