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Paperback Friends

Sam Ögren

Welcome to Paperback Friends!

This is my weekly book podcast where I do book reviews, interviews and touch on a myriad of book-related topics from – Why Mind Control Sucks to How to Get Your Book Published.

I think reading should be fun, but I never settle with "good" or "bad." My reviews dig deeper, and the question I usually start with: "How can I contribute to the conversations about this book?"

Trust me, you've never heard book reviews quite like these.

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24 episodes
weekly
Avg 26 min
English

Episodes 24

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Friday · 22 min
Episode: 113 – [General] Do Book Awards Actually Matter?
This is a long promised episode that came about because of me often ranting at bad author bios that only seem to focus on “book awards” rather than the other themselves. I find these types of bios to be very tedious, but let’s leave actually dig deeper here, and do the “Paperback Friends’ thing” and analyse something thoroughly to see if there is something more to these awards Are book awards a prestigious recognition of literary excellence, or just another marketing tool? That’s what we aim to find out in this episode. We take a look at why book awards exist, who decides the winners, and whether they actually matter? Specifically focusing on the Hugo and Nebula Awards. I award you, thanks, for listening to this episode =) Type: General | Book: N/A | Writer: N/A
October 23 · 27 min
Episode: 112 – [Review] Exit Strategy
Martha Wells brings the first major arc of The Murderbot Diaries to a close with Exit Strategy. Ending it with another fast-paced rescue mission, and a story that brings its growing relationship with freedom, identity, and the people around it into sharper focus. We look at why this series continues to work so well for me despite some increasingly noticeable flaws, from the repetitive hacking to the thin supporting characters. Four books in, Murderbot remains a fantastic protagonist, and Wells has built a world I genuinely want to spend more time in. But why this series over many others that I reject completely? One of many questions we answer in this week’s episode of Paperback Friends. Type: Review | Book: Exit Strategy | Writer: Martha Wells
October 16 · 56 min
Episode: 111 – [Interview] Andreas Hedberg National Library of Sweden
In this episode, I had the absolute pleasure of interviewing Andreas Hedberg from the National Library of Sweden. Andreas is a researcher at the National Library. We managed to cover quite a lot in this episode. How much of a book comes from the writer, and how much from the interpretation? Why are some books worth researching, and what tools can we use to better understand novels? We also get to know Andreas a bit better. I had a blast doing this, and would love to welcome Andreas back at some point as I think we have a lot more to talk about! Books and authors mentioned George Eliot – Middlemarch Virginia Woolf – To the Lighthouse Viktor Rydberg – “The Tomten” Viktor Rydberg – Singoalla J.R.R. Tolkien – The Silmarillion Mary Shelley – Frankenstein Homer – The Odyssey Authors and researchers mentioned Astrid Lindgren Algirdas Julien Greimas – narratology Gérard Genette – narratology Wayne C. Booth – narrative theory Viktor Shklovsky For more goings-on at the Kungliga biblioteket (National Library of Sweden), you can visit their website here: https://www.kb.se/eng.html Type: Interview | Book: N/A | Writer: N/A
October 9 · 23 min
Episode: 110 – [General] Why Did Orwell Write?
Why did George Orwell write? In this episode of Paperback Friends, I take a look at Orwell's essay Why I Write, where he explores the four motivations he believed drive writers: ego, aesthetic enthusiasm, historical impulse, and of course the aspect that made his own writing so famous. But this episode is about more than Orwell's reasons for writing. We also talk about how his early ambitions shaped Burmese Days, why reading this essay felt like Orwell had reached across time to respond to one of my own reviews, and why this old kook continues to mean so much to me. Type: General | Book: Why I Write | Writer: George Orwell
October 2 · 27 min
Episode: 109 – [Review] A Man Called Ove
In this episode, we take a look at Fredrik Backman’s A Man Called Ove, a hugely popular Swedish novel about grief, loneliness, friendship, and finding a reason to keep going. The emotional beats are not bad, and the novel manages a tender moment or two, but Backman comes to represent a type of writing that is fundamentally disagreeable to me. He favors the plot over the narrative, and that lights a fire in me. This is one of the worst novels we have ever read on this podcast, not because my opinion is right, but because this is how this novel made me feel. Regardless how you feel about it, it’s all good we are just adding to the greater conversation about this book! Type: Review | Book: A Man Called Ove | Writer: Fredrik Backman
September 25 · 32 min
Episode: 108 – [Review] Dune
In this episode of Paperback Friends, we dive into one of the most beloved science-fiction novels ever written: Dune by Frank Herbert. I have to tread lightly on this one, to avoid the drum sand and the fans… While Dune has inspired generations of readers, I found myself struggling to connect with some of its biggest ideas. Why did the political intrigue and character work captivate me, while the themes of prophecy, destiny, and messianic power left me feeling disconnected? Sometimes the question isn't whether a book is great, or not, it’s what it can offer us as individuals. Type: Review | Book: Dune | Writer: Frank Herbert
September 18 · 19 min
Episode: 107 – [Review] Rogue Protocol
Martha Wells continues to prove why The Murderbot Diaries has become one of modern science fiction's most beloved series. In Rogue Protocol, Murderbot infiltrates an abandoned research station to uncover the truth behind GrayCris's illegal operations,but beneath the action lies a surprising story about identity, freedom, and friendship. In this episode, we explore why Wells's writing is so consistently engaging, why Miki becomes the emotional center of the novella, and why this series continues to impress me... even as one recurring element is beginning to hold it back. This is a fantastic series, and Wells does not disappoint, but the bar is being raised. Type: Review | Book: Rogue Protocol | Writer: Martha Wells
September 11 · 17 min
Episode: 106 – [Review] Moral Ambition
Can ambition be moral? In this episode, I review Moral Ambition by Rutger Bregman—a book arguing that too many of us spend our lives chasing status instead of solving meaningful problems. We talk about how Bregman builds his case through history and biography, why his arguments are surprisingly compelling, and whether he succeeds in answering the biggest question of all: What do you actually do after hearing the call to make a difference? Type: Review | Book: Moral Ambition | Writer: Rutger Bregman
September 4 · 27 min
Episode: 105 – [Review] Butcher's Crossing
What if the wilderness doesn't destroy you—but reveals who you really are? This week on Paperback Friends, we return to John Williams to review Butcher's Crossing, the novel that came before Stoner and helped establish Williams as one of the great overlooked American writers. We follow Will Andrews as he abandons his comfortable life for a buffalo hunt deep in the American West, only to discover that the greatest struggle isn't against nature, but against himself. A quiet novel about the wilderness, freedom, and that everything has a price – man and buffalo. Type: Review | Book: Butcher's Crossing | Writer: John Williams
August 28 · 27 min
Episode: 104 – [Review] The Old Curiosity Shop
Charles Dickens really is a master of craft, and padding a novel. The Old Curiosity Shop is also one of the most exhausting books I've read for the podcast. In this episode, I take a baseball bat to Dickens' fourth novel while examining why it feels so painfully slow, melodramatic, and padded – there is a very specific reason for it! It's still Dickens though, so it can't be that bad can it? Ask Oscar Wilde... Type: Review | Book: The Old Curiosity Shop | Writer: Charles Dickens
August 21 · 16 min
Episode: 103 – [Review] The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas
We’re diving into Ursula K. Le Guin for the first time on Paperback Friends with The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas. It may be one of the shortest stories we’ve covered, but there’s an awful lot packed into those few thousand words. Le Guin’s writing is secondary to the question she builds the story around. Omelas is a perfect utopia, but its happiness depends entirely on the suffering of one child. What makes the story so clever is how quietly Le Guin turns that premise back on the reader, forcing us to consider our own complicity in the comfortable societies we live in. Type: Review | Book: The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas | Writer: Ursula K. Le Guin
August 14 · 21 min
Episode: 102 – [Review] Artificial Condition
We’re back with Martha Wells and The Murderbot Diaries! I really enjoyed All Systems Red, and Artificial Condition continues to show me why I like this series so much. Wells's writing is remarkable restraint, building a surprisingly complex world without drowning the story in unnecessary detail. The corporate politics, world-building, action, and Murderbot itself all work beautifully together. This is another excellent entry in a series that has quickly become one of my easiest recommendations. It may not quite reach five stars for me, but I absolutely want more Murderbot. Type: Review | Book: Artificial Condition | Writer: Martha Wells
August 7 · 21 min
Episode: 101 – [Review] To the Lighthouse
In this episode of Paperback Friends, I try to answer a question I've been asking myself ever since I finished the novel: why is this book considered such a fantastic novel? Together we explore why To the Lighthouse became a cornerstone of modernist literature, and why Woolf's stream-of-consciousness style has inspired generations of writers. We talk about modernism, narration, Virginia Woolf's craft, the passage of time, consciousness, and why I believe this is one of the hardest books I've ever attempted, not because it's unintelligent, but because it asks the reader to experience literature in a fundamentally different way. I loved making this episode, and I hope you like listening to it. Type: Review | Book: To the Lighthouse | Writer: Virginia Woolf
July 31 · 23 min
Episode: 100 – [Review] The Remains of the Day
