Curious Readers

Curious Readers
  • 5.0 (25)
  • BOOKS
  • UPDATED FORTNIGHTLY

A bi-weekly bookchat podcast by Joseph Dance and Amanda Moulson, two time-poor curious readers with eclectic TBRs. Every two weeks we meet to talk all things books and deliver some recommendations for new, classic, and contemporary titles you might want to read next. We cover everything from backlist to frontlist, prize winners to debuts, and we are generally spoiler free.  Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderpodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  1. 4 DAYS AGO

    Ep 34: Beyond the Countryside - How Nature Writing Asks Us to Pay Attention

    Join Amanda and Joseph for this week’s episode as they delve into the best that nature writing has to offer. Plus, as always, they talk about their current reads and what they're looking forward to picking up next, as well as the latest from the Women's Prize for Fiction shortlist. Bookish News Women’s Prize shortlist Recent Reads Pearl Oyster by Sophie Robinson @sophiepoetry  London Falling, by Patrick Radden Keefe @praddenkeefe Tilt by Emma Pattee   Nature Writing Helm by Sarah Hall Bewilderment by Richard Powers The Overstory by Richard Powers A World Appears: A Journey Into Consciousness by Michael Pollan @michael.pollan Crow Planet by Lyanda Lynn Haupt @lyandahaupt Walden by Henry David Thoreau  Silent Spring by Rachel Carson The Sea Around Us by Rachel Carson H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald @emerillon Raising Hare by Chloe Dalton @chloedaltonuk Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer @robinwallkimmerer An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden Realms Around Us by Ed Yong I Contain Multitudes by Ed Yong Soundings: Journeys In The Company of Whales by Doreen Cunningham @doreenwriting My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell Wintering by Katherine May @katherinemay_ Intertidal: A Coast And Marsh Diary by Yuvan Aves @a_naturalists_column The Peregrine by J.A. Baker  The Living Mountain by Nan Shepherd  Underland: A Deep Time Journey by Robert Macfarlane @robertmacfarlane Dart by Alice Oswald What We’re Reading Next  California Gold by Jodie Chapman @jodiechapman The Italian Girl by Iris Murdoch The Bell by Iris Murdoch The Sea, The Sea by Iris Murdoch   Also mentioned Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    57 min

  2. 25 APR

    Ep 33: Crime Fiction After Agatha - Whodunit Got A Whole Lot Weirder

    Join Amanda and Joseph for this week’s episode as they delve into the Golden Age of Detective Fiction, remember Agatha Christie and talk about their favourite mysteries. This time, they really try to be spoiler free!   Bookish News International Booker Prize shortlist short flims  Helen DeWitt and Windham Campbell Literary Award Recent Reads There Is No Antimemetics Division by qntm (Sam Hughes) The Wreck by Lizzy Stewart @lizzy_stewart Alison by Lizzy Stewart   The Novels of Agatha Christie and Golden Age Detective Fiction Snow Upon the Desert by Agatha Christie Murder On The Orient Express by Agatha Christie Death On The Nile by Agatha Christie Evil Under The Sun by Agatha Christie And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie The Murder of Roger Akroyd by Agatha Christie A Murder is Announced by Agatha Christie A is for Arsenic by Kathryn Harkup V is for Venom by Kathryn Harkup The Knox Decalogue S.S. Van Dine’s Commandments Fair Play by Louise Hegarty Our Favourite Mysteries In the Woods (The Dublin Murder Squad series) by Tana French @tanafrenchwrites The Trees by Percival Everett The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett @r.jackson.bennett The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett @janice.hallett The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman The Whitstable Pearl by Julie Wassmer The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith ‘Only Murders in the Building’ The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow by Peter Høeg The Girl in the Maze by R K Jackson @randal.jackson1 The Water is Wide by Pat Conroy None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai @rebeccamakkai What We’re Reading Next  Ghachar Ghochar by Vivek Shanbhag The Oldest Bitch Alive by Morgan Day @yeah_okday Prairie Oyster by Sophie Robinson @sophiepoetry   Also mentioned Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    1hr 9min

