Code Talker by Chester Nez

Season 1 of Andor is in the books! Bowen, Grady, Anson and Mak take a break from Thanksgiving to talk about what set Andor apart from the rest of Star Wars.

A departure in style and substance from previous Star Wars shows, Andor hits Disney+. Bowen, Grady, Anson, and Makeli discuss what this new show means to Star Wars.

Cousins Ryan, Mak and Nainoa reunite in Las Vegas for a birthday party.  

(**SHOW NOTE: We are still meeting as a book club but haven't been able to record our recent gatherings.  We plan to resume recording for our next book which should be posted next month.) Cousins Ryan, Mak and Nainoa travel to Seattle to celebrate the year in which they all turn 40. Field recordings of their trip plus their rendition of "Come As You Are" by Nirvana.

***Note: This episode is actually not related to a book.  We were all in town for Thanksgiving and wanted to sit down to record a podcast for posterity. :)

Combat, the most intense and dynamic environment imaginable, teaches the toughest leadership lessons, with absolutely everything at stake. Jocko Willink and Leif Babin learned this reality first-hand on the most violent and dangerous battlefield in Iraq. As leaders of SEAL Team Three's Task Unit Bruiser, their mission was one many thought impossible: help US forces secure Ramadi, a violent, insurgent-held city deemed "all but lost." In gripping, firsthand accounts of heroism, tragic loss, and hard-won victories, they learned that leadership - at every level - is the most important factor in whether a team succeeds or fails. 

It begins outside a burning plantation hut in Louisiana... and an East Texas honky-tonk... and, without a doubt, inside the heart of God. It unfolds at a Hollywood hacienda... an upscale New York gallery... a downtown dumpster... a Texas ranch. 

On May 18, 1860, William H. Seward, Salmon P. Chase, Edward Bates, and Abraham Lincoln waited in their hometowns for the results from the Republican National Convention in Chicago. When Lincoln emerged as the victor, his rivals were dismayed and angry. Throughout the turbulent 1850s, each had energetically sought the presidency as the conflict over slavery was leading inexorably to secession and civil war. That Lincoln succeeded was the result of a character that had been forged by life experiences that raised him above his more privileged and accomplished rivals. He won because hepossessed an extraordinary ability to put himself in the place of other men, to experience what they were feeling, to understand their motives and desires. This capacity enabled President Lincoln to bring his disgruntled opponents together, create the most unusual cabinet in history, and marshal their talents to preserve the Union and win the war.

An extraordinary insight into life under one of the world's most ruthless and secretive dictatorships - and the story of one woman's terrifying struggle to avoid capture/repatriation and guide her family to freedom.  

Chester Nez, the only surviving member of the original 29 Navajo code talkers, shares the fascinating inside story of his life and service during World War II.