Latest / Friday Night Readers: Gilmore Girls Inspired Book Club / 👯‍♀️6 Books About Female Friendship That Are Better Than Romance Novels

Transcript

👯‍♀️6 Books About Female Friendship That Are Better Than Romance Novels · Friday Night Readers: Gilmore Girls Inspired Book Club

• 0:05
  SPEAKER_01: Welcome to Friday Night Readers.
• 0:07
  SPEAKER_01: Fueled by coffee, we break down the books referenced on Gilmore Girls.
• 0:11
  Our little literary corner of the world helps you understand
• 0:14
  what the characters
• 0:15
  SPEAKER_01: are talking so fast about and live in a world of books like worry.
• 0:19
  SPEAKER_01: Like short, read fast.
• 0:21
  SPEAKER_01: Before we dive in,
• 0:22
  don't forget to subscribe to our Friday Night Readers
• 0:24
  newsletter community on
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_01: Substack.
• 0:26
  You'll get instant access to a free printable list of 450 plus
• 0:31
  books on Gilmore Girls.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_01: Plus,
• 0:33
  SPEAKER_01: even more Gilmore-inspired content,
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_01: like our Rory Gilmore Reading Challenge,
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_01: which we've been doing together since 2020.
• 0:40
  Paid members get exclusive extras,
• 0:42
  like our Gilmore Girls-inspired reading journal.
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_01: And our unofficial guide to the books on Gilmore Girls.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_01: Come hang out where the real Gilmore magic happens.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_02: Hi, Friday night readers.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_02: I've got something a little bit different for you today,
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_02: and I'm sorry if my voice sounds congested.
• 1:00
  SPEAKER_02: I do have a little bit of a cold,
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_02: but it is Galentine's Day,
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_02: so I wanted to celebrate with one of my favorite gal pals,
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_02: Laura Yaman,
• 1:08
  SPEAKER_02: who is from the What to Read Next podcast.
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  She and I met in mid-2025 and have become daily talking friends
• 1:16
  since then.
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  So we wanted to share three of our favorite books each on
• 1:21
  female friendship and
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_02: and talk about how we nurtured our female friendship as adults.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_02: It's more like a traditional podcast with back and forth,
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_02: so I hope you really like this improv conversation.
• 1:33
  SPEAKER_02: Hi, Jules.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_02: Hello, and happy Galentine's Day, Laura.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_00: Happy Galentine's Day.
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  I love this conversation that we're going to have because we're
• 1:42
  newer friends.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: We got to know each other this past year.
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  A lot of people are looking for community and making new
• 1:47
  friends as an adult.
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  SPEAKER_00: We are a good example of how you can build a friendship.
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  SPEAKER_02: And I find it interesting,
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  SPEAKER_02: too,
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  SPEAKER_02: because wasn't Amy Poehler the one who came up with Galentine's Day?
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_02: And she's very much a topic of conversation in our texts.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, yes, I love it.
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  SPEAKER_00: I think Valentine's Day tend to be a commercial like romantic.
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  But you know what we got to take care of our friendships and
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  Valentine's Day is the
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  SPEAKER_00: day before Valentine's Day,
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  SPEAKER_00: you go take your girlfriends out for lunch or dinner,
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  SPEAKER_00: and just celebrate your female friendships.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: And I love her podcast.
• 2:18
  SPEAKER_00: I'm so grateful that she started podcasts,
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  SPEAKER_00: unlike other celebrities,
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_00: because her attitude is much more fun and conversational.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_00: Which is what I want to hear on my ears.
• 2:29
  SPEAKER_00: I want to hear someone yelling at me for telling this information.
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  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it's so light and joyful.
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  SPEAKER_02: And I'm loving that about what she's bringing to the space.
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  So should we first introduce ourselves and talk about how we
• 2:41
  met and became friends?
• 2:43
  SPEAKER_00: I am Laura.
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_00: I'm a long term podcaster.
• 2:45
  SPEAKER_00: I've been podcasting for about 10 years.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_00: And I've been podcasting in this book space for about eight years.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_00: And I've been sharing author interviews,
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_00: friends interviews,
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  and I've used the podcast a lot of time as a way to get to know
• 2:58
  friends and get to
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  SPEAKER_00: know people.
• 3:00
  SPEAKER_00: I'm kind of like an introvert slash extrovert.
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  So I love having conversations and I've used the podcast as a
• 3:07
  speed dating route.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_00: I lived in New York long term until 2020.
• 3:10
  SPEAKER_00: And then I moved to Chicago and I did not know anybody.
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  SPEAKER_00: And I was alone.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
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  in a really strange city and so one of the things that i did
• 3:21
  was to interview a
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  bunch of authors and at that point i interviewed about 500 of
• 3:27
  them one of the
• 3:28
  reasons why i reached out to jules was that i posted about
• 3:31
  magazines onSubstack and
• 3:33
  jules actually liked it and i have called jules journey as a
• 3:37
  blogger so i decided
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  to reach out to jules and i was like hey will you be interested
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  in coming on the
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  SPEAKER_00: podcast
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_00: I love what you're doing.
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  She has transitioned over to Gilmore Girls and we connected and
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  it turns out we
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  SPEAKER_00: have a lot of things in common.
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  What I realized is I made a really close knit of female
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  friendships sliding into
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  people's DM and getting to talk about common interests and then
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  taking the
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  conversation offline off social media into WhatsApp or voice
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  messages or actually
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  SPEAKER_00: inviting them for the podcast.
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  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, that's exactly what I take from our meeting as well.
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  SPEAKER_02: And you were really good at reaching out.
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  And I remember that I also and I try to do this when I connect
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  with someone,
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  I try to make that extra effort to not just like something to
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  actually go in and
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  SPEAKER_02: message someone and say,
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  SPEAKER_02: Oh,
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  SPEAKER_02: hey,
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  SPEAKER_02: I saw your work.
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  SPEAKER_02: I think it's really cool what you're doing.
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  SPEAKER_02: It just opens up those doors.
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  And I think it's so hard to meet female friends as an adult
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  that you really do have
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  SPEAKER_02: to take those little extra steps and they really do make a difference.
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  I was on Bookstagram for many years and I've met a lot of
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  friends that way as well.
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  SPEAKER_02: And it's just,
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  we go through school and it's a lot easier that you're all
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  contained in the same
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  SPEAKER_02: space and you don't really have to make those extra efforts.
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  SPEAKER_02: But in the real world, you really do, but it is worth it.
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  SPEAKER_00: It is worth it.
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  I think in some ways it's a low stake sending a DM and seeing
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  if you're right fit.
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  SPEAKER_00: And I've gone to friend dates that are not the right fit for me.
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  SPEAKER_00: We are different values or different stages in life.
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  SPEAKER_00: And I think friendships come and go.
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  SPEAKER_00: I think there's a lot of stigma that it has to be the same way.
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  And you have different friends at different stages of life or
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  where you are like to my friends.
