Ravenous Readers: Recent Episodes

SopoReads Book Club

Welcome to "Ravenous Readers", a podcast made by the SopoReads Book Club, where we chat about reading and how different books make us better people.

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Welcome to our first Poetry Chat! Our resident poetry guru Mr. Norris dives into the work of Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith. 

For more reading based on this episode check out the following:

Life on Mars by Tracy K. Smith

Wade in the Water by Tracy K. Smith 

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Our school library media specialist, Miss Tara Foor, walks us through a three step process on creating a reading goal for 2021. Grab a pen and paper to jot down your thoughts and ideas for your goals as you listen to this workshop episode! 

Step 1: Develop a question or goal for your reading... ie) "Is this a book that I could read and have a conversation about?"

Step 2: Find the answers that will start helping you achieve your goal... ie) "Do I know someone who can recommend a book to me and I can chat with them later about it?"

Step 3: Apply your question and answer to your current habits.. ie) Text your friend who reads to ask what their favorite book is and start looking for a copy!

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Today we're chatting with staff members from The Anchor, Hope Reynolds and Ellie Brown, and yearbook adviser Sam Hanley about the importance of reading the news since everybody has a story that needs to be heard. Check out this episode as to how and why learning more about reading the news can help you become a better informed person.

Happy listening!

For further reading and information on topics mentioned in this episode, check out:

The New York Times (Links to an external site.)

The Washington Post (Links to an external site.)

Time Magazine (Links to an external site.)

FOR TEACHERS:  National Association for Media Literacy Education (NAMLE) Resources

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In this episode, one of our SopoReads Book Club members and reporters from The Journal, Phoebe Mawi and Miss Foor chat with author Liz Lawson about her new book, The Lucky Ones shortly after it debuted this past April, how it's never too late to pursue your dreams of writing (regardless of how old you are) and the idea of finding hope through trauma.

Happy listening!

For further reading and information on topics mentioned in this episode, check out:

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

A List of Cages by Robin Roe

All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

One of Us is Lying by Karen McManus

Looking for Alaska by John Green

Girl in Pieces by Kathleen Glasgow

Sadie by Courtney Summers

Wilder Girls by Rory Powers

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In this episode, we're chatting with author Erin Hahn about her new book, More Than Maybe, as well having a debate about our favorite Taylor Swift song. 

Happy listening!

For further reading and information on topics mentioned in this episode, check out:

You'd Be Mine by Erin Hahn

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In this episode, Mr. Luers from Social Studies and Miss Foor chat with Dr. Martha S. Jones, a history professor at The Johns Hopkins University about slavery and civil rights in her new book, Birthright Citizen.

Happy listening!

For further reading and information on topics mentioned in this episode, check out:

Birthright Citizen: A History of Race and Rights in Antebellum America by Dr. Martha S. Jones

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What is the "true crime" genre and why do readers find it so addicting? In this episode of "Ravenous Readers", our Media Specialist, Miss Foor chats with English teachers Mrs. Wyatt, Ms. Kohne and Ms. Breeden about the mystery of the true crime genre is and why it's so appealing.

Happy listening!

For further reading and information on topics mentioned in this episode, check out:

The 57 Bus by Dashka Slater

In Cold Blood by Truman Capote

Knives Out film

"Lessons from Death Row Inmates" TED Talk by David Dow

Missoula: Rape and Murder in a College Town by Jon Krakauer

The Nickel Boys by Colson Whitehead

Sadie by Courtney Summers... we recommend the audiobook!!

Serial, Season 3 podcast : https://serialpodcast.org/season-three/1/a-bar-fight-walks-into-the-justice-center

The Other Side of the River by Alex Kotlowitz

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Every few episodes, we'll be doing a Reader Spotlight, where we interview a Southport Cardinal about their identity as a reader. To kick us off, we're chatting with Mrs. Reedy, a CIP teacher and Southport Alum who encourages readers to mix up their reading mediums and to read more audiobooks.

Happy listening!

Additional books that Mrs. Reedy mentions in this podcast episode:

Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire 

Girl in the Blue Coat by Monica Hesse 

Mindy McGinnis... pretty much any of her books!

Not Even Bones by Rebecca Schaeffer 

Sadie by Courtney Summers

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Our first author chat episode of "Ravenous Readers" features National Book Award winner Randy Ribay who has written the popular Young Adult novels The Patron Saint of Nothing, After the Shot Drops and An Infinite Number of Parallel Universes . Tune is as we chat with him about books, why we should read the YA genre and how to focus on things when you feel like you just can't.

Happy listening!

For further reading and information on topics mentioned in this episode, check out:

America is in the Heart by Carlos Bulosan

Broken Earth Trilogy by N. K. Jemison

Cane by Jean Toomer

The Glass Hotel by Emily St. John Mandel

The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros

Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds

Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel

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We're kicking off our new podcast with an episode of chatting with Johnson County Public Library's Teen Librarian, Erin Cataldi, about one of the first major bestsellers of 2020,  American Dirt by Jeanine Cummins.

Happy listening!

For further information on topics  mentioned in this podcast episode, check out:

A Million Little Pieces by James Frey 

The Book of Rosy: A Mother's Story of Separation at the Border by Rosarya Pablo Cruz 

The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros