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That was INTENSE. Lyra narrowly avoids disaster, has a heart-to-heart with mom, creates some chaos in Bolvangar, and … falls into a whole new disaster! Greta Johnsen, Tricia Bobeda and Peter Sagal have some thoughts on the latest episode, as did you. So join us! P.S. We want to hear from you! Tell us: In the final episodes, are you willing to endure the noticeable dearth of CGI daemons in exchange...

The first season of His Dark Materials is more than halfway done and while things are coming together, we still have a lot of questions. Like much does it cost to CGI a daemon? What exactly are the Gobblers up to? And if you dial up a friend in another dimension, will the phone still ring? Greta Johnsen, Tricia Bobeda and Peter Sagal are here to discuss the latest episode, which had more creepy cr...

Armored drinking bears! Sassy thieving cowboys! Dudley Dursley for some reason! Greta Johnsen, Tricia Bobeda and Peter Sagal are here to discuss the latest episode of His Dark Materials , which is either the moment this TV series comes to life or a terrible approximation of an excellent book, depending on who you listen to.  See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy No...

Holy plot developments! Based on how much we learned in Episode 3 of HBO’s His Dark Materials , it’s safe to say this young TV show is maturing quite rapidly! And as per usual, Greta Johnsen, Tricia Bobeda and Peter Sagal are here to break it all down. Listen to the latest recap, and remember that we also want to hear from you! Join the conversation and share your own theories with us on Twitter,...

Boy is it getting DUST-y in here. (Haw haw, get it?) The second episode of HBO’s His Dark Materials sees Lyra travel to London with Mrs. Coulter as the Gyptians track down the so-called Gobblers and try to find their kidnapped children. And after some monkey business in Mrs. Coulter’s study, Lyra discovers that her surrogate mother is up to something in the North, but it’s not entirely clear what....

Grab your daemons and put on your snow boots, because Greta Johnsen and Tricia Bobeda of Nerdette and Peter Sagal of NPR’s Wait Wait … Don’t Tell Me! are back together again to recap another HBO fantasy show: His Dark Materials . This week the team discusses the   series premiere, which aired Monday, so beware, there are some episode 1 spoilers (but we avoid book spoilers the best we can!). If you...

… Oxford! That’s right, just like Weezer, Sleater-Kinney, and the Spice Girls before them, the Nerdette Recaps crew is getting the band back together for the new HBO series His Dark Materials . Starting Tuesday, Nov. 5 — the day after the premiere episode of His Dark Materials airs — you’ll find all new episodes of Nerdette Recaps His Dark Materials with Peter Sagal right here in this podcast feed...

Good gravy! It's George R.R. Martin! If you're unfamiliar, he's the author of that little book series that became one of the most popular TV shows of all time,  Game of Thrones . These days, he’s in the midst of writing the final two novels in that series. Before he sat down with Greta, his team told us that he couldn’t answer the question on everyone’s mind ("So, like, when’s the next book coming...

To celebrate the approach of another wonderful two-day break, Nerdette host Greta Johnsen talked with Alison Roman, author of the new cookbook Nothing Fancy , about three ways to make sure you host the most badass dinner party possible (she prefers to call it “ having people over ”). And did you know that the largest 3D printer in the world just printed the world’s largest 3D-printed boat ? We tal...

We’ve finished The Testaments ! Press play and join Nerdette host Greta Johnsen, New York Magazine ’s Heather Havrilesky and Vocalo’s Jill Hopkins for this final installment of the #NerdetteBookClub . You’ll hear how each of us rated the book on a scale of 1-10 warm milks (10 being the best, obviously), what the professional reviewers thought, and how much your fellow book club members liked it! P...

We’re two thirds of the way through Margaret Atwood’s The Testaments, and we’ve got a lot to talk about. This week is all about chapters 24 through 46, and our panel of intrepid feminists questions whether these storylines are just a little toooo convenient, whether it’s really possible to rip a person apart with your bare hands … and what the deal is with all that warm milk. Want to be a part of...

Our reading of Margaret Atwood’s The Testaments has commenced! This week, we’re talking about book chapters 1 through 23. So … spoilers abound. Join Nerdette host Greta Johnsen, New York Magazine’s Heather Havrilesky and Vocalo’s Jill Hopkins as they contemplate the motives of Aunt Lydia, wonder what’s in that darn safe and talk smack about the mean girls of Gilead. To follow along with us, read T...

