Back Stories Johnson County Public Library-Indiana

Susan Crisafulli, president of the Imagination Library of Johnson County, joins Elyssa for a behind-the-scenes look at the mission and growth of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library in our county. The Imagination Library of Johnson County has mailed more than 149,000 books.

Elyssa and her guest Erin share the books, resources and other details about their latest “Behind the Page” event. Here are the resources and book titles they discussed or mentioned in this podcast.

Adventure Books


James by Percival Everett
Raiders of the Lost Heart by Jo Segura

Cozy Mysteries


A Bean to Die For by Tara Lush (A Coffee Lover's Mystery #4)
Peril in Pink by Sydney Leigh

Nonfiction Books


The Real Hoosiers: Crispus Attucks High School. Oscar Robertson, and the Hidden History of Hoops by Jack McCallum
A History of the World in Twelve Shipwrecks by Dave Gibbins

Paranormal Books


Bride by Ali Hazelwood
Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlands by Heather Fawcett (Emily Wilde #2)

RomCom Books


Funny Story by Emily Henry
The Break-Up Tour by Emily Wibberkey and Austin Siegemund-Broka

Books that People Shared


The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley
Small Mercies by Dennis Lehane
Virgil Wander by Leif Enger (author coming to Wild Geese Bookshop this summer)
The Librarian Spy by Madeline Martin
Iron Lake by William Kent Krueger
The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles
Yellowface by R.F. Kuang
Greymist Fair by Francesca Zappia
The Last Devil to Die by Richard Osman
Black Sheep by Rachel Harrison
No One Can Know by Kate Alice Marshall
The Warm Hands of Ghosts by Katherine Arden
Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson
When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
The Blue Bistro by Elin Hilderbrand
The Heart's Invisible Furies by John Boyne
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt
The Little Liar by Mitch Albom (from last time)
Shark Heart by Emily Habeck (from last time)

Resources Talked About


Talpa Search - https://www.pageafterpage.org/what-should-i-read-next
Staff Picks and Book Lists - https://www.pageafterpage.org/staff-picks
E-Books and E-Audiobooks - https://www.pageafterpage.org/e-books-e-audio-downloadable-movies

Elyssa and her guest, Stephanie, of JCPL's White River Branch Library, give you the backstory of Frankenstein and Dracula.

In this Back Stories bonus episode, Elyssa is joined by Erin from JCPL’s Clark Pleasant Branch. Erin provides the backstory on the Local Author Fair, which is scheduled for April 13, 2024. Forty-five authors are registered. Genres include picture books, memoirs, young adult novels, Christian self-help, gardening essays, poetry, romance, non-fiction and more.

Elyssa and Library Director Lisa Lintner provide the backstory on how the Snuggle Up with a Book Ball came to be and how it supports bringing New York Times bestselling authors to Johnson County as part of the Authors at JCPL series.

You will get an inside look at this fun ”event you don’t attend,” as well as authors and some of Lisa’s favorite books.

Your host, Elyssa, takes a look at Stephen King. She notes he writes pretty much everything except for Amish romance.

Elyssa’s guest is Franklin Branch Children’s Librarian Katie. Despite being a children’s librarian, she is also here to discuss horror. Although she started reading Stephen King when she was ten, she is here to give you the backstory on Grady Hendrix, the author of “How to Sell a Haunted House” and many other horror novels. Katie says, “There is such a playfulness” to his books.