Podcasts about Brown Girl Dreaming

In 'Meanwhile', Jacqueline Woodson and Catherine Gund weave together the words of literary legends to explore the intersection of art, grief, and social justice.Description: James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, Muhammad Ali and Nina Simone are some of the artists featured in the moving new film “Meanwhile”, from National Book Award-winner Jacqueline Woodson and Emmy-nominated producer & director Catherine Gund. Their meditations on grief, art, breath and more are beautifully woven together as the film poses the question, how do you keep breathing amidst the chaos? Catalyzed by the Covid-19 pandemic and the police killing of George Floyd, Gund and Woodson tap into our shared existence. The artists featured in the docu-poem, with a haunting soundtrack by Meshell Ndegeocello, work through questions of race, political violence, resistance and identity — so much of what shapes our lives and relationships. “This is not a love letter to this country but to us inside this country,” says Woodson in the film. “We see us. We love us. We make eye contact and nod to us”. In this conversation with Laura Flanders, the trio of longtime friends discuss the film from Aubin Pictures, the losses they experienced in the 80s, and how the arts and poetry can compel us to enact change. Can we reclaim the “meanwhile”? All that, plus a commentary from Laura on hers.Guests:•  Catherine Gund: Producer & Director, Meanwhile; Filmmaker & Founder, Aubin Pictures•  Jacqueline Woodson: Writer & Performer, Meanwhile; Author, Brown Girl Dreaming; Founder, Baldwin for the Arts;  The Elders Project, ColumbiaWatch the special report released on YouTube May 16th 5pm ET; PBS World Channel May 18th, and on over 300 public stations across the country (check your listings, or search here via zipcode). Listen: Episode airing on community radio (check here to see if your station airs the show) & available as a podcast May 21st.Full Conversation Release May 16th, 2025: While our weekly shows are edited to time for broadcast on Public TV and community radio, we offer to our members and podcast subscribers the full uncut conversation. ARE YOU AUDACIOUS? SUPPORT OUR RESISTANCE REPORTING FUND! Help us continue fighting against the rise of authoritarianism in these times. Please support our Resistance Reporting Fund. Our goal is to raise $100K. We're at $35K! Become a sustaining member starting at $5 a month! Or make a one time donation at LauraFlanders.org/Donate RESOURCES:Watch the broadcast episode cut for time at our YouTube channel and airing on PBS stations across the country  Related Laura Flanders Show Episodes:•  Ask Angola Prison: What Difference Can a Play Make?  Watch / Listen:  Episode and Full Conversation•  Survival Guide for Humans Learned from Marine Mammals with Alexis Pauline Gumbs: Watch / Listen:  Episode and Full Conversation  •  V (formerly Eve Ensler): Reckoning with Our Past, Transforming the Future: Watch / Listen Related Articles and Resources:•  Jacqueline Woodson:  Kennedy Center Education Artist-in-Residence (2022-2024)•  Catherine Gund's Meanwhile:  A gorgeous, quietly energetic, and moving meditation on Black resilience and world-making in the face of interminable violence. by Brittany Turner, March 2025, The Brooklyn Rail•  Ivy Young, D.C. journalist, poet, and activist dies at 75: A life of service dedicated to community building. By Staff reports, June 6, 2023, Washington Blade•  Gai Gherardi, legendary co-founder of L.A. Eyeworks, Garrett Leight *Recommended book:“Brown Girl Dreaming” by Jacqueline Woodson. Get the Book*(*Bookshop is an online bookstore with a mission to financially support local, independent bookstores. The LF Show is an affiliate of bookshop.org and will receive a small commission if you click through and make a purchase.) Full Episode Notes are located HERE. Laura Flanders and Friends Crew: Laura Flanders, along with Sabrina Artel, Jeremiah Cothren, Veronica Delgado, Janet Hernandez, Jeannie Hopper, Gina Kim, Sarah Miller, Nat Needham, David Neuman, and Rory O'Conner. FOLLOW Laura Flanders and FriendsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/lauraflandersandfriends/Blueky: https://bsky.app/profile/lfandfriends.bsky.socialFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/LauraFlandersAndFriends/Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lauraflandersandfriendsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFLRxVeYcB1H7DbuYZQG-lgLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lauraflandersandfriendsPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/lauraflandersandfriendsACCESSIBILITY - The broadcast edition of this episode is available with closed captioned by clicking here for our YouTube Channel

In 'Meanwhile', Jacqueline Woodson and Catherine Gund weave together the words of literary legends to explore the intersection of art, grief, and social justice.Description:  James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, Muhammad Ali and Nina Simone are some of the artists featured in the moving new film “Meanwhile”, from National Book Award-winner Jacqueline Woodson and Emmy-nominated producer & director Catherine Gund. Their meditations on grief, art, breath and more are beautifully woven together as the film poses the question, how do you keep breathing amidst the chaos? Catalyzed by the Covid-19 pandemic and the police killing of George Floyd, Gund and Woodson tap into our shared existence. The artists featured in the docu-poem, with a haunting soundtrack by Meshell Ndegeocello, work through questions of race, political violence, resistance and identity — so much of what shapes our lives and relationships. “This is not a love letter to this country but to us inside this country,” says Woodson in the film. “We see us. We love us. We make eye contact and nod to us”. In this conversation with Laura Flanders, the trio of longtime friends discuss the film from Aubin Pictures, the losses they experienced in the 80s, and how the arts and poetry can compel us to enact change. Can we reclaim the “meanwhile”? All that, plus a commentary from Laura on hers.“. . . Having lost people so early and in such quick succession and under such an awful oppressive situation [of AIDS in the 80s], . . . each one of those hit so hard. We wrote and we made movies, and we had these elaborate memorials, and we did things to process and grieve. I am really holding on to that approach to death and dying as we get older, because I don't wanna ever not care.” - Catherine GundGuests:•  Catherine Gund: Producer & Director, Meanwhile; Filmmaker & Founder, Aubin Pictures•  Jacqueline Woodson: Writer & Performer, Meanwhile; Author, Brown Girl Dreaming; Founder, Baldwin for the Arts;  The Elders Project, Columbia Full Conversation Release: While our weekly shows are edited to time for broadcast on Public TV and community radio, we offer to our members and podcast subscribers the full uncut conversation. These audio exclusives are made possible thanks to our member supporters.Watch the special report released on YouTube May 16th 5pm ET; PBS World Channel May 18th, and on over 300 public stations across the country (check your listings, or search here via zipcode). Listen: Episode airing on community radio (check here to see if your station airs the show) & available as a podcast May 21st. ARE YOU AUDACIOUS? SUPPORT OUR RESISTANCE REPORTING FUND! Help us continue fighting against the rise of authoritarianism in these times. Please support our Resistance Reporting Fund. Our goal is to raise $100K. We're at $35K! Become a sustaining member starting at $5 a month! Or make a one time donation at LauraFlanders.org/Donate RESOURCES:Watch the broadcast episode cut for time at our YouTube channel and airing on PBS stations across the country Full Episode Notes are located HERE. Related Laura Flanders Show Episodes:•  Ask Angola Prison: What Difference Can a Play Make?  Watch / Listen:  Episode and Full Conversation•  Survival Guide for Humans Learned from Marine Mammals with Alexis Pauline Gumbs: Watch / Listen:  Episode and Full Conversation  •  V (formerly Eve Ensler): Reckoning with Our Past, Transforming the Future: Watch / Listen Related Articles and Resources:•  Jacqueline Woodson:  Kennedy Center Education Artist-in-Residence (2022-2024)•  Catherine Gund's Meanwhile:  A gorgeous, quietly energetic, and moving meditation on Black resilience and world-making in the face of interminable violence. by Brittany Turner, March 2025, The Brooklyn Rail•  Ivy Young, D.C. journalist, poet, and activist dies at 75: A life of service dedicated to community building. By Staff reports, June 6, 2023, Washington Blade•  Gai Gherardi, legendary co-founder of L.A. Eyeworks, Garrett Leight   Laura Flanders and Friends Crew: Laura Flanders, along with Sabrina Artel, Jeremiah Cothren, Veronica Delgado, Janet Hernandez, Jeannie Hopper, Gina Kim, Sarah Miller, Nat Needham, David Neuman, and Rory O'Conner. FOLLOW Laura Flanders and FriendsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/lauraflandersandfriends/Blueky: https://bsky.app/profile/lfandfriends.bsky.socialFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/LauraFlandersAndFriends/Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@lauraflandersandfriendsYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCFLRxVeYcB1H7DbuYZQG-lgLinkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/lauraflandersandfriendsPatreon: https://www.patreon.com/lauraflandersandfriendsACCESSIBILITY - The broadcast edition of this episode is available with closed captioned by clicking here for our YouTube Channel

Send us a textEver wondered why it's crucial to champion Black authors in today's literary world? Join me, Jebeh Edmunds, as I unpack the pressing need for diverse voices and introduce you to some of my absolute favorites. This episode is a treasure trove of book recommendations that tackle racial and social justice head-on, featuring the compelling narratives of Angie Thomas and Nick Stone, whose works are essential for any high school curriculum focused on social equity. Trust me, these books are more than just stories—they're powerful tools for understanding the multifaceted human experience and advocating for a more inclusive literary landscape.But that's not all; I'm diving into the transformative works of Ibram X. Kendi, whose writings provide actionable steps for dismantling racism in everyday life. From "How to Be an Antiracist" to "400 Souls," and even "Stamped: Anti-Racism and You" for young readers, Kendi's books are both research-driven and deeply passionate. Plus, I share a personal classroom favorite, Jacqueline Woodson's "Brown Girl Dreaming," a poetic exploration of Black childhood. Whether you're looking to enrich your own bookshelf or encourage community learning, this episode is your guide to amplifying the diverse voices that are shaping our literary world. COME SAY Hey!! Instagram: @cultrallyjebeh_ Facebook: @JebehCulturalConsulting Pinterest: @Jebeh Cultural Consulting LinkedIn: @Jebeh Cultural Consulting Leave a Review on our Podcast! We value your feedback!Buy My eBook: Empowering Your BIPOC Students Enroll In My Digital Course: How To Be A Culturally Competent LeaderBuy My K-12 Lesson PlansSign Up For Our Newsletter

Ruth Dickey, Executive Director of the National Book Foundation, joins us to talk about her connection to the organization, the process of judging the National Book Awards, who she is as a reader and more with Miwa Messer, host of Poured Over. We end this episode with TBR Top Off book recommendations from Marc, Jamie, and Donald. This episode of Poured Over was hosted by Miwa Messer and mixed by Harry Liang.                      New episodes land Tuesdays and Thursdays (with occasional Saturdays) here and on your favorite podcast app  Featured Books (Episode):  March: Book Three by John Lewis  Sing, Unburied, Sing by Jesmyn Ward  Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward  Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson  My Friends by Hisham Matar  Interior Chinatown by Charles Yu  Chain Gang All-Stars by Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah  The Rabbit Hutch by Tess Gunty   Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange  Featured Books (TBR Top Off):  The Great Fire by Shirley Hazzard  Behind the Beautiful Forever by Katherine Boo  The Shipping News by Annie Proulx 

This episode of the Velshi Banned Book Club will confront the barrier to entry that surrounds poetry and tear it down by closely examining a masterclass in poetic storytelling:  “Brown Girl Dreaming” by Jacqueline Woodson. "Brown Girl Dreaming" follows Woodson's childhood split between segregated Greenville, South Carolina, and New York City. “Brown Girl Dreaming” is a beautiful look at childhood, identity, and racism in America. The Poetry Foundation's Young People's Poet Laureate from 2015 to 2017, Woodson proves that poems tell more in a few turns of phrase than many novels tell us in an entire chapter.

In a special episode recorded before a live audience at the 2024 Ohioana Book Festival, Jacqueline Woodson and Hanif Abdurraqib discuss their latest books, their artistic influences, how they define “making it” as a writer, what it was like to win the MacArthur Fellowship, how they navigate their public roles as authors, how libraries impacted their lives, and more.   Hanif Abdurraqib is a poet, essayist, and cultural critic from Columbus, Ohio. He is the author of the poetry collections The Crown Ain't Worth Much and A Fortune for Your Disaster. His nonfiction titles include Go Ahead in The Rain: Notes to a Tribe Called Quest, They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us, and A Little Devil in America: In Praise of Black Performance, which was a finalist for the National Book Award and won the 2022 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence. His latest book is There's Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension.   Jacqueline Woodson is the author of more than thirty books for young people and adults, including Another Brooklyn, Red at The Bone, and The Day You Begin. She received a 2023 Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship and a 2023 E. B. White Award, among many other accolades, and was the 2018–2019 National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. Her memoir Brown Girl Dreaming won the National Book Award, the Coretta Scott King Award, a Newbery Honor, and the NAACP Image Award. In 2018, she founded Baldwin For The Arts, a residency serving writers, composers, interdisciplinary, and visual artists of the Global Majority. Her most recent book, Remember Us, is a middle grade novel set in Bushwick.   The panel was sponsored by Ohio Humanities and hosted at the Ohioana Book Festival at the Columbus Metropolitan Library on April 20, 2024. Festival photos: Mary Rathke   Page Count is produced by Ohio Center for the Book at Cleveland Public Library. For full show notes and a transcript of this episode, visit the episode page. To get in touch, email ohiocenterforthebook@cpl.org (put “podcast” in the subject line) or follow us on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook.

Jacqueline Woodson, in conversation with Richard Wolinsky, while on tour for her novel Another Brooklyn, recorded September 20, 2016. The interview was posted as a podcast on October 30, 2016. Jacqueline Woodson is known for her young adult novels, and won the National Book Award for Young Peoples Literature in 2014 for Brown Girl Dreaming. She was in the KPFA studios to discuss Another Brooklyn, her first adult novel in over two decades. Since that time, Jacqueline Woodson has come out with two middle school novels, Harbor Me and Before the Ever After, the adult novel Red at the Bone, and two illustrated children's books. Another Brooklyn tells the story of four African American girls growing up in Brooklyn during the 1970s, focusing on August, a transplant from the South with a single father, growing up during a turbulent era and struggling to find herself. The post Jacqueline Woodson, “Another Brooklyn,” 2016 appeared first on KPFA.

