The Commentary Magazine Podcast

Episode: "Books for First-Years, Games"

Date: August 22, 2025
Participants: John Podhoretz (host), Abe Greenwald, Seth Mandel, Christine Rosen, Matthew Continetti

Overview

In this special summer episode, the Commentary staff takes a break from news to offer insightful, sometimes quirky, recommendations for books that college-bound students should read—and discuss the best (and worst) board games to play, especially as families and friends gather for the new school year. Full of humor and warmth, the episode provides a blend of high-minded literary discussion with relatable anecdotes about the joys and agonies of family game night.

Book Recommendations for College First-Years

(00:57 – 15:43)

Each panelist suggests one life-changing or crucial book for a student about to embark on their college journey.

Christine Rosen:

The Captive Mind by Czesław Miłosz

• Why: "When you go off to college you get a lot of new information, a lot of new experiences, but not always a lot of wisdom going in." (02:59)
• What it offers: An accessible, psychological exploration of human nature and the moral weight of choices.
• Quote: “It shows you so many facets of the human personality and in a way that's quite accessible for… a younger, impressionable mind.” (03:22)
• Practicality: Short enough to read in a week; rich enough to mull its lessons over time.

Seth Mandel:

The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen

• Why: A quintessential novel about moments of transition and uncertainty.
• Context: Post-Cold War, late-20th-century setting where old certainties are vanishing, much like the transition to college.
• Quote: “A book about standing at the precipice along with everybody else around you and nobody really knowing exactly what to do now, but also understanding that this is now the moment of opportunity…” (04:21)

Abe Greenwald:

A New History of the World by J.M. Roberts (Fourth Edition or earlier)

• Why: Abe wished he'd read it before college—helps connect disparate academic knowledge into a coherent historical narrative.
• Description: “It is gripping. It begins with prehistory and goes right up through to the end of the 20th century. And it explains the movements of nations, of peoples, of intellectual movements, of science and technology.” (07:15)
• Warning: Avoid later editions for “being edited in strange ways.”

Matthew Continetti:

Cultural Amnesia by Clive James

• Why: Offers foundational cultural literacy through accessible vignettes of major thinkers, artists, and cultural figures.
• Quote: “It is basically a collection of biographical portraits of significant cultural figures… along with commentary by Clive James, who's a very good Australian born, then lived in England most of his life, literary critic.” (08:09)
• Tone: “Just a lot of fun to read…you’re going to have a wide breadth of knowledge about all of the different movements that inform our…postmodern apocalyptic landscape today.” (08:39)

John Podhoretz:

High Windows by Philip Larkin (plus a bonus suggestion)

• Why: A brief, powerful poetry collection for literary-minded students—emphasizes transcendence from everyday frustrations.
• Personal anecdote: “This one book changed my life as a…as a rising, near-to undergraduate…” (11:26)
• Notable quote about Larkin’s poetry: “They begin grounded on earth and then they soar into a kind of transcendent greatness about what it means to be alive, often tragic, often incredibly sad, and yet totally human.” (10:59)
• Bonus for the politically minded:
  • Plunkitt of Tammany Hall by George Washington Plunkitt—a humorous, cynical primer on the realities of politics.
  • “It is conversational to the extreme. It is funny, probably without him meaning to be funny, but as a portrait of the way the world really works…” (13:23)
  • Available free online (Project Gutenberg).

Books Recap:

• The Captive Mind (Miłosz)
• The Corrections (Franzen)
• A New History of the World (Roberts)
• Cultural Amnesia (James)
• High Windows (Larkin)
• Plunkitt of Tammany Hall (Plunkitt)

Board & Card Games: Family Favorites and Cautionary Tales

(17:01 – 37:35)

The panel transitions from books to the world of games—what to play (and what to avoid) with friends and family, especially in dorm rooms full of new freshmen.

Abe Greenwald:

Favorite Game: Scrabble (under duress)

• “I don't like board games, but I will play them under duress. It won't be very pleasant because I'll be bored…” (18:07)
• Not a Scrabble expert himself, but enjoys the challenge.

Christine Rosen:

Scrabble, Poker

• Scrabble made enjoyable through “family hacks” and house rules to keep things moving.
  • “One kid took way too long to find a word, the other would just add an S to someone else's awesome word. And we're like, that's not fair.” (18:57)
• Poker as a life lesson during COVID: “To learn how to bet, to learn how to bluff. All that stuff was—these are great, important human life lessons.” (19:41)

John Podhoretz:

Boggle

• “One of the great pleasures of Scrabble as a parent is losing—to your kid as your kid gets older… Boggle has much the same effect… I just swell with pride at being humiliated by my kid at Boggle.” (20:21)
• Savoring moments when children outpace parents.

