Fully Booked by Kirkus Reviews
Get the ultimate insider's scoop on the best new books. The editors at Kirkus Reviews interview your favorite authors, tell you whether or not the books on the bestseller list are worth the read, give you behind-the-scenes insights, and introduce you to great books you may otherwise never find.
Episodes
January 14, 2025 • 54 mins
On this episode, dedicated to the Most Anticipated Books of 2025, Cynthia Weiner joins us to discuss A Gorgeous Excitement (Crown, Jan. 21), a brilliant debut novel inspired by her 1980s childhood on New York’s Upper East Side, and a personal connection to an infamous murder. Kirkus: “Carefully paced and beautifully written, this edgy coming-of-age novel succeeds on all counts” (starred review). Then our editors share some of this ...
Mark as Played
January 7, 2025 • 43 mins
In this special repisode, recorded live at the Texas Book Festival in Austin, host Megan Labrise moderates featured panel “The Art of Mystery” with New York Times bestselling authors Jean Hanff Korelitz (The Sequel) and Liz Moore (The God of the Woods).
Mark as Played
December 31, 2024 • 54 mins
Happy New Year, listeners! It’s the Fully Booked Year in Review, featuring editor-in-chief Tom Beer and Kirkus correspondent Michael Schaub. On this jolly special episode, we take a deep dive into the weirdest book news of 2024 and reveal the year’s most popular episode.
Mark as Played
December 24, 2024 • 52 mins
On this special holiday episode, Megan presents her favorite interviews of 2024, featuring Danzy Senna, author of Colored Television (Riverhead), and J. Drew Lanham, author of Joy Is the Justice We Give Ourselves (Hub City Press).
Mark as Played
December 17, 2024 • 56 mins
We conclude our Best Books of 2024 coverage with a special episode dedicated to YA. First, debut graphic novelist Agnes Lee joins us to discuss 49 Days (Levine Querido, March 5), one of Kirkus’ Best YA Books of 2024: “A moving portrayal of mortality and its aftermath, shown from both sides” (starred review). Then editor Laura Simeon explores some more of the year’s best YA.
Mark as Played
December 10, 2024 • 61 mins
We continue our Best Books of 2024 coverage with a special episode dedicated to MIDDLE GRADE. First, New York Times-bestselling author Annie Barrows joins us to discuss Stella & Marigold, illustrated by Sophie Blackall (Chronicle Books, Oct. 1), one of Kirkus’ Best Books of 2024.Kirkus: “All the heart. None of the pablum. Sisterhood at its finest and freshest” (starred review). Then editors Laura Simeon and Mahnaz Dar highlight mor...
Mark as Played
December 3, 2024 • 46 mins
We continue our Best Books of 2024 coverage with a special episode dedicated to PICTURE BOOKS. First, Ying Chang Compestine joins us to discuss Growing Up Under a Red Flag, illustrated by Xinmei Liu (Rocky Pond Books/Penguin, May 7), one of Kirkus’ Best Picture Books of 2024. Kirkus“A vivid glimpse into a childhood under communist rule.” Then young readers’ editor Mahnaz Dar highlights more of the year’s best picture books.
Mark as Played
November 26, 2024 • 52 mins
We continue our Best Books of 2024 coverage with a special episode dedicated to NONFICTION. First, Nell Irvin Painter joins us to discuss I Just Keep Talking: A Life in Essays (Doubleday, April 23), one of Kirkus’ Best Nonfiction Books of 2024. Kirkus: “A vibrant, insightful collection from an indispensable voice” (starred review). Then nonfiction editor John McMurtrie discusses more of the year’s best nonfiction.
Mark as Played
November 19, 2024 • 48 mins
We’re kicking off our Best Books of 2024 coverage with a special episode dedicated to FICTION. First, Elise Bryant joins us to discuss on of Kirkus’ Best Fiction Books of 2024: the tantalizing mystery novel It’s Elementary (Berkley, July 9). Then fiction editor Laurie Muchnick dishes on the year’s best novels and story collections.
Mark as Played
November 12, 2024 • 56 mins
It’s the seventh annual Fully Booked Holiday Gift Guide! On the second of two special episodes, we’re delving art books, travel, fun fresh holiday reads, and more. Special guest cohost Tom Beer joins host Megan Labrise conviviality and good cheer with curator and writer Lisa Le Feuvre (Great Women Sculptors; Phaidon) and Rosie Schaap, (The Slow Road North: How I Found Peace in an Improbable Country; Mariner Books). Then Kirkus’ edi...
