Selected Shorts

ตอน

• Twisty Tales: O. Henry Prize Winners with Edward P. Jones 18.06.2026 58นาที

  Host Meg Wolitzer presents two O. Henry Prize-winning stories, from the volume guest edited by Edward P. Jones. The Prize was created in honor of the 19th-century writer best known for slyly humorous stories like “The Ransom of Red Chief” and “Gift of the Magi,” but contemporary selections range wide. In “Rosaura at Dawn,” by Daniel Saldaña París, a woman searches for new life, and a new home. The reader is Sonia Manzano. And “Countdown,” by Anthony Marra, is a darkly comic look at life in modern Russia. The reader is Morgan Spector.
• Introducing Wayfinder: Life-Changing Travel 18.06.2026 2นาที

  Host Meg Wolitzer presents the Wayfinder podcast. It’s a podcast about travel journeys that transform us, told through immersive stories of places, people, and moments that stay with you even once you are back home. Give it a listen, and we hope you enjoy it as much as we do.
• Nothing to Do with Love 11.06.2026 58นาที

  Host Meg Wolitzer presents two unconventional love stories, one classic, one contemporary, that avoid the usual tropes of “meet cute,” “opposites attract,” or “happily ever after” but are still engaging. In “Love in the Slump,” by Evelyn Waugh, clueless upper-crust newlyweds are sent on a comic odyssey. The reader is Jane Kaczmarek. And Esther Yi’s “Moon” explores something we often mistake for love—obsession--as a young woman is drawn farther and farther into K-Pop fandom. The story was selected by guest editor Min Jin Lee for Best American Short Stories 2023. It’s read by Hettienne Park. And we hear Lee’s and Park’s thoughts about the story.
• The Pursuit of Happiness with Death, Sex and Money 04.06.2026 58นาที

  In the second of two programs created with the podcast Death, Sex, and Money and our live event host Anna Sale, we explore issues of happiness. Host Meg Wolitzer introduces a satirical romance by Oscar Wilde (did he write any other kind?). “The Model Millionaire” is read by Peter Francis James. In Kevin Brockmeier’s “Space,” a grieving widower and his son try to get past their loss, looking for light in the darkness. The reader is Michael Stuhlbarg.
• Death Sex Money 28.05.2026 58นาที

  In the first of two programs created with the podcast Death, Sex, and Money and host Anna Sale, we explore issues of identity and connection. In “Sacrament of Confession,” by Ernie Wang, a man struggles with a messy past that is affecting the present. The reader is Richard Kind. And in a touching do-over, a man meets his wife for the first time—again. Amy Ryan reads Seth Fried’s “You Again.”
• Modest Expectations 21.05.2026 59นาที

  Host Meg Wolitzer presents four stories, recorded at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, in which characters shape their expectations and dreams to a manageable size. So if you’re “Medusa,” as in our first story, by Tania James, you try to figure out how to live in the world instead of turning it to stone. The reader is Constance Zimmer. Parents in our second story, “We Only Wanted Their Happiness,” by Alexander Weinstein, make a tactical choice about technology. It’s performed by Randall Park. The narrator of Honor Levy’s “Good Boys,” read by Annie Hamilton, understands that infatuation is a phase. And a man and a woman sidestep romance in “Arrangements” by Charlie Watts, performed by Laura Harrier and Will Harrison. The program was created in cooperation with Belletrist, an online book club created by Emma Roberts and Karah Preiss.
• Save the Date with Belletrist Book Club 14.05.2026 59นาที

  Host Meg Wolitzer presents three stories about social occasions for introverts and extroverts alike, curated with the Belletrist Book Club, founded by actor Emma Roberts and producer Karah Preiss, and recorded at the Getty Center in Los Angeles. Humorist Samantha Irby asks “Please Invite Me to Your Party,” but we’re not sure she means it. The reader is Richa Moorjani. Victoria Lancelotta’s “The Anniversary Trip,” performed by Judy Greer, is, and is not, about the married couple making the trip. And Jen Spyra takes to extremes what it takes to get to the altar in perfect shape in “The Bridal Body,” performed by Erinn Hayes.
• Fork in the Road 07.05.2026 58นาที

