We often hear from book club members who are interested in finding the right picks for their reading groups. Today Anne explores a deliciously fun twist on this idea with guest Madeline Janney, an early intervention speech therapist with a unique community-based hobby you'll hear more about today.

This year, Madeline and her mom are forming a book club of two in their hometown of New Orleans. And, they'd love to pair their to-be-read list with discussions at the local restaurants they've been dying to try.

Madeline would love Anne's help to find books they can enjoy reading together every month, and is especially hoping for ideas on how to slightly structure their conversations.  She and Anne explore books that suit the small space where Madeline's reading tastes overlap with her mom's.

We hope you enjoy listening in today—find the list of titles mentioned and share your recommendations for Madeline at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/514.

We'd love to make sure that you're only getting the emails you really want from us, and not missing out on any that you would enjoy. You may already receive the Tuesday morning emails about this show: we also send out our Modern Mrs Darcy newsletter, which includes Anne's weekly "Links I Love" posts, occasional personal newsletters not readable via the blog, and new posts from Anne and members of our team. You're also invited to sign up for our popular eBook deals digest. When you visit modernmrsdarcy.com/subscribe, you can check any or all of the boxes to sign up for emails you'd love to see in your inbox each week.

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Readers, we have a special episode for you today: Anne is talking with one of her favorite authors, Maggie O'Farrell.

They're not just talking about one book, one film, or one story today; instead, their conversation explores the creative process, and why certain stories resonate both broadly and individually. They discuss emotional resonance and joy and sorrow and pain, and bringing worlds to life in a way that feels real and true and urgent.

We hope this episode will help you think about what you enjoy, on the page and on the screen, and why you enjoy it.

Find the list of titles mentioned and continue the conversation by leaving a comment on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/513.

Because of the way Anne and Maggie O'Farrell recorded their conversation today, we are able to share a video as a bonus over in our Patreon community. If you'd like to see them talk books on the screen, join us at ​patreon.com/whatshouldireadnext​ to see that recording and access our full archive of other bonus episodes.

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Today's guest has been on a long run of three or three-and-a-half-star reads. This isn't bad, but it's not what she's looking for, so she and Anne dive into this conundrum together.

Meredith Wiggins works in library services from her hometown of Lawrence, Kansas, which means she is well-versed in recommending books to readers and finding great titles for herself.

Lately, though, Meredith has struggled to find the five-star reads that leave her in the best kind of tears at book's end. She's already tried a few solutions that haven't much helped, so she and Anne will dig deeper into what's going on and what tactics might put Meredith back on track to find these standout titles she's seeking. Anne hopes to leave Meredith with more insight into what exactly is going on here, plus ideas for titles and techniques that might just turn this trend around in the year to come and find plenty of stunners that she'll be glad she read.

Find the list of titles discussed today at our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/512.

We are always happy to welcome new listeners to our show. Whether you've recently found our show or you've been listening for all 10 years, we have so many good bookish conversations to bolster your reading life. Our What Should I Read Next? homepage is a great place to start. For more insight into past conversations, consider joining our Patreon community and you'll get access to our super secret spreadsheet, which lists every episode, every book recommended, and a quick summary of each episode's focus. Find us there at patreon.com/whatshouldireadnext.

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Across the years, we've periodically hosted Ask Anne Anything events in our Patreon community, and today you're hearing a replay of our latest gathering. These live events invite our Patreon community members to submit their burning questions, and Anne does her best to answer as many of them as she can.

As we continue to mark 10 years of this podcast and all the books and reading talk we've enjoyed across those years, we thought a live AMA would be a fun way to celebrate. You'll get to hear the range of questions and Anne's answers in this replay of a casual, fun, unscripted event that really represents the feel of our Patreon community. We hope you'll enjoy listening.

Find the list of titles and links mentioned today at our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/511

Our Patreon community is an intimate corner of the book universe, where we get the chance to periodically gather in smaller groups for events like the one you're hearing today. Our community is gathering next on February 7th for our Reader's Day Spring Preview Library Chat. This is a relaxed and laid back virtual get together where Anne will talk about the spring releases she's most excited about. Members of our Patreon and Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club communities are invited, so if you'd like to join us for that event, weekly bonus episodes, and other upcoming good stuff, like our 2026 Summer Reading Guide, check out the details and join us over at patreon.com/whatshouldireadnext.

