Tag: Fiction

Ep. 266 We Are the Ones Who Make the World with Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah

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Award-winning author Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah joins us for a spoiler-free discussion of his new novel Chain-Gang All Stars. He shares the pressures he’s felt ahead of releasing his second book, and his trepidation around how the book will be received in prison abolition spaces. Plus, we find out what makes revision so important to Nana, and how he thinks about employing violence in the book to help tell this story.

The Stacks Book Club selection for May is This Boy We Made by Taylor Harris. We will discuss the book on May 31st with Nicole Chung.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

Photo: Alex M. Philip

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

Connect with Nana: Instagram | Twitter | Website
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To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

The Stacks Book Club – February 2023

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Our February selection for The Stacks Book Club is The Round House by Louise Erdrich. The thrilling coming-of-age novel set in 1988 centers on a 13 year-old boy named Joe living with his parents on a reservation in North Dakota. After a brutal attack traumatizes his mother into silence and seclusion, and when the authorities fail to take action, Joe is thrust into a complex mystery that sends him on a justice-seeking mission with a trio of friends. Their adventure truly begins when they’re led to the sacred Ojibwe space of The Round House. Released in 2012, The Round House won the National Book Award and was a New York Times Best Book of the Year.

We will discuss The Round House by Louise Erdrich on Wednesday, February 22nd. You can find out who our guest will be by listening to today’s episode. If you’d like even more discussion around the book, consider joining The Stacks Pack on Patreon and participating in The Stacks’ monthly virtual book club.

Order your copy of our February book on Bookshop.org and Amazon, or listen to the audiobook.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page (https://www.patreon.com/thestacks). We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of The Stacks.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed. For more information click here.

Unabridged: A Book Should Be More Like an Orgasm with Hunter McLendon

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For this Unabridged discussion, we’re joined by Hunter McLendon, the reader behind @shelfbyshelf on bookstagram. Together, we unpack what makes fiction or nonfiction good, and the practice of writing for other writers versus writing for readers. We also get into the legitimacy of star rating systems when everyone has a different idea of what five stars means. Listen out for our Pulitzer predictions!

*This episode is exclusive to members of The Stacks Pack on patreon. To join this community, get inside access to the show, and listen now, click the link below.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. You can also find what we talked about on Amazon.

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Connect with Hunter: Instagram | Twitter | Newsletter
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To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Ep. 147 Crafting a Collection with Danielle Evans

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Our guest today is Danielle Evans, author of The Stacks January Book Club selection, The Office of Historical Corrections. We discuss this incredible short story collection, spoiler free. We also discuss finding themes in a collection, and the ways Evans approaches writing white characters, plus how she came to understand she wanted to be a writer.
There are no spoilers on this episode.

The Stacks Book Club selection for January is The Office of Historical Corrections by Danielle Evans, we will discuss the book with Deesha Philyaw on January 27th.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. You can also find everything we talked about on Amazon.

Connect with Danielle: Twitter | Website

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To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. If you prefer to support the show with a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Ep. 126 Sula by Toni Morrison — The Stacks Book Club (Brit Bennett)

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Brit Bennett (The Vanishing Half, The Mothers) is back for our annual discussion of a Toni Morrison novel. This year, we’re taking on Sula, Morrison’s novel about the bonds between women. Our conversation dives into feminist commentary throughout the book, the desire to create lasting communal art, and the ways Morrison uses gruesome violence and unexpected humor to show us a world that is deeply human and uniquely Black.
There are spoilers in this episode.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

Connect with Brit: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Website
Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of this show. If you prefer to do a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

The Stacks Book Club — August 2020

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Its time for a favorite annual tradition around these parts. Every year we read a Toni Morrison novel for The Stacks Book Club, and this year we’re reading Sula.

Sula, written in 1973, is the story of a relationship between two girls, Nel Wright and Sula Peace, and the ways their friendship evolves and complicates as they grow up. The book asks questions about betrayal and loyalty, and how these ideas are often more complex than they appear. Sula is not only about the relationships between the two women, but also the family trauma they come from, the community they are raised in, and the societal expectations of Black femininity.

