Send us a Text Message. Stephany and Julia chat about their recent reading experiences and the books they’re looking forward to reading on vacation. They’ll be taking a brief hiatus in August, so they take some time to explain that, too. Books, etc. Mentioned in the Show · Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky · Counting the Cost by Jill Dugger · …

Send us a Text Message. Stephany and Julia spend time in this episode discussing the DNF, what it is and the reasons why they may or may not do it. Of course, books are mentioned. Happy listening! Books, Etc. Mentioned in This Episode Simone St. James What the River Knows by Isabelle Ibañez Braiding Sweetgrass written and narrated by Robin Wall Kim…

Send us a Text Message. The second quarter of 2024 has been...interesting. In this chapter, we're sharing our reading struggles as well as some of our best (and worst) books of April, May and June. Audiobooks and mysteries take the top spots in our lists. We're excited to share our favorites with you. Julia’s Books: The Guernsey Literary and Potato…

Send us a Text Message. Hi, Friends! We are back in The Book Snug for the newest chapter of our 3 Peas in a Pod series. In this series, we invite a guest to join us on the show to discuss a book of their choosing. Our guest for this episode is Lexie Yoder. Lexie chose Fourth Wing, a fantasy featuring dragons by Rebecca Yarros, for us to read togeth…

Send us a Text Message. In this episode, Julia and Stephany discuss the books they are looking forward to diving into this summer. Their book lists include backlist and new release selections in several genres: mystery/thriller, science fiction, speculative fiction, historical fiction, adventure/romance and magical realism. It going to be a great s…

Send us a Text Message. Julia and Stephany are sharing reading experiences that go beyond the books to include related experiences, settings and simple serendipitous moments which elevate the stories to the Exceptional level. Julia's Books Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech The Murderer's Maid: A Lizzie Borden Novel by Erika Mailman Harry Potter and t…

Send us a Text Message. Due to that thing called life, Stephany is flying solo this week. She's talking about books that give good, happy, uplifting vibes. These books are great for counteracting all the negative aspects of life we face in the modern world. if you are looking for a feel -good story, you've come to the right place. And don't worry -…

Send us a Text Message. In celebration of Mother's Day, we've invited Jo Hart back to the show . Jo is Julia's Nana and Stephany's mom. We talk about how our mothers have impacted and encouraged our reading lives. It's a fun, informal chat that covers a variety of books. Books, Etc. Great Lion of God by Taylor Caldwell Dear and Glorious Physician b…

Send us a Text Message. We're deviating from the original plan for this week's episode (for reasons we discuss in the show). Instead of offering fictional worlds we'd like to visit, we're sharing our suggestions for books that would make great adaptions for the big or small screen. Julia's Wishlist Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech Fairest by Gail Ca…

Send us a Text Message. We're having a stellar reading year so far in 2024. In this chapter, we're sharing some of our best (and worst) books of January, February and March. Fiction and non-fiction showed up and delivered in a big way for us and we're excited to share our favorites with you. Julia’s Books: Elizabeth by Margaret George Snow and Rose…

Send us a Text Message. Hi, Friends! We are back in The Book Snug for the newest chapter of our "3 Peas in a Pod" series. In this series, we invite a guest to join us on the show to discuss a book of their choosing. Our guest for this episode is Jay Yoder, Stephany's husband and Julia's dad. Jay chose Outside, a thriller by Ragnar Jonasson, for us …

Send us a Text Message. We are having such a great start to reading year that we decided to share some of our not-quite-cream-of-the-crop-but still-great reads of 2024. Join us as we gush about some historical fiction, fantasy, middle grade, non-fiction and mystery books that have kept us enthralled and entertained during these first few months of …

Send us a Text Message. As readers, we are almost required to say "the book was better" any time we encounter a movie adaptation. Here in the Book Snug, we are going out on a limb and saying that sometimes the movie is the better experience. Take a listen to this episode to find out which movies surpass the books they're based on and the reasons wh…

Send us a Text Message. We are in the deep, dark, middle of winter here in the Northern hemisphere. Our coping mechanism is to embrace the cold, grey and snowy vibes by settling into books with a frosty setting. In today's chapter, we share some books with fantastic wintry settings that will have you craving a warm blanket and a cup of hot chocolat…

Send us a Text Message. 2024 has a treasure trove of book releases that we can't wait to read. In this chapter, we discuss our most highly anticipated books of the year. Julia’s Books: These Deadly Prophecies by Andrea Tang American Daughters by Maurice Carlos Ruffin A Fate Inked in Blood by Danielle L. Jensen Murder Road by Simone St. James The My…

