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The Los Angeles Review of Books Radio Hour is a weekly show featuring interviews, readings and discussions about all things literary. Hosted by LARB Editors-at-Large Kate Wolf, Medaya Ocher, and Eric Newman.

PublishesWeeklyEpisodes500Founded11 years ago
Number of ListenersCategories
ArtsSociety & CultureBooks

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Artwork for LARB Radio Hour

Latest Episodes

Eric Newman and Kate Wolf speak to journalist and music critic Barry Walters about Mighty Real: A History of LGBTQ Music 1969-2000. Spanning three decades of pop, disco, rock, funk, folk, and much more, Mighty Real looks at the power of popular music... more

Eric Newman interviews Kimberlé Crenshaw about her memoir Backtalker: An American Memoir. One of the most influential legal scholars of the past half century, Crenshaw is widely known for developing the analytical framework of intersectionality and p... more

Kate Wolf and Eric Newman speak with Andrew Durbin about his new biography, The Wonderful World that Almost Was: A Life of Peter Hujar and Paul Thek. A joint portrait of two influential yet under-sung American artists, the book follows Thek and Hujar... more

A double header show on beauty, class, surgical intervention, media manipulation, and assimilation American style. First Kate Wolf and Medaya Ocher speak with debut novelist Sarah Wang about her book, New Skin, a mother-daughter story rendered in the... more

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Recent Guests

Andrew Durbin
Writer and editor, editor-in-chief of Freeze, author of The Wonderful World That Almost Was
Freeze; Los Angeles Review of Books (interview subject)
Episode: Andrew Durbin's "The Wonderful World that Almost Was"
Sarah Wang
Debut novelist of New Skin, a mother-daughter story rooted in LA and immigrant contexts
Author, New Skin
Episode: Nose Jobs and Reality TV
MJ Corey
Psychodynamic therapist and author of Deconstructing the Kardashians, A New Media Manifesto
Author, Deconstructing the Kardashians
Episode: Nose Jobs and Reality TV
Suzy Hansen
Journalist and author of From Life Itself
Author, From Life Itself; former New York Times Magazine contributor
Episode: Suzy Hansen's "From Life Itself"
Lucrecia Martel
Filmmaker
Independent filmmaker, Nuestra Tierra
Episode: Lucrecia Martel "Nuestra Tierra"
Ann Scott
French author, author of Superstars; discussion about her book and writing process
Author, Les Insolents; translator/editorial context provided by the show
Episode: A Return to the Queer 90's
Hugh Ryan
Queer historian and author of When Brooklyn Was Queer; host of Queer History 101 Book Club
Author, Historian, Bennington College instructor
Episode: A Return to the Queer 90's
Patrick Radden Keefe
Staff writer at The New Yorker and author of London Falling
The New Yorker
Episode: Patrick Radden Keefe's "London Falling"
Karan Mahajan
Author of The Complex
Author
Episode: Karan Mahajan's "The Complex"

Hosts

Kate Wolf
Host of the show
Medaya Ocher
Editor-in-chief and host
Eric Newman
Host and producer

Reviews

4.8 out of 5 stars from 220 ratings
  • Los Angeles

    As filmmaker Thom Anderson says in his film, Los Angeles Plays Itself, it's not "LA" (cringe) it's Los Angeles.

    Audible
    3
    Anonymous
    United States4 months ago
  • As filmmaker Thom Anderson says in his film, Los Angeles Plays Itself, it's not "LA" (cringe) it's Los Angeles.

    Audible
    3
    Anonymous
    United States4 months ago
  • Happy Pride

    I really enjoyed the recent Pride episode. The interviews with Milo Todd and Vince Aletti were great.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    chabad fan
    United Statesa year ago
  • huge fan!

