Book Club Appetizer

Susan Elia MacNeal is the New York Times bestselling author of the MAGGIE HOPE mysteries. In her new thriller MOTHER DAUGHTER TRAITOR SPY, a mother and daughter find the courage to go undercover after stumbling upon a Nazi cell in Los Angeles during the early days of World War II. Inspired by the real mother-daughter spy duo who foiled Nazi plots, this is a powerful portrait of family, duty, deception, and what it means to have courage in the face of terror. Now let's join editor Jenny Chen in conversation with author Susan Elia MacNeal.

Laura Warrell's work has appeared in HuffPost, The Rumpus, and the Los Angeles Review of Books, among other publications. SWEET, SOFT, PLENTY RHYTHM is her provocative debut novel about the perennial temptations of dangerous love, told by the women who love Circus Palmer—trumpet player and old-school ladies’ man—as they ultimately discover the power of their own voices. Now let's join editor Deb Garrison in conversation with author Laura Warrell.

Laura Warrell's work has appeared in HuffPost, The Rumpus, and the Los Angeles Review of Books, among other publications. SWEET, SOFT, PLENTY RHYTHM is her provocative debut novel about the perennial temptations of dangerous love, told by the women who love Circus Palmer—trumpet player and old-school ladies’ man—as they ultimately discover the power of their own voices. Now let's join editor Deb Garrison in conversation with author Laura Warrell.

Laurie R. King is the award-winning, bestselling author of seventeen Mary Russell mysteries and many other novels. In the new novel BACK TO THE GARDEN, a fifty-year-old cold case involving California royalty comes back to life—with potentially fatal consequences. This gripping tale involves hidden secrets, serial killer The Highwayman, and an inspector with her work cut out for her. Now let's join editor Hilary Teeman in conversation with author Laurie R. King.

Ava Glass is a pseudonym for an internationally bestselling author who has sold over two and a half million copies worldwide. Ava's new novel ALIAS EMMA is a breakneck, race-against-the-clock thriller, in which a British spy has twelve hours to deliver her asset across London, after Russia hacks the city’s security cameras. Can she make it without being spotted . . . or killed? Now let's join editor Anne Speyer in conversation with author Ava Glass.

Gabrielle Zevin is the New York Times and internationally best-selling author of several critically acclaimed novels, including THE STORIED LIFE OF A.J. FIKRY and YOUNG JANE YOUNG. Her exhilarating new novel TOMORROW, AND TOMORROW, AND TOMORROW is about two friends—often in love, but never lovers— who come together as creative partners in the world of video game design, where success brings them fame, joy, tragedy, duplicity, and a kind of immortality. Now let's join editor Jennifer Jackson in conversation with author Gabrielle Zevin.

As the legendary director of classic sitcoms such as The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Taxi, Will & Grace, Frasier, and Friends—and the co-creator of Cheers—James Burrows has spent five decades making America laugh. His new book DIRECTED BY JAMES BURROWS is an insightful and nostalgic memoir that offers a bounty of behind-the-scenes moments from our favorite shows, peeling away the layers behind how a successful sitcom comes together. In today's very special episode, Pat Stango talks to James about his experiences on these legendary shows, how Ted Danson was the perfect center of a cast, and what it was like the day Andy Kaufman's alter ego visited the set of Taxi. Now let's join author and TV icon James Burrows in conversation.

Grace Li is a Chinese American writer who is currently attending medical school at Stanford University. Her debut novel PORTRAIT OF A THIEF is a lush, lyrical heist novel inspired by the true story of Chinese art vanishing from Western museums. Described as "Ocean’s Eleven meets The Farewell", it's a story about diaspora, the colonization of art, and the complexity of the Chinese American identity. Now let's join the author in conversation with her editor Amber Oliver.

Cleyvis Natera was born in the Dominican Republic, migrated to the United States at ten years old, and grew up in New York City. Her exhilarating debut novel NERUDA ON THE PARK follows members of a Dominican family in New York City who take radically different paths when faced with encroaching gentrification. The book is a beautifully layered portrait of family, friendship, and ambition. Now let's join the author in conversation with her editor Chelcee Johns.

Vanessa Hua is a columnist for the San Francisco Chronicle and the author of the novel A RIVER OF STARS and a story collection, DECEIT AND OTHER POSSIBILITIES. Her new novel FORBIDDEN CITY is an epic yet intimate portrayal of one of the world’s most powerful and least understood leaders during an extraordinarily turbulent period in modern Chinese history. This harrowing journey toward truth and disillusionment raises questions about power, manipulation, and belief, as seen through the eyes of a passionate teenage girl. Now let's join Vanessa in conversation with her editor Susanna Porter.

Fiona Davis is the New York Times bestselling author of several novels, including THE DOLLHOUSE, THE ADDRESS, THE MASTERPIECE, and THE CHELSEA GIRLS. Her latest is THE MAGNOLIA PALACE, a tantalizing novel about the secrets, betrayal, and murder within one of New York City’s most impressive Gilded Age mansions. Today Fiona is in conversation with Xavier Salomon, the Deputy Director and Peter Jay Sharp Chief Curator at The Frick in New York City.

