The 19th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified exactly 100 years ago Tuesday, the culmination of decades of activism that finally gave women the right to vote. Finish the Fight! is a new children’s book that chronicles the stories of some of the lesser-known suffragettes that made the 19th Amendment possible. Greta talks with author Veronica Chambers about 100 years of women’s suffrage and some of her favorite, lesser-known suffragettes. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and C...
Aug 18, 2020•19 min
We’re all human, but who has the right to make mistakes? That’s a question at the heart of Members Only , the debut novel from author Sameer Pandya. In it, Raj Bhatt's life falls apart after he makes a racist remark to an African-American couple at a posh tennis club. In this Nerdette Book Club author interview, host Greta Johnsen talks with Pandya about the weaponization of the term “cancel culture,” why a tennis club serves as the setting for a story about Indian-American identity and who gets...
Aug 14, 2020•23 min
Some of you may already be familiar with Nerdette Recaps with Peter Sagal, the podcast where Greta Johnsen and Nerdette cohost-emeritus Tricia Bobeda recapped Game of Thrones with Peter Sagal, host of NPR's Wait Wait ... Don't Tell Me! Well we are very happy to announce that we’re BACK, and this time, we’re doing '90s movies! So here is our very first episode! It’s a recap of 1995's 'Clueless,' featuring Alicia Silverstone, Stacey Dash, and Paul Rudd. We break it down, ask if it holds up, and he...
Aug 11, 2020•1 hr
Welcome back to Nerdette Recaps with Peter Sagal! the podcast where we rewatch movies of the ‘90s and talk about them like the intense nerds we are. Our first selection is Clueless , the 1995 Emma adaptation filled with ridiculous footwear, Paul Rudd putting mayo on cold cuts and also Friedrich Nietzsche for some reason. Listen to our conversation, then join us next week for a discussion of Independence Day. And don’t forget, we want to hear from you! Join the party and send us a voice recording...
Aug 11, 2020•59 min
We talk with New York Magazine advice columnist Heather Havrilesky about quarantine madness, cinnamon rolls and making friends during a pandemic. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Aug 07, 2020•21 min
What better way to remember a simpler decade than by watching some of the biggest films from 30 years ago? Join Greta Johnsen, Tricia Bobeda and Peter Sagal of NPR’s Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me! as they dissect movies from the ‘90s. (And yes, we’re totally gonna do Dazed and Confused.) Listen to this new trailer, then come back here on Wednesday, August 12 for fresh recap all about a classic film from 1995, Clueless . See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at...
Aug 05, 2020•2 min
More women are running for political office this year than ever before, but men still disproportionally represent the American populace. We talk with Erin Vilardi, the founder of VoteRunLead, an organization that encourages and trains women to run for office -- and win. Are YOU considering a run for office? Vilardi explains why women are well-suited for leadership and why you should take the plunge. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.co...
Aug 04, 2020•17 min
Welcome to the Nerdette Book Club! Each month, we read a book and chat about it with a rotating group of panelists. This month’s pick is Last Tang Standing by Lauren Ho. It tells the story of Andrea Tang, a thirtysomething Malaysian woman who lives and works in Singapore. Her love life is a mess and she’s vying for partner at her law firm, all while drinking a lot and somehow spending many hours playing Candy Crush. Listen along as Nerdette host Greta Johnsen discusses the book with podcast expe...
Jul 31, 2020•55 min
As you'll soon find out, Emily Graslie has a contagious enthusiasm for science and discovery. She holds the very real title of “Chief Curiosity Correspondent” at the Field Museum here in Chicago. She hosts a YouTube series called The Brain Scoop . And she’s also the host of a series on PBS called Prehistoric Road Trip , where she travels across the western United States to examine the history of our planet. We talk with Emily about exploration and discovery, how loving art and science does not h...
