14h ago

Saints Were the Original Influencers

A viral tradwife thriller sends its heroine back to the actual 1850s life she was selling online. A 13th-century Belgian saint's miracles go "viral" long before the internet exists. Ksenija and Sue put the two side by side to ask why we build women up in public just to watch them fall, and whether the church controlling a saint's story is really so different from an algorithm controlling a creator's reach. 📚 Books Mentioned Yesteryear by Caro Claire BurkeCanticle by Janet Rich EdwardsCanon by Paige LewisWhistler by Ann Patchett 💌 Our Substack & Show Notes: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/ 📚 Read Ksenija's Novels: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/p/publications 📚 Ksenija on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6449766.Ksenija_Popovi_ 🎙 ABOUT TRANSATLANTIC BOOKMARKS Hosted by European novelist Ksenija Popović and American engineer Sue Graham Johnston, Transatlantic Bookmarks is a weekly literary podcast that uses books as the starting point for conversations about culture, history, psychology, morality, politics, and the questions hiding between the lines. New episodes every Saturday. 👉 CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro 01:14 The Trad Wife Fantasy 09:41 Where Yesteryear Goes Wrong 13:46 Dumping Non-Fiction and Reading Bad Books 19:04 Ksenija's Positive Social Media Experience 24:14 Losing Authenticity Online 30:05 Canticle: Miracles, Relics, and the Business of Sainthood 48:55 Freedom, Aging, and Who Gets to Be Free in Public 01:02:44 Our Podcasting Adventure 01:09:12 Reading Recommendations

Jul 25

Nobody Complained About Diane Kruger

Christopher Nolan's Odyssey cast Lupita Nyong'o as Helen of Troy, and the internet exploded over "historical accuracy." Nobody said a word when Diane Kruger played the same role in 2004. Sue and Ksenija dig into the double standard, and into what cultural appropriation actually means, using the Nyong'o/Kruger casting controversy and Montenegro's own non-racial experience of cultural erasure to ask what's really being protected when people invoke the term. Is this about race, about power and ownership, or is "appropriation" just doing too much work as a single word for very different problems? Also discussed: the Snow White backlash, Hamilton's colorblind casting, and why our idea of "universal beauty" so often defaults to whiteness. 📚 Books Mentioned • Circe by Madeline Miller • Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller • The Color of Everything by Cory Richards • D'Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths by Ingri and Edgar Parin d'Aulaire 💌 Our Substack & Show Notes: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/ 📚 Read Ksenija’s Novels: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/p/publications 📚 Ksenija on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6449766.Ksenija_Popovi_ 🎙️ ABOUT TRANSATLANTIC BOOKMARKS Hosted by European novelist Ksenija Popović and American engineer Sue Graham Johnston, Transatlantic Bookmarks is a weekly literary podcast that uses books as the starting point for conversations about culture, history, psychology, morality, politics, and the questions hiding between the lines. New episodes every Saturday. 👉🏻 CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro 00:34 Casting Controversy: Lupita Nyong'o as Helen of Troy 07:28 The casting of Nolan's Odyssey 17:40 The Inaccuracy of Beauty Standards 26:11 Reimagining Historical Figures: Hamilton 30:56 The Snow White Controversy 33:49 Inclusivity in Beauty Standards 40:38 Cultural Appropriation: Definitions and Perspectives 55:23 Book Recommendations and Personal Growth

Jul 18

What Happens When Women Stop Caring

It starts with a novel about a woman who steals from her employer, marries into money, and eventually disappears on her own kids. It ends with a hard, unresolved argument about loyalty, guilt, and who actually holds women to impossible standards. Are women each other's worst enemy? Not men, not the patriarchy in the abstract, but women, tearing down other women who speak up, judging mothers who walk away, staying silent when it would cost them something to defend each other. Also: book recs, the "human doing" trap, a Paraguayan Senator's lame excuse for attacking the great Kylian Mbappe, and why nobody should be tipping 20% in Montenegro. 💌 Our Substack & Show Notes: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substa... 📚 Read Ksenija’s Novels: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substa... 📚 Ksenija on Goodreads: / 6449766.ksenija_popovi_ 🎙️ ABOUT TRANSATLANTIC BOOKMARKS Hosted by European novelist Ksenija Popović and American engineer Sue Graham Johnston, Transatlantic Bookmarks is a weekly literary podcast that uses books as the starting point for conversations about culture, history, psychology, morality, politics, and the questions hiding between the lines. New episodes every Saturday. 👉🏻 CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 03:30 Tipping Culture 10:23 Expectations of Loyalty and Compliance 15:02 The Impact of Aging on Women 21:57 Compliance vs. Performance and the Human Doing 29:07 Mothers Abandoning Children 43:20 Class Distinctions, Politics, and Morality 50:03 Living Up to the Public Image on Social Media 53:37 Coopting Feminism to Justify Abhorrent Behavior: the Case of the Paraguayan Senator Celeste Amarilla 59:35 Trump's Intervention in the World Cup 01:03:22 Book Recommendations

