Season 5, Episode 17: Colin Woodard

American Rambler with Colin Woodward

Colin often gets confused with Colin. And by that, we mean the author of Marching Masters is often thought of as an author of books about Maine and pirates. To clear things up, Colin Woodard is the Maine author and historian behind Republic of Pirates, The Lobster Coast, American Nations, and the recent book, Union: The Struggle to Forge the Story of United States Nationhood (2020).

A writer his whole life, Colin came into journalism "accidentally." He studied history as an undergraduate at Tufts and began as a correspondent in post-communist Europe, spending long stretches in Hungary. In the 90s, he also got a masters degree at the University of Chicago in International Relations.

A New York Times bestselling author, Colin is the state and national affairs writer at the Portland Press Herald, where he received a 2012 George Polk Award and was a finalist for the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for explanatory reporting. His writing has taken him from Antarctic to Greenland to Micronesia. And despite the trouble state of newspapers today, he has managed to stay in the game. So, get your Colins straight in this fascinating talk, covering everything from Maine to Malkovich!