Finding Favorites with Leah Jones

Over on Candy Chat Chicago, Ronnie Raviv joined hosts Leah Jones and Jocelyn Geboy to talk about medical diagnoses, Finland, the Ice Hotel, the last Bears game of the post-season, all while eating a lot of Finnish candy. Candy that we sample during the episode. Photos on Threads Suffeli Puffi Marianne Dumle Winter Mix Jaffa Karl Fazer Blueberry Truffle Karl Fazer Salty Toffee Crunch Salted Caramel...

It's time for our annual Best of Call In show where past guests and listeners send in voice memos of some of their favorite things from 2025. This year's episode includes a 30 minute interlude with Rabbi Michael Zedek to talk about his newest book!   Rabbi Michael Zedek People are Like ... Taking Miracles Seriously TedX The Four Beautifuls Korman Siblings Hosts of Friday Night Movie Podcast Produc...

Max Klau, an author, musician and social change agent, joined Leah in October to talk about his new book, a new album and making art in dangerous times. Max and Leah met through New Politics Academy and his book Developing Servant Leaders at Scale dives into his tried and true methods for self-discovery.  Follow Max online Developing Servant Leaders at Scale by Max Klau: https://bookshop.org/p/boo...

Ry Jones, an open source community architect and Leah's older brother, loves sending postcards when he travels. We dig into his postcard habits and he also shares the different ways that he supports the war effort in Ukraine through Car for Ukraine and Help99. Follow Ry online Github LinkedIn Support Ukraine https://car4ukraine.com/campaigns/50forua-washington-battalion   Help99 EnGin (English ESL...

Suzanne Reisman is one of Leah's friends from MySpace and they sat down to talk about her viral sensation - the New York City History of Garbage and Rats walking tour! Coming soon to a newspaper or TV near you! She's been featured in Time Out NYC, the NY Post, Nebraska and Australian radio shows, and even made it to newspapers in Europe and Chinatown. We dig deep on how (and why) she created the ...

Author/artist Jesi Bender joined Leah to talk about her novel Child of Light , available from Whiskey Tit press, and Victorian houses in Utica, New York. Note from Leah: In this episode, I boldly say that there are no Victorian houses in Chicago, because they all burnt down in the Chicago fire. I couldn't have been more wrong. Follow Jesi Bender online https://www.jesibender.com/ https://www.jesib...

To kick off the month of Elul and High Holy Day preparations, Leah sat down with Sarah Osborne, founder of A Mitzvah to Eat, to talk about how her organizations supports Jews who are unable to fast on days like Yom Kippur. We also talk about leadership, our mutual friend Evonne, and tongue drums. Order your A Mitzvah to Eat care package by September 12, 2025 to receive before Yom Kippur.  A Mitzva...

Shai Korman, one of the Friday Night Movie podcast hosts, is on the road with a movie he produced with his sisters. He took a break in between festivals to talk about The Floaters, film festivals and Weird Al.  Follow Shai online Shai Korman: https://www.instagram.com/pancake4table/   Friday Night Movie Podcast: https://fridaynightmoviepod.podbean.com/   Floaters the Movie: https://floatersmovie.c...

Israel-based educator and writer Sharna Marcus joined Leah on Friday, June 20th, to share the story of how she was able to get to Indiana from Israel during the active war with Iran. Spoiler alert: a cargo ship was involved. We talk about her work as a Middle East history educator, the damage done by the "weapons of mass destruction" lies told by the Bush administration, finding Jewish identity an...

Author Lee Upton joined Leah to talk about her newest book Wrongful, available for pre-order now for May 1 delivery, and about how she became a bunny person. PSA: Bunnies are exotic pets and not responsible Easter presents. Stick to chocolate and toy bunnies today! Where was the podcast? Leah had emergency gall bladder surgery which meant hitting eject from her life for about a month. So happy to...

Detroit-based Brandon Klein sat down with Leah to talk about his love of interviewing - AKA non-fiction storytelling. Brandon has been a meditation coach, lived "van life" in the national parks, and is the creator and host of Humanize the Human Eyes. Keep up with Brandon on YouTube and Instagram https://www.youtube.com/@brandonmklein/videos https://www.instagram.com/brand0nklein/ Show Notes https:...

Christine Marie Eberle returns to Finding Favorites to discuss her new book and the pilgrimage that inspired her to write it. Her new book Finding God Along the Way: Wisdom from the Ignatian Camino for Life at Home is available now. We have an in depth conversation about the logistics, prayer and intentions of going on this pilgrimage in the fall of 2022. Christine-Marie-Eberle.com Finding God Alo...

Every year, we start by looking back at 2024. We asked friends and past guests to send in voice memos highlighting their favorite things of 2024. In this episode you'll hear from Shai Korman – Friday Night Movie Podcast Jesse Dukes – Upper Middle Brow Liz Nord Laura and Annie – BFF Sticker Club Chris Bagg – Upper Middle Brow Pam Mandel – Canned Mike Maddaloni Amy Guth – Canned Rocco Cataldo - Some...

