Thecuriousmanspodcast

Matt Crawford speaks with author and wellness coach Brittany Gowan about her book, Turn to the Sun. Gowan discusses how nature can have an acute effect on our mindfulness and overall, wellbeing. Included in the book are exercises to teach us how to turn on our sensory wakefulness and how to disconnect and recenter no matter where we are. 

Matt Crawford speaks with author and podcast host Emily P. Freeman about her book, How to Walk Into a Room. Many of us do not know how or when to leave a situation that doesn't suit us. We also have trouble discerning what to take and what to leave. Freeman discusses how to decide when the time is right to move on and how to do so with grace, dignity and closure.

Matt Crawford speaks with author Dr. Angela Bowers about her book, Overcoming. A psychotherapist for over 40 years Dr. Bowers decided to share one of her most challenging and complex patients with us. Using the name Emma to protect her identity, Dr. Bowers shares the intense therapy Emma needed for 6 years to try and heal from the vast trauma, of all different types that she had suffered. A story that can be difficult to read it is also one that is sure to uplift. Emma's words are also included in this book, and it shows how indominable the human spirit truly is. While we all may have not experienced what Emma has, her story will strike resonance with some of our struggles and illustrate that there is always hope.

Matt Crawford speaks with journalist and author Roger Rapoport about his book, Searching for Patty Hearst. 50 years ago, socialite and billionaire heiress Patty Hearst was kidnapped by the Symbionese Liberation Army (SLA.) After two months in captivity Hearst joined the SLA and participated in a bank robbery and kidnapping. Rapoport has followed this case from the start and is still uncovering details about it. This is a story so unbelievable it begs to be read.

Matt Crawford speaks with author Jeffrey Simon about his book, The Bulldog Detective: William J. Flynn and America's First War Against the Mafia, Spies, and Terrorists. Who was William J. Flynn? At the forefront of crime fighting as a member then Chief of the Secret Service, Deputy Commissioner in the NYPD and director of the Bureau of Investigation (the forerunner of the FBI) this man chased down corruption, spies, the Mafia and terrorists and the turn of the 20th century. Why then so do few know his name. That is a wrong that Simon looks to right in this detailed and exciting read that proves history is anything but boring.

Matt Crawford speaks with author Kevin Baker about his book, The New York Game: Baseball and the Rise of a New City. Baseball is "the New York Game" because New York is where the diamond was first laid out, where the bunt and the curveball were invented, and where the home run was hit. Baker and I discuss how unique baseball is to New York and how both the game and the city evolved in tandem. You want to watch New York grow? Take the train back in time to the ball field and see how the city was built around the New York teams. 

Matt Crawford speaks with author Kevin Holohan about his book, So You Wanna Run A Country? A satirical parable of the perils of authoritarianism, nationalism, and device-dependent group think. With the T.V show So You Wanna Run a Country? as the backdrop, Holohan reveals our societies psychological underbelly with some scenarios that hit too close to home. A ridiculously, outlandish, fun and thought provoking read that will make you guffaw and cringe in shame in the same sentence! 

Matt Crawford speaks with top marriage and parenting author and speaker, Arlene Pellicane about National Marriage Week. Arlene has written several books about marriage and hosts the Happy Home Podcast. We discuss the importance of National Marriage Week, why it was started and why it is so important to celebrate it. We also talk about the secrets to a long and happy marriage, as well as how to keep a happy spouse. 

Matt Crawford speaks with author Ditte Lysgaard Vind about her book, Danish Design Heritage and Global Sustainability. Why should we care and what can we learn from Danish designers? Vind describes the circumstances that led to certain tenets of Danish design developed and how those practices were steeped in sustainability and ecology. We can all agree that we have taken too much from this planet and we need to start rolling back that impact. How though can we start if we don't understand how and why we impact the earth the way we do? This book is the perfect place to start and Vind includes solutions as well as case study and proof that we can act responsibly, and people have been doing it for decades. There are solutions and we just need to be open to them. 

Matt Crawford speaks with Reagan Sova about his epic poem, Wildcat Dreams in the Death Light. This work has been described as an incantatory work of narrative poetry. Infused with hobo melancholy, Jewish lore, bloodshed, and hilarity, this epic poem is nothing short of a contemporary masterpiece. Set in 1910s America, Wildcat Dreams in the Death Light traces young  Mort Sloman’s odyssey to honor his jockey uncle—the only dead man ever to have won a horse race. But before Mort can organize a worthy funeral, he must acquire “the Locksmith keys”—a form of esoteric knowledge beyond the understanding of even graybeard rabbis. Sova and I describe what lies underneath his poetry and what influenced him to write this work. This is a literary journey that will force us all on our own path of discovery, I hope you will all come along for the ride. As has been said, this is a work that begs regular rereading and years of contemplation. I wholeheartedly agree!