From The Front Porch

Thomasville is the City of Roses, and spring is the town's time to shine! Each year, Thomasville hosts the Rose Show and Festival, and Chris and Annie talk to city event coordinator Sarah Turner about balancing tradition with new ideas, why a festival devoted to roses, and what she's reading right now.  Vote for Thomasville in USA Today's Best Historic Small Town competition!  Check out all the Rose Show festivities -- including parade details and flower show times -- here.  Support Tallahassee's Word of South festival.   Sarah's go-to podcasts:  + Radio Lab + This American Life   Books Sarah mentioned: + In a Dark, Dark Wood by Ruth Ware + Fed, White, and Blue by Simon Majumdar + Tribal by Diane Roberts + The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh + How to Be a Woman by Caitlin Moran   Books Chris mentioned:  + The Empathy Exams by Leslie Jamison  + Battleborn by Claire Watkins + Fortune Smiles by Adam Johnson    Books Annie mentioned: + Fortune Smiles by Adam Johnson   Website |

One perk of life in a small town: You can try something just to see if it works. And if it does? Then you've established a new town tradition, like Thomasville's Due South music festival, put on by the Center of the Arts.  Annie and Chris chat with the Center's marketing director, Callie Sewell, about music festivals; the Athens, Ga., music scene; and whether Jane Eyre is overrated.  BUY TICKETS for Due South here.    Books mentioned:  + Jane Eyre + The Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls + No One Belongs Here More Than You + The Nest + The Empathy Exams   Podcasts mentioned: + This American Life + Serial  + The Moth + Mom and Dad Are Fighting + Gilmore Guys

How do you raise creative kids? Do small towns foster creativity better than big cities do? Annie and guest Emily McKenna chat about these questions, plus book hangover and what they're reading right now.  Emily is the product developer for Everfan, a superhero and imaginative play company located right above The Bookshelf in Thomasville. Emily is also the owner of You're Maker, where she teaches classes to adults and children.  Books mentioned in today's episode:  - Imagine by Jonah Lehrer - Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert - A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle (plus the Austin Family Chronicles and Walking on Water - Dumplin' by Julie Murphy - Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys - This Is Where You Belong by Melody Warlick (preorder here)  Plus, Chip Kidd's TED talk, and How to review the podcast on iTunes.  Full show notes here. 

The podcast introduces a new co-host with a familiar voice, and Annie recaps the books she read in March, including:  - Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend by Katarina Bivald - Britt-Marie Was Here by Fredrik Backman - The After Party by Anton DiSclafani - I'm Glad About You by Theresa Rebeck - Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk - This Is Where You Belong by Melody Warnick Annie also menions: American Girls, The Nest, and The Excellent Lombards.  Find the Perfect Days podcast episode here.  Check out this episode of This American Life about American teenagers on social media. (It's fascinating!) ---  Rate and review the podcast on iTunes.  Full show notes from today's episode and past episodes here.  Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

Which book wins this year's Out of Print Book Bracket? Listen as Annie and frequent podcast contributor Jordan Jones duke it out over their favorite contemporary classics, including Fates and Furies vs. Looking for Alaska and All the Light We Cannot See vs. Room.  Round One match-ups can be found here.  Follow The Bookshelf on Instagram for the shop's own version of March Madness.  Rate and review the podcast on iTunes.  Full show notes from today's episode and past episodes here.  Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

Ever wondered why guys aren't in book clubs? Listen as Annie and Grassroots Coffee roaster Peyton Hodges chat about co-ed book clubs, plus Peyton schools Annie on her knowledge of sci-fi literature. Peyton mentions:  + Sad Puppies and the 2015 Hugo Awards + Ready Player One by Ernest Cline + Dune by Frank Herbert + Author David Wong + Author Neal Stephenson + Saga + Hark! A Vagrant --- How to rate/review From the Front Porch Full show notes from today's episode and past episodes here.  Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