We will be discussing Sula on the podcast on Wednesday, August 26th, and you can find out who our guest will be buy listening to the podcast on August 5th. If you’d like even more discussion around the book consider joining The Stacks Pack on Patreon and participating in The Stacks’ monthly virtual book club.

As always, we want to hear from you, so please reach out with your thoughts, questions, and things you want to hear discussed on the podcast. You can email us at thestackswithtraci@gmail.com, comment on this post, or reach out through Instagram @thestackspod.

Order your copy of our July book on Bookshop.org or Amazon.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page (https://www.patreon.com/thestacks). We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of The Stacks.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed. For more information click here.

Ep. 109 Trust Exercise by Susan Choi — The Stacks Book Club (Brandon Taylor)

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Its The Stacks Book Club day, and we’re discussing the 2019 National Book Award winner in fiction, Trust Exercise by Susan Choi. Our guest is Brandon Taylor, author of Real Life, and if you missed Brandon’s first episode you can hear it here. Trust Exercise looks at fiction, perspective, and truth as it ventures back to a 1980’s performing arts high school. On this episode we discuss the many twists and turns we experienced as readers and our takes on the characters. We dive deep today, and that means lots of spoilers. You’ve been warned.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

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Connect with Brandon: Twitter | Instagram | Website
Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of this show. If you prefer to do a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

The Stacks Book Club — April 2020

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April marks the start of our third season of The Stacks. What a joy! Thank you all who have read along with The Stacks over these past two years, the show and the book club wouldn’t be what it is with out all of your enthusiasm and support.

Starting this month, we will have one book club book per month. The discussion of the book will be on the episode that falls on the last Wednesday of the month. This month that will be April 29th. Its a small change that will allow for more people to keep up with reading with The Stacks.

The Stacks will announce the book club selection on the first of the month, but you can find out a week early but tuning into the book club episode of the podcast. For example, we announced the April book on the March 25th episode of the podcast, and are announcing it now here, on April first!

So without further adieu, The Stacks Book Club pick for April 2020 is National Book Award winning novel, Trust Exercise by Susan Choi. The book looks at fiction and truth as it ventures back to a 1980’s performing arts high school. Trust Exercise is sure to inspire conversation about responsibility and desire and the ways we tell our stories.

Be sure to tune into The Stacks on April 29th for our deep dive into this book. There will be spoilers.

As always, we want to hear from you, so please reach out with your thoughts, questions, and things you want to hear discussed on the podcast. You can email us at thestackswithtraci@gmail.com, comment on this post, or reach out through Instagram @thestackspod.

Order your copies of our February books on Amazon or IndieBound.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page (https://www.patreon.com/thestacks). We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of The Stacks.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

EP. 105 The Union of Science and Art with Brandon Taylor

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Today marks the start of our third year here at The Stacks, and there is no better way to celebrate than by talking a whole lot about books! Thank you to all our listeners for their love and support, we can’t wait for year three! Make sure to listen to the introduction today to hear about some exciting changes to the podcast.

Our Guest today is Brandon Taylor, debut author of one of 2020’s buzziest books, Real Life. We talk today about releasing a book into the world, the similarities between science and art, and much more.

The Stacks Book Club selection for April is Trust Exercise by Susan Choi, we will discuss the book with Brandon Taylor on April 29th.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

Books

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Everything Else

Connect with Brandon: Twitter | Instagram | Website
Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of this show. If you prefer to do a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.

Ep. 90 Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson — The Stacks Book Club (Jason Reynolds)

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Jason Reynolds is back this week for The Stacks Book Club discussion of Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson. The novel tells the story of three generations of one family in Brooklyn, NY and the struggles and successes of life. We talk about the taboo of not loving motherhood, doubling down on disappointment, and sensitivity readers.
There are spoilers this week.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

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Connect with Jason: Twitter | Instagram | Website
Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe

To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.

To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of this show. If you prefer to do a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.

The Stacks received Red at the Bone from the publisher. For more information click here.

The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.