Benjamin Moser: The Life of Susan Sontag

from Live Mic: Best of TPL Conversations · host Toronto Public Library

*Note: given the current temporary closure of TPL due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we have made our best efforts to offer suggestions below for materials which are part our online collections, and available at home to anyone with a current Toronto Public Library card. Why are wait time for ebooks or audiobooks sometimes so long? Learn more about limits on the number of eBook copies and the length of time they can be borrowed. Books by Benjamin MoserSontag: Her Life and Work (ebook)Clarice Lispector: The Hour of the Star by Clarice Lispector (translated by Moser) (ebook)The Besieged City by Clarice Lispector (edited by Moser) (ebook) Books by Sheila HetiWomen in Clothes (ebook)Motherhood (print book available when branches reopen)“My Life is a Joke” (link opens a 2015 story by Heti in The New Yorker) Materials by or about Susan SontagDebriefing: Collected Stories by Susan SontagAs Consciousness is Harnessed to Flesh: Journals and Notebooks (of Susan Sontag), 1964-1980Regarding the Pain of Others by Susan SontagOn the Eve of the Met Gala, Andrew Bolton Takes Vogue on a Walking Tour of “Camp: Notes on Fashion” (link opens a Vogue magazine article from May 2019) Writers Off the Page: 40 Years of TIFA podcast A four-part Interview with Susan Sontag (can be listened to in any order)Episode One: This God-Damned Celebrity Culture (23 mins)Episode Two: The Little Illness Book (19 mins)Episode Three: The Arts Give Humans Dignity (19 mins)Episode Four: Make Something Better (19 mins) Live Mic: Best of TPL Conversations features curated discussions and interviews with some of today’s best-known and yet-to-be-known writers, thinkers and artists, recorded on stage at one of Toronto Public Library’s 100 branches. Episodes are produced by Natalie Kertes, Jorge Amigo, and Gregory McCormick. Technical support by Michelle De Marco and George Panayotou. AV support by Jennifer Kasper and Mesfin Bayssassew. Marketing support by Tanya Oleksuik. Music is by The Worst Pop Band Ever.

What this episode covers

Over the last couple of years, American writer and intellectual, Susan Sontag, has been experiencing a “rediscovery,” as evidenced by Benjamin Moser’s 2019 biography of Sontag (the subject of this conversation with Sheila Heti), as well as the much talked about 2019 Met exhibition, Camp: Notes on Fashion, that took as its theme Sontag’s highly influential 1964 essay “Notes on Camp.” And as part of the podcast series, Writers Off the Page: 40 Years of TIFA, TPL released its own four-part episode of Sontag herself talking in 2001 with Evan Solomon at the International Festival of Authors (now called TIFA) to celebrate the release of her book, In America. This is the conversation that Sheila Heti references when this conversation here with Ben Moser begins and Heti exclaims that she “she was so fierce, she was so terrifying, and I've never forgotten it, all these years…” Benjamin Moser is the author of Sontag: A Life. Moser was born in Houston. He is the author of Why This World: A Biography of Clarice Lispector, a finalist for the National Book Critics' Circle Award and a New York Times Notable Book. For his work bringing Clarice Lispector to international prominence, he received Brazil’s first State Prize for Cultural Diplomacy. He has published translations from French, Spanish, Portuguese, and Dutch. A former books columnist for Harper's Magazine and The New York Times Book Review, he has also written for The New Yorker, Conde Nast Traveler, and The New York Review of Books. Sheila Heti is the author of eight books of fiction and nonfiction, including Motherhood, How Should a Person Be? which was a New York Times Notable Book and was named a best book of the year by The New Yorker. She is co-editor of the New York Times bestseller Women in Clothes, and is the former Interviews Editor for The Believer magazine. Her work has been published in The New York Times, The London Review of Books, The Paris Review, McSweeney's, Harper's, and n+1.

NOW PLAYING

Benjamin Moser: The Life of Susan Sontag

0:00 37:04

1×

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

Share this episode

Similar Episodes

I'm ok

Mar 26, 2026 ·1m

Food Saved My Life

Mar 19, 2026 ·34m

Eat More Vegetables: The 4 Foods That Beat Ozempic (Naturally)

Feb 18, 2026 ·11m

How to End Heart Disease with Dr. Fuhrman

Feb 11, 2026 ·45m

Revolutionizing Breast Health: QT Imaging, Overdiagnosis, and What to Do Instead

Jan 27, 2026 ·35m

REMIX: Why we over-shop and compulsively acquire, and how to stop, with Dr Jan Eppingstall

Jan 9, 2026 ·61m

Similar Podcasts

Ask A Spaceman Archives - 365 Days of Astronomy Ask A Spaceman Archives - 365 Days of Astronomy Podcasting Astronomy Every Day of the Year Eat to Live Jenna Fuhrman, Dr. Fuhrman Our health is our most precious gift and smart nutrition can change your life. Each month, join Dr. Fuhrman and his daughter, Jenna Fuhrman as they discuss important topics in the world of nutrition. Eat to Live will change the way you eat and think about food. French Your Way Jessica: Native French teacher founder of French Your Way Boost your French listening skills and test your comprehension with this one of a kind series of podcasts. Get the chance to listen to a real conversation between native speakers talking at normal speed AND customise your learning experience through carefully designed sets of questions (2 levels of difficulty) available for download at www.frenchvoicespodcast.com. All interviews also come with the transcript. French teacher Jessica interviews native speakers of French from around the world who share a bit of their life and passion. Where else would you meet in one same place a French yoga teacher based in Melbourne, a soap manufacturer from Provence, or a couple cycling around the world? That Hoarder: Overcome Compulsive Hoarding That Hoarder Hoarding disorder is stigmatised and people who hoard feel vast amounts of shame. This podcast began life as an audio diary, an anonymous outlet for somebody with this weird condition. That Hoarder speaks about her experiences living with compulsive hoarding, she interviews therapists, academics, researchers, children of hoarders, professional organisers and influencers, and she shares insight and tips for others with the problem. Listened to by people who hoard as well as those who love them and those who work with them, Overcome Compulsive Hoarding with That Hoarder aims to shatter the stigma, share the truth and speak openly and honestly to improve lives.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of Live Mic: Best of TPL Conversations?

This episode is 37 minutes long.

When was this Live Mic: Best of TPL Conversations episode published?

This episode was published on April 20, 2020.

What is this episode about?

Can I download this Live Mic: Best of TPL Conversations episode?

Yes, you can download this episode by clicking the download button on the episode player, or subscribe to the podcast in your preferred podcast app for automatic downloads.

URL copied to clipboard!