Spring 2023 Review with Charles Kesler
The Claremont Review of Books Podcast
Release Date: 07/21/2023
“Make Speech Free Again,” by John Rosenthal
The Claremont Review of Books Podcast
Associate Editor Spencer Klavan reads “Make Speech Free Again,” John Rosenthal’s essay on how the U.S. can defeat E.U. censorship, featured in the spring 2025 issue.
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Christopher Flannery on Mark Twain
The Claremont Review of Books Podcast
Mark Twain’s life and work are representative of what it means to be an exceptional American. His writing is earthy, funny, and direct, but also profoundly serious about morality and politics. Contributing editor and repeat guest Christopher Flannery sits down with host Spencer Klavan to discuss this giant of American letters, whose life and legend are as grand as his own stories.
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“They Forgot to Sing,” by Anthony Esolen
The Claremont Review of Books Podcast
Associate Editor Spencer Klavan reads “They Forgot to Sing,” Anthony Esolen’s review of Poetry as Enchantment, by Dana Gioia, featured in the spring 2025 issue.
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Spring 2025 Review with Charles Kesler
The Claremont Review of Books Podcast
Editor Charles Kesler and Associate Editor Spencer Klavan discuss the newly released spring issue. Kesler’s cover piece, reviewing a biography of William F. Buckley, Jr., gives insight into the life and profound impact of Buckley’s career; the virtues he emanated; and the long-awaited biography by Sam Tanenhaus. William Voegeli chronicles progressives' troubled attempts to build their way out of a woke tailspin. Christopher Caldwell gives a sobering analysis of Trump’s tariffs. And Daniel Mahoney provides a fresh survey of Winston Churchill’s early life and writings, alongside...
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Barry Strauss on Ancient Alexandria
The Claremont Review of Books Podcast
Alexandria: a sprawling metropolis, once the cultural capital of the Western world. It was ruled by the Ptolemies, whose queens—the Cleopatras—produced the unforgettable queen we know from Shakespeare and Plutarch. Yet their history was eclipsed by that of the Roman Empire and has lost much of its glamor in the public imagination. Spencer sits down with Hoover Institution senior fellow Barry Strauss to dust off the fascinating stories of these Macedonian queens of Egypt. Extravagant, cunning, and powerful, with a flair for the dramatic, they embedded themselves into native Egyptian...
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William Voegeli on How Woke Broke the Democrats
The Claremont Review of Books Podcast
On the heels of a dramatic Trump victory in the 2024 election, Democrats scramble to get their bearings. Spencer is joined by senior editor William Voegeli to conduct a wellness check on the blue and battered Left, discussing both Voegeli’s recent cover essay and the eventful months of Trump 2.0 that have unfolded since it was published. Democrats remain uncomfortably yoked to their progressive wing; meanwhile, Trump spends political capital to accomplish any and every goal he’s ever harbored in his heart of hearts—ignoring shots fired from opponents. What will the parties look like once...
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Winter 2024/25 Review with Charles Kesler
The Claremont Review of Books Podcast
Editor Charles Kesler and Associate Editor Spencer Klavan discuss the winter issue, hot off the press. William Voegeli’s cover essay delivers a bleak prognosis for a Democratic party unable or unwilling to cut loose woke deadweights. Kesler observes the terror struck in the heart of the administrative state by Elon Musk’s DOGE. Christopher Caldwell and Andrew Busch offer insightful analyses of populism’s rise and pitfalls in France and at home, while Daniel Mahoney and Gary Saul Morson explore Russia’s history of oppression and dissidence. Plus much more from the latest issue!
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Fall 2024 Review with Charles Kesler
The Claremont Review of Books Podcast
Editor Charles Kesler and Associate Editor Spencer Klavan sit down to page through the newly released fall CRB and talk election results. Kesler’s essay discusses the possibility of a long-awaited Republican majority; William Voegeli tracks the humiliation of both Biden and the mainstream media; and Christopher Caldwell highlights the success of Trump’s arresting rhetoric in a post-rhetorical age. And much more! Plus: the online-exclusive “” is out now.
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William Voegeli on Shifting Party Allegiances
The Claremont Review of Books Podcast
With election day creeping ever closer, political predictions are everywhere already. Spencer takes the opportunity to sit down with Dr. William Voegeli, senior editor of the Claremont Review of Books, to survey the history and prospects of realignment. Voegeli gives an incisive explanation of the current electoral landscape and what both parties need to do to capitalize on the opportunities before them.
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Spring 2024 Review with Charles Kesler
The Claremont Review of Books Podcast
Editor Charles Kesler and Associate Editor Spencer Klavan meet the afternoon before the first 2024 presidential debate to discuss the new Spring CRB. Kesler and Spencer spin insightful short-term prophecies--and Kesler calls Biden's flop in advance--using the editor's note as a starting point. Meanwhile, Lee Edwards' tribute to Solzhenitsyn’s Gulag Archipelago does honor to an epochal work of dissident literature. There's a surfeit of great content in the latest issue, from National Conservatism to George Orwell.
info_outlineEditor Charles Kesler and Associate Editor Spencer Klavan sit down to rifle through the Spring CRB. There's lots to unpack, including but not limited to: Kesler's editor's note on the growing ideological divide among the states, Christopher Caldwell's investigation of unrest in France, and a new biography of MLK, Jr. Plus: incisive commentary on the Supreme Court's history with affirmative action, and a whistle-stop tour through the greatest hits of country music's first ladies.