C-SPAN Bookshelf by C-SPAN

05.07.2024

BN+: Larry Tye, "The Jazzmen"

Duke Ellington was the grandson of slaves. Louis Armstrong was born in a News Orleans slum so tough that it was called "The Battlefield." William James "Count" Basie grew up in a world unfamiliar to his white fans, the son...

05.06.2024

Q&A: Patrick Kennedy, "Profiles in Mental Health Courage"

Former congressman Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) talks about Americans who have struggled with mental illness and the stigma and silence that he says still surrounds it. He shares the stories of the people profiled in his book, "Profiles in Mental Health...

05.04.2024

AW: David Sanger, "New Cold Wars"

New York Times correspondent David Sanger spoke about China's rise, Russia's invasion of Ukraine & America's role in the world in the 21st century. He was interviewed by Harvard University Belfer Center senior fellow Paula Dobriansky. Learn more about your ad...

04.30.2024

BN+: Carolyn Eisenberg, "Fire and Rain"

The book "Fire and Rain" is a narrative, according to author Carolyn Woods Eisenberg, about the way national security decisions, formed at the highest level of government, affect the lives of individuals at home and abroad. Her primary focus is...

04.29.2024

Q&A: Jochen "Jack" Wurfl, "My Two Lives"

Half Jewish and a member of the Hitler Youth who saw Adolf Hitler in person, Jochen "Jack" Wurfl, author of "My Two Lives," talks about surviving in Nazi Germany and his later life and success in the United States. To...

04.27.2024

AW: Susan Page, "The Rulebreaker - The Life and Times of Barbara Walters"

USA Today's Susan Page spoke about the life and career of Barbara Walters. She was interviewed by former ABC News White House Correspondent Ann Compton. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

04.26.2024

AB: Publishing Analyst Brenna Connor on Book Sales in 2024

Publishing industry analyst Brenna Connor discussed sales trends and bestsellers in the first quarter of 2024, as well as predictions for the remainder of the year. About Books also reported on the latest publishing news and new releases. Learn more about...

04.23.2024

BN+: Joseph Epstein, "Never Say You've Had a Lucky Life"

Early in his newest of over 30 books, Joseph Epstein, our guest this week, writes: "I feel extremely lucky in all these realms in which I had no real choice: parents, epoch, country, and throw in religion, city, and social...

04.22.2024

Q&A: Zachary Treitz & Christian Hansen, "American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders"

Filmmakers Zachary Treitz and Christian Hansen discuss their 4-part Netflix docuseries "American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders," about the events surrounding the death of freelance journalist Danny Casolaro (cas-uh-LARE-oh) in 1991. At the time of his death, officially ruled a suicide,...

04.20.2024

AW: Eddie Glaude, "We Are the Leaders We Have Been Looking For"

Princeton University professor Eddie Glaude spoke about his views on Black politics & how the Black community moves forward in America's democracy. He was interviewed by Harvard University History, Race, & Public Policy Professor Khalil Gibran Muhammad. Learn more about...

04.16.2024

BN+: Chris Moody, "Finding Matt Drudge" Podcast Series

Matt Drudge started his website called "The Drudge Report" in 1995. In those early days, he had just 1,000 e-mail subscribers. Within a short time that number jumped to hundreds of thousands. Up until the mid-2000s, Mr. Drudge was very...

04.15.2024

Q&A: Steven Conn, "The Lies of the Land"

In "The Lies of the Land," Miami University (Oxford, Ohio) history professor Steven Conn argues that the reality of rural America today is vastly different from the way it is often portrayed by politicians and the media. He says rural...

04.13.2024

AW: Batya Ungar-Sargon "Second Class"

Newsweek’s Batya Ungar-Sargon talks with working class Americans about their lives & policies they believe could help get them to the middle class. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

04.12.2024

AB: Danny Heitman on Rereading the Classics

Columnist Danny Heitman discussed the importance of rereading classical literature. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

04.09.2024

BN+: Jack McCallum, "The Real Hoosiers"

The book is called "The Real Hoosiers". The author is Pennsylvania-based Jack McCallum. He was a senior writer at Sports Illustrated for 30 years. "The Real Hoosiers" is a book about parts of Indiana, race, and basketball. To tell the...

04.08.2024

Q&A: David Charter, "Royal Audience"

The Times of London U.S. editor David Charter, author of "Royal Audience," discusses the special relationship that Queen Elizabeth II had with the United States and U.S. presidents over her 70-year reign as Britain's Head of State. Queen Elizabeth, who...

