First off - love the hair. :) The Loneliness Files sounds so good and also devastating. I'm an RN (I no longer work patient care) but I can't tell you how many times, I was the only one at the patient's beside when they were leaving this earth. Most of these patients were older/elder but it's no less sad. In The Dream House - so good. I recently read What My Bones Know by Stephanie Foo. I thought it was very good. I'm not the biggest non-fiction reader but I'm trying to bet better.

These all sound good, and I'm drawn to the magical language of others and water on fire.

First off, I love your channel. It is right up my alley. I have picked up many great books this year from your channel and newsletter. Memoirs are not really my thing but I already own The Magical Language of Others and it is on my Nov tbr now. I think Walking the Ojibwe path looks like a must-read. Thanks again for all the work you put into this endeavor!

I LOVE a good memoir!!! Here are some of my lesser known favs - Post-Traumatic Church Syndrome by Reba Riley A Thousand Miles to Freedom by Eunsun Kim Path to the Stars: My Journey from Girl Scout to Rocket Scientist by Sylvia Acevedo The Bigamist by Mary Turner Thomson Tales of a Female Nomad by Rita Golden Gelman

Thank you ! I love your reviews.

I recently read “In Memory of Memory” (Maria Stepanova, tr Sasha Dugdale, New Directions) and it was one of the most incredible books I’ve ever read. Super innovative and beautiful blend of memoir, history, and art criticism. You have got to read The Story Game! I really got a lot out of it and have a lot to say about the structure. I’m also very interested in Water on Fire and Sinkhole. The description you gave of Loneliness Files was chilling and yet made me want to read it….

Everyone should Definitely subscribe to the newsletter!

Love these indie reviews. Tortoise has put out some good ones! My Half Orange, The Birthparents, and Delirium Vitae coming out soon sounds like it's got wheels..

Yay! I love the shelves!

Yeah...I am not w you on this. I love reading novellas, especially after reading an 800 page book. Kind of a palette cleanser. I read these books in a day and they have stayed w me.

I’m with you Sarah, in fact I think the reason I like to read at least three to four books at the same time is so I can spend time with them over a longer period. I think those ‘read a book in a day’ videos are geared towards people trying to achieve their Goodreads goal 😉The world thing made me think of Mathias Énard’s, Tell Them of Battles, Kings and Elephants, a world I was immersed in and I didn’t want to leave but I think the idea that short books are quick to get through can also be a wrong one. Often they aren’t propelled by plot but are often character heavy, dense in the writing and deep or dark in the themes. I always think they are going to take me less time than they do. Intense is a great adjective for many short books, Minor Detail by Adania Shibli and Die, My Love by Ariana Harwicz are two that come to mind where I had to put them down frequently. I’m currently reading the 125 page Panthers at the Museum of Fire and it will take me a week to finish, it’s just not a book you could speed through. So yes, people can read anyway they want but short does not mean, or should mean, speedy. Kudos to your director, a Scorsese in the making!

Wow! You've gone next level with this video by bringing in this #1 Dinosaur Director. Nice job! I appreciate the points made here. I will occasionally finish a shorter audiobook in a day, but I typically don't have that much time to dedicate, which is just fine. If some can or want to finish a book in a day, that is great for them but not for me.

I love everything about this video 😊. I used to be a binge-reader, but in the last few years I've come to realize how much more I appreciate stories when I take my time with them. There's also a certain delight in putting down a book you're loving so that you can look forward to the next time you'll pick it up (if that makes any sense).

I have read a book in a day, but will probably not pick up another book straight after finishing. I like to let in wander around my mind after I have finished it.

Hey everyone! FYI I had an entire section that I cut out. It was about page turners. The video was just getting way too long. But I feel very strongly that "page turners" in any genre probably SHOULD be read quickly. That's their genius! If they are a good plot driven page turner, they make you want to read them quickly. So unless there is a reason you are studying a page turner (maybe you want to write one of your own?), I think its great to read them quickly. Anyway, just an additional thought that didn't quite make it into the video. XOXO -- Sarah

Excellent video! Such important take aways on reading a book too fast. I do not have the luxury either of having the uninterrupted time to do so, but even if I did, these points you make should deter one to do so.

“The dinosaur is the best director!” Visitation is intense and so full of images that resonate. Ernaux’s books (well two I have read) feel so much like memoir that it’s hard for me to think about them as fiction. I have some memories of Blood Res, but I didn’t read it in a day. So, you may be right.

