Darwin’s Finches and “Call Me By Your Name” author André Aciman

Being Jewish with Jonah Platt

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Jonah Platt sits down with celebrated author André Aciman, the literary voice behind the beloved novel Call Me By Your Name, in this intimate and illuminating conversation. Known for his lyrical prose and deep explorations of longing, identity, and exile, Aciman opens up about his Sephardic Jewish heritage, his family's displacement from Egypt, Turkey, Syria, Spain, and the Dalmatian Coast, and how a lifelong sense of otherness has shaped his storytelling.

Together, they dive into the emotional layers of young love, memory, and spiritual yearning that define Aciman’s most iconic works. He also shares behind-the-scenes insights into his latest book, Room on the Sea, and teases what’s next in his creative journey.

Whether you're a longtime fan or new to his world, this episode of Being Jewish with Jonah Platt offers a rare glimpse into the mind of one of our most thoughtful contemporary writers.

Host & Production Team

Host: Jonah Platt; Produced by Rainbow Creative (Executive Producer: Matthew Jones; Story Producer: Sean Leviashvili; Editors: Patrick Edwards & Nathan Wheatley); Consulting Producer: Bethany Mandel; Research Associate: Samantha Greenwald; Executive Assistant: Josie Rothschild; Creative Associate: Rachel Stern; Social Media Manager: Yuval Yosha; Graphic Designer Noah Bell

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MENTIONED IN EPISODE

• Darwin’s Finches & What It Means About Evolution
• Evolutionary Theory & Natural Selection Explained
• Charles Darwin’s Exploration on the HMS Beagle
• Jews of Discretion by Andre Aciman
• Andre Aciman’s CUNY Profile
• Call Me By Your Name by Andre Aciman
• Call Me By Your Name Book Review by The New York Times
• Find Me by Andre Aciman
• Preorder Room on The Sea by Andre Aciman
• Listen to Room on The Sea on Audiobook
• Listen to The Gentleman From Peru by Andre Aciman
• Listen to Mariana by Andre Aciman
• Roman Year: A Memoir by Andre Aciman
• Out of Egypt by Andre Aciman
• False Papers by Andre Aciman
• Harvard Square by Andre Aciman
• Eight White Nights by Andre Aciman
• Watch Call Me By Your Name Film
• What is Ladino? Understanding the Spanish-Judeo Language
• Who Are Sephardic Jews?
• Jewish Population in Egypt
• The Fascinating History of Jews in Egypt
• Who Was Gamal Abdel Nasser (Former President of Egypt)?
• Who Are The Coptic Christians of Egypt?
• History of Jewish Expulsion from the Middle East & North Africa
• Who was poet John Keats?
• The Non-Catholic Cemetery in Rome
• New Yorker Article on the Writing of Marcel Proust