podcast – Bellwether Friends: Recent Episodes
Carolyn & Anna
In this episode, we discuss our pandemic coping mechanism, watching horror movies and television! Please note we recorded this in October 2020. In spite of how it sounds, we were not quarantined at opposite ends of a long tunnel during the recording. CW: frank discussion of various elements of horror.
In this episode (ABBAsode) we invited @renatasnacks to rank the contents of the 1992 greatest hits release ABBA Gold with us, discussing the relative merits of each track and sharing our personal histories with ABBA. Spoiler: We totally went to Sweden about it. Links ABBA Greatest Hits ABBA Gold Columbia House Hannah Montana Kesha Lady […]
Somewhat in the spirit of Extra Hot Great's television Canon, your hosts each assembled a list of favorite movies and agreed to make a universal Bellwether Friends list out of intersecting titles. In this episode, we reveal our picks to one another. Click here for the joint list! sounds of paper rustling
Join us as we discuss the most recent winner of our What To Watch Next TV Bracket: Pose! Then we exhaustively review the shows we’re watching, shows we’ve lost, shows we might consider adding, and shows we’ve put on unintentional hiatus. Links Billy Porter Instagram (video) Paris is Burning Pose The Good Place The Daily […]
In this episode, we talk about all the books we got excited about at BookExpo way back in May. Many are already available for you to buy from your local independent bookstore or borrow from your library!
In this episode, we talk to author and librarian emeritus Kelly Jensen about mental health and how it impacts our ability to read for work and pleasure, and what we can do to get out of reading slumps (if we want to).
In this episode, we discuss all things (European) opera with noted cataloger @marccold! Content warning for sexual assault and murder (no thanks to Don Giovanni). Links Mozart: Marriage of Figaro Overture Episode 83 with @Tuphlos Great Courses: Operas of Mozart, How To Listen To and Understand Opera Dr. Robert Greenberg Seattle Opera Puccini: Tosca New […]
In this episode, we talk about the first-run movies we've seen since our last Movie Advisory effort in episode 95. This episode covers October 2018 through April 2019.
In this episode, we discuss fairies with author friend and known fairy aficionado Stephanie Burgis! Including some discussion of what we define as a member of the fey, how to get rid of an earworm, and all the things you should be reading and watching. Stephanie’s website: Thornbound The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart The […]
In this episode, we work our way through our own version of March Madness: our third annual What to Watch Next TV Bracket! At the end of this episode, you will get to vote on what TV series we will watch and discuss next from among four categories: Comedy, Crime, Drama, and SFF. Previous brackets […]
In this episode, we discuss our favorite romantic comedies that were not on the list we covered in Episode 103. More happy endings for lesbian couples! The Sandra Bullock sidebar! Aunt Lynne's picks!
In this episode, we review and comment on a ratings-based Rotten Tomatoes list of the 150 best romantic comedies of all time! Tune in for many opinions about romance, comedy, and the intersection of the two in film.
In this episode, we talk about our favorite awards shows and what we like about them, then share our top Oscar picks.
In this episode, we tackle Anna's lifelong obsession, Robin Hood, in all his (her? its? their?) incarnations and formats. Thwip!
Can you believe there have been a hundred episodes of Bellwether Friends? Well, there haven't. THIS is the one hundredth episode! Carolyn, Margaret, Sophie, and Ally joined us to discuss our inspiration and beloved novel Bellwether, by our beloved and inspiring Connie Willis, complete with all the digressions you've come to love over our past 99 episodes, readalikes, and other suggestions!
