Boston Book Festival

Joseph Campbell said, “Follow your bliss and don't be afraid, and the universe will open doors where there were only walls.” This session features three individuals who apparently followed that dictum and turned a passionate interest into their life’s work. Mattapan native Rich Benoit’s love of cars, especially electric vehicles, led to his popular YouTube channel, Rich Rebuilds. He tells how his interest in cars and rebuilding stuff led to a burgeoning career in Going Fast and Fixing Things. Trish O’Kane, in Birding to Change the World, chronicles how her obsession with birdwatching led her to a new identity as a birder, environmentalist and social justice warrior. “Birds,” she writes, “forged a new neural pathway in my brain, a joyful pathway.” In My Roman History, Alizah Holstein describes how her love affair with Rome, which began in high school, morphed into a career. Her memoir is a meditation on the mysteries of affinity, desire, and self-realization. This session will be moderated by Robin Young, host of WBUR’s Here & Now. Come be inspired to follow your own bliss. Sponsored by WBUR.