Bookish Flights: Book Recommendations for Busy People

Kara Infante

Bookish Flights is a show where we tell our stories through our favorite books. It is sure to grow your to-be read (TBR) pile and not leave you wondering what to read next.

We are all busy and this show encourages you to make time for your reading life. You will be inspired to read more, to try a new genre and to get more out of your reading life.

If you want to read more good books, you have come to the right place! Head over to www.BookishFlights.com to learn more.

This show will provide answers to questions like:

* What are the best fiction and non-fiction books?

* What books should I read?

* How do I find more time to read?

* What books should I read to explore new genres?

* What books should my kids be reading?

* What is the publishing journey like for authors?

* What are my favorite authors reading?

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Neurodivergence, Dyslexia and Reading with Alexie Better (E83)

Neurodivergence, Dyslexia and Reading with Alexie Better (E83)

Alexie gives us all the tips on reading with dyslexia, what to do and who to contact if you think your child may struggle with dyslexia. And most importantly, she gives us hope! That with the right tools and study strategies you or your child can fall in love with reading too. Her book flight today features decodable books for dyslexic readers and both books are published by Barrington Stoke.

Episodes

Neurodivergence, Dyslexia and Reading with Alexie Better (E83)

Neurodivergence, Dyslexia and Reading with Alexie Better (E83)

Alexie gives us all the tips on reading with dyslexia, what to do and who to contact if you think your child may struggle with dyslexia. And most importantly, she gives us hope! That with the right tools and study strategies you or your child can fall in love with reading too. Her book flight today features decodable books for dyslexic readers and both books are published by Barrington Stoke.

We Can Do Hard Things with Colton Sawyer (E82)

We Can Do Hard Things with Colton Sawyer (E82)

Today we have an episode from the kids for the kids. I am speaking today with Colton and his Dad, Ryan Sawyer. Colton is 11 years old and a 5th grader. Colton teamed up with his Dad and wrote the book, We Can Do Hard Things, to inspire anyone who has felt the weight of struggling to fit in or battling self-doubt. He shares his journey of overcoming self-doubt and finding resilience. He is our youngest published author on the show to date and I am beyond excited to share our conversation with you.

New Zealand, Murder Mysteries and 5-Star Reads with Sara E. Johnson (E81)

New Zealand, Murder Mysteries and 5-Star Reads with Sara E. Johnson (E81)

In today’s episode, I am chatting with Sara E. Johnson. Sara lives in Durham, North Carolina. She worked as a middle school reading specialist and local newspaper contributor before her husband lured her to New Zealand for a year. Her first novel, Molten Mud Murder, is the result. The fifth book in the series, The Hungry Bones, comes out on June 11th, 2024. I had so much fun chatting with Sara. She talks about the connections she has made through the writing process to help her research and write her novels. Lastly, Sara totally understood the book flight! Tune in to hear the fun approach she took. Happy listening!

Life Lessons and Historical Autobiographies with Trunnis Goggins II (E80)

Life Lessons and Historical Autobiographies with Trunnis Goggins II (E80)

In today’s episode, I am chatting with Trunnis Goggins. Trunnis is an educator, author and consultant for small businesses and higher-rated institutions. Trunnis is also the host of a podcast called The 4 P’s of You. The 4 P’s are Passion, Planning, Purpose and Persistence, which are all essentail in our life journeys towards success.This episode is sure to inspire you. Happy listening!

Dr. Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai on Language, Culture and Authors of Việt Nam with (E79)

Dr. Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai on Language, Culture and Authors of Việt Nam with (E79)

In today’s episode, I am chatting with Dr. Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai. Born and raised in Việt Nam, she is the author of the global best-selling novels The Mountains Sing and Dust Child. In this episode, Quế Mai shares about the importance of tonal marks in the Vietnamese language, how writing saved her with a traveling lifestyle, what she has learned about herself through writing. She brought a wonderful book flight with her to highlight Vietnamese authors. Happy listening!

Myth, Fantasy and Truth in Storytelling with Jared Michaud (E78)

Myth, Fantasy and Truth in Storytelling with Jared Michaud (E78)

In today’s episode, I am chatting with Jared Michaud. Jared has had a life-long drive to write fiction and is the author of Brightstar: Energematrice6 – The Epimyth Begins. He is on a mission to give his children’s generation myths built on the greatest foundation the world has ever seen. We talked about the importance of myth in stories, the gentle art of writing about the truth, including a piece of yourself in the characters you write and more! This is a delightful episode with Jared, I hope you enjoy. Happy listening!

Jaime Jo Wright on Mood Reading, Momento Mori and Gothic Novels (E77)

Jaime Jo Wright on Mood Reading, Momento Mori and Gothic Novels (E77)

In today’s episode, I am chatting with Jaime Jo Wright. Jaime is the author of ten novels, including her latest novel, Night Falls on Predicament Avenue. We had a wide ranging conversation on this episode from momento mori photography, fashions we hoped to never see again, which of her ten novels was her favorite to write as well as a sneak peek at the title of her next book coming April 2025. This was such a fun and delightful conversation, I hope you enjoy it too. Happy listening!

Graphic Novels from the Kids with Morgan Kappes (E76)

Graphic Novels from the Kids with Morgan Kappes (E76)

Today we have an episode from the kids for the kids. I am speaking today with Morgan and her Mom, Jenn Kappes. Morgan is 8 years old and a 3rd grader. She has brought a book flight of her favorite graphic novels. I have listed the recommended ages for the books of the flight below. They live in sunny, beautiful Hawaii and you can hear the birds chirping in the background, it sounds idyllic! Happy listening!

