Guest i still think i very much see myself as a book critic. This book is just sort of an extension of that work, but these days i feel like im a political journalist also in many ways and just using books as a means to do that kind of work. Host also an author, obviously. This is your first book. Did you know you always wanted to write a book as a book critic or is that something you steered clear of . Guest i did not have a sense i wanted to necessarily be an author or write a book. Reading other peoples books was plenty for me and i worried a bit that if i went through the process of writing a book i would end up far too sympathetic to authors and ruin me for my day job, but i think its been useful to see what that side of the process is like and all of the work that goes into creating that finished product usually just get at the tail end host do you think it will change your approach at all as a book critic . I think it almost has to. I dont know how it will, though. I went to see
To you. I still see myself as a book critic. This book is gamma extension of that work but these days i feel like i am a political journalist and using books as a means to that kind of work. Or is that something you actually steered clear of it has to in some ways beyond just sympathy for so i hope that it will give me a better sense of the decisionmaking that goes into what a book covers and how many chapters. What is it that you do during the day then you read 150 books about the trump era it is a book about books like the book about coffee tables from seinfeld but i hope it simply uses books to try to understand a moment and get a snapshot of a moment so it could have been a lot of things. It could have been film, theater, fiction so its a book about this moment in america and civic life but what do you mean about the intellectual history . There are a lot of ways to imagine. It anticipated everything and ive done some of that myself, guilty but that isnt the kind of book i wanted t
Public service. And brought to you today by your television provider. Host thank you for joining us for my name is alex meriwether. On behalf of Harvard Bookstore and very pleased to introduce our talk with thomas levenson. They panicked the nation and made the world richford tonight professor levinson is joining conversation by david dobbs. The Virtual Event tonight Harvard Bookstore continues to bring authors and their work to our community and our new digital community. Finer Event Schedule harvar harvard. Com events we can also sign up for our email newsletter and shopper shells from home. This evenings discussion will conclude for some time for your questions. If you have a question for speakers go to the queue and a box to submit questions at any time during the discussion. Will come to those at the end of the talk. I will work on answering as many of your questions as time allow allows. And in just a moment i will post the harvard. Com link to purchase money for nothing. Your pu
The world rich. And tonight hes joined by david dobbs. And bringing the authors to the community and find our schedule harvard. Com events where you can sign up for our email newsletter and shop our shelves from home. This evening will conclude with time for your questions. If you have questions for our speakers, go to the q a box to submit at any time during the discussion. Well come to those the end of the talk and well work on answering as many of your questions as time allows and in a minute ill put up the link to purchase money for nothing, and it makes this virtual author series possible more than ever the future of a landmark independent bookstore. Thank you. We sincerely appreciate your continued support now and always and finally, and if we have any tech issues tonight during the event of the we will do our best to resolve them quickly. Thanks for your patience and understanding. And now, im pleased to introduce our speakers. Thomas levenson is a professor of science writing a
Hello, everyone and welcome to todays virtual Commonwealth Club program. My name is don lemon and im going to be your moderator. A few things before we announce our beautiful wonderful sunny hostin. As the club hosts Virtual Events theyre grateful to your continued support of their members and we hope youll consider making a donation, you can do it online or you can text, text donate. Here is the number, 4153294231, 4153294231. The club would like to thank for the good let event. Its my pleasure, my just overwelcomiove overwhelmi overwhelming, deeply i cant tell you how much i love this woman, but my pleasure to welcome my very dear friend sunny hostin, Award Winning journalist and cohost of the view. We talk so much, were like sisters a brothers and we fight, but its all love. And the new book, here it is, i am these truths, its a memoir of identity and justi living between worlds. A revealing look at the her incrediblestory. Sunny grew up in the south bronx, tough hard work and deter