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  SPEAKER_00: who are actually have children, stay-at-home moms.
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  SPEAKER_00: I'm their childless friend who is living the best life possible.
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  SPEAKER_00: And I get to care about their kids and support them and hear them vent.
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  SPEAKER_00: I'm the outside coming in.
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  SPEAKER_00: I have friends who are childless and I'm like,
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  SPEAKER_00: actually we have things in common and I'm not alone.
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  So I think it's an opportunity to hear other people's
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  perspective and to feel connected.
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  SPEAKER_00: I've been alone.
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  SPEAKER_00: for a long time, but I rarely I feel lonely.
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  SPEAKER_00: Even in Chicago, I did not feel lonely.
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  SPEAKER_00: I actually felt connected.
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  SPEAKER_00: I felt like I have friends with unconditional love.
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  SPEAKER_00: And they're part of the people who support me through the days.
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  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I think that's a really powerful thing.
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  SPEAKER_02: Loneliness is an epidemic right now.
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  SPEAKER_00: Yes.
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  And I think in some ways,
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  it's alone and loneliness are two very different things.
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  SPEAKER_00: Alone is a voice.
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  SPEAKER_00: And I'm not saying that making friends is very easy.
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  SPEAKER_00: It takes time.
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  SPEAKER_00: Building a local community here in Tampa,
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  SPEAKER_00: it takes energy to put yourself out there and to see,
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  SPEAKER_00: do we have the same values?
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  SPEAKER_00: Do we have the same worldviews or do we have the same interests?
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  And then building that connection and then trying to foster
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  those relationships.
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  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
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  SPEAKER_00: it's taken me five years to make local friends.
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  SPEAKER_02: And I think another thing that really worked well for us,
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  SPEAKER_02: because we both are in similar workspaces,
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  SPEAKER_02: is that we never took a competitive approach to it.
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  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I think a lot of people feel like there's a scarcity mentality.
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  SPEAKER_00: And the reality, you gain so much more with collaborations.
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  You gain so much more with connecting with other people and
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  just look for the best
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  SPEAKER_00: out of others.
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  SPEAKER_00: I've come from a place where there's an offer for everyone.
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  SPEAKER_00: And I think having genuine friendships is
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  SPEAKER_00: and having conversations make it much more richer.
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  SPEAKER_00: Having friendships are actually my best performing episodes.
• 7:02
  SPEAKER_02: So I am Jules, and I work at Friday Night Readers.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_02: And this is a book club that reads the books on Gilmore Girls.
• 7:08
  SPEAKER_02: I started as a blogger in 2019 at a blog called Literary Lifestyle.
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  I'll actually get into the origins of it with one of my book
• 7:16
  choices today.
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  SPEAKER_02: But the thing that really
• 7:19
  stuck with my audience and that stuck with me was around the
• 7:22
  time of the pandemic
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  SPEAKER_02: when I started rewatching Gilmore Girls and reading the books on it.
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  SPEAKER_02: That's what really hit with people.
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  SPEAKER_02: Just last,
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  SPEAKER_02: middle of last year,
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  I switched fully to the books on Gilmore Girls and moved most
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  of my work over to
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  SPEAKER_02: Substack.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_02: And that's been a thriving and growing community.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_02: It's the sixth year now that we're reading the books from Gilmore Girls.
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  SPEAKER_00: Yes,
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  I love the community you've been building because you're not
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  only talking about
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  SPEAKER_00: Gilmore Girls,
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  SPEAKER_00: which we love as a comfort show,
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  but you're talking about a real Gilmore lifestyle and like
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  Gilmore Burns and a lot
• 7:52
  SPEAKER_00: like all over the place,
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  SPEAKER_00: but we love her for what she is.
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  SPEAKER_00: And I think your recommendations actually show
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  SPEAKER_00: the different type of friendships that we see in the show, which I love.
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  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I agree.
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  SPEAKER_02: And when I picked my three books for today,
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  I put little notations of which friends from the show I would
• 8:07
  recommend it to.
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  And so I do go outside the books from Gilmore Girls,
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  but I always try to bring it back somehow.
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  SPEAKER_02: The books that I chose today will show you how I bring it back.
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  SPEAKER_02: So let's start with the books.
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  SPEAKER_02: Okay, let's do it.
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  So my first one is my favorite book of all time,
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  My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante.
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  SPEAKER_02: Do not let this horrible cover prevent you from reading it.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_02: There are newer covers.
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  I'm not sure what's going on with this one,
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  but it is my favorite book of all time.
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  And the way I was introduced to it was in 2019,
• 8:41
  we were planning our honeymoon to Italy.
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_02: And my sister-in-law said, oh, I know you love books.
• 8:45
  SPEAKER_02: This was before my blog.
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  SPEAKER_02: I know you love books and you're going to Italy.
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  SPEAKER_02: You have to read this book.
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  SPEAKER_02: It's actually a book series.
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  SPEAKER_02: There's four books.
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  SPEAKER_02: my brilliant friend.
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  SPEAKER_02: And I said, I never heard of that.
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  So the next day a box showed up at my porch and it had all four
• 8:58
  books in it.
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  SPEAKER_02: And it became my favorite book of all time.
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  SPEAKER_02: I did read the whole series,
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  SPEAKER_02: but this particular book,
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  and I will say it was also number one on the New York Times
• 9:07
  best books of the 21st
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  SPEAKER_02: century.
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  I don't recall the whole criteria of how they chose those,
• 9:13
  but it was number one.
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  SPEAKER_02: So this is a story for the literary fiction lovers.
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  SPEAKER_02: And I'm calling this one a good recommendation for Rory and Lane.
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  SPEAKER_02: You'll see some threads of Rory and Lane's friendship.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_02: So it's set in 1950s Naples, Italy.
• 9:27
  SPEAKER_02: And this is a very post-World War II.
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  SPEAKER_02: There's poverty, there's violence.
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  SPEAKER_02: And these two young girls,
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  SPEAKER_02: Elena and Lila,
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  SPEAKER_02: meet and they connect over a book,
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  SPEAKER_02: Little Women,
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  SPEAKER_02: a book that many young women love.
• 9:41
  SPEAKER_02: And it's clear that they're both very smart,
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  SPEAKER_02: but their life takes a different trajectory from there.
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  So Elena follows a very traditional educational path while Lila
• 9:50
  has to go and work
• 9:51
  SPEAKER_02: with her family's business.
• 9:53
  SPEAKER_02: And it's a lot about what opportunities are available to women and how...
• 9:58
  This educational decision changes their lives,
• 10:02
  but it's not necessarily what you think.
• 10:03
  It's not preachy because it really does go back and forth and
• 10:07
  highs and lows in
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_02: both of their lives and a lot of like cat and mouse push and pull.
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_02: And it really surprises you and grabs your emotions.
• 10:15
  SPEAKER_02: I don't want to say they're frenemies.
• 10:16
  They're frenemies in a different way because they're always in
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  each other's shadow
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  and it's always bouncing back and forth between who is the
• 10:23
  brilliant friend.
