Book Lust with Nancy Pearl (Seattle Channel)

Nancy Pearl talks with bestselling author Susan Wiggs about her novel "Wayward Girls," the story of six teenage girls sent to a brutal Catholic-run reform school in 1968 and their decades-long journey toward justice. Wiggs shares how a return to her childhood home sparked the idea for the novel and how conversations with survivors helped shape its characters and events. 

Zayd Ayers Dohrn was born underground while his parents, Weather Underground leaders Bill Ayers and Bernardine Dohrn, were fugitives from the FBI. In his memoir, "Dangerous, Dirty, Violent and Young: A Fugitive Family in the Revolutionary Underground," he investigates the forces that transformed his parents from idealistic young activists into some of America’s most notorious radicals—and the consequences their choices had for their children. Dohrn joins Book Lust host Nancy Pearl to discuss the difficult family conversations behind the book, the line between resistance and violence, and the unsettling parallels he sees between the political upheaval of the 1960s and today.

Host Nancy Pearl sits down with author Priya Parmar to discuss her new book, "The Original." Together, they explore the life and career of Katharine Hepburn, Priya’s extensive research, and Nancy’s appreciation for the novel’s attention to detail.

Nancy Pearl talks with Brad Bigelow about his new biography, "Virginia Faulkner: A Life in Two Acts," which revisits the life of a once-promising American writer, editor, and overlooked literary figure. Bigelow traces Faulkner’s rise as a writer and the personal struggles that reshaped her path. The Book Lust conversation also explores Bigelow’s lifelong fascination with neglected books, forgotten writers, and the compelling lives that continue to draw him to biography.

On Book Lust with Nancy Pearl, author and journalist Anthony DePalma discusses "On This Ground: Hardship and Hope at the Toughest Prep School in America," a story he describes as “a school that refused to die in a city that nearly did.” In the conversation, DePalma explores how Saint Benedict’s Prep in Newark endured social upheaval and decline through the steadfast commitment of Benedictine monks who stayed loyal to their community and believed in redemption, accountability, and the idea that education is shaped not just in the classroom, but in the people students become.

On Book Lust, host Nancy Pearl talks with journalist Howard Bryant about his book, "Kings and Pawns: Jackie Robinson and Paul Robeson in America." The conversation explores Bryant’s research into the complicated legacies of two towering civil rights figures, baseball legend Jackie Robinson and musician, actor, athlete, and activist Paul Robeson. Bryant examines how their Cold War–era divide shaped the civil rights movement and forced difficult choices on Black leaders in a deeply divided America. The result is a gripping look at power, protest, patriotism, and what history chooses to remember or forget.

Cartoonist and writer Mimi Pond jokes that her obsession with the Mitford Sisters nearly sank her marriage. That fascination became her new graphic biography, "Do Admit! The Mitford Sisters and Me." In a one-on-one conversation with Book Lust host Nancy Pearl, Pond shares why these wildly influential sisters, who moved in circles ranging from Churchill to Hitler to the Black Panthers, still captivate her today.

In the last episode of Book Lust, Susan Straight talks with Nancy Pearl about "Sacrament," her novel about three women nurses fighting through the first year of COVID. Straight reflects on how the pandemic reshaped her storytelling and stirred memories of loss, caregiving, and resilience. She also revisits "In the Country of Women," exploring the generations of women—from her Swiss mother to her Mississippi-born mother-in-law—whose overlooked histories shaped her life and work.

In a conversation with Book Lust host Nancy Pearl, popular young adult author Maggie Stiefvater discusses her first novel written for adults, "The Listeners," a captivating tale inspired by true events and set against the backdrop of World War II. In the interview, Stiefvater explores mythic storytelling, historical research, and the courage to change when life seems settled.

On Book Lust with Nancy Pearl, Kira Jane Buxton talks about weaving humor into her storytelling, including her latest novel "Tartufo," set in a fading Italian village full of unforgettable characters. She shares how the idea was sparked by her time living in a small Italian town, walks through her writing process, and reflects on her affection for every character she creates...even the most complex and temperamental ones.