Episode 43: A Hopeful Android Story: The Best Sci-Fi and Fantasy Novels with Guest Host Amanda Espinoza
The Currently Reading Podcast
Meredith Schwartz
4.6 • 1.8K Ratings
🗓️ 17 June 2019
⏱️ 49 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Meredith and Kaytee had to call in the big guns this week, so they invited Amanda Espinosa to join them for this special episode of Currently Reading!
Continuing Important announcement: we have a great discount code to share with you from The Bookshelf Thomasville! Now through June 30th, you can get anything on their website for 10% off using the code CURRENTLYREADING (wow!!!) This would be a great time to pick up a Shelf Subscription for yourself or others!
You'll hear a "bookish moment of the week" from each host: a perfectly bookish gift for a Labyrinth fan, a fun reading tracking idea, and a local bookstore visit.
Next, we discuss our current reads for the week. We are each sharing two recent reads, and there are some really big opinions in this episode, so get ready!
For our deep dive this week, Amanda has done some amazing prep work to fill up your Currently Reading Challenge worksheet in the Science Fiction and Fantasy slot. She's created a number of book flights for each genre, and, in an unusual twist, there are even MORE titles in show notes than there are in the episode!
As always, we finish up with A Book (yep, capitalized) that we'd like to press into every reader's hands. A magical realist novel, a humorous collection of stories centered on childhood, and a fantasy novel that will totally transport you and you might wish was real (with a TRIPLE COSIGN!)
As per usual, time-stamped show notes are below with references to every book and resource we mentioned in this episode. If you'd like to listen first and not spoil the surprise, don't scroll down!
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2:24 - Jim Henson's Labyrinth: The Novelization by A.C.H. Smith
2:38 - Jim Henson's Labyrinth: Coronation Vol. 1 by Simon Spurrier
3:24 - What Should I Read Next episode 187: Traveling the World Without Leaving Your Hometown
5:12 - Collected Works Bookstore in Santa Fe, NM
6:51 - The Gown by Jennifer Robson
8:09 - Episode 32 with Mindy Brouse
9:11 - The Murmur of Bees by Sophia Segovia
11:00 - Books by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
12:51 - Hey, Kiddo by Jarrett Krosoczka
14:30 - El Deafo by Cece Bell
15:44 - The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker
17:36 - Do Not Become Alarmed by Maile Meloy
18:28 - Fierce Kingdom by Gin Phillips
19:05- Sarah's Bookshelves Live
20:58 - The Girl in Red by Christina Henry
24:41 - Currently Reading 2019 Reading Challenge!
24:55 - Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
24:56 - 11/22/63 by Stephen King
24:58 - The Lunar Chronicles Series by Marissa Meyer
24:59 - Court of Thorns and Roses Series by Sarah J. Maas
25:00 - A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer
25:02 - A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab
27:11 - Flight 1: Sci-Fi in Space
27:17 - (1) The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury
28:11 - (2) Redshirts by Jon Scalzi
28:52 - (3) Leviathan Wakes by James SA Corey
30:04 - (4) Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
30:12 - (5) The Martian by Andy Weir
30:47 - Flight 2: Sci-Fi on Earth
30:56 - (1) Fall; or, Dodge in Hell by Neal Stephenson
31:32 - Reamde by Neal Stephenson
31:47 - (2) Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Nueval
32:23 - (3) Alex + Ada by Jonathan Luna and Sarah Vaughn
33:19 - (4) Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Phillip K. Dick
33:32 - (5) 11/22/63 by Stephen King
33:55 - Flight 3: YA Sci-Fi
34:00 - (1) Red Rising by Pierce Brown
34:37 - (2) The Illuminae Files by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
35:46 - (3) The Thousandth Floor by Katharine McGee
(4) Skyward by Brandon Sanderson
(5) An Absolutely Remarkable Thing by Hank Green
36:07 - Flight 4: Fantasy
36:11 - (1) Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik
36:16 - Uprooted by Naomi Novik
36:49 - (2) The Princess Bride by William Golding
(3) A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab
(4) The Lunar Chronicles Series by Marissa Meyer
(5) The Magicians by Lev Grossman
Flight 5: Epic Fantasy
37:09 - (1) The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson
38:16 - (2) Game of Thrones by George R.R. Martin
38:42 - Alcatraz Vs. The Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson
(3) The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
40:40 - Caraval by Stephanie Garber
41:28 - (4) His Majesty's Dragon by Noami Novik
(5) Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson
Flight 6: YA Fantasy
(1) Caraval by Stephanie Garber
(2) Nimona by Noelle Stevenson
(3) My Lady Jane by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows
(4) Wings of Fire by Tui T. Sutherland
(5) The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen
42:23 - Sourdough by Robin Sloan
42:25 - Calypso by David Sedaris
43:34 - Naked by David Sedaris
43:35 - Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris
43:49 - Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris
44:51 - The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
45:38- The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
45:43 - Scythe by Neal Schusterman
Find Amanda:
Twitter: @AmandaEspi and @LoungeCuriosity
Instagram: @LoungeCuriosity
Website: https://curiositylounge.com/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/AmandaEspi
*Please note that all book titles linked above are Amazon affiliate links. Your cost is the same, but a small portion of your purchase will come back to us to help offset the costs of the show. Thanks for your support!*
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hey readers, welcome to the currently reading podcast. We are two bookish best friends |
| 0:15.3 | who spend time every week talking about the books that we've read recently and we are known. |
| 0:20.2 | You know we have strong opinions, so get ready. |
| 0:23.6 | I'm Meredith Monday Schwartz, a mom of four, and full-time CEO living in the San Francisco Bay Area, |
| 0:29.1 | and I find that sometimes taking a break is the best thing I can do for my reading life. |
| 0:34.0 | And I'm Katie Kom, a homeschooling mama four aged date and under, living in New Mexico, |
| 0:38.0 | and I read to challenge myself to see the world in a brand new way. |
| 0:42.0 | Today, we're joined by Amanda Espinosa. |
| 0:44.8 | Amanda is a homeschooling mom of three |
| 0:46.7 | living in Texas. |
| 0:47.7 | I promise I don't only know homeschoolers guys. |
| 0:50.3 | She blogs at curiosity lounge.com and we've called her in today to be an expert guest. |
| 0:55.7 | This is episode number 43 and we're so glad you're here. |
| 0:59.1 | Amanda, welcome to currently reading. |
| 1:01.3 | Thank you so much for having me. Yeah, we're excited to have you. Heather Collar gave me your name and told me that you would be a great guest to talk about sci-fi and fantasy. So we are excited to get into that with you for our currently reading challenge for 2019. |
| 1:15.0 | Yes. I am so excited about this. I cannot wait to hear Amanda's picks. |
| 1:20.0 | Me too. |
| 1:21.0 | Yeah, you guys don't know what they are yet. So right. This will be a surprise for everybody. Right. Yes. We love to keep it a surprise for sure. All right, but before we get started with our sci-fi fantasy deep dive with Amanda, which is coming up, |
| 1:36.0 | Meredith of course loves to remind us about our bookshelf Thomasville currently reading code that gets you 10% off, and I actually just got to open my first treat your shelf subscription box which was so so fun |
| 1:49.2 | It was great birthday present from Meredith. Yeah, it was so great. I cannot recommend it enough. So |
| 1:55.3 | excited to read the book they sent and you know enjoy the goodies that they sent along. |
| 2:00.0 | So again, currently reading all one word all caps at bookshelf Thomasville.com. |
... |
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