In this episode, we look back over a year of movies, television, music, experiences, and books. We did the same for 2017 in Episode 77, 2016 in Episode 53, and 2015 in Episode 27. Links Movies Black Panther Crazy Rich Asians Ocean’s 8 To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before The Spy Who Dumped Me […]
In this episode, we discuss the ocean and her presence in movies, books, music, television, and art, in partial response to Episode 94, when our guests were not as pro-sea as Alene might have liked. The #1 takeaway from this episode is that boat safety is very important to Alene. Also, WHAT is the DEAL […]
In this episode, we discuss our favorite animated heartthrobs with friend of the podcast Sarah. Come for the strangely attractive cartoon foxes, stay for the romance recommendations! Links HuffPost: 27 Cartoon Characters Who Gave Us The Hots As Kids BuzzFeed: 38 Characters That Were Oddly Hot Even Though They Were Animated Robin Hood Dimitri (Anastasia) […]
We visited New York City to hear from a variety of publishers about their upcoming titles, and we’re here to share some of our favorites, as well as likely candidates for library collections, against a backdrop of rustling paper!
In this episode, we talk about the 25 first-run movies we've seen since our last movie advisory session, Episode 86. Our extensive movie viewing has been brought to you by MoviePass (RIP) and Ladies in Suits.
In this episode, we discuss sharks in pop culture with Worst Best Friends Renata and Becca, including deep dives (see what we did there?) into The Meg and Jaws as well as our ideal shark movie plots--call us, Hollywood! We were also recently on Worst Bestsellers to discuss Hope Never Dies.
Here’s a brief interview with a special guest about the movie Jaws while we prepare an episode with much more shark content!
In this episode, we talk basketball with Cecily of The Riverdale Rag and Deb, sharing our personal basketball histories and favorite teams, coaches, and players. When we recorded the episode, the winner of this year's WNBA championship was still in doubt, but since then the STORM have claimed the title, to the delight of many.
In this episode, jumping off our presentation at the Massachusetts Library Association conference in May, we discuss inclusive romance novels we've read and are looking forward to reading. The official genre of Bellwether Friends is Historical Romance. This episode is brought to you by Fake Dating with a side of Getting It Out Of Our System.
In this episode, we continue what we began in Episode 90 and bring you Alene’s hard pass. Content warning for discussion of various unpleasant topics, primarily suicide. Apologies for the poor sound quality, we didn’t feel like we would make it through this one again if we tried to re-record it. Links National Suicide Prevention Lifeline: […]
The first of two episodes exploring the things that we don’t like to encounter in our books, television, movies, and more. Content warning for discussion of various unpleasant topics, primarily cancer. Links Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr Death Be Not Proud by John Gunther Spoilers, Sweetie! A Monster Calls (book) The […]
We’re bringing you our top picks for the fall and early 2019 for you and your library patrons, based on our trips to recent conferences. This is part two of a two-part episode, featuring titles from Hachette, Penguin Random House, Sourcebooks, Quirk Books, Soho Press, Pegasus, Sterling, Ingram, and more! Catch up with part one here.
We’re bringing you our top picks for the fall and early 2019 for you and your library patrons, based on our trips to recent conferences. This is part one of a two-part episode, featuring titles from WW Norton, Simon & Schuster, New York Review Books, HarperCollins, Harlequin, Workman, Macmillan, and Bloomsbury! Links Library Journal: Exploring […]
Welcome back! In this episode, we discuss two runners up from episode 81’s What To Watch Next TV Bracket II: Sports Night and Black Lightning. So much Sorkin! So many powers! Links Massachusetts Library Association conference sessions BookExpo (#bookexpo2018) Episode 81: What To Watch Next TV Bracket II Episode 85: The Good Place The New […]
In this episode, we discuss the movies we have seen since our last movie advisory episode (Episode 77), skipping those we already discussed on other episodes (Episode 81: Oscar Thoughts). We subscribed to MoviePass and it increased our volume of movies seen, but not the overall quality of movies in general. Light spoilers and content […]
In this episode, we discuss our viewing of The Good Place, winner of our #episode81 What to Watch Next TV Bracket. Spoiler alert! We talk about a lot of details of both seasons of The Good Place, which has some twists and surprises you might not want spoiled. Links Vulture: Our 7 Biggest Questions After […]
Not at the same time! In preparation for Avengers: Infinity War, we’ve been catching up on all the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies (that’s everything except the X-Men and Deadpool and most Spider-Mans, we think?) we missed because of our unwillingness to watch stories about dude superheroes in the theater. We need to watch in the […]
Spring is here! In this episode, we discuss some of our pod culture favorites! Musical Obsessions Anna: “Come On Nature” by Proclaimers Alene: “Nearly Lost You” by Screaming Trees Obsessions Alene: The Man Who Planted Trees Anna: Lines Composed a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey, On Revisiting the Banks of the Wye during a Tour. […]
In this episode, we follow up Episode 82 with Classical Music Advisory, bringing back Robin @Tuphlos Bradford (previously our guest on Episode 36) to share her expertise. We learned a lot about Robin’s dark musical past in the process, including her love for the cello and her secret years as a flutist?! Links Leonard Bernstein/New […]
In this episode, we talk about our favorite classical pieces and our recent live symphony experiences.