  3. 10 APR

    Ep 32: Spring Preview - 10 Upcoming Books We Want To Read Next

    Join Joseph and Amanda as they discuss the reads they are most looking forward to this Spring, plus a few more updates from prize season. We also introduce a new segment – DNF corner, where we talk about the books we couldn’t wait to put down.  Bookish News Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction shortlist International Booker Prize shortlist Recent Reads The Director by Daniel Kehlmann, translated by Ross Benjamin Tyll by Daniel Kehlmann, translated by Ross Benjamin The Discomfort of Evening by Lucas Rijneveld The Winner by Teddy Wayne Companion Piece by Ali Smith  Joan Is Okay by Weike Wang Top Ten Reads for Spring Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke Land by Maggie O’Farrell Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell Kin by Tayari Jones The Vanishing Half by Britt Bennett American Marriage by Tayari Jones Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones Devotions by Lucy Caldwell Openings by Lucy Caldwell If We Cannot Go At The Speed Of Light by Kim Cho-yeop, translated by Anton Hur Transcription by Ben Lerner Leaving the Atocha Station by Ben Lerner My Year In Paris With Gertrude Stein by Deborah Levy You With The Sad Eyes by Christina Applegate Famesick by Lena Dunham ‘Too Much’ by Lena Dunham ‘Girls’ by Lena Dunham Your Presence Is A Danger To Your Life by Samar Yazbek, translated by Leri Price Second Hand Time by Svetlana Alexivich London Falling: Death in a Gilded City and a Family’s Search for Truth by Patrick Radden Keefe Empire of Pain by Patrick Radden Keefe Tell Noone by Patrick Radden Keefe  Ghost Stories: A Memoir by Siri Hustvedt Mother Mary Comes To Me by Arundhati Roy One Aladdin, Two Lamps by Jeanette Winterson DNF Corner  My Friends by Frederick Backman Britt-Marie Was Here by Frederick Backman Workhorse by Caroline Palmer   Also mentioned Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    56 min

  4. 27 MAR

    Ep 31: The Benefactors by Wendy Erskine (Deep Dive) & the Carol Shields Prize Longlist

    Join Amanda and Joseph for their next deep dive into Wendy Erskine’s debut novel, The Benefactors, a polyphonic story about a sexual assault and the lengths that three mothers will go to to keep their sons from being held accountable. Along the way, they discuss the latest prize news, with the Carol Shields Prize longlist topping the episode. Bookish News Carol Shields Prize for Fiction longlist Recent Reads The Brittle Age by Donatella Di Pietrantonio The books of Elena Ferrante The Only Story by Julian Barnes Deep Dive The Benefactors by Wendy Erskine Sweet Home by Wendy Erskine Dance Move by Wendy Erskine Close to Home by Michael Magee Magnolia, written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson The Bee Sting by Paul Murray  What We’re Reading Next Waiting For The Fear by Oguz Atay The Door by Magda Szabo Indignity by Lea Ypi   Also mentioned Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    56 min

  5. 13 MAR

    Ep 30: The Books That Made Us & International Booker Prize Longlist

    This week, join Amanda and Joseph for one of their most personally revealing episodes yet, as they discuss the books that made them: the teenage obsessions, the gateway reads, and the unforgettable titles, passages and writers that made us the readers they are today. (1:20) Bookish News   (1:40) The Women’s Prize for Fiction Longlist (2:49) Gloria Don't Speak by Lucy Apps @lucy.emma13 (3:10) The Mercy Step by Marcia Hutchinson @marxia1 (4:32) The International Booker Prize Longlist (5:36) The Nights Are QuietIn Iran by Shida Bazyar (5:59) Women Without Men by Shahrnush Parsipur (6:28) Taiwan Travelogue Yáng Shuāng-zǐ (8:08) Recent Reads   (8:17) Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves by Sophie Gilbert @sophiegilbertwrites (12:52) The Missing Ink by Philip Hensher @philiphensher (17:43) The Books That Made Us (23:16) The Odyssey by Homer (various translations including Robert Fagles and Emily Wilson) (24:27) O’ Brother, Where Art Thou directed by Joel and Ethan Cohen (24:54) 'Penelope' by Carol Ann Duffy (28:43) The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper (32:48) Elidor by Alan Garner (32:53) His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman  (34:58) The Odyssey directed by Christopher Nolan (36:56) The Continuous Life: Poems by Mark Strand (40:16) The Colour Purple by Alice Walker (41:25) The Passion of New Eve by Angela Carter (46:34) Gilead by Marilyn Robinson (49:38) A Passage North by Anuk Arudpragasam (53:55) In the Distance by Hernan Diaz (54:36) What We’re Reading Next (55:00) No Friend of This House by Natalie Haynes @nataliehaynesauthor (55:12) One Aladdin, Two Lamps by Jeanette Winterson (56:07) Main Street by Sinclair Lewis (56:43) EveryDay Is For The Thief by Teju Cole @_tejucole   Also mentioned Tate Modern, Nigerian Modernism (on until 16 April 2026) Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    58 min

