Just Dads Reading Books: Recent Episodes
E.J. Sanders and Matt Martens
Just Dads Reading Books is about judging your children for what they read. E.J. Sanders and Matt Martens investigate children's books and young adult novels so you don't have to. We'll never tell kids they can't read something, but we will try to make them feel cool for reading the good stuff.
Don't be alarmed. It's just two dads here to engage in their yearly tradition. If you're seeing this, it's because we really love you and miss you. Enjoy!
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Hey there, it's been a minute. We've been struggling to hit a consistent schedule recently and we wanted to talk to you, our listeners, about this and how we'd like to update the show going forward to better fit in with some of the changing aspects of our lives.
We still love to read and react to these books together, and we want you to be a part of that, but we're going to shift some of our focus away from regular releases, and follow a bit more of our passions, which hopefully will include the ability to do more author interviews, like the one at the end of this episode with Intisar Khanani who we met at GenCon!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Matt lacks the language of classical literature which meant his mind was measured and ripe for Zach Weinersmith's graphic novel depiction of Beowulf. EJ is bringing a bit more book-smarts to this beat, but honestly we're both just relishing in the rhythm of reading a prose as composed as this.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We finally get to have a very special guest on JDRB! Cole Wehrle is here to join us as a fellow dad with a deep love for Lloyd Alexander. He loves the Chronicles of Prydain so much he made numerous overt references to it in his board game Oath, by Leder Games! But this isn't a board game show! Let's talk about the first book!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
A year ago we read The Skull by Jon Klassen. And in it, Jon puts forward the idea that stories are interesting to retell in just the way you remember them. So we took that as a challenge and agreed to meet up one year later to see how well we could remember the story of The Skull.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Where'd all the picture books go?! Don't worry, we're done with all that heavy TEEN stuff, and we're incredibly ecstatic to talk about Carson Ellis' work. Seriously, this is maybe an all-timer...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Matt read this graphic novel when he was 19 years old and boy I tell ya that's just a real wild time to be reading something like this. He decided he wanted to make his friend EJ sad for a little while, so he made him read it to. But what's it like to read it as an adult? Let's check in...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
This is one of those books that has some delightful merit that we just bounced off of. It's an action-filled romp through an inventive world and maybe you just shouldn't listen to books like that like they're going out business. Either way, let's pick apart what didn't work for us!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
It's a big ol' finish line this week at JDRB. With this episode, we will have read all of the "critical path" Avatar books and comics that we intent to read (until these cool new Roku books come out...) So let's celebrate!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
An episode so nice we recorded it twice! But also, JUST KIDDING, this isn't nice at all. This is possibly the most spiteful, angry book we've ever read and we loved every single page of it. What if Medieval China was just as patriarchal and oppressive, but also had giant mechs that fed off of the energy of the male pilot's female concubine? That one sentence should be enough to get you to read this book, so I don't know what you're still doing here...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Early Reader books are a genre Matt and EJ have only lightly tapped into, and so far we're sticking to some reliable author/illustrators. Our most recent foray into this was the Elephant and Piggie books by Mo Willems, and this time we're checking out the Jack Books by Jon Klassen's favorite collaborator Mac Barnett! These have a pretty bold take on kid's lit because they feature a main character who is constantly up to no good! Is that okay?!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
CONTENT WARNING
This is a heavy episode folks. Elana K. Arnold held nothing back in her book What Girls Were Made Of, so much so that Matt even questioned if he was fit to record a podcast about it. But we came out the other side stronger and more aware of how to talk about this kind of stuff so join us on this important journey, won't you?!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We're gonna claim a handful of "endings" to our Avatar journey, and this is one of them! Gene Luen Yang and Gurihiru have taken us on some delightful journeys and this is the last comic we get to read from them!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We discovered this hidden gem of an independent writer. He goes by Dr. Seuss and though you may have never heard of him, he wrote a lot of books! We wanted to do our civic duty and shine a light on an unappreciated artist. Thank goodness we won't have to talk about weird race stuff...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
It's taken us a while, but we've finally finished our journey with Nnedi Okorafor! The series hasn't been concluded, but the most recent entry in the adventures of Sunny Nwazue, Akata Woman, was released 2022 and we'll wait as long as we must for whatever comes next. And with this entry, there's a lot of growing up to do!
We disappeared there for a little bit, but the Dads are back on track. What better way to bring this show back into the world than with our favorite thing: Avatar! We're nearing the end of our main arc of the Avatar graphic novels, so let's see how our latest entry compares to the rest of the series.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We missed last week due to a horrible move across country for Matt leaving him computerless for more time than he expected! But it was all worth the wait because we finally get to talk about the follow up to Nnedi Okorafor's Akata Witch!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Read books with your kids. It's fun. But boy is it so much easier and more fun when you have books like Mother Bruce by Ryan T. Higgins. Illustrations that evoke so much emotion, humor that actually works for all ages, and stories that are FUN to read. We've got a new favorite author/illustrator, folks...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Quick! More Avatar while no one is looking! This is a quick look at a shorter Avatar comic, but also we finally get to start talking about the new live action Avatar series. We've only watched a couple of episodes, and we'll be slowly watching over the next few Avatar comic episodes, so join us for the ride!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
One more! We're still putting off our Akata Warrior episode but we got our hands on the next set of Avatar graphic novels! This one is perhaps a less impressive entry than the first two, but honestly how is one supposed to compete with those in the first place? If anything, we get a nice filler episode that feels in line with the tone of the show itself!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Picture books! We're delaying out Akata Warrior episode a little bit and in the meantime we read a bunch of Olivia books by Ian Falconer. They're a pleasant little look at a precocious little pig and it's hard to say whether the titles of the books are ever even relevant to the story in the books...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We're back on that Avatar grind and galdarnit, they just keep bringing the hits. I'm actually not sure at this point why we didn't just start an Avatar podcast but it's beginning to feel like one!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We're coming full circle on our list of Caldecott winners of the last decade. Matthew Cordell is one of the last ones on our list and we've been excited to read more by him since we read Wolf in the Snow over the holidays. He's a beautiful illustrator that tells a wide range of stories! Is he our favorite?! I don't know!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
New series time! We put Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor on our list when we started the show and it took us entirely too long to finally get around to reading it. And spoiler alert, it's so good we're absolutely reading the entire trilogy as fast as possible.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We've watch the show and we've read the novels, but there's a huge swath of Avatar the Last Airbender universe we have left untapped, The Graphic Novels. We definitely didn't know what to expect but we should have higher hopes as Avatar never seems to disappoint. But when we started this series, we both started to wonder if this was the skippable bit of Avatar material and boy were we off base. Some truly stellar work is being done in these comics and we're not putting them down anytime soon.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We're catching up on a couple of recent Caldecott stragglers. Doug Salati is an illustrator who has worked with a number of different writers and the picture book he wrote himself, Hot Dog, won the 2023 Caldecott and boy do we agree with the committee on this one. Doug's work transports you to such specific, kind, casual worlds and we'd rather not leave.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We're back in Carlos Hernandez's wonderful Sal and Gabi universe which is actually infinite number of universes with infinite Sals and infinite Gabis and we must assume infinite EJs and Matts as well. The first book was a surprise hit for us and we want to see if the series can keep up the pace!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
New Year and that means it's time to make a change! And we've got a great idea for everyone: read When the World Runs Dry by Nancy Castaldo and then go get your representatives to take the water crisis more seriously! Thank goodness young adult books like this exist so that hopefully future generations can do a little bit better than the ones before them...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Today, Matt and EJ are the odd couple. Matt loves holidays, and EJ apparently holds no love in his heart for them. Can Matt convince EJ that this is a fun time of year through the power of picture books?
