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The Book JamSeason 3, Episode 1: Book To Read All Year Long, Not Just During Black History MonthMarisa and Mary are back! We have a new season and a new episode of The Book Jam! Today’s books are books to read not just during Black History Month, but to read all year long. But we don’t just want to focus on reading black authors and black stories during just one month, these are excellent books that are amazing reads that will give you all the emotional feels. Explore sadness and grief on a roadtrip with Mary’s title: Me (Moth) by Amber McBride, a book in verse. Marisa’s title is a YA/new adult boo...2022-04-0351 minThe Book JamSeason 2 Episode 15: Belated 2021 Year Wrap Up: The books that got us through the dumpster fire of 2021.Marisa and Mary are back! Today we’re talking about the books that got us through the dumpster fire that was 2021. Not all of the books talked about were published in 2021. There are a million reasons to read: sometimes you might read to dive deep to learn about a topic or read to escape. Whatever your reason, here are some of our favorite titles we turned to to help us get through 2021.Check out the Books Mentioned below to add even more books to your To Be Read pile.Books we talked about this episode:...2022-02-1254 minThe Book JamSeason 2, Episode 14: Historical Fiction With A Fresh PerspectiveMarisa and Mary are back with a new episode of The Book Jam! Winter has just begun and it makes us want to read historical fiction books-but these aren’t your typical historical fiction titles. Both titles we talk about today give voice and fresh perspectives to this genre. Marisa talks about So Many Beginnings: A Little Women Remix by Bethany C. Morrow; this book was set in 1863 in the Freedmen's Colony of Roanoke Island and centers on the binding love of a family of four black sisters each finding their own way. Mary talks about The City Beautiful by...2022-01-0249 minThe Book JamSeason 2, Episode 13: Let's Talk Non-Binary Identities in Books!Marisa and Mary are back with a new episode of The Book Jam! We love to highlight LGBTQIA+ voices and authors and today’s books are all about non-binary and gender non-conforming characters. Marisa’s book, Both Can Be True by Jules Machias, is a middle grade debut that “explores identity, gender fluidity, and the power of friendship and acceptance in a dual-narrative story about two kids who join forces to save a dog.” Mary speaks about Gender Queer: a Memoir by Maia Kobabe; this is a graphic memoir that relates-with sometimes painful honesty-the experience of growing up gender non-conforming. If this t...2021-11-2441 minThe Book JamSeason 2, Episode 12: Not Your Typical Spooky & Horror Books (AKA these characters are not going to be the first ones to die)Marisa and Mary are back with a new episode of The Book Jam! Today we are talking about teen spooky and horror books-but not your typical horror books; these books feature BIPOC main characters (one LGBTQIA+) and they are NOT going to be the first ones to die. These books are like no other. We also discuss the need in publishing for more diverse-diverse books, what do we mean? Listen to the episode and hear us discuss these great horrifying reads.Check out the Books Mentioned below to add even more books to your To Be Read...2021-10-3038 minThe Book JamSeason 2, Episode 11: Not Your Typical MysteriesMarisa and Mary are back with a new episode of The Book Jam! Today we are talking about teen mystery books-but not your typical teen mysteries; today’s books we discuss are also action, adventure, and thrillers that are ‘locked room mystery’ books. Is this the episode where we realize we have become mystery reader fans?Check out the Books Mentioned below to add even more books to your To Be Read pile.Mary’s book:The Marvelous by Claire Kann. Teen, Grades 7+. Published by Swoon Readers, June 2021.Marisa’s book:The G...2021-10-1654 minThe Book JamSeason 2, Episode 10: The Books They Don't Want You To Read...Banned Books WeekMarisa and Mary are back with a new episode of The Book Jam! We have a special guest today, Samatha Lee, she is Head of Reference Services at the Enfield Public Library AND serves as chair of the CT Library Association’s Intellectual Freedom Committee.This makes Sam, the perfect guest for today's topic: we are talking about the books 'they don’t want you to read' because it is Banned Books Week. Listen and find out what is Banned Books Week, what is a challenge versus a ban, and of course hear us talk about our favo...2021-09-271h 26The Book JamSeason 2, Episode 9: Let’s Talk Mental HealthMarisa and Mary are back with a new episode of The Book Jam!This month’s book theme is all about mental health. Our mental health affects how we think, feel, and act-and how we handle stress, relate to others, and how we make choices. It is no wonder that so many good teen books are tackling this topic.The books we talk about in this episode could be triggering. Marisa’s book, The Weight of Our Sky by Hanna Alkaf, features a music loving teen girl who has OCD who struggles to do everything she...2021-09-0356 min
