On the Grill: Ep. 276

This week on Unorthodox, ceasefire in Israel and chaos on social media. Our Jewish guest this week is former Late Show with Stephen Colbert writer Jen Spyra, who returns to the show to discuss her debut book, a wacky collection of short stories called Big Time. Our Gentile of the week is novelist John Green, whose latest book, The Anthropocene Reviewed, is based on his podcast of the same name, which reviews various facets of our modern lives using a five-star scale. He also tells us about the infamous Anne Frank house kissing scene in his novel-turned-film, The Fault in Our Stars. Join us for virtual events! Sunday, May 30 — Liel will be talking to Andrew Fox about his new book, The Bad Luck Spirits' Social Aid and Pleasure Club, a fantasy tale about a Jewish ayin harah, or evil eye, named Kay Rosenblatt living in New Orleans and doing her best to deal with the chaos that ensues after her fellow demons summon a hurricane. 11:30 a.m. EDT; register here. Tuesday, June 1 — Liel will be talking to Sohrab Ahmari, New York Post op-ed editor and author of The Unbroken Thread: Discovering the Wisdom of Tradition in an Age of Chaos, about his journey from Iran to America, his conversion to Catholicism, and about how our faith traditions give us the tools we so desperately need to survive and thrive in these scary and tumultuous times. 7:30 p.m. EDT; Register here. Thursday, June 3 — Stephanie will be interviewing Sarah Maslin Nir, New York Times reporter and author of Horse Crazy: The Story of a Woman and a World in Love with an Animal, about her family’s Holocaust history (and, of course, horses), presented by the Museum of Jewish Heritage. 7 p.m. EDT; Register here. Find out about all our upcoming events at www.tabletmag.com/unorthodoxlive. Like the show? Rate us on iTunes! Subscribe to our weekly newsletter to get new episodes, photos, and more. Join our Facebook group, and follow Unorthodox on Twitter and Instagram. Get a behind-the-scenes look at our recording sessions on our YouTube channel! Get your Unorthodox T-shirts, mugs, and baby onesies at bit.ly/unorthoshirt. Want to book us for a live show? Email producer Josh Kross at jkross@tabletmag.com. Check out all of Tablet’s podcasts at tabletmag.com/podcasts. Sponsors: Harry’s is a great shave at a great price. New customers can get a starter set valued at $13 for just $3 at HARRYS.COM/UNORTHODOX.