Welcome to the Nerdette Book Club! It’s just like a normal book club but in podcast form, and you provide your own booze. In this episode, we're taking a look back at Margaret Atwood's 1985 dystopian novel 'The Handmaid's Tale' before sending you out to read Atwood's brand new sequel, ' The Testaments .'   What are the rules of a book club podcast, you ask?  Well, after this ' Handmaid’s Tale'  re...

September is right around the corner, which means fall is coming . To celebrate, Nerdette host Greta Johnsen talks with Rainbow Rowell and Faith Erin Hicks, author and illustrator of the new graphic novel Pumpkinheads . It’s about Deja and Josiah, two high schoolers who love working at an amazing pumpkin patch every autumn. But the story starts on their last day of work as they try to enjoy everyt...

Abra Berens is a Midwest born-and-bred farmer-turned-chef. And her cookbook, Ruffage , is a gorgeous A-to-Z guide to vegetables. The idea, she tells us, is this: You go to the grocery store, buy what inspires you and then you go home to look up meal ideas in her cookbook. Abra’s not a pretentious chef who poo-poos comfort food. Instead, she’s all about meeting people where they are (and encouragin...

Chicago Magazine called this novel "a Midwestern Big Little Lies — an intimate character study of a group of affluent, secretive women." In this bonus interview, Greta talks with author Claire Lombardo about her debut novel, ‘The Most Fun We Ever Had.’ It’s the story of four radically different daughters from suburban Chicago. And it’s about love, family, forgiveness and the importance of showing...

These days there are more and more celebrations of women who might have otherwise been relegated to the footnotes of history. As you can imagine, here at Nerdette we’re all about that. Totally into it. Zero complaints. But what is equally as wonderful is when the spotlight also lands on accomplished young girls. And that’s what author Kate Schatz and illustrator Miriam Klein Stahl have done with t...

Is summer a great time for watching TV? Heck yeah it is. So we caught up with  New York Times  TV critic Margaret Lyons to get recommendations for the best of the best summer TV, including shows that are dark and mysterious, bright and fun, and also the throwbackiest throwback binges. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-...

When anyone at WBEZ needs book recommendations, they go to Greta Johnsen, the station’s resident bookworm. So please enjoy Greta talking about some fantastic reads that you might want to pick up this summer. Contemporary Romantic Fiction Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren Fantasy Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey Mystery/Thriller Searching for Sylvie Lee b...

If you know NPR’s Linda Holmes, it’s probably not as a novelist. She’s a pop culture correspondent, she co-hosts NPR's  Pop Culture Happy Hour  podcast, and her recalcitrant dog Brian is  mildly famous  on Twitter. But she always wanted to write a novel. And at 48, she did. It's called Evvie Drake Starts Over and it is excellent.  “This is what I think my story does actually prove,” Holmes tells G...

What’s it like to give people hallucinogenic drugs and study what happens? How might these drugs be used for therapy? And what causes people to take drugs in the first place?  That’s what we asked Harriet de Wit, who runs the University of Chicago’s Human Behavioral Pharmacology Laboratory , where she administers drugs like LSD, ecstacy and psilocybin to volunteers in an effort to learn more about...

It’s the end of an era. After more than 70 hours of television and nearly ten years of worrying about the Stark children, Game of Thrones is finally over. Tricia, Greta and Peter got together one last time to reflect on the series.. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info .

Greta gives 'Booksmart' four out of four Gretas, a new rating system we've devised specifically for this wonderful new movie.  Why's it so good? Well, it’s smart, funny, a little raunchy, and it embraces so many gorgeous, gut-wrenching elements of what it means to be a smart, funny teenage girl. This week on Nerdette, we talk with the wonderful Kaitlyn Dever and Beanie Feldstein (the stars of the...

Game of Thrones is over, and there is a *lot* to process. In this recap of the series finale, Tricia realizes she doesn’t like endings, Peter wants Jon Snow’s head and Greta observes the Valyrian word for Dorne appears to be Dornut . Listen to this recap of Game of Thrones Season 8, episode 6, titled “The Iron Throne.” Then be sure to come back next week for our final recap of the entire series ,...

That was pretty messed up! The penultimate episode of Game of Thrones has come and gone, and we all just witnessed Dany commit a few thousand war crimes. What just happened? Madness! How are we feeling? Conflicted! But there was some good news if you're a land speculator: Now might just be a great time to buy real estate in King’s Landing. Join Nerdette and Peter Sagal as we consider the super low...