New Books Network Podcast

Sports December 9, 2023

Marty Glickman

The Life of an American Jewish Sports Legend

Jeffrey S. Gurock

Hosted by Paul Knepper

For close to half a century after World War II, Marty Glickman was the voice of New York sports. His distinctive style of broadcasting, on television and especially on the …

Ministry of Ideas December 5, 2023

Climbing the Mountains of Modernity

Genealogies of Modernity Episode 1

Hosted by Zachary Davis

We all know many stories about how modernity came about. But what does it mean to be “modern”? This episode comes at the question through the test case of mountain …

Sports November 27, 2023

After the Count

The Death of Davey Browne

Stephanie Convery

Hosted by Keith Rathbone

Today we are joined by Stephanie Convery, inequality editor at Guardian Australia, and author of After the Count: The Death of Davey Browne (Penguin Australia, 2020). In our conversation, we …

Sports November 26, 2023

Suds Series

Baseball, Beer Wars, and the Summer of '82

J. Daniel

Hosted by Rob Heaton

On this episode, J. Daniel takes readers back more than forty years, telling a story that is part baseball history, part urban history, and part U.S. cultural history, with a …

Religion November 14, 2023

Christianity, Race, and Sport

Jeffrey Scholes

Hosted by Jacob Barrett

Listen:

This book provides a rigorously researched introduction to the relationship between Christianity, race, and sport in the United States. Christianity, Race, and Sport (Routledge, 2021) examines how Protestant Christianity and …

Israel Studies November 12, 2023

Walking the Land

A History of Israeli Hiking Trails

Shay Rabineau

Hosted by Christopher Davey

Israel has one of the most extensive and highly developed hiking trail systems of any country in the world. Millions of hikers use the trails every year during holiday breaks …

Sports October 21, 2023

Velocipedomania

A Cultural History of the Velocipede in France

Corry Cropper and Seth Whidden

Hosted by Keith Rathbone

Today we are joined by Corry Cropper, a Professor of French at Brigham Young University, and one of two authors, alongside Seth Whidden, of Velocipedomania: A Cultural History of the …

Sports October 6, 2023

Mountaintop

The Inside Story of Michigan's 1997 National Title Climb

Nick Baumgardner and Mark Snyder

Hosted by Paul Knepper

Listen:

When the 1997 college football season began, the once-mighty Michigan Wolverines were dismissed nationally as a relic of a bygone era. Michigan had posted four straight four-loss seasons and started …

Sports October 5, 2023

Equality Unfulfilled

How Title IX's Policy Design Undermines Change to College Sports

James N. Druckman and Elizabeth A. Sharrow

Hosted by Kelly McFall

Listen:

The year 1972 is often hailed as an inflection point in the evolution of women's rights. Congress passed Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, a law that outlawed …

Sports September 23, 2023

Baseball

The Turbulent Midcentury Years

Steven P. Gietschier

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin

Baseball: The Turbulent Midcentury Years (University of Nebraska Press, 2023) explores the history of organized baseball during the middle of the twentieth century, examining the sport on and off the …

Sports September 18, 2023

The One Hundred Most Important Players in Baseball History

Lincoln A. Mitchell

Hosted by Paul Knepper

Listen:

Baseball lore and history is filled with many valuable players, and not all of them are the Hall of Famers you know. In The One Hundred Most Important Players in Baseball …

Sports September 17, 2023

Shifting Currents

A World History of Swimming

Karen Eva Carr

Hosted by Keith Rathbone

Today we are joined by Dr. Karen Carr, Associate Professor Emerita in the Department of History at Portland State University and the author of Shifting Currents: A World History of …

Sports September 6, 2023

Daybreak at Chavez Ravine

Fernandomania and the Remaking of the Los Angeles Dodgers

Erik Sherman

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin

Listen:

Fernando Valenzuela was only twenty years old when Tom Lasorda chose him as the Dodgers' opening-day starting pitcher in 1981. Born in the remote Mexican town of Etchohuaquila, the left-hander …

Sports September 5, 2023

Upon Further Review

The Greatest What-Ifs in Sports History

Mike Pesca

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin

Listen:

No announcer ever proclaimed: "Up Rises Frazier!" "Havlicek commits the foul, trying to steal the ball!" or "The Giants Lose the Pennant, The Giants Lose The Pennant!" Such moments are …

Sports August 16, 2023

Earl the Twirl

My Life in Basketball

Earl Cureton and Jake Uitti

Hosted by Paul Knepper

Listen:

Today I talked to Earl Careton about his new book (co-authored with Jake Uitti), Earl the Twirl: My Life in Basketball (McFarland, 2023) Earl "The Twirl" Cureton was never a star player …

Sports July 30, 2023

The Imperial Gridiron

Manhood, Civilization, and Football at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School

Matthew Bentley and John D. Bloom

Hosted by Bennett Koerber

The Imperial Gridiron: Manhood, Civilization, and Football at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School (University of Nebraska Press, 2022) examines the competing versions of manhood at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School …

African American Studies July 2, 2023

Isaac Murphy

The Rise and Fall of a Black Jockey

Katherine C. Mooney

Hosted by Omari Averette-Phillips

Listen:

Isaac Murphy, born enslaved in 1861, still reigns as one of the greatest jockeys in American history. Black jockeys like Murphy were at the top of the most popular sport …

MIT Press Podcast June 25, 2023

Surf Craft

Design and the Culture of Board Riding

Richard Kenvin

Hosted by MIT Press

Listen:

Surfboards were once made of wood and shaped by hand, objects of both cultural and recreational significance. Today most surfboards are mass-produced with fiberglass and a stew of petrochemicals, moving …

Sports June 12, 2023

A History of Competitive Gaming

Zhouxiang Lu

Hosted by Shu Wan

Listen:

Competitive gaming, or esports - referring to competitive tournaments of video games among both casual gamers and professional players - began in the early 1970s with small competitions like the …

Sports June 11, 2023

Baseball's Endangered Species

Inside the Craft of Scouting by Those Who Lived It

Lee Lowenfish

Hosted by Paul Knepper

Listen:

Scouting has been called pro baseball’s personalized way of renewing itself from year to year and a pathway to the game’s past. It takes a very special person to be …