But That's Another Story

Memoirist Jennifer Finney Boylan on J. R. R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, transitioning, and man’s best friend. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White, Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien, and Good Boy by Jennifer Finney Boylan. Also consider our staff pick’s: Matilda by Roald Dahl, The Nancy Drew series by Carolyn Keene, Number the Stars by Lois Lowry, The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, We Were Feminists Once by Andi Zeisler, Half the Sky by Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn and On Writing by Stephen King. Stay in the know about the latest Macmillan news by reading our free newsletter here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Writer Emily Gould on Eileen Myles’s Chelsea Girls, riot grrrl culture, and turning her observations inward. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out The Adventures of Tintin graphic novel series created by Hergé, the Babysitter’s Club series by Ann M. Martin, the Goosebumps series by R. L. Stine, and Inferno by Eileen Myles. Be sure to check out Emily Gould’s new book, Perfect Tunes, available now. Stay in the know about the latest Macmillan news by reading our free newsletter here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

National Book Award finalist Min Jin Lee on George Eliot's Middlemarch, imposter syndrome, and her lifelong obsession with wisdom. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin, War and Peace and Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy, Main Street by Sinclair Lewis, Middlemarch by George Eliot, and Pachinko by Min Jin Lee. Stay in the know about the latest Macmillan news by reading our free newsletter here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Novelist Rufi Thorpe on Jane Smiley’s Private Life, balancing motherhood with artistry, and a brush with mortality. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out Anne of Green Gables Lucy Maud Montgomery, The Chocolate War and We All Fall Down by Robert Cormier and Private Life by Jane Smiley. Be sure to check out Rufi’s book, The Knockout Queen. Stay in the know about the latest Macmillan news by reading our free newsletter here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Novelist Melissa Rivero on Elie Wiesel’s Night, questioning God, and growing up undocumented in America. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out Miss Nelson is Missing by Harry Allard, Dreaming in Cuban by Cristina Garcia, Death in the Andes by Mario Vargas Llosa and the Pigeon series by Mo Willems. Be sure to check out Melissa’s book, The Affairs of the Falcóns. Stay in the know about the latest Macmillan news by reading our free newsletter here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

New York Times food writer Melissa Clark on Miguel de Cervantes’ Don Quixote, Jewish Brooklyn, and eating her way through literature. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out the Little House on the Prairie series by Laura Ingalls Wilder, The Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel and Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes. Be sure to check out Melissa’s new book, Dinner in French, out Mar. 10, 2020. Stay in the know about the latest Macmillan news by reading our free newsletter here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Scholar and podcaster Simran Jeet Singh on Malcolm X and Alex Haley’s The Autobiography of Malcolm X, Edward Said’s Orientalism, and imposter syndrome to the max. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out The Autobiography of Malcolm X by Malcolm X with Alex Haley and Orientalism by Edward Said. To learn more about Simran, check out his podcast, Spirited, or follow him on Twitter @SikhProf. Stay in the know about the latest Macmillan news by reading our free newsletter here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Writer André Aciman on Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights, bygone eras and luxurious summer days spent reading. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out Enid Blyton’s The Famous Five series and The Hardy Boys books. Stay in the know about the latest Macmillan news by reading our free newsletter here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you're enjoying But That's Another Story, there's another storytelling podcast we think you'll really like. The following is an episode of Storybound, a new podcast from Lit Hub and The Podglomerate. In it, Mitch Albom reads an excerpt from his new book Finding Chika. Musical compositions by Maiah Wynne & Aliephant. To hear more episodes of Storybound today, open Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or your app of choice today, search for Storybound and hit subscribe. We'll see you next week for a new episode of But That's Another Story with a very special guest. Keep up to date on the latest at Macmillan plus behind-the-scenes details by subscribing to our newsletter here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Writer Gretchen Rubin on Virginia Woolf’s A Writer’s Diary, finding joy and children’s literature. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out E.B. White’s Charlotte’s Web and Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House on the Prairie series. Also look for Virginia Woolf’s works such as The Waves, Mrs. Dalloway, To the Lighthouse, Flush, Orlando, and Three Guineas. Stay in the know about the latest Macmillan news by reading our free newsletter here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Businesswoman and philanthropist Melinda Gates on James Baraz's Awakening Joy, spirituality, and the books that come into our lives later -- and put everything into perspective. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out Ghost Wall by Sarah Moss, The Moment of Lift by Melinda Gates, Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret by Judy Blume, Awakening Joy by James Baraz and The Book of Awakening by Mark Nepo. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Writer Michael Frank on Pema Chodron’s When Things Fall Apart, infertility and waiting. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out Pema Chodron’s When Things Fall Apart. Also look for Michael Frank’s The Mighty Franks and What is Missing? Stay in the know about the latest Macmillan news by reading our free newsletter here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Thought provocateur Michael Eric Dyson on James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time, fictionalizing race and immersing himself in all forms of learning. To learn more about the books, poems and lyrics we discussed in this episode, check out Richard Henry Dana Jr.’s Two Years Before the Mast, Thomas Gray’s poem Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard, John Paul Sartre’s Les Mots, James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time and Jay-Z’s What More Can I Say. Stay in the know about the latest Macmillan news by reading our free newsletter here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Author and environmental activist Terry Tempest Williams on W.S. Merwin’s poem The Last One, leaving Mormonism and writing from pain. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out Michael DiGiorgio and Roger Tory Peterson’s Peterson Field Guide to Birds of Western North America, Kafka’s Metamorphosis, Marie Louise Von Franz’s Creation Myths and Gladys Reichard’s Navajo Religion. To hear the latest at Macmillan, be sure to check out our newsletter here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

TV writer Gary Janetti on Charles Dickens's David Copperfield, Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City, and writing his own script. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out Randy Shilts's And the Band Played On:: Politics, People, and the AIDS Epidemic and Michael Cunningham’s The Hours. You can read Macmillan's newsletter here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Author and playwright Jessica Hagedorn on Roberto Bolaño’s 2666, taking risks and the place of the writer in America. To learn more about some of the books we discussed in this episode, check out Grimms' Fairy Tales by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger and iovanni’s Room by James Baldwin. Also see A Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Kiss of the Spider Woman by Manuel Puig and The Savage Detectives and 2666, both by Roberto Bolaño. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we're revisiting our conversation with Last Week Tonight writer Josh Gondelman, who just released his new memoir, Nice Try. He talks David Foster Wallace's Infinite Jest, his comedy career, and the value of goodness over niceness. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger, The Lord of the Flies by William Golding, It by Stephen King, and Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace. You can find transcripts of this episode and past ones on LitHub. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Director and producer Lisa Cortes on Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children, cultural consciousness and finding her voice through different mediums. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out Dr. Suess’s One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish, Gabriel García Márquez’s One Hundred Years of Solitude, Gloria Naylor’s The Women of Brewster Place and Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children. Also mentioned is the poetry of Anna Akhmatova and Gwendolyn Brooks. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Writer Monique Truong on Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women, food in literature, and seeing stories from a different angle. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder, Lafcadio Hearn’s Creole Cookbook by Lafcadio Hearn and Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Editor of The New York Times Book Review Pamela Paul on Thalia Zepatos's A Journey of One's Own, travel, and nonlinear life paths. To learn more about the books we discussed in this episode, check out Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell, A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle, Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy and A Journey of One's Own by Thalia Zepatos. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices