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Why are kids drawn to stories about orphans? Has childhood always been the way it is now? Writer and historian Dixie Dillon Lane talks to Tsh about two books + two places that have shaped her. * The Hollow | Dixie Dillon Lane on Substack * Dixie’s book, Skipping School: A History of American Homeschooling and How It Went Mainstream * Hearth & Field magazine * The Commonplace | Tsh’s newsletter on Substack * Summer 2027: Join Tsh in Italy! Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe

When you can’t do the ideal, but you can still do something, what’s the good-enough version? That’s the partial solution. Sounds simple, but it’s really hard to enact. This episode embodies a partial solution because it’s a departure from the usual episodes. But done > perfect, every time. * The Commonplace | Tsh’s newsletter on Substack * On Making Friends & Partial Solutions * Ira Glass’ The Gap * Summer 2027: Join me in Italy! Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe

And live for a few of you! It’s been awhile, but I’m dusting off the podcast feed and returning to a new season of Drink. I’m back to asking friends about two books—one from their childhood, one recent—that’s shaped them in some way, but I’m also asking them about something else: what about places? What’s one place from childhood and one more recent that’s formed them, even in a small way, into who they are today? In this inaugural “dusting off” episode, I’m answering my own questions—and also explaining a bit of where I’ve been (I promise, it’s not that interesting). * The Commonplace | Tsh’s newsletter on Substack * Ep. 192: Childhood Mythology & the Greatest Medieval Epic * The Westing Game, by Ellen Raskin * Emma M. Lion, by Beth Brower (vols. 1-8 so far) * Summer 2027: Join me in Italy! Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe

For the final episode of this season, Tsh chats with Abigail Favale, a fellow author and all-around great gal. She shares her childhood book—one Tsh has never heard of—and one she’s read as an adult that’s been on Tsh’s TBR list for absolute ever. * Abigail Favale’s new novel, Our Lady of the Sign * Abigail on Substack * The Farthest Away Mountain, by Lynne Reid Banks | Amazon * Kristin Lavransdatter, by Sigrid Undset | Amazon | Bookshop * Tsh Oxenreider’s newsletter, books, course, and trips Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe

Annelise Roberts is a wife and mom of six kids whom she homeschools while raising animals on their homestead in North Carolina. She shares with Tsh a beloved childhood book (that’s very fitting for her life right now), as well as one of the most mind-blowing works of fiction from C.S. Lewis. * Annelise Roberts’ newsletter, Writing While Washing * Little Men, by Louisa May Alcott | Amazon | Bookshop * Till We Have Faces, by C.S. Lewis | Amazon | Bookshop * Tsh Oxenreider’s newsletter, books, course, and trips Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe

Shawn Smucker co-owns an independent bookshop in his town with his wife, and is also a long-time author of several books. He shares with Tsh a classic, perennial favorite childhood book, as well as one of his go-tos from adulthood. * Shawn Smucker’s newsletter, The Courage to Live It * His bookshop, Nooks * The Lion, the Witch, & The Wardrobe, by C.S. Lewis * A Prayer for Owen Meany, by John Irving * Tsh Oxenreider’s newsletter, books, course, and trips Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe

Autumn Kern is a mom of four who releases bookish videos in a space called, delightfully enough, The Commonplace, and also hosts Common House, a space for homeschooling moms to get their bearings in the classical Charlotte Mason world. She shares with Tsh a favorite childhood book (one of Tsh’s favorites, too, though not from her own childhood) and a recent one from her adulthood (it’s one Tsh has never heard of). * Autumn Kern’s video channel, The Commonplace * Autumn’s mom encouragement space, Common House * Harry Potter & The Prisoner of Azkaban, by J.K. Rowling * The Lost Princess + The Wise Woman: A Parable, by George MacDonald * Tsh Oxenreider’s newsletter, books, course, and trips Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe

Hadden Turner writes the well-loved Substack newsletter Over the Field and lives in northern England among farmers and apples. He shares with Tsh his choice of a favorite book from childhood (one she’d never heard of before), as well as a recent read for his choice of favorites as an adult. * Hadden’s Newsletter, Over the Field * Out of the Ashes, by Michael Morpurgo * The Pearl, by John Steinbeck * Tsh Oxenreider’s newsletter, books, course, and trips Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe

