What do you call fiction where women are feral, unraveling, or just delightfully off? We're calling it Weird Girl Fiction! In this episode, local independent bookseller Julia joins us to build the ultimate TBR of bizarre, unhinged, atmospheric novels.

Weird Girl Books Mentioned:
Big Swiss by Jen Beagin
Headlights by CJ Leede
Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder
Blob by Maggie Su
Sky Daddy by Kate Folk
Standard Deviation by Katherine Heiny
Hooked by Asako Yuzuki
My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh
Beautyland by Marie-Helene Bertino
Exit Zero: Stories by Marie-Helene Bertino
Nevada by Imogen Binnie

Other Books Mentioned:
Seek Immediate Shelter by Vincent Yu
Kairos by Jenny Erpenbeck|
Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield
Bone Horn by Prudence Bussey-Chamberlain
Chouette by Claire Oshetsky

Non Book Things
Below Deck Mediterranean: Season 11
Summer Softball
House of the Dragon: Season 3

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As a Bookshop.org affiliate, we earn a small commission from qualifying purchases made through the links, which directly supports local, independent bookstores!

We’d love to hear from you—your feedback, questions, and book suggestions help shape the show. Drop us a line anytime at idreadthat.podcast@gmail.com
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Yadriel just wants his family's magic to recognize him as the brujo he is — instead, he summons the wrong ghost. This week: the world-building of Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas — traditions, family, and magic tied to gender (brujos summon, brujas heal) — plus the relationship at its heart: Yadriel and Julian.

Yadriel solo quiere que la magia de su familia lo reconozca como el brujo que es — en cambio, invoca al fantasma equivocado. Esta semana: la construcción del mundo de Cemetery Boys, de Aiden Thomas — tradiciones, familia, y magia ligada al género (los brujos invocan, las brujas sanan) — y la relación que lo conquista todo: Yadriel y Julian.

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

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Thanks so much for listening to I’d Read That!

As a Bookshop.org affiliate, we earn a small commission from qualifying purchases made through the links, which directly supports local, independent bookstores!

We’d love to hear from you—your feedback, questions, and book suggestions help shape the show. Drop us a line anytime at idreadthat.podcast@gmail.com
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And of course, if you enjoyed the episode, tell a friend or leave us a review—it really helps us grow this book-loving community.

What makes a villain truly unforgettable? In this episode, we explore the psychology of storytelling by mapping out the most compelling villain archetypes and character tropes in literature using the Enneagram personality framework. We break down the core fears and motivations of the nine different Enneagram types, matching them up against our favorite fictional antagonists, literary antiheroes, and specific character archetypes.

Enneagram 1: Nurse Ratched (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest)
Enneagram 2: Doug (Annie Bot)
Enneagram 3: Patrick Bateman (American Psycho)
Enneagram 4: Joe Goldberg (You) E
Enneagram 5: Victor Frankenstein (Frankenstein)
Enneagram 6: Peter Darling (The Hounding)
Enneagram 7: George Wickham (Pride & Prejudice)
Enneagram 8: Cersei Lannister (A Song of Ice and Fire)
Enneagram 9: Marcos (Tender is the Flesh)

Other Mentions
Headlights by CJ Leede
Dune Messiah by Frank Herbert

Non-Book Things:
Ninja NeverClog Juicer
World Cup '26

Send us Fan Mail

Thanks so much for listening to I’d Read That!

As a Bookshop.org affiliate, we earn a small commission from qualifying purchases made through the links, which directly supports local, independent bookstores!

We’d love to hear from you—your feedback, questions, and book suggestions help shape the show. Drop us a line anytime at idreadthat.podcast@gmail.com
.

Want a little more between episodes? Subscribe to our Substack for bonus thoughts, updates, and companion pieces at idreadthat.substack.com.

And of course, if you enjoyed the episode, tell a friend or leave us a review—it really helps us grow this book-loving community.

We are broadcasting live from the NWA Book Fest Kids event in Springdale, Arkansas! In this quick bonus episode, we interview a lineup of brilliant local children's authors about their new books, their writing journeys, and what inspires them to create engaging stories for young readers. If you want to support independent creators and discover amazing new kid-lit from the Northwest Arkansas literary community, this episode is for you.

Featured Books & Authors:

Junko's Climb by Elyssa Gavin

Xavier's Voice by Ashley Franklin

Presha's Mountain by R. A. Thapa

I See Colors by Zuri Louis

Benny In The Garden by Matt & Melissa Cooper

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Thanks so much for listening to I’d Read That!

As a Bookshop.org affiliate, we earn a small commission from qualifying purchases made through the links, which directly supports local, independent bookstores!

