Episode · Las Culturistas with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang · 2026-05-20
Books mentioned on "More Like Read BY Jenna" (w/ Jenna Bush Hager)
This is TODAY, with Matt + Bowen... and their friend Jenna Bush Hager!
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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The Baby-Sitters Club
Discussed“It was 1988. It was the combination of two things. It was Ann M. Martin Merdens's The Babysitters Club.”
Where to get it
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Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares is a popular contemporary young adult novel following four close friends who share a magical pair of jeans as they spend their first summer apart.
Discussed“I didn't read Judy Bloom, but you know you know what the big standout like thing that I hid under my bed was was Sister of the Traveling Pants.”
Where to get it
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Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret is a classic young adult novel by Judy Blume that addresses the physical and emotional trials of adolescence.
Discussed“And honestly, even when when I Judy Bloom gave me Are You There God? It's Me Margaret, which is Mila's real name. I'm like, "Oh my god, I'm going to give that to Mila."”
Where to get it
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Tom Lake
Tom Lake by Ann Patchett is a contemporary novel that follows a mother recounting her past romance with a famous actor to her daughters while the family isolates together on a Michigan cherry farm during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Discussed“Well, I mean, when we think about like Tom Lake, which our queen Anne Patchet wrote, but Merryill Streep read it.”
Where to get it
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The Meaning of Mariah Carey
The Meaning of Mariah Carey by Mariah Carey is a deeply personal memoir that chronicles the iconic singer's life, career, and personal struggles.
Book club“we did Mariah for the meaning of Mariah Carey and just the way that she informs the stories with her voice.”
Where to get it
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Wicked
Wicked by Gregory Maguire is a celebrated 1995 revisionist fantasy novel that reimagines the Land of Oz from the perspective of the Wicked Witch of the West, serving as the foundational source for the hit musical and subsequent film adaptations.
Discussed“Why are we banning all these books, y'all? INCLUDING THE WICKED BOOK. WHY ARE WE BANNING the wicked book?”
Where to get it
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To Kill a Mockingbird
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a celebrated American novel addressing racial injustice and moral growth through the eyes of young Scout Finch in the deep South.
Discussed“Why are we banning to kill a mockingb bird?”
Where to get it
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The Summer I Turned Pretty
Jenny Han's popular young adult romance novel captures the quintessential experiences of teenage adolescence, summer vacations, and complicated first loves through the perspective of its young protagonist.
Discussed“I posted a picture, I don't think so, honey, OF MY DAUGHTER READING THE SUMMER I TURNED PRETTY.”
Where to get it
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Beloved
Beloved by Toni Morrison is a powerful historical fiction novel that tells the harrowing story of Sethe, an escaped enslaved woman haunted by the trauma of her past and the literal ghost of her daughter.
Discussed“But you're taking Beloved by Tony Morrison out of our libraries.”
Where to get it
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Pachinko
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee is a sweeping historical novel that chronicles the complex lives of a Korean family living in Japan across four generations.
Discussed“I was with Men Jen, this author who I love who wrote Pachinko, and she told me, Menin Lee, she told me that books actually made her brave.”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (2) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
“and um to to kill a mockingb bird because it's about like this friendship in a small town but it's also this kind of thriller.”
“It's like if um it's like if room which maybe you've read and um to to kill a mockingb bird because it's about like this friendship”