The Lives of Flies
9 July 2021 - 44 minsThe subtitle of Jonathan Balcombe’s new book, “Super Fly: The Unexpected Lives of the World’s Most Successful Insects” leads to the first question on this week’s podcast. Why “successful”?
“Their diversity, for one,” Balcombe says. “There’s over 160,000 described species — and it’s important to add that qualifier, ‘described,’ because it’s estimated there may be about five times that many that are undescribed. Insects make up 80 percent of all animal species on the planet, so that says something right there about how incredibly successful they are, and flies are arguably the most species-rich subset of insects. It’s estimated there’s about 20 million flies on earth at any moment for every h...
Series Episodes
100 Years of Simon & Schuster
The publisher has gone through a lot of changes since its founding in 1924. Its current chief executive, Jonathan Karp, talks about the company’s history and its hopes for the future.
31 mins
12 April Finished
Looking Back at 50 Years of Stephen King
This month marks the 50th anniversary of the publication of Stephen King’s first novel, “Carrie.” On this week’s episode, host Gilbert Cruz talks to the novelist Grady Hendrix, who read and re-read many of King’s books over several years for a writing project, as well as King superfan Damon Lindelof, the TV showrunner behind shows such as “Lost” and “The Leftovers.”
1 hour 5 mins
5 April Finished
Books That Make Our Critics Laugh
Dwight Garner, Alexandra Jacobs and Jennifer Szalai weigh in on 22 of the funniest novels since “Catch-22.”
30 mins
29 March Finished
Talking to Tana French About Her New Series
The great Irish crime novelist Tana French joins Sarah Lyall to talk about her new novel "The Hunter," a sequel to 2020's "The Searcher."
43 mins
22 March Finished
Talking ‘Dune’: Book and Movies
The Times’s critic Alissa Wilkinson discusses Frank Herbert’s classic science fiction novel and Denis Villeneuve’s film adaptations.
39 mins
15 March Finished
Book Club: Let’s Talk About ‘Erasure,’ by Percival Everett
A scathing satire about race, publishing and identity politics, Everett’s acclaimed 2001 novel is the basis of the Oscar-nominated movie “American Fiction.”
44 mins
8 March Finished
