Ep. 404 The Best Books of 2025 with MJ Franklin and Greta Johnsen

It’s finally the episode we’ve all been waiting for: The Stacks' Best Books of 2025! Traci talks with two longtime friends of the show, Greta Johnsen, host of Happy to Be Here, and MJ Franklin, an editor at The New York Times Book Review, to share our top 10 books of the year. We discuss the overall year in books, why we struggled to create this list, and all the books we’re looking forward to reading in 2026.The Stacks Book Club pick for December is Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream by H.G. Bissinger. We will discuss the book on Wednesday, December 31st, with Joel Anderson.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks website: https://www.thestackspodcast.com/2025/12/24/ep-404-best-books-of-2025Connect with Greta: Instagram | SubstackConnect with MJ: Instagram | TikTok | ThreadsConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Threads | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | Youtube | SubscribeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We're at the end of 2025 and this year we're looking back, not at the best of the year, but at the worst, most hatable moments. To break it all down, Traci teamed up with friend of the pod, Nora McInerny, for a crossover bonus episode between The Stacks and Nora's show, Thanks for Asking. From Taylor Swift to AI slop and so much more, get ready for a whole lot of hot takes and disgruntled energy.This episode is a collaboration with Nora’s podcast Thanks for Asking.You can find links to everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks Website: https://www.thestackspodcast.com/unabridged/2025/12/19/tsu-54-nora-mcinernyConnect with Nora: Website | Substack | Instagram | TikTok | Threads | YouTubeConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Threads | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | Youtube | SubscribeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today on The Stacks, we are joined by National Book Award finalist Alejandro Varela to talk about his newest novel, Middle Spoon. Humorously exploring unconventional relationships and complexities of polyamory, this novel follows Alejandro’s unnamed narrator, a married man navigating heartbreak after his boyfriend abruptly dumps him. We discuss why he wanted to write about heartbreak, how he brought more of himself to this book, and why it was important to him to depict OCD correctly.The Stacks Book Club pick for December is Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream by H.G. Bissinger. We will discuss the book on Wednesday, December 31st, with Joel Anderson as our guest.You can find links to everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks Website: https://www.thestackspodcast.com/2025/12/17/ep-403-alejandro-varelaConnect with Alejandro: Instagram | Website | Bluesky Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Threads | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | Youtube | SubscribeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today on The Stacks, we’re joined by James Beard Award-winning chef, TV host, and author Samin Nosrat to discuss her newest book, Good Things: Recipes and Rituals to Share with People You Love. In this cookbook, Samin shares over 125 of her favorite go-to recipes, including ricotta custard pancakes, saffron-burnished roast chicken, nostalgia-inducing yellow cake with chocolate frosting, and everything in between. We discuss her return to writing after the success of Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat: Mastering the Elements of Good Cooking, how she balances technique with improvisation in the kitchen, and the friction between her identities as a writer and a chef.The Stacks Book Club pick for December is Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream by H.G. Bissinger. We will discuss the book on Wednesday, December 31st, with Joel Anderson.You can find links to everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks Website: https://www.thestackspodcast.com/2025/12/10/ep-402-samin-nosratConnect with Samin: Instagram | Website | SubstackConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Threads | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | Youtube | SubscribeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today on The Stacks, we’re joined by Joel Anderson, senior staff writer at The Ringer and co-host of sports & media podcast The Press Box. We discuss his transition from athlete to sports journalist, how his relationship with his audience has changed alongside public perceptions of the media, whether we’re freaking out enough about the state of media, and why he loves books on place.The Stacks Book Club pick for December is Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream by H.G. Bissinger. We will discuss the book on Wednesday, December 31st, with Joel Anderson returning as our guest.You can find links to everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks Website: https://www.thestackspodcast.com/2025/12/3/ep-400-joel-andersonConnect with Joel: Instagram | Twitter | BlueskyConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Threads | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | Youtube | SubscribeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

