Professional Book Nerds

On today's episode, Adam and Jill sit down with Matthew Desmond, who won the 2017 Pulitzer Prize for nonfiction for his book, Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City. Matthew shares the research and experiences that led to him writing this book and how he formed a close bond with the families he writes about. This book is incredibly important and has the ability to spark conversations about poverty in America.  Say Hello! Find OverDrive on Facebook at OverDriveforLibraries and Twitter at @ProBookNerds. Email us directly at professionalbooknerds@overdrive.com  Music Provided royalty free from www.bensound.com  Podcast Overview We're not just book nerds: we're professional book nerds and the staff librarians who work at OverDrive, the leading app for eBooks and audiobooks available through public libraries and schools. Hear about the best books we've read, get personalized recommendations, and learn about the hottest books coming out that we can't wait to dive into. For more great reads, find OverDr

On today's episode, Adam chats with Jason Reynolds about his powerful children's and YA books including Long Way Down, Ghost, and Patina. They discuss the stories from his life that inspire his books and why he gets angry when people say he's "Just a children's book author." Jason's books are beyond inspiring and his attitude towards young readers is so wonderful. You'll love this discussion and we cannot recommend his books highly enough! Say Hello! Find OverDrive on Facebook at OverDriveforLibraries and Twitter at @ProBookNerds. Email us directly at professionalbooknerds@overdrive.com  Music Provided royalty free from www.bensound.com  Podcast Overview We're not just book nerds: we're professional book nerds and the staff librarians who work at OverDrive, the leading app for eBooks and audiobooks available through public libraries and schools. Hear about the best books we've read, get personalized recommendations, and learn about the hottest books coming out that we can't wait to dive into. For more gre

On today's episode, Adam and Jill recap OverDrive's Halloween extravaganza before discussing the books they're reading currently. Then, the main event: Nancy Pearl live and in our offices! Nancy visited Cleveland for some library events and took time out of her busy schedule to talk books with us because she is simply the best. Take a listen!  Books mentioned in this episode The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell   Blood Rose Rebellion by Rosalyn Eves   George & Lizzie by Nancy Pearl   In The Woods by Tana French   Half Magic by Edward Eager   Seven-Day Magic by Edward Eager   Directorate S by Steve Coll   Live from Cairo by Ian Bassingthwaighte   Say Hello! Find OverDrive on Facebook at OverDriveforLibraries and Twitter at @ProBookNerds. Email us directly at professionalbooknerds@overdrive.com  Music Provided royalty free from www.bensound.com  Podcast Overview We're not just book nerds: we're professional book nerds and the staff librarians who work at OverDrive, the lead

On Today's episode, Jill and Adam talk about their Halloween plans and mutual love of classic candy before getting into a conversation Adam had with two-time New York Times bestselling author Kerri Maniscalco. Both of Kerri's YA thrillers, Stalking Jack the Ripper and her newest book Hunting Prince Dracula debuted on the NYT list and they are wonderful. Adam and Kerri discuss the haunted house she grew up in and how she deals with being terrified of supernatural beings through reading and writing about them. They also talk about the classic terrifying movies Fievel Goes West, Ferngully and the Labyrinth.   Say Hello! Find OverDrive on Facebook at OverDriveforLibraries and Twitter at @ProBookNerds. Email us directly at professionalbooknerds@overdrive.com  Music Provided royalty free from www.bensound.com  Podcast Overview We're not just book nerds: we're professional book nerds and the staff librarians who work at OverDrive, the leading app for eBooks and audiobooks available through public libraries and

It's that time again! Our heroes journey out to the land of pre-pub books and offer up the ones their most excited about coming out in November. Come along, won't you!  November Releases mentioned in this episode The Story of Arthur Truluv by Elizabeth Berg Breaking Free: How I escaped polygamy, the FLDS cult, and my father, Warren Jeffs by Rachel Jeffs Future Home of the Living God by Louise Erdrich The City of Brass by S.A. Chakraborty What Unites Us by Dan Rather Troublemakers: Silicon Valley's Coming of Age by Leslie Berlin Heather, the Totality by Matthew Weiner Artemis by Andy Weir Gold Dust Woman: The Biography of Stevie Nicks by Stephen Davis Renegades by Marissa Meyer The Magic Misfits by Neil Patrick Harris Queen Victoria's Matchmaking: The Royal Marriages that Shaped Europe by Deborah Cadbury Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant Dark Asylum by E.S. Thomson The End We Start From by Megan Hunter Bunk: The Rise of Hoaxes, Humbug, Plagiarists, Phonies, Post-Facts, and Fake News by K

