Forever Shelfmates

S1E12 - 12 - Fatty Fatty Boom Boom by Rabia Chaudry

SHOW NOTES BY CHERYL Episode 12: Nonfiction Fatty Fatty Boom Boom by Rabia Chaudry We’re in favor of supporting independent bookstores! If you don’t know your local indie, check out this link [https://bookshop.org/books/fatty-fatty-boom-boom-a-memoir-of-food-fat-and-family/9781643750385] if you want to get your own copy of Fatty Fatty Boom Boom from a website that supports all indies. Alternatively, here is a link [https://www.workman.com/products/fatty-fatty-boom-boom/hardback] directly to the publisher’s website with other options to purchase your own copy.  A few things: Rabia Chaudry has done a bunch of really cool things: she’s part of the Undisclosed podcast [https://www.undisclosed-podcast.com/] that discusses wrongful convictions, she wrote a book [https://rabiachaudry.com/adnans-story/] about Adnan Syed - a family friend that was (wrongfully) convicted of murder, and she was part of an HBO docuseries [https://www.hbo.com/the-case-against-adnan-syed] about the Adnan Syed case (which is what spurred her weight loss journey at the end of Fatty Fatty Boom Boom.) In this book, they refer to her podcast as the Serial podcast. Here’s [https://serialpodcast.org/] a link to that podcast. Don’t ask us why it’s not on her website. Adnan Syed has even been in the news [https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2022/10/13/adnan-syed-serial-q-and-a/] recently when the charges against him were dropped. The history of American food/cuisine [https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/what-is-american-food-history/index.html] is very interesting.  Colorism is real and it is rampant around the world, not just in Pakistan. Here’s [https://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2020/07/09/860912124/black-lives-matter-gets-indians-talking-about-skin-lightening-and-colorism] an article about the history of colorism in South Asia (specifically India) and the history of the use of skin lightening cream. Super Size Me [https://youtu.be/zKQGAv8gtBA] is a 2004 documentary film about a man who eats McDonalds for three meals a day for a whole month to determine if fast food causes real harm to people’s health. The American chicken industry has an interesting history [https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/aug/17/from-farm-to-factory-the-unstoppable-rise-of-american-chicken] as well. Don’t read this unless you’re sure you want to know. Just in case you read the previous article and now feel compelled to change your eating habits, here’s [https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/becoming-a-vegetarian] some introductory information about vegetarianism. Cheryl was totally wrong about when Coca Cola contained cocaine [https://www.justthinktwice.gov/article/did-coca-cola-ever-contain-cocaine]. It was not the 1980s but the 1880s, when it was first invented and cocaine was legal. Abusers can put on a different face [https://www.loveisrespect.org/resources/too-good-to-be-true/] before they start the abuse. If you or someone you know needs help getting out of a domestic abuse situation, there is help. Click here [https://www.thehotline.org/get-help/] for the National Domestic Abuse Hotline. What a book to finish out the season. From the bottom of our hearts, Mirele, Aaron and I (Cheryl) are so grateful that you’ve been on this journey with us, whether this is your first episode, twelfth episode, or any number in between.  Thank you for your incredible support during our first season! Can’t wait to be back in your ear holes with some new books (and possibly some new voices) in Season 2! This podcast is powered by Pinecast [https://pinecast.com].