• 10:24
  SPEAKER_02: So very literary, people like Rory would love to read it.
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  People say that once you start reading her work,
• 10:32
  you never want to read anything ever again.
• 10:34
  SPEAKER_02: And that's the way I felt.
• 10:36
  So I did this book to go to Italy and then I started doing
• 10:39
  other books to go to Italy.
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_02: And while we were there, we were taking notes.
• 10:42
  And I had all these book reviews on my phone and all these
• 10:45
  where to go in Italy and
• 10:46
  SPEAKER_02: what we loved and what we didn't love.
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_02: And I was like,
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_02: I feel like I should put them together and make a blog out of this,
• 10:51
  SPEAKER_02: almost like literary travel.
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_02: So that was how the impetus for my blog started.
• 10:55
  And then I will also note that when the adaptation for this
• 10:58
  show came out on HBO,
• 11:00
  one of the characters goes on her honeymoon to the exact same
• 11:03
  hotel we went to.
• 11:05
  SPEAKER_00: Oh my gosh, I love this story.
• 11:06
  SPEAKER_00: And I love like how this book actually led you to start a new career.
• 11:10
  SPEAKER_02: Crazy, right?
• 11:12
  SPEAKER_02: It became my favorite book of all time.
• 11:13
  SPEAKER_00: I love it.
• 11:14
  I love the fact it's like we pick books to travel and we get to
• 11:18
  know the culture,
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_00: we get to know the places,
• 11:20
  and we get to see the flavor of what it was like to do that
• 11:23
  before traveling.
• 11:24
  SPEAKER_00: I love planning traveling.
• 11:25
  I love thinking about traveling and then being in the place and
• 11:28
  enjoying fully.
• 11:30
  SPEAKER_00: And I think books like this capture that essence.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_02: And I do still feel Gilmore Girls is so much lighter than this book.
• 11:36
  SPEAKER_02: But when you really think about it,
• 11:39
  SPEAKER_02: Rory had that traditional educational path,
• 11:41
  SPEAKER_02: but she still struggled to define herself.
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_02: And that's how Elena was in this book.
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_02: And then Lane got pregnant young and stopped her education early.
• 11:49
  SPEAKER_02: And we see how that affected her life and limited her choices.
• 11:53
  SPEAKER_02: And that's exactly what happens with Leela.
• 11:55
  And there's not really a right or wrong,
• 11:57
  but it's very much about where women are.
• 11:59
  SPEAKER_02: And it's still true today because we see it in Gilmore Girls.
• 12:02
  SPEAKER_00: Yes.
• 12:03
  SPEAKER_00: I love this.
• 12:03
  SPEAKER_00: I know this is a bonus recommendation,
• 12:05
  but something similar and of a different island has a similar
• 12:08
  relationship with
• 12:10
  SPEAKER_00: both friends,
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_00: has education.
• 12:11
  She is moving back to Mackinac Island and her best friend who's
• 12:15
  staying on the
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_00: island ended up getting pregnant.
• 12:17
  SPEAKER_00: And it's an interesting, similar path.
• 12:19
  SPEAKER_00: And that's a new book that comes
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_00: Is that a retelling of Anne of Green Gables?
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's not quite Anne of Green Gables because it's not Canadian.
• 12:27
  But Anne Gallagher loves Anne Shirley so much that she tells
• 12:33
  everyone she wants to
• 12:34
  SPEAKER_00: live like Anne Shirley,
• 12:35
  SPEAKER_00: but she realizes maybe life is not like your favorite book.
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_02: Gotcha.
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_02: This sounds really good.
• 12:40
  I've seen you recommend it a few times and I think I am
• 12:43
  officially putting it on my list now.
• 12:44
  SPEAKER_02: Please do.
• 12:45
  SPEAKER_02: And it's not spicy.
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_02: And I think my readers will like that too.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_00: So my recommendations are books that came out in 2026.
• 12:52
  SPEAKER_00: My first recommendation is a book, Too Blessed Stressed by Ali Kosick.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_00: This is an interesting relationship because we got four friends and
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_00: or frenemies.
• 13:02
  They're four Christian influencers who have come together to
• 13:05
  build a collaboration,
• 13:06
  and they just want to share their moral values or what they're
• 13:09
  learning from the
• 13:10
  SPEAKER_00: church.
• 13:11
  SPEAKER_00: And at the same time,
• 13:12
  SPEAKER_00: they're trying to help the church in their part,
• 13:14
  SPEAKER_00: which is non-determinational.
• 13:16
  help with the human trafficking gala and they're realizing that
• 13:22
  not all it's what
• 13:23
  it seemed to be each one and have their own struggles and it
• 13:27
  just brings us a
• 13:28
  relationship with the girls who want to be part of them because
• 13:31
  they're like well
• 13:32
  known as influencers and how they actually go through life in
• 13:37
  this space where
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_00: we're thinking online relationships
• 13:41
  SPEAKER_00: What's Happening Real Life.
• 13:43
  SPEAKER_00: You read this book too.
• 13:44
  SPEAKER_02: I did.
• 13:44
  SPEAKER_02: I read it on my summer vacation.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_02: Allie is local to me here in Philly.
• 13:49
  SPEAKER_02: And this is as we talk about female friendships.
• 13:51
  SPEAKER_02: She's another person who early in my days blogging,
• 13:54
  SPEAKER_02: she did a podcast called SSR Podcast,
• 13:57
  SPEAKER_02: which was about rereading books.
• 13:58
  children's books from our childhood in a new light i reached
• 14:01
  out to her like you
• 14:02
  and i reached out to each other and said if you want to do a
• 14:04
  podcast episode
• 14:05
  together we did encyclopedia brown which is on gilmore girls
• 14:08
  she's since become a
• 14:09
  local friend and i've seen her at local events and stuff and
• 14:11
  i'm going to interview
• 14:12
  her next month as well so i did also read the book and i do
• 14:15
  find i'm always trying
• 14:17
  to find those gilmore girls threads and this one brings me back
• 14:19
  to lane as well
• 14:20
  because there's religious threads and coming of age in a
• 14:23
  religious community
• 14:25
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it's coming away to religious community.
• 14:27
  SPEAKER_00: And yet in this 2020s world where we're all want to be influencers,
• 14:32
  where we all want to have fame or be well known for something
• 14:38
  and their intentions
• 14:39
  SPEAKER_00: are good.
• 14:40
  SPEAKER_00: Other factors are in the world.
• 14:42
  so it's a pretty timely book it's a good book for book club for
• 14:46
  conversations i
• 14:47
  think this is a good juicy conversation book that you can have
• 14:51
  discussions around
• 14:52
  different areas from from influencing and what we're getting
• 14:56
  from the media to
• 14:57
  SPEAKER_00: christian values or what is happening in the world today
• 15:01
  SPEAKER_02: And it's thoughtful without being too heavy.
