Always Bring a Book

Isaac Fitzgerald on Dirtbag Massachusetts, American Rambler, and the stories we inherit

Today I sit down with Isaac Fitzgerald [https://www.isaacfitzgerald.net/], bestselling author of Dirtbag Massachusetts, Pen & Ink, How to Be a Pirate, and the forthcoming book American Rambler: Walking the Roads of Johnny Appleseed. In the new book, Isaac retraces the path of Johnny Appleseed from Massachusetts to Indiana while exploring family history, storytelling, faith, loneliness, and the generosity of strangers across America. Our conversation covers writing honestly about family, how memoir changes when the people you’re writing about are still around to read it, and the experience of retracing Johnny Appleseed’s path across America. We also talk about long walks, why Isaac believes America is kinder than the internet would have you think, and why he likes moving between different styles of writing. Author Photo © Nader Farzan [https://www.instagram.com/nader.tiff/] Get Isaac’s books: * American Rambler [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/736787/american-rambler-by-isaac-fitzgerald/] (out May 12) * Dirtbag Massachusetts [https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/dirtbag-massachusetts-9781635573978/] * Pen & Ink [https://bookshop.org/p/books/knives-ink-chefs-and-the-stories-behind-their-tattoos-with-recipes-isaac-fitzgerald/8df18cbfede84def?ean=9781632861214&next=t&next=t&source=IndieBound] * How to Be a Pirate [https://www.lemuriabooks.com/How-to-Be-a-Pirate-Isaac-Fitzgerald-p/9781681197784.htm] Intro music by: Trevor Vaughan https://maglory.bandcamp.com/ [https://maglory.bandcamp.com/]

Eleanor Anstruther and Alisa Kennedy Jones on radical publishing, women’s voices, and Fallout

Today I sit down with Eleanor Anstruther [https://www.eleanoranstruther.com/] and Alisa Kennedy Jones [https://alisajones.com/], author and publisher behind Fallout [https://empresseditions.io/our-books], a punk-hearted coming-of-age novel set against the backdrop of the Greenham Common Women’s Peace Camp. Our conversation dives into the radical history that inspired Fallout, the power of protest and community, and why stories about women’s lives—especially in midlife—are often overlooked by traditional publishing. We talk about alternative paths to publishing, from Substack to indie presses, what it means to truly support authors, and how Empress is rethinking the model to center creative freedom, transparency, and collaboration. Author photo credit: Rosalind Hobley [https://www.portlandphotographersforum.com/news/get-to-know-rosalind-hobley] ⸻ Get Eleanor’s book: Fallout [https://bookshop.org/p/books/fallout-eleanor-anstruther/a5cc5b1eed58fb37?ean=9798999527035&next=t&next=t&affiliate=93729] (out April 21) ⸻ Learn more about Empress Editions: Empress Editions [https://empresseditions.io/] ⸻ Intro music by: Trevor Vaughan [https://maglory.bandcamp.com/]

Eric LaRocca on grief, transgressive horror, and his new novel Wretch

Today I sit down with Eric LaRocca [https://ericlarocca.com/] who is a Bram Stoker Award finalist and the author of Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke, We Are Always Tender with Our Dead, and many other works of transgressive, boundary-pushing horror. His latest novel, Wretch, explores grief, loss, and the terrifying lengths we might go to reconnect with those we’ve lost. Our conversation dives into Eric’s approach to writing horror and how he navigates pushing boundaries while working with publishers, what kinds of content some large retailers won’t carry, and why he’s drawn to stories that leave readers feeling “unclean.” We discuss the evolving landscape of queer horror, the current renaissance of queer voices in the genre, and why horror has always been a space for outsiders. ---------------------------------------- Get Eric’s books: * Wretch [https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Wretch/Eric-LaRocca/9781668070093] (out March 24) * Things Have Gotten Worse Since We Last Spoke [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/714716/things-have-gotten-worse-since-we-last-spoke-and-other-misfortunes-by-eric-larocca/] * We Are Always Tender with Our Dead [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/790259/we-are-always-tender-with-our-dead-by-eric-larocca/] * More [https://ericlarocca.com/books] ---------------------------------------- Craig's recommendation this week: Trad Wife [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/807398/trad-wife-by-saratoga-schaefer/] by Saratoga Schaefer ---------------------------------------- Intro music by: Trevor Vaughan [https://maglory.bandcamp.com/]

Michael Finkel on true crime, impossible stories, and The Art Thief

Michael Finkel is the author of The Art Thief, The Stranger in the Woods, and True Story; all nonfiction books that read like thrillers and dive deep into the minds of people living far outside the bounds of normal life. (Photo Credit: © Doug Loneman) We talk about how Mike became fascinated with people living on the fringes of society, from a Frenchman [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St%25C3%25A9phane_Breitwieser] who stole over $2 billion worth of art just to admire it in his bedroom, to a hermit [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Thomas_Knight] who lived alone in the Maine woods for 27 years without speaking to another human being. Mike explains why he’s drawn to these kinds of stories, what it takes to convince elusive subjects to talk, and how years of reporting and research eventually become a narrative that feels both unbelievable and completely true. Our conversation also revisits the bizarre real-life events that inspired his book True Story, including the surreal moment when Mike discovered that a fugitive [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_Longo] accused of murdering his family had been traveling under his name while posing as a reporter for the New York Times. We talk about the complicated aftermath of that experience, what it taught him about truth and storytelling, and how it shaped the way he approaches every project since. Get Michael's books: * The Art Thief [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/611687/the-art-thief-by-michael-finkel/] * The Stranger in the Woods [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/251786/the-stranger-in-the-woods-by-michael-finkel/] * True Story [https://www.michaelfinkel.com/books/true-story/] This week's recommendation: The Return [https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/611389/the-return-by-rachel-harrison/] by Rachel Harrison Intro music by: Trevor Vaughan [https://maglory.bandcamp.com/]

Megha Majumdar on A Guardian and a Thief, writing full-time, and trusting the process

About the episode In this episode of Always Bring a Book, I sit down with bestselling author Megha Majumdar to talk about her new novel, A Guardian and a Thief, an Oprah’s Book Club pick and finalist for the National Book Award. Megha shares why she structured the novel over seven tense days, how an earlier ten-day draft had to be abandoned, and what it really means to “listen” when a book tells you it wants to become something else. We talk about the house at the center of the story, the hard-earned wisdom of cutting hundreds of pages in pursuit of a sharper, more urgent narrative, and her decision to step away from her role as Editor-in-Chief at Catapult to focus on writing full time. About the author Megha Majumdar is the author of the novel A Guardian and a Thief, which is an Oprah’s Book Club pick, a finalist for the Kirkus Prize and the National Book Award, and the winner of the American Library Association’s Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence. A Guardian and a Thief is also a New York Times notable book, a Washington Post notable book, and one of the ten best books of the year per The Atlantic and TIME Magazine. Her first book, the New York Times bestselling novel A Burning, was a TODAY Show Read With Jenna book club pick and a National Book Award nominee, among other honors. Her work has been supported by the Whiting, Civitella Ranieri, and Hawthornden foundations. Born and raised in Kolkata, India, she now lives in New York. Intro music by: Trevor Vaughan [https://maglory.bandcamp.com/]