Send us a Text Message. It's time for one of our favorite shows of the year! In this episode we're gushing about our very best books of 2023. Julia’s Books: Holes by Louis Sachar Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine Ruby Holler by Sharon Creech Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt The Memory Keeper's Daughter by Kim Edwards Half a Soul by Olivia Atw…

Send us a Text Message. It's the end of 2023 which means it's time to talk about our bookish superlatives for the year. Get ready for a fun discussion and a long list of books to either avoid or add to your TBR. Julia’s Books: The Binding by Bridget Collins Verity by Colleen Hoover In the Company of the Courtesan by Sarah Dunant The Midnight Librar…

Send us a Text Message. Welcome to the newest chapter of our "3 Peas in a Pod" series. In this series, we invite a guest to join us on the show to discuss a book of their choosing. Our guest for this episode is Aaron Yoder. Aaron chose Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad for us to read together. The reading experience was traumatic, but the book dis…

Send us a Text Message. Welcome to the first show of Season 2! We're discussing the signature components of gothic literature and we're using Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë to illustrate each one. Jane Eyre is Julia's favorite book of all time so this was an extra fun episode to record. One small warning: the recording quality isn't the greatest - w…

Send us a Text Message. We've made it to one year of podcasting here at The Book Snug and we want to celebrate! Join us as we reflect on our experiences of the last year and share our hopes and dreams for the next 12 months. As always, we end up talking about books and we even share a bit more about ourselves in the process. Julia’s Books: House Ru…

Send us a Text Message. Ghosts are the topic of the day! We share some of our favorite books containing ghosts as main characters, side characters or narrators. Some of the recommendations are pretty terrifying and some aren't scary at all. One thing is certain - we enjoyed every one of these books! Julia’s Books: The Seer of Shadows by Avi Deep an…

Send us a Text Message. It's autumn here in Pennsylvania and we couldn't be happier. On the show today, we talk about all our reading plans for this apple cider sipping, chunky sweater wearing, ghost story telling season. Books Mentioned in the Show: Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl A Secret History of Witches by Louisa Morgan Jane Eyre by Charlotte…

Send us a Text Message. We are sharing some of our best (and worst) books of July, August and September in this chapter. Our books cover a wide variety of fiction and a little bit of non-fiction. Things are looking up in our reading lives and we couldn't be happier about it! Julia’s Books: Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine Holes by Louis Sachar …

Send us a Text Message. It's the third episode of our "3 Peas in a Pod" series. In this series, we invite a guest to join us on the show to discuss a book of their choosing. Our guest is Paige Haldeman (a special family friend). Paige chose The Secret History by Donna Tartt for our discussion and we a had a great time digging into the story and sha…

Send us a Text Message. We have a bit of a longer chapter today. In recognition of the start of another school year, we've decided to talk about books we were required to read in high school using a comprehensive Goodreads list to structure our discussion. The list contains 800 books, but we only look at the top 50. You can find the list here: Requ…

Send us a Text Message. Julia has been struggling through a reading slump this summer so we thought is was time to address the elephant in the room. In this chapter, we talk about her disinterest in reading and then discuss some ways to overcome reading malaise. Books/authors Julia mentions: Dan Brown Because of Wynn Dixie by Kate Dicamillo Charlie…

Send us a Text Message. Hop into the Time Machine with us as we head way back to elementary school. We're discussing books we discovered and fell in love with because our teachers read them to us first. We cover beloved children's classics as well as unknown gems published from the 1950s to the 1990s. Nostalgia reigns supreme in this chapter. Julia…

Send us a Text Message. What do you do when you're suffering from wanderlust, but have no imminent travel plans? You read books with a vivid or evocative setting. In today's episode, we share many book recommendations that are sure to satisfy that craving to explore someplace new, even if you can't make the trip in your real life. Julia’s Books: Th…

Send us a Text Message. We are sharing some of our best (and worst) books of April , May and June in this chapter. The books we discuss range from beloved middle grade to newly released YA fantasy romance (what?!) to adult contemporary fiction. It's been an interesting quarter, to say the least. Julia’s Books: Ruby Holler by Sharon Creech The Trial…

Send us a Text Message. It's the second episode of our "3 Peas n a Pod' series. We've invited a special guest to join us to discuss a book of their choosing. Our guest is Mark Yoder (Stephany's son and Julia's brother). Mark chose Dune by Frank Herbert for our discussion and we a had a great time digging into the story and sharing our thoughts. Bew…

Send us a Text Message. Because of a death in Ben's family (Julia's husband), we will not be posting an episode today. We'll be back on June 28 with 3 Peas in a Pod when we'll be discussing Dune by Frank Herbert. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for listening to today’s show. To support The Book Snug Podcast: Write a review and /or rate us o…

