From the Front Porch

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**From the Front Porch**

Welcome to From the Front Porch, a weekly conversational podcast on books, small business, and life in the South, produced by The Bookshelf, an independent bookstore in Thomasville, Georgia.

Latest Episodes:

319 || April Reading Recap May 06, 2021

Show notes

This week Annie recaps and reviews her April reads.

The books mentioned in this week’s episode can be purchased from The Bookshelf:

145th Street by Walter Dean Myers
Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Competitive Grieving by Nora Zelevansky
Kisses and Croissants by Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau
Revival Season by Monica West
The Girls Are All So Nice Here by Laurie Elizabeth Flynn
Gold Diggers by Sanjena Sathian
When the Stars Go Dark by Paula McLain
The Trouble With Hating You by Sajni Patel
What Comes After by JoAnne Tompkins
Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume

From the Front Porch is a weekly podcast production of The Bookshelf, an independent bookstore in South Georgia. You can follow The Bookshelf’s daily happenings on Instagram at @bookshelftville, and all the books from today’s episode can be purchased online through our store website, www.bookshelfthomasville.com.

A full transcript of today’s episode can be found here.

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.

This week, Annie is reading The Final Revival of Opal and Nev by Dawnie Walton.

If you liked what you heard on today’s episode, tell us by leaving a review on iTunes. Or, if you’re so inclined, support us on Patreon, where you can hear our staff’s weekly New Release Tuesday conversations, read full book reviews in our monthly Shelf Life newsletter, follow along as Hunter and I conquer a classic, and receive free media mail shipping on all your online book orders. Just go to patreon.com/fromthefrontporch.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.

318 || Casting Call, Vol. 4 Apr 29, 2021

Show notes

Annie is joined by her casting experts, Courtney Kinsey, FTFP royals correspondent and co-host of the podcast I Do Declare; and Julie Anna Helms, @julieannareads on Instagram and creator of Who Would You Cast? polls. The three are casting One to Watch this week.

One to Watch is available for purchase at The Bookshelf, and you can cast your votes on our castings on Julie Anna’s Instagram stories on Sunday.

A full transcript of today’s episode can be found here.

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.

This week, Annie is reading Gold Diggers by Sanjena Sathian. Julie Anna is reading Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir, and Courtney Kinsey is reading Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.

317 || Indie Bookstore Day Apr 22, 2021

Show notes

Listen in this week as Annie and The Bookshelf staffers celebrate Independent Bookstore Day by sharing their favorite things about indie bookstores and the books they love to sell.

The books mentioned in this week’s episode can be purchased from The Bookshelf.

The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
Furious Hours by Casey Cep
Klara and the Sun by Kazuo Ishiguro
The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes
Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann
What Kind of Woman by Kate Baer
Nobody Will Tell You This But Me by Bess Calb
84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi
Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
House Lessons by Erica Bauermeister

A full transcript of today’s episode can be found here.

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.

This week, Annie is reading The Trouble with Hating You by Sajni Patel.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.

316 || The Kids‘ Table: Spring Apr 15, 2021

Show notes

Listen in this week as Annie and guest, cousin and Bookshelf Community Manager, Ashley Sherlock chat about their Spring reading, listening, watching and buying lists.

The books mentioned in this week’s episode can be purchased from The Bookshelf.

Reading:

Good Company by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney
Early Morning Riser by Katherine Heiny
Olympus, Texas by Stacey Swann
Persuasion by Jane Austen
Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
Caste by Isabel Wilkerson
Reading While Black by Esau McCaulley
You Never Forget Your First by Alexis Cole
145th Street by Walter Dean Myers
Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen
Upworthy on Instagram
Poetry Is Not A Luxury on Instagram
The Washington Post subscription
The Marshall Project: Article about author Sara Gruen

Watching:

Ted Lasso on Apple TV+
Love Island on Hulu
The Limit (workout program) by Beth Nicely

Sharon McMahon of Sharon Says So - Government for Grownups classes
Yes Day on Netflix

Listening:

Taylor Swift: From the Vault
Drivers License by Olivia Rodrigo
Still Processing podcast
Caul Baby by Morgan Jenkins
Breezy Instrumental playlist by Kendra Joyner Adachi
Hot Girl Walk playlist
The First Spring playlist

Buying:

Ally B
The Bookshelf
Material Kitchen
Ashley has been buying grande lemonades with strawberries and two pumps of raspberry syrup on top from Starbucks

A full transcript of today’s episode can be found here.

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.

This week, Annie is reading Kisses and Croissants by by Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau and Ashley is reading Good Company by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.

315 || The Power of Poetry Apr 08, 2021

Show notes

Listen in this week as Annie is joined by special guest and author Andre' Hadley Marria (The Songs I Could Not Sing) to discuss all things poetry.

The books mentioned in this week’s episode can be purchased from The Bookshelf:

The Songs I Could Not Sing by Andre’ Hadley Marria
Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard by Thomas Gray
The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
Moby Dick by Herman Melville
The Prophet by Kalil Gibran (including poem On Children)
The Hill We Climb by Amanda Gorman
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
We Speak Your Names by Pearl Cleage
Good Night, Willie Lee, I’ll See You In the Morning by Alice Walker

Some of Andre’s other favorite poets:

William Wordsworth
Gwendolyn Brooks
Langston Hughes
Walter Wintle
Edgar Guest (Sermons We See )

A full transcript of today’s episode can be found here.

