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05-01-09: Agony Column Exclusive Podcast : Alan Cheuse, Three Books :
Amos Oz, 'Rhyming Life and Death,' Elmore Leonard, 'Road Dogs' and Rory Clements 'Martyr'


If you want to know what you should be reading tomorrow, you can listen to what Alan Cheuse has to say today. He's the book commentator for NPR's All Things Considered, and the source of seemingly endless variety when it comes to reading suggestions. Today's discussion goes all over the map, from literary thought-experiments to slick, smart, mainstream fiction to new books you might not have heard of, but will be glad to hear about.

Alan Cheuse always manages to surprise me with this literary choices. I plucked his review of 'Rhyming Life and Death' from the San Francisco Chronicle, which is to be commended for its extensive and varied book coverage. The latest novel by Amos Oz is a slim volume with lots of payoff. And how can you go wrong with Elmore Leonard? You can't, and his latest, 'Road Dogs,' brings together three protagonists from previous novels. Finally, we talk about the first book by Rory Clements, a British journalist whose historical mystery, 'Martyr' is an immersive historical journey and a toe-tapping murder mystery. You can hear what Alan and I have to say about these fine works well worth your time and money by following this link to the MP3 audio file.



04-30-09: Agony Column Podcast News Report : Richard Lupoff Reads at SF in SF : "T-Shirts"

At the last, heavily attended SF in SF, you could have been forgiven if you were to wonder where in the hell the "Science Fiction" had scampered off to. Peter Beagle's story featured a fantasy staple, the dragon, in a modern setting and was written with a nice feel for magic realism. I have to admit, I did not know what to expect from Richard Lupoff. I've enjoyed his goofy, entertaining mysteries and his horror fiction. But what he read was took me by surprise.

Lupoff's story, "T-Shirts" was another wonderful piece of super-American magic realism. To my mind it would have made a wonderful episode of The Twilight Zone, especially if done in the trademark black and white style of the first and to my mind best (only, really) run of the series. He's working on a series of short story collections for Elder Signs Press; the first volume out is 'Terrors.' If I'm not mistaken, "T-Shirts" is from a forthcoming volume titled 'Wonders.' "T-Shirts" is a period piece, and he really re-creates an era. You can hear his story by following this link to the MP3 audio file podcast.



04-29-09: Agony Column Podcast News Report : Mark Rudd at Cal State East Bay, Part 2: "You don't dehumanize the enemy."

For a presentation lasting nearly two hours, Mark Rudd's lecture at Cal State East Bay was really quite lively. From a future war with China to a confrontation with the only FBI agent to infiltrate the Weather Underground, the second half of this show - and it really was a show - more than equals the first. I have to say that the group that showed up from DC didn't do itself any favors and they won no converts with their questions. They tried to rattle Rudd, but he proved to be I think to them, annoyingly generous and unconcerned with their accusation. He was quite straightforward and up front while they quickly began to move from questioning Rudd to hectoring him. They also stirred up some folks in the audience who didn't want to hear them natter on. I was actually sitting next to the gang leader — and it was a gang, even if they were all cops of ex-cops — and I tried to shut him up to no avail. Larry Grohlwald, the FBI agent, parroted their take on matters, but came off just a little bit better than they did. You can hear the back-and-forth between Rudd and Grohwald by following this link to the audio MP3 file.


04-28-09: Mark Rudd at Cal State East Bay, Part 1: "I was kind of on my way down"

When Peter McGettigan and I arrived to record Mark Rudd's lecture in the library at Cal State East Bay, the lines of battle were already drawn. Every chair in the room was blessed with a single sheet of paper containing: "Questions For Communist Terrorist Mark Rudd." The organization driving the questions, Pipeline News, had a heavy-duty right-wing agenda and three or four beefy ex-cops on the scene to hector Rudd. It was going to get ugly and fast.

McGettigan and I got the audio and video set up pretty quickly, then waited as the room filled with listeners and tension. Rudd arrived and after a brief introduction by Hank Reichman, began a straightforward reading where he was open and willing to answer the questions posed to him. He encouraged interruptions, which he received, and responded to them until Reichman, an effective moderator, tried to move the discussion along. You can hear the tension mount by downloading the linked MP3 audio file of the first part of the
confrontation presentation.


04-27-09: A 2009 Interview with Mark Rudd : "It was a moment in which people felt a terrible need to do something"

Just over a month ago, I wrote that Mark Rudd wasn't going to make friends with his new book, 'Underground: My Life with the SDS and the Weathermen' (William Morrow / HarperCollins ; March 24, 2009 ; $25.99). Little did I know how true this would prove when I finally had the opportunity to interview him. I shouldn't have been surprised that he would have a busy schedule when he came to Northern California. My hopes for getting him down to Santa Cruz so we could tape an interview at the Community TV studios were dashed, and instead, I found myself driving up the Cal State East Bay with Santa Cuz Book TV videographer Peter McGettigan.