The Book JamSeason 2, Episode 8: It's summer. Let's go to CAMP!Marisa and Mary are back with a new episode of The Book Jam! We have been busy with summer reading, starting new library jobs, and doing tons of reader’s advisory. It is summer...and that means we’re going to talk about summer camp: bugs, s'mores, scary stories. Marisa’s book, You Got a Match by Emma Lord, is a romcom with a messy main character, ditching summer school to attend a summer camp with a secret influencer older sister she never knew about. Mary’s book Camp by Lev A.C. Rosen has a diverse LGBTQ cast of campe...2021-08-2052 minThe Book JamSeason 2, Episode 7: It's PRIDE Month!Marisa and Mary are back with a new episode of The Book Jam! June is Pride Month and celebrating by talking about a plethora of LGBTQIAP+ books! Hawke and Grayson flee a political coup of their noble house, to stay alive they must hide and assume new identities in Niki Smith’s debut middle grade graphic novel, The Deep & Dark Blue. Dahlia Adler's Cool for the Summer is a story of self-discovery and new love, as high school senior Lara attempts to figure out her life and what she wants. Come jam with us!Check out the Boo...2021-06-2547 minThe Book JamSeason 2, Episode 6: Books to read in celebration of Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage monthMarisa and Mary are back with a new episode of The Book Jam! We are closing out May with an episode celebrating two titles by Asian American authors. Luck of the Titanic, Stacey Lee’s latest historical fiction, follows British Chinese twins on the maiden voyage of the Titanic. Maurene Goo’s The Way You Make Me Feel is about an LA girl who loves pranks until one goes too far and gets a unique punishment; it is a funny and entertaining story to remind you it's never too late to make change.Check out the Books Ment...2021-06-0137 minThe Book JamSeason 2, Episode 5 Let's Talk Books About Comic-Cons (until we can go to Cons again)Marisa and Mary are back with a new episode of The Book Jam! New format: we will talk about 2 books on a theme. Let us know if you like it! Both books are all about one of our favorite things: Comic Cons! The meet ups, the cosplay, the fandoms! We miss our Cons, so instead we're talking about middle grade and teen books that make us FEEL like we're there. Check out the Books Mentioned below to add even more books to your To Be Read pile.Mary’s book:Con Quest! by Sam...2021-05-0745 minThe Book JamSeason 2, Episode 4: Being True to YourselfMarisa and Mary are back with a new episode of The Book Jam! New format: we will talk about 2 books on a theme. Let us know if you like it! Both of the books we talk about are about LGBTQ characters, one contemporary setting and the other set in the past. No matter the setting, both books are about finding and being true to yourself.Check out the Books Mentioned below to add even more books to your To Be Read pile.Mary’s book:Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo...2021-04-0950 minThe Book JamSeason 2, Episode 3: Intriguing Family MysteriesMarisa and Mary are back with a new episode of The Book Jam! All of the books we are talking about today are about families and mysteries. These books have it all: sibling disappearances, secrets, and supernatural mysteries.Check out the Books Mentioned below to add even more books to your To Be Read pile.Marisa’s books:Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston. Middle Grade, Grades 4-8. Published by Balzer + Bray, 1/19/21.House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland. Teen, Grades 8+. Published by Putnam Publishing Group, 4/6/21.Mary’s bo...2021-03-121h 02The Book JamSeason 2, Episode 2: Teen Romcoms, Never Gonna Give You UpMarisa and Mary are back with a new episode of The Book Jam! We are excited to have our second guest to come jam with us, Jennifer R., a Youth Services Librarian at Cragin Memorial Library. It is February and Jennifer is the queen of romance books. So today's books are all about romcoms. Jennifer gets to pick 2 books and Mary and Marisa each pick a complementary readalike. (Fun fact, the alternate episode title: “My Heart Will Go On...For Teen Romcoms”). What is our favorite teen romcom?Check out the Books Mentioned below to add even more...2021-02-121h 06The Book JamSeason 2, Episode 1: Stories of ResilienceMarisa and Mary are back with a new season of The Book Jam! We are excited to have our first guest to come jam with