Research – A Bookish Home

Ep 243: Patti Callahan Henry on The Story She Left Behind

March 18, 2025March 10, 2025Posted in History, Mystery, Reading Life, Research, WritingTagged author, PodcastLeave a comment

I’m so happy to share that Patti Callahan Henry returns to the podcast this week to discuss her new novel!

The Story She Left Behind is a beautiful, hopeful historical novel that explores female creativity, second chances, mother/daughter relationships, and a real-life literary mystery while also whisking us off to England’s Lake District and the world of Beatrix Potter.

Listen in as we dive into the kernels of curiosity and inspiration that led to the novel.

“Once again, Patti Callahan Henry proves that she is a magician with words… Graceful in its telling and so very wise in its insights, The Story She Left Behind is a book that will capture your heart, lift your spirits, and delight your soul.” —William Kent Krueger, New York Times bestselling author of This Tender Land

Listen here or subscribe on Apple Podcasts and wherever you get your podcasts.

About the Author:

Patti Callahan Henry is the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of several novels, including Surviving Savannah and Becoming Mrs. Lewis. She is the recipient of the Christy Award, the Harper Lee Award for Alabama’s Distinguished Writer of the Year Award, and the Alabama Library Association Book of the Year. She is the cohost and cocreator of the popular weekly online live web show and podcast Friends and Fiction. She lives in Alabama and South Carolina with her family. Find out more at PattiCallahanHenry.com.

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

Links:

Macmillan Audio

Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep 241: Francesca Segal on Literary Comfort in Welcome to Glorious Tuga

March 4, 2025March 3, 2025Posted in Reading Life, Research, WritingTagged author, PodcastLeave a comment

This week my guest is Francesca Segal, author of Welcome to Glorious Tuga, the literary comfort read we all need right now.

A complete and vivid world to escape to, Welcome to Glorious Tuga celebrates a fictional island, and the eccentric community who live there. Enchanting, uplifting and very funny, this is a captivating novel about love, belonging, and what it really means to come home.

‘A magical novel, so uplifting, heartwarming, funny. . . I cannot TELL you how much I adored it! This feels as if it was written specifically to give comfort – the perfect antidote to current climes.” — Marian Keyes

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app.

About the Author:

Francesca Segal is an award-winning British American writer. She is the author of a memoir, Mother Ship, and the novels The Awkward Age and The Innocents, the latter of which won the Costa Book Award for First Novel, the National Jewish Book Award for Fiction, and the Sami Rohr Prize, and was long-listed for the Women’s Prize for Fiction. She lives in London with her family. Welcome to Glorious Tuga, her new novel, is the first in a planned trilogy. Learn more: https://www.francescasegal.com/

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

Links:

Macmillan Audio

Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep 239: Julia Kelly on The Dressmakers of London

February 18, 2025February 13, 2025Posted in History, Research, WritingTagged author, PodcastLeave a comment

This week, Julia Kelly is back with us to discuss her new novel, The Dressmakers of London, about estranged sisters who inherit their late mother’s dress shop in World War II London.

We discuss unearthing women’s everyday experiences in history, how rationing affected women’s fashion during World War II, the lasting impact on clothing design, ties to today’s slow fashion movement, and much more.

“An uplifting WWII story about familial struggles, societal standards, and forgiveness . . . Kelly portrays friendships built, sisterhoods solidified, and new, deserving love stories formed. Women’s strength in the face of adversity is the focus of this fine historical novel.” —Booklist

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app.

About the Author:

Julia Kelly is the internationally bestselling author of emotional historical fiction about extraordinary women and intriguing historical whodunnit mystery novels. Her books have been translated into 13 languages. In addition to writing, she’s been an Emmy-nominated producer, journalist, marketing professional, and (for one summer) a tea waitress. Julia called Los Angeles, Iowa, and New York City home before settling in London with her husband. Learn more: https://www.juliakellywrites.com/

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

Links:

Macmillan Audio

Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep 237: Tara Dorabji on the Sweeping Family Saga, Call Her Freedom

February 4, 2025January 22, 2025Posted in History, Research, WritingTagged author, PodcastLeave a comment

This week, Tara Dorabji shares the path to publishing her debut novel, Call Her Freedom. A sweeping family saga and intergenerational love story, the book was also the winner of Simon & Schuster’s Books Like Us First Novel Contest, a competition for underrepresented writers to submit their manuscripts and win a book deal.

A deeply moving novel about one woman’s love for her family, this is an epic investigation of colonialism, militarization, and the loss and innocence on the journey to creating home.

“A rich and beautifully crafted multigenerational epic that takes us into the heart of a war-torn family and into the soul of a people fighting for liberation, Call Her Freedom is a searing, atmospheric debut by a talented new voice in fiction.”
—KRISTIN HARMEL, New York Times bestselling author of The Paris Daughter

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app.

