Totally Booked with Zibby

Zibby is joined by Eileen Patricia Curran to discuss her debut novel,  Hungry Hill , which she self-published. Eileen shares what that journey has been like, from assembling a team of passionate experts to distributing her books as far as she can, as well as why she decided to start her own independent imprint. Eileen also tells Zibby about how her own family's connection to th...

Zibby is joined by author Erika Schickel to talk about her new memoir,  The Big Hurt , and the journey she took to reclaim her story. Erika shares how her whole understanding of herself changed when she was prompted to reevaluate a traumatic memory and what she learned about her family when she began to reflect on her past. Erika and Zibby also discuss how best to deal with the hurt we m...

Everyone found their own way to make it through quarantine; for Todd Doughty, that meant compiling lists of happy-making things in a difficult world every day and sharing them on Instagram. Soon, people were gathering in his comments to share their own happy-making things. Todd joins Zibby to discuss what he personally does every day to make himself happy, his journey from book-lover to the publis...

CNN anchor, law student, and now author Poppy Harlow joins Zibby to discuss her children's book,  The Biggest Little Boy , which was inspired by a real Christmas memory with her son. The two talk about the problems with dedicating books to just one child, what prompted Poppy to go to law school in the middle of her career, and how they're learning to embrace the mess in life as mothers. Poppy...

Melanie Gideon, bestselling author of  The Slippery Year  and  Wife 22 , joins Zibby to talk about her latest book,  Did I Say You Could Go . Melanie shares why she has enjoyed changing genres — moving from young adult to memoir and now to a psychological thriller — and why she thinks more female writers should do the same. The two also discuss the politics of mom friends,...

Vanessa Zoltan, podcast host, atheist chaplain, and author of  Praying with Jane Eyre  joins Zibby to talk about her book and the path that led her to write it. After not feeling connected to prayer while enrolled in divinity school, Vanessa tried to approach Charlotte Brontë's  Jane Eyre  as a sacred text. Vanessa and Zibby talk about how what it means to connect on a spiritua...

Zibby is joined by renowned neuroscientist Tracey Shors to discuss her first book,  Everyday Trauma . The two talk about how although Tracey was inspired to write this story in the wake of the #MeToo movement, the pandemic has opened up discussions about how stress impacts our brains so much more. Tracey also shares the experience in her own life that she returns to as a case study for proces...

Josephine Caminos Oría has a love/hate relationship with her book,  Sobremesa , even admitting to Zibby that she at one time ripped out 380 pages and tried to start from scratch countless times. But eventually, the pieces fell into place and Josephine was able to tell the story of her family, their recipes and traditions, and the protector who has been watching over her since she was 16. Jose...

Francesca Serritella joins Zibby to discuss her debut novel,  Ghosts of Harvard , which was inspired by a real death that occurred during Francesca's first year of undergrad. The two talk about what she did to capture the emotions of going away to college with a darker twist, the role Harvard played in this story and in history, and the influence that Francesca's mother — author Lisa Sco...

Zibby is once again joined by Malcolm Gladwell, this time to talk about his new audiobook  Miracle and Wonder  which covers forty hours of interviews he conducted with Paul Simon. The two talk about why some people would be happy to just create art for themselves even if no one sees it and the lessons Simon's career can offer younger generations. Malcolm also shares why he co-founded Pus...

Zibby is joined by actress, playwright, and author of  Harvesting , Lisa Harding, to talk about her latest novel,  Bright Burning Things , which is this month's Read with Jenna pick. Lisa shares what life is like for performers after the end of their creative careers and why so many exhibit addictive behaviors like Lisa's protagonist. The two also discuss Lisa's unique writing style...

Author and writing coach Mary Adkins joins Zibby to discuss her latest novel,  Palm Beach , which was inspired in part by her family's move to Florida in 2019. The two talk about the aspects of Mary's real life that made it into the book, what research she did on income inequality to create the story's primary tension, and why some of her friends weren't huge fans of her protagonist. Mary als...

