C-SPAN Bookshelf

Q&A: Historian & Biographer Robert Caro

Mon, 04 May 2026 00:00:00 -0000

This week on Q&A, it's a rare interview with one of America's leading historians. We tour the New York City office and home library of Pulitzer Prize-winning bestselling biographer Robert Caro, who is currently working on the final volume of his 5-volume biography of Lyndon Johnson. During the tour, Mr. Caro talks about his research and writing process on the LBJ series, and the impact of "The Power Broker," his bestselling 1974 biography of NYC Parks Commissioner Robert Moses.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC: Douglas Brinkley on America at 250, D-Day, and the Space Race

Sun, 03 May 2026 22:00:00 -0000

Bestselling author and historian Douglas Brinkley joins David M. Rubenstein in the Capitol's Kennedy Caucus Room to discuss America's 250th anniversary and his books about Walter Cronkite, the space race, Hurricane Katrina and D-Day.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The 1990s Golden Era of Black Sitcoms

Sun, 03 May 2026 00:00:00 -0000

PBS Newshour co-anchor Geoff Bennett talks about the history of Black comedy in America and its impact on culture and politics.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Craig Fehrman, "This Vast Enterprise"

Tue, 28 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0000

Author Craig Fehrman has written a new history of the expedition of Lewis and Clark. It's called "This Vast Enterprise." In the prologue to his 515-page book, Fehrman writes: "After departing from near St. Louis on May 14, 1804, the Corps of Discovery traveled 8,000 miles to find 'the most direct and practicable water communication across the continent for the purpose of commerce.'" The Corps was Jefferson's idea. Craig Fairman continues: "When Lewis and Clark returned more than two years later, they did not have a Northwest Passage, but they did have an incredible tale…" This is Mr. Fehrman's third book.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Jean Becker & Tom Collamore, "Don't Tell the President"

Mon, 27 Apr 2026 00:00:00 -0000

Jean Becker and Tom Collamore, former staffers to President George H.W. Bush, discuss the work done by advance teams for presidential events, including foreign trips, state visits, and campaign rallies. They share behind-the-scenes stories of success, near disaster, and failure, told by the professionals who prepared for these events over the past 60 years.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC: America’s Book Club: Andrew Ross Sorkin in Conversation with David Rubenstein

Sun, 26 Apr 2026 22:00:00 -0000

Bestselling author and CNBC journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin joins David M. Rubenstein at the New Orleans Book Festival to discuss his book examining the 1929 stock market crash.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Palantir's CTO on Rebuilding the American Industrial Base

Sun, 26 Apr 2026 00:00:00 -0000

Palantir Chief Technology Officer Shyam Sankar talked about how the U.S. can revive its industrial base and win the defense technology race against America's adversaries. This event was hosted by the Hudson Institute in Washington, D.C.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Antony Beevor, "Rasputin"

Tue, 21 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0000

Sir Antony Beevor, an historian based in London, has authored 13 books which have sold at least 8.5 million copies and been translated into 35 different languages. In his latest book, he focuses on Rasputin and the downfall of the Romanovs. The country is Russia and the timeframe is the early 1900s. Sir Antony Beevor, on his official website, sums up his findings this way: "Grigori Rasputin, a barely literate peasant from Siberia, is one of the most enigmatic and influential figures in modern history. In a bizarre reversal of the Great Man Theory of History he had no official position and no mass following…" His book details Rasputin's relationship with the czar and czarina of Russia before their downfall.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Howard Mortman, "Extreme Mortman" Podcast Host

Mon, 20 Apr 2026 00:00:00 -0000

This year's White House Correspondents' Association dinner will take place on Saturday, April 25th, at the Washington Hilton. In preparation, we look back at memorable performances by presidents and comedians at the annual fundraiser going back to the Reagan administration. Joining us for the discussion is C-SPAN's Director of Communications Howard Mortman, who for years has been chronicling the happenings at WHCA dinners on his "Extreme Mortman" podcast.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC: Pulitzer Finalist Alice McDermott Talks Novels and Writing Process with David Rubenstein

Sun, 19 Apr 2026 22:00:00 -0000

Three-time Pulitzer Prize finalist Alice McDermott joins David M. Rubenstein to discuss her novels, writing process, and work as a creative writing professor.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: What is conciousness? with Michael Pollan

Sun, 19 Apr 2026 00:00:00 -0000

Author Michael Pollan ("A World Appears") discussed the science of consciousness and the human experience with bestselling author Michael Lewis. This event took place at the New Orleans Book Festival at Tulane University.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bob Crawford, "America's Founding Son"

Tue, 14 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0000

Bob Crawford plays upright bass, bass guitar, and violin with the Grammy nominated Americana band, the Avett Brothers. He's been with the band for 25 years. Since 2016, Mr. Crawford has had his own podcast called The Road to Now, along with Ben Sawyer. Their focus is about history. Six years ago, during his band's tour, Mr. Crawford received his master's degree online from Arizona State University. The focus again was history. Now comes his first serious book titled "America's Founding Son: John Quincy Adams, from President to Political Maverick." Bob Crawford spends a significant amount of time discussing the 17 years Adams spent in the House of Representatives, after he was president, trying to stop the spread of slavery in the United States.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Carla Kaplan, "Troublemaker"

Mon, 13 Apr 2026 00:00:00 -0000

Muckraking journalist Jessica Mitford and her 5 sisters – two of whom were intimate friends with Hitler – were global celebrities during the early and mid-20th century, known for their colorful personal lives and political differences. Born a British aristocrat like her sisters, Jessica Mitford rejected her upbringing at an early age, eventually moving to America, where she became a communist, civil rights activist, and bestselling author. Northeastern University literature professor Carla Kaplan, our guest this week, tells Jessica Mitford's story in her book, "Troublemaker."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC: David Rubenstein on the Presidency, Congress & Economy — Interview with Evan Smith at Tulane Book Festival

Sun, 12 Apr 2026 22:00:00 -0000

Journalist Evan Smith interviews America's Book Club Host David M. Rubenstein about the presidency, Congress, and the state of the economy in a special episode from The New Orleans Book Festival at Tulane University.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: The Problem with Plastic

Sun, 12 Apr 2026 00:00:00 -0000

Judith Enck warned against the health and environmental impacts of plastic. Politics & Prose bookstore in Washington, D.C., hosted this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Giles Tremlett, "El Generalísimo"

Tue, 07 Apr 2026 08:00:00 -0000

Giles Tremlett is a biographer, a narrative historian, and a journalist based in Madrid, Spain. He was born in Plymouth, England, in 1962, but since graduating from Oxford University has almost continuously lived in Spain. His latest book is titled "El Generalísimo," a biography of the late Spanish dictator Francisco Franco. Supported by Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini, Franco rose to power by defeating the loyalists in the Spanish Civil War that lasted from 1936 to 1939. He then controlled the Spanish government until his death in 1975. He was a strong supporter of national Catholicism and a strong opponent of democracy.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Jennifer Levasseur, Space History Curator Smithsonian Institution's National Air & Space Museum

Mon, 06 Apr 2026 00:00:00 -0000

The Smithsonian Institution National Air & Space Museum's Jennifer Levasseur discusses the history of the 135-mission Space Shuttle program (1981-2011), its accomplishments, and two tragic failures that led to the deaths of 14 shuttle astronauts. Ms. Levasseur, the curator in charge of the Space Shuttle Discovery at the Air & Space Museum's Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia, where this interview took place, also takes us on a tour of the shuttle orbiter.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Reagan's Invasion of Grenada During the Cold War

Sun, 05 Apr 2026 00:00:00 -0000

Newsmax host John Bachman talked about the 1983 U.S. invasion of the island of Grenada and the overthrow of its People's Revolutionary Government. This event was hosted by The Right Book Club in Palm Beach, Florida.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Tom Wells, "The Kissinger Tapes"

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 08:00:00 -0000

Author and editor Tom Wells opens his 600-page book titled "The Kissinger Tapes" this way: "Henry Kissinger is one of the most polarizing figures in recent American history…He is hailed by many as a master in the art of diplomacy and realpolitik…" Tom Wells, who has a PhD in sociology from the University of California at Berkeley also writes this: "[M]any critics consider his diplomacy overhyped and some condemn him for committing war crimes…" Mr. Wells' book is subtitled "Inside His Secretly Recorded Phone Conversations." These recordings cover the years 1969 through August of 1974, the end of the Nixon presidency.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Lloyd Blankfein on “Streetwise,” Goldman Sachs, and the 2008 Financial Crisis

Sun, 29 Mar 2026 22:00:00 -0000

Former Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein, author of the memoir "Streetwise," discusses his upbringing in public housing in Brooklyn, being educated at Harvard, and rising through the ranks of one of the world's largest investment banks. He also talks about the 2008 financial crisis, which happened during his tenure as CEO, and the power and influence of Goldman Sachs executives within the U.S. government going back decades.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC: Beverly Gage on J. Edgar Hoover Biography & American History Road Trip

Sun, 29 Mar 2026 22:00:00 -0000

Historian and Yale University Professor Beverly Gage joins David M. Rubenstein to discuss her Pulitzer Prize winning biography of former FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover and her road trip across America visiting historic sites.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Jewish Entrepreneurs Who Created the Toy Industry in America

Sun, 29 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0000

Author Michael Kimmel discussed the first-generation Jewish American toymakers who manufactured now-famous children's toys, including the Teddy Bear and the Rubik's Cube. P&T Knitwear in New York hosts this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Michael Hastings, "The Operators"

Tue, 24 Mar 2026 08:30:00 -0000

As a follow up to the most recent Booknotes+ featuring Seth Harp on his book "The Fort Bragg Cartel," we are replaying an interview from June 12, 2012. The guest on Q&A, the television program, was 31-year-old Michael Hastings, author of the book "The Operators," which he said is what the special forces call themselves. It is based on a Rolling Stone article that allegedly led to the dismissal of General Stanley McChrystal, who was commander of the Joint Special Operations Command from 2003 to 2008. One year almost to the day after our interview with Michael Hastings, he was killed in an automobile accident in Los Angeles at 4:25 in the morning.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: New York Times Photographer Doug Mills on Covering the White House

Mon, 23 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0000

New York Times staff photographer Doug Mills has won 3 Pulitzer Prizes for his work covering the White House & Washington, Super Bowls, Olympics, and many other major events. He tells us that he's taken over one million photographs of President Trump alone. In our conversation, he talks about some of the events he's covered going back to the Reagan administration. He talks about being in the Oval Office and on Air Force One, photographing the Clinton/Gore campaign in 1992, accompanying President George W. Bush on September 11, 2001, and taking the photograph of the attempted assassination of President Trump in 2024, which won him his third Pulitzer Prize.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: The Impact Of Wealth Concentration On Society And Politics

Sun, 22 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0000

Chuck Collins discussed his book Burned by Billionaires where he examines the impact of wealth concentration on society and politics. The event was hosted by Politics and Prose bookstore in Washington, D.C.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Investigative Journalist Seth Harp Explores The Fort Bragg Cartel

Tue, 17 Mar 2026 08:00:00 -0000

Seth Harp is a lawyer and an Iraq war veteran and an investigative writer and journalist. His first book, "The Fort Bragg Cartel," is about drug trafficking and murder in the Special Forces. Near the end of his book, Harp writes: "Between January 2017 and September 2022, a total of 15,293 active duty service members suffered drug overdoses, and 322 of those were fatal. The Defense Department data showed that Fort Bragg had far more overdoses than any other military base in both absolute and per capita terms." Fort Bragg is located in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and is the largest populated army base with close to 50,000 soldiers. It is the headquarters of the secret Delta Force.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Lee Bollinger Discusses University: A Reckoning and Academic Freedom in America

Mon, 16 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0000

Former longtime Columbia University president Lee Bollinger discusses his book "University: A Reckoning," about the purpose and future of universities in the United States. He also talks about protests and free speech on college campuses and the targeting of Columbia, Harvard, and other institutions of higher learning by the Trump administration.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: A Former US Marine's Journey from Russian Prison to the Ukrainian War

Sun, 15 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0000

Former U.S. Marine Trevor Reed discussed his 2019 arrest and imprisonment in Russia and his decision to volunteer in war against the Russians in Ukraine after his release. This event was hosted by Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Josh Ireland, "The Death of Trotsky"

Tue, 10 Mar 2026 08:00:00 -0000

London-based writer Josh Ireland is the author of three books and ghostwriter of five others. His latest is titled "The Death of Trotsky: The True Story of the Plot to Kill Stalin's Greatest Enemy." According to Josh Ireland, Trotsky led two revolutions and a civil war in Russia in the first half of the 20th century. Leon Trotsky died on August the 21, 1940. The day before, in Trotsky's house near Mexico City, a man named Ramon Mercator sunk an ice axe into Trotsky's skull. He lived for 26 hours. Mercator, who had several names, was a Soviet agent and had befriended Trotsky. This was all the work of Stalin, Trotsky's archenemy. Josh Ireland's first sentence of chapter one asked this question: "When did Joseph Stalin decide to crush or destroy or kill Leon Trotsky?" His book tells the complicated story.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA), "Young Man in a Hurry"

Mon, 09 Mar 2026 00:00:00 -0000

California governor Gavin Newsom (D) discusses his memoir, "Young Man in a Hurry," in which he chronicles moments in his life that influenced his political career. He was mayor of San Francisco from 2004 to 2011 and then served as lieutenant governor before becoming governor in 2019. Gov. Newsom also talks about his personal life, including living with dyslexia, and his relationship with billionaire Gordon Getty, a longtime political benefactor.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC: Journalists Peter Baker & Susan Glasser Discuss Profiling Putin, Trump, and Other Leaders

Sun, 08 Mar 2026 22:00:00 -0000

Married journalists Peter Baker and Susan Glasser join David M. Rubenstein to discuss collaborating to write books profiling key newsmakers including Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: How AI is Transforming Healthcare

Sun, 08 Mar 2026 01:00:00 -0000

Dr. Robert Wachter examined the future of artificial intelligence being used in health care. The Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco hosted this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Richard John Neuhaus, "As I Lay Dying"

Tue, 03 Mar 2026 09:30:00 -0000

On May 26, 2002, our guest on the Booknotes television program was Richard John Neuhaus . His book, "As I Lay Dying: Meditations Upon Returning." The Neuhaus interview received one of the biggest responses of any during the history of the 16-year program. Neuhaus was 66 at the time and told us that several years earlier, he had a ruptured tumor that almost killed him. During a series of complicated operations, weeks in critical condition, and months in slow recovery, he was brought face to face with his own mortality. As he lay dying, he found that despite his faith, he had been quite unprepared for the experience. In 1990, Richard John Neuhaus, a writer and Lutheran minister, became a Catholic priest. He died of cancer in 2009 at age 72.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Steve Israel Explores Espionage and Science in The Einstein Conspiracy

Mon, 02 Mar 2026 01:00:00 -0000

Former U.S. Congressman Steve Israel (D-NY) discusses his book, "The Einstein Conspiracy," a novel based on an actual plot by the Nazis to silence physicist Albert Einstein during the 1930s. Einstein, a prominent critic of Hitler, moved to the United States with his wife in 1933 and became a citizen in 1940. This interview was recorded at Theodore's Book in Oyster Bay, New York, an independent bookstore opened by Mr. Israel in 2021.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC: Pulitzer Winner Rick Atkinson on Revolutionary War and WWII Trilogies with David Rubenstein

Sun, 01 Mar 2026 23:00:00 -0000

Three-time Pulitzer Prize winner Rick Atkinson joins David M. Rubenstein at the National Archives to discuss his trilogies examining the Revolutionary War and World War II and view artifacts in the Archives' vault.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: America's Black Botanical Legacy

Sun, 01 Mar 2026 01:00:00 -0000

Biologist Beronda Montgomery explored the botanical knowledge developed by African Americans. Harvard Book Store hosted this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: David Sirota on Master Plan: How Corporate Power Reshaped America

Tue, 24 Feb 2026 09:00:00 -0000

David Sirota, who is based in Denver, Colorado, has some very strong views about money and politics. His book is called "Master Plan: The Hidden Plot to Legalize Corruption in America." There are 11 chapters which reflect the 11 episodes of his podcast, "Master Plan." In order to tell his story, he points his finger at the 1971 Powell secret memo. That's former US Supreme Court Associate Justice Lewis Powell, who served on the Supreme Court from 1972 to 1987. He died in 1998 at age 90. Author Sirota, who is 50, writes that the Powell memo laid out a comprehensive step-by-step strategy for corporate America to regain control, protect its interests, and reshape the political and legal system of the United States to favor business.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Wil Haygood Explores Race, Conflict, and the Vietnam War in The War Within a War

Mon, 23 Feb 2026 01:00:00 -0000

Former Washington Post correspondent Wil Haygood, author of "The War Within a War," discusses the experience of Black American soldiers in Vietnam and the struggle for racial equality, happening at the same time, back home in the United States. He also talks about growing up in Columbus, Ohio, during this period, where, as a child, he witnessed this dichotomy firsthand.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC: Linda Chavez: Former Reagan Official and Conservative Commentator

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 23:00:00 -0000

Former Reagan administration official Linda Chavez joins David M. Rubenstein to discuss her career in public service and her works of fiction and nonfiction.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Sam Bankman-Fried, Elite Fraud, and the Cult of Techno-Utopia

Sun, 22 Feb 2026 01:00:00 -0000

Finance and Tech reporter David Morris reported on Sam Bankman-Fried and FTX. POWERHOUSE Arena in New York City hosted this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Elliot Williams, "Five Bullets"

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 09:30:00 -0000

For his book, "Five Bullets," attorney Elliot Williams wrote 95,720 words. On the back of the cover of the book, writer Garrett Graff sums up the story this way: "Never has a book about the 1980s felt more like current events than Elliot Williams's journey back to one of America's most notorious shootings, when Bernie Goetz opened fire in a crowded New York City subway…'Five Bullets' is a haunting examination of our nation's complicated fascination with vigilantes and the politics of crime…" A lot of the people who were instrumental to this story are deceased. However, the man at the center, Bernie Goetz, is still alive at 78 and still lives in New York City.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stewart McLaurin on The People’s House Miscellany: Stories from the White House

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 01:00:00 -0000

White House Historical Association president Stewart McLaurin, author of "The People's House Miscellany," talks about the history of the White House and White House-related trivia. He also discusses the changes that presidents and first ladies have made to the White House's interior and exterior going back to President Thomas Jefferson.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: The Biggest Stolen Artifacts Case in FBI History

Sun, 15 Feb 2026 01:00:00 -0000

Former FBI investigator Tim Carpenter recounted the true-life detective story spearheaded by the Bureau's Art Crime Team, which found itself on the trail of a thief who stole thousands of cultural artifacts -- and human remains -- from around the world. The Boswell Book Company in Milwaukee hosted this event

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Candace Rondeaux, "Putin's Sledgehammer"

Tue, 10 Feb 2026 09:00:00 -0000

Russian Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of the Wagner Group, marched toward Moscow starting on June 23, 2023. His forces were advancing north on M4 Highway after seizing Rostov-on-Don. The rebellion against his longtime colleague Vladimir Putin was halted the next day. Literally two months later, at a little past 6pm, Prigozhin and nine others boarded his Embraer 600 jet in Moscow. Several minutes later, at 6:20pm, over Tver, Russia, 100-miles north of Moscow, the plane exploded. All 10 passengers perished, including two pilots and the flight attendant. Writer and intelligence expert, Candace Rondeaux, gives us the rest of the story in her book, "Putin's Sledgehammer: The Wagner Group and Russia's Collapse into Mercenary Chaos."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Teasel Muir-Harmony, History of the U.S. Space Program

Mon, 09 Feb 2026 01:00:00 -0000

The Smithsonian Air and Space Museum's Teasel Muir-Harmony discusses the history of the U.S. space program, from the creation of NASA in 1958 through the Gemini early flights to Neil Armstrong taking his historic first steps on the lunar surface in July 1969. She also talks about the missions that followed and NASA's current efforts to return astronauts to the moon.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: The State and the Soldier

Sun, 08 Feb 2026 01:00:00 -0000

Kori Schake, director of foreign and defense policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, examined the relationship between civilian and military leadership in America going back to the country's founding. This event was hosted by AEI in Washington, D.C

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Carol Hymowitz on 10 Books That Changed the Way Americans Thought About Work

Tue, 03 Feb 2026 09:00:00 -0000

In the December 1, 2025, print edition of the Wall Street Journal, there was this headline on page R25: "These 10 books changed the way Americans thought about work." Carol Hymowitz, the author, wrote: "It began with Benjamin Franklin, who couldn't stop working or writing about work throughout his 84-year long life." Carol Hymowitz has been associated with the Wall Street Journal since she got her master's degree in journalism at Columbia University. Other books she featured in this article about work include Tocqueville, Frederick Douglass, Upton Sinclair, John Steinbeck, Dale Carnegie, and C. Wright Mills, plus others. We wanted to know how she chose these 10 books about work, so we had a chat.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Nicholas Boggs, "Baldwin: A Love Story"

Mon, 02 Feb 2026 01:00:00 -0000

Nicholas Boggs discusses the personal life and activism of American writer James Baldwin (1924-1987). Mr. Boggs, who spent over 20 years working on "James Baldwin: A Love Story," also talks about Baldwin's many books, his life outside the United States, and his involvement in the civil rights movement.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC: Pulitzer Prize–Winning Historian Jon Meacham

Sun, 01 Feb 2026 23:00:00 -0000

Pulitzer Prize winner Jon Meacham joined David M. Rubenstein to discuss his biographies of Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, and George H.W. Bush, and his upcoming book on Dwight Eisenhower.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: The Thrill of (and Threat to) the Modern Dictionary with Stafan Fatsis

Sun, 01 Feb 2026 01:00:00 -0000

Stefan Fatsis describes his experience as a lexicographer in training at Merriam-Webster to learn how words are added to the dictionary. Harvard Book Store in Cambridge, MA, hosted this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Jonathan Horn, "The Fate of the Generals"

Tue, 27 Jan 2026 09:00:00 -0000

Jonathan Horn's latest book is titled "The Fate of the Generals: MacArthur, Wainwright, and the Epic Battle for the Philippines." The publisher Scribner explains the premise of Horn's book: "For the doomed stand American forces made in the Philippines at the start of World War II, two generals received the country's highest military award, the Medal of Honor. One was the charismatic Douglas MacArthur whose orders forced him to leave his troops and go to Australia. The other was the gritty Jonathan Mayhew Wainwright who became a hero to the troops whose fate he insisted on sharing."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC News Journalist Jonathan Karl on Retribution

Mon, 26 Jan 2026 01:00:00 -0000

ABC News chief Washington correspondent Jonathan Karl discusses his book, "Retribution," a behind-the-scenes look at Donald Trump's winning 2024 presidential campaign. Mr. Karl, who started covering Trump in the mid-1990s for the New York Post, also talks about his longtime relationship with the 47th president and the contrast between President Trump's public and private sides.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC: Christopher Buckley on Satire, Politics, and Writing Fiction

Sun, 25 Jan 2026 23:00:00 -0000

Christopher Buckley is a novelist, essayist, humorist, critic, magazine editor and memoirist. The only child of publishing icon William F. Buckley, Christopher's books have been translated into sixteen foreign languages. He has worked as a merchant seaman and White House speechwriter. He has written for many newspapers and magazines and has lectured in over 70 cities around the world. He was awarded the Thurber Prize for American Humor and the Washington Irving Medal for Literary Excellence.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW:Dave Barry and Carl Hiaasen Discuss Satire and American Culture

Sun, 25 Jan 2026 01:00:00 -0000

How does the son of a Presbyterian minister wind up winning a Pulitzer Prize for writing a wildly inaccurate newspaper column read by millions of people? That’s the question posed by humor columnist Dave Barry’s 2025 memoir titled, Class Clown: The Memoirs of a Professional Wiseass: How I Went 77 Years Without Growing Up.   This week on C-SPAN's Afterwords podcast, a discussion on satire and humor with Dave Barry and novelist Carl Hiaasen. Hiaasen also has a new book titled Fever Beach. It’s a satirical crime novel, which he says was inspired by real events in Florida and the January 6th riot at the Capitol.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Anne Marshall, "Cassius Marcellus Clay"

Tue, 20 Jan 2026 09:00:00 -0000

Anne Marshall is associate professor of history and executive director of the Ulysses S. Grant Presidential Library at Mississippi State University. Her book is "Cassius Marcellus Clay: The Life of an Antislavery Slaveholder and the Paradox of American Reform." Clay lived to be 92, had two wives and 11 children. Kentucky was his home state. As an antislavery reformer, Cassius Marcellus Clay is often remembered as a knife-wielding rabble rouser who both inspired and enraged his contemporaries. Abraham Lincoln made him minister to Russia. And yes, the boxer Muhammad Ali was originally named after him, but decided he wanted his own original name. Ann Marshall will discuss all this with us.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Peniel Joseph, "Freedom Season"

Mon, 19 Jan 2026 01:00:00 -0000

University of Texas at Austin history professor Peniel Joseph, author of "Freedom Season," talks about the pivotal events of 1963 that impacted the Civil Rights Movement in America. That year, which marked the centenary of Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation, also saw the assassinations of President Kennedy and Mississippi civil rights activist Medgar Evers, the publication of James Baldwin's bestseller "The Fire Next Time," and the bombing of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama, which killed 4 little girls.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Jonathan Mahler on Power, Politics, and the Making of Modern New York

Sun, 18 Jan 2026 01:00:00 -0000

New York Times Magazine staff writer Jonathan Mahler talked about the 1980s forces, events, and characters that defined and shaped New York City. His book features Donald Trump, Spike Lee, Rudy Giuliani , Ed Koch, and Al Sharpton - and highlights New York's experiences with homelessness, AIDS, racial tensions, and the crack epidemic. The Roosevelt House Public Policy Institute at Hunter College in New York City hosted this event

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Ben Freeman, "The Trillion Dollar War Machine"

Tue, 13 Jan 2026 09:00:00 -0000

"The Trillion Dollar War Machine" is the name of the book. The co-authors are William Hartung and Ben Freeman. They both do work for the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, a think tank in Washington, D.C. It's a nonprofit research organization whose stated purpose is to oppose the military-industrial complex described by President Eisenhower in his 1961 farewell address. We will talk with co-author Ben Freeman, the Quincy Institute Director of Democratizing Foreign Policy. The subtitle of the book is: "How Runaway Military Spending Drives America into Foreign Wars and Bankrupts Us at Home."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Gary Walters, "White House Memories 1970-2007"

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 01:00:00 -0000

Gary Walters has served seven U.S. presidents and their families at the White House from 1970-2007, first as a member of the Secret Service and later as an usher. He served as White House Chief Usher from 1986-2007, the longest in U.S. history. Mr. Walters shares stories from his time in the Executive Residence and discusses the role that he played in managing the day-to-day operations, presidential transitions, and major events at the White House.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cal Ripken Jr.: Baseball Iron Man on 2,632 Consecutive Games and His Hall of Fame Career

Sun, 11 Jan 2026 23:00:00 -0000

Baseball hall of famer Cal Ripken Jr. joins David M. Rubenstein to discussed his legendary career and his work as a bestselling author, and gave viewers a tour of memorabilia from his decades in baseball.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Ben Shapiro Argues the World Is Divided Over the Future of Western Civilization

Sun, 11 Jan 2026 01:00:00 -0000

The Daily Wire's Ben Shapiro argued that the world is divided between those who want to defend Western civilization and those who want to undermine it. This event was hosted by the Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: John Ferling, "Shots Heard Round the World"

Tue, 06 Jan 2026 09:30:00 -0000

After 15 books on Revolutionary America, John Ferling still has more to say about the early period in the life of the United States. Ferling is professor emeritus of history at the University of West Georgia. In the preface of his 2025 book, "Shots Heard Round the World," Prof. Ferling opens with this: "Now that America will be commemorating the 250th anniversary of its War of Independence, what pops into your mind as you hear or witness references to that conflict?" Prof. Ferling gives his answer in a 500-page book focusing on America, Britain, and Europe in the Revolutionary War.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Rosie Rios, America250 Commission Chair

Mon, 05 Jan 2026 01:00:00 -0000

July 4, 2026, marks the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. In 2016, Congress established the America250 Commission to plan events to celebrate the semiquincetennial. America250 Commission Chair Rosie Rios joins us to talk about several of these events which will occur over the next year, including the U.S. Army's 250th anniversary parade that took place on June 14, 2025, and other initiatives that the public can participate in leading up to the anniversary. She also talks about serving as the 43rd Treasurer of the United States (2009-2016).

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Rachel Corbett Explores Online Harassment in Monsters We Make

Sat, 03 Jan 2026 23:00:00 -0000

In Monsters We Make, journalist Rachel Corbett examines how power operates in the digital age, exploring the systems and incentives that shape online behavior and amplify harassment and abuse.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Frank McCourt on Angela’s Ashes: Pulitzer Prize–Winning Memoir

Tue, 30 Dec 2025 09:00:00 -0000

Irish American writer Frank McCourt wrote a book in 1996 that was on the New York Times bestseller list for over 100 weeks. Over the next 20 years, "Angela's Ashes" sold close to 10 million copies worldwide. It was translated into 24 languages. McCourt was born in New York City, but moved with his family to Limerick, Ireland, for his childhood years. Frank McCourt died at age 78 in 2009 of melanoma cancer. He was a guest on the Booknotes television program on September 19th, 1996.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Enes Kanter Freedom Discusses His Memoir and Global Human Rights Advocacy

Mon, 29 Dec 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom, chosen third in the NBA draft in 2011, is the author of "In the Name of Freedom." In his book, he talks about advocating for human rights as a professional athlete. The Turkish American basketball player has been critical of the NBA and Nike for doing business with China and has called out LeBron James for staying silent on China's human rights abuses. He has also testified in front of Congress about the authoritarian rule of Turkey's president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Bill McKibben on Climate Change: Why Solar and Wind Power Are the Best Path Forward

Sat, 27 Dec 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Environmentalist Bill McKibben argued that solar and wind power offer the best path for addressing climate change. Politics and Prose bookstore in Washington, D.C., hosted this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Peter Gomes, "The Good Book"

Tue, 23 Dec 2025 09:00:00 -0000

This week's encore interview is from September 21, 1997. Twenty-eight years ago. Our guest was Peter J. Gomes, former minister of the Memorial Church at Harvard. His father was from Cape Verde, and his mother was African-American. In 1991, he identified himself as gay but says he remained celibate. Professor Gomes passed away in 2011 at age 69. During his lifetime, he received over 40 honorary degrees. Professor Gomes was a registered Republican for most of his life and offered prayer at the inaugurations of Presidents Reagan and George H.W. Bush. However, in August of 2006, he changed his registration to the Democratic Party. His book is titled "The Good Book: Reading the Bible with Mind and Heart."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Charles Murray, "Taking Religion Seriously"

Mon, 22 Dec 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Taped on 12/15/25

Political scientist Charles Murray, author of "Taking Religion Seriously," discusses his decades-long evolution from "happy agnostic" to believing Christian. Mr. Murray, co-author of the controversial 1994 bestseller "The Bell Curve: Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life," also talks about the foundations of human morality, the Big Bang, the authorship of the Gospels, and the writings of C.S. Lewis.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC: Pulitzer Prize Winner Rita Dove on Poetry and American History

Sun, 21 Dec 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Pulitzer Prize winner and former U.S. Poet Laureate Rita Dove joins David M. Rubenstein to discuss her upbringing and writing process and reads from her poem "Lady Freedom Among Us."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Piers Morgan "Woke Is Dead: How Common Sense triumphed in an age of total madness"

Sun, 21 Dec 2025 01:00:00 -0000

British journalist Piers Morgan argued that there has been a global rejection of "wokeism" and discussed what he thinks a post-woke world will be like. He spoke at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library & Museum in Yorba Linda, California.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Alexandra Churchill, "Ring of Fire"

Tue, 16 Dec 2025 09:00:00 -0000

British historian Alexandra Churchill is no relation to the former prime minister. However, her new book is the history of the world at war in 1914, titled "Ring of Fire." Alex Churchill is quick to tell you she is not an academic but has a research master's degree in the Battle of the Somme. She's a self-starter who writes three times a week for Substack, co-hosts a podcast titled "History Hack," appears in many documentaries, and is a participant in a history touring company in Great Britain. Her book is the story of ordinary people, she says, not those stalking the corridors of power.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Charles Ferguson, "Presidential Seclusion"

Mon, 15 Dec 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Former Camp David Historian and Presidential Chaplain Charles Ferguson, author of "Presidential Seclusion: The Power of Camp David," talks about the history of the U.S. presidential retreat and its recreational and diplomatic uses. Located in Catoctin Mountain Park in Maryland, roughly 60 miles outside of Washington, DC, the 180-acre facility, with a dozen cabins and a Naval base, has, since 1942, hosted presidents from FDR to Trump, their families, and numerous foreign dignitaries.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC: Harvard Professor Arthur Brooks Explains What Makes Us Happy

Sun, 14 Dec 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Author and Harvard Professor Arthur Brooks joins David M. Rubenstein to discuss the science of happiness, his path to becoming an expert on happiness and how people can lead happier lives.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: The Art Spy: Michelle Young Chronicles Rose Valland’s WWII Mission

Sat, 13 Dec 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Journalist Michelle Young discussed the history of Rose Valland, a female spy working for the French Resistance at the Jeu de Paume museum in Paris during World War II. This event was part of the 2025 History Book Festival in Lewes, Delaware.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Kenneth Vogel, "Devils' Advocates"

Tue, 09 Dec 2025 09:00:00 -0000

Most of the names are familiar to those who follow politics and government. Hunter Biden, Rudolph Giuliani, Tony Podesta, Paul Manafort, and many others. Kenneth Vogel has written a book about these figures. It's called "Devils' Advocates: The Hidden Story of Rudy Giuliani, Hunter Biden, and the Washington Insiders on the Payroll of Corrupt Foreign Interests." In the publisher Morrow's liner notes on the book, they write: "The foreign influence business comprised of shadowy operators who quietly shaped US foreign policy while producing massive paydays for themselves has existed for decades, often unnoticed by Americans." Ken Vogle is a reporter for the New York Times.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Eugene Kranz, Former NASA Flight Director & Author

Mon, 08 Dec 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Former NASA flight director Eugene "Gene" Kranz, author of "Tough and Competent," shares stories from his 34 years at NASA's Mission Control, beginning in 1960 with his work on Project Mercury, the first American human spaceflight program. He was later flight director for NASA's Gemini and Apollo programs, including the 1969 Apollo 11 mission that landed Americans on the moon and the 1970 Apollo 13 mission that almost ended in tragedy ("Houston, we've had a problem…" reported Commander Jim Lovell in route to the moon). Mr. Kranz, who turned 92 this year, also talks about his work on Skylab and the Space Shuttle Program, and weighs in on NASA's current plans to send humans back to the moon.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC: Jodi Picoult on Storytelling, Ethics, and the Power of Fiction

Sun, 07 Dec 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Bestselling writer Jodi Picoult, author of 29 novels, discusses her writing process, adapting her books for Hollywood and why one of her books has been banned across the country.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: David Gelles on How Patagonia Founder Yvon Chouinard Built a Purpose-Driven Company

Sun, 07 Dec 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Author David Gelles discussed how Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard built his business, made a fortune, and then gave it all away. Books Passage Bookstore in Corte Madera, California, hosted this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Doug Most, "Launching Liberty"

Tue, 02 Dec 2025 09:30:00 -0000

Boston-based writer Doug Most's new book is called "Launching Liberty: The Epic Race to Build the Ships That Took America to War." Most, who spent 15 years at the Boston Globe, writes: "In total, American shipyards produced 2,710 Liberty ships in essentially four years, peaking in the spring and summer of 1943, when almost 800 ships were built in seven months..." A lot of the credit is given to Henry Kaiser, who produced half of all Liberty ships – 1,490. By 1943, average time per ship was down to 42 days, the fastest month recorded. Author Doug Most is currently working at Boston University.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Peter Navarro Reflects on Politics, Prison, and the Trump Presidency

Mon, 01 Dec 2025 01:00:00 -0000

White House trade adviser Peter Navarro went to prison in 2024 after being found guilty of two counts of criminal contempt of Congress for refusing to comply with a subpoena from the House January 6th Committee. In his book, "I Went to Prison So You Won’t Have To," Mr. Navarro describes the Justice Department's case against him, his arrest and trial, and what it was like for him prison.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Ken Vogel’s “Devils’ Advocates”: Inside Rudy Giuliani, Hunter Biden, and D.C.’s Hidden Foreign Influence Networks

Sun, 30 Nov 2025 01:00:00 -0000

New York Times reporter Kenneth Vogel talked about the secret world of foreign lobbying in Washington, D.C., and the Americans involved in it, including Rudy Giuliani and Hunter Biden. This event was hosted by the Commonwealth Club World Affairs of California

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Constitutional Scholar Akhil Reed Amar on America’s Equality Story

Tue, 25 Nov 2025 09:30:00 -0000

Yale constitutional law professor Akhil Reed Amar's second book in a trilogy is titled "Born Equal: Remaking America's Constitution, 1840-1920." In Professor Amar's introduction, he writes: "Millions of Americans can recite by heart Lincoln's opening line at Gettysburg. But how many of us understand it?" "This sentence," Professor Amar continues, "sits at the very center of this book." Akhil Amar, born in 1958 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, was raised in California. After law school at Yale, he clerked for Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer, and became a junior professor back at his alma mater at age 26.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Enes Kanter Freedom, "In the Name of Freedom"

Mon, 24 Nov 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC: Chef José Andrés on Food, Humanity, and Global Relief Efforts

Sun, 23 Nov 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Jose Andres joins David M. Rubenstein to discuss his career, his global relief efforts with World Central Kitchen, his books, and his love of food.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Former CNN Moscow Bureau Chief Jill Dougherty on Understanding Today’s Russia

Sun, 23 Nov 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Former CNN Moscow bureau chief Jill Dougherty talked about her experiences covering Russia and Russian Presidents Gorbachev, Yeltsin, and Putin. She spoke at Politics and Prose Bookstore in Washington, D.C.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Kenneth Feinberg, "What is Life Worth?"

Tue, 18 Nov 2025 09:30:00 -0000

Kenneth Feinberg is a Washington-based attorney who served as a special master of the US government's 9/11 Victims Compensation Fund. Mr. Feinberg worked for 33 months, pro bono, deciding who should be compensated as a result of the deaths and injuries from 9/11. Kenneth Feinberg, who today is 79, was interviewed on C-SPAN's Q&A program about his book, "What is Life Worth: The Unprecedented Effort to Compensate the Victims of 9-11." Here is an encore presentation of that July 1, 2005, interview.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Rep. James Clyburn on “The First Eight” and the Rise of Black Political Leadership

Mon, 17 Nov 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Rep. James Clyburn (D-SC) talks about eight Black representatives from South Carolina who served in Congress during the Reconstruction Era. The eight included Joseph Rainey, the first Black politician elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, and Robert Smalls, a Civil War hero who fled the Confederacy to fight for the Union Army. Both were former slaves. Rep. Clyburn became the ninth Black congressman from South Carolina nearly a century later.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

ABC: Walter Isaacson on the Minds That Shape Our Modern World

Sun, 16 Nov 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Walter Isaacson is a Professor of History at Tulane. He has been the editor of Time Magazine, the CEO and Chairman of CNN, and the CEO of the Aspen Institute. He is the author of Elon Musk (2023), Leonardo da Vinci (2017), Steve Jobs (2011), Einstein: His Life and Universe (2007), Benjamin Franklin: An American Life (2003), and Kissinger: A Biography (1992). Isaacson is a graduate of Harvard College and Pembroke College of Oxford University, where he was a Rhodes Scholar. He began his career at The Sunday Times in London and then New Orleans’ Times-Picayune. He joined TIME in 1978 and served as a political correspondent, national editor, and editor of digital media before becoming the magazine’s 14th editor in 1996. He became chairman and CEO of CNN in 2001, and then president and CEO of the Aspen Institute in 2003.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After Words: George Selgin, "False Dawn: The Rise and Decline of Bitcoin"

Sun, 16 Nov 2025 01:00:00 -0000

University of Georgia professor emeritus George Selgin argued that many of FDR's New Deal programs were counterproductive and impeded recovery during the Great Depression. He spoke at the Cato Institute in Washington, D.C.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: William Galston, "Anger, Fear, Domination"

Tue, 11 Nov 2025 09:30:00 -0000

William Arthur Galston has been a senior fellow with the Brookings Institution since 2006 and a columnist for the Wall Street Journal for the past 12 years. In the first paragraph of his latest 161-page book, he tells us what the book is about: "This book advances this proposition that what I call the dark passions - anger, hatred, humiliation, resentment, fear, and the drive for domination - fuels today's attacks on liberal democracy." Galston also says, "persuasive public speech is the main way demagogues mobilize these passions to pursue power." The name of the book is "Anger, Fear, Domination."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Stewart McLaurin on The People’s House Miscellany: Stories from the White House

Mon, 10 Nov 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

2025 Printers Row Lit Fest: Maureen Dowd on the Culture of Celebrity in America

Sun, 09 Nov 2025 23:00:00 -0000

This week on After Words — Pulitzer Prize–winning New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd discusses her new book, Notorious, with CNN Chief Political Analyst David Axelrod. In the book, Dowd profiles some of the most talked-about figures from Hollywood, Silicon Valley, and American culture. Their conversation was recorded at the 2025 Printers Row Lit Fest in Chicago.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

David Grann on Killers of the Flower Moon and America’s Hidden History

Sun, 09 Nov 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Author David Grann joins David M. Rubenstein to discuss his books including "Killers of the Flower Moon" and "The Wager" and visits the vault of the Folger Shakespeare Library.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Peter Henriques Explores George Washington’s Character and Presidency

Tue, 04 Nov 2025 09:00:00 -0000

Retired George Mason University history professor, Peter Henriques, starts off his author's note writing: "If anyone had told me in the summer of 2023 that I would be writing one more book on George Washington, I would have expressed extreme skepticism." In Episode 6 of this Booknotes+ podcast series in 2021, Professor Henriques told us the same thing. But at 88 years old, he's back with another book on our first president, titled "George Washington: His Quest for Honor and Fame." In the afterward of the book, Peter Henriques puts a special emphasis on George Washington and slavery.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Boyce Upholt on The Great River: The Making and Unmaking of the Mississippi

Mon, 03 Nov 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Journalist Boyce Upholt talks about the history and geography of the Mississippi River and human attempts to control it going back to the Founding Era. He discusses how government-built levees, dikes, and dams have transformed the landscape and ecosystem along the 2,340-mile-long Mississippi and the impact that commerce, floods, and pollution have had on the population along its banks.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pulitzer Prize Author Stacy Schiff on Writing History That Feels Alive

Sun, 02 Nov 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Pulitzer Prize winner Stacy Schiff joins David M. Rubenstein to discuss her biographies of Cleopatra, Benjamin Franklin and Samuel Adams before visiting the vault of the National Archives to view the Treaty of Paris and other priceless documents.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Eric Trump, "Under Siege: My Family's Fight to Save Our Nation"

Sun, 02 Nov 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Eric Trump, executive vice president of the Trump Organization, talked about growing up as a Trump and his family's involvement in business and politics. This event was held at the Ronald Reagan Library in Simi Valley, California.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Geri Spieler, "Housewife Assassin: The Woman Who Tried to Kill President Ford"

Tue, 28 Oct 2025 08:30:00 -0000

In September 1975, 17 days apart, two women, one in Sacramento and the other in San Francisco, attempted to assassinate President Gerald Ford. The first attempt on September the 5th came from Annette Squeaky Fromm. The Charles Manson follower spent over 30 years in prison, is out on parole, and is 76 years old. The other attempt came on the non-entrance side of St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco on September the 24th, 1975. The shooter, Sara Jane Moore, served 32 years in prison and died almost 50 years to the day on September the 24th, 2025. Author Jerry Spieler wrote the book "Housewife Assassin" in 2009. She talked to and exchanged letters with Sara Jane Moore on several occasions. Here's her up-to-date story about the woman who tried to kill President Ford.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Media Mogul Barry Diller on His Life and Career in Television and Hollywood

Mon, 27 Oct 2025 00:00:00 -0000

In his memoir, "Who Knew," media mogul Barry Diller talks about his career in television and Hollywood, and about his personal life and longtime relationship with fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg. Mr. Diller has been an executive at ABC and head of Paramount Pictures and 20th Century Fox (where he created the Fox television network). While at ABC in the mid-1970s, Mr. Diller was responsible for creating the Movie of the Week and the television miniseries, including "Roots."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Justice Amy Coney Barrett on "Listening to the Law: Reflections on the Court and Constitution"

Sun, 26 Oct 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Supreme Court Associate Justice Amy Coney Barrett joins host David M. Rubenstein to discuss her new book, her early life and her view of the Constitution.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Empire of AI - Dreams and Nightmares in Sam Altman's OpenAI

Sun, 26 Oct 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Journalist Karen Hao discussed her reporting on OpenAI under the leadership of Sam Altman. The Commonwealth Club of California hosted this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Dan Wang on Breakneck: China’s Quest to Engineer the Future

Tue, 21 Oct 2025 08:30:00 -0000

The book is called "Breakneck: China's Quest to Engineer the Future." Author Dan Wang was born in China in 1992. His parents moved to Canada when he was seven. In 2014, he graduated from the University of Rochester in New York. Then in 2018, Dan Wang went to live in China until he returned to the US in 2023. He then went to the offices of the Yale Law School and wrote about his comparison of China and the United States. He writes in his introduction: "A strain of materialism, often crass, runs through both countries, sometimes producing variations of successful entrepreneurs, sometimes creating displays of extraordinary tastelessness and overall contributing to a spirit of vigorous competition."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Jill Dougherty — My Russia: War or Peace and a Life Covering the Kremlin

Mon, 20 Oct 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Former CNN Moscow Bureau Chief Jill Dougherty discusses her life-long interest in Russia, which she first visited in 1969 as an exchange student. A fluent Russian speaker, she spent 10 years covering Russia for Voice of America and CNN. Besides serving as Moscow Bureau Chief, Jill Dougherty was White House correspondent during the H.W. Bush and Clinton administrations. While in Moscow, she covered the presidencies of Mikhail Gorbachev, Boris Yeltsin, and Vladimir Putin.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

From the Library of Congress: John Grisham on Storytelling and Justice

Sun, 19 Oct 2025 22:00:00 -0000

From the Great Hall of the Library of Congress, master of the legal thriller John Grisham joins host David M. Rubenstein to discuss his early life, writing process, latest novel and his work with wrongfully convicted prisoners.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: "Rocket Dreams..." C. Davenport, Musk, Bezos and space race

Sun, 19 Oct 2025 00:00:00 -0000

The Washington Post's Christian Davenport reported on the private companies in space flight and the rivalry between Elon Musk's SpaceX and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin. Politics and Prose in Washington, D.C., hosts this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Jonathan Mahler on The Gods of New York: NYC in the 1980s

Tue, 14 Oct 2025 08:31:00 -0000

The names are almost all known nationally: Ed Koch, Rudy Giuliani, David Dinkins, Al Sharpton, Larry Kramer, and Donald Trump. These are people who were first in the news in the 1980s. Their early public lives are now featured in Jonathan Mahler's book, "The Gods of New York." The book is divided into four large chapters titled 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989. Mr. Mahler, a feature writer for the New York Times Magazine, closes his book with this last paragraph: "The existential questions that New York faced as it entered 1986 were answered. The great working-class city was gone."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Jane Goodall "Hope for Animals and Their World: How Endangered Species Are Being Rescued from the Brink"

Sun, 12 Oct 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Jane Goodall talked about her book Hope for Animals and Their World: How Endangered Species Are Being Rescued from the Brink (Grand Central Publishing; September 2, 2009). In the book, she and her co-authors describe people and projects around the world that are rescuing species on the brink of extinction. The guest interviewer was John Nielsen. The interview was held at Georgetown University, prior to Ms. Goodall giving a special lecture. Primatologist Jane Goodall, famous for her work with chimpanzees, is the founder of the Jane Goodall Institute. She is the author of many books, including In the Shadow of Man; Reason for Hope, and Chimpanzees I Love. John Nielsen, journalist in residence at the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), is the author of Condor: To the Brink and Back - The Life and Times of One Giant Bird and the producer of WWF's "The Wild Things," a bi-weekly podcast.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Inside McNamara at War: Philip and William Taubman on Vietnam and U.S. Power

Tue, 07 Oct 2025 08:30:00 -0000

Philip Taubman and his brother William have written what the publisher Norton is calling "McNamara at War: A New History." It's a full life biography of former Secretary of Defense Robert Strange McNamara. "It's a portrait of a man at war with himself," according to the authors. "It's riven with melancholy, guilt, zealous loyalty, and profound inability to admit his flawed thinking about Vietnam before it was too late." William Taubman, seven years older than his brother at 83, is an emeritus political science professor from Amherst College. Brother Phil spent 30 years with the New York Times and is an author of several books.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Christopher Scalia, "13 Novels Conservative Will Love (but Probably Haven't Read)"

Mon, 06 Oct 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Critic and opinion writer Christopher Scalia, son of the late Justice Antonin Scalia, recommends 13 novels with conservative themes that, he says, aren’t widely known by conservatives. In his book "13 Novels Conservatives Will Love (but Probably Haven't Read," the former English professor discusses books by Walter Scott, George Eliot, P.D. James, Zora Neale Hurston, and others.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Trump 2024: Joe Concha on Strategy, Media, and The Greatest Comeback Ever

Sun, 05 Oct 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Fox News contributor Joe Concha gave his take on President Donald Trump's return to the White House for a second, non-consecutive term. The Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation & Institute in Simi Valley, California, hosted this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Daniel Flynn, "The Man Who Invented Conservatism"

Tue, 30 Sep 2025 08:00:00 -0000

Daniel Flynn's book is titled, "The Man Who Invented Conservatism: The Unlikely Life of Frank S. Meyer." Mr. Flynn points out in his introduction that "Meyer travels from communist to conservative, peace activist to soldier, Jew to Catholic, rhapsodist of Satan to cheerleader for Reagan, and free love enthusiast to family man." Flynn, who is a senior editor at the American Spectator and a visiting fellow at the Hoover Institution, tells readers how he found the forgotten papers of Frank Meyer. It's in a warehouse in Altoona, Pennsylvania. Meyer lived between 1909 and 1972. He was 62 when he died.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Every Screen on the Planet: Emily Baker-White on the Future of Technology and Society

Mon, 29 Sep 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Last week, President Trump announced that a deal had been reached between the U.S. government and China regarding the control of the widely popular social media platform, TikTok. In April 2024, Congress passed, and President Biden signed, a law that required TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to sell TikTok within a year or face a ban in the United States. Forbes technology reporter Emily Baker-White, author of "Every Screen on the Planet," talks about the meteoric rise of TikTok, used by an estimated 150 million Americans, and the U.S. government's concerns over its influence and ownership.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: The Mission: Tim Weiner on How the CIA Operates in the Modern Era

Sun, 28 Sep 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Tim Weiner discussed the history and evolution of the Central Intelligence Agency from the end of the Cold War through the first quarter of the 21st century. Politics and Prose bookstore in Washington, D.C., hosted this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Zbigniew Brzezinski, The Grand Failure: Communism in the 20th Century

Tue, 23 Sep 2025 08:00:00 -0000

In our last podcast, Ed Luce of the Financial Times told us about his book, "Zbig," for Zbigniew Brzezinski (1928-2017) who he calls America's great power prophet. In this episode, we're going to feature a Booknotes interview from April 2, 1989, with Dr. Brzezinski. He was the first guest for the weekly Sunday evening program that ran until 2005. His book at the time was about his longtime prediction that there would be a failure of communism in the Soviet Union. The name of Brzezinski's book was "The Grand Failure."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Peter Navarro Reflects on Politics, Prison, and the Trump Presidency

Mon, 22 Sep 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lee Tilghman on ‘If You Don’t Like This I Might Die’: Life Inside Influencer Culture

Sun, 21 Sep 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Former influencer Lee Tilghman described the impact on herself of making a career on social media. Strand Books in New York City hosted this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Edward Luce, "Zbig"- Zbigniew Brzezinski & Carter Era U.S. Foreign Policy

Tue, 16 Sep 2025 08:00:00 -0000

"I was initially very skeptical about embarking on a full life biography of anyone, let alone a figure as big as Zbig." Edward Luce is talking about President Carter's former national security advisor, Zbigniew Brzezinski. Mr. Luce is the Financial Times' chief commentator and columnist. Luce is a native of Sussex, England, and has spent close to 20 years in the United States since the mid-90s. He is an Oxford grad. Zbigniew Brzezinski was born in Warsaw, Poland, got his PhD at Harvard, and spent time in Canada during the time his father was posted as police council general in Montreal. Brzezinski was national security advisor from 1977 to 1981.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Ann Butler, "Wife, Mother, Spy" — Women, Espionage, and the CIA

Mon, 15 Sep 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Ann Butler was a CIA spy for 25+ years. She donned disguises, used false names, and learned how to evade surveillance. She did this clandestine work while simultaneously raising five children. As she says, "No one suspected a pregnant woman was a spy." Ann Butler talks about her work with the Agency, what it took to become an overseas operative in the mid-1980s, and some of the methods she used to extract information from targets.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Gianno Caldwell, "The Day My Brother Was Murdered" — Crime, Justice, and Loss

Sat, 13 Sep 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Fox News political analyst Gianno Caldwell's book, The Day My Brother Was Murdered, explores crime and justice in American cities through the stories of murders that occurred the night that his 18-year-old brother was killed as an innocent bystander during a drive-by shooting.. The loss of his brother inspired Gianno Caldwell to establish the Caldwell Institute for Public Safety, which is dedicated to addressing the pervasive issue of crime and its impact on communities across the country. Melissa Giller of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute interviewed Mr. Caldwell.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Simon Ball, "Death to Order"

Tue, 09 Sep 2025 08:00:00 -0000

Simon Ball is the author of the book "Death to Order: A Modern History of Assassination." Professor Ball is British and is located at the University of Leeds. His publisher, Yale University Press, says: "Assassination, the murder of a specific individual by an organized conspiracy in pursuit of political ends has shaped the fate not only of the famous and infamous victims, but also of nations and empires." Simon Ball tells the story of hundreds of assassins from 1914 to the present. He claims the most important assassination during those years was the murder of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, which was the start of World War I.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: John Malone, "Born to Be Wired"

Mon, 08 Sep 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Liberty Media chairman and cable TV pioneer John Malone, author of "Born to Be Wired," discusses his life and entrepreneurship. Mr. Malone's many business ventures include the Discovery Channel, QVC, SiriusXM, Formula One, and Ticketmaster. He also talks about competing with Ted Turner and Rupert Murdoch, the value of philanthropy, Republican leadership in Congress, and living life as a high-functioning autistic.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Heath Hardage Lee, "The Mysterious Mrs. Nixon"

Sun, 07 Sep 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Historian Heath Hardage Lee, author of The Mysterious Mrs. Nixon, talked about the life and times of the former first lady (1969-74). She said that Pat Nixon, who was voted "Most Admired Woman in the World" in 1972, was largely mis-portrayed by the press

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Sam Tanenhaus, "Buckley"

Tue, 02 Sep 2025 08:00:00 -0000

Author Sam Tanenhaus opens the acknowledgement section in his latest book, "Buckley," this way: "I first met William F. Buckley in 1990, shortly after I had begun work on a biography of Whitaker Chambers…Bill Buckley had been Chambers' last patron and most eloquent champion." The biography of Chambers was published in 1997. Now 28 years later, Sam Tanenhaus finished his 1,018-page book on the life of William Buckley Jr. "Within months of our first conversation, Bill Buckley had opened doors," writes Tanenhaus, "uncovered grant money, made phone calls, and performed innumerable other kindnesses, large and small."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Jason Riley, "The Affirmative Action Myth"

Mon, 01 Sep 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Wall Street Journal columnist Jason Riley, author of "The Affirmative Action Myth," argues that the racial preference policies of the 1960s and 70s have had an overall negative impact on the success of Black Americans. He says that Black incomes, homeownership, and educational attainment were all on an upward trajectory prior to these policies being implemented.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Kathleen deLaski, "Who Needs College Anymore?"