Mark as Played
November 5, 2024 • 64 mins
It’s the seventh annual Fully Booked Holiday Gift Guide! On the first of two special episodes, we’re delving into Books for Cooks, cookbooks, culinary histories, foodie fiction, and more. Special guest cohost Laurie Muchnick joins host Megan Labrise for spirited conversations with Rose Levy Beranbaum, author of The Cake Bible, 35th Anniversary Ed. (William Morrow Cookbooks, Oct. 22) and Paola Velez, author of Bodega Bakes: Sweets a...
Mark as Played
October 29, 2024 • 51 mins
Debut novelist Nayantara Roy discusses The Magnificent Ruins (Algonquin, Nov. 12). “Lila De’s life in Brooklyn is a success, but a bereavement that pulls her back to her homeland of India forces her to confront her demons” in this “rich” family saga, Kirkus writes. Then our editors share their top picks in books for the week.
Mark as Played
October 22, 2024 • 47 mins
Abbott Kahler discusses Eden Undone: A True Story of Sex, Murder, and Utopia at the Dawn of World War II (Crown, Sept. 24). Kirkus calls this standout narrative nonfiction, set on a small Galapagos island, “a spirited page-turner.” Then Kirkus’ editors share their top picks in books for the week.
Mark as Played
October 15, 2024 • 54 mins
Amy Reading discusses The World She Edited: Katherine S. White at the New Yorker (Mariner Books, Sept. 3). Kirkus calls this standout biography “an entertaining and expansive study of a pioneering literary editor and the era that shaped her legendary tenure” (starred review). Then Kirkus’ editors share their top picks in books for the week.
Mark as Played
October 8, 2024 • 47 mins
On this special episode, editor-in-chief Tom Beer and host Megan Labrise dish on the 2024 Kirkus Prize, one week ahead of the 11th Kirkus Prize Awards Ceremony in New York City. Then Kirkus’ editors take us behind the scenes of the monthslong Kirkus Prize process.
Mark as Played
October 1, 2024 • 48 mins
On our Best October Books episode, sponsored by Flying Eye Books, Kirkus’ editors share their top titles for the month. Then Betsy Lerner joins us to discuss her distinctive debut novel, Shred Sisters (Grove, Oct. 3). Kirkus: “A seamlessly constructed and absorbing fictional world, full of insight about how families work” (starred review).
Mark as Played
September 24, 2024 • 54 mins
Rumaan Alam discusses Entitlement (Riverhead, Sept. 17), the scintillating follow-up to his National Book Award-nominated novel Leave the World Behind (2020). “A billionaire philanthropist’s ambitious young protégé wants her slice of the pie,” Kirkus writes in a starred review. “[Entitlement] cements Alam’s status as a talented truth-teller willing to tackle tough issues with grace, generosity, and sensitivity.” Then Kirkus’ editor...
Mark as Played
September 17, 2024 • 41 mins
Garth Greenwell discusses Small Rain (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, Sept. 3), a profound new novel in which an unnamed narrator faces a medical emergency in Iowa City at the height of the pandemic. Kirkus: “Greenwell—such a finely tuned, generous writer—transforms a savage illness into a meditation on a vital life” (starred review). Then our editors share their top picks in books for the week.
Mark as Played
September 10, 2024 • 49 mins
Devika Rege discusses her standout debut novel, Quarterlife (Liveright, Sept. 10), which Kirkus calls “an ambitious, unusual, formally risky novel that attempts nothing less than a full-scale portrait of India circa 2014.” Then our editors share their top picks in books for the week.
Mark as Played
September 3, 2024 • 48 mins
On our Best September Books episode, Kirkus’ editors share their top titles for the month. Then Danzy Senna joins us to discuss her highly anticipated new novel, Colored Television (Riverhead, Sept. 3). “When her second novel hits a wall, a biracial California writer makes a desperate attempt to sta
Mark as Played
Popular Podcasts
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations.
'Monster: BTK', the newest installment in the 'Monster' franchise, reveals the true story of the Wichita, Kansas serial killer who murdered at least 10 people between 1974 and 1991. Known by the moniker, BTK – Bind Torture Kill, his notoriety was bolstered by the taunting letters he sent to police, and the chilling phone calls he made to media outlets. BTK's identity was finally revealed in 2005 to the shock of his family, his community, and the world. He was the serial killer next door. From Tenderfoot TV & iHeartPodcasts, this is 'Monster: BTK'.
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy And Charlamagne Tha God!