Mallory McCormack from The Staredown podcast joins us for a crossover episode about books and sports! Our book discussion takes us deep into the U.S. women's soccer team's quest for pay equality, but we promise that even readers who don't enjoy sports will love the books we talk about this month! Books we discuss in this episode: Pre: The Story of America’s Greatest Running Legend by Tom Jordan Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game by Michael Lewis Family Huddle by Archie Manning, Eli Manning and Peyton Manning Bleachers by John Grisham The National Team: The Inside Story of the Women Who Changed Soccer by Caitlin Murray The Guncle by Steven Rowley  Find us on Instagram @checkyourshelfpodcast and @thestaredown_podcast. Thanks for listening!

Media specialist and Alabama Take writer Laura Lott suggests some titles for fiction fans who may be hesitant to dabble in the world of nonfiction. We also talk about her favorite fiction from this year, as well as what we're currently reading and what's next on our TBR list.  Books we discuss in this episode: You'll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey: Crazy Stories About Racism by Amber Ruffin and Lacey Lamar Savor: A Chef's Hunger for More by Fatima Ali Fatty Fatty Boom Boom: A Memoir of Food, Fat, and Family by Rabia Chaudry So You've Been Publicly Shamed by Jon Ronson The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson All That Is Mine I Carry with Me by William Landay Olympus, Texas by Stacey Swann Catch-22 by Joseph Heller Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros Legendborn by Tracy Deonn Blueberry Muffin Murder by Joanne Fluke What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall My Murder by Katie Williams In the Weeds: Around the World and Behind the Scenes with Anthony Bourdain by Tom Vitale The Last Word by Taylor Adams Quietly Hostile by Samantha Irby If We're Being Honest by Cat Shook Encounterism: The Neglected Joys of Being In Person by Andy Field You can find Laura's article about nonfiction books that she loves here  and her latest article about summer reads here.  Find us on Instagram @checkyourshelfpodcast or email us at [email protected]. Thanks for listening!  

This month my friend and fellow librarian Sedona Brewer stops by to talk about our favorite underrated books. Our news segment is dedicated to book bans (and book ban bans - we see you, Illinois!), and then we wrap up with what we're currently reading and what's on our TBR list. 

Mallory McCormack is here this episode for a discussion of Prince Harry's memoir Spare, then she tells us about the Bully Book Club, an international book club made up of dog lovers that she joined during the pandemic. We finish the episode with some excellent book recommendations from Oscar. 

Do you still have some last minute gifts to buy? We have you covered! Jennifer Kimbrough (@jennythebookgal) joins us again to discuss the best book gifts we've ever received and our favorite books to give as gifts. We also talk about what we've been reading, and then Oscar is back to share some book reviews for young readers (46:18).

In our third episode Jennifer Kimbrough joins us to discuss her favorite audiobooks. She also fills us in on the best (and cheapest) ways to find audiobooks and listen to your heart's content (28:00). She sticks around to discuss the buzz around Matthew Perry's new book in our Book News segment (41:54), and then we wrap up with some fiction and nonfiction recommendations (47:22).

Despite a few technical issues, we cover a lot of books in this month's episode! I’m joined by Christa Martin to discuss our love of thrillers and horror novels. We also talk about the National Book Award finalists (kind of) and Prince Harry’s upcoming memoir, then recommend some of our favorite fiction and nonfiction (32:19). Next, Oscar shares some of his favorite historical fiction titles for young readers (54:28), and then Corey and I wrap up the podcast with a discussion of Questlove’s Music Is History (59:56).  

In the first episode of Check Your Shelf we talk about our favorite books and authors, discuss George R. R. Martin's Fire & Blood and its HBO adaptation House of the Dragon, and dive deep into Dave Grohl's bestselling memoir The Storyteller.