It's time for March Madness and time for another What to Watch Next TV Bracket! We're also going to tell you what we think about top Oscar categories. Vote in the poll at the bottom of this page to tell us what to watch next!
"A truly great library contains something in it to offend everyone." ~Jo Godwin
...and a moderately good librarian podcast should aspire to the same!
In this episode, we brought in author and podcaster Annie Cardi (@anniecardi) discuss things everyone likes that we don't. Yes, it was covered in Episode 9, but that was back in December 2014, so here's an update!
We brought in writing implement expert Cecily Walker (@skeskali) of the Riverdale Rag podcast to talk about one of our favorite things: pens! Warning: if you are at all inclined to rash internet purchases, Cecily makes buying pens and ink sound very appealing.
We brought in holiday romance expert Cory (and her mom) to help us sift through the offerings from the 2017 season. We talked about diversity, Lifetime vs. Hallmark, nude nail polish, royalty, adorable moppets, and more, using our Holiday Romance Movie Checklist as a baseline. See our spreadsheet of the 38 movies the Bellwether Friends team watched this season here.
We give our takes on the theatrical releases we watched in the back half of 2017, then talk about our bests of the past year before plunging into what we're looking forward to in the new year! There are some spoilers, but we rarely make much sense. Movie Advisory 2017A was episode 66!
In this episode, we recap the 17 horror movies we've watched since we last checked in, and what we Learned About Ourselves in the process of watching them. Content warning: we couldn't resist spoilers for some of the movies, and there is a brief discussion of sexual assault in The Evil Dead.
We visited New York City to hear from a variety of publishers about their upcoming titles, and we're here to share some of our favorites, as well as likely candidates for library collections, against a backdrop of rustling paper! (See episodes 48 and 64 for previous Book Buzz content.)
All the checking in this episode as we discuss the progress we've made on watching horror movies since Episode 73 and also our plans for watching and unpacking holiday romance movies (see also Episode 56) for a future episode. If you want to follow along with us, we'll be using the hashtag #BFHolidayRomance on Twitter and Facebook and using our Holiday Romance Movie Checklist
In this episode, Alene tries to find horror films that Anna will consent to watch with her. We discuss our history and preferences regarding horror movies, with a brief foray into horror in other media. See Episode Six for earlier thoughts related to this topic. Links Paste Magazine: The 100 Best Horror Movies of All […]
For this episode, we brought in Jennie Rothschild to give strong opinions on the current state of children’s television and reminisce about a few old favorites. Including a theme song quiz! Bucking tradition, we start with the quiz, which ends at 19:00 if you want to skip ahead. Links Bananas in Pyjamas Saturday Morning Slow […]
In this episode, we discuss the reality TV shows we watched after our Episode 70 conversation with @bookavore. Sadly, no cookies were made as a result. Links Unreal Season 1 Episodes 1–2 Chopped Season 27 Episode 4 Great British Baking Show Series 5 Episodes 1-4 So You Think You Can Dance Season 14 “Top Six […]
In this episode, we head into largely uncharted waters to discuss reality TV with Stephanie Anderson aka @bookavore. SPOILER ALERT we talk about the Rachel Lindsay season of The Bachelorette! Links American Idol Hoarders Jersey Shore Pretty Wild The Bling Ring (movie, book [London Review of Books review], article) phone message recording (comedy) The Bachelorette Real […]
For this show we pulled in author (and secret famous librarian) Kelly Maher to talk about her TV true crime experience. Links Kathy Reichs The New Detectives FBI Files Discovery Investigation Discovery American Greed 48 Hours Dateline 20/20 Bill Kurtis Cold Case Files Pat Kiernan The Blotter Presents podcast American Greed Episode 70: The Prisoner […]
