
Our guest today is Joseph Papa, author (Elizabeth Taylor, A Passion for Life), activist, and former book publicist at Harper Collins. Joseph brings his years of experience to the show to explain how book publicity works, what it is like working with celebrity authors, and how he got into the publishing industry. We also discuss Kris Jenner’s reading taste, audiobook speed, Scientology, and so much more. Trust us, this episode has it all!
LISTEN NOW
Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Podcasts | Overcast | Stitcher
Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes. If you’d like to support your local indie, you can shop through IndieBound.
Books
- Elizabeth Taylor, A Passion for Life by Joseph Papa
- Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
- Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind by Ellen F. Brown
- How I Got This Way by Regis Philbin
- Stephen King
- Scream by Tama Janowitz
- Slaves of New York by Tama Janowitz
- Jeffery Self
- Make ‘Em Laugh by Debbie Reynolds
- The Perfect Letter by Chris Harrison
- The Bible
- Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng
- Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi
- Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel
- Hunger by Roxane Gay
- Good and Mad by Rebecca Traister
- Eloquent Rage by Brittney Cooper
- The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt
- Not The Kind of Girl by Lena Dunham
- Proof of Heaven by Eben Alexander
- Atonement by Ian McEwan
- Off-White by Laurie Gunst
- Blood in the Water by Heather Ann Thompson
- John Krakauer
- Where Men Win Glory by John Krakauer

- Under the Banner of Heaven by John Krakauer
- Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro
- The History of Love by Nicole Krauss
- The Lover’s Dictionary by David Levithan
- The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides
- The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen
- Freedom by Jonathan Franzen
- Less by Andrew Sean Greer
- Ladies Who Punch by Ramin Setoodeh
- Familiar Spirits by Alison Lurie
- The Truths We Hold by Kamala Harris
- Shortest Way Home by Pete Buttigieg
- Becoming by Michelle Obama
- Going Clear by Lawrence Wright
- God Save Texas by Lawrence Wright
- Inside Scientology by Janet Reitman
- People Who Eat Darkness by Richard Lloyd Parry
- How Long ‘Til Black Future Month by N. K. Jemisin
- Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
- Dave Cullen
- A Thousand Lives by Julia Scheeres
- Jesus Land by Julia Scheeres
- The Mother of Black Hollywood by Jenifer Lewis
- The Last Black Unicorn by Tiffany Haddish
- Tinderbox by Robert W. Fieseler
- Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe
- The Selected Poems of Nikki Giovanni by Nikki Giovanni
- Kwame Alexander
- Love Sex Again by Lauren Streicher
- Columbine by Dave Cullen
- Parkland by Dave Cullen
- William Faulkner
- F. Scott Fitzgerald
- Alexandre Dumas
- The Library Book by Susan Orlean
- James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
- Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston
- Death of a Salesman by Aurthur Miller
- The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
- Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann
- The Horse Whisperer by Nicholas Evans
- James Patterson
- Hilary Rodham Clinton
Everything Else
- Harper Collins
- Equality Virginia
- Library of Virginia
- Oprah’s book Club
- The New York Times Book Review
- Lena Dunham
- Kirkus
- Publishers Weekly
- Booklist Online
- Library Journal
- #Bookstagram
- Kylie Jenner
- Lady Gaga
- V Magazine
- Search Party (TBS)
- Jeffery Self Twitter
- The Bachelor (ABC)
- Jason Tartick
- Kaitlyn Bristowe
- New York Magazine
- The View (ABC)
- Russell Brand
- Molly Ringwald
- Today Show (NBC)
- Good Morning America (ABC)
- Ellen (Warner Brothers Studios)
- The Talk (CBS)
- Marina Abramovic
- The Golden Girls (NBC)

- Kris Jenner
- Ask the Stacks
- Ep. 26 Less by Andrew Sean Greer — The Stacks Book Club with Zeke Smith (The Stacks)
- Beyoncé
- Libby
- Libro.fm
- Audbile
- Entertainment Weekly Books
- Ep. 7 Talking Books with Sam Pinkleton
- Charles Manson
- Orphan Black (BBC)
- Bette Midler
- Skylight Books (Los Angeles, CA)
- The Colbert Report (Comedy Central)
- Ep. 60 Beloved by Toni Morrison (The Stacks)
- The Horse Whisperer (Robert Redford, 1998)
- Robert Redford
- The Shining (Stanley Kubrick, 1980)
- A Clockwork Orange (Stanley Kubrick, 1972)
Connect with Joseph: Instagram | Twitter
Connect with The Stacks: Instagram | Twitter | Shop | Patreon | Goodreads | Subscribe
To support The Stacks and find out more from this week’s sponsors, click here.
To contribute to The Stacks, join The Stacks Pack, and get exclusive perks, check out our Patreon page. We are beyond grateful for anything you’re able to give to support the production of this show. If you prefer to do a one time contribution go to paypal.me/thestackspod.
The Stacks participates in affiliate programs. We receive a small commission when products are purchased through links on this website, and this comes at no cost to you. This in no way effects opinions on books and products reviewed here. For more information click here.