Totally Booked with Zibby

Sara Shepard is the #1 New York Times best-selling author of  Pretty Little Liars , The Lying Game ,  The Perfectionists , The Elizas  and  The Heiresses . Her latest book, Reputation  centers on a very prestigious university, an Internet security hack and what happens when everyone's secrets are on display for all to read. Sara and I chatted about why...

Sarah Hurwitz is the former head speechwriter for First Lady Michelle Obama and senior speechwriter for President Barack Obama. She was also the chief speechwriter for Hillary Clinton on her 2008 presidential campaign. Sarah’s book, Here All Along: Finding Meaning, Spirituality, and a Deeper Connection to Life--in Judaism (After Finally Choosing to Look There) is her account of exploring Judaism a...

New York Times  best-selling author Andrea Buchanan is the author of ten books including  The Daring Book for Girls  and  Mother Shock . In her latest memoir,  The Beginning of Everything: The Year I Lost My Mind and Found Myself , Andi recounts her year of experiencing a profound health crisis and the struggle to find her way back to her former self. Andi and I discussed...

Lee Matalone is the author of debut novel Home Making , a story of three characters united in a quest to find a sense of identity, home, and belonging. I really enjoyed chatting with Lee about her personal connection to the source material, the path from shorter pieces to a novel, and Lee’s idea that our homes say so much about who we are and what we value. Lee’s writing has been featured in...

Shonda Moralis is the author of Breathe, Mama, Breathe: 5-Minute Mindfulness for Busy Moms.  As a self-proclaimed recovering perfectionist and people-pleaser, Shonda’s book explores mindfulness breaks and their power to create more connection, calm, and contentment for moms. I so enjoyed chatting with Shonda, and her college-age daughter, about her path to meditation, finding the space, even if it...

Happy Valentine's Day! I wrote this essay, "Making Time for Love This Valentine's Day" for SheHustleCollective.com. Don't mind me when I start crying at the end of the episode after I read it! It's about how I'm trying to do so much professionally that I've somehow neglected the people I love the most. Yes, I prioritize my kids, but what about my husband? My friends?! I feel like a giant failure....

Gigi Levangie is the author of Been There, Married That , a funny take on a ruthless Hollywood divorce. She also wrote The Starter Wife and Maneater , which were both adapted into award-winning miniseries. She was a screenwriter for “Stepmom” starring Julia Roberts. Gigi and I talked about everything from marriage and divorce, LA vs. NY, the advice she gives friends on whether or not to...

I chatted with husband-and-wife team, Siena Cherson Siegel (author) and Mark Siegel (illustrator) of the graphic novel TO DANCE. This autobiographical book chronicles a ten-year period of Siena’s life as she falls in love with ballet and moves to New York to train at the School of American Ballet. This inspiring couple shared what it was like to create together, the journey to merge their passions...

Dan Peres is the author of As Needed For Pain: A Memoir of Addiction.  This story explores Dan’s struggle with a massive addiction to opiates while working as editor-in-chief of Details magazine. Dan and I discussed hiding addiction in plain sight, his road to sobriety, the role of magic in his life, eating issues, fatherhood, the magazine world, and his path to recovery.&...

Alice Berman is the author of the Audible Originals book I Eat Men Like Air.  This murder mystery takes place as seven twentysomethings gather to celebrate their friend's upcoming wedding. I just could not stop listening! I loved chatting with Alice about her love of true crime, the importance of cultivating friendships with other authors and the process of bringing a story to life with Audib...

Angela Himsel is the author of A River Could Be a Tree,  a memoir chronicling Angela’s journey from a conservative Christian upbringing in rural Indiana to life as a practicing Jewish women in Manhattan. Angela and I discussed growing up with ten siblings, the fascinating research that went into the book, and the magical brochure that changed her life.  ** Want more? Become a part of my...

Jennifer Gefsky and Stacey Delo are the coauthors of Your Turn: Careers, Kids, and Comebacks--A Working Mother's Guide . This book is a true roadmap for women making career decisions as their work and motherhood collide. I absolutely loved hearing Jen and Stacey discuss their personal stories of navigating career paths after having children and their passion for helping women gain confidence...

Emily Nemens is the Editor of  The Paris Review and the debut author of  The Cactus League . Emily’s novel centers around a small suburb of Phoenix, AZ and the different hopes and aspirations of the community members during baseball spring training. I loved chatting with Emily about her working on a literary quarterly, her deeply rooted love of baseball, and writing on wha...