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Our guest today is searching for classics in audio format, with narration that brings stories and characters alive.

Janae Mast lives in small town, Kansas, where she's a stay-at-home mom to her young son and looking forward to the arrival of her second child this spring. Janae's found that the audio format works especially well for her in this season of life, and she's here to get ideas for classics on audio that offer immersive reading experiences, that prompt curiosity, and that teach her new things about a moment in time or significant historical event.

We love this quest for Janae. Today, she and Anne explore titles that may fit Janae's listening criteria this spring.

For the full list of titles discussed and to share your suggestions for Janae, visit our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/510.

Here at What Should I Read Next? and Modern Mrs Darcy, we have lots of tools you can use to keep your reading life on track as you start a fresh year of reading. Explore our collection of Leuchtturm journals as well as Anne's reading journals, My Reading Life and My Reading Adventures. Find the reading journal of your choice and more bookish accessories at ModernMrsDarcy.com/shop.

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At the end of last year, you heard us ask for your help to create this celebratory episode. For ten years now, you've been telling us how this show has bolstered your reading life, and in some cases, completely transformed it. We don't just talk book titles here: we love diving deep into conversations that explore why we love what we love, why some books just don't work for us, and importantly, what it all means in our reading lives.

 We firmly believe that the reason this format works, week in and week out, is that we are constantly together, finding the universal in the specific. While each week Anne gets granular with a reader about their highly unique and individual reading life, the conversation gives you a framework by which to think about your own reading life.

For today's show, we wanted to celebrate what What Should I Read Next? has done for your reading lives, and specifically, we wanted to hear what good books you found through the show. With that in mind, we asked you to call in and tell us about a title you discovered, or finally made time to read, because of the show. Your messages poured in, and our team so enjoyed listening to and reading them. Today, you'll hear a collection of oft-repeated themes, a few surprises, and a whole bunch of delightful reading moments.

 As always, we've collected all the titles, plus links to the episodes mentioned by our readers, you'll hear from today over on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/509. If you didn't have a chance to call in with your title, or you'd like to share your reading memory, it's never too late to talk about a book you love. We would love it if you'd leave a comment with your best, favorite, most memorable books and moments at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com.

A few weeks from now, we are airing a special episode of Ask Anne Anything, and we are inviting members of our Patreon community to submit their questions and join Anne live for this episode recording. If you'd like to be there as it happens and or share your burning questions in advance, you can do that by joining us over on Patreon, where you will also unlock immediate access to our full archive of bonus episodes, past summer and seasonal guides, and special membership events like our team's best books of the year. Find out more and join us at patreon.com/whatshouldireadnext.

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We're kicking off 2026 and a year of exciting milestones today! On January 12th, we are celebrating 10 years of our podcast: we'll be sharing a few special podcast episodes to mark this moment. And as you'll hear today, as we move into the rest of 2026, there is plenty more to celebrate.

While today's episode isn't technically part of our anniversary celebrations, it's become an annual tradition over the past few years. Today, Anne is joined by her husband and our executive producer Will Bogel to talk about her favorite reads of the past year.

Find the list of titles mentioned today and chime in with your 2025 favorites at our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/508.

Thank you so much to everyone who has listened, supported our show in all the ways, and been a crucial part of our community of readers. We look forward to celebrating the joy of a good book with you all year long.

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As we wrap up our ninth year together, Anne invites our What Should I Read Next? team members to join her and share insight into what the past twelve months have meant in each of their reading lives.

This episode borrows from a long-time tradition on Modern Mrs Darcy, the blog where every year Anne asks herself what worked and what didn't. Our team is answering those questions today here, from the unexpected wins to what's decidedly not worked in everyone's reading lives.

You'll hear from each of our team members today for a lightning round of book talk. We love talking books as a team, and it's so fun to get to do it with the microphones on for once. We hope you'll enjoy listening to today's episode as much as we enjoyed recording it.

