Where Did Everybody Go?

In the bestselling tradition of Mary Roach and A.J. Jacobs comes a fresh and powerful deep dive on loneliness, illuminating the complexity of this misunderstood social phenomenon and why people need people.

According to a report by the US Surgeon General in 2023, one out of every two American adults are lonely. Author and podcaster Don Martin was one of them: in 2020, as the COVID pandemic raged and Don’s once-vibrant social life was reduced to Zoom calls and Animal Crossing, he realized that lockdown did not create these feelings—they just amplified them until they could not be ignored. He wondered: how did we get here? What exactly is loneliness, anyway? How is it measured, and how is it useful to us as a species?

Blending thorough research with humor and personal insight from his own experience, Don takes listeners on a loneliness deep dive, all the way from the conception of the term itself in the 1800s through the death of the American mall and rise of social media, which is too often blamed as the root cause of a centuries-old problem. Along the way, he talks to everyone from prominent researchers in the space to historians, city planners, and other writers and creatives working through this ever-evolving topic from unique angles. You’ll learn about how loneliness affects different age groups and communities, the history and future of third places, the ways loneliness can deteriorate your physical health, and how everything from capitalism to the placement of garages in modern home construction ultimately impact our social bonds. Don leaves listeners with an action plan, sharing insights on how we can build a more connected future for ourselves and our neighbors.