2026 Micro Genres with Anderson McKean | Ep. 232

In Episode 232, Sarah is joined by returning guest Anderson McKean of Page & Palette Bookstore for the 2026 edition of Micro Genres! Each year, this series gives us a chance to niche down even further into the kinds of books we love — spotlighting those very specific sub-sub-genres that capture a particular reading taste. This year, Sarah and Anderson have 10 all-new Micro Genres to share, along with standout books for each. With more than 80 books mentioned, you're bound to find a few new additions to your TBR — and maybe recognize a Micro Genre or two of your own.

This post contains affiliate links through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!).

CLICK HERE for the full episode Show Notes on the blog.

Politically-Adjacent Stories (Sarah)

• The Hopefuls by Jennifer Close (2016) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [3:00] 
• Charlotte Walsh Like to Win by Jo Piazza (2018) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [3:11] 
• American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld (2008) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [3:36]
• Rodham by Curtis Sittenfeld (2020) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [3:38]  
• Vantage Point by Sara Sligar (2025) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [3:47]
• The Emperor of Ocean Park (Elm Harbor, 1) by Stephen L. Carter (2002) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [4:48]  
• Palace Council (Elm Harbor, 3) by Stephen L. Carter (2008) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [4:49] 
• The Boomerang by Robert Bailey (2025) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [5:23]
• State of Terror by Louise Penny and Hillary Clinton (2021) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [6:14] 
• The Situation Room by George Stephanopoulos (2024) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [6:55] 
• Becoming by Michelle Obama (2018) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [8:18] 
• From the Corner of the Oval by Beck Dorey-Stein (2018) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [8:53] 

Retellings that Are NOT Mythological (Anderson)

• Lady Tremaine by Rachel Hochhauser (2026) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [10:41] 
• The Beheading Game by Rebecca Lehmann (2026) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [10:58] 
• Beautiful Little Fools by Jillian Cantor (2022) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [11:55] 
• Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese (2022) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [12:23] 
• Honeysuckle by Bar Fridman-Tell (2026) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [12:55] 
• Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld (2016) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [14:03] 
• Anna K (Anna K, 1) by Jenny Lee (2020) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [14:08] 
• Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver (2022) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [14:20] 
• The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson (2015) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [14:36] 
• The Favorites by Layne Fargo (2025) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [14:48] 
• Broken Country by Clare Leslie Hall (2025) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [14:57] 
• Wasp's Nest by Kat Stoddard (2026) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [15:26] 
• A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley (1991) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [15:39] 

Other Books Mentioned

• The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne (1850) [12:32] 
• James by Percival Everett (2024) [12:36] 
• Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen (1813) [14:07] 
• Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy (1878) [14:11] 
• David Copperfield by Charles Dickens (1850) [14:24] 
• Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith (1950) [14:41] 
• Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë (1847) [14:55] 
• The Go-Between by L. P. Hartley (1953) [15:03] 
• The Philadelphia Story by Philip Barry (1939) [15:32] 
• King Lear by William Shakespeare (1608) [15:45] 

Ministers Behaving Badly (Sarah)

• Dominion by Addie E. Citchens (2025) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [16:36]
• Awake by Jen Hatmaker (2025) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [16:45]
• God Spare the Girls by Kelsey McKinney (2021) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [17:19]
• The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman by Deesha Philyaw (Sep 29, 2026) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [17:36]
• The Dearly Beloved by Cara Wall (2019) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [17:51]
• The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver (1998) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [18:16]

Dear Reader / Love Letters to Books (Anderson)

• This Book Made Me Think of You by Libby Page (2026) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [19:14]
• The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern (2019) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [19:53]
• The Borrower by Rebecca Makkai (2011) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [20:22]
• Dear Fahrenheit 451 by Anne Spence (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [22:24]
• Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore by Robin Sloan (2012) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [22:37]
• The Storied Life of A. J. Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin (2014) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [22:56]

Other Books Mentioned

• I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai (2023) [20:29]
• The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai (2018) [20:31]
• Yellowface by R. F. Kuang (2023) [22:15]

Dark Humor (Sarah)

• Rabbit Cake by Annie Hartnett (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [23:52]
• Unlikely Animals by Annie Hartnett (2022) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [23:53]
• The Road to Tender Hearts by Annie Hartnett (2025) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [23:55]
• Goodbye, Vitamin by Rachel Khong (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [24:41]
• Cleo Dang Would Rather Be Dead by Mai Nguyen (2026) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [25:42]
• Lost Lambs by Madeline Cash (2026) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [25:51]
• The Heart's Invisible Furies by John Boyne (2017) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [26:00]
• Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty (2024) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [26:47]

