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05-16-12: A 2012 Interview with Mark Sundeen and Daniel Suelo

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"What would happen if we actually practiced this stuff?"

—Daniel Suelo

Mark Sundeen and Daniel Suelo were in high spirits when they arrived at the Capitola Book Café to talk about Sundeen's biography of Suelo, 'The Man Who Quit Money.' Suelo was not wearing his trademarked hat, and his shock of gray hair gave him a rather professorial air. Hunkered down in the lounge with big cups of chai tea, they could have been TA's on break from UC Santa Cruz.

Were that to be the case, their lectures would have been quite well-attended. Suelo's blog has recently hit big, and he's been getting coverage in lots of media outlets, even, yes, this one. To be honest, I was not all that interested in the book, but Tamera at Capitola Book Café urged me to give it a chance. What I found had the feel of a novelistic story, not a pop-celeb puff piece, and I finished the book easily.

Mark and Daniel make an interesting pair. They both tend to the quiet side, though Mark is incisive and quick to the point. Daniel is a bit quieter and more contemplative. You can see why he thought he might become a sadhu when he was in India. He's definitely cut out for the life is he leading. He wears it well. It was a fun interview, and I just followed what was interesting to me. Afterwards, I was told by both men that nobody else had asked the sorts of questions I did.

You can hear my conversation with Mark Sundeen and Daniel Suelo by following this link to the MP3 audio file.


05-15-12: The Agony Column Live with T. M. Luhrman, Capitola Book Café, May 5 2012

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"It's a real experience."

—Tanya Luhrman

There was already a crowd (and not without problems) when Tanya Luhrman arrived for the Agony Column Live show at the Capitola Book Café on Saturday, May 5. She was there to discuss her book 'When God Talks Back: Understanding the American Evangelical Relationship With God,' with an audience of both skeptics and believers. That makes for a lively, if sometimes contentious show.

Happily, I had time to sit down speak with her before the show, to chat about her work in a more general manner. It was nice to speak with her outside the boundaries of an interview, where I tend to focus on the latest specific written work. Luhrman works in a number of areas that I find interesting.

When we sat down to talk in front of the audience, the conversation went easily, with new questions that I'd not had a chance to ask the first time around. When it came time for the audience Q&A things did get a bit contentious. With perfect hindsight, I now have in my arsenal a means to make sure that these Q&A's don't go south in the future. In the interim, I used my discretion as an editor to clean up and tone down some of the more digressive questions. I tried to cut to the chase.

Luhrman got some great audience questions, and her answers were particularly smart and expansive. You can hear the whole interview by following this link to the MP3 audio file.




05-15-12 UPDATE: Podcast Update: Time to Read Episode 44: David Vann, 'Dirt'

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Here's the forty-fourth episode of my new series of podcasts, which I'm calling Time to Read. The podcasts/radio broadcasts will be of books worth your valuable reading time. I'll try to keep the reports under four minutes, for a radio-friendly format. If you want to run them on your show or podcast, let me know.

My hope is that in under four minutes I can offer readers a concise review and an opportunity to hear the author read from or speak about the work. I'm hoping to offer a new one every week.

The forty-fourth episode is a look at David Vann, 'Dirt.'

Here's a link to the MP3 audio file of Time to Read, Episode 44: David Vann, 'Dirt.'




05-14-12: A 2012 Interview with Marika Blossfeldt

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"...we tend to look for foods to fill the gap..."

— Marika Blossfeldt

Some interviews are almost too easy, and talking to Marika Blossfeldt about 'Essential Nourishment' was really just fun. We managed to meet at the Capitola Book Café and talk in the back office. The hour flew by, and as we spoke, I was thinking that I could easily have prepared any two of the dishes I cooked in prep for the interview we spoke in that hour.

