This episode, Emily and Kyle catch up on what they've been reading so far in 2016 – including a long-overdue discussion of Scott Hawkins' The Library of Mt Char.

They also discuss several new fantasy novels, Kyle's cookbook addiction, Helen Ellis' hilarious new book of short stories, and the inspiration behind the Pringles potato chip guy.

Episode Breakdown:

• 0:00 – 08:00: Smoke by Dan Vyleta
• 08:00 – 15:00: Shadow and Claw by Gene Wolfe
• 15:00 – 23:00: American Housewife by Helen Ellis
• 23:00 – 36:00: The Library at Mt. Char by Scott Hawkins
• 36:00 – 40:00: A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab
• 40:00 – 47:00: Simple French Food by Richard Olney
• 47:00 – 55:00: Sunny's Nights: Lost and Found at a Bar on the Edge of the World by Tim Sultan

What have you been reading so far in 2016? Email the show at [email protected] or tweet us @PortableMagicPC!

This episode, Emily and Kyle discuss how they find the time and motivation to read, even amongst all the other distractions of modern life.

Plus, for the second year in a row, they provide a comprehensive gift list for all the last-second holiday shoppers out there.

Episode Breakdown:

• 0:00 – 10:00: What We're Reading
• 10:00 – 40:00: Finding the Motivation to Read
• 40:00 – 1:00:00: Gift Recommendations!

What Emily's Reading:

• The Road to Little Dribbling by Bill Bryson

What Kyle's Reading:

• Slade House by David Mitchell
• 2666 by Roberto Bolaño
• The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski

How do you find the time to read? Did you Email the show at [email protected] or tweet us @PortableMagicPC!

This episode, Emily and Kyle discuss which contemporary books will become classics. Along the way, they touch on Infinite Jest, Harry Potter, and many, many more.

Plus, Kyle's been spending some time with Welcome to Night Vale and the newest encyclical from the Pope, while Emily's been immersed in Peter Clines' The Fold.

Episode Breakdown:

• 0:00 – 16:00: What We're Reading
• 16:00 – 1:00:00: Contemporary books that will become classics

What Emily's Reading:

• Twelve Kings in Sharakhai by Bradley Beaulieu
• Binti by Nnedi Okorafor
• The Fold by Peter Clines

What Kyle's Reading:

• Welcome to Night Vale by Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor

Which books do you think will stand the test of time? Email the show at [email protected] or tweet us @PortableMagicPC!

This episode, we take a trip back to our awkward high-school years to discuss what we read, what we didn't, and what stuck with us.

Plus, quick thoughts on Kim Stanley Robinson's Aurora and Nicole Kornher-Stace's Archivist Wasp.

Episode Breakdown:

• 0:00 – 16:00: What We're Reading
• 16:00 – 1:20:00: Books We Read in High School

What Emily's Reading:

• Archivist Wasp by Nicole Kornher-Stace
• Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire
• Faiths and Furies by Lauren Groff

What Kyle's Reading:

• Aurora by Kim Stanley Robinson
• Out on the Wire by Jessica Abel

We also discussed classic books that were probably on your high-school reading list.

What did you read in high school? What books or teachers did you love or loathe? Email the show at [email protected] or tweet us @PortableMagicPC.

This episode, we take a closer look at the bibliography of the amiable travel, science, and memoir writer Bill Bryson.

Plus, our quick thoughts on China Mieville, The Devil in the White City, and pop history vs. scholarly history.

Episode Breakdown:

• 0:00 – 10:00: What We're Reading
• 10:00 – 53:00: Bill Bryson

What Emily's Reading:

• Three Moments of an Explosion by China Mieville
• The Devil and the White City by Eric Larsen

What Kyle's Reading:

• Cuba in Revolution: A History Since the 50s by Antonin Kapscia

Bill Bryson Books We Discuss:

• The Lost Continent
• Notes from a Small Island
• In a Sunburned Country
• A Walk in the Woods
• I'm A Stranger Here Myself
• A Short History of Nearly Everything
• At Home: A Short History of Private Life
• One Summer: America 1927

Other Works Mentioned:

• The Wordy Shipmates by Sarah Vowell
• Gulp by Mary Roach
• The Last Chance to See by Douglas Adams

We love hearing from readers! Email the show at [email protected] or tweet us @PortableMagicPC.

This episode, we take a hopefully-not-too-grim look at the genre of post-apocalyptic fiction. Emily wonders why the genre attracts so many hyper-masculine writers and Kyle talks about one of his favorite and one of his least favorite novels.

No spoilers to speak of in this episode.

Episode Breakdown:

• 0:00 – 9:00: What We're Reading
• 9:00 – 1:00:00: Post-Apocalyptic Fiction

What Emily's Reading:

• The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison
• The Incorruptables by John Horner Jacobs

What Kyle's Reading:

• Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Other Works Mentioned:

• "Sleep Donation" by Karen Russell
• "Black Moon" by Kenneth Calhoun
• The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
• The Road by Cormac McCarthy
• Farnham's Freehold by Robert Heinlein
• A Canticle for Leibowitz by Walter Miller, Jr.
• Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
• California by Edan Lepucky
• The Stand by Stephen King
• "There Will Come Soft Rains" by Ray Bradbury

Buying books at Powell's by using these affiliate links helps support the show!

Do you love or hate to read about the end of the world? Email the show at [email protected] or tweet us @PortableMagicPC!