Faith Moore is a writer and podcaster of the popular show Storytime for Grownups, as well as an avid reader. She shares with Tsh her choice of a favorite book from childhood, as well as one of her all-time favorites as an adult (it’s one of Tsh’s favorites, too). * Faith’s podcast, Storytime for Grownups * Matilda, by Roald Dahl * Jane Eyre, by Charlotte Bronte * Tsh Oxenreider’s newsletter, books, course, and trips Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe

Joel Miller is the writer of the popular newsletter Miller’s Book Review, chief content officer at Full Focus, author of the new book The Idea Machine, and an avid reader. He shares with Tsh a beloved book from his childhood and one from adulthood (as well as two extras from both). * Joel’s newsletter, Miller’s Book Review * Joel’s new book, The Idea Machine: How Books Built Our World and Shape Our Future * Tarzan of the Apes, by Edgar Rice Burroughs * First Blood, by David Morrell * The Road, by Cormac McCarthy * The Aviator, by Eugene Vodolazkin * Tsh Oxenreider’s newsletter, books, course, and trips Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe

For a new season of this podcast, Tsh Oxenreider is talking with people about two books that changed them: one from childhood, one from adulthood. Who better to start with than her own daughter, Tatum? * the Percy Jackson series, by Rick Riordan * Bridge to Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson * A Wrinkle in Time, by Madeleine L’Engle * The Divine Comedy, by Dante Alighieri * A Gentleman in Moscow, by Amor Towles * Tsh Oxenreider’s newsletter, books, course, and trips Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe

Tsh gives a short pitch for why you should do — in some way, before too long — what she does every summer: take a break from the internet. She explains why this break is so life-giving and necessary for her, her three reasons why she firmly believes EVERYONE needs to take regular breaks from the internet, as well as some encouragement that you, too, can do this. Yes, you! Really. The next season will return after a brief hiatus! * Tsh’s newsletter, books, trips, & Rule of Life * Recommended reads * Buy a round of drinks Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe

Tsh chats with her in-real-life local friend Rick Reynolds, whom she first got to know on one of her pilgrimages (he and his wife have since been on three with her!). Rick is a marriage therapist specializing in infidelity, so they get into what really holds marriages together, why community matters so much to ALL of us, what it means to affair-proof your relationship, how to heal from betrayals, and where hope is truly found in all of it. (Sounds like a potential downer, but it's actually a super encouraging conversation!) * Affair Recovery * Journey with Jesus: Discovering the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius, by Larry Warner * Temecula Coffee Roasters * Tsh’s books, trips, & Rule of Life * Recommended reads * Buy a round of drinks Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe

Tsh chats with Stephanie Duncan Smith, a book editor who’s been thinking for a while about the liturgical calendar. They get into Eastertide — and the beauty of its length (50 days), how it’s good that feasting always follows fasting, why Ordinary Time is magical, and how it all fits together with the rhythms of our personal lives (and how it feels when it sometimes doesn’t). * Stephanie Duncan Smith and her Slant Letter * Stephanie’s book, Even After Everything: on Bookshop and Amazon * Hallowed Be This House, by Thomas Howard * Tsh’s books, trips, & Rule of Life * Recommended reads * Buy a round of drinks Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe

Tsh talks with Rachel Canto, author of Pretty Good Catholic, about the current dating scene and …well, what to do about it. Tsh read her book in one sitting on a flight a few months ago, and knew she wanted to chat with her. Rachel’s thoughts are chock-full of sage, practical advice — and not just for Catholics. She has wisdom beyond her years! * Rachel Canto & Pretty Good Catholic * Tsh’s newsletter: The Commonplace * Tsh’s books, trips, & Rule of Life * Join Tsh’s next pilgrimage: The Rhine River 2025 * Recommended reads * Buy a round of drinks Get full access to The Commonplace at thecommon.place/subscribe