Episode 49 — Joe Blair

Summary: Joe Blair is the guest. He's the author of the memoir BY THE IOWA SEA, now available from Scribner. Scott Spencer, author of 'Main in the Woods,' raves: An intimate, startling memoir that honors and elevates our quotidian existence. With his contagious curiosity as to what drives him and what holds him back, Blair writes fearlessly and beautifully about the family he loves and also betrays, the people he treasures and plots to escape from. BY THE IOWA SEA is funny and unsettling, painful and rock and roll romantic, and it has the invigorating ring of truth on every page. A terrific conversation. Topics include: marriage, floods, kids, metaphors, infidelity, Iowa City, why, autism, tuberous sclerosis, Massachusetts, forgiveness, Jack Kerouac, workshops, money, sex, love, routine, pain, impermanence, rationality, editing, truth, Nevada, California, wanderlust, motorcycles, air conditioners, heart attacks, control, fear, reviews, special needs parents, divorce, and hope. Monologue topics: AWP, Chicago, gate-crashing, freedom, travel, celebrity fragrances, Sebastian Junger, Jonathan Safran-Foer, Drakkar Noir, Brad, Christiane Amanpour, and Caine from Kung Fu.