Bookwaves/Artwaves is produced and hosted by Richard Wolinsky. Links to assorted local theater & book venues   Bookwaves Martin Amis (1949-2023), in conversation with Richard Wolinsky and Richard A. Lupoff in the KPFA studios, January 27, 1998 while on tour for his novel, “Night Train,” published in 1997. This is the second of five interviews with Martin Amis for KPFA's Probabilities/Bookwaves program, which were recorded over a period of 23 years. Along with Night Train, he discusses his novel which was published in 1995, The Information. The three books he discusses at the end of the interview were a short story collection, Heavy Water and Other Stories, which came out later in 1998, a much celebrated memoir and Booker prize winner, Experience,  in published in 2000, and another long novel, Yellow Dog, a satire focusing on British ideas of masculinity and patrimony, published in 2003. Known for such novels as London Fields, Money, Time's Arrow, The Information and The Zone of Interest, the Booker Prize winning memoir, Experience, and his essay collection The War Against Cliché, Martin Amis was he son of novelist and essayist Kingsley Amis, He was also close friends with Christopher Hitchens, Saul Bellow and Philip Larkin, all of whom he wrote about in his final memoir disguised as a novel, Inside Story, in 2020. This interview was digitized, remastered and edited in August 2023 by Richard Wolinsky, has not been heard since its original broadcast. Complete 33-minute Interview.   Bookwaves Jacqueline Woodson, in conversation with Richard Wolinsky, while on tour for her novel Another Brooklyn, recorded September 20, 2016. Jacqueline Woodson is known for her young adult novels, and won the National Book Award for Young Peoples Literature in 2014 for Brown Girl Dreaming. She was in the KPFA studios to discuss Another Brooklyn, her first adult novel in over two decades. Since that time, Jacqueline Woodson has come out with two middle school novels, Harbor Me and Before the Ever After, the adult novel Red at the Bone, and two illustrated children's books. Another Brooklyn tells the story of four African American girls growing up in Brooklyn during the 1970s, focusing on August, a transplant from the South with a single father, growing up during a turbulent era and struggling to find herself. Extended 37-minute Radio Wolinsky podcast.   Book Interview/Events and Theatre Links Note: Shows may unexpectedly close early or be postponed due to actors' positive COVID tests. Check the venue for closures, ticket refunds, and vaccination and mask requirements before arrival. Dates are in-theater performances unless otherwise noted. Some venues operate Tuesday – Sunday; others Wednesday or Thursday through Sunday. All times Pacific Time. Closing dates are sometimes extended. Book Stores Bay Area Book Festival  Event calendar and links to previous events. Book Passage.  Monthly Calendar. Mix of on-line and in-store events. Books Inc.  Mix of on-line and in-store events. The Booksmith.  Monthly Event Calendar. Center for Literary Arts, San Jose. See website for Book Club guests in upcoming months. Green Apple Books. Events calendar. Kepler's Books  On-line Refresh the Page program listings. Live Theater Companies Actor's Reading Collective (ARC).  See website for past streams. Alter Theatre. See website for upcoming productions. American Conservatory Theatre  The Hippest Trip: The Soul Train Musical,  August 25 – October 1, 2023. Aurora Theatre  Born With Teeth by Liz Duffy Adams, September 1 – October 1. Awesome Theatre Company. Check website for upcoming live shows and streaming. BAMBDFest. Festival in Celebration of Black Arts and Culture, through August  31, BAM House (formerly Oakland PianoFight). Berkeley Rep POTUS: Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass Are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive, by Selina Fillinger, September 16 – October 22, Roda Theatre. Berkeley Shakespeare Company. King Lear. September 1 – 24. See website for days and locations. Boxcar Theatre. See website for calendar listings. Brava Theatre Center: See website for events. BroadwaySF: Hadestown, September 12-17, 2023, Orpheum. Broadway San Jose: Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, August 29 – September 3. California Shakespeare Theatre (Cal Shakes). Shakespeare in the Park: Cymbeline, September 16, 17, 23, 24, 4 pm. Free, tickets required. See website for other events. Center Rep: Crowns by Regina Taylor, September 9 – October 6, 2023. Central Works The Engine of Our Disruption by Patricia Milton, October 14 – November 12. Cinnabar Theatre. The Sound of Music, September 8 -24. Club Fugazi. See website for Club Date events in August. Dear San Francisco returns September 8, 2023. Contra Costa Civic Theatre Sondheim on Sondheim, August 25 – September 10; Tintypes, October 20 – November 12. Curran Theater: See website for upcoming live events and streaming choices. Custom Made Theatre. Tiny Fires by Aimee Suzara, postponed to a later date in 2023. Cutting Ball Theatre. See website for upcoming season. 42nd Street Moon. Mame, November 2 -19, 2023. Golden Thread  ReOrient Festival of Short Plays, October 13 – November 4, 2023. Lorraine Hansberry Theatre. See website for upcoming productions and events. Magic Theatre. Josephine's Feast by Star Finch, extended to September 27, Campo Santo at the Magic. See website for other events at the Magic. Marin Theatre Company Odyssey written and directed by Lisa Peterson, August 31 – September 24. Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts Upcoming Events Page. New Conservatory Theatre Center (NCTC)  Transnational Cabaret runs through August 20.  Before The Sword by Andrew Alty, September 15 – October 15. Oakland Theater Project.  Gary, a sequel to Titus Andronicus by Taylor Mac, September 1 – 24. Pear Theater. Noises Off by Michael Frayn,  September 8 – October 1. PianoFight. Permanently closed as of March 18, 2023. Presidio Theatre. See website for upcoming productions Ray of Light:  Cruel Intentions: The '90s Musical, September 8 – October 1, Victoria Theatre. The Rocky Horror Show, Oasis Nightclub, October 6  – 31. See website for Spotlight Cabaret Series at Feinstein's at the Nikko. San Francisco Playhouse.  A Chorus Line runs through September 16, 2023. SFBATCO See website for upcoming streaming and in- theater shows. San Jose Stage Company: Sex with Strangers by Laura Eason, October 12 – 30. Shotgun Players. Wolf Play by Hansol Jung, Performances start September 2, 2023. South Bay Musical Theatre: Rent, September 30 – October 21. The Breath Project. Streaming archive. The Marsh: Calendar listings for Berkeley, San Francisco and Marshstream. Theatre Rhino  Overlooked Latinas, September 24 – October 1. Streaming: Essential Services Project, conceived and performed by John Fisher, all weekly performances now available on demand, New performances most Wednesdays. TheatreWorks Silicon Valley. Mrs. Christie by Heidi Armbruster, October 4 -29, Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts. Word for Word.  See schedule for live and streamed performances and readings. Misc. Listings: BAM/PFA: On View calendar for BAM/PFA. Berkeley Symphony: See website for listings. Chamber Music San Francisco: Calendar, 2023 Season. Dance Mission Theatre. On stage events calendar. Oregon Shakespeare Festival: Calendar listings and upcoming shows. San Francisco Opera. Calendar listings. San Francisco Symphony. Calendar listings. Filmed Live Musicals: Searchable database of all filmed live musicals, podcast, blog. If you'd like to add your bookstore or theater venue to this list, please write Richard@kpfa.org                                     The post Bookwaves/Artwaves – August 31, 2023: Martin Amis – Jacqueline Woodson appeared first on KPFA.

Fear! It's such a powerful, destructive force.We talk a lot about how so much of what we see out there – and what we face in our own hearts – is all about fear. And are we afraid of a PRETEND God??Beloved, we don't need to be afraid – but what do we do?So, we talk today about how we might quiet those fears, and we share two lovely pieces from the amazing writer and poet Jacqueline Woodson, from her memoir in poetry, Brown Girl Dreaming.Support the show

On Today's Show "For me, in the fiction, it is so much about keeping that continuum going, that someone's going to come along after me and tell a story that's connected to the story that I've told. I'm telling the story that's connected to the writers and the relatives who came before me.” - Jacqueline Woodson Jacqueline Woodson was born a watcher. An observer. Even as a young girl, she recognized that our stories are part of an enduring legacy that stretches far before and beyond our own lifetimes. Woodson is an icon in American literature, and author of works like “Brown Girl Dreaming,” “Red at the Bone,” and “Each Kindness.” Her voice has left an indelible mark on the literary landscape.In this episode, she shares about her relationship with her siblings growing up, her sense of melancholy as a child, and how some of the earliest books she read gave her a deep sense of fairness and social justice. She reveals the book that most impacted her own writing and the one thing that gives her hope, even in dark times. Jacqueline has witnessed the evolution of literary spaces over decades, along the way establishing herself as a legendary voice in the industry. She has become a guiding force, pushing publishers, readers, and writers toward a more inclusive future, a future that features creators of the global majority. She reflects on the industry's evolution throughout her career through the lens of a Black queer writer, and she talks about setting the next generation up to carry on our stories and the stories that came before us. Now, in addition to her own work, Woodson dedicates her time to providing resources and support to the next generation of voices through the Baldwin For the Arts. ***Connect with Jordan and The Reading Culture @thereadingculturepod and subscribe to our newsletter at thereadingculturepod.com/newsletter. Connect with Jacqueline on social @jacqueline_woodson.***For her reading challenge, Reading Black, Jacqueline challenges us to use her reading list as a way to look forward and back. The books she has chosen are all by black authors, telling their brilliant and varied stories of the American diaspora - stories this country is attempting to erase through book bans and challenges. She asks us to read these books and consider what other books they remind us of? For those we reread, what is new in the re-reading? What was it we missed the first time around? What thoughts and ideas have changed for us in the re-reading? You can find her list, designed for high school to adult readers, and all of our author challenges at thereadingculturepod.com.Returning as this episode's Beanstack featured librarian is Cicely Lewis, School Library Journal's 2020 school librarian of the year, from Gwinnett County Public Schools. Cicely, aka the Read Woke librarian, talks about why read-alouds are so important even for high school students, and why she refuses to stop using the word “woke” to inspire young people to read important narratives.ContentsChapter 1 - Starting in the Middle (2:30)Chapter 2 - The Continuum (5:44)Chapter 3 - Ballad of the Sad Café (10:44)Chapter 4 - Jacqueline's Beginning (15:44)Chapter 5 - Empowering the Future (20:31)Chapter 6 - A Different Story (28:00)Chapter 7 - 500 Questions (35:37)Chapter 8 - Reading Black (36:33)Chapter 9 - Beanstack Featured Librarian (37:41)Links The Reading Culture Jacqueline Woodson Carson McCullers reads from The Ballad of the Sad Cafe (1958) Baldwin for the Arts The Reading Culture on Instagram (for giveaways and extra content) Beanstack resources to build your community's reading culture The Children's Book Podcast Cicely Lewis (Read Woke Librarian) Brown Girl Dreaming Red at the Bone Ballad of the Sad Café Greenville, SC Juno Diaz Jamaica Kincaid MacDowell Bastard Out of Carolina Toshi Reagon Host: Jordan Lloyd BookeyProducer: Jackie Lamport and Lower Street MediaScript Editors: Josia Lamberto-Egan, Jackie Lamport, Jordan Lloyd Bookey

Harper wants to level up his life and career; Jordan gets creative at work; Lance seeks purpose --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/tsfentertainment/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/tsfentertainment/support

To celebrate Halloween, this week's episode is magical! Acclaimed authors Dhonielle Clayton and Jacqueline Woodson discuss Clayton's recent middle grade debut The Marvellers, a fantasy adventure set in a global magic school in the sky. This conversation originally took place May 15th, 2022 at the inaugural American Writers Festival and was recorded live. AWM PODCAST NETWORK HUB Dhonielle Clayton spent most of her childhood under her grandmother's table with a stack of books. She hails from the Washington, D.C. suburbs on the Maryland side. She is the author of the Tiny Pretty Things series (recently adapted by Netflix) and The Belles series. She earned an MA in Children's Literature from Hollins University and an MFA in Writing for Children at the New School. Now, she is a librarian at Harlem Village Academies, is one of the #WeNeedDiverseBooks librarians, and co-founder of CAKE Literary. The Marvellers is her debut middle grade novel. Jacqueline Woodson is the recipient of a 2020 MacArthur Fellowship, the 2020 Hans Christian Andersen Award, the 2018 Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, and the 2018 Children's Literature Legacy Award, and she was the 2018–2019 National Ambassador for Young People's Literature. Her New York Times bestselling memoir, Brown Girl Dreaming, won the National Book Award, as well as the Coretta Scott King Award, a Newbery Honor, and the NAACP Image Award. She also wrote the adult books Red at the Bone, a New York Times bestseller, and Another Brooklyn, a 2016 National Book Award finalist. Her dozens of books for young readers include Coretta Scott King Award and NAACP Image Award winner Before the Ever After, New York Times bestsellers The Year We Learned to Fly, The Day You Begin, and Harbor Me, Newbery Honor winners Feathers, Show Way, and After Tupac and D Foster, and the picture book Each Kindness, which won the Jane Addams Children's Book Award.

This week Chris is joined by Jacqueline Woodson. Jacqueline is an American writer of books for adults, children, and adolescents. She is best known for her National Book Award-Winning memoir Brown Girl Dreaming, and her Newbery Honor-winning titles After Tupac and D Foster, Feathers, and Show Way.  Her picture books The Day You Begin and The Year We Learned to Fly were NY Times Bestsellers. After serving as the Young People's Poet Laureate from 2015 to 2017, she was named the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature by the Library of Congress for 2018–19. She was awarded the Hans Christian Andersen Medal in 2020. Later that same year, she was named a MacArthur Fellow. Her TED talk "What reading slowly taught me about writing" has been viewed close to 3 million times. Chris will speak to Jacqueline about why she chose writing as a career, her mission to diversify publishing and why she has invested so much time, resources and energy into founding and running Baldwin for the Arts. 

Jacqueline Woodson always loved to read and write.  But growing up in Brooklyn, she didn't see herself represented in her beloved books.  She has helped to change that, serving as a beacon for young, aspiring black and brown writers and more.  Books such as Brown Girl Dreaming and Another Brooklyn have earned her numerous awards, including the MacArthur Fellowship in 2020.  Her books are read around the world, but the Brooklyn neighborhood of her youth is never far away.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What book should i do next?

Jacqueline Woodson writes books to be savored. She is best known for her memoir "Brown Girl Dreaming" along with her works "After Tupac and D Foster," "Feathers" and "Show Way." Her accolades include the MacArthur "Genius Grant" and the National Book Award. In this excerpt of a conversation she had with Debbie Millman on the podcast Design Matters, Jacqueline talks about how she discovered her deep love of reading and writing and how she went from struggling with words as a child to becoming an illustrious writer as an adult. This episode is part of the TED Talks Daily summer book club, a series featuring talks and interviews to inspire your next great read.

see you next time!

Sam Stein is joined by Hugo Lowell, Congressional Reporter at The Guardian, Tim O'Brien, Senior Columnist at Bloomberg Opinion, Carol Leonnig. Investigative Reporter at The Washington Post, Dr. Uché Blackstock, Founder & CEO of Advancing Health Equity, Jonathan Kott, Founder of Majority Makers, Nancy Northup, President & CEO of Center for Reproductive Rights, Dr. Melissa March, OB/GYN - Maternal and Fetal Medicine, Ryan Reilly, Justice Reporter at NBC News Digital, and Jacqueline Woodson, Author of ‘Brown Girl Dreaming'.

In this episode of #VelshiBannedBookClub, Citizen Board Member and MSNBC host Ali Velshi speaks with MacArthur Fellow and renowned author Jacqueline Woodson about her multi-award-winning (and banned) book: Brown Girl Dreaming.

First Draft Episode #349: John Cho John Cho, actor, producer, writer, and author of debut middle grade novel, Troublemaker, with Sarah Suk. Links to Topics Mentioned In This Episode: Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder Fifth Chinese Daughter by Jade Snow Wong The Woman Warrior: Memoirs of a Girlhood Among Ghosts by Maxine Hong Kingston Sarah Suk, author of Made in Korea and the forthcoming The Space Between Here and Now

Brown Girl Dreaming is a poem-style autobiography written by Jacqueline Woodson. Today, I share two poems I wrote based on this book. Hope you enjoy!

