- Chantal W.
- Thursday, March 26, 2020
Richland Library staff have curated a list of their favorite podcasts and a few that we have heard really good things about. Happy Listening! #LearnFreely
BOOKS AND LITERATURE 📚
Readers unite behind these podcasts about books, literature and words...
- The Book Review "The world's top authors and critics join host Pamela Paul and editors at The New York Times Book Review to talk about the week's top books, what we're reading and what's going on in the literary world."
- Lexicon Valley Phillip W. calls this podcast a "fascinating podcast with John McWhorter of Columbia University about language/word origins and how word usage changes over time." May not be particularly bookish, but if you love to read you also typically love words! Give it a try.
- Moby Dick Energy According to Jennifer N. this podcast is "a chapter-by-chapter podcast about Moby Dick by writer Talia Lavin. I'm reading along (having never read Moby Dick) and am surprised that the book is so enjoyable!" If you decide to begin a quest for the white whale 🐳 check out OverDrive for copies.
- Myths and Legends "Jason Weiser tells stories from myths, legends, and folklore that have shaped cultures throughout history. Some, like the stories of Aladdin, King Arthur, and Hercules are stories you think you know, but with surprising origins. Others are stories you might not have heard, but really should. All the stories are sourced from world folklore, but retold for modern ears. These are stories of wizards, knights, Vikings, dragons, princesses, and kings from the time when the world beyond the map was a dangerous and wonderful place."
- The New Yorker: Fiction "A monthly reading and conversation with the New Yorker fiction editor Deborah Treisman."
- Overdue "Overdue is a podcast about the books you've been meaning to read. Join Andrew and Craig each week as they tackle a new title from their backlog. Classic literature, obscure plays, goofy murder mysteries: they'll read it all, one overdue book at a time."
- Whoa!mance: Romance, Feminism, and Ourselves "Whoa!mance is a weekly podcast about Romance Novels and Ourselves. No seriously. Join Morgan and Isabeau every Wednesday as they unearth the weirdest bits and the sexiest parts of a new romance novel each week."
COMEDY
Listen up if you need a laugh...
- Best Friends with Nicole Byer and Sasheer Zamata "Gayle & Oprah. Bonnie & Clyde. Nicole & Sasheer. Enter the pantheon of best friendship. When you’re forced to change your number, are sick of being single, or want to take a pole-dancing class, you’re going to need a best friend...and if you don’t, you can still have this podcast."
- Citation Needed "The podcast where we choose a subject, read a single Wikipedia article about it, and pretend we’re experts. Because this is the internet, and that’s how it works now."
- Comedy Bang Bang: The Podcast "Top rated show Comedy Bang Bang is a raucous podcast featuring banter between host Scott Aukerman (“Mr. Show”, Producer of “Between Two Ferns”) and his hilarious friends. You never know what to expect but do expect to be entertained."
- My Brother, My Brother, and Me "Free advice from three of the world's most qualified, most related experts: Justin, Travis and Griffin McElroy. For one-half to three-quarters of an hour every Monday, we tell people how to live their lives, because we're obviously doing such a great job of it so far."
- Office Hours with Tim Heidecker This is a favorite podcast of Jennifer T. - "Office Hours Live is a weekly-ish live call-in show which broadcasts on YouTube and goes up as a podcast shortly after. Tim Heidecker, along with co-hosts Doug Lussenhop and Vic Berger, take calls from around the world to talk about just about anything under the sun. Every episode you'll hear sound bite battles, drops galore, and Tim's rants and riffs on politics, music, his kids and whatever else is happening in his life (and the lives of our beloved callers). Special guests have included Fred Armisen, John C. Reilly, A.D. Miles, Weyesblood, Jon Glaser, Ezra Koenig and more!"
CURRENT EVENTS, NEWS, AND POLITICS 📰
If you like current events and politics, cast your vote here...
- The Daily "This is what the news should sound like. The biggest stories of our time, told by the best journalists in the world. Hosted by Michael Barbaro. Twenty minutes a day, five days a week, ready by 6 a.m."
- FiveThirtyEight Politics "Nate Silver and the FiveThirtyEight team cover the latest in politics, tracking the issues and "game-changers" every week."
- Left, Right & Center "Left, Right & Center is KCRW’s weekly civilized yet provocative confrontation over politics, policy and pop culture."
- Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! NPR's weekly current events quiz. Have a laugh and test your news knowledge while figuring out what's real and what we've made up. Megan M. says it is hilarious 😆- so if you need a laugh give it a try.
- Why Is This Happening? With Chris Hayes Every week "Chris Hayes asks the big questions that keep him up at night. How do we make sense of this unprecedented moment in world history? Why is this (all) happening? This podcast starts to answer these questions. Writers, experts, and thinkers who are also trying to get to the bottom of them join Chris to break it all down and help him get a better night’s rest."