Sun, 31 Aug 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Education Design Lab founder Kathleen deLaski examined whether the U.S. higher education system can meet the needs of future generations of students. She discusses alternatives to the four-year college degree, including educational bootcamps, skills-based learning, and apprenticeships. This event took place at Porter Square Books in Cambridge, Massachusetts

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Jay Winik, "1861"

Tue, 26 Aug 2025 08:00:00 -0000

Historian Jay Winik first appeared on the Booknotes television program 24 years ago to discuss his book, "April 1865." It became a #1 New York Times bestseller, reportedly read by Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, George W. Bush, and many others. It's the narrative story of the Civil War. For his latest book, Winik stepped back four years in history to look at how the Civil War began. This time the book is titled "1861: The Lost Peace." "Northerners had little regard for the strength or determination of the South," writes Winik. Lincoln friend John Hay said the Southern Army was nothing more than a vast mob. The New York Tribune said it differently: "Jeff Davis and company will be swinging from the battlements at Washington by the 4th of July."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Syndicated Columnist George Will on His Life & Career

Mon, 25 Aug 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Author and writer George Will, whose nationally syndicated column has been running since 1974, discusses his life and career in the opinion business. Mr. Will talks about the impact of his work on U.S. politics over the past 50 years, conservatism in the age of Donald Trump, his love of baseball, and other topics.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Michael Grynbaum, "Empire of the Elite"

Sun, 24 Aug 2025 00:00:00 -0000

This was an inside look at the glamorous Condé Nast publishing empire, the people who crafted its publications, and the standards they set for American culture. Politics and Prose bookstore in Washington, D.C., hosted this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Richard J. Evans, "Hitler's People"

Tue, 19 Aug 2025 08:00:00 -0000

Sir Richard J. Evans has been writing about Germany and Adolf Hitler for his entire professional life. He was knighted in Britain in 2012 for his service to scholarship. From 2003-2008, Professor Evans published a trilogy of the Third Reich with a total of over 2,500 pages. His latest book is titled "Hitler's People: The Faces of the Third Reich." In his preface, Sir Richard, a former professor at Cambridge University writes: "The individuals who stand at the center of this book range from the top to the bottom, from Hitler all the way down to the lowest of the Nazi party." There are 22 chapters.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Jane McManus, "The Fast Track"

Mon, 18 Aug 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Sports journalist and academic Jane McManus, author of "The Fast Track," discusses the rise in popularity of women's sports since the early 1970s and the challenges female athletes have faced since then, including unequal pay and lack of media coverage. Prof. McManus talks about the experiences of Billie Jean King, Venus and Serena Williams, Caitlin Clark, Riley Gaines, and other female competitors.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Isabel Allende, "My Name Is Emilia del Valle"

Sun, 17 Aug 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Isabel Allende spoke about identity & resilience in her historical novel set in the 19th century against a backdrop of civil war breaking out in Chile. The Sixth and I Synagogue in Washington, D.C., hosted this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: David Herbert Donald, "Lincoln"

Tue, 12 Aug 2025 08:00:00 -0000

In our earlier discussion with Zaakir Tameez about his biography of Senator Charles Sumner of Massachusetts, he discussed his differences with Professor David Herbert Donald on the same subject. On December the 24th, 1995, Professor Donald talked about his book called "Lincoln" on the Booknotes television program. David Donald died in 2009 at age 88. During his teaching career, which he finished as a professor of history at Harvard, Professor Donald was praised for his "Lincoln" book by historian Eric Foner. "It is often considered the best single volume of Lincoln ever. It's the most balanced of the biographies out there," said Foner.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Lee Hawkins, "I Am Nobody's Slave"

Mon, 11 Aug 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Journalist and musician Lee Hawkins, author of "I Am Nobody's Slave," talks about the impact that slavery and Jim Crow have had on his family through multiple generations. Mr. Hawkins examines the relationship between the past violence experienced by family members, often at the hands of white people, and the way his parents raised and severely disciplined him.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Josh Dawsey, Tyler Pager & Isaac Arnsdorf, "2024"

Sun, 10 Aug 2025 00:00:00 -0000

This conversation was a behind-the-scenes account of the 2024 presidential election that sent Donald Trump back to the White House for a second, non-consecutive term -- only the second president other than Grover Cleveland to achieve that distinction, and after a litany of criminal and civil investigations and two assassination attempts.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Zaakir Tameez, "Charles Sumner"

Tue, 05 Aug 2025 08:00:00 -0000

Charles Sumner was from Boston, Massachusetts. He was a U.S. Senator for 23 years from 1851 to 1874. Sumner, an anti-slavery Republican, was brutally caned on the Senate floor by pro-slavery Democrats in 1856, during the lead-up to the Civil War. The attack, which almost killed Sumner, kept him out of the Senate for over 3 years. Sumner didn't marry until he was 55 years old, but his marriage to Alice Hooper ended in divorce seven years later. The 6' 4" Republican died of a heart attack in his home on March 11, 1874. Zaakir Tameez, a graduate of Yale Law School, reports in his new biography that Charles Sumner, in his opinion, was the conscious of a nation. In his introduction, Tameez writes: "This biography brings Sumner back to life, returning him to the place he deserves in the pantheon of American heroes. That said, this book is no hagiography."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Nicole Kobie, "The Long History of the Future"

Mon, 04 Aug 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Technology reporter Nicole Kobie, author of "The Long History of the Future," talks about how technology evolves and discusses why many predicted technologies – including driverless and flying cars, smart cities, hyperloops, and autonomous robots – haven’t become a reality.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: "Framed," John Grisham and Jim McCloskey

Sun, 03 Aug 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Bestselling author John Grisham and co-author Jim McCloskey wrote about the challenges of exonerating a person who is wrongfully convicted. Princeton Library, Centurion, and Labyrinth Books in Princeton, New Jersey, sponsored this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: John Seabrook, "The Spinach King"

Tue, 29 Jul 2025 08:00:00 -0000

The patriarch, C.F. Seabrook, was hailed as the Henry Ford of agriculture. His son, Jack, a keen businessman, was poised to take over what Life magazine called the biggest vegetable factory on earth. His son, John Seabrook, has written about his grandfather and father in his book called "The Spinach King." It's subtitled "The Rise and Fall of an American Dynasty." Work on "The Spinach King" started in the early 1980s when John Seabrook was with the New Yorker Magazine. John Seabrook says: "I had a grandfather who was a champion of white supremacy, a true believer in the superiority of the Nordic Christian male."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Cornel West & Robert George, "Truth Matters"

Mon, 28 Jul 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Progressive professor Cornel West and conservative professor Robert George talk about their decades-long friendship and teaching together at Princeton University. They also discuss their new book, "Truth Matters," a dialogue between the two on such topics as American history, great books, faith, and free speech.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Patrick McGee, "Apple in China"

Sun, 27 Jul 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Financial Times San Francisco Correspondent Patrick McGee examined Apple's relationship with China and the impact of locating so many factories there. The Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco hosted this event.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Evan Osnos, "The Haves and Have-Yachts"

Tue, 22 Jul 2025 08:00:00 -0000

In a word, Evan Osnos' latest book focuses on the subject of money. His book is titled "The Haves and the Have Yachts: Dispatches on the Ultra-Rich." There are 10 essays which originally appeared in his home publication, The New Yorker. The oldest one, "Survival of the Richest," ran in 2017. The newest, titled "Land of Make-Believe," was published in 2024. In his introduction, Osnos writes that: "Reporting in the enclaves of the very rich, Monte Carlo, Palm Beach, Palo Alto and Hollywood is complicated. It's not a world that relishes scrutiny."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Presidential Legacies

Mon, 21 Jul 2025 00:00:00 -0000

David Kramer (G.W. Bush Institute), Stephanie Streett (Clinton Foundation), Alice Yates (George & Barbara Bush Foundation), and Mark Updegrove (LBJ Foundation) talk about preserving the legacies of U.S. presidents and the work their privately funded organizations do to achieve this, including through the Presidential Leadership Scholars program, which launched in 2015. They also talk about the relationship between their foundations and the government funded presidential library system, which is overseen by the National Archives.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Bill Clinton and James Patterson, "First Gentleman"

Sun, 20 Jul 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Former President Bill Clinton talked with his co-author James Patterson about their latest novel: A mystery in the White House that leads to the first gentleman on trial for murder. Politics and Prose Bookstore hosted this event at the Lincoln Theatre in Washington, D.C

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Dave Barry, "Class Clown"

Tue, 15 Jul 2025 08:00:00 -0000

Dave Barry's memoir is called "Class Clown." It is at least his 46th book. On the front of his book, he makes an important declaration: "How I went 77 years without growing up." For 30 years, Dave Barry wrote a weekly humor column published in newspapers, mostly on the weekends. He retired that column in 2005 but has kept writing. On the back flap of his memoir, the bio says he has more best sellers than you can count on two hands. Barry won the 1988 Pulitzer Prize for commentary. He lives in Miami.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Robert Malone, "PsyWar"

Mon, 14 Jul 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Dr. Robert Malone, recently appointed to the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, talks about his book "PsyWar," in which he argues that the U.S. government uses psychological warfare against Americans to control them. He also talks about how his career as a virologist and immunologist took a turn after he criticized the government's response to the COVID pandemic.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Senator Lisa Murkowski, "Far From Home"

Sun, 13 Jul 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) told her own political story in Far From Home. She was first elected in 2001 and has served in the Senate since 2002. Her book covers a career ranging from the emergence of the tea party movement to President Trump's second election. Politics and Prose bookstore hosted this event at the Sixth and I cultural center in Washington, D.C

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: John Laurence, "The Cat from Hue"

Tue, 08 Jul 2025 08:00:00 -0000

As a follow-up to last week's interview with Lien-Hang Nguyen, here is an encore interview with former CBS and ABC reporter John Laurence. Mr. Laurence was interviewed on Booknotes, the television program, on January 17, 2002. His book is called "The Cat from Hue". It's 800 plus pages and relays his Vietnam experience as a reporter for CBS. John Laurence spent a total of 22 months there, from the years 1965 to 1970. In his interview, he calls his book "my life's work because I hope it will be helpful to others."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Rosie Rios, America250 Commission Chair

Mon, 07 Jul 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Jose Andres. "Change the Recipe"

Sun, 06 Jul 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Chef José Andrés talked about the life lessons he's learned through the work he does with the World Central Kitchen, an organization that feeds people in conflict and disaster zones around the world. He spoke at George Washington University's Lisner Hall.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Lien-Hang Nguyen, "Hanoi's War"

Tue, 01 Jul 2025 08:00:00 -0000

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the fall of Saigon. Netflix is offering a five-part documentary series titled "Turning Point: The Vietnam War," directed by Brian Knappenberger. The series includes never-before-seen footage of the war from the CBS archives. Also included in the documentary are interviews with participants in the war, both from the North and the South. One of the most frequent voices heard during the series is Columbia University professor Lien-Hang Nguyen, born in Vietnam in 1974. She is the youngest of nine children and was brought to the United States by her parents in 1975. Prof. Nguyen is the author of the 2012 book "Hanoi's War: An International History of the War for Peace in Vietnam."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Jonathan Turley, "The Indispensable Right"

Mon, 30 Jun 2025 00:00:00 -0000

George Washington University Law School professor Jonathan Turley discusses the history of free speech in America and the people who advanced it. He argues that the right to free speech, enshrined in the First Amendment, is a basic human right that protects all the others. Prof. Turley also talks about current attempts by government, universities, and the private sector to limit free speech in the United States.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dave and Dina McCormick, "Who Believed in You?"

Sun, 29 Jun 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Sen. Dave McCormick (R-PA) and his wife Dina McCormick discussed the importance of mentors and shared stories of successful politicians and business leaders who have had their lives changed by them. This event was hosted by the Ronald Regan Institute in Washington, D.C

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: William Geroux, "The Fifteen"

Tue, 24 Jun 2025 08:00:00 -0000

One October morning in 2018, journalist William Geroux says he was returning some books to his local Virginia Beach Library when he noticed a new state historical marker planted in the ground near the front entrance. It said the library was built on the site of a World War II prisoner of war camp. In Mr. Giroux's author's note in his latest book called "The Fifteen," he writes that he "was surprised and a little embarrassed" not to know that, during World War II, the U S had 700 POW camps spread throughout the United States in 46 different states, housing 371,683 German soldiers and 49,784 Italians. His book is subtitled "Murder, Retribution, and the Forgotten Story of Nazi POWs in America."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Peniel Joseph, "Freedom Season"

Mon, 23 Jun 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Mark Bauerlein, The Dumbest Generation Grows Up: From Stupefied Youth to Dangerous Adults

Sun, 22 Jun 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Emory University professor Mark Bauerlein argues that the lack of general civics knowledge by Millennials poses a threat to America's political and social institutions. He was interviewed by the Federalist's culture editor Emily Jashinksy

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Claire Hoffman, "Sister, Sinner"

Tue, 17 Jun 2025 08:00:00 -0000

It's a story from the 1920s, 30s, and 40s. The book by Claire Hoffman is called "Sister, Sinner: The Miraculous Life and Mysterious Disappearance of Aimee Semple MacPherson." FSG, the publisher, further emphasizes that the story is "the dramatic rise, disappearance, and near fall of a woman called Sister Amy who changed the world." Author Claire Hoffman, who has a master's in religion from the University of Chicago, says Aimee Semple MacPherson may not be known to many today, but she was a global star at the inception of global media.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Mark Whitaker, "The Afterlife of Malcolm X"

Mon, 16 Jun 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Former Newsweek editor and managing editor of CNN Worldwide, Mark Whitaker, discusses the life and legacy of the Black nationalist leader Malcolm X, who was assassinated in 1965. Mr. Whitaker, author of "The Afterlife of Malcolm X," talks about Malcolm X's split with the Nation of Islam, his relationship with Martin Luther King Jr. and Muhammad Ali, and his posthumous impact on Barack Obama, Clarence Thomas, and others.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Teresa Ghilarducci, "Work, Retire, Repeat - The Uncertainty of Retirement in the New Economy"

Sun, 15 Jun 2025 22:00:00 -0000

New School economic professor Teresa Ghilarducci offered her thoughts on how to make retirement in the U.S. attainable for more Americans. She was interviewed by Washington Post economics correspondent Abha Bhattarai.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Kathryn Olmsted, "Red Spy Queen"

Tue, 10 Jun 2025 08:00:00 -0000

In several recent episodes of the podcast, we have featured books about the World War II era. An important figure from that time has been mentioned but not discussed during any of those interviews. Her name is Elizabeth Bentley. She was the first person to reveal, to the FBI and the Congress, the names of people living in the United States and spying for the Soviets, both Americans and foreign-born operatives. To better understand this former communist spy turned informant, we asked Kathryn Olmsted, author of "Red Spy Queen," a biography of Elizabeth Bentley, to tell us the late spy's story.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Medea Benjamin, CODEPINK Co-Founder

Mon, 09 Jun 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Medea Benjamin, co-founder of the pro-peace, feminist grassroots organization CODEPINK, talks about her life as an activist and CODEPINK's current campaigns focusing on Gaza, Ukraine, Iran, and Latin America. She also talks about the nonviolent, disruptive actions taken by CODEPINK at congressional hearings and elsewhere to bring attention to their causes.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Stephanie Land, "Maid"

Sun, 08 Jun 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Stephanie Land discusses her path from working as a maid to earning a journalism degree and later writing about the working poor. She was interviewed by Rachel Schneider, co-author of "The Financial Diaries."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Kenneth Rogoff, "Our Dollar, Your Problem"

Tue, 03 Jun 2025 08:00:00 -0000

Kenneth Rogoff is professor of economics at Harvard University and former International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief economist. In his most recent book, "Our Dollar, Your Problem," he argues that America's currency might have reached today's lofty pinnacle without a certain amount of good luck. However, as Professor Rogoff nears the end of his 345-page book, he writes, quote: "If rapidly rising debt is left unchecked, and there seems to be little political appetite to rein in massive deficits, the United States and the entire world is in for a substantial period of global financial volatility marked by higher average real interest rates and inflation."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Jason Riley, "The Affirmative Action Myth"

Mon, 02 Jun 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Rick Atkinson, "The Fate of the Day"

Tue, 27 May 2025 08:00:00 -0000

Rick Atkinson has just published the second volume of his American Revolution trilogy. The book is called "The Fate of the Day" and covers years 1777 to 1780. His initial 800-page volume, titled "The British Are Coming," was published in 2019 and focused on years 1775 to 1777. Mr. Atkinson won the George Washington prize for this beginning look at the revolution. His second book in the trilogy covers the middle years. Stationed in Paris, Benjamin Franklin was wooing the French. In Pennsylvania, George Washington was pleading with Congress to deliver the money, men, and material he needed to continue the fight. This volume is timed to coincide with the 250th anniversary of the beginning of the American Revolution.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Rick Steves, "On the Hippie Trail"

Mon, 26 May 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Travel writer Rick Steves talks about his 1978 journey along the "Hippie Trail" and the 60,000-word journal he kept of the trip which he recently published as a book. During the 3,000-mile trek, the then 23-year-old Steves and a friend visited Turkey, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, and Nepal. He talks about the people he met along the way, the challenges of travelling in foreign countries in the 1970s, and the lifelong impact the trip had on him.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Rick Atkinson, "An Army at Dawn"

Tue, 20 May 2025 08:00:00 -0000

On November 17th, 2002, 23 years ago, Rick Atkinson appeared on the Booknotes television program to discuss his book, "Army at Dawn." This was the first of three books Atkinson called the "Liberation Trilogy," a full history of the European theater of World War II, which is a total of 2,512 pages, including notes and indexes. Beginning in 2019, Rick Atkinson switched trilogies. This time, it's the history of the American Revolution. In this episode of Booknotes+, we are repeating the 2002 interview, which has substantial background on Rick Atkinson's life and writing experience. During next week's episode, we will talk with him about his second book on the Revolution, "The Fate of the Day."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Christopher Cox, "Woodrow Wilson: The Light Withdrawn"

Mon, 19 May 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Former U.S. Congressman Christopher Cox (R-CA), author of "Woodrow Wilson: The Light Withdrawn," takes a critical look at the 28th President of the United States and his attitudes towards racial equality and women's suffrage. Mr. Cox also talks about Wilson's intellectual development and his tenure as president of Princeton University.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Leah Litman, "Lawless - How the Supreme Court Runs on Conservative Grievance, Fringe Theories, and Bad Vibes"

Sun, 18 May 2025 22:00:00 -0000

University of Michigan law professor Leah Litman explains why she believes the Supreme Court isn't making rulings based on legal principles. She was interviewed by author and Nation Magazine justice correspondent Elie Mystal.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Thomas Maier, "The Invisible Spy"

Tue, 13 May 2025 14:43:00 -0000

"Ernest Cuneo played Ivy League football at Columbia University and was in the old Brooklyn Dodgers NFL franchise before becoming a City Hall lawyer and 'Brain Trust' aide to President Franklin Roosevelt." While on the payroll of national radio columnist Walter Winchell, Cuneo "mingled with the famous and powerful. But his status as a spy remained a secret, hiding in plain sight." All of this is the way Hanover Square Press introduces readers to Thomas Maier's book, "The Invisible Spy." Maier, a graduate of Fordham and Columbia, is an author and a television producer.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: John Kasich, "Heaven Help Us"

Mon, 12 May 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Former Ohio governor John Kasich (R) talks about the good work done by religious institutions and people of faith in the United States. In his book "Heaven Help Us," Mr. Kasich profiles over a dozen religious Americans involved in combating homelessness, hunger, human trafficking, and other issues.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Sophie Gilbert, "Girl on Girl - How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves"

Sun, 11 May 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Atlantic Magazine staff writer Sophie Gilbert looks at the pop culture of the '90s & early 2000s and its impact on women and the feminist movement. She's interviewed by Jennifer Pozner, author and founder of Women in Media & News.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Clay Risen, "Red Scare"

Tue, 06 May 2025 08:00:00 -0000

McCarthyism, Whitaker Chambers, Alger Hiss, Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, Paul Robeson, House Un-American Activities Committee, the Smith Act, the Hollywood 10, the Joint Anti-Fascist Committee, the Truman Loyalty Program, the Blacklist, book burning, and communism – all subjects of controversy during the 1930s, 40s, and 50s here in the United States. Clay Risen, a reporter and editor at the New York Times, has a fresh look at all this in his book, "Red Scare." Mr. Risen writes in his preface that his grandfather was a career FBI agent who joined the Bureau during World War II, and he recounted stories of implementing loyalty tests for the federal government in the late 1940s.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Kathleen deLaski, "Who Needs College Anymore?"