  6. 27 FEB

    Ep 29: Romance For Cynics & Women's Prize For Non-Fiction Longlist

    This week, Joseph and Amanda tackle romance. But this is romance with a twist, no tropes or formulas, just good writing that even the most hard-hearted cynic can enjoy. And before that, as Prize season is upon us, they dish the latest on prestigious longlists, and top and tail the episode with current and future reads.  (0:52) Bookish news (1:03) The Women’s Prize for Non-Fiction (2:52) Indignity: A Life Reimagined by Lea Ypi  (4:03) Ask Me How It Works: Love in an Open Marriage by Deepa Paul @storiesbydeepa (4:29) The Finest Hotel in Kabul: A People’s History of Afghanistan by Lyse Doucet @lyse.doucet (6:04) Mother Mary Comes to Me a memoir by Arundhati Roy @arundatiroyauthor (6:17) International Booker Prize (6:45) The National Book Critics Circle Awards (NBCC) (7:16) Dublin Literary Award (7:56) What I Know About You by Eric Chacour @ericchacour (8:09) The Creation of Half-Broken People by Siphiwe Gloria Ndlovu  (8:37) Live Fast by Brigitte Giroud (9:13) Recent Reads  (9:21) Every One Still Here by Liadan Ní Chuinn (14:19) Lost Lambs by Madeline Cash @madelinecash (17:45) Romance for Cynics (19:15) Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin (19:29) Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte (24:09) Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid @rachelreidwrites (25:38) Emma & Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (26:30) Persuasion by Jane Austen (26:56) Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte (27:09) Villette by Charlotte Bronte (29:03) The books of Lily King @lilykingbooks (29:23) Minor Black Figures & The Late Americans by Brandon Taylor @brandonlgtaylor (29:23) Memorial: A Novel by Bryan Washington (30:05) Normal People by Sally Rooney @sallyrooneyofficial (30:37) You Are Here by David Nicholls @davidnichollswriter (31:17) Happy All The Time by Laurie Colwin (35:46) Reasons To Be Cheerful by Nina Stibbe @ninastibbe  (39:17) Crush by Ada Calhoun @adacalhoun (42:58) Good Material by Dolly Alderton @dollyalderton (47:13) The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller @madeline.e.miller (47:47) The Disenchantment by Celia Bell  (48:22) The Lovers by Paolo Cognetti  (49:24) Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason @meg_mason_writer (50:26) Really Good, Actually by Monica Heisey @monicaheisey (51:50) You, Again by Kate Goldbeck @kategoldbeck (52:25) Heartburn by Nora Ephron (53:15) What We’re Reading Next  (53:26) Midnight Is Not In Everyone’s Reach by António Lobo Antunes @antonio.lobo.antunes (54:16) White Spines: Confessions of a Book Collector by Nicholas Royle @nicholasroyle (55:15) Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones @tayari (55:21) Kin by Tayari Jones (55:47) My Friends by Frederik Backman @frederickbackman (56:00) The Winner by Teddy Wayne The Benefactors by Wendy Erskine @wednesdaywerskin Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio Follow us on Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    58 min

  7. 13 FEB

    Ep 28: Short Stories To Start The Year - Debuts to Classics

    This week, Joseph and Amanda talk about some of their favourite short story collections - ranging from canonical gems to new voices - plus, as always, they talk about what they’ve been reading recently and discuss what they’re excited to read next.  (1:24) Bookish news (2:20) Birchbark Books (2:27) Inkwell Books (2:40) Red Balloon Books (2:56) Excelsior Bay Books / Milkweed Books / Black Garnet Books (3:08) Shop Minneapolis bookshops from anywhere at Bookstore.org and libro.fm (4:31) Standwithminnesota.com (5:36) The TS Eliot Prize (6:03) Wellwater by Karen Solie  (7:17) Recent Reads  (7:27) Buckeye by Patrick Ryan @patrickryanyc (12:40) A Question of Upbringing by Anthony Powell (17:14) Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh (18:17) Short Story Collections (18:26) Joseph's Short Story Quiz (25:38) Games and Rituals by Katherine Heiny @katherineheiny (30:59) Standard Deviation by Katherine Heiny (34:32) Mslexia (34:45) Drinking Coffee Elsewhere by Z.Z. Packer @zzpacker56 (40:42) In Our Time by Ernest Hemingway (46:37) The Latehomecomer: Essential Stories by Mavis Gallant (51:18) Furies: Stories of the Wicked, Wild and Untamed by Margaret Atwood and others @therealmargaretatwood (52:21) Stories of Place:///zinc.level.blindfold edited by Niamh McAnally @niamh_mcanally (53:00) The Woman Dies by Aoko Matsuda @matsudaoko (56:40) You Glow in the Dark by Liliana Colanzi @lilianacolanzi, translated by Chris Andrews  (58:06) Selected stories by Nikolai Gogol (59:19) Every One Still Here by Liadan Ní Chuinn (59:59) What We’re Reading Next  (1:00:13) I’m Glad My Mother Died by Jennette McCurdy @jennettemccurdy (1:00:50) Half His Age by Jennette McCurdy (1:01:19) Palaver by Bryan Washington @bry.washing Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio Follow us on Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    1hr 3min

  8. 30 JAN

    Ep 27: Angel Down by Daniel Kraus (Deep Dive)

    This week, Amanda and Joseph go into the trenches with Daniel Kraus’s repulsively propulsive Angel Down. They also discuss what they’ve been reading recently, including the new Ian McEwan novel and a slew of non-fiction, as well as what they’re looking forward to picking up next.  (2:40) Bookish news (2:44) Storygraph (@josephjdance and @itsmoleyreads) (3:47) Faversham Literary Festival, 20 February to 1 March, 2026 (4:44) Chocolat and Vianne by Joanne Harris  (5:41) Recent reads  (6:00) Books, A Manifesto: Or, How To Build A Library by Ian Patterson (7:19) Trees In Winter by Richard Shimell (richardshimell.co.uk) (8:21) Hiroshima by John Hersey  (10:33) What We Can Know by Ian McEwan (14:05) Deep Dive - Angel Down (14:45) The Shape of Water by Daniel Kraus (14:53) Trollhunters by Daniel Kraus (15:04) The Monster Variations by Daniel Kraus (15:27) Rotters and Scowler by Daniel Kraus (15:46) The Death and Life of Zebulon Finch by Daniel Kraus (15:57) Whale Fall by Daniel Kraus (19:13) Angel Down by Daniel Kraus @krausauthor (23:49) Ducks, Newburyport by Lucy Ellman (24:04) Zone by Mathias Enard  (24:18) Septology by Jon Fosse (38:56) 1917, directed by Sam Mendes (38:59) All’s Quiet on the Western Front (2022), directed by Edward Berger (41:39) In Memoriam by Alice Winn (57:33) Final thoughts (59:38) What We’re Reading Next (59:44) A High Wind In Jamaica. Or The Innocent Voyage by Richard Hughes (1:00:59) The Woman Dies by Aoko Matsuda Curious Readers is mixed by the incredibly talented James Whiting @fishislandstudio Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderspodcast and Bluesky @curiousreaderspod.bsky.social for more recommendations in between episodes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    1hr 3min
See All (35)

Trailer

5
out of 5
25 Ratings

About

A bi-weekly bookchat podcast by Joseph Dance and Amanda Moulson, two time-poor curious readers with eclectic TBRs. Every two weeks we meet to talk all things books and deliver some recommendations for new, classic, and contemporary titles you might want to read next. We cover everything from backlist to frontlist, prize winners to debuts, and we are generally spoiler free.  Follow us on Instagram @curiousreaderpodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Information

  • Creator
    Curious Readers
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    35
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Joseph Dance
  • Show Website
    Curious Readers

You Might Also Like