Listen Score
LS 39
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TOP 2%

ABOUT THIS PODCAST 🔗

Update frequency:
biweekly
Average audio length:
15 minutes
English
United States
175 episodes
since June 9, 2020
episodic

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To modern eyes, the Victorians displayed a number of toxic traits—not least of which was a penchant for poisoning themselves. After a long day of applying lead-based cosmetics and eating adulterated bread, a person of the 1800s might kick back under the indoor gas lamp with a brilliant green book b…

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In today’s episode, we pivot away from books and shake things up by talking about Ken’s own personal collection of over 250 snowdomes. He and his wife, Joyce, have been picking up the snowdomes as souvenirs for years—on family vacations and while they're traveling for Antiques Roadshow. We’ll discu…
Today we’re looking at two classic American magazines: TIME and LIFE. Published weekly for most of the 20th century, these sister periodicals offer complementary perspectives on the biggest stories of the era, with LIFE’s vivid photojournalism bringing immediacy and emotional resonance to TIME’s in…
This week, we’re unwrapping (not literally) a little piece of local journalistic history: one of 150,000 condoms distributed by The Boston Phoenix. In 1987, the alternative weekly published an issue that included a condom—donated by Trojan—and a guide to safer sex with every newspaper. They intende…
When you visit a different stranger’s home almost every day of your working life, you end up having a lot of interesting experiences—some incredibly elevated, and others rather harrowing. On today’s episode, we’re going over some of those highs and lows from Ken’s decades in book buying, from palat…
Ken’s a busy guy—we’re lucky he can even make time for this podcast. In today’s episode, he’ll break down one of his typically action-packed weeks, from early morning chores and laborious book buys to photo shoots at the shop and high-end appraisals. We say at the Brattle that Ken only works half-d…
Today we’re flipping through some fresh arrivals to the shop: issues of Ebony magazine from the 1970s. In print from 1945 to 2019 (and still published online), Ebony documented mid-century Black life in the United States with the same upbeat and aspirational tone that mainstream magazines once rese…
The Brattle has been in Ken’s family since 1949—before GPS, electronic mail, or even the podcast. In today’s episode, we discuss how modern tools have changed our daily routines at the shop, from appraising collections and setting up appointments to navigating the roads of New England. One piece of…
Astute Brattlecast listeners may have already noticed this, but Ken really loves to tell a good story. Did you know you can see him speak in person as well? Today’s episode is about Ken’s lectures: informative, entertaining presentations drawn from his decades in the book business and delivered at …
Our shop has seen many love stories over the years—some fiction, others nonfiction. In today’s episode, we reminisce about the handful of presumably still-happy couples who’ve gotten married or engaged at the Brattle. It may be an unconventional venue, but people love books, and we love love. It’s …
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