- With Friends Like These "Political journalist and cultural critic Ana Marie Cox sits down with liberals, conservatives, activists, former white supremacists, and others for conversations that explores our differences. It’s not about finding common ground; it’s about learning to see the world through someone else’s eyes. New episodes every Friday."
HEALTH AND FITNESS
Take these on your walk or run...
- Dishing Up Nutrition "Learn the connection between what you eat and how you feel. Licensed nutritionists and dietitians explain how food affects your energy, focus, moods and overall health."
- Happier with Gretchen Rubin "Gretchen Rubin is HAPPIER, and she wants you to be happier too. The #1 bestselling author of The Happiness Project and Better Than Before gets more personal than ever as she brings her practical, manageable advice about happiness and good habits to this lively, thought-provoking podcast. Gretchen’s cohost and guinea pig is her younger sister, Elizabeth Craft, a TV writer and producer living in Los Angeles, who (lovingly) refers to Gretchen as her happiness bully. "
- Mind Pump: Raw Fitness Truth "MindPump exposes the RAW TRUTH about health, fitness, nutrition and more... Hosts Sal Di Stefano, Adam Schafer & Justin Andrews pull back the curtain on the mythology, snake oil and pseudo-science that pervades the fitness industry and present science-backed solutions that result in increased muscular development and performance while simultaneously emphasizing health. No fitness institution or fitness "truth" is safe from their quick wit and over 40 years of combined experience in the fitness industry."
- The Model Health Show "The Model Health Show is a fun, entertaining, and enlightening look at health and fitness. No subject is off limits here! World-renown author and nutritionist Shawn Stevenson breaks down complex health issues and makes them easy to understand and overcome. Whether it's weight loss, chronic fatigue, heart disease, diet, exercise, sex, hormones, sleep problems, or countless other health topics, the insights you get here will help you transform your health and live your best life ever."
- Trained Per Thomas M. "Nike's fitness podcast draws from a wide pool of workout experts, including athletes, doctors, and professional trainers, to provide a holistic view of just about every aspect of fitness. Episode topics include diet and nutrition, workout regiments, setting goals, motivation, overcoming setbacks, and proper rest. Interviews always include practical takeaways for average listeners who might not be chasing Olympic medals and world records."
HISTORY
Who says history can't be fun...
- The British History Podcast "The BHP is a chronological retelling of the history of Britain with a particular focus upon the lives of the people. You won’t find a dry recounting of dates and battles here, but instead you’ll learn about who these people were and how their desires, fears, and flaws shaped the histories of England, Scotland, and Wales."
- The History Chicks "Two women. Half the population. Several thousand years of history. About an hour."
- Lore "Lore is an award-winning, critically-acclaimed podcast about true life scary stories. Lore exposes the darker side of history, exploring the creatures, people, and places of our wildest nightmares. Because sometimes the truth is more frightening than fiction."
- Pessimist's Archive Phillip W. calls this podcast "a funny, over-the-top history podcast about moral panics in reaction to change, and especially cultural innovations and technology. Each episode contains a sizable amount of re-enactment from primary source materials. Past episodes on the teddy bear and the waltz stand out in my memory."
- Throughline "The past is never past. Every headline has a history. Join us every week as we go back in time to understand the present. These are stories you can feel and sounds you can see from the moments that shaped our world."
- You Must Remember This According to Jennifer N. this podcast has "stories of old Hollywood (though newer episodes are moving into more modern times...). Later seasons are themed- I really enjoyed the Charles Manson season, and the latest season ('Make Me Over') focuses on Hollywood and the beauty industry."
- You're Wrong About This podcast description says "Mike and Sarah are journalists obsessed with the past. Every week they reconsider an event or person or trend that's been miscast in the public imagination." Per Jennifer N. "this is probably my favorite podcast at the moment. The episodes on the DC sniper have been stunning... there's so much of that story that I never knew. Same with 'The 'Ebonics' Controversy' - really, really eye-opening."
POP CULTURE (MOVIES, MUSIC, & TV)
We love to talk with customers and each other about the books were reading, the movies and TV shows were watching, and the music were listening to - check out our favorites...
- How Did This Get Made? Paul Scheer, Jason Mantzoukas, and June Diane Raphael watch terrible movies 🎞️ and dissect them. It's not snarky for the snarky's sake- there's a genuine appreciation of 'bad' movies, and there are lots of great guest hosts (usually comedians, actors, or writers). - Jennifer N.
- Japan Top 10 According to Thomas M. "the team of disc jockeys at Japan Top 10 run the show like an informative radio hour of Japanese musicians. Their most regular format is counting down a given month's top ten most popular songs, but there's plenty of variety in other episodes, whether it's band interviews, themed lists (songs about food / from certain areas / eras / genres), or personal recommendations. I like this show for the trivia shared after each song - in addition to not knowing what to expect from any episode, there's always a bonus nugget of information delivered in a professional style that gives the feeling of a well-curated experience."
