How We Live Now With Katherine May podcast

46:41

Recently, Katherine interviewed Sarah Moss about her incredible new memoir, My Good Bright Wolf , an account of growing up as a difficult girl in a difficult family, and how this ultimately led to her eating disorder. Throughout the book, she repeatedly argues against herself. A voice rises up in the text and says, What are you trying to claim here? That’s not how it happened! Why can’t you tell the truth? The point she makes is that we are unsteady in our remembering. We’re often incredibly uncertain, not just about the content of our memories, but also what they represent. We're unsure when the meaning-making took place. Was it something that arose at the point that those events happened? Or was it something we constructed far later in adulthood? And if so, what purpose did they serve? Links from the episode: Sarah Moss' book, My Good Bright Wolf Katherine's book, Enchantment, is available now: US/CAN and UK Join Katherine's Substack Find show notes and transcripts for every episode by visiting Katherine's website . Follow Katherine on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

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Exploring Hilary Mantel's memoir with Jillian Hess 1:00:51

há 22 weeks1:00:51

1:00:51

What’s to be done with the lost, the dead, but write them into being?’ So writes Hilary Mantel in her extraordinary memoir, Giving Up the Ghost . First published in 2003, it offers a snapshot of the great writer before the Wolf Hall era: a literary, if not commercial, success, and a fragile soul with a dark, scuttling imagination. Katherine was joined by Jillian Hess of the brilliant Noted Substack to explore this wonderful book. They discussed the way that Mantel captures her childhood and family, her relationship to her body and the endometriosis that assailed it, the way she talks about writing, and - of course, given that it’s Halloween week - those ambiguous ghosts. Katherine's book, Enchantment, is available now: US/CAN and UK Links from the episode: Jillian's Substack, Noted Hilary Mantel’s book, Giving Up The Ghost Join Katherine's Substack for a free reading guide, video recordings and transcripts Find show notes and transcripts for every episode by visiting Katherine's website . Follow Katherine on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

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Kate Fox on the potential and power of poetry 59:11

há 24 weeks59:11

59:11

It was National Poetry Day in the UK earlier this month and Katherine talked to Kate Fox about her new book, On Sycamore Gap , in an extra Book Club event. Kate’s book is about a very special tree in the north of England that was chopped down by vandals, but that has brought people together in the aftermath of its felling. Katherine's book, Enchantment, is available now: US/CAN and UK Links from the episode: Kate on Instagram Kate's website Kate’s book, On Sycamore Gap : UK Join Katherine's Substack for a free reading guide, video recordings and transcripts Find show notes and transcripts for every episode by visiting Katherine's website . Follow Katherine on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

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Oliver Burkeman on mortality, acceptance and imperfectionism 1:00:25

há 27 weeks1:00:25

1:00:25

September - when we’re almost as likely to be trying to reform ourselves as in January - is the perfect moment for Oliver Burkeman’s new book, Meditations for Mortals . Katherine sat down to talk to Oliver for her Book Club, and there was one question she was burning to ask: do you confuse lots of readers too? Oliver, you see, has mastered the art of subverting the self-help genre. It’s not that he doesn’t want to offer succour to people who are struggling, nor that he denies we can change. It’s just that he wants us to understand how unrealistic we’ve learned to be about our capacity to do things. He urges us to accept our imperfections, our limitations, our fundamental humanness. Katherine's book, Enchantment, is available now: US/CAN and UK Links from the episode: Oliver on X Oliver's website Oliver’s book, Meditations for Mortals : UK | US Join Katherine's Substack for a free reading guide, video recordings and transcripts Find show notes and transcripts for every episode by visiting Katherine's website . Follow Katherine on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

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Lucy Jones on matrescence, maternal myths and transformation 53:38

há 31 weeks53:38

53:38

This month, Katherine spoke to Lucy Jones about Matrescence , her book about the profound changes wrought by pregnancy and birth. Combining the biological, the social and the political with exquisite writing, this is a radical revision of a subject veiled in forced cosiness and obfuscation. Lucy's frankness and curiosity - her utter realness - are an absolute balm for anyone who’s navigated the very particular environment of contemporary western maternity, whether that contact has been personal or at one remove. It helps us to understand why pregnancy feels like such a hinterland, and also why it doesn’t need to be this way. Katherine's book, Enchantment, is available now: US/CAN and UK Links from the episode: Lucy's Instagram Lucy's website Lucy’s book, Matrescence Join Katherine's Substack for a free reading guide, video recordings and transcripts Find show notes and transcripts for every episode by visiting Katherine's website . Follow Katherine on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