About the Author:

Tara Dorabji is the author of the novel, Call Her Freedom, winner of the Simon & Schuster Books Like Us first novel contest. She is the daughter of Parsi-Indian and German-Italian migrants. Her documentary film series on human rights defenders in Kashmir won awards at over a dozen film festivals throughout Asia and the USA. Tara’s publications include Al Jazeera, The Chicago Quarterly, Huizache, and acclaimed anthologies: Good Girls Marry Doctors and All the Women in My Family Sing. She lives in Northern California with her family and rabbit. Learn more: www.dorabji.com

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

Links:

Macmillan Audio

Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep 236: Fiona Davis Takes Us Behind the Scenes at the Met in The Stolen Queen

January 28, 2025January 15, 2025Posted in History, Research, WritingTagged author, PodcastLeave a comment

Today one of my favorite authors, Fiona Davis is back on A Bookish Home to tell us all about her dazzling new novel, The Stolen Queen.

For nearly a decade, Fiona Davis has introduced readers to the fascinating and often little known histories behind some of New York City’s most iconic landmarks through the eyes of female characters seeking the truth about themselves and the world around them.

Now, in her enthralling eighth novel, The Stolen Queen, Fiona Davis delights readers with a story centered on the Metropolitan Museum of Art and its famed Met Gala, while for the first time, exploring a territory beyond New York City—Egypt’s Valley of the Kings.

“In her latest stunner, Fiona Davis sweeps readers from the sun-baked sands of Egypt to the inner sanctum of the Met Museum and a world full of art, intrigue, and heart-stopping secrets. While crafting a vivid picture of two fascinating eras, Davis also dives deeply into the vibrant inner worlds of her complex and compelling lead characters, Charlotte and Annie. Inspired by the unearthing of an incomparable ancient queen, this book solidifies Davis’s place as a reigning queen of historical fiction, and a master storyteller at the height of her craft.”

— Allison Pataki, New York Times bestselling author of Finding Margaret Fuller

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app.

About the Author:

Fiona Davis is the New York Times bestselling author of several historical fiction novels set in iconic New York City buildings, including The Magnolia Palace, The Address, and The Lions of Fifth Avenue, which was a Good Morning America book club pick. Her novels have been chosen as “One Book, One Community” reads and her articles have appeared in publications like The Wall Street Journal and O the Oprah magazine. She first came to New York as an actress, but fell in love with writing after getting a master’s degree at Columbia Journalism School. Her books have sold more than 1 million copies to date and have been translated into more than twenty languages. She’s based in New York City. Learn more: fionadavisbooks.com

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

Links:

Macmillan Audio

Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep 235: Nancy Reddy on Dismantling The Good Mother Myth

January 21, 2025January 12, 2025Posted in History, Research, WritingTagged author, PodcastLeave a comment

This week my guest is Nancy Reddy, author of The Good Mother Myth: Unlearning Our Bad Ideas About How to Be a Good Mom.

Timely and thought-provoking, Nancy Reddy unpacks and debunks the bad ideas that have for too long defined what it means to be a “good” mom.

“Reddy cracks open everything we take for granted about motherhood and shows us the facts are mere mythology and the ‘science’ is shoddy. This book is a gift to all mothers. With beautiful prose, Reddy wipes the slate clean and gives moms permission to forge their own parenting path.” – Minna Dubin, author of Mom Rage

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app.

About the Author:

Nancy Reddy is the author of The Good Mother Myth. Her previous books include the poetry collections Pocket Universe and Double Jinx, a winner of the National Poetry Series. With Emily Pérez, she’s co-editor of The Long Devotion: Poets Writing Motherhood. Her essays have appeared in Slate, Poets & Writers, Romper, The Millions, and elsewhere. The recipient of grants from the New Jersey State Council on the Arts and the Sustainable Arts Foundation and a Walter E. Dakin Fellowship from the Sewanee Writers’ Conference, she teaches writing at Stockton University and writes the newsletter Write More, Be Less Careful. Learn more: nancyreddy.com

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

Links:

Macmillan Audio

Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep. 233: Rebecca J. Sanford on the True Stories Behind The Disappeared

January 7, 2025January 1, 2025Posted in History, Research, WritingTagged author, PodcastLeave a comment

This week my guest is Rebecca J. Sanford, author of The Disappeared, a dazzling historical tale of one woman’s fight for survival, a grandmother’s search for her child and grandchild, and an adoptee’s journey of self-discovery.

Seamlessly moving from 1970s Buenos Aires (at the heart of the Dirty War) to early 2000s New York, Rebecca creates a delicate portrait of the consequences of war and the power of women’s resistance.

