Hello from the book tour trail. Thank you for riding along with me as I traipse from hotel room to hotel room (although recently, in D.C., I got to stay in my childhood bedroom, which is considerably better).
Today I’m in L.A., where I went on Bill Maher’s show last night. We were supposed to talk about several things, but the conversation about homelessness and mental illness and how we care for those on the edge ended up consuming so much of our time, I think because there is no one who doesn’t see and feel this problem, and wonder.
I wanted to share a few things with you that I hope you’ll find worth your time.
First, and most importantly, there is this video of me humiliating myself when my book character Moses Harper tries to teach me some Michael Jackson moves.
Then there is this conversation from the 92nd Street Y in New York with the brilliant, irrepressible Tina Brown, one of the fiercest minds and sharpest pens we have. I don’t think I’ve ever come alive so much in a public conversation. It’s a special one. And check out Tina’s trenchant Substack here.
Now, if you’re ever wondered more about me, which I cannot remotely understand why anyone would, I nonetheless want to be here for you. So I’m also going to post a profile of me in The New York Times by the very knowing and seeing Ginia Bellafante.
There are many insights and details Ginia weaves together, including exposing how utterly strange I must look while writing:
Giridharadas wrote “Man in the Mirror” in two years, a short span for a book of its length (442 pages) and seriousness. His first draft exceeded 1,000 pages. Priya Parker, his wife of 16 years, a specialist in conflict negotiation and also a writer, said he did it keeping “quote unquote office hours, working nine to five.” He would read his daily output to her while he cooked dinner in their home in Brooklyn. Giridharadas has played the piano since he was a child and thinks about writing in terms of musicality. “He’ll sit at his desk,” Parker said, “and tap the desk to feel the rhythm of the sentence and think, ‘Does this rhythm work?’”
L.A. folks — you asked for a SoCal event, and a reminder that there is one…tonight! Come see me in Summerland at Godmother’s!
Oh, and here’s a Bill Maher clip from last night.
Finally, just a note of thanks. None of this would be possible without the community I have around me. That includes you. Thank you.
Your comments on AI yesterday on Real Time were spot on. AI is optional and we have bigger human problems. You may consider that humans and their many achievements over time are pretty fascinating too. How about focusing on that instead of thinking machines we can create?
I like the subject title of the message today “From
Certitude to Curiosity.”
We were at the event in NYC. We sat right behind your parents. (Lucky people) We are your parent’s age and have adult children and grandchildren. You give me hope in a very troubling time. I am so impressed with both you and your wife’s work. I am reading both of your books right now. I am definitely on Team Human! ❤️