Send us a Text Message. We are headed to the beach in a few short days! In today's chapter, we chat about all the books we're thinking of packing for some serious beach chair and poolside reading. Our choices range from classics to shiny new releases and we're excited about every single one. We're going to follow Ralph Waldo Emerson's suggestion to…

Send us a Text Message. Spring is the perfect time for fairy tales. With that in mind, we are happily dedicating the month of May to discussing some of our favorite fairy tale retellings. In today's show, we're chatting about different aspects of the Beauty and the Beast story and sharing some of our favorite interpretations. Shared Books: Beauty b…

Send us a Text Message. Spring is the perfect time for fairy tales. With that in mind, we are happily dedicating the month of May to discussing some of our favorite fairy tale retellings. In today's show, we're diving into the story of Cinderella and sharing some of our favorite books that tell her story in a unique way. Julia’s Books: Cinderella b…

Send us a Text Message. Using the Easter celebration as inspiration, we talk about a few of our favorite books that address some aspect of the Christian faith. The theme is broad and the books are varied, ranging from memoir to apologetics and everything in between. Julia’s Books: The Bible Project Coffee Table Book: Illustrated Summaries of Biblic…

Send us a Text Message. In Chapter 10, we're introducing another quarterly series: the Quarterly Reading Review. In these episodes, we'll talk about our reading experiences across a three month period and share some of our most memorable reads of that time. For this episode, we are focusing on the books we read in January, February and March. Julia…

Send us a Text Message. Today we're introducing the pilot episode of our new series called "3 Peas in a Pod". We've invited a special guest to choose a book for the three of us to read and then discuss together. Our special guest is Jo Hart (Stephany's mom and Julia's Nana). Jo chose The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell to discuss with us on t…

Send us a Text Message. In Chapter 8, we recommend a few books that play with time. Books range from those for beginner readers to adults and cover time travel, time loops and immortality. We also introduced a new series we'll be doing quarterly called Three Peas in a Pod which we'll be starting in the next chapter. We've invited a guest and will b…

Send us a Text Message. In Chapter 7, we use Ryan Holiday's "8 Rules for Reading" to inspire our own list of rules that govern our reading lives. It's a chatty episode that provides a peek into our personal reading profiles (hint: we are very different readers). This was a fun thought experiment and hopefully it sparks listeners to create their own…

Send us a Text Message. In Chapter 6, we chat about the what, when and where of our preferred winter reading experiences. Because we both enjoy non-fiction in the winter, we take some time to talk about a few non-fiction books that sound intriguing. Julia’s Books: Humans of New York by Brandon Stanton Humans by Brandon Stanton Atlas of Beauty by Mi…

Send us a Text Message. Join us as we discuss our best books of 2022! Julia’s Books: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doer Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens American Gods by Neil Gaiman Garlic and the Vampire by Bree Paulson The Legend of Holly Claus by Brittney Ryan Stephany’s Books: The River by Peter Heller Piranesi by Susanna Clarke …

Send us a Text Message. In Chapter 5, we're taking a gleeful look at some of our happiest reading experiences of 2022. The superlatives include "Most Surprising" and "Class Clown" among others. Some of our favorite books of the year are mentioned in this episode and we have so much fun talking about them. At the end of the episode, we also share a …

Send us a Text Message. In Chapter 4 we're looking back over some of our less than stellar reading experiences of 2022 by using superlatives such as "Most Likely to Drop Out" and "Least Popular". We do end the show on a more positive note discussing the books that happily made us cry, so it's not all negative energy. Julia's Books: The Dead Romanti…

Send us a Text Message. In Chapter 3 we spend some time reviewing our reading goals and aspirations for 2022 and discussing our reading plans for 2023. We end the show by talking about all the books we've been reading lately and the books we hope to fit in before the end of the year. Julia's Books: The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova A Christmas Car…

Send us a Text Message. In this chapter, we spend some time reminiscing about bookish childhood Christmas memories. Then we dive into a pile of favorite Christmas picture books. Unfortunately, because of the length of the episode, we don't take time to discuss our current reads. We'll spend more time in Chapter 3 on that topic. Stephany was really …

Send us a Text Message. In this episode, we spend some time talking about books that fit fall-themed prompts: 1) a school theme or setting, 2) a creepy, atmospheric or gothic vibe, or 3) an autumn setting. To close the show, we chat about the books we’ve just finished, the books we're currently reading, and the books we hope to get to next. Julia's…

Send us a Text Message. In the Prologue, we introduce our brand new podcast and ourselves. We share our vision for The Book Snug and spend some time discussing a few favorite and not so favorite books. We close the episode by talking about the books we’ve just finished, the books we're currently reading, and the books we hope to get to next. Julia’…