Send us a text Merry Christmas everyone!!! This is a re-run but one of my most popular podcasts about the beloved Charlie Brown. Who doesn't love the Charlie brown Christmas Tree? I hope all of you are captured by the wonder of this season, surrounded by love and to remember what it is to love. God Bless all Look forward to everyone in the New Year. Michele McAloon We explore how Charles Schulz turned Peanuts into a cultural mirror for Cold War fear, public faith, an...

Send us a text If you love Christmas history, urban culture, or just the glow of a winter night, this conversation will change how you walk a market lane. Subscribe, share the episode with a friend who loves Christmas markets, and leave a quick review to tell us your favorite Christmas market whereever you are in the world. Connect with the Catholic Thing Fear – and Hope – in Europe’s Christmas Markets' from The Catholic Thing. https://www.thecatholicthing.org/2025/12/13/fear-and...

Send us a text A million stories rest under the trees of Père Lachaise, and some of them still move. We sit down with curator and author-photographer Benoît Galliot to walk the avenues of Paris’s most visited cemetery and discover why it feels so alive. From neo-gothic chapels and art nouveau tombs to foxes raising kits among ivy, this tour blends cultural history with urban ecology in a way that surprises and soothes. Benoît opens the gate on a distinctly French approach to burial: time-bou...

Send us a text In this fascinating podcast episode, historian Gareth Russell delves into the riveting life of King James I. Michele McAloon, the host, describes Russell's latest book, 'The Six Loves of James the First,' as a compelling historical narrative that rivals even the most intricate fiction. Russell shares captivating anecdotes about James I's dramatic upbringing amidst religious turmoil, his complex relationships, and his influence on history, including the creation of the King Jame...

Send us a text War Eagel! Roll tide! College game day! The Iron Bowl A single game can define a state. We sit down with Yahoo Sports senior writer Jay Busbee to unpack how Alabama vs Auburn became the South’s fiercest mirror, reflecting pride, pain, progress, and power from 1893 to NIL. Jay’s new book, Iron in the Blood, traces the Iron Bowl’s evolution from picnic blankets and early tailgates to bowl-driven TV eras and today’s high-dollar recruiting wars, revealing how a rivalry without pro ...

Send us a text A freighter longer than a skyscraper is tall. Waves four seconds apart that can bend steel. A ballad recorded in a single take that changed how an entire industry thinks about risk. We sat down with John U. Bacon, author of The Gales of November, to trace the Edmund Fitzgerald from blueprint to bell, and from storm science to the quiet rooms where families still keep watch. We unpack what makes the Great Lakes uniquely dangerous: freshwater’s sharper, closer-spaced waves; loca...

Send us a text Find out more about Cross Word Books at https://www.bookclues.com/ Professor Beer's website https://mollybeer.net A woman without a rank helped a country find its balance. We sit down with Professor Molly Beer to explore Angelica Schuyler—born Engeltia into Dutch New York, educated at a royal governor’s table, and fluent in the quiet arts that hold a republic together. Her new book, Angelica: For Love and Country in Time of Revolution, uncovers a life lived at the center o...

Send us a text You can contact Michele at https://www.bookclues.com Have you ever read Dracula??? child's play compared to John Blair's Killing the Dead; Vampire Epidemics from Mesopotamia to the New World. A corpse that won’t stay put tells you as much about the living as it does about the dead. We sit down with Oxford’s Professor John Blair to chart how vampire epidemics rise when communities are shaken by disease, war, or rapid change—and why the freshly buried beco...

Send us a text Connect with Michele at https://www.bookclues.com What if the most important maps we’ll ever draw are hidden under miles of water and thousands of PSI? We sit down with physicist and exploration roboticist James Bellingham to trace a life spent pushing past pressure, busting tethers, and building the autonomous systems that make the deep sea knowable. We start with the physics that rule the depths: hydrostatic pressure that crushes air spaces, why small pressure vessels surviv...