us, Kym P., a Library Specialist and Children and YA Consultant. Today, Kym gets to pick 2 books and Mary and Marisa each pick a complementary readalike. All of these are stories of resilience; these kids and teens find ways to survive, and hopefully thrive no matter the setting, no matter their age. Check out the Books Mentioned below to add even more books to your To Be Read pile.Kym’s b...2021-02-051h 13The Book JamEpisode 15: Season Finale: Books that got us through the dumpster fire of 2020Marisa and Mary are back! Today we’re talking about the books that got us through the dumpster fire that is 2020. Not all of the books talked about were published in 2020. There are a million reasons to read: sometimes you might read to dive deep to learn about a topic or read to escape. Whatever your reason, here are some of our favorite titles we turned to to help us get through 2020.Check out the Books Mentioned below to add even more books to your To Be Read pile.Books we talked about this episode:...2021-01-1456 minThe Book JamEpisode 14 Books about Middle School problems and Dystopian horrorsMarisa and Mary are back! Today we’re talking books about Middle School problems and Dystopian horrors. It is a mood. In lieu of a listener question, we talk about book world news of: BookExpo being retired and Penguin Random House buying Simon & Schuster.Check out the Books Mentioned below to add even more books to your To Be Read pile.Mary’s first book is Black Brother, Black Brother by Jewell Parker Rhodes. Donte is tired of the racism and microaggressions thrown his way at his new very white, prep school. He decides to take...2020-12-1046 minThe Book JamEpisode 13 Accepting you for you: books that remind you you're good enoughMarisa and Mary are back! We had to re-record Episode 13 (we blame recording the first time on Friday 13th). We have a listener question asking for teen book recommendations with not so super hero powers. Check out the Books Mentioned below! Marisa’s first book is Zenobia July by Lisa Bunker. A story about a trans girl starting a new life and finally presenting as her true gender. In her previous life, Zen was a not so nice hacker, but now she is determined to solve a cyber mystery at her school. This book is full of fami...2020-11-281h 01The Book JamEpisode 12: Middle Grade Mysteries & WerewolvesEpisode 12:Marisa and Mary are back and this time we are talking about Middle Grade Mysteries and werewolves. We also discuss print vs ebook, which is better? What about for advance reader copies? As always, if you need to add more books to your To Be Read pile, check out the Books Mentioned below!Mary's first book, Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling is a middle grade mystery with a strong girl character who was born without arms and her friendship with a boy who has Tourette's. This is...2020-11-0240 minThe Book JamEpisode 11: Facts and Spoopy Books!Episode 11:Marisa and Mary return! This month we are all about FACTS and SPOOPY books. What is a spoopy book? A book that is fun and spooky at the same time. We also ask the eternal question, original cover vs movie cover...and we have THOUGHTS. As always, if you need to add more books to your To Be Read pile, check out the Books Mentioned below! Mary's first book was a nonfiction graphic novel called Kent State: Four Dead in Ohio by Derf Backderf. He tells the untold story of the Kent State...2020-10-151h 03The Book JamEpisode 10: Spooky book time and LGBTQIA+ books that make you feel seenEpisode 10 Marisa and Mary return this time and we declare it SPOOKY BOOK SEASON, and we discuss LGBTQIA+ books that make you feel seen. We also answer a question from a teen who asks "why does therapy get a bad rap in young adult literature?" Thank you to Lauren L., the teen who asked our question this episode! As always, if you need to add more books to your To Be Read pile, check out the Books Mentioned below! Marisa's first book was You Should See Me In A Crown by Leah Johnson. This...2020-09-2451 minThe Book JamEpisode 09: Let's talk about all things: spooky, scary, thrillers, and horror in books!Marisa and Mary are back! This time to talk about middle grade and teen books that are varying levels of spooky, scary, thriller, and horror. We also talk about graphic novels: format vs genre debate, where should they go?As always, if you need to add more books to your To Be Read pile, check out the Books Mentioned below!Marisa's first book was Thirteens by Kate Alice Marshall. A spooky middle grade pick. Grieving Eleanor moves to an all too perfect town where she meets other teens who tell her not to talk about...2020-09-1046 minThe Book JamEpisode 08: Strong female characters, no matter the setting.Marisa and Mary return this time to talk about middle grade and teen books