Mon, 05 May 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Education Design Lab founder Kathleen deLaski, author of "Who Needs College Anymore?," questions if the U.S. higher education system, with its skyrocketing costs and declining enrollment, is currently suited to meet the needs of future generations of students. She talks about alternatives to the 4-year college degree, including educational bootcamps, skills-based learning, and apprenticeships.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: David Graham, "The Project - How Project 2025 Is Reshaping America"

Sun, 04 May 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Journalist David Graham looks at how parts of the Heritage Foundation's Project 2025 document is being implemented by the Trump administration. He's interviewed by author and George Washington University professor Matthew Dallek.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Jill Eicher, "Mellon vs. Churchill"

Tue, 29 Apr 2025 08:00:00 -0000

After a career in investment management and some time as a credit risk specialist at the US Treasury Department, Jill Eicher has written her first book titled, "Melon vs. Churchill: The Untold Story of Treasury Titans at War." It's all about the collection of war debts from World War I, which was fought between 1914 and 1918. Andrew Mellon, a wealthy industrialist, served as Secretary of the Treasury for Presidents Harding, Coolidge, and Hoover. 11 years total. He took on Chancellor of the Exchequer Winston Churchill. Jill Eicher tells a story that will be new to most readers.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Jane McManus, "The Fast Track"

Mon, 28 Apr 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Stephen Witt, "The Thinking Machine - Jensen Huang, Nvidia, and the World's Most Coveted Microchip"

Sun, 27 Apr 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Journalist Stephen Witt profiles the company Nvidia, its founder Jensen Huang, and the development of their microchip. He's interviewed by Business Insider reporter Emma Cosgrove.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Dr. Hassan Tetteh, "Smarter Healthcare with AI"

Tue, 22 Apr 2025 08:00:00 -0000

Dr. Hassan Tetteh, in his latest book, opens the introduction with a question: "How do we prepare for the future with AI?" His primary focus is on healthcare and AI, but it's subtitled "Harnessing Military Medicine to Revolutionize Healthcare for Everyone Everywhere." Dr. Tetteh is currently based at Howard University and Inova Hospital in Fairfax, Virginia, after serving 25 years in military medicine. His specialty is as a thoracic surgeon doing heart and lung transplants. He retired from the Navy in 2023.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Nicole Kobie, "The Long History of the Future"

Mon, 21 Apr 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Viet Thanh Nguyen, "To Save and to Destroy - Writing as an Other

Sun, 20 Apr 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Pulitzer Prize–winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen reflected on how society can build allegiances beyond racial identity & have more global solidarity. He's interviewed by author Ijeoma Oluo.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Phil Tinline, "Ghosts of Iron Mountain"

Tue, 15 Apr 2025 08:00:00 -0000

British writer Phil Tinline has written a book titled "Ghosts of Iron Mountain." The publisher Scribner calls it "an investigative masterpiece for readers curious about the surprising connection between John F. Kennedy, Oliver Stone, Timothy McVeigh, QAnon, Alex Jones, and Donald Trump." In his introduction, author Tinline says the book is the true story of a hoax. A hoax that shocked the nation in the late 1960s and that once created seemed impossible to extinguish. Those involved in the hoax included Victor Navasky, E.L. Doctorow, John Kenneth Galbraith, and Leonard Lewin.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Rick Steves, "On the Hippie Trail"

Mon, 14 Apr 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Senator James Lankford (R-OK), "Turnaround - America's Revival"

Fri, 11 Apr 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Senator James Lankford (R-OK) speaks about his faith, the challenges the country faces, and what he believes needs to happen to improve the country. He's interviewed by Wall Street Journal congressional reporter Siobhan Hughes.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Richard Overy, "Rain of Ruin"

Tue, 08 Apr 2025 08:00:00 -0000

Richard Overy is a British historian who has spent most of his professional life writing books about war, primarily World War II. Professor Overy's current work is called "Rain of Ruin: Tokyo, Hiroshima, and the Surrender of Japan." Liner notes on the cover of the book say: "With the development of the B-29 Super Fortress in the summer of 1944, strategic bombing, a central component of the Allied war effort against Germany, arrived in the Pacific theater. In 1945 Japan experienced the three most deadly bombing attacks of the war." Professor Richard Overy is 77 and lives in Great Britain and Italy. He has written close to 30 books.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Lee Hawkins, "I Am Nobody's Slave"

Mon, 07 Apr 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: David Enrich, "Murder the Truth"

Sun, 06 Apr 2025 22:00:00 -0000

New York Times investigative journalist David Enrich argues that the rich & powerful are using free speech laws to suppress dissent. He's interviewed by author and George Washington Law School professor Mary Anne Franks.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Dennis Hutchinson, "The Forgotten Memoir of John Knox"

Tue, 01 Apr 2025 08:00:00 -0000

As a follow on to Stuart Banner's history of the Supreme Court, this week's Booknotes+ podcast features a 2002 interview with Dennis Hutchinson, a University of Chicago law professor emeritus. The subject matter: the forgotten memoir of John Knox, a law clerk to former justice James McReynolds, a native of Kentucky. Knox's year was the term beginning October 1936. In history, it is very rare that a law clerk at the Supreme Court has published an insider's view of the court or of a justice. Professor Hutchinson gives the background on where he found the memoir, which hadn't been published before. Justice McReynolds, as you will hear, was, according to historians, arguably one of the most disagreeable justices ever to sit on the bench.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Syndicated Columnist George Will on His Life & Career

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Paul Blustein, "King Dollar - The Past and Future of the World's Dominant Currency"'

Sun, 30 Mar 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Writer Paul Blustein made the case for why he believes the dollar will remain the world's dominant currency. He was interviewed by author and Council on Foreign Relations senior fellow Zongyuan Zoe Liu.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Stuart Banner, "The Most Powerful Court in the World"

Tue, 25 Mar 2025 08:00:00 -0000

UCLA law professor Stuart Banner's book, "The Most Powerful Court in the World," is a history of the United States Supreme Court from the founding era to the present. In his introduction, Stuart Banner writes that: "Today, critics on the left accuse the justices of deciding cases on political rather than legal grounds. This book shows that the Court's critics have always leveled this criticism at decisions they did not like. These attacks have usually come from the left because the court has usually been a conservative institution." Author Stuart Banner has a law degree from Stanford and clerked for Justice Sandra Day O'Connor in 1991.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Loretta Ross, "Calling In"

Mon, 24 Mar 2025 00:00:00 -0000

Activist and professor Loretta Ross, author of "Calling In," discusses the excesses of cancel culture and the need for a more inclusive way to hold people accountable in the age of social media. Prof. Ross, who was sexually abused as a child, also talks about her past work with convicted rapists and white supremacists.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Michael Lewis, "Who is Government?"

Sun, 23 Mar 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Bestselling author Michael Lewis posed the question, who works for the government and why does their work matter? He's interviewed by Harvard Kennedy School of Government Public Policy & Management Professor Elizabeth Linos.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The C-SPAN Story

Thu, 20 Mar 2025 18:09:00 -0000

C-SPAN Founder Brian Lamb is in conversation with Sam Feist, the network's CEO, and Susan Swain, C-SPAN's former co-CEO, about his quest to bring live, gavel-to-gavel coverage of Congress into every American home.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Steven Gillon, "Presidents at War"

Tue, 18 Mar 2025 08:00:00 -0000

Steven Gillon was a scholar in residence at the History Channel for more than 20 years. He has written 12 books on subjects including a history of the United States, the Kerner Commission, Lee Harvey Oswald, and the Life of John F. Kennedy Jr. His latest book is titled "Presidents at War: How World War II Shaped a Generation of Presidents from Eisenhower and JFK through Reagan and Bush." Steven Gillon closes his book saying: "Ironically, the threats facing America in the third decade of the 21st century are very real and, in many ways, similar to the challenges the nation confronted in the 1930s."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Meryl Gordon, "The Woman Who Knew Everyone"

Mon, 17 Mar 2025 00:00:00 -0000

New York University journalism professor Meryl Gordon, author of "The Woman Who Knew Everyone," talks about the life of socialite and Democratic fundraiser Perle Mesta. Mesta, dubbed the "hostess with the mostest," was close to three U.S. presidents during the mid-20th century, and was known for throwing parties that brought political elites together. She served as U.S. envoy to Luxembourg following WWII, was an early activist for the Equal Rights Amendment, and was the subject of the Broadway musical and later movie, "Call Me Madam."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Dr. Adam Ratner, "Booster Shots -The Urgent Lessons of Measles and the Uncertain Future of Children's Health"

Sun, 16 Mar 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Dr. Adam Ratner spoke about the resurgence of measles that he's seeing as a pediatrician and the future of children's health. He was interviewed by George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health professor Emily Smith.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+ Alexandra Richie, "Warsaw 1944"

Tue, 11 Mar 2025 08:00:00 -0000

As a follow up to our recent podcast regarding the life and times of Anne Frank, we asked author Alexandra Ritchie to tell us more about the horrors of World War II and Poland. Ritchie, a citizen of Canada, now lives in the city which is the title of her book, Warsaw. Her focus is on 1944 and what was called the Warsaw Uprising. In her introduction, she writes, "Himmler and Hitler had decided that the entire population remaining in one of Europe's great capital cities was to be murdered in cold blood. Himmler referred to Warsaw as the great abscess, which was to be completely destroyed."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Rep. James Comer (R-KY), "All the President's Money"

Mon, 10 Mar 2025 00:00:00 -0000

House Oversight Committee chairman Rep. James Comer (R-KY), author of "All the President's Money," talks about his committee's 15-month investigation into the business practices of then President Joe Biden and members of President Biden's family, including his brother James and son Hunter. Rep. Comer argues that the Bidens have benefitted financially from corrupt financial dealings involving Ukraine, China, and other countries.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Omar El Akkad, "One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This"

Sun, 09 Mar 2025 22:00:00 -0000

Omar El Akkad questions if the U.S. is forsaking its core values, after covering wars around the globe & social unrest as a journalist for 20 years. He's interviewed by author and University of Oxford Modern Middle Eastern History professor Eugene Rogan

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Katherine Carter, "Churchill's Citadel"

Tue, 04 Mar 2025 09:00:00 -0000

In the years right before World War II started in 1939, Winston Churchill had been out of government. However, even though he was far from power, his country home, Chartwell, became Churchill's headquarters of his campaign against Nazi Germany. Catherine Carter is a curator and historian who has managed the house and collections at Chartwell. Her new book is called "Churchill's Citadel: Chartwell and the Gatherings Before the Storm." Catherine Carter reveals how Churchill used Chartwell, which is 35 miles from London, as his base during the pre-war years to collect key intelligence about Germany's preparation for war.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Tara Roberts, "Written in the Waters"

Mon, 03 Mar 2025 01:00:00 -0000

National Geographic explorer Tara Roberts travels the world documenting underwater wrecks of some of the 12,000 slave ships that operated during the Atlantic slave trade. In her memoir, "Written in the Waters," Roberts talks about the training and preparation required to undertake the diving missions and the work done by the nonprofit organization that she dives with, Diving with a Purpose, which is primarily composed of African American divers.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Kevin Fagan, "The Lost and the Found - A True Story of Homelessness, Found Family, and Second Chances"

Sun, 02 Mar 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Journalist Kevin Fagan reports on the underlying issues of homelessness in America, tracing the experiences of two unhoused persons in San Francisco. He was interviewed by former Obama Administration HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Ruth Franklin, "The Many Lives of Anne Frank"

Tue, 25 Feb 2025 09:00:00 -0000

80 years ago, in early 1945, 15-year-old Anne Frank died from a typhus epidemic in the Nazi German-based concentration camp Bergen-Belsen. As the 7500 square foot replica of the Otto Frank family secret annex in Amsterdam opens in New York City, writer Ruth Franklin is publishing her new biography called "The Many Lives of Anne Frank." According to Franklin, the title of the book refers to the multiplicity of ways in which Anne Frank has been understood and misunderstood. Anne Frank's diary is one of the best-selling non-fiction books of all time. Reportedly over 30 million copies have been sold.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Louis Ferrante, "Borgata: Clash of Titans" PART 2

Mon, 24 Feb 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Former mafia associate Louis Ferrante talks about "Borgata: Clash of Titans," volume two of his history of the American mafia that covers the years 1960-1985. In part two of this two-part interview, Mr. Ferrante further details what he says was the mafia's involvement in the assassination of President Kennedy and discusses Robert Kennedy's battle with mobster Carlos Marcello (mar-CELL-oh), boss of the New Orleans Mafia from the late 1940s to the early 1980s.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Eve Ewing, "Original Sins: The (Mis)education of Black and Native Children and the Construction of American Racism"

Sun, 23 Feb 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Professor Eve Ewing argues that education systems in the United States have been designed to reinforce racial inequality at the expense of Black & Native children. She's interviewed by Associate Press editor Alia Wong.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Sean McMeekin, "July 1914"

Tue, 18 Feb 2025 09:00:00 -0000

A little over 100 years ago was the beginning of what's often been called the Great War. World War I had military casualties of over nine million and millions more of civilians. Professor Sean McMeekin of Bard College, located in New York State, has written 9 books since 2003 on subjects that include German history, Russian history, the Ottoman Empire, communism, World War II, and one titled "July 1914." This last book is the focus of our conversation with Professor McMeekin. World War I was triggered in late June of 1914 by the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sophie in Sarajevo, Bosnia. They were gunned down by a Serbian 19-year-old by the name of Gavrilo Princip.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Louis Ferrante, "Borgata: Clash of Titans" PART 1

Mon, 17 Feb 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Former mafia associate Louis Ferrante talks about "Borgata: Clash of Titans," volume two of his history of the American mafia that covers the years 1960-1985. In part one of a two-part interview, he gives a history of the mafia in America, discusses Attorney General Robert Kennedy's war against organized crime and the involvement that he says the mafia had in the 1960 election and 1963 assassination of President John Kennedy. Mr. Ferrante also shares stories about his time as a heist expert for the Gambino crime family, which led to his imprisonment in 1994.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Anson Frericks, "Last Call for Bud Light"

Sun, 16 Feb 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Former president of Anheuser-Busch Sales & Distribution Company Anson Frericks offers his insight to the Bud Light controversy, declining sales & its future. He was interviewed by the Competitive Enterprise Institute senior fellow Richard Morrison.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: David Levering Lewis, "The Stained Glass Window"

Tue, 11 Feb 2025 09:00:00 -0000

David Levering Lewis is an American historian and retired professor from New York University. He's the author of 12 books and the winner of two Pulitzer Prizes for his two volumes on the life of W.E.B. DuBois. At 88 years old, Prof. Lewis has written a memoir that, as he says, focuses on "a past I barely knew." He a native of St. Louis, MO, with degrees from Fisk, Columbia, and the London School of Economics. The title of Prof. Lewis' latest book is "The Stained Glass Window: A Family History as the American Story, 1790-1958." In his prologue, he writes: "Africans in America had been both unique victims and unimpeachable critics of a nation corrupted at its inception by a political economy anchored to slavery."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Reginald Dwayne Betts on Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail"

Mon, 10 Feb 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Reginald Dwayne Betts originally read Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1963 "Letter from Birmingham Jail" – King's defense of the use of nonviolent civil disobedience in the fight for civil rights – while in solitary confinement in prison. Mr. Betts, who served over 8 years for a carjacking he committed when he was 16, went on to become an award-winning poet and graduate of Yale Law School. He has written the Afterword for a new commemorative edition of Dr. King's "Letter from Birmingham Jail." Mr Betts talks about the book and the work done by Freedom Reads, an organization he founded that builds libraries in prisons.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Omo Moses, "The White Peril - A Family Memoir"

Sun, 09 Feb 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Omo Moses, son of civil rights organizer Robert Moses, talks about being Black in America through the voices of three generations of the Moses family. He's interviewed by University of Maryland, Baltimore County emeritus president Freeman Hrabowski.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Jane Calvert, "Penman of the Founding"

Tue, 04 Feb 2025 09:00:00 -0000

John Dickinson is one of the most significant founders of the United States who is not well known by the American public. Author Jane Calvert is trying to change that with her new biography "Penman of the Founding." John Dickinson is known for his 9 essays under the title Fabius, published anonymously in newspapers during the time that the states were deciding on whether to approve the new Constitution. John Dickinson of Maryland, Delaware, and Pennsylvania was the only founding figure present and active in every phase of the American Revolution, from the Stamp Act Crisis to the ratification of the Constitution.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Judge Frederic Block, "A Second Chance"

Mon, 03 Feb 2025 01:00:00 -0000

U.S. District Court judge Frederic Block (Eastern District of New York) talks about the application of the 2018 First Step Act, under which federal prisoners who have served decades in prison can petition the court for reductions in their sentences. The bi-partisan act, signed into law by President Trump during his first term, was created to address the excesses in federal sentencing during the 1980s and 90s, reduce the size of the federal prison population, and promote rehabilitation. In his book, "A Second Chance," Judge Block discusses the outcomes for 6 defendants – including mafia hitmen, a child pornographer, and a rogue policeman – who petitioned him for their release.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After Words: Eva Dou, House of Huawei - The Secret History of China's Most Powerful Company"

Sun, 02 Feb 2025 23:00:00 -0000

The Washington Post's Eva Dou explains how Huawei became China's most powerful company & what that means for its global competitors. She was interviewed by author and Council on Foreign Relations emerging technologies and national security chair Adam Segal.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Robert Kaplan, "Waste Land"

Tue, 28 Jan 2025 09:00:00 -0000

For In his latest book titled "Waste Land," author Robert Kaplan focuses on the importance of technology in determining the world's future. Kaplan, author of 24 books, holds the chair in geopolitics at the Foreign Policy Institute. In Chapter 3 of his 177-page book, he claims: "…civilization is now in flux. The ongoing decay of the West is manifested not only in racial tensions coupled with new barriers to free speech, but in the deterioration of dress codes, the erosion of grammar, the decline in sales of serious books and classical music, and so on…all of which have traditionally been signs of civilization."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Nigel Hamilton, "Lincoln vs. Davis" PART 2

Sun, 26 Jan 2025 09:00:00 -0000

Military historian and presidential biographer Nigel Hamilton talks about the military face-off between two American presidents – Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis – during the Civil War. He discusses the early months of the war, the decision to move the Confederate capitol to Virginia, Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation, and more. This is part two of a two-part interview with Mr. Hamilton about his book "Lincoln vs. Davis."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: John Berendt, "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil"

Tue, 21 Jan 2025 09:00:00 -0000

For 216 weeks, a record, John Berendt's book "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" sat on the New York Times best sellers list. It was published in 1994. It sold more than 1.5 million copies. Mr. Berendt, a Syracuse native, is today 85 and lives in New York City. A musical based on the book opened in Chicago in 2024 and will open on Broadway in 2025. During this episode of the podcast, an interview with John Berendt from 1997, when he appeared on the original "Booknotes" television program to talk about the book and its success.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Nigel Hamilton, "Lincoln vs. Davis" PART 1

Mon, 20 Jan 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Military historian and presidential biographer Nigel Hamilton talks about the military face-off between two American presidents – Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis – during the Civil War. He discusses the background of both men, their rise to the presidencies of the Union and the Confederacy, respectively, and the events that led up to attack on Fort Sumter by Confederate forces on April 12, 1861, not long after both men were inaugurated. This is part one of a two-part interview with Mr. Hamilton about his book "Lincoln vs. Davis."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), "It Takes Chutzpah - How to Fight Fearlessly for Progressive Change"

Sun, 19 Jan 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) shares his thoughts on having the tenacity to pursue progressive goals through strong alliances, hard work, & focus.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Lincoln Scholar Harold Holzer on His Life & Work

Tue, 14 Jan 2025 09:00:00 -0000

Since his first interview on C-SPAN on Booknotes in 1993, Harold Holzer has appeared on the network close to 200 times. Up to that year he had written or edited 6 books on Abraham Lincoln. Since then, Harold Holzer has added another 50 books to his name. C-SPAN viewers and listeners have had the opportunity to hear Mr. Holzer talk about Lincoln's life, from his birth in Kentucky in 1807, until his assassination in Washington, DC, in 1865. The following conversation, which is just over 5 hours, is meant to be extensive. The center of attention is Mr. Lincoln, but in this case, also the life of Harold Holzer, a New Yorker for the past 75 years.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Sharon McMahon, "The Small and the Mighty"

Mon, 13 Jan 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Former high school government teacher and host of the "Here's Where It Gets Interesting" podcast, Sharon McMahon, author of "The Small and the Mighty," profiles lesser-known Americans who have changed the course of American history. During the interview, Ms. McMahon talks about the contributions of retail pioneers Richard Sears and Alvah Roebuck, former slave and philanthropist Clara Brown, Japanese American politician Norman Mineta, Founding Father Gouverneur Morris, and others.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Adam Chandler, "99% Perspiration - A New Working History of the American Way of Life"

Sun, 12 Jan 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Journalist Adam Chandler argues that hard work is not enough to obtain the American dream. He's interviewed by author Alissa Quart.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Michael Tackett, "The Price of Power"

Tue, 07 Jan 2025 09:00:00 -0000

Kentucky senator Mitch McConnell has spent 40 years in the United States Senate, 17 of those as leader of his Republican colleagues. That's the longest any senator has been at the top of the leadership rung in either political party. Sen. John Thune (R-SD) was elected a few weeks ago to head up the Republican majority in the Senate in 2025. Journalist Michael Tackett's book, a profile of Senator McConnell, is called "The Price of Power: How Mitch McConnell Mastered the Senate, Changed America, and Lost His Party." Mr. Tackett, deputy Washington bureau chief of the Associated Press, conducted over 50 hours of interviews and was granted access to never-before-released oral histories.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Stuart Eizenstat, "The Art of Diplomacy"

Mon, 06 Jan 2025 01:00:00 -0000

Stuart Eizenstat, former Domestic Policy Adviser to President Carter and U.S. Ambassador to the European Union under President Clinton, talks about his political career and his new book, "The Art Of Diplomacy," in which he discusses the work done to achieve agreements like the Camp David Accords, the Kyoto Protocols, and the Iran nuclear agreement. Mr. Eizenstat also talks about growing up in the South during the Civil Rights Era and how that experience changed him.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Rep. Mark Green (R-TN), "We Before Me"

Sun, 05 Jan 2025 23:00:00 -0000

Congressman Mark Green (R-TN) discusses division in America and the advantages of putting others before self. He's interviewed by Military Times deputy editor Leo Shane.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Brion McClanahan, "9 Presidents Who Screwed Up America"

Tue, 31 Dec 2024 09:00:00 -0000

Brion McClanahan has a PhD in history from the University of South Carolina. Several years ago, he wrote a book titled "9 Presidents Who Screwed Up America: And Four Who Tried to Save Her." His view on the presidency is not the traditional one you get from most historians. On the back of his book, published by Regnery History, the liner notes claim: "The worst presidents are the ones who want to 'reform' the country through the power of the federal government, which usually means usurping the power of Congress or the people." Brion McClanahan focuses a negative spotlight on Andrew Jackson, Abraham Lincoln, Barack Obama, and others."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Speaker Don Scott (D), Virginia House of Delegates

Mon, 30 Dec 2024 01:00:00 -0000

"For every young kid that makes a mistake, they can look at Don Scott and say, 'I'll never give up. I can still be what I want to be in America.'" That was former Republican governor Bob McDonnell of Virginia speaking about our guest this week, the state's newly elected Democratic speaker of the House of Delegates. Don Scott talks about the hurdles he overcame, including spending almost eight years in prison, to become Virginia's first Black speaker in 405 years.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Peter Osnos, "LBJ & McNamara"

Tue, 24 Dec 2024 09:00:00 -0000

In his latest book, "LBJ & McNamara," Peter Osnos's dedication reads this way: "To those on the Vietnam Wall on the Mall and their countless Vietnamese counterparts. It did not have to happen." In his role as publisher at PublicAffairs Books, Osnos spent numerous hours working with former Defense Secretary Robert McNamara for his 1995 book, "In Retrospect: The Tragedy and Lessons of Vietnam." Osnos writes: "This book describes what happened in the years between 1963 and McNamara's last day as Secretary of Defense in February of 1968. Robert McNamara died in 2009 at the age of 93.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Christina Swarns, Innocence Project Executive Director

Mon, 23 Dec 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Since its founding in 1992, the Innocence Project has been responsible for getting hundreds of wrongfully convicted people in the United States out of prison. Attorney and Innocence Project executive director Christina Swarns joins us to talk about the history of the organization, the root causes of wrongful convictions, and some of the clients the Innocence Project has successfully represented over the years, including the two men convicted of killing of Malcolm X in 1965.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Andy Puzder, "A Tyranny for the Good of Its Victims"

Sun, 22 Dec 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Andy Puzder, former CEO of CKE Restaurants, took a critical look at stakeholder capitalism, which he argues is a form of socialism that will hurt the middle and lower classes in America.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Edward Aldrich, "The Partnership"

Tue, 17 Dec 2024 09:00:00 -0000

In an earlier conversation in this series, Evan Thomas discussed his 1986 book, "The Wise Men." There were 6 of them: Messrs. Acheson, Bohlen, Harriman, McCloy, Lovett, and Kennan. In this episode, we asked Edward "Ted" Aldrich to discuss his book titled "The Partnership: George Marshall, Henry Stimson, and the Extraordinary Collaboration That Won World War II." Mr. Aldrich writes: "FDR paired Stimson, as Secretary of War, with Gen. George Marshall, Chief of Staff of the Army, in the summer of 1940 in anticipation of the global war into which all three men knew the United States could shortly be drawn."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Larry Silverstein, "The Rising"

Mon, 16 Dec 2024 01:00:00 -0000

New York City real estate developer Larry Silverstein, author of "The Rising," shares stories about the rebuilding of the World Trade Center complex following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Mr. Silverstein - who acquired a 99-year lease on the World Trade Center just weeks before the attacks - talks about his memories from that day and discusses the business, political, and engineering challenges he faced during his 20-year rebuilding effort.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: James Rickards, "MoneyGPT - AI and the Threat to the Global Economy"

Sun, 15 Dec 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Economist and investment advisor James Rickards spoke about the potential threats that AI poses to the global economy and national security. He was interviewed by George Mason University Distingushed University Professor J.P. Singh.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: James Bradley, "Martin Van Buren"

Tue, 10 Dec 2024 09:00:00 -0000

James M. Bradley's biography of Martin Van Buren is the first full-scale portrait of the 8th president in 4 decades. Mr. Bradley is co-editor of the Martin Van Buren papers and teaches in the public history program at the State University of New York at Albany. In his introduction, he writes: "As this biography will show, reaching the nation's highest office was not Van Buren's greatest achievement. He built and designed the party system that defined how politics was practiced and power wielded in the United States." Van Buren is known as the principal founder of the Democratic Party.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Malcolm Gladwell, "Revenge of the Tipping Point"

Mon, 09 Dec 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Twenty-five years ago, author Malcolm Gladwell published "The Tipping Point," about how ideas and behavior spread in a society to create positive change. The book was an international bestseller, having since sold over 2 million copies in the U.S. alone. In his follow-up, "Revenge of the Tipping Point," Mr. Gladwell looks at the downside of social epidemics, including the rise of opioid abuse and Medicare fraud.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: T.J. English, "Los Muchachos,"

Sat, 07 Dec 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Journalist T.J. English spoke about the rise and fall of "Los Muchachos," one of the most successful cocaine empires in U.S. history. He was interviewed by author and Brookings Institution senior fellow Vanda Felbab-Brown.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Glory Edim on the Well-Read Black Girl Book Club

Fri, 06 Dec 2024 02:00:00 -0000

Well-Read Black Girl founder Glory Edim discussed the book club she began in 2015 to celebrate black, brown and indigenous women. She also discussed her latest book, "Gather Me: A Memoir in Praise of the Books that Saved Me."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Evan Thomas, "The Wise Men"

Tue, 03 Dec 2024 09:00:00 -0000

A book called "The Wise Men" was first published in 1986. The cover copy says that "it was about six friends and the world they made." The names Harriman, Lovett, Acheson, McCloy, Kennan, and Bohlen are only to be found in the history books today. Co-authors Evan Thomas and Walter Isaacson were in their mid-thirties. In the updated 2012 introduction to the paperback, they wrote: "In their time, the wise men operated largely behind the scenes, little known by the public, but they achieved great things." According to Thomas and Isaacson, those great things included the shaping of the world order today, the creation of international institutions, and the forging of lasting peace in a perilous time. We asked Evan Thomas, now in his 70s: Who are the wise men of today?

