What Did They Read?

Player Piano

Kurt Vonnegut

Mentions2 mentions
First heard15 September 2026
BuyAmazon*

Episodes about this book

2 episodes

How Do You Run a Company When You Can’t See Six Months Ahead? - with Axios CEO Jim VandeHei

Beyond The Prompt - How to use AI in your company, 16 September 2026. The book comes up at 46 min 26 sec in.

After Jim VandeHei argues that men without work tend toward destructive behaviour rather than self-improvement, a host asks Jim if he has read Player Piano by Vonnegut; Jim says he has not. The host calls it a great Vonnegut book and summarises its premise: a future where machines do all the work, 90 percent of the population has a higher standard of living than ever before, yet is completely miserable — offered as a parallel to contemporary AI-driven automation debates.

Listen to this episode ↗︎

Fall Favorites EP 476

Best of Both Worlds Podcast, 15 September 2026. The book comes up at 14 min 17 sec in.

Sarah Hart-Unger recommends Kurt Vonnegut's 1952 novel, describing it as imagining a future where machines took over and ran other machines, and exploring the impact on humanity. She notes how surprisingly relevant it feels to read today given current AI themes, and says she found it more enjoyable than expected.

Listen to this episode ↗︎

Also on Best of Both Worlds Podcast

Every book from the show

*Affiliate link. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

All summaries are AI generated based on the original transcript.