Podcast host, author, and former news anchor Gretchen Carlson joins Zibby to discuss her life story. The two talk about Gretchen's two books,  Getting Real  and  Be Fierce , as well as her nonprofit, Lift Our Voices, which works to further female empowerment by advocating against the mechanisms used to silence women who come forward about workplace harassment. Gretchen also sha...

Playwright, author, and essayist Sarah Ruhl joined Zibby for a Women on the Move event with the Temple Emanu-El Streicker Center to discuss her latest book,  Smile.  Sarah shared glimpses into what her ten-year journey living with Bell's palsy has been like, how her condition has impacted her relationships with her kids and her mother, and what she is working on now that theate...

Max Greenfield, actor and author of the new children's book,  I Don't Want to Read This Book , joins Zibby to talk about how his kids helped inspire this project. The two discuss the effects of dyslexia and why those diagnosed with it often tend to be the most creative people, as well as how this book evolved from the videos Max would film with his daughter, Lilly, early in the pandemic. Max...

Bestselling author of the  Bridgerton  series Julia Quinn joins Zibby to talk about her latest book,  The Wit and Wisdom of Bridgerton: Lady Whistledown's Official Guide , which features a collection of quotes and snippets about the show's characters. Julia also shares how she almost gave up writing to attend medical school, the ways in which the popular Netflix adaptation of the bo...

Zibby is joined by Saumya Dave, resident psychiatrist and author of  Well-Behaved Indian Women , to talk about her latest novel,  What a Happy Family . The two talk about what inspired Saumya and her husband to co-found the nonprofit, thisisforHER, why she finds herself drawn to intergenerational stories, and how her career in the medical field actually helps her care...

Zibby is joined by literary icon Sandra Cisneros to talk about her latest book,  Martita, I Remember You , which she actually began writing in the early 1990s. The two talk about what made Sandra move forward with publishing this story now, why she feels the need to share as many stories as she can "with the time she has left," and what she would be doing if she weren't a writer (hint: i...

Lifestyle expert Colin Cowie joins Zibby to discuss his 11th book,  The Gold Standard . Zibby shares which piece of advice from the book she recently shared to inspire her team at Zibby Books and asks Colin about how Covid-19 impacted his messaging. The two also talk about how to create a desirable product in a saturated market, the ways in which publishing has changed between the release of...

Bestselling author of  Whisper Network  Chandler Baker returns to talk with Zibby about her latest novel,  The Husbands,  a Stepford Wives gender-swap. Chandler shares why she wanted to write about the discrepancies in the division of domestic labor, as well as what the responses have been like from actual husbands. The two also discuss the things they love about being a part o...

"To me, there's always humor at the edge of the darkness." Zibby is joined by Hilma Wolitzer to talk about her new collection of short stories,  Today a Woman Went Mad in the Supermarket , which follows one woman throughout her life. The two discuss how Hilma wrote these stories in the large window between 1966 all the way through the pandemic, as well as how they both reflect and stray from...

Dana Canedy's career is incredible — a senior editor at the  New York Times , the administrator of the Pulitzer Prizes, and now the senior vice president and publisher of Simon & Schuster — but it's her lost love story that has shaped who she is today. Dana joined Zibby to discuss her book,  A Journal for Jordan , which tells the story of how Dana's fiancée Charles managed to wr...

New York Times  bestselling author Riley Sager joins Zibby to discuss his latest thriller,  Survive the Night . Riley shares why he loves writing plot twists that the readers will least expect, as well as how this book started with the simplest pitch: "a girl, a killer, a car." The two also talk about why it is that they remember the 1990s better than they remember the last few days...

Zibby is joined by professor and poet Maggie Smith to discuss her latest collection,  Goldenrod , which includes a selection of the poems Maggie has written since 2016. Maggie shares why she calls herself a recovering pessimist, the reason she doesn't write when she's in the midst of big feelings, and how she often pulls together poems from lines she writes as they come to her. Zibby als...

"I love the fact that we all try and replicate our parents and rebel against them at the same time." Novelist Esther Freud joins Zibby to talk about her latest book,  I Couldn't Love You More,  and how her fascinating family history inspired its intergenerational story. The two discuss why Esther sought to work on a lighter project than her last, as well as which writing techni...