On Today's episode, Adam sits down with Drew Magary, author of The Hike and contributor to GQ, Deadspin and several other sites Adam is obsessed with. They chat about the book (think modern day Iliad) as well as a myriad of topics ranging from covering sports, whether social media has been good or bad for how news is covered and whether he feels the need to have hot takes on everything that happens. They then get into the good stuff, the time Drew went on Chopped and won. Take a listen and then go read this book! Say Hello! Find OverDrive on Facebook at OverDriveforLibraries and Twitter at @ProBookNerds. Email us directly at professionalbooknerds@overdrive.com  Music Provided royalty free from www.bensound.com  Podcast Overview We're not just book nerds: we're professional book nerds and the staff librarians who work at OverDrive, the leading app for eBooks and audiobooks available through public libraries and schools. Hear about the best books we've read, get personalized recommendations, and learn about

Last week, Adam talked Young Adult Horror with Andrea and Christina. This week, Christina and Andrea are back with Jill, along with their coworker Shannon, to discuss Adult Horror!  Books Mentioned in this Episode: House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter series by Laurell K. Hamilton City Infernal by Edward Lee Horrorstor by Grady Hendrix My Best Friend's Exorcism by Grady Hendrix Night Film by Marisha Pessl Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Trembley Dead Spots by Rhiannon Frater Broken Monsters by Lauren Beukes Foxlowe by Eleanor Wasserberg American Psycho by Bret Easton Ellis Haunted by Chuck Palahniuk The Ruins by Scott Smith Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice Claudia's Story by Ashley Marie Witter Ramses The Damned by Anne Rice and Christopher Rice Sleeping Beauties by Owen King and Stephen King The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins The Yellow Wallpaper by C

Today's episode is an interview Adam did with young adult author Anna-Marie McLemore at Book Expo America. Anna-Marie writes fairy tale style magical realism and her latest book Wild Beauty is now available. They discuss the origin of her stories and what defines "magical realism" in her mind. Take a listen!  Say Hello! Find OverDrive on Facebook at OverDriveforLibraries and Twitter at @ProBookNerds. Email us directly at professionalbooknerds@overdrive.com Music "Buddy" provided royalty free from www.bensound.com Podcast Overview We're not just book nerds: we're professional book nerds and the staff librarians who work at OverDrive, the leading app for eBooks and audiobooks available through public libraries and schools. Hear about the best books we've read, get personalized recommendations, and learn about the hottest books coming out that we can't wait to dive into. For more great reads, find OverDrive on Facebook and Twitter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're getting spooky on today's episode as Adam first chats with Andrea and Christina in the office about their YA Horror recommendations before calling the queen of YA Horror, Dawn Kurtagich, to get her picks. Adam and Dawn also chat about Halloween traditions and what Dawn has been working on since we last spoke. Books Mentioned in this episode   Odd & True by Cat Winters The Merciless by Danielle Vega Daughters Unto Devils by Amy Lukavics The Ravenous by  Amy Lukavics The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson Brother by Ania Ahlborn Doll Bones by Holly Black The Uninvited by Cat Winters Juliet, Immortal by Stacey Jay Slasher Girls & Monster Boys Revenge of the Witch by Joseph Delaney A Madness So Discreet  by Mindy McGinnis The Dead Girls of Hysteria Hall by Katie Alender House of Ash by Hope Cook Stalking Jack the Ripper & Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco Cinderella, Necromancer by F.M Boughan The Hollow Girl by Hillary Monahan Devil in Ohio by Daria Polatin The Mons

On this special BONUS Big Library Read episode of the Professional Book Nerds podcast, Adam welcomes back author Chelsea Sedoti to the show. Chelsea shares the real life stories that built the story in The Hundred Lies of Lizzie Lovett, how falling down a rabbit hole on the internet can be both a blessing and a curse and why she feels readers of all ages love going back to the Young Adult genre. You can learn all about the Big Library Read program, the world's largest digital book club, by visiting http://biglibraryread.com/.    Say Hello! Find OverDrive on Facebook at OverDriveforLibraries and Twitter at @ProBookNerds. Email us directly at professionalbooknerds@overdrive.com Music "Buddy" provided royalty free from www.bensound.com Podcast Overview We're not just book nerds: we're professional book nerds and the staff librarians who work at OverDrive, the leading app for eBooks and audiobooks available through public libraries and schools. Hear about the best books we've read, get personalized recomm