• 15:04
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 15:04
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 15:04
  SPEAKER_02: It's not preachy.
• 15:06
  SPEAKER_02: It's too blessed, too stressed.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_02: I also think, before we move on to the next one, I find it interesting.
• 15:11
  SPEAKER_02: So Allie's in Philly.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 15:13
  SPEAKER_02: Joe Piazza is in Philly.
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 15:15
  SPEAKER_02: Olivia Montour lived in Philly.
• 15:17
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 15:17
  SPEAKER_02: And they all wrote culty books.
• 15:20
  SPEAKER_02: They did.
• 15:21
  So we have Olivia Montour has the food cult book that just came
• 15:25
  out,
• 15:25
  little one.
• 15:25
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_02: We have Allie's book.
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_02: And then Joe's was Everyone is Lying to You, which was Trad Wives.
• 15:30
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 15:31
  I love Joe's take on Treadwise,
• 15:33
  which is actually a really good convenience for this book.
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_00: It is.
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_00: The established mommy blogger who has established the brand.
• 15:40
  SPEAKER_00: These are up and coming influencers.
• 15:42
  SPEAKER_00: These are the young, the next generation.
• 15:44
  SPEAKER_00: So do you look at these girls as frenemies?
• 15:47
  SPEAKER_00: I think it's both.
• 15:48
  SPEAKER_00: I think they're friends, but they really are frenemies.
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_00: I think it's like an interesting,
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_00: if you think about like early your 20s,
• 15:54
  SPEAKER_00: there's a lot of frenemy undertones,
• 15:57
  SPEAKER_00: you see a lot of toxicity.
• 15:58
  If you look at shows like Girls,
• 16:00
  it's hard to see how they really are friends.
• 16:03
  But then as you grow older,
• 16:04
  you start realizing,
• 16:05
  okay,
• 16:06
  what are boundaries?
• 16:06
  SPEAKER_00: What are values?
• 16:07
  SPEAKER_00: And I think it's normal to have friendship breakups.
• 16:10
  I think this is just as valuable and it can be just as
• 16:13
  devastating as a romantic breakup.
• 16:16
  And I think you can feel a lot more competitive when you're in
• 16:18
  your 20s than 30s and 40s.
• 16:20
  SPEAKER_00: Because you need to accomplish something.
• 16:23
  SPEAKER_00: I think in your 20s,
• 16:24
  SPEAKER_00: you're expected to have it all together,
• 16:26
  SPEAKER_00: to be married or have a career or be on top of the career.
• 16:31
  SPEAKER_00: And the reality is your 20s is just...
• 16:34
  SPEAKER_00: doing the grunt work and you have no idea what is it going to be.
• 16:38
  SPEAKER_00: Like I'm in my 40s now and I have three or four careers at least.
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_02: Everything is so much more condensed when you're young too.
• 16:45
  SPEAKER_02: You're all experiencing the same thing.
• 16:47
  Whereas the longer life goes on,
• 16:49
  the more different highs and lows we all experience.
• 16:53
  Like I've had friends who've experienced divorce and different
• 16:55
  kinds of parent
• 16:56
  SPEAKER_02: loss,
• 16:57
  SPEAKER_02: which I haven't experienced.
• 16:58
  SPEAKER_02: We all go through different things at different times.
• 17:01
  Whereas when you're younger,
• 17:02
  it all feels like you're all living the same life almost.
• 17:05
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 17:06
  It's normal to see a lot of my friends in their 20s who had
• 17:10
  their big wedding
• 17:11
  SPEAKER_00: parties,
• 17:11
  SPEAKER_00: bachelor parties,
• 17:12
  SPEAKER_00: and they don't talk to each other 10 years later.
• 17:15
  I have expectations on money,
• 17:16
  expectations of doing all just different things for other
• 17:19
  people.
• 17:19
  SPEAKER_00: And there's a little bit more selfishness.
• 17:22
  SPEAKER_00: When you're in your 20s, you're just like, it's me against the world.
• 17:25
  SPEAKER_00: Right.
• 17:26
  SPEAKER_00: As we said, you want to be abundant.
• 17:28
  SPEAKER_00: You don't want to be competing with other people.
• 17:30
  SPEAKER_00: You want to just lift.
• 17:32
  So I think it's probably a good time to transition to my next
• 17:35
  book because it's
• 17:36
  very much about two women who are in the same field at the same
• 17:41
  time with the same
• 17:42
  SPEAKER_02: ambitions.
• 17:43
  SPEAKER_02: It's Truth and Beauty by Ann Patchett and it is a memoir.
• 17:46
  SPEAKER_02: And it's about her friendship with a woman whose name is Lucy Greeley.
• 17:51
  And they were both in the Iowa Writers Workshop together,
• 17:53
  which is a really famous.
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_02: I think Ellen Hildebrand went to that and a bunch of other authors.
• 17:58
  SPEAKER_02: Kylie Reid, I think, went there.
• 17:59
  SPEAKER_02: Claire Lombardo.
• 18:00
  SPEAKER_02: So that was interesting to me because I went to law school.
• 18:03
  So I totally get what it's like to be in an environment where
• 18:07
  literally everyone,
• 18:08
  SPEAKER_02: including your best friends,
• 18:09
  SPEAKER_02: are all applying to the same jobs.
• 18:11
  SPEAKER_02: And I think that's helped me later in my life.
• 18:14
  take a collaborative approach versus a competitive approach
• 18:17
  because I had to learn
• 18:18
  SPEAKER_02: at a young age that,
• 18:20
  SPEAKER_02: yeah,
• 18:20
  SPEAKER_02: I want her to get a job.
• 18:21
  And maybe I didn't get that job,
• 18:22
  but maybe there is another job for me that is better for me.
• 18:25
  SPEAKER_02: You just learn to live with it.
• 18:26
  SPEAKER_02: So anyway,
• 18:27
  SPEAKER_02: what's interesting about this friendship is that,
• 18:30
  SPEAKER_02: first of all,
• 18:30
  SPEAKER_02: Ann Patchett is my favorite author.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_02: And I think she makes...
• 18:34
  SPEAKER_02: The very ordinary things in life feel extraordinary.
• 18:37
  SPEAKER_02: I think that's the beauty of her writing.
• 18:39
  SPEAKER_02: And this is a very special friendship.
• 18:41
  SPEAKER_02: So Lucy had childhood cancer and it left her disfigured.
• 18:45
  SPEAKER_02: And she goes through a lot of facial surgeries throughout her life.
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_02: And this is about what it means to be a friend during the hard times,
• 18:55
  SPEAKER_02: because Lucy is a difficult friend.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_02: She battles addiction.
• 18:59
  She battles all of these issues with her identity and how she
• 19:02
  looks and seeking
• 19:03
  SPEAKER_02: love and validation and going from man to man.
• 19:07
  SPEAKER_02: And you see what it means to unconditionally love a friend.
• 19:11
  SPEAKER_02: And that's really the beauty in it.