There we first attended a lecture, reading and Q&A with Rudd, hosted by Hank Reichman. I'll write more about that scene over the next couple of days as I podcast the audio of the raucous event. But I think first, it's best to get a clean overview of Rudd and his life from my interview with him after the event. Reichman, who did a superb job managing a rowdy event, and Diane Daniel, the Cal State East Bay Publicist, were kind enough to find us a perfect conference room with great sound and a good setup for McGettigan's video. Rudd was tired (and after such an emotionally draining event, who can blame him?) but as you can hear in this linked MP3 interview, we managed to have a great conversation covering the salient points of how he was transformed from an intellectual high-school nerd into a federal fugitive and eventually a teacher in New Mexico. Stay tuned for the action-packed two-part prequel. We're hoping to get the video extracted sooner rather than later, and to make video more a part of our podcast.


New to the Agony Column

04-21-15: Commentary : Kazuo Ishiguro Unearths 'The Buried Giant' : The Mist of Myth and Memory

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2014 Interview with Kazuo Ishiguro : ".... by the time I was writing this novel, the lines between what was fantasy and what was real had blurred for me..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 202: Kazuo Ishiguro : The Buried Giant

04-17-15: Commentary : Erik Larson Follows a 'Dead Wake' : Countdown to Destiny

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2014 Interview with Erik Larson : " "...said to have been found in the arms of a dead German sailor..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 201: Erik Larson : Dead Wake

04-15-15: Commentary : Peter Bell Reflects 'A Certain Slant of Light' : Strange Stories of Modern Scholars

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2014 Interview with Peter Bell : "...I looked up some of the old books..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 200: Peter Bell : Strange Epiphanies and A Certain Slant of Light

03-14-15: Commentary : Marc Goodman Foresees 'Future Crimes' : Exponential Potential

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Marc Goodman : "...every physical object around us is being transformed, one way or another, into an information technology..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 199: Marc Goodman : Future Crimes: Everything Is Connected, Everyone Is Vulnerable and What We Can Do About It

03-01-15: Commentary : William Ury on Getting to Yes with Yourself: And Other Worthy Opponents : To the BATNA, Robin!

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with William Ury : ...he proceeded to shout at me for approximately 30 minutes..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 198: William Ury : Getting to Yes with Yourself: And Other Worthy Opponents

02-22-15: Commentary : Jennifer Senior Experiences 'All Joy and No Fun: The Paradox of Modern Parenthood' : Reading Fun for the Whole Fambly!

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Jennifer Senior : "...it becomes a source of enormous tension once a baby comes along..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 197: Jennifer Senior : All Joy and No Fun: The Paradox of Modern Parenthood

02-09-15: Commentary : Stewart O'Nan Looks 'West of Sunset' : Twilight of the Great

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Stewart O'Nan : "...we see him as a tragedian because is life is a tragedy..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 196: Stewart O'Nan : West of Sunset

02-04-15: Commentary : Armistead Maupin Maps 'The Days of Anna Madrigal' : Swiftly Flow the Years

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Armistead Maupin : "I could see what silliness was going on while it was happening..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 195: Armistead Maupin : The Days of Anna Madrigal

01-31-15: Commentary : Christine Carter's Path to 'The Sweet Spot: How to Find Your Groove at Home and Work' : Neurohabits

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Christine Carter, Ph.D. : "...a real tipping point..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 194: Christine Carter, Ph.D. : The Sweet Spot: How to Find Your Groove at Home and Work

01-23-15: Commentary : Jake Halpern Pushes 'Bad Paper: Chasing Debt from Wall Street to the Underworld' : Non-Fiction 21st Century Noir

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Jake Halpern : "...he goes to Las Vegas to this debt-buyers' convention..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 193: Jake Halpern : Bad Paper: Chasing Debt from Wall Street to the Underworld

01-19-15: Commentary : David Shields and Caleb Powell Assert 'I Think You're Totally Wrong' : The Power to Bicker

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with David Shields and Caleb Powell : "I read no book reviews any more; the level of discussion is really pedestrian." David Shields "I'm just saying it's a conflict of interest!" Caleb Powell

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 192: David Shields and Caleb Powell : I Think You're Totally Wrong

01-17-15: Commentary : Charles Todd Expects 'A Fine Summer's Day' : We Interrupt This Program...

Commentary : Charles Todd Engages In 'A Test of Wills' : The Politics of Passion and Policing

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2014 Interview with Charles and Caroline Todd : "...let them be themselves and sort it out..." Caroline Todd "...it's more on a personal level..." Charles Todd

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 191: Charles Todd : A Fine Summer's Day

01-13-15: Commentary : Rosalie Parker Unearths 'The Old Knowledge' : The New Old World

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2014 Interview with Ray Russell and Rosalie Parker : "I thought I'd write something for fun.." Ray Russell "..there was a side of me of that was interested in the strangeness..." Ros Parker

01-12-15: Commentary : Richard Ford 'Let Me Be Frank with You' : The Default Years

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2014 Interview with Richard Ford : "...most of our politicians are morons..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 190: Richard Ford : Let Me Be Frank with You

01-06-15: Commentary : Bessel van der Kolk 'The Body Keeps the Score' : Human Trauma

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2014 Interview with Bessel van der Kolk : "...being able to see what happens in the brain really helps us to understand certain things..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 189: Bessel van der Kolk : The Body Keeps the Score

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