Nancy's Bookshelf: Two worlds one with pets and one with a narcotics detective

By Nancy Wiegman,

Published May 6, 2026 at 10:05 AM PDT

Scott Simon, host of NPR’s Saturday Weekend Edition, has a new book that reflects on his life through his relationships with various pets, from cats and dogs to a grasshopper and a fish.

Also, former Green Beret Jim Hasse is the author of a collection of short stories, some of which are based on his experiences as an undercover narcotics detective and a federal postal inspector.

Episode #812

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Nancy Wiegman

Nancy Wiegman has a master's degree in French linguistics from Indiana University and taught yoga and foreign languages at CSU Fresno and the College of Charleston before moving to Chico in 1990.

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Matt Fidler

Matt Fidler is a producer and sound designer with over 15 years’ experience producing nationally distributed public radio programs. He has worked for shows such as Freakonomics Radio, Selected Shorts, Studio 360, The New Yorker Radio Hour and The Takeaway. In 2017, Matt launched the language podcast Very Bad Words, hitting the #28 spot in the iTunes podcast charts.

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