Jul 11

Books for Your Summer Escape

Looking for the perfect book this summer? In this episode of Transatlantic Bookmarks, novelist Ksenija Popović and engineer Sue Graham Johnston share the titles they’re most excited to recommend for the season. Whether you’re heading to the beach, escaping to the mountains, or simply slowing down at home, we’ve put together a list that ranges from light and funny to deeply thought-provoking. We cover romance, psychological thrillers, fantasy, science fiction, literary fiction, historical fiction, and nonfiction, talking about the novels we couldn’t put down, the authors who surprised us, and the books waiting at the top of our own TBRs. We also discuss why holidays are the perfect time to discover something different, how our tastes have changed over the years, and why putting your phone away for an hour may be the best gift you give yourself this summer. 💌 Our Substack & Show Notes: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/ 📚 Read Ksenija’s Novels: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/p/publications 📚 Ksenija on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6449766.Ksenija_Popovi_ 🎙️ ABOUT TRANSATLANTIC BOOKMARKS Hosted by European novelist Ksenija Popović and American engineer Sue Graham Johnston, Transatlantic Bookmarks is a weekly literary podcast that uses books as the starting point for conversations about culture, history, psychology, morality, politics, and the questions hiding between the lines. New episodes every Saturday. 👉🏻 CHAPTERS 00:00 Introduction 04:44 Romance 16:36 Thrillers 23:03 Science Fiction and Fantasy 27:07 More Comedy 28:12 YA and Strong Female Heroines 33:06 Diving into European Literary Fiction 39:25 Self-Help 51:46 Our TBR for the Summer

Jul 4

What Makes a Country Worth Loving?

What makes a country worth loving? Is patriotism about flags, freedom, democracy, or the people who hold a nation together behind the scenes? In this episode of Transatlantic Bookmarks, we celebrate America’s 249th Independence Day by moving beyond the headlines to ask a bigger question: What makes a country worth fighting for, protecting, or simply loving? We discuss patriotism, democracy, American history, the Fourth of July, Michael Lewis’s Who Is Government?, Hamilton, Lonesome Dove, nationalism, citizenship, NATO, the European Union, Montenegro, and what literature can teach us about civic life. Whether you’re interested in books, politics, history, literary fiction, democracy, public service, patriotism, or thoughtful long-form conversations, we hope you’ll join us. 📚 Books Mentioned • Who Is Government? edited by Michael Lewis • South and West by Joan Didion • Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry • Steep Trails by John Muir • The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain • Moneyball by Michael Lewis • Flash Boys by Michael Lewis • Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers by Jesse Q. Sutanto • Ms. Mabel Goes to the Chopping Block by Jesse Q. Sutanto • The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O’Farrell • Taiwan Travelogue by Yang Shuang-Zi 💌 Our Substack & Show Notes: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/ 📚 Read Ksenija’s Novels: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/p/publications 📚 Ksenija on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6449766.Ksenija_Popovi_ 🎙️ ABOUT TRANSATLANTIC BOOKMARKS Hosted by European novelist Ksenija Popović and American engineer Sue Graham Johnston, Transatlantic Bookmarks is a weekly literary podcast that uses books as the starting point for conversations about culture, history, psychology, morality, politics, and the questions hiding between the lines. New episodes every Saturday. 👉🏻 CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro 00:42 Happy Fourth of July 03:31 What We’re Reading 08:09 American Democracy and Independence 13:17 The Price of Independence in the Balkans 24:05 Unsung Heroes in Government 34:41 What Is Patriotism Today? 51:34 Post-9/11 America and Post-Bataclan Paris 54:57 Can One Person Make a Difference? 01:04:12 Alexander Hamilton and the Founding Fathers 01:14:19 Book Recommendations

Jun 27

Can Distance Change Who You Are?

