New Books Network
History January 22, 2021

Feral Atlas

The More-than-human Anthropocene

Anna L. Tsing

Hosted by Michael Vann
Do you feel lost in the Anthropocene? Would you like a map to chart your way through our changing world? How about an atlas? Well, the Feral Atlas Collective has …

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Eastern European Studies January 22, 2021

On Civilization's Edge

A Polish Borderland in the Interwar World

Kathryn Ciancia

Hosted by Steven Seegel
As a resurgent Poland emerged at the end of World War I, an eclectic group of Polish border guards, state officials, military settlers, teachers, academics, urban planners, and health workers …
Islamic Studies January 22, 2021

The Golden Calf Between Bible and Qur'an

Scripture, Polemic, and Exegesis from Late Antiquity to Islam

Michael E. Pregill

Hosted by Shehnaz Haqqani
In his exciting and thorough book, The Golden Calf between Bible and Qur'an: Scripture, Polemic, and Exegesis from Late Antiquity to Islam (Oxford, 2020), Michael Pregill explores the biblical and …
Science, Technology, and Society January 22, 2021

Catastrophic Thinking

Extinction and the Value of Diversity from Darwin to the Anthropocene

David Sepkoski

Hosted by Lukas Rieppel
We live in an age in which we are repeatedly reminded—by scientists, by the media, by popular culture—of the looming threat of mass extinction. We’re told that human activity is …
Biography January 22, 2021

Poet of Revolution

The Making of John Milton

Nicholas McDowell

Hosted by Mark Klobas
Decades before he wrote his epic work Paradise Lost, John Milton was an active republican and polemicist. How Milton came to espouse such radical views is just one of the …
African American Studies January 22, 2021

Careers

A Discussion with Dorothy Berry, DIgital Archivist

Dorothy Berry

Hosted by Adam McNeil
On today’s podcast, I am chatting with Dorothy Berry, Houghton Library's Digital Collections Program Manager. In it, we discuss why she became an archivist, what digital archivists do, and about the great …
Anthropology January 22, 2021

Everyday Economic Survival in Myanmar

Ardeth Maung Thawnghmung

Hosted by John Traphagan
Reforms in Myanmar (formerly Burma) have eased restrictions on citizens' political activities. Yet for most Burmese, Ardeth Maung Thawnghmung shows in Everyday Economic Survival in Myanmar (U Wisconsin Press, 2019), eking …
Literary Studies January 22, 2021

Archive Feelings

A Theory of Greek Tragedy

Mario Telò

Hosted by Britton Edelen
On this episode, I interview Mario Telò, professor of Classics and Comparative Literature at the University of California, Berkeley, about his new book, Archive Feelings: A Theory of Greek Tragedy …
Genocide Studies January 22, 2021

Spain, the Second World War, and the Holocaust

History and Representation

Sara J. Brenneis and Gina Herrmann

Hosted by Kelly McFall
Spain has for too long been considered peripheral to the human catastrophes of World War II and the Holocaust. This volume is the first broadly interdisciplinary, scholarly collection to situate …
Genocide Studies January 22, 2021

Acts of Repair

Justice, Truth, and the Politics of Memory in Argentina

Natasha Zaretsky

Hosted by Jeff Bachman
Acts of Repair: Justice, Truth, and the Politics of Memory in Argentina (Rutgers UP, 2020) explores how ordinary people grapple with political violence in Argentina, a nation home to survivors of …
Academic Life January 21, 2021

How to Stop Chasing Happiness and Make a Meaningful Life Instead

A Discussion with Frank Martela

Frank Martela

Hosted by Christina Gessler
Welcome to The Academic Life. You are smart and capable, but you aren’t an island, and neither are we. So we reached across our mentor network to bring you podcasts …
Asian Review of Books January 21, 2021

These Violent Delights

Chloe Gong

Hosted by Nicholas Gordon
“These violent delights have violent ends. And in their triumph die, like fire and powder, which as they kiss, consume.” These Violent Delights (Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2020) is the …
East Asian Studies January 21, 2021

Being in North Korea

Andray Abrahamian

Hosted by Ed Pulford
As well as presenting practical challenges, addressing the question ‘what is it like in North Korea?’ raises ethical concerns around who is entitled to interpret life in a place so …
Dan Hill's EQ Spotlight January 21, 2021

The Saddest Words

William Faulkner's Civil War

Michael Gorra

Hosted by Dan Hill
Today I talked to Michael Gorra about his new book The Saddest Words: William Faulkner's Civil War (Liveright, 2020). This episode touches on two of William Faulkner’s novels in particular: The Sound and …
Central Asian Studies January 21, 2021

Polymaths of Islam

Power and Networks of Knowledge in Central Asia

James Pickett

Hosted by Nicholas Seay
James Pickett's new book, Polymaths of Islam: Power and Networks of Knowledge in Central Asia (Cornell University Press, 2020) analyzes the social and intellectual power of religious leaders who created a …
East Asian Studies January 21, 2021

Fir and Empire

The Transformation of Forests in Early Modern China

Ian M. Miller

Hosted by Sarah Bramao-Ramos
Ian M. Miller’s book Fir and Empire: The Transformation of Forests in Early Modern China (University of Washington Press, 2020) offers a transformation of our understanding of China’s early modern …
Political Science January 21, 2021

Amateur Hour

Presidential Character and the Question of Leadership

Lara M. Brown

Hosted by Lilly Goren
Political scientist Lara Brown’s new book, Amateur Hour, is a complex and important multi-method study of the presidency, starting from the original conception of the office at the constitutional convention …
Sociology January 21, 2021

Digital Nomads

In Search of Freedom, Community, and Meaningful Work in the New Economy

Rachael A. Woldoff and Robert C. Litchfield

Hosted by Galina Limorenko
In the space of a few weeks this spring, organizations around the world learned that many traditional, in-person jobs could, in fact, be performed remotely. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, however …
Christian Studies January 21, 2021

Trump and the Protestant Reaction to Make America Great Again

Matthew Rowley

Hosted by Ryan Shelton
The relationship between American Protestant Evangelicals and the candidacy, presidency, and legacy of Donald Trump arrests the attention of journalists and pundits alike. But few have probed the implication that the rally …
Literature January 20, 2021

I'll Go

War, Religion, and Coming Home, From Cairo to Kansas City

Alexs Thompson

Hosted by Eric LeMay
Today I interview Alexs Thompson about his new memoir, I'll Go: War, Religion, and Coming Home, from Cairo to Kansas City (2020). Let me begin with a moment of honesty …