Best-selling author Rod Dreher talks to Chris about his latest book, Living in Wonder: Finding Mystery and Meaning in a Secular Age. Rod explains why we’ve lost the ability to see the transcendent around us and how we can rediscover enchantment. What do UFO’s, demons, and beauty have to do with this? Listen and find out!Show Notes:Rod’s new book: Living in Wonder: Finding Mystery and Meaning in a Secular AgeRod’s Substack, Rod Dreher’s DiaryDocumentary version of Live Not By Lies on Angel.comChris’s book, 13 Novels Conservatives Will Love (but Probably Haven’t Read), available to order now!Samuel Taylor Coleridge, “Hymn before Sun-rise, in the Vale of Chamouni”; Percy Shelley, “Mont Blanc: Lines Written in the Vale of Chamouni”Opening and closing music: Brendan Benson, “Spit It Out,” used with permission from the artist.
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1:05:29
My Brother the Priest
Chris’s brother, Father Paul Scalia, joins the show to discuss the significance of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter, and how Catholics in particular celebrate this most important (and for priests, most exhausting) week in the liturgical calendar. Father Scalia also recounts his road to the priesthood, shares his favorite Christian apologists and novelists, and discusses the state of the Catholic Church in America.Show Notes:· Father Scalia’s books: That Nothing May be Lost: Reflections on Catholic Doctrine and Devotion; Sermons in Times of Crisis: Twelve Homilies to Stir Your Soul (editor)· Father Scalia at The Catholic Thing· Chris’s book, 13 Novels Conservatives Will Love (but Probably Haven’t Read), available to order now!Opening and closing music: Brendan Benson, “Spit It Out,” used with permission from the artist.
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1:01:48
The Politics of Public Art and a Plan for Cultural Renewal
Chris talks to Fisher Derderian, founder and executive director of the Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation, about how politics and patronage shape American art. How did the CIA use abstract expressionism as a cultural weapon during the Cold War? How have culture-shaping institutions and public funds moved from supporting artistic greatness to enforcing political compliance? How can more supporters of cultural excellence reform existing institutions—and create their own? Plus, Fisher shares his thoughts about the great Sir Roger Scruton.Show Notes:· Fisher’s Substack, Dux Culturae· Fisher’s non-profit, The Roger Scruton Legacy Foundation· The art of Jacob Collins and the Grand Central Atelier· Oh, and Chris’s book, 13 Novels Conservatives Will Love (but Probably Haven’t Read), is available to pre-order on Amazon!This episode is brought to you by BizniCorps: navigating enterprise solutions for greater value-add! Special thanks to AEI’s Maggie Obriwin for making the last ten minutes sound less like a lo-fi indie record from the early 2000s. Opening and closing music: Brendan Benson, “Spit It Out,” used with permission from the artist.
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1:03:11
Presidents and the Power of Popular Culture
Tevi Troy, a senior fellow at the Ronald Reagan Institute, talks to Chris about his books The Power and the Money: The Epic Clashes Between Commanders in Chief and Titans of Industry (Regnery History, 2024) and What Jefferson Read, Ike Watched, Obama Tweeted: 200 Years of Popular Culture in the White House (Regnery History, 2013). Tevi explains how different titans of the entertainment industry—the Warner brothers, Lew Wasserman, and Oprah Winfrey—developed and used relationships with such presidents as FDR, Reagan, and Obama. He also considers the different ways Joe Biden and Donald Trump have engaged with popular culture to develop their images and connect with voters. Plus, how did Tevi go from earning a PhD in American Civilization to working in the White House to becoming a presidential historian?Show Notes:Tevi’s newest book, The Power and the Money: The Epic Clashes Between Commanders in Chief and Titans of IndustryMore from Tevi about presidents and pop culture (C-SPAN)Follow Tevi on TwitterX: @TeviTroyICYMI: Chris’s conversation with Jonah Goldberg on The RemnantChris’s upcoming book, 13 Novels Conservatives Will Love (but Probably Haven’t Read)This episode is brought to you by Root & Branch Sheets: the only bedsheets designed specifically for unwanted guests! Opening and closing music: Brendan Benson, “Spit It Out,” used with permission from the artist.
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47:31
Who Killed Beauty? The Demise of Art Deco and the Rise of Ugly Buildings
Megan Gafford joins Chris to discuss some of her recent writing about the fate of architecture in the 20th century. Art Deco was a beautiful, ornamental style that thrived in the United States in the 1920s and ‘30s. What happened to it—why did modernism displace it and what did we lose in the process? Plus, why do manifestos and fanaticism spoil art? Megan and Chris also discuss the architectural writings of Tom Wolfe, the new film The Brutalist, and why beauty matters in even the bleakest times. Show Notes:· Megan’s Substack, Fashionably Late Takes—don’t miss “‘America Was Supposed to be Art Deco’: When America abandoned beauty.”· Tom Wolfe, “The Building That Isn’t There” Part 1 & Part 2 (New York Times)· Follow Megan on TwitterX: @megan_gafford This episode is brought to you by the Gaza Largo Club—the Crown Jewel of Palestine!Opening and closing music: Brendan Benson, “Spit It Out,” used with permission from the artist.
In The Back of the Book, host Christopher J. Scalia interviews writers, scholars, and other expert guests about culture and the arts.Listen to The Back of the Book, along with more than 40 other original podcasts, at Ricochet.com. No paid subscription required.
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