What happens when distance changes the way we see the world—and ourselves? Inspired by Samantha Harvey’s Orbital, we explore the Overview Effect: the profound shift astronauts describe after seeing Earth from space. From there, the conversation expands into borders, war, loneliness, mortality, perspective, and the relief that can come from stepping back. Along the way, we discuss the International Space Station, the former Yugoslavia, Viktor Frankl's Man’s Search for Meaning, climate anxiety, AI and art, social media, body image, and why some books help us see familiar things from a completely different angle. 📚 BOOKS MENTIONED: • Training for the Uphill Athlete by Steve House, Scott Johnston, and Kilian Jornet • Reading Like a Writer by Francine Prose • Orbital by Samantha Harvey • In Ascension by Martin MacInnes • Awe by Dacher Keltner • Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl • The Living Mountain by Nan Shepherd • Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell 💌 Our Substack & Show Notes: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/ 📚 Read Ksenija’s Novels: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/p/publications 📚 Ksenija on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6449766.Ksenija_Popovi_ 🎙️ ABOUT TRANSATLANTIC BOOKMARKS Hosted by European novelist Ksenija Popović and American engineer Sue Graham Johnston, Transatlantic Bookmarks uses books as the starting point for conversations about culture, history, psychology, morality, politics, and the questions hiding between the lines. New episodes every Saturday. 👉🏻 CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro 00:25 What We’re Reading 08:03 The Overview Effect 19:14 Isolation vs. Connection 26:09 When Borders Disappear 33:46 Judging from a Distance 39:05 Above Situationalists 48:26 Literature and Human Empathy 52:39 Literature, Climate, and the Earth 59:08 Mortality, Meaning, and Daily Life 01:01:40 Body Image and Beauty Standards 01:08:08 Book Recommendations

Jun 20

The War on Books

What makes a book dangerous? In this episode of Transatlantic Bookmarks, we discuss banned books, censorship, school libraries, Pride Month, LGBTQ literature, free speech, and the role books play in helping us understand lives different from our own. From John Steinbeck and Upton Sinclair to Alice Walker and Andrew Sean Greer, we explore why certain books become cultural battlegrounds and who gets to decide what belongs on the shelf. We also discuss book bans in the United States, the difference between age-appropriate reading and censorship, the role of librarians, LGBTQ representation in literature, and why societies often seem more comfortable with violence than with sex. At the center of the conversation is a simple question: what do we lose when access to books becomes restricted? 📚 BOOKS MENTIONED: • No Shortcuts to the Top by Ed Viesturs (with David Roberts) • Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer • White Teeth by Zadie Smith • The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck • Das Kapital by Karl Marx • Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck • The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand • The Works of Immanuel Kant • Less by Andrew Sean Greer • The Twilight Saga by Stephenie Meyer • The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare • Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell • The Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel • Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak • The Jungle by Upton Sinclair • The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes • The Color Purple by Alice Walker 💌 Our Substack & Show Notes: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/ 📚 Read Ksenija’s Novels: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/p/publications 📚 Ksenija on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6449766.Ksenija_Popovi_ 🎙️ ABOUT TRANSATLANTIC BOOKMARKS Hosted by European novelist Ksenija Popović and American engineer Sue Graham Johnston, Transatlantic Bookmarks uses books as the starting point for conversations about culture, history, psychology, morality, politics, and the questions hiding between the lines. New episodes every Saturday. 👉🏻 CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro 02:49 What We’re Reading 05:21 The Fear of a Different Opinion 08:54 The Role of Literature in Critical Thinking 09:20 Pride Month and LGBTQ Representation 16:23 Cultural Divides in America 21:23 Book Banning in the United States 25:55 The Case for Censorship 33:46 The Hypocrisy of Censorship 38:03 Censoring Socialism 43:36 LGBTQIA+ in the Balkans 49:28 Unexpected Events and Personal Stories 51:13 Pride Marches: Corporate Influence vs. Authenticity 52:45 The Role of Librarians in Democracy 56:13 Both Sides Are Banning

Jun 13

Can You Trust a Translation?

