Poured Over

Latest Episodes:

Nicole Chung on A LIVING REMEDY Apr 08, 2023

Show notes

"It was going to be a story about American instability, and precarity, and what happens when we aren't able to access the things that we need — and yet still have to try to care for each other anyway."

Nicole Chung's newest memoir, A Living Remedy, reflects on the tragic inequality of access to the American healthcare system and the way it directly affected her family. Chung talks with us about privilege and class, how writing this memoir changed her, her literary influences and more with Poured Over host, Miwa Messer. And we end this episode with TBR Topoff book recommendations from Marc and Madyson.

This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Executive Producer Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang.

New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app.

Featured Books (Episode):

A Living Remedy by Nicole Chung

All You Can Ever Know by Nicole Chung

How to Write an Autobiographical Novel by Alexander Chee

The Swimmers by Julie Otsuka

Featured Books (TBR Topoff):

The Anthropocene Reviewed by John Green

Seeing Ghosts by Kat Chow

Gina Chung on SEA CHANGE Apr 06, 2023

Show notes

"Loneliness is such a universal experience for so many of us — and I do hope that the book is a balm for that and helps make readers feel less alone…"

Gina Chung's debut novel Sea Change explores family ties, grief and growing up through a complicated protagonist that readers will love to root for — and yes, there really is an octopus. Chung joins us to talk about sad girl characters, allowing women to feel anger, how we never stop "coming of age" and more with Poured Over host, Miwa Messer.

This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Executive Producer Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang.

New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app.

Featured Books (Episode):

Sea Change by Gina Chung

Chemistry by Weike Wang

Pizza Girl by Jean Kyoung Frazier

Goodbye, Vitamin by Rachel Khong

All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Matthews

If I Survive You by Jonathan Escoffery

Nuclear Family by Joseph Han

Please Report Your Bug Here by Josh Riedel

Featured Books (TBR Topoff):

Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead by Emily Austin

More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera

Jeannette Walls on HANG THE MOON Apr 04, 2023

Show notes

"We all want the same thing; we want respect and security and to be loved — and that's what storytelling does, it connects the similarities that we have."

Jeannette Walls, author of The Glass Castle, returns with Hang the Moon, a novel that follows feisty Sallie Kincaid as she comes into her own in the upheaval of Prohibition-era Virginia. Walls talks with us about the language of historical fiction, the differences between writing a memoir and a novel, the impact of telling your story and more live at Barnes & Noble Union Square with Poured Over host, Miwa Messer.

This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Executive Producer Miwa Messer and mixed by Chris Gillespie.

New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app.

Featured Books (Episode):

Hang the Moon by Jeannette Walls

The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls

Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls

Jacqueline Holland on THE GOD OF ENDINGS Mar 30, 2023

Show notes

"I live on art. I'm an art vampire, that's how I sustain myself."

Jacqueline Holland's debut novel The God of Endings weaves together themes of motherhood, mortality and the human condition in a vampire novel unlike any we've seen before. Holland joins us to discuss vampire lore, the power of art, how her novel grew out of a grad school novella, why you should always read the book rather than watch the movie and more with guest host, Kat Sarfas. We end the episode with TBR Topoff book recommendations from Marc and Madyson.

This episode of Poured Over was produced and hosted by Kat Sarfas and mixed by Harry Liang. Poured Over is brought to you by Executive Producer Miwa Messer and the booksellers of Barnes & Noble.

Featured Books (Episode):

The God of Endings by Jacqueline Holland

White Cat, Black Dog by Kelly Link

The Shining by Stephen King

Featured Books (TBR Topoff):

Carmilla by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu

The Lovely War by Julie Berry

Rachel Heng on THE GREAT RECLAMATION Mar 28, 2023

Show notes

"As a kid, you don't know any of that. You're just like, wow, this sounds magical, like, how could this be the sea? How could this be land? How can that just happen? And I think that speaks to a particular quality of life in Singapore, and growing up in Singapore, and all of the changes that you see happening before your eyes…"

Rachel Heng's new novel, The Great Reclamation, is an epic story of love and power and family (with a magical twist) set in mid-century Singapore. She joins us on the show to talk about the legacy of colonialism, rewriting (with an assist from Post-It notes and index cards), Elizabeth McCracken and the Michener Center, the histories that get told (and the ones that don't), Crazy Rich Asians, and much more with host Miwa Messer. And we end this episode with TBR Topoff book recommendations from Marc and Jamie.

This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Executive Producer Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang.

Featured Books (Episode):

The Great Reclamation by Rachel Heng

Suicide Club by Rachel Heng

The Man with the Compound Eyes by Wu Ming-Yi

The Known World by Edward P. Jones

Lost in the City by Edward P. Jones

The Old Drift by Namwali Serpell

Featured Books (TBR Topoff):

The Shell Collector by Anthony Doerr

The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy

Katherine May on ENCHANTMENT: AWAKENING WONDER IN AN ANXIOUS AGE Mar 23, 2023

Show notes

"I'm so interested in the moment when the reader takes over … I wanted it to be a book that feels like I'm walking alongside the reader, learning as they learn."

Katherine May's first book, Wintering, was a finalist for the Barnes & Noble 2020 Book of the Year, and we've been waiting, waiting, waiting for her follow-up, Enchantment. Katherine joins us on the show to talk about the importance of humor, holding space for joy and curiosity and wonder in her work, journaling (and the scrappy beginnings of all her books), hierophany, the memoirist's terror, her admiration for the work of Joan Didion and much more in a charming, laughter-filled conversation with Jenna Seery, Associate Producer of Poured Over. And we end the episode with TBR Topoff book recommendations from Marc and Jamie.