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
This guy has a lot of books! We recently discussed his series Elephant and Piggie, and we want to eventually cover the Pigeon books in depth, but today we're going to cover the grab bag of his other works!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We're celebrating 50 episodes and taking it as an opportunity to just smile for over 40 minutes. We get to talk about Bill Watterson's legendary run of the Calvin and Hobbes comic strip. One of the most influential comic strips ever made, Calvin and Hobbes has an evergreen appeal that we just hope new generations aren't going to miss it. Please give your kids Calvin and Hobbes books. You will fundamentally improve their lives...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We're a bit late to be doing something spooky, but Coraline by Neil Gaiman is an all-timer so it seemed fine to talk about in December! And we didn't just read this book. This time we have fully consumed Coraline in nearly every medium it has ever appeared. Come listen to a discussion about the differences between the book, audiobook, graphic novel, and movie!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
It's our first foray into Mo Willems! He's won more awards than almost any illustrator and he has multiple best selling series. We'll get to more of them eventually, but we wanted to start with the Elephant and Piggie series because both of our kids immediately gravitated towards these books and we couldn't stop reading them!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We've caught up to the last of F.C. Yee's books set in the Avatar: The Last Airbender universe and guess what? We still love it and him. Honestly at this point this books can't really fail either of us, so prepare your ears to listen to two joyful dads.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
It's picture book time! We've dabbled a bit in award winning picture books and along that journey something we've started to wonder is what do these awards really mean? We're learning a lot about this industry and so we wanted to take some time to take a closer look at the Caldecott award for picture book illustrations. We've been able to get a decent look at the last decade of the Caldecott and thought we'd try to put some puzzle pieces together about what kind of books usually earn this prestigious award.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
F.C. Yee recently released his final book set in the Avatar universe. This is a crime he has committed. His Avatar books are sublime and today we wanted to continue that series by reading it's third iteration, Dawn of Yangchen. We're introduced to a new Avatar in a different time period and surprise! It's a spy novel!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We're winding down from our Lemony Snicket adventure and EJ spent some time recently in a friendly local book shop where he was captivated by the cover of today's book, Mulysses. It's a graphic novel from Norwegian artist Øyvind Torseter and it straddles the line of even qualifying as young adult fiction, but it was in a kid's store so it counts!
To learn more about Dad Suggests and check out his blog, go to https://www.dadsuggests.com/
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We finished a major arc of the show by reading all of A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket. It's been a long journey and we felt like taking time to think on the series as a whole. And you bet your bottom dollar we decided to arbitrarily rank all of the books...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We've come a long way and yet it feels like we're just lost at sea...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We're almost done! Or are we done? So much happens in this book it's honestly hard to talk about. So here, at the 11th hour we're actually going to offer up a bit of a spoiler-free conversation about the Penultimate Peril. That's how bad we want you to just go out and read it for yourself.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Here's an odd little episode for you: EJ and Matt took a long road trip in August of 2023 and decided to record their road chat. This isn't a 30 minute episode about a book, it's an hour long conversation with a handful of tangents. Consider it a celebration of 40 JDRB episodes. We talk about growing up, our reading history, disc golf, poker, and being dads. We hope you enjoy it and sorry it sounds like we are in a car. It's only because we were.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We've been referencing this book for week's now as a supposed low point in the series, but it's been years since either of us have read it. Is it a boring, bottle episode of a book, or is there more deep its murky depths? Either way, it's uncharted territory for Matt from here on out!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Jon Klassen has a new book out and we're newly inducted Klassenites so we had to check it out. AND BOY WE WEREN'T PREPARED. It is stylistically beautiful, conceptually brilliant, and absolutely hilarious. And critically, we'll be revisiting this book in one year's time...so see you then!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
The adventure continues with Baudelaires all doing a bit of growing up! We get some big, heavy new themes in the 10th entry of the Series of Unfortunate Events and we couldn't be more excited to see how the story changes as our three protagonists mature and get a bit wiser.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
This week we unexpectedly returned to our "Road to Pratchett" mini-arc by reading the legendary fantasy novel from Ursula K. LeGuin, A Wizard of Earthsea. The best part is we each had wildly different reactions to the book. One of us listened to it and bounced off it and the other read it with our eyeballs and fell desperately in love...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We continue our journey through Lemony Snicket's escapades with a sleeper hit! Perhaps the silliest of all of the books is also the one that finally makes the world feel whole and unique and some important ground work is laid for the thickening mystery behind VFD and all it's past and present members.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We've been having a categorically dark and/or bad time on the show recently. Not with bad books but with SAD books, so we asked everyone to tell us about a happy, good time book. Well we were recommended Flora & Ulysses and I hate to report we did not have a good time... Let's talk about why this beloved book didn't quite work for us.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Our Series on a Series of Unfortunate Events continues in one of the perhaps most patently absurd stories in the set. Why are we at a hospital? How does no one know that's just a baby in a doctor's coat? We're really just going to get someone's head open in front of a crowd of people?