  Host Meg Wolitzer presents two stories about characters who find themselves in a place in which they need to make a choice, something that will affect them for the rest of their lives. In Ursula K. Le Guin’s classic, “Direction of the Road,” an ancient being has to make hard choices in its role as a guardian and a force of nature. The reader is Nikki M. James. In Helen Schulman’s “The Shabbos Goy,” a divorcee and a rabbi develop an interesting relationship around their mutual love of poetry. The reader is Jessica Hecht.
• Too Hot For Radio: Jonathan Lethem "The King of Sentences" 04.05.2026 44นาที

  The author of novels such as Motherless Brooklyn and The Fortress of Solitude brings us a story about meeting your heroes. It's read by the actor Brendan Hunt, best known these days for the series Ted Lasso.
• Elements of Nature 30.04.2026 57นาที

  Host Meg Wolitzer presents four works in which nature and the out-of-doors drive both plots and character. Humorist Jenny Allen does battle with her stubborn plants in “Garden Growing Pains,” read by Kirsten Vangsness. The majestic Canadian border separates an Indigenous family in Thomas King’s “Borders,” read by Kimberly Guerrero. A housewife masters one of the elements in “Flying,” by Alyce Miller. The reader is Kirsten Vansgness again. And a sudden storm creates a sense of abandon in the Kate Chopin classic “The Storm,” read by Jane Curtin. “Garden Growing Pains,” “Borders,” and “Flying,” were presented in cooperation with CacheArts and Utah Public Radio, KUSU-FM.
• Tell Me More: Jodi Kantor 20.04.2026 30นาที

  Meg Wolitzer speaks to Jodi Kantor, the prize-winning investigative reporter for The New York Times, as part of the spin-off series, where we bring together all kinds of stories and storytelling.
• Meg Wolitzer Talks with Louise Erdrich 19.03.2026 14นาที

  In this bonus feature, host Meg Wolitzer talks with author Louise Edrich about “The Big Cat,” her craft, and her Native American roots.
• Meg Wolitzer Talks with Denis O'Hare 05.03.2026 16นาที

  In this bonus feature, host Meg Wolitzer talks with actor Denis O’Hare about his craft, and his approaches to readings of the two very different stories on this program.
• Too Hot For Radio: Paul La Farge "Another Life" 02.03.2026 28นาที

  Actor Josh Radnor performs Paul La Farge's story, "Another Life."
• Too Hot For Radio: Carmen Maria Machado "Persephone Rides at the End of Days" 05.01.2026 20นาที

  Cynthia Nixon reads Carmen Maria Machado's short story, "Persephone Rides at the End of Days."
• Bonus: Etgar Keret and Ira Glass 11.12.2025 35นาที

  Israeli writer Etgar Keret talks to his friend, This American Life host Ira Glass.
• Meg Wolitzer Talks to Author Michael Cunningham 13.11.2025 22นาที

  The author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Hours sits down with Meg for a chat about all things writing.
• Tell Me More: Kathryn Nicolai 15.09.2025 32นาที

  Introducing Tell Me More, a bonus podcast that brings all kinds of stories and storytelling together under one big tent. First up, an interview with the popular host of the podcast, Nothing Much Happens, Kathryn Nicolai.
• Bonus: A.M. Homes interviews Margaret Atwood 26.06.2025 17นาที

  As part of our live event with Margaret Atwood, host A.M. Homes interviewed her from the stage at Symphony Space. Here is that interview.
• Bonus: Meg Wolitzer Talks with Judy Blume 16.01.2025 14นาที

  Meg Wolitzer speaks with author Judy Blume about her life, her writing and the challenges of book banning.