Jul 28, 2020•19 min
When you hit a rough spot with a good friend, what do you do about it? Aminatou Sow and Ann Friedman are longtime friends and business partners. Their fans also know them as the hosts and creators of 'Call Your Girlfriend,' a podcast “for long-distance besties everywhere.” When they recently hit a rough patch, the pair took what might be considered an unusual step to save a friendship: they went to therapy together. Their new book is called Big Friendship: How We Keep Each Other Close . They tal...
Jul 24, 2020•21 min
This is a weird year for [insert almost anything] and also summer blockbusters. But even though the theaters remain (mostly) closed, there's still plenty of great new movies to stream from the comfort of your own home. We talk with Eliana Dockterman, staff writer at Time , about the uncertain future for new movies, a few great films you can watch right now, and a few more that you'll have to wait for. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19....
Jul 21, 2020•21 min
It’s the Nerdette Book Club! And today we're talking with Lauren Ho, the author of this month’s selection, Last Tang Standing . It's a wonderful summer romance that follows the story of Andrea Tang, a 33-year-old Chinese-Malaysian lawyer, as she tries to make partner at her Singaporean law firm while fending off the unhealthy interest her relatives have in her love life. Before she wrote this novel, Lauren herself was a Chinese-Malaysian lawyer living in Singapore. So ahead of our panel discussi...
Jul 17, 2020•15 min
Kate Stayman-London loves reality TV. But even though shows like The Bachelorette and Love Island bring her joy, “we should also hold those things accountable to our values,” she said. Stayman-London’s debut novel, One To Watch , puts a plus-size woman as the star of a Bachelorette -style reality TV show. It’s both a lovely summer read and also a critical assessment of reality TV tropes. Greta talks with Kate about the impetus for the novel, what it means to see stories about large women, and wh...
Jul 14, 2020•23 min
Sheyna Gifford spent a year living on a volcano in Hawaii with just five other people as part of a NASA project to simulate life on Mars. Living in a biodome the size of a two-bedroom apartment, the crew studied the psychological effects and group dynamics that could be at play when astronauts eventually make it to Mars. This interview — about relationships, food and free time while in isolation — originally aired on Nerdette back in 2017, but it also has a few interesting parallels to our colle...
Jul 10, 2020•17 min
In this chock-full-of-bassoons episode, we talk about the history of the orchestra's largest woodwind with bassoonist and culture writer Eileen Reynolds, we jam with a principal bassoonist from the Chicago Philharmonic, and we even call up the self-proclaimed “Bassoon King,” The Office 's Rainn Wilson. Join Johnsen, Nerdette co-host emeritus Tricia Bobeda and this bevy of bassoon buffs for more bassoon than you knew you needed. This episode originally aired on August 11, 2017. See Privacy Policy...
Jul 07, 2020•32 min
After she visited the very bottom of the Marianas Trench last month, Kathy Sullivan became the very first human to both fly to space and reach the deepest part of the ocean. We talk with her about about what drew her to the deepest part of the deep sea, what's so powerful about the power of discovery and why you, too, should follow your dreams. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Jul 03, 2020•16 min
The coronavirus pandemic is not over, but stay-at-home orders are starting to loosen up across the country. In Illinois, people can now visit hair salons, museums, restaurants and even bars. Meanwhile, other states are seeing more cases of COVID-19 than ever before. Which means all of this is really confusing. Dr. Emily Landon, an epidemiologist and infectious disease specialist at the University of Chicago , has spent a lot of time thinking about global pandemics, and COVID-19 in particular. Sh...
Jun 30, 2020•28 min
It's Nerdette Book Club! Each month, we read a book and chat about it with a rotating group of panelists.This month’s pick is Brit Bennett’s sophomore novel, The Vanishing Half . The story starts in rural Louisiana in the late 1950s, when two light-skinned Black girls run away from home to New Orleans. When one decides to pass as white, she leaves her past behind. The book unfolds to tell the stories of both sisters and their daughters as they live with the repercussions of the choices they’ve m...