We’d love to hear from you—your feedback, questions, and book suggestions help shape the show. Drop us a line anytime at idreadthat.podcast@gmail.com
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Want a little more between episodes? Subscribe to our Substack for bonus thoughts, updates, and companion pieces at idreadthat.substack.com.

And of course, if you enjoyed the episode, tell a friend or leave us a review—it really helps us grow this book-loving community.

Welcome to our special Children's Literature Episode! Today we dive deep into the world of picture books, storytelling for kids, and graphic novels. We are joined by two incredible special guests: award-winning author and illustrator Zeke Peña, and Ryan from Fayetteville's own independent children's bookstore, Dad Suggests. What we thought would be a simple conversation about kid-lit turned out to be something far richer, with unexpected turns and genuine things to say about the human experience. Don't let the genre fool you—great children's stories have incredible depth.

Special Guests:

Zeke Peña

Ryan from Dad Suggests

Non-Book Things

The Boroughs

AMC+ Subscriber & Obsession

Chess.com

Tiny Bookshop

Books Mentioned

You Are Fatally Invited by Ande Pliego

Dungeon Crawler Carl by Matt Dinniman

Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson

Scarlett Morning by ND Stevenson

Recommended Children's Books

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Thanks so much for listening to I’d Read That!

As a Bookshop.org affiliate, we earn a small commission from qualifying purchases made through the links, which directly supports local, independent bookstores!

We’d love to hear from you—your feedback, questions, and book suggestions help shape the show. Drop us a line anytime at idreadthat.podcast@gmail.com
.

Want a little more between episodes? Subscribe to our Substack for bonus thoughts, updates, and companion pieces at idreadthat.substack.com.

And of course, if you enjoyed the episode, tell a friend or leave us a review—it really helps us grow this book-loving community.

Hey, hey! In this episode, we’re celebrating AAPI Heritage Month with a few incredible books from Asian American authors. We’re talking fantasy, thrillers, literary fiction, and horror. What can I say, we have genre types.

Non-Book Things

More time to enjoy - Liz

Lawn is looking better - Jerry

Book Things:

Dear Debbie by Frieda McFadden

Come Closer by Sara Gran

Books Mentioned:

Jade City Trilogy by Fonda Lee

The Return of Ellie Black by Emiko Jean

Audition by Kaite Kitamura

Japanese Gothic by Kylie Lee Baker

Send us Fan Mail

Thanks so much for listening to I’d Read That!

As a Bookshop.org affiliate, we earn a small commission from qualifying purchases made through the links, which directly supports local, independent bookstores!

We’d love to hear from you—your feedback, questions, and book suggestions help shape the show. Drop us a line anytime at idreadthat.podcast@gmail.com
.

Want a little more between episodes? Subscribe to our Substack for bonus thoughts, updates, and companion pieces at idreadthat.substack.com.

And of course, if you enjoyed the episode, tell a friend or leave us a review—it really helps us grow this book-loving community.

Happy Mother's Day to all you special moms out there!

Non-Book Things:

Noah Kahan

Hacks - Season 5

Books Mentioned:

Open Throat by Henry Hoke

My Husband's Wife by Alice Feeney

Mother's Day Books

Send us Fan Mail

Thanks so much for listening to I’d Read That!

As a Bookshop.org affiliate, we earn a small commission from qualifying purchases made through the links, which directly supports local, independent bookstores!

We’d love to hear from you—your feedback, questions, and book suggestions help shape the show. Drop us a line anytime at idreadthat.podcast@gmail.com
.

Want a little more between episodes? Subscribe to our Substack for bonus thoughts, updates, and companion pieces at idreadthat.substack.com.

And of course, if you enjoyed the episode, tell a friend or leave us a review—it really helps us grow this book-loving community.

This episode celebrates the "auto-buy" authors; the writers whose names alone are enough to make us hit the pre-order button. Whether it’s sweeping historical drama, sharp-witted romance, or haunting atmosphere, these four authors have our full attention!

Non-Book Thing

Paradise

Home Labbing

Books Mentioned

Buttermilk Graffiti by Edward Lee

The God of the Woods by Liz Moore

Authors We Love!!

Taylor Jenkins Reid

Ali Hazlewood

Charlotte McConaghy

Isabel Cañas

Send us Fan Mail

Thanks so much for listening to I’d Read That!

As a Bookshop.org affiliate, we earn a small commission from qualifying purchases made through the links, which directly supports local, independent bookstores!

We’d love to hear from you—your feedback, questions, and book suggestions help shape the show. Drop us a line anytime at idreadthat.podcast@gmail.com
.

Want a little more between episodes? Subscribe to our Substack for bonus thoughts, updates, and companion pieces at idreadthat.substack.com.

And of course, if you enjoyed the episode, tell a friend or leave us a review—it really helps us grow this book-loving community.