The Bookmonger

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Studies of Paul may be the liveliest area of biblical scholarship today, says Paula Fredriksen, author of Paul: The Pagans' Apostle.

In a 10-minute conversation with The Bookmonger, Fredriksen describes why Paul was so important to early Christianity, how we know what we know about his life and times, whether he'd be surprised that the end times still have not come, and what he must have been like to meet in person.

Join the conversation and comment on this podcast episode: https://ricochet.com/podcast/bookmonger-john-miller/paul-pagans-apostle/.

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Was Churchill a drunk? Richard M. Langworth insists he wasn't in Winston Churchill, Myth and Reality: What He Actually Did and Said.

In a 10-minute conversation with The Bookmonger, Langworth describes Churchill's drinking habits and addresses the accusations that Churchill exacerbated the 1943 famine in Bengal. He also recommends biographies of Churchill and offers his assessment of the new film Dunkirk.

Join the conversation and comment on this podcast episode: https://ricochet.com/podcast/bookmonger-john-miller/winston-churchill-myth-reality-actually-said/.

Podcast listeners: Now become a Ricochet member for only $2.50 a month! Join and see what you’ve been missing: https://ricochet.com/join/.

Subscribe to The Bookmonger with John J. Miller in iTunes (and leave a 5-star review, please!), or by RSS feed. For all our podcasts in one place, subscribe to the Ricochet Audio Network Superfeed in iTunes or by RSS feed.

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Americans in the 21st century can learn a lot from an Elizabethan Englishman who wrote about classical Rome. That's what Paul A. Cantor says in Shakespeare's Roman Trilogy: The Twilight of the Ancient World.

In a 10-minute conversation with The Bookmonger, Cantor describes what he's learned about Shakespeare over a lifetime of teaching his works, what he thinks of the recent production of "Julius Casear" that features a decapitation of a Trump-like character, and why he believes "Breaking Bad" is the greatest TV show of all time.

Join the conversation and comment on this podcast episode: https://ricochet.com/podcast/bookmonger-john-miller/shakespeares-roman-trilogy-twilight-ancient-world/.

Podcast listeners: Now become a Ricochet member for only $2.50 a month! Join and see what you’ve been missing: https://ricochet.com/join/.

Subscribe to The Bookmonger with John J. Miller in iTunes (and leave a 5-star review, please!), or by RSS feed. For all our podcasts in one place, subscribe to the Ricochet Audio Network Superfeed in iTunes or by RSS feed.

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Edwin Stanton was President Lincoln's indispensable man, says Walter Stahr, author of Stanton: Lincoln's War Secretary.

In a 10-minute conversation with The Bookmonger, Stahr explains how Stanton helped the Union achieve victory, whether he was wrong to arrest draft dodgers and journalists, and why Stahr writes that he "was not a good man, but he was a great man." He also takes aim at the conspiracy theorists who claim that Stanton help plot Lincoln's murder.

Join the conversation and comment on this podcast episode: https://ricochet.com/podcast/bookmonger-john-miller/stanton-lincolns-war-secretary/.

Podcast listeners: Now become a Ricochet member for only $2.50 a month! Join and see what you’ve been missing: https://ricochet.com/join/.

Subscribe to The Bookmonger with John J. Miller in iTunes (and leave a 5-star review, please!), or by RSS feed. For all our podcasts in one place, subscribe to the Ricochet Audio Network Superfeed in iTunes or by RSS feed.

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Flannery O'Connor was a great writer of literature, but was she also a political figure? That's the claim of Henry T. Edmondson III, editor of A Political Companion to Flannery O'Connor.

In a 10-minute conversation with The Bookmonger, Edmondson explains why people still enjoy O'Connor's work today, why conservatives hold her in special regard, and how she and Russell Kirk shared a concern over "misguided humanitarianism." For those new to O'Connor, Edmondson also suggests a couple of places to start reading.

Join the conversation and comment on this podcast episode: https://ricochet.com/podcast/bookmonger-john-miller/political-companion-flannery-oconnor/.

Podcast listeners: Now become a Ricochet member for only $2.50 a month! Join and see what you’ve been missing: https://ricochet.com/join/.

Subscribe to The Bookmonger with John J. Miller in iTunes (and leave a 5-star review, please!), or by RSS feed. For all our podcasts in one place, subscribe to the Ricochet Audio Network Superfeed in iTunes or by RSS feed.

Sponsored by RXBAR

In his new book, False Black Power?, Jason L. Riley says that the civil-rights movement made a mistake when it choose political advancement over economic opportunity.

In a 10-minute conversation with The Bookmonger, Riley explains why the political success of African Americans hasn't translated into gains in human capital, what black politics should aim to accomplish in the 21st century, and why he put a question mark in his book's title.

Join the conversation and comment on this podcast episode: https://ricochet.com/podcast/bookmonger-john-miller/false-black-power/.

Podcast listeners: Now become a Ricochet member for only $2.50 a month! Join and see what you’ve been missing: https://ricochet.com/join/.

Subscribe to The Bookmonger with John J. Miller in iTunes (and leave a 5-star review, please!), or by RSS feed. For all our podcasts in one place, subscribe to the Ricochet Audio Network Superfeed in iTunes or by RSS feed.

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He was once "one of the most widely known American writers at home and abroad," writes Christoph Ir>mscher in his new biography, Max Eastman: A Life. So whatever happened to Max Eastman?

In a 10-minute conversation with The Bookmonger, Irmscher describes the life of Eastman (1883-1969), a public intellectual who started out as a political radical but then moved to the right, eventually becoming a contributor to National Review. He suggests that Eastman was the Christopher Hitchens of his time and makes the case for rediscovering Eastman today.

Join the conversation and comment on this podcast episode: https://ricochet.com/podcast/bookmonger-john-miller/max-eastman-life/.

Podcast listeners: Now become a Ricochet member for only $2.50 a month! Join and see what you’ve been missing: https://ricochet.com/join/.

Subscribe to The Bookmonger with John J. Miller in iTunes (and leave a 5-star review, please!), or by RSS feed. For all our podcasts in one place, subscribe to the Ricochet Audio Network Superfeed in iTunes or by RSS feed.

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Carl Cannon writes about "the degraded conditions of our dysfunctional, rude, hair-on-fire politics"-but also says they've been pretty bad before, in On This Date: Discovering America One Day at a Time.

In a 10-minute conversation with the Bookmonger, Cannon describes how this book was born from the morning emails he writes as Washington Bureau Chief of RealClearPolitics, how he tells the story of America with an unconventional narrative, and why being American comes to us as a gift but turns into an obligation.

Join the conversation and comment on this podcast episode: https://ricochet.com/podcast/bookmonger-john-miller/date-discovering-america-one-day-time/.

Podcast listeners: Now become a Ricochet member for only $2.50 a month! Join and see what you’ve been missing: https://ricochet.com/join/.

Subscribe to The Bookmonger with John J. Miller in iTunes (and leave a 5-star review, please!), or by RSS feed. For all our podcasts in one place, subscribe to the Ricochet Audio Network Superfeed in iTunes or by RSS feed.

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The Wall Street Journal publishes a legendary editorial page-and George Melloan reveals its history from the inside with Free People, Free Markets: How the Wall Street Journal Opinion Pages Shaped America.

In a 10-minute conversation with The Bookmonger, Melloan describes the issues that animate the Journal's opinion section, how the editors select the topics they cover, and whether he'd encourage young people to pursue careers in journalism.

Join the conversation and comment on this podcast episode: https://ricochet.com/podcast/bookmonger-john-miller/free-people-free-markets-wall-street-journal-opinion-pages-shaped-america/.

Podcast listeners: Now become a Ricochet member for only $2.50 a month! Join and see what you’ve been missing: https://ricochet.com/join/.

Subscribe to The Bookmonger with John J. Miller in iTunes (and leave a 5-star review, please!), or by RSS feed. For all our podcasts in one place, subscribe to the Ricochet Audio Network Superfeed in iTunes or by RSS feed.

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George Washington was a warrior and a farmer and a leader. Was he also a reader? Kevin J. Hayes says "yes," in George Washington: A Life in Books.

In a 10-minute conversation with The Bookmonger, Hayes discusses what Washington liked to read, whether he felt intimidated around great minds such as Jefferson and Hamilton, and why nobody has written an intellectual biography of him.

Join the conversation and comment on this podcast episode: https://ricochet.com/podcast/bookmonger-john-miller/george-washington-life-books/.

Podcast listeners: Now become a Ricochet member for only $2.50 a month! Join and see what you’ve been missing: https://ricochet.com/join/.

Subscribe to The Bookmonger with John J. Miller in iTunes (and leave a 5-star review, please!), or by RSS feed. For all our podcasts in one place, subscribe to the Ricochet Audio Network Superfeed in iTunes or by RSS feed.