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Usually, Christmas in July sales feature new cars or mattresses, but we are giving you a Christmas in July book episode. Our guest this week is Suzy Krause, a Canadian novelist whose book I Think We’ve Been Here Before is set in the few weeks leading up to the Christmas holiday in a small town in Saskatchewan.  This book is cozy but not in a way you would expect because something terrible is about to happen.  A cosmic event is going to end the world, and residents have several weeks to prepare.  But this apocalyptic story is hopeful and uplifting and makes you feel good.  How can you combine the end of the world with Christmas and make it comforting?  That’s what we asked Suzy because she has written a book that is nothing like I’ve ever read.  It’s like a little unexpected gift under the tree. 

For our book rec section of this episode, we are talking about diaries. And no, we’re not going to be reading from our diaries because that would be a snoozefest. We’ve selected both nonfiction and fictional diaries that allow us to get a sneak peek into a historic event or a situation that we don’t know much about. 

Books Mentioned In this Episode:

1- I Think We've Been Here Before by Suzy Krause

2- We Need To Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver 

3- A Mother's Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy by Sue Klebold 

4- The Lathe of Heaven by Ursula K. Le Guin

5- Space Crone by Ursula K. Le Guin 

6- The Millicent Quibb Schook of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science by Kate McKinnon

7- The Cicada Tree by Robert Gwaltney

8- A Five Star Read Recommended by Fellow Book Lover Lizzy Roth - Dead Water by C.A. Fletcher

9- The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani

10- These Is My Words: The Diary of Sarah Agnes Prine, 1881-1901 by Nancy Turner 

11- This is Going To Hurt: Secret Diaries of a Junior Doctor by Adam Kay 

12- The Red Leather Diary: Reclaiming a Life Through the Pages of a Lost Journal by Lilly Koppel 

13- Here Comes the Fun: A Year of Making Merry by Ben Aitken 

14- The Lost Diaries of Édouard Manet by Maureen Gibbon 

Media Mentioned:

1- Adolescence (Netflix 2025)

2- We Need To Talk About Kevin (2011)

3- Seeking a Friend for the End of the World (Prime, 2012)

4- Ben Aitken Podcast episode - https://ThePerksofBeingaBookLover.podbean.com/e/s-7-ep-146-a-may-december-friendship-with-guest-ben-aitken-9722/