- Pop Mom! Per Thomas M. "Bonnie and John Teti are a mother-son duo who chat about a different slice of pop culture in each episode, usually a recent TV show or movie. John is a professional critic, while his mother is the real hoot. Most episodes involve his savvy setup followed by her laundry list of reactions and a grade for the thing they experienced."
- The Read "Join bloggers Kid Fury and Crissle for their weekly podcast covering hip-hop and pop culture's most trying stars. Throwing shade and spilling tea with a flippant and humorous attitude, no star is safe from Fury and Crissle unless their name is Beyoncé. (Or Blue Ivy.) As transplants to New York City (Kid Fury from Miami and Crissle from Oklahoma City), The Read also serves as an on-air therapy session for two friends trying to adjust to life (and rats) in the big city."
- R U Talkin R.E.M. RE: Me? "Adam Scott (Parks and Recreation) and Scott Aukerman (Comedy Bang! Bang!) come together as superfan Adam Scott Aukerman to discuss the music and impact of the band R.E.M. Through an album by album analysis, listen to these friends break down everything and nothing about the band. This is good rock n’ roll, uh, music. This is the podcast formerly known as U Talkin' U2 To Me?" Jennifer says it's "hilarious 😆, and a fun reason to revisit REM's catalog. 💿
- Song Exploder "Song Exploder is a podcast where musicians take apart their songs, and piece by piece, tell the story of how they were made. Each episode features an artist discussing a song of theirs, breaking down the sounds and ideas that went into the writing and recording. Hosted and produced by Hrishikesh Hirway."
READ ME A STORY
Story time for Adults sounds like fun to us. How about you?
- Chilling Tales for Dark Nights: A Horror Anthology and Scary Stories Series Podcast "Chilling Tales for Dark Nights is a horror fiction anthology podcast, with each weekly episode featuring several creepy tales from talented authors, brought to life by professional voice actors, and accompanied by SFX and music."
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LeVar Burton Reads "In every episode, host LeVar Burton invites you to take a break from your daily life, and dive into a great story. LeVar’s narration blends with gorgeous soundscapes to bring stories by Neil Gaiman, Haruki Murakami, Octavia Butler, Ray Bradbury and more to life. So, if you’re ready, let’s take a deep breath..."
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The Other Stories | Sci-Fi, Horror, Thriller, WTF Stories "These aren't the stories your mother used to tell you ... no, these are The Other Stories. The Other Stories is a weekly short story podcast. A modern take on The Twilight Zone, Tales From The Crypt, or The Outer Limits. Sci-Fi, Horror, Thriller, WTF stories delivered right to your podcast feed every Monday morning."
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Selected Shorts "From WNYC, New York Public Radio and Symphony Space comes PRI's Selected Shorts recorded live in New York City's Peter Norton Symphony Space. The podcast features the best of stars of stage and screen reading short works of fiction to a live audience."
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The Truth "THE TRUTH makes movies for your ears. They're short stories that are sometimes dark, sometimes funny, and always intriguing. Every story is different, but they all take you to unexpected places using only sound."
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Tumanbay "An ambitious drama series which blends politics and adventure, Tumanbay is a story of upheaval, revolution and romance set in a corrupt fictional city. Broadcast over 3 series, this epic saga is inspired by the Mamluk slave-dynasty of Egypt, Gregor (Rufus Wright) - Master of the Palace Guard - is charged by Sultan Al-Ghuri (Raad Rawi) with the task of rooting out an insurgence and crushing it."
SCIENCE
Let your science geek out...
- Invisibilia "Unseeable forces control human behavior and shape our ideas, beliefs, and assumptions. Invisibilia—Latin for invisible things—fuses narrative storytelling with science that will make you see your own life differently."
- Ologies with Alie Ward "Volcanoes. Trees. Drunk butterflies. Mars missions. Slug sex. Death. Beauty standards. Anxiety busters. Beer science. Bee drama. Take away a pocket full of science knowledge and charming, bizarre stories about what fuels these professional -ologists' obsessions. Humorist and science correspondent Alie Ward asks smart people stupid questions and the answers might change your life."
- Science Friday "Science Friday, as heard on PRI, is a weekly discussion of the latest news in science, technology, health, and the environment hosted by Ira Flatow. Ira interviews scientists, authors, and policymakers, and listeners can call in and ask questions as well."
