Avid Reader Show

05/18/2026

Some conversations leave you thinking long after they end.
In this episode of Avid Reader, I spoke with Chanda Prescod-Weinstein about The Edge of Space-Time: Particles, Poetry, and the Cosmic Dream Boogie — a conversation about science, imagination, curiosity, identity, and the wonder of trying to understand the universe.
This one expanded my world a little.
Listen to the full conversation here: https://youtu.be/GlTBESPow7c

Pantheon Books

In her highly acclaimed debut, distinguished cosmologist and particle physicist Dr. Chanda Prescod-Weinstein shared with her audience an abiding sense of won...

05/05/2026

Some conversations stay with you.
What does it mean to truly translate a text?
In this episode of The Avid Reader Show, Daniel Hahn reflects on translation as more than preserving meaning—it’s about recreating the experience of a work for a new audience.

Alfred A. Knopf

Watch the full conversation here:

Shakespeare may have breathed the air of sixteenth-century England, but today, all the world is his stage. Every year, millions of people, from Bogotá to Bor...

04/30/2026

Some conversations shift the way you think about something you’ve taken for granted. This one did that for me.

In my latest episode, I talk with Katrine Øgaard Jensen about Ancient Algorithms, a project that blurs the line between translation and writing in a way that feels both intentional and a little uncanny.

We explore what it means to create something “original,” and how writing might actually be less about invention and more about where we enter an ongoing conversation.

It’s thoughtful, a little disorienting, and really beautiful.

🎧 Listen here: https://youtu.be/Pg4JN3JXGuc




Sarabande

Ancient Algorithms - Katrine ØGaard Jensen

04/29/2026

Some books feel less like stories and more like reflections on life itself and Elegy in Blue by Mark Helprin is one of them.

At its center is an 82-year-old man, living quietly in a small Brooklyn apartment, looking out over the rooftops toward the sea. His life has been shaped by profound loss: his career, his home, and, most heartbreakingly, the people he loved most.
He describes his “allegiance…to his ghosts.”

And yet, when violence threatens another family, he makes a choice to act. One final attempt to bring a sense of justice and meaning to a life that has endured so much.

Beautifully written, both tragic and unexpectedly hopeful. A meditation on memory, love, and what it means to carry on.

If you’ve read Winter's Tale or any of Helprin’s work, I’d love to hear your thoughts.



ABRAMS Books

https://youtu.be/UzMalArbxu4

11/17/2025

We think of parasites as villains—but what if they’re vital partners in life’s web? 🦠 In Our Bodies, Our Planet, Marcus Hall uncovers how these “freeloaders” have shaped our evolution, health, and even imagination. From tapeworms to ecosystems, he shows why we can’t survive without them.
Would you rethink your relationship with parasites? 👇
Watch the full interview now on YouTube 🎥
👉 https://youtu.be/u3SjaCas6Rc

11/06/2025

id you know manga’s roots stretch back over 400 years? 🇯🇵 Before global fandoms and anime franchises, Japan had a thriving illustrated book culture — from Hokusai’s sketchbooks and Utamaro’s creature collections to serialized epics and early political cartoons.
In Japan’s Manga Revolution, Andreas Marks shows how these playful, beautiful, and groundbreaking works shaped the foundation of modern manga.
Which early manga style or artist fascinates you most? 👇
Watch the full interview now on YouTube 🎥
👉 https://youtu.be/TSCrjsffK_M

Manga didn’t begin in the 20th century — it emerged from a rich, inventive world of illustrated books in early Japan. 🇯🇵📚 In Japan’s Manga Revolution, art...

11/05/2025

From samurai rituals to modern brewpubs, 🍶 historian Eric Rath uncorks the 1,300-year story of sake — Japan’s drink of tradition, rebellion, and celebration.

Would you try traditional sake if you could visit Japan? 🇯🇵👇

Watch the full interview now on YouTube 🎥
👉 https://youtu.be/wjoFVkinFQE

Reaktion Books

Lift a glass to the story of sake—from Japanese homebrew to global phenomenon. Sake, Japan’s iconic rice-based alcoholic drink, has been central to Japanese ...

11/04/2025

Can we really edit our memories? 🧠✨ Neuroscientist Steve Ramirez explores the science of reshaping the past — and what it means for who we are.
Would you change a painful memory if you could? 👇
Watch the full interview now on YouTube 🎥
👉 https://youtu.be/SfJyf_nRBjs

Princeton University Press

A disarmingly personal account of the new science of memory manipulation by one of today's leading pioneers in the fieldAs a graduate student at MIT, Steve R...

10/02/2025

In this gripping biography, philosopher William O. Stephens explores the life, struggles, and Stoic philosophy of Marcus Aurelius — Rome’s emperor-philosopher. From pandemics and wars to betrayal and family challenges, the book reveals how Marcus applied Stoic principles while navigating an empire in turmoil. A vivid look at his legacy, it blends history, philosophy, and leadership lessons that remain strikingly relevant today.

Reaktion Books

The moving life and legacy of Rome’s great emperor philosopher. This book guides us through the fascinating life and writings of Marcus Aurelius, Stoic phil...

09/30/2025

Barbara H. Rosenwein’s Winter Dreams is a moving history of aging, revealing how the elderly have expressed their emotions and desires across two millennia. Challenging stereotypes of decline, she uncovers the depth, vitality, and meaning in old age through literature, art, and history. A timely reflection in a world that still struggles with ageism, this book celebrates the richness of our “winter years.”

Reaktion Books

A life-affirming exploration of the rich emotional lives of the elderly across thousands of years of human history. Winter Dreams is an evocative history of ...