Myth, post-truth and empathetic villains – from an ancient fantasy world to Kellyanne Conway: Live at the San Diego Book Festival

In this episode, recorded live at the KPBS San Diego Book Festival, authors Emily Greenberg ("Alternative Facts") and Moses Ose Utomi ("Forever Desert" trilogy) delve into storytelling across genres. Greenberg's politically charged, experimental fiction and Utomi's fantasy, rooted in West African mythology, may appear vastly different, but both investigate how societies — real and imagined — navigate truth, lies and the narratives that guide culture.

Each book in Utomi's trilogy is separated by 500 years, showing how events in his world become distorted and mythologized over time. Greenberg's short stories feature characters drawn from our real world today, bringing readers inside the mind of Kellyanne Conway and exploring formative moments in the childhood of George W. Bush.

The authors' conversation reveals where their unique voices intersect, highlighting how imagination shapes understanding of identity, history and the forces that influence perception.

Guests:

• Moses Ose Utomi
• Emily Greenberg

Sources:

• Storytelling and Cultural Traditions (National Geographic Society, 2025)
• Familiar Aliens: Science Fiction as Social Commentary (Elaine J. O’Quinn and Heather Atwell, The Alan Review, 2010)
• 7 Speculative Fiction Works That Offer Powerful Social Commentary (Erin Crosby Eckstine, Electric Literature, 2025)
• Why Genre Fiction Is So Effective in Tackling Social Issues (Cindy Fazzi, Publishers Weekly, 2023)
• The late 19th and early 20th centuries in African American literature (Willliam L. Andrews, Britannica)
• Report: Conway punched a man three times at inaugural ball (Jennifer Calfas, The Hill, 2017)
• Man says Hawaii missile-alert panic caused near-fatal heart attack (CBS News, 2018)
• Welcome to Post-Truth America (Tony Rehagen, Boston College Magazine, 2020)
• Truthiness (Ben Zimmer, The New York Times, 2010)
• Deepfakes, Elections, and Shrinking the Liar’s Dividend (Josh A. Goldstein and Andrew Lohn, Brennan Center for Justice, 2024)
• Emily Greenberg's 'Alternative Facts': A post-truth blend of fiction, politics and pop culture (Julia Dixon Evans, KPBS, 2025)