Episode 186: Brin-Jonathan Butler — Misfits, Status, and ‘Tourist Information’

By Brendan O’Meara

Good ol’ Brin-Jonathan Butler returns to the show. In years’ past, he’s come on to talk about all kinds of stuff. Cuba. Access as a drug. Chess. And the blessing of struggle.

He’s a kindred spirit and person who best articulates what I’m thinking, only I’m incapable of articulating it the way he can.

Brin’s also my favorite writer going. He throws a “heavy ball,” as we say in baseball circles. The ball sounds differently coming off his bat.

He’s the author of The Grandmaster and The Domino Diaries and he’s the host of the new podcast Tourist Information.

Be sure to subscribe to the podcast wherever you get your pods and to subscribe to my monthly newsletter. Social media is @CNFPod, though, as many of you know, I’ve scaled back quite a bit on this.

As always, thanks for listening.

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Episode 125—Brin-Jonathan Butler Talks “The Grandmaster,” Obsession, Madness, and the Power of Being an Outsider

Brin-Jonathan Butler, Brendan O'Meara
Brin-Jonathan Butler sporting Cuban refugee Yasiel Puig’s No. 66.

By Brendan O’Meara

Brin-Jonathan Butler has the world record for appearances on The Creative Nonfiction Podcast at four times. In honor of that, here’s a riff in 4/4 time.

You an check out his past few trips when he talked about what his ego is tied to, all things Cuba, and the blessings of struggle.

His new book The Grandmaster: Magnus Carlsen and the Match that Made Chess Great Again is a masterpiece.

Continue reading “Episode 125—Brin-Jonathan Butler Talks “The Grandmaster,” Obsession, Madness, and the Power of Being an Outsider”