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Matthew Riemer and Leighton Brown, authors of WE ARE EVERYWHERE: PROTEST, POWER, AND PRIDE IN THE HISTORY OF QUEER LIBERATION | Ep22 BOOKS CONNECT US Jun 15, 2020

Show notes

On today's show we have a conversation between Matthew Riemer and Leighton Brown, authors of WE ARE EVERYWHERE: PROTEST, POWER, AND PRIDE IN THE HISTORY OF QUEER LIBERATION. This book is a a rich and sweeping photographic history of the Queer Liberation Movement from the creators and curators of the massively popular Instagram account @lgbt_history, and traces queer activism from its roots in late-nineteenth-century Europe–long before the pivotal Stonewall Riots of 1969–to the gender warriors leading the charge today. The New York Times calls WE ARE EVERYWHERE “An impassioned photographic tour of an ever-changing, increasingly vocal and insistently resilient LGBTQ community and culture, from nineteenth century ideology to contemporary conversations around intersectionality.”

Please join Matthew and Leighton for a fascinating conversation about LGBTQ history, intersectionality, and activism.

Max Brooks, author of WORLD WAR Z and DEVOLUTION | Ep21 BOOKS CONNECT US Jun 11, 2020

Show notes

On today's show Max Brooks, the author of World War Z, The Zombie Survival Guide, and Minecraft: The Island, talks with his editor Sarah Peed about his writing process, survival, and his newest book, DEVOLUTION. Part survival narrative, part bloody horror tale, and part scientific journey into the boundaries between truth and fiction, DEVOLUTION is a Bigfoot story as only Max Brooks could chronicle it.

This interview originally premiered on Del Reydio---that's D-E-L R-E-Y-D-I-O, the dedicated podcast for Random House's Del Rey imprint. Del Rey is one of the world's foremost publishers of science fiction, fantasy, and horror, as well as media and pop culture titles. And now, here's our conversation with Max Brooks.

Chanel Cleeton, author of NEXT YEAR IN HAVANA and LAST TRAIN TO KEY WEST | Ep20 BOOKS CONNECT US Jun 08, 2020

Show notes

On today's show we have author Chanel Cleeton, the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick NEXT YEAR IN HAVANA. Her latest book LAST TRAIN TO KEY WEST is about three women in 1925 whose lives are forever changed when one of the most powerful hurricanes in history barrels toward the Florida Keys. OprahMag.com says "Cleeton’s beach reads are often lit by the sun of places like Florida and Cuba, and her latest doesn’t disappoint." Now let's join internationally renowned book blogger Vilma Iris Gonzalez in conversation with Chanel Cleeton.

Dustin Lance Black, author of MAMA'S BOY and Academy Award winning screenwriter of MILK | Ep19 BOOKS CONNECT US Jun 04, 2020

Show notes

Today's guest is Dustin Lance Black: an author, filmmaker and social activist known for writing the Academy Award–winning screenplay of the Harvey Milk biopic MILK, and for his part in overturning California’s discriminatory Proposition 8. His heartfelt, deeply personal memoir MAMA'S BOY explores how a mother and son built bridges across great cultural divides—and how our stories hold the power to heal. Now please join book editor Anna Kaufman in conversation with Dustin Lance Black.

Praise for MAMA'S BOY:
Mama’s Boy is a beautifully written, utterly compelling account of growing up poor and gay with a thrice married, physically disabled, deeply religious Mormon mother, and the imprint this irrepressible woman made on the character of Dustin Lance Black. Their extraordinary bond left me exhilarated—it actually gave me hope for the future of the republic, which is no mean feat, given the dark mood of our current moment.”
—Jon Krakauer, author of Missoula and Under the Banner of Heaven

“A fast read with witty observations, and all the emotions to go along. . . . [A] testament to the powerful impact a good parent has on children. . . . Black and Mama’s Boy show just how far the unlikeliest of children can go with pure, unabashed grit.”
—San Francisco Chronicle