Today I'm chatting with picture book author and owner of The Flying Pig Bookstore, Elizabeth Bluemle, about writing and the magic of solo writing retreats, the diversity database she has developed, and of course, BOOKS!The Flying Pig Bookstore  Elizabeth Bluemle, books Brown Girl Dreaming, Jacqueline WoodsonTheir eyes Were Watching God: A Novel, Zora Neale Hurston On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous: A Novel, Ocean Vuong Friday Black, Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah The House in the Cerulean Sea, TJ Klune Convenience Store Woman, Sayaka Murata, Ginny Tapley Takemori (translator) Sankofa: a novel, Chibundu Onuzo Roxanne Gay, books Support the show

First Draft Episode #341: Jon Scieszka Jon Scieszka, former National Ambassador for Children's Literature and New York Times bestselling author best known for picture books with illustrator Lane Smith, including The True Story of the Three Little Pigs, The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales, Math Curse, and more. Links to Topics Mentioned In This Episode: The Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio Jacqueline Woodson, 2020 MacArthur Genius fellow, National Book Award winner, Newberry, Caldecott, and Coretta Scott King winner, former National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, and #1 New York Times bestselling author of Brown Girl Dreaming, Red at the Bone, Another Brooklyn, Before the Ever After and many, many more. She joins us to talk about her picture books with Rafael López, The Day You Begin and The Year We Learned to Fly. Hear her First Draft interview here. Dr Seuss, author of How the Grinch Stole Christmas, Oh, the Places You'll Go!, Green Eggs and Ham and more Go, Dog, Go by P.J. Eastman Franz Kafka, author of The Metamorphosis, The Trial, The Castle, and more Jack London, author of The Call of the Wild, White Fang, and more Edgar Allen Poe, author of The Raven, The Masque of the Red Death, The Cask of Amontillado, and more Jon's Science Verse The Astronuts, Jon's series with Steven Weinberg Jonathan Baumbach, author of The Pavilion of Former Wives, Dreams of Molly and many more Thomas Pynchon, author of Gravity's Rainbow, Inherent Vice, and The Crying of Lot 49 Gabriel Garcia Marquez, author of One Hundred Years of Solitude, Chronicle of a Death Foretold, and more Carlos Fuentes, author of Aura, The Death of Artemio Cruz, and more Charles McGrath, former editor of The New York Times Book Review and former deputy editor of The New Yorker. He is currently a writer at large for The New York Times Frog and Toad Are Friends by Arnold Lobel Boy: Tales From Childhood and Going Solo are autobiographical books written by Roald Dahl Vladimir Nabokov, author of Lolita Oliver Jeffers, visual artist, climate activist, and author and/or illustrator of several New York Times bestselling picture books, including The Day the Crayons Quit, How to Catch a Star, The Fate of Fausto, and Here We Are, joins us to talk about his newest picture book, There's a Ghost In This House. Listen to his First Draft interviews here and here. Battle Bunny by Mac Barnett and Jon Scieszka Matt de la Peña, author of seven critically acclaimed young adult novels including Mexican Whiteboy and Newbery Medal–winning author of Last Stop on Market Street talks about his newest collaboration with illustrator Christian Robinson, Milo Imagines the World. Listen to his First Draft interview here. Adam Rubin, author of Dragons Love Tacos, Those Darn Squirrels, Robo-Sauce and more with Daniel Salmieri The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle (TV show) Jon's autobiography, Knucklehead: Tall Tales and Mostly True Stories of Growing Up Scieszka Gone to the Woods: Surviving a Lost Childhood, a memoir by Gary Paulsen, author of Hatchet Monty Python Saturday Night Live Jon Klassen, Caldecott Award-winning and New York Times bestselling author and illustrator of the I Want My Hat Back series, who is back with a book he wrote and illustrated: The Rock From the Sky. Listen to his First Draft episodes here and here. The Far Side cartoon by Gary Paulsen Calvin & Hobbes by Bill Watterson Guys Read Kate DiCamillo, is one of six people to win two Newbery Medals, for her novels The Tale of Despereaux and Flora & Ulysses, and author of Newbery Honor book Because of Winn-Dixie, National Book Award finalist The Tiger Rising, as well as New York Times bestselling novels The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, The Magician's Elephant, the Mercy Watson series, and more. DiCamillo was the U.S. National Ambassador for Young People's Literature for 2014 and 2015. Her most recent novel, Beverly, Right Here completes the trilogy of Raymie Nightingale and Louisiana's Way Home. Dog Man by Dave Pilkey, author of Captain Underpants Shannon Hale, author of Princess Academy, The Goose Girl, Austenland and more Adele Griffin, two-time National Book Award honoree and author of almost thirty books for Young Adult and middle grade readers, including The Unfinished Life of Addison Stone, The Becket List, and Sons of Liberty and Where I want to Be. Hear her First Draft interview here. Lisa Brown, illustrator of The Phantom Twin, The Airport Book and more Katherine Paterson, author of The Bridge to Terabithia, Jacob Have I Loved, and more Dave Shannon, author and illustrator of No, David! Loren Long, author and illustrator of Otis, Little Tree, and many more The Treehouse books (The 13-Story Treehouse all the way to The 143-Story Treehouse) by Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton The Rijksmuseum, the museum that has Rembrandts available online Jason Reynolds, New York Times bestselling author of critically acclaimed books, including National Book Award finalist Ghost, Newberry and Printz-honored Long Way Down, Coretta Scott King Honoree As Brave as You, and his latest, middle grade Look Both Ways, which was just named to the National Book Award Longlist for Young People's Literature. Listen to his First Draft interviews here and here. Walter Dean Myers, author of Monster, The Glory Field, Malcolm X: By Any Means Necessary Gene Luen Yang, former National Ambassador for Young People's Literature and author and illustrator of American Born Chinese The Rabbit hOle's Explor-A-Storium The Real Dada Mother Goose: A Treasury of Complete Nonsense by Jon Scieszka and Julia Rothman   Thanks for Listening!  

Nicole and Tori welcome Wil'Lani back to the show to talk more true crime picks, the emergence of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in professional football players, and more. The resources discussed in this episode are listed below: Tears of Rage: From Grieving Father to Crusader for Justice: The Untold Story of the Adam Walsh Case by John Walsh; Imperfect Justice: Prosecuting Casey Anthony by Jeff Ashton; Insulin Murders: True Life Cases by Vincent Marks; Home Sweet Murder by James Patterson; A Serial Killer's Daughter: My Story of Faith, Love, and Overcoming by Kerri Rawson; The Midnight Assassin: Panic, Scandal, and the Hunt for America's First Serial Killer by Skip Hollingsworth; Inside the Mind of Scott Peterson by Keith Ablow; Witness: For the Prosecution of Scott Peterson by Amber Frey; Concussion by Jeanne Marie Laskas; Fourth Down and Inches: Concussions and Football's Make-or-Break Moment by Carla Killough McClafferty; Meet 4 People Who Worry About CTE, But Never Played in the NFL article from NPR Red At the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson; Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson; Before the Ever After by Jacqueline Woodson; Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer by John Grisham; Theodore Boone: The Abduction by John Grisham; Killer Inside: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez Netflix documentary; 20/20 show from ABC; Southern Fried True Crime podcast

The books of the moment for today's episode are If You Come Softly and Behind You by Jacqueline Woodson. Just a forewarning for those of you listening, this is NOT a spoiler-free zone. We will be discussing this book in all of its glory, which of course includes revealing the ending. The author of If You Come Softly and Behind You, Jacqueline Woodson is an American writer of books for children and adolescents. She is best known for Miracle's Boys, and her Newbery Honor-winning titles Brown Girl Dreaming, After Tupac and D Foster, Feathers, and Show Way. After serving as the Young People's Poet Laureate from 2015 to 2017, she was named the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, by the Library of Congress, for 2018–19. She was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2020. If you enjoyed this episode, I encourage you to leave a review on whichever platform you are listening on, if applicable. If you have any further questions regarding topics discussed throughout the episode feel free to join our Hardcover Hoes Discord Server via the link in the show notes, or send us an email at hardcoverhoespod@gmail.com. Feel free to recommend books to cover in future episodes as well! Discord Server: https://discord.gg/zpvW4FyuPF TikTok, IG, Twitter: @HardcoverHoes Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/993967071461813/ --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app

Jacqueline Woodson, author of many books including the National Book Award-winning Brown Girl Dreaming (Nancy Paulsen Books, 2014), talks about how Dr. King's life and legacy have influenced her work, from her prize-winning grade school poem to her calling to write for children who might not see themselves in books.

Jacqueline Woodson is a 2020 MacArthur Genius fellow, National Book Award winner, Newberry, Caldecott, and Coretta Scott King winner, former National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, and #1 New York Times bestselling author of Brown Girl Dreaming, Red at the Bone, Another Brooklyn, Before the Ever After and many, many more. She joins us to talk about her picture books with Rafael López, The Day You Begin and The Year We Learned to Fly.

Play along with the Brooklyn Geo-Quiz, with guest quiz leader Jacqueline Woodson, the author of many books, in prose and poetry, for adults and children, including the National Book Award-winning Brown Girl Dreaming (Nancy Paulsen Books, 2014), Another Brooklyn (Amistad, 2016) and her latest book, Before the Ever After (Nancy Paulsen Books, 2020).

