Pete Simon
@Pete__Simon
Editor-in-Chief @LiverightPub. Everywhere else: just some guy.
I wrote about the lack of administrative support for the liberal arts in @nytimes. The standard story we hear is that students don't want it. But a darker reality is that even when it wins big with students and donors it loses with those in power. nytimes.com/2025/07/17/opi…
ICYMI: My interview with Phil Melanson re his bestselling debut #FLORENZER. Topics: (1) the secret/suppressed details of #DaVinci's sex life, (2) the most $$$ painting ever sold (#SalvatorMundi) & (3) the mysterious/beguiling nature of Da Vinci's genius. bit.ly/3GRPIAs
"It’s not just a history lesson. It’s an immersive experience, one that leaves you breathless, as if you were aboard the ship yourself." --Doug Marrin, The Sun Times News (MI)
"This is narrative non-fiction at its very best. Readers who like David Grann, Candice Millard, & Erik Larsen will devour this terrific book. My vote for the non-fiction read of the season!" --Bill Carl, Book Buyer at An Unlikely Story in Plainville, MA. THANK YOU, BILL!
My upcoming book, "The Gales of November: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald," just got a great review from @KirkusReviews, an 88-year old institution that's hard to impress. A starred review (top 10%). kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/j…
In case you missed Jennifer Frey’s New York Times article that is setting the internet on fire — here’s a summary of her powerful critique of how universities are failing students who want a true liberal arts education. A thread 🧵
"...the reader can barely breath. I don't know if I have ever read a sequence so harrowing as the storm and the fate of the Edmund Fitzgerald." -Bill Carl, buyer at An Unlikely Story, an indie store owned by Jeff Kinney @wimpykid, author of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid megaseries.
"This is narrative non-fiction at its very best. Readers who like David Grann, Candice Millard, & Erik Larsen will devour this terrific book. My vote for the non-fiction read of the season!" --Bill Carl, Book Buyer at An Unlikely Story in Plainville, MA. THANK YOU, BILL!
"MONA ACTS OUT is the only Me Too novel I have yet to read that’s both sweet and sophisticated, an alchemical combination it must have borrowed from the Bard himself." Learn more about what @voxdotcom's @constancegrady calls one of the year's best so far! wwnorton.com/books/97813240…
Best books of the year so far! I'm finding the good stuff this year so far is a lot of JOURNEYING and TRAVEL and EXPLORATION — a post lockdown effect finally trickling through maybe? vox.com/books/419739/b…
I'm joined in my 200th episode by NYT best-selling author @Johnubacon. John talks about his fan journey, the writing process, & his upcoming book, "The Gales of November: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald." There are also plenty of digressions:-) thesportsfanproject.com/podcast/
Lance’s IG story (July 16, 2025): Link: philmelanson.com/florenzer
“When students realize their own humanity is at stake in their education, they are deeply invested in it. The problem with liberal education in today’s academy does not lie with our students.” @jennfrey on a successful program at @utulsa , and why it was destroyed.
Anything to distract from the Epstein files.
"When you build a movement on innuendo and conjecture, conspiracies and alleged coverups, turning around and telling the true believers to suddenly forget it is bound to backfire." More: rollingstone.com/politics/polit…
Yeah what changed?
🚨BREAKING: A video is going viral showing JD Vance calling for the full Epstein list to be released - on Theo Von’s podcast. Hey JD, what changed? Let’s blast this everywhere before he tries to erase it.
IMAX 70mm tickets for Christopher Nolan’s ‘THE ODYSSEY’ are confirmed to go on sale on Thursday. The film releases in just over 1 year. (Source: variety.com/2025/film/box-…)
Best books of the year so far! I'm finding the good stuff this year so far is a lot of JOURNEYING and TRAVEL and EXPLORATION — a post lockdown effect finally trickling through maybe? vox.com/books/419739/b…