Find the full list of titles mentioned today on our show notes page, and chime in with your own comments on what worked and didn't in your reading life this year. You'll find that page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/507.

This is our last episode for 2025. It's been an incredible year and we are looking to so many exciting things in 2026. Thanks to everyone who helps make this show happen: our whole team, our episode guests, our Patreon community, and each and every listener.

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Today's guest has been participating in reading challenges for nearly a decade, and she's putting a unique spin on this tradition in 2026 that you'll hear about today. 

Callie Dean lives in Shreveport, Louisiana, where in addition to reading she enjoys playing the violin in the Shreveport Symphony Orchestra, writing children's books, and running and baking.

Reading challenges aren't for every reader, but Anne wanted to talk about Callie's 2026 project because it sounds like fun and might help get you thinking about what you want from your own reading life in the year to come.

Callie's challenge is both highly structured and incredibly flexible: in the new year, Callie's hoping to read one book that starts with each letter of the alphabet. Today she and Anne talk about the surprisingly difficult challenge parameters and the books Callie's already identified. Then, Anne fills in some of Callie's gaps in her 2026 reading alphabet, aiming to help her strike a delightful balance of topics, genres, and authors.

The long list of titles mentioned today is collected over on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/506.

The Modern Mrs. Darcy shop is full of great last-minute gifts. Treat your favorite reader to a present inspired by your shared love of reading, like our sturdy tote, gorgeous journals, or reading accessories. Anne's book journals My Reading Life and My Reading Adventures—designed with the young reader in mind—make a great gift for any style of reader, any time of year, but especially with the new year upon us. And for a truly last-minute gift with no shipping required, give a membership to the Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club. Find out more and shop our in-stock selection at modernmrsdarcy.com/shop.

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We love unique reading projects around here, and today's guest has maintained hers since 2021. We're going to hear all about it and explore how she's adding a new twist for 2026.

Kate Mosesso is a reader and improv comedian who lives and works in Chicago. She's a lifelong reader, and while she loves the stories on the page, she's an even bigger fan of the connections that reading fosters.

Since 2021, Kate's undertaken a community-inspired reading project: every month, she reads a book recommended by a loved one. This project has led her to a lot of great books and given her a new way to connect with people she loves: friends, family members, even favorite professors. For 2026, she's thinking of a new angle for this long-time project and is interested in discussing how to make it really work for her.

Today, we're going to explore what's happening with Kate's project, the changes she'd like to make for the year ahead, and what we can do about it. Anne recommends titles and tips to infuse Kate with confidence and enthusiasm for her reading year to come.

Find the full list of titles mentioned today and leave your recommendations for Kate on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/505.

If you're curious about what the Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club is all about, today Anne shares a peek behind the scenes of this online community. From our annual readers' retreats to author talks and classes to help you make the most of your reading life, Book Club is full of things to look forward to each year. Our team Best Books of the Year event is coming up in January, an event that's only available for our online communities. And looking ahead for 2026, our Book Club members will enjoy our February Readers' Day with a Spring Book Preview themed library chat, our Summer Reading Guide unboxing, Austen in August, and more good nerdy fun. We hope you'll join us in 2026 as we celebrate 10 years of the Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club. A Book Club membership also makes a fantastic last-minute holiday gift. Find out more or sign up now at modernmrsdarcy.com/club.

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Historical fiction is a popular genre among many, but today's guest learned a lot about her reading life when she realized this genre wasn't for her!

Today Anne is talking with Laura Howard, an Atlanta-area faculty developer and part-time university professor. She’s always seen reading as both a personal joy and a form of connection, whether with the fellow members of her longstanding book club or with other friends and neighbors. 

When Laura realized she wasn't a fan of historical fiction, she was also able to pinpoint why: she’d prefer to learn about the actual history of events before reading fiction inspired by real life. She also has a specific list of topics she’d love to explore via engrossing nonfiction books. A high priority is keeping those books on the shorter side. Laura has tried to research on her own to find titles that meet her needs, but she’s found the options online to be totally overwhelming. That brings her here today: Anne and Laura dive in to identify great nonfiction about history.

Please share your ideas for Laura by leaving a comment on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/504, where you'll also find the list of titles discussed today.

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