There’s a lot of passionate argument about whether “Critical Race Theory” should be taught in schools. But the meaning of CRT differs greatly depending on who you talk to. What did CRT originally mean, and what does it mean now? What are our children actually being taught? And why do some terms tend to become so thorny over time? Click play to find out.*FULL TRANSCRIPT*JOHN McWHORTER: From Booksmart Studios, this is Lexicon Valley, a podcast about language. I'm John McWhorter and we need to talk about something.WORD MEANINGS CHANGE OVER TIMEAs I often do, I'm going to start from way outside and then I'm going to zero in. As you'll see, that is a general process that I consider very central to the passage of people and things and words through time. We need to talk about something. So let's start with something like audition. We all know what an audition is. You're picturing somebody nervous on stage. Think about what that word, quote unquote, should mean. The aud is about hearing. The reason that we say audition is because the original idea was that you would listen to someone recite something. Now, it was a natural drifting that you would go from someone reciting something on a stage or in a performance to someone playing an instrument or even someone doing a dance, something that doesn't involve sound at all. It could be a mime these days who auditions, but it started out being about hearing someone say something and then it changed. Words’ meanings change. No one today would say: How dare you use the word audition for dance? What's happening to language? Nobody says that because we all know that words don't always mean what they mean, that the form is often different from the content and that's just the way it is.Lewd. Lewd used to mean that you were unlearned. It meant that you didn't know things. Now, no one who knows that says, how dare you imply that those people aren't intelligent, when what you're really talking about is issues of morality and sex or whatever lewd is about. You know, you can learn that it used to mean unlearned, but you don't wish that it still did. There isn't a sense that it's wrong that unlearned drifted into meaning that you can't keep your pants up or something like that.One more, to get a little closer to what we need to talk about. Democratic, and no, I don't mean Greece. I mean the party here in the United States. Democratic once stood for very different things than it does now. Most of us know that Democrats were the party of segregation, for example. There's actually, there's a silly book, and I'm not going to name who wrote it or what the book's title is, because many of us write silly books now and then. I have once or twice, but a silly book that was basically saying that Black people need to stop voting Democratic so much because Democrats have often been quite racist in the past. And this meant things like the fact that Woodrow Wilson, you know, who was a straight up racist, that he was a Democrat, that Franklin D. Roosevelt appointed Hugo Black to the Supreme Court and he had been an ex Ku Klux Klan member. All those things are true. But, you know, we think to ourselves, whatever racism we might find in the Democratic Party today, when we're talking about Wilson or what FDR’s priorities were, we're talking about a very long time ago. As history moves along, as conditions change, the parties change. What a Democrat is today is very different from what a Democrat was in 1920. Just like certainly being a Republican now is quite different from what it was in, say, 1865. So words’ meanings change over time. The sequence of sounds comes to refer to different aspects of this vale of tears called life than it once did, right? OK, we all know that. We've got that.WORD MEANINGS TEND TO NARROW WHEN THEY CHANGEWords’ meanings don't only change, they often get more specific. They narrow. But it's not always about value, just they get more specific. It starts out general and then it gets down to cases. My favorite example of this is reduce. Reduce is from re, as in going back to, and then duce, leading. It used to be that reduce just meant going back to the way it was. That could be a good thing or a bad thing. That could be an increase or a decrease. It used to be that you could reduce something to its former glory. Get that? That it meant take it back to its former glory. Not that glory was somehow down in the dirt, but reduce just meant to take something back. Now, it could also mean to take something down into the mud, and that is what the word ended up meaning. And so we think of reducing as going down. But that is not what somebody would have thought of 500 years ago. The word changed. It got more specific. It happened to drift into a choice.Getting a little closer to what we need to talk about today, how about diversity? We know what diversity means or don't we? Diversity, just difference, just willy-nilly. But we know that when we talk about diversity today, it tends to be much more specific than just talking about difference. You can talk about a diversity of mushrooms, but notice that you're already imagining that the word ends in ie rather than y, and it's probably in some ancient book that's falling apart. When we think about diversity, we are generally thinking about affirmative action policies, about even racial preference policies. And so, within the controversies over that, there is often someone who will say, well, you know, if we're looking for diversity, then what about Mormons and people from Idaho and somebody who has only one leg? What about that diversity? But no, we, we all know that what diversity means, in code, is Black Americans, Latinos and also Native Americans. That's what diversity policies are usually aimed at. And to be an American person is to know that that is the meaning that diversity has specified into. It’s narrowed.And you know what's diverse in the real sense, as in the original sense, Beauty and the Beast, the Disney movie musical. And you know it's diverse when it's in Dutch. Yes. I spent about 15 minutes in Holland way back in 1992. And of course, when I was there, I wanted to at least be able to fake speaking Dutch. I could have a really, really bad conversation for about three minutes of the time I was there. And the way I learned it mostly was by listening to the Dutch soundtrack of the then new musical film, Beauty and the Beast over and over. This is the bon jour. And since this is so popular, most of you probably know basically what the words are. But yes, in the Netherlands, they dub these things — things like this, where kids, you know, they don't know English yet and so you have to do it in Dutch — and I enjoyed listening to it in Dutch. So here it goes.MUSIC: Belle from Beauty and the Beast (in Dutch)Daar gaat de bakker — there goes the baker — see how Dutch and English are related?CRITICAL RACE THEORY’S ORIGINS AS LEGAL THEORYLet's get back to what we were talking about. So words’ meanings are always changing. Words’ meanings are getting more specific. Now, there's a term that we're using lately as if those two, frankly rather obvious, things weren't true. And that term is, get ready for it: critical race theory. We really need just some simple perspectives from linguistics to cut through a lot of one of the weirdest, messiest controversies I've seen in a long time, because nobody quite understands what the other person is talking about. And so critical race theory begins with obscure legal theory articles a good 35, 40 years ago. And they had a particular subject matter. They were about reconceiving our sense of how society works on the basis of power relations, which are so entrenched that we might reconsider the very philosophical foundations of the republic. That is one of the arguments in this body of work. And this body of work was, as legal scholarship, also about how we might reconceive our very notion of what justice is. So this is law school stuff. This is legal scholarship and it was titled Critical Race Theory. Now, today we're hearing that critical race theory is being used in schools and it's something quite different from what these legal papers were about because critical race theory has come to refer to different things than it happened to in, for example, 1985. This is what happens. So Democratic doesn't mean today what it meant in 1920. Diversity today doesn't mean what it meant as recently as, say, 1975. Critical race theory — what we mean by that has extended from what it originally meant into something that is different, related, but different.IS CRT BEING TAUGHT TO SCHOOLCHILDREN?So to take an extreme, and this is an extreme, there are schools where people are teaching a way of looking at things that's rooted in critical race theory, but certainly is not about exposing nine or 12 or even 15 year olds to articles written for legal scholars decades ago. But for example, there's the Dalton School in New York City and there is an anonymous letter from parents where they describe the sort of thing that has been going on at that particular school. It's something different from preaching from legal articles. So, quote:Every class this year has had an obsessive focus on race and identity, racist cop reenactments in science, decentering whiteness in art class, learning about white supremacy and sexuality in health class. In place of a joyful progressive education, students are exposed to an excessive focus on skin color and sexuality before they even understand what sex is. Children are bewildered or bored after hours of discussing these topics in the new long format classes.Now, that's not happening everywhere, but it is a useful peek at what is alarming many parents. What we have to understand is that when that is called critical race theory, we're talking about what that term has come to apply to in the wake of the original articles, but it doesn't refer anymore to the articles in question. So there's a pushback against that happening in the schools. And you should understand that my point here is only to be a linguist, not to editorialize about those things. As most of you know, I do that elsewhere. But my issue here is to say that if there's going to be a coherent debate about these things, we have to understand that the pushback against the kind of thing I just described is not against exploring the operations of power. It's not against students supposedly being introduced to a whole reconception of what justice should be. Almost nobody is teaching that to schoolchildren. The idea is the modern manifestation of CRT, as it's called, and that's less about legal theory than about, for example, separating students by race to teach them that race and power relations are deeply embedded in our fabric. It is having anti-racism be the core of pretty much all teaching in the schools. The people who came up with critical race theory weren't thinking about school pedagogy at all. This is the morphing of the term and what it applies to over time.Or there's a general theme that you might teach that the whole American experiment has essentially been a kind of a, a crime spree. Now that, although the CRT people don't put it that way, it is a reflection of what those legal scholars thought. But the fact is, the package that is being taught in many schools today, and it really is, is not critical race theory as a legal scholar would have recognized it 30 years ago. Critical race theory as we discuss it today, is more specific than what these legal scholars were talking about. It's not about legal scholarship and the entire foundations of the nation. It's a particular pedagogical teaching program and a particular set of practices. So it's more specific.CRT, LIKE RACE ITSELF, HAS SPECIFIED AND BECOME CONFUSINGYou can do this with the word race. We all know what a race is. And it used to be that if it was a record, this is way back when there were records. This is back in the 20s and 30s. If there was a record of Black popular music, it was called a race record. Well, you know, there's the white race, the Black race and all the other ones. Why is it a race record when it's Black people? Well, that was because Black people were the nonwhite race who were most discussed. That's messy, but that was normal. And all this sort of thing means is that on the left to say that opposition to critical race theory is inherently racist is oversimplifying because the opposition might be to a specific way of addressing racism in these classrooms. So if there's a parent who's alarmed that the white kids are being put on one side of the room for activities and the Black kids are being put on the other side of the room within those activities, that doesn't necessarily mean that these parents are against students learning anything about race or even racism at all.Then if you're on the right, you have to be clearer about your opposition to critical race theory, even if you're just in the center, because let's face it, many people in the center are against the sorts of things that are going on today. But if you say, well, we don't want any critical race theory taught in the schools, you have to realize that people are extremely unclear these days on just what critical race theory we're referring to. And there are great many people who are supposing that you're objecting to this legal theory being taught. And it's reasonable to suppose, if you don't want that being taught, you don't want people to learn about race and power and injustice at all. You have to make it clear — people on the right and even people in the center — that you're against specific things often going on at schools like Dalton today. That would make for a more constructive discussion, wherever the leaves fall, whatever happens, whoever turns out to hold the cards, whoever turns out to quote unquote be correct. The discussion could be more coherent if we allow that when you say CRT, you don't necessarily mean legal papers, especially if you're not a legal scholar or some other kind of graduate student. And what it means is that if somebody from the left says critical race theory isn't being taught in the schools, it's a little disingenuous because when a person objects to what they're seeing and calls it CRT, they're talking about a term whose meaning has morphed considerably over time.Now, no doubt there are some people, especially on the right, I don't know any from the center, but especially on the right, who do want kids to not learn anything about race or racial difference or racism at all in the schools. There are occasional such people, and I should make it clear — here I am going to editorialize a little bit — I think that anybody who doesn't want racism or power relations or the dangers within them talk to students at all, I think that that's, narrow would be polite, frankly I think it's just wrong. So, for example, recently there was a case where Jacqueline Woodson, she is a Black woman author, she has this beautiful children's book called Brown Girl Dreaming. And there were parents who had a problem with that being taught out of the idea that that's critical race theory. No, no. There's nothing wrong with students being given a book that describes the experiences of that Black girl. Nevertheless, the left in saying if you don't like CRT, you're a racist, too simple. With the right, saying you're teaching CRT in these schools and being surprised when some people seem to think that you're talking about the legal theory of Kimberle Crenshaw, you have to understand the nature of this debate and realize that many people, and frankly they have reason to, suppose that people from the right don't want race taught at all. Most of you on the right don't mean that. Please make it clearer so that this debate can make more sense.By the way, as you know, we like to stick mostly to linguistics and etymology and such here in the Valley. But if you’re interested in deeper dives on issues like Critical Race Theory, or what people mean these days when they talk about getting “cancelled,” here at Booksmart, we also have Amna Khalid at Banished and Bob Garfield at Bully Pulpit, both of whom deep dive on those topics every week. So subscribe to me too but collect all three. We are a family.WORDS NOT ONLY SPECIFY OVER TIME, THEY TEND TO PEJORATELet's get to what real people may really be thinking, not just getting more specific, but you might be thinking the new meaning is negative. So it's not just that it's more specific, but we have this business of thinking of critical race theory as a bad thing, all this stuff going on. Isn't that just the grand old story? The new meaning isn't only more specific, it's negative. It's a slur. Isn't that evidence of racism, of some kind of just general problem with Black people? It's that people are slamming it. But, you know, that is linguistically normal too. Words have a way of putrefying; pejoration is what it's sometimes called. So, for example, hierarchy. That word originally referred to the nine orders of the angels. It was an order of angels and angels are good and goodly. And I always imagined an angel smelling like honey, and if you licked an angel, they would have honey all over them, although they wouldn't mind. Nine orders of angels. Now think about how hierarchy feels to you now, just I say the word. Notice it's a little irritating. It goes a little down to your liver. Hierarchy. If anything, hierarchy tends to be bad. If you mention a hierarchy, there's at least an implication that there shouldn't be one or that the people who are on top of it have some explaining to do. Hierarchy’s kind of an “uh-huh” term. That's not the way it started. It used to be about angels.Think about attitude. Attitude used to just mean your position, like you're standing in a certain pose. And then you could extend that to your position about any number of things in the emotional or the cognitive sense. But an attitude was how you held yourself. It was a position. Yet now notice, I say attitude, the first thing you think is bad attitude. If somebody has an attitude that means they have a bad attitude. You don't say somebody has an attitude and then picture that person smiling, or if they're smiling, it's a maleficent smile. Or you can say somebody has a positive attitude, but that presumes a contrast with a negative one and negative attitude feels redundant. Positive attitude is the attitude that you don't expect because having an attitude is negative. That is just normal. There's nothing that hierarchy and attitude have in common culturally that would make them both take that pathway. It's just that words have a tendency to putrefy. It's actually been shown that words develop negative meanings more readily than they develop positive meanings in the history of English at least.Yeah, yeah. We need a song. And, you know, a lot of you liked Traffic when I did some Traffic in a recent episode. So how about more of that genre? So that kind of gritty, absolutely perfect music, kind of jazzy, fusiony, rocky stuff that a lot of people were doing in the late ’60s. That would have to be, for example, Blood, Sweat & Tears and my favorite from them. I don't know them that well, but my favorite from them is Spinning Wheel. It was on the radio long into my young childhood. Or maybe my father had it because it’s ’68 and I'm not remembering it from then. But Spinning Wheel, ride that painted pony. So how about a little of that, some of this music that's just God's music? It's like Duke Ellington. It's like Mozart. It's just good.MUSIC: Spinning WheelWORDS FROM CONTROVERSIES ARE MORE LIKELY TO PEJORATEMcWHORTER: That negative business, that's especially likely with controversial topics, and so, for example, think about woke. Woke, like 10 minutes ago, was a compliment. It was this happy word, it basically replaced PC because PC had gone bad and it was this jolly thing. But I want you to listen to something. I don't want things to be all about me, but I want you to hear a certain person speaking on Colbertback in 2018 about the word woke. Listen to what I said back then when I was young and carefree.McWHORTER: The one that's happening now is, you know, because I'm, I'm a stodgy person who tends to like old things and doesn't want things to change. And so I always learn about slang terms about 20 minutes too late. But, for example, woke. I'm not going to tell you when I learned that term, but when I learned it, it was still just the coolest thing. You are woke to the complexities of society and how injustice really happens. It was, it was cool. It smelled like roughly marijuana and lavender. It was that kind of word. And about two seconds later, a certain kind of person started sneering, oh, is that person woke? And it's at the point where woke is as in quotation marks in many circles as the word perky. You can't really say that anybody is perky. It's a word. It hasn't been a real word since roughly Bye Bye Birdie. Woke is the same thing. Now, woke is something that people from a certain side of the political spectrum are throwing at other people, the idea being that you're a smug person who thinks that your views are the ones that come from on high. That has happened during the time, roughly, that a certain person has become president and about six months before that. I've found it fascinating. Wokewill be all but unusable in 10 years.Notice I said all but unusable in 10 years. What? It was all but unusable like 10 minutes after that taping. Here we are with woke being unusable outside of quotation marks at this point. That is what happens to words.Oh, by the way, since it's all about me, just for a second. You know, folks, I would be a fool not to tell you here. I am doing a newsletter now in The New York Times, of all places, twice a week. So if you feel like it, you can also subscribe to me there. And it's not just columns. I don't feel like writing columns. It's like 700 words. I don't think in 700 words. I think in essays for some reason. They're letting me do an essay every three days. So, you know, 1200, 1500, I get to stretch out, but not too much so that I'm not taking up too much of your time as I might be here. But I did my first piece there on exactly this story of the word woke.In any case, enough about me. Let's talk about neoliberals. Although come to think of it, I've been called one, but that's another one where it used to be that neoliberal was, quote unquote, good. So Walter Lippmann, you know one of those people very famous as a pundit at the time. Damned if you know anything he said then. It's such a fragile career, pundit. But Walter Lippmann, you know, he was the king, the Krugman, Brooks person, and he had this idea of neoliberal back in the day being a matter of “challenging the ruthless with an intuition of the human destiny, which is invincible because it is self-evident.” The way you could write for the popular press back then, it's the ringing 10 dollar words. I love it. That was Lippmann. And so that meant that in the late 70s, for example, if you were a neoliberal, you didn't like the free market or you were distrustful of it. You didn't like the National Review. But nowadays, when you hear neoliberal, it's often with a sneer. So there are people who have called it all about cutting expenditures for social services and it's about deregulation and eliminating the concept of the public good. Those are the sorts of things you hear about neoliberalism. In other words, as commitments have changed, as impressions have changed, as coalitions have changed, that term, neoliberal has turned upside down over the past nearly 100 years. That's normal. It would be peculiar if we meant today by neoliberal what people meant when there was no penicillin yet.What is all this about? Controversy is inevitable about, for example, current developments in education. But to hear that some people don't like CRT being taught in the schools and to say nobody's teaching the work of Kimberle Crenshaw, or even to say, so you're saying you don't want these kids to learn anything about racism at all? You don't want us to stir that stuff up? That's crude, if I may. And I don't mean crude in the sense of vulgar, but I just mean that it's looking at these things too brusquely. It's not thinking about the fact that we mean different things by critical race theory. But all of us, no matter where we are on the spectrum, need to understand that there's a difference between what people meant by critical race theory in 1990, for example, and what people mean when they're worried about certain things going on in the schools here in 2021. Because the terms meaning has changed, we do have to accept that if somebody is angry about CRT in the classroom today, they don't necessarily mean that they think that nine year olds are being taught legal justice theory. They don't necessarily mean that they don't think that kids should learn about race and racism. They mean something more specific. And that's because critical race theory’s meaning has become more specific. And that's not a peculiar thing. This is what happens to terminology in this world that we live in.In any case, if you’d like to leave a comment, check out our other great podcasts, Banished and Bully Pulpit, or subscribe, just visit BooksmartStudios.org. Our producers are Matthew Schwartz and, as always, Mike Vuolo. Our theme music was created by Harvest Creative Services. And I am John McWhorter. This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at www.booksmartstudios.org/subscribe

Jacqueline Woodson is the author of “Miracle's Boys,” “Harbor Me” and many other books for children and young adults. Her bestselling memoir “Brown Girl Dreaming” is written in verse and in 2015, the Poetry Foundation named her the Young People's Poet Laureate. She was awarded a MacArthur Foundation "genius grant" in 2020. We spoke with Woodson in front of a small audience at Literary Arts in downtown Portland in 2019.

First Draft Episode #307: John Green John Green, #1 New York Times bestselling author of many young adult novels, including The Fault in Our Stars and Printz-winning Looking For Alaska, joins to discuss his new essay collection, The Anthropocene Reviewed. He is also one half of the vlogbrothers on YouTube and co-creator of educational series Crash Course. Today’s episode is brought to you by JAY’S GAY AGENDA, a moving and hilarious sex-positive queer teen rom-com from debut novelist Jason June, out from HarperCollins now. Links to Topics Mentioned In This Episode: Hank Green’s First Draft interview discussing A Beautifully Foolish Endeavor, the sequel to his #1 New York Times bestselling debut, An Absolutely Remarkable Thing. Hank is, along with his brother John Green, the CEO of Complexly, co-host of the Vlogbrothers YouTube channel and the Dear Hank and John podcast, and is also co-founder of VidCon, DFTBA Records, and Crash Course. Listen to his First Draft interview here. The Babysitter’s Club by Anne M. Martin Fallen Angels and Monster by Walter Dean Myers Across Five Aprils by Irene Hunt Where the Red Fern Goes by Wilson Rawls Sula and Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison Kurt Vonnegut, author of Slaughterhouse Five and Cat’s Cradle The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne Angels in America: A Gay Fantasia on National Themes by Tony Kushner Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird J.D. Salinger, author of Catcher in the Rye Laurie Halse Anderson, author of Speak, Chains, and memoir Shout Jacqueline Woodson, author of Brown Girl Dreaming, Locomotion, Another Brooklyn, and many many more. Harvey (movie) Booklist The Looking For Alaska mini-series in Hulu “The Anthropocene Reviewed Reviewed,” an episode of John’s podcast, The Anthropocene Reviewed “On Being Ill” by Virginia Woolf Turtles All the Way Down by John Green “Hank Reviews Everything” video on the Vlogbrothers channel Katrina Vandenberg, poet Claude Glass Superleague (official website, woof) explained so well in this New York Times review and this podcast episode of The Daily, as well as the three-episode breakdown of Men In Jackets (ep 1, ep 2, ep 3)  

In this episode,  Abby and Abby talked about reading Jacqueline Woodson’s: Brown Girl Dreaming and Red at the Bone We also mentioned several of her other books and recommended further reading. See jmrl.org/samepage for more information. Find recordings of past JMRL programs here: JMRL’s Youtube channel Follow JMRL’s progress through the tiers of the JMRL … Continue reading S.4 Ep.12 – Same Page 2021 →

On this week’s episode of Currently Reading, Kaytee and Mary are discussing: Bookish Moments: an Instagram buddy read and freeing up time for more reading Current Reads: trigger warnings and fluff and all the in between Deep Dive: genre convincers - a new word, we made it up Book Presses: a springtime read and a YA Fantasy genre convincer As per usual, time-stamped show notes are below with references to every book and resource we mentioned in this episode. If you’d like to listen first and not spoil the surprise, don’t scroll down!  New: we are now including transcripts of the episode (this link only works on the main site). These are generated by AI, so they may not be perfectly accurate, but we want to increase accessibility for our fans! *Please note that all book titles linked below are Amazon affiliate links. Your cost is the same, but a small portion of your purchase will come back to us to help offset the costs of the show. Thanks for your support!*   . . . . Bookish Moments: 1:40 - Books by Selena Montgomery 3:39 - Intimations by Zadie Smith 1:49 - Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston Current Reads: 4:23 - Dangerous Alliance: An Austentacious Romance by Jenneike Cohen (Mary) 7:09 - Outlawed by Anna North (Kaytee) 10:00 - Two Can Keep a Secret by Karen McManus (Mary) 11:18 - One of Us is Lying by Karen McManus  11:25 - A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson 12:10 - Florence Adler Swims Forever by Rachel Beanland (Kaytee) 14:22 - HRH: So Many Thoughts on Royal Style by Elizabeth Holmes (Mary) 14:35 - Elizabeth Holmes on Instagram 16:17 - This Close to Okay by Leesa Cross-Smith (Kaytee) Deep Dive - Genre Convincers and Genre Dissuaders: 19:48 - Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston 22:09 - Bringing Down the Duke by Evie Dunmore 23:33 - Kindred by Octavia Butler 25:46 - Dark Matter by Blake Crouch 27:20 - Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier  28:43 - Everything I’ve Never Told You by Celeste Ng 29:45 - Memorial by Bryan Washington 28:48 - All Grown Up by Jami Attenberg 31:27 - The Girl Who Drank the Moon by Kelly Barnhill 34:01 - Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi  34:02 - Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead 34:04 - Brown Girl Dreaming by Jaqueline Woodson 34:17 Evicted by Matthew Desmond 34:19 Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson Books We Want to Press Into Your Hands: 36:38 - Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver (Mary) 38:47 - Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi (Kaytee) Connect With Us: Meredith is @meredith.reads on Instagram Kaytee is @notesonbookmarks on Instagram Mindy is @gratefulforgrace on Instagram Mary is @maryreadsandsips on Instagram currentlyreadingpodcast.com @currentlyreadingpodcast on Instagram currentlyreadingpodcast@gmail.com Support us at patreon.com/currentlyreadingpodcast

With a sprawling inter-generational tale of displacement, poverty and racism, Jacqueline Woodson has written an evocative, lyrical novel about her time growing up. Special shout-outs to listeners Melissa and Kailie who chimed in with their thoughts.Wanna connect with the show? Follow us on Twitter: @HKHSPod or use the hashtag #HKHSPod.Brenna: @brennacgrayJoe: @bstolemyremoteHave something longer to say or a comment about book club? Email us at hkhspod@gmail.com. See you on the page and on the screen!

