Books & Looks: Real Books for Real Readers was started as a podcast to supplement Blaine Desantis’ website, ViewsOnBooks.com, and expand into audio interviews with authors.
With Books & Looks, Blaine’s goal is to focus on real books that real people will read. At least half of the books he reviews are either new authors or unknown authors that many in the general public are unaware of. After a segment reviewing books or interviewing authors, Blaine ends each episode with a discussion of the movies and TV shows he is currently watching.
This Week’s Episode
In this episode, we sit down with Julia Bryan Thomas, the creative mind behind the evocative novel The Radcliffe Ladies’ Reading Club: A Novel. Journey with us as we explore the transformative years of the 1950s through the eyes of four first-year students at Radcliffe College. Julia shares her own literary journey, from a childhood filled with letters and poems to fulfilling her dream at the Yale Writers Workshop.
We also discuss the shifting landscape of higher education and the diminishing role of liberal arts. Don’t miss our conversation about Julia’s upcoming espionage novel set in 1960s Paris and the challenges of writing in extreme weather conditions. Tune in for a rich narrative that transcends time, offering both a nostalgic look back and a critical eye on today’s societal norms. As a bonus, listen to me touch on the recent wildfires in Maui, urging a nuanced understanding of their complex causes.
Check out the latest episode of Books & Looks:
About Blaine Desantis:
Blaine is an avid lifetime reader, a retired attorney, and has been a book club leader for the past seven years. He is an active teacher in senior education classes at Furman University. Blaine loves fiction, nonfiction, histories, mysteries and almost all genres of books.