For In his latest book titled "Waste Land," author Robert Kaplan focuses on the importance of technology in determining the world's future. Kaplan, author of 24 books, holds the chair in geopolitics at the Foreign Policy Institute. In Chapter 3 of his 177-page book, he claims: "…civilization is now in flux. The ongoing decay of the West is manifested not only in racial tensions coupled with new barriers to free speech, but in the deterioration of dress codes, the erosion of grammar, the decline in sales of serious books and classical music, and so on…all of which have traditionally been signs of civilization."  

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Military historian and presidential biographer Nigel Hamilton talks about the military face-off between two American presidents – Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis – during the Civil War. He discusses the early months of the war, the decision to move the Confederate capitol to Virginia, Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation, and more. This is part two of a two-part interview with Mr. Hamilton about his book "Lincoln vs. Davis."     

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For 216 weeks, a record, John Berendt's book "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" sat on the New York Times best sellers list. It was published in 1994. It sold more than 1.5 million copies. Mr. Berendt, a Syracuse native, is today 85 and lives in New York City. A musical based on the book opened in Chicago in 2024 and will open on Broadway in 2025. During this episode of the podcast, an interview with John Berendt from 1997, when he appeared on the original "Booknotes" television program to talk about the book and its success.  

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Military historian and presidential biographer Nigel Hamilton talks about the military face-off between two American presidents – Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis – during the Civil War. He discusses the background of both men, their rise to the presidencies of the Union and the Confederacy, respectively, and the events that led up to attack on Fort Sumter by Confederate forces on April 12, 1861, not long after both men were inaugurated. This is part one of a two-part interview with Mr. Hamilton about his book "Lincoln vs. Davis."     

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Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) shares his thoughts on having the tenacity to pursue progressive goals through strong alliances, hard work, & focus.

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Since his first interview on C-SPAN on Booknotes in 1993, Harold Holzer has appeared on the network close to 200 times. Up to that year he had written or edited 6 books on Abraham Lincoln. Since then, Harold Holzer has added another 50 books to his name. C-SPAN viewers and listeners have had the opportunity to hear Mr. Holzer talk about Lincoln's life, from his birth in Kentucky in 1807, until his assassination in Washington, DC, in 1865. The following conversation, which is just over 5 hours, is meant to be extensive. The center of attention is Mr. Lincoln, but in this case, also the life of Harold Holzer, a New Yorker for the past 75 years.  

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Former high school government teacher and host of the "Here's Where It Gets Interesting" podcast, Sharon McMahon, author of "The Small and the Mighty," profiles lesser-known Americans who have changed the course of American history. During the interview, Ms. McMahon talks about the contributions of retail pioneers Richard Sears and Alvah Roebuck, former slave and philanthropist Clara Brown, Japanese American politician Norman Mineta, Founding Father Gouverneur Morris, and others.    

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Journalist Adam Chandler argues that hard work is not enough to obtain the American dream. He's interviewed by author Alissa Quart.

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Kentucky senator Mitch McConnell has spent 40 years in the United States Senate, 17 of those as leader of his Republican colleagues. That's the longest any senator has been at the top of the leadership rung in either political party. Sen. John Thune (R-SD) was elected a few weeks ago to head up the Republican majority in the Senate in 2025. Journalist Michael Tackett's book, a profile of Senator McConnell, is called "The Price of Power: How Mitch McConnell Mastered the Senate, Changed America, and Lost His Party." Mr. Tackett, deputy Washington bureau chief of the Associated Press, conducted over 50 hours of interviews and was granted access to never-before-released oral histories.

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Stuart Eizenstat, former Domestic Policy Adviser to President Carter and U.S. Ambassador to the European Union under President Clinton, talks about his political career and his new book, "The Art Of Diplomacy," in which he discusses the work done to achieve agreements like the Camp David Accords, the Kyoto Protocols, and the Iran nuclear agreement. Mr. Eizenstat also talks about growing up in the South during the Civil Rights Era and how that experience changed him.

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