Ep 051 – Fiction. In 1941, a Soviet soldier witnesses Hitler's invasion of the USSR and must cope with its devastating consequences. Sasha Vasilyuk discusses her fantastic new novel, "Your Presence Is Mandatory," based on the real-life story of her grandfather's experiences during and after the war. Support local bookstores & buy Sasha's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781639731534 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube:...

Ep 050 – Nonfiction. Are we already in a second Cold War? George S. Takach says yes, and joins me to discuss his fascinating new book, "Cold War 2.0: Artificial Intelligence in the New Battle between China, Russia, and America." Support local bookstores and buy George's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781639365630 [https://a.co/d/df7oh7z] Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple: https://apple.co/3FP4ULb Spotify:...

Ep 050 – Nonfiction. Are we already in a second Cold War? George S. Takach says yes, and joins me to discuss his fascinating new book, "Cold War 2.0: Artificial Intelligence in the New Battle between China, Russia, and America." Support local bookstores and buy George's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781639365630 [https://a.co/d/df7oh7z] Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple: https://apple.co/3FP4ULb Spotify:...

Ep 049 – Fiction. In August 1943, a fourteen-year-old is newly orphaned and flees Rome after surviving the American bombing raid that killed his parents. Author Derek B. Miller joins me to discuss his fascinating new #WWII novel, "The Curse of Pietro Houdini." Support local bookstores & buy Derek's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781668020883 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple: https://apple.co/3FP4ULb Spotify:...

Ep 048 – Nonfiction. By July 1794, Robespierre was an outlaw, wanted for conspiracy against the French Republic. Historian Colin Jones chronicles Robespierre's finals hours & joins me to discuss his new book, "The Fall of Robespierre: 24 Hours in Revolutionary Paris." Support local bookstores & buy Colin's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9780198715955 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple:...

Ep 047 – Nonfiction. What's it like to grow up surrounded by Soviet propaganda? What lessons can we learn today? Magda Stroinska, Professor of Linguistics at McMaster University, joins me to discuss her fascinating new memoir, "My Life in Propaganda: Language and Totalitarian Regimes." Support local bookstores & buy Magda's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781990735332 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple:...

Ep 046 – Nonfiction. Before 1862, Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain had rarely left his home state of Maine, where he was a trained minister and professor. During the U.S. Civil War, he rose to fame as one of the North's greatest heroes. Ronald C. White joins me to discuss his book, "On Great Fields: The Life and Unlikely Heroism of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain." Support local bookstores & buy Ron's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9780525510086 Subscribe to the War Books podcast...

Ep 045 – Nonfiction. How do the descendants of Nazis reckon with the pasts of their families? Burkhard Bilger joins me to discuss his memoir, a ten-year quest to uncover the truth about his grandfather— a Nazi party chief, "Fatherland: A Memoir of War, Conscience, and Family." Support local bookstores & buy Burkhard's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9780385353984 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple:...

Ep 044 – Nonfiction. From 1800-1860, America grappled with 4 major wars: the War of 1812, the Seminole Wars, the Mexican War, and the lead-up to the U.S. Civil War. Historian E joins me to discuss these wars & his new book, "American Visions: The United States, 1800-1860." Support local bookstores & buy Ed's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9780393881264 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple:...

Ep 043 – Nonfiction. For England, the decades leading up to 1066 were defined by bloody wars in which Vikings, Anglo-Saxons, and Normans vied for supremacy. Don Hollway joins me to discuss his new book, "Battle for the Island Kingdom: England's Destiny 1000–1066." Support local bookstores & buy Don's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781472858931 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple:...

Ep 042 – Nonfiction. Across both world wars, women ran spy networks and escape lines, parachuted behind enemy lines, and interrogated prisoners. Helen Fry joins me to discuss her fascinating new book, "Women in Intelligence: The Hidden History of Two World Wars." Support local bookstores & buy Helen's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9780300260779 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple:...

Ep 041 – Nonfiction. The F-35 aircraft, which changed modern warfare, was one of the most expensive and controversial military programs in history. Tom Burbage joins me to discuss his new book, "F-35: The Inside Story of the Lightning II." Support local bookstores & buy Tom's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781510777576 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple: https://apple.co/3FP4ULb Spotify:...