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Jochen "Jack" Wurfl, "My Two Lives"

Mon, 02 Dec 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Half Jewish and a member of the Hitler Youth who saw Adolf Hitler in person, Jochen "Jack" Wurfl, author of "My Two Lives," talks about surviving in Nazi Germany and his later life and success in the United States. To hide their identities after the Nazis took over in 1933, Mr. Wurfl and his brother were baptized Catholic and later joined the Hitler Youth. His Catholic father, deemed a political enemy by the state, was sent to a concentration camp in Austria, while his Jewish mother was arrested by the Gestapo and sent to Auschwitz, where she perished.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Corey Brettschneider, "The Presidents and the People"

Tue, 26 Nov 2024 09:00:00 -0000

According to professor Corey Brettschneider, author of "The Presidents and the People," the following presidents in history threatened democracy: "John Adams waged war on the national press…prosecuting as many as 126 people who dared criticize him…James Buchanan colluded with the Supreme Court to deny constitutional personhood to African Americans….Andrew Johnson urged violence against his political opponents…Woodrow Wilson nationalized Jim Crow by segregating the federal government…Richard Nixon committed criminal acts – ordering the Watergate break-in." Corey Brettschneider teaches constitutional law and politics at the Providence, Rhode Island-based Brown University.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Peggy Noonan, "A Certain Idea of America"

Mon, 25 Nov 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Peggy Noonan, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for the Wall Street Journal and former speechwriter for President Reagan, discusses her book "A Certain Idea of America," a collection of her columns from over the past quarter century. She also talks about her time working in the White House and her career in radio after graduating from college.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Stephanie Gorton, "The Icon and the Idealist - Margaret Sanger, Mary Ware Dennett, and the Rivalry That Brought Birth Control to America"

Sun, 24 Nov 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Stephanie Gorton looked at the lives & rivalry between two key figures in the early movement for birth control & reproductive rights. She was interviewed by author and UC Davis School of Law professor Mary Ziegler.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Talmage Boston, "How the Best Did It"

Tue, 19 Nov 2024 09:00:00 -0000

Talmage Boston considers himself a full-time lawyer and a full-time historian. His latest book is called "How the Best Did It: Leadership Lessons from Our Top Presidents." He chose the first 4 of 8 off the face of Mount Rushmore: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, and Theodore Roosevelt. In addition, Mr. Boston chose 24 distinct leadership traits he says were exhibited by these presidents. The other 4 presidents include FDR, Dwight Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, and Ronald Reagan. Seventy-one-year-old Talmage Boston lives in Dallas, Texas.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Maureen Callahan, "Ask Not"

Mon, 18 Nov 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Investigative journalist Maureen Callahan talks about the physical and psychological abuse, and worse, that she says was experienced by women and girls connected to the Kennedy family going back to Joe Kennedy, Sr. In her book, "Ask Not," Callahan tells the stories of Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, Kathleen "Kick" Kennedy, Martha Moxley, Mary Richardson Kennedy, Jacqueline Kennedy, and others.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Vince Beiser, "Power Metal - The Race for the Resources That Will Shape the Future"

Sun, 17 Nov 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Journalist Vince Beiser looked at how the race to mine metals and other natural resources needed in technology & renewable energy is impacting geopolitics and the environment. He was interviewed by Wall Street Journal global metals and mining reporter Julie Steinberg.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: James Patterson, "American Heroes"

Fri, 15 Nov 2024 02:00:00 -0000

Bestselling author James Patterson discusses servicemembers from World War II through modern conflicts who have been recognized for valor in combat.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Kyla Scanlon, "In This Economy?"

Tue, 12 Nov 2024 09:00:00 -0000

The title of the book is "In This Economy?" The author, Kyla Scanlon, subtitles her 277-page effort: "How Money and Markets Really Work." Ms. Scanlon is a 27-year-old graduate of Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green. The author description in the back of the book says Kyla Scanlon is a writer and a video creator focused on "human-centric economic analysis that demystifies the complex." The author background note continues: "She is the founder of the financial education company called Bread."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Stuart Eizenstat, "The Art of Diplomacy"

Mon, 11 Nov 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Tom Fitton, "Rights and Freedoms in Peril - An Investigative Report on the Left's Attack on America"

Sun, 10 Nov 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Judicial Watch president Tom Fitton argues that the Left is attacking American rights and freedoms. He was interviewed by Washington Times legal affairs reporter Alex Swoyer.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Tess Owen, "Inside the Patriot Wing"

Tue, 05 Nov 2024 09:00:00 -0000

For the past 10 years, Tess Owen has covered extremism, disinformation, and politics for several nationally owned publications. In the October 8, 2024, issue of New York magazine, Ms. Owen wrote an article with the title "Inside the Patriot Wing." She talked with several of the over 1,400 January 6 defendants who have been spending time in the District of Columbia Jail, about 2 miles from the U.S. Capitol. This is her story of how she got to know several men who have been convicted of, in her words, "violent crimes." We asked Tess Owen how she got access to these folks behind bars and what they are saying.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Lina Zeldovich, "The Living Medicine"

Sun, 03 Nov 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Journalist Lina Zeldovich explained how a nearly forgotten lifesaving "healing virus" could be groundbreaking in treating deadly infectious diseases. She was interviewed by USA Today health reporter Adrianna Rodriguez.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Christina Swarns, Innocence Project Executive Director

Sun, 03 Nov 2024 09:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Miranda Devine on the Biden Family

Fri, 01 Nov 2024 16:41:00 -0000

New York Post columnist and "Laptop From Hell" author Miranda Devine discussed her latest book on the Biden family, "The Big Guy: How a President and His Son Sold Out America."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Howard Blum, "Night of the Assassins"

Tue, 29 Oct 2024 08:00:00 -0000

In 1943, in the middle of World War II, the Allied leaders FDR, Winston Churchill, and Josef Stalin were planning to meet secretly in Tehran. The Nazis wanted to kill them.

In his book "Night of the Assassins," author Howard Blum tells the story of "Operation Long Jump," the code name for the Nazi plan to assassinate the Allied leaders. In telling this story, author Blum says: "I wanted to write a suspenseful character-driven story of men, heroes, and villains caught up in a tense, desperate time, who needed to find courage and cunning to do their duty for their countries and to fulfill their own sense of honor."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Pamela Toler, "The Dragon from Chicago"

Mon, 28 Oct 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Historian Pamela Toler talks about the life and career of journalist Sigrid Schultz, Berlin bureau chief for the Chicago Tribune from 1925-1941. Schultz provided first-hand accounts of the rise of Adolf Hitler in Germany and was one of the earliest reporters to warn Americans about the dangers of Nazism.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Rep. Mike Waltz, "Hard Truths - Think and Lead Like a Green Beret"

Sun, 27 Oct 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Congressman Mike Waltz (R-FL) spoke about serving in Afghanistan as a Green Beret and how his military career influences his decision making. He was interviewed by Politico Pentagon and National Security reporter Paul McLeary.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Max Boot, "Reagan: His Life and Legend"

Tue, 22 Oct 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Max Boot, in his 836-page book titled "Reagan: His Life and Legend," says that his is the first definitive biography of the 40th president. Boot suggests that Edmund Morris, the president's official biographer, "appeared to be so flummoxed by the complexities of Reagan's character that he produced 'Dutch: A Memoir of Ronald Reagan,' that was widely criticized in spite of its acute insights." Max Boot also points out in his introduction: "I am fortunate that Ronald Reagan's story can now be told as never before because we possess far more archival sources and far more historical perspective."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: John Mackey, "The Whole Story" & Steven Pinker, "Rationality"

Mon, 21 Oct 2024 00:00:00 -0000

This week on Q&A, Whole Foods co-founder John Mackey and Harvard University psychology professor Steven Pinker discuss their books. John Mackey, author of "The Whole Story," talks about the rise of Whole Foods, the organic foods grocery store chain, and his political and intellectual development. Professor Steven Pinker talks about the role that rationality plays in a functioning society and the growth of irrationality in the United States. These interviews were recorded in Las Vegas at FreedomFest, an annual libertarian conference.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Stephanie Baker "Punishing Putin"

Sun, 20 Oct 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Bloomberg News' Stephanie Baker looked at the global impact of U.S-led economic sanctions against Russia following Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine. She was interviewed by author and Brookings Institution senior fellow Angela Stent.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Brenda Wineapple, "Keeping the Faith"

Tue, 15 Oct 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Brenda Wineapple calls them "two gladiators." The year was 1925. She writes that "the ubiquitous politician William Jennings Bryan and the criminal lawyer Clarence Darrow, each of them national celebrities for decades, were going into battle over God and science and the classroom and, not incidentally, over what it meant to be an American." Brenda Wineapple's latest book is titled "Keeping the Faith" and is about the Scopes Trial, held in the small town of Dayton, Tennessee, which focused on the state law that prohibited the teaching of evolution in the schools.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Heath Hardage Lee, "The Mysterious Mrs. Nixon"

Mon, 14 Oct 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Historian Heath Hardage Lee, author of "The Mysterious Mrs. Nixon," talks about the life and times of the former First Lady (1969-74). She says that Pat Nixon, who was voted "Most Admired Woman in the World" in 1972, was largely mis-portrayed by the press, who characterized her as being elusive and "plastic."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Brigid Schulte, "Over Work"

Sat, 12 Oct 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Journalist Brigid Schulte examined the future of work and explored how to better align workplace culture with the needs of American workers. She was interviewed by Business Insider chief correspondent Aki Ito.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Kirk Cameron, "Born to Be Brave

Fri, 11 Oct 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Actor Kirk Cameron discussed his latest book, "Born to Be Brave," on American culture and faith. He also discussed his series of children's books and experiences hosting story hours at public libraries.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Harvey Mansfield on Presidential Immunity

Tue, 08 Oct 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Harvey Mansfield has been a professor of political philosophy at Harvard for over 6 decades. He retired from the classroom in 2023 at age 91. However, he's not finished thinking and writing about his favorite subject: democracy and how it works. In the Wall Street Journal of September 7, 2024, Professor Mansfield wrote an essay with this opening: "The Supreme Court case of Trump v. U.S. was about more than special counsel Jack Smith’s prosecution of Donald Trump, which continues under a superseding indictment handed up by a federal grand jury in Washington. The decision and the dissents contain a fundamental debate about the presidency that looks beyond the present personalities and campaign."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Francis Collins, "The Road to Wisdom"

Mon, 07 Oct 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Former National Institutes of Health director Dr. Francis Collins, author of "The Road to Wisdom," talks about the milestones in his career, including his work on the Human Genome Project and the COVID-19 vaccine. He also talks about his Christian faith, the importance of engaging with those we disagree with, and the current distrust of science and government in the United States.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Timothy Snyder, "On Freedom"

Sat, 05 Oct 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Yale University professor Timothy Snyder argued that freedom is often misinterpreted and offered his thoughts on what freedom is and isn't. He was interviewed by George Washington University political science professor and author Elisabeth Anker.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Megan Gorman, "All the Presidents' Money"

Tue, 01 Oct 2024 08:00:00 -0000

The book is titled "All the Presidents' Money." It's about how the men who governed America governed their own money. The author, Megan Gorman, is the founding partner of Chequers Financial Management, a San Francisco-based firm specializing in tax and financial planning for high-net-worth individuals. Megan Gorman writes: "The American presidents are a complex group to tackle. While they live in a mud-slinging reality on the way to and through their presidency, the moment their term ends, they become historical figures carved in stone."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Michael & Robert Meeropol, Sons of Julius & Ethel Rosenberg on the Rosenberg Spy Case

Mon, 30 Sep 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were executed in 1953 after being convicted of conspiracy to commit espionage for the Soviet Union. Their sons Michael and Robert Meeropol, nee Rosenberg, were 10 and 6 at the time. They are our guests this week. The sons talk about their parents' executions, their lives before and after, the anti-communist climate in the U.S. during the 1950s, the government's case against the Rosenbergs, and their efforts to clear their mother Ethel's record posthumously.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Paola Ramos, "Defectors -The Rise of the Latino Far Right and What It Means for America"

Sun, 29 Sep 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Journalist Paola Ramos looked at the rise of far-right Latino voters and what it means for America. She was interviewed by New York Times political reporter Jennifer Medina.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Fall Book Preview 2024

Thu, 26 Sep 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Associated Press books and publishing reporter Hillel Italie previews some of the non-fiction books being released in Fall 2024.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Lindsay Chervinsky, "Making the Presidency"

Tue, 24 Sep 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Lindsay Chervinsky is the brand-new executive director of the George Washington Presidential Library at Mount Vernon. Simultaneously, her new book on John Adams has just been published. The book's title is "Making the Presidency." In her introduction, Chervinsky writes that Adams was "guaranteed to fall short in comparison to George Washington." She says the "challenge of the second president, therefore, called for someone to battle the growing partisan divisions without Washington's presence." John Adams served only one term and was defeated by Thomas Jefferson for a second.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: James Allen, Jr., "Not My Chair"

Mon, 23 Sep 2024 00:00:00 -0000

James Allen, Jr., murdered Tony Sylvester in Las Vegas during a 1980 home burglary, a crime for which he was found guilty and sentenced to death. Mr. Allen, who was a teenager at the time, spent 26 years in prison, including almost 4 years on death row, before being paroled by the state of Nevada in 2008. Since being released, he has spent his time mentoring at-risk youth and working with the Nevada Coalition Against the Death Penalty. He co-wrote a book about his life titled "Not My Chair: Journey from Death Row to Freedom."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Brooke Harrington, "Offshore - Stealth Wealth and the New Colonialism"

Sun, 22 Sep 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Dartmouth College professor Brooke Harrington examined the world of offshore finance, how it works and its impact on the U.S. and globally. She was interviewed by Wall Street Journal U.S. tax policy reporter Richard Rubin.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Dr. Marty Makary, "Blind Spots"

Tue, 17 Sep 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Dr. Marty Makary is a Johns Hopkins School of Medicine professor. He has published more than 300 scientific research articles. His book is called "Blind Spots: When Medicine Gets It Wrong, and What It Means for Our Health." In his preface, Dr. Makary says he realizes that much of what the public is told about health is medical dogma, an idea or practice given incontrovertible authority because someone decreed it to be true based on a gut feeling. He writes: "This book may change your life, it did mine."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Peter Osnos, "LBJ and McNamara"

Mon, 16 Sep 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Author and publisher Peter Osnos talks about "LBJ and McNamara," a book-length Substack serial and soon to be book about President Johnson and Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara's handling of the Vietnam War. Mr. Osnos, Saigon correspondent for the Washington Post during the war, also talks about publishing Robert McNamara's memoir "In Retrospect" and the meetings he had with McNamara in preparation for that book, which Mr. Osnos recorded.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Kim Wehle, "Pardon Power - How the Pardon System Works - and Why"

Sat, 14 Sep 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Former assistant U.S. attorney and law professor Kim Wehle looked at how the pardon system works in the United States. She was interviewed by University of Michigan emeritus professor of law and sociology Richard Lempert.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Patrick Oliver, founder and CEO of Say It Loud! Readers & Writers

Sat, 14 Sep 2024 04:00:00 -0000

Patrick Oliver, founder and CEO of Say It Loud! Readers & Writers, discusses the need for literary arts programs and his efforts to promote reading among children and young adults.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Ken Khachigian, "Behind Closed Doors"

Tue, 10 Sep 2024 08:00:00 -0000

The book is called "Behind Closed Doors: In the Room with Reagan & Nixon." It's the title of a memoir by a man who worked closely with both. Ken Khachigian, the author, was a speechwriter and a confidant to former Presidents Nixon and Reagan back in the 1960s, 70s and 80s. Near the end of his book, Khachigian, a lawyer based in California, writes: "I spent a decade and a half in close, confidential contact with these two Presidents." In 1990, when Presidents Reagan and Nixon were together, chatting about history, Khachigian kept notes of their conversation, which he reveals in his memoir.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Steven Ford on Gerald Ford's Presidency

Mon, 09 Sep 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Fifty years ago, on August 8, 1974, President Nixon, who was under threat of impeachment, announced that he would resign from office. The following day, Vice President Gerald Ford was sworn in as the 38th president of the United States. Gerald and Betty Ford's son, Steven Ford, provides a behind-the-scenes look at that tumultuous period in American history and President Ford's term in office, including his decision to pardon Richard Nixon on September 8, 1974.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Joel Pollak, "The Agenda - What Trump Should Do in His First 100 Days"

Sat, 07 Sep 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Breitbart News' Joel Pollak discussed what he thinks a potential second presidential term for Donald Trump should focus on in its first 100 days. He was interviewed by Reason Magazine editor at large Matt Welch.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: David Roll, "Ascent to Power" – Part 2

Tue, 03 Sep 2024 08:00:00 -0000

This is the second in a 2-part series with David Roll, a Washington-based attorney, who has written books on Harry Hopkins, George Marshall, and Louis Johnson. Now comes his fourth book, "Ascent to Power," which focuses on Franklin Roosevelt's final days through the sudden transition to the presidency of Harry Truman. Spanning the years 1944-1948, David Roll's newest book looks at the struggles of a relatively unknown Missouri senator, Harry Truman, who had served the U.S. as vice president for only 82 days before FDR's death on April 12, 1945.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Patrick Kennedy, "Profiles in Mental Health Courage"

Mon, 02 Sep 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Former congressman Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) talks about Americans who have struggled with mental illness and the stigma and silence that he says still surrounds it. He shares the stories of the people profiled in his book, "Profiles in Mental Health Courage," including himself and members of his own family.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: David Roll, "Ascent to Power" – Part 1

Tue, 27 Aug 2024 08:00:00 -0000

David Roll, a Washington-based attorney, has written books on Harry Hopkins, George Marshall, and Louis Johnson. Now comes his fourth book, "Ascent to Power," which focuses on Franklin Roosevelt's final days through the sudden transition to the presidency of Harry Truman. Spanning the years 1944-1948, David Roll's newest book looks at the struggles of a relatively unknown Missouri senator, Harry Truman, who had served the U.S. as vice president for only 82 days before FDR's death on April 12, 1945. This is the first of a 2-part interview with David Roll. Part two will be posted next week.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Virginia Ali & Bernard Demczuk, "Breaking Barriers with Chili"

Sun, 25 Aug 2024 08:00:00 -0000

We sat down with Ben's Chili Bowl owner Virginia Ali and Ben's Chili Bowl official historian Bernard Demczuk to talk about the history of the Washington, DC, landmark. Opened in 1958 by Ben and Virginia Ali, Ben's Chili Bowl has been a hangout for civil rights activists, politicians, and celebrities for over 65 years. Recently, Bernard Demczuk published a book about Mrs. Ali and Ben's titled "Breaking Barriers with Chili."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Tevi Troy, "The Power and the Money"

Tue, 20 Aug 2024 08:30:00 -0000

Presidential historian Tevi Troy has called his latest book "The Power and the Money: The Epic Clashes Between Commanders in Chief and Titans of Industry." Mr. Troy has spent most of his professional life in and around Washington-based government and politics. He is currently a senior fellow at the Bipartisan Policy Center. In the introduction to the book, he writes: "For current and future CEOs, this book can be a guide for how to engage with an increasingly powerful and involved federal government, especially in our era in which both Democrats and Republicans target corporations in their rhetoric and, often, in their policy prescriptions."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: George Takei, "My Lost Freedom"

Mon, 19 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Author and actor George Takei talks about growing up in internment camps in the U.S. during World War II, following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. Mr. Takei and his family were four of the 120,000 Japanese Americans to be forcibly removed from their homes and relocated to military-run camps during the war on the orders of President Franklin Roosevelt. Mr. Takei has recently published a children's book about his experiences titled "My Lost Freedom."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Maureen Callahan, "Ask Not"

Tue, 13 Aug 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Maureen Callahan's book "Ask Not: The Kennedy's and the Women They Destroyed" has been near the top of the New York Times nonfiction bestseller list since its publication in early July. In a review of the Callahan book by Nina Burleigh in the Washington Post, Burleigh writes: "She identifies the wellspring of misogyny in Irish Catholic patriarch Joseph P. Kennedy Sr. in Boston during the Gilded Age, and traces it anecdote by anecdote down through JFK, RFK and Teddy, and the litter of boomer generation men — boys hatched by three Kennedy wives Callahan depicts as humiliated breeders and political props, driven to madness and alcoholism."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: World War II Veterans Steven Ellis & Rolf Slen

Mon, 12 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0000

We sat down with two World War II veterans – former U.S. Navy gunnery officer Steven Ellis and former U.S. Army Air Force B-24 navigator Rolf Slen – to talk about their experiences during the war. Mr. Ellis, age 99, and Mr. Slen, age 100, both served in the Pacific Theater. Of the 16.4 million Americans who served in uniform in World War II, 119,550 were still alive as of 2023.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Richard Brookhiser, "Glorious Lessons"

Tue, 06 Aug 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Richard Brookhiser has written and edited for National Review magazine for over 50 years. He has also written books about George Washington, James Madison, John Marshall, Alexander Hamilton, and "gentleman revolutionary" Gouverneur Morris. Now comes his latest, "Glorious Lessons: John Trumbull, Painter of the American Revolution." Trumbull, who lived between 1756 and 1843, was most famous for his 4 very large paintings about the Revolutionary War on the walls of the rotunda in the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, DC.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Steven Conn, "The Lies of the Land"

Mon, 05 Aug 2024 00:00:00 -0000

In "The Lies of the Land," Miami University (Oxford, Ohio) history professor Steven Conn argues that the reality of rural America today is vastly different from the way it is often portrayed by politicians and the media. He says rural Americans have not been left behind or been overlooked and are just as connected to the forces of American modernity – militarization, industrialization, corporatization, and suburbanization – as people living in the rest of the country.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Former Washington Post Reporter & Professor Leon Dash

Tue, 30 Jul 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Leon Dash spent over 30 years with the Washington Post from 1966 to 1998. In 1995 series on poverty and survival in urban America. Leon Dash spent 4 years following the life of Rosa Lee Cunningham and her 8 children and 5 grandchildren. He appeared on C-SPAN's Booknotes program in November 1996 to discuss his published book, which focused on the underclass in the United States. In the last 26 years, Leon Dash has been a professor of journalism and African American studies at the University of Illinois. We asked him for an update on his original story.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Tammy Bruce, "Fear Itself"

Mon, 29 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Columnist and Fox News contributor Tammy Bruce, author of "Fear Itself," argues that progressive Democrats have weaponized fear to increase government control over American citizens. She also argues that the mainstream media helps stoke fear through its biased coverage of topics like COVID-19, climate change, and racism.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Peter Goodman, "How the World Ran Out of Everything"

Sat, 27 Jul 2024 22:00:00 -0000

New York Times reporter Peter Goodman looked at how the global supply chain works and what happens when it doesn't. He was interviewed by Northeastern University professor and author Nada Sanders.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Ronald Feinman, "Assassinations, Threats, and the American Presidency"

Tue, 23 Jul 2024 08:00:00 -0000

This Booknotes+ podcast is a repeat of a Q&A program from November 4, 2015. The featured guest, Ronald Feinman, is the author of the book "Assassinations, Threats, and the American Presidency," in which he examines attempts on the lives of presidents and presidential candidates throughout history.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: J.D. Vance, "Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis"

Mon, 22 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Prior to becoming Donald Trump's VP pick or a U.S. Senator representing Ohio, J.D. Vance was a bestselling author. Over 1.6. million copies of his book "Hillbilly Elegy," a memoir about growing up in a poor, white family that has its roots in Appalachia, have sold to date. After the VP announcement, the book once again shot to the top of the Amazon bestsellers list. This week on Q&A, our 2016 interview with Mr. Vance about his book. He talks about his childhood, his family, his military service in Iraq with the U.S. Marine Corps, his education at Ohio State and Yale Law School, and more.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Jonathan Turley, "The Indispensable Right"

Sun, 21 Jul 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Law professor Jonathan Turley highlights individuals who've fought to exercise & defend the right to free speech throughout U.S. history. Author and American Civil Liberties Union former president Nadine Strossen interviews him.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: The 2024 Kukula Book Review Awards

Fri, 19 Jul 2024 18:39:00 -0000

Yangyang Cheng and Helen Lewis discussed book reviewing and winning the 2024 Kukula Award, the only journalism prize dedicated recognizing non-fiction book reviews and public affairs book criticism. About Books also reported on new releases and the current books featured on BookTV.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Nigel West, "Operation Garbo"

Tue, 16 Jul 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Rupert William Simon Allason was a Conservative member of the British House of Commons from 1987 and 1997. However, he's best known around the world as Nigel West, military historian and journalist specializing in security and intelligence matters. During the recent commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landings, Nigel West's name surfaced in relation to his 1985 book on Agent Garbo, the personal story of who, some say, was the most successful double agent of World War II. The agent's real name was Juan Pujol.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Riley Gaines, "Swimming Against the Current"

Mon, 15 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0000

In 2022, collegiate swimmer Riley Gaines tied for 5th place in the 200m freestyle final at the NCAA Women's Championships. The swimmer she tied with was transgender athlete Lia Thomas. Since then, Riley Gaines has become an outspoken critic of transgender women competing in women's sports and has even testified on the issue before Congress. In this week's Q&A, she talks about her swimming career, her stance on transgender athletes, and the backlash she has received after going public with her views, topics she covers in her new book "Swimming Against the Current."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Soraya Chemaly, "The Resilience Myth"

Sat, 13 Jul 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Writer and activist Soraya Chemaly offered an alternative view of grit and resilience today in a world of overlapping crises. She was interviewed by University of Pennsylvania Positive Psychology Center Instructor Judith Saltzberg.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Meg Medina on Reading & Young People

Fri, 12 Jul 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Author Meg Medina, the 8th and current National Ambassador for Young People's Literature at the Library of Congress, discussed her efforts to reach and connect with young readers.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Investigative Reporter Brody Mullins on Google & Law Professor Joshua Wright, and "The Wolves of K Street"

