Emily Bazelon talks with author Peter Singer about his updated and re-released book, Animal Liberation Now . The classic text has been an integral part of the animal rights movement since its publication in 1975. They discuss what we’ve learned about animals in the last several decades, including the intelligence of animals, why people should become vegan to help with climate change, and what we've learned about animals over the last four decades. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email u...
Jun 17, 2023•32 min
Emily Bazelon talks with author author Curtis Sittenfeld about her new book Romantic Comedy . They discuss why ordinary guys get to be with famous women, but usually not the other way around, the fun of writing a fictional version of Saturday Night Live, and how to write witty email exchanges. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Cheyna Roth. Learn more about your ...
May 06, 2023•26 min
David Plotz talks with author Alexandra Petri about her new book, Alexandra Petri’s US History: Important American Documents . They discuss how to transform staid history documents into rollicking parodies, how Petri found her “voice” multiple times, and her grander ambitions for the book. Plus, Petri reads some choice selections. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production ...
Apr 22, 2023•23 min
John Dickerson talks with author Chris Miller about his new book, Chip War: The Fight for The World’s Most Critical Technology . They discuss how semiconductor chips became so important, why everyone is so dependent on Taiwan for chips, and what lessons China can glean from what’s happening in Ukraine. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Cheyna Roth. Learn more ab...
Mar 18, 2023•35 min
Emily Bazelon talks with author Rebecca Makkai about her new book, I Have Some Questions For You . They discuss why it’s so easy to suspend disbelief with this type of story, the “cancelled” subplot, and whether we’d be better off without Twitter. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Cheyna Roth. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices...
Feb 18, 2023•35 min
David Plotz talks with author Shahan Mufti about his new book, American Caliph: The True Story of a Muslim Mystic, a Hollywood Epic, and the 1977 Siege of Washington, DC . They discuss an Islamic group’s multi-location attack in D.C., the terror that hostages experienced while held captive for the two days, and the movie that started the whole thing. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.)...
Jan 21, 2023•34 min
John Dickerson talks with author Gautam Mukunda about his new book Picking Presidents: How to Make the Most Consequential Decision in the World . They talk about how Mukunda’s first book, Indispensable: When Leaders Really Matter laid the groundwork for Picking Presidents . Later, Dickerson and Mukunda dig into why ‘intellectual brilliance’ – which goes beyond IQ - is a strong predictor of presidential performance and how the human portion of the job of president is changing. Tweet us your quest...
Dec 17, 2022•41 min
Emily Bazelon talks with author Beverly Gage about her new book, G-Man: J. Edgar Hoover and the Making of the American Century , a detailed account of the life of the first FBI Director, J. Edgar Hoover. They discuss Hoover’s hostile relationship with Martin Luther King Jr., why he should have quit at the end of the 1950s, and how Hoover’s childhood shaped his reign [MOU1] as director. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unle...
Nov 19, 2022•35 min
David Plotz talks with with author Tom Perrotta about why Tracy Flick doesn’t have the life she dreamed of in his new novel, Tracy Flick Can’t Win . A sequel to Perrotta’s 1998 novel Election , Tracy Flick Can’t Win meets up with Tracy Flick decades later where she’s a single mother and assistant principal of a New Jersey high school. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast product...
Oct 22, 2022•29 min
John Dickerson talks with author Ada Calhoun about her new memoir, Also a Poet: Frank O’Hara, My Father, and Me . What started as Calhoun’s attempt to finish the biography of Frank O’Hara that her father started, turned into a gripping story of Calhoun’s relationship with her father. Calhoun and Dickerson talk about not pulling punches when it comes to how nice family members are, why you can’t pre-plan a happy ending, and what her father thought of the book. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfes...
Sep 18, 2022•32 min
David Plotz talks with author Mat Johnson about his new novel Invisible Things . Johnson’s novel tells the story of a group of astronauts that land in a bubble colony on Jupiter's biggest moon. They talk about the challenges of writing satire when reality feels fake, how mediocre people rise up by sucking up, and why we need to look at the invisible things in our daily lives. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unless the wri...
Aug 21, 2022•27 min
Emily Bazelon talks with author Vanessa Hua about her new historical fiction book, Forbidden City . The novel tells the story of sixteen-year-old revolutionary Mei who becomes a dancer in Chairman Mao’s inner circle. Emily and Vanessa talk about Vanessa’s inspiration for the novel, the complicated dynamics between Mei and Chairman Mao, and whether we’ll hear more from Mei. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer...
Jul 24, 2022•29 min
Emily Bazelon talks with author Keri Blakinger about her new memoir, Corrections in Ink which recounts Blakinger’s path from Olympic ambitions, to heroin addiction, to prison, and ultimately a return to life on the outside. Blakinger launched a program to deliver her memoir to currently incarcerated readers. You can learn more here: https://800ceoread.com/coupons/redeem/donationcorrectionsinink Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by ...
Jun 26, 2022•37 min
John Dickerson talks with author Elif Batuman about coming of age as a college student in the 1990’s, and the similarities between herself and her main character in Either/Or, the sequel to The Idiot. Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Cheyna Roth Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices...
May 29, 2022•35 min
David Plotz talks with author Amy Bloom about her journey to support the death, by suicide, of her husband, chronicled in her new book In Love: A Memoir of Love and Loss . Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Jocelyn Frank. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices...
Apr 17, 2022•21 min
Emily Bazelon talks with author Meghan O’Rourke about germ theory, biomarkers, medical mysteries, long COVID and the quest to return to health as chronicled in her new book The Invisible Kingdom: Reimagining Chronic Illness . Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Jocelyn Frank. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices...
Mar 22, 2022•29 min
Gabfest reads is a new monthly series from the hosts of the Political Gabfest. This month David Plotz talks with author Florence Williams about divorce, affection, good friendships, and her new book Heartbreak: A Personal and Scientific Journey . Tweet us your questions @SlateGabfest or email us at gabfest@slate.com . (Messages could be quoted by name unless the writer stipulates otherwise.) Podcast production by Jocelyn Frank. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices...
Feb 20, 2022•34 min
John Dickerson talks with Kirsten Powers about her new book Saving Grace: speak your truth, stay centered and learn to coexist with people who drive you nuts. Powers offers advice about on how to navigate the toxic divisions within our culture without compromising personal convictions and emotional well-being. Kirsten Powers is a New York Times bestselling author, USA Today columnist, and senior political analyst for CNN, where she appears regularly on Anderson Cooper 360, CNN Tonight with Don L...
Nov 07, 2021•21 min
