John Waters Talks About His First Novel

<p>Literature isn’t a horse race. Taste is subjective, and artistic value can’t be measured in terms of “winners" and “losers.”</p><p>That doesn’t mean it’s not fun to try.</p><p>The book world’s awards season officially kicked off on Oct. 9, when the Hungarian novelist Laszlo Kr ... Show More

<p>Nicholas Boggs’s “Baldwin: A Love Story,” is many things at once. It’s a comprehensive biography of James Baldwin. It’s a nimble excavation of Baldwin’s work, filled with astute literary analysis of his books and prose. And, most pressingly, it’s an argument for a new critical ... Show More

<p>On Nov. 10, 1975, during a calamitous storm, the Edmund Fitzgerald sunk below the waves of Lake Superior. All 29 men aboard went down with the vessel. With no survivors and no eyewitnesses, there’s always been a sense of mystery to what is arguably the most famous shipwreck in ... Show More

<p><em>An odd story, made up of oddly assorted elements that include a man, a woman, a gray cat, a treasure—and an invisible being that had to be seen to be believed. All Cats Are Gray by Andre Norton</em>, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, with at least one lost vintage sc ... Show More

This week’s episode is with one of my biggest writing inspirations: Dame Jacqueline Wilson. Her 111th novel Love Frankie is out now. We talk about her journey into being one of the nation's most loved writers, her writing process, why she's always wanted to discuss deeper issues ... Show More

<p><em>John Thurmon swore he'd be the first man on the moon. But he wasn't. He was only the first murderer. The First Man On The Moon by Alfred Coppel</em>, that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, with at least one lost vintage sci-fi short story in every episode.</p><br><p>In re ... Show More

Judith Butler joins Adam Shatz to discuss a landmark in feminist thought, Simone de Beauvoir’s The Second Sex (1949). Dazzling in its scope, The Second Sex incorporates anthropology, psychology, historiography, mythology and biology to ask an ‘impossible’ question: what is a woma ... Show More

On this week’s show, the hosts begin by discussing Challengers, Luca Guadagnino’s sexy tennis flick in which Zendaya stars as Tashi Duncan, the muse and lover of two male players, Art (Mike Faist) and Patrick (Josh O’Connor). It’s a smart but silly movie, one that paints a beauti ... Show More

<p><em>The slovenly wub might well have said: Many men talk like philosophers and live like fools. Beyond Lies the Wub by Philip K. Dick, </em>that’s next on The Lost Sci-Fi Podcast, with at least one lost vintage sci-fi short story in every episode.&nbsp;</p><br><p>Another 5 sta ... Show More

With her new memoir, The Critic's Daughter (Norton), Priscilla Gilman explores her relationship with her father, Theater Critic and Yale Drama professor Richard Gilman (as well as with her mom, literary agent Lynn Nesbit). We get into the perils of literary-kid memoir, the NYC bo ... Show More

<p>This week on the Penguin Podcast, Nihal is joined by writer, science populariser and theoretical, Carlo Rovelli. </p><br><p>He joins us to talk about the new English translation of his first book, Anaximander.</p><br><p>They all also discuss the singular genius of the philosop ... Show More

I am so excited to say that my guest on the great women artists podcast is one of the most pioneering – and my favourite – writers alive today, Elif Shafak! In this episode, we talk about the power of storytelling, the importance of writing women's lives into history and fighting ... Show More

Today’s guest (recorded back in 2021) is with the amazing Laura Mucha, an ex-lawyer, author, award-winning poet, and speaker. Her first book, Love Factually / We Need to Talk About Love is the result of ten years of interviews with hundreds of strangers aged 8-95 years old across ... Show More