It was nice to talk with Marika about her background, to hear her story about the Estonian farm and art colony that inspired the book. As ever, I was reminded of the importance of hearing the author actually speak, to hear her voice saying the words. It provides a critical perspective on the work itself. The shading and inflections of how Marika speaks will help you understand just why her recipes work so well, and to my mind, inform your preparation.

We spoke at length about the lifestyle aspects that begin the book, and I asked her about her background in cooking. She talked of the New York School where she went to learn about nutrition, and her family background. We also talked about the recipes, but did not, alas, just list out the ingredients and prep. Still, her suggestions and thoughts were helpful when I went back and tried some more after the interview. You can hear our delicious conversation by following this link to the MP3 audio file.



New to the Agony Column

09-18-15: Commentary : William T. Vollman Amidst 'The Dying Grass' : An Epic Exploration of Simultaneity

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with William T. Vollman : "...a lot of long words that in our language are sentences..."

09-05-15: Commentary : Susan Casey Listens to 'Voices in the Ocean' : Science, Empathy and Self

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Susan Casey : "...the reporting for this book was emotionally difficult at times..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 213: Susan Casey : Voices in the Ocean: A Journey into the Wild and Haunting World of Dolphins

08-24-15: Commentary : Felicia Day Knows 'You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost)' : Transformative Technology

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Felicia Day : "I think you have to be attention curators for audience in every way."

08-22-15: Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 212: Felicia Day : You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost)

08-21-15: Agony Column Podcast News Report : Senator Claire McCaskill is 'Plenty Ladylike' : Internalizing Determination to Overcome Sexism [Incudes Time to Read EP 211: Claire McCaskill, Plenty Ladylike, plus A 2015 Interview with Senator Claire McCaskill]

Agony Column Podcast News Report : Emily Schultz Unleashes 'The Blondes' : A Cure by Color [Incudes Time to Read EP 210: Emily Schultz, The Blondes, plus A 2015 Interview with Emily Schultz]

08-10-15:Agony Column Podcast News Report : In Memory of Alan Cheuse : Thank you Alan, and Your Family, for Everything

07-11-15: Commentary : Robert Repino Morphs 'Mort(e)' : Housecat to Harbinger of the Apocalypse

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Robert Repino : "...an even bigger threat. which is us, the humans..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 208: Robert Repino : Mort(e)

07-05-15: Commentary : Dr. Michael Gazzaniga Tells Tales from Both Sides of the Brain : A Life in Neuroscience Reveals the Life of Science

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Michael Gazzaniga : "We made the first observation and BAM there was the disconnection effect..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 208: Michael Gazzaniga : Tales from Both Sides of the Brain: A Life in Neuroscience

06-26-15: Commentary : Neal Stephenson Crafts an Eden for 'Seveneves' : Blow It Up and Start All Over Again

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Neal Stephenson : "...and know that you're never going to se a tree again..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 207: Neal Stephenson : Seveneves

06-03-15: Commentary : Dan Simmons Opens 'The Fifth Heart' : Having it Every Way

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Dan Simmons : "...yes, they really did bring those bombs..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 206: Dan Simmons : The Fifth Heart

05-23-15: Commentary : John Waters Gets 'Carsick' : Going His Way

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with John Waters : "...you change how you would be in real life...”

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 205: John Waters : Carsick

05-09-15: Commentary : Jeffrey A. Lieberman, MD and 'Shrinks' : A Most Fashionable Take on the Human Mind

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Jeffrey A. Lieberman, MD : "..its influence to be as hegemonic as it was..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 204: Jeffrey A. Lieberman, MD : Shrinks: The Untold Story of Psychiatry

04-29-15: Commentary : Barney Frank is 'Frank' : Interpersonally Ours

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 Interview with Barney Frank : "...while you're trying to change it, don't ignore it..."

Agony Column Podcast News Report UPDATE: Time to Read Episode 203: Barney Frank : Frank: A Life in Politics from the Great Society to Same-Sex Marriage

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

Agony Column Podcast News Report : A 2015 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 2015 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

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