Let’s talk about books that are NOT my book! I’ve been pretty open that in the last few months of launching my first book Share Your Stuff. I’ll Go First., my personal reading life has taken a major nosedive. For the first time in years, I’ve been unable to focus on reading any sort of fiction with consistency.

But after I had this conversation with Sara Hildreth of @fictionmatters and the Novel Pairings podcast, I suddenly had a renewed interest in my favorite hobby of all time: READING! Sara just brings that out in people.

In this conversation, Sara and I each share 5 reasons we read fiction, why it has matters to us personally and how it changes the world. I just loved chatting with her and we could have talked for hours.

I hope this episode makes you run to your bookshelves or sparks a great conversation about why reading fiction matters to YOU.

Follow Sara on IG @fictionmatters

Listen to her podcast @novelpairings

ROTHYS. Go to Rothys.com/YOU

RAYCON. Go to BuyRaycon.com/YOU for 15% off

NOOM. Go to Noom.com/10Things to start your trial

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Mentioned in this episode:

Jane Austen

Place for Us by Fatima Farheen Mirza

Fates and Furies by Lauren Groff

Starring Sally J. Freeman as Herself by Judy Blume

Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Paterson

Bloomability and Walk Two Moons both by Sharon Creech

The Sense of an Ending by Julianne Barnes

Stephen King

V.C. Andrews

R.L. Stine

The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi

Neopolitan Novels by Elena Ferrante

Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward

Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell

Sing Unburied Sing by Jesmyn Ward

An American Marriage by Tayari Jones

The Interestings by Meg Wolitzer

Big Little Lies and What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty

Dark Matter and Recursion by Blake Crouch

The Passage by Justin Cronin

Exhalation and The Story of Your Life and Others by Ted Chiang

Reminder that I share all the books I’ve been reading (and my most honest reviews) in my monthly-ish newsletter The Secret Posts.

But if you ARE in the mood for a little non-fiction, might I suggest:

I'm Laura Tremaine.

I live in Los Angeles. I'm a reader, a podcaster, a wife, and a mom.

At all times, I have (at least) 10 Things To Tell You. And I know that YOU have 10 Things To Tell.

This place is about connection, with each other and with ourselves. We can only do this by opening our eyes and seeing others and (even harder) by letting ourselves be seen.

Let’s tell our stories.

Let’s share our stuff.

I’ll go first.