S1E11 - Episode 11 - Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer

SHOW NOTES BY CHERYL Episode 11: Nonfiction Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer We’re in favor of supporting independent bookstores! If you don’t know your local indie, check out this link [https://bookshop.org/books/into-thin-air-a-personal-account-of-the-mount-everest-disaster/9780385494786] if you want to get your own copy of Into Thin Air from a website that supports all indies. Alternatively, here is a link [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/95441/into-thin-air-by-jon-krakauer-new-afterword-by-the-author/] directly to the publisher’s website with other options to purchase your own copy.  A few things: While the internet did exist back in 1996, there isn’t a link to the original article by Jon Krakauer on the Outside Magazine website. This link [https://web.archive.org/web/20101127043907/http://outsideonline.com/outside/destinations/199609/199609_into_thin_air_1.html?page=1] will take you to the internet archived version of the article. We each went down a “rabbit hole” while reading this book. Here are the things we researched: Mirele: I need to know what frostbite looks like! I looked here [https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/frostbite/symptoms-causes/syc-20372656]. (Cheryl’s side note: if you want more gruesome images, Mirele suggests googling “frostbite pictures.” I, personally, could not look.) Cheryl: I need the GoPro experience of climbing Everest! So I watched Expedition Everest [https://www.disneyplus.com/movies/expedition-everest/4XFY7zRsoAxo] and Lost on Everest [https://www.disneyplus.com/movies/lost-on-everest/6ccrgpcKp2Fd]. Aaron: I need to see and learn everything I can! I looked here [https://www.mountainguides.com/everest-south.shtml], here [https://adventure.howstuffworks.com/outdoor-activities/climbing/mount-everest4.htm#:~:text=Camp%20IV%2C%20also%20known%20as,spend%20in%20the%20Death%20Zone], and here [https://mount-everest3d.com/3d-map/].  There’s a movie called Everest [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2719848/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0] and a movie based on this book, conveniently called, Into Thin Air [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118949/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_1]. What happened to the Hillary Step? Here’s [https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/climbing/american-climbers-confirm-hillary-step-gone/] the article about it. Join us next time when we discuss Mirele’s Nonfiction selection: Fatty Fatty Boom Boom [https://bookshop.org/books/fatty-fatty-boom-boom-a-memoir-of-food-fat-and-family/9781643750385] by Rabia Chaudry This podcast is powered by Pinecast [https://pinecast.com].

S1E10 - Episode 10 - Efrén Divided by Ernesto Cisneros

SHOW NOTES BY CHERYL Episode 10: Realistic Fiction Efrén Divided by Ernesto Cisneros We’re in favor of supporting independent bookstores! If you don’t know your local indie, check out this link [https://bookshop.org/books/efren-divided/9780062881694] if you want to get your own copy of Efrén Divided from a website that supports all indies. Alternatively, here is a link [https://www.harpercollins.com/products/efren-divided-ernesto-cisneros?variant=39741640081442] directly to the publisher’s website with other options to purchase your own copy.  A few things: Are you interested in other books that have won the Pura Belpre Award? Check out this link [https://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/belpre] for more information about the award and a link to a list of all the winners. I.C.E. is the acronym for the U.S. Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement [https://www.ice.gov/].  Cheryl got DREAMers wrong in the episode. Efrén and his siblings are U.S. citizens. DREAMers are undocumented children brought to the United States by their undocumented parents but have lived most of their lives in the United States, don’t know or have little connection with their “home” countries, but are vulnerable to deportation. Click here [https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/research/dream-act-overview] for more information. Antisemitic tropes are pervasive in popular culture. Hopefully, unintentionally. We didn’t always notice AS tropes, starting with the most popular children’s book of all time, Harry Potter. Here’s [https://www.heyalma.com/are-the-goblins-in-j-k-rowlings-harry-potter-anti-semitic/] an article about the AS tropes (and other problematic elements) in HP and here’s [https://www.nbcnews.com/think/opinion/j-k-rowling-s-harry-potter-goblins-echo-jewish-caricatures-ncna1287043] another interesting take on AS tropes in popular culture. Want to learn more about Ernestos Cisneros? Click here [https://www.ernestocisneros.com/] for his website. The place where people can meet across the border is Friendship Park [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friendship_Park_(San_Diego%E2%80%93Tijuana)#U.S._side] in San Diego, along the U.S.-Mexican border. Click here [http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=664] for more information about the border monument. Join us next time when we discuss Cheryl’s Nonfiction selection: Into Thin Air [https://bookshop.org/books/into-thin-air-a-personal-account-of-the-mount-everest-disaster/9780385494786] by Jon Krakauer This podcast is powered by Pinecast [https://pinecast.com].

S1E9 - 9 - The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman

SHOW NOTES BY CHERYL Episode 9: Realistic Fiction The Bookish Life of Nina Hill by Abbi Waxman We’re in favor of supporting independent bookstores! If you don’t know your local indie, check out this link [https://bookshop.org/books/the-bookish-life-of-nina-hill/9780451491879] if you want to get your own copy of The Bookish Life of Nina Hill from a website that supports all indies. Alternatively, here is a link [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/572648/the-bookish-life-of-nina-hill-by-abbi-waxman/] directly to the publisher’s website with other options to purchase your own copy.  A few things: Are you an introvert? Click here [https://www.verywellmind.com/signs-you-are-an-introvert-2795427] for a description of introversion. Not sure what an anxiety disorder looks like? Click here [https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/anxiety-disorders] for some general information about anxiety. The car in question is a 1982 Pontiac Trans Am [https://www.hotcars.com/1982-pontiac-trans-am-facts/], which was the car used in the 1980s TV show, Knight Rider [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0083437/]. Apparently, the one in the show could talk. Mirele and Cheryl still maintain that cars have wheels and go. Want to learn more about pub trivia? Click here [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pub_quiz] for some good background info. Is CBD good for your skin [https://www.webmd.com/beauty/cbd-for-skin] - enough that CBD cosmetics would be a thing? Indeed. Lili’s book is called, The Garden of Small Beginnings [https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33877155-the-garden-of-small-beginnings?ref=nav_sb_ss_4_11]. The book that prominently features Polly is Adult Assembly Required [https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58813189-adult-assembly-required].  Click here [https://youtu.be/dQw4w9WgXcQ] for an informative video. You’re welcome. Larchmont Village, Los Angeles is a real place! Can’t travel to see it? You can take a virtual walking tour by clicking here [https://www.discoverlosangeles.com/things-to-do/a-walking-tour-of-larchmont-village]. Purpley and Buddy are Mirele’s new hermit crabs. Make sure to follow us on Instagram (@4evershelfmate [https://www.instagram.com/4evershelfmates/]) to see an example of their inner dialogue. Max is Cheryl’s puppy (even if he is 11 years old) and he will also make an appearance. Join us next time when we discuss Mirele’s realistic fiction selection: Efrén Divided [https://bookshop.org/books/efren-divided/9780062881694] by Ernersto Cisneros This podcast is powered by Pinecast [https://pinecast.com].

S1E8 - 8 - The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

SHOW NOTES BY CHERYL Episode 8: Mystery The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes We’re in favor of supporting independent bookstores! If you don’t know your local indie, check out this link [https://bookshop.org/books/the-inheritance-games-1ed98619-91db-426a-a6d9-a770fefb8546/9780759555402] if you want to get your own copy of The Inheritance Games from a website that supports all indies. Alternatively, here [https://www.lbyr.com/titles/jennifer-lynn-barnes/the-inheritance-games/9781368052405/] is a link directly to the publisher’s website with other options to purchase your own copy. A few things: The Westing Game [https://alsc-awards-shelf.org/book/284/the-westing-game] actually won the Newbery Medal [https://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/newbery] in 1979, so it seems it was a very popular book, at least with librarians. Even though Cheryl has never heard of “awkward turtle [https://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=awkward%20turtle],” it is, in fact, a real thing. You’ve probably seen a Victorian house, but in case you can’t envision it, click here [https://www.elledecor.com/design-decorate/a40023952/victorian-style-house/]. Cheryl envisioned Hawthorne House to be more like Frank Lloyd Wright’s house, Taliesin West [https://franklloydwright.org/taliesin-west/]. Never heard of the saying, “Suspend your disbelief”? Click here [https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/suspend%20%28one%27s%29%20disbelief] for the formal definition. Want a list of all of JLB’s books? Click here [http://jenniferlynnbarnes.com/books.html]. Here’s [https://www.iheart.com/podcast/966-red-sneaker-writers-29862066/episode/writing-young-adult-with-jennifer-lynn-55554947/] a link to the podcast episode that Cheryl listened to that included the interview with JLB. Interested in JLB’s other research? Click here [https://jenniferlynnbarnes.tumblr.com/post/123403591194/fiction-and-the-need-to-belong] for some info on the science of fiction. Cheryl did not succeed at getting an Advanced Reader’s Copy (ARC) at the ALA Annual Conference [https://2022.alaannual.org/]. Join us next time when we discuss Cheryl’s realistic fiction selection: The Bookish Life of Nina Hill [https://bookshop.org/books/the-bookish-life-of-nina-hill/9780451491879] by Abbi Waxman This podcast is powered by Pinecast [https://pinecast.com].