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If Books Could Kill
If Books Could Kill
Michael Hobbes & Peter Shamshiri

The airport bestsellers that captured our hearts and ruined our minds

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Episodes

What's The Matter With Kansas?

In 2004, historian Thomas Frank proposed a theory about the rightward drift of the white working class. Was he a... more

06 Dec 2024 · 1 hour, 5 minutes
Sam Harris's "The End of Faith"

Peter and Michael discuss the book that launched the phenomenon of New Atheism and asked the question: What if we... more

04 Nov 2024 · 1 hour, 9 minutes
Who Moved My Cheese?

What should workers do when they get laid off? In 1998 a bleak, asinine bestseller told them to find another... more

10 Oct 2024 · 1 hour, 9 minutes
UNLOCKED: Eric Adams

New York’s favorite criminal is in the news, so here is our episode about his ridiculous life.To hear all of... more

26 Sep 2024 · 59 minutes
Glenn Kessler Retire B*tch [TEASER]

Is fact-checking a legitimate enterprise? Is America's most famous fact-checker nothing more than a dweeb? Michael and Peter discuss.To hear... more

26 Sep 2024 · 36 minutes
Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

A memoir about parenting very badly and then getting weirdly defensive when anyone asks you about it.Where to find us:... more

24 Sep 2024 · 55 minutes
The Anxious Generation

Is social media to blame for the teen mental health crisis? It's complicated!Thanks to Emily Weinstein, Amy Orben, Andrew Przybylski,... more

08 Aug 2024 · 2 hours,
Breaking News Re-Release: "Hillbilly Elegy"

To celebrate ("celebrate") Donald Trump choosing JD Vance as his running mate we are re-releasing our "Hillbilly Elegy" episode. Enjoy!

16 Jul 2024 · 51 minutes
Richard Hanania's "The Origins of Woke"

Peter and Michael discuss "The Origins of Woke," a glimpse into the dark aspirations of the Republican Party and the... more

11 Jul 2024 · 1 hour, 1 minute
The Columbia Protests [TEASER]

Peter and Michael discuss the media coverage of the protests at Columbia — from the crazed, bloodthirsty ravings of right-wing... more

16 May 2024 · 27 minutes
"Going Infinite": Michael Lewis Takes On Sam Bankman-Fried

Peter and Michael discuss Michael Lewis’s bestselling book about the rise and fall of Sam Bankman-Fried, a young prodigy whose... more

02 May 2024 · 1 hour, 15 minutes
"The Better Angels of Our Nature" Part 2: Campus Lies, I.Q. Rise & Epstein Ties

2 Better 2 AngelsSupport us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Jeffrey Epstein’s Science... more

11 Apr 2024 · 1 hour, 24 minutes
Who's Afraid of Naomi Wolf? [TEASER]

We're finally discussing a good book! Naomi Klein's "Doppelgänger" chronicles the long, steady descent of another Naomi — Wolf (buddy... more

28 Mar 2024 · 30 minutes
Lean In

In 2013, Sheryl Sandberg became an icon for women who wanted to move from middle management at a tech company... more

14 Mar 2024 · 57 minutes
"The Better Angels of Our Nature" Part 1: You're Not Wrong, Pinker. You're Just An *sshole

This week we're tackling Steven Pinker's 900 page dissection of the reasons why violence, torture and war have declined over... more

22 Feb 2024 · 1 hour, 37 minutes
The Art of the Deal

Before Donald Trump became America's most prominent politician and birth certificate inspector, he spent his days making everyone in New... more

11 Jan 2024 · 52 minutes
The Worst Takes of 2023 [TEASER]

To hear the rest of the episode, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

21 Dec 2023 · 28 minutes
The Identity Trap

"There are two kinds of political scientists: The types who deal with noisy data and post on Twitter with a... more

14 Dec 2023 · 1 hour, 47 minutes
Pundit Portraits: Kathleen Parker and Chris Cillizza [TEASER]

To hear the rest of the episode, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

28 Nov 2023 · 29 minutes
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck

You stare, mouth agape, at the bookstore display. It’s a self-help book, but with curse words in the title?! This... more

21 Nov 2023 · 45 minutes
The 48 Laws of Power

In 1996, a frustrated screenwriter got a fellowship in Italy. Twenty years later, Beyoncé released "Lemonade." Content warning: This episode... more

02 Nov 2023 · 1 hour, 5 minutes
The "Organized Retail Crime" Panic [TEASER]

Retailers have been sounding the alarm about a shoplifting epidemic driven by organized criminal syndicates. In a shocking twist, it... more

26 Oct 2023 · 31 minutes
San Fransicko

This week we're tackling "San Fransicko: Why Progressives Ruin Cities," a book that dares to ask: What if everything that... more

19 Oct 2023 · 1 hour,
The 4-Hour Workweek

Have you ever wanted to escape the grind and follow your dreams? This week we're discussing "The 4-Hour Workweek," which... more

21 Sep 2023 · 56 minutes
The Clinton E-Mail Scandal [TEASER]

But her e-mails! Michael explains the non-scandal that captivated the mainstream media in 2016 while Peter attempts to sow the... more

