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The Dylan Movie Plus the Trump Books

On this episode of Start Making Sense, John Powers talks about “A Complete Unknown,” and host Jon Wiener has a list of the “best” books about the president-elect.

Jon Wiener

December 31, 2024

Timothee Chalamet is seen on location for the Bob Dylan biopic titled “A Complete Unknown” on March 24, 2024, in New York City.(Gotham / GC Images)

The Nation Podcasts

Here's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.

The Dylan Movie, plus the Trump Books | Start Making Sense
byThe Nation Magazine

The endlessly elusive Bob Dylan seems an unlikely candidate for a Hollywood biopic. John Powers, Critic-at-Large on NPR’s “Fresh Air,” talks about how the new movie “A Complete Unknown” captures a defining moment in his career — and in American culture .

Also: Our holiday reading guide: Dozens of books about Trump were published at the end of his first term, some selling millions of copies. Now that he’s coming back, it’s time to look at what some of those books had to say about him. Host Jon Wiener presents his list, including the one with the best title: “A Very Stable Genius.” 

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The endlessly elusive Bob Dylan seems an unlikely candidate for a Hollywood biopic. John Powers, a critic-at-large on NPR’s Fresh Air, talks about how the new movie A Complete Unknown captures a defining moment in his career and in American culture.

Also, our holiday reading guide: Dozens of books about Trump were published at the end of his first term, some selling millions of copies. Now that he’s coming back, it’s time to look at what some of those books had to say about him. Host Jon Wiener presents his list, including the one with the best title: A Very Stable Genius.

The Nation Podcasts

Here's where to find podcasts from The Nation. Political talk without the boring parts, featuring the writers, activists and artists who shape the news, from a progressive perspective.

How LA Defeated Trump, Plus Bob Dylan’s Xmas | Start Making Sense
byThe Nation Magazine

In June, Trump sent more than 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines to occupy Los Angeles and terrorize the immigrant population. But by the end of July, almost all the Guard and the Marines were gone. Bill Gallegos explains how that happened and what other cities can learn from it. 

Also: Bob Dylan fans have been puzzled and troubled by his Christmas album ever since he released it in 2009. To help figure out what Dylan was doing, we turn to Sean Wilentz. He’s author of Bob Dylan in America, and he also teaches history at Princeton. (Originally recorded in January, 2005.)​ 

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Jon WienerTwitterJon Wiener is a contributing editor of The Nation and co-author (with Mike Davis) of Set the Night on Fire: L.A. in the Sixties.


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