Bullseye with Jesse Thorn Folgen

Hari Kunzru is a novelist and journalist. He is the author of several novels including: My Revolutions, Gods Without Men, and White Tears. His latest novel is called Red Pill. The book's protagonist is an unnamed narrator. He's a writer in Brooklyn, married with kids. In the back of his mind, he can't shake this feeling: something bad is about to happen in the world. He gets a job in Berlin, a residency. The time alone only invites more demons in. It sends him on a journey around the internet, to reactionary message boards and old blogs. Then, it sends him on a journey around the world, into stone huts in Scotland and Parisian hotels. By the end of the book you might start to wonder if his fears were justified. Hari joins guest host Carrie Poppy to talk about where he got the idea for this new book, the dark web, online privacy, and similarities between his real life experiences and Red Pill's narrator.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Veteran comedian Eddie Pepitone loves turning our expectations on their head. He's a working man's comedian with a set that perfectly melds the impassioned righteous rage of Lewis Black with the more understated observations of a comedian like Steven Wright. These days, due to the global pandemic, he's taken his act digital: live streams, video conferences, etc. His latest special, taped before the shutdown, is called "For The Masses." It's a special that fits the moment: Eddie sees all the scary, horrible and confusing stuff happening in the world, and helps us find joy in the absurdity of it all. It's also very funny. Eddie joins guest host Julie Klausner to discuss how comedy helped prepare him for the tribulations of 2020, fighting his addiction to bad news and his writing process for his new special. Plus, he'll pitch us his version of La La Land 2!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

Writer Roger Angell is our guest his week. Roger is best known for his writing and editing for The New Yorker and most notably wrote about his love of baseball. This week, in celebration of his 100th birthday, we revisit our 2016 interview with him. He shares stories about being a young kid in New York watching Babe Ruth play, which baseball players are the best talkers, editing fiction at The New Yorker. Plus he tells us about why he doesn't write about baseball as a pastime but rather as an experience of watching players grow and evolve.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy