Today Anne is joined by two readers to discuss what it means to be well-read these days, and why it’s a concept worth exploring.

Rebecca Schinsky and Jeff O’Neal of the Book Riot podcast Zero to Well-Read are Anne's guests today. Together with Anne, they explore how each of them thinks about what it means to be well-read, and how their personal working definitions have evolved over the years.

The reading life is a journey, and today's conversation goes beyond what being well-read and reading well means: it also explores the ways that deciding what well-read means to you can help you cultivate readerly satisfaction, combat distraction, and even build community. 

Find out more and see the links and titles mentioned today on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com.

Our new Patreon Ad-Free Episodes tier makes it possible for you to receive ad-free episodes right in your regular podcast feed for just $5 a month. We’d love to have you join us on Patreon: find out more and sign up today at patreon.com/whatshouldireadnext.

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Reading in retirement has given today’s guest more time to explore what makes a book "click" for her, and she's joining Anne today to talk all about it.

Debbie Day lives in the Nashville area, where she’s enjoying settling into retirement and empty nesting. This chapter of life is giving her more time for travel, dancing, cooking, spending time with friends and family, and of course, reading.

The extra time to reflect on her reading life has led Debbie to discover an unexpected common thread among her favorite books: an interesting structure. Now that she’s homed in on this element, Debbie is on the hunt for more such books—but she’s not sure where to look.

As a fellow structure nerd, Anne has ideas for Debbie.

Find the list of titles discussed today and leave your suggestions for Debbie on our show notes page at ⁠whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com⁠.

We’ve been thrilled to hear from so many of you that you’re loving this year’s Fall Book Preview lookbook. This smaller-format, analog booklet invites you to dig into Anne's selections for this season’s most anticipated books. Find out more and get your copy while supplies last at modernmrsdarcy.com/fbp.

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Anne is back with the latest episode in a new-ish series in which she invites a team member to join her in recommending titles for a guest. Today Anne is joined by Patreon community manager Shannan Malone as they chat with Lindsey Bloodworth.

Lindsey is a mom to two boys who lives in Homewood, Alabama. She's found joy and community in a mom's workout group that she's managed to turn into a book club, as well as through another book club at her local indie bookstore.

Lindsey would love to hear ideas for books her community of moms would enjoy reading and discussing together. Lindsey's found that having other moms to chat with through all of life's small and big moments has been really important to her, and she's enjoyed using books to spark these conversations.

Shannan also lives in Alabama and in a prior life ran the Rocket City Mom Virtual Book Club for 10 years, where they read over 60 books together. So when she saw Lindsey's query, Shannan knew she had ideas to share. Today, she and Anne will see what types of books they can put on Lindsey's reading radar that might make for great conversations with either one of her book clubs.

Find the list of titles discussed today and share your suggestions for Lindsey by leaving a comment on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com.

We’ve had some big changes lately over on Patreon. We launched our new Ad-Free Episodes Tier, which delivers weekly episodes of What Should I Read Next? without the ads. We also rolled out our Patreon All-Inclusive Tier, which includes everything we do on Patreon: our weekly bonus episodes, live events like our Fall Book Preview and Summer Reading Guide Unboxing, and weekly ad-free episodes of WSIRN. If you’re a patron: thank you! If not, consider joining us: check out the options and sign up for a monthly or annual membership at patreon.com/whatshouldireadnext.

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Today, Anne is talking all things fall books with our executive producer, Will Bogel. They'll discuss the 2026 Fall Book Preview, which came out last Thursday, September 17th. In their conversation, Will and Anne will bring you behind the scenes as they talk about where the idea came from, when it started, how it's changed, what's happening this year, and why.

Find out more and share your comments on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com.

Our Fall Book Preview was released last Thursday, which means you can now get yours at modernmrsdarcy.com/FBP. Members of our Patreon community in the Bonuses & Events or All-Inclusive tiers get the Fall Book Preview as an included membership perk. This is a great time to become a member, not only for the Fall Book Preview, but also our upcoming bonus episodes and our team's Best Books of the Year, coming up in just a few months. Find out more at modernmrsdarcy.com/FBP.

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Today's guest wants to experience the satisfaction of engaging in what she calls meaningful reading more often, but she finds herself easily distracted by the new and shiny. Jane Baldwin has ideas for different reading projects but has gotten overwhelmed by the possible options, and would love Anne's help navigating these roadblocks.

Jane lives with her husband and two dogs in St. Louis, where she's an accounting manager by day and a devoted gardener and Dungeons & Dragons regular by night. Lately, Jane is attempting to fill some gaps she's identified in her American literature reading to date, but she's finding herself stalling out.

