George Saunders has won the Booker Prize, and he’s the recipient of a MacArthur Genius Grant. He won the Folio Prize for his collection of short stories, Tenth of December, which includes the short story “Victory Lap.” In this episode, Susan and George talk about a passage from “Victory Lap.”
“Victory Lap” is about two teenagers, Alison and Kyle, and what happens when a stranger tries to abduct Alison. In his conversation with Susan, George discusses a passage from the light-hearted opening of the story, before it takes its darker turn.
Fangs! Capes! Undead bloodlust! Are vampires soul-draining ghouls or a hot prom date? No better person to ask than Indiana University professor of Slavic and East European Languages and Cultures," Dr. Jeff Holdeman, who teaches the course “The Vampire in European and American Culture.” In Part 1, it’s a deep dive into the HISTORY. Jeff breaks down the folkloric purpose of vampire stories and how they morphed into novels and hit the silver screen. Plus: why every generation reinvents its monsters.
Part 2 will dive into our modern vampire franchises and answer dozens of excellent, goofy, horny questions.
A donation went to Myeloma.org for blood cancer research in honor of your Grandpod, Larry Ward
Nutrition is a huge deal. The need to eat is one of the very few things all human beings have in common, and nations have risen and fallen based on this fact. Yet even in 2022, not everyone is getting enough of the right stuff to eat. In today's episode, Ben, Matt and Noel dive into the concept of food deserts -- including why some people hate the term, and why others think it's the result of a conspiracy. They don’t want you to read our book.
Tuesday night’s senatorial debate in Pennsylvania treated voters to a voyeuristic spectacle that was painful to watch. Can voters look beyond John Fetterman’s infirmities on November 8? Also, Lee Zeldin shines in the New York state gubernatorial debate.
Carmel DeAmicis was the 20th employee at Figma, a startup that Adobe just acquired for $20 billion. A former journalist and editor at Figma, DeAmicis saw the company rise under the nose of Adobe — the giant in the space — and eventually grow so fast that Adobe acquired it in a defensive move. In this week's episode, DeAmicis explains how a startup caught a major, established company by surprise. And why changing design culture played a big part in it. You can find DeAmicis on Notion.
A trend forecaster follows up on a trend report from 2016. A prominent fashion buyer tells me his trends for fall 2022. And Avery wonders why one particular trend, against all odds, seems to come back over and over again
Professor Amar and colleagues have weighed in (heavily) on the ISL danger, as they filed a brief with the Supreme Court in the case of Moore v. Harper. The brief is garnering wide attention with its powerful argument, as well as an innovative format. We review the background to the case and the brief, and then take you through the argument point by point. Law and history come together to make the case in this most consequential matter. Judging from the response, the country is watching.
It was the audio leak that created a political earthquake in Los Angeles.
Soon after the racist comments recorded during a private conversation among three council members and a labor leader leaked to the public, the fallout began. There’ve been resignations, rowdy protests at City Hall and more. The controversy has created a political opening that might fundamentally change the makeup of the City Council by pushing it even further to the left.
With midterms just two weeks away, today we talk about what’s next at L.A. City Hall. Read the full transcript here.