In this episode, we talk all things Sherlock Holmes with expert readers’ advisor Ally (also of #girlgang fame), running with our collective lady supremacy ideas wherever possible. Links Sherlock Holmes The Sherlock Holmes Museum Basil Rathbone: The Hound of the Baskervilles, The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, etc Jeremy Brett: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, The […]
We invited Rebecca (our guest on Episode 49: Musicals) to return, along with Amanda from Episode 54: Song Covers, to talk about Stephen Sondheim and Hamilton, fill in some gaps from our previous conversations, and take another action-packed quiz that tested the depths of their musical theater knowledge. Links Hamilton Bring It On In the […]
Our wrap-up of all the first-run movies we saw in the first half of 2017, and what we’re looking forward to for the rest of the year. With special guest Giant Bug. Links Previous Movie Advisory episodes: 35, 53 Baywatch Pamela Anderson David Hasselhoff Beauty and the Beast Fifty Shades Darker Guardians of the Galaxy […]
We got our favorite movie explicator, Renata, on board to discuss the latest entry in the Fast and the Furious franchise: F8 of the Furious (which is what it should have been called). But first we watched all seven previous movies! Hashtag completist. On the way, we learned some very important lessons about ourselves and […]
Have you ever wondered “what do they do all day when they’re not recording podcasts, those Bellwether Friends? I know I should trust librarians, but why?” We sat down for an interview about collection development (the art of budgeting for, buying, maintaining, and eventually disposing of books and other materials) with Helene Williams, Senior Lecturer […]
In this episode, we tell you about a ton of the books we learned about at BookExpo last week! Prepare to have your TBR grow completely beyond management. Links: Library Journal Day of Dialog #ljdod17 #BookExpo HarperCollins: The Woman in the Window by A. J. Finn (January 2018) The Last Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine […]
In this episode, we talk to author and jewelry designer (and former librarian) Kelly Jones about her books Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer and Murder, Magic, and What We Wore. Also personal styling tips, such as: Dress the beautiful woman that you are Try on everything before you buy it Thrift shop for success […]
For this episode we discussed our obsession with Converse Chuck Taylor All-Stars (and other Converse shoes, and shoes in general) in conjunction with our month-long project with @melissazd, #chuckstravaganza. We are wearing our Chucks every day in May to celebrate the fact that shoes don’t have to be brown or black! Topics include where to […]
We joined forces with Margaret and Sophie of Two Bossy Dames to take a closer look at the 1951 mystery classic The Daughter of Time by Josephine Tey. Much cleverness, and many readalikes and watchalikes, ensued. PLUS: A Young Olds discussion of Harry Styles and his debut single. Links The Two Bossy Dames wall clock […]
We discuss the winner of our What to Watch Next Bracket challenge: Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. Links “Where’s the Bathroom?” “I Could if I Wanted To” “I’m So Good at Yoga” Glee Musicals with Rebecca (Episode 49) Girl Groups Galore with Margaret (Episode 34) Paste: All 39 Crazy Ex-Girlfriend Songs, Ranked Glen Weldon: Updated! The 100% Definitive, […]
Wolverine expert Renata returns to recap the first two (confusingly named) Wolverine movies featuring Hugh Jackman as an appetizer for our spoiler-filled discussion of the new movie Logan. You might not want to watch the movies when we’re through, but you’ll definitely want to watch movies with Renata. Apologies in advance for some […]
Dragons, dragons, dragons! In this episode, we talk about dragon books, movies, television, games, and more with author Stephanie Burgis, including her book The Dragon With A Chocolate Heart! And a short discussion of . . . Jurassic Park? Links The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell (audiobooks narrated […]