Other Books Mentioned

• Real Americans by Rachel Khong (2024)  [24:44]

Fantasy Even Sarah Might Like / Fantasy-Lite (Anderson)

• Conform (Conform Series, 1) by Ariel Sullivan (2025) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [28:54]
• The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern (2011) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [30:13]
• The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo (2024) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [30:39]
• The Atlas Six (The Atlas Trilogy, 1) by Olivie Blake (2022)* | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [30:53]
• A Darker Shade of Magic (Shades of Magic, 1) by V. E. Schwab (2015) | Amazon| Bookshop.org  [31:57]
• Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V. E. Schwab (2025) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [32:02]
• The Midnight Train (The Midnight World, 2) by Matt Haig (2026) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [32:04]
• The Midnight Library (The Midnight World, 1) by Matt Haig (2020) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [32:05]
• The Measure by Nikki Erlick (2022) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [32:20]
• The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami (2025) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [32:25]
• The Other Valley by Scott Alexander Howard (2024) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [32:28]

Other Books Mentioned

• The Hunger Games (The Hunger Games, 1) by Suzanne Collins (2008) [29:03]
• The Handmaid's Tale (The Handmaid's Tale, 1) by Margaret Atwood (1985) [29:04]

Like Friday Night Lights, But Book Form (Sarah)
a.k.a. Sports Books That Are About Far More Than Sports

• The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach (2011) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [35:06] 
• The Slip by Lucas Schaefer (2025) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [35:15] 
• The World According to Garp by John Irving (1978) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [35:51]
• In One Person by John Irving (2012) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [35:53]  
• Carrie Soto Is Back by Taylor Jenkins Reid (2022) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [36:12] 
• The Flock by Ellen Bar (Apr 27, 2027) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [36:41] 
• The Last Days of Vic & Coco by Taylor Jenkins Reid (Mar 2, 2027) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [38:31] 

Other Books Mentioned

• The Amateur by Chris Bohjalian (2026)  [37:29] 
• The Double Bind by Chris Bohjalian (2007)  [37:48] 

Women Rule the World (Anderson)

• The Romanov Empress by C. W. Gortner (2018) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [40:16] 
• Mademoiselle Chanel by C. W. Gortner (2015) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [40:41]
• Marlene by C. W. Gortner (2016) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [40:43]
• The Woman with the Cure by Lynn Cullen (2023) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [41:07] 
• Mrs. Poe by Lynn Cullen (2013) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [41:28] 
• Twain's End by Lynn Cullen (2015) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [41:31]
• Lady Clementine by Marie Benedict (2020) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [41:36] 
• The Other Einstein by Marie Benedict (2016) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [41:53]
• The Only Woman in the Room by Marie Benedict (2019) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [41:47]
• Daughter of a Daughter of a Queen by Sarah Bird (2018) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [42:03]

Other Books Mentioned

• Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler (2013) [43:13] 
• Isola by Allegra Goodman (2025) [43:32] 

Royals (Sarah)

• The Royal We (The Royal We, 1) by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan (2015) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [45:04] 
• Red, White & Royal Blue (Red, White & Royal Blue, 1) by Casey McQuiston(2019) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [45:06] 
• American Royals (American Royals, 1) by Katharine McGee (2019) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [45:09] 
• Spare by Prince Harry (2023) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [45:19]
• The Force of Such Beauty by Barbara Bourland (2022) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [45:29]
• The Heir Apparent by Rebecca Armitage (2025) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [45:48]  
• The Windsor Affair by Melanie Benjamin (2026) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [46:03] 

This Land is Your Land (Anderson)

• Land by Maggie O'Farrell (2026) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [46:34] 
• Damnation Spring by Ash Davidson (2021) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [47:33] 
• I Will Send Rain by Rae Meadows (2016) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [47:52] 
• The Well and the Mine by Gin Phillips (2007) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [48:07] 
• Greenwood by Michael Christie (US Release 2020) | Amazon | Bookshop.org [49:03] 
• The Islanders by Lewis Robinson (2024) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [49:32] 
• The Shark House by Sara Ackerman (2026) | Amazon | Bookshop.org  [49:40] 

*Publication year reflects the later traditionally published edition for a book originally self-published.