It's a crossover episode of Finding Favorites and Upper Middle Brow - Leah Jones, Jesse Dukes and Chris Bagg are talking about robot friends and enemies. We start with M3GAN and go on a winding conversation from there. Subscribe to Upper Middle Brow and rate them 5 stars: https://uppermiddlebrow.com/ Recommendations from this show: Ted Chiang’s Exhalation Alien: Romulus Duncan Jones Moon Honorable...

Curtis Smith, author of Deaf Heaven (available May 2025) and The Lost and The Blind, is a professor who loves 70s Hollywood. Leah and Curt talk about his new book, favorite movies and directors. Build your own 70s To Watch list from this episode. Leah is still collecting voice memos for the best of 2024 episode slated for January 12th. There's still time to send in a 1-5 minute clip highlighting s...

Jeph Wilkinson, host of Big Campaign Podcast, loves table top role playing games (AKA TTRPGs) and joined Leah to talk about how he found Dungeons & Dragon, the joy of running TTRPGs campaigns with friends, and storytelling. Jeph is an independent podcaster! Follow Jeph online The World of Big Campaign Stories: https://www.bigcampaign.com/ Big Campaign Podcast Linktree: https://linktr.ee/big_ca...

Rabbi Michael Zedek, the rabbi emeritus of Emanuel Congregation in Chicago, joined Leah for a very fun and meandering conversation about lots of his favorite things. His book, Taking Miracles Seriously: A Journey to Everyday Spirituality, is going into a second printing and he's available for all of your events - Jewish or not, in person or virtual, to discuss the book. As a congregant of 20 years...

Ashlie, host of Advice from The Cheerbrarian, LOVES books and loves to prescribe books to friends, listeners and strangers based on a few questions. We talk about breaking up with your phone, the benefits of parallel reading multiple books at the same time, and book discovery. Keep up with Ashlie online Advice from the Cheerbrarian: https://open.spotify.com/show/77y9HmJHzKhZZ8wyspnCqb Goodreads: h...

Nancy House-Bluhm, author of Whispers for Terra and The Nickel Loop, loves clear communication. The midwesterner spent 25 years in Colorado before returning to Michigan. She talks with Leah about communication skills, trains and The Artist's Way. Keep up with Nancy online Whispers for Terra The Nickel Loop Nancy's website Nancy's email Instagram @jnbpine Nancy on Facebook Tik Tok @nancyhouserbluhm...

Elana Silber is the CEO of Sharsheret, the Jewish breast and ovarian cancer organization that Leah supports, and totally obsessed with Orangetheory. Nothing interrupts her daily workouts and she might get you Orange-curious by the end of the episode. Elana has dedicated her career to supporting people with breast and ovarian cancers through her work at Sharsheret. We talk a lot about what you shou...

Theresa Goodrich, aka The Local Tourist, has always loved to write. After she was diagnosed with breast cancer, she decided not to let anything stop her from writing fiction and she has written FIVE mysteries featuring travel writer Alex Paige. Theresa is one of the first people I met on Twitter and this was a great chance to catch up with each other. Since it's Breast Cancer Awareness Month, both...

Summer hiatus is over with a banger of an episode! Abbas Jaffary, a mathematician and roller derby referee, joined Leah to talk about The Chicago Knockouts Roller Derby League and his love of math. Leah and Abbas also share a love of How Did This Get Made, the podcast that brings all people together. Follow Abbas online Mathematics for Misfits: https://linktr.ee/mathematicsformisfits Accessible Ma...

Chuck Gay, a musician, writer and actor, joins Leah to introduce her to Buck Owens and the Buckaroos. Chuck can be seen in Elvis of the Yukon (as Elvis) written by guest Pam Mandel and produced by Amy Guth. Keep up with Chuck online Instagram @charlespgay Facebook @chuckgaymusic ChuckGayMusic.com Top Five Buck Owens Albums Buck Owens and The Buckaroos - Carnegie Hall Concert Buck Owens and The Buc...

Author Darrin Doyle returns to celebrate a new book and his love of horror movies. Keep up with Darrin online Darrin's website: https://www.darrindoyle.com/ Darrin on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorDarrinDoyle Darrin on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/darrindoylewriter/ Let Gravity Seize the Dead pre-order: https://regal-house-publishing.mybigcommerce.com/let-gravity-seize-the-dead/...

Author and film maker Pam Mandel is here to convince us all to add an ebike to our garage for local errands and more freedom of movement. Her debut short film Elvis of the Yukon debuted in New York and has just been selected for the Seattle Film Festival. We will be visiting with her collaborators throughout the summer as we celebrate road trips. Keep up with Pam Mandel online Pam’s Links Nerd's E...