Bringing Up Bébé by Pamela Druckerman with Guest Ashley Arbaiza

Hello Hello!!! This week we read another 2023 bestseller: Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross! It's about two young "rival journalists" ahhh yes, a classic duo, who are also magical and living through a world war amongst gods! They say things like: Oh My Gods. And oh my gods is this book... something. You'll see!Mean Book Club is four ladies (UCB, BuzzFeed, College Humor, Impractical Jokers) who read, discuss and whine about NYT bestselling books that have questionable literary merit. It's fun. It's cathartic. It's perfect for your commute. New podcast every otherTuesday! Here’s the Season 17 reading list: Happy Place by Emily HenryDivine Rivals by Rebecca RossJust the Nicest Couple by Mary KubicaThe Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley HellerA Man Called Ove by Fredrik BackmanThe Bodyguard by Katherine CenterDichotomy of Leadership by Jocko Willink and Leif BabinEleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail HoneymanSend any future book suggestions to [email protected]! Follow us on the socials @meanbookclub! Rate, like, subscribe, and check out our Patreon page at patreon.com/meanbookclub to become a true patron of the mean arts. CREDITS: Hosted by Sarah Burton, Clara Morris, Johnna Scrabis, & Sabrina B. Jordan. This episode was produced by Clara Morris and edited by Johnna Scrabis. Special thanks to FSM Team for our theme song, "Parkour Introvert." You can get it here: https://www.free-stock-music.com

We're BAAAACCCCCKKK! And this week we read NYT 2023 bestseller Happy Place by Emily Henry. A bunch of words so generic we kept forgetting what we were supposed to be reading. Thanks to Emily Fidago (listener, friend of the pod) for suggesting it, saying "this is the perfect Mean Book Club book because it is absolutely intolerable... my fury propelled me to the end of the book." That's good enough for us!Mean Book Club is four ladies (UCB, BuzzFeed, College Humor, Impractical Jokers) who read, discuss and whine about NYT bestselling books that have questionable literary merit. It's fun. It's cathartic. It's perfect for your commute. New podcast every otherTuesday! Here’s the Season 17 reading list: Happy Place by Emily HenryDivine Rivals by Rebecca RossJust the Nicest Couple by Mary KubicaThe Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley HellerA Man Called Ove by Fredrik BackmanThe Bodyguard by Katherine CenterDichotomy of Leadership by Jocko Willink and Leif BabinEleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail HoneymanSend any future book suggestions to [email protected]! Follow us on the socials @meanbookclub! Rate, like, subscribe, and check out our Patreon page at patreon.com/meanbookclub to become a true patron of the mean arts. CREDITS: Hosted by Sarah Burton, Clara Morris, Johnna Scrabis, & Sabrina B. Jordan. This episode was produced and edited by Sarah Burton. Special thanks to FSM Team for our theme song, "Parkour Introvert." You can get it here: https://www.free-stock-music.com

BOOOOOKSSSSS!!! Announcing our Season 17 book list and promo. Season premiere March 5! Mean Book Club is four ladies (UCB, BuzzFeed, College Humor, Impractical Jokers) who read, discuss and whine about NYT bestselling books that have questionable literary merit. It's fun. It's cathartic. It's perfect for your commute. New podcast (almost) every Tuesday! Here’s the Season 17 reading list: Happy Place by Emily HenryDivine Rivals by Rebecca RossJust the Nicest Couple by Mary KubicaThe Paper Palace by Miranda Cowley HellerA Man Called Ove by Fredrik BackmanThe Bodyguard by Katherine CenterDichotomy of Leadership by Jocko Willink and Leif BabinEleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail HoneymanSend any future book suggestions to [email protected]! Follow us on the socials @meanbookclub! Rate, like, subscribe, and check out our Patreon page at patreon.com/meanbookclub to become a true patron of the mean arts. CREDITS: Hosted by Sarah Burton, Clara Morris, Johnna Scrabis, & Sabrina B. Jordan. This episode was produced and edited by Sarah Burton. Special thanks to FSM Team for our theme song, "Parkour Introvert." You can get it here: https://www.free-stock-music.com

Special Bonus Episode! We uncovered the lost, original recording of our first episode: Malice by Danielle Steel. The quality isn't what you've come to expect, after 17 seasons, but the meanness is still there. There's a raw edge and anger to our younger selves. There's also more alcohol. As you await our Season 17 Book List, please enjoy the special (unedited) episode found deep within our podcast vault.Mean Book Club is four ladies (UCB, BuzzFeed, College Humor, Impractical Jokers) who read, discuss and whine about NYT bestselling books that have questionable literary merit. It's fun. It's cathartic. It's perfect for your commute. New podcast (almost) every Tuesday!