Sometimes when you’re having trouble figuring out how to narrow down your choices, you do a bracket. Well, you do that if you’re Anna. Alene likes to ask everyone she knows what they think. In this episode, we do both. Links Slash HTGAWM Wig Scene You Can’t Touch My Hair by Phoebe Robinson […]
We’ve spent our time over the past few months watching loads of Hallmark and Lifetime Christmas movies — ALL FOR YOU. Links The Worst Bestsellers: Episode 36–The Mistletoe Promise The Federalist: Here’s The Hallmark Christmas Movie Party Game You’ve Been Waiting For The Fandomentals: Top Ten Weirdly Common Hallmark Christmas Movie Tropes Yahoo! […]
For this episode, we brought in small medium at large Kaite Stover (Twitter, Instagram) to tell us all about tarot. By the end, even skeptic Anna was convinced. Links Tarot (card meanings) Decks Katie’s preferred: Robin Wood Housewives Tarot: Tarot of the Witches (James Bond Tarot): Ghetto Tarot: Gilded Reverie Lenormand: Amanda Palmer Tarot Alice Tarot […]
In this episode, we talked about cover songs, because Hamilton Mixtape. We brought in @AmandaStretch, a librarian and musicologist, all the way from Japan to lend our conversation gravitas. Also, we made a playlist! Links The Atlantic: The Hamilton Mixtape, a Love Letter to a Love Story The Hollywood Reporter: Lin-Manuel Miranda Teases […]
In this episode, we talk about movies we’ve seen since our last movie advisory (episode 35), share our picks for best of 2016, and squeal over what we’re looking forward to in 2017. Links Movie Advisory Love and Friendship Finding Dory From The Washington Post: How Finding Dory and Finding Nemo Deal Beautifully With […]
At the intersection of pop culture and fingernails, it’s fandom nail polish! We brought in polish expert Angie and nail wrap aficionado Renata (of Worst Bestsellers fame) to help Anna make sense of it all. Plus: Nail Polish Advisory! Links Glossary! Darling Diva NerdLacquer Dollish Polish (clearance bin) Literary Lacquers Excelsior Jamberry nail wraps […]
We have a lot of thoughts about the Gilmore Girls! Paula (@Nerdista) joined us to complain lovingly about the most recent episodes. Links Mental Floss: 22 Things You Might Not Know About Gilmore Girls 20 Future Stars Who Appeared On Gilmore Girls Washington Post: Rory Gilmore Is A Monster Autostraddle: ‘Gilmore Girls’ Doubles Down […]
We made it to fifty episodes! In this very special post-election installment of Bellwether Friends, we talked to founding Friend Carolyn about comforting pop culture (and food) to consume when we’re trying to recharge our batteries. Via Two Bossy Dames, “A post specifically for white women from a white woman” Code Switch, “A Muslim and […]
In this epic episode, we discussed musicals with musical theater major Rebecca for nearly two hours! There were some differences of opinion (cough Sondheim cough) but we all parted as friends after a musical quiz! Links International Delight Peppermint Mocha Mary Poppins West Side Story The Sound of Music Camelot My Fair Lady […]
In this episode, we bring you our picks from the publisher book buzz we attended in October 2016. Fiction! A surprising amount of nonfiction! Plus our usual obsessions. Prepare to be interested in some books! Links: #aaplibrarianbookbuzz Publishers on Twitter (a list) Our publishing colleagues (sign up for their newsletters!): W. W. Norton, Melville House, Hachette, Simon […]
We talked with our friend Paula (aka @Nerdista) to talk about a variety of hot topics and burning questions related to audiobooks. Anna had some trouble managing with twice the normal number of Alenes. Links Bangs “And the Audie Goes To…” Library Journal article More from Anna (2010) National Library Service for the […]
In this episode, we discuss Take My Wife (starring Cameron Esposito and Rhea Butcher) with @amydieg of @jointhegirlgang. The jury is still out as to which of us is butcher. Links: Take My Wife seeso Cameron Esposito Rhea Butcher Food in movies Same Sex Symbol Wham Bam Pow Ricky Carmona Fu Yuanhui Ali Wong Marriage […]
Shayera Tangri joined us from the other coast to discuss funny books, movies, television, and other humorous pop culture. Much pun was had by all. BuzzFeed: 21 Puns BuzzFeed: Clever Jokes Punderdome O. Henry Pun-Off World Championships A Chocolate Moose for Dinner by Fred Gwynne Bennet Cerf Silver Woven in my Hair by Shirley Rousseau […]
