For more than two decades, Bob Crawford has toured the country as the bassist for the Avett Brothers. But long before he began his career as a musician, he was obsessed with American history. After turning that obsession into two podcasts, he has now written his first book, ?America?s Founding Son: John Quincy Adams, From President to Political Maverick.?

On this week?s episode, Crawford talks with Gilbert Cruz, the editor of The New York Times Book Review, about what it was like writing a book for the first time and the authors who have inspired him. In addition to discussing what he loves about John Quincy Adams, the country?s sixth president and the son of John Adams, Crawford also talks about the research he did for the book. That included scouring Adams?s 14,000-page diary.

?He?s not a perfect man ? he?s far from perfect,? Crawford said of Adams. ?But he?s so human. He?s suffered depression, and just the humanness in his diary, not to mention the actual historical narrative, is just incredible.?

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Emily Brontë?s ?Wuthering Heights? is a tale of star-crossed lovers: Catherine, the wild daughter of an aristocratic family, and Heathcliff, an orphan whom Catherine?s father brings home unexpectedly. While Catherine?s brother and mother denigrate Heathcliff, depriving him of an education and forcing him into a servant-like role, Catherine forms an intense, almost spiritual bond with her family?s new charge.

Despite their deep connection, however, she marries the scion of a nearby wealthy family ? a decision that leaves Catherine yearning, Heathcliff bent on revenge and everybody in their orbit on a path to calamity.

Brontë?s classic has long been a favorite among readers, and the novel is back in the zeitgeist thanks to Emerald Fennell?s recent film adaptation. On this week?s episode, host MJ Franklin discusses ?Wuthering Heights? with colleagues from the New York Times Book Review.

Other works discussed:

?Wuthering Heights,? the song by Kate Bush

?Twilight,? by Stephenie Meyer

?But Daddy I Love Him,? by Taylor Swift

?Wuthering Heights,? the 2026 film directed by Emerald Fennell

?The Safekeep,? by Yael van der Wouden

?Mexican Gothic,? by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

The ?Wuthering Heights? comics in Kate Beaton?s ?Hark! A Vagrant? series

?Villette,? by Charlotte Brontë

?Rebecca,? by Daphne du Maurier

?The Idiot,? by Elif Batuman

?The Great Gatsby,? by F. Scott Fitzgerald

?The Count of Monte Cristo,? by Alexandre Dumas

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

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