Each month, Podcast Review’s staff offers recommendations on the best new shows to listen to. Here are our favorite podcasts for January.
Despite reports that narrative podcasting is on the decline, storytelling podcasts are still doing interesting things. On Hold launched in November last year, and has proven to be one of the most compelling additions to the genre since Never Told. This British podcast’s theme, as its title suggests, is waiting.
Whether waiting for news, for inspiration, or for a loved one to be released from prison, being in the “in-between” space between one reality and another is a strange, often distressing stasis. Writers like Ben Lerner have covered the feeling in both poetry and prose, highlighting the lack of agency and simultaneous existence of “two realities,” especially if the waiting in question concerns test results or news about a missing person.
On Hold captures these “in-between” moments with convincing universality. Katy Davis works hard to draw out the poetry and humanity in each story, giving the show a radio-style variety format. It feels like a natural successor to Short Cuts, which we named one of our best podcasts of 2024.
Since launching her first podcast Unplanned with her husband, Abby Howard has shared some of the most intimate moments of her life with their fans. From navigating motherhood to a recent miscarriage, Abby has always been candid about the joys and struggles of being a young parent. Most of her audience is young women, and seeing an opportunity to better connect with them (“girls bathroom” style), she has launched a brand new podcast with her sister-in-law, also called Abby Howard, and Daylight Media.
Always Here is just as candid as Unplanned, but focuses more on the “sisterhood” angle of being a married twenty-something woman, processing life changes with your best friend by your side. The show is a video podcast, and will appeal to fans of Call Her Daddy and The Squeeze.
Most of us will be familiar with the term “microplastics,” but what about PFAS? These “forever chemicals” have been linked to various health conditions and diseases, but little is being done to prevent more from reaching our environments. Safe to Drink is the true story of a New Hampshire town that discovers its water is contaminated with PFAS, likely from the nearby Saint-Gobain plant. Officials insist the water is safe for most people. What happens when a resident digs deeper?
This new four-part investigative podcast that focuses on the biggest contamination in New Hampshire history, headed by the Pulitzer Prize-finalist Document team at New Hampshire Public Radio, launches on January 29.
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All features are non-sponsored.