“Written in spare yet wonderfully evocative prose, The Disappeared captures the brutal realities of a shared buried history, one that we can now never afford to forget. Rebecca J. Sanford is a gifted novelist, and I highly recommend this deeply compelling and important book.”

— “Andre Dubus III, New York Times bestselling author of House of Sand and Fog”

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app.

About the Author:

Rebecca J. Sanford is the author of The Disappeared, recipient of the Women’s Fiction Writers Association Rising Star Award. She received her MA in international affairs from the New School in New York City. Originally from New York, Rebecca now lives in Florida with her family. Learn more: rebeccajsanford.com

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

Links:

Macmillan Audio

Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep. 230: Signe Pike Brings Legends to Life in The Shadowed Land

December 17, 2024November 27, 2024Posted in History, Research, WritingTagged author, PodcastLeave a comment

Signe Pike is back this week to discuss The Shadowed Land, the third installment of The Lost Queen series, which is being made into a tv series and resurrects the real historical figures who inspired one of the most epic legends: King Arthur.

“A legend-steeped story of the real King Arthur and his contemporaries, The Shadowed Land is full of mystery and Celtic magic, shimmering lochs and verdant glens, snow-cloaked mountains and deep forests, fierce battles and fragile love. Deeply researched, sweeping, and utterly compelling, The Shadowed Land is this winter’s can’t-miss historical epic.” —Kristin Harmel, New York Times bestselling author of The Paris Daughter

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app.

About the Author:

Signe Pike is the author of The Lost Queen series, which has been optioned for television, and the travel memoir Faery Tale. She has researched and written about Celtic history for over a decade. She lives in South Carolina. Learn more: signepike.com

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

Links:

Macmillan Audio

Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep. 229: Shelley Noble on the Ambitious Women Behind The Colony Club

December 10, 2024November 26, 2024Posted in History, Research, WritingTagged author, PodcastLeave a comment

Today Shelley Noble is here to tell us all about her new novel, a stunning, Gilded Age NYC-set story about the inception of The Colony Club, the first women’s club of its kind.

Come for the dazzling setting and stay for an unforgettable story of female ambition. The novel is perfect for fans of Alison Pataki, Fiona Davis, and historical TV shows like The Gilded Age and Downton Abbey.

“The Colony Club is an inspiring, powerful tribute to the Gilded Age women who broke through barriers to create their own place in the world. This impeccably researched story features real events and people in history, spotlighting the amazing feats women can accomplish when they support each other.” — Madeline Martin, New York Times bestselling author of The Keeper of Hidden Books

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app.

About the Author:

Shelley Noble is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Whisper Beach, Beach Colors, and The Tiffany Girls, the story of the largely unknown women artists responsible for much of Tiffany’s legendary glasswork, as well as several historical mysteries. A former professor, professional dancer and choreographer, she now lives in New Jersey halfway between the shore, where she loves visiting lighthouses and vintage carousels, and New York City, where she delights in the architecture, the theatre, and ferreting out the old stories behind the new. Shelley is a member of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America, Women’s Fiction Writers Association, and Historical Novel Society. Learn more: shelleynoble.com

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

Links:

Macmillan Audio

Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.

Ep. 227: Rosa Kwon Easton on the Roots of Her Grandmother’s Story in White Mulberry

November 26, 2024November 17, 2024Posted in History, Research, WritingTagged author, PodcastLeave a comment

Today my guest is Rosa Kwon Easton, author of the evocative debut novel, White Mulberry. Set against the backdrop of the 1930s in Japan-occupied Korea, it tells a rich & deeply moving portrait of a young Korean girl who is torn between two worlds and must reclaim her true identity to provide a future for her family.

“A beautiful and deeply researched novel…If you loved Pachinko, you’ll love White Mulberry.” —Lisa See, New York Times bestselling author of The Island of Sea Women

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app.

About the Author:

Rosa Kwon Easton was born in Seoul, Korea, and grew up with her extended family in Los Angeles. Easton holds a bachelor’s degree in government from Smith College, a master’s in international and public affairs from Columbia University, and a JD from Boston College Law School. She is a lawyer and an elected trustee of the Palos Verdes Library District. She is an Anaphora Writing Residency Fellow, and her work has been published in CRAFT Literary, StoryCenter.org, Writer’s Digest, and elsewhere. She has two adult children and lives with her husband and Maltipoo in sunny Southern California. For more information, visit www.rosakwoneaston.com.

Browse Books Mentioned On This Episode:

Looking for a book mentioned on the podcast? Want to browse books by past guests? Visit A Bookish Home Podcast’s Bookshop.org page.

Links:

Macmillan Audio

Happy Reading and Listening,

Laura Szaro Kopinski

ABookishHome.com

*A Bookish Home is an affiliate of Bookshop.org. At no extra cost to you, we receive a small commission if you purchase something through the Bookshop.org links provided.