Totally Booked with Zibby

Bonnie Garmus joins Zibby Owens to talk about her new novel Peck & Peck , the story of recent graduate Batter Gray who struggles with what to do with his arts degree after college, only to find himself at a prestigious poetry quarterly in the midst of a secret war between two editors. Bonnie discusses why poetry continues to evade extinction, the themes of theft and dishonesty explored in this...

Julie Orringer sits down with Zibby Owens to discuss her new novel Luna, Phoenix, Queen , a multiple narrative story about a husband who steals his wife’s novel while she suffers from early-onset Alzheimer’s and the people in the orbit of this betrayal. Julie talks about the reason for showing readers a sympathetic version of a character before revealing their moral faults, how writing fiction has...

Maria Shriver and Zibby Owens speak in-person at Zibby’s Bookshop about their life and work inspired by Zibby’s new book Between Chapters and Maria’s poetry collection I Am Maria. Zibby talks about how starting a podcast was a turning point in her life, the fear of unfulfilled dreams at any age, the shame surrounding changing your identity, and her hope that this book helps start the conversation...

Endocrinologist and longevity expert Dr. Florence Comite joins Zibby Owens to discuss Invincible , her new book that dives deep into genetics, aging, longevity, and reclaiming your health. Dr. Florence Comite talks about how having an identical twin made her realize that genetics wasn’t the only answer, learning about disease in medical school instead of health, how a person’s life tells the story...

Audrey Niffenegger sits down with Zibby Owens to talk about her new novel Life Out of Order , a follow-up to her bestselling book The Time Traveler’s Wife . Audrey discusses how she ended up returning to this story years later, her artistic childhood, the themes of loss and love in her work, and the novel’s exploration of people trying to teach each other. She also shares the biological mechanism...

Shai Davidai joins Zibby Owens to discuss his book American Intellectual Antisemitism , the story of how he went from Columbia business professor to accidental activist after the attacks on October 7th. Shai shares the shock he experienced regarding Columbia’s reaction to the attacks, what led to his remarks going viral, how hatred starts in the syllabus, and how regaining agency has driven his ac...

Michael Lewis sits down with Zibby Owens to discuss his new book Blockers , a deep dive into the early days of Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency through the lens of six targeted public servants. Michael discusses how the title was inspired by an Elon Musk quote, the fascinating work into fire research that the government made difficult, and why narrative matters. He also shares what acti...

Erin Schlozman joins Zibby Owens to discuss her book The Myth of the Perfect Mom , a guide to new motherhood and postpartum that rejects the idea of the perfect mother in place of authenticity, self-compassion, and joy. Erin talks about debunking the aspiration to be perfect, how her experience as a licensed therapist working on an addiction medicine team led her to opening her own private practic...

Hank Phillippi Ryan sits down with Zibby Owens to chat about her new novel Mother Daughter Sister Stranger , a twisty thriller about Eliza’s search for her sister Bea who goes missing on the eleventh anniversary of the plane crash they survived but killed their parents.   Hank talks about how stories shape our lives, family lore, the experience of writing a young character on the cusp of...

Rebekah Lowin sits down with Zibby Owens to discuss A Year of Jewish Joy , her new cookbook full of meaningful recipes, homemade crafts, and table guides for the Jewish holidays. Rebekah talks about being inspired by her grandmother, the impossible joy of the Jewish people, her experience working for Martha Stewart in New York City years ago, and how the blog she started in 2019 led to this book....

Elizabeth Wellington Rollins joins Zibby Owens to discuss her debut novel and Book of the Month Club Pick The Three Graces of Pearl Street , the story of an Italian American grandmother, daughter, and granddaughter who must all live together again after years apart and what that collision stirs up.   Elizabeth talks about the little threads of home she wove into this story, her inspirati...

Newly minted Reese's Book Club pick Meg Mason joins Zibby Owens to discuss her new novel (and Zibby’s October Book Club pick!) Sophie, Standing There , the story of book lover Sophie Pattison who finds herself living alone and isolated, and how her favorite author provides solace when she needs it most. Meg talks about the surreal success of her first novel, her struggles while trying to write...

