Vroman's Podcast 6: Otis Chandler

For the latest edition of Vroman's Podcast, we're trying something different. Our guest this week isn't an author, but he is among the more important people in the book business today. Otis Chandler is the founder of Goodreads.com, a social networking site for readers. I have a Goodreads account, as do many of my friends. Vroman's has its own group (Big ups to the Vroman's Goodreads group!), and the site continues to evolve, playing host to over 650,000 users, some of whom are both authors and readers.

In this interview, which runs about 26 minutes long, Otis and I talk about the history of Goodreads, the future of social networking sites, and of course, what he's reading right now. In the process, I learned a bit about web design, and I said "I'm curious" about forty times (Seriously. There should be a drinking game or something.).

To download the podcast, click here.

Vroman's Podcast 5: Aravind Adiga

Aravind Adiga is the author of The White Tiger, a gripping new novel about contemporary India. It has been shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize for Fiction, one of two debut novels to make the list this year. I've already made it clear that I'm pulling for him.

Mr. Adiga and I spoke over the phone a short while ago. He was in his apartment in Mumbai, and I was in my kitchen. It was early in the morning for me, which might explain why I inverted the name of a key character in the book. During our conversation, which runs about 21 minutes, we spoke about globalization, outsourcing, book sales, and how the United States is already dead to the rest of the world. You know, the usual stuff.

Click here to download the podcast to your computer.

Vroman's Podcast 4: David Benioff

David Benioff's new novel City of Thieves is Vroman's favorite book of the moment. Everybody at our store who has read it has loved it. It's a book that appeals to many different kinds of readers, and I have a hunch it will appeal to you. At once literary and thrilling, dramatic and comedic, romantic and sexy (Yes, sexy!), City of Thieves is one of the most readable, well-written, and exciting books of the year. (Did I mention that we really like it?)

In this interview, which runs about 33 minutes, we discuss the rather coy prologue of the book, how his screenwriting has shaped Benioff's fiction, Arnold Schwarzenegger's skinny calves, and the speeding ticket Benioff got on his way to his Vroman's event back in June. Listen now!

(Click here to download the podcast to your computer.)

The Podcast Is Working!

After some mysterious difficulties yesterday, the third Vroman's podcast is up and running. Listen to it today, and tell your friends! Yay!

Vroman's Podcast 3: Debra Ginsberg

Vroman's Podcast 3 is up. This time Debra Ginsberg is in the hot seat, as we discuss her new book The Grift. Before the interview, Debra read my astrological chart, which was an illuminating experience. It turns out I have a lot of Scorpio in my chart. She was pretty damn accurate, too. She noted that I am intense yet like to pass myself off as easygoing (true), that I often need time to myself to regroup (also true), and that women find me very charming (well...).

Debra will be appearing at Vroman's on Wednesday, August 27 at 7 pm. Everybody buying a book that night will be entered to win a free astrological reading from Debra. Be there.

[Click here to download the podcast to your computer. As you can see on our fancy new player, the running time is a shade over 31 minutes.]

[UPDATE: It looks like the site that hosts the podcast is experiencing technical difficulties. The podcast should appear in a little while, so check back later. Sorry for the inconvenience.]

Vroman's Podcast 2: Julie Klam

Regular readers of this blog know that I love Julie Klam's memoir Please Excuse My Daughter. It so perfectly captures what it's like to be smart and cool and young, and yet somehow unable to find your way. It's a book that's consistently funny throughout but never at the expense of real emotion. Everybody should buy it (from Vroman's) and then buy it again for their friends.

And now Julie Klam is the subject of our second podcast (or, as I'm tentatively calling it, "The Inquisition with Patrick Brown"). In our interview, we discuss balancing writing and parenting, David Letterman, Titlepage, the Kindle, Goodreads, and much, much more. The running time is roughly 45 minutes.

Again, there's no music (still working on that), and if you notice a few edits, it's because I had to edit out a section where we talked about AP tests and the movie Diner for about twenty minutes ("Oh, Modell, my blood is boiling!"). Anyway, thanks to Julie for putting up with my slightly amateurish interviewing style, and thanks to all of you for listening.

Click here to download the podcast to your computer.