What happens to a book when it crosses a border? In this episode of Transatlantic Bookmarks, we discuss translation, multilingualism, dialects, cultural context, and whether it is ever possible to experience a book exactly as its author intended. Ksenija shares her experience writing a novel in English rather than her native language, the politics of language in the former Yugoslavia, and the disastrous translation that nearly ruined Steinbeck for her forever. Along the way, we explore translated literature, Asian fiction, letter writing, the global dominance of English, the challenge of translating poetry, and the books that helped us understand cultures far beyond our own. 📚 BOOKS MENTIONED: • The Correspondent by Virginia Evans • Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler • Orbital by Samantha Harvey • Fathers Before Sons by Ksenija Popović • Commissario Montalbano by Andrea Camilleri • Swann’s Way by Marcel Proust • The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck • Journey to the West by Wu Cheng’en • Sputnik Sweetheart by Haruki Murakami • Pachinko by Min Jin Lee • The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy • Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell • The Castle of Crossed Destinies by Italo Calvino • The Solitude of Prime Numbers by Paolo Giordano 💌 Our Substack & Show Notes: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/ 📚 Read Ksenija’s Novels: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/p/publications 📚 Ksenija on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6449766.Ksenija_Popovi_ 🎙️ ABOUT TRANSATLANTIC BOOKMARKS Hosted by European novelist Ksenija Popović and American engineer Sue Graham Johnston, Transatlantic Bookmarks uses books as the starting point for conversations about culture, history, psychology, morality, politics, and the questions hiding between the lines. New episodes every Saturday. 👉🏻 CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro 07:57 The Football World Cup 10:49 What We’re Reading 12:32 How Many Languages Do Ksenija (and Melania Trump) Speak? 19:08 The Challenges of Writing in a Foreign Language 24:57 Accents and Dialects 34:15 The Woes of Reading in Translation 41:25 The United States and the Hegemony of English 49:36 Asian Literature 55:48 Why Ksenija Talks (a Lot!) 58:15 Getting a Sense of Place Through Literature 1:03:05 The Translator from Hell 1:06:18 Translating Poetry 1:08:20 Examples of Translation Gems 1:10:07 Book Banning in the United States 1:12:44 Book Recommendations 1:14:29 Setting the Record Straight on Tolstoy

Jun 6

Would You Make Art for a Dictator?

Daniel Kehlmann’s The Director, shortlisted for the 2026 International Booker Prize, tells the story of legendary filmmaker G.W. Pabst and raises a question that extends far beyond one artist or one historical moment: what happens when creative people find themselves face to face with power? In this episode of Transatlantic Bookmarks, we discuss the uneasy relationship between artists and tyrants, artistic freedom, censorship, free speech, and the compromises creators make to survive. From Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia to modern publishing, Hollywood, and social media, we explore where the line lies between pragmatism and complicity, whether great art can be separated from its creator, and why these debates remain as relevant today as ever. 📚 BOOKS MENTIONED: • The Director by Daniel Kehlmann • The Sisters by Jonas Hassen Khemiri • Isola by Allegra Goodman • Departure(s) by Julian Barnes • Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling • Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy • War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy • Doctor Zhivago by Boris Pasternak • The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli • Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl • One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez • The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand • Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand 💌 Our Substack & Show Notes: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/ 📚 Read Ksenija’s Novels: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/p/publications 📚 Ksenija on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6449766.Ksenija_Popovi_ 🎙️ ABOUT TRANSATLANTIC BOOKMARKS Hosted by European novelist Ksenija Popović and American engineer Sue Graham Johnston, Transatlantic Bookmarks uses books as the starting point for conversations about culture, history, psychology, morality, politics, and the questions hiding between the lines. New episodes every Saturday. 👉🏻 CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro 00:44 What We’re Reading 06:42 The Director by Daniel Kehlmann 11:33 Historical Context of Artists and Power 18:05 Moral Dilemmas in Artistic Integrity 25:15 The Different Standards for Artists, Tech Bros, and Podcast Bros 30:00 Censorship in the Publishing Industry 39:03 The Nuances of Free Speech 41:06 Art, Politics, and the Artist’s Responsibility 49:05 Does Great Art Require Angst? 51:14 The Compromises of Artistic Freedom 1:06:26 Book Recommendation

May 30

The Wuthering Heights Controversy: Is Hollywood Ruining Books?

