Episode 234 - Author Spotlight with Elissa Altman

Author Spotlight with Elissa Altman

Episode 234 Show Notes

– Currently Reading –
One of Ours – Willa Cather (CW)
Feeding Ghosts – Tessa Hulls (EF)
Renegade Girls: A Queer Tale of Romance and Rabble-Rousing  – Nora Neus, illustrated by Julie Robine (CW)
The Good House – Tananarive Due (EF) (audiobook)        
The Forest for the Trees – Betsy Lerner (EF)

– Just Read –
The Good House – Tananarive Due (CW)
Leaving – Roxana Robinson (EF)
When I Was Straight – Julie Marie Wade (CW)
Permission: The New Memoirist and the Courage to Create – Elissa Altman (EF) (audiobook)
Jane Austen’s Bookshelf: A Rare Book Collector's Quest to Find the Women Writers Who Shaped a Legend – Rebecca Romney (CW)
Green Tea by Sheridan Le Fanu by Charles Dickens from The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories: From Elizabeth Gaskell to Ambrose Bierce (CW)(EF) (audiobook)   

– Episode Sponsor –
True Home by Janet Clare
Learn more about Janet and her writing here.

– Biblio Adventures –
Chris and Emily went on a joint jaunt to NYC to visit Aunt Ellen. Stops included the Belle de Costa Green exhibit at The Morgan Library & Museum and the Selected Shorts: Classics with a Twist with Meg Wolitzer and Friends at Symphony Space.

Emily went to Hartford Theater Works to attending Matthew Dick’s one man show Shovel.

Chris met a friend for coffee at Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore in Middletown, CT then she strolled Wesleyan University’s campus and discovered another outpost of RJ’s bookstore, unfortunately it was closed.

– Upcoming Jaunts –
Chris is heading on a trip to Chicago to visit her mom and has some fun stops planned on the drive.

Emily signed up to attend a writing workshop with Betsy Lerner at the Willoughby Wallace Library and a List Essay Workshop with Shuly Cawood on May 28 from 2:30-5:30. 

Emily is registered for an event at RJ Julia Booksellers on Tuesday, May 20 at 6 pm (ET) to see Amy Bloom in conversation with her daughter Sarah Moon to discuss Sarah’s new novel Family Week.

– Upcoming Reads –
A Family Matter – Claire Lynch (EF)
The Belgian Girls – Kathryn J. Atwood (CW)
52 Ways to Reconcile: How to Walk with Indigenous Peoples on the Path to Healing – David A. Robertson (CW)
A Century of Queer Korean Fiction – Samuel Perry (CW)
The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories: From Elizabeth Gaskell to Ambrose Bierce up next is The Ghost in the Cap’n Brown House by Harriet Beecher Stowe. If you would like to join us there is a schedule available on Goodreads or we can email a copy.

– Out Now –
Speak to Me of Home – Jeannine Cummins
Food Person – Adam Roberts

– Author Spotlight with Elissa Altman –
We talk with Elissa about her writing life and her books including Permission: The New Memoirist and the Courage to Create. Learn more about Elissa here.

– 2025 Readalong Theme and 2nd Quarter Book –
Our theme for 2025 is Ghost Stories! Click here to follow everything Ghost Stories 2025.

There is a ghost story discussion thread on Goodreads. Come tell us about your favorite ghost stories or those you are interested in reading.

The 2nd Quarter Readalong and our Episode 230 Giveaway is The Good House by Tananarive Due. The Zoom conversation will take place on Sunday, June 8th at 7pm (ET). Send us an email if you would like to join. You can join the online conversation via the Goodreads discussion thread.

Over the course of the year, we will be reading The Penguin Book of Ghost Stories: From Elizabeth Gaskell to Ambrose Bierce, one story at a time. If you would like to join us there is a schedule available on Goodreads or we can email a copy.

– Also Mentioned –
James by Percival Everett
Caste and The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf
The English Patient by Michael Ondatjee
Killers of a Certain Age and Kills Well With Others by Deanna Raybourn
Watch our conversation with Deanna on BookTube
Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu
Author Bram Stoker
Abridged Classics: Brief Summaries of Books You Were Supposed to Read but Probably Didn't by John Atkinson
The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer
SpeakUp storytelling
Kaweco pens
St. Louis Art Supply Company
Heaven’s Coast by Mark Doty
Saving Ellen: A Memoir of Hope and Recovery by Maura Casey

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audiobook platform: Follow this link and use promo code: bookcougars
Shop on Bookshop.org – support the Book Cougars and independent bookstores!

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Episode 210 - Getting Cozy with Our Mystery Man, John Valeri

Episode 210 Show Notes

Two long-running mystery series are coming to end: Maisie Dobbs written by Jaqueline Winspear and Maggie Hope by Susan Elia MacNeal.

– Episode 210 GIVEAWAY! –
The Comfort of Ghosts by Jacqueline Winspear
Mind Games by Nora Roberts
Looking for Love in All the Haunted Places by Claire Kann
Skirted by Julie Marie Wade
The winner will be chosen on July 1st. Subscribe to the newsletter to be entered to win.