• 19:13
  SPEAKER_02: I don't want anyone to think it's like speaking negatively about Lucy.
• 19:16
  SPEAKER_02: It's shown with so much love, but it's a different play on friendship.
• 19:21
  SPEAKER_02: And I listened to it on audio while I was moving.
• 19:24
  SPEAKER_02: And I still have such a visceral experience of listening to this story.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_02: And oh my gosh, I cannot believe what is happening.
• 19:30
  SPEAKER_02: So much happened.
• 19:31
  SPEAKER_02: And you felt so many feelings that were going on in their friendship.
• 19:35
  And the other cool thing about it is that Lucy wrote a book,
• 19:40
  Autobiography of a Face.
• 19:41
  SPEAKER_02: So you can read them as companions as well.
• 19:43
  SPEAKER_02: So you get both sides of the story.
• 19:46
  SPEAKER_02: Oh my gosh, it's a memoir.
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_02: They're both memoirs.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_02: I thought it was fiction.
• 19:51
  SPEAKER_02: Padgett writes, I'd say like maybe 30 to 40% of her stuff is nonfiction.
• 19:56
  SPEAKER_02: And usually it's essays.
• 19:57
  SPEAKER_02: This is more of a nonfiction narrative memoir.
• 20:00
  SPEAKER_02: And you just feel so many things.
• 20:01
  SPEAKER_02: My Brilliant Friend is like that too.
• 20:03
  It really brings out the emotions of what these deep female
• 20:06
  friendships are like.
• 20:07
  SPEAKER_02: And not just the good times, but the hard times.
• 20:10
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 20:10
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, I now need to pick this one up.
• 20:12
  And now I know that there's the other side because a lot of
• 20:15
  times there's two sides
• 20:16
  SPEAKER_02: or three sides of the story.
• 20:17
  SPEAKER_02: And you can find empathy on both sides.
• 20:20
  SPEAKER_02: I do recommend it on audio.
• 20:21
  SPEAKER_02: I'm telling you, I could not turn it off.
• 20:24
  SPEAKER_00: So the next one I'm going to talk about is It's a Mystery.
• 20:26
  SPEAKER_00: That's my new bread and butter.
• 20:27
  SPEAKER_00: This is what I love.
• 20:29
  SPEAKER_00: So it's Rachel West and the Fallen Starlet.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm going to start the stage.
• 20:33
  SPEAKER_00: So it is set in 2008 in L.A.
• 20:36
  SPEAKER_00: when TMZ was just a hot spot where the paparazzis were.
• 20:41
  SPEAKER_00: We were watching The Hills.
• 20:42
  SPEAKER_00: What was the Jessica Simpson show?
• 20:44
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, nearly what?
• 20:45
  SPEAKER_00: Was it?
• 20:46
  newlyweds newlyweds yes so basically rachel dropped out of
• 20:51
  medical school she's
• 20:52
  copy editor at a tabloid in la because her brother died of
• 20:57
  childhood cancer and
• 20:58
  while he was in the hospital she found comfort reading tabloid
• 21:01
  magazines like us
• 21:02
  weekly and on the bathroom she meets molly who is a former
• 21:06
  disney star who is like
• 21:08
  up-and-coming actor slash lindsay lohan a little bit she is all
• 21:13
  over the place
• 21:14
  Rachel and Molly struck a friendship and people think it's a
• 21:17
  friendship of
• 21:18
  convenience because Molly used to give her all the extra stuff
• 21:21
  like all the clothes
• 21:22
  SPEAKER_00: and got her the breakout story for Rachel to get promoted.
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_00: But a couple months later, Molly had an overdose and is found dead.
• 21:31
  And Rachel has to figure out what happened to Molly and Rachel
• 21:34
  quits her job to
• 21:35
  SPEAKER_00: become an amateur sleuth.
• 21:37
  SPEAKER_00: Molly leaves her money and a house.
• 21:40
  And so along with her neighbors,
• 21:44
  amazing girl people in LA,
• 21:46
  we have TV writers who write CSI.
• 21:49
  SPEAKER_00: We have a hacker who knows how to find the information.
• 21:53
  SPEAKER_00: We try to uncover what happened to Molly.
• 21:55
  SPEAKER_00: And it's a juicy, fun mystery.
• 21:57
  SPEAKER_00: But it's so rich in the 2008 LA tabloid TMZ.
• 22:03
  SPEAKER_00: We see all the famous starlets and Britney Spears and everything.
• 22:07
  SPEAKER_02: This setting sounds like the star of the show to me.
• 22:10
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 22:10
  SPEAKER_02: Because that was a time.
• 22:12
  SPEAKER_00: It was a time.
• 22:13
  SPEAKER_00: I had so much fun.
• 22:16
  SPEAKER_00: So Emma Mills writes YA.
• 22:18
  SPEAKER_00: Actually, she's a well-known YA author.
• 22:20
  SPEAKER_00: She says, I wasn't planning to set up in 2008.
• 22:22
  SPEAKER_00: I just started writing this book in 2008.
• 22:25
  SPEAKER_00: And so it's been on the drawer for that long.
• 22:27
  And so now actually having this book that feels like a
• 22:30
  millennial love story.
• 22:32
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_00: And this is adult though, right?
• 22:35
  SPEAKER_00: It is coming out in May.
• 22:36
  So you should definitely pre-order it if you're looking for a
• 22:40
  good cozy mystery.
• 22:41
  SPEAKER_02: So this is making me think of Maureen Gu,
• 22:44
  SPEAKER_02: who you had recommended her new adult book,
• 22:47
  SPEAKER_02: One and Only.
• 22:48
  SPEAKER_02: And she was also a YA author.
• 22:50
  SPEAKER_02: And her last book was Throwback.
• 22:52
  SPEAKER_02: And I think that was a 90s book.
• 22:55
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so a lot of these authors, I think they know each other.
• 22:58
  SPEAKER_00: So a lot of the white authors of the 2010s have moved on to adult books,
• 23:03
  SPEAKER_00: whether it's mysteries or rom coms.
• 23:05
  But I'm really enjoying these white authors for just basically
• 23:09
  writing in this new space.
• 23:11
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, me too.
• 23:12
  SPEAKER_02: It's honestly been the highlight of my year.
• 23:14
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 23:14
  SPEAKER_02: I'm like, thank you, Galentine, because you recommended it to me.
• 23:18
  SPEAKER_00: So that's Rachel West and the following story by Emma Mills.
• 23:23
  SPEAKER_00: It comes out in May, but definitely pre-order it.
• 23:25
  SPEAKER_00: I'm assuming the audio is going to be excellent.
• 23:27
  SPEAKER_00: So either way, however you consume it, just pre-order it.
• 23:31
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I totally think it sounds so millennial coded.
