Totally Booked with Zibby

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Hilma Wolitzer, TODAY A WOMAN WENT MAD IN THE SUPERMARKET: Stories Dec 07, 2021

Show notes

"To me, there's always humor at the edge of the darkness." Zibby is joined by Hilma Wolitzer to talk about her new collection of short stories, Today a Woman Went Mad in the Supermarket, which follows one woman throughout her life. The two discuss how Hilma wrote these stories in the large window between 1966 all the way through the pandemic, as well as how they both reflect and stray from her real life experiences. Hilma also shares what it was like to lose her husband to Covid-19 while recovering from it herself in a different hospital, the best lesson about editing (which she learned through a humiliating but impactful experience), and how her relationship with her daughter Meg has been strengthened through their writing.

Purchase on Amazon or Bookshop.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3I28Ebr

Bookshop: https://bit.ly/3I0mPxX

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Dana Canedy, A JOURNAL FOR JORDAN: A Story of Love and Honor Dec 06, 2021

Show notes

Dana Canedy's career is incredible — a senior editor at the New York Times, the administrator of the Pulitzer Prizes, and now the senior vice president and publisher of Simon & Schuster — but it's her lost love story that has shaped who she is today. Dana joined Zibby to discuss her book, A Journal for Jordan, which tells the story of how Dana's fiancée Charles managed to write down all of the life lessons he wanted to teach their son in a blank journal before he was suddenly killed by an IED while deployed in Iraq. Dana and Zibby talk about the need for community when faced when an unprecedented situation, how they have learned to be resilient in the wake of their losses, and what the experience was like for Dana to have the book adapted into a movie by her good friend, Denzel Washington.

Purchase on Amazon or Bookshop.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3rlSnII

Bookshop: https://bit.ly/3lBR8kU

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Riley Sager, SURVIVE THE NIGHT: A Novel Dec 05, 2021

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New York Times bestselling author Riley Sager joins Zibby to discuss his latest thriller, Survive the Night. Riley shares why he loves writing plot twists that the readers will least expect, as well as how this book started with the simplest pitch: "a girl, a killer, a car." The two also talk about why it is that they remember the 1990s better than they remember the last few days, the importance of starting a chapter with a captivating sentence, and how Riley has adjusted to living the life he once dreamed he would have.

Purchase on Amazon or Bookshop.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/319VbO8

Bookshop: https://bit.ly/3xB7GhE

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Maggie Smith, GOLDENROD: Poems Dec 04, 2021

Show notes

Zibby is joined by professor and poet Maggie Smith to discuss her latest collection, Goldenrod, which includes a selection of the poems Maggie has written since 2016. Maggie shares why she calls herself a recovering pessimist, the reason she doesn't write when she's in the midst of big feelings, and how she often pulls together poems from lines she writes as they come to her. Zibby also reads two selections from the book, including a piece Maggie forgot she had written.

Purchase on Amazon or Bookshop.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3xBYAkT

Bookshop: https://bit.ly/3G1xGpc

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Esther Freud, I COULDN'T LOVE YOU MORE: A Novel Dec 03, 2021

Show notes

"I love the fact that we all try and replicate our parents and rebel against them at the same time." Novelist Esther Freud joins Zibby to talk about her latest book, I Couldn't Love You More, and how her fascinating family history inspired its intergenerational story. The two discuss why Esther sought to work on a lighter project than her last, as well as which writing techniques Esther employed as she braided three storylines together.

Purchase on Amazon or Bookshop.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/31gu5VA

Bookshop: https://bit.ly/3FWHAbH

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chloe Shaw, WHAT IS A DOG?: A Memoir Dec 02, 2021

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Zibby is joined by author and dog mother Chloe Shaw to discuss her debut memoir, What Is a Dog? Chloe shares her unique literary career as well as the stories of some of the dogs who have impacted her the most. The two also talk about the importance of community in Chloe's life, why this is the perfect book to gift any dog lover, and how the many forms grief may take are all equally valid.

Purchase on Amazon or Bookshop.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3lmjHCD

Bookshop: https://bit.ly/3FZr0YY

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nora Zelevansky, COMPETITIVE GRIEVING: A Novel Dec 01, 2021

Show notes

Zibby is joined by Nora Zelevansky to talk about her latest novel, Competitive Grieving. The two discuss how the death of a friend often also means the loss of a shared history, why moms often feel the need to conceal their grief from their children, and what they each have planned for their own funerals. Read Nora's essay on Moms Don't Have Time to Write.

Purchase on Amazon or Bookshop.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3D34MDy

Bookshop: https://bit.ly/3D6yho3

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jodi Picoult, WISH YOU WERE HERE: A Novel Nov 30, 2021

Show notes

Although Jodi Picoult is the bestselling author of 26 novels which have collectively sold over 40 million copies, the pandemic affected her just like everyone else. After interviews with frontline workers, Covid-19 survivors, and a man who accidentally got trapped on the Galapagos Islands in March 2020, Jodi wrote Wish You Were Here, her take on a pandemic book. She joined Zibby to talk about the horrific stories she heard through her interviews, which projects she has resumed working on, and what questions she hopes all readers will ask themselves as we begin to emerge out from Covid-19's shadow.

Purchase on Amazon or Bookshop.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/2XRZoVh

Bookshop: https://bit.ly/3vYU9je

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Pamela Paul, 100 THINGS WE'VE LOST TO THE INTERNET Nov 29, 2021

Show notes

Pamela Paul, editor of the New York Times Book Review, joins Zibby to discuss her latest book, 100 Things We've Lost to the Internet. The two joke about the irony of their meeting about this book on Zoom as well as all of Pamela's promotional coverage on social media. They also talk about the pandemic's effect on our online activity, how our online consumption is a result of marketing messaging, and the relationship between parenting and technology.

Purchase on Amazon or Bookshop.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3nxpxS8

Bookshop: https://bit.ly/3ErkYzB

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bernhard Schlink, OLGA: A Novel Nov 28, 2021

Show notes

Zibby is joined by Bernhard Schlink, author of the international bestselling book, The Reader, to discuss his latest novel, Olga. Bernhard shares how the titular character was inspired by the women in his family, which of his own experiences shaped the novel's premise, and why he prefers to read a very specific type of book.

Purchase on Amazon or Bookshop.

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3GrIaiW

Bookshop: https://bit.ly/2ZsRgeJ

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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