Person
Every book Rachel Bard recommended on podcasts
Rachel Bard is an expert commentator whose appearance on The Ezra Klein Show offers thoughtful recommendations across narrative history, social movements, and deeply moving memoirs. Bard's first recommendation was Richard Rhodes's The Making of the Atomic Bomb, which she praised for reading like a blockbuster movie while meticulously detailing the physics, scientific breakthroughs, and the shaping influence of political and social forces behind the historical development. Next, she recommended Jennifer Reich's Calling the Shots, highlighting the 2016 sociological ethnography and history of the anti-vaccine movement as an illuminating text for understanding contemporary skepticism. Finally, Bard recommended Sonali Deraniyagala's memoir Wave, reflecting on the excruciating yet powerful account of an economist who lost her entire family in the 2004 Sri Lankan tsunami. Together, these selections reflect Bard's engagement with books that tackle catastrophic historical events, complex public health debates, and profound personal grief.
Books recommended by Rachel Bard
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Calling the shots
Calling the shots by Jennifer A.
Recommended“Um calling the shots, which is a book by the sociologist Jennifer Reich that was published in 2016, and it's um an ethnography and a history of the antivax movement that I found incredibly useful in illuminating and helping me think about this.”
Where to get it
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The making of the atomic bomb
The Making of the Atomic Bomb by Richard Rhodes is a comprehensive historical and scientific account detailing the development of nuclear weapons during the twentieth century.
Recommended“Rachel, um Making of the Atomic Bomb by Richard Rhodess, which I think it it reads like a blockbuster movie, but it is an 850 page book about physics. um all about how scientific breakthroughs and discoveries happen and very much how about how they're shaped by um social forces, political events, and government priorities.”
Where to get it
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Wave
Wave by Sonali Deraniyagala is a harrowing and deeply moving memoir documenting the author's survival of the devastating 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, which tragically claimed the lives of her entire family, including her husband, two children, and parents.
Recommended“And then a book called Wave by Sonia Dana Yagala, who is an economist. It's a it's a memoir that she wrote. She lost her entire family in the 2004 Sri Lankan tsunami. um, her husband, her two children, and her parents all at once. That sounds like it would be an excruciating memoir to read. It is an unbelievably”
Where to get it
Appearances
| Episode | Podcast | Date | Books |
|---|---|---|---|
| MAHA Is a Bad Answer to a Good Question | The Ezra Klein Show | The Ezra Klein Show | 2025-08-22 | 3 |