If Books Could Kill

A memoir about parenting very badly and then getting weirdly defensive when anyone asks you about it.Where to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Effects of Authoritative Parental Control on Child Behavior, Child DevelopmentTypes of Parenting Styles and Effects On ChildrenDoes “Tiger Parenting” Exist? Parenting Profiles of Chinese Americans and Adolescent Developmental OutcomesAssociations of parenting dimensions and styles with externalizing...

Is social media to blame for the teen mental health crisis? It's complicated!Thanks to Emily Weinstein, Amy Orben, Andrew Przybylski, Dean Burnett, Michael Mullarkey and Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz for help researching and fact-checking this episode! Where to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Emily Weinstein's book, "Behind Their Screens"Positive and negative uses of social media among adolescents hospitalized for suicidal behaviorThe Sisyphean ...

To celebrate ("celebrate") Donald Trump choosing JD Vance as his running mate we are re-releasing our "Hillbilly Elegy" episode. Enjoy!

Peter and Michael discuss "The Origins of Woke," a glimpse into the dark aspirations of the Republican Party and the mind of a very unusual man.Where to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:What Speech Does "Hostile Work Environment" Harassment Law Restrict? Tunis v. Corning Glass Works, 698 F. Supp. 452 (S.D.N.Y. 1988)Pakizegi v. First Nat. Bank of Boston, 831 F. Supp. 901 Tesla Settles Discrimination Suit With Former Factory Worker...

Peter and Michael discuss the media coverage of the protests at Columbia — from the crazed, bloodthirsty ravings of right-wing media to the more muted, respectful bloodthirst of centrist media.To hear the rest of the episode, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

Peter and Michael discuss Michael Lewis’s bestselling book about the rise and fall of Sam Bankman-Fried, a young prodigy whose only flaw was that he dreamed too big.Where to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Michael Lewis Is Buying What Sam Bankman-Fried Is Selling Michael Lewis Likens Critics of His New Book on Sam Bankman-Fried to a 'Mob'The SBF trial is a reminder that crypto is a rotten businessReview: Michael Lewis's Going Infinit...

2 Better 2 AngelsSupport us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Jeffrey Epstein’s Science of SleazePinker’s response to Epstein allegationsHow Jeffrey Epstein Captivated HarvardJeffrey Epstein Hoped to Seed Human Race With His DNAIt’s Official — Steven Pinker Is Full of ShitPinker, Epstein, Soldier, SpyA century of sexual abuse victimisation: A birth cohort analysisThe prevalence of child ...

We're finally discussing a good book! Naomi Klein's "Doppelgänger" chronicles the long, steady descent of another Naomi — Wolf (buddy oof) — from feminist icon to crank conspiracist. To hear the rest of the episode, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

In 2013, Sheryl Sandberg became an icon for women who wanted to move from middle management at a tech company into upper management at a tech company. Today, Peter and Michael examine the contents of her bestselling book, survey the wreckage of corporate feminism and ask whether women will finally find liberation in the Metaverse.Where to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Facebook Feminism, Like It or NotFeminism's Tipping Point: Who Wins f...

This week we're tackling Steven Pinker's 900 page dissection of the reasons why violence, torture and war have declined over the last 10,000 years. Was it an indeterminate mixture of politics, economics, technology and serendipity? Or did some European guys write some books that said murder was bad?Special thanks to Philip Dwyer, Eleanor Janega, David M. Perry and Doug Thompson for help researching and fact-checking this episode!Where to find us: Peter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's ot...

Before Donald Trump became America's most prominent politician and birth certificate inspector, he spent his days making everyone in New York City slightly uncomfortable. Michael and Peter discuss "The Art of the Deal," Trump’s 1987 bestseller chronicling his exploits as a celebrity slumlord. Where to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:When Donald Trump Took Down Holiday Inns The Lost City of Trump Who Runs New York Now?&nbs...

To hear the rest of the episode, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

"There are two kinds of political scientists: The types who deal with noisy data and post on Twitter with a bunch of caveats. And then there are the types who write books about identity politics." Where to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:Sam Huneke's "Yascha Mounk’s Woke Straw Man"Jacob T. Levy's "The Defense of Liberty Can’t Do Without Identity Politics"Olúfẹ́mi O. Táíwò's "Elite Capture"Aaron Huertas's "We Need to Talk...

To hear the rest of the episode, support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

You stare, mouth agape, at the bookstore display. It’s a self-help book, but with curse words in the title?! This must be a revolutionary new framework, not simply the same dull, reactionary ideas repackaged as hip and new.Support us on Patreon:https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPodWhere to find us: TwitterPeter's other podcast, 5-4Mike's other podcast, Maintenance PhaseSources:The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck (Blog Post)Where A is Ordinary: The Evolution of American College and Universit...