

C-SPAN Bookshelf
C-SPAN
The C-SPAN Bookshelf podcast feed makes it easy for you to listen to all of the C-SPAN podcast episodes about nonfiction books. Each week we gather episodes from the different C-SPAN podcasts that feature authors talking about history, biography, current events, and culture to make it easier to discover the episodes and listen. If you like nonfiction books, follow this podcast feed so you never miss an episode!
Episodes
Mentioned books

Nov 1, 2024 • 34min
AB: Miranda Devine on the Biden Family
New York Post columnist and "Laptop From Hell" author Miranda Devine discussed her latest book on the Biden family, "The Big Guy: How a President and His Son Sold Out America." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 29, 2024 • 1h 5min
BN+: Howard Blum, "Night of the Assassins"
In 1943, in the middle of World War II, the Allied leaders FDR, Winston Churchill, and Josef Stalin were planning to meet secretly in Tehran. The Nazis wanted to kill them. In his book "Night of the Assassins," author Howard Blum tells the story of "Operation Long Jump," the code name for the Nazi plan to assassinate the Allied leaders. In telling this story, author Blum says: "I wanted to write a suspenseful character-driven story of men, heroes, and villains caught up in a tense, desperate time, who needed to find courage and cunning to do their duty for their countries and to fulfill their own sense of honor." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 28, 2024 • 1h 4min
Q&A: Pamela Toler, "The Dragon from Chicago"
Historian Pamela Toler talks about the life and career of journalist Sigrid Schultz, Berlin bureau chief for the Chicago Tribune from 1925-1941. Schultz provided first-hand accounts of the rise of Adolf Hitler in Germany and was one of the earliest reporters to warn Americans about the dangers of Nazism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 27, 2024 • 1h 5min
AW: Rep. Mike Waltz, "Hard Truths - Think and Lead Like a Green Beret"
Congressman Mike Waltz (R-FL) spoke about serving in Afghanistan as a Green Beret and how his military career influences his decision making. He was interviewed by Politico Pentagon and National Security reporter Paul McLeary. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 22, 2024 • 1h 8min
BN+: Max Boot, "Reagan: His Life and Legend"
Max Boot, in his 836-page book titled "Reagan: His Life and Legend," says that his is the first definitive biography of the 40th president. Boot suggests that Edmund Morris, the president's official biographer, "appeared to be so flummoxed by the complexities of Reagan's character that he produced 'Dutch: A Memoir of Ronald Reagan,' that was widely criticized in spite of its acute insights." Max Boot also points out in his introduction: "I am fortunate that Ronald Reagan's story can now be told as never before because we possess far more archival sources and far more historical perspective." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 21, 2024 • 1h 7min
Q&A: John Mackey, "The Whole Story" & Steven Pinker, "Rationality"
This week on Q&A, Whole Foods co-founder John Mackey and Harvard University psychology professor Steven Pinker discuss their books. John Mackey, author of "The Whole Story," talks about the rise of Whole Foods, the organic foods grocery store chain, and his political and intellectual development. Professor Steven Pinker talks about the role that rationality plays in a functioning society and the growth of irrationality in the United States. These interviews were recorded in Las Vegas at FreedomFest, an annual libertarian conference. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 20, 2024 • 1h 4min
AW: Stephanie Baker "Punishing Putin"
Bloomberg News' Stephanie Baker looked at the global impact of U.S-led economic sanctions against Russia following Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine. She was interviewed by author and Brookings Institution senior fellow Angela Stent. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 15, 2024 • 1h 8min
BN+: Brenda Wineapple, "Keeping the Faith"
Brenda Wineapple calls them "two gladiators." The year was 1925. She writes that "the ubiquitous politician William Jennings Bryan and the criminal lawyer Clarence Darrow, each of them national celebrities for decades, were going into battle over God and science and the classroom and, not incidentally, over what it meant to be an American." Brenda Wineapple's latest book is titled "Keeping the Faith" and is about the Scopes Trial, held in the small town of Dayton, Tennessee, which focused on the state law that prohibited the teaching of evolution in the schools. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 14, 2024 • 1h 6min
Q&A: Heath Hardage Lee, "The Mysterious Mrs. Nixon"
Historian Heath Hardage Lee, author of "The Mysterious Mrs. Nixon," talks about the life and times of the former First Lady (1969-74). She says that Pat Nixon, who was voted "Most Admired Woman in the World" in 1972, was largely mis-portrayed by the press, who characterized her as being elusive and "plastic." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Oct 12, 2024 • 1h 1min
AW: Brigid Schulte, "Over Work"
Journalist Brigid Schulte examined the future of work and explored how to better align workplace culture with the needs of American workers. She was interviewed by Business Insider chief correspondent Aki Ito. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices