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Books podcasts were talking about in February 2018
February 2018 featured extensive literary discussions on political history, classical philosophy, and presidential biographies, particularly on The Rubin Report. In an episode examining John F. Kennedy, guest Brian Domitrovic discussed his co-authored work, JFK and the Reagan Revolution: A Secret History of American Prosperity. Domitrovic and the host also reviewed Kennedy's early writings, including Why England Slept and John F. Kennedy: Profile in Courage, alongside Richard Reeves's biography President Kennedy. The conversation further touched upon Margaret Coit Elwell's Pulitzer Prize-winning biography, The Continuing Relevance of John C. Calhoun, and James Piereson's Camelot and the Cultural Revolution, which was described as a definitive book on the Kennedy assassination. In another episode dedicated to John Adams, guest C. Bradley Thompson detailed the books that shaped Adams's worldview at Harvard, identifying Sir Isaac Newton's Newton's Principia and John Locke's An Essay Concerning Human Understanding as foundational texts that introduced Adams to universal physical laws and a secular science of ethics. These episodes offered listeners deep dives into American political history, intellectual development, and the biographical legacies of prominent historical figures.
The Rubin Report
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JFK and the Reagan Revolution
Discussed“joining me today is an associate professor of history at Sam Houston State and the co-author of JFK and the Reagan Revolution a secret history of American prosperity Brian to be trovich”
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Why England Slept
Discussed“and then and then it was published as a book and it sold about 80,000 copies of course Kennedy would publish another growth profile is encouraged”
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John F. Kennedy: Profile in Courage
Discussed“and then and then it was published as a book and it sold about 80,000 copies of course Kennedy would publish another growth profile is encouraged”
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President Kennedy
Discussed“Richard Reeves who's his greatest biographer he wrote the great book on Kennedy 1992 President Kennedy he said no no what Kennedy liked to do”
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The Continuing Relevance of John C. Calhoun
Discussed“Larry and I talked a bit about a girl he dated Margaret quoits who won the Pulitzer Prize in biography and history she wrote a biography a great biography of John Calhoun 1950”
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Camelot and the Cultural Revolution
Discussed“nonetheless James Pearson's book Camelot in the Cultural Revolution is the best book ever written but about the Kennedy assassination”
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Newton's Principia
Discussed“he's introduced to two books that that change his life The first is Newton's Principia Mathematica and the second is John Locke's essay concerning human understanding”
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An Essay Concerning Human Understanding
Discussed“The first is Newton's Principia Mathematica and the second is John Locke's essay concerning human understanding”
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Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography
Discussed“Benjamin Franklin when he was the same age as Adams decides that he wants to achieve moral perfection and you can read about this in in Franklin's autobiography which and if you think about it I mean this is extraordinary”
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Nicomachean Ethics
Discussed“Well it's it's never the Bible it is Aristotle Nicomachean ethics Cicero cicero's de o'fee key Seneca and epictetus”
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Seneca in English
Discussed“Well it's it's never the Bible it is Aristotle Nicomachean ethics Cicero cicero's de o'fee key Seneca and epictetus”
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Diary and Autobiography of John Adams
Discussed“which is interesting if you if you read his diary his autobiography all of his political writings and more”
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Tom Paine
Discussed“other than Tom Paine's Common Sense it was the most influential pamphlet written during I think the Revolutionary period”
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Xenophon̓s Memorabilia of Socrates
Discussed“Adams was always fascinated with this ancient fable called the choice of Hercules which was first told in Xenophon's memorabilia and then was captured on canvas in I think the 16th century by the by the painter anabolic kurachi”
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The Works Of John Adams, Second President Of The United States: With A Life Of The Author, Notes And Illustrations; Volume 9
Discussed“so the passage that you just read and much of what you reference here that this was all in his biography so he was just writing this to himself”
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Letters from John Adams to His Constituents
Discussed“he wrote what I think is still to this day the most importance certainly I think the most brilliant Revolutionary tract that was published it was the title is the no Vangelis letters”
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John Adams and the Spirit of Liberty
Discussed“we've linked to John Adams and the spirit of Liberty as well as the revolutionary writings of John Adams right down below”
Pod Save America
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Ghost Wars
Discussed“I interviewed a a very very smart journalist named Steve Coll he's written some of the best books about the war in Afghanistan ghost war ghosts wars Directorate asses his latest ones about the CIA's role the military's role all the challenges in the region why we're still there after 17 years”
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Yes We (Still) Can
Discussed“and if anyone and people buy it which I would please encourage you to do because I feel better about having written this book but also it a portion of the proceeds for every book sold during the pre-sale period so between now and June 18th will be donated to swing left our friends at swing left who are out”
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Un-Trumping America
Discussed“and if anyone and people buy it which I would please encourage you to do because I feel better about having written this book but also it a portion of the proceeds for every book sold during the pre-sale period so between now and June 18th will be donated to swing left our friends at swing left who are out”