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About Caleb Zakarin

Caleb Zakarin is the Assistant Editor of the New Books Network (Twitter: @caleb_zakarin).

NBN Episodes hosted by Caleb:

Economics December 8, 2022

The Federal Reserve

A New History

Robert L. Hetzel

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
In The Federal Reserve: A New History (University of Chicago Press, 2022), Robert Hetzel draws on a 43-year career as an economist in the central bank to trace the influence of …
Digital Humanities November 30, 2022

Ourboox

A Conversation with Mel Rosenberg

Mel Rosenberg

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
In this interview, Mel Rosenberg discusses his love for children's literature, what makes for a memorable picture book, and the company he created, Ourboox. Ourboox is a free site that …
Political Science November 22, 2022

The Modern Presidency

Six Debates That Define the Institution

Michael Genovese

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
The Modern Presidency: Six Debates That Define the Institution (Columbia University Press, 2022) is a concisely written book that helps makes sense of the most powerful office in America. Michael frames …
Biography November 17, 2022

Our Man In Tokyo

An American Ambassador and the Countdown to Pearl Harbor

Steve Kemper

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
A gripping, behind-the-scenes account of the personalities and contending forces in Tokyo during the volatile decade that led to World War II, as seen through the eyes of the American …
Digital Humanities November 17, 2022

Plumbing the Depths of Wikipedia

A Conversation with Annie Rauwerda

Annie Rauwerda

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
In 2020, during the nadir of the pandemic, Annie Rauwerda began posting strange, humorous, and obscure Wikipedia entries on social media. She dubbed her project Depths of Wikipedia, and after several …
Art November 16, 2022

Women In Art Magazine

A Conversation with Laureline Latour

Laureline Latour

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
Laureline Latour founded Women In Art Magazine in July 2022 from a desire to bring together artists from different countries. She studied German and Russian ab initio at Oxford University. Women …
Biography November 11, 2022

Egypt's Golden Couple

When Akhenaten and Nefertiti Were Gods on Earth

John Darnell and Colleen Darnell

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
Two celebrated Egyptologists bring to vivid life the intriguing and controversial reign of King Tut's parents. Akhenaten has been the subject of radically different, even contradictory, biographies. The king has …
Politics & Polemics November 4, 2022

Aufhebunga Bunga and Global Politics

A Conversation with Alex Hochuli, George Hoare and Philip Cunliffe

Alex Hochuli, George Hoare and Philip Cunliffe

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
Aufhebunga Bunga is the global politics podcast at the End of the End of History. In this episode, Alex Hochuli, George Hoare, and Philip Cunliffe talk about their work as academics …
Digital Humanities October 13, 2022

Want to Talk to People about Books?

A Discussion with Ben Keene, Founder of Rebel Book Club

Ben Keene

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
Rebel Book Club is an online and in-person book club. Each month, over 1,000 people get together to discuss a non-fiction book, occasionally with the author as a participant.  For new …
Sociology October 13, 2022

Police, Provocation, Politics

Counterinsurgency in Istanbul

Deniz Yonucu

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
In Police, Provocation, Politics: Counterinsurgency in Istanbul (Cornell University Press, 2022), Deniz Yonucu presents a counterintuitive analysis of contemporary policing practices, focusing particular attention on the incitement of counterviolence, perpetual …
Politics & Polemics October 12, 2022

The Long Alliance

The Imperfect Union of Joe Biden and Barack Obama

Gabriel Debenedetti

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
In The Long Alliance: The Imperfect Union of Joe Biden and Barack Obama (Henry Holt, 2022) New York Magazine national correspondent Gabriel Debenedetti reveals an inside look at the historically close …
Business, Management, and Marketing September 28, 2022

After Steve

How Apple Became a Trillion-Dollar Company and Lost Its Soul

Tripp Mickle

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
Steve Jobs called Jony Ive his "spiritual partner at Apple." The London-born genius was the second-most powerful person at Apple and the creative force who most embodies Jobs's spirit, the …
American Studies September 21, 2022