The 2025 adaptation of Wuthering Heights has reignited debate about race, casting, and fidelity to the source material. But the controversy raises a larger question: why do some books survive adaptation beautifully while others lose everything essential about them? In this episode of Transatlantic Bookmarks, we discuss Wuthering Heights, Hollywood’s relationship with literature, the challenges of adapting classic novels, and whether some books should simply be left alone. From Emily Brontë and Milan Kundera to Sally Rooney and Maggie O’Farrell, we explore what happens when stories move from page to screen, why authors often lose control of their work, and whether film can ever truly capture what makes a novel great. 📚 BOOKS MENTIONED: • The Correspondent by Virginia Evans • Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë • The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera • Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell • Normal People by Sally Rooney • Life of Pi by Yann Martel • Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir • The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón • One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez • The Favorites by Layne Fargo • Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry • Butter by Asako Yuzuki 💌 Our Substack & Show Notes: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/ 📚 Read Ksenija’s Novels: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/p/publications 📚 Ksenija on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6449766.Ksenija_Popovi_ 🎙️ ABOUT TRANSATLANTIC BOOKMARKS Hosted by European novelist Ksenija Popović and American engineer Sue Graham Johnston, Transatlantic Bookmarks uses books as the starting point for conversations about culture, history, psychology, morality, politics, and the questions hiding between the lines. New episodes every Saturday. 👉🏻 CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro 04:39 Wuthering Heights, the 2025 Adaptation 13:45 The Racial Component of Wuthering Heights and the 2011 Adaptation 19:08 Why Charlotte Brontë Renounced Wuthering Heights 22:53 Hollywood’s Relationship with Literature 28:29 An Author’s Perspective on Adaptations 32:11 Why Jacob Elordi’s Heathcliff Disappointed Ksenija 33:18 How Sue Discovered The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera 34:16 Hamnet by Maggie O’Farrell 35:47 Normal People by Sally Rooney and the Masterful Acting of Paul Mescal 38:06 Do Authors Write with a Movie in Mind? 41:59 Life of Pi by Yann Martel 43:22 Books That Shouldn’t Be Adapted 45:52 The Good and Bad of Audiobooks 47:46 Female Authors and Adaptations 50:20 Retellings of Classics: The Favorites by Layne Fargo 51:59 Playful Remakes of Jane Austen and William Shakespeare 53:37 Ksenija’s Favorite Wuthering Heights Adaptation

May 23

Is Women's Writing Still Relevant?

The shortlist for the 2026 Women’s Prize for Fiction is out, sparking an important debate: does the term “women’s writing” still make sense today, and do we still need prizes dedicated exclusively to female authors? In the very first episode of Transatlantic Bookmarks, we discuss women’s writing, literary prizes, and whether male experience is still treated as the default universal perspective in literature. We also share some of our favorite female authors and talk about the books we love most. 📚 BOOKS MENTIONED: • The Ending Writes Itself by Evelyn Clarke • Heart the Lover by Lily King • The Correspondent by Virginia Evans • 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff • Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver • The Secret History by Donna Tartt • The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt • The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy • The Bridge on the Drina by Ivo Andrić 💌 Our Substack & Show Notes: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/ 📚 Read Ksenija’s Novels: https://transatlanticbookmarks.substack.com/p/publications 📚 Ksenija on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6449766.Ksenija_Popovi_ 🎙️ ABOUT TRANSATLANTIC BOOKMARKS Hosted by European novelist Ksenija Popović and American engineer Sue Graham Johnston, Transatlantic Bookmarks uses books as the starting point for conversations about culture, history, psychology, morality, politics, and the questions hiding between the lines. New episodes every Saturday. 👉🏻 CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro 01:14 The Ending Writes Itself by Evelyn Clarke 04:35 Heart the Lover by Lily King 05:33 The Correspondent by Virginia Evans 07:05 84, Charing Cross Road by Helene Hanff 07:24 Defining Women’s Fiction 12:20 Women Read More 13:06 The Balkan Perspective 15:53 The American Perspective 19:59 The Disparity in Literary Awards 22:42 Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver and the Opioid Epidemic 33:20 Is Women’s Prize for Fiction DEI? 41:55 Do We Read More Female or Male Authors? 46:04 The God of Small Things by Arundhati Roy 47:39 Donna Tartt’s The Goldfinch and The Secret History 50:00 The Bridge on the Drina by Ivo Andrić 53:20 Book Recommendations

Transatlantic Bookmarks

Episodes

Saints Were the Original Influencers

Nobody Complained About Diane Kruger

What Happens When Women Stop Caring

Books for Your Summer Escape

What Makes a Country Worth Loving?

Can Distance Change Who You Are?

The War on Books

Can You Trust a Translation?

Would You Make Art for a Dictator?

The Wuthering Heights Controversy: Is Hollywood Ruining Books?

Is Women's Writing Still Relevant?

Ratings & Reviews

About

Information