Arts
Welcome back to Big Little Books! Even though 2020 has been tumultuous, to say the least, one thing has remained constant throughout and that is books and all they have to offer. BLB takes a look at our end-of-year stats and the new reading habits that we’ve formed along the way. Since last year, Sam has developed an appreciation for audiobooks, and Yuli might be in the market for a Kindle or e-reader in the near future! We jump into what we have been reading while also entrenched in world events, specifically discussing some of our favourite reads of 2020. Next, we actively look at the year ahead and the changes we hope to see in our reading habits. Already thinking about new book releases coming out? So have we! Yuli and Sam chat about their most anticipated reads for the first half of 2021 and good things coming to the podcast in the year ahead. Thank you, dear listeners, for tuning into this episode. As always, we would love to hear from you! Find us on Instagram @biglittlebookspod or email us at biglittlebookspod@gmail.com Coming at you in February is BLB Episode 19: From Books to TV, whereby we will be discussing The Queen’s Gambit by Walter Tevis and the Netflix adaptation everyone has been obsessed with since last fall. Friendly reminder to shop at your local independent bookstores. Stay safe out there! EPISODE GUIDE: 00:01:53 – 2020 Cold Hard Reading Stats 00:06:00 – Goodreads Reading Stats and Goals: Pros and Cons 00:10:40 – Analysis of our 2020 Reading, discussion of BLB episode 13, and how our goals went 00:22:50 – Favourite Reads of 2020 00:23:19 – In the Dream House by Carmen Maria Machado 00:24:43 – A Darker Shade of Magic (Shades of Magic #1) by V.E. Schwab 00:25:58 – Strange the Dreamer (Strange the Dreamer #1) by Laini Taylor 00:27:39 – A Sky Beyond the Storm (An Ember in the Ashes #4) by Sabaa Tahir 00:28:00 – H is for Hawk by Helen Macdonald 00:30:15 – The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison 00:31:03 – Saga, Vol. 1 by Brian K. Vaughan (Writer), Fiona Staples (Artist) 00:33:10 – Kindred by Octavia E. Butler 00:35:14 – A Fortune for Your Disaster by Hanif Abdurraqib 00:37:36 – Last Christmas in Paris: A Novel of World War 1 by Hazel Gaynor and Heather Webb (Our Book Bangers Book Club December 2020 Pick) 00:40:10 – Intermission 00:40:30 – Reading Goals for 2021 00:45:25 – The StoryGraph Shoutout (THEY HAVE .5 RATINGS!) https://www.thestorygraph.com/ 00:48:49 – Our Most Anticipated Books for the First Half of 2021 00:49:03 – No One Is Talking About This by Patricia Lockwood (February 16, 2021) 00:50:55 – The Prophets by Robert Jones Jr. (January 5, 2021) 00:52:36 – A River Called Time by Courttia Newland 00:53:44 – Remote Control by Nnedi Okorafor (January 19, 2021) 00:54:00 – A Court of Silver Flames (A Court of Thorns and Roses #4) by Sarah J. Maas (February 16, 2021) 00:54:45 – Hot Stew by Fiona Mozley (June 1, 2021) 00:55:55 – Home Is Not a Country by Safia Elhillo (March 2, 2021) 00:57:11 – Where is BLB headed in 2021? 00:58:40 – Besides Books