Caroline de Maigret is the author, with Sophie Mas, of How to Be Parisian Wherever You Are from 2014 and most recently, Older, but Better, but Older . She is an international model, has been a Chanel ambassador since 2013, and a music producer at Bonus Track Records and a fashion video producer. She is also a children's and women's rights activist. She lives in Paris, but we recently got to talk j...

Dr. Mark McConville, PhD, is the author of Failure to Launch: Why Your Twentysomething Hasn't Grown Up...and What to Do About It . He is a clinical psychologist in private practice, and as a senior member of the faculty of the Gestalt Institute of Cleveland, he has lectured and taught widely about child development, parenting, and counseling. An expert in adolescent psychology, his book is a...

Zibby Owens: Elizabeth Gerlach is the author of the children's book series Ben's Adventures about a young triplet brother who uses a wheelchair but loves to dream up fun adventures with his family and friends. A former advertising and marketing exec with an MBA in marketing, Elizabeth is now a special needs advocate and fundraiser for the Ben Smiles Memorial Foundation which she founded. She has a...

I got to sit down with Patricia Marx and Roz Chast on the publication day of their book,  You Can Only Yell at Me for One Thing at a Time: Rules for Couples.  Roz Chast, the illustrator, is the author of the number-one New York Times best-selling memoir Can't We Talk About Something More Pleasant? A graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, she has been drawing cartoons since she wa...

There has been a storm of controversy surrounding Jeanine Cummins ' novel, AMERICAN DIRT. One big objection is that Jeanine shouldn't have written a story about a Mexican mother and her son trying to flee to the U.S. because she herself isn't Mexican and hasn't had that experience. I wrote this short essay in response to it. I published it on Medium and am reading it here (a 3-minute read!).  ** W...

Ann Napolitano is the author of Dear Edward,  which is a huge sensation. It's a December 2019 Book of the Month Club pick, a January Today Show #ReadWithJenna Pick and the Barnes & Noble January pick among many others. Ann spent 8 years writing this riveting novel, and I got to talk to her about the beautiful storyline, the writing process, her family, and more.  ** Want more? B...

Megan Alexander is an Emmy-nominated national news correspondent on Inside Edition , the number-one syndicated news magazine TV show. She has covered football for CBS, acted in the TV show Nashville , appeared in several films, and executive-produced the feature film Heartbeats . She is the author of Faith in the Spotlight: Thriving in Your Career While Staying True to Your Beliefs , and a new chi...

Michael Frank is the author of What Is Missing,  a gripping psychological novel centered on the lives of three brilliantly developed characters. His memoir, The Mighty Franks , was a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers selection, one of The Telegraph 's and The New Statesman 's best books of 2017, and the winner of the 2018 JQ Wingate Literary Prize. His work has appeared in The New...

I'm here today with Thatcher Wine who's the coauthor, with Elizabeth Lane, of For the Love of Books: Designing and Curating a Home Library. A book by book lovers for book lovers, it's about collecting, displaying, and admiring books in a way that reflects who you are. Thatcher is also the founder of Juniper Books, a company that works with book enthusiasts, homeowners, and designers to c...

I sat down with Amber Tamblyn who is an author, actress, and director. She has been nominated for an Emmy, a Golden Globe, and an Independent Spirit Award for her work in film and TV. She cowrote and directed the critically acclaimed feature film Paint It Black . She's a contributing writer for The New York Times , a poet in residence at Amy Poehler’s Smart Girls, and a founding member of Time's U...

I interviewed both authors of The Woman in the Park,  Teresa Sorkin and Tullan Holmqvist, coauthors of both the novel and the screenplay for The Woman in the Park . Tullan is an investigator, writer, and actress. Teresa is a TV producer and founder of Roman Way Productions. Their book is a mind-bending psychological thriller about a woman who is drawn to a mysterious man she meets in Central...

Randi Zinn is the author of Going Beyond Mom: How to Activate Your Mind, Body & Business After Baby . She's a mindfulness and wellness expert and the founder of community Beyond Mom which offers expert interviews, lifestyle advice, stories, a podcast including "Going Beyond with Randi Zinn," events and retreats for the ten thousand creative and productive moms in its membership. We talked abou...