The Power and Impact of Books with J.D. McCabe (E75)

The Power and Impact of Books with J.D. McCabe (E75)

In today’s episode, I am chatting with J.D. “Danny” McCabe. J.D. is a Pittsburgh, PA native, and the author of The Third Gift, a true story about a tumultuous marriage gone wrong. He now speaks with organizations across the country about his experiences. Danny was encouraged to share this unbelievable voyage in rediscovering himself by the many people who witnessed and heard about his journey first hand. Happy listening!

A Vibrant Book Flight of Color with Erin Bartels (E74)

A Vibrant Book Flight of Color with Erin Bartels (E74)

In today’s episode I am chatting with Erin Bartels. Erin is the award-winning author of We Hope for Better Things, The Words between Us, All That We Carried, The Girl Who Could Breathe Under Water, and Everything is Just Beginning. Her latest novel, The Lady with the Dark Hair, came out yesterday. I learned so much from Erin in this episode about painting, art and the history of colors and how they were made. Happy listening!

The Serendipity of Books: A Book Flight Inspired by her Writing Community with Huda Al-Marashi (E73)

The Serendipity of Books: A Book Flight Inspired by her Writing Community with Huda Al-Marashi (E73)

In today’s episode, I am chatting with Huda Al-Marashi. Huda is the author of the memoir First Comes Marriage: My Not-So-Typical American Love Story and a co-author of the middle-grade novel Grounded. Huda shared all about her experience as a woman living in diaspora, immigrant experiences in a foreign country and how assimilation into other cultures is dependent on each individual family. She talked about how she fit writing into motherhood and the tension of writing memoir - bordering a line of fiction, using composite characters and figuring out the story you want to tell within your memoir. Lastly, she talked about how supportive the writing community is and what an invaluable resource they are. Happy listening!

An Early YA Book Flight from the Kids with Hazel Terpstra (E72)

An Early YA Book Flight from the Kids with Hazel Terpstra (E72)

Today we are featuring another episode from the kids. I am speaking today with Hazel and her Mom, Ashley Terpstra. Hazel is 11 and a 6th grader. However, please note she has a higher reading level than that, I have listed the recommended ages for the books of the flight below. We talked all about Battle of the Books which was really fun to learn about and a book flight of her favorite books. Happy listening!

Books That Inspired Her Writing Path with Kristie Addair Guard (E71)

Books That Inspired Her Writing Path with Kristie Addair Guard (E71)

In today’s episode, I am chatting Kristie Addair Guard. Kristie is the author of Healing Ever After. Her favorite topic of conversation is Jesus, and her gift is to encourage others, especially women, to find, understand, and walk in their identity in Jesus. Kristie shared all about writing her book, vulnerability and authenticity. She talks about the journey and the healing that happened along her journey. Her book flight includes books that encouraged her along her writing journey and is a beautiful reflection of her faith. Happy listening!

A Book Flight of Fun with Sandhya Gokal (E70)

A Book Flight of Fun with Sandhya Gokal (E70)

In today’s episode, I am chatting Sandhya Gokal. Sandhya is a pharmacist and health coach with over 12 years experience. Sandhya loves exploring the inner landscape of people and understanding why they do what they do and about how books gives us a glimpse into the mind of the author. She also talked about techniques she learned through books that have helped her throughout life. Her laugh is infectious. I cannot wait for you to tune into this episode, it is an absolute delight.

Matt Coyle on Character is King (E69)

Matt Coyle on Character is King (E69)

In today’s episode, I am chatting Matt Coyle. Matt is the best-selling author of the Rick Cahill PI Crime Series. Matt dives deep into what it takes to write crime fiction - life experiences, getting to the truth of the matter and honor code/core of who you are as a person. His book flight shares all about books that have influenced his writing.

Books That Have Impacted You - Story Share | Part B

Books That Have Impacted You - Story Share | Part B

In today’s episode I am chatting with Jacqui Lents of the Jacqui Just Chatters podcast. Jacqui and I have teamed up to do a two-part story share episode. You can find Part A over at Jacqui Just Chatters. We asked for submissions on “Books That Have Impacted You.” We got many lovely submissions and I am beyond excited to share the stories of books that have impacted Sue Pritchard and Shirley Hay.

Book Flight | Magic to Make You Think Differently with Meg Seitz

Book Flight | Magic to Make You Think Differently with Meg Seitz

We chatted all about starting with a really good question to start determining where to start, writing being a team sport and what she has learned about life through moving a lot in her childhood. She also shared how reading and writing do not occur in a vacuum and how our life contributes. I love her book flight of “digestible books” that leave you with an aha moment and how she refers to books as interesting currency in conversation.

A Mississippi Sisterhood of Writers with Gerry Wilson

A Mississippi Sisterhood of Writers with Gerry Wilson

Gerry taught us all about the literary traditions of Mississippi and her perspective as a teacher on how we teach our children to write. Her book flight focuses on the women writers of Mississippi, including generations of writers. The book flight also focuses on themes of family and motherhood. This is a delightful episode, I hope you enjoy it as well. Happy listening!

Kristin Hannah and The Women: On Writing, Motherhood and Friendships (E65)

Kristin Hannah and The Women: On Writing, Motherhood and Friendships (E65)

In today’s episode, I am chatting with an well-loved author here at Bookish Flights, Kristin Hannah! Tune in to hear about her latest novel, The Women. Her book flight features books that influenced her writing. Happy listening!

Finding Acceptance and Belonging through Books with Ainsley Billings (E64)

Finding Acceptance and Belonging through Books with Ainsley Billings (E64)

In today’s episode I am chatting with Ainsley Billings. Ainsley is a first-time author, hoping to always create new worlds and characters. She is the author of a dystopian/urban fantasy, The Offenders. We talked all about getting vulnerable amongst the pages and what writing has done for processing big events in her life. It is a delightful episode and one you will not want to miss! Happy listening!