The Book Case

If you aren’t an Elizabeth Strout fan yet, Tell me Everything, her newest novel, is going to wow you. If you are already devoted fans, like we are, then you are in for a real treat. In Tell Me Everything, she brings together two beloved characters: Lucy Barton and Olive Kitteridge. The results are truly magical. Our bookstore this week is Snowbound Books in Marquette, Michigan. Books mentioned in this week's episode: Tell Me Everything by Elizabeth Strout Amy and Isabelle by Elizabeth Strout Olive Kitteridge by Elizabeth Strout Olive, Again by Elizabeth Strout Abide With Me by Elizabeth Strout Lucy by the Sea by Elizabeth Strout Oh William! By Elizabeth Strout The Burgess Boys by Elizabeth Strout My Name Is Lucy Barton by Elizabeth Strout Anything Is Possible by Elizabeth Strout Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This is a special episode dedicated the art of spoken word poetry. One of our listeners wrote to us mentioning the name of Rudy Francisco and from there we fell down the rabbit hole of spoken word and slam poetry. We talk to Rudy and two other greats of the art, Bianca Phipps and Neil Hilborn. They are going to perform one work each and we will round it out with a conversation with Sam Van Cook. Sam is a founder of Button Poetry that represents and publishes so many of these great artists. Trust us, this is an episode you won't want to miss. Books mentioned in this week's episode: Helium by Rudy Francisco Excuse Me While I Kiss the Sky by Rudy Francisco Crown Noble by Bianca Phipps The Future by Neil Hilborn About Time by Neil Hilborn Mill, Railways and General Castings by Sam Van Cook Watch their poems online: Hide and Seek by Rudy Francisco Almosts by Bianca Phipps OCD by Neil Hilborn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dr. Fei-Fei Li is one of the most important scientists of our time. Her book, The Worlds I See, chronicles her pioneering efforts in Artificial Intelligence. Does AI scare you? Us too. But read this book and listen to this episode. The book is not just the compelling story of Dr. Li herself, who immigrated as a girl speaking no English but who understands physics like Michael Jordan plays basketball. She is now a worldwide authority on AI and its development. Second, if you are scared of AI, this book explains it and the issues surrounding it both with beauty and with hope. She believes AI is the next step in our evolution, but that it MUST be rooted in humanity. What does that mean? Tune in and find out. Books mentioned in this week's episode: The Worlds I See: Curiosity, Exploration, and Discovery at the Dawn of AI by Dr. Fei-Fei Li Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by J.K. Rowling Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Have you ever heard the rumor that Shakespeare didn’t write his own plays? So had we, but By Any Other Name, the new novel by Jodi Picoult, may make the best case for it we have ever read. This novel puts forth a theory that Emilia Bassano wrote at least some of them, and she is an unforgettable character. This book succeeds on so many levels — a polemic, a great piece of feminist AND historical fiction, AND it’s a page turner. This is the book Jodi says she was born to write…and we think it’s her best to date. Books mentioned in this week's episode: By Any Other Name by Jodi Picoult Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult Mermaid by Jodi Picoult Second Glance by Jodi Picoult Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult The Pact by Jodi Picoult The Book of Two Ways by Jodi Picoult House Rules by Jodi Picoult Mad Honey by Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan Where There’s Smoke by Jodi Picoult Picture Perfect by Jodi Picoult Perfect Match by Jodi Picoult A Spark of Light by Jodi Picoult The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult Wish You Were Here by Jodi Picoult Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult Handle with Care by Jodi Picoult Change of Heart by Jodi Picoult Salem Falls by Jodi Picoult Vanishing Acts by Jodi Picoult Lone Wolf by Jodi Picoult Topdog/Underdog by Suzan-Lori Parks Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder by Salman Rushdie Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Love it or hate it, the genre of “reality tv” has now shaped American history. That means no matter how you feel about it, you cannot ignore it. Enter Cue the Sun!, the most comprehensive, thoughtful and well written book about the history and development of the genre we have come across. We talk to the book’s author, Emily Nussbaum about how the genre has come to take up so much space in American pop culture and what that means for our country as a whole. We also talk to Ferguson Books' owner Dane Ferguson about how his shop serves rural communities in the upper midwest. You don’t want to miss it. Books mentioned in this week's episode: Cue the Sun!: The Invention of Reality TV by Emily Nussbaum I Like to Watch: Arguing My Way Through the TV Revolution by Emily Nussbaum Black Bear Lake by Leslie Liautaud Thief River Falls by Brian Freeman Alter Ego by Brian Freeman Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices