Advertise on podcast: Beyond the Desk

Staffers Desirae and Karen talk about the author Freida McFadden and two of her twistiest books. Books mentioned: The Housemaid, The Boyfriend, and The Tenant. Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com,hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visitwestallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay

Staffers Sarah, Desirae and Brynne talk about the best books they read the past year.  Books mentioned: A Walk in the Park by Kevin Fedarko; The Möbius Book by Catherine Lacey; The Wrong Daughter, One Small Mistake, The Perfect Match and The Wedding Vow by Dandy Smith; All Fours by Miranda July; The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo; and Love, Mom by Iliana Xander. Also mentioned: A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson; Wild by Cheryl Strayed; The Grand Canyon: Between River and Rim by Pete McBride; the documentary Into the Canyon; Biography of X by Catherine Lacey; The Last Word by Taylor Adams; author Freida McFadden; Ninth House, Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo; Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke; and The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay

Co-hosts Brynne and Desirae discuss Mona Awad's novels Bunny (2019) and We Love You, Bunny (2025) following the latter's release. The novels follow five women in a fictional MFA writing program at a presitgious university and delves into their unique, unsettling, and magical creative processes. Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay

Staffers Sarah, Karen and Emily talk about The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon. Inspired by the life and diary of Martha Ballard, the historical novel follows the 18th-century midwife as she delivers babies, prepares to testify in court, and deals with a patriarchal culture in her small community in Maine. Also mentioned: A Midwife’s Tale by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich and the documentary A Midwife’s Tale. Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay

Librarians Sarah and Brynne discuss the Secrets of the Nile duology featuring What the River Knows and Where the Library Hides by Isabel Ibañez. The historical fantasy novels follow Inez from Argentina to Egypt, where she seeks answers about her parents’ deaths. Along the way she discovers magical objects, adventure and romance. Also mentioned: Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie and the movie adaptation from 2022, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, Cleopatra by Stacy Schiff, Dinner with King Tut by Sam Kean, An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir, Hotel Magnifique by Emily J. Taylor, and The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay

Librarians Desirae and Sarah talk about the atmospheric thriller Beautiful Ugly by Alice Feeney. When a writer’s wife goes missing, his career stalls. Then his agent gives him an opportunity to start fresh on a remote island off the coast of Scotland. But it’s filled with secrets and mysteries, and he begins to see his wife everywhere. Also mentioned: Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney, the movie The Wicker Man, The Plot by Jean Hanff Korelitz, Yellowface by R.F. Kuang, The Guest List by Lucy Foley, and His & Hers and Rock Paper Scissors by Alice Feeney. Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay

Librarians Desirae and Sarah talk about this suspenseful novel that follows a woman trying to uncover the truth of her mother’s death 30 years prior on the Italian island of Capri. On an annual family visit there, one of their party goes missing, and the decades-old case gets reopened. Also mentioned: The Cloisters by Katy Hays, The White Lotus TV series, Revenge TV series, The Heiress by Rachel Hawkins, Daisy Darker by Alice Feeney, We Were Liars by E. Lockhart, The God of the Woods by Liz Moore (see episode 47), Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter. Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay

Sarah, a librarian at WAPL, interviews Harini Nagendra, author of the Bagalore Detectives Club Mystery series. Her most recent novel, Into the Leopard’s Den, takes amateur detective Kaveri Murthy to the mountains of Coorg while investigating a series of murders. Also mentioned: The Bangalore Detectives Club, Murder Under a Red Moon and A Nest of Vipers by Harini Nagendra; Tommy and Tuppence mysteries by Agatha Christie; Sherlock Holmes books by Arthur Conan Doyle; Baroness Emma Orczy; the Wyndham & Banerjee Mysteries by Abir Muhkerjee (see episode 4); and the Perveen Mistry Series by Sujata Massey. Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay

Librarians Katie and Sarah chat about Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins. This Hunger Games prequel follows Haymich Abernathy as he navigates his way through a Quarter Quell, in which twice as many tributes compete in the Hunger Games. It’s a worthwhile page-turner with an emotional punch. Also mentioned: The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Mockingjay, and The Battle of Songbirds and Snakes by Suzanne Collins; The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood and the TV series; the movie Mean Girls; and “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe. Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, so Sarah sat down to talk with Meg Kissinger, author of While You Were Out: An Intimate Family Portrait of Mental Illness in an Era of Silence. Meg grew up in a large family, and some family members struggled with bipolar disorder and depression. But even as they struggled to understand what was happening, they were a close-knit clan whose humor helped them cope with loss. For more about Meg, visit megkissinger.com. To request her book from the card catalog, go to tinyurl.com/bduabsjm. Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay

Librarians Desirae and Katie sit down to discuss the lasting impact of Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight book series. Works mentioned: Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, Breaking Dawn, Midnight Sun, Forever Dawn, and Life and Death by Stephenie Meyer; The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan; Looking for Alaska by John Green; The Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld; Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling; The movie Avengers: Infinity War; The Fast and the Furious movies; The movie Mickey 17 People mentioned: Walter Dean Myers; Nikki Grimes; Meg Cabot; Maureen Johnson; E. Lockhart; Billy Burke; James Patterson; Sarah J. Maas; Rebecca Yarros; Taylor Swift; Rami Malek; Robert Pattinson Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay

West Allis resident Tammy joins WAPL staffers Sarah and Karen to discuss the bestseller The Women by Kristin Hannah. It tells the story of Frankie, a sheltered young woman who joins the Army Nurse Corps in Vietnam and encounters difficulty reacclimating to civilian life upon her return. Also mentioned: The TV series M*A*S*H, about the Korean War; the movie Born on the Fourth of July; the TV series China Beach; The Nightingale and The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah; Saving Ruby King by Catherine Adel West; The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell; The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane, The Island of Sea Women, and Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See. To listen to a soundtrack of songs from The Women, go to https://tinyurl.com/womensoundtrack. Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay

Librarian Desirae and library assistant Bianca sit down to discuss the importance of representation in romance and highlight three of their favorite reads. Works mentioned: Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf, Electric Idol by Katee Robert, and How to Dance by Jason B. Dutton. Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay

WAPL staffers Desirae, Sarah and Karen discuss The God of the Woods by Liz Moore. This standout literary mystery follows the disappearance of a teen in the same woods where her brother went missing years before. Also mentioned: Long Bright River by Liz Moore. Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay

Katie, Desirae and Sarah talk about their favorite reads of the year. We suggest thrillers, nonfiction, graphic novels and more. Works mentioned: Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus, You Know What You Did by K.T. Nguyen, First Lie Wins by Ashley Elston, America Redux by Ariel Aberg-Riger, All This Could Be Different by Sarah Thankam Mathews, the movie Lady Bird, The Wedding People by Alison Espach, the movie Table 19, and A First Time for Everything by Dan Santat, The Tea Dragon Society by K. O’Neill, and No Cats in the Library by Lauren Emmons. Check out books, TV shows and movies at countycat.mcfls.org, wplc.overdrive.com, hoopladigital.com and kanopy.com/en/westallis. For more about WAPL, visit westallislibrary.org. Music: Tim Moor via Pixabay