• 23:33
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 23:35
  so i'll move on to my third recommendation i debated this one
• 23:40
  my other two books
• 23:41
  are heavy so i wanted something that feels like a friendship
• 23:44
  that's a balm for the
• 23:45
  soul and this one is lorelei and sookie coated because it's
• 23:49
  very much about food
• 23:50
  it's love and saffron by kim faye i've heard so many people
• 23:54
  talk about this book on
• 23:55
  SPEAKER_02: social media and then i went to my local used bookstore
• 23:59
  So it is,
• 24:00
  for anyone who's listening and not watching,
• 24:02
  it's a signed book.
• 24:03
  SPEAKER_02: And I looked up her signature and it matched.
• 24:06
  SPEAKER_02: So I'm assuming it really was signed by her,
• 24:08
  which is really cool to just pick up off a used bookstore shelf
• 24:11
  and not know.
• 24:12
  SPEAKER_02: But you can also see how nice and short this book is.
• 24:15
  SPEAKER_02: And it's epistolary.
• 24:16
  SPEAKER_02: So it's one that you can really flip through on an afternoon.
• 24:20
  SPEAKER_02: And this is another 1960s.
• 24:22
  SPEAKER_02: So you get a lot of threads of women's rights.
• 24:25
  SPEAKER_02: through the stories of these women.
• 24:27
  And one is an aspiring writer in Los Angeles and the other is a
• 24:32
  food columnist in Seattle.
• 24:35
  And the one who's aspiring writer writes a letter to the famous
• 24:39
  food columnist and
• 24:40
  SPEAKER_02: it starts a dialogue back and forth.
• 24:42
  SPEAKER_02: And I think what's interesting is a few things.
• 24:45
  One is that you don't have to be in person with a friend to be
• 24:49
  a friend because
• 24:50
  SPEAKER_02: their friendship develops.
• 24:51
  SPEAKER_02: over many years.
• 24:52
  And I think we're going into a time where people are looking at
• 24:55
  more analog living
• 24:57
  SPEAKER_02: and things like pen pals are becoming more popular to do.
• 25:00
  SPEAKER_02: And I think it shows that you don't have to be in person.
• 25:03
  SPEAKER_02: And one of the things I wrote on my notes too,
• 25:05
  SPEAKER_02: is I used to be on the phone with my girlfriends all the time.
• 25:08
  SPEAKER_02: And
• 25:09
  It's like you have to make those efforts now to do things like
• 25:11
  write a little note
• 25:12
  SPEAKER_02: or send a little Galentine's Day card or St.
• 25:15
  SPEAKER_02: Patrick's Day card.
• 25:16
  SPEAKER_02: All those little things that we did naturally in the past,
• 25:19
  now we make an effort and it really does make a difference
• 25:22
  because they experience
• 25:24
  SPEAKER_02: so much with each other and it all comes back to food at the same time.
• 25:27
  SPEAKER_02: So you have that sort of food porn as well that feels very sooky and very
• 25:31
  SPEAKER_02: comforting and the food gets them through.
• 25:34
  SPEAKER_02: the difficult things in life.
• 25:36
  SPEAKER_02: It's both heartwarming and a little bit heartbreaking.
• 25:38
  I think it'd be fun to do with a friend and then do a cooking
• 25:41
  class together.
• 25:42
  SPEAKER_00: Oh my gosh, that would be like a perfect book club, book discussion.
• 25:46
  SPEAKER_00: It absolutely would.
• 25:47
  SPEAKER_00: I love the idea of reminding when we used to talk on the phone.
• 25:51
  SPEAKER_00: When I was in high school, I would be talking with my friends.
• 25:53
  I'll see them in school and then I'll be like,
• 25:55
  well,
• 25:55
  we're going to talk for an hour.
• 25:57
  SPEAKER_02: So when I was a teenager,
• 25:59
  SPEAKER_02: I wasn't allowed to have my own line,
• 26:01
  but my mom actually bought me a headset because I spent so many
• 26:05
  hours walking
• 26:06
  SPEAKER_02: around with a phone glued to my ear.
• 26:08
  SPEAKER_02: Yes,
• 26:08
  having your own line was ultimate because otherwise you needed
• 26:11
  to talk to your
• 26:12
  SPEAKER_00: parents.
• 26:12
  SPEAKER_00: 100%.
• 26:14
  SPEAKER_02: Oh my gosh.
• 26:14
  Kids today do not understand what it was like to ask someone to
• 26:20
  prom by first
• 26:21
  SPEAKER_02: talking to their mom or dad.
• 26:22
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 26:25
  SPEAKER_00: So it was such thing as a landline, like a house phone.
• 26:28
  But I love this idea of bringing back the analog living of pen
• 26:32
  pals or even just
• 26:33
  SPEAKER_00: having communication.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_00: I used to,
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_00: in the arts,
• 26:35
  SPEAKER_00: I used to send emails to my friends,
• 26:37
  SPEAKER_00: actually,
• 26:37
  SPEAKER_00: because I was at work and I had nowhere to go and I had access to Gmail.
• 26:41
  and i didn't i was in the office so i would just send emails or
• 26:44
  we'll talk and
• 26:44
  gchat we do have text messages but it's not the same when
• 26:48
  you're having a gchat
• 26:49
  conversation to a friend so what's your third book my third
• 26:54
  book is the ultimate
• 26:55
  girl group the golden girl so we got i love it golden girls
• 26:59
  cozy mystery is a
• 27:00
  series that's happening there's two books there's gonna be a
• 27:03
  second book coming out
• 27:04
  SPEAKER_00: this year
• 27:05
  SPEAKER_00: But the first book is already out.
• 27:06
  SPEAKER_00: It's Murder by Cheesecake.
• 27:07
  SPEAKER_00: And it has all the elements of the Golden Girls living in Miami.
• 27:12
  SPEAKER_00: And they're trying to solve a murder.
• 27:14
  SPEAKER_00: So Rose Cousins is living in Miami.
• 27:17
  SPEAKER_00: And Rose wants to keep the tradition saying Olaf.
• 27:20
  SPEAKER_00: But the Cousins family doesn't want to have those traditions.
• 27:23
  SPEAKER_00: And so they are planning a wedding.
• 27:25
  SPEAKER_00: Dorothy goes and looks for a date.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_00: And she finds a guy that she finds tolerable.
• 27:30
  SPEAKER_00: And she invites him to come to the date.
• 27:32
  SPEAKER_00: And he is horrible.
• 27:34
  SPEAKER_00: And they find him in the freezer or dead.
• 27:36
  SPEAKER_00: And they have to uncover what happened to him.
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_00: It is hilarious.
• 27:41
  SPEAKER_00: It is fun.
• 27:41
  SPEAKER_00: It has the elements of the Golden Girls.
• 27:43
  SPEAKER_00: It's just a fun little environment.
• 27:45
  SPEAKER_00: The second book is coming out.
• 27:46
  SPEAKER_00: I haven't read it, but I'm very excited for it.
• 27:49
  SPEAKER_00: The audios are available on Audible exclusive, which sucks.
• 27:53
  SPEAKER_00: But if you want to avoid paying, try to get a free trial of Amazon Music.