Degrade and Destroy

The Inside Story of the War Against the Islamic State, from Barack Obama to Donald Trump

Michael R. Gordon

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
In Degrade and Destroy: The Inside Story of the War Against the Islamic State, from Barack Obama to Donald Trump (FSG, 2022), Wall Street Journal national security correspondent Michael R. Gordon …
Sociology September 16, 2022

Community Media Representations of Place and Identity at Tug Fest

Reconstructing the Mississippi River

Michael O. Johnston

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
Community Media Representations of Place and Identity at Tug Fest (Lexington Books, 2022) explores an annual interstate tug-of-war between two small towns along the Mississippi River. In this book, Johnston examines …
Education September 15, 2022

Where Research Begins

Choosing a Research Project That Matters to You (and the World)

Thomas S. Mullaney and Christopher Rea

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
The hardest part of research isn't answering a question. It's knowing what to do before you know what your question is. Where Research Begins: Choosing a Research Project That Matters to …
Literary Studies September 14, 2022

On Consolation

Finding Solace in Dark Times

Michael Ignatieff

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
When we lose someone we love, when we suffer loss or defeat, when catastrophe strikes—war, famine, pandemic—we go in search of consolation. Once the province of priests and philosophers, the …
Education September 6, 2022

You Are Your Own Best Teacher!

Sparking the Imagination and Intellect of Tweens

Claire Nader

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
You Are Your Own Best Teacher!: Sparking the Imagination and Intellect of Tweens (Essential Books, 2022) provides a variety of teachable antidotes to the punishing forces bearing down on youngsters from harmful …
General History September 5, 2022

The Triumph of Broken Promises

The End of the Cold War and the Rise of Neoliberalism

Fritz Bartel

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
Why did the Cold War come to a peaceful end? And why did neoliberal economics sweep across the world in the late twentieth century? In this pathbreaking study, Fritz Bartel …
Media September 5, 2022

A Linguistic Overview of Whatsapp Communication

Lucía Fernández-Amaya

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
Digital discourse has become a widespread way of communicating worldwide, WhatsApp being one of the most popular Instant Messaging tools. A Linguistic Overview of Whatsapp Communication (Brill, 2022) offers a critical state-of-the-art …
Law September 1, 2022

Social Media, Freedom of Speech, and the Future of Our Democracy

Lee C. Bollinger and Geoffrey R. Stone

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
One of the most fiercely debated issues of this era is what to do about "bad" speech, hate speech, disinformation, propaganda campaigns, incitement of violence on the internet, and, in …
Politics & Polemics August 24, 2022

After the Fall

Being American in the World We've Made

Ben Rhodes

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
Ben Rhodes visited dozens of countries, meeting with politicians and activists confronting the same nationalism and authoritarianism that are tearing America apart. Along the way, he discusses the growing authoritarianism …
Scholarly Communication August 22, 2022

Studying Black Religious Thought

A Conversation with John Ahn, Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Black Religious Thought

John Ahn

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
The Journal of Black Religious Thought advances critical scholarship in the fields of Religious Studies – with special attention to Black religious studies, which includes and intersects, but not limited …
Economics August 16, 2022

The Future of Money

How the Digital Revolution Is Transforming Currencies and Finance

Eswar S. Prasad

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
The Future of Money: How the Digital Revolution is Transforming Currencies and Finance (The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2021) provides a cutting-edge look at how accelerating financial change, from the …
Political Science August 15, 2022

The Revenge of Power

How Autocrats Are Reinventing Politics for the 21st Century

Moisés Naím

Hosted by Caleb Zakarin
Moisés Naím's The Revenge of Power: How Autocrats Are Reinventing Politics for the 21st Century (St. Martin's Press, 2022) is an urgent, thrilling, and original look at the future of democracy. It …