Jun 26, 2020•1 hr 13 min
We talk with Emily Pilloton, author of Girls Garage: How to Use Any Tool, Tackle Any Project, and Build the World You Want to See , about representation, being your own repair person and it's important to put power tools in the hands of young girls. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
Jun 23, 2020•26 min
For the last few weeks, our “Introvert’s Guide to the Good Life” series has been all about helping you find ways to enrich your perhaps-more-than-usual indoors-based life. Today, we talk to Pooja Naik, founder of Chicago-based organizational consulting company Organizing With You . She tells us why you should make your bed and how decluttering your physical space can help with your head space. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/priv...
Jun 19, 2020•17 min
For the last few weeks, our “Introvert’s Guide to the Good Life” series has been all about helping you find ways to enrich your perhaps-more-than-usual indoors-based life. Today, we talk to plant expert Tara Heibel, who owns a garden center called Sprout Home here in Chicago and also in Brooklyn, about why you might want to consider putting some of your anxious energy towards helping something simple grow. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://a...
Jun 16, 2020•16 min
Greta talks with Brit Bennett, the author of this month’s Nerdette Book Club selection, The Vanishing Half, which just climbed to the top of The New York Times bestselling fiction list amid nationwide conversations around racial inequality. The Vanishing Half tells the story of two light-skinned black sisters whose lives take very different directions: Desiree moves back home after escaping an abusive relationship with her dark-skinned husband while Stella chooses to pass as a white woman. Hear ...
Jun 12, 2020•28 min
It’s a question a lot of people are asking right now. So we talk with author and activist Kate Schatz about how white people can have constructive conversations with each other about racism in America. Ever since Schatz’s friend, comedian W. Kamau Bell, made Schatz responsible for “Conan O’Brien’s whiteness,” she’s been answering white people’s questions on Instagram live. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-in...
Jun 09, 2020•27 min
Widespread protests against police brutality have led many white people to ask how they can better understand the systems behind the disparities in our society. There are dozens of great resources out there. Nerdette host Greta Johnsen and NPR books editor Barrie Hardymon offer a few recommendations of the books they’ve found helpful. Plus a handful of summer reads, too. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info...
Jun 05, 2020•26 min
We think you could use some joy and calm right now. So we’re taking a moment to take some deep breaths. Then, we’ll listen back to part of our delightful 2017 interview with Tom Hanks. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
Jun 02, 2020•18 min
What if cities were embodied in human beings? If The Bronx were a human, what would she be like? And why is xenophobia so toxic? Listen along as Nerdette host Greta Johnsen discusses 'The City We Became,' the new novel from Hugo-award-winning author N.K. Jemisin, along with WBEZ host Jenn White and Michi Trota, editor for the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. And then get ready for next month’s Book Club pick: The Vanishing Half , a new novel by Brit Bennett. See Privacy Policy at ...
May 29, 2020•59 min
There are so many video game options that it can be hard to know where to begin. Which is why Nerdette host Greta Johnsen enlisted the assistance of Samantha Nelson, who writes about video games for The A.V. Club and Polygon . From simple task-oriented games to elaborate explorations, she’s got you covered. Plus, of course, we get plenty of recommendations from YOU. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
May 25, 2020•19 min
Greta talks with grief counselor Claire Bidwell Smith about how anxiety is part of grieving and how grieving is now part of everyday life. Plus what you can do with all those anxious thoughts. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .
May 22, 2020•21 min
Have you been exercising lately? No shame if you haven't! But ... personal trainer Sarah Gonsiorowski of The Lunge Ladies has some ideas to get your body moving. We also hear about some great apps and workout routines from YOU, our lovely listeners. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info ....
May 19, 2020•21 min
How does one deal with existential horror from beyond? That’s one question at the heart of The City We Became , a new novel from Hugo Award-winning author N.K. Jemisin, in which New York City literally comes alive in order to fight off “creepy tentacle monster creatures." Nerdette's Greta Johnsen talked to Jemisin earlier this week about the novel, how all cities have personalities, and why she doesn’t describe racism with subtlety. AND in a couple weeks, we'll bring you a panel discussion on Th...
May 15, 2020•36 min
