Ep 520: Why are so many promising-sounding titles not working for me?

What Should I Read Next?

Anne Bogel

Arts, Books, Leisure

4.8 • 5.3K Ratings

🗓️ 7 April 2026

⏱️ 54 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Today's guest would love to add more four and five-star picks to her reading list and she's curious about techniques that might help get her there. Kelly Krause is a first grade teacher who lives in Northwest Arkansas with her family. When Kelly discovers a winning author, it feels like a slam dunk to read the rest of their work. But when it comes to branching out in new directions, Kelly is not as confident. She's wondering whether devoting more time to reflecting on her reads by analyzing what's worked well or practicing the art of writing book reviews will help her pick more winning titles. Anne can't wait to explore this with Kelly today, along with sharing titles and authors Kelly may enjoy. Find the list of titles mentioned today on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/520. Our 15th Summer Reading Guide is coming your way next month! Creating this guide each year is truly a labor of love. Our Modern Mrs Darcy Book Club and What Should I Read Next? Patreon community members are automatically invited, and we'll also be offering our popular a la carte ticket. To make sure you get the 15th anniversary edition in your inbox and to find out how to join us for our live unboxing event, visit modernmrsdarcy.com/srg. Chapters 02:25 Meet Kelly 04:47 Kelly’s reading dilemma 07:09 The Book of Hope: A Survival Guide for Trying Times by Jane Goodall and Douglas Abrams 08:44 The Kitchen Front by Jennifer Ryan 10:04 The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo 12:27 The Ministry of Time by Kaliane Bradley 28:06 The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali 35:35 Kate & Frida by Kim Fay 38:58 Grief Cottage by Gail Godwin 50:29 What will Kelly read next? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	One that a lot of people have been talking about.
0:03.0	Ooh, yeah.
0:03.7	Okay, I'll tell you, I don't know.
0:05.2	Okay.
0:05.6	I want you to read like three big wins, and then I want to talk to you about it.
0:10.0	Okay.
0:10.8	But it's not like a heck yes or definitely not.
0:13.6	Okay.
0:14.2	It's like a ooh, like, oh, let's get a little more info first.
0:21.7	Hey, readers, I'm Ann Bogle, and this is What Should I Read Next?
0:27.2	Welcome to the show that's dedicated to answering the question that plagues every reader.
0:32.1	What should I read next?
0:34.1	We don't get bossy on the show.
0:36.1	What we will do here is give you the information you need to choose your next read.
0:40.7	Every week we'll talk all things books and reading and do a little literary matchmaking with one guest.
0:53.2	Readers, this year marks a whole bunch of milestones here at What Should I Read Next HQ.
0:58.0	And one of those is our 15th summer reading guide, coming your way next month.
1:02.5	Creating this guide each year is truly a labor of love.
1:05.9	Our Modern Mrs. Darcy Book Club and What Should I Read Next, Patreon, community members, are
1:10.0	automatically invited, and will have a popular a la carte option as well. To make sure you get the 15th anniversary
1:16.4	edition in your inbox and to find out how to join us for our live unboxing events, visit
1:21.1	modern mrs.darsi.com slash SRG for summer reading guide to get all the details.
	...

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