Shoulda Books

The Left Behind series traumatized me as a tween, and I know I'm not the only one. Join me for a loose, rambling episode exploring this cursed series and how it shaped the American Evangelical mind and, consequently, maybe even current US foreign policy?
 
NOTE: I recorded this episode on the afternoon of April 7th, 2026, before the temporary ceasefire was announced
 
Guardian article: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/03/us-israel-iran-war-christian-rhetoric#:~:text=war%20on%20Iran-,US%20troops%20were%20told%20war%20on%20Iran%20was%20%27all%20part,Christian%20rhetoric%20to%20justify%20war



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Shoulda Books theme song by Skyler Klingenberg

Merle Shane O'Neal shares 2 books that mean a great deal to me, and one that I know absolutely nothing about. So it goes.
 
follow Merle on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/merleeshay/
 
follow Merle on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@MerleONeal
 
for the ad-free, extended version of this episode, sign up for the Shoulda Books Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/ShouldaBooks
 
books discussed below. these are affiliate links for bookshop.org. by purchasing books through these links, you support local bookstores, and I earn a (very small) commission.
 
"The Artist's Way" by Julia Cameron https://bookshop.org/a/120498/9780143129257
 
"The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver https://bookshop.org/a/120498/9780060786502
 
"Slaughterhouse-Five" by Kurt Vonnegut https://bookshop.org/a/120498/9780440180296
 
"The Outsiders" by S.E. Hinton https://bookshop.org/a/120498/9780142407332
 
"Never Let Me Go" by Kazuo Ishiguro https://bookshop.org/a/120498/9781400078776



join the Shoulda Book Club on Fable: https://fable.co/club/the-shoulda-book-club-with-shoulda-books-225140024638?brid=yapSJjJ6zqETOwu3XngDDw



follow Shoulda Books on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shouldabooks/
follow Shoulda Books on TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@shouldabooks
 
follow Jonathan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jf.kirk/?hl=en
 
Shoulda Books theme song by Skyler Klingenberg

this week, we're rumbling through S.E. Hinton's 1967 classic The Outsiders, the book that apparently taught the publishing industry that teenagers read books
 
for the ad-free, extended version of this episode, sign up for the Shoulda Books Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/ShouldaBooks
 
books discussed below. these are affiliate links for bookshop.org. by purchasing books through these links, you support local bookstores, and I earn a (very small) commission.
 
"The Outsiders" by S.E. Hinton https://bookshop.org/a/120498/9780142407332
 
"Never Let Me Go" by Kazuo Ishiguro https://bookshop.org/a/120498/9781400078776
 
 
join the Shoulda Book Club on Fable: https://fable.co/club/the-shoulda-book-club-with-shoulda-books-225140024638?brid=yapSJjJ6zqETOwu3XngDDw

 
follow Shoulda Books on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shouldabooks/
 
follow Shoulda Books on TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@shouldabooks
 
follow Jonathan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jf.kirk/?hl=en
 
Shoulda Books theme song by Skyler Klingenberg

Ash Perez discusses 3 books that bring together comedy and heartbreak, and that balance nostalgia with hope for the future.
 
pre-order Ash's delightful new rom-com audiobook "Speak Now" (available March 31, 2026) https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Speak-Now/Ash-Perez/9781668117927?utm_campaign=speak-now_ash-perez_audio&utm_content=audio_buy_link&utm_medium=audio_author_outlet&utm_source=author_outlet#buy-from
 
Ash's website: https://www.ashperez.com/
 
for the ad-free, extended version of this episode, sign up for the Shoulda Books Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/ShouldaBooks
 
books discussed below. these are affiliate links for bookshop.org. by purchasing books through these links, you support local bookstores, and I earn a (very small) commission.
 
"Heartburn" by Nora Ephron https://bookshop.org/a/120498/9780679767954
 
"Tuck Everlasting" by Natalie Babbit https://bookshop.org/a/120498/9780312369811
 
"Hyperbole and a Half" by Allie Brosh https://bookshop.org/a/120498/9781451666175
 
"The Outsiders" by S.E. Hinton https://bookshop.org/a/120498/9780142407332
 
join the Shoulda Book Club on Fable: https://fable.co/club/the-shoulda-book-club-with-shoulda-books-225140024638?brid=yapSJjJ6zqETOwu3XngDDw
 
The Q2 Ballot o' Books (vote for these on Patreon for free):
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

White Teeth by Zadie Smith

Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell

Pachinko by Min Jin Lee

The Overstory by Richard Powers

Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro




follow Shoulda Books on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shouldabooks/
follow Shoulda Books on TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@shouldabooks
 
follow Jonathan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jf.kirk/?hl=en
 
Shoulda Books theme song by Skyler Klingenberg

Author Andrew Martin shares the three books he thinks everyone should read. His fantastic new novel Down Time is available everywhere now, via Farrar, Straus, and Giroux.
 
follow Andrew on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andrewhmartin85/?hl=en
 
for the ad-free, extended version of this episode, sign up for the Shoulda Books Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cw/ShouldaBooks
 
books discussed below. these are affiliate links for bookshop.org. by purchasing books through these links, you support local bookstores, and I earn a (very small) commission.
 
Down Time by Andrew Martin https://bookshop.org/a/120498/9780374617066
 
The Radetzky March by Joseph Roth https://bookshop.org/a/120498/9781585673261
 
The Collected Stories of Grace Paley https://bookshop.org/a/120498/9780374530280
 
Unforgiving Years by Victor Serge https://bookshop.org/a/120498/9781590172476

 
join the Shoulda Book Club on Fable: https://fable.co/club/the-shoulda-book-club-with-shoulda-books-225140024638?brid=yapSJjJ6zqETOwu3XngDDw
 
follow Shoulda Books on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shouldabooks/
follow Shoulda Books on TikTok:  https://www.tiktok.com/@shouldabooks
 
follow Jonathan on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jf.kirk/?hl=en
 
Shoulda Books theme song by Skyler Klingenberg