Person
Every book Sadie Stein recommended on podcasts
Sadie Stein recommended a diverse array of books ranging from gripping nonfiction and literary novellas to classic spooky stories and beloved children's literature. For readers interested in investigative nonfiction, she recommended Patrick Radden Keefe's Say Nothing as a compelling follow-up read. Turning to fiction, she suggested Fred Uhlman's novella Reunion as a thoughtful companion piece and highlighted Daphne du Maurier's collection Don't Look Now and Other Stories, particularly praising the lesser-known piece Monte Verita. For younger readers and back-to-school reading lists, Stein recommended Alvin Schwartz's Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, Beverly Cleary's Ramona the Pest, and Harry Allard and James Marshall's Miss Nelson is Missing!, drawing attention to Marshall's iconic illustrations. Furthermore, she celebrated the works of John Bellairs by discussing The House with a Clock in Its Walls and its sequels, emphasizing how integral Edward Gorey's book covers and illustrations are to those stories. Stein also shared her personal appreciation for Edward Gorey's distinctive style by naming The Willowdale Handcar as her favorite book by the author during a discussion celebrating a century of his artistic legacy.
Books recommended by Sadie Stein
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Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark
Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alvin Schwartz is a classic, widely read children's horror anthology that compiles terrifying American folklore and urban legends, accompanied by famously unsettling illustrations by Stephen Gammell.
Recommended“But if I had to give it to one, it has got to be Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark by Alan Schwarz, which is a book I know Gilbert also enjoyed as a child.”
Where to get it
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Affinity
Affinity by Sarah Waters is a Victorian-era historical novel that delves into the shadowy worlds of a London women's prison and the booming spiritualism movement of the late nineteenth century.
Recommended“I would add to that Affinity another of her spookier ones which yes is about spiritualism also a perfect book which you have to read”
Where to get it
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Don't look at me like that
Don't Look at Me Like That by Diana Athill is a poignant novel exploring complex relationships, personal freedom, and emotional vulnerability.
Recommended“I would recommend Diana aills don't look at me like that which has just been re-released by New York Review of Books”
Where to get it
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Don't Look Now
Don't Look Now by Daphne du Maurier is a chilling collection of short fiction known for its atmospheric tension, psychological depth, and dark twists.
Recommended“yeah they put out don't look now and Other Stories on another great movie based on her books and that also includes another one I love called Monte verita which I once read about and read like the wind and it's not so well known but I highly recommend it”
Where to get it
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Eight Ghosts
Eight Ghosts by Sarah Perry, Mark Haddon, and Max Porter is a contemporary horror anthology featuring stories set in various real-life heritage locations across the country.
Recommended“and you have a mixture of classic collections like sherid and lau Walter Dyan and then new writers and I picked up a book called Eight ghosts which is put out in connection with English heritage and each of the stories by a contemporary horror writer is set at some real life Heritage house or space in the UK which”
Where to get it
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Madness
Madness: Race and Insanity in a Jim Crow Asylum by Antonia Hylton is a harrowing work of investigative non-fiction that chronicles the dark and troubled history of Crownsville Hospital, a segregated Maryland institution for psychiatric patients.
Recommended“and this is a Madness by Antonia Hilton”
Where to get it
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Miss Nelson is missing!
Miss Nelson is Missing! by Harry Allard and James Marshall is a humorous children's picture book about a well-behaved classroom whose sweet teacher disappears and is replaced by a strict substitute.
Recommended“And um another good back to school pick is um Miss Nelson is Missing with the iconic James Marshall illustrations.”
Where to get it
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Ramona the Pest
Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary is a classic children's novel following the energetic and strong-willed Ramona Quimby as she navigates the trials and tribulations of starting kindergarten.
Recommended“And we're starting kindergarten, so we just read Ramona the Pest to him and he loved it.”
Where to get it
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Reunion
Reunion by Fred Uhlman is a poignant and tightly crafted novella that explores the tragic friendship between two schoolboys in Germany as the Nazi party rises to power.
Recommended“Um, but to go in a slightly different direction, I I thought a few times about this novella, Reunion by Fredman.”