– Currently Reading –  
Tides: The Science and Spirit of the Ocean – Jonathan White (CW)(audiobook)
Pearce Oysters – Joselyn Takacs (EF)  release date 6/25/2024
Otherwise: Essays – Julie Marie Wade (CW)
Check out our Friday Reads video with John Valeri to see the visual and hear Chris talk about the first essay in the collection.
The Women’s Room – Marilyn French (CW)

– Just Read –
The Awakening: The Dragon Heart Legacy, Book One – Nora Roberts (CW)(audiobook)
This is How It Always Is – Laurie Frankel (EF)
Read the Modern Love piece by Frankel in the NY Times: From He to She in First Grade
Looking for Love in All the Haunted Places – Claire Kann (CW)
The Mystery Guest – Nita Prose (EF)

Emily read three short stories:
“Lucky Girls” from the collection Lucky Girls: Stories by Nell Freudenberger.
“That of Which We Cannot Speak” from the collection I Knew You’d Be Lovely: Stories by Alethea Black.  

– Biblio Adventures –
Chris and Emily went on a joint jaunt sponsored by the Mark Twain House to see Percival Everett discuss his new novel James in conversation with Michael Harriot, author of Black AF History: The Un-Whitewashed Story of America. You can watch the video of the event here.

Chris did a Couch Biblio Adventure watching a live poetry reading via Cultivating Voices: Live Poetry via Facebook or you can watch the video here.

Emily had a watch-a-thon of Presumed Innocent, the film, and the upcoming tv series, based on the novel by Scott Turow.

Emily and the Gentleman Caller went to the Book Barn in Niantic, CT where she found a copy of Fellowship Point by Alice Elliott Dark and purchased a gift for Chris, Cather's Kitchens: Foodways in Literature and Life by Roger Welsch and Linda K. Welsch.

– Upcoming Jaunts –
On July 23 at 7 pm (ET), Juliet Grames will be in conversation with Sarah Weinman about her new novel The Lost Boy of Santa Chiona at Books Are Magic. There is an in-person or virtual option, tickets are available here.

On August 10 at 2:30 pm (ET), Kimberly McCreight will be in conversation with Vanessa Lillie about her new novel Like Mother, Like Daughter hosted by BookClub on the Go at Resort Lifestyle Communities in South Windsor, CT. You can reserve your seat here.

Emily is excited to see Ann Leary at RJ Julia Booksellers in Madison, CT on Thursday, June 20th at 6:30 discussing her new book of essays, I’ve Tried Being Nice.

Dawn Tripp is on tour with her novel Jackie.

– Upcoming Reads –
The Whole Enchilada – Diane Mott Davidson (EF)
Arsenic and Adobo – Mia P. Manansala (EF)
The Migrant Chef: The Life and Times of Lalo García – Laura Tillman (EF)
The Wonder of Small Things: Poems of Peace and Renewal – edited by James Crews (CW)
Death by Dumpling: A Noodle Shop Mystery - Vivien Chien (CW)
On What Grounds – Cleo Coyle (CW)

– Out Now –
The God of the Woods – Liz Moore
Same As It Ever Was – Claire Lombardo
Shadow Heart – Meg Gardiner

– Our Mystery Man John Valeri – |
Head to our Guests Page to see prior appearances by John.         
You can learn more about John here and be sure to check out his BookTube channel, Central Booking.           
Books John mentions:
The Dredge by Brendan Flaherty
Dick Tracy Vol. 1 by Alex Segura and Michael Moreci, illustrated by Geraldo Borges and Mark Englert
Middle of the Night – Riley Sager
The Lost Boy of Santa Chiona by Juliet Grames

A cozy mystery conversation inspired by reading Bless Your Heart by Lindy Ryan.
Rules of cozy mysteries:
· No graphic violence, language, or sex.
· There is an Amateur Sleuth that often has friction between local law enforcement.
· Usually there is a pet.
· Justice will prevail.
· As the series progresses the story often takes place in a new setting; they travel to keep the series fresh.

– Also Mentioned –
The other books in the Dragon Heart Trilogy by Nora Roberts: The Becoming and The Choice
Being Ace: An Anthology of Queer, Trans, Femme, and Disabled Stories of Asexual Love and Connection – edited by Madeline Dyer
The Maid by Nita Prose
The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain
Georgia: A Novel of Georgia O'Keeffe by Dawn Tripp
Catering to Nobody by Diane Mott Davidson
Secret Identity by Alex Segura
Author Jane K. Cleland
Murder She Wrote: Domestic Malice by Jessica Fletcher and Donald Bain
Close to Death by Anthony Horowitz
Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
Author Leslie Meier writes the Lucy Stone Mysteries

Help support the Book Cougars via our affiliates:
Libro.fm
audiobook platform: Follow this link and use promo code: bookcougars
Shop on Bookshop.org – support the Book Cougars and independent bookstores!

If you’d like to help financially support the Book Cougars, please consider becoming a Patreon member. If you would prefer to donate directly, email for instructions.

Join our Goodreads Group!

Check out our BookTube Channel and be sure to subscribe!

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter.