About this episode
Writer Alexis Okeowo ( The New Yorker ) untangles the themes of her new book Blessings and Disasters: A Story of Alabama , which weaves personal experience and the complex history of her home state; legendary comedian Maria Bamford takes the hot seat and answers her popular Vulture magazine questionnaire; and alt-folk rocker Pete Droge performs "You Called Me Kid" from his latest album Fade Away Blue .