Where to get it
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Say Nothing
Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe is a true story of murder and memory in Northern Ireland that investigates political violence, justice, and the heavy personal cost of what individuals kill and die for.
Recommended“I would say definitely read Say Nothing if you haven't and if you liked it, I second that.”
Where to get it
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The Birds
The Birds by Daphne Du Maurier is a chilling collection of suspenseful short stories best known for inspiring Alfred Hitchcock's cinematic thriller about unexplained avian attacks.
Recommended“yeah they put out don't look now and Other Stories on another great movie based on her books and that also includes another one I love called Monte verita which I once read about and read like the wind and it's not so well known but I highly recommend it”
Where to get it
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The Ghost stories of Edith Wharton
The Ghost Stories of Edith Wharton by Edith Wharton is a collection of eerie and psychological short tales penned by the celebrated master of American literary realism.
Recommended“well if I were telling people to read one I think I would have to go with a classic which is Edith Wharton's ghost stories and they are uh have been collected a bunch of times but New York Review Classics put out a very good collection I guess last year maybe two years ago which is Wharton's own selection”
Where to get it
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The House with a Clock in Its Walls
The House with a Clock in Its Walls by John Bellairs is a classic dark fantasy novel that follows a young orphan who goes to live with his uncle, only to discover a world of magic, mystery, and malevolent forces.
Recommended“and then the John Belair books if you like the house with the clock and its walls and all the sequels again you can't really separate his illustrations and covers from those terrific books”
Where to get it
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The paying guests
The Paying Guests by Sarah Waters is a gripping historical novel set in 1920s London following a struggling mother and daughter who take in lodgers, leading to intense psychological drama.
Recommended“I also think you have to read her last book which was called the paying guests oh that's it's so good which just has some scenes of such Menace including one where someone where a man is getting a shave with a straight Riser that is just just excruciating”
Where to get it
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The Sullivanians
The Sullivanians by Alexander Stille is a compelling nonfiction work exploring the history, dynamics, and eventual decline of a radical Upper West Side psychotherapy commune.
Recommended“this book is by Alexandra Stila and it is called the sullivanians subtitle sex Psychotherapy and the wildlife of an American commune”
Where to get it
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The Turn of the Screw
The Turn of the Screw by Henry James is a seminal Gothic novella that has terrified and fascinated readers for generations with its chilling ambiguity surrounding ghosts, psychological torment, and unreliable narration.
Recommended“but I think we could not end this conversation without mentioning a turn at the screw just because it started it all and it in if you want psychosexual Thrills if you want to be really scared if you want a great writer seeing what can be done with this media you just can't beat Henry James Henry James and”
Where to get it
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The Virago Book of Ghost Stories
The Virago Book of Ghost Stories, edited by Richard Dalby, is a carefully curated anthology that brings together haunting fiction exclusively written by women from the eighteenth century through the modern age.
Recommended“I've been debating and I wanted to say if you're reading one collection the verago book of ghost stories is so good it's all women writers from the 18th century uh through the Modern Age It's just so well cated there's barely a lemon in the bunch”
Where to get it
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The Willowdale Handcar
The Willowdale Handcar by Edward Gorey is an eccentric and atmospheric illustrated story that follows a group of curious characters on a mysterious journey.
Recommended“my favorite and let me know if you've read it is called called the Willowdale handar”
Where to get it
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A Farewell to Arms
A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway is a celebrated novel that chronicles a tragic wartime romance and the brutal realities of combat, known for its spare prose and poignant explorations of human resilience.
Critiqued“And I'm thinking here of a farewell to arms, which which was a particular dud in my freshman English class.”
Where to get it
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As I Lay Dying
As I Lay Dying is a classic 1930 novel by American author William Faulkner that presents the harrowing journey of the Bundren family as they attempt to fulfill their matriarch's dying wish for burial.
Critiqued“Um, being made to read it in a high school English class as I lay dying as well. Um, and just it I was like, I I I have no idea what's happening.”
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“I remember reading um we read quite a bit of it was Beloved that we first read in high school Tony Morrison and that was such a good high school book.”
