

Poured Over
Barnes & Noble
Poured Over is a show for readers who pore over details, obsess over sentences and ideas and stories and characters; readers who ask a lot of questions, just like Poured Over's host, Miwa Messer, a career bookseller who's always reading. Follow us here for surprising riffs, candid conversations, a few laughs, and lots of great book recommendations from big name authors and authors on their way to being big names. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional bonus episodes on Saturdays).
Episodes
Mentioned books

Mar 31, 2026 • 1h 7min
Yann Martel on SON OF NOBODY
Son of Nobody by Yann Martel is an imaginative retelling of the Trojan War from the bestselling author of Life of Pi. Yann joins us to talk about the Trojan War, studying the classics, writing epic poetry, structure, Greek mythology, storytelling and more with cohost Brenda Allison. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Brenda Allison and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Son of Nobody by Yann Martel Life of Pi by Yann Martel The Iliad by Homer, translated by Stephen Mitchell The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller The Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant by Ulysses S. Grant Margo's Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison The Divine Comedy: The Inferno, The Purgatorio, and The Paradiso by Dante Alighieri, translated by John Ciardi The Tartar Steppe by Dino Buzzati Waiting for Godot: : A Tragicomedy in Two Acts by Samuel Beckett The Iliad by Homer, translated by Emily Wilson Featured Books (TBR Top Off) Son of Nobody by Yann Martel What We Can Know by Ian McEwan Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr

Mar 28, 2026 • 45min
Kristen Arnett on STOP ME IF YOU'VE HEARD THIS ONE
Stop Me If You've Heard This One by Kristen Arnett is a heartfelt and hilarious romp through Central Florida following an unlikely protagonist: a clown working the birthday circuit. Kristen joins us to talk about the polarization of clowns, following your creative intuition, the tourism economy, art, friendship, Florida, third spaces and more with cohost Isabelle McConville. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Isabelle McConville and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Stop Me If You've Heard This One by Kristen Arnett Mostly Dead Things by Kristen Arnett With Teeth by Kristen Arnett It by Stephen King Brawler: Stories by Lauren Groff Alligator Tears: A Memoir in Essays by Edgar Gomez Whidbey by T Kira Madden Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls by T Kira Madden State of Paradise by Laura van den Berg

Mar 26, 2026 • 54min
Amal El-Mohtar on SEASONS OF GLASS AND IRON
Seasons of Glass and Iron by Amal El-Mohtar features her award-winning folktales that invite readers into fantastic new worlds. Amal joins us to talk about Dungeons & Dragons, creating characters, long form vs short form writing, the life of the internet, creativity, birds and more with cohost Isabelle McConville. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Isabelle McConville and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Seasons of Glass and Iron: Stories by Amal El-Mohtar The River Has Roots by Amal El-Mohtar This is How You Lose the Time War by Max Gladstone and Amal El-Mohtar The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien Travel Light by Naomi Mitchison There Is No Antimemetics Division by qntm Jade City by Fonda Lee The Last Contract of Isako by Fonda Lee Metal from Heaven by August Clarke

Mar 24, 2026 • 40min
Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney on LAKE EFFECT
Lake Effect by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney is a witty and wry story about family, marriage—and happiness. Cynthia joined us live at The Grove to talk about the 1970s, women's agency, revisiting classic novels, Rochester and more with host Miwa Messer. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Lake Effect by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney The Nest by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney Good Company by Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney The Great American Novel by Philip Roth Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen Middlemarch by George Eliot North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner Steppenwolf by Hermann Hesse Intruder in the Dust by William Faulkner

Mar 21, 2026 • 53min
Tom Junod on IN THE DAYS OF MY YOUTH I WAS TOLD WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A MAN
In the Days of My Youth I Was Told What It Means to Be a Man by Tom Junod is a poignant reflection of fathers, sons and the complex bonds of family. Tom joins us to talk about growing up on Long Island, Mad Men, writing about his father, masculinity, Mr. Rogers and more with host Miwa Messer. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): In the Days of My Youth I Was Told What It Means to Be a Man by Tom Junod

Mar 19, 2026 • 53min
Andy Weir on PROJECT HAIL MARY
Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir is a tale of impending catastrophe, survival and interstellar adventure. Andy joins us to talk about his books being adapted into films, astrophysics, placing his characters in tricky situations, world building, The Beatles and more with cohost Chris Gillespie. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Chris Gillespie and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir The Martian by Andy Weir A City on Mars: Can We Settle Space, Should We Settle Space, and Have We Really Thought This Through? by Kelly and Zach Weinersmith The Time Machine by H.G. Wells Featured Books (TBR Top Off) Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell When the Moon Hits Your Eye by John Scalzi

Mar 17, 2026 • 51min
Jung Yun on ALL THE WORLD CAN HOLD
All the World Can Hold by Jung Yun is a smart, sharp and surprising novel following three passengers aboard a Bermuda-bound cruise ship. Jung joins us to talk about The Love Boat, character, the aftermath of 9/11, capturing history through art, the early internet, technology and more with host Miwa Messer. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): All the World Can Hold by Jung Yun Shelter by Jung Yun O Beautiful by Jung Yun The Wapshot Chronicle by John Cheever On Morrison by Namwali Serpell Blue Ruin by Hari Kunzru

Mar 14, 2026 • 46min
Karan Mahajan on THE COMPLEX
The Complex by Karan Mahajan is a captivating family drama that moves between the US and India during a time of political transformation. Karan joins us to talk about Russian novels, the American Dream, New Delhi, connection, memory vs nostalgia, exile and more with host Miwa Messer. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): The Complex by Karan Mahajan The Association of Small Bombs by Karan Mahajan The Loneliness of Sonia and Sunny by Kiran Desai Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy Paradise Lost by John Milton Rejection by Tony Tulathimutte Malgudi Days by R.K. Narayan The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy This Is Not That Dawn by Yashpal The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing Ravelstein by Saul Bellow Homeland Elegies by Ayad Akhtar The Adventures of Augie March by Saul Bellow

Mar 12, 2026 • 49min
T Kira Madden on WHIDBEY
Whidbey by T Kira Madden is a gripping story of three women and the complex ties that bind them. T Kira joins us to talk about life-changing moments, balancing fact and fiction, immersive research, interactive reading, truth, storytelling and more with cohost Jenna Seery. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Jenna Seery and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): Whidbey by T Kira Madden Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls by T Kira Madden Geek Love by Katherine Dunn Cruddy by Lynda Barry The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith Trust Exercise by Susan Choi

Mar 11, 2026 • 52min
Caitlin Breeze on THE FOX HUNT
The Fox Hunt by Caitlin Breeze follows students at an elite university concealing a dark and deadly secret. Caitlin joins us to talk about the publishing process, attending Cambridge, patriarchy within academia, tradition, the gothic, fairy tales and more with cohost Isabelle McConville. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Isabelle McConville and mixed by Harry Liang. New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app. Featured Books (Episode): The Fox Hunt by Caitlin Breeze Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carroll Alanna: The First Adventure by Tamora Pierce Metamorphoses: Translated by Stephanie McCarter Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë


