Latest Wbez Podcast Episodes
Nerdette Book Club: ‘Take What You Need,’ discussed!
Nerdette - May 30, 2023 08:00 - 34 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsThis month’s book club selection is Idra Novey’s Take What You Need, a novel that centers around Jean, an older woman who welds giant sculptures in her rural Pennsylvania living room, and Leah, her estranged ex-stepdaughter. We’re joined by two novelists who wrote books that came out in 2022: C...
Everything’s garbage. Sam Irby makes it better.
Nerdette - May 26, 2023 08:00 - 34 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsNerdette had the great privilege of hosting a live WBEZ event with Samantha Irby to celebrate the release of her newest book Quietly Hostile. Like her other books, it’s a collection of essays that span a huge variety of topics. She writes about lesbian nun porn fantasies, living with teenage step...
K-beauty is all the rage
Nerdette - May 19, 2023 08:00 - 32 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsThis week, Greta is joined by host of City Cast Chicago Jacoby Cochran and WBEZ reporter Araceli Gómez-Aldana. We get into the newly announced sequel to Freaky Friday and whether Martha Stewart’s Sports Illustrated swimsuit cover is really breaking down barriers. Then, NPR host-at-large Elise H...
Trans visibility with Tre’vell Anderson
Nerdette - May 12, 2023 08:00 - 27 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsTracie Hunte, correspondent and producer for WNYC studios, and Arionne Nettles, journalism lecturer at Northwestern University, join us to wade through some of the week’s most amusing stories, from the coronation to a study on how to properly call a cat. Then, Tre’vell Anderson tells us about t...
Pulitzer Prize winner Hernan Diaz on 'Trust'
Nerdette - May 10, 2023 17:00 - 21 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsThe Pulitzer Prize in fiction was awarded this week to Hernan Diaz’s novel ‘Trust,’ a Nerdette Book Club pick! To celebrate, we are sharing our book club conversation with the author from December of last year. In this spoiler-free episode, Hernan discusses the novel, male privilege, and who does...
Your summer books preview
Nerdette - May 05, 2023 08:00 - 37 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsGet ready to add a LOT of new titles to your TBR list this summer! Three of the best readers around came on to talk about the book they’re extra excited about: Liberty Hardy, senior contributing editor and podcast host at Book Riot, Lupita Aquino, who is on Instagram and Substack as Lupita Reads,...
Nerdette Book Club: Idra Novey on ‘Take What You Need’
Nerdette - May 02, 2023 08:00 - 21 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsOur May book club pick is ‘Take What You Need’ by Idra Novey. The story opens with Leah, who has just learned that her estranged stepmother Jean died falling off a ladder while making a giant, metal sculpture. The book alternates points of view between Leah in the novel’s present day, and Jean be...
Are you there spring?! It’s me, Greta.
Nerdette - April 28, 2023 08:00 - 34 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsNiala Boodhoo, host of the podcast Axios Today, and Inkoo Kang, TV critic for The New Yorker, recommend the best things to read, watch, and listen to right now. Then, director Kelly Fremon Craig shares her experience adapting Judy Blume’s seminal 1970 novel ‘Are You There God? It’s Me, Margar...
‘Better the Blood,’ discussed!
Nerdette - April 25, 2023 08:00 - 26 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsBook club is back to discuss ‘Better the Blood’ by Michael Bennett! It’s about Hana Westerman, a Māori police detective who is hunting down a serial killer in Auckland, New Zealand. Angeline Boulley, author of the YA novel ‘The Firekeeper’s Daughter,’ and Steph Matuku, a New Zealand author wh...
Adult BFFs
Nerdette - April 21, 2023 08:00 - 30 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsThe Atlantic’s Shirley Li and ‘Articles of Interest’ host Avery Trufelman stop by to chat about the end of an era for Netflix’s DVDs, the popularity of voice notes, and the woman who spent 500 days in a cave. Then, writer, actor, comedian, and musician Lane Moore joins us to discuss her new bo...
Spoiler alert: It’s Friday
Nerdette - April 14, 2023 08:00 - 31 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsMargaret Willison, communications director and faculty for Not Sorry Productions, and Christina Tucker, host of the podcast ‘Wait, Is This a Date?,’ return to discuss the ethics of TV spoilers, NPR’s decision to leave the Twitter-sphere, and why HBO thinks Max is a good idea. Then, one of our...
The nerds behind some of the things you love most
Nerdette - April 07, 2023 08:00 - 14 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsWe are bringing you a collection of stories from our Nerdy Job series! These profiles are a chance to learn about how a person ended up doing something super cool, surprising, and maybe even a little random. We talk to board game designer Elizabeth Hargrave, professional Netflix binge-watcher ...
Nerdette Book Club: Michael Bennett on ‘Better the Blood’
Nerdette - April 04, 2023 08:00 - 20 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsOur April book club pick is ‘Better the Blood’ by Michael Bennett. It is both a page-turning detective novel and a deep exploration of the lasting scars of colonialism. Hana Westerman, a Māori detective in Auckland, New Zealand, discovers that a series of murders are connected to the execution of...
How to be a lazy cook (in the best possible way!)
Nerdette - March 31, 2023 08:00 - 25 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsThis week, Justin Richmond, host of the new podcast ‘Started From the Bottom,’ and Bridget Todd, host of the podcasts ‘There Are No Girls on the Internet’ and ‘City Cast DC,’ stop by to talk about an AI-generated image of the pope, a party that only people named Ryan can attend, and the return of...
Nerdette Book Club: ‘I Have Some Questions for You,’ discussed!
Nerdette - March 28, 2023 08:00 - 38 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsSince Rebecca Makkai’s novel ‘I Have Some Questions for You’ follows a podcast host who is investigating a crime, we decided to ask two podcast hosts who have done the same to talk about it! Jonquilyn Hill is the host of the Vox podcast ‘The Weeds’ and the former host of the WAMU podcast ‘Through...
I want those three years back!
Nerdette - March 24, 2023 07:00 - 26 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsThis week, we are making space to commemorate three years since COVID first hit the U.S. Shoes Off: A Sexy Asians Podcast co-hosts Susie An and Esther Yoon-Ji Kang of WBEZ help us to reflect on what we learned about ourselves during the past three years and what we hope to keep with us in the fut...
It’s gonna be ok!!!!!!
Nerdette - March 17, 2023 08:00 - 27 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsThis week on Nerdette, we feature two of our favorite interviews from 2022, both with people who work to find hope and joy in tandem with difficulty and grief. First up is Dylan Marron, whose book ‘Conversations with People Who Hate Me’ is based on what he learned from his podcast with the sam...
How old do you feel?
Nerdette - March 10, 2023 09:00 - 28 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsThis week, co-hosts of the podcast ‘Just Between Us,’ Gabe Dunn and Allison Raskin, stop by to talk about the dark side of credit card rewards programs, TikTok’s pros and cons for kids, and how old we feel in our brains. Also, did you know fewer and fewer teens are getting their driver’s lice...
Nerdette Book Club: Rebecca Makkai on ‘I Have Some Questions for You’
Nerdette - March 07, 2023 09:00 - 18 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsOur March Book Club book is ‘I Have Some Questions’ for You by Rebecca Makkai! It’s a whodunit that interrogates the true crime genre, the carceral system and #MeToo narratives. The novel follows Bodie, a true crime podcaster who’s invited back to the boarding school she attended to teach a class...
Brown butter FTW
Nerdette - March 03, 2023 09:00 - 26 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsThis week, we are leaning into baking! First, our panelists, senior producer of WBEZ’s Reset Meha Ahmad and the host of WNYC and Futuro Studio’s La Brega podcast Alana Casanova-Burgess, stop by to chat about the decline in college English majors, a study that finds a connection between mask-weari...