Heather McGhee is an expert in economic and social policy, and now chairs the board of Color of Change, the nation’s largest online racial justice organization. Her new book THE SUM OF US offers a powerful exploration of inequality and the lesson that generations of Americans have failed to learn: Racism has a cost for everyone—not just for people of color. But in unlikely places of worship and work, McGhee finds proof of what she calls the Solidarity Dividend: the benefits we gain when people come together across race to accomplish what we simply can’t do on our own. Now let's join Heather Mcghee in conversation with her editor Chris Jackson. 

Adriana Trigiani is the New York Times bestselling author of twenty books, including THE SHOEMAKER'S WIFE. Among her screen credits, Trigiani wrote and directed the major motion picture adaptation of her debut novel, BIG STONE GAP. Her latest work is THE GOOD LEFT UNDONE, a lush, immersive novel about three generations of Tuscan artisans with one remarkable secret. Epic in scope and resplendent with the glorious themes of identity and belonging, THE GOOD LEFT UNDONE unfolds in breathtaking turns. Now let's join author Adriana Trigiani in conversation with her editor Maya Ziv.

Dr. Benjamin Gilmer is a former neurobiologist turned rural family practitioner, Dr. Gilmer has lectured across the country about medical ethics, rural health, and the intersection of medicine and criminal justice reform. His new book THE OTHER DR. GILMER is a powerful true story about a shocking crime and a mysterious illness that will forever change your notions of how we punish and how we heal—an expansion on one of the most popular This American Life episodes of all time. Now let's join Dr. Gilmer in conversation with his editor Emily Hartley about the mystery of what could make a caring doctor commit a brutal murder.

Kai Harris is a writer and educator from Detroit, Michigan, who uses her voice to uplift the Black community through realistic fiction centered on the Black experience. Her new book WHAT THE FIREFLIES KNEW is a coming-of-age novel told by an almost-eleven-year-old girl, as she and her sister try to make sense of their new life with their estranged grandfather in the wake of their father’s death and their mother’s disappearance. The story reveals that heartbreaking but necessary component of growing up–the realization that loved ones can be flawed. Now let's join Kai Harris in conversation with her editor Amber Oliver.

Sarah Polley is an Academy Award-nominated screenwriter, director, and actor whose films include AWAY FROM HER and TAKE THIS WALTZ. In her new essay collection RUN TOWARDS THE DANGER, Polley contemplates stories from her own life ranging from stage fright to high-risk childbirth to endangerment and more. In this extraordinary book, Polley explores what it is to live in one’s body, in a constant state of becoming, learning, and changing. Margaret Atwood is the author of more than fifty books of fiction, poetry, critical essays, and graphic novels. Her award-winning work includes THE HANDMAID'S TALE, CAT'S EYE, and ALIAS GRACE. In her new essay collection BURNING QUESTIONS, Atwood offers her funny, erudite, endlessly curious, and uncannily prescient take on everything from debt and tech to the climate crisis and freedom and the importance of how to define granola. Join us now for this fascinating conversation between authors Sarah Polley and Margaret Atwood.

Judd Apatow is one of the most important comic minds of his generation. He directed the films THE 40-YEAR OLD VIRGIN, KNOCKED UP, and TRAINWRECK. His producing credits include Superbad, Bridesmaids, Freaks and Geeks, and The Ben Stiller Show. He is the author of the interview collections SICK IN THE HEAD and SICKER IN THE HEAD, in which Apatow sits down with comedy legends such as David Letterman, Whoopi Goldberg, and Will Ferrell, as well as new stars such as John Mulaney, Bowen Yang, Amber Ruffin, Pete Davidson, and others. Let's join Pat Stango for a conversation with Judd Apatow that covers his career, his books, and his reflections on a life devoted to comedy.

Arthur C. Brooks is the author of the instant bestseller FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH, which is a roadmap for finding purpose, meaning, and success as we age. Drawing on social science, philosophy, biography, theology, and eastern wisdom—as well as dozens of interviews with everyday men and women—Brooks shows us that true life success is well within our reach. Gretchen Rubin is the author of many books, including the blockbusters OUTER ORDER, INNER CALM; THE FOUR TENDENCIES; and THE HAPPINESS PROJECT. In this special episode, Arthur C. Brooks and Gretchen Rubin have an in-depth conversation about aging, productivity, and how to set yourself up for happiness throughout life.

Diana Gabaldon is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the wildly popular OUTLANDER novels, the basis for the hit Starz series. In her latest novel GO TELL THE BEES THAT I AM GONE the year is 1779, and Claire and Jamie are at last reunited with their daughter Brianna—but the American Revolution threatens to tear them apart. On today’s episode, Diana Gabaldon talks with ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY’s Maureen Lee Lenker about her career, her writing process, and all things Outlander.

As the global pandemic began in March 2020, Todd Doughty knew he needed to do something to help him stay connected to the everyday joys of daily life. So he wrote down a list of things that make him happy. LITTLE PIECES OF HOPE pulls together the best of Doughty’s lists along with essays, musings, prompts, quotes, and playlists that offer solace, connection, and a daily touchstone of joy in a difficult world. A beautiful keepsake full of gorgeous illustrations, LITTLE PIECES OF HOPE is brimming with the pleasures of life, inspiring readers to look for and celebrate the good things that surround us. Now let's join author Todd Doughty in conversation with his editor Meg Leder.