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
THIS EPISODE CONTAINS DISCUSSION ABOUT SUICIDE. PLEASE TAKE CARE WHEN LISTENING, ESPECIALLY AROUND CHILDREN
Matt found a book at the library with a fascinating structure and then it ruined his whole day. Thornhill is a horror in the truest sense of the word and analyzing what that means for children might take a bit of work...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
It's an exciting week because we start to really slow down with Lemony Snicket's sad adventure. We've been burning through the early books in the series mostly out of sheer excitement to get to this arc of it. Vile Village kicks off much bigger mysteries being established and the questions surrounding the VFD become the forefront of each book. So join us as we explore the rest of one of our favorite childhood series!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We've had this book on our list for a long time and we're finally ready to tackle the behemoth that is Watership Down. Or at least one of us is. Maybe Matt is a coward, or maybe it's just a very big book that Matt didn't appropriately make time for. Either way, EJ is here with all the love in the world for the biggest bunny book there is.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Yuyi Morales is one of those picture book author/illustrators that truly feels like an artist first. Her books are stunning to behold and that's before you even get into the stories and messages. She also tells captivating tales about love, family, immigration, the environment, and art itself. And sometimes, it's just a perfect book about a toddler luchador...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
EJ has had his heart ripped through a portal and smashed wide open. This book is a magical tale of empathy and care and go read it right now and what are you still doing here and sure listen to our show but just go read this book, okay?!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Our ongoing big project on JDRB is Matt and E.J's obsession with reliving Lemony Snicket's Series of Unfortunate Events. Today we barrel through the end of the "Guardian Arc" meaning it's time to talk about 3 young adult novels very quickly!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Our first attempt to cover picture books was Jon Scieszka's Cowboy and Octopus. Since then, we've learned we can squeeze a lot more books into a single episode, so it was high time we came back around to cover more works by this hilarious author!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We made a solemn vow last week. After getting excited for mediocre young adult fiction, we though it would be a good idea to return to where Just Dads Reading Books all began. I am sad to report this was not our best decision and for all of you Percy Jackson fans out there, I'm sorry. This guy just can't seem to win us over...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Matt and EJ went on a trip to beautiful Portland, Oregon and made sure to stop by the massive Powell's Books. While there, they encountered a shelf of books recommended BY CHILDREN and decided to pick the book with the best pitch. Seance Tea Party, recommended by Avi, is that book and it means we get our first excuse to check out a graphic novel for the show!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
It's time for a first for JDRB. We haven't properly tackled poetry yet, despite a phase of trying to read poems at the end of episodes. But we stumbled upon an absolute must read by Julia Alvarez and we can't stop talking about it...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We decided this week to read a stone cold classic and the book was so nice we recorded it twice. There's a first pass at this episode we recording that will now be lost to time, but never you worry because EJ and Matt are DADS which means we're used to telling the same jokes more than once. And besides, Holes rules and everyone knows it. You don't need us to tell you twice.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
Terry Pratchett is back! And this time we're reading his Masterpiece, according to Neil Gaiman. This is the first book in the "Death" based Discworld series and it absolutely earned it's legendary status. We reckon with it brilliant pacing, hilarious wordplay, and come to some conclusion about our ongoing "Road to Pratchett" arc.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
It's a picture book episode! This time we're tackling Writer/Illustrator Peter H. Reynolds who has a sharp focus on artist expression and trying to encourage and uplift kids. Some of it reads like motivational speaking, but when it works it works exceptionally well!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
On this special presentation of Just Sads Reading Books, Matt and EJ grapple with how to get your kids to read important books. Do our children care about Newberry medal winners, or is that just for us? Or is it all Captain Underpants?
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
What an exciting week for everyone. EJ read AND watched, for the first time in his life, one of Matt's favorite movies, Howl's Moving Castle. Matt had never read the book, so they're both entitled to a bit of whimsy, charm, and magic and it'd be great if you joined in!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
So today begins a project we've wanted to do for a long time. EJ and Matt both grew up on A Series of Unfortunate Events, and it's high time we relived it! We're starting really fast by burning through the first 3 books, The Bad Beginning, The Reptile Room, and The Wide Window, but we promise not every Lemony Snicket episode will be so many books at once. But let's see how the memory of these books, the Jim Carrey movie, and the recent Neil Patrick Harris series live up to a modern reread.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Music by Russian Baths: https://open.spotify.com/artist/07N9Lr8AIzUbDzjPXUXTLr?si=vegRwDLXSF-IpupxjuEPJQ
We missed our best friend in the whole world. We haven't seen what Timmy Failure is up to since episode 2 of the show and it was time to check in on our favorite Failure. This time: more plot, less polar bear...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
We're following up last week's heavy teen novel with a much lighter teen novel. IEitLoaC is a book about a girl with no arms. But more than that, it's like if Freaks and Geeks took place in an old western theme park.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
We found one! Today's book is a recent Science Fiction entry in the Young Adult category and I'll tell ya this: It does not hold back. We wondered aloud before whether sci-fi was at times too cerebral of a genre to be a mainstay in the world of young fiction, but The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera didn't get that memo. It visceral, authentic, and emotionally told and gets top marks from this show.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
It's time to dive into the deep end on our journey through children's fantasy books with Christopher Paolini's Eragon. It's a thick book about a fantasy word with magic and dragons, what more could you ask for?