Tue, 09 Jul 2024 08:00:00 -0000

On Saturday, June 8th, 2024, the headline in the Wall Street Journal Saturday review section read: "The Hidden Life of Google's Secret Weapon." The author was Brody Mullins, a veteran investigative reporter for the Journal. The series ran over 3 days. The focus was on a man named Joshua Wright, a lawyer and former law professor at George Mason University Law School. Under the Journal headline, the paper declares that: "Joshua Wright cleared a path to domination for the world’s biggest tech companies, keeping regulators at bay while juggling inappropriate relationships and skirting conflict-of-interest standards at every turn." Brody Mullins, with his brother Luke, also has a new book out called "The Wolves of K Street."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: David Charter, "Royal Audience"

Mon, 08 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0000

The Times of London U.S. editor David Charter, author of "Royal Audience," discusses the special relationship that Queen Elizabeth II had with the United States and U.S. presidents over her 70-year reign as Britain's Head of State. Queen Elizabeth, who became queen in 1952 and passed away in 2022, had met and had varying degrees of personal relationships with 13 of the 14 U.S. presidents during her reign going back to Harry Truman.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Robert Schmuhl, "Mr. Churchill in the White House"

Tue, 02 Jul 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Robert Schmuhl is the Walter Annenberg-Edmund Joyce Chair Emeritus in American Studies and Journalism at the University of Notre Dame. He has often written about the American presidency. His newest book is "Mr. Churchill in the White House: The Untold Story of a Prime Minister and Two Presidents." Prof. Schmuhl says both Roosevelt and Eisenhower eventually adjusted to the unconventional habits and hours of their White House guest, who not only proposed his visits but almost always, by accident or design, stayed longer than initially intended.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Frank Bruni, "The Age of Grievance"

Mon, 01 Jul 2024 00:00:00 -0000

New York Times opinion columnist Frank Bruni, author of "The Age of Grievance," argues that we are living in a cultural and political era defined by victimhood and perceived injustice. He discusses the causes of this development and offers ways to move past it.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Ruchir Sharma, "What Went Wrong with Capitalism"

Sun, 30 Jun 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Rockefeller International chairman Ruchir Sharma explains why he believes capitalism is broken and how it can be fixed. He was interviewed by the Cato Institute's Alex Nowrasteh.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: David Tatel, "Vision"

Tue, 25 Jun 2024 08:00:00 -0000

On January 16, 2024, after nearly 30 years, David Tatel retired as a judge on the Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. On the cover of his new memoir is a photo of Judge Tatel in his black robe with his dog Vixen standing on his left side. The book is titled "Vision: A Memoir of Blindness and Justice." He says he wrote the book together with his wife Edie. "Day in and day out we sat at our long desk overlooking an immense oak tree and the hills beyond, Edie on the left with her laptop and me on the right with my brail computer. We wrote, we debated, we laughed, we deleted words, paragraphs, pages. Slowly but surely, a book emerged."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Virginia Ali & Bernard Demczuk, "Breaking Barriers with Chili"

Mon, 24 Jun 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Lawrence Ingrassia, "A Fatal Inheritance - How a Family Misfortune Revealed a Deadly Medical Mystery"

Sun, 23 Jun 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Former New York Times editor Lawrence Ingrassia spoke about cancer research and his own family's rare medical history with the disease. He was interviewed by Wall Street Journal health and science reporter Amy Dockser Marcus.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Cass Sunstein on Campus Free Speech

Fri, 21 Jun 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Harvard Law professor Cass Sunstein discussed his book on freedom of speech and how it applies to students, professors, and administrators on college campuses. About Books also reported on the latest publishing industry news and current non-fiction books.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Historian Stacey Schiff at Purdue University

Tue, 18 Jun 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Six-time book author Stacy Schiff made a guest appearance in early April at Purdue University. She was a guest of the C-SPAN Center for Scholarship & Engagement. A large number of questions were asked by the students studying communications and political science. Stacy Schiff's latest book "The Revolutionary: Samuel Adams" was published in 2022. Her 2005 book on Benjamin Franklin has been used as a primary source for an Apple TV series currently available on that streaming service. Students also asked her about her writing and her other books from "Cleopatra" to "The Witches: Salem, 1692."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Christina Swarns, Innocence Project Executive Director

Mon, 17 Jun 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Ernesto Londoño, "Trippy - The Peril and Promise of Medicinal Psychedelics"

Sat, 15 Jun 2024 22:00:00 -0000

The New York Times' Ernesto Londono looked at the use of psychedelics in mental health treatment & described his own experience with them. He was interviewed by Politico Health Care reporter Erin Shumaker.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Garrett Graff, "When the Sea Came Alive"

Tue, 11 Jun 2024 08:00:00 -0000

"June 6, 1944, is the most famous single day in all human history." Those are the words of Garrett Graff in his author's note in his book "When the Sea Came Alive." This month is the 80th anniversary of the Normandy landing in World War II. As Graff introduces the reader to his oral history of D-Day, he writes: "The official launch of Operation Overlord, the long-anticipated invasion of Western Europe, marks a feat of unprecedented human audacity. A mission more ambitious and complex than anything ever seen, before or since, and a key turning point in the fight for a cause among the most noble humans have ever fought."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: George Takei, "My Lost Freedom"

Mon, 10 Jun 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Shefali Luthra, "Undue Burden - Life and Death Decisions in Post-Roe America"

Sat, 08 Jun 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Health reporter Shefali Luthra looks at what impact the 2022 Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade is having on patients seeking an abortion.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Andrea Fleck-Nisbet on Independent Book Publishing

Fri, 07 Jun 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Independent Book Publishers Association CEO Andrea Fleck-Nisbet discussed her trade association's work to promote small and mid-sized presses and author-published books. About Books also reported on the latest publishing industry news and current non-fiction books.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Erik Larson, "The Demon of Unrest"

Tue, 04 Jun 2024 08:00:00 -0000

In the first week of publication of Erik Larson's latest book "The Demon of Unrest," sales put it at the very top of the bestseller list. It's about the start of the Civil War, with a focus on the five months between Abraham Lincoln's election and the day of the first shot fired on Fort Sumter which is off the coast of Charleston, South Carolina. That was April 12, 1861. In his introduction, Erik Larson writes: "I invite you now to step into the past, to that time of fear and dissension…I suspect your sense of dread will be all the more pronounced in light of today's political discord…"

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: World War II Veterans Steve Ellis & Rolf Slen

Mon, 03 Jun 2024 00:00:00 -0000

We sat down with two World War II veterans – former U.S. Navy gunnery officer Steve Ellis and former U.S. Army Air Force B-24 navigator Rolf Slen – to talk about their experiences during the war. Mr. Ellis, age 99, and Mr. Slen, age 100, both served in the Pacific Theater. Of the 16.4 million Americans who served in uniform in World War II, 119,550 were still alive as of 2023.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Mike Hixenbaugh, "They Came for the Schools"

Sat, 01 Jun 2024 22:00:00 -0000

NBC investigative reporter Mike Hixenbaugh looked at how issues of race and identity are playing out in school districts around the country. He was interviewed by Chalkbeat editor and author Cara Fitzpatrick.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Glenn Loury, "Late Admissions"

Tue, 28 May 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Glenn C. Loury is a professor of economics. He teaches at Brown University and is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute. He calls his new book "Late Admissions: Confessions of a Black Conservative." His publisher, W.W. Norton, describes Prof. Loury on the flap of the cover: "[He] grew up on the south side of Chicago, earned a PhD in MIT’s economics program, and became the first Black tenured professor of economics at Harvard at the age of 33. He has been, at turns, a young father, a drug addict, an adulterer, a psychiatric patient, a born-again Christian, a lapsed born-again Christian, a Black Reaganite who has swung from the right to the left and back again." In his book, Prof. Loury attempts to explain all of this.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Betty Koed, "Scenes"

Mon, 27 May 2024 00:00:00 -0000

This Memorial Day weekend, retired U.S. Senate Historian Betty Koed shares stories from her book "Scenes: People, Places and Events That Shaped the United States Senate." It's a collection of brief chronicles of Senate history that she presented to Senators during their Tuesday caucus lunches between 2009 and 2023. Some of the stories told include the influence and power of Senate Majority Leader Lyndon Johnson, the story of the first female senator, and when Mark Twain worked as a Senate staffer.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Alan Taylor, "American Civil Wars"

Tue, 21 May 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Alan Taylor is the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation professor of history at the University of Virginia. He is only one of 5 history writers who have won the Pulitzer Prize twice. His 11 books focus mostly on the early years of the creation of the United States. His latest book is titled "American Civil Wars: A Continental History, 1850-1873." During these 23 years, North America's 3 largest countries – Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. – all transformed themselves into nations. Professor Taylor includes stories of Black soldiers fighting for the Union, Native Americans struggling to preserve their homelands in the United States and the West, women fortifying the homeland, and newly arrived immigrants thrust into the maelstrom of the Civil War.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Freeman Hrabowski, "The Resilient University"

Mon, 20 May 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Author and president emeritus of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County Freeman Hrabowski talks about the role of college presidents, the handling of campus protests over the war in Gaza, and political involvement in higher education. His new book "The Resilient University" looks at how UMBC dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic and the racial unrest that followed the killing of George Floyd by police in the summer of 2020. Freeman Hrabowski served as president of UMBC from 1992-2022.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Jim Wallis, "The False White Gospel"

Sat, 18 May 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Theologian Jim Wallis argued that a faith of love, healing and hope must be used to dismantle a false gospel that promotes White Christian Nationalism. He was interviewed by Daily Beast columnist and author Wajahat Ali.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Craig Whitlock, "Fat Leonard"

Tue, 14 May 2024 08:00:00 -0000

For over 10 years, Washington Post investigative reporter Craig Whitlock has tracked the story of Malaysian shakedown man Leonard Francis, aka "Fat Leonard," and his collusion with hundreds of U.S. Navy officers, several of whom have spent time in prison. Now comes the book titled "Fat Leonard: How One Man Bribed, Bilked, and Seduced the U.S. Navy." Craig Whitlock writes: "On the surface, with his flawless American accent, Fat Leonard seemed like a true friend of the Navy. What the brass didn't realize, until far too late, was that Francis had seduced them by exploiting their entitlement and hubris."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Ilyon Woo, "Master Slave Husband Wife"

Mon, 13 May 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Ilyon Woo, our guest this week, was recently awarded the 2024 Pulitzer Prize for Biography for her book "Master Slave Husband Wife." The book recounts the harrowing journey of self-emancipation made by married slaves William and Ellen Craft in 1848. Disguised as a wealthy disabled white man with his servant, the Crafts left Georgia, avoiding slave traders, law enforcement, and even friends to gain their freedom. This program originally aired in February 2023.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Johann Hari, "Magic Pill"

Sat, 11 May 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Journalist Johann Hari reported on the success and concerns surrounding the new weight-loss drugs, as well as his personal experience taking Ozempic. He was interviewed by Bloomberg News health reporter Madison Muller.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Children's Book Author Jonah Winter on Censorship

Fri, 10 May 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Award winning children's book author Jonah Winter discussed his experiences with censorship, and why he believes cancel culture is more dangerous than book banning.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Larry Tye, "The Jazzmen"

Tue, 07 May 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Duke Ellington was the grandson of slaves. Louis Armstrong was born in a News Orleans slum so tough that it was called "The Battlefield." William James "Count" Basie grew up in a world unfamiliar to his white fans, the son of a coachman and a laundress. Author Larry Tye says the Duke, the Count, and Satchmo transformed America. The book is called "The Jazzmen" and Mr. Tye writes: "How better to bring alive the history of African America in the early to mid-1900s than through the singular lens of America's most gifted, engaging, and enduring African American musicians."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Patrick Kennedy, "Profiles in Mental Health Courage"

Mon, 06 May 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: David Sanger, "New Cold Wars"

Sat, 04 May 2024 22:00:00 -0000

New York Times correspondent David Sanger spoke about China's rise, Russia's invasion of Ukraine & America's role in the world in the 21st century. He was interviewed by Harvard University Belfer Center senior fellow Paula Dobriansky.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Carolyn Eisenberg, "Fire and Rain"

Tue, 30 Apr 2024 08:00:00 -0000

The book "Fire and Rain" is a narrative, according to author Carolyn Woods Eisenberg, about the way national security decisions, formed at the highest level of government, affect the lives of individuals at home and abroad. Her primary focus is on the way the Nixon administration fought and ended the Vietnam War. Early in the book, Hofstra University professor Eisenberg quotes President Nixon's predecessor, Lyndon Johnson, during his 1964 election campaign: "We are not about to send American boys nine or ten thousand miles away from home to do what Asian boys ought to be doing for themselves." However, the U.S. left Vietnam permanently in 1975 and, at the end, the number of U.S. military personnel killed in the war was 58,098.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Jochen "Jack" Wurfl, "My Two Lives"

Mon, 29 Apr 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Susan Page, "The Rulebreaker - The Life and Times of Barbara Walters"

Sat, 27 Apr 2024 22:00:00 -0000

USA Today's Susan Page spoke about the life and career of Barbara Walters. She was interviewed by former ABC News White House Correspondent Ann Compton.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Publishing Analyst Brenna Connor on Book Sales in 2024

Fri, 26 Apr 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Publishing industry analyst Brenna Connor discussed sales trends and bestsellers in the first quarter of 2024, as well as predictions for the remainder of the year. About Books also reported on the latest publishing news and new releases.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Joseph Epstein, "Never Say You've Had a Lucky Life"

Tue, 23 Apr 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Early in his newest of over 30 books, Joseph Epstein, our guest this week, writes: "I feel extremely lucky in all these realms in which I had no real choice: parents, epoch, country, and throw in religion, city, and social class." The 87-year-old Epstein, a longtime essayist for the Wall Street Journal, has written his autobiography called "Never Say You've Had a Lucky Life: Especially If You've Had a Lucky Life." He has spent 20 years as editor of The American Scholar and 30 years teaching in the English department at Northwestern University.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Zachary Treitz & Christian Hansen, "American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders"

Mon, 22 Apr 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Filmmakers Zachary Treitz and Christian Hansen discuss their 4-part Netflix docuseries "American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders," about the events surrounding the death of freelance journalist Danny Casolaro (cas-uh-LARE-oh) in 1991. At the time of his death, officially ruled a suicide, Mr. Casolaro was working on a story about a series of crimes – including drug running, money laundering, and murder – that he argued were connected to a cabal of ex-government officials associated with the Reagan administration and the CIA. He referred to this group as "the Octopus."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Eddie Glaude, "We Are the Leaders We Have Been Looking For"

Sat, 20 Apr 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Princeton University professor Eddie Glaude spoke about his views on Black politics & how the Black community moves forward in America's democracy. He was interviewed by Harvard University History, Race, & Public Policy Professor Khalil Gibran Muhammad.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Chris Moody, "Finding Matt Drudge" Podcast Series

Tue, 16 Apr 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Matt Drudge started his website called "The Drudge Report" in 1995. In those early days, he had just 1,000 e-mail subscribers. Within a short time that number jumped to hundreds of thousands. Up until the mid-2000s, Mr. Drudge was very visible, appearing on television and hosting his own radio show. After that, without notice, he disappeared from public view. Chris Moody, our guest this week, just finished hosting an 8-part podcast series called "Finding Matt Drudge." We asked him to tell us what he found.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Steven Conn, "The Lies of the Land"

Mon, 15 Apr 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Batya Ungar-Sargon "Second Class"

Sat, 13 Apr 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Newsweek’s Batya Ungar-Sargon talks with working class Americans about their lives & policies they believe could help get them to the middle class.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Danny Heitman on Rereading the Classics

Fri, 12 Apr 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Columnist Danny Heitman discussed the importance of rereading classical literature.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Jack McCallum, "The Real Hoosiers"

Tue, 09 Apr 2024 08:00:00 -0000

The book is called "The Real Hoosiers". The author is Pennsylvania-based Jack McCallum. He was a senior writer at Sports Illustrated for 30 years. "The Real Hoosiers" is a book about parts of Indiana, race, and basketball. To tell the story, McCallum focuses on the life of "The Big O," well-known basketball success Oscar Robertson, who is now 85 years old. Oscar Robertson started his career at Crispus Attucks High School in Indianapolis. Author McCallum says his is a story of a city, a state, and a country struggling to come to terms with race.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: David Charter, "Royal Audience"

Mon, 08 Apr 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Annie Jacobsen, "Nuclear War"

Sat, 06 Apr 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Journalist Annie Jacobsen chronicled the sequence of events that would occur at home and around the globe following the launch of a nuclear missile. She was interviewed by author and national security analyst Joe Cirincione.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Stephen Puleo, "The Great Abolitionist"

Tue, 02 Apr 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Charles Sumner of Massachusetts was a United States Senator for 23 years. He lived to be 63, from January of 1811 to March of 1874. Stephen Puleo has written the first major, full biography of Sumner since 1960. It's titled "The Great Abolitionist: Charles Sumner and the Fight for a More Perfect Union." Mr. Puleo writes: "His positions cost him dearly. Southerners despised him, sometimes feared him, and celebrated gleefully when Sumner was beaten unconscious in the Senate chamber in May of 1856." Stephen Puleo first published the full story of the caning of Charles Sumner in 2012.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Dr. Uché Blackstock, "Legacy"

Mon, 01 Apr 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Our guest this week is Dr. Uché Blackstock. She and her twin sister, Oni, are graduates of Harvard Medical School, as was their mother, Dr. Dale Gloria Blackstock. In fact, they were the first Black mother-daughter graduates of Harvard Medical School. Dr Blackstock's book, "Legacy: A Black Physician Reckons With Racism in Medicine," looks at some of the issues she sees facing Black doctors and patients today.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Jonathan Haidt, The Anxious Generation"

Sat, 30 Mar 2024 22:00:00 -0000

NYU professor Jonathan Haidt argued that technology is harming the social development and mental health of children. He was interviewed by Harvard University Center for Digital Thriving co-director and author Emily Weinstein.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Jonathan Karp on 100 years of Simon & Schuster

Fri, 29 Mar 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Simon & Schuster President & CEO Jonathan Karp discussed the company's 1924 founding, its role in publishing, and some of the authors it has published.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Andrew Pettegree, "The Book at War"

Tue, 26 Mar 2024 08:00:00 -0000

Andrew Pettegree is a British historian at St. Andrews University in Scotland. His specialty is the history of the book and media transformations. He has written a great deal about the written word with an emphasis on libraries. His latest book is titled "The Book at War: How Reading Shaped Conflict and Conflict Shaped Reading." In his introduction, Prof. Pettegree writes: "In all nations, once war broke out, writers and libraries were expected to play a full role in forging victory….after the Second World War the Allies would face the problems of how to sanitize, or exploit, the collections of the defeated."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Carlos Lozada, "The Washington Book"

Mon, 25 Mar 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Pulitzer Prize-winning book critic and New York Times columnist Carlos Lozada, author of "The Washington Book," talks about the insights he gleaned from reading the memoirs, political biographies, and official reports written by politicians and government officials in Washington, DC.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Teresa Ghilarducci, "Work, Retire, Repeat - The Uncertainty of Retirement in the New Economy"

Sat, 23 Mar 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Dorothy & Thomas Hoobler, "Are You Prepared for the Storm of Love Making?"

Tue, 19 Mar 2024 08:00:00 -0000

In Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler's latest book, they open with this introduction: "This is a book of love stories. Every one of them involved a president of the United States, and we will tell their stories through letters they wrote. Through this collection of carefully chosen letters, we reveal the writers at their most vulnerable, providing a surprisingly intimate and deeply personal portrait that is often obscured by the public persona." Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler's book is titled "Are You Prepared for the Storm of Love Making?"

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Rob Henderson, "Troubled"

Mon, 18 Mar 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Columnist Rob Henderson talks about growing up as a troubled child in the U.S. foster care system, the hurdles he overcame to become successful, and what he learned about class divisions in America as a result. By age 8, after 5 years in the system, Mr. Henderson had lived in 9 different foster homes and attended 6 different schools. He eventually went on to join the military and obtain higher degrees in psychology from Yale and Cambridge universities.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Jane Marie, "Selling the Dream"

Sat, 16 Mar 2024 22:00:00 -0000

Journalist Jane Marie reported on how multilevel marketing businesses make their profits. She was interviewed by Business Insider senior correspondent Emily Stewart.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: 2024 Spring Book Preview

Fri, 15 Mar 2024 01:00:00 -0000

National Book Critics Circle board member J. Howard Rosier previewed some of the nonfiction books being released this spring.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: James Traub, "True Believer"

Tue, 12 Mar 2024 08:00:00 -0000

James Traub's latest book is titled "True Believer: Hubert Humphrey's Quest for a More Just America." In the introduction, Mr. Traub writes: "I return to Humphrey in order to explain what liberalism was at its ascendant moment, why it mattered so much to so may people, why it abruptly lost its appeal to the majority of Americans – and, perhaps, how it might rejuvenate itself." Hubert Humphrey served as mayor of Minneapolis, United States Senator, Vice President of the United States under Lyndon Johnson, and a candidate for President in several years, including 1968.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Scott Eyman, "Charlie Chaplin vs. America"

Mon, 11 Mar 2024 00:00:00 -0000

Hollywood biographer Scott Eyman discusses his book "Charlie Chaplin vs. America," about the silent film star's fallout with the U.S. government during the Red Scare. Once a beloved actor and filmmaker, Charlie Chaplin became a target of right-wing politicians and the FBI after World War II because of his liberal political views and sexual interests. He was exiled from the U.S. in 1952 and didn't return until 1972.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Dr. Elizabeth Comen, "All in Her Head"

Sat, 09 Mar 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Dr. Elizabeth Comen looked at the medical history of women's health and discussed how the narrative around women's bodies was shaped mostly by men. She was interviewed by Muhlenberg College Medical Humanities Program Director Jacqueline Antonovich.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Peter Englund, "November 1942"

Tue, 05 Mar 2024 09:00:00 -0000

The year is 1942, the month is November. The subject of Peter Englund's book is "An Intimate History of the Turning Point of World War II." Mr. Englund, who is based in his native Sweden, features close to 40 people from around the world and what they were doing during that month and year of the war. He writes that: "At the start of that [November] many people still believed that the Axis powers would be victorious. By the end of that month it had become clear that it was only a matter of time before [Germany, Japan, and Italy] would lose."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Katie Rogers, "American Woman"

Mon, 04 Mar 2024 01:00:00 -0000

New York Times White House correspondent Katie Rogers discusses her book "American Woman," about the modern evolution of First Ladies of the United States. She talks about the impact and contributions of First Ladies of both parties going back to Hillary Clinton and their changing roles in the 21st century.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Kara Swisher, "Burn Book - A Tech Love Story"

Sat, 02 Mar 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Journalist Kara Swisher spoke about her career and covering the tech industry and its key players. She was interviewed by author and Financial Times global business columnist and associate editor Rana Foroohar.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tony Lyons of Skyhorse Publishing

Fri, 01 Mar 2024 02:00:00 -0000

Skyhorse President & Publisher Tony Lyons discusses the company he founded in 2006, his latest expansion efforts and outlook on the publishing industry.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Jim Trusty, Defense Attorney

Tue, 27 Feb 2024 09:00:00 -0000

Jim Trusty, our guest this week, is an attorney with 28 years of experience as a prosecutor, first in the state of Maryland and later with the U.S. Justice Department in Washington, DC. He has worked as an attorney for Donald Trump on several pending cases. In June last year, Mr. Trusty withdrew from representing former President Trump, citing irreconcilable differences. However, in his public appearances, Jim Trusty remains a critic of the different prosecutors and their approach to his former client.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Patti Davis, "Dear Mom and Dad"

Mon, 26 Feb 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Patti Davis discusses her book "Dear Mom and Dad," a memoir written as a letter to her late parents, Ronald and Nancy Reagan. She talks about being in the spotlight after her father entered politics in the 1960s, her complicated relationship with her mother, her views on the Reagan administration's handling of illegal drugs and the AIDS epidemic, and more.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Marie Arana, "LatinoLand - A Portrait of America's Largest and Least Understood Minority"

Sat, 24 Feb 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Writer Marie Arana shares stories and little-known histories of the diverse Latino population of America, the fastest-growing minority in the U.S.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Glenn Kirschner, Former Federal Prosecutor & "Justice Matters" Host

Tue, 20 Feb 2024 09:00:00 -0000

Glenn Kirschner, our guest this week, is an attorney with 30 years of trial experience. For 24 of those years, he prosecuted 50 murder trials for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Washington, DC. Three years ago, he created for YouTube viewers a daily video analysis of Donald Trump's legal issues and indictments. He calls his show "Justice Matters" and records his remarks from his home in Virginia. We asked him how he puts it all together. As you'll learn, he is not a fan of Donald Trump. Our next episode of Booknotes+ will feature Jim Trusty, a former attorney for the 45th president.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Speaker Don Scott (D), Virginia House of Delegates

Mon, 19 Feb 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Andrew Curran, "Who’s Black and Why?"

Sat, 17 Feb 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Wesleyan University professor Andrew Curran looked at how the concept of race emerged during the 18th-century Enlightenment period. George Mason University history professor Christy Pichichero interviewed him.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Daniel Paisner on Ghostwriting

Fri, 16 Feb 2024 02:00:00 -0000

Author Daniel Paisner discusses his ghostwriting career and the recent National Convention of Ghostwriters.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Steven Ujifusa, "The Last Ships from Hamburg"

Tue, 13 Feb 2024 09:00:00 -0000

"Between 1881 and 1914, over ten million people crossed the Atlantic from Europe to America, the largest mass migration of people from one continent to another in human history." Those are the words of our guest, Steven Ujifusa, from his introduction to his book "The Last Ships from Hamburg". Over 2.5 million of these immigrants to America were Jews. A significant percentage came from Russia. Mr. Ujifusa focuses mostly on three men to tell the story: Jacob Schiff of Kuhn, Loeb & Company; Albert Ballin, managing director of the Hamburg-American Line shipping company; and J.P. Morgan, mastermind of the International Mercantile Marine trust.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Charles Scribner III, "Scribners: Five Generations in Publishing"

Mon, 12 Feb 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Charles Scribner III, author of "Scribners: Five Generations in Publishing," talks about his family's history at the famous publishing house that was founded by his great-great-grandfather in 1846. He also shares stories about some of the authors published by Scribner over the decades, including Edith Wharton, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, and Winston Churchill.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Coleman Hughes, "The End of Race Politics"

Sat, 10 Feb 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Writer and podcaster Coleman Hughes argued that the U.S. should move towards a colorblind approach to politics and race. He was interviewed by the Atlantic staff writer and author Thomas Chatterton Williams.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN+: Benn Steil, "The World That Wasn't"

Tue, 06 Feb 2024 09:00:00 -0000

Henry Wallace was President Franklin Roosevelt's vice president during his third term, 1941-1945. FDR then chose Harry Truman as vice president in his fourth and last term. In author Benn Steil's book "The World That Wasn't: Henry Wallace and the Fate of the American Century," he writes, "Wallace loved humankind but was mostly vexed or bored by humans…" Steil takes us through Wallace's life, from Iowa farm boy to presidential candidate on the Progressive ticket in 1948. Wallace preached the supremacy of human rights over property rights yet excused the absence of human rights in Russia.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

QA: Sebastian Thrun, AI Pioneer & Tech Entrepreneur

Mon, 05 Feb 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Tech entrepreneur Sebastian Thrun talks about his work in Silicon Valley and the future of artificial intelligence. Thrun, formerly a vice president at Google, is the founder or co-founder of Google X (R&D), Waymo (self-driving cars), Google Brain (AI), Kitty Hawk (flying vehicles), and Udacity (online learning).