Listen to the beginning chapters of this classic memoir by Jacqueline Woodson.

Today's Patreon-fueled shout-out is for the Plant Northern Piedmont Natives Campaign, an initiative that wants you to grow native plants in yards, farms, public spaces and gardens in the northern Piedmont. Native plants provide habitat, food sources for wildlife, ecosystem resiliency in the face of climate change, and clean water.  Start at the Plant Northern Piedmont Natives Facebook page and tell them Lonnie Murray sent you! On today’s show:City Council suspends search for a new city manager Three Georgia men have been arrested in connection with a shooting yesterdayAlbemarle’s design review panel briefed on restoration of several “entrance corridors”Details on two “community reads” currently being assisted by the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library The Virginia Department of Health is reporting another 4,377 cases of COVID-19 today, and reports another 59 deaths. The percent positivity rating has risen to 16.2 percent, up from 12.2 percent a week ago. In the Blue Ridge Health District there are another 55 cases and one more death, bringing the total COVID-related fatalities in the district to 97 since March. Yesterday the Blue Ridge Health District posted a video that showed the inside of the temporary structure that has been erected in the former KMart parking lot. The structure will be the location of mass vaccinations beginning tomorrow. Blue Ridge Health District spokeswoman Kathryn Goodman said in an email this morning Emergency Medical Services personnel, Region 10 residential facility staff and dialysis center staff will be the first to receive doses as part of Phase1A of the vaccine roll-out. Meanwhile, many health care workers at the University of Virginia and Sentara Martha Jefferson hospitals have received their second doses. Source: Virginia Department of Health*Charlottesville Police have arrested three men from Columbus, Georgia and charged them with several felonies related to a shooting on Emmet Street yesterday. According to a release, a 21-year-old resident of Fluvanna County was shot and is in stable condition at the University of Virginia Hospital. The suspects were apprehended by the Albemarle County Police Department and being held in the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail pending a bond hearing. *Charlottesville City Council has suspended its search for a new city manager to replace Dr. Tarron Richardson, who resigned last September. "Council has decided to pause working with a search firm for the City Manager recruitment and is evaluating next steps to stabilize the organization over the next 12-24 months,” reads a statement from Council sent to the Daily Progress yesterday by Councilor Heather Hill. “We anticipate providing additional information to the public in advance of our next regular meeting on January 19th."  In a Facebook post, City Councilor Lloyd Snook said the city had interviewed five search firms in October and selected Ralph Andersen and Associates in part because one of that company’s officials had made a statement that “it is going to take a special kind of person to want to come to Charlottesville at the moment.”  That official was Robert Burg, the company’s vice president.  According to Snook, Burg had a virtual meeting with city staff on December 4. A story in the Daily Progress today based on a Freedom of Information Act request from Tanesha Hudson quotes an email from Police Chief RaShall Brackney in which she described Burg as “unprofessional.” In his post, Snook said that Charlottesville Mayor Nikuyah Walker had disagreed with the hiring of Ralph Andersen and Associates. He quoted a December 10 email from Walker in which she said she would not meet one-on-one with Burg, but only as an entire Council. In the email, she said she did not think the firm was interested in hearing her point of view. “I explained to you all in the summer that I believed that it would be extremely challenging to select a city manager with this current council and that I had hoped that things would have worked out with the previous city manager,” Walker said in that email. Walker’s first four-year term is up later this year, as is the first four-year term of Councilor Heather Hill. In 2017, Walker was the first independent candidate elected to Council since 1948, and she announced last February she would seek another term. In his Facebook post, Snook said Burg told that he had never seen this level of dysfunction before and that it would be difficult to hire a manager at this time.“In my opinion, we will not be able to hire a permanent City Manager until after the next election, in November, 2021, and we should not try,” Snook wrote. Council has now had four managers since the contract of Maurice Jones was not renewed in 2018. Deputy City Manager Mike Murphy served as interim until May 2019, when Richardson took over. City attorney John Blair is serving as interim manager.  Council also recently suspended its strategic plan process. They are next scheduled to meet on January 12 in a joint meeting with the Planning Commission. That meeting will be on the Capital Improvement Program. So far, no candidates for Council have filed paperwork, according to an email received this morning from City Registrar Melissa Morton. *Albemarle County might soon pursue scenic and historic designations for roadways that until recently have been under the jurisdiction of the Architectural Review Board. The ARB reviews projects within what are known as Entrance Corridors, but several roads such as Route 6 do not qualify because the Virginia Department of Transportation does not classify them as “arterial” roadways. Margaret Maliszewski is an Albemarle County Planning Manager.“For four of the non-arterial streets, we are recommending that they be upgraded to arterial status,” Maliszewski said. “They include the full length of Avon Street Extended, Barracks Road from the city limits to Georgetown Road, Thomas Jefferson Parkway or Route 53 for the full length, and Richmond Road from Route 22 to the County.”Maliszewski said staff is also recommending restoring a county-level scenic or historic designation for several other streets such as the rest of Barracks Road, Route 6 and Route 22. Other roads could become Scenic By-Ways, a designation granted by the Commonwealth Transportation Board.  The Board of Supervisors will be presented with the information at their meeting on February 3. “If the Board wants us to start to consider the county scenic highway and the historic designation that is a multi-step process that would have public hearings and we’re not ready to jump into that yet. Really what we’re asking for in February is whether they want us to start pursuing it.”ARB Member Frank Stoner said he wasn’t sure that all of the entrance corridor designations needed to be restored.“Some of these corridors don’t really have any commercial development on them and I just wonder whether it’s worth the effort to pursue this designation,” Stoner said. “I don’t exactly know what’s involved once you get into VDOT.” Stoner said he was most concerned about restoring ARB’s jurisdiction over Avon Street Extended, which he said was not a major arterial. “And it’s a road that already has a fairly industrial character and so I worry that there aren’t many places anymore in the county where you can actually build something akin to a warehouse or a purely functional structure and Avon already serves that purpose,” Stoner said. *The year is still relatively new and there’s still time to pick up the habit of reading a book. If you’d like to read along with several hundred other area residents, the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library has the book for you as part of their Same Page program. “So this year for 2021 our Same Page pick is Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson,” said Abby Cox, a reference librarian with JMRL. “This is the same book we picked for last year but Same Page takes place during March so as you can imagine, most of our book groups did not get to meet last year to discuss the book and we weren’t able to bring her in person because of the pandemic.”Cox said Brown Girl Dreaming is a memoir in poetry of Woodson’s childhood in South Carolina and New York in the late 60’s. And this year’s programs will also be virtual due to the continuing nature of the pandemic. JMRL has adapted. “We have pivoted a lot of our programming to virtual programming so we’ve been having book groups meet through Zoom where people can also call into participate so that’s really how this is going to look for our Same Page programming,” Cox said. Woodson will be on one of the sessions on March 17 at 7 p.m. as part of the Virginia Festival of the Book, which will be entirely virtual this year. The “community read” is under the Same Page program, which is funded by the Friends of the Library group in partnership with the Virginia Festival of the Book. It used to be called the Big Read and was paid for through a grant from the National Endowment of the Arts. The University of Virginia’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion are also doing a “community read” in commemoration of Martin Luther King Jr. Their book for 2021 is Dr. King’s 1967 work Where Do We Go From Here: Chaos or Community. A panel discussion for that will be held on January 25 at 6 p.m. (details)“One of the things that is so great about a Community Read is it gives people to have conversations with neighbors or members of the community that they may not otherwise be in dialogue with,” Cox said. Copies of both Brown Girl Dreaming and Where Do We Go From Here are available to be checked out from JMRL branches. Are you going to read it? If so, let me know. Let’s have some dialog!Details on the Same Page program are on the JMRL website*Today in meetings, the Charlottesville Tree Commission meets at 5 p.m. They’ll discuss their annual report to Council and hear a report from the city’s arborist. (agenda) This is a public episode. Get access to private episodes at communityengagement.substack.com/subscribe

Say good-bye to 2020 with some favorite interviews, including: Robert Caro, the author, most recently, of Working (Knopf, 2019), shares stories and insights from his work writing Pulitzer Prize-winning biographies of Robert Moses and Lyndon Johnson. Astronaut and rocket scientist Buzz Aldrin is an advocate for the exploration of Mars -- in fact, he hopes people will live on Mars one day. He talks about his vision for a new generation of space explorers and his new children's book, Welcome to Mars: Making a Home on the Red Planet (National Geographic Children's Books, 2015). Michael Curry, presiding bishop of the Episcopal Church, talks about his new book, Love is the Way: Holding on to Hope in Troubling Times (Avery, 2020). Plus, six New York- and New Jersey-based 2020 MacArthur Fellows:  Brooklyn's N. K. Jemisin, science fiction writer and the author of The City We Became: A Novel (Orbit, 2020); Brooklyn's Cécile McLorin Salvant, singer, composer and visual artist; Montclair's Nanfu Wang, documentary filmmaker whose most recent film is "One Child Nation"; Brooklyn's Jacqueline Woodson, the author of the National Book Award-winning Brown Girl Dreaming (Nancy Paulsen Books, 2014) and her latest, Before the Ever After (Nancy Paulsen Books, 2020);  Scientist Mohammad R. Seyedsayamdost, associate professor in Princeton University’s department of chemistry; New York's Fred Moten, cultural theorist, poet and professor in the department of performance studies at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts.   These interviews were edited slightly for time, the original versions are available here:  How Robert Caro Does It (Apr 9, 2019) Buzz Aldrin Wants Us Living on Mars (Sep 10, 2015) Bishop Michael Curry: Love in Troubled Times (Oct 20, 2020) Meet the 'Geniuses': N. K. Jemisin (Oct 19, 2020)                               Cécile McLorin Salvant (Oct 20, 2020)                               Nanfu Wang (Oct 21, 2020)                               Jacqueline Woodson (Oct 22, 2020)                                 Mohammad R. Seyedsayamdost (Oct 23, 2020)                                         Fred Moten (Oct 29, 2020)                                     

First Draft Episode #281: David Levithan David Levithan is editorial director at Scholastic and the author of many young adult novels, including Boy Meets Boy, Every Day, and co-author with Rachel Cohn of Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist and Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares. Sips By is the only mutl-brand, personalized monthly tea subscription box, which makes discovering tea fun and affordable! Use the code “firstdraft” for 50% off your first Sips By box at www.sipsby.com. On the Remember Reading podcast, discover the tales behind these beloved children’s book classics. Hear from award-winning authors like Meg Cabot, Katherine Paterson, and Tiffany Jackson, and guests as they uncover the unique story behind each story. Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode The Babysitters Club series by Anne M. Martin David launched PUSH, the Scholastic imprint still there today Jean Feiwel, Senior Vice President and Publisher, Feiwel & Friends, Henry Holt Books for Young Readers, Swoon Reads, Square Fish Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky Dan Ehrenhaft, author of The Last Dog on Earth, Friend is Not a Verb, and That’s Life, Samara Brooks Sarah Mlynowski, author of Just a Boy and a Girl in a Little Canoe, I See London, I See France, and co-author of Upside-Down Magic The New York City Teen Author Festival Nancy Garden, author of Annie on My Mind, The Year They Burned the Books, and Endgame. Francesca Lia Block, Francesca Lia Block, author of more than 25 books, including seminal YA novel WEETZIE BAT, talks about her most recent book, THE THORN NECKLACE, a memoir-driven guide to healing through the craft of writing. (listen to her First Draft interview here) Jacqueline Woodson, National Book Award and Newberry Honor winning author of Brown Girl Dreaming, Another Brooklyn, Miracle’s Boys and many more Brent Hartinger’s Geography Club Bermudez Triangle by Maureen Johnson, New York Times bestselling author of of several YA novels, including 13 Little Blue Envelopes, Suite Scarlett, The Name of the Star, and Truly Devious: A Mystery. She has also done collaborative works, such as Let It Snow (with John Green and Lauren Myracle), and The Bane Chronicles (with Cassandra Clare and Sarah Rees Brennan). (Listen to my interview with Maureen Johnson here) Lauren Myracle’s Kissing Kate Alex Sanchez’s The Rainbow Boys series Sara Ryan’s Empress of the World David edits Suzanne Collins, author of The Hunger Games David edits Garth Nix, author of the Sabriel series, Angel Mage, and many more Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist (movie) Bill Clegg, a literary agent formerly with WME and now at The Clegg Agency Gingerbread by Rachel Cohn Will Grayson, Will Grayson which David co-wrote with John Green, author of The Fault in Our Stars and Looking For Alaska You Know Me Well with Nina LaCour (listen to her First Draft episodes here and here) Maggie Stiefvater, author of the The Raven Boys series, Shiver, and The Scorpio Races Alex Gino’s Stonewall Award-winning George I want to hear from you! Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998 or send an email to mailbag @ firstdraftpod dot com! Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author of Divergent; National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Jason Reynolds; Leigh Bardugo, author of Ninth House and the Grishaverse series; Creator of Sex and the City Candace Bushnell; YouTube empresario and author Hank Green; Actors, comedians and screenwriters Jessica St. Clair and Lennon Parham; author and host of NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast Linda Holmes; Bestselling authors and co-hosts of the Call Your Girlfriend podcast, Ann Friedman and Aminatou Sow; Michael Dante  DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish and co-host of the Sciptnotes podcast; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works. Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. Track Changes If you’re looking for more information on how to get published, or the traditional publishing industry, check out the Track Changes podcast series, and sign up for the Track Changes weekly newsletter. Support the Show Love the show? Make a monthly or one-time donation at Paypal.me/FirstDraft. Rate, Review, and Recommend Take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you! Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post! Thanks again!

All this week, meet one of the local 2020 MacArthur geniuses. Today: Brooklyn's Jacqueline Woodson, 2020 MacArthur Fellow and the author of the National Book Award-winning Brown Girl Dreaming (Nancy Paulsen Books, 2014) and her latest, Before the Ever After (Nancy Paulsen Books, 2020), who has received the honor for "redefining children’s and young adult literature to encompass more complex issues and reflect the lives of Black children, teenagers, and families." →Jacqueline Woodson's website

Amie and Tami have had books by Jacqueline Woodson on their TBR lists for sometime so we decided to pair them this week into one awesome episode all about Brown Girl Dreaming and Red at the Bone. Terrific Reads!

Two Lit Mamas: A Kid-Lit podcast for parents, teachers and writers Episode 3: Multicultural Middle GradeIn Episode 3 of Two Lit Mamas, Margie and Heather chat about heavy metal t-shirts, flower pictures, and flying teenagers before diving into a discussion on first gen Americans, language misconceptions, unfounded fears of the other, and the right kind of rule breakers. Margie even gets misty about her Turkish, immigrant husband – you don’t want to miss it! Multicultural Middle Grade Book Discussion:We're Not From Hereby Jeff RodkeyAfter the human race obliterates Earth, middle schoolers Lan and Ila are living on Mars with their parents. Unfortunately, Mars' resources are nearly exhausted, but the far-off planet Choom has agreed to take on human refugees. Unfortunately, during the 20-year journey to Choom, the government changed and no longer has any interest in taking a ship full of violent human refugees. With little food and fuel left and the remainder of the human race counting on them, Lan and family have been given a chance to prove to all of Choom that humans are not as bad as they seem. No pressure.Stand Up, Yumi Chung!by Jessica KimEleven-year-old Yumi Chung is a shy Korean American girl who struggles at her fancy L.A. private school where students call her names and she eats lunch by herself in the bathroom. Her one solace is her favorite comedians’ how-to videos and her notebook full of jokes. In a case of mistaken identity, Yumi joins a summer comedy camp without the permission of her over-protective parents. During that time to learns to fail forward and stick up for herself. Eventually she uses her comedy skills to save the day. Pick Six Multicultural Books:1. Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan2. Bud Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis3. Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson4. Towers Falling by Jewell Parker Rhodes5. The First Rule of Punk by Celia Pérez6. The House with Chicken Legs by Sophie Anderson Show Reference Links: Teacher Guide for We’re Not From Here #ownvoices The Book Sommelier 11 Contemporary Diverse Novels for Middle Grade Readers on ReadBrightly.com https://coloursofus.com

Richard Ford's love of the Irish, Wai Chim and Melanie Cheng have a writers' hotline session and Jacqueline Woodson's growing list of awards.