that feature strong female characters-no matter what happened to them, they choose their fate. We also give teen book recommendations to a mom & 7th grader who read and LOVED the Twilight series by Stephanie Meyers.As always, if you need to add more books to your To Be Read pile, check out the Books Mentioned below!Marisa's first book was the middle grade title Dress Coded by Carrie Firestone. Described as a “girl-power friendship story, an eighth grader starts a podcast to...2020-08-2648 minThe Book JamEpisode 07: Fantastic fantasy books for teens!Episode 07Seventh Episode: The one where we talk about all types of teen fantasy booksMarisa and Mary return this time to talk about teen fantasy books of all types, and answer the hardest listener question: "What is your favorite book of all time?"As always, if you need to add more books to your To Be Read pile, check out the Books Mentioned below! Thank you to Audra, the teen who asked our question this episode!Marisa talked about Marisa's first book was the genre-defying Jane Unlimited by K...2020-07-2446 minThe Book JamEpisode 06: Middle Grade Girl Main Characters & Great Graphic Novels Episode 06Sixth Episode: middle grade novels & graphic novels!Marisa and Mary return this time to talk about teen middle grade books, graphic novels, and the world of book covers and publishing. If you need to add more books to your To Be Read pile, check out the Books Mentioned below! Thank you to Acadia, a teen who asked our question about big publishers vs self publishing this week!Mary talked about Hazel’s Theory of Evolution by Lisa Jenn Bigelow, a middle grade LGBTQIA+ novel with a girl who loves goats and encyclopedias, but...2020-07-0247 minThe Book JamEpisode 05 Are Mysteries the #1 YA genre? Episode 05 Are Mysteries the #1 YA genre?Fifth Episode:Marisa and Mary return this time to talk about teen graphic novels, mysteries, and fantasy. If you need good mysteries and or fantasies: check out any and all of the titles in the "Books Mentioned" below. Mary talked about Sabrina the Teenage Witch by Kelly Thompson, illustrated by Veronica Fish and Andy Fish. A fresh fun twist on a favorite comic character. For her second book, Mary delved into the world of MYSTERY with Maureen Johnson's Truly Devious, the first in a trilogy. 2020-06-1634 minThe Book JamEpisode 04: Books For Pride Month & Asian Pacific Heritage MonthFourth Episode:Mary and Marisa are back this time to talk about some titles for Pride Month and Asian Pacific Heritage Month. May was Asian Pacific Heritage Month: Marisa talks about Frankly In Love by David Yoon (a YA romcom-dramedy?) about a Korean American boy navigating family issues and trying to find love his own way. June is Pride Month: Marisa talked about the powerful nonfiction YA title, The 57 Bus: A True Story of Two Teenagers and the Crime That Changed Their Lives by Dashka Slater; a short overlapping bus ride of a queer teen who dresses how they feel in...2020-06-0432 minThe Book JamEpisode 03 Humor (books) can get you through itThird Episode: Times can be tough, but laughing makes things better. All of these books use humor to get you through it. Marisa talks about some of her favorite books, one about an evil genius, one historical fiction of a plucky girl who won't give up. Mary's two books are: one a graphic novel about a girl, technology and aliens, and the other is packed with humor and sports. We talk about how we miss our teens, patrons, and our libraries. Books we talked about this week: Marisa's books: I Am A Ge...2020-05-1133 minThe Book JamEpisode 02 Middle Grade Graphics & Dark Supernatural Teen TitlesSecond Episode: Marisa and Mary are back! This week we talk about a couple of our favorite middle grade/teen graphic novels. We also reveal our love of dark supernatural teen books; this is just the tip of the iceberg, because we love this genre so much. Books we talk about this week: Marisa's books: The Okay Witch by Emma Steinkellner, Middle grade, Grades 5-8. Published: September 3, 2019. Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers, High School, Grades 9-12. Published: April 3, 2012. Mary's books: This Was Our Pact by Ryan And...2020-04-2728 min
The Book JamEpisode 01 Welcome to the Book Jam!First Episode: come jam with us!Books we talk about this week: Marisa's books:Wink by Rob Harrell. Middle grade, Grades 5-8. Available March 3rd, 2020. The Light in Hidden Places by Sharon Cameron. Teen, Grades 7-12. Available : March 3rd, 2020. Six Angry Girls by Adrienne Kisner. Teen/High School, Grades 8-12. Available: June 2nd, 2020. Mary's books: First Rule of Punk by Celia C. Pérez. Middle grade, Grades 5-8. Available: August 22nd, 2017. White Rabbit by Caleb Roehrig. High School, Grades 9-12. Available: April 24th, 2018. Harley...2020-04-0854 min