Podcast Summary: Totally Booked with Zibby — Sasha Salzmann, GLORIOUS PEOPLE

Host: Zibby Owens
Guest: Sasha Salzmann
Air Date: August 20, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode of Totally Booked with Zibby, Zibby Owens sits down with acclaimed playwright and novelist Sasha Salzmann to discuss their novel Glorious People. The conversation centers on intergenerational relationships, particularly between mothers and daughters, set against the backdrop of Ukraine and the Jewish diaspora’s experience before and after the fall of the Soviet Union. Themes include identity, motherhood, cultural memory, the importance of storytelling, and navigating complex identities in present-day Europe.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Heart of Glorious People: Mothers, Daughters, and Memory

• Sasha’s Description (02:00-05:00): The novel is about “mothers and daughters who try to look at each other and truly see the individual in front of them,” with the setting ranging from 1970s-80s Ukraine to post-Soviet Germany.
  • The book is less about Ukraine as a nation and more a tribute to the women who risked everything for their children.
  • Sasha shares that the inspiration came from observing dinner parties thrown by their mother, where guests’ varied perspectives in the wake of the 2014 war inspired Sasha to gather and share their stories.
  • “I want to know everything. And since I'm a novelist and not a historian, I need to talk to people.” (04:33, Salzmann)

Interrogating Family, History, and the Refusal to Simplify

• Portraying Authenticity (05:04-07:30): Zibby reads evocative passages from the novel, highlighting the intimate and at times painful dynamics between mothers and daughters.
  • Sasha notes that interviewing her mother’s friends yielded depth she couldn’t access directly from her mother, revealing harsh truths about giving birth and survival in the Soviet system.
  • On the act of asking about one’s own birth: “I encourage everybody to ask their mom about giving birth to them. Literally. This is not a question you would think of, but...it does something to you, to your relationship with your mom.” (09:35, Salzmann)

Storytelling as an Act of Dignity and Political Resistance

• Giving Voice to the Overlooked (10:08-14:35): Sasha reflects on how many mothers’ stories go uncollected and unappreciated.
  • “I really wish they would see themselves as protagonists of historical events. It's not only the mother, it's like somehow really unpoliticized term. I think the mother can be a very political issue, obviously.” (11:46, Salzmann)
  • Her interviews revealed that Soviet life was more stratified and complex than often portrayed, disrupting the myth that everyone had the same struggles and resources.

Relevance Across Generations

• Zibby considers doing a similar project by interviewing her mother’s friends and notes the importance of collecting these stories before they are lost. Sasha stresses the transformative power for both storyteller and listener:
  • “By giving them this opportunity to tell their story, they will see themselves differently and you will see your mom differently. And it's fun...it's somehow also really eye opening.” (14:58, Salzmann)

Being Jewish in Contemporary Germany

• Complex Identities (15:42-18:50): Zibby asks Sasha about Jewish identity in modern Germany, especially post-October 7th.
  • Sasha describes the tension: feeling both needed and “othered” by the German majority, and the pressure to serve as the “good other.”
  • Friendship and solidarity across backgrounds (Palestinian, Kurdish, Russian, Ukrainian, etc.) have provided Sasha with support in times of crisis:
    • “Friendship is truly like, you know, a net that will hold you. That was my experience after October 7th, when I was sure that I was going to lose my mind...everybody called and this is where I knew that we have a chance.” (18:40, Salzmann)

Current and Future Work

• Exploring Friendship (18:56-19:43): Sasha’s new project centers on the friendships between people of different backgrounds in Europe since the 1990s, especially in the face of rising extremism.
• Form Follows Story (19:54-22:16): Sasha shares her organic creative process:
  • “The truth is every time an empty page tells me what to do.” (20:00, Salzmann)
  • The form—be it play, novel, or essay—emerges from the story’s unique demands, as illustrated by her move between fiction and theatre when grappling with grief and political memory.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Complexity of Motherhood:
  • “You stay a kid and a mom has to stay a mom. You will not be that kind of friend or you will never be able to see each other just as individuals, but you have to make this effort.” (08:20, Salzmann)
• On Collecting Family and Community Stories:
  • “Nobody is going around...because they don’t think of themselves as protagonists.” (14:58, Salzmann)
• On Living as a Jew in Germany:
  • “Germans love their Jews, they need their Jews. I think that's kind of known...but you’re never accepted as part of the society.” (16:00, Salzmann)
• On Artistic Practice:
  • “Reading a book is really such an intimate experience...and the theater is such a public experience. It's very social. You're always with others, so it's very different.” (21:40, Salzmann)

Significant Timestamps

• 01:40: Sasha introduces Glorious People and its central themes
• 04:33: On gathering real stories from her mother’s friends
• 05:31: Zibby reads the opening to Glorious People
• 09:35: Sasha on the impact of asking about one’s own birth
• 11:46: The political significance of mothers’ stories
• 14:58: The importance of collecting stories from the older generation
• 15:42–18:50: Sasha on Jewish identity and solidarity in Germany
• 18:56: Announcement of new work on friendship and identity
• 19:54: Sasha’s process for choosing between playwriting and novels

Tone & Takeaways

The conversation is intimate, warm, and reflective, marked by mutual admiration and a shared interest in the power of storytelling. The episode is as much a celebration of everyday heroism as it is a call to preserve overlooked narratives—reminding listeners that by honoring the experiences of mothers and friends, we honor history itself.

Final Thoughts:
Sasha Salzmann’s Glorious People and the stories behind its creation urge readers and listeners alike to ask new questions of their families, recognize the hidden protagonists among us, and remember that “friendship is…a net that will hold you.” (18:40, Salzmann).