Ep. 194: Bookish Time Capsule (2017) with Catherine (@GilmoreGuide)
Release Date: 04/30/2025
Best of Horror with Meredith Monday Schwartz (Currently Reading) | Ep. 216
Sarah's Bookshelves Live
Episode 216 continues the Best of… series with a deep dive into the horror genre. Meredith Monday Schwartz of the podcast joins the show to discuss her all-time Top Ten favorite horror books, along with a few buzzy titles that didn’t quite work for her. Meredith also talks about how she came to the genre and the wide range of reading experiences horror has to offer. This post contains affiliate links through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!). Highlights How Meredith defines the horror genre — and where she draws the lines Subgenres of...
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The Best Backlist We Read in 2025 with Catherine Gilmore | Ep. 215
Sarah's Bookshelves Live
In Episode 215, Sarah and Catherine of share the best backlist books they read in 2025. They discuss their top 5 backlist books from last year, highlight some underrated backlist gems, and review their backlist reading statistics. Devoting an entire episode to backlist reading is both a team and listener favorite annual tradition! This post contains affiliate links through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!). Announcement The Best of the Backlist Guide: Favorite Backlist Books Read in 2025 is available now! Members of the Sarah’s...
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Winter 2026 Book Preview with Catherine Gilmore | Ep. 214
Sarah's Bookshelves Live
Welcome to the Winter 2026 Book Preview with Catherine of ! Today, Catherine and Sarah share 16 of their most anticipated books releasing from January through March. This post contains affiliate links through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!). Announcement The 2026 Reading Tracker is out! This year brings upgraded features across the board — including NEW average star rating and 5-star book tracking for every stat on the Dashboard — plus an updated Lite Tracker for those who prefer a streamlined version. Both Trackers are...
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Best Books of 2025 Genre Awards with Chrissie (@ChrissieWhitley) | Ep. 213
Sarah's Bookshelves Live
In Episode 213, Sarah and Chrissie () wrap up the year with the Best Books of 2025 Genre Awards. They reveal their Overall Best Books (Fiction and Nonfiction) and a full breakdown by genre, including: Best Literary Fiction, Best Romance, Best Brain Candy, Best Genre Mash-Up, and more! Plus, they share the winners for these same genres as chosen by the Sarah’s Bookshelves Live Member Community. This post contains affiliate links through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!). Announcements The 2026 Reading Tracker is out! This year brings...
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Best Books of 2025 Superlatives with Catherine (@GilmoreGuide) | Ep. 212
Sarah's Bookshelves Live
In Ep. 212, Sarah and Catherine of start wrapping up 2025 with the first of the two year-end episodes: Best Books of 2025 Superlatives. In this episode, they share their picks for over 25 superlative categories, including Weirdest 5-Star Read of 2025, The Book That Made Us Furious, Most Underrated Gem, Too Dark Even for Me, and so much more! This post contains affiliate links through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!). Highlights Our best books of the year from over 25 categories, including: My First 5-Star 2025...
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Fall 2025 Circle Back with Catherine (@GilmoreGuide) (Ep. 211)
Sarah's Bookshelves Live
In Episode 211, Sarah and Catherine of catch up on the 14 new releases they shared in the , now that they’ve read them — or at least tried to! They share their reading stats and discuss which books worked and which didn’t…and why. This post contains affiliate links through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!). Highlights Catherine’s success rate bounces back from summer. Sarah’s fall reading felt kind of “meh” despite a higher success rate. They also share their combined 2025 Preview success rates....
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State of the Publishing Industry in 2025 with Laura McGrath, Author of the textCrunch Substack (Ep. 210)
Sarah's Bookshelves Live
In Ep. 210, Laura McGrath, author of the popular Substack newsletter, , joins Sarah to take a sharp look at the State of the Publishing Industry in 2025. This packed episode covers a high-level look at the top sales and book trends, as well as Laura’s insights into the future of the book world for 2026. Also, Laura shares her favorite books of 2025! This post contains affiliate links through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!). Highlights Laura McGrath’s book (publishing April 28, 2026) is available for pre-order...
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Ep. 209: 2025 Debuts Special with Catherine (@GilmoreGuide) and Chrissie (@ChrissieWhitley)
Sarah's Bookshelves Live
In Episode 209, Catherine () and Chrissie () join Sarah for the 5th annual Debuts Special! They’re sharing their reading stats for debuts this year, along with their favorite debuts, new and backlist — so far for 2025. This post contains affiliate links through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!). Highlights How debuts from 2025 compare to those from previous years. A full breakdown of Sarah’s, Catherine’s, and Chrissie’s 2025 debut-related stats. Featured debuts, split into two categories: Favorite Debuts of 2025 (so far) Favorite...
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Ep. 208: Best of Narrative Nonfiction with Elizabeth Barnhill of Fabled Bookshop (@FabledBookshop)
Sarah's Bookshelves Live
Ep. 208 brings the third installment of our “Best of…” series. Elizabeth Barnhill of joined Sarah for the Best of Narrative Nonfiction, sharing her ALL-TIME TOP books in this genre. Plus, she brings a few popular nonfiction reads that didn’t work for her. This episode is chock-full of fantastic book recommendations to get you ready for Nonfiction November or just your next nonfiction pick. This post contains affiliate links through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!). Highlights How Elizabeth got started with narrative...
