Today marks thirty years since the last day of the FBI siege on the Branch Davidians of Waco, Texas. We hear from three authors who released books on the events this year: Jeff Guinn (Waco: David Koresh, the Branch Davidians, and a Legacy of Rage), Stephan Talty (Koresh: The True Story of David Koresh and the Tragedy at Waco) and Kevin Cook (Waco Rising: David Koresh, the FBI, and the Birth of America’s Modern Militias) They address why they chose to tell this story now, what exactly happened in Waco (and why), and why this story is still relevant today.

The Stacks Book Club selection for April is Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude by Ross Gay. We will discuss the book on April 26th with Clint Smith.

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Everything we talk about on today’s episode can be found below in the show notes and on Bookshop.org and Amazon.

JEFF GUINN

• Waco by Jeff Guinn
• Manson by Jeff Guinn
• The Road to Jonestown by Jeff Guinn
• Oklahoma City bombing
• January 6 United States Capitol attack
• Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF)
• Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)
• David Koresh
• Branch Davidians
• Seventh-day Adventist Church
• Coke Zero
• The Allure of Immortality by Lyn Millner
• John Steinbeck
• Travels with Charley by John Steinbeck

STEPHAN TALTY

• Koresh by Stephen Talty
• The Sopranos finale (HBO)
• Marc Breault
• The Executioner’s Song by Norman Mailer
• Gary Gilmore
• A Captain’s Duty by Richard Phillips with Stephan Talty
• Trust the Plan by Will Sommer
• Ron DeSantis

KEVIN COOK

• Waco Rising by Kevin Cook
• The Burning Blue by Kevin Cook
• Space Shuttle Challenger disaster
• CNN
• Timothy McVeigh
• Ruby Ridge
• Tom Wolfe
• Gary Noesner
• Janet Reno
• Wayne Martin
• Randy Weaver
• Kitty Genovese by Kevin Cook
• Alex Jones
• Waco miniseries (Paramount+)
• John le Carré
• Philip Roth
• Hilary Mantel

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Connect with Jeff: Website
Connect with Stephan: Twitter | Website
Connect with Kevin: Website
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