JACQUELINE WOODSON, is a writer of books for children and young adults, and the recipient of the National Book Award for her 2014 book, Brown Girl Dreaming. She was awarded National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature for 2018-2019 by the Library of Congress, and the Hans Christian Andersen Medal this year. Her latest book Red at the Bone was released last year and was an instant New York Times best seller and New York Time Notable book of the year, as well as Oprah’s Best Books of 2019. In this episode, she talks about coming out to her super religious family in the 1980’s. For more info on Jacqueline, visit: www.jacquelinewoodson.comSupport the show (https://www.paypal.com/donate/?token=gwDpOtSRwr2aN0exTy_FAa_lOm9kam0ka6yS_nYth-cILmRaxBLCsx2hKMRqebud8Qy7gG&country.x=US&locale.x=US)

First Draft Episode #256: Elizabeth Acevedo Elizabeth Acevedo, New York Times bestselling author of The Poet X, winner of the 2018 National Book Award for Young People’s Literature, the Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Fiction, the CILIP Carnegie Medal, and the Boston Globe-Hornbook Award. She is also the author of With the Fire on High and Clap When You Land, out now! This episode is brought to you by Highland 2, the writing software made by writers, for writers. Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode The Nuyorican Poets Cafe A handful of Elizabeth’s viral poems Anna Deavere Smith and Sarah Jones are both poets who had one woman shows, which inspired Elizabeth in college Nikki Giovanni, Tupac, Lucille Clifton were some poets who shaped Elizabeth Jacqueline Woodson, author of Brown Girl Dreaming, I Hadn’t Meant to Tell You This, and Red At the Bone Walter Dean Myers, author of Monster, Scorpions, and dozens more books Julia Alvarez, author of Before We Were Free, Return to Sender, and more Sandra Cisneros, author of The House on Mango Street, Woman Hollering Creek and many more Phil Bildner, author of High Five For Glenn Burke, and Marvelous Cornelius: Hurricane Katrina and the Spirit of New Orleans Angela Johnson’s Coretta Scott King-winning The First Part Last was dedicated to Elizabeth Acevedo I want to hear from you! Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998. Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, author of Divergent; Linda Holmes, author and host of NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast; Jonny Sun, internet superstar, illustrator of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Gmorning, Gnight! and author and illustrator of Everyone’s an Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too;  Michael Dante  DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish, Charlie’s Angels, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works. Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. It’s free! Rate, Review, and Recommend How do you like the show? Please take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you! Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Please share this episode on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or via carrier pigeon (maybe try a text or e-mail, come to think of it). Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post! Thanks again!

In this Unabridged Podcast discussion, we recommend some books by Black authors that we think would be a great fit in the classroom. We talk about recommendations for Kid Lit, Middle Grade, and YA Lit, and we touch on books by several of our favorite authors, including Jacqueline Woodson, Kwame Alexander, and Ibi Zoboi. Bookish Check-in Ashley - Anna Solomon’s The Book of V Jen - Ibram X. Kendi’s Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America Sara - Sandhya Menon's When Dimple Met Rishi   Our Recommendations -Kid Lit *Quvenzhané Wallis’s A Night Out with Mama *Kwame Alexander’s The Undefeated, illustrated by Kadir Nelson   -Middle Grade *Jerry Craft’s New Kid *Jacqueline Woodson’s Brown Girl Dreaming and Harbor Me   -YA Lit *Ibi Zoboi's American Street and Pride: A Pride and Prejudice Remix *Renee Watson’s Piecing Me Together   Give Me One - Movie to Watch with Your Kids Ashley - Shrek series Jen - Diary of a Wimpy Kid Sara - Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse   Other Mentions Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi's Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You: A Remix of the National Book Award-winning Stamped from the Beginning Black Lives Matter Movement Nic Stone's article "Don’t Just Read About Racism—Read Stories About Black People Living" Nic Stone's works, including Dear Martin, Odd One Out, Jackpot, Clean Getaway, Shuri Kwame Alexander's works, including the Crossover series (including The Crossover, Booked, Rebound), Solo, and Swing Ibi Zoboi's My Life as an Ice Cream Sandwich Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice Elizabeth Acevedo's The Poet X Angie Thomas's On the Come Up Angie Thomas's Concrete Rose (January 2021) Ernest J. Gaines's A Lesson Before Dying Jacqueline Woodson's The Day You Begin Jason Reynolds's Miles Morales: Spider-Man     Click here for a full transcript that you can read while listening, provided by otter.ai.   Interested in what else we're reading? Check out our Featured Books page.     Want to support Unabridged? Check out our Merch Store! Become a patron on Patreon.​ Follow us @unabridgedpod on Instagram. Like and follow our Facebook Page. Subscribe to our YouTube channel. Check out our Teachers Pay Teachers store. Follow us @unabridgedpod on Twitter. Subscribe to our podcast and rate us on Apple Podcasts or on Stitcher. Check us out on Podbean.

Black Lives Matter. Black Stories Matter. Share them. Say their names. Don’t let them be silenced. Resources - Advancement Project’s List of Organizations (https://advancementproject.org/how-you-can-act-now-to-address-police-violence/) - Bookshop’s Antiracist Reading Recs (https://bookshop.org/lists/antiracist-reading-recs) - Henry Louis Gates, Jr. spotlights the last 50 years of African-American history in “Black America Since MLK: And Still I Rise” now streaming in full for free online (https://watch.weta.org/show/black-america-mlk-and-still-i-rise/) - Guide to Ally-ship: read the short guide here (https://guidetoallyship.com/) - 10 Steps to Non-Optical Allyship: on Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/p/CA04VKDAyjb/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link) - An anti-racist reading list from Ibram X Kendi (https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/29/books/review/antiracist-reading-list-ibram-x-kendi.html) - List of Black-Owned bookstores in the U.S. (https://aalbc.com/bookstores/list.php) - The Conscious Kid (https://www.theconsciouskid.org/about/) : A resource to help educate children on racial bias and promoting positive identity development - I have No Mouth, and I Must Scream: The Duty of the Black Writer During Times of American Unrest by Tochi Onyebuchi (https://www.tor.com/2020/06/01/i-have-no-mouth-and-i-must-scream-the-duty-of-the-black-writer-during-times-of-american-unrest/) - Ibram X Kendi on why not being racist is not enough (https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.theguardian.com/world/2019/aug/14/ibram-x-kendi-on-why-not-being-racist-is-not-enough) Accounts to Follow on Social Media - The Conscious Kid on Instagram (https://instagram.com/theconsciouskid?igshid=9p7j4jyk7wn3) - Spinesvines on Instagram (https://instagram.com/spinesvines?igshid=1itc7byp0ob5l) - The Stacks Podcast on Instagram (https://instagram.com/thestackspod?igshid=1ocj4sd78c8ak) - Diverse Spines on Instagram (https://instagram.com/diversespines?igshid=9n2shtxu7gsv) - Bowties and Books on Instagram (https://instagram.com/bowtiesandbooks?igshid=t3167ozs7bbv) Where to Donate - Black Live Matter: donate here (https://secure.actblue.com/donate/ms_blm_homepage_2019) - Campaign Zero: donate here (https://www.joincampaignzero.org/#vision) - The Bail Project: donate here (https://bailproject.org/) Podcasts/Podcast Episodes - Code Switch Podcast (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/code-switch/id1112190608): hosted by journalists of color, the podcast tackles the subject of race head-on. - Deadline City Podcast (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deadline-citys-podcast/id1482022414): hosted by authors Dhonielle Clayton & Zoraida Cordova who talk about the publishing industry and their writing journeys. - First Draft Podcast’s (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/first-draft-with-sarah-enni/id896407410?i=1000452748799) interview with Jason Reynolds, discusses his book LOOK BOTH WAYS, his childhood growing up in DC, his writing career, and more. - The Stacks Podcast (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep-112-r-eric-thomas-here-for-it/id1362164483?i=1000475188487) interview with R. Eric Thomas, author of HERE FOR IT, a collection of humorous and thoughtful essays centering around his identities of Black, Christian, Gay, and American. - The Reading Women’s (https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/reading-women/id1118019442?i=1000465359770) interview with Kiley Reid, author of SUCH A FUN AGE. Black Stories on Youtube - Let’s Talk About Race: Nic Stone & Jodi Picoult (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQcUPRqbUuA) - Amber Ruffin’s Experience with Police on Late Night with Seth Meyers (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8o6OEyfuJU8) - This is My Story - The FBE Cast (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FowNV-PvcyY) - Untold Story of Black Suffragettes (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wzpc6u2PJ5U) Tara’s Book Rec Sister Outsider - on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32951.Sister_Outsider) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/sister-outsider-essays-and-speeches-9780143134442/9781580911863) Audre Lourde is a legend. When I read Sister Outsider for the first time a few years ago I felt empowered, I felt rage, I felt sickened - I cried a number of times. Ultimately, it’s a plea for hope and change. Why I picked it? A stunning number of my friends on Goodreads have not read this book. It’s older, but I think it’s just as important now as when it was published. Meredith’s Book Rec Dear Martin on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24974996-dear-martin?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=JkaNZk39FR&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/dear-martin/9781101939529) This book might be short, but its impact is huge as it tackles racial discrimination, police brutality, and the inequality in the American school system. Why I picked it? This is one of those books that sticks with you. I ugly cried during portions of it, but was still left with hope at the end. It’s also a great time to read it because Nic Stone is publishing a sequel called DEAR JUSTYCE in September 2020 that deals with the very real issues facing Black boys and other minorities in the American justice system. Jeannette’s Book Rec All American Boys on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25657130-all-american-boys) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/all-american-boys-reprint/9781481463348) Told from the two perspectives of Rashad and Quinn, this book explores the idea of police brutality and the trauma and impact it has on the victim and their community, but it also shows a white teen dealing with his privilege and what his responsibility is as someone who knows the truth behind the incident. Why I picked it? This book is so powerful in the way it handles real issues of discrimination and privilege. It made me think, it made me cry, and it has never really left me. Non-Fiction Book Recs - Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29780253-born-a-crime) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/born-a-crime-stories-from-a-south-african-childhood/9780399588198) - March on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29436571-march) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/march-book-one-9781603093002/9781603093002) - How to be An Antiracist on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40265832-how-to-be-an-antiracist?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=RcrqyFlOBY&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/how-to-be-an-antiracist/9780525509288) - So You Want to Talk About Race on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35099718-so-you-want-to-talk-about-race?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=kHNRRrmlzG&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/so-you-want-to-talk-about-race/9781580058827) - The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6792458-the-new-jim-crow?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=A9O5vRwRbM&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/the-new-jim-crow-mass-incarceration-in-the-age-of-colorblindness-anniversary/9781620971932) - Heavy: An American Memoir on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29430746-heavy?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=drcUZW2fhg&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/heavy-an-american-memoir/9781501125669) - White Fragility: Why it’s so Hard for White People to Talk About Racism on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43708708-white-fragility?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=qvf4zvOBvd&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/white-fragility-why-it-s-so-hard-for-white-people-to-talk-about-racism/9780807047415) - Just Mercy:A Story of Justice and Redemption on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20342617-just-mercy?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=i5URE53cNm&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/just-mercy-a-story-of-justice-and-redemption/9780812984965) - Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25898216-stamped-from-the-beginning?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=ySHfnhQvR5&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/stamped-from-the-beginning-the-definitive-history-of-racist-ideas-in-america-9781568585987/9781568585987) - Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52220686-stamped?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=GzTXW6dN5T&rank=2) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/stamped-racism-antiracism-and-you-a-remix-of-the-national-book-award-winning-stamped-from-the-beginning/9780316453691) - Here For It: Or, How to Save Your Soul in America; Essays on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/45915136-here-for-it?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=FFJht955IC&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/here-for-it-or-how-to-save-your-soul-in-america-essays/9780525621034) - I Know Why the Caged Birds Sings on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13214.I_Know_Why_the_Caged_Bird_Sings?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=FVDgMjJy5I&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/i-know-why-the-caged-bird-sings/9780345514400) - The Fire Next Time on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/464260.The_Fire_Next_Time?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=VjShxSnbiF&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/the-fire-next-time/9780679744726) - Between the World and Me on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25489625-between-the-world-and-me?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=Fui0mGBH9g&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/between-the-world-and-me/9780812993547) - Sister Outsider on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32951.Sister_Outsider?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=4DXMxZmpPV&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/sister-outsider-essays-and-speeches-9780143134442/9781580911863) - Becoming on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38746485-becoming?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=sRwlA7QlrN&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/becoming/9781524763138) - Brown Girl Dreaming on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20821284-brown-girl-dreaming?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=MqwNGFAQWX&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/brown-girl-dreaming/9780147515827) Fiction Book Recs - The Hate U Give on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32075671-the-hate-u-give) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/the-hate-u-give/9780062498533) - The Fifth Season on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19161852-the-fifth-season?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=VFZbxrH0N1&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/the-fifth-season/9780316229296) - Kindred on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60931.Kindred?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=qNDoKp897l&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/kindred-9780807083697/9780807083697) - Homegoing on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27071490-homegoing?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=ACZZCRQs1w&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/homegoing-9781101947135/9781101971062) - Invisible Man on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16981.Invisible_Man?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=JSTgSxWdMc&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/invisible-man-9780679732761/9780679732761) - The Underground Railroad on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29584452-the-underground-railroad?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=Hq6NJPQMHK&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/the-underground-railroad-9780385542364/9780345804327) - The Nickel Boys on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42270835-the-nickel-boys?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=kn9mpwcpny&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/the-nickel-boys-winner-2020-pulitzer-prize-for-fiction/9780385537070) - Long Way Down on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22552026-long-way-down?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=G3pOQt7HjY&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/long-way-down-9781481438254/9781481438261) - The Belles on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23197837-the-belles?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=HaoMmcEL2S&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/the-belles/9781484732519) - A Phoenix First Must Burn on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/49619831-a-phoenix-first-must-burn?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=QKOjX8e7i7&rank=2) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/a-phoenix-first-must-burn-sixteen-stories-of-black-girl-magic-resistance-and-hope/9781984835659) - All American Boys on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25657130-all-american-boys?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=Fsje5QTOC9&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/all-american-boys-reprint/9781481463348) - Dear Martin on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24974996-dear-martin?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=26fM2HEZEH&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/dear-martin/9781101939529) - American Street on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/30256109-american-street?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=dIUmteTScP&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/american-street/9780062473059) - Pride on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35068632-pride?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=NFFXEYoI9g&rank=7) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/pride-9780062564047/9780062564054) - Slay on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43723509-slay?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=sBxstr9aex&rank=9) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/slay/9781534445420) - You Should See Me in a Crown on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/50160619-you-should-see-me-in-a-crown?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=TxhQ8aU6ux&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/you-should-see-me-in-a-crown/9781338503265) - Felix Ever After on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51931067-felix-ever-after?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=q8ivmnHk9L&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/felix-ever-after/9780062820259) - The Wedding Date on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33815781-the-wedding-date?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=qRYtpHHhy4&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/the-wedding-date-9780399587665/9780399587665) - Riot Baby on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/43719523-riot-baby?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=yQHOjE5X6D&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/riot-baby/9781250214751) - The Bluest Eye on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11337.The_Bluest_Eye?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=BkFLYgPLrc&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/the-bluest-eye/9780307278449) - Their Eyes Were Watching God on Goodreads (https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/37415.Their_Eyes_Were_Watching_God?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=fXHDz3soTy&rank=1) and Bookshop (https://bookshop.org/books/their-eyes-were-watching-god/9780061120060)