In hopes of boosting her enthusiasm for this project, Jane would love to identify clusters of books that can be in conversation with each other. Today Anne will aim to identify both contemporary and classic options that will provide interest and context to some of Jane's older picks. Along the way, they notice how much some of Jane's chosen shiny and new books have in common with these older titles she's been less excited to read.

Share your ideas for Jane and find the list of titles mentioned today on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com.

Readers, the coming fall weather means sweatshirts will soon be back in our team's wardrobe rotation, and we're especially partial to our MMD Sorority Sweatshirt, tailor-made for your fall activities on or off campus. Choose from a crimson or blue jean colored comfort color sweatshirt adorned with navy felt applique letters and white stitching. Order your fall sweatshirt and shop our refreshed for fall collection of bookish merch at modernmrsdarcy.com/shop.

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When today's guest felt something shift in her reading life, she found herself turning to other forms of entertainment instead of the books she typically enjoys. Jacquelyn Duggan isn't thrilled with this substitution, and came to Anne for help in figuring out what's changed and what she can do about it.

Jacquelyn is joining Anne from her home in Richmond, Virginia. In addition to reading, she enjoys being outside and working in her flower garden, with a special appreciation for her zinnias and roses.

Today Jacquelyn and Anne explore what’s going on with her reading life right now, and Anne shares ideas to help Jacquelyn get back to reading the types of books she's been missing lately. They also discuss the one element of Jacquelyn's reading life that hasn't changed throughout this experience: her love for a great coffee table book.

Find the list of titles discussed today on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com.

Our Fall Book Preview is coming up soon on September 17, and this year we’re featuring a new option to purchase a compact printed booklet to complement your Fall Book Preview experience. We’re calling it our lookbook. It's been thoughtfully designed in a small format and is pleasantly packed with bookish goodness for the literary season to come along with backlist recommendations perfect for fall from our team.

If you’ve already purchased your a la carte ticket, or you’re a member of our Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club, Patreon All-Inclusive, or Patreon Bonuses & Events Tiers, then you’re all set to receive the digital guide and attend our live Unboxing. If you’d enjoy a little analog delight along with, or instead of, those digital experiences, we think you’ll really love the lookbook. Find out more and select the Fall Book Preview experience that’s right for you at modernmrsdarcy.com/fbp

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Today's guest is recently retired and is excited to have more time to read in this chapter of life. She wants to find good books and, in particular, long books that she can really sink into, but her library holds keep wreaking havoc with her well-laid plans. When Amy Czuba wrote into our submissions page with this plea for help, Anne could not say no.

After wrapping up her career as a global HR leader, Amy said goodbye to Massachusetts after living there for nearly 40 years and moved to Charleston, South Carolina, where she's now enjoying soaking up the history of her new hometown. 

Amy is here today seeking ideas for those long books that she's craving. She would especially enjoy a book that teaches her about a topic she might not otherwise learn about. Amy also has a goal to read more books from her as-yet-unread pile of titles that she already owns, but she cannot resist a shiny new library book that's available for checkout at her local branch, and this is keeping her from reading through her owned titles. Anne has ideas to share.

Find the list of titles discussed today and share your tips for Amy on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/540.

Our eighth annual Fall Book Preview releases on Thursday, September 17th to members of Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club and our Patreon All-Inclusive and Bonuses & Events tiers, plus our a la carte ticket holders. The Fall Book Preview experience includes our 12-page digital PDF lookbook and an invitation to our live Unboxing event happening at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time on September 17th. This year we are also offering a printed, delivered by snail mail lookbook that is available as an add-on to your Fall Book Preview experience order or as a standalone purchase. Mark your calendars, get your a la carte ticket or professionally printed lookbook, or just get more information at ​modernmrsdarcy.com/fbp​.

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Last week you heard part one of our team’s selections for their best books of summer. And as promised, today we’re back with another round of book talk.

In today’s episode, you’ll hear from Executive Producer Will Bogel, Community Coordinator Brigid Misselhorn, Community Manager Shannan Malone, and Media Production Specialist Holly Wielkoszewski.

As with last week, today’s team members represent a cross-section of the bookstore. Today’s conversation features sci-fi and fantasy picks that range from cozy to dystopian, thrillers and stories with non-stop action, memoir, and nonfiction. 

Find the list of titles discussed today and tell us more about your favorite summer reads on our show notes page.

Today we’re talking about summer books we’ve loved, but fall is just around the corner and that means it’s almost (or already!) sweatshirt season. Our shop is freshly stocked with all colors and sizes of our MMD Sorority Sweatshirt. We spent literal years finding just the right source for this sweatshirt: after a long, painstaking process, we're thrilled with how it came together. Based on our original sales from our limited spring release, so were you. Order yours now and shop all our merch, including our newly available Fall Book Preview print lookbook, at modernmrsdarcy.com/shop. 