Susan Coll sits down with Zibby Owens to discuss her new novel Word Salad , a bookish comedy about former economics major Matilda who finds herself working at her hometown bookstore where she must navigate the nonsensical business of publishing and the people in it.  Susan talks about teaching herself to write, structuring each chapter as a scene, the remarkable literary community in Washingt...

Fran Hauser joins Zibby Owens to discuss her new book Twenty Minutes is the New Hour, a guide to help women embrace the twenty-minute mindset, reclaim their time, and take small steps towards better productivity.  Fran talks about the techniques she used to launch her bookstore Bedford Books in just eight weeks, how time becomes the enemy of the good, and adding more kairos over chronos in wo...

Allison Sweet Grant joins Zibby Owens to talk about her new poetic memoir Lump , an unconventional, moving collection of essays and verse about her experience with breast cancer.  Allison discusses how the book started out as a journal to process the difficult moments of her cancer journey, being diagnosed at the beginning of Covid at forty years old, what kept her from going to the doctor ri...

Isabel Allende joins Zibby Owens to discuss her new memoir Story Telling , a heartfelt love letter to life and writing that recounts the past forty-five years of her career, the philosophy and emotion behind craft, and the lessons she’s learned along the way.  Inspired by the masterclass she did with the BBC, Isabel writes about the quiet happiness of aging, how the inner critic never goes aw...

Bestselling author Renée Rosen interviews Zibby Owens about her new book Between Chapters, a heartfelt and candid collection of essays centered around her decade of extreme change and where it all led.  Zibby discusses overcoming intense social anxiety as a young girl, the impact of her first published piece in Seventeen Magazine after her parent’s divorce, her editing process, and launching...

Laura Moriarty sits down with Zibby Owens to discuss her new novel and August 2026 Read With Jenna Pick Sunlight Finds You , a deeply felt love story set in 1949 that ends in heartbreak and shame, and changes the course of seventeen-year-old Nora’s life forever.  Laura talks about the book’s look into dealing with uncertainty, her extensive research into the time period, and the conversations...

Harlan Coben sits down with Zibby Owens to discuss his new book Plot Twist , a memoir that blends personal narrative and writing advice, acknowledging that both are inevitably connected. Harlan talks about the importance of critical thinking in fiction, incremental ambition, accepting adaptations as a different perspective, and how insecurity makes good writers.  He also shares personal exper...

Instant New York Times bestseller! Dara Horn joins Zibby Owens to discuss her new book The Final Solution to the Jewish Question , an exploration into the lies of antisemitism throughout history and her vision for the future.   Dara discusses how Holocaust education fails to do its job, her surprise at finding so much more ignorance than malice, how the hate movement has taken over AI, a...

USA Today bestseller Sona Movsesian sits down with Zibby Owens to discuss her new book The World’s Worst Mom , a funny and relatable look into motherhood. Sona discusses her experience with IVF and the conversations that it demands, her obsession with mortality after having kids, the trauma of losing her home in the 2025 Southern California wildfires, and betraying her preconceptions about motherh...

Elizabeth Castellano joins Zibby Owens to talk about her new novel Proof of Progress , the humorous story of B-list actress and comedian Maria Astorini whose second book is thirty-seven years overdue.  Elizabeth shares how this book was inspired by her own difficulties while writing her second novel under contract, the impact of pressure on her writing, and the pieces of real life that made i...

Live from the Children’s Museum of the East End, Amy Chozick sits down with Zibby Owens to talk about her new psychological thriller With Friends Like You . In the novel Emily, a struggling new mom in Manhattan, embarks on the search for her long-lost friend Daisy who disappeared years ago after becoming a stripper. But when Emily finally finds her, the question becomes: Is Daisy saving her life o...

Zibby was one of the countless people who lost a loved one on 9/11. Stacey Sanders, Zibby’s college roommate, worked in the North Tower of the World Trade Center. To process the loss, Zibby wrote an essay for her business school newspaper, The Harbus , two weeks after it happened. She reads it here to pay tribute to the 25th anniversary of the attacks.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy...

Lea Vale joins Zibby Owens to discuss her new novel Blue Sky Black , the second-chance romance told across two timelines that she wrote as a love letter to the friend she lost on 9/11. Lea shares her own experience in New York City that day 25 years ago, the trauma of having to cope with a loved one simply disappearing, and the importance of talking about tragedy. She also recounts how the romance...