Meet the Author
Studio: iBooks
Category: Literature
What Is It
Live interviews/speeches/readings with a variety of authors, presented in audio & video format.
Technical Details
This show presents both audio and video episodes. I have tended to keep my reviews to shows that present audio episodes exclusively, but I’m going to look at this one as well because its archive is predominately audio episodes, though the most recent episodes are all videos. The iTunes archive has the whole run of shows, going back to 2007. The most recent episode came out in March of 2017, but don’t count it out just yet. The show has seemingly closed up shop before, with a couple of six month gaps between episodes and one eleven month gap previously. We might get a 2018 episode yet.
What About It
I like this show a lot. The selection of authors is interesting and most of the time the authors are engaging and interesting. The show covers a wide variety of books, from non-fiction to genre thrillers. They’ve even done a comic book related episode once or twice. The live setting actually adds a lot; the authors interact with the crowds a lot sometimes and that’s always fun. It isn’t, perhaps, the most in-depth or substantial literary show you’ll find, but it’s very good.
3 stars.
Essential If
You like hearing writers talk.
Avoid Like the Plague If
A writer should be seen and not heard.
Best Starting Place
I’m going to actually send you back to episode one, which features Alan Alda in connection with a memoir he released in 2007. He’s warm, witty and a real force of charisma.