“The dinosaur is the best director!” Visitation is intense and so full of images that resonate. Ernaux’s books (well two I have read) feel so much like memoir that it’s hard for me to think about them as fiction. Ooh and The Long Form is so good and fits thematically. Well done.

The conversations with your director made me so happy. (I miss that age. My resident director is 14, and they really do think they can govern my life!) Of your list I’ve only read Grief is the Thing with Feathers. I own My Death but had completely forgotten about it, so thanks for the reminder, I now want to read it immediately! Along with all the rest, you’re a fantastic salesman. I set a StoryGraph reading goal of 55 books, usually go over that but this has been a bad year (health-wise) so I’ve only read 40, and feel stupidly guilty about it. But adding some of these might help get me up there. ( I promise I’ll spend more than a day with each. 😝)

Love the shelves! I had to laugh about the mountains of books. My mountains of books are staying until I get more shelves...they may be the only thing that lights a fire under my husband!

It seems to me like your son had all the right ideas, I love the creepy bookshelf! And I think it's very considerate that he had you put all your notebooks together and thought about writing utensils too! It looks so great! love the halloween decor too

Beautiful book shelves! We did a big cleanout this summer, and I was able to make room for 2 tall, skinny Ikea bookshelves downstairs, and it makes me so happy when I pass by them. Who needs a couch anyway?🤷‍♀️

I'm especially impressed that you let your kid and your spouse each have a shelf … but stuck behind the big chair. 😂👍

The bookshelves look great! Yay!

The shelves look great! I know it was a struggle to share a few of those shelves, at least it would have been for me. 😅

Congrats on the shelves!

Yay for bookshelves!!

Living the dream! 📚 Love the new shelves, love that butterscotch chair! Happy reading. :)

I love this video! So informative and my mind is spinning now on research I need to do on these Publishing companies.

This is too funny. I just finished The Bulgarian Training Manual by Ruth Bonapace. Published by Clash Books. I hadn’t heard of Clash Books and now I’ve heard of it twice. If I heard of Bulgarian Training Manuel from you Thank You, and I enjoyed it as well as Sister Golden Calf which I really enjoyed. This was going to a party and seeing a lot of old friends and then saying who are those other people I don’t think I’m familiar with them

i need horse girl fever so badly! another cool press to add to my list. i love these roundups :) thanks!

And @pageturnerswithkatja just mentioned that Tilted Axis has a crowdgunder going since they are in precarious straits--help them out if you can, friends!

I came across your channel sometime around when you were talking about the Republic of Consciousness Prize this year. It opened my eyes to the fact that I (and I suspect most people) don't pay attention to who the publisher is when they read a book. (Something I hope I'm rectifying.) I manage a book club and I've chosen small and independent publishers as the theme for our 2025 book club. I had already chosen 22 publishers (2 per month for more of a choice), but now I think I should check out some of these to add in. I'm still catching up with your older videos and there's some great information.

Every time I think I’m up to date on indie and small press publishers Sarah you introduce me to more! 😉I just feel I get access to a a bigger part of the world with these publishers who aren’t just catering to what’s popular right now. Thank you for always championing them!

Thank you so much for sharing these publishers! I am off to explore their websites.

📚❤️

Hi Sarah! I am wondering if Book*hug Press is on your radar. Their About page is pretty straightforward but they publish excellent books, works of literary fiction by diverse authors. Just in case I wanted to mention this Canadian gem.

This festival looks like so much fun! Great haul of unique books.

Thank you!

What a great listi read Fowl Eulogies after a previous recommendations. Book buying bans don’t work my wife and I buy to many and enable each other. So it’s easier to ban purse and golf hats purchases. Still not perfect but closer

It's only a matter of time before my family stage an intervention and I too have a book buying ban.

Chicago is so beautiful. Cool book festival. I think you exercised remarkable control.

oh my gosh I love your channel and your focus on small presses + translated lit. I've read both carnality and I who have never known men and I highly recommend both <3 subscribed for sure

I'M starting at the bottom of the list, with Zone 3, ooh, a lit mag! :D

It's so confusing! When some publishers take on distributing duties, it becomes opaque who the players are...I thought it was just Ingram now!

I loved I who have never known men. The cover of Carnality is fantastic. Ohhh, I'm glad you liked Tree Doctor.