First Draft Episode #214: Jason Reynolds Jason Reynolds is the New York Times bestselling author of the Ghost series (Ghost, Patina, Sunny, Lu), When I Was the Greatest, The Boy in the Black Suit, As Brave As You, Miles Morales: Spider Man, Long Way Down, For Every One, Look Both Ways, and co-author of All American Boys (with Brendan Kiely, listen to his First Draft interview here) and Stamped: Racism, Anti-Racism, and You (with Ibram X. Kendi),. In January, Jason was named the seventh National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature for 2020-2021. Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode Jason didn’t grow up writing prose, but he and all his friends had rhyme books where they would write lyrics. They wanted to be the next Nas, Slick Rick, Run DMC, Big Daddy Kane, or Rakim. Jason’s aunt would give him classic books as gifts, including Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson and Little Women by Louisa May Alcott Bob Marley’s “Kaya,” Nina Simone’s “Four Women,” Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car” were hugely influential on Jason because of the beauty of the lyrics Jason teamed up with the artist and writer Jason Douglas Griffin for an early book, My Name is Jason. Mine Too: Our Story. Our Way. Jason credits Joanna Cotler, author and artist, and then publisher of her own imprint at HarperCollins, with teaching him how to write narrative and gave him the mantra: “Your intuition will take you farther than your education ever will.” Jacqueline Woodson (author of Brown Girl Dreaming, winner of the National Book Award, the Coretta Scott King Award, and Newberry Honor winner), Rita Williams-Garcia (author of Clayton Byrd Goes Underground, a National Book Award finalist), and Walter Dean Myers (author of more than 100 books for young people, including Monster, winner of the Printz Award, the Coretta Scott King Award, and National Book Award, and more) are people Jason considers predecessors to his career. Christopher Myers, writer, artist, and the son of Walter Dean Myers, pressed Jason to return to writing, to carry on his father’s legacy. At Christopher’s urging, Jason read The Young Landlords by Walter Dean Myers (which the TV show 227 was based on) Caitlyn Dlouhy, Vice President & Editorial Director of Caitlyn Dlouhy Books, nurtured Jason’s career by focusing on the integrity of his work Laurie Halse Anderson (author of Speak and The Impossible Knife of Memory), Eliot Schrefer (author of Threatened, a National Book Award finalist), and Gene Luen Yang (author and illustrator of American Born Chinese), and Jason also shouts out Sharon Draper’s New York Times bestselling Stella by Starlight Jason references part of Walt Whitman’s Song of Myself: “Unscrew the locks from the doors! Unscrew the doors themselves from their jambs!” Jason admires writers who use verse for all or many of their books, specifically Kwame Alexander (poet and educator, and New York Times bestselling author of The Crossover: A Novel, winner of the Newbery Medal and a Coretta Scott King Honor) and Ellen Hopkins (New York Times bestselling author of Crank) Alfred Hitchcock’s works (including Psycho and Rear Window), and Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining are examples of subtle ways that framing and design can make a viewer feel uncomfortable. Quincy Jones said about producing music, “I always say you have to leave space for God to walk into the room.” That’s how Jason feels about the appearance of poetry in text. The first scene of Boyz ‘n the Hood shows one kid asking another, “Do you want to see a dead body?” Fresh Ink: An Anthology, edited by Lamar Giles (author of Fake ID and Spin), and Black Enough: Stories of Being Young & Black in America, edited by Ibi Zoboi (author of American Street, a National Book Award finalist, and Pride) are among the anthologies that Jason thinks are wonderful. He wonders why we’ve moved away from the short story format for younger readers. The TV show High Maintenance is another example of vignette storytelling that Jason was going for with Look Both Ways Jason shouts out Jennifer Buehler, Ph.D., Associate Professor at St. Louis University, Educational Studies who specializes in young adult literature Jason’s friend and co-author of All American Boys, Brendan Keily (author of Tradition, listen to his First Draft episode here), refers to the story under the story as “vertical narrative” I want to hear from you! Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998. You can also email the podcast at firstdraftwithsarahenni@gmail.com.  Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Divergent; Linda Holmes, New York Times bestselling author and host of NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast; Jonny Sun, internet superstar, illustrator of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Gmorning, Gnight! and author and illustrator of Everyone’s an Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too;  Michael Dante  DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish, Charlie’s Angels, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works. Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. It’s free! Rate, Review, and Recommend How do you like the show? Please take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you! Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Please share this episode on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or via carrier pigeon (maybe try a text or e-mail, come to think of it). Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post! Thanks again!

Enjoy our presentation of Brown Girl Dreaming written by Jacqueline Woodson and published by Penguin Young Readers Group.Brown Girl Dreaming won the 2014 National Book Award for Young People's Literature, the 2015 Coretta Scott King Book Award and was named a 2015 Newbery Honor Book. Brown Girl Dreaming is recommended for ages 10 and up for mature themes, including violence, sexuality, and language. Please see common sense media for more information and reviews: https://bit.ly/BrownGirlReviewsThis title is available in the following formats through Libby by Overdrive: Ebook - https://bit.ly/BrownGirlLibbyEbookAudiobook - https://bit.ly/BrownGirlLibbyAudiobookPlease visit www.calvertlibrary.info for more information.Music: Dub the Uke (excerpt) by Kara Square (c) copyright 2016. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Noncommercial (3.0) license. http://dig.ccmixter.org/files/mindmapthat/53340

Winner of the 2019 National Book Award for fiction, Trust Exercise follows a star-crossed suburban teen romance in a 1980s performing arts high school. Susan Choi's novels are known for excavating the hidden corners of the human heart and acclaimed for their ''nuance, psychological acuity, and pitch-perfect writing'' (Los Angeles Times). Her books include the Asian American Literary Award–winning The Foreign Student; American Woman, a finalist for the 2004 Pulitzer Prize; A Person of Interest, a finalist for the 2009 PEN/Faulkner Award; and My Education, winner of the Lambda Literary Award for Bisexual Fiction. A creative writing teacher at Yale, Choi has earned Guggenheim and National Endowment for the Arts Fellowships. The author of nearly 30 books for young people and adults, Jacqueline Woodson has won three Newbery Honors, a Coretta Scott King Award and three Coretta Scott King Honors, and the 2014 National Book Award for Brown Girl Dreaming, a poetry collection about her upbringing in New York and South Carolina amidst the vestiges of Jim Crow. Her other books include After Tupac and D Foster, Feathers, and Another Brooklyn, which was a finalist for the National Book Award. Woodson's latest novel, ''a universal American tale of striving, failing, then trying again'' (Time), addresses a bevy of societal issues through the intergenerational saga of a family striving to escape the tug of history. (recorded 5/7/2020)

In Mini Episode 55, Sarah Saba Cetra (@bookedinadvance) shares Middle Eastern books on her TBR list, books from a publisher we both love (Riverhead), and we both share how coronavirus is impacting our reading. This post contains affiliate links, through which I make a small commission when you make a purchase (at no cost to you!). Highlights How coronavirus is impacting both of our reading. How Sarah barely read at all during law school and what (specific book and specific person) eventually got her back into reading. Sarah’s 2 reading goals for this year (including focusing on reading more Middle Eastern authors). The 3 Middle Eastern books on Sarah’s TBR list. An ode to Riverhead Books (the publisher). Sarah’s Book Recommendations Two OLD Books She Loves Beautiful Souls by Eyal Press | Buy from Amazon [10:45] Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds | Buy from Amazon [13:55] Two NEW Books She Loves We Wish You Luck by Caroline Zancan (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [16:13] Red at the Bone by Jacqueline Woodson | Buy from Amazon [19:45] One Book She DIDN’T Love Women Talking by Miriam Toews | Buy from Amazon [] One NEW RELEASE She’s Excited About Sisters by Daisy Johnson (Release Date: August 25, 2020) | Buy from Amazon [26:51]  Other Books Mentioned It Sounded Better In My Head by Nina Kenwood | Buy from Amazon [4:24] Hour of the Assassin by Matthew Quirk | Buy from Amazon [5:16] The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [6:51] Our Women on the Ground by Zahra Hankir | Buy from Amazon [9:24] How Does it Feel to Be a Problem? by Moustafa Bayoumi | Buy from Amazon [9:24] Apeirogon by Colum McCann | Buy from Amazon [9:24] A Good Neighborhood by Therese Anne Fowler | Buy from Amazon [17:10] Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson | Buy from Amazon [21:17] Other Links Ashley Spivey Podcast Ep. 47: Caroline Zancan (Author of We Wish You Luck) About Sarah Instagram Sarah was an avid reader until she hit law school, where she read maybe 2 books per year for the three years she was a student, and the year after she graduated. After following Ashley Spivey for Bachelor-related reasons, and she found Sarah’s Bookshelves Live and got back into the swing of regularly reading.   She is currently a legal writer living in Pittsburgh, where she’s just become a regular at her neighborhood indie bookstore. She also likes to embroider while listening to audiobooks. Next Episode Full length episode featuring Holly Root, Literary Agent and Owner of Root Literary (airing Wednesday, April 29). Support the Podcast Support on PatreonWhen you support the podcast on Patreon for $5/month, get bonus podcast episodes and other goodies! ShareIf you like the podcast, I’d love for you to share it with your reader friends…in real life and on social media (there’s easy share buttons at the bottom of this post!). Subscribe …wherever you listen to podcasts, so new episodes will appear in your feed as soon as they’re released. Rate and ReviewSearch for “Sarah’s Bookshelves” in Apple Podcasts…or wherever you listen to podcasts!

Today Chelsey and Sara are celebrating National Poetry Month. We chat about our strong feelings towards poetry in high school, how our view has changed as teachers, and the ways in which we incorporate poetry into our daily reading lives. Our discussion includes: How we feel about poetry and how our high school experiences shaped our view (1:45) Our favorite poets and poetry collections (28:30)  Amazing YA novels in verse (42:30) Shop this episode in our affiliate shop at Bookshop.org to support independent bookstores.  Today’s episode is brought to you by Libro.fm, the only audiobook company that allows you to purchase audiobooks directly from your favorite indie bookstore. You can get THREE audiobooks for $15 by clicking this link or by using code NOVELPAIRINGS at checkout. --Scroll down for titles and timestamps--       Introduction to Poetry by Billy Collins Eating Poetry by Mark Strand If I Should Have a Daughter by Sarah Kay (13:38) 3 Ways to Speak English by Jamila Lyiscott (13:55) Romantic poets A Poetry Handbook by Mary Oliver (17:40) Japan by Billy Collins (24:35) Emily Dickinson (28:47) Funeral Blues by WH Auden (31:22) Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude by Ross Gay (31:44) No Matter the Wreckage by Sarah Kay (31:49) The World’s Wife by Carol Ann Duffy (32:56) Felicity by Mary Oliver (34:33) Audre Lorde (35:33) Shakespeare’s Sonnets (36:33) Sir Patrick Stewart Reading a Sonnet a Day Sonnet 116 Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair by Pablo Neruda (38:37) Langston Hughes (38:45) Theme for English B Rupi Kaur I, Too I Hear American Singing by Walt Whitman (40:54) With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo (42:42) The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson (43:32) Red at the Bone  Brown Girl Dreaming  Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds (44:36) Kwame Alexander (45:39) Poem-a-day emails Poetry Foundation Poets.org Button Poetry  

Nicole and Matthew discuss the COVID-19 pandemic through the lens of racism and social media, how the virus is impacting school kids and families, and how the kidlit community is responding. This episode is sponsored by: TBR: Tailored Book Recommendations Don’t Check Out This Book! By Kate Klise & M. Sarah Klise new from Algonquin Young Readers The Sunken Tower by Tait Howard from Oni Press Subscribe to the podcast via RSS, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher. To get even more kidlit news and recommendations, sign up for our The Kids Are All Right newsletter! RELEVANT LINKS: Resource for Teaching Online Due to School Closures Talking to Kids About Coronavirus Additional Resources Talking With Children: Tips for Caregivers, Parents, and Teachers During Infectious Disease Outbreaks  Coping With Stress During Infectious Disease Outbreaks  Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Hand Sanitizer Use at Home, at Play, and Out and About The Everywhere Book Fest Defaced Mulan movie poster “Corona Time” kids in costumes  BOOKS DISCUSSED ON THE SHOW: Books by Raina Telgemeier (Guts; Smile; Babysitters Club) Books by Marti Dumas (The Little Human; Jupiter Storm; Jaden Toussaint) Books by Nikki Grimes (Ordinary Hazards; Bedtime for Sweet Creatures; One Last Word) Books by Lori Alexander (Future Engineer; Future President; All in a Drop) Books by Jacqueline Woodson (The Day You Begin; Brown Girl Dreaming; Red at the Bone) Books by Saadia Faruqi (Meet Yasmin series; A Place at the Table) CLOSING NOTE: Let us know what books or topics you’ve been sharing this week, or if you have a suggestion or book recommendation for an upcoming episode. Find us on email (kidlitthesedays@bookriot.com) or Twitter (@MatthewWinner and @ittybittyny).

Today's DCPL Presents focused on a conversation with Ashleigh Coren, Women’s History Content and Interpretation Curator at the National Portrait Gallery. In addition to discussing the DCPL/NPG program ArtAfterWords, we discussed her work as a librarian working on women's representation at the Smithsonian Institution. ArtAfterWords offers participants a chance to discuss a book and portrait, and February's discussion will focus on a portrait of Angela Davis and Brown Girl Dreaming by Jaqueline Woodson. Powered and distributed by Simplecast.