“A fascinating and poignant combination of memoir and family history. . . . Both personal and universal. . . . The most emotional moments come as Black finds himself in personal encounters with those who might be considered obviously antagonistic to his world, including leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and more conservative members of his own family. . . . Finding common ground is indeed the powerful throughline in Mama’s Boy.”
—Salt Lake City Weekly

Jodi Picoult (SMALL GREAT THINGS) and Nic Stone (DEAR JUSTYCE) have a frank discussion about race | Ep18 BOOKS CONNECT US Jun 03, 2020

Show notes

On today's show we have authors Nic Stone and Jodi Picoult discussing topics such as white fragility, the differences in expectations for black women and white women, the problematic nature of colorblindness, and what to do to be a better white advocate. Nic Stone is the critically acclaimed and New York Times bestselling author of DEAR MARTIN, CLEAN GETAWAY and her latest DEAR JUSTYCE.
Jodi Picoult is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of twenty-five novels, including SMALL GREAT THINGS and THE BOOK OF TWO WAYS.

This originally aired on Nic Stone's Instagram channel, as part of a series of conversations that she is having about race.

Other books discussed in this episode include WHITE FRAGILITY by Robin DiAngelo and HOW TO BE AN ANTIRACIST by Ibram X. Kendi.

Abbi Waxman (I WAS TOLD IT WOULD GET EASIER) and Kristan Higgans (ALWAYS THE LAST TO KNOW) | Ep17 BOOKS CONNECT US Jun 01, 2020

Show notes

Today's episode is a discussion between authors Abbi Waxman and Kristan Higgins. Abbi Waxman is the USA Today bestselling author of OTHER PEOPLE'S HOUSES, THE GARDEN OF SMALL BEGINNINGS, and her latest I WAS TOLD IT WOULD GET EASIER, which follows mother-daughter duo Jessica and Emily Burnstein as their carefully mapped-out college tour devolve into a series of off-roading misadventures.

Kristan Higgins is the New York Times bestselling author of nearly twenty novels, including LIFE AND OTHER INCONVENIENCES and her latest ALWAYS THE LAST TO KNOW, which examines a family at the breaking point in all its messy, difficult, wonderful complexity. Let's join Abbi Waxman and Kristan Higgins in conversation.

Roselle Lim (Vanessa Yu's Magical Paris Tea Shop) and Soniah Kamal (Unmarriageable) | Ep16 BOOKS CONNECT US May 28, 2020

Show notes

Today we have a conversation between authors Roselle Lim and Soniah Kamal. Roselle Lim is a Filipino Chinese writer who came to Canada from the Philippines as a young teen, and penned the novels Natalie Tan's Book of Luck and Fortune, and her latest "Vanessa Yu's Magical Paris Tea Shop". Book Riot says that "similar to the sweet fabulist-romcom style of Lim’s debut, this new book follows a young woman’s culinary and magical adventures.”

Soniah Kamal’s debut novel, An Isolated Incident, was a finalist for the Townsend Prize for Fiction. Her new book UNMARRIAGEABLE is a charming update on Jane Austen’s beloved PRIDE AND PREDJUDICE, and an exhilarating exploration of love, marriage, class, and sisterhood.

Here are Soniah Kamal and Roselle Lim in conversation with Penguin Random House's Senior Campaigns Director Christine Hung.

