Books with Betsy
Books with Betsy is a podcast that celebrates the reading life of all readers. Each week, Betsy interviews a different person about their reading life. Listen for book recommendations, reading tips, and to join in the joy that reading brings. And remember, anyone who reads is a reader.
Episodes
On this episode, Emily Bogaert, a fellow teacher, talks about how her childhood made her fall in love with the library, the joy she feels when getting the right books into the hands of her students, and we talk about the ups and downs of the reading life when you’re a teacher. She also has a reading habit that is absolutely wild and I didn’t even know was still possible.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading:
...On this episode, Jennifer from Off Color Book Club joins me to discuss the most recent Off Color Book Club book, Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli.
If you’re interested in joining the Off Color Book Club in the future, our next meeting will be on Tuesday, April 21st to discuss True Biz by Sara Novic. All are welcome!
On this episode, Stephanie Bailey, a fellow Read & Runner, talks about her love of audiobooks, especially a favorite narrator, how much she enjoys graphic novels, and we discuss our shared love of sad books. She also has a surprising way that school helped her fall in love with reading.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading:
This Here is Love by Princess Joy L. Perry
Brawler by Lauren Groff
On this episode, Arionne Nettles, author, journalist, and professor, talks about how she finds romance to be a comfort, audiobook preferences that she loves, and why she likes talking about books in person but has a harder time with the bookish internet. We also get to talk about her book that I would absolutely recommend widely!
We Are the Culture: Black Chicago’s Influence on Everything
Books mentioned in this episode:
Wha...
On this episode, Will Pass, author and creator of Who Reads Books Anymore, talks about the joy of the library with his kids, how much he learns about books when talking to strangers, and the book that hooked him as a young reader. We also talk a lot about how people develop a rich reading life and I hope this inspires listeners to encourage a non-reader in their life!
On this episode, Sofia and Becca from Off Color Book Club join me to discuss the most recent Off Color Book Club book, There There by Tommy Orange.
If you’re interested in joining the Off Color Book Club in the future, our next meeting will be on Tuesday, March 17th to discuss Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli. All are welcome!
On this episode, Nicole Abrahamson, Off Color Book Club Member, talks about her extremely varied reading life that is inspired by the idea of trying anything once. We also talk about the importance of talking about why you might not like a book and she drops a ton of titles that you might want to add to your TBR.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading:
Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
The Wilderness by Angel...
On this episode, Rachel Larkins, a listener of Books with Betsy, talks about her project to read all the winners of the Hugo award, so we talk about a lot of really great sci-fi books. We also dish about how great the Book Riot podcast universe is and we might convince you to pick up Dune.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading:
Ring by Michele Lerner
You Wanna Be On Top? by Sarah Hartshorne
On this episode, Amanda Moulson, co-host of the Curious Readers podcast, talks about finding her heartland as a reader, how much women’s voices influence her reading life, and the ways that podcasting about books changes how she interacts with books. We also go down a bit of an awards rabbit hole and find our shared love of pen and paper.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading:
On this episode, Stephanie Majercik and Nicole Abrahamson from Off Color Book Club join me to discuss the most recent Off Color Book Club book, Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir.
If you’re interested in joining the Off Color Book Club in the future, our next meeting will be on Tuesday, February 17th to discuss There There by Tommy Orange. All are welcome!
On this episode, Giorgia Riddell, of Fostered Fiction, talks about her love for used books, especially those that are already annotated, her memories of listening to books on road trips, and we get into the current reading stats from last year and encourage anyone who wants to talk about reading online to go out there and do it.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What...
On this episode, Alexander Davidson, an English teacher and author, talks about his life as a self-proclaimed chaotic mood reader and gives a lot of really excellent book recommendations from a wide range of genres. He also talks about his recently developed love for audiobooks, and gives some great recommendations for narrators to look out for.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading...
On this episode, past guests of Books with Betsy and I share our favorite books of 2025! Listen to hear about lots of great 2025 books and the excellent backlist we got to this year.
Books mentioned in this episode:
Betsy’s Top 11 Books (in no particular order):
The Sisters by Jonas Hassan Khemiri
Endling by Maria Reva
The Director by Daniel Kehlmann
The Buffalo Hunter Hunter by Stephen Graham Jones
Biography of X by Cathe...
On this episode, past guests of Books with Betsy and I share our favorite books of 2025! Listen to hear about lots of great 2025 books and the excellent backlist we got to this year.
Books mentioned in this episode:
Betsy’s Best Categorically (books that…):
Shocked me:
It’s Not the End of the World by Jonathan Parks-Ramage
Sky Full of Elephants by Cebo Campbell
Made me Cry:
The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai
On this episode, Madeline Blair, founder and editor of the literary magazine Sabr Tooth Tiger, talks about her development as a lover and writer of poetry, how balancing reading online publications can run up against her day job, and how she discovers new pieces to read. You also get to hear me have a bit of an existential crisis in real time which happens every time I think about how much content there is out there to read.
On this episode, Francisco Rafael Peralta-Cerda, a fellow Read & Runner, talks about his work building a love for reading as a high school teacher, how his mom encouraged him to read when he was little, and a possibly surprising genre that he has fallen in love with this year. We also discuss his hesitation to read in public but also the attempt to dispel the myth of the performative male.
Books mentioned in this episode:
...
On this episode, Deirdre Harrison, Executive Director of SitStayRead in Chicago talks about how her understanding of relationships affects her reading life, the joys of being a little free library steward, and shares deep thoughts about how her organization fits into the literary lives of everyone she interacts with. She also tells some really incredible stories about her experiences with SitStayRead that will emphasize the importa...
On this episode, Antonio Michael Downing, author and host of CBC’s Next Chapter, talks about his early reading life with his grandmother in Trinidad, how his work affects his reading life, and the types of authors that are speaking to him now. We talk about his two books, Saga Boy, a memoir, and Black Cherokee, his first novel.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s readin...
On this episode, Jesus, Emily, and Brian from Off Color Book Club join me to discuss the most recent Off Color Book Club book, Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar.
If you’re interested in joining the Off Color Book Club in the future, we will not be meeting in December but will meet on Tuesday, January 20th to discuss Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir. All are welcome!
On this episode, Julie P., a mom who is finding her reading life to look differently than it has in the past, talks about how audiobooks have been a huge part of her reading life, the ways she brings reading to life with her kiddos, and how important and amazing children’s books are. Julie also gives a lot of great children’s book recommendations for many difficult topics.
Books mentioned in this episode:
What Betsy’s reading:...
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