In this episode we discuss Star Trek (TV and movie iterations) and the organizational tactic/life-wrangling practice known as the bullet journal. Perhaps you’ve heard of it? Links Star Trek Memory Alpha Wiki @picardtips Star Trek Beyond Eddie Izzard on Star Trek Star Trek Discovery (coming in 2017) Eight Space Operas Written by Women Star Trek Official […]
Just in time for the Closing Ceremonies, we were joined by Anna’s sister (@semisponge) to discuss Olympics past and present, uniform fashion, rooting hierarchies, and more! Links Katarina Witt Kristi Yamaguchi Beach Volleyball @shotdiva Fiji wins first Olympic gold Singapore wins first Olympic gold Puerto Rico wins first Olympic gold No Olympics GIFs Oksana Chusovitina […]
For this episode, we took advantage of a visit from Amy Diegelman (aka @amydieg aka half of #jointhegirlgang aka WTF is America aka Panels contributor) to watch Firefly and Deadpool, plus spend a morning at the local arcade. Firefly fans be warned: Anna doesn’t like it much. She looks forward to hearing from you on […]
For this episode, we talked with Cory Eckert (aka @helenstwin aka Joint Chief of Storytime Underground) for a discussion on historical romance tropes, types, and favorites. We apologize in advance for sound quality issues that we had during recording. Links Sarah MacLean’s Recommended List of Romance Novels Lace by Shirley Conran Smart Bitches, Trashy Books […]
For this episode, we watched the 1944 classics Arsenic and Old Lace and Gaslight. After a brief digression into the mysterious ways of straight people, we introduced a new segment: The TBR Challenge! Links Arsenic and Old Lace Cary Grant Celeste Holm/Priscilla Lane Boris Karloff Raymond Massey Peter Lorre Edward Everett Horton Proof play/film Gaslight […]
In this Especially Long Episode, we bring you a discussion of Jane Austen’s best work (come at us), Persuasion, featuring Margaret and Sophie of Two Bossy Dames and Ally of the Girl Gang. The discussion includes some diving into the gay subtext, some trips down memory lane, and some heated pros and cons of different […]
For this episode we brought in outside X-Perts Kait and Renata of the podcast Worst Bestellers. There might be some spoilers for the plot of the new movie X-Men: Apocalypse, but it will be hard to find them in our peripatetic conversation about all things X. We promise you might not come out of it feeling more confused about […]
This week, we were joined by both members of the #girlgang to discuss a shared passion: the character of Phryne Fisher and all the mysteries she solves, people she helps, and young men she…er, becomes acquainted with. Featuring an in-depth discussion of the season two episode “Blood at the Wheel” and also: Mac. Links Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries […]
In this episode, we wax nostalgic about fantasy series of yore with Robin Bradford (aka @Tuphlos). Well, Anna and Robin wax while Alene wonders what she’s gotten herself into. Then we talk about what makes a good book cover and what makes a bad one, with a few examples. Feel free to send us your […]
In this episode, we talk about movies we’ve seen in the last nine months and preview what we’re looking forward to (or not) in the 2016 summer movie season. Plus: Anna has finally boarded the Hamilton train. Links Deadpool Why Deadpool’s Prostitute Love Interest is More Heroic and Subversive than He is The Boss My […]
In this episode, we had Margaret aka @MrsFridayNext back to talk girl groups (both classic and more modern) in a belated companion piece to our boy band episode. This included not one but two quizzes created by Quizmaster Helgagrace. We hope you enjoy listening along! Links: Dreamgirls “The Real Dreamgirls: How Girl Groups Changed American […]
In this episode, we took a deep dive into the 80s with the movie Electric Dreams (1984), segueing into a broader discussion of artificial intelligence in pop culture with our special guest, Josie (@papertronica)! There was some singing. Links Lenny von Dohlen Virginia Madsen Bud Cort Short Circuit American Dreamer 12:01 2001: A Space Odyssey […]
