No birth certificates, no school, no doctors, no registered existence, and abuse at the hands of one of her brothers. Westover’s first book “Educated” describes how she escaped a traumatic childhood to graduate from Brigham Young, Harvard, and Cambridge University with a PhD.
Also in this episode, Roxanne discusses some of her favorite memoirs and some of yours!
To purchase any of the books in this episode, just go to R.J. Julia.
Educated by Tara Westover
Fifty Days of Solitude by Doris Grumbach
Personal History by Katharine Graham
Make Trouble: Standing Up, Speaking Out, and Finding the Courage to Lead-My Life Story by Cecile Richards
Running in the Family Michael Ondaatje
With a Daughter's Eye: Memoir of Margaret Mead and Gregory Bateson by Mary Catherine Bateson
Where is the Mango Princess: A Journey Back from Brain Injury by Cathy Crimmins
The Fact of a Body: A Murder and a Memoir by Alexandra Marzano-Lesnevich
When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi and Abraham Verghese
After the Eclipse: A Mother's Murder, A Daughter's Search by Sarah Perry
H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald
The Red Parts: Autobiography of a Trial by Maggie Nelson
Roxanne shares 6 of her favorite beach reads to help you kick off your Memorial Day weekend in our first Bookmarks episode of the new season!
Whether its a classic beach read, a political thriller or a short story collection, we've got you covered! "I think about it as this sort of unfettered time to read" says Roxanne.
To purchase any of the books recommended by Roxanne, just go to R.J. Julia.
The Twelve Lives of Samuel Hawley by Hannah Tinti
The Hellfire Club by Jake Tapper
The Arrangement by Sarah Dunn
West by Carys Davies
Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann
Last Stories by William Trevor
We start our second season with two-time National Book Award finalist Rachel Kushner. Her new book, “The Mars Room” tells the story of Romy Hall who was serving two consecutive life sentences plus six years at the Stanville Women's Correction Facility in California’s Central Valley.
Roxanne says that the book “informs our understanding of prison life in a woman's correctional facility in thrilling and ironic detail” and “helps us ponder a society that gives rise to these inevitabilities, disappointments, and injustices.”
Also in this episode, we welcome back Lissa Muscatine, the owner of Politics & Prose in Washington DC for our segment “What’s on The Front Table.”
Books in this episode:
The Mars Room by Rachel Kushner
The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky
To purchase any of the books recommended by Lissa Muscatine, just go to Politics & Prose.
Manhattan Beach by Jennifer Egan
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin
Beneath a Ruthless Sun: A True Story of Violence, Race, and Justice Lost and Found by Gilbert King
Locking Up Our Own: Crime and Punishment in Black America by James Forman
Fascism: A Warning by Madeleine Albright
Make Trouble by Cecile Richards
Something Wonderful by Todd S. Purdum
The Wine Lover's Daughter: A Memoir by Anne Fadiman
Lab Girl by Hope Jahren
Happiness: A Novel by Aminatta Forma
Losing Mum and Pup: A Memoir by Christopher Buckley
Sharp by Michelle Dean
Educated by Tara Westover
Lessons From Lucy: The Simple Joys of an Old, Happy Dog by Dave Barry
The President Is Missing: A Novel by James Patterson and Bill Clinton
There Will Be No Miracles Here: A Memoir by Casey Gerald
The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro
Luvvie Ajayi dished on meeting Oprah, moving to the US from Nigeria, and raising awareness of HIV/AIDS among women in our inaugural episode!
The comic phenom and award winning author's first book I’m Judging You: The Do-Better Manual became an instant New York Times best seller!
Also in this episode, we debuted our very first installment of “What’s on the Front Table” with Lissa Muscatine, former speech writer for Hillary Clinton and owner of the Politics and Prose bookstore in Washington, D.C.
Books in this episode:
I’m Judging You: The Do-Better Manual By Luvvie Ajayi
The Broke Diaries: The Completely True and Hilarious Misadventures of a Good Girl Gone Broke By Angela Nissel
We Should All Be Feminists By Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Hillbilly Elegy By J.D. Vance
Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right By Arlie Russell Hochschild
The Fight to Vote By Michael Waldman
Swing Time By Zadie Smith
Amy Dickinson chats about finding love at middle-age, the heartbreak of caring for an ailing parent at the end of life and moving back to her hometown of Freeville, NY.
The nationally syndicated advice columnist's book, “Strangers Tend to Tell Me Things: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Coming Home” is out in paperback now!
Books in this episode:
Strangers Tend to Tell Me Things: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Coming Home by Amy Dickinson
John Grisham revealed just how close he came to ending his writing career when the mega-bestselling author joined us last summer to promote the crime fiction thriller, Camino Island. (now out in paperback)
“If this book doesn’t work, I’m quitting this,” said the former attorney about The Firm, his first major success.
Books in this episode:
Camino Island by John Grisham
The Firm by John Grisham