In the upcoming episodes, we will be reading books on a topic that we tend to associate with one of our book friends. First up, Fiona and books about nuns (and other clergy). Books mentioned in this episode: One Corpse Too Many by Ellis Peters, Agatha of Little Neon by Claire Luchette, Sisters of the Vast Black by Lina Rather, and The Rebel Nun by Marj Charlier.
Buckets of spiders. Talking animals. Folk songs about bad people. Corene, Fiona, Gabriel, Mark, and Virginia recommends a Southern Gothic. Books mentioned on this episode: The Cutting Season by Attica Locke, Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward, The Devil All the Time by Donald Ray Pollock, A Lush and Seething Hell by John Hornor Jacobs, and Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin.
May is Asian Heritage Month in Canada. Join us in celebrating the many wonderful voices. Also, there is a point to short stories, and Gabriel draws the line at centipede gaming chairs. Books mentioned in this episode: In the Country: Stories by Mia Alvar, Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram, and Kundo Wakes Up by Saad Z. Hossain.
We have another new book friend! Welcome Mark to the Keep It Fictional family. Let us introduce you to Mark by telling you about one of his favourite books..with very strong feelings. Books mentioned on this episode: The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas, Autobiography of a Corpse by Sigizmund Krzhizhanovsky, Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Haruki Murakami, and On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong.
An episode Fiona has been waiting for: Family Sagas. Do we have some creative interpretations of the theme? You betcha! Books mentioned in this episode: Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell, Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe, The Inheritance of Orquídea Divina by Zoraida Córdova, and Go Tell It on the Mountain by James Baldwin. (And kudos to Gabriel for trying to explain the gazillion narratives in Cloud Atlas!) p.s. We apologize that this episode sounds a bit different from the others. We lost ou...
Welcome to Part 2 of our Most Anticipated Reads of 2022 (May - August) episode. We can't wait for these books to arrive in the next few months: Death on Gokumon Island by Seishi Yokomizo, The Sisters Sputnik by Terri Favro, Death by Landscape by Elvia Wilk, The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean, Cult Classic by Sloan Crosley, The Last Queen by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School by Sonora Reyes, and Patricia Wants to Cuddle by Samantha Allen. Be sure to check out Part 1 o...
We're here to add books to your TBR. Check out the upcoming titles Corene, Fiona, Gabriel, and Virginia are looking forward to reading. Stories may include heists, enemies-to-lovers, mushroom foraging, and blood magic. Books mentioned in this episode: The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas, Home Field Advantage by Dahlia Adler, The Witchery by S. Isabelle, The Spear Cuts Through Water by Simon Jimenez, The Monsters We Defy by Leslye Penelope, Haven by Emma Donoghue, The Hangman Feeds the Jackal by Coy Hal...
To celebrate Sadie and Liz, our two book friends who have recently become parents, the four of us decided to tackle a book about parenthood. We feel like we may have failed this assignment a little bit...Books mentioned in this episode: I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness by Claire Vaye Watkins, Nightwing Vol. 1: Better Than Batman by Tim Seeley and Javier Fernandez, With Teeth by Kristen Arnett, and The Book of Unknown Americans by Cristina Henríquez.
And the award goes to... In today's episode, we celebrate the fantastic books that have won literary awards. Books mentioned: The Sweetness of Water by Nathan Harris, They Called Us Enemy by George Takei, Justin Eisinger, and Steven Scott, Throne of the Crescent Moon by Saladin Ahmed, and Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire.
Judge the book by its cover or judge the book by its title? We're doing the latter today by talking about books that we picked up because they have got an amazing titles. You will also get a lesson on the right way to say the name "Thrawn". Books mentioned in this episode: Mrs Death Misses Death by Salena Godden, The Sweetness At the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley, Star Wars: Thrawn by Timothy Zahn, and The Book of Form and Emptiness by Ruth Ozeki.
CBC's Canada Reads is an annual literary event Port Moody Public Library staff and patrons look forward to every year. In this episode, Corene, Fiona, Gabriel, and Virginia each champions one of the 2022 contenders to be the "one book to connect us"...all (a very LOTR sounding theme?) Books mentioned in this episode: Five Little Indians by Michelle Good, Life In the City of Dirty Water by Clayton Thomas-Müller, What Strange Paradise by Omar El Akkad, and Washington Black by Esi Edugyan. (There a...
This week definitely feels like we're living in one of the apocalyptic or post-apocalyptic books we shared in this episode. This is Liz's last episode with us before she goes on her temporary leave. What will the world of Keep It Fictional be like after this? Tune in next week to find out. Books mentioned in this episode: Severance by Ling Ma, Familiar Things by Hwang Sok-yong, Brown Girl in the Ring by Nalo Hopkinson, Into the Forest by Jean Hegland, and Dread Nation by Justina Ireland.
Whether you have worked in a cubicle or not, we think you'll enjoy these books set in an office (or sometimes, a nightmare office). Books mentioned on this episode: The Devil Wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger, Attachments by Rainbow Rowell, The Beautiful Bureaucrat by Helen Phillips, Horrorstör by Grady Hendrix, and There's No Such Thing as an Easy Job by Kikuko Tsumura, translated by Polly Barton.
Here at Keep It Fictional, we always aim to amplify different marginalized voices, no matter what time of the year it is. During this Black History Month, we want to dedicate an episode to celebrate stories by black authors. We urge you to pick up a book by a black author too. Here are the books we share on this episode: Frying Plaintain by Zalika Reid-Benta, Ain't Burned All the Bright by Jason Reynolds and illustrated by Jason Griffin, Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé, and Willie: The Ga...
We welcome Gabriel, a new book friend to our Keep It Fictional podcast, by reading a book on their top ten list. Books mentioned on this episode: Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, The Secret History by Donna Tartt, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Tsubasa by CLAMP.
