WYPL Book Talk

  Brad Taylor is a retired U.S. Army Lt. Colonel who served in what is commonly known a Delta Force. Since his retirement, he's become a best-selling thriller writer whose series starring Pike Logan and The Taskforce, a sub rosa kinetic tactical squad, is now up to its twentieth installment, Shadow Strike , which is published by William Morrow.

WYPL Programming Coordinator Andy Hunt hosts his first episode of Book Talk, and his guest is veteran journalist and novelist David Wesley Williams . David appeared on Book talk previously to discuss his novel Long Gone Daddies. Today he and Andy discuss his most recent title, Come Again No More , which is published by JackLeg Press.

Mark Greaney is a best-selling writer of thrillers. He co-authored several Jack Ryan novels with Tom Clancy, and even continued the series for several years following Mr. Clancy's passing. Some of his other titles are Red Metal and Armored, but he is best known to Book Talk listeners as the author of The Gray Man series of books starring the burned CIA operator, Court Gentry. 2026 brings us the 15...

Matthew Pearl is a best-selling historical novelist and writer of non fiction. His previous novels include The Dante Club and The Technologists. His most recent novel moves him into a more contemporary era dealing with real estate, the literary world, and jealousy. It’s called The Award , and it’s available from Harper.   

Dr. Austin McCoy is a professor of history at West Virginia University. Today we’ll be discussing his first book for a general readership about the legendary hip-hop group De La Soul, Living in a D.A.I.S.Y. Age: The Music, Culture, and World De La Soul Made , which is published by Atria.  

Gayle Feldman has been with the prestigious industry magazine Publisher’s Weekly for over forty years as a writer and a senior editor. She has previously written the memoir, You Don’t Have to Be Your Mother, as well as a look at the publishing industry called Best and Worst of Times: The Changing Business of Trade Books. Today Gayle and I continue our conversation about her newest title.   Nothing...

  Brian Earl to the program today. Brian is the host of the podcast  Christmases Past and the author of two books about the holiday, Christmas Past: The Fascinating Stories Behind Our Favorite Holiday's Traditions and the recently published, Of Christmases Long, Long Ago: Surprising Traditions from Christmas Past , which is available from Lyons Press. 

We welcome Peter Brannen to the program for the final installment of our two-part interview. Peter is a journalist, and his work has appeared in publications such as The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Wired.  His book The Ends of the World, about the five major mass extinctions in Earth's history, was published in 2017. Today we’ll conclude our discussion of his latest titl...

We welcome Peter Brannen to the program for the first installment of our two-part interview. Peter is a journalist, and his work has appeared in publications such as The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Wired.  His book The Ends of the World, about the five major mass extinctions in Earth's history, was published in 2017. Today we’ll begin our discussion of his latest title,...

  E li Cranor is a former professional football player turned crime fiction novelist. His previous novels are Don’t Know Tough, which won the Edgar Award in 2023 for Best First Novel, Ozark Dogs, Broiler, and today we’ll be discussing his most recent title, Mississippi Blue 42 , which is published by Soho Crime.   

  Food historian and host of TV's TrueSouth John T. Edge returns to Book Talk to discuss his memoir, House of Smoke .

  Dr. Coltan Scrivner is a scientist who studies morbid curiosity, or why death and injury demand our attention, ranging from biological instincts to cultural mores. Today we’ll be discussing his new book,  Morbidly Curious: A Scientist Explains Why We Can't Look Away , which is published by Penguin.  

    We welcome Dr. Pue Shaw back to the program today for the final of a two-part interview. Dr. Shaw is a retired reader of Italian and Italian Literature, having taught at The University of Cambridge and the University of London. Much of her research is focused on the medieval poet Dante Alighieri. Her books for a general readership are Reading Dante: From Here to Eternity and the recently publi...

    We welcome Dr. Pue Shaw to the program today for the first of a two-part interview. Dr. Shaw is a retired reader of Italian and Italian Literature, having taught at The University of Cambridge and the University of London. Much of her research is focused on the medieval poet Dante Alighieri. Her books for a general readership are Reading Dante: From Here to Eternity and the recently published ...

Eliana Ramage earned her MFA in fiction at the Iowa Writer’s Workshop. Her debut novel is To the Moon and Back and is published by Avid Reader Press. It’s the story of Steph Harper who wants to be the first Cherokee astronaut in space, as well as the sacrifices and drive it requires from her, and how it affects her relationships with her family, partners, and people.   

Susan Gregg Gilmore has appeared on Book Talk for her three previous novels, Looking for Salvation at the Dairy Queen, The Improper Life of Bezellia Grove, and The Funeral Dress. Today we’ll be discussing her latest title, The Curious Calling of Leonard Bush which is published by Blair.  

N at Segaloff has worked in show biz as a publicist, producer, writer and more. His previous titles include: Hurricane Billy: The Stormy Life and Films of William Friedkin, A Lit Fuse: The Provocative Life of Harlan Ellison, and Breaking the Code: Otto Preminger Versus Hollywood’s Censors. Today we’ll be discussing his latest book Bogart and Huston: Their Lives, Their Adventures, and the Classic M...

Dr. Kate Marvel is a climate scientist. She earned her PhD in theoretical physics from the University of Cambridge. She conducted post-doc research at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, as well as at the Carnegie Institution for Science, and the Center for International Security and Cooperation at Stanford University. She was a columnist for Scientific American for several years. Today, we’ll...

Dr. Kate Marvel is a climate scientist. She earned her PhD in theoretical physics from the University of Cambridge. She conducted post-doc research at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, as well as at the Carnegie Institution for Science, and the Center for International Security and Cooperation at Stanford University.    She was a columnist for Scientific American for several years. Today we’...

  Jerry Avorn is a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and Chief Emeritus of the Division of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. His previous book is Powerful Medicines: The Benefits, Risks, and Costs of Prescription Drugs, and today we’ll be finishing our discussion of his recent release, Rethinking Medications: Truth, Power, and the Drugs You T...

  Jerry Avorn is a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School and Chief Emeritus of the Division of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. His previous book is Powerful Medicines: The Benefits, Risks, and Costs of Prescription Drugs, and today we’ll begin our discussion of his recent release, Rethinking Medications: Truth, Power, and the Drugs You Take whi...

Elizabeth Birkelund is a novelist whose previous works include The Runaway Wife and The Dressmaker. Prior to writing novels, Elizabeth was a personal finance columnist for Cosmopolitan magazine and a full-time freelance writer for publications such as Glamour, Self, Victoria and Working Woman. Today, we’ll be discussing her recent novel, A Northern Light in Provence , which is published by Ballant...

Heather Clark is a biographer, literary critic and novelist. She is the author of Red Comet: The Short Life and Blazing Art of Sylvia Plath, The Grief of Influence: Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes, The Ulster Renaissance: Poetry in Belfast 1962 – 1972 and Sylvia Plath, a Very Short Introduction. Today we’ll be discussing her novel, The Scrapbook , which is published by Pantheon Books.   

Rickey Fayne is a native of western Tennessee but currently makes his home in the upper Midwest. His fiction has appeared in publications such as The Kenyon Review, The Sewanee, and Guernica. Today we’ll be discussing his debut novel, The Devil Three Times which is published by Little, Brown and Company.   

  Michael Farris Smith is a novelist who has appeared on Book Talk many times discuss his books, including Blackwood and Salvage this World. Today, we’ll be discussing his most recent novel, Lay Your Armor Down which is published by Little, Brown and Company.