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The fantastic Keith Thomson joins us to talk pirates, hand grenade throwing, and how even I can still live out my baseball dreams. We talk about Keith's new book, Born to Be Hanged, which is one of the craziest pirate stories you've never heard.

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The wonderful Shelley Puhak joins me to talk her new book, The Dark Queens, how I can improve my poetry, and what I would wear back in the Dark Ages. Yes, really. She was very patient with me.

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Pulitzer Prize winner Debby Applegate joins us to talk about her new book, Madam, her addiction to research, and the things she's learned along the way. We also talk about winning the Pulitzer for The Most Famous Man in America and, of course, trashy TV.

Check out her website: https://debby-applegate.com/
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You know James Kirby Martin when he came on the podcast to talk about his novel, Surviving Dresden. Well, Russia invaded Ukraine and Jim had feelings he wanted to talk about. I did, too and the result is this special episode for you, nerds! We hope you enjoy it, and more importantly, we hope Ukraine keeps up the fight.

Check out his website: https://jameskirbymartin.com/
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This episode is with author Catherine Grace Katz to talk about her book, The Daughters of Yalta. We also talk time management, baseball, 80s John Hughes movies, and whether or not I can play Joseph Stalin in a movie.

Check out her website: https://www.catherinegracekatz.com/
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This episode is with PEN New England and Truman Capote award winner Kevin Birmingham to talk about his newest book, The Sinner and the Saint. We also talk with Kevin about his previous book, The Most Dangerous Book and we even get into his thoughts on how colleges run their graduate programs.

Check out his website: http://www.kevinbirmingham.net/
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Another special episode for you, nerds! Dr. James Kirby Martin joins me to talk about his new book, Surviving Dresden. He talks about how the idea started, the Hollywood machine, and we do some dream casting for the inevitable miniseries.

Check out his website: https://jameskirbymartin.com/
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Two for one episode for you, nerds! Husband and wife team Matthew and Tobey Pearl join the podcast to discuss mansplaining, how to balance being an author and parent, and their new books (Tobey - Terror to the Wicked and Matthew - The Taking of Jemima Boone)!

Make sure to check out their websites:
Tobey - https://www.tobeypearl.com/
Matthew - http://www.matthewpearl.com/

Don't forget to buy their books too. Use the links below to get a great read and support the podcast. Thanks in advance, nerds!

Terror to the Wicked
The Taking of Jemima Boone

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Pulitzer Prize finalist and author James M. Scott joins the podcast to talk about Rampage, his book on the World War II Battle of Manila. James explains his writing process, where he gets his ideas, the challenge in getting children to pay attention to history, and how to make the perfect gin and tonic. Hint: the secret is in his yard.

Make sure to check James out on his website: http://jamesmscott.com/.

Don't forget to buy his books too. Use the links below to get a great read and support the podcast. Thanks in advance, nerds!

Rampage: MacArthur, Yamashita, and the Battle of Manila
Target Tokyo: Jimmy Doolittle and the Raid That Avenged Pearl Harbor
The Attack on the Liberty: The Untold Story of Israel's Deadly 1967 Assault on a U.S. Spy Ship
The War Below: The Story of Three Submarines That Battled Japan 

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The Prankmaster General is in the house! In preparation for the upcoming Army/Navy football game, we welcome the king of Army/Navy pranks to the podcast. Mike talks about his path to being famous (infamous?) among military academy alumni, his rules for pranking, and which are his favorites.

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