News Nerds

As the year comes to an end, I thought it would be a good opportunity to review this year in interviews. This week, you’ll hear one of my favorite interviews of the year with writer Lois Lowry. Lowry is a prolific author; she’s written almost 50 books. Two of her books, Number the Stars and The Giver, won a John Newbery Award for best children’s literature. She has a new book coming out in February called The Windeby Puzzle. It’s inspired by the discovery of a 2,000 year old bog body of a child found in Germany. Set in the Iron Age, the book imagines what happened to the child, who was found wearing a woolen blindfold. In this January interview we talked about her best known books, my favorites, and newest books.

Have a good start to the holidays!

Ezra

This week marks the one year anniversary of a chain of deadly tornadoes that travelled through Kentucky and the surrounding states. 80 Kentuckians died in the tornadoes and many more were injured. One of the hardest hit towns in Kentucky was Mayfield. Many businesses were affected by the storm including Carr’s Steakhouse. Last year I talked to Daniel Carr, who is an owner at the steakhouse. This week I called him back up to get an update on the future of the restaurant. Although the restaurant was completely destroyed, the Carr family has opened Carr’s Cafe while they think about rebuilding.

Help Kentucky tornado victims: https://secure.kentucky.gov/formservices/finance/wkyrelief

Ezra

The U.S. military has been racially integrated for less than a century, and the nation has fought some of the most significant wars with segregated troops. As this week’s guest will tell us, the often overlooked role of African Americans in the second World War is important; black troops fought in combat, supplied other troops with food and ammunition, and built key infrastructure that allied militaries relied on in winning the war. Matthew Delmont’s new book is Half American: The Epic Story of African Americans Fighting World War II at Home and abroad. Delmont teaches history at Dartmouth college and is the author of 4 previous books, all relating to civil rights and African American history. He won a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2017 and was awarded a National Endowment for the Humanities Public Scholar Award two years ago.

Ezra

I'm back from Italy with an interview with one of the great foodies of America.

You might know J Kenji Lopez Alt from his cookbooks or maybe his work at Cook’s Illustrated and Serious Eats or maybe from social media, where he has hundreds of thousands of followers. Lopez Alt is known for his scientific approach to cooking in his books, videos, and articles. Well, this week, Kenji was in town, and he graciously stopped by for an interview. He’s the author of two cookbooks, The Food Lab, and his newest book, The Wok: Recipes and Techniques. He’s also published a children’s book called Every Night Is Pizza Night. Today we’ll talk about his early days in the kitchen, his latest cookbook, and his advice for last minute Thanksgiving woes. Happy Thanksgiving!

Ezra

This week we’ll head south, to Brazil, where voters narrowly elected Lula Da Silva as the country’s next president. Lula previously was president of Brazil from 2003 to 2010 and won in Sunday’s run-off election against incumbent Jair Bolsonaro. Many were watching the race because of policy regarding the deforestation of the Amazon Rainforest. As today’s guest will tell us, president-elect Lula views deforestation in a different way than Bolsonaro; in fact, Lula has pledged to stop deforestation of the Amazon altogether. A day after the election, I recorded my interview with climate scientist Carlos Nobre. He works with the University of São Paulo, the Federal University of Espírito Santo and the State University of São Paulo regarding the Amazon and its impacts on earth systems. He was also a lead author of the 2007 IPCC report that won the Nobel peace prize. We’ll learn how the Amazon acts as the “carbon sink” of the world, the effect of deforestation on the ecosystem, more sustainable ways to extract wealth from the Amazon, and how Lula’s administration will work to stop deforestation.

 Following a slow start to the hurricane season, Hurricanes Fiona and Ian left many without electricity or even a house to return to after the storm. This week we’re joined by National Public Radio’s Miami correspondent Greg Allen, who has been covering the hurricanes. Allen got his start in radio in Pennsylvania where he hosted a weekly folk music program. After work at several NPR member stations, Greg transitioned to work at national shows including Morning Edition and Talk of the Nation. Before becoming a correspondent based in Florida, he worked for four years as a Midwest correspondent. 

Later, remembering country icon Loretta Lynn. She died Tuesday at the age of 90. She’s best known for her autobiographical song “Coal Miner's Daughter” which is the same name of her first memoir. Then, we’ll listen back to my 2021 interview with science writer David Quammen. He has a new book out called Breathless: The Scientific Race to Defeat a Deadly Virus and It’s a finalist for the national book award. My full interview with David is linked here.

Sorry for the delay, what can I say, Wi-Fi on the high plains!

Ezra

On this week’s News Nerds, remembering England’s Queen Elizabeth who died earlier this month at 96. Journalist Robert Hardman joins us to talk about his book, Queen Of Our Times: The Life of Elizabeth II, which was published in March of this year. Robert writes for the Daily Mail and has worked covering the royal family for more than 25 years. He’s the author of 4 additional books about Queen Elizabeth and has adapted his work into several documentaries. We’ll talk about Queen Elizabeth’s early days on the throne, the commonwealth, and the differences between her and her son, King Charles.

Have a happy week,

Ezra

Yo, News Nerds, I'm so glad to be back! This week I (virtually) sat down with NY Mag correspondent, Gabriel Debenedetti. 

The complicated relationship between Barack Obama and Joe Biden is mostly thought of through the lens of their two terms in the White House , but today’s guest, New York Magazine writer Gabriel Debenedetti tells us that the relationship spans almost 2 decades. Debenedetti’s new book, The Long Alliance which was published yesterday, profiles the two president’s relationship from 2003 up until this year, a time span in which he says the two men had a nuanced but at times turbulent relationship. We’ll talk about the duo’s decision making, how their personal lives seeped into their professional ones, and what their relationship looks like now. Debenedetti writes for New York Magazine, which he joined in 2018, but previously covered politics and the 2016 presidential race for Politico. He also previously covered the Obama Administration and Capitol Hill for Reuters.

A tentative plan for next week: Remembering Queen Elizabeth II

Ezra