Meredith and Kaytee are joined by Mindy today in a three-host show full of bookish delights. You’ll hear a “bookish moment of the week” from each host. A book club win for kids, a book train with friends, and strong opinions about a bookish movie. Next, we discuss our current reads for the week. There’s some serious gushing over books in this week’s titles, plus a couple “I didn’t like this” strong opinions. Hold onto your earbuds. We are doing a brief Slow But Steady check-in this week to let you know what we’re choosing for our next reads for this challenge. For our deep dive this week, we are playing around with book pairings for TV shows that we’ve enjoyed in the past. We each chose two shows to dive deep into and then find ways to replicate some of those same feelings in our reading. What fun! Finally, this week, we are Pressing Books into Your Hands: we’ve got a “very favorite” read-aloud book, one that will work, even if you’re down to the wire on a challenge category, and a book that is perfect for gift-giving. As per usual, time-stamped show notes are below with references to every book and resource we mentioned in this episode. If you’d like to listen first and not spoil the surprise, don’t scroll down!  *Please note that all book titles linked above are Amazon affiliate links. Your cost is the same, but a small portion of your purchase will come back to us to help offset the costs of the show. Thanks for your support!*   . . . . . Announcements: 1:19 - Episode 32 of Season 1 1:45 - 2020 Reading Challenge Printable 2:38 - 2020 Reading Journal for purchase (free for Patrons!) Bookish Moments: 4:57 - Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman 6:38 - Eye of the Elephant by Delia and Mark Owens 6:42 - Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens 7:43 - A Heart So Fierce and Broken by Brigid Kemmerer 8:13 - Little Women by Louisa May Alcott Current Reads: 10:34 - Warriors Don’t Cry by Melba Patillo Beales 13:55 - Great Expectations by Charles Dickens 14:42 - Nothing to See Here by Kevin Wilson 18:17 - Wild Robot by Peter Brown 21:41 - Harry’s Trees by Jon Cohen 22:00 - Episode 38 of Season 1 22:16 - What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty 23:04 - Dear Evan Hansen by Val Emmich, Steven Levenson, Benj Pasek and Justin Paul 26:42 - The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates 28:10 - Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates 31:24 - City of Girls by Elizabeth Gilbert 31:57 - Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert Slow But Steady: 36:22 - The Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates 36:40 - Gone with The Wind by Margaret Mitchell 37:10 - The Road Back to You by Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile 37:29 - The Art of Typing by Ginger Lapig-Bogda 38:18 - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by JK Rowling 38:20 - Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets by JK Rowling 38:24 - East of Eden by John Steinbeck 38:30 - Les Miserables by Victor Hugo 38:40 - Persuasion by Jane Austen 38:48 - A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith Deep Dive: Pairings with Grey’s Anatomy: 40:22 - Small Great Things by Jodi Piccoult 40:49 - The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory 41:19 - The Queen of Hearts by Kimmery Martin Pairings with Parenthood: 42:09 - The Lager Queen of Minnesota by J. Ryan Stradal 42:24 - The Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown Pairings with West Wing: 43:43 - Who Thought This Was a Good Idea? by Alyssa Mastromonico 44:28 - The Gatekeepers by Chris Whipple 45:03 - Young Jane Young by Gabrielle Zevin 45:19 - The Brethren by John Grisham 45:22 - Term Limits by Vince Flynn Pairings with Dr. Quinn or When Calls the Heart: 46:37 - Christy by Catherine Marshall 47:15 - Tisha: The Wonderful True Love Story of a Young Teacher in the Alaskan Wilderness by Robert Specht Pairings with Elementary: 49:06 - Sherlock Holmes canon by Arthur Conan Doyle 49:37 - The House of Silk by Anthony Horowitz 49:54 - The Word is Murder by Anthony Horowitz 50:11 - A Study in Scarlet Women by Sherry Thomas 50:38 - A Great Deliverance by Elizabeth George Pairings with Dexter: 51:17 - Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsey 51:25 - You by Caroline Kepnes 51:45 - My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing 52:11 - The One by John Marrs Presses: 52:58 - Episode 32 of Season 1 53:07 - I, Juan de Pareja by Elizabeth Borden de Trevino 54:18 - Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson 56:03 - The Quilter’s Apprentice by Jennifer Chiaverini 56:11 - Resistance Women by Jennifer Chiaverini

Jacqueline Woodson is the New York Times-bestselling and National Book Award-winning author of “Another Brooklyn” and “Brown Girl Dreaming.” Her latest novel, “Red at the Bone,” tells how an unexpected teenage pregnancy pulls together two families from different social classes, and exposes the private hopes, disappointments, and longings that can bind or divide us from […]

Jacqueline Woodson is the New York Times-bestselling and National Book Award-winning author of “Another Brooklyn” and “Brown Girl Dreaming.” Her latest novel, “Red at the Bone,” tells how an unexpected teenage pregnancy pulls together two families from different social classes, and exposes the private hopes, disappointments, and longings that can bind or divide us from […]

First Draft Episode #214: Jason Reynolds Jason Reynolds, New York Times bestselling author of critically acclaimed books, including National Book Award finalist Ghost, Newberry and Printz-honored Long Way Down, Coretta Scott King Honoree As Brave as You, and his latest, middle grade Look Both Ways, which was just named to the National Book Award Longlist for Young People’s Literature. This episode was brought to you by Freedom — upgrade to Premium and use code FIRSTDRAFT for 40% off a yearly or Forever plan! Links and Topics Mentioned In This Episode Jason didn’t grow up writing prose, but he and all his friends had rhyme books where they would write lyrics. They wanted to be the next Nas, Slick Rick, Run DMC, Big Daddy Kane, or Rakim. Jason’s aunt would give him classic books as gifts, including Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson and Little Women by Louisa May Alcott Bob Marley’s “Kaya,” Nina Simone’s “Four Women,” Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car” were hugely influential on Jason because of the beauty of the lyrics Jason teamed up with the artist and writer Jason Douglas Griffin for an early book, My Name is Jason. Mine Too: Our Story. Our Way. Jason credits Joanna Cotler, author and artist, and then publisher of her own imprint at HarperCollins, with teaching him how to write narrative and gave him the mantra: “Your intuition will take you farther than your education ever will.” Jacqueline Woodson (author of Brown Girl Dreaming, winner of the National Book Award, the Coretta Scott King Award, and Newberry Honor winner), Rita Williams-Garcia (author of Clayton Byrd Goes Underground, a National Book Award finalist), and Walter Dean Myers (author of more than 100 books for young people, including Monster, winner of the Printz Award, the Coretta Scott King Award, and National Book Award, and more) are people Jason considers predecessors to his career. Christopher Myers, writer, artist, and the son of Walter Dean Myers, pressed Jason to return to writing, to carry on his father’s legacy. At Christopher’s urging, Jason read The Young Landlords by Walter Dean Myers (which the TV show 227 was based on) Caitlyn Dlouhy, Vice President & Editorial Director of Caitlyn Dlouhy Books, nurtured Jason’s career by focusing on the integrity of his work Laurie Halse Anderson (author of Speak and The Impossible Knife of Memory), Eliot Schrefer (author of Threatened, a National Book Award finalist), and Gene Luen Yang (author and illustrator of American Born Chinese), and Jason also shouts out Sharon Draper’s New York Times bestselling Stella by Starlight Jason references part of Walt Whitman’s Song of Myself: “Unscrew the locks from the doors! Unscrew the doors themselves from their jambs!” Jason admires writers who use verse for all or many of their books, specifically Kwame Alexander (poet and educator, and New York Times bestselling author of The Crossover: A Novel, winner of the Newbery Medal and a Coretta Scott King Honor) and Ellen Hopkins (New York Times bestselling author of Crank) Alfred Hitchcock’s works (including Psycho and Rear Window), and Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining are examples of subtle ways that framing and design can make a viewer feel uncomfortable. Quincy Jones said about producing music, “I always say you have to leave space for God to walk into the room.” That’s how Jason feels about the appearance of poetry in text. The first scene of Boyz ‘n the Hood shows one kid asking another, “Do you want to see a dead body?” Fresh Ink: An Anthology, edited by Lamar Giles (author of Fake ID and Spin), and Black Enough: Stories of Being Young & Black in America, edited by Ibi Zoboi (author of American Street, a National Book Award finalist, and Pride) are among the anthologies that Jason thinks are wonderful. He wonders why we’ve moved away from the short story format for younger readers. The TV show High Maintenance is another example of vignette storytelling that Jason was going for with Look Both Ways Jason shouts out Jennifer Buehler, Ph.D., Associate Professor at St. Louis University, Educational Studies who specializes in young adult literature Jason’s friend and co-author of All American Boys, Brendan Keily (author of Tradition, listen to his First Draft episode here), refers to the story under the story as “vertical narrative” I want to hear from you! Have a question about writing or creativity for Sarah Enni or her guests to answer? To leave a voicemail, call (818) 533-1998. You can also email the podcast at firstdraftwithsarahenni@gmail.com.  Subscribe To First Draft with Sarah Enni Every Tuesday, I speak to storytellers like Veronica Roth, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Divergent; Linda Holmes, New York Times bestselling author and host of NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast; Jonny Sun, internet superstar, illustrator of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Gmorning, Gnight! and author and illustrator of Everyone’s an Aliebn When Ur a Aliebn Too;  Michael Dante  DiMartino, co-creator of Avatar: The Last Airbender; John August, screenwriter of Big Fish, Charlie’s Angels, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory; or Rhett Miller, musician and frontman for The Old 97s. Together, we take deep dives on their careers and creative works. Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts. It’s free! Rate, Review, and Recommend How do you like the show? Please take a moment to rate and review First Draft with Sarah Enni in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Your honest and positive review helps others discover the show -- so thank you! Is there someone you think would love this podcast as much as you do? Please share this episode on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, or via carrier pigeon (maybe try a text or e-mail, come to think of it). Just click the Share button at the bottom of this post! Thanks again!

The 2018-‘19 National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, Woodson is the award-winning author of dozens of books for children, young adults, and above, including the classic Brown Girl Dreaming. Her new novel, written for adults, and infused with her signature insight and rich, poetic prose, opens in 2001 in Brooklyn. The occasion is Melody’s sixteenth birthday, but it proves bittersweet as the assembled family recalls Melody’s mother—who never reached age sixteen. Charting the course of two families from different classes, Woodson’s affecting narrative tackles identity, ambition, desire, and parenthood as well as exploring how the decisions young people make change the generations to come. Woodson is in conversation with Lynn Neary, longtime NPR arts correspondent. https://www.politics-prose.com/book/9780525535270Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Since her groundbreaking autobiography, “Brown Girl Dreaming,” Jacqueline Woodson has used spare prose to tell rich, multilayered stories in a fraction of the space other writers require.

Jacqueline Woodson is the author of “Harbor Me,” “Miracle’s Boys,” and many other books for children and young adults. Her bestselling memoir “Brown Girl Dreaming” is written in verse and in 2015, the Poetry Foundation named her the Young People’s Poet Laureate.

Diane leads a panel discussion about Jacqueline Woodson's memoir in verse, "Brown Girl Dreaming," winner of the 2014 National Book Award for young people's literature.

Jacqueline Woodson is the author of “Miracle’s Boys,” “Harbor Me” and many other books for children and young adults. Her bestselling memoir “Brown Girl Dreaming” is written in verse and in 2015, the Poetry Foundation named her the Young People’s Poet Laureate. We speak with Woodson in front of a small audience at Literary Arts in downtown Portland.

On today’s episode, a look back to 2004 when the 2018 National Ambassador for Young People's Literature, Jacqueline Woodson, visited the Festival. As we listen back to the 2004 Festival, we hear Jacqueline Woodson consider how her upbringing, including her family’s faith commitments, prepared her for life as a writer, a mother, and a humanitarian. Though she writes for all ages, Jacqueline Woodson has won just about every major award in children’s and young adult literature, including several ALA Best Books for Young Adults, multiple Coretta Scott King awards and honors, a number of Newbery Honors, the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, and the National Book Award. The author of poetry, fiction, and memoir, Woodson is the author of many books, among them: Brown Girl Dreaming, Another Brooklyn (a National Book Award for Fiction nominee), The Other Side, Each Kindness, Coming On Home Soon, Feathers, Show Way, After Tupac and D Foster, and Miracle’s Boys. Rewrite Radio is a production of the Calvin Center for Faith and Writing, located on the campus of Calvin College in Grand Rapids, MI. Theme music is June 11th by Andrew Starr. Additional sound design by Alejandra Crevier. You can find more information about the Center and its signature event, the Festival of Faith and Writing, online at ccfw.calvin.edu and festival.calvin.edu and on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Jenn and guest Christina Orlando discuss novels in verse, Hannibal read-alikes, fiction about Lyon, and more in this week’s episode of Get Booked. This episode is sponsored by TBR and The Lost Man by Jane Harper. Subscribe to the podcast via RSS, Apple Podcasts, or Stitcher.   Questions 1. Hi guys! I’m looking for some novels in verse to read. I’ve always been a big fan of poetry, but never read to many novels in verse. Recently however I read Anne Carson’s amazing Autobiography of Red, and discovered a new favorite book. Now I’m looking for more novels in verse, but don’t know what’s good, or really where to start. I know of Brown Girl Dreaming from this show and have ordered it- so I’ll be reading that soon. Obviously I’ve read the classic epic poetry, like Homer, Virgil, and Ovid, etc. I’m open to any genre or themes, and I enjoy a wide variety of different poets. I read a lot of classic and modern poetry, so I’m not afraid of jumping into anything a bit dense. -Lisbeth   2. I am going to Lyon in March and would love some reading material to get me even more excited than I already am. Historical Fiction is definitely my favorite, but I like all genres, including romance, young adult, and non-fiction. Some of my most beloved authors include Ruth Reichl, Rose Lerner, Barbara Pym, Becky Chambers, Jess Kidd, Naomi Novik, and Patricia Lockwood. Please only women authors. Thank you! -Hillary   3. Hello ladies! I’ve been a fan of the podcast for a year now and because of it, my TBR seems endless. Yet here I am! My all time favorite show is NBC’s Hannibal (I do like the movies and books, but the show is light years better in my opinion) and after watching it for the fifth time I decided I need something else that is similar because my friends and family will murder me if I ever mention it again. I’m looking for something that’s equally dark and twisted but aesthetically beautiful. My favorite thing about the show was the complex, love-hate relationship between protagonist and antagonist, the way they blurred into one at times, their exploration of good and evil, but also how intentionally pretentiousness the whole show is. Some books that have kind of helped fill the hole so far were Song of Achilles (mostly because of the wonderful, flowery writing) Vicious, If We Were Villains, The Secret History and Born, Darkly. I’d love anything you could find that is remotely like this, bonus points for good queer rep. Thank you and hope y’all are doing good. -Celina   4. Hi ladies! Thanks so much for all the bookish fun! I’m looking for a book of poetry as a gift for my spouse. They like Rilke’s Sonnets to Orpheus, Paul Celan, and other lyrical poems about the human condition. Themes of love and inspiration are ideal but not required. I would prefer to support a living poet, and appreciate any recommendations! Thanks! -Lindsey   5. The greatest tragedy of my life is that Hanya Yanagihara has only released two books. I loved them both, particularly A Little Life. For two years I’ve been looking for books that give me the same feelings, especially books with queer characters and I need some help. Thank you! -Ellie   6. Hello! I typically read hard fantasy, but once in a while I crave something a little lighter. When I’m in that reading mood I have really enjoyed magical realism stories with a romantic plot or sub plot. I love the lush and lyrical writing. I enjoyed The Weight of Feathers and The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender. The Night Circus is definitely on my list, but I was hoping you could give me some more diverse options please. I enjoy Toni Morrison and Octavia Butler because of their strong voices and unique subject matter. What I am really looking for is beautiful writing, a ending that makes you feel happy and fulfilled, and a story that makes you turn the page because it is just so darn lovely. Thank you for the recommendations! -Kyla   7. Hi ladies! I recently finished reading Red Clocks by Leni Zumas, and I really, really loved and related to Ro (the biographer) and Gin’s (the mender) independence. They didn’t have current romantic/life partners, and they weren’t agonizing over being alone or over trying to find someone. I am getting sick of novels where women spend a lot of time worrying about being “on the shelf.” I would like to read more books with women who are single and proud, and romance isn’t anywhere near the top of their priority list. I am willing to read any genre, length, or format. Can’t wait to hear what you have to recommend! Thanks so much! Best, -Mary Beth   Books Discussed Black Leopard, Red Wolf by Marlon James The Swimming Pool Library by Alan Hollinghurst The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo The Sampo by Peter O’Leary Chocolat by Joanne Harris The Body in the Vestibule by Katherine Hall Page Her Body & Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado (tw: sexual assault, violence against women) Killing Eve LoveMurder by Saul Black (rec’d by Jamie) Mary Oliver Oceanic by Aimee Nezhukumatathil Smith Blue by Camille T. Dungy Tipping the Velvet by Sarah Waters The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne (rec’d by Liberty) Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel Mistress of Spices by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni (tw: domestic violence, hate crimes, limited representation of Native Americans) All Grown Up by Jami Attenberg The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang (tw: rape, war crimes, genocide)

Critically acclaimed and prizewinning author Jacqueline Woodson joins us to talk about her career making unforgettable fiction out of the lives of ordinary young people.  She's author of more than 30 books for children, young adults and adults, and among her many honors is the National Book Award for her bestselling book Brown Girl Dreaming and is currently serving as the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature.  She sat down in the studio to talk with Miwa Messer about her extraordinary body of work and her latest novel for young readers, Harbor Me.

Author Jacqueline Woodson won the 2014 National Book Award for Brown Girl Dreaming, and this past January began her two-year tenure as the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature; her latest book Another Brooklyn was a New York Times best-seller. In this conversation, host Helga Davis sits down to talk with Woodson about family – the alternative one she was born into and the one she made for herself. Finding the ones with whom she can connect has been invaluable for her; here she shares how she made her community and how they have influenced her process. "For me the extended family is about having more parenting tools. [...