What We're Reading, Listening to, and Watching This Week (8/9/2026)
Linda-Marie Barrett / Executive Director:
Reading: Two Thousand Hours of Us by Gayle Forman. I’m loving her latest YA love story. I picked this ARC up at NVNR, and spent a lovely time getting to know Gayle as we prepped for her lunch panel “Writing for the Next Generation" with Daniel Nayeri and Frederick Joseph.
Listening: To lawn maintenance equipment, the hum of hummingbirds at the feeder, and the occasional human shout or clapping noises when one of the local bears strides through our neighborhood.
Watching: Something’s Gotta Give, which aged “okay,” but in what universe would anyone pick Jack Nicholson’s character over Keanu Reeves? Also watching reruns of The Great British Baking Show as it’s one of my favorite comfort watches.
Candice Huber / Membership:
Reading: I'm about halfway through This Will Be Fun by E.B. Asher. I think the plot is finally kicking in! I also grabbed SO MANY books at NVNR and can't wait to dig into my pile!
Listening: So happy to be back at home listening to my cats play and purr!
Watching: Catching up on allll the TV after being away for a week. Big Brother is again in full swing, and I can't wait to watch my two favorite wrestlers hopefully win at WWE SummerSlam (World Wrestling Entertainment—soap opera acrobats)!
Nicki Leone / Communications:
Reading: August is Women in Translation month, which is my favorite literary theme. Right before NVNR I went a little nuts on my Bookshop.org wish list, and now I have a stack of novels by my bed of the "I-heard-something-about-it-and-got-interested" variety. Right now I'm reading She Who Remains by Bulgarian author Izidora Angel, a queer novel set around an Albanian woman who becomes a "sworn virgin." After that, it is When the Museum is Closed by Emi Yagi, about a woman whose job is to talk to the statue of Venus in Latin. Yes, it's a love story.
Listening: I am interspersing Octavia Butler's audiobooks (Thank you, Libro.fm!) with other things, most recently Eliza Sunshine by Michelle Good.
Watching: Whatever Mom and Dad have on TV. Usually the Yankees, but also right now a slightly gruesome series called Traces.
SP Rankin / Website Administrator:
Reading: A Gay Little History of Maryland by Ben Egerman, published by and bought at Red Emma's when the NVNR bus tour stopped by. It's pink and smaller than my hand, and there is a chapter called "The Friday Nights: The Messy Lives of Gilded Age Lesbian Heiresses." I'm only human!
Listening: Related to what I've been watching, Italian pop classics, which are simultaneously dramatic, summery, romantic, breezy, and make me crave an Aperol Spritz.
Watching: Nobody creates quirky, cozy, yet dark-around-the-edges detective shows like the Brits, so I have been catching up on all five seasons of Professor T. He's a typical bundle of idiosyncrasies and foibles working with the Cambridge police department to solve outlandish murders, and the show features a soundtrack of Italian pop songs. I think even messy Gilded Age lesbians would approve.
Andrea Richardson / Sales:
Reading: I'm deep into prep for Bookstore Romance Day (coming up this Saturday!) so I'm reading The World's Okayest Oracle (Reluctantly) Seeks Demon by Olivia Dade. It's a fun follow-up to Romzomcom from last year.
Listening: If Books Could Kill by Kate Eberle. It's really good on audio!
Watching: The Ocho was briefly back over the weekend, so we recorded a ton of fun, silly things like the USA Jigsaw Puzzle Nationals. I cannot recommend it enough.