Mar 12

Society Is Closer To Collapse Than We Think - Luke Kemp

Today on Open Book, we’re diving into one of the biggest questions in human history: why do civilizations rise—and why do they collapse? Cambridge scholar Luke Kemp joins me to explain why the forces shaping our future might be the same ones that brought down every empire before ... Show More

29m 49s

Mar 11

America’s Economic Divide, Global Energy Crisis, AI Job Losses, Bitcoin’s Future

The world feels like it’s unraveling—oil shocks, AI replacing jobs, and markets trying to figure out what comes next. Mike Novogratz and I break down why this economy is splitting in two, where Bitcoin and oil go from here, and how smart investors survive the chaos. Michael Novog ... Show More

32m 53s

Mar 10

March 2026 Q&A: America Going Broke, Working for Trump, Books You Must Read

In this month’s Q&A episode of Open Book, I answer questions from viewers across YouTube, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X on topics ranging from politics and global markets to career decisions, philosophy, and parenting. We cover Citizens United, the national debt, and the future of c ... Show More

30m 8s

Apr 2025

Hugh Howey: “I write for myself.”

Hugh Howey is an international best-selling author whose work has been published in 40 languages. But he’s not just a writer, he’s an entrepreneur in the purest sense. When Hugh self-published a short story, the world demanded more. Soon enough the income from that one story was ... Show More

35m 37s

Mar 2025

688 Georges Simenon

The Belgian-born French writer Georges Simenon (1903-1989) was astonishing for his literary ambition and output. The author of something like 400 novels, which he wrote in 7-10 day bursts (after checking with his physician beforehand to ensure that he could handle the strain), he ... Show More

1h 2m

Nov 2024

Ken Burns

For more than forty years, Ken Burns and his collaborators have created some of the most acclaimed historical documentaries ever made. Sarah Burns and David McMahon join him to discuss his legendary career, new film, and the people and events that molded our history.Learn more ab ... Show More

1h 8m

Sep 2024

Rabih Alameddine

As the author of six critically acclaimed novels, including the 2022 PEN/Faulkner award winning ‘The Wrong End of the Telescope’, Rabih Alameddine is no stranger to the living art of storytelling. His work explores worlds that may seem beyond words, everything from civil war t ... Show More

29m 10s

Oct 2024

Writing Fiction, Overcoming Depression, and Ben Shapiro Becoming Christian (Andrew Klavan) | Ep. 490

Andrew Klavan is a bestselling author, screenwriter, and cultural commentator known for his incisive insights and engaging storytelling. With a career spanning decades, he has penned numerous novels, many of which have been adapted into films. Klavan's work often explores themes ... Show More

3h 1m

Jun 2024

613 Celebrating the Book-Makers (with Adam Smyth) | My Last Book with Christopher de Hamel

Books are beloved objects, earning lots of praise as amazing pieces of technology and essential contributors to a civilized society. And yet, we often take these cultural miracles for granted. Who's been making these things for the last several centuries? How have they influenced ... Show More

58m 57s

Jan 2024

Episode 572 - Sammy Harkham

With his graphic novel, BLOOD OF THE VIRGIN (Pantheon), Sammy Harkham tells a story of personal and professional disintegration, against the backdrop of exploitation movies and the Iraqi Jewish diaspora in '70s L.A. We get into the obsessions and family lore that drove him to mak ... Show More

1h 31m

Mar 2025

Paul Theroux Reads V. S. Pritchett

Paul Theroux joins Deborah Treisman to read and discuss “<a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1958/02/15/the-necklace">The Necklace</a>,” by V. S. Pritchett, which was published in The New Yorker in 1958. Theroux’s nonfiction books include “<a ... Show More

1h 5m

The Master Of Fiction: Ken Follett