Shelf-Involved Podcast

We’re back with one of our last episodes of Shelf-Involved (for now). We’re taking a break and will be back in a few months with a new podcast, Hardship & Hemlock: Revisiting the Dear America Series, focusing on a middle grade series that has has a hold on us since age 8. We’re really excited to get into these books and see what has (and has not ) held up. Look for a feed drop for the new show in the next few months.

This week we’re talking about teen chefs, a title that was meant to never see the light of day, but here we are. Teens who cook, teens who are good at cooking—we don’t know. But we love these books, for reasons both delicious and personal.

We’re back to talk about your favorite hot topic: cancel culture! Does it exist? Is it bad? Does it happen to teens? Let’s get into it.

This week we're talking about the first book in our Season 5 Book Club: Everything Sad Is Untrue by Daniel Nayeri. This incredible memoir, that reads more like an epic, is unbelievable, and we think everyone should read it. 

This week we’re talking about climate change in YA, otherwise known as climate fiction—Cli-Fi, if you will. It’s a cool fun topic! Get excited. But seriously, we actually really enjoy the thoughtful ways these books deal with a reality that’s pretty hard to not think about it.

This week, it’s just Emily! We’re trying something new this week that we’re calling Close Reads. And Emily is talking about one of her favorite books, but not in an effort to get you to read it. We’re getting a bit more personal with this series, opening up about why our favorite books mean so much to us, how our conception of them has changed over the years, and of course, the vast power of stories.

This week we’re talking about what ifs in YA — sliding doors, alternate timelines, the flip of a coin, we want it all. And the books we talk about do really interesting things with this beloved trope

Way back in season 3 we gave you a list of our favorite spooky YA books, and now we have a whole new set of recommendations to get you in the spirit of spooky season. We love these books and even if you're not a horror fan, there are a few lightly-spooky, not too intense options on the list. And one that we both absolutely had to stop reading late at night and made us never want to go camping again. 

This week we're talking about grudges and the way this is used as a satisfying (and redemptive) plot device in YA. 

This week we’re talking about teens abroad! We’re looking at studying abroad and the interesting fish out of water trope combined with being a teen in decidedly adult situations. How thrilling! We also talk about the delightful ways in which this subgenre has developed and become more grounded in recent years.