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.

This week, Annie is reading Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid Just As I Am by Cicely Tyson.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.

314 || March Reading Recap Apr 01, 2021

Show notes

This week Annie recaps and reviews her March reads.

The books mentioned in this week’s episode can be purchased from The Bookshelf:

March Reads:

Early Morning Riser by Katherine Heiny
Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner
- The New Yorker article: Crying in H Mart
Love Like That by Emma Duffy-Comparone
It’s Kind of a Cheesy Love Story by Lauren Morrill
You’ll Never Believe What Happened to Lacey by Amber Ruffin and Lacey Lamar
Olympus, Texas by Stacey Swann
Good Company by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney
The Summer Job by Lizzy Dent
With Teeth by Kristen Arnett
The Turnout by Megan Abbott
The Second Season by Emily Adrian
The Final Girl Support Group by Grady Hendrix

Other books mentioned:

Forty Rooms by by Olga Grushin
The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney
The Push by Ashley Audrain
Dare Me by Megan Abbott
The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix
Final Girls by Riley Sager

A full transcript of today’s episode can be found here.

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.

This week, Annie is reading 145th Street by Walter Dean Myers.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.

313 || March Madness 2021 Mar 25, 2021

Show notes

Annie is joined this week by her husband and March Madness super fan, Jordan Jones to discuss their own bookish brackets.

The books mentioned in this week’s episode can be purchased from The Bookshelf:

The Harpy by Megan Hunter
The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires by Grady Hendrix
The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel
Such a Fun Age by Kiley Reid
All Adults Here by Emma Straub
Writers and Lovers by Lily King
Normal People by Sally Rooney
The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi
Florence Adler Swims Forever by Rachel Beanland
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy
Wintering by Katherine May
Untamed by Glennon Doyle
What Kind of Woman by Kate Baer
All Things Reconsidered by Knox McCoy
The Lazy Genius Way by Kendra Adachi
The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett
Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi

A full transcript of today’s episode can be found here.

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.

This week, Annie is reading The Turnout by Megan Abbott.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.

312 || What Would Susie Read?, Vol. 2 Mar 18, 2021

Show notes

Annie’s mom Susie joins the podcast this week to discuss books for sensitive readers.

The books mentioned in this week’s episode can be purchased from The Bookshelf:

Summer House by Lauren K. Denton
On the Bright Side by Melanie Shankle
Stand All the Way Up by Sophie Hudson
I’m Still Here by Austin Channing Brown
Everything Beautiful in Its Time by Jenna Bush Hager
House Lessons by Erica Bauermeister
Will the Circle Be Unbroken? by Sean Dietrich
Burnout by Amelia Nagoski and Emily Nagoski
A Gentle Answer by Scott Sauls
The Kitchen Front by Jennifer Ryan
The Woman with the Blue Star by Pam Jenoff
My Vanishing Country by Bakari Sellers
What Comes After by JoAnne Tompkins

A full transcript of today’s episode can be found here.

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.

This week, Annie is reading Olympus, Texas by Stacey Swann and Susie is reading The Music of Bees by Eileen Garvin.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.

311 || Literary Therapy, Vol. 6 Mar 11, 2021

Show notes

This week Annie puts her literary therapy hat back on to answer some listener questions.

To leave your own voicemail for an upcoming literary therapy episode, go here.

The books mentioned in this week’s episode can be purchased from The Bookshelf:

Libertie
Early Morning Riser
Caste
Me and White Supremacy
Is Your Allyship Conditional
Everything I Never Told You
Everybody Rise
This Close to Okay
Room
Brown Girl Dreaming
Before the Fall
Dear Edward

A full transcript of today’s episode can be found here.

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.

This week, Annie is reading Crying in H Mart by Michelle Zauner.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.

310 || February Reading Recap Mar 04, 2021

Show notes

Join Annie this week as she recaps her reads from the month of February.

Some of the books mentioned in today’s episode are available for purchase from The Bookshelf.

Annie’s February reads:

This Close to Okay by Leesa Cross-Smith
How the One-Armed Sister Sweeps Her House by Cherie Jones
Share Your Stuff, I’ll Go First by Laura Tremaine
Anne of Manhattan by Brina Starler
Libertie by Kaitlyn Greenidge
The Cross and the Lynching Tree by James H. Cone
Persuasion by Jane Austen

Other books mentioned:

Whiskey & Ribbons by Leesa Cross-Smith
We Love You, Charlie Freeman by Kaitlyn Greenidge

A full transcript of today’s episode can be found here.

Special thanks to Dylan and his team at Studio D Production for sound and editing and for our theme music, which sets the perfect warm and friendly tone for our Thursday conversations.

This week, Annie is reading Caste by Isabel Wilkerson.

We’re so grateful for you, and we look forward to meeting back here next week.