• 27:57
  SPEAKER_00: Right.
• 27:57
  SPEAKER_00: You're able to listen to them.
• 27:59
  SPEAKER_02: So these are the four golden girls that are the characters.
• 28:02
  SPEAKER_02: So this is really cool.
• 28:03
  SPEAKER_02: I guess they got the rights to write about it.
• 28:05
  SPEAKER_02: It's Disney.
• 28:06
  SPEAKER_00: Disney owns it.
• 28:07
  SPEAKER_00: Gotcha.
• 28:08
  SPEAKER_00: A lot of Disney books are reimagining.
• 28:11
  SPEAKER_00: But we're getting Nancy, which is Nancy.
• 28:13
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I think this is really smart.
• 28:15
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 28:15
  SPEAKER_00: Nancy drew a mystery.
• 28:16
  SPEAKER_00: We just got the announcement yesterday.
• 28:18
  SPEAKER_00: Nancy and her former best friend are working towards consoling a crime.
• 28:22
  SPEAKER_02: So I'm loving all these histories.
• 28:24
  We also got news yesterday that American Girl is getting its
• 28:28
  first adult novel.
• 28:30
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, and it's Fiona Davis.
• 28:31
  SPEAKER_02: Fiona Davis is amazing.
• 28:33
  SPEAKER_02: So I love all this.
• 28:35
  SPEAKER_02: They're keeping us happy.
• 28:36
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, we're very much about the fandoms.
• 28:38
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 28:39
  SPEAKER_02: And so I love Golden Girls.
• 28:40
  SPEAKER_02: I watched Golden Girls with my grandmother when I was younger.
• 28:44
  SPEAKER_02: And my grandmother very much looked like Betty White.
• 28:47
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 28:48
  SPEAKER_02: So she always reminded me of Betty White.
• 28:49
  But what's interesting to me,
• 28:51
  so those women were,
• 28:52
  I believe,
• 28:52
  only in their 50s at the time.
• 28:53
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 28:54
  SPEAKER_02: And so I grew up in Scranton, like home of the office.
• 28:58
  My grandmother and all of her girlfriends all lost their
• 29:01
  spouses at young ages.
• 29:02
  Most of their spouses had worked in coal mines and either had
• 29:07
  something with their
• 29:07
  SPEAKER_02: lungs or some other sort of issue.
• 29:09
  SPEAKER_02: Men died a lot earlier.
• 29:11
  SPEAKER_02: So it really was,
• 29:12
  her life really was this community of women who had to find a
• 29:16
  way to get through
• 29:18
  SPEAKER_02: life and move forward with your girls.
• 29:20
  SPEAKER_02: And when you think about it, they're only in their fifties.
• 29:22
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 29:22
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 29:22
  SPEAKER_00: They're only in the 50s.
• 29:23
  SPEAKER_00: So you might as well just have roommates that you actually like.
• 29:26
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, very much was true for what I saw in my grandmother's life.
• 29:30
  SPEAKER_02: You're definitely in a cozy mystery era.
• 29:32
  SPEAKER_00: I am in all types of cozy mysteries.
• 29:34
  SPEAKER_00: Millennium mysteries, which are a little bit grown up.
• 29:37
  SPEAKER_00: Cozy are just a little bit of great, but I try to just keep them fun.
• 29:41
  SPEAKER_00: It doesn't give me nightmares.
• 29:43
  SPEAKER_00: It's great to fall asleep with.
• 29:45
  SPEAKER_02: I wonder if we'll see some Gilmore Girls novels.
• 29:47
  SPEAKER_00: I don't know who owns the licensing rights.
• 29:49
  SPEAKER_00: So it just depends on who gets the IP.
• 29:51
  SPEAKER_00: But we might get some reimagining.
• 29:52
  SPEAKER_00: I'd love to see Lane.
• 29:55
  SPEAKER_02: Yes.
• 29:55
  SPEAKER_02: People always say justice for Lane.
• 29:57
  SPEAKER_00: We need reimagining of these stories.
• 30:00
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I would love that.
• 30:01
  SPEAKER_02: And then it's fun because you can add in the music as well.
• 30:04
  SPEAKER_00: Yes.
• 30:05
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, a rock star.
• 30:07
  SPEAKER_02: We have six book recommendations.
• 30:08
  SPEAKER_02: Should we move on?
• 30:10
  SPEAKER_02: And before we end, we talked a lot about female friendships.
• 30:14
  SPEAKER_02: And maybe we can share a few things,
• 30:17
  SPEAKER_02: a few ideas to get your female friendships going on Galentine's Day.
• 30:21
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so I personally am an active person.
• 30:24
  SPEAKER_00: So I tend to take classes and I don't like to go drinking.
• 30:28
  SPEAKER_00: I tend to be like,
• 30:29
  SPEAKER_00: hey,
• 30:29
  SPEAKER_00: can we do a yoga class or fitness class or go for a walk and talk date
• 30:33
  SPEAKER_00: opportunities just to get active a little bit,
• 30:36
  SPEAKER_00: just sweat a little bit.
• 30:37
  SPEAKER_00: But at the same time, it's a good way of having conversation afterwards.
• 30:40
  SPEAKER_00: So that's my go to.
• 30:41
  SPEAKER_00: I've met friends in my yoga studio.
• 30:43
  SPEAKER_00: I've taken it to other classes, but I love walk and talk.
• 30:47
  SPEAKER_00: And I live in New York.
• 30:47
  SPEAKER_00: That was a big one.
• 30:48
  SPEAKER_00: We'll just pick a neighborhood.
• 30:50
  SPEAKER_00: We'll walk all over the neighborhood.
• 30:52
  I love that because I'm trying to get steps in and I realize
• 30:56
  how many steps I need,
• 30:57
  SPEAKER_02: which is really over an hour of walking a day,
• 30:59
  SPEAKER_02: which is hard to do with a full work day to get those 10,000.
• 31:03
  SPEAKER_02: So I love that because it's bang for your buck.
• 31:06
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, you can just find a little neighborhood and go for a walk.
• 31:09
  SPEAKER_00: And then you just have coffee or a drink, have a little bit of fun.
• 31:14
  SPEAKER_00: Other times it's just doing an activity.
• 31:15
  I think we're might do this activity of going to a class on how
• 31:18
  to make candles.
• 31:19
  So we have not met in real life yet,
• 31:21
  but I am coming to Tampa for spring training.
• 31:24
  I'm a huge sports fan and my husband is working in Tampa at the
• 31:28
  same time as spring training.
• 31:29
  So we're going to go a little early and go to spring training
• 31:32
  over the weekend.
• 31:33
  SPEAKER_02: So we're going to meet up hopefully and go to Oxford Exchange,
• 31:36
  SPEAKER_02: which is my absolute favorite bookstore.
• 31:38
  SPEAKER_02: And they do have candle making within the bookstore.
• 31:41
  SPEAKER_02: And I did it last year with a group of girls and we had a great time.