Featured Books (Episode) Enchantment by Katherine May Wintering by Katherine May Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susannah Clarke

Featured Books (TBR Topoff) And Yet by Kate Baer The Half Known Life: In Search of Paradise by Pico Iyer

This episode of Poured Over was produced and hosted by Jenna Seery and mixed by Harry Liang. Poured Over is brought to you by Executive Producer Miwa Messer and the booksellers of Barnes & Noble.

Matthew Desmond on POVERTY, BY AMERICA Mar 21, 2023

Show notes

"Look at all the advances we've made in the last 50 years, look at the way that culture and medicine and technology and science have advanced since the Beatles broke up, since we were involved in Vietnam, but the poverty rate has been incredibly stubbornly persistent and I think it's rather shameful for the richest country in the history of the world."

Reading Matthew Desmond's books will make you smarter, break your heart, make you mad, and push you to think differently about poverty — all in the same moment. Poverty, by America is his follow-up to his landmark book, Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City, winner of the Pulitzer Prize. Desmond joins us on the show to talk about going where the data takes him, the human cost of poverty, the gig economy, writing in community, what a post-poverty would could look like, and much more with Poured Over's host, Miwa Messer.

Featured Books:

Poverty, by America by Matthew Desmond

Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond

Poured Over is produced and hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. Follow us here for new episodes Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays).

Poured Over Double Shot: Claire Jiménez and Elaine Hsieh Chou Mar 18, 2023

Show notes

Who gets to tell our stories? Two debut authors use their powerful voices to show strong female characters navigating family, race and colonialism with unfailing humor and heart.

Claire Jiménez's What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez follows a family in the wake of a tragedy as they attempt to move on — and up. Jiménez talks with us about finding the voice in her work, telling Puerto Rican stories, how she uses perspective and humor and more.

In Disorientation by Elaine Hsieh Chou we find a young Taiwanese American woman mired in the world of academia and all the challenges that privilege and power can bring. Chou joins us to talk about Asian American identity, how she changed while writing the book, what she's working on next and more.

Listen in as both talk separately with Poured Over's host, Miwa Messer. And we end this episode with TBR Topoff book recommendations from Jamie and Madyson.

Featured Books (Episode):

Disorientation by Elaine Hsieh Chou

What Happened to Ruthy Ramirez by Claire Jiménez

The Makioka Sisters by Junichiro Tanizaki

I Hotel by Karen Tei Yamashita

Another Country by James Baldwin

Dear Miss Metropolitan by Carolyn Ferrell

Post-Traumatic by Chantal V. Johnson

Yellowface by R.F. Kuang

Olga Dies Dreaming by Xochitl Gonzalez

War Against All Puerto Ricans by Nelson A. Denis

Velorio by Xavier Navarro Aquino

Featured Books (TBR Topoff):

Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson

The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood

Poured Over is produced and hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. Follow us here for new episodes Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays).

Poured Over Double Shot: Alice Winn and Madelaine Lucas Mar 16, 2023

Show notes

From the trenches of WWI to the coast of Australia, these two debut novels depict the ubiquity of coming of age, even when the circumstances are drastically different.

In Alice Winn's In Memoriam, two young men find love and tragedy on the fields of battle. Winn talked with us about how the story came into being, the extensive research required to create her characters and their world, her literary influences and more.

Thirst for Salt by Madelaine Lucas follows a young woman through a newfound relationship that alters her perspective on life and the future. Lucas joins us in conversation about location as a character, other novels and writers that weave their way into her work, the music she listens to when writing and more.

Listen in as both talk separately with Poured Over's host, Miwa Messer. And we end this episode with TBR Topoff book recommendations from Marc and Madyson.

Featured Books (Episode):

In Memoriam by Alice Winn

Thirst for Salt by Madelaine Lucas

A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara

The Runaways by Fatima Bhutto

Storm of Steel by Ernst Jünger

Testament of Youth by Vera Brittain

Regeneration by Pat Barker

Vladimir by Julia May Jonas

Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin

Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

The Lover by Marguerite Duras

Voyage in the Dark by Jean Rhys

The Friend by Sigrid Nunez

Featured Books (TBR Topoff):

Call Me by Your Name by André Aciman

Good-bye to All That by Robert Graves

Poured Over is produced and hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. Follow us here for new episodes Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays).

Poured Over Double Shot: Jenny Jackson and Ann Napolitano Mar 14, 2023

Show notes

Family dynamics, for better or worse, are front and center in these two novels from two striking voices in fiction.

Jenny Jackson's debut, Pineapple Street, brings us to an upper-class suburb in New York City — an old-money family, new romance, heartbreak and the kinds of drama only the one-percent can deliver. Jackson joins us to talk about publishing as an author rather than an editor, the intrigue of Brooklyn Heights, how to write humor and more.

In Hello Beautiful, Ann Napolitano follows four sisters as they navigate their lives from the 80s to early 2000s through tragedy, love and what happens when our futures don't go as we've planned. We talked with Napolitano about her emotional journey while writing this, incorporating obsessions into your work, how to know when a story sounds right and more.

Listen in as both talk separately with Poured Over's host, Miwa Messer. And we end this episode with TBR Topoff book recommendations from Marc and Jamie.

Featured Books (Episode):

Pineapple Street by Jenny Jackson

Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano

Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin

Bridget Jones's Diary by Helen Fielding

Games and Rituals by Katherine Heiny

Dear Edward by Ann Napolitano

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Commonwealth by Ann Patchett

Featured Books (TBR Topoff):

The Most Fun We Ever Had by Claire Lombardo

How It Feels to Float by Helena Fox

Poured Over is produced and hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. Follow us here for new episodes Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays).

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