Zero to Well-Read

Book Riot's Jeff O'Neal and Rebecca Schinsky created Zero to Well-Read for a very specific audience: people who want to talk about classic and bestselling books at dinner parties without having actually read all of them. Part book club, part literary crash course, the show breaks down one major title per episode -- covering the plot, the reading experience, the cultural significance, and the key takeaways you can deploy in conversation. The tone is irreverent in the best way. Jeff and Rebecca aren't trying to be English professors, even though they clearly have the chops. They'll tell you that a celebrated novel is actually a slog, or that the reason everyone talks about a certain book has more to do with timing than quality. Episodes run long -- about 85 minutes on average -- which gives them room to really dig into a single book without rushing. The weekly Tuesday drops have been consistent since the show launched in September 2025. With 25 episodes so far and a 4.7-star rating from over 650 reviews, the show has already built real momentum despite being relatively new. That rating is impressive for a podcast that's only a few months old. The concept fills a gap that most book podcasts ignore: the anxiety of feeling like you should have read certain books and haven't. Rather than shaming you for it, Jeff and Rebecca turn that feeling into something entertaining and genuinely educational. It's a smart addition to the Book Riot podcast family, and the early episode count means you can still catch up from the beginning without feeling overwhelmed.