How many times have you looked at your phone today? In today's episode, we share books that explore the impact of technology. Books mentioned in this episode: Tell the Machine Goodnight by Katie Williams, Feed by M.T. Anderson, Siri, Who Am I? by Sam Tschida, Bored and Brilliant by Manoush Zomorodi, and Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now by Jaron Lanier.
Take a chance...on a debut novel and a new author. Corene, Liz, and Virginia share some fantastic debuts in today's episode. Books mentioned: The Boy with a Bird in His Chest by Emme Lund, The Korean Vegan Cookbook by Joanne Lee Molinaro, and Rainbow Milk by Paul Mendez.
It's Liz's and Virginia's turn to tell you about the books coming out in the first four months of 2022 that they are looking forward to reading. Things may get a bit dark here as you may expect from those two. Books mentioned in this episode: Notes on an Execution by Danya Kukafka, Glory by NoViolet Bulawayo, Yinka, Where Is Your Huzband? by Lizzie Damilola Blackburn, How High We Go in the Dark by Sequoia Nagamatsu, The Bone Orchard by Sara A. Mueller, Engines of Empire by R.S. Ford, Our Lady of...
New Year, New Books! Corene and Fiona share the titles they are most looking forward to reading in the next few months. Books mentioned in this episode: The Bone Spindle by Leslie Vedder, Mindful of Murder by Susan Juby, Peach Blossom Spring by Melissa Fu, The Violin Conspiracy by Brendan Slocumb, Four Treasures of the Sky by Jenny Tinghui Zhang, The Old Woman with the Knife by Gu Byeong-mo, Portrait of a Thief by Grace D. Li, Kaikeyi by Vaishnavi Patel, and The Book of Cold Cases by Simone St. ...
How do you do a vibe check to see if you will likely enjoy a book or not? Read the blurbs by other authors on the book. In today's episode, Corene, Liz, and Virginia talk about books we read because they were blurbed or recommended by authors we like and respect. Books mentioned: Leave the World Behind by Rumaan Alam, Version Control by Dexter Palmer, and Velvet was the Night by Silvia Moreno-Garcia.
Happy New Year, listeners! To a brand new year of reading! What kinds of books do you like to read during winter? In today's book chat, we talk about some wintery reads for us. Very timely, since it's pretty snowy over the holidays in Vancouver, BC. Books mentioned in this episode: Melmoth by Sarah Perry, Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah, and The Second Bell by Gabriela Houston.
Last week, Corene, Fiona, Liz, and Virginia talked about their number three to five favourite books of 2021. This week, we revealed our top two picks of the year, with a shocking turn of events. Thank you once again to all our listeners for supporting our podcast. We'll be taking a holiday break for the rest of the year. See you in 2022! Happy Reading!
We're counting down to our top five picks of books published in 2021. What books captured our hearts and made a difference in our lives this year? Find out in this special two-part series. Be sure to tune in next week for part two.
We give a sneak preview to our upcoming Social Justice Book Club Sets at the Port Moody Public Library by talking about some of the titles available. Books mentioned in this episode: Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam, 21 Things You May Not Know about the Indian Act: Helping Canadians Make Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples a Reality by Bob Joseph, and Biased: Uncovering the Hidden Prejudice That Shapes What We See, Think, and Do by Jennifer L. Eberhardt. (Plus, a bonus round of ...
In this episode, we challenge ourselves to go read the book that has been on our To-Be-Read (TBR) list for the longest. Do you keep a TBR? How often do you add or purge books from it? Books mentioned in this episode: Waiting by Ha Jin, Furies of Calderon by Jim Butcher, Disappearing Moon Cafe by Sky Lee, and Porcupines and China Dolls by Robert Arthur Alexie.
Non-fiction fans, this episode is for you! Today, we bring you some wild true stories (or creative interpretations of the theme). Books mentioned in this episode: The Storm Is Upon Us: How QAnon Became a Movement, Cult, and Conspiracy Theory of Everything by Mike Rothschild, The Organ Thieves: The Shocking Story of the First Heart Transplant in the Segregated South by Chip Jones, Run, Hide, Repeat: A Memoir of a Fugitive Childhood by Pauline Dakin, and Black Heroes of the Wild West: Featuring St...
So, part of our job is to suggest books to library patrons, but do we take recommendations ourselves? In this episode, we had to read a book one of our book friends talked about on the show. Which book did Corene, Fiona, and Virginia pick? Well well well, the choices may surprise you. Let's just say, eclipses! Books mentioned in this show: Build Your House Around My Body by Violet Kupersmith, Call Down the Hawk by Maggie Stiefvater, and Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu.
It's the perfect time of the year to warm and cozy up with a cozy mystery with a good punny title (unless you're Virginia). Books mentioned in this episode: Wish You Were Here by Rita Mae Brown and Sneaky Pie Brown, Reservation for Murder by June Wright, By Book or By Crook by Eva Gates, and Beyond a Reasonable Stout by Ellie Alexander.
Today's word of the day is "Halloweeny". Please use it in a book. Books mentioned in this episode: The Twisted Ones by T. Kingfisher, Lovecraft Country by Matt Ruff, Ophie's Ghosts by Justina Ireland, When the Reckoning Comes by LaTanya McQueen, and Ghost Forest by Pik-Shuen Fung.
For this episode, Corene, Fiona, Liz, Sadie, and Virginia have to read a book with a colour in the title. Did everyone pick a title that corresponds to their favourite colour? Books mentioned in this episode: The Secret Lives of Colour by Kassia St Clair, Red Fox Road by Frances Greenslade, Black Mad Wheel by Josh Malerman, Black Water Sister by Zen Cho, and Devil in a Blue Dress by Walter Mosley.
