FictionMatters

Books That Matter: Julie Buntin on THE STONE DIARIES by Carol Shields

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit fictionmatters.substack.com Welcome to Books That Matter. In this series, I ask writers to share a book tha

Books That Matter: Laura McGrath on THE WIFE by Meg Wolitzer

Welcome to Books That Matter. In this series, I’ll speak with writers I admire to learn about their lives as readers and deep dive into a book that matters to them. Laur

Books That Matter: Sarah Wang on THE TOPEKA SCHOOL by Ben Lerner

Welcome to the FictionMatters Podcast. I’m your host Sara Hildreth and this is Books That Matter. In this series, I’ll speak with writers I admire to learn about their li

Books That Matter: Shannon Sanders on JAZZ by Toni Morrison

Welcome to the FictionMatters Podcast. I’m your host Sara Hildreth and this is Books That Matter. In this series, I’ll speak with writers I admire to learn about their li

🎉📚Best Books of 2026 (so far) with Liz Hein

Welcome to the FictionMatters podcast. Today I’m talking about the best books of the year (so far) with my co-host Liz Hein. This year’s reading has been strange for me,

Books That Matter: Rob Franklin on CRUSH by Richard Siken

Welcome to the FictionMatters Podcast. I’m your host Sara Hildreth and this is Books That Matter. In this series, I’ll speak with writers I admire to learn about their li

Books That Matter: Nora Lange on A LIFE'S WORK by Rachel Cusk

Welcome to the FictionMatters Podcast; this is Books That Matter. In this series, I’ll speak with writers I admire to learn about their lives as readers and deep dive int

Olympic Figure Skating Debrief

Your girls are back! This Olympics was too dramatic to keep our commentary in the group chat so we’re back on mic to debrief it all. We chat through every event sharing o

Books That Matter: Alli Hoff Kosik on PREP by Curtis Sittenfeld

Welcome to the FictionMatters Podcast. This is Books That Matter. In this series, I’ll talk with writers about reading to learn about their tastes, their habits, and the

The Best Stories in Olympic Figure Skating with Layne Fargo and Denne Michele Norris

The 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan have begun. The torch is lit and the figure skating team event is underway. As you may know, I’m a former figure skater, and I love the

Books That Matter: A. Natasha Joukovsky on EVELINA by Frances Burney

Welcome to Books That Matter. Today, I’m joined by A. Natasha Joukovsky. a. natasha joukovsky is the author of the novels The Portrait of a Mirror and Medium Rare (fort

Books That Matter: Anika Jade Levy on THE CATCHER IN THE RYE by J.D. Salinger

Welcome to Books That Matters. Today, I’m joined by Anika Jade Levy. Anika is a writer from Colorado, a founding editor of Forever Magazine, and an instructor in the Writ

The FictionMatters Best Books of 2025

This episode needs no introduction. Today Liz and I are share our favorite books of the year--all new releases. This was a weird year in books, but we each managed to com

Books That Matter: Jade Chang on THE WOMAN WARRIOR by Maxine Hong Kingston

Welcome to the FictionMatters Podcast. I’m your host Sara Hildreth and this is Books That Matter. In this series, I’ll speak with writers I admire to learn about their li

Books That Matter: Rickey Fayne on SONG OF SOLOMON by Toni Morrison

Welcome to the FictionMatters Podcast; this is Books That Matter. In this series, I’ll speak with writers I admire to learn about their lives as readers and deep dive int

Reading without pressure: a little book therapy for the end of the year

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit fictionmatters.substack.com/subscribe

Books That Matter: Emily Adrian on LOITERING WITH INTENT by Muriel Spark

Welcome to the Fiction Matters podcast. This is Books That Matter, an author interview series where we’ll get to know writers as readers and talk about the books that mat

Best Books of 2025 (so far)

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit fictionmatters.substack.com It’s time! Liz Hein and I are here with our annual Best Books of the Year (so f

Summer Reading Guide Chat with Sara Hildreth

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit fictionmatters.substack.com/subscribe

Celebrating Ordinary Time with Annie B. Jones

In today’s special podcast episode, I’m joined by independent bookstore owner, podcaster, and debut author Annie B. Jones. Annie has been a favorite follow and a trusted