Russell Reads with the Rach(a)els

Reading With Our Eyes Shut [Guest Star Adrian Nester]

Russell, Rachel, and Rachael chat with our guest Adrian Nester, English Department chair at Tunstall Highschool, and self-admitted library girlie. We discuss cutting edge reading technology such as audiobooks on cassette and magazines on sticks, our newest idea for a party bus for reading(™), and the importance of formats like audiobooks and graphic novels to make reading accessible and enjoyable for all. Books/Authors we discuss include: * “Nancy Drew Mystery Stories” series by Carolyn Keene (a pseudonym for various ghostwriters, notably Mildred Wirt) * “Sweet Valley Twins” series by Jamie Suzanne, created by Francine Pascal * “Horse” by Geraldine Brooks * “The Marriage Portrait” by Maggie O’Farrell * “The Grapes of Wrath” by John Steinbeck * “Their Eyes Are Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston * “Jane Eyre” by Charlotte Brontë * “Tess of the D’Urbervilles” by Thomas Hardy * “Tuck Everlasting” by Natalie Babbitt * “Goosebumps” series by R.L. Stine * “The Buffalo Hunter Hunter” by Stephen Graham Jones * “Helter Skelter: The True Story of the Manson Murders” by Vincent Bugliosi * “Heart of Darkness” by Joseph Conrad * “They Called Us Enemy” by George Takei, illustrated by Harmony Becker * “Vanity Fair” by William Makepeace Thackeray * “Patron Saints of Nothing” by Randy Ribay * “Knuffle Bunny” by Mo Willems

I MAY Have Read This Book [May Challenge 2026]

Russell, Rachael, and Rachel discuss the May Reading Challenge to read books that we MAY or MAY NOT have read in the past. This could include books you lied about for an assignment in school, books you’ve been too embarrassed to read, or books you just cannot remember if you have actually read. We chat about the delightful discoveries we made delving into books we may have missed in the past! Books/Authors we discuss include: * “The Call of the Wild” by Jack London * “War and Peace” by Leo Tolstoy * “This Is How You Lose the Time War” by Amal El-Mohtar, Max Gladstone * “Old Yeller” by Fred Gipson * “Where the Red Fern Grows” by Wilson Rawls * “Pippi Longstocking” by Astrid Lindgren * “Anne of Green Gables” by Lucy Maud Montgomery * “One Heart To Win” by Johanna Lindsey * “Charlotte’s Web” by E.B. White * “Cyrano de Bergerac” by Edmond Rostand * “The Courtship Plan” by Kathleen Fuller * “Walden or, Life in the Woods” by Henry David Thoreau * John Muir

Meatballs, Murder, and the Audiobook [Guest Star Bailey Cline]

Russell, Rachel, and Rachael chat with our guest Bailey Cline, Program Coordinator at Ballou Recreation Center and our certified number one fan. We discuss finding your way back to reading despite the responsibilities of adult life, the joy of audiobooks, and our strong opinions about movie adaptations. Books/Authors we discuss include: * “The Rainbow Fish” by Marcus Pfister * “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” by Judi Barrett, illustrated by Ron Barrett * “How To Be Okay When Nothing Is Okay” by Jenny Lawson * “I Know What You Did Last Summer” by Lois Duncan * “His & Hers” by Alice Feeney * Freida McFadden * “The Menagerie” Series by Tui T. Sutherland, Kari H. Sutherland * “Your Baby’s First Word Will Be DADA” by Jimmy Fallon * “The Night Before Christmas” allegedly by Clement Clarke Moore * “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” by Dr. Seuss * Carl Hiaasen * “The Green Ember” series by S.D. Smith, illustrated by Zach Franzen * “Hamlet” by friend of the pod, William Shakespeare

I Love Big Brother [April Challenge 2026]

Russell, Rachael, and Rachel discuss the April Reading Challenge to read a dystopian or alternate history novel. Oppressive governments, controlling factions, structured existence and more, we discuss the tropes and themes that define this often bleak, but always profound genre. **Correction: George Orwell died 6 months after the release of 1984, not before. Books/Authors we discuss include: * “Zoo” by James Patterson, Michael Ledwidge * “1984: The Graphic Novel” by George Orwell, adapted/illustrated by Fido Nesti * “The Handmaid’s Tale” by Margaret Atwood * “Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley * “The Giver” by Lois Lowry * “Legend” by Marie Lu * “Divergent” by Veronica Roth * “The Hunger Games” by Suzanne Collins * “Fourth Wing” by Rebecca Yarros * “Parable of the Sower” by Otavia E. Butler * “Red Rising” by Pierce Brown * “Ready Player One” by Ernest Cline * “The Last Christian” by David Gregory * “Automatic Noodle” by Annalee Newitz * “The Electric State” by Simon Stålenhag * “The Dream Hotel” by Laila Lalami * “Our Missing Hearts” by Celeste Ng * “The City of Ember” by Jeanne DuPrau * “The Long Walk” by Stephen King * “The Shadow Road” by K.D. and Kurt Kirchmeier

Panthers, Trees, and the City Manager [Guest Star Danville City Manager Ken Larking]

Russell, Rachel, and Rachael chat with our guest Ken Larking, Danville City Manager. In our first mini book club, we review “The Which Way Tree” by Elizabeth Crook and the deep themes it explores including love, kindness and absolution. We discuss the delight of quirky characters, the importance of finding the right book for you, and Russell’s quest for a fun book about owls. Books/Authors we discuss include: * “The Which Way Tree” by Elizabeth Crook * Michael Crichton * Tom Clancy * “Jack Reacher” series by Lee Child * Dick Francis * “Our Country Friends” by Gary Shteyngart * “The Catcher in the Rye” by J.D. Salinger * John Grisham * “Joe Pickett” series by C.J. Box * “Walt Longmire” series by Craig Johnson * “Crime and Punishment” by Fyodor Dostoevsky * “Tuck Everlasting” by Natalie Babbit * “Demon Copperhead” by Barbara Kingsolver * “Razorblade Tears” by S.A. Cosby * “The Monster at the End of this Book (Starring Lovable, Furry Old Grover)” by Jon Stone