and what was probably the most fascinating thing about doing this book for the two of you? that our original goal when we had our first conversation about doing the book, we had a goal about what kind of book we wanted it to be and what we thought might succeed, and we executed exactly what we wanted to do which is pretty rewarding in any aspect of life. host: had you two worked together before? guest: we had not written so much as a shopping list. we d had a few meals and tries together but had never written anything together. i have to say, there are always challenges with all good partnerships, but within the possible spectrum of how rewarding and enjoyable it was, it was way off the charts for both of us. we had a great time doing it, and the writing of it was shockingly much easier than either one of us expected it would be. malcolm gladwell, author of what the dog saw, and david grann discuss their respective collections of of essays and their writing career