It is The Stacks Book Club day, and Page Break founder Mikey Friedman is back to discuss National Book Award-winner Justin Torres's debut novel, We the Animals. Set in rural upstate New York in the 1980s, this coming-of-age novel traces the experiences of three mixed-race brothers bustling through boyhood while navigating the violence and chaos within their household. In our conversation, we chat about what sets this book apart from other coming-of-age stories, how this functions as a sensory novel, and the ways the book explores shame and desire without judgment. There are spoilers in this episode.Make sure you listen to the end of the episode to hear what our January book club pick will be!You can find links to everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks Website: https://www.thestackspodcast.com/unabridged/2025/11/26/ep-400-we-the-animalsConnect with Mikey: Instagram | TikTokConnect with Page Break: Instagram | WebsiteConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Threads | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | Youtube | SubscribeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

*This is a teaser for this Patreon and Substack-only bonus episode, click here to listen to the full episode*Ever wondered who else brings The Stacks to life? Well, lucky for you, you’re about to meet them. For the first time ever, we're bringing you behind the scenes to introduce you to the team that helps make this podcast happen. Join Traci as she chats with Sahara Clement, Cherie Marquez, and Christian Dueñas about who they are, what they do, the biggest surprises and hardest parts of their jobs, and the things she does that annoy them. This podcast wouldn’t be what it is without their hard work, and you can support that by joining The Stacks Pack on Patreon and subscribing to our Substack.You can find links to everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks Website: https://www.thestackspodcast.com/unabridged/2025/11/21/tsu-53-meet-the-stacks-teamConnect with Sahara: Website | Instagram Connect with Cherie: Website | InstagramConnect with Christian: InstagramConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | SubscribeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today on The Stacks, we are joined by author and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Quiara Alegría Hudes to talk about her new novel, The White Hot. This book explores an exhausted young mother’s life-changing, “white hot” rage-induced decision to abandon her daughter, break her family’s cycle of generational trauma, and discover herself in the process. We chat about why she wanted to write about women leaving home, how she views the audience for her plays versus her books, and how she creates in the face of her own success.The Stacks Book Club pick for November is We the Animals by Justin Torres. We will discuss the book on Wednesday, November 26th, with Mikey Friedman.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks website: https://www.thestackspodcast.com/2025/11/19/ep-399-quiara-alegria-hudesConnect with Quiara: Instagram | WebsiteConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Threads | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | Youtube | SubscribeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today on The Stacks, we are joined by Sarah Aziza to talk about her debut book, The Hollow Half: A Memoir of Bodies and Borders. In this memoir, Sarah explores her struggle with anorexia through the lens of her family’s history of violent displacement from Gaza, drawing haunting parallels between her personal and ancestral trauma. We talk about why she wanted to trace these connections, how she uses footnotes to complicate the narrative, and how she sees her work in conversation with those of Black feminist scholars. The Stacks Book Club pick for November is We the Animals by Justin Torres. We will discuss the book on Wednesday, November 26th, with Mikey Friedman.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks website: https://www.thestackspodcast.com/2025/11/12/ep-398-sarah-azizaConnect with Sarah: Instagram | Threads | Website Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Threads | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | Youtube | SubscribeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Today on The Stacks, we are joined by Mikey Friedman, the founder of Page Break, a New York–based, weekend-long retreat centered on community reading. We discuss all things Page Break, including how it came to be, the book selection process, the focus on fiction, and why reading aloud is at the heart of the experience. Plus, tune in for a special announcement.The Stacks Book Club pick for November is We the Animals by Justin Torres. We will discuss the book on Wednesday, November 26th, with Mikey Friedman.You can find everything we discuss on today's show on The Stacks' website: https://www.thestackspodcast.com/2025/11/5/ep-397-mikey-friedmanConnect with Mikey: Instagram | TikTokConnect with Page Break: Instagram | WebsiteConnect with The Stacks: Instagram | Threads | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Substack | Youtube | SubscribeSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.