- Science Rules! With Bill Nye "Bill Nye is on a mission to change the world— one phone call at a time. He’ll tackle your curliest questions on just about anything in the universe. Give him a call! Perhaps you’ve wondered: Should I stop eating cheeseburgers to combat climate change? How often should I really be washing my pillowcase? Can I harvest energy from all those static-electricity shocks I get in the winter? With a little help from his co-host Corey S. Powell, field experts, and special celebrity guests, Bill will answer those questions and convince you that science rules!"
- Science Vs "There are a lot of fads, blogs and strong opinions, but then there’s SCIENCE. Science Vs is the show from Gimlet Media that finds out what’s fact, what’s not, and what’s somewhere in between. We do the hard work of sifting through all the science so you don't have to."
- This Podcast Will Kill You "This podcast might not actually kill you, but it covers so many things that can. Each episode tackles a different disease, from its history, to its biology, and finally, how scared you need to be. Ecologists and epidemiologists Erin Welsh and Erin Allmann Updyke make infectious diseases acceptable fodder for dinner party conversation and provide the perfect cocktail recipe to match."
SOCIAL SCIENCE AND CULTURAL STUFF
If you have an interest in society and culture give these thought provoking podcasts a go...
- 99% Invisible "Design is everywhere in our lives, perhaps most importantly in the places where we've just stopped noticing. 99% Invisible is a weekly exploration of the process and power of design and architecture. From award winning producer Roman Mars."
- All My Relations "A podcast hosted by Matika Wilbur (Swinomish and Tulalip) and Adrienne Keene (Cherokee Nation) to explore our relationships— relationships to land, to our creatural relatives, and to one another. Each episode invites guests to delve into a different topic facing Native American peoples today."
- Missing Richard Simmons Per Phillip W. "alhough this came out a couple of years ago, this series was fascinating because of the questions it raised about the limits of investigative journalism: Is there a point at which journalism crosses lines of asking important questions and simply becomes an invasion of privacy? When does the story become less about the subject and more about the journalist's fascination?"
- On Being with Krista Tippett Phillip W. describes this podcast as "wide-ranging conversations with activists, philosophers, and artists about the nature of their work; as the title implies, usually turns to "larger" subjects (god, religion, culture, reality, etc.)"
- Stay Tuned with Preet "Join former U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara as he breaks down legal topics in the news and engages thought leaders in a podcast about power, policy, and justice."
- Stuff You Should Know "If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered." Megan M. says this podcast covers all types of topics and she likes it because "I get to learn about lots of stuff."
TRUE CRIME (ISH)
Examine the evidence to see if these podcasts need to be added to your lineup...
- Bag Man "Is it possible for an American Vice President to carry out a criminal enterprise inside the White House and have nobody remember? To have one of the most brazen political bribery scandals in American history play out before the country while nobody’s paying attention? In her first original podcast, MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow goes back 45 years to dig into a story that got overshadowed in its day. There’s intrigue. Corruption. Envelopes of cash delivered to the White House. It’s a story that’s not well known, but it probably should be." History + True Crime = A Peabody Award Nominated Podcast
- Criminal "Criminal is a podcast about crime. Not so much the "if it bleeds, it leads," kind of crime. Something a little more complex. Stories of people who've done wrong, been wronged, and/or gotten caught somewhere in the middle. Per Phillip W. this podcast has "short episodes (approximately 30 minutes or so, but they cover a lot of ground regarding the cases during the allotted time."
- Dr. Death "We’re at our most vulnerable when we go to our doctors. We trust the person at the other end of that scalpel. We trust the hospital. We trust the system. Christopher Duntsch was a neurosurgeon who radiated confidence. He claimed he was the best in Dallas. If you had back pain, and had tried everything else, Dr. Duntsch could give you the spine surgery that would take your pain away.But soon his patients started to experience complications, and the system failed to protect them. Which begs the question: who - or what - is that system meant to protect?"
- The Dream This podcast came up on a couple of folk's favorites. The podcast description says "in Season 2 we look at a world just as shady and mysterious as MLMs, but one whose promises are at times even more bombastic and unfathomable: WELLNESS. What is it? Who sells it? And will it bring you eternal happiness…and, perhaps, eternal life?" Jennifer N. describes it as a "deep dive into the world of multi-level marketing schemes. Really interesting look at how these scams can put people into massive debt, and a history of government regulation and the current lack thereof."
- My Favorite Murder "Lifelong fans of true crime stories Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark tell each other their favorite tales of murder and hear hometown crime stories from friends and fans." Jennifer N. says they've built a HUGE following and 'murderino' community. The stories are great and the banter is even better. Check out the eBook and eAudiobook on OverDrive.
- White Lies "In 1965, Rev. James Reeb was murdered in Selma, Alabama. Three men were tried and acquitted, but no one was ever held to account. Fifty years later, two journalists from Alabama return to the city where it happened, expose the lies that kept the murder from being solved and uncover a story about guilt and memory that says as much about America today as it does about the past."