• 31:47
  SPEAKER_02: And not only did we have a great time, but
• 31:49
  SPEAKER_02: I got the reed diffuser.
• 31:51
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 31:52
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 31:53
  SPEAKER_02: And it's lasted this whole time.
• 31:54
  SPEAKER_02: So I'm looking up reed diffusers online and I'm like, you know what?
• 31:58
  SPEAKER_02: I should just go back there.
• 31:59
  SPEAKER_02: We had fun doing that.
• 32:00
  And then you can go and get a book and then they have coffee
• 32:04
  and tea there too.
• 32:05
  SPEAKER_02: You can do brunch, you can shop.
• 32:06
  SPEAKER_02: It is the best place.
• 32:08
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 32:08
  SPEAKER_02: The other thing I want to recommend.
• 32:11
  So I got permanent jewelry last week while we were away from my
• 32:14
  husband's work.
• 32:16
  SPEAKER_02: And I was against it.
• 32:18
  SPEAKER_02: I'm like, oh my gosh, I do not want to do this permanent jewelry.
• 32:21
  SPEAKER_02: And then once we went, it was actually fun.
• 32:22
  They set up a brunch and it was a mimosa bar and a Bloody Mary
• 32:25
  bar and a coffee bar and food.
• 32:28
  SPEAKER_02: Everyone's helped each other pick out which one looked best on them.
• 32:31
  SPEAKER_02: And everyone was just so low key.
• 32:33
  We travel a few times a year with my husband's work developing
• 32:36
  friendships.
• 32:37
  I've got numbers at that event that those are people I will
• 32:40
  talk to over the next
• 32:41
  SPEAKER_02: several years,
• 32:42
  SPEAKER_02: if not decades.
• 32:43
  SPEAKER_02: So it really did actually make that bonding experience.
• 32:46
  SPEAKER_00: Yes.
• 32:47
  I would encourage you if you're looking for new online
• 32:49
  communities and take them in
• 32:50
  SPEAKER_00: real life,
• 32:51
  SPEAKER_00: look for hobbies and see if there's meetups.
• 32:53
  SPEAKER_00: I know there's like dark journaling, calligraphy, book clubs.
• 32:57
  SPEAKER_00: There's all types of book clubs.
• 32:58
  SPEAKER_00: Libraries actually do offer some social aspects.
• 33:01
  SPEAKER_00: So that's a good place.
• 33:03
  SPEAKER_00: You don't have to spend money.
• 33:04
  SPEAKER_00: So look for local events in your place.
• 33:07
  SPEAKER_00: It's okay to go by yourself.
• 33:08
  SPEAKER_00: It's okay.
• 33:08
  SPEAKER_00: You don't need someone.
• 33:10
  SPEAKER_00: Same goes if you go to a concert by yourself.
• 33:12
  SPEAKER_00: It is okay.
• 33:13
  SPEAKER_00: I've met a lot of friends locally at author events.
• 33:17
  SPEAKER_00: Yes.
• 33:18
  SPEAKER_00: So go to an event,
• 33:19
  SPEAKER_00: talk to the person next to you,
• 33:21
  SPEAKER_00: maybe start a conversation with like,
• 33:22
  SPEAKER_00: hey,
• 33:23
  SPEAKER_00: did you like the book?
• 33:24
  SPEAKER_00: Or just be open to conversations and people will come and talk to you.
• 33:28
  Yeah,
• 33:28
  I really think it's just a matter of putting yourself out
• 33:31
  there,
• 33:31
  that extra little step.
• 33:32
  SPEAKER_00: Yes.
• 33:33
  SPEAKER_00: It just takes time, but just do it.
• 33:35
  SPEAKER_02: And nurturing it too.
• 33:36
  SPEAKER_00: Let's share where we can find each other online.
• 33:39
  SPEAKER_02: I am Friday Night Readers,
• 33:41
  SPEAKER_02: and I think the best place to find me,
• 33:43
  SPEAKER_02: what I look at as my hub,
• 33:44
  SPEAKER_02: is Substack.
• 33:45
  Speaking of communities and safe spaces and trying to make
• 33:49
  friends in a world that
• 33:50
  SPEAKER_02: we used to be able to...
• 33:52
  SPEAKER_02: Not doom scroll on social media.
• 33:54
  SPEAKER_02: Now it's a lot harder.
• 33:55
  So I'm trying to make a more exclusive,
• 33:57
  private,
• 33:58
  safe community on Substack.
• 33:59
  SPEAKER_02: So fridaynightreaders.substack.com is probably the best place.
• 34:04
  And again,
• 34:04
  we read the books from Gilmore Girls and live the Gilmore
• 34:06
  lifestyle.
• 34:07
  SPEAKER_02: Awesome.
• 34:07
  SPEAKER_00: I'm a What to Read Next podcast.
• 34:09
  SPEAKER_00: I'm a girl on all major podcast series.
• 34:11
  SPEAKER_00: If you want to get the links, you can go to whattournextblog.com.
• 34:15
  SPEAKER_00: I'm on Spotify, YouTube, Apple.
• 34:18
  And if you're looking for an author,
• 34:19
  chances are there's an author going to be there for you.
• 34:21
  SPEAKER_02: That's true.
• 34:22
  SPEAKER_02: You are the author interview expert.
• 34:24
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 34:25
  SPEAKER_00: So Jules, thank you for doing this.
• 34:28
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you, Laura.
• 34:28
  SPEAKER_02: Awesome.
• 34:29
  SPEAKER_02: All right.
• 34:30
  SPEAKER_02: Thank you for being a friend in the words of the Golden Girls.
• 34:35
  SPEAKER_01: Thanks so much for listening to Friday Night Readers.
• 34:38
  SPEAKER_01: I love having you here in our little corner of the Gilmore Girls world.
• 34:41
  SPEAKER_01: If you'd like even more feel-good fun,
• 34:44
  SPEAKER_01: then upgrade to a free or paid email subscription membership at
• 34:47
  SPEAKER_01: fridaynightreaders.substack.com.
• 34:50
  Paid members get exclusive extras like our Gilmore
• 34:53
  Girls-inspired reading tour and
• 34:55
  SPEAKER_01: our unofficial guide to the books on Gilmore Girls,
• 34:58
  SPEAKER_01: broken down by episode.
• 35:00
  You'll also unlock members-only posts like weekly gazettes and
• 35:03
  monthly bookmarks,
• 35:04
  SPEAKER_01: as well as full community access to our chats.
• 35:07
  SPEAKER_01: It's the coziest virtual place like Stars Hollow,
• 35:10
  SPEAKER_01: and your support helps keep this podcast going strong.
• 35:14
  Lastly,
• 35:14
  if you enjoyed today's episode,
• 35:16
  please take a minute to rate and review the show.
• 35:19
  It helps other Gilmore fans find us,
• 35:21
  which helps me provide you with more content like this.
• 35:25
  SPEAKER_01: Until next time, life's short, read fast.