Where to get it
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Betsy-Tacy (Betsy-Tacy #1)
Discussed“I should say I was not an early reader and I think what really started me loving it was um the first Betsy Tacy book.”
Where to get it
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From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs.
Discussed“And I remember she read from the mixed up files of Mrs. Basily Frankeiler and um she read a lot to us every day...”
Where to get it
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Macbeth
Macbeth by William Shakespeare is one of the playwright's darkest and most famous tragedies, exploring the destructive psychological and political ambitions of a Scottish lord who seizes the throne.
Discussed“whether that be the Zepharelli or the Roman Palansky McBth or So, they showed you the most inappropriate versions of these stories.”
Where to get it
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Nine Stories
Nine Stories by J.
Discussed“I mean, you mentioned nine stories and we read that later on and that was another gut punch.”
Where to get it
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Of Mice and Men
Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck is a classic American novella chronicling the tragic journey of two displaced migrant ranch workers, George and Lennie, as they desperately pursue their shared dream during the Great Depression.
Discussed“I do remember reading of Men and it made I found it almost traumatic. I remember that.”
Where to get it
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Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare is a timeless tragedy about two young lovers from feuding families whose deaths ultimately reconcile their households.
Discussed“especially Romeo and Juliet being a a way that, you know, first of all, we acted them out.”
Where to get it
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Something Wicked This Way Comes
Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury is a classic dark fantasy novel that explores the complex relationships between fathers and sons against the backdrop of a sinister traveling carnival.
Discussed“and then well the first movie that I really loved was Something Wicked This Way come which was a Disney film but really scary and then I read the rape Bradberry book it was based on probably too young and that just chilled me to the bone in the most delicious way”
Where to get it
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Song of Solomon
Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison is a celebrated novel that follows the life of Macon Dead III, known as Milkman, as he embarks on a journey of self-discovery and ancestral unravelling.
Discussed“And so we also had um the audio book of I think Song of Solomon in his case. And that was fantastic.”
Where to get it
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The Ambassadors
Discussed“I was really interested to read the Illusions to Henry James's 1903 novel The ambassadors because I had in the time since read that she deliberately modeled at least a setup on that”
Where to get it
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The Catcher in the Rye
The Catcher in the Rye by J.
Discussed“Oh um seventh grade we read Catcher in the Eye and I absolutely loved it.”
Where to get it
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The Gashlycrumb Tinies
Discussed“hidden around the house are table or references to each of the 26 deaths from the gashly crumb tinies and so you get a a piece of paper that reprints the gashly crumb tinies”
Where to get it
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The Idiot
The Idiot by Fyodor Dostoevsky is a profound 19th-century Russian novel that follows the compassionate, innocent, and deeply misunderstood Prince Myshkin as he navigates the cynical and corrupt high society of St.
Discussed“we read The Idiot in high school by Doski, which is this, you know, difficult Russian literature, but he I just remember loving it.”
Where to get it
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The Insect God
Discussed“actually that's part of a Trilogy you'll recall the vinegar works three volumes of moral instruction and and of those three gley crom tines is the most famous but the insect God was actually always my favorite”
Where to get it
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The Iron Tonic, Or, A Winter Afternoon in Lonely Valley
Discussed“another one I was thinking about is the iron tonic or a winter afternoon in lonely Valley”
Where to get it
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The Pearl
The Pearl by John Steinbeck is a dark and compelling parable that examines the corrupting nature of wealth and greed through the story of a poor Mexican pearl diver who finds a magnificent gem that ultimately brings misfortune to his family.
Discussed“We read that and The Pearl, and I found them so incredibly upsetting that that I have never read them again.”
Where to get it
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The Wolves Of Willoughby Chase
The Wolves Of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken is a classic children's gothic adventure novel set in an alternative historical period in England, featuring daring orphans and sinister plots.
Discussed“when I got into kind of young Reader Books some of my favorites had Edward gory covers Wolves of willowy Chase and the other Joan aen books have a perfect match with gory's covers”
Where to get it
Appearances
Other mentions (1: passing, ad reads, own books)
“and they had also all the compan one of which I see you have here the igore”