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For years now, our team members have joined Anne on the podcast in late summer to share the books they’ve been loving most this season. Last year, we split this conversation into two episodes: we heard really positive feedback, so that’s what we’re doing again this year.  

In today’s episode, the first in our two part series, Anne is in conversation with three of our team members: our Resident Spreadsheet Queen Donna Hetchler, our Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club Community Manager Ginger Horton, and Modern Mrs Darcy Editor and Social Media Manager Leigh Kramer. Next week, you'll hear from the rest of our team.

Our reading lives vary widely and we read across a range of genres that reflect the reading world at large. Today you’ll hear about true crime and books in translation, a backlist novel that inspired an award-winning musical, a literary mystery from a fan favorite author, romantasy and thriller titles that captured our team’s imagination this season, and more. 

Find the list of titles discussed today and leave a comment to share your best book of the summer on ⁠our show notes page.⁠

Fall reading is just around the corner and if you’re curious about the titles that you may be hearing about in the weeks ahead, or what new releases might be suited to your TBR list, our Fall Book Preview was designed to help with those answers. We’ll be gathering for our 8th annual Fall Book Preview on Thursday, September 17. A la carte ticketholders and eligible community members will receive a downloadable digital preview, as well as an invitation to the live Unboxing event happening that night at 8pm EDT.  We’re also offering a printed booklet edition of the digital preview: it’s smaller and in a different format than our printed magazine-style Summer Reading Guide, and priced accordingly. Find out more and join us at modernmrsdarcy.com/fbp. 

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We hear from many readers who set reading goals informed by their to-be-read stacks, whether physical or digital. Today's guest has a specific and relatable goal of making progress through her library of already purchased ebooks.

Danielle Petrie lives and works in the Canadian prairies, where she enjoys swing dancing, outdoor activities, and reading. Historically, it's been important to Danielle to keep her ebook library at about 50% read, with the other half ready to enjoy. But lately, Danielle's balance has tipped heavily towards the purchased but not yet read end of the spectrum.

When she reached out as a potential guest, she was currently sitting at 36% read, and shared her desire to create a reading challenge to bring that ratio back into balance and focus on reading from her unread library of titles.

Today, she and Anne take a look at Danielle's reading life, see what's on her Kindle and how it got there, and make a plan for her to experience reading satisfaction on several different levels.

Find the titles discussed today and leave your suggestions for Danielle on our show notes page.

For many years now in the Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club, we mark the month of August by reading an Austen novel. This year, we're reading Pride and Prejudice. We'll enjoy reading through the annotated edition together, gathering for a watch party of the 1995 BBC edition, and enjoying all things Austen all month long. We'd love to have you join us and stick around into the fall for more bookish connection and conversation. Get all the details or join us now at modernmrsdarcy.com/club. 

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If you’ve ever felt intimated by old books, or haven’t been sure you’re reading them “correctly”, it is NOT just you. We regularly hear from readers seeking tips and advice on how to read the classics.

Earlier this season New Yorker Lizzey McFarlin sent us her guest submission asking for help to approach the classics in a different way. She’d been trying to read them the way she’d approach any other book—late at night, hoping to sink in and quickly turn the pages—but was too often growing so bored she would abandon them. She knew that strategy wasn’t working, but she wasn’t sure what to do instead. Lizzey would appreciate some fresh ideas, and Anne has those to share today.

You'll also hear about Lizzey's local book club and the themed excursions they pair with the classics they read each quarter.

We hope you’ll find this conversation inspiring and empowering. Find the list of titles mentioned today and share your ideas for excursions over on our show notes page.

We’re excited to share that beginning today, August 4, we are adding a new option to enjoy our weekly What Should I Read Next? episodes without ads. When you sign up for our new ad-free tier on our Patreon platform and add your personal subscriber link to your favorite podcast player, you’ll get an ad-free version of our weekly episode automatically each week. Learn more about our Patreon options and join us at patreon.com/whatshouldireadnext.

Chapters:

04:00 Meet Lizzey

15:26 How Lizzey's reading habits have changed recently

19:54 East of Eden by John Steinbeck

22:38 The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

24:30 A Room with a View by E.M. Forster

27:14 The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky

35:35 What Lizzey is hoping for in today’s conversation

54:46 Passing by Nella Larsen

58:01 The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton

1:03:26 Home Cooking by Laurie Colwin

1:08:27 What will Lizzey read next?

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