Audiobooks

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers

This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Kate Scott

Staff Writer

Kate Scott is a bookstagrammer and strategic web designer serving women business owners and creative entrepreneurs. Follow her on Instagram @parchmentgirl and visit her website at katescott.co/books.

Looking for something to spice up your commute? Look no further! There are hundreds of bookish podcasts on iTunes and there’s something for everyone. Here are twenty-five of the best.

Want even more reading for your ears?

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | Big Planet Comics1. Big Planet Comics

Employees of the mid-Atlantic comic book store chain of the same name produce Big Planet Comics. Die-hard comic book fans will enjoy the industry insider perspective.

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | Bookclub2. Bookclub

BBC Radio 4’s Bookclub is a forum for readers to interact directly with authors. Led by James Naughtie, the studio audience conducts a Q&A with each featured author.

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | Bookrageous3. Bookrageous

If you like Book Riot, then you’ll love the Bookrageous podcast. Hosted by Book Riot’s very own Jenn Northington, Rebecca Schinsky, and Preeti Chhibber, as well as Josh Christie, an indie bookseller from Maine, it’s a thoughtful and lighthearted conversation on literature and literary culture.

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | Books on the Nightstand4. Books on the Nightstand

Books on the Nightstand will cause your TBR pile to explode to epic proportions. It’s a one-show-fits-all-readers podcast; there’s something for everyone.

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | The Catapult5. The Catapult

Jaime Green hosts The Catapult, a half-hour podcast featuring poetry, short stories, essays, and book excerpts read by the authors. It’s a great way to be exposed to new and undiscovered writers.

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | Dear Bitches, Smart Authors6. Dear Bitches, Smart Authors

Dear Bitches is the podcast for romance lovers. Sarah of Smart Bitches, Trashy Books and Jane of Dear Author offer intelligent insight into the romance genre, interview authors, and occasionally host guests from around the bookosphere. With episodes like “The Mysterious Hymen” and “Squeeing about Outlander,” you know it’s going to be a fun time.

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | The Disney Story Origins Podcast7. The Disney Story Origins Podcast

Like the title implies, this fun podcast investigates the literary, cultural, and historical origins of Disney’s most beloved tales.

 

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | Drunk Booksellers8. Drunk Booksellers

Drunk Booksellers is–you guessed it–a podcast by professional booksellers (including Book Riot’s own Emma Nichols) who enjoy a good drink. Tune in for an hour of intelligent book talk, guest booksellers, and one seriously rad Jay Z/Kanye West parody theme song.

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | The Guardian Books9. Guardian Books

Editor Claire Armistead presents Guardian Books, a podcast featuring author interviews, readings, discussions, and a live recording of the Guardian’s monthly book club.

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | Inside the New York Times Book Review10. Inside the New York Times Book Review

The official books podcast of the New York Times, Book Review is hosted by Sunday Book Review editor Pamela Paul and features interviews and conversations with authors and critics.

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | KCRW's Bookworm11. KCRW’s Bookworm

Bookworm showcases emerging and established writers of fiction and poetry in conversation with the host, Michael Silverblatt.

 

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | Late Night Library12. Late Night Library

Late Night Library includes two shows–Late Night Conversation, which features unscripted talks with authors, publishers, and editors, and Late Night Debut, which showcases debut authors. LNL prioritizes female and POC authors.

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | Lit Up13. Lit Up

Angela Ledgerwood and Emily Gould host Lit Up, a podcast about books, writers, and other literary topics. Guest authors frequent the show to talk about their books and the conversation is always stimulating.

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | Lore14. Lore

A great podcast for horror fans, Lore is a half-hour show about the history behind scary stories. It’s beautifully produced and reminds me of the radio dramas I used to listen to as a kid. The background music alone makes it worth listening to, though preferably not before bed.

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | Meet the Author15. Meet the Author

Meet the Author is Apple’s official audio/video podcast for book lovers. It usually features household-name authors like Neil Gaiman and Rick Riordan or celebrity authors like Gillian Anderson and Nick Cannon.

 

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | MuggleCast16. MuggleCast

Potterheads, rejoice! MuggleCast is the most listened-to Harry Potter podcast on the web, and after two hundred eighty-four episodes, it’s amazing how these guys never run out of stuff to talk about.

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | The Myths and Legends Podcast17. Myths and Legends

This podcast explores the fascinating origins of myths and legends from around the world and how they have shaped many of the stories we know and love today.

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | The New Yorker Fiction18. The New Yorker: Fiction

Editor Deborah Treisman hosts The New Yorker Fiction podcast. Every month a writer is chosen to pick a story from the magazine’s archives to read and discuss on the air.

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | Overdue19. Overdue

From Pygmalion to 50 Shades of Grey, Overdue covers all the books that have been sitting on your TBR stack for far too long. 

 

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | The Rabbit Room20. The Rabbit Room

The Rabbit Room podcast is an extension of The Rabbit Room website, an online collective of Christian artists, musicians, and writers. The podcast, hosted by Andrew Peterson, features music, reviews, readings, and interviews.

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | The Readers21. The Readers

The Readers is an hour-long “chat show for books” that features book news, debates and discussions, and interviews with authors, book bloggers, and people in publishing.

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | Slate's Audio Book Club22. Slate’s Audio Book Club

Slate’s Audio Book Club is a podcast in which Slate’s critics discuss and debate the book club’s monthly selection.

 

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | So Many Damn Books23. So Many Damn Books

So Many Damn Books is a bi-weekly podcast covering all things having to do with books, literature, reading, and publishing.

 

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | Storynory24. Storynory

Perfect for parents of young kids, Storynory brings you a new children’s audio story every week.

 

 

25 Outstanding Podcasts for Readers | World Book Club25. World Book Club

BBC’s World Book Club features some of the world’s greatest authors discussing their best-known works and invites listeners to participate in Q&A sessions.

 

And of course be sure to check out all of Book Riot’s podcasts!

The Book Riot Podcast Reading Lives Podcast All the Books! Podcast Get Booked Podcast Dear Book Nerd Podcast