Praise for VANESSA YU'S MAGICAL PARIS TEA SHOP:

“…similar to the sweet fabulist-romcom style of Lim’s debut, this new book follows a young woman’s culinary and magical adventures.”-BookRiot

Praise for UNMARRIAGEABLE:

“Thoroughly charming.”—New York Post

“[A] funny, sometimes romantic, often thought-provoking glimpse into Pakistani culture, one which adroitly illustrates the double standards women face when navigating sex, love, and marriage. This is a must-read for devout Austenites.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Elizabeth Gilbert author of EAT PRAY LOVE and CITY OF GIRLS | Ep15 BOOKS CONNECT US May 25, 2020

Show notes

Elizabeth Gilbert is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Big Magic, Eat Pray Love, and several other internationally bestselling books of fiction and nonfiction. Her latest entitled CITY OF GIRLS is a unique love story set in the New York City theater world during the 1940s. A novel of glamour, sex, and adventure, it's about a young woman discovering that you don’t have to be a good girl to be a good person. Here is our own Amy Brinker in conversation with Elizabeth Gilbert.

Praise for CITY OF GIRLS:

“A spellbinding novel about love, freedom, and finding your own happiness.”
– PopSugar

“Intimate and richly sensual, razzle-dazzle with a hint of danger.”
–USA Today

“Pairs well with a cocktail…or two.”
–TheSkimm

Jonathan Karl, author of FRONT ROW AT THE TRUMP SHOW and Chief White House Correspondent for ABC News | Ep14 BOOKS CONNECT US May 21, 2020

Show notes

Today's guest is Jonathan Karl, the Chief White House Correspondent for ABC News and president of the White House Correspondents' Association. Over his long and award-winning career, he has reported from the White House under four presidents and more than a dozen press secretaries and has covered every major beat in Washington. His New York Times bestselling book is [FRONT ROW AT THE TRUMP SHOW][1], which is an account like no other from the White House reporter who has known President Donald Trump for more than 25 years.

Joining him is Allison Dobson, who is President of the Penguin Publishing Group and oversees Penguin’s adult publishing business in the U.S. Prior to her time in publishing, Allison spent several years on Capitol Hill and on political campaigns. And now let's join Allison Dobson in conversation with author Jonathan Karl.

Included in this episode is an excerpt from the audiobook, courtesy of Penguin Random House Audio.

Praise for [FRONT ROW AT THE TRUMP SHOW][2]:

“No reporter has covered Donald Trump longer and with more energy than Jonathan Karl. It pays off in his account of what he calls the Trump Show with some startling scoops. What did the president scrawl across the rejected resignation letter from his attorney general? He tells us.”—Susan Page, Washington Bureau chief, USA TODAY

“Jon Karl is fierce, fearless and fair. From cub reporter at the NY Post to Chief WH Correspondent for ABC News, he’s covered Donald Trump—and the White House—for a generation. He knows the man, and the office. Front Row at the Trump Show takes us inside the daily challenge of truthful reporting on the Trump WH, revealing what’s at stake with vivid detail and deep insights.”—George Stephanopoulos

“Jonathan Karl is a straight shooting, fair minded, and hardworking professional so it’s no surprise he’s produced a book historians will relish. It’s about good old fashioned news getting—about the process and the rules and how it works. Overlaying it is this most amazing moment in American political history. Underlying it is a story about waking up each morning and trying against the odds to find out what’s true.”—Peggy Noonan, The Wall Street Journal
[1]: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/611343/front-row-at-the-trump-show-by-jonathan-karl/
[2]: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/611343/front-row-at-the-trump-show-by-jonathan-karl/

Curtis Sittenfeld, author of RODHAM, asks "What if Hillary had NOT married Bill Clinton?" | Ep13 BOOKS CONNECT US May 18, 2020

Show notes

Curtis Sittenfeld is the New York Times bestselling author of the novels Prep, American Wife, Sisterland, and Eligible. Her latest is the much anticipated RODHAM, a novel that imagines a deeply compelling what-might-have-been: What if Hillary Rodham hadn’t married Bill Clinton? Brilliantly weaving a riveting fictional tale into actual historical events, RODHAM delivers an uncannily astute and witty story for our times. So now let's join READ IT FORWARD's Abbe Wright in conversation with Curtis Sittenfeld.

This episode is brought to you by the new podcast THE ADAPTABLES from Read It Forward.

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