WYPL Book Talk

We are delighted to welcome Lamar Alexander back to the program today for the second of a special two-part interview. Mr. Alexander served three terms as a United States Senator from Tennessee, two terms as the governor of the Volunteer State, served as secretary of education during George H.W. Bush’s administration, and was also the president of the University of Tennessee. He's also authored several previous books including Six Months Off and Lamar Alexander’s Little Plaid Book. Today, we conclude our discussion of his new memoir The Education of a Senator: from JFK to Trump, which is published by Post Hill Press. 

We are delighted to welcome Lamar Alexander to the program today for the first of a special two-part interview. Mr Alexander served three terms as a United States Senator from Tennessee, two terms as the governor of the Volunteer State, served as secretary of education during George H.W. Bush’s administration, and was also the president of the University of Tennessee. He's also authored several previous books including Six Months Off and Lamar Alexander’s Little Plaid Book. Today we begin our discussion of his new memoir The Education of a Senator: from JFK to Trump, which is published by Post Hill Press. 

Ruth Franklin is an acclaimed American literary critic and biographer, known for her award-winning works Shirley Jackson: A Rather Haunted Life (Liveright/W.W. Norton, 2016) and A Thousand Darknesses: Lies and Truth in Holocaust Fiction (Oxford University Press, 2011).  Today, we’ll be discussing her latest release, The Many Lives of Anne Frank, which is published by Yale University Press. 

Max Brallier is a prolific and NY Time Bestselling author who has been working most recently in the field of children’s literature. His book series include Mister Shivers, Eerie Elementary, Galactic Hot Dogs, and The Last Kids on Earth. Several years ago, he began a graphic novel spin off from The Last Kids on Earth called The Last Comics on Earth, which he co-writes with Joshua Pruett and is drawn by Jay Cooper and Douglas Holgate. Max stopped by the studio to discuss the fourth and final installment called The Last Comics on Earth: Across the Doodleverse, which is published by Viking Books for Young Readers

I’m pleased to welcome Adam Ross back to the program today for the second of a two-part interview. Adam is the editor of the legendary literary journal, The Sewanee Review. He’s also a novelist and appeared on Book Talk for his debut Mr. Peanut and for the follow-up short story collection Ladies and Gentlemen. Today we will be discussing his second novel, Playworld, which was published last year and has been recently released in trade paperback by Vintage Contemporaries.

 

I’m pleased to welcome Adam Ross back to the program today for the first of a two-part interview. Adam is the editor of the legendary literary journal, The Sewanee Review. He’s also a novelist and appeared on Book Talk for his debut Mr. Peanut and for the follow-up short story collection Ladies and Gentlemen. Today we will be discussing his second novel, Playworld, which was published last year and has been recently released in trade paperback by Vintage Contemporaries.

 

 

Brad Taylor is a retired U.S. Army Lt. Colonel who served in what is commonly known a Delta Force. Since his retirement, he's become a best-selling thriller writer whose series starring Pike Logan and The Taskforce, a sub rosa kinetic tactical squad, is now up to its twentieth installment, Shadow Strike, which is published by William Morrow.

WYPL Programming Coordinator Andy Hunt hosts his first episode of Book Talk, and his guest is veteran journalist and novelist David Wesley Williams. David appeared on Book talk previously to discuss his novel Long Gone Daddies. Today he and Andy discuss his most recent title, Come Again No More, which is published by JackLeg Press.

Mark Greaney is a best-selling writer of thrillers. He co-authored several Jack Ryan novels with Tom Clancy, and even continued the series for several years following Mr. Clancy's passing. Some of his other titles are Red Metal and Armored, but he is best known to Book Talk listeners as the author of The Gray Man series of books starring the burned CIA operator, Court Gentry. 2026 brings us the 15th installment in the series, The Hard Line.

Matthew Pearl is a best-selling historical novelist and writer of non fiction. His previous novels include The Dante Club and The Technologists. His most recent novel moves him into a more contemporary era dealing with real estate, the literary world, and jealousy. It’s called The Award, and it’s available from Harper. 

 

Dr. Austin McCoy is a professor of history at West Virginia University. Today we’ll be discussing his first book for a general readership about the legendary hip-hop group De La Soul, Living in a D.A.I.S.Y. Age: The Music, Culture, and World De La Soul Made, which is published by Atria.

 

Gayle Feldman has been with the prestigious industry magazine Publisher’s Weekly for over forty years as a writer and a senior editor. She has previously written the memoir, You Don’t Have to Be Your Mother, as well as a look at the publishing industry called Best and Worst of Times: The Changing Business of Trade Books. Today Gayle and I continue our conversation about her newest title. Nothing Random: Bennett Cerf and the Publishing House He Built, which is published by Random House. 

 

 

Brian Earl to the program today. Brian is the host of the podcast Christmases Past and the author of two books about the holiday, Christmas Past: The Fascinating Stories Behind Our Favorite Holiday's Traditions and the recently published, Of Christmases Long, Long Ago: Surprising Traditions from Christmas Past, which is available from Lyons Press. 

We welcome Peter Brannen to the program for the final installment of our two-part interview. Peter is a journalist, and his work has appeared in publications such as The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Wired.  His book The Ends of the World, about the five major mass extinctions in Earth's history, was published in 2017. Today we’ll conclude our discussion of his latest title, The Story of CO2 is the Story of Everything: How Carbon Dioxide Made Our World, which is published by Ecco.   

 

We welcome Peter Brannen to the program for the first installment of our two-part interview. Peter is a journalist, and his work has appeared in publications such as The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Wired.  His book The Ends of the World, about the five major mass extinctions in Earth's history, was published in 2017. Today we’ll begin our discussion of his latest title, The Story of CO2 is the Story of Everything: How Carbon Dioxide Made Our World, which is published by Ecco.   

 

 

Eli Cranor is a former professional football player turned crime fiction novelist. His previous novels are Don’t Know Tough, which won the Edgar Award in 2023 for Best First Novel, Ozark Dogs, Broiler, and today we’ll be discussing his most recent title, Mississippi Blue 42, which is published by Soho Crime. 

 

 

Food historian and host of TV's TrueSouth John T. Edge returns to Book Talk to discuss his memoir, House of Smoke.

 

Dr. Coltan Scrivner is a scientist who studies morbid curiosity, or why death and injury demand our attention, ranging from biological instincts to cultural mores. Today we’ll be discussing his new book, Morbidly Curious: A Scientist Explains Why We Can't Look Away, which is published by Penguin.

 

 

 

We welcome Dr. Pue Shaw back to the program today for the final of a two-part interview. Dr. Shaw is a retired reader of Italian and Italian Literature, having taught at The University of Cambridge and the University of London. Much of her research is focused on the medieval poet Dante Alighieri. Her books for a general readership are Reading Dante: From Here to Eternity and the recently published Dante: The Essential Commedia, both are published by Liveright. 

 

 

We welcome Dr. Pue Shaw to the program today for the first of a two-part interview. Dr. Shaw is a retired reader of Italian and Italian Literature, having taught at The University of Cambridge and the University of London. Much of her research is focused on the medieval poet Dante Alighieri. Her books for a general readership are Reading Dante: From Here to Eternity and the recently published Dante: The Essential Commedia, both are published by Liveright.