    I love the variety and consistency of the LARB podcast — the hosts are well-informed and articulate and likeable, and I really enjoy listening to them. They are also very grounded somehow, which is nice for a podcast about books and the zeitgeist and so on. That balance seems difficult to strike and I’m glad this podcast exists!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Sachita Nishal
    United States2 years ago
  • A missed opportunity

    I can tolerate a good amount of intellectualization, pontification, and high-falutin nonsense (and I hope you can too), but there are times during LARB’s podcast that I am aghast (aghast, I say) at the level of disconnection and incuriosity on full and unabashed display, all L.A. tropes aside. The more interesting bits occur when the conversation becomes so unmoored that you realize how preoccupied and stymied the hosts become by the sound of their own voice at the expense of any and all depth o... more

    Apple Podcasts
    2
    B_squared
    United States2 years ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

The show is valued for thoughtful questions, breadth of topics, and high-quality book recommendations.
Listeners praise the show for its intelligent, engaging conversations and strong host-pod relationships.
Guests are consistently described as insightful and well-chosen, with deep expertise across literature, film, and culture.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Apple Podcasts
#241
United States/Arts/Books
Apple Podcasts
#171
United Kingdom/Arts/Books
Apple Podcasts
#98
Australia/Arts/Books
Apple Podcasts
#54
South Korea/Arts/Books
Apple Podcasts
#94
South Korea/Arts
Apple Podcasts
#175
Belgium/Arts/Books

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

Nose Jobs and Reality TV
Q: Can you talk about Fanny's face as a capacious symbol rather than a fixed image?
Fanny's face is intentionally undefined so readers can project their own meanings onto it; it acts as a palimpsest that carries different cultural and personal significances depending on the reader's perspective.
Nose Jobs and Reality TV
Q: Welcome, Sarah—how did the idea for New Skin come about?
The book evolved through many drafts, starting from a broader interest in rock-and-roll and LA scenes, but the mother-daughter relationship emerged as the core, enriching the narrative with themes of trauma, beauty, and migration.
Lucrecia Martel "Nuestra Tierra"
Q: Why did you feel that you wanted to make a non-fiction film here when some of the themes of this film already run throughout your entire body of work?
Martel explains that documenting the community's archive and legal documents came first, but the deeper impulse was to use documentary form to address the foundational myths of the nation and to reveal how language can mask oppression and inequality.
A Return to the Queer 90's
Q: Hugh, what makes the Queer Nineties a turning point in terms of internet culture and community formation?
Hugh argues the 90s were pivotal for the emergence of online spaces and physical gathering places, creating a dense, but fragile, sense of shared identity that has since transformed with technology.
A Return to the Queer 90's
Q: What was the writing process like when you moved from your first book to Superstars and then to more speculative later work?
Ann contrasts the autobiographical pressure of the early book with later books that shifted toward different narrative forms, including darker and more speculative plots, while still drawing on personal themes.

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

Listeners per Episode
Gender Skew
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Frequently Asked Questions About LARB Radio Hour

What is LARB Radio Hour about and what kind of topics does it cover?

Listeners tend to be literary-minded, culture-curious, and intellectually engaged, often drawn to deep-dive conversations with writers, filmmakers, journalists, and critics. The show regularly features authors, translators, historians, and filmmakers who discuss books, cinema, and broader cultural trends, with an emphasis on memory, identity, politics, and global perspectives. Noteworthy is the blend of intimate interviews, critical analysis, and end-of-episode book recommendations, which makes it a strong fit for audiences who want thoughtful, provocative conversations and cross-disciplinary ideas.

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How many listeners does LARB Radio Hour get?

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How many subscribers and views does LARB Radio Hour have?

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Which podcasts are similar to LARB Radio Hour?

These podcasts share a similar audience with LARB Radio Hour:

1. London Review Bookshop Podcast
2. Between The Covers : Conversations with Writers in Fiction, Nonfiction & Poetry
3. The LRB Podcast
4. The Shakespeare and Company Interview
5. Close Readings

How many episodes of LARB Radio Hour are there?

LARB Radio Hour launched 11 years ago and published 500 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

How do I contact LARB Radio Hour?

Our systems regularly scour the web to find email addresses and social media links for this podcast. We scanned the web and collated all of the contact information that we could find in our podcast database. But in the unlikely event that you can't find what you're looking for, our concierge service lets you request our research team to source better contacts for you.

Where can I see ratings and reviews for LARB Radio Hour?

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What guests have appeared on LARB Radio Hour?

Recent guests on LARB Radio Hour include:

1. Andrew Durbin
2. Sarah Wang
3. MJ Corey
4. Suzy Hansen
5. Lucrecia Martel
6. Ann Scott
7. Hugh Ryan
8. Patrick Radden Keefe

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

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