On today's episode, Jill got to interview one of her most favorite writers ever: Tana French, author of the award winning Dublin Murder Squad series. Tana shares where her ideas come from, how she approaches each book and detective and they even talk about just what exactly happened in "In the Woods." If you're a mystery fan and haven't yet picked up any of Tana's books, do it today! Tana's Books In the Woods The Likeness Faithful Place Broken Harbor The Secret Place The Trespasser    Say Hello! Find OverDrive on Facebook at OverDriveforLibraries and Twitter at @ProBookNerds. Email us directly at professionalbooknerds@overdrive.com Music "Buddy" provided royalty free from www.bensound.com Podcast Overview We're not just book nerds: we're professional book nerds and the staff librarians who work at OverDrive, the leading app for eBooks and audiobooks available through public libraries and schools. Hear about the best books we've read, get personalized recommendations, and learn about the hottest

Rarely do single books come out that the we feel the need to do an entire episode on by themselves but the Harry Potter universe is an exception they'll always make. On today's show, we're celebrating the release of the illustrated version of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban!  These books have played a massive part in both Jill and Adam's lives and this title is the first of the series that truly goes dark. We discuss themes of the book, what it means to us and some of our favorite scenes. Note: The illustrated versions of the Harry Potter titles are not available on OverDrive but you can check out the very cool and brand new Hogwarts Library Collection on OverDrive thanks to our friends at Pottermore. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today's episode, we harken back to to June when Jill and Adam sat down with debut author Linsey Miller at the American Library Association's annual meetings. Linsey's book Mask of Shadows is now available and *spoiler alert* IT.FRICKIN.ROCKS.  Our trio talks all about Linsey's book, her background going from Biology student to writer and then wax poetic about their first library cards.  Say Hello! Find OverDrive on Facebook at OverDriveforLibraries and Twitter at @ProBookNerds. Email us directly at professionalbooknerds@overdrive.com  Music "Buddy" provided royalty free from www.bensound.com  Podcast Overview We're not just book nerds: we're professional book nerds and the staff librarians who work at OverDrive, the leading app for eBooks and audiobooks available through public libraries and schools. Hear about the best books we've read, get personalized recommendations, and learn about the hottest books coming out that we can't wait to dive into. For more great reads, find OverDrive on Facebook and Tw

Best day of the month! On today's episode the Nerds dive into the the new books coming out in October that they're most excited about. Spoiler Alert: There are SO. MANY. Laughs are had. Books are shared. Adam is awkward. The usual. Check out all the links below to get more information on every book discussed in this episode! Books Mentioned in this episode: Uncommon Type by Tom Hanks Mistress of All Evil: A Tale of the Dark Fairy by Serena Valentino Origin by Dan Brown The Book of Dust, Volume 1 by Philip Pullman Homicide for the Holidays by Cheryl Honigford It Devours! By Joseph Fink and Jeffrey Cranor Hiddensee by Gregory Maguire Dunbar by Edward St. Aubyn Where the Past Begins: A Writer's Memoir by Amy Tan Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds Strange Weather by Joe Hill What the Hell Did I Just Read by David Wong Periods Gone Public by Jennifer Weiss-Wolf From a Certain Point of View Otherworld by Jason Segel & Kirsten Miller Turtles All the Way Down by John Green Fresh Complaint by Jeffr

On today's episode, Adam sits down with author Annalee Newitz to discuss her debut novel, Autonomous. Annalee is a giant in the science and tech industry as one of the founding editors of i09.com and Gizmodo and the Tech Culture Editor at Ars Technica. Annalee shares what she's most excited about in the tech industry and the two of them geek out over The Dark Crystal prequel that's coming soon. Fans of Science Fiction will adore this book.  Say Hello! Find OverDrive on Facebook at OverDriveforLibraries and Twitter at @ProBookNerds. Email us directly at professionalbooknerds@overdrive.com Music "Buddy" provided royalty free from www.bensound.com Podcast Overview We're not just book nerds: we're professional book nerds and the staff librarians who work at OverDrive, the leading app for eBooks and audiobooks available through public libraries and schools. Hear about the best books we've read, get personalized recommendations, and learn about the hottest books coming out that we can't wait to dive into. For m