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
We've got another week of PICTURE BOOKS! Last week was the patently fiction surrealism of David Wiesner and this week is a 180 degree turn into the non-fiction of Sophie Blackall. She covers a very broad range in the books she's written herself or illustrated for and we want to get a sense of what it's like to do heavy research for a children's book.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
It's picture book time! David Wiesner is a THREE TIME Caldecott winner and felt deeply nostalgic for these two millennials. Come exam wordless children's fiction with us and what it means to engage in books WITH your kid.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
This week we grabbed a book off the shelf with no research ahead of time. Root Magic is a recent release and the cover looked cool and lemme tell ya we lucked out. An amazing story about American history, family, and the horror of authority and difficulty in trusting others. Please check out Root Magic with us.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
We have a new quest on the show following our episode on Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett. We loved the humor of Pratchett's fantasy setting but we felt like a young reader would need more a baseline to enjoy the parody. So now we begin our quest for good, simplistic and impactful fantasy books for kids so that by the time they're 12 or so they are fully Primed for Pratchett.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Last week we checked out a single picture book. This week, we're attempting to evolve our format for picture books by evaluating the work of a single Author or Illustrator. In this case, BOTH! Jon Klassen is an award winning children's book creator whose works evoke wholly unique and specific humor and setting that we can't get enough of!
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
That's enough of that sophisticated Young Adult stuff. It's time to get into the REAL LITERATURE. That's right, this is a show about children's books and it's high time we actually talked about a picture book. We start with one of the most abstract, bizarre picture books either of us have ever encountered, Cowboy and Octopus. From the creator of The Stinky Cheese Man comes this fascinating lucid dream about friendship and acceptance? This one is a trip, y'all.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Your dads have never ventured into the Discworld of Terry Pratchett, and that's a real shame. So, for their first dive, they're going with book 1 of the City Watch series. It's a hilarious book that bring about some bigger questions about fantasy tropes and fantasy written for young people.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
We're back with more fawning over the world of Avatar and the words of F.C. Yee. This book is the conclusion (for now?) of Kyoshi's arc and builds a lot off of the first entry in this series. It is violent and complex and tough to say this even qualifies as a kids book. But it's set in a universe that was supposed to be for a kid's TV show, so I don't know what to tell you. We make the rules around here, okay?
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Things get a bit heavier today because we're talking about race, American history, slavery, and American education. We're a couple of dumb white dads that had the opportunity to read something that taught us something we probably should have learned more about 20 years ago. Hopefully our own stupidity is something we can help our daughters to avoid...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Okay, for this final part of our podcast launch we cheated a little bit. We both read the first Avatar novel a year or so ago but it's so good we wanted to check it out again in the context of this show. And it did not disappoint the second time. If you don't know much about the Avatar universe, hopefully this episode still serves as rationale for why all the cool kids are out there reading about the Earth Nation.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
Part two of our podcast launch is a total surprise to us! Neither of us had really heard of Timmy Failure (oh except for the part where Matt worked on the Disney adaptation of it for like a day) and it's humor and heart completely took us by surprise. Hopefully your kid likes references to Bob Dylan as much as you do...
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com
This series premiere features E.J. Sanders and Matt Martens grappling with the first entry in Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson books. What began as an intent to possibly check out the whole series instantly changes the scope of this podcast as they realize maybe they don't think the PJ books are that cool?
This isn't a show about being negative, but we are looking for the books we want to read with our kids, so join us as we track down all the stories that will make our kids look smart and cool and fun.
If you want to chat with us and recommend books or tell us your reaction to book we've covered on the show, please email us at justdadsreadingbooks@gmail.com