Person
Every book Helen Lewis recommended on podcasts
Helen Lewis appears as a guest on The Ezra Klein Show, where discussions frequently center on contemporary political culture, historical precedents, and social movements. During her appearance, Lewis offers thoughtful book recommendations and engages with several notable historical and sociological texts. For her designated recommendations, Lewis highlights Nancy Mitford's biography Madame de Pompadour, which explores the life of the famous mistress of Louis the Fifteenth of France. She also recommends David Plotz's The Genius Factory, describing it as the compelling and unusual story of a eugenicist millionaire who attempted to solve American societal problems by enlisting Nobel Prize winners to donate their sperm. Beyond these formal recommendations, Lewis references several influential works during the broader conversation. She brings up Betty Friedan's seminal work The Feminine Mystique to discuss the historical unhappiness experienced by stay-at-home housewives in the past. Furthermore, she references Charles Cornish-Dale's The Last Man when examining recurring modern arguments concerning diet, health, and the role of societal elites. Through these varied references, Lewis demonstrates a deep engagement with literature examining historical power dynamics, social structures, and human behavior.
Books recommended by Helen Lewis
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Madame de Pompadour
Madame de Pompadour by Nancy Mitford is a historical biography detailing the life of the influential chief mistress of King Louis XV of France.
Recommended“Nancy Mittford's biography of Madame de Pompador, Mistress of Louis the 15th of France.”
Where to get it
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The Genius Factory
The Genius Factory by David Plotz is a non-fiction investigative book that uncovers the bizarre history of a repository established to propagate the DNA of exceptionally gifted individuals.
Recommended“So, I have brought The Genius Factory by David Plots, which is the story of one mad eugenicist millionaire who decides that the way to solve all of America's problem is to get lots of Nobel Prize winners to donate their sperm...”
Where to get it
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The Feminine Mystique
The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan is a landmark 1963 text of second-wave feminism that famously critiqued the stifling domestic confinement and unhappiness experienced by suburban housewives.
Discussed“It was something that Betty Fredan was writing about in the feminine seat when she was talking about specifically the unhappiness of stay-at-home housewives.”
Where to get it
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The Last Men
Discussed“So, not I don't think all of those things are ridiculous, you know, and that's that's that's something that comes up a lot in um The Last Man, the idea that, you know, elites are keeping you fat...”
Where to get it
Books Helen Lewis wrote
Appearances
| Episode | Podcast | Date | Books |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Right’s Pre-Modern ‘Masculinist’ Fantasy | The Ezra Klein Show | The Ezra Klein Show | 2026-06-05 | 4 |
Other mentions (2: passing, ad reads, own books)
“In my first book, which is a history of feminism, I wrote about some of the women who wrote to Mary Stoopes, who was our kind of version of Margaret Sanger, a contraceptive pioneer.”
“I wrote in difficult women about the problems of boys in school which again I think are real.”