For this episode, we brought in Podcast Expert (according to Bellwether Friends) Amy to give us some tips, tricks, and recommendations for other podcasts. Yes! There are other podcasts–we were also surprised. Then we played a rousing round of Slash for your entertainment. Links Extra Hot Great Valentin & The Widow Call Your Girlfriend Judge John […]
In this episode, we are joined by @semisponge (aka Anna’s parents’ other daughter) to discuss To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis. Which is a great book! We also dig in to the topic of video games with Kristina’s expert help. Links Connie Willis Hugo Award Nebula Award Three Men In A Boat by Jerome […]
Dear Listeners, It is a truth universally acknowledged that a librarian in want of a new book will pounce upon any that promise to be epistolary in nature. Join us for a discussion of epistolary novels with #jointhegirlgang‘s Ally. We promise a very charming discussion! Yours in admiration, BF Show notes are here.
In this episode, Anna and her special guests talk about Star Wars, Legos, Star Wars Legos, and Fun Facts about lightning. Links How bb-8 works: Lego Nexo Knights Neko Atsume #colorourcollections Weather ABC: An Alphabet Book by Blake Hoena SPQR: A History of Ancient Rome by Mary Beard Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen by Lois […]
In this episode, Anna and #NumberOneFan @surlyspice talk about pop culture they’ve encountered from countries that don’t use English as their primary language. Show notes here.
In this episode, Anna and Non-Librarian Angie discuss their decades-old obsession with The X-Files, plus a few other tidbits, including the many faces of Stony. Show notes here.
The 25 Greatest Christmas Albums of All Time, according to Rolling Stone. The 50 Worst Christmas Albums of All Time, according to BuzzFeed. Note: There is at least one album that is on both lists. Also, Anna knows it’s a BNL/Sarah M cover of “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” and “We Three Kings,” she swears. […]
After three months away, we are back to discuss Hamilton (one of us is an expert and one is not) and discuss some of our highlights for 2015. And make an important announcement. Thanks to all our fans for your patience and support. Show notes here.
We at Bellwether Friends believe in provided a QUALITY PRODUCT for our listeners. With that in mind, we are taking a brief hiatus to recharge, regroup, and refocus. We will miss you terribly, but please know we will be back soon with renewed energy.
We are finally ready to discuss Stephen King’s IT! Or are we? Find out in our latest episode, which features an interview with a very special guest. Also: everyone seems to be going back to school, so we discuss our favorite teachers and favorite (and least favorite) schools. Feel free to share yours in the […]
On our previous visit to the posh desert island, we chose the books we would want with us. This time, we're talking movies!
Twenty-five episodes! We’re celebrating by bingeing on summer movies and talking about pop culture from our home states: Utah and Arizona. It’s summer! Woooo! Tweet us @bellwetherfrnds with your best celebratory gifs! Show notes here.
In this episode, Anna and Carolyn delve deep into the world of Magic Mike (both Magic Mike XXL and Magic Mike Original Flavor) and revisit the topic of celebrity crushes in exhaustive detail. Show notes here.
During this episode, Anna and Carolyn talk about the latest Pixar release, Inside Out, as well as answering listener questions. Everything you ever wanted to know about us, all wrapped up in one tasty episode. Show notes here.
For this episode, we had special guest Amy Diegelman (@amydieg) of #girlgang (@jointhegirlgang) and Panels (@heypanels) with us to talk about graphic novels in libraries in general and Y: The Last Man in particular! Show notes here.
This week, Anna reported in on her experience at BEA (aka BookExpo America) and did her worst to booktalk some of the books she learned about in New York City! Then we discussed our first encounter with the show Leverage, and were both very happy about Fun Home–the book and the show. Show notes here.