Ep 040 – Nonfiction. The Russia-Ukraine War is the most serious crisis in Europe since World War II. At the heart of the conflict is a mystery: why did Putin put his entire regime at risk of destruction? Owen Matthews joins me to discuss his new book, "Overreach: The Inside Story of Putin's War Against Ukraine." Support local bookstores & buy Owen's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9780008562786 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube:...

Ep 039 – Nonfiction. Tecumseh's military stand against William Henry Harrison was a last chance to protect Indigenous people from U.S. expansion. Peter Stark joins me to discuss his new book, "Gallop Toward the Sun: Tecumseh and William Henry Harrison's Struggle for the Destiny of a Nation." Support local bookstores & buy Peter's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9780593133613 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple:...

Ep 038 – Nonfiction. In 1812 the French emperor Napoleon invaded Russia. For this purpose, he gathered an army of half a million, including C.J. Wagevier, a Dutch officer who was captured and spent nearly 2 years in Russian captivity. Samuel de Korte joins me to discuss his translation of C.J.'s memoir of that time, "Fighting for Napoleon's Army in Russia: A POW's Memoir." Support local bookstores & buy Samuel's translation here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781399089753 Subscribe...

Ep 037 – Nonfiction. The War of 1812 was disastrous for the U.S., the lowest moment being the capture and burning of Washington, D.C. Historian Robert Watson talks about his new book, "When Washington Burned: The British Invasion of the Capital and a Nation's Rise from the Ashes." Support local bookstores & buy Robert's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781647123505 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple:...

Ep 036 – Nonfiction. Deliberately engineered by Prussian Chancellor Otto von Bismarck, the Franco-Prussian War toppled the French Empire, unified Germany, and set Europe on the path to World War I. Historian Rachel Chrastil joins me to discuss her fascinating new book, "Bismarck's War: The Franco-Prussian War and the Making of Modern Europe." Support local bookstores & buy Rachel's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781541604094 Subscribe to the War Books podcast...

Ep 035 – Nonfiction. In 1990, East Germany, a country born from war, ceased to exist. Katja Hoyer joins me to discuss East Germany's evolution during the Cold War & her fantastic new book, "Beyond the Wall: A History of East Germany." Support local bookstores & buy Katja's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781541602571 [https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781617758607] Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple:...

Ep 034 – Fiction. There aren't many books that give the perspective of the fight against ISIS from an Iranian perspective. Salar Abdoh joins me to discuss his extraordinary new novel, "Out of Mesopotamia." Support local bookstores & buy Salar's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781617758607 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple: https://apple.co/3FP4ULb Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3kP9scZ Follow the show...

Ep 033 – Nonfiction. Why did Putin opt for regime change in Ukraine, rather than a smaller-scale intervention in Donbas? Samuel Ramani joins me to discuss his new book, "Putin's War on Ukraine: Russia's Campaign for Global Counter-Revolution." Support local bookstores & buy Samuel's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781787388512 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple: https://apple.co/3FP4ULb Spotify:...

Ep 032 – Nonfiction. What is the importance of Eastern Europe, and how has it been defined by warfare? Jacob Mikanowski joins me to discuss his insightful new book, "Goodbye, Eastern Europe: An Intimate History of a Divided Land." Support local bookstores & buy Jacob's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781524748500 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple: https://apple.co/3FP4ULb Spotify:...

Ep 031 – Nonfiction. As a journalist, Christopher Miller was on the ground in Ukraine when the first Russian missiles struck and troops crossed the border. He joins me to discuss his fascinating new book, "The War Came To Us: Life and Death in Ukraine." Support local bookstores & buy Christopher's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9781399406857 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple: https://apple.co/3FP4ULb Spotify:...

Ep 030 – Nonfiction. What do America's modern wars say about us as a country, and how should we respond as citizens? Phil Klay joins me to discuss his incredible new book, "Uncertain Ground: Citizenship in an Age of Endless, Invisible War." Support local bookstores & buy Phil's book here: https://bookshop.org/a/92235/9780593299241 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple: https://apple.co/3FP4ULb Spotify:...

Ep 029 – Nonfiction. 500 years ago, a Spanish flotilla reached the Yucatán under the command of Hérnan Cortés, leading to the fall of Tenochtitlan. Stefan Rinke joins me to discuss his new book, "Conquistadors and Aztecs: A History of the Fall of Tenochtitlan." Buy Stefan's book here: https://www.amazon.com/Conquistadors-Aztecs-History-Fall-Tenochtitlan/dp/0197552463 Subscribe to the War Books podcast here: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@warbookspodcast Apple:...