that library show 'for breakfast'

for when you need a 25-minute YouTube video before bed

One of the beauties of late-stage YouTube is that you can discover a creator who had an entire career, hiatus, and reinvention before you ever laid eyes on them. Actually, That Library Show found me. The same 2-minute-long clip landed on my For You feed (TikTok), then in my other For You feed (Twitter), and then one night the full episode of this series landed on my YouTube homepage. I had no choice but to click!

Today, I’m curating three episodes of That Library Show to get you curious and hopefully to get you started on this funny, kind of odd, and ultimately wholesome and refreshing corner of YouTube. Truly, I think this show has something for everyone.

The goal of 'for breakfast' is to break off a piece of the media landscape, giving you an easy way to find stuff you love and consume it in a way that works for you. Just like you are what you eat, I believe you are what you watch, read, and listen to as well. As simi for breakfast, I’ll be your guide to creating a balanced, nourishing media diet where the name of the game is enjoyment through critical analysis.

for breakfast: “A Dating Coach”

That Library Show’s host is Derek Gerard, who I only googled to do a quick background check for this piece. Come to find out, this man used to make Mr. Beast-style food commentary!? I’m not sure, I didn’t watch any of them (besides his “I’m done” video) because it seems radically different from the first video that got me interested in his newest venture.

In this episode of That Library Show, Derek interviews dating coach, Chantal Heide in a library. One of the simpler talk show concepts I’ve encountered but extremely effective.

I chose this one for breakfast and as the accessible gateway to the show, because I found myself so engaged and locked in to this conversation between two strangers. Derek asks great questions and Chantal seems to always give a surprising answer. Their conversation seemed to sum up every type of dating discourse or hookup-culture thinkpiece I’ve come across in the past few years.

Amongst cohosts, I’m also constantly looking for chemistry in unexpected places, and these two have it! The banter is witty and sincere. I cannot stress how much of a delight this was to watch.

for lunch: “A Trans Woman”

For lunch, I’m always surprised. Speaking candidly about marginalized identity online is often a tricky thing to do, but this episode of That Library Show proves it doesn’t have to be.

For this conversation, Derek sits down with influencer and Big Brother alumni, Julie Vu, for a vulnerable conversation about being trans, dating, and life in general. The stripped-back format really shines here, and I also noticed the editing keeps the pace of the conversation without losing the quietness and charm.

You can tell they’re both comfortable, and that makes you comfortable which all adds up to a watch that is fun, heartening, and at times philosophical.

for dinner: “My Ex”

This video is why I’ll never leave YouTube fully! Derek interviewing his ex-girlfriend of three years, Lysi, in — you guessed it — the library is the logical and beautiful progression of this series.

Out of these three picks, I place this for dinner because it’s kind of hard to watch in the best way. It’s not awkward by any means, but it’s the type of vulnerability and detail I crave from videos like this but rarely ever get (I’m looking at you Jubilee).

If you have any affinity for Couples Therapy on Showtime then this will scratch that same itch. I will be revisiting this the next time I go through a rough delusionship breakup.

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I felt weird giving this much airtime to something so specific, but if I can put just one of you on to something you enjoy it will have been worth it.