Fan Alessandra Rosso needed us to confirm whether this NYT bestseller was actually trash because the main character “could have been replaced by a potted plant and I am not sure it would have changed the story.” And it’s a short book? About BROOKLYN (where we all live/have lived)?? Consider it read. Mean Book Club is four ladies (UCB, BuzzFeed, College Humor, Impractical Jokers) who read, discuss and whine about NYT bestselling books that have questionable literary merit. It's fun. It's cathartic. It's perfect for your commute. New podcast (almost) every Tuesday! Here’s the Season 16 reading list: Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuistonThe Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele RichardsonRomantic Comedy by Curtis SittenfeldRun Rose Run by James Patterson and Dolly PartonEverything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex by David ReubenThe House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ KluneSupermarket by LogicBrooklyn by Colm Toibin Send any future book suggestions to [email protected]! Follow us on the socials @meanbookclub! Rate, like, subscribe, and check out our Patreon page at patreon.com/meanbookclub to become a true patron of the mean arts. CREDITS: Hosted by Sarah Burton, Clara Morris, Johnna Scrabis, & Sabrina B. Jordan. This episode was produced and edited by Sarah Burton. Special thanks to FSM Team for our theme song, "Parkour Introvert." Thanks to Scott Buckley for the song used during our summary - “Three Sheets To The Wind.” You can get both the songs here: https://www.free-stock-music.com

Thank you to our Icelandic listener Jessic Lyn Webb who told us that this NYT bestseller was “truly the most heinous misjustice to storytelling I have every had the pain of reading,” and included lots of borderline harmful takes on mental illness. And for some reason, that sold us. Heaven knows why. This one was painful. We also have special guest - comedian and cohost of The Beanball podcast Joey Price! Mean Book Club is four ladies (UCB, BuzzFeed, College Humor, Impractical Jokers) who read, discuss and whine about NYT bestselling books that have questionable literary merit. It's fun. It's cathartic. It's perfect for your commute. New podcast (almost) every Tuesday! Here’s the Season 16 reading list: Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuistonThe Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele RichardsonRomantic Comedy by Curtis SittenfeldRun Rose Run by James Patterson and Dolly PartonEverything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex by David ReubenThe House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ KluneSupermarket by LogicBrooklyn by Colm Toibin Send any future book suggestions to [email protected]! Follow us on the socials @meanbookclub! Rate, like, subscribe, and check out our Patreon page at patreon.com/meanbookclub to become a true patron of the mean arts. CREDITS: Hosted by Sarah Burton, Clara Morris, Johnna Scrabis, & Sabrina B. Jordan. This episode was produced by Clara Morris and edited by Sarah Burton. Special thanks to FSM Team for our theme song, "Parkour Introvert." You can get it here: https://www.free-stock-music.com

TJ Klune's The House in the Cerulean Sea. An "enchanting story, masterfully told" or "a book that tries so hard to be quirky and twee it makes me want to throw it into the Atlantic Ocean." YOU DECIDE! We decide, also, on: Mean Book Club! We are four ladies (UCB, BuzzFeed, CollegeHumor, Impractical Jokers) who read, discuss and whine about NYT bestselling books that have questionable literary merit. It's fun. It's cathartic. It's perfect for your commute. New podcast (almost) every Tuesday!HUGE THANKS to Erin C for recommending this read! Here’s the Season 16 reading list:Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuistonThe Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele RichardsonRomantic Comedy by Curtis SittenfeldRun Rose Run by James Patterson and Dolly PartonEverything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex by David ReubenThe House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ KluneSupermarket by LogicBrooklyn by Colm ToibinSend any future book suggestions to [email protected]! Follow us on the socials @meanbookclub! Rate, like, subscribe, and check out our Patreon page at patreon.com/meanbookclub to become a true patron of the mean arts. CREDITS: Hosted by Sarah Burton, Clara Morris, Johnna Scrabis, & Sabrina B. Jordan. This episode was produced and edited by Johnna Scrabis. Special thanks to FSM Team for our theme song, "Parkour Introvert" and for "Happy Days" which played during the summary. You can get them both here: https://www.free-stock-music.com