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Ep. 207: Regina Black (Author of August Lane)
Sarah's Bookshelves Live
In Episode 207, Sarah chats with author Regina Black about her newest novel, . A second-chance romance about two people healing from trauma, is set in Arcadia, Arkansas, with themes of family, generational scars, and a unique thread of Black country music. Regina also talks about how she got into writing Romance on top of her job as a law school administrator, how long she’s been writing, and what spurred her on to seeking publication. Plus, Regina shares some of her top book recommendations! This post contains affiliate links through which I make a small commission when you make a...
info_outlineIn Ep. 194, Catherine (@GilmoreGuide) and Sarah head back to the year 2017 in the book world with this second annual special retrospective episode! They share big bookish highlights for that year, including book news, award winners, and what was going on in the world outside of reading. They also talk about how their own 2017 reading shook out, including their favorite 2017 releases. Plus, a quick run-down of listener-submitted favorites! This episode is overflowing with great backlist titles to add to your TBR!
This post contains affiliate links through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!).
CLICK HERE for the full episode Show Notes on the blog.
Highlights
- The big news that was going on outside the book world.
- The book stories and trends that dominated 2017.
- How similar 2017 and 2025 are.
- The 2017 books that have had staying power.
- Was this as dismal a year in books as Sarah remembers?
- Sarah’s and Catherine’s personal 2017 reading stats.
- Listener-submitted favorites from 2017.
Bookish Time Capsule (2017) [2:12]
The World Beyond Books
- No books mentioned in this segment.
The Book Industry
- Wonder by R. J. Palacio (2012) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [9:59]
- Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur (2015) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [10:04]
- A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles (2016) | Amazon | Bookshop.org[10:40]
- The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead (2016) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [10:44]
- Uncommon Type by Tom Hanks (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [12:08]
- My Absolute Darling by Gabriel Tallent (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [12:18]
- The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [13:03]
- If We Were Villains by M. L. Rio (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [13:13]
- We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [13:23]
- Sweetbitter by Stephanie Danler (2016) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [13:46]
- Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi (2016) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [13:48]
- The Nest by Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney (2016) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [13:50]
- Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall (2025) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [14:57]
- Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar (2024) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [15:03]
- James by Percival Everett (2024) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [15:04]
Bookish Headlines and Trends
- Becoming by Michelle Obama (2018) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [20:41]
- A Promised Land by Barack Obama (2020) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [20:43]
- The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama (2006) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [20:48]
- My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante (2011) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [23:04]
- The Road to Dalton by Shannon Bowring (2023) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [23:31]
Big Books and Award Winners of 2017
- A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman (2012) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [26:01]
- Beartown by Fredrik Backman (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [26:06]
- The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood (1985) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [26:21]
- Hillbilly Elegy by J. D. Vance (2016) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [26:27]
- The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [26:48]
- Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus (2022) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [28:09]
- The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [28:39]
- Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [29:23]
- Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng (2014) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [29:40]
- Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [31:31]
- Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout (2008) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [32:09]
- Pachinko by Min Jin Lee (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [32:51]
- Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [33:16]
- Normal People by Sally Rooney (2018) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [33:41]
- Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [34:32]
- Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward (2011) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [34:38]
- Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [35:09]
- The Sellout by Paul Beatty (2015) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [35:52]
- What Happened by Hillary Rodham Clinton (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [36:56]
- Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [37:21]
- The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead (2016) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [37:45]
- Before the Fall by Noah Hawley (2016) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [38:04]
- The Stone Sky (The Broken Earth, 3) by N. K. Jemisin (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [38:30]
Our Top Books of 2017
- The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [40:46]
- Beartown by Fredrik Backman (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [41:20]
- Dead Letters by Caite Dolan-Leach (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [41:22]
- Emma in the Night by Wendy Walker (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [42:02]
- If We Were Villains by M. L. Rio (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [42:16]
- Quicksand by Malin Persson Giolitio (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [42:23]
- The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [42:36]
- This Is How It Always Is by Laurie Frankel (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [42:38]
- Trophy Son by Douglas Brunt (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [42:48]
- White Fur by Jardine Libaire (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [43:05]
- Final Girls by Riley Sager (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [46:38]
- Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [46:44]
- Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [46:46]
- Young Jane Young by Gabrielle Zevin (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [46:49]
- The Rules of Magic by Alice Hoffman (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [47:10]
- Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman (1995) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [47:15]
- Goodbye, Vitamin by Rachel Khong (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [47:19]
- The Heirs by Susan Rieger (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [47:34]
- The Takedown by Corrie Wang (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [47:53]
- Feast of Sorrow by Crystal King (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [48:01]
- Girl in Snow by Danya Kukafka (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [48:09]
- Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng (2014) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [48:17]
- Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [48:28]
- The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [48:33]
Listeners’ Top Books of 2017
- Pachinko by Min Jin Lee (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [49:33]
- Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [49:51]
- The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [50:03]
- The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org[50:07]
- Beartown by Fredrik Backman (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [50:13]
- Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [50:15]
- The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [50:18]
- The Alice Network by Kate Quinn (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [50:24]
- This Is How It Always Is by Laurie Frankel (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [50:25]
- Goodbye, Vitamin by Rachel Khong (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [50:27]