Roger Rosenblatt is the author of five New York Times Notable Books of the Year, and three New York Times bestsellers. He has written seven off-Broadway plays and his essays for Time and the PBS Newshour have won two George Polk Awards, the Peabody, and the Emmy, among others. In 2015, he won the Kenyon Review Award for Lifetime Literary Achievement. He held the Briggs-Copeland appointment in the teaching of writing at Harvard. He is Distinguished Professor of English and Writing at SUNY Stony Brook/Southampton. His new book is Cold Moon: On Life, Love, and Responsibility. He will be joining Lilliam Rivera, Helen Macdonald, and Melissa Faliveno on October 20 to tell stories tied to the theme “Nerves of Steel.” Register here for the show! What are you reading right now for solace or escape? Myself, a new book I’m writing; and I can’t escape. If you could live inside a fictional world, which one would you choose? America; It must be fiction. Are there any quotes you use to inspire you now or anytime? “Be kind, for everyone you meet is carrying a great burden.” — Philo