A VERY SPECIAL BONUS EPISODE: We read Murder on Sex Island by Jo Firestone, suggested to us by friend of the pod and talented comedian Jo Firestone! It’s not YET a bestseller, but we jumped at the chance to cross-examine the author and dig down deep on why they made the weird choices they made. Fake teeth? A blonde wig? Is Sex Island just Love Island??? We had to know more.This book comes out TODAY (October 17) and you can buy it here: https://a.co/d/i7unYOs - Jo self-published so YES you can listen to her podcast version of the book for free but YES you should still buy the book!Here’s the Season 16 reading list:Red White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuistonThe Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele RichardsonRomantic Comedy by Curtis SittenfeldRun Rose Run by James Patterson and Dolly PartonEverything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex by David ReubenThe House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ KluneSupermarket by LogicBrooklyn by Colm ToibinSend any future book suggestions to [email protected]! Follow us on the socials @meanbookclub! Rate, like, subscribe, and check out our Patreon page at patreon.com/meanbookclub to become a true patron of the mean arts. CREDITS: Hosted by Sarah Burton, Clara Morris, Johnna Scrabis, & Sabrina B. Jordan. This episode was produced and edited by Sarah Burton. Special thanks to FSM Team for our theme song, "Parkour Introvert." You can get it here: https://www.free-stock-music.com

THE sex manual of 1969 (yeah baby) is also one of the all time best selling books EVER in America. Yeah, if you were breathing in 1969, odds are: YOU READ THIS BOOK. But is it a radical, liberal education on "fun sex" or a truly disturbing attack on women, aging, and homosexuality that you cannot even FIND in libraries today?We have award-winning podcast host and best-selling author DAN SAVAGE (instagram.com/dansavage/?hl=en) on the cast to help us find out. Spoiler: We find out VERY quickly. Kind of like, page two...This is a great one, so tune in! And check out Dan's podcast and column!https://savage.love/lovecast/https://savage.love/savagelove/Mean Book Club is four ladies (UCB, BuzzFeed, College Humor, Impractical Jokers) who read, discuss and whine about NYT bestselling books that have questionable literary merit. It's fun. It's cathartic. It's perfect for your commute. New podcast (almost) every Tuesday! Here’s the Season 16 reading list:Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuistonThe Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele RichardsonRomantic Comedy by Curtis SittenfeldRun Rose Run by James Patterson and Dolly PartonEverything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex by David ReubenThe House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ KluneSupermarket by LogicBrooklyn by Colm ToibinSend any future book suggestions to [email protected]! Follow us on the socials @meanbookclub! Rate, like, subscribe, and check out our Patreon page at patreon.com/meanbookclub to become a true patron of the mean arts. CREDITS: Hosted by Sarah Burton, Clara Morris, Johnna Scrabis, & Sabrina B. Jordan. This episode was produced and edited by Johnna Scrabis. Special thanks to FSM Team for our theme song, "Parkour Introvert." You can get it here: https://www.free-stock-music.com

Again listener Ashleigh C convinced us to read a Patterson book because Dolly Parton co-wrote it as “it’s very loosely autobiographical.” So we took on 17-week NYT bestseller by Dolly Parton and James Patterson. There’s a companion country album? Yes please. We also have special guest - comedian, showrunner and fellow Pennsylvanian Leo Allen, the man behind such classic shows as Nathan For You, Review with Forrest MacNeil, Jon Benjamin Has a Van and yes, even Saturday Night Live. Plus: he’s a HUGE Dolly fan. Mean Book Club is four ladies (UCB, BuzzFeed, College Humor, Impractical Jokers) who read, discuss and whine about NYT bestselling books that have questionable literary merit. It's fun. It's cathartic. It's perfect for your commute. New podcast (almost) every Tuesday! Here’s the Season 16 reading list:Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuistonThe Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele RichardsonRomantic Comedy by Curtis SittenfeldRun Rose Run by Dolly Parton and James PattersonEverything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex by David ReubenThe House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ KluneSupermarket by LogicBrooklyn by Colm ToibinSend any future book suggestions to [email protected]! Follow us on the socials @meanbookclub! Rate, like, subscribe, and check out our Patreon page at patreon.com/meanbookclub to become a true patron of the mean arts. CREDITS: Hosted by Sarah Burton, Clara Morris, Johnna Scrabis, & Sabrina B. Jordan. This episode was produced and edited by Sarah Burton. Special thanks to FSM Team for our theme song, "Parkour Introvert." You can get it here: https://www.free-stock-music.com