This episode, we take a close look at Andy Weir's hard sci-fi novel The Martian and discuss its unusual publication history, its narrative structure, and how effective we thought the book turned out to be.

Plus, Emily's been on a horror kick and Kyle's been hate-watching True Detective, so he decided to pick up Nic Pizzolatto's debut novel.

Warning: This episode contains some coarse language. Maybe don't listen with the kids around.

Episode Breakdown:

• 0:00 – 15:00: What We're Reading
• 13:00 – 45:00: The Martian by Andy Weir

What Emily's Reading:

• The Blumhouse Book of Nightmares, edited by Jason Blum
• Meg: A Novel of Deep Terror by Steve Alten
• The Bloody Chamber by Angela Carter

What Kyle's Reading:

• Galveston by Nic Pizzolatto

Buying books at Powell's by using these affiliate links helps support the show!

Are you an avid eBook or audiobook fanatic? Email the show at [email protected] or tweet us @PortableMagicPC!

This episode, we're talking about the alternative book formats: eBooks and audiobooks. We talk about our habits with each, our favorite examples of each medium, and what might be stopping these alternative formats from reaching their full potential.

Episode Breakdown:

• 0:00 – 5:00: What We're Reading
• 5:00 – 55:00: eBooks & Audiobooks

What Emily's Reading:

• The Gracekeepers by Kirsty Logan

What Kyle's Reading:

• The Tusk That Did the Damage by Tania James

Buying books at Powell's by using these affiliate links helps support the show!

Are you an avid eBook or audiobook fanatic? Email the show at [email protected] or tweet us @PortableMagicPC!

Welcome back to Portable Magic! In this episode, we're talking about adaptations – good and bad. In the mix are The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, The Princess Bride, The Great Gatsby, Game of Thrones, and many more.

Episode Breakdown:

• 0:00 – 10:00: What We're Reading
• 10:00 – 1:00:00: Adaptations

What Emily's Reading:

• The Deadlands by Benjamin Percy

What Kyle's Reading:

• Bird Box by Josh Malerman
• American Elsewhere by Robert Jackson Bennett

Buying books at Powell's by using these affiliate links helps support the show!

Which adaptations have burned you in the past? Email the show at [email protected] or tweet us @PortableMagicPC!

We forgot to introduce ourselves this week! If you're new to the show, Portable Magic is hosted by Emily Hughes and Kyle Deas.

This episode, we take a look at short stories – our favorites, the classics, and the magic and the art behind them. Emily makes the argument that we're living in the golden age of the short story collection and Kyle wonders what happened to all the magazines that used to publish short fiction.

Plus, we talk about Jon Krakauer's Missoula and a new, extended interview with Calvin & Hobbes creator Bill Watterson.

Episode Breakdown:

• 0:00 – 13:00: What We're Reading
• 13:00 – 1:05:00: Short Stories

What Emily's Reading:

• Missoula by Jon Krakauer
• Voices in the Night by Steven Millhauser

What Kyle's Reading:

• Exploring Calvin & Hobbes by Bill Watterson

Short Stories / Collections We Discuss:

Stories:

• "The Bad Graft" by Karen Russell
• "Tenth of December" by George Saunders
• "They're Made of Meat" by Terry Bisson
• "The Last Question" by Isaac Asimov
• "John, For Christmas" by Ethan Rutherford
• "The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas" by Ursula Le Guin
• "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson
• "The Enormous Radio" by John Cheever

Collections:

• Tenth of December by George Saunders
• Vampires in the Lemon Grove by Karen Russell
• This Is How You Lose Her by Junot Diaz
• The Peripatetic Coffin by Ethan Rutherford
• Jaganath by Karin Tidbeck

Buying books at Powell's by using these affiliate links helps support the show!

What's your favorite short story collection? Email the show at [email protected] or tweet us @PortableMagicPC!

This episode, Kyle and Emily take a close look at horror fiction – why we read it, how it scares us, and what our favorite horror novels are. Kyle tells us what his pick is for the scariest Stephen King book and Emily talks about the books that got her into horror in the first place.

Plus, Emily follows up on her impressions of Beautiful Darkness, Kyle's pick for A Gift For A Child You Hate from Episode 2!

Episode Breakdown:

• 0:00 – 7:00: What We're Reading
• 7:00 – 1:05:00: Horror Fiction

What Emily's Reading:

• After Birth by Elisa Albert

What Kyle's Reading:

• Wodehouse on Crime by P.G. Wodehouse

Horror Fiction that We Discuss:

Short Stories / Essays:

• "Skeleton" by Ray Bradbury, from October Country (Click on "Readable PDF")
• "Supernatural Horror in Literature" by H.P. Lovecraft
• "I Have No Mouth But I Must Scream" by Harlan Ellison

Novels:

• Beautiful Darkness by Fabien Vehlmann
• Zone 1 by Coulson Whitehead
• The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson
• Hell House by Richard Matheson
• The Troop by Nick Cutter
• The Shining by Stephen King
• Pet Sematary by Stephen King
• Bag of Bones by Stephen King
• The Stand by Stephen King
• NOS4A2 by Joe Hill
• Birdbox by Josh Malerman

Buying books at Powell's by using these affiliate links helps support the show!

What's your favorite horror novel? Email the show at [email protected] or tweet us @PortableMagicPC!