Send us a text Michele McAloon is the host. You can find more interviews on her website https://www.bookclues.com. The name Thomas Becket echoes through history as one of medieval England's most compelling figures – a man whose dramatic transformation from royal chancellor to martyred archbishop continues to captivate our imagination nearly a millennium later. In this episode, we're joined by Professor Michael Stotten from University College Dublin, a medieval historian whose expertise ...

Send us a text Connect with me on https://www.bookclues.com Have you ever wondered about the real-life inspiration behind shows like "The Americans"? Shaun Walker pulls back the curtain on one of history's most audacious espionage operations in this riveting conversation about his meticulously researched book, "The Illegals: Russia's Most Audacious Spies and Their Century-Long Mission to Infiltrate the West." Walker reveals the extraordinary world of Russian "illegals" – spies who spend...

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Send us a text Contact Michele at her website https://www.bookclues.com Andrei Soldatov shares his firsthand account of Russia's transformation under Putin, explaining how the free press was systematically dismantled and the country became increasingly isolated from the West. His powerful narrative weaves personal stories of journalists who either resisted or succumbed to the system, providing crucial context for understanding Russia's invasion of Ukraine and its hostile stance toward America...

Send us a text Professor John Ferling takes us on a captivating journey through the international dimensions of America's founding conflict in "Shots Heard Around the World: America, Britain, and Europe in the Revolutionary War." As we approach the 250th anniversary of American independence, this conversation reveals how our revolution emerged from the ashes of the Seven Years' War, when France began meticulously planning revenge against Britain after their devastating 1763 defeat. The Revol...

Send us a text Andrew Weiss, Vice President for Studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, reveals how Vladimir Putin rose from mediocre KGB officer to Russian leader through a series of accidents and opportunities rather than strategic brilliance or espionage expertise. • Putin was a mid-level KGB officer who never achieved high rank before being chosen as Yeltsin's successor precisely because he seemed controllable • The image of Putin as a master spy was deliberately creat...

Send us a text "World War Zoos: Humans and Other Animals in the Deadliest Conflict of the Modern Age." University of Chicago Press To find our more about Michele McAloon: Your host. https://www.bookclues.com What happens to zoo animals when war breaks out? It's a question few of us consider, yet the answer reveals profound truths about humanity's moral compass. Professor John M. Kinder takes us on a haunting journey through World War II's forgotten captives in "World War Zoos: Hu...

Send us a text Michele McAloon speaks with Olena Tregub, a Ukrainian civil society leader and anti-corruption advocate, about the realities of war in Ukraine and why American support remains crucial despite political uncertainty. • Olena describes the terrifying routine of air raid alerts and Russia's intensified attacks on Ukrainian civilians • Ukrainian defense relies heavily on US-supplied Patriot systems which cannot be replaced by European support • Most corruption stories about Ukraine...

Send us a text This Memorial Day episode revisits a conversation with Alison Maker about her book "Making the Best Years of Our Lives," exploring the classic 1946 film that portrayed veterans returning home from World War II. • William Wyler, the film's director, was a Jewish immigrant who served as a major in the Army Signal Corps during WWII • Wyler flew actual combat missions while filming documentaries and lost his hearing in one ear during service • Harold Russell, who played Homer Parr...

Send us a text What if apocalypse doesn't mean the end of everything, but rather a revelation of new possibilities? Archaeologist Lizzie Wade turns our understanding of catastrophe upside down in this eye-opening conversation about how ancient societies transformed through crisis. Speaking from Mexico City, Wade takes us on a global journey through civilizations that faced devastating challenges yet emerged transformed. She dismantles our preconceptions about Neanderthals, revealing not brut...

Send us a text Dorian Linskey explores humanity's persistent fascination with apocalyptic scenarios through his book "Everything Must Go: The Stories We Tell About the End of the World." This deep dive into our cultural obsession with the end times reveals how these narratives reflect our psychology, politics, and understanding of human nature. • Mary Shelley created the first secular apocalyptic novel with "The Last Man," establishing a genre that continues to influence modern fiction • Our...