Chapter 1: What is STACK and how did it come about?
Hello and welcome to The Stack.
In every episode, we'll be building a themed stack of six books that we love.
The podcast starts properly next week, but for now, we just wanted to introduce ourselves and The Stack and talk a little bit about what we're doing, why we're doing it. Ella, the podcast, how did it come about?
Working in publishing, I have quite limited choice around the books I read. And because I'm reading fantastic submissions and fantastic books that we're publishing and I'm working on, and I was finding it hard to prioritise reading for pleasure. And I think that is something that is relatable to a lot of people.
It felt like I would be able to better prioritize reading for fun if we had a real reason and a deadline. And also, I think we've got lots of fun things to share. And you were the obvious person. Books have always been a big part of our friendship.
And I think so many people maybe used to read or don't read as much as they would like to. And it feels like an overwhelming amount of choice or what you should be reading or what everyone else is reading or what people are recommending.
And I think I read recently there are 200,000 books published a year in the UK.
Which is a lot.
You just can't get through them, Jake. And I know you give it your best effort. But I think it can be really hard to cut through that noise and find the books that are really worth your time. And that's become our mission as we put this pod together.
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Chapter 2: Why is prioritizing reading for pleasure important?
What do you think people are going to get from us that's different to other books, podcasts?
I think there are some really great book podcasts out there. I think they are focused either, for the most part, on author interviews or book reviews. And I find both of those quite hard as a reader to engage with on a regular basis because... If I haven't read that book or if I haven't read that author, then I feel like I can't quite access it.
And I think for this, this just feels like every episode will be six books that are absolutely worth the hype in our opinion. And that feels quite refreshing in a world that is pretty negative. And I'd love to hear from listeners as well on their books on that theme. So it doesn't just feel like it's kind of limiting. And also, crucially, you're a boy and I'm a girl.
Which we've never seen before.
That's rare in podcasts.
It's rare in book podcasts. It is. Ella, do you remember when we first met? Because we are friends.
Spoiler. We are friends. We met at uni and we were both working in the student bar. Do you remember when we met?
I remember. Maybe I'd met you before that. I'd been on the shift together. But I remember the first time I was like... That's a good one. It was a really busy shift. It was a really hot summer day. There was loads going on. Loads of people coming in to get coffees. And I think you'd been to the gym and someone was like, oh, we're so busy. Will anyone jump on shift?
You literally spring to the rescue. You come in. You're not even in the uniform, but you're a supervisor. So no one cared. And you were just whacking out these coffees so quickly. And I remember thinking like... She's a marvel. She saved the day.
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Chapter 3: What makes this podcast different from other book podcasts?
That is quite hot.
Thank you. I think it's also because if you eat food and you're too full and you're not enjoying it, that's still a waste. And also that doesn't serve that author either. If you're hating it and determined to see it through to the end, then you're not going to go forth and spread the word about that book.
And we're quite different on that because I am quite a finisher.
Religiously, yeah.
Almost religiously, I would say. I couldn't actually name you a book that I've not seen to the end.
I can't name you a book I have seen through to the end. I'm kidding.
My hot take is books don't have enough merch.
Is this part of your campaign to have a one day t-shirt? Yes. Get it out there early.
Episode zero. Let's do this. Ella, what's your favourite book?
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