Host Greta Johnsen talks with T Kira Madden, whose novel Whidbey is the GRETAGRAM Book Club selection for May. (TW: Child sexual abuse.)

Whidbey is told from the points of view of three women who are all connected to Calvin, a sexual precator: Mary Beth, his mother, and Birdie and Linzie, who victims who approach their trauma in very different ways.

T Kira talks about the book’s enticing opening scene, the ways that victimhood can be exploited, and whether she considers writing fiction to be cathartic.

SHOW CREDITS

Creator and host: Greta Johnsen

Senior Producer: Ben Goldberg

Composers: Ross Bellenoit and Jeremy Thal

Tile art: Mac Maclean

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Host Greta Johnsen talks with Roxana Jullapat, head baker and co-owner at the Los Angeles restaurant Friends & Family. Her new cookbook is Morning Baker: Recipes and Rituals for Breakfast and Beyond.

In 2019, she wrote Mother Grains: Recipes for the Grain Revolution, a thorough compendium of heritage grains and everything they have to offer.

Roxana says the new cookbook is just as devoted to whole grains, but it’s a little more joyful. “There’s a lot more spontaneity,” she said. “It truly is a reflection of what we make at Friends & Family, and what it means to be a grain head.”

SHOW CREDITS

Creator and host: Greta Johnsen

Senior Producer: Ben Goldberg

Composers: Ross Bellenoit and Jeremy Thal

Show art: Mac Maclean

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Host Greta Johnsen talks to author Rufi Thrope, whose novel Margo’s Got Money Troubles was just adapted into a series on Apple TV+.

The show’s cast is stacked -- it stars Elle Fanning as Margo, a young woman who becomes pregnant after an affair with her college professor. She decides to keep the baby, much to the chagrin of her own single mom Shyanne, played by Michelle Pfeiffer. Margo’s absentee former pro wrestler dad, Jinx, is played by Nick Offerman.

Rufi and Greta talk about the magic of seeing a novel in a whole new dimension, what Rufi is working on next, and the utter absurdity of living with the cuddly monster known as the Bull Terrier.

SHOW CREDITS

Creator and host: Greta Johnsen

Senior Producer: Ben Goldberg

Composers: Ross Bellenoit and Jeremy Thal

Show art: Mac Maclean

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.