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Daniel Tammet on real autistic lives 55:29

há 36 weeks55:29

55:29

Katherine was excited to speak to Daniel Tammet about his latest book, Nine Minds: Inner Lives on the Spectrum . Katherine has been reading Daniel’s writing for a long time - his first book, Born on a Blue Day , came out in 2006. At the time, he was writing about his experience as a savant (his synaesthesia means that he conceptualises numbers and dates in a completely different way to most of us), and in this conversation Katherine and Daniel talk about the way that he was treated during those years. Daniel is a beautiful writer, but his talent was often invisible to people who only wanted to see him as a kind of specimen, not fully human. Hear as they talk about the way Daniel’s persisted, asserting his rightful place as a thinker and a master of prose. Katherine's book, Enchantment, is available now: US/CAN and UK Links from the episode: Daniel's Website Daniel’s book, Nine Minds Join Katherine's Substack Find show notes and transcripts for every episode by visiting Katherine's website . Follow Katherine on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

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Tom Newlands on writing neurodivergence with a light touch 47:19

há 39 weeks47:19

47:19

Join Katherine as she talks with Tom Newlands about his debut novel, Only Here, Only Now . Katherine talks with Tom about his female main protagonist, the unforgettable Cora, setting the book in 1990s Scotland and how it offers a new way of writing about neurodivergence. She also explains the thinking behind choosing Only Here, Only Now for a non-fiction book club, and why it captivated her enough to break her own rules. Katherine's book, Enchantment, is available now: US/CAN and UK Links from the episode: Tom's Instagram Tom’s book, Only Here, Only Now Join Katherine's Substack Find show notes and transcripts for every episode by visiting Katherine's website . Follow Katherine on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

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Samantha Irby on being a person 57:22

há 41 weeks57:22

57:22

Join me for a recent conversation with comedian, essayist, blogger, and television writer Samantha Irby. Recorded as part of my True Stories Book Club hosted on Substack, we talked about realising you have a body again after lockdown, dogs that don’t love us enough/love us too much, writing about the darkest parts of our life, and terrorising Sex and the City fans by writing on And Just Like That… If you haven’t read it already, do check out her latest essay collection, Quietly Hostile . Katherine's new book, Enchantment, is available now: US/CAN and UK Links from the episode: Samantha’s website Samantha’s book, Quietly Hostile Join Katherine's Substack Find show notes and transcripts for every episode by visiting Katherine's website . Follow Katherine on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

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Catherine Coldstream on life as a nun 1:13:04

há 45 weeks1:13:04

1:13:04

Join my conversation with Catherine Coldstream as we relax into a questing, rambling chat about the deep pull that many of us feel towards the quiet and gentle rhythms of the monastic life, and the risks of submitting so completely. Katherine's new book, Enchantment, is available now: US/CAN and UK Links from the episode: Catherine’s website Catherine’s book, Cloistered Join Katherine's Substack Find show notes and transcripts for every episode by visiting Katherine's website . Follow Katherine on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

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Camille T. Dungy on unearthing histories 50:07

há 1 year50:07

50:07

At a superficial level, Soil is a gardening memoir, full of gorgeous descriptions of plants and getting your hands in the soil. But the garden in question is a political gesture, an act of resistance and an assertion of belonging. Camille T. Dungy uproots the staid monoculture of the suburban garden, and takes a fierce, critical look at its assumptions. In this conversation, we talk about the way that gardens can become a means of social control and conformity, but also an expression of freedom and solidarity that crosses generations. We also touch on the idea of outsidership, and the difference between choosing to stay at the edges, and being forced out of the centre. Katherine's new book, Enchantment, is available now: US/CAN and UK Links from the episode: Camille’s website Camille’s book, Soil Camille's Instagram Join Katherine's Substack to receive episodes ad-free, extended intros and immersive, bonus mini-episdes Find show notes and transcripts for every episode by visiting Katherine's website . Follow Katherine on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