14 Sep 2023 · 28 minutes
God And Man At Yale

Oops all grievance.Support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:No Ivory Tower :... more

07 Sep 2023 · 1 hour, 11 minutes
'On Bullsh*t' and the Pundit Industrial Complex [TEASER]

For this month's bonus episode we dissected Harry Frankfurt's gloriously brief bestseller and applied the concept to our favorite op-ed... more

10 Aug 2023 · 16 minutes
Liberal Fascism

Who poses the greatest threat to democracy? Is it the movement that openly identifies with the symbols, goals and policies... more

27 Jul 2023 · 1 hour, 4 minutes
Are The Straights OK [TEASER]

In our "Rules" and "Game" episodes we didn't get a chance to dissect the phenomenon of online dating (i.e. describe... more

13 Jul 2023 · 24 minutes
BONUS: Conservatives vs. Pride Month

Lots of subscribers asked us to release last month's bonus episode in full so here it is! Share it with... more

06 Jul 2023 · 1 hour, 5 minutes
The Rules

In 1995 a bestselling book proposed a simple dating strategy for women: Lose weight, wear bright colors and become a... more

29 Jun 2023 · 1 hour, 9 minutes
Atomic Habits

This week we're discussing "Atomic Habits," a book about how to use science (and also some stuff that’s definitely not... more

15 Jun 2023 · 1 hour, 1 minute
The World is Flat

Much has been said about globalization, but perhaps no one has said it worse than Thomas Friedman.Content Note: Discussions of... more

01 Jun 2023 · 1 hour, 7 minutes
"Nudge" Part 2: Mr. Nudge Goes to Washington

The Nudgening.Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:David Gal's "Behavioral Winter"The... more

19 May 2023 · 1 hour, 1 minute
The Meme Stock Cult [TEASER]

In 2021, scrappy young investors from across the world joined forces to buy GameStop stock, aiming to take down greedy... more

15 May 2023 · 19 minutes
"Nudge" Part 1: A Simple Solution For Littering, Organ Donations and Climate Change

In 2008, an economist and a law professor proposed a radical new approach to politics: Telling people not to do... more

04 May 2023 · 1 hour, 10 minutes
The 5 Love Languages

What’s your love language? Is it gifts? Words of affirmation? Or is it podcasts about books with extremely weird, reactionary... more

20 Apr 2023 · 54 minutes
Ben Shapiro's Plan To End Poverty [TEASER]

Is it bootstraps? It's bootstraps.To hear the rest of the show, support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

13 Apr 2023 · 12 minutes
Rich Dad Poor Dad

In 1997, Robert Kiyosaki revealed the secret to lifelong success: Deliver grifty seminars and hire child slaves.Support us on Patreon:... more

06 Apr 2023 · 1 hour, 13 minutes
The Dumbest Campus Controversies Of The Last Decade [TEASER]

Get in loser, we're going to Oberlin.To hear the rest of the show, support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

30 Mar 2023 · 20 minutes
Hillbilly Elegy

In 2016, J.D. Vance informally launched his political career with "Hillbilly Elegy," a memoir that blames the relative poverty of... more

23 Mar 2023 · 48 minutes
The Coddling Of The American Mind

TRIGGER WARNING: if you're a SNOWFLAKE college professor afraid of how your students are expressing themselves, you might need a... more

09 Mar 2023 · 1 hour, 1 minute
The New York Times's War On Trans Kids [TEASER]

The nation's most prestigious newspaper insists on asking a very stupid question. So for this month's bonus episode, we decided... more

28 Feb 2023 · 27 minutes
The Clash of Civilizations

"If your thesis doesn't hold up to obvious criticisms, there's a chance that your thesis sucks." Thanks to Paul Musgrave... more

23 Feb 2023 · 58 minutes
The End of History

Francis Fukuyama's "The End of History and the Last Man" changed political discourse forever. Peter and Michael peel back his... more

09 Feb 2023 · 47 minutes
The Lab Leak [TEASER]

In December 2019, the coronavirus pandemic began in Wuhan, China. In May 2021, America experienced one of the most cursed... more

31 Jan 2023 · 14 minutes
Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus

In 1992 a yoga instructor with a distance-learning PhD had the courage to ask: "Are women not getting help around... more

26 Jan 2023 · 1 hour, 9 minutes
The Secret

Rhonda Byrne's "The Secret" sold millions of copies based on a simple premise: All of science is fake and the... more

12 Jan 2023 · 42 minutes
The Population Bomb

How a Stanford lepidopterist convinced the world to fear the breeding habits of the poor. Again. Support us on PatreonWhere... more

15 Dec 2022 · 49 minutes
A Bari Special Bonus Episode [TEASER]

Our first premium episode is a deep dive into the blog of the infamously (and dubiously) "canceled" Bari Weiss.... more

08 Dec 2022 · 9 minutes
If Books Could Kill
The New York Times's War On Trans Kids [TEASER]
If Books Could Kill
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Description

The nation's most prestigious newspaper insists on asking a very stupid question. So for this month's bonus episode, we decided to answer... more