Small-town virtues to the Oval Office? Jimmy Carter's presidency may have inspired our current political climate, and Annie interviews author Robert Buccellato to find out why. His new book Jimmy Carter in Plains shares insight into President Carter's approachability and how his underdog story and small-town, Southern charm made a lasting impact.  + Robert's author page + tour dates + How to rate/review From the Front Porch + From the Front Porch on iTunes Robert is reading Stone Door, a YA fantasy, and Why the Dutch Are Different, a memoir.  Full show notes from today's episode and past episodes here.  Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

Annie recaps the books she read in February, including:  - Let's Just Say It Wasn't Pretty - My Name Is Lucy Barton - The Good Goodbye - The Interestings - American Housewife - Opening Belle - Readers of Broken Wheel Recommend  Looking for other indie bookstores to support? Annie loves Sundog Books in Seaside, Florida, and The Hidden Lantern Books in Rosemary Beach, Florida.  Rate the podcast on iTunes! 

Annie and Bookshelf staffer Chris share their love for the Oscars and this year's Oscar-inspired books, plus they chat briefly about Harper Lee and what her death means to the literary world.  iTunes || Facebook || Twitter || Instagram

Ever read a book you hated? Annie, Rebekah, and Hunter discuss the new suspense novel Perfect Days by Raphael Montes. (Spoiler-free discussion, with five minutes of spoiler-filled bonus conversation at the close of the episode.)  The book reaction video Annie mentions is here. 

Annie recaps the books she read in January, including several ARCs, a couple of thrillers, and a YA novel. (Full list with titles and authors here.)    Instagram || Facebook || Twitter

What are your reading goals for 2016? Annie chats reading resolutions with returning podcast guest Hunter McLendon. Annie and Hunter also make their way through Modern Mrs. Darcy's 2016 Reading Challenge, plus talk about what they're reading right now (him: Americanah; her: The Expatriates).  What Should I Read Next? podcast Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

Have you ever wondered how your favorite book would play out on-stage? Annie interviews Jana Mohr, president of Thomasville On Stage and Company, Thomasville's community theatre. Annie and Jana chat about TOSAC's upcoming production of A Little Princess, plus why books make great on-stage adaptations. For tickets to A Little Princess, click here. Facebook | Instagram | Twitter    

We're back with our first episode of 2016, and Annie's recapping her favorite books of 2015. (You can find the full list here.)  Local listeners may want to subscribe to The Bookshelf newsletter, a weekly update on bookstore happenings. Faraway folks, you can subscribe to Annie's monthly musings -- including reading recaps -- here.

Where we're from affects how we read. Annie chats with blogger, podcaster, and aspiring author Science Mike about science, faith, and the many nuances of the South, plus their favorite Thomasville spots and what they're reading right now. (Mike's reading The Last Pilot, and Annie's reading Live from New York.) Mike's website || The Liturgists podcasts || Ask Science Mike podcast  

Annie reviews the six books she read in November: Accidental Saints by Nadia Bolz-Weber; Distance from Me to You by Marina Gessner; The Clasp by Sloane Crosley; Flood Girls by Richard Fifield; The Year of Yes by Shonda Rhimes; You Don't Have to Like Me by Alida Nugent.  Facebook || Instagram || Twitter || iTunes

What makes David Sedaris so funny? Annie chats with Atlanta author, blogger, and comic Jim Hodgson about the ever-changing publishing industry, urban fantasy fiction, and Jim's latest book, Ten Thousand Gods. You can find it and his other works on his website, www.jimhodgson.com. Jim is also the founding writer and editor of the Atlanta Banana. 

What's on your table this Thanksgiving? Annie and fellow bookseller Chris Jensen discuss food and food writing, including whether cookbooks are becoming obsolete and their favorite Thanksgiving recipes.   Similar carrot recipe (find the one Chris made in A Southern Gentleman's Kitchen Avid Bookshop  Annie loves: Supper of the Lamb, Delancey, A Homemade Life, The Hidden Art of Homemaking, Voracious

What do all those different festivals do for their cities? Annie chats with Laura Beggs, the main street coordinator for the city of Thomasville. They discuss their favorite spots in downtown T'ville, plus Thomasville's Victorian Christmas (details

Annie reviews the books she read in October, including Tribal by Diane Roberts and Assassination Vacation by Sarah Vowell.  Rank and review us on iTunes here.  Shop locally -- even from afar! -- here.