04.06.2024

AW: Annie Jacobsen, "Nuclear War"

Journalist Annie Jacobsen chronicled the sequence of events that would occur at home and around the globe following the launch of a nuclear missile. She was interviewed by author and national security analyst Joe Cirincione. Learn more about your ad choices....

04.02.2024

BN+: Stephen Puleo, "The Great Abolitionist"

Charles Sumner of Massachusetts was a United States Senator for 23 years. He lived to be 63, from January of 1811 to March of 1874. Stephen Puleo has written the first major, full biography of Sumner since 1960. It's titled...

04.01.2024

Q&A: Dr. Uché Blackstock, "Legacy"

Our guest this week is Dr. Uché Blackstock. She and her twin sister, Oni, are graduates of Harvard Medical School, as was their mother, Dr. Dale Gloria Blackstock. In fact, they were the first Black mother-daughter graduates of Harvard Medical...

03.30.2024

AW: Jonathan Haidt, The Anxious Generation"

NYU professor Jonathan Haidt argued that technology is harming the social development and mental health of children. He was interviewed by Harvard University Center for Digital Thriving co-director and author Emily Weinstein. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

03.29.2024

AB: Jonathan Karp on 100 years of Simon & Schuster

Simon & Schuster President & CEO Jonathan Karp discussed the company's 1924 founding, its role in publishing, and some of the authors it has published. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

03.26.2024

BN+: Andrew Pettegree, "The Book at War"

Andrew Pettegree is a British historian at St. Andrews University in Scotland. His specialty is the history of the book and media transformations. He has written a great deal about the written word with an emphasis on libraries. His latest...

03.25.2024

Q&A: Carlos Lozada, "The Washington Book"

Pulitzer Prize-winning book critic and New York Times columnist Carlos Lozada, author of "The Washington Book," talks about the insights he gleaned from reading the memoirs, political biographies, and official reports written by politicians and government officials in Washington, DC....

03.23.2024

AW: Teresa Ghilarducci, "Work, Retire, Repeat - The Uncertainty of Retirement in the New Economy"

New School economic professor Teresa Ghilarducci offered her thoughts on how to make retirement in the U.S. attainable for more Americans. She was interviewed by Washington Post economics correspondent Abha Bhattarai. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

03.19.2024

BN+: Dorothy & Thomas Hoobler, "Are You Prepared for the Storm of Love Making?"

In Dorothy and Thomas Hoobler's latest book, they open with this introduction: "This is a book of love stories. Every one of them involved a president of the United States, and we will tell their stories through letters they wrote....

03.18.2024

Q&A: Rob Henderson, "Troubled"

Columnist Rob Henderson talks about growing up as a troubled child in the U.S. foster care system, the hurdles he overcame to become successful, and what he learned about class divisions in America as a result. By age 8, after...

03.16.2024

AW: Jane Marie, "Selling the Dream"

Journalist Jane Marie reported on how multilevel marketing businesses make their profits. She was interviewed by Business Insider senior correspondent Emily Stewart. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

03.15.2024

AB: 2024 Spring Book Preview

National Book Critics Circle board member J. Howard Rosier previewed some of the nonfiction books being released this spring. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

03.12.2024

BN+: James Traub, "True Believer"

James Traub's latest book is titled "True Believer: Hubert Humphrey's Quest for a More Just America." In the introduction, Mr. Traub writes: "I return to Humphrey in order to explain what liberalism was at its ascendant moment, why it mattered...

03.11.2024

Q&A: Scott Eyman, "Charlie Chaplin vs. America"

Hollywood biographer Scott Eyman discusses his book "Charlie Chaplin vs. America," about the silent film star's fallout with the U.S. government during the Red Scare. Once a beloved actor and filmmaker, Charlie Chaplin became a target of right-wing politicians and...

03.09.2024

AW: Dr. Elizabeth Comen, "All in Her Head"

Dr. Elizabeth Comen looked at the medical history of women's health and discussed how the narrative around women's bodies was shaped mostly by men. She was interviewed by Muhlenberg College Medical Humanities Program Director Jacqueline Antonovich. Learn more about your...

03.05.2024

BN+: Peter Englund, "November 1942"

The year is 1942, the month is November. The subject of Peter Englund's book is "An Intimate History of the Turning Point of World War II." Mr. Englund, who is based in his native Sweden, features close to 40 people...

03.04.2024

Q&A: Katie Rogers, "American Woman"

New York Times White House correspondent Katie Rogers discusses her book "American Woman," about the modern evolution of First Ladies of the United States. She talks about the impact and contributions of First Ladies of both parties going back to...

03.02.2024

AW: Kara Swisher, "Burn Book - A Tech Love Story"

Journalist Kara Swisher spoke about her career and covering the tech industry and its key players. She was interviewed by author and Financial Times global business columnist and associate editor Rana Foroohar. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

03.01.2024

Tony Lyons of Skyhorse Publishing

Skyhorse President & Publisher Tony Lyons discusses the company he founded in 2006, his latest expansion efforts and outlook on the publishing industry. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

02.27.2024

BN+: Jim Trusty, Defense Attorney

Jim Trusty, our guest this week, is an attorney with 28 years of experience as a prosecutor, first in the state of Maryland and later with the U.S. Justice Department in Washington, DC. He has worked as an attorney for...

02.26.2024

Q&A: Patti Davis, "Dear Mom and Dad"

Patti Davis discusses her book "Dear Mom and Dad," a memoir written as a letter to her late parents, Ronald and Nancy Reagan. She talks about being in the spotlight after her father entered politics in the 1960s, her complicated...

02.24.2024

AW: Marie Arana, "LatinoLand - A Portrait of America's Largest and Least Understood Minority"

Writer Marie Arana shares stories and little-known histories of the diverse Latino population of America, the fastest-growing minority in the U.S. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

02.20.2024

BN+: Glenn Kirschner, Former Federal Prosecutor & "Justice Matters" Host

Glenn Kirschner, our guest this week, is an attorney with 30 years of trial experience. For 24 of those years, he prosecuted 50 murder trials for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Washington, DC. Three years ago, he created for YouTube...

02.19.2024

Q&A: Speaker Don Scott (D), Virginia House of Delegates

"For every young kid that makes a mistake, they can look at Don Scott and say, 'I'll never give up. I can still be what I want to be in America.'" That was former Republican governor Bob McDonnell of Virginia...

02.17.2024

AW: Andrew Curran, "Who’s Black and Why?"

Wesleyan University professor Andrew Curran looked at how the concept of race emerged during the 18th-century Enlightenment period. George Mason University history professor Christy Pichichero interviewed him. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

02.16.2024

AB: Daniel Paisner on Ghostwriting

Author Daniel Paisner discusses his ghostwriting career and the recent National Convention of Ghostwriters. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

02.13.2024

BN+: Steven Ujifusa, "The Last Ships from Hamburg"

"Between 1881 and 1914, over ten million people crossed the Atlantic from Europe to America, the largest mass migration of people from one continent to another in human history." Those are the words of our guest, Steven Ujifusa, from his...

02.12.2024

Q&A: Charles Scribner III, "Scribners: Five Generations in Publishing"

Charles Scribner III, author of "Scribners: Five Generations in Publishing," talks about his family's history at the famous publishing house that was founded by his great-great-grandfather in 1846. He also shares stories about some of the authors published by Scribner...

02.10.2024

AW: Coleman Hughes, "The End of Race Politics"

Writer and podcaster Coleman Hughes argued that the U.S. should move towards a colorblind approach to politics and race. He was interviewed by the Atlantic staff writer and author Thomas Chatterton Williams. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

02.06.2024

BN+: Benn Steil, "The World That Wasn't"

Henry Wallace was President Franklin Roosevelt's vice president during his third term, 1941-1945. FDR then chose Harry Truman as vice president in his fourth and last term. In author Benn Steil's book "The World That Wasn't: Henry Wallace and the...

02.05.2024

QA: Sebastian Thrun, AI Pioneer & Tech Entrepreneur

Tech entrepreneur Sebastian Thrun talks about his work in Silicon Valley and the future of artificial intelligence. Thrun, formerly a vice president at Google, is the founder or co-founder of Google X (R&D), Waymo (self-driving cars), Google Brain (AI), Kitty...

02.03.2024

AW: Ijeoma Oluo, "Be a Revolution"

Writer Ijeoma Oluo looked at how everyday Americans are fighting oppression in our systems and institutions to bring about change in communities. She was interviewed by author and activist Soraya Chemaly. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

02.02.2024

AB: Mary Beth Tinker on Book Bans & Free Speech

Free speech activist Mary Beth Tinker discussed Iowa's state law on "age-appropriate" books in public school libraries. About Books also reported on the latest publishing industry news and current non-fiction books. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

01.30.2024

BN: H.W. Brands, "Founding Partisans"

Henry William Brands Jr. has written close to 40 books in the past 36 years. The Portland, Oregon, native is a professor of history at the University of Texas at Austin, the same school where he earned his PhD in...

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