On today's episode, Jill and Adam talk about Banned Books Week, the National Books Awards and their newfound love of the the Wizarding World of Harry Potter Lootcrate. Below, you'll find all the books we discussed as well as the full Banned Books and National Book Award longlist collections from OverDrive.com:   OverDrive's Banned Books Week collection   The full National Book Awards longlist collection   2016's most challenged books Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell Make Something up by Chuck Palahniuk Big Hard Sex Criminals by Matt Fraction & Chip Zdarsky Looking for Alaska by John Green Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan I Am Jazz by Jessica Herthel & Jazz Jennings George by Alex Gino Drama by Raina Telgemeier This One Summer by Jillian Tamaki   Banned books that Adam and Jill will be reading during Banned Books Week I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman

On today's episode, Adam sits down with Ben Blum who wrote the recently released Ranger Games. Ben's book is a nonfiction recounting of his cousin's life as he prepared to become an Army Ranger since he was a child only to be arrested the week before his deployment for robbing a bank. Ben goes into the indoctrination of Rangers as well as what led to Alex's crime and the aftermath. This book is incredibly important and is getting LOTS of buzz and it's entirely deserved.    Today (Sept 18) is also Read an eBook Day so share why you love eBooks on social media using the hashtag #eBookLove for a chance to win a Kobo Aura ONE from OverDrive! Learn more at http://readanebookday.com/. Say Hello! Find OverDrive on Facebook at OverDriveforLibraries and Twitter at @ProBookNerds. Email us directly at professionalbooknerds@overdrive.com Music "Buddy" provided royalty free from www.bensound.com Podcast Overview We're not just book nerds: we're professional book nerds and the staff librarians who work at OverDrive, t

Last weekend, Jill and Adam both watched the new adaptation of Stephen King's IT and loved it so much they decided to talk about it -- both the film, the book it is based on, and a little bit about the original TV miniseries.  SPOILER ALERT for anyone who hasn't read the book or seen the movie yet! Say Hello! Find OverDrive on Facebook at OverDriveforLibraries and Twitter at @ProBookNerds. Email us directly at professionalbooknerds@overdrive.com Music "Creepy" provided royalty free from www.bensound.com Podcast Overview We're not just book nerds: we're professional book nerds and the staff librarians who work at OverDrive, the leading app for eBooks and audiobooks available through public libraries and schools. Hear about the best books we've read, get personalized recommendations, and learn about the hottest books coming out that we can't wait to dive into. For more great reads, find OverDrive on Facebook and Twitter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today's episode, Jill is joined by Melissa, Megan, and Briana to talk about a genre they all love: memoirs! From celebrity memoirs like Eddie Izzard's "Believe Me" to a behind-the-scenes peek at the romance publishing business with "Romance Is My Day Job" by Patience Bloom to the difficult but necessary books of kidnapping survivors like Elizabeth Smart and Jaycee Dugard, this episode has a little bit of everything for readers.    Books Mentioned In Today's Episode From cradle to stage by Virginia Hanlon Grohl I Can't Make This Up by Kevin hart The Awkward Thoughts of W. Kamau Bell by W. Kamau Bell Theft by Finding by David Sedaris Holidays on Ice by David Sedaris Yes, Please by Amy Poehler Believe Me by Eddie Izzard Vacationland by John Hodgman Redefining Realness by Janet Mock Surpassing Certainty by Janet Mock Spoiler Alert by Michael Ausiello Wishful Drinking by Carrie Fisher The Princess Diarist by Carrie Fisher The Keys by DJ Kahlad Born a Crime by Trevor Noah Hillbilly Elegy by JD

On today's episode, Adam sits down with author Adrian J. Walker and they instantly bond over their shared love of running, dogs and the dystopian genre that Adrian writes in. They discuss his books, The End of the World Running Club and The Last Dog on Earth as well as dealing with the tragic loss of heroes we may have never even met.  Say Hello! Find OverDrive on Facebook at OverDriveforLibraries and Twitter at @ProBookNerds. Email us directly at professionalbooknerds@overdrive.com Music "Buddy" provided royalty free from www.bensound.com Podcast Overview We're not just book nerds: we're professional book nerds and the staff librarians who work at OverDrive, the leading app for eBooks and audiobooks available through public libraries and schools. Hear about the best books we've read, get personalized recommendations, and learn about the hottest books coming out that we can't wait to dive into. For more great reads, find OverDrive on Facebook and Twitter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.f