Nerdette Book Club: ‘How Far the Light Reaches,’ discussed!
Nerdette - February 28, 2023 09:00 - 26 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsNerdette Book Club is back to discuss ‘How Far the Light Reaches: A Life in Ten Sea Creatures’ by Sabrina Imbler! This sparkling essay collection explores themes of community, queerness, and survival by weaving marine biology with stories from the author’s life. Kat Chow, former NPR reporter ...
Are we having fun yet?
Nerdette - February 24, 2023 09:00 - 31 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsJacoby Cochran, host of City Cast Chicago, and Erin Allen, host of WBEZ's The Rundown, join us to unwind from the week! The publisher of author Roald Dahl is making edits to his children’s books to make them more appropriate for today’s readers. We discuss whether it’s a good idea. Plus, we debat...
Go to your room!
Nerdette - February 17, 2023 09:00 - 30 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsNPR political correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben and WBEZ host and reporter Araceli Gómez-Aldana join the panel this week! We analyze an extremely comprehensive list of etiquette rules for 2023 from The Cut and discuss what it’s like for monogamous couples to sleep in separate bedrooms. Then, ...
A rom-com with a heavy dose of *dram*
Nerdette - February 10, 2023 09:00 - 22 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsThis week, Dave Franco and Alison Brie join us to talk about their new rom-com, ‘Somebody I Used to Know.’ Dave and Alison wrote the movie together. They also happen to be married. We chat about how they navigated it all on set, plus Alison's passion for streaking!
Nerdette Book Club: Sabrina Imbler on ‘How Far the Light Reaches’
Nerdette - February 07, 2023 09:00 - 23 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsFebruary’s book club pick is ‘How Far the Light Reaches: A Life in Ten Sea Creatures’ by Sabrina Imbler. From a mother octopus, to shimmering salps on the shores of a queer beach, to predatory worms, Sabrina looks at each creature as a symbol for their own life experiences. Part memoir, part scie...
Special: NPR’s ‘Book of the Day’
Nerdette - February 03, 2023 09:00 - 9 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsWe are bringing you an episode of NPR’s ‘Book of the Day’ podcast! Everyday, that podcast highlights a recent story or interview about books from NPR. Listen to host Leila Fadel speak with author George M. Johnson about their memoir ‘All Boys Aren’t Blue’ and the challenges to books by school boa...
Nerdette Book Club: ‘Now Is Not the Time to Panic,’ discussed!
Nerdette - January 31, 2023 09:00 - 37 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsWe discuss the nostalgia and magic in ‘Now Is Not the Time to Panic’ by Kevin Wilson. Our panelists this month are Angie Kim, author of ‘Miracle Creak,’ and Gwen Kirby, author of ‘S*** Cassandra Saw.’ Be warned! We do not hold back on spoilers in this episode! Also, we extend a very special th...
Taking down anti-fat bias with Aubrey Gordon
Nerdette - January 27, 2023 09:00 - 29 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsOur weekly panel chat is back! NPR’s Code Switch hosts B.A. Parker and Lori Lizarraga join us to discuss the week’s pop culture news. We cover the Academy Award nominations, cultural expectations for tipping and a man who survived off of ketchup while lost at sea. Then, Maintenance Phase co-h...
Undercover: The art of adaptation
Nerdette - January 20, 2023 09:00 - 18 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsIn the final installment of our “Undercover” series, we head to the movies (or just your living room couch)! Some of today’s biggest films and TV shows are adaptations of books. So what does it take to make a written story just as evocative on-screen? Can the movie *ever* be as good as the bo...
Undercover: How audiobooks bring a story to life
Nerdette - January 13, 2023 09:00 - 18 minutes ★★★★★ - 1.3K ratingsFor our special series “Undercover,” we are taking a deep dive into some of the different ways a book comes to life! This week, we’re peeking behind the curtain to learn more about one of Greta’s favorite ways to experience a story: the audiobook! We follow the lifecycle of a “book on tape” f...