Kazuo Ishiguro's The Remains of the Day is my favorite novel – not because I believe it's objectively the greatest ever written, but because it was the first book that truly showed me what literature could do. It challenged me, reached me, and ultimately set me on the path that would lead to Paperback Friends. In this episode, we discuss Ishiguro's restrained writing, Stevens as one of literature's great unreliable narrators, identity, duty, regret, and why this quiet novel has become a modern classic. Along the way, I also reflect on why this book has remained so important to me, and why I chose to save it for the podcast's 100th episode. Thank you for listening, whether this is your first episode or your hundredth. You are a Paperback Friend =) Type: Review | Book: The Remains of the Day | Writer: Kazuo Ishiguro
July 24 · 26 min
Episode: 99 – [Review] The Lie Tree
In this episode of Paperback Friends, I return to Frances Hardinge with The Lie Tree, a Victorian mystery where science, religion, reputation, and social systems collide. This is a novel about deception, but more importantly, it is about the systems that decide what society believes. Hardinge explores gender roles, class, reputation, morality, and the ways people are forced to survive within unfair structures. I also discuss why The Lie Tree feels like much more than a YA novel, how Hardinge builds complex characters who refuse to fit simple categories, and why a book does not have to be a personal favorite to be worth talking about. Type: Review | Book: The Lie Tree | Writer: Frances Hardinge
July 17 · 20 min
Episode: 98 – [General] Can You Misunderstand a Book?
What does it really mean to "not get" a novel? Can an interpretation be wrong, or are books simply open to whatever we bring to them? In this episode of Paperback Friends, we dive into one of my favorite topics: literary interpretation. We talk about what a book means, the difference between an opinion and an interpretation, why some readings fit a story better than others, and why being willing to challenge your own understanding can make reading far more rewarding. Along the way, we revisit books like The Secret Garden, Shutter Island, Parable of the Talents, The Dice Man, and Burmese Days to explore how different perspectives can completely change the conversation. Whether you're a casual reader or someone who loves picking books apart long after you've finished them, I hope this episode encourages you to look a little deeper; without ever forgetting that reading should still be enjoyable. Because the goal isn't to win an argument about literature – it's to contribute to the conversation. Type: General | Book: N/A | Writer: N/A
July 10 · 34 min
Episode: 97 – [Review] Parable of the Talents
Parable of the Sower left a massive impression on me, so I expected Parable of the Talents to hit just as hard. It didn't. At least... not in the way I expected. In this episode, we dive into Octavia E. Butler's final Earthseed novel, discussing why this sequel frustrated me, why I think its story is weaker than its predecessor, and how I eventually realized I had misunderstood what Butler was actually trying to accomplish. We explore Earthseed, faith, family, ideology, and why Parable of the Talents may be less about survival than about humanity's need to believe in something. Have you read Parable of the Talents? Did it surpass Parable of the Sower, or did you find yourself wrestling with it as much as I did? Type: Review | Book: Parable of the Talents | Writer: Octavia E. Butler
July 3 · 19 min
Episode: 96 – [General] Why You Should Let Books Make You Uncomfortable
Some books comfort us. Others challenge us. Some make us uncomfortable, and maybe that's exactly why they're worth reading. In this episode, we talk about why stepping outside your comfort zone as a reader can be one of the most rewarding things you do. From trying new genres to taking on books that ask more of you, I share my own experiences with difficult literature, why I used to avoid it, and why I think challenge is something to embrace, but never force. Do you actively seek out books that challenge you, or do you prefer staying within your wheelhouse? Type: General | Book: N/A | Writer: N/A
June 26 · 20 min
Episode: 95 – [Review] Life of Pi
Life of Pi is one a beloved novels of the 21st century. It has sold millions of copies, won major awards, inspired a successful film adaptation, and continues to be recommended as a modern classic. So why did I spend most of my time with it feeling bored? In this episode, we dive into Yann Martel's famous survival story, following Pi Patel and Richard Parker across the Pacific Ocean as we try to make sense of the core question of "faith vs reason." Have you read Life of Pi? Which story did you choose to believe? Type: Review | Book: Life of Pi | Writer: Yann Martel
June 19 · 19 min
Episode: 94 – [Review] Aurora Rising
In this episode of Paperback Friends, I review Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff. A squad of academy rejects, an ancient galactic threat, a girl lost in time, and enough banter to power a small moon. Aurora Rising is one of those books that constantly reminded me that I am probably not the target audience for this book. It full of overwritten banter, and enough dollar store humor to feel three episodes of Saved by the Bell. It isn't until the third act the novel get's its act together. It tones down the humor, and delivers by far the best act. We talk about the writing, the characters, why the middle of the novel nearly lost me entirely, and why some books can be perfectly fine while still not being for me. Type: Review | Book: Aurora Rising | Writers: Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff

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