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If Books Could Kill

If Books Could Kill

By: Michael Hobbes & Peter Shamshiri
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About this listen

The airport bestsellers that captured our hearts and ruined our minds© 2026 If Books Could Kill Art Literary History & Criticism Political Science Politics & Government Social Sciences
Episodes
  • The Worst Takes of 2025 [TEASER]
    Dec 29 2025

    The boys catalog the definitive worst takes of the year, from the pundits who misunderstood our political moment to a guy who wants to have sex with a computer.

    To hear the rest of the episode, support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IfBooksPod

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    50 mins
  • Elon Musk Part 2
    Dec 18 2025

    The boys continue their discussion of Walter Isaacson's "Elon Musk." This is the part where Elon loses his mind.

    Where to find us:

    • Our Patreon
    • Our merch!
    • Peter's newsletter
    • Peter's other podcast, 5-4
    • Mike's other podcast, Maintenance Phase

    Sources:

    • From self-proclaimed ‘socialist’ to Team Trump and DeSantis: Elon Musk’s curious politics revealed
    • The Quiet Political Rise of David Sacks, Silicon Valley’s Prophet of Urban Doom
    • Elon Musk biographer admits suggestion SpaceX head blocked Ukraine drone attack was wrong
    • Elon Musk's Daughter on Dad's Biography: 'Sad Excuse for a Puff Piece'
    • Character Limit
    • Twitter fulfilling more government censorship requests under Musk
    • Elon Musk booed for nearly 5 minutes straight at Dave Chappelle show in San Francisco
    • New CNN Chief Trying to Please GOP Elite
    • Research finds more than 14 million preventable deaths by 2030 if USAID defunding continues, including more than 4 million children under five
    • What the data says about Social Security
    • Trump Administration, DOGE Activities Risk SSA Operations and Security of Personal Data

    Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!


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    1 hr and 31 mins
  • Elon Musk
    Dec 9 2025

    A biography that dares to ask: Is a lifetime of worker abuse and narcissism worth it to experience robot butlers?

    Where to find us:

    • Our Patreon
    • Our merch!
    • Peter's newsletter
    • Peter's other podcast, 5-4
    • Mike's other podcast, Maintenance Phase

    Sources:

    • What Elon Musk Gets Wrong about South Africa
    • Elon Musk’s Anti-Semitic, Apartheid-Loving Grandfather
    • Elon Musk claims he was once one of the best Quake players around
    • Watch Elon Musk Talk About Being an ‘Illegal Immigrant’ in Video From 2013
    • Elon Musk’s dad Errol says he can ‘prove’ existence of emerald mine in new bombshell claim revealing its location
    • How Elon Musk Went from Superhero to Supervillain
    • The Believer
    • Elon Musk: The Architect of Tomorrow
    • How Elon Musk Plans on Reinventing the World (and Mars)
    • Tesla factory workers reveal pain, injury and stress: 'Everything feels like the future but us' | Tesla
    • Hundreds of Tesla workers tested positive for the virus after Elon Musk reopened a plant, data shows
    • Inside Tesla as Elon Musk Pushed an Unflinching Vision for Self-Driving Cars
    • Tesla video promoting self-driving was staged, engineer testifies
    • Elon Musk Says His 'Running Robot' Will 'Actually Eliminate Poverty' As He Shares Video Of Tesla Optimus Jogging
    • Elon Musk Wants ‘Strong Influence’ Over the ‘Robot Army’ He’s Building
    • There’s a Very Simple Pattern to Elon Musk’s Broken Promises

    Thanks to Mindseye for our theme song!

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    1 hr and 28 mins
All stars
Most relevant
I listen to this while I'm bored or distracted. It's a total stress remover, just amazing.

I love this podcast.

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accessible but smart critique of culture, politics and sociology. Well worth the listen. Essentially a cut-through of books of misinformation that never got corrected in the public consciousness.

Want some political analysis with your breakfast?

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get rich quick, use child slave labor, run a scam. start of with a large fortune, don't pay tax, don't save but save everything.

great coverage

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I mean, I knew already men weren't from Mars, but I had no idea the author was only pretending to be a doctor!

An entertaining deep-dive into the dangerous agendas hiding inside non-fiction bestsellers

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funny and informative. I have read some of the books they critique and found their discussions about them very interesting and amusing

My favourite podcast

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