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Kaitlin Curtice on resisting with integrity 59:55

há 1 year59:55

59:55

In the past few years, resistance has been a live issue for many of us, whether we’re wondering for the first time how to bring about social change, or realising that we need to find new ways to be activists. For Kaitlin Curtice, this resistance is an ongoing practice, informed by her perspective as an Indigenous American, and imbued with gentleness, integrity and personal sustainability. In this episode, we talk about her book, Living Resistance, how her own perspective developed over time, and - appropriately for this podcast - how we can live in this unsettling moment. Katherine's new book, Enchantment, is available now: US/CAN and UK Links from the episode: Kaitlin’s website Kaitlin’s book, Living Resistance Kaitlin's Instagram Join Katherine's Substack to receive episodes ad-free, extended intros and immersive, bonus mini-episdes Find show notes and transcripts for every episode by visiting Katherine's website . Follow Katherine on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

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Erica Berry on the meaning of wolves 1:04:19

há 1 year1:04:19

1:04:19

The wolf carries an almost unbearable amount of symbolism in western culture, encapsulating the predatory, the carnal, the supernatural and the ravenous. But in her book Wolfish , Erica Berry suggests that it’s time to understand wolves differently: as tender, as hunted, as guardians of the landscape. What’s more, those evil qualities may be better attributed to ourselves than to wolves. Berry weaves memoir with natural history, cultural critique, folklore and conservation to show that wolves have too often been a cypher for all our fears, and that this has left them under threat of extinction. In this fascinating and wide-ranging conversation, recorded as part of Katherine’s True Stories Book Club, Erica discusses her experiences with wolves real and imagined. Katherine's new book, Enchantment, is available now: US/CAN and UK Links from the episode: Erica’s website Erica’s book, Wolfish Join Katherine's Substack to receive episodes ad-free, extended intros and immersive, bonus mini-episdes Find show notes and transcripts for every episode by visiting Katherine's website . Follow Katherine on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

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Dacher Keltner on awe, humility and purpose 49:35

há 2 years49:35

49:35

I stumbled across Dacher Keltner’s work when I was first researching Enchantment , and now - for the final episode in this season - I’m honoured to speak to him about Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life . Dacher’s research attempts to understand this very fleeting, ineffable emotion. He and his colleagues have shown that awe induces a feeling of being small within a vast universe - a radical shift into context. What’s more, by absorbing ourselves in awe, we become better people, more motivated to go out and do good. In this episode, we explore how it feels to experience awe, how we can seek it out in the everyday, and we share the personal experiences of awe that have inspired both of our books. Dacher Keltner is a professor of psychology at UC Berkeley and the director of the Greater Good Science Center. He has over 200 scientific publications and six books, including Born to Be Good , The Compassionate Instinct , and The Power Paradox . He has written for many popular outlets, from The New York Times to Slate . He was also the scientific advisor behind Pixar’s Inside Out. Katherine's new book, Enchantment, is available now: US/CAN and UK Links from the episode: Dacher’s website Dacher’s book, Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life Join Katherine's Substack to receive episodes ad-free, extended intros and immersive, bonus mini-episdes Find show notes and transcripts for every episode by visiting Katherine's website . Follow Katherine on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

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Marjolijn van Heemstra on the overview effect 48:29

há 2 years48:29

48:29

Marjolijn van Heemstra believes that we can change the world by gazing into the night sky. Her book, In Light Years There’s No Hurry , explores the ‘overview effect’, a personal transformation reported by astronauts who have seen the earth from space. People who’ve experienced this rare view often report an ethical shift taking place, a new sense of mission in their lives. They come to see themselves as guardians of their planet, rather than its passive citizens. Clearly not all of us can - or want to - leave the atmosphere to gaze over the earth from space. But in this thought-provoking conversation, Marjolijn makes a case for us learning to draw on the overview effect from where we stand, suggesting that this could lead us to become better stewards of our environment, and form closer bonds with the communities around us. Marjolijn is a Dutch theatre-maker, journalist and poet who has recently been named Amsterdam’s Poet Laureate. Her most recent work has focused on reacquainting ourselves with darkness, and this includes her creative project The Night Watch, and the Amsterdam Dark Festival , of which she is the founder. Katherine's new book, Enchantment, is available now: US/CAN and UK Links from the episode: Marjolijn’s Instagram Marjolijn’s book, In Light Years There’s No Hurry Amsterdam Dark Festival Join Katherine's Substack to receive episodes ad-free, extended intros and immersive, bonus mini-episdes Find show notes and transcripts for every episode by visiting Katherine's website . Follow Katherine on Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.…

1
Amy Jeffs on ancient stories and new understandings 55:31

há 2 years55:31