Seth Mandel:

Chess & The Magic Labyrinth

• Cherishes the day his nephew beat him at chess: “Because it's like…your kid beats you at one on one in basketball… there's a stage of development they have reached…” (21:29)
• The Magic Labyrinth—a memory and obstacle board game that teaches kids to navigate invisible mazes.
  • “That sounds like hell on earth to me. That horrifying thing…if you wanted me to give up the nuclear code, you would make me play that game…” (24:07, John Podhoretz reacting)

Matthew Continetti:

Axis and Allies

• “As a young man I needed ways to express my Napoleonic tendencies. And so I found them released in what I believe to be the best board game of all time. And that is Axis and Allies.” (24:31)
• Recounts hours strategizing World War II with friends.

John Podhoretz (again):

Monopoly

• “Designed to be a sort of primer for socialism… but, because people want to win things and not cooperate, it taught people how to be savage and how to bankrupt other people.” (26:06)
• Anecdote about game tokens: “Did you or did you not get the car?…you almost didn't even have to win because you had the car.” (27:59)

Further Chess Discussion

(28:17 on)

• Chess as a unique intellectual passion—“If you do have, like an eidetic memory and a certain type of brain, you can literally know every chess game that has ever been played and play it in response to whatever move is being made by your opposite number.” (30:19)
• Analysis of grandmasters like Magnus Carlsen and chess prodigies.
• Mention of the movie Searching for Bobby Fischer, with John recommending it as a “beautiful, interesting movie about…what it's like to…raise a kid who, like, has gifts that you can't even begin to imagine.” (32:06)
• Seth’s personal story: losing at Washington Square Park to a Pepsi mascot for an ad campaign—a reminder of chess’s colorful subculture. (34:11)

Caution: Game to Avoid

Settlers of Catan

• John’s strong advice: “Do whatever you can to avoid it. If you have young kids…do not bring it into your house. You will be so sorry.” (37:11)
• “It is excruciating. It is boring. It is some form of politicized…about sustainability.” (37:19)

Notable Quotes & Moments

• “This is one of our special summer podcasts, undated because I don't know when it's going to run, that we are recording to give ourselves a break and to provide you with non-news insights from the Commentary family.” —John Podhoretz (00:24)
• “It's always fun to be humiliated by someone ten years younger than you.” —John Podhoretz on losing at Boggle (20:25)
• “The main issue is, did you or did you not get the car?”—John Podhoretz on Monopoly (27:59)
• “Under no circumstances should this child be allowed anywhere near a chessboard because it would swallow him up and trap him forever.”—John Podhoretz on the pull of chess (28:17)
• “Do NOT bring Settlers of Catan into your house… You are gonna be so sorry.”—John Podhoretz’s closing warning (37:11)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:57 — Panel introductions and set-up
• 02:59 — Christine’s book pick (Captive Mind)
• 04:09 — Seth’s book pick (The Corrections)
• 05:45 — Abe’s book pick (New History of the World)
• 07:56 — Matt’s book pick (Cultural Amnesia)
• 10:58 — John’s poetry pick (High Windows)
• 13:08 — Plunkitt of Tammany Hall discussion
• 17:01 — Transition to board games
• 18:32 — Scrabble and family rules
• 19:41 — Poker and life lessons
• 20:21 — Losing to kids at games (Boggle)
• 21:29 — Chess and “beating your elders” stories
• 22:14 — The Magic Labyrinth explained
• 24:31 — Axis and Allies discussion
• 25:37 — Monopoly, its origins, and social lessons
• 30:19 — The passion (and peril) of chess mastery
• 32:06 — Searching for Bobby Fischer film
• 34:11 — Chess in Washington Square Park
• 37:11 — Settlers of Catan: a dire warning

Tone & Conclusion

The episode is marked by a mix of warmth, intellectual curiosity, and playful self-deprecation. Alternating between heartfelt parental observations and witty group banter, the panel delivers insightful, idiosyncratic advice for both the mind and the game table, useful for both soon-to-be college students and their families looking to navigate change—and maybe just survive the next round of Monopoly.