This week, Anna and Carolyn talk about their first music purchases and concerts, and Pitch Perfect 2. Show notes here.
This week, we invited each other to watch TV episodes from shows we hadn’t seen before, with shocking results! It’s TV Advisory! Show notes here. As promised, our musical obsession Spotify playlist! Do you have a musical obsession right now? Let us know and we’ll add the song!
We had a very special guest this episode: Dolly aka @loather aka one half of the Withdrawn podcasting team (@withdrawntweets) talked with us about serial killers and mysteries in general. And . . . Starbucks? Surprisingly, we did not talk about her star cats. Show notes here.
We took a break from our various nostalgia tours to talk about some current television shows. Each of us had watched the entirety of one show and the other had watched at least a few episodes. Warning: some spoilers and discussion of sexual assault. Show notes here.
In this episode, Anna took the wheel after reading Amy’s post “Comics Aren’t For Girls.” We tackled comic strips, webcomics, comic books, and graphic novels in our usual rambling and spontaneous fashion. Show notes here.
For this episode, we took a much closer look at a subject that we’ve touched on a few times before: the animal known as the “Boy Band.” DISCLAIMER: We know that there’s no British boy band named “Take Five,” we really do. Let’s blame Robbie Williams or something. We also took a look at what […]
Before we taped our LIVE show, we had our studio audience (some of which came in the middle of the process) take a quiz from the book Feminine Lost: Why Most Women are Male by Jennifer Granger. The quiz is entitled “So Just How Feminine or Masculine Are You?” Thanks to our friends on the […]
We are back from our LIVE show and answering a few more listener-submitted questions. Ally wanted us to talk about “classics” and Katie wanted to know what to give her white male children to diversify their reading experiences. Carolyn says a classic book is something she won’t want to read again, but a classic movie […]
For lucky episode thirteen, we took advantage of actually being in the same time and place to have our very first LIVE show! Our special guest was Margaret Willison, aka @MrsFridayNext of Two Bossy Dames and Pop Culture Happy Hour fame. Between breaks in mutual admiration, we also answered some audience questions. Show notes here.
In this episode, we tackle two listener questions. First, we are pretty miserable at recommending good binge-watching practices. Then, we tackle (hee) the question of sports, zeroing in on the uniforms with laser-like precision. Thanks for the questions, @sophiebiblio and @surlyspice!
Anna convinces Carolyn to complete a People Magazine crossword puzzle with her…over the Internet. Happy New Year, listeners! Regular sized episodes of BWF return on January 15.
Introducing our best of 2014 lists, which are both arbitrary and silly (as you might have suspected)! New Year’s resolutions? We should go to more concerts. We should keep better track of things. Show notes here.
This episode we catch up on where we are with It so far, Carolyn’s experience watching a third season episode of the Gilmore Girls with zero prior knowledge. Then we tackle @anneheathen‘s question about how you handle recommendations that you don’t really want to follow through on and tackle the question of entertainment while traveling. […]
In this episode, we dive deeper into the topic of re-reading, re-watching, and otherwise revisiting pop culture, which led naturally into the question of sequels--thanks, @younglibrarian!--only a few of which are more popular than the original properties!
In this episode we field two questions from you (thanks, Cory and Amy!) about the pop culture we loved as kids--and how well it has aged--and how becoming parents has changed our perspective on things. We mention a million things in the show, most linked below.
For our sixth episode, we turned to a convenient national obsession: HALLOWEEN! Warning: meandering conversation ahead.
In episode five, we explore the question of fanfiction and our experiences with it. We range far and wide into history, Harry Potter, namesquishes, and whether or not it's OK to ship real people.
In this episode, we backtrack to the question of how we define pop culture, then talk about whether you can still enjoy someone's work once you find out something unsavory about them. And we still don't think opera is (current) pop culture.
In our second episode, we tackle questions of pop culture acquisition and its logical counterpart: disillusion and disenchantment that leads to bitter the end of a pop culture relationship. Or something like that.