Ep 516: Don't overthink your buddy reads

From What Should I Read Next? by Anne Bogel

March 3, 2026 · 50 min · Episode 516

About this episode

Ruth Werwai seeks book recommendations to connect with her sister through their newly formed book club despite the distance between them.

Today's guest is looking for titles to help bridge the large geographic gap between her and her sister. Ruth Werwai hails from Vancouver, Canada, but she's lived in Germany with her family for over a decade. Recently, she and her sister have created a book club of two. They've found that reading books together helps them feel close even while they're physically far apart. But when it comes to finding the right books, Ruth is feeling a bit stymied. A few recent selections have been, in Ruth's words, flops, and she's worried she's overthinking it. Ruth would love to feel more confident about recommending books that both she and her sister will enjoy. And since they use these books to spark conversation, it's important that the selected titles not only reflect their diverse reading tastes, but also give them plenty to talk about. Today, Ruth and Anne will try to suss out where their reading tastes overlap, and Anne hopes to recommend titles that will make for ideal sister book club picks. Find the list of titles discussed today on our show notes page at whatshouldireadnextpodcast.com/516. Anne's book Don't Overthink It came out exactly six years ago today! If you haven't yet read…

People in this episode

Host: Anne

Guest: Ruth Werwai

Topics covered

buddy reads
sister book club
reading recommendations

Keywords

geographic gap
reading tastes
book club

Mentioned in this episode

Products: Don't Overthink It

Books & works: Don't Overthink It

Places: Vancouver, Canada, Germany