Fiction/Non/Fiction at LitHub

26/06/2025

NEW EPISODE: New York Times reporter Ernesto Londoño joins co-hosts V.V. Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell to discuss the recent murder of Minnesota state representative Melissa Hortman, which has made headlines as local politicians in the U.S. are rarely targeted for assassination. Londoño describes how a gunman posing as law enforcement went to the homes of several state politicians, killing Hortman and her husband Mark and gravely injuring Democratic state senator John Hoffman and his wife Yvette. Londoño recounts how the No Kings Rally at the Minnesota capitol later that day honored the crime’s victims in addition to protesting President Trump. Londoño details the alleged attacker’s background and debunks conspiracy theories about possible motives. Comparing the current circumstances to his own childhood in Colombia, where political attacks on the local level were common, Londoño discusses how Trump “redrew the rules of acceptable political discourse,” and how increasing violence against lawmakers may impact who is willing to serve.
Literary Hub

New York Times reporter Ernesto Londoño joins co-hosts V.V. Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell to discuss the recent murder of Minnesota state representative Melissa Hortman, which has made headlin…

25/06/2025

As Faulkner predicted, humans prevail — creatively. Workers get practical help working the cleanup of the Los Angeles wildfires. Listen as Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan talk to writer Sarah S. Grossman about the fires in LA.



https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/25/dining/taco-trucks-palisades-fires-california.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

https://lithub.com/sarah-s-grossman-on-the-los-angeles-wildfires/

A huddle of trucks has become the most reliable place for cleanup crews and contractors to find lunch.

24/06/2025

A summer heat wave is affecting a large swath of the country, and some are suffering more than others. Listen as Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan discuss the inequities of climate change with author, Emily Raboteau.

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https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/24/climate/extreme-heat-pollution-health.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

https://lithub.com/emily-raboteau-on-mothering-and-climate-change/

Extreme heat is making air pollution worse, scientists say. And President Trump’s regulatory rollbacks could drive air pollution even higher.

23/06/2025

As American support for Ukraine waivers and Zelensky looks to Europe for allies, listen as Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan discuss the war with journalists Tetyana Ogarkova and Volodymyr Yermolenko.

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https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/23/world/europe/ukraine-russia-kyiv-attack.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

https://lithub.com/journalists-tetyana-ogarkova-and-volodymyr-yermolenko-on-trump-and-ukraine/

The Ukrainian leader was set to meet Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday, after the latest in a series of intensifying Russian strikes.

22/06/2025

New York politics grinds on with the leading candidate being saddled by baggage that may or may not make a difference. Listen as Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan talk with New York Times reporter Nicholas Fandos about how New York found itself in this moment.
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https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/22/nyregion/cuomo-legacy-governor-nyc.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

https://lithub.com/nicholas-fandos-on-new-york-politics-eric-adams-and-trump/

Mr. Cuomo, the front-runner in the mayoral race and former governor, has a long — and, his critics say, mixed — record handling important issues in the city.

21/06/2025

As the Senate continues its budget negotiations, listen as Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan discuss Trump’s plans to seize spending power with ProRepublica reporter Molly Redden. . .

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/21/us/politics/senate-snap-food-stamps.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

https://lithub.com/molly-redden-on-trumps-plan-to-seize-spending-power/

The ruling by the parliamentarian sent G.O.P. lawmakers back to the drawing board to cover the costs of President Trump’s domestic policy bill.

20/06/2025

NEW EPISODE: Writer joins co-hosts and to discuss his new memoir HOMEWORK, which covers Dyer’s working-class youth in England during the 1960s and ’70s. He recollects his early passion for reading and film and reflects on writing about his parents, as well as the intensity of childhood play and collecting in the wake of the Second World War. He also explains what it meant for him to pass the 11-plus exam, a test given to British 11-year-olds to determine if they could go to grammar school—and the peculiar role that grammar schools played in the British educational system. Dyer talks about how this opportunity made his eventual admission at Oxford possible. He reads from HOMEWORK.

20/06/2025

The Supreme Court still has several important cases to decide this season. Listen as Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan discuss the legal processes that impact every American life with Harry Siegel.


https://apnews.com/article/supreme-court-birthright-citizenship-undecided-cases-66f330166fa6c2960c30b4725ba414e7

https://lithub.com/harry-siegel-on-the-supreme-court-bribery-and-scofflaws/ Harry Siegel on the Supreme Court, Bribery, and Scofflaws ‹ Literary Hub

The Supreme Court is in the homestretch of a term that has lately been dominated by the Trump administration’s emergency appeals of lower court orders seeking to slow President Donald Trump’s efforts to remake the federal government.

20/06/2025

NEW EPISODE: Writer Geoff Dyer joins co-hosts Whitney Terrell and V.V. GaneshananthanV.V. Ganeshananthan to discuss his new memoir HOMEWORK, which covers Dyer’s working-class youth in England during the 1960s and ’70s. He recollects his early passion for reading and film and reflects on writing about his parents, as well as the intensity of childhood play and collecting in the wake of the Second World War. He also explains what it meant for him to pass the 11-plus exam, a test given to British 11-year-olds to determine if they could go to grammar school—and the peculiar role that grammar schools played in the British educational system. Dyer talks about how this opportunity made his eventual admission at Oxford possible. He reads from HOMEWORK.
Literary Hub

Writer Geoff Dyer joins co-hosts Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan to discuss his new memoir Homework, which covers Dyer’s working-class youth in England during the 1960s and ’70s. He recolle…

12/06/2025

NEW EPISODE: Fiction writer Jess Walter joins co-hosts Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan to discuss his new novel SO FAR GONE, in which a former environmental reporter living off the grid is jolted back onto it by the surprise arrival of his two grandchildren and news of his missing daughter. Walter talks about developing the character of his protagonist’s son-in-law, whose right-wing politics are one of the causes of the family’s fissure. He also reflects on what it means that conspiracy theorists, who were formerly at the fringes of American politics, are now at its center, and why it is important for writers to depict the interior lives of those with different political beliefs. Walter reads from SO FAR GONE.
Literary Hub

Fiction writer Jess Walter joins co-hosts Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan to discuss his new novel So Far Gone, in which a former environmental reporter living off the grid is jolted back o…

11/06/2025

Juneteenth and the history of freedom in America take on new challenges this year. Listen as Whitney Terrell and V.V. Ganeshananthan speak with Tracy K. Smith about the difference between free and freedom.


https://apnews.com/article/juneteenth-order-no-3-texas-ensalved-free-c833aade1ac14b3fa302d9356cbf827f

https://lithub.com/tracy-k-smith-on-liberty/

The origin of the Juneteenth celebrations marking the end of slavery in the U.S. goes back to an order issued as Union troops arrived in Texas at the end of the Civil War.

10/06/2025

Truth and ethics in writing non-fiction are not new subjects, but their complexity keeps writers wrestling with boundaries. As James Frey’s new novel is released, listen as V.V. Ganeshananthan and Whitney Terrell talk with Iris Jamahl Dunkle and Kelly McMasters on biographical ethics.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/08/style/james-frey-next-to-heaven.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare

https://lithub.com/iris-jamahl-dunkle-and-kelly-mcmasters-on-biographical-ethics/ Iris Jamahl Dunkle and Kelly McMasters on Biographical Ethics ‹ Literary Hub

Twenty years after “A Million Little Pieces” became a national scandal, James Frey is ready for a new audience.