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Ijeoma Oluo, "Be a Revolution"

Sat, 03 Feb 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Writer Ijeoma Oluo looked at how everyday Americans are fighting oppression in our systems and institutions to bring about change in communities. She was interviewed by author and activist Soraya Chemaly.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Mary Beth Tinker on Book Bans & Free Speech

Fri, 02 Feb 2024 02:00:00 -0000

Free speech activist Mary Beth Tinker discussed Iowa's state law on "age-appropriate" books in public school libraries. About Books also reported on the latest publishing industry news and current non-fiction books.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: H.W. Brands, "Founding Partisans"

Tue, 30 Jan 2024 09:00:00 -0000

Henry William Brands Jr. has written close to 40 books in the past 36 years. The Portland, Oregon, native is a professor of history at the University of Texas at Austin, the same school where he earned his PhD in 1985. His first American history book, written in 1988, was titled "Cold Warriors: Eisenhower's Generation and American Foreign Policy." The list of other books includes one on Lyndon Johnson, Benjamin Harrison, Woodrow Wilson, Andrew Jackson, U.S. Grant, Abraham Lincoln, FDR, and many others. We talked to Prof. Brands about these and his newest offering, "Founding Partisans," about Hamilton, Madison, Jefferson, and John Adams.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

QA: Betty Koed, "Scenes"

Mon, 29 Jan 2024 01:00:00 -0000

ALL NEW EPISODE!!!

Retired U.S. Senate Historian Betty Koed shares stories from her book "Scenes: People, Places and Events That Shaped the United States Senate." It's a collection of brief chronicles of Senate history that she presented to Senators during their Tuesday caucus lunches between 2009 and 2023.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Donald McNeil, "The Wisdom of Plagues - Lessons from 25 Years of Covering Pandemics"

Sat, 27 Jan 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Journalist Donald McNeil spoke about what he's learned from covering pandemics for 25 years for the New York Times. He was interviewed by Science Magazine senior correspondent Jon Cohen.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Ep 150 Nigel Hamilton, "FDR at War" Trilogy

Tue, 23 Jan 2024 09:00:00 -0000

When Nigel Hamilton was a student at Cambridge University in Great Britain, he stayed for a brief time with Winston and Lady Churchill at their home at Chartwell in Kent. He also spent hours talking about World War II with Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery. These experiences led to a life as an author about history. Nigel Hamilton first moved to the United States in 1988 and is now a U.S. citizen. He's based in the Boston area and his books include "JFK: Reckless Youth," two volumes on President Bill Clinton, and a trilogy on FDR as Commander in Chief during World War II from 1941 to 1945.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: David Stockman, "Trump's War on Capitalism"

Sat, 20 Jan 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Reagan OMB director David Stockman argued that the economic policies of the Trump administration were a failure. He was interviewed by New York Times Federal Reserve & economy reporter Jeanna Smialek.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Brad Meltzer's Ordinary People Change the World Series

Thu, 18 Jan 2024 20:47:00 -0000

Author Brad Meltzer discussed the 10th anniversary of his children's series Ordinary People Change the World. About Books also reported on the latest publishing industry news and current non-fiction books.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Kira Anne West, Defense Attorney

Tue, 16 Jan 2024 09:00:00 -0000

It has been 3 years since the January 6th events at the U.S. Capitol occurred. Since that time close to 300 individuals have been charged with a crime by the U.S. Justice Department. Because of the Sixth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, and subsequent Supreme Court decisions, defendants have a right to an attorney, paid for by the taxpayers if necessary. Kira (KEER-uh) Anne West, our guest this week, has been one of the defense attorneys involved in the January 6th trials in the United States District Court of the District of Columbia. She's a graduate of Drake University Law School in Des Moines, Iowa.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Rachel Slade, "Making It in America"

Sat, 13 Jan 2024 23:00:00 -0000

Journalist Rachel Slade looked at the challenges of manufacturing goods in the United States through the lens of a sweatshirt company in Maine. She was interviewed by author and New York Times editorial board member Farah Stockman.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Amrita Chakrabarti Myers, "The Vice President's Black Wife"

Tue, 09 Jan 2024 09:00:00 -0000

The name of the book is "The Vice President's Black Wife." The author is Amrita Chakrabarti Myers. Prof. Myers teaches history at Indiana University. She explains best what is between the covers of her book in the first paragraph of the introduction: "This is the story of an American family. Set in Great Crossing, Kentucky, in the early nineteenth century, it’s a tale that seems typical at first glance: a plantation owner was sexually involved with an enslaved woman and had children with her. The union of Julia Ann Chinn and Richard Mentor Johnson, a congressman from Kentucky who became vice president of the United States in 1837 under Martin Van Buren is, however, anything but standard."

Make your donation at: c-span.org/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Cassandra Good, "First Family"

Mon, 08 Jan 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Historian Cassandra Good talks about the lives and complicated legacies of George Washington's heirs. George and Martha Washington never had children together, but they raised Martha's children, and later grandchildren, as their own. Together they made up America's first "first family." This program originally aired in June 2023.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Peter Biskind, "Pandora's Box - How Guts, Guile, and Greed Upended TV"

Sun, 07 Jan 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Cultural critic and film historian Peter Biskind looked at the changes in television over the past 40 years from the networks to cable to streaming. He was interviewed by Wall Street Journal media and entertainment bureau chief Amol Sharma.

Make your donation at: c-span.org/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: John Sargent, "Turning Pages"

Fri, 05 Jan 2024 02:00:00 -0000

Former Macmillan CEO John Sargent discussed his memoir about his four decades in the publishing industry. About Books also reported on the latest publishing industry news and current non-fiction books.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Ross Perot on His Life & Career

Tue, 02 Jan 2024 09:00:00 -0000

With less than a year to go before the 2024 presidential election, there continues to be a lot of chatter about the possible impact of a candidate on the ballot who is not a Republican or a Democrat. Over the years, third party candidates have made a difference in several elections. The third party candidate to get the largest percentage of votes was Teddy Roosevelt in 1912, at 27 percent. Next was Ross Perot at 19 percent in 1992. His campaign didn't start until the same year of the election. Here he is, from March 1992, talking about his life and politics.

Make your donation at: c-span.org/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Craig Fehrman, "Author in Chief"

Mon, 01 Jan 2024 01:00:00 -0000

Journalist and historian Craig Fehrman analyzes American presidents through the lens of the books they've written. This program originally aired in February of 2020.

Make your donation at: c-span.org/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BONUS EPISODE: Convo w/ New Q&A Host Peter Slen

Wed, 27 Dec 2023 09:00:00 -0000

This week a conversation with the new host of Q&A, Peter Slen. We discuss the mission of the program, what to expect, and the best parts of hosting a one-hour conversation with interesting individuals.

All new episodes of Q&A begin on January 28th, 2024.

Make your donation at: c-span.org/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: R. Emmett Tyrrell, Jr., "How Do We Get Out of Here?"

Tue, 26 Dec 2023 09:00:00 -0000

On the cover of R. Emmett Tyrrell, Jr.'s memoir is a photo of him holding a 3-olive martini. It was obviously his choice and part of a message he chooses to send his readers about his life after 79 years. Mr. Tyrrell founded the American Spectator magazine in 1967. In the author's bio in the back of the book it says: "He has never had another job, though he came terrifyingly close in the late 1960s when the Vice President asked him to join his staff. After strenuous negotiations, the Vice President settled for Tyrrell as a consultant. After that the Vice President resigned." The Vice President was Spiro Agnew.

Make your donation at: c-span.org/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Kate Bowler, "Everything Happens for a Reason"

Mon, 25 Dec 2023 01:00:00 -0000

Prosperity gospel scholar, Kate Bowler, discusses her memoir, "Everything Happens for a Reason," in which she reflects on being diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer and the age of 35. This program originally aired in February of 2018.

Make your donation at: c-span.org/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Nick Bunker, "In the Shadow of Fear"

Tue, 19 Dec 2023 09:00:00 -0000

British-born author Nick Bunker, our guest this week, has written books on the Mayflower Pilgrims, the Revolutionary War, and a biography of Benjamin Franklin. Lately he has turned his attention to America and the world in 1950. His book is titled "In the Shadow of Fear." Nick Bunker, a graduate of King's College, Cambridge, and Columbia University, focuses on names like Joseph McCarthy, Harry Truman, Dean Acheson, Margaret Chase Smith, George Marshall, Robert Taft, Alger Hiss, Winston Churchill, Joseph Stalin, and Mao Zedong. In addition, Bunker pays close attention to the Korean War.

Make your donation at: c-span.org/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Susannah Cahalan, "The Great Pretender"

Mon, 18 Dec 2023 01:00:00 -0000

Journalist Susannah Cahalan discusses her book "The Great Pretender," about a 1973 experiment, led by Stanford psychologist David Rosenhan, that was conducted to test the legitimacy of psychiatric hospitals in America. For the experiment, Prof. Rosenhan and seven other healthy individuals checked themselves into mental asylums claiming that they were experiencing hallucinations. Once inside, they acted normally and told doctors that the hallucinations had subsided, but they weren't allowed to leave until they admitted to having a mental illness and agreeing to take antipsychotic drugs to treat their conditions. Susannah Cahalan talks about the experiment and the impact that the resulting study – "On Being Sane in Insane Places" – had on the psychiatric profession. This program originally aired in November of 2019.

Make your donation at: c-span.org/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Tim Alberta "The Kingdom, the Power, and the Glory"

Sun, 17 Dec 2023 01:00:00 -0000

The Atlantic staff writer Tim Alberta examined the evangelical movement in America and its intersection with political issues. He was interviewed by Messiah University history professor and author John Fea.

Make your donation at: c-span.org/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Michael Bryant (Co-Editor), "Hitler's 'Mein Kampf' and the Holocaust"

Tue, 12 Dec 2023 09:00:00 -0000

Michael S. Bryant, our guest this week, is a professor of history and legal studies specializing in the impact of the Holocaust. He's based at Bryant University in Smithfield, Rhode Island. Among his many writings he co-edited and contributed an essay to a book titled "Hitler's 'Mein Kampf' and the Holocaust." In the introduction, the editors point out that: "When the Bavarian government's copyright to Adolf Hitler's 'Mein Kampf' lapsed on January 1, 2016, the opportunity to reissue the book in German arose for the first time since 1945."

Make your donation at: c-span.org/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Daryl Davis, Musician & Author

Mon, 11 Dec 2023 01:00:00 -0000

Musician and author, Daryl Davis, who, for over 30 years, has befriended members of the Ku Klux Klan to try to understand their hatred and to convince them that they are wrong. He is the author of "Klan-destine Relationships" and was featured in the documentary "Accidental Courtesy." This program originally aired in November of 2017.

Make your donation at: c-span.org/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Jeff Horwitz, "Broken Code Inside Facebook and the Fight to Expose Its Harmful Secrets"

Sun, 10 Dec 2023 01:00:00 -0000

Wall Street Journal technology reporter Jeff Horwitz discusses Facebook's growth as a company and the challenges its platforms have faced. He's interviewed by Bloomberg News reporter Sarah Frier.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Transit Books with Adam Levy

Fri, 08 Dec 2023 16:00:00 -0000

Adam Levy discusses his publishing company, Transit Books, which focuses on international literature and translated books.

Make your donation at: c-span.org/donate

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: McKay Coppins, "Romney"

Tue, 05 Dec 2023 09:00:00 -0000

It's not normal to hear what a politician really thinks about his or her colleagues in the United States House and Senate while they are still in office. McKay Coppins of the Atlantic magazine, our guest this week, tried to change that with his bestselling book about Senator Mitt Romney of Utah. The book, called "Romney: A Reckoning," is, according to the publisher, "a redemptive story about a flawed politician who summoned his moral courage just as fear and divisiveness were overtaking American life."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Erik Larson, "In the Garden of Beasts"

Mon, 04 Dec 2023 01:00:00 -0000

Erik Larson talked about the life of William E. Dodd, who became America's first ambassador to Adolf Hitler's Germany in Berlin during 1933.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Jennifer Burns, "Milton Friedman - The Last Conservative"

Sun, 03 Dec 2023 01:00:00 -0000

Stanford University history professor Jennifer Burns discussed the life and career of economist Milton Friedman. She was interviewed by CATO Institute vice president for economic and social policy studies Alex Nowrasteh.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Historians Douglas Brinkley, Joanne Freeman, Edna Medford and H.W. Brands on the Experiment of Democracy in America

Tue, 28 Nov 2023 09:00:00 -0000

At the beginning of November, the George Washington Presidential Library in Mount Vernon celebrated its 10th anniversary with a symposium titled, "The Great Experiment – Democracy from the Founding to the Future." Guests on this panel included: Historians H.W. Brands of the University of Texas, Douglas Brinkley of Rice, Joanne Freeman of Yale, and Edna Medford of Howard University. One point of the discussion was the Mount Vernon poll that found that 2/3rds of Americans are pessimistic about the country's direction and dissatisfied with the political climate.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Jesse Holland, "The Invisibles: The Untold Story of African American Slaves in the White House"

Mon, 27 Nov 2023 01:00:00 -0000

Jesse Holland talked about his book, The Invisibles: The Untold Story of African American Slaves in the White House.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Sarah Ogilvie, "The Dictionary People"

Tue, 21 Nov 2023 09:00:00 -0000

Sarah Ogilvie spent 8 years studying the creation of the Oxford English Dictionary. Her book is called "The Dictionary People." Ogilvie, who has a PhD in linguistics from Oxford University, studied over 3,000 original contributors to the dictionary. In her introduction to the book, she writes: "I was thrilled to discover not one but three murderers, a pornography collector, Karl Marx’s daughter, a president of Yale, the inventor of the tennis-net adjuster, a pair of lesbian writers who wrote under a male pen name, and a cocaine addict found dead in a railway station lavatory."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Gerald Blaine and Clint Hill, "The Kennedy Detail: JFK’s Secret Service Agents Break Their Silence.”

Mon, 20 Nov 2023 01:00:00 -0000

Gerald Blaine and Clint Hill, two former Secret Service agents, spoke about the day that President Kennedy was assassinated. They also talked about the assassination’s conspiracy theories and their lives after retirement from the Secret Service.. Gerald Blaine is author of the new book, “The Kennedy Detail: JFK’s Secret Service Agents Break Their Silence.” Clint Hill wrote the prologue for the book as well as cooperating in interviews for the book’s content.

Gerald Blaine worked for the Secret Service from 1959 to 1964. Blaine worked for several businesses after his time as an agent. Clint Hill was in the U.S. Army for three years before working for the Secret Service from 1958 to 1975. Mr. Hill was the Secret Service agent who jumped onto the trunk of the motorcade seconds after Kennedy was shot. Both men are currently retired.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Fei-Fei Li, "The World's I See: Curiosity, Exploration, and Discovery at the Dawn of AI"

Sun, 19 Nov 2023 01:00:00 -0000

Stanford University's Fei-Fei Li spoke about her life and journey to becoming one of the leading scientists in the field of artificial intelligence. She's interviewed by New Scientist technology reporter Jeremy Hsu.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BTSA: "The Words of Cesar Chavez" with historian Miriam Pawl

Fri, 17 Nov 2023 09:00:00 -0000

Born in Yuma, Arizona, César Chávez began his working life as a manual laborer. After serving in the U.S. Navy, Chávez moved to California to join an organization that helped laborers register to vote. This week's guest is historian Miriam Pawl. He later began organizing strikes among farm workers, calling for better pay and working conditions. Chávez eventually co-founded the labor union that became known as United Farm Workers. In this first published anthology, from 2002, the editors of The Words of César Chávez reveal how the labor leader presented his calls to action and sought to inspire his audiences.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Martin Gurri, "The Revolt of the Public and the Crisis of Authority in the New Millennium"

Tue, 14 Nov 2023 09:00:00 -0000

Martin Gurri is a former CIA analyst who writes about the relationship between politics and media. Gurri was born in Cuba and came to the United States with his parents in the 1950s. In 2014 he self-published an e-book titled "The Revolt of the Public and the Crisis of Authority in the New Millennium." It was republished in hardback in 2018. Martin Gurri says his thesis is a simple one: "The information technologies of the twenty-first century have enabled the public, composed of amateurs, people from nowhere, to break the power of political hierarchies of the industrial age."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Rosemary Stevens, "A Time of Scandal: Charles R. Forbes, Warren G. Harding, and the Making of the Veterans Bureau"

Mon, 13 Nov 2023 01:00:00 -0000

Rosemary Stevens talked about her book, A Time of Scandal: Charles R. Forbes, Warren G. Harding, and the Making of the Veterans Bureau.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Greg Lukianoff, "The Canceling of the American Mind"

Sun, 12 Nov 2023 01:00:00 -0000

Foundation for Individual Rights & Expression president Greg Lukianoff argues that the right to free speech is being threatened by cancel culture. He was interviewed by Reason Magazine's Matt Welch.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BTSA: "Free to Choose" Milton & Rose Friedman with Prof. Mark Skousen

Fri, 10 Nov 2023 20:42:00 -0000

Milton Friedman was a 1976 Nobel Prize-winning American economist and advisor to President Ronald Reagan and conservative British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, among others. This week, a conversation with his friend and a Professor at Chapman University, Mark Skousen. In 1980, Friedman partnered with his wife, Rose, to create a 10-part television series for PBS titled "Free to Choose." The Friedmans argued that free-market capitalism works best for all members of society, leading to problem-solving where other economic approaches have failed. The companion book to the PBS series, also titled Free to Choose, was among the best-selling non-fiction books of 1980.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Stephen Friot, "Containing History"

Fri, 10 Nov 2023 02:00:00 -0000

U.S. District Court Judge Stephen Friot discussed his book on Cold War history and how it explains current U.S.-Russia relations. About Books also reported on the latest publishing industry news and current non-fiction books.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Robert Hartley, "Purpose, Power & Prison"

Tue, 07 Nov 2023 09:00:00 -0000

When you read about the political history of Illinois, you often see the word "corruption." For instance, from January 1961 until January 2009 Illinois citizens elected 8 different men to be their governor. Four of those eventually went to prison, all convicted after they were out of office. Our guest this week, Robert Hartley, has written 11 books about the politicians of Illinois, including one titled "Power, Purpose & Prison." Mr. Hartley writes that these men met their downfall under different circumstances. He asks: "Where did they go wrong?" and "Were they able to recover self-respect in spite of their punishment?"

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Randy Barnett and Evan Bernick, "The Original Meaning of the 14th Amendment"

Mon, 06 Nov 2023 01:00:00 -0000

Professors Randy Barnett and Evan Bernick talked about their book, The Original Meaning of the 14th Amendment. They argued that the 14th Amendment, which gave the federal judiciary and Congress new powers over the states, has been misinterpreted by conservative and liberal judges alike since its adoption in 1868.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Ruth Simmons, "Up Home - One Girl's Journey"

Sun, 05 Nov 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Ruth Simmons spoke about her journey from poverty to academia, serving as president of Smith College, Brown University & Prairie View A&M University. She was interviewed by author Freeman Hrabowski.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BTSA: "Their Eyes Were Watching God" by Zora Neale Hurston w/ Prof. Gary Richards

Fri, 03 Nov 2023 08:00:00 -0000

Zora Neale Hurston brings to life a Southern love story that explores race, gender roles, and identity, which influenced African-American and women's literature. In this episode, we speak with English Professor Gary Richards of The University of Mary Washington. The book is considered a classic of the Harlem Renaissance.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Ben Stein, "The Peacemaker"

Tue, 31 Oct 2023 08:00:00 -0000

Ben Stein, our guest this week, is close to 80 years old. When he was in his 20s he wrote speeches for Richard Nixon. He wants you to know that he still calls Mr. Nixon his hero. Mr. Stein also tells you in his latest book about what he's done since those early years: "I've worked as a university teacher, a columnist for the Wall Street Journal, a scriptwriter, a novelist, an investigator into financial fraud for Barron's, a columnist for the late greatly lamented Los Angeles Herald Examiner, a writer and a commentator on economics, an actor, a game show host, a talk show host, a father, and a husband." His book is called "The Peacemaker: Nixon – The Man, President, and My Friend."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Tom Cronin, "Imagining a Great Republic"

Mon, 30 Oct 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Professor Tom Cronin talked about his book, Imagining a Great Republic, a survey of American novels that have helped tell the story of the American political experiment.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Martin Baron, "Collision of Power"

Sun, 29 Oct 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Martin Baron talks about leading the Washington Post as executive editor under the ownership of Jeff Bezos & during Donald Trump’s presidency. He's interviewed by NPR Media Correspondent David Folkenflik.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BTSA: "My Antonia" by Willa Cather w/ Historian Richard Norton Smith

Fri, 27 Oct 2023 04:00:00 -0000

Willa Cather's novel, My Ántonia, evokes the Nebraska prairie life of her childhood and pays tribute to the spirit and courage of immigrant pioneers in America. Historian Richard Norton Smith discusses Cather's works, including My Antonia, which was written in 1918. The book tells the story of a girl who arrives on the frontier as part of a family of Bohemian immigrants, and her friendship with an orphaned boy who taught her English. The novel explores issues facing women of the time in that region, and the meaning of success in America.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Book Bans & School Libraries

Fri, 27 Oct 2023 04:00:00 -0000

Bridgette Exman discussed her actions when she was criticized nationally for her efforts to comply with a state law on "age appropriate" books in Mason City, Iowa, school libraries. About Books also reported on the latest publishing industry news and current non-fiction books.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Brooke Barbier, "King Hancock"

Tue, 24 Oct 2023 08:00:00 -0000

John Hancock is one of the most famous signatures in the history of the United States. Most people don’t know much more than that about him. Brooke Barbier, our guest this week, who is the founder of Ye Olde Tavern Tours of Boston, wants to change your perception of this American signer of the Declaration of Independence. Barbier's newest book is called "King Hancock." He got that moniker back in the middle of the 1700s. The author writes: "His stature eventually rose so high that he became known by both his friends and enemies by that name."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Elizabeth Papez on Chief Justices of the Supreme Court

Mon, 23 Oct 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Elizabeth Papez talked about the influence of Chief Justice John Roberts and other high-profile chief justices on the direction of the Supreme Court as well as American life. Ms. Papez is a litigator and partner in the firm of Gibson Dunn who previously clerked for Associate Justice Clarence Thomas and served as deputy assistant attorney general during the George W. Bush administration.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Ryan Reilly, "Sedition Hunters - How January 6th Broke the Justice System"

Sun, 22 Oct 2023 00:00:00 -0000

NBC News' Ryan Reilly chronicled how citizens helped law enforcement find individuals involved in the January 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol. He was interviewed by Politico senior legal affairs reporter Kyle Cheney.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BTSA: The Life of Mark Twain w/ Professor Matt Seybold

Fri, 20 Oct 2023 04:00:00 -0000

Our guest this week is Elmira College Professor Matt Seybold, who shares insights and introspections into the life of Mark Twain. Named among the great American novels, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn has been known internationally since its first printing in 1884 and remains popular yet controversial.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BTSA: "The Common Law" by Oliver Wendell Holmes w/ Historian Stephen Budiansky

Wed, 18 Oct 2023 16:23:00 -0000

Our guest this week is historian Stephen Budianksy, who shares his insights into the late Justice's life and work.

After serving in the Civil War, during which he was wounded, Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. became a scholar and jurist, eventually rising to the U.S. Supreme Court after being nominated by President Theodore Roosevelt.

While practicing law in Boston, Holmes summarized a series of lectures he had delivered and had them published in 1881 as a book titled The Common Law. Holmes is known for the maxim, "The life of the law has not been logic: it has been experience," and that the law develops according to the "felt necessities of the time." He served on the high court for nearly 30 years, retiring at age 90, and has been of the most frequently cited justices.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Diana Henriques, "Taming the Street"

Tue, 17 Oct 2023 08:00:00 -0000

Diana Henriques is the author of 5 previous books including "The Wizard of Lies: Bernie Madoff and the Death of Trust." Originally from Bryan, Texas, and Roanoke, Virginia, Ms. Henriques spent 22 years as a reporter with the New York Times. In her latest book "Taming the Street," she writes in the preface: "My mission is to describe just one of the New Deal's most significant achievements, clearing out the vicious jungle that was the nation's financial landscape in the 1920s and replacing it with a well-tended terrain where ordinary Americans could save and invest with confidence."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Cameron McWhirter and Zusha Elinson, "American Gun"

Sun, 15 Oct 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Wall Street Journal reporters Cameron McWhirter and Zusha Elinson discuss the history of the AR-15 and how the weapon has influenced American gun culture. They were interviewed by author and journalist Paul Barrett.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Kenneth Rendell, "Safeguarding History"

Tue, 10 Oct 2023 08:00:00 -0000

Historian Andrew Roberts calls this week's guest Kenneth Rendell the "manuscript whisperer." Rendell's new book is about his travelling the world during his career buying and selling significant historical letters and documents, from the Renaissance to the present day. The title of his book is "Safeguarding History: Trailblazing Adventures Inside the Worlds of Collecting and Forging History." One of the stories he tells is about his role in determining whether the Hitler diaries, published in 1983, were real or fake.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Michael Green, "The Speaker of the House: A Study of Leadership"

Mon, 09 Oct 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Kevin McCarthy earned a place in the history books this week as the first Speaker of the House to be voted out of office. Just 9 months into his term, Speaker McCarthy was challenged by a "motion to vacate" offered by Florida Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz. McCarthy lost by 6 votes; with all Democrats voting against him.

Kevin McCarthy, a California republican, was the 55th Speaker of the House. Second in line to the presidency, the Speaker is the political and parliamentary leader of the House of Representatives, and the de facto leader of the Majority. As Republicans mull their choice for a new Speaker, we look back to a Q&A episode from February of 2018 on the historical power and influence of the House Speaker of. Our guest is Michael Green, author of The Speaker of the House: A study of Leadership. You'll learn about the role of the Speaker and the tenures of Henry Clay, Joe Cannon, Newt Gingrich and Nancy Pelosi.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Melissa Kearney, "The Two-Parent Privilege"

Sun, 08 Oct 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Economist Melissa Kearney argues that the decline in two-parent married households is a driving factor in many of America's economic issues. She was interviewed by American Enterprise Institute's Center on Opportunity and Social Mobility director Scott Winship.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BTSA: Life of Frederick Douglas w/ Prof. David Blight

Fri, 06 Oct 2023 18:25:00 -0000

Our guest this week is Pultizer-Prize-winning Yale Professor David Blight. He expounds on the life of Frederick Douglas when he learned to read and write, and his relationship with President Abraham Lincoln.

Born into slavery in Maryland, Frederick Douglass went on to become a writer, orator, statesman, and key leader in the abolitionist movement. After his escape to freedom as an adult, Douglass in 1845 wrote the first of his three autobiographies, titled The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Fox News Contributor Karl Rove on America's Broken Politics

Tue, 03 Oct 2023 08:00:00 -0000

"America is deeply divided. Our politics is broken, marked by anger, contempt and distrust. We must acknowledge that reality but not lose historical perspective. It’s bad now, but it’s been worse before—and not only during the Civil War." These are the words of Fox News contributor Karl Rove, a longtime political consultant and former senior adviser to President George W. Bush. He wrote them under the headline: "America Is Often a Nation Divided," in a recent Saturday edition of the Wall Street Journal. The piece is historical and starts back when the country began.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

QA: Randall Eliason, On Senator Bob Menendez's First Trial

Mon, 02 Oct 2023 00:00:00 -0000

In a dip into the Q&A archives, an interview from 2017 with former federal prosecutor and George Washington University Law School professor Randall Eliason. He talked about the ongoing trial of Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) and other prominent political corruption cases that came before.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Adam Nagourney, "The Times"

Sun, 01 Oct 2023 00:00:00 -0000

New York Times reporter Adam Nagourney looked at the successes and failures of the last four decades of "the paper of record," The New York Times. He was interviewed by Columbia Journalism Review contributor Jon Allsop.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: The Internet Archive & Digital Libraries

Fri, 29 Sep 2023 15:30:00 -0000

Internet Archive founder Brewster Kahle discusses digital libraries, legal disputes over electronic book lending, and copyright laws.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BTSA: Journals of Lewis and Clark w/ Author Lanny Jones

Thu, 28 Sep 2023 04:00:00 -0000

Our guest this week is author, historian, and magazine editor Lanny Jones. He is the author of "William Clark and the Shaping of the West. His latest work is Celebrity Nation.

Shortly after the 1803 Louisiana Purchase, President Thomas Jefferson commissioned Meriwether Lewis and William Clark to explore and map the newly acquired territory and to seek a water route to the Pacific Ocean. Lewis and Clark's two-year Tour of Discovery ended in September 1806 as the explorers returned to St. Louis with maps, sketches and journals detailing the region's plants, animal life, geography, and indigenous people.

In 1814, many Americans were able to learn for the first time about the western lands upon the publishing of the book titled History of the Expedition Under the Command of Captains of Lewis and Clark.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Charlotte Gray, "Passionate Mothers, Powerful Sons"

Tue, 26 Sep 2023 08:00:00 -0000

Author Charlotte Gray, our guest this week, is a Canadian born in Great Britain who now lives in a suburb of Ottawa. Her book "Passionate Mothers, Powerful Sons" is about Jennie Jerome Churchill and Sara Delano Roosevelt. The former Jennie Jerome was born in the United States and was the mother of Winston Churchill. Sara Delano married James Roosevelt and became the mother of FDR in 1882. Charlotte Gray writes that one of the reasons to write about these two women is that: "Their reputations, so different within their lifetimes, have both suffered since their deaths."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Meg Kissinger, "While You Were Out - An Intimate Family Portrait of Mental Illness in an Era of Silence"

Sun, 24 Sep 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Meg Kissinger spoke about her family's struggle with mental illness and her coverage of mental health care in America as a journalist. She was interviewed by Mindsite News founding editor Rob Waters.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BTSA: James Madison, Alexander Hamilton & John Jay "The Federalist Papers"

Fri, 22 Sep 2023 17:20:00 -0000

Colleen Sheehan, Arizona State University Professor, discusses the early life and times of the Federalist's three authors. She explains how their lives challenged their writing and thinking. Plus their lasting legacy today.

In September 1787, the newly drafted Constitution of the United States was sent to the states for ratification. Responding to initial public criticism of the document, Alexander Hamilton, James Madison, and John Jay - under the collective pseudonym "Publius" - wrote a series of 85 essays to promote the ratification of the Constitution. The essays were first published in several New York newspapers and were later combined into a book titled The Federalist. Today, the original essays are commonly referred to as The Federalist Papers

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Erec Smith, Co-Founder of Free Black Thought

Tue, 19 Sep 2023 08:00:00 -0000

Erec Smith, our guest this week, is an associate professor of rhetoric at York College of Pennsylvania. He is also the co-founder of Free Black Thought, a website that "seeks to represent the rich diversity of black thought beyond the relatively narrow spectrum of views promoted by mainstream outlets..." In a Newsweek article, Prof. Smith wrote: "We hear endlessly about systemic racism, white supremacy, the black/white income gap, and police brutality. So powerful an ideology has this narrative become that those of us who pose a credible counter-narrative—black anti-woke writers, for example—frequently find our words being misconstrued in an effort to stanch their impact."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Cliff Sloan, "The Court at War

Sun, 17 Sep 2023 08:00:00 -0000

Georgetown University law professor Cliff Sloan, author of "The Court at War," talks about the civil rights and civil liberties cases taken up by the U.S. Supreme Court during World War Two and the influence that FDR had on the justices, the vast majority of whom he appointed.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Loren Grush, "The Six - The Untold Story of America's First Women Astronauts"

Sun, 17 Sep 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Journalist Loren Grush detailed the history & experiences of the six women selected in 1978 to become America's first female astronauts. She was interviewed by former NASA deputy administrator Lori Garver.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Fall Book Preview with Colette Bancroft

Fri, 15 Sep 2023 15:15:00 -0000

Tampa Bay Times book critic Colette Bancroft previews some of the most anticipated non-fiction books being released this fall. About Books also reported on the latest publishing industry news.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BTSA: Professor Richard Bell on "Common Sense" Thomas Paine (1776)

Fri, 15 Sep 2023 08:00:00 -0000

Englishman Thomas Paine arrived in America in 1774 as the conflict between the colonies and Great Britain peaked. Up to that point, the colonies were said to have considered negotiation rather than separating from Britain. This week, University of Maryland history professor Richard Bell joins BTSA to discuss Paine's arguments, his life, and what led him to publish Common Sense.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Lindsay Chervinsky, "The Cabinet"

Tue, 12 Sep 2023 08:00:00 -0000

Lindsay Chervinsky is a presidential historian who has written what she says is the first book on the presidential cabinet. It's called "The Cabinet: George Washington and the Creation of an American Institution." It was on November 26, 1791, that President George Washington convened his cabinet department secretaries: Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, Henry Knox, and Edmund Randolph. It was the first cabinet meeting ever held. Among other things, we asked Lindsay Chervinsky why Washington waited a full two and a half years into his presidency to call everyone together.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Richard Striner, "Ike in Love and War"

Mon, 11 Sep 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Historian Richard Striner talks about his book "Ike in Love and War," about the personal life and career of Dwight D. Eisenhower, covering everything from his upbringing and military service to his two-terms as president of the United States. Mr. Striner also talks about the three women Eisenhower fell in love with over his lifetime: Gladys Harding, Mamie Doud (later Mamie Eisenhower), and Kay Summersby, a Brit who served as Eisenhower's driver during World War Two.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Cara Fitzpatrick, "The Death of Public School"

Sun, 10 Sep 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Chalkbeat editor Cara Fitzpatrick looked at the school choice movement and the future of education in America. She was interviewed by Washington Post education reporter Moriah Balingit.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Politico's Kyle Cheney on the January 6 Trials

Tue, 05 Sep 2023 08:00:00 -0000

It has been 32 months since the attack on the U.S. Capitol that disrupted a joint session of the U.S. Congress in the process of completing the presidential election result. More than 1,100 defendants have been charged in nearly all 50 states and the District of Columbia. More than 110 individuals have been found guilty of felonies. Kyle Cheney of Politico has spent a lot of time during these past months covering the trial in the U.S. District Court of the District of Columbia. We asked him to give us an overview of what these court proceedings have looked like up close.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Richard Norton Smith, "An Ordinary Man"

Mon, 04 Sep 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Presidential historian and author Richard Norton Smith discusses his biography of President Gerald Ford titled "An Ordinary Man." He talks about Ford's personal life, anti-establishment politics, and post-presidential years. He also talks about the efforts made by President Ford to heal the country following the Watergate scandal and his controversial decision to pardon Richard Nixon.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Matthew Delmont, "Half American"

Sun, 03 Sep 2023 00:00:00 -0000

The title of Dartmouth history professor Matthew Delmont's latest book is "Half American: The Epic Story of African Americans Fighting World War II at Home and Abroad." Prof. Delmont, our guest this week, writes in his introduction that: "Nearly everything about the war – the start and end dates, geography, vital military roles, home front, and international implications – looks different form the African American perspective." He points out that ultimately, over one million Black men and women served in World War II.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Max Miller, "Tasting History"

Fri, 01 Sep 2023 01:00:00 -0000

YouTuber Max Miller discussed his cookbook which explores history through recipes. About Books also reported on the latest publishing industry news and current non-fiction books.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Luke Nichter, "The Year That Broke Politics"

Tue, 29 Aug 2023 08:00:00 -0000

Chapman University professor Luke Nichter is the author of the book "The Year That Broke Politics: Collusion and Chaos in the Presidential Election of 1968." Professor Nichter is also the creator of nixontapes.org, the "only website dedicated solely to the scholarly production and dissemination of digitized Nixon tape audio and transcripts." Nichter's book focuses on the 1968 presidential race and the contentious battle between Vice President Hubert Humphrey, Richard Nixon, and George Wallace.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Jean Twenge, "Generations"

Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 -0000

San Diego State University psychology professor Jean Twenge discusses her book "Generations," about the differences between the six generations – The Silents, Baby Boomers, Gen. X, Millennials, Gen. Y and "The Polars" – currently living in the United States. She argues that technological advances shape generations more than anything else and talks about the impact this will have on the country in the future.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Craig Nelson, "V Is For Victory"

Tue, 22 Aug 2023 08:00:00 -0000

Craig Nelson, in his book "V Is For Victory," reports on the number of casualties from World War II. He writes that, according to the U.S. Department of Defense, the military casualties were 1,870,000 (405,000 killed and 673,115 wounded). Then, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were over 8.9 million American war industry worker casualties (75,400 dead and over 8.8 million wounded) between 1942 and 1945. Author Craig Nelson, our guest this week, further says: "Across history, the 'arsenal of democracy' has come to mean this miracle of American manufacturing. When Roosevelt used the term, however, he meant the miracle of the American people."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Shahan Mufti on the 1977 Siege of Washington, D.C.

Mon, 21 Aug 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Our guest is Shahan Mufti's, who's new book, American Caliph, recounts an event that's been lost to history-- the March 9th, 1977 Hanafi Muslim siege in Washington, D.C. That day, three buildings in Washington, D.C. were seized by 12 Hanafi Movement gunmen and were held for two days.

The group took 149 hostages, killed a young radio reporter named Maurice Williams, and shot then-councilman and future Washington D.C. mayor Marion Barry. Mr. Mufti describes the background of the group's leader, Hamas Abdul Khaalis, the blood feud between him and the Nation of Islam, a movie about the prophet Muhammed that fueled the hostage-taking, and the tense negotiations that ultimately ended the siege.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Goodreads and "Review-Bombing"

Fri, 18 Aug 2023 15:00:00 -0000

New York Times books reporter Elizabeth Harris discusses the review website Goodreads and how the platform can help and hurt sales, especially for lesser-known authors.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Alan Philps, "The Red Hotel"

Tue, 15 Aug 2023 08:00:00 -0000

The Metropol Hotel is located near the Bolshoi Theatre in downtown Moscow. When it opened in 1901 it was the symbol of Russia's growing prosperity. After the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution, it was often used by Lenin to give speeches at so-called party congresses. During World War II, the Metropol became a home and office for almost all foreign journalists allowed to work in the U.S.S.R. British journalist Alan Philps, our guest this week, has written a book about those days titled "The Red Hotel: Moscow 1941, the Metropol Hotel, and the Untold Story of Stalin's Propaganda War."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: James Rosen, "Scalia"

Mon, 14 Aug 2023 00:00:00 -0000

By advancing his judicial philosophies of "originalism" and "textualism," Antonin Scalia became one of the 20th century's most influential justices. This week, James Rosen talks about Book One of his two-part biography of Antonin Scalia, titled "Scalia: Rise to Greatness, 1936-1986," Rosen who is Newsmax's Chief White House Correspondent examines Justice Scalia's life prior to the Supreme Court. We talk about Nino Scalia's early years, the importance of his Catholic faith, his first years as a corporate lawyer, his teaching career at the University of Chicago and UVA, his time in government during the Nixon and Ford administrations, and his appointment to the U.S. Court of Appeals.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Adam Andrzejewski, OpenTheBooks.com

Tue, 08 Aug 2023 08:00:00 -0000

Adam Andrzejewski is the founder of OpenTheBooks.com and lives in Hinsdale, Illinois. OpenTheBooks.com says it is "the largest private repository of U.S. public sector spending." The mission is to post "every dime, online, in real time." In their 2022 annual report on government spending, Alexander Fraser, a 19th century Scottish professor of history is quoted saying: "A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. Democracy will continue to exist until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury." Mr. Andrzejewski is our guest this week on the Booknotes+ podcast.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Ilyon Woo on the Self-Emancipation of William and Ellen Craft in 1848

Mon, 07 Aug 2023 00:00:00 -0000

In this episode, you'll meet Ilyon Woo, author of a new bestseller-- "Master Slave, Husband Wife." She recounts the harrowing journey of self-emancipation made by two enslaved Georgians--William and Ellen Craft -- in 1848. Disguised as a wealthy disabled white man traveling with his enslaved servant, the Crafts left Georgia via public conveyances, avoiding slave traders, law enforcement, and curious fellow passengers in their successful effort to gain freedom. Becoming popular speakers on the lecture circuit, they found themselves hunted by slavecatchers after the passage of the Fugitive Slave Law in 1850.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Matt Lewis, "Filthy Rich Politicians"

Sun, 06 Aug 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Daily Beast 's Matt Lewis explored how American politics is fueled by wealth & offered reforms on how to hold elected officials more accountable. He was interviewed by RealClearPolitics columnist and associate editor A.B. Stoddard.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Cormac McCarthy & the Publishing Industry

Fri, 04 Aug 2023 15:00:00 -0000

Emory University professor Dan Sinykin discusses the late novelist Cormac McCarthy and how his career was nurtured by the publishing industry.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Katherine Clarke, "Billionaires' Row"

Tue, 01 Aug 2023 08:00:00 -0000

Wall Street Journal reporter Katherine Clarke, in her book "Billionaires' Row," admits that: "Part of my motivation for writing this book was that as a reporter I can't help but observe that the colorful characters who've made the New York real estate world so dynamic are increasingly few and far between…In some ways, this book memorializes that dying breed of New York real estate kingpins who took big swings and risked losing it all." The subtitle of the book describes its focus: "Tycoons, High Rollers, and the Epic Race to Build the World's Most Exclusive Skyscrapers." These supertall buildings that house $100 million apartments are located on 57th Street at the southern end of Central Park in Manhattan.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Rachel Louise Martin, "A Most Tolerant Little Town"

Mon, 31 Jul 2023 00:00:00 -0000

A year before Arkansas' Little Rock Central High School was desegregated, 12 Black students in Clinton, Tennessee, enrolled, by court mandate, in Clinton High School's 1956 Fall semester. Historian Rachel Louise Martin, author of "A Most Tolerant Little Town," talks about the experiences of the students who desegregated the first school in the south following Brown v. Board of Education and the violent reaction by the extremist White Citizens Council and others in town who championed a segregated America.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Judge Amul Thapar, "The People's Justice - Clarence Thomas and the Constitutional Stories that Define Him"

Sun, 30 Jul 2023 00:00:00 -0000

U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Amul Thapar discussed the judicial philosophy of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas & recounted some of Thomas's key opinions. He was interviewed by USA Today Supreme Court correspondent John Fritze.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Rebeccah Heinrichs, Hudson Institute Senior Fellow

Tue, 25 Jul 2023 08:00:00 -0000

In the past 18 months, since the start of the Russia-Ukraine War, the threat of a possible nuclear war is mentioned in the media almost every day. There are 9 countries in the world that reportedly have nuclear weapons, over 13,000 in all, 89% of which are controlled by the United States and Russia. Rebeccah Heinrichs of the Hudson Institute spends most of her professional time thinking, speaking, and writing about national security and defense. We asked her to give us her analysis of the nuclear weapons issue.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Felix Salmon, "The Phoenix Economy"

Mon, 24 Jul 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Axios chief financial correspondent Felix Salmon, author of "The Phoenix Economy," talks about the long-term social and economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. He argues that while the pandemic was devastating, many of the outcomes that have resulted from it have been surprisingly positive.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Wesley Lowery, "American Whitelash - A Changing Nation and the Cost of Progress"

Sun, 23 Jul 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Wesley Lowery argued that moments of progress in race matters in the U.S. are often met with acts of violence. He was interviewed by Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism Dean Jelani Cobb.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Artificial Intelligence and the Publishing Industry

Fri, 21 Jul 2023 01:00:00 -0000

Publishing analyst and consultant Thad McIlroy talked about the impact artificial intelligence might have on the publishing industry. About Books also reported on the latest publishing industry news and current non-fiction books.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Benjamin Lorr, "The Secret Life of Groceries"

Tue, 18 Jul 2023 08:00:00 -0000

As we begin the 2024 presidential campaign, we hear the word "inflation" in almost every candidate's speech. One issue that is always mentioned is the price of food. Benjamin Lorr spent several years travelling the United States and the world to investigate how the food supply chain works. His book is titled "The Secret Life of Groceries: The Dark Miracle of the American Supermarket." He writes that: "Most people shop for groceries with clueless abandon."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Joshua Zeitz, "Lincoln's God"

Mon, 17 Jul 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Historian and Politico contributing writer Joshua Zeitz, author of "Lincoln's God," talks about the impact of faith on America's 16th president. Zeitz contends that as a young man, Abraham Lincoln was skeptical of organized religion but later, as president, came to embrace the power of evangelical Protestantism, both personally and politically.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Elizabeth Currid-Halkett, "The Overlooked Americans"

Sun, 16 Jul 2023 00:00:00 -0000

USC public policy professor Elizabeth Currid-Halkett argued that rural & urban America have more in common than what Americans have been led to believe. She was interviewed by former Senator Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND).

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Martha Hodes, "My Hijacking"

Tue, 11 Jul 2023 08:00:00 -0000

On January 6, 1970, TWA flight 741 from Israel to New York was hijacked and flown to the Jordanian desert. Historian Martha Hodes, at the time 12 years old, was on that plane along with her sister Catherine, who was 13. A group called the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine was behind the hijacking. For years, Martha Hodes, who teaches 19th Century history at New York University, only had fuzzy memories of those 6 days and nights in the desert as a hostage. In the past couple of years, Prof. Hodes decided to try to piece together her experience. The result is her book titled "My Hijacking: A Personal History of Forgetting and Remembering."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Tania Branigan, "Red Memory"

Mon, 10 Jul 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Guardian newspaper editorial writer and former China correspondent Tania Branigan, author of "Red Memory," talks about China's Cultural Revolution (1966-1976), during which millions of Chinese were killed and tens of millions were persecuted by the Chinese government for being enemies of the state. In the book, Ms. Branigan profiles several people who were targeted during this period and discusses the lasting impact of the Cultural Revolution in China today.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Graphic Artist Jerry Craft on Book Bans

Fri, 07 Jul 2023 15:25:00 -0000

Author and illustrator Jerry Craft discusses attempts to remove his graphic novels from school libraries.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: C.W. Goodyear, "President Garfield"

Tue, 04 Jul 2023 08:00:00 -0000

C.W. Goodyear was born in New Orleans. He's a graduate of Yale University and now lives in the Washington, DC area. He's also a first time biographer, having just published a book about James Garfield titled "President Garfield: From Radical to Unifier." Garfield, America's 20th president, took office on March 4, 1881. His time as president lasted only 200 days. Garfield was assassinated by Charles Guiteau in a Washington, DC train station at the corner of 6th and Pennsylvania Avenue on July 2, 1881. Mr. Goodyear has written a full life biography of James Garfield, from the years he grew up in Ohio through his generalship in the Civil War and his 17 years in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Mark Clague, "O Say Can You Hear?"

Mon, 03 Jul 2023 00:00:00 -0000

This July 4th weekend, University of Michigan musicology and American culture professor Mark Clague discusses his book, "O Say Can You Hear?," about the history and cultural impact of the Star-Spangled Banner. He talks about how the 1814 poem written by Francis Scott Key became the U.S. national anthem, its widespread use today at sporting events, and renditions of the song performed by Jimi Hendrix, Whitney Houston, Roseanne Barr, and others.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Jason Del Rey, "Winner Sells All - Amazon, Walmart and the Battle for Our Wallets"

Sun, 02 Jul 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Business journalist Jason Del Rey looks at the rise of Amazon and Walmart and their economic impact on the U.S. and the world. He's interviewed by Insider chief tech correspondent Eugene Kim.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: William Hazelgrove, "The Last Charge of the Rough Rider"

Tue, 27 Jun 2023 08:00:00 -0000

Former president Theodore Roosevelt died on January 6, 1919. He was 60 years old. Author William Hazelgrove, in his new book about Roosevelt, chose to focus mostly on the last two years of TR's life. It's titled "The Last Charge of the Rough Rider," and it's the focus of this week's podcast. Mr. Hazelgrove takes us through TR's feud with President Woodrow Wilson over wanting to create another Rough Rider soldier regiment to fight in Europe. Wilson turned him down in spite of the fact that both the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives had approved Roosevelt's request.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Cassandra Good, "First Family"

Mon, 26 Jun 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: Rebecca Grant, "Birth - Three Mothers, Nine Months, and Pregnancy in America"

Sun, 25 Jun 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Journalist Rebecca Grant reported on maternal healthcare in the U.S. & discussed how social & political dynamics impact pregnancy & motherhood. She was interviewed by New York Times reporter Alisha Gupta.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Brian O'Leary on Upgrading the Publishing Industry Supply Chain

Fri, 23 Jun 2023 01:00:00 -0000

Book Industry Study Group executive director Brian O’Leary discusses how his organization is working to improve the production and distribution of print and digital books in the United States.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

BN: Simon Sebag Montefiore, "The World"

Tue, 20 Jun 2023 08:03:00 -0000

Simon Sebag Montefiore is a British historian. He's 57 and lives in London with his wife Santa and their two children. He's written 12 books - 9 nonfiction and 3 novels. His latest effort is titled "The World: A Family History of Humanity." Including the index, it's 1,304 pages. In his preface, Montefiore writes: "I have always wanted to write an intimate human history like 'The World' – in some ways a new approach, in some ways a traditional one – which is the fruit of a lifetime of study and travels."

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Rev. Wheeler Parker Jr. on the Murder of Emmett Till and the Search for Justice

Mon, 19 Jun 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Emmett Till's cousin Rev. Wheeler Parker Jr., who accompanied Till on his trip to Mississippi in 1955, talked about the fateful events leading up to Till's murder by two white men and his efforts to get justice for his late cousin.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Booknotes+: Robert Kaplan, "The Tragic Mind"

Tue, 13 Jun 2023 08:00:00 -0000

Robert Kaplan's 21st book, "The Tragic Mind," revolves around what he has learned over the years from Greek philosophers and William Shakespeare. Yale University Press says that Kaplan "employs the works of ancient Greek dramatists, Shakespeare, German philosophers, and the modern classics to explore the central subjects of international politics: order, disorder, rebellion, ambition, loyalty to family and state, violence, and the mistakes of power." Mr. Kaplan, 70, was born in New York City and graduated from the University of Connecticut.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Q&A: Henry Grabar, "Paved Paradise"

Mon, 12 Jun 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Slate magazine staff writer Henry Grabar, author of "Paved Paradise," talks about the evolution of parking in the United States and the consequences of that development today. He argues that the decades-long importance given to parking has negatively impacted housing costs and development, city traffic, the environment, and more.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AW: David Bernhardt, "You Report to Me - Accountability for the Failing Administrative State"

Sun, 11 Jun 2023 00:00:00 -0000

Former Trump Administration Interior Secretary David Bernhardt argued that the administrative state has amassed unaccountable power over the last twenty years. He was interviewed by American Enterprise Institute senior fellow Adam White.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

AB: Former FBI Director Comey on Writing Crime Novels

Fri, 09 Jun 2023 01:00:00 -0000

Former FBI Director James Comey discussed his legal thriller "Central Park West" and why he decided to start writing novels. About Books also reported on the latest publishing industry news and current non-fiction books.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

TRAILER: What is the C-SPAN Bookshelf?

Tue, 30 May 2023 16:30:46 -0000

Nonfiction book lovers, we are making it easy to find all of the C-SPAN podcast episodes with authors in one place. Each week we will post episodes from the different C-SPAN podcasts that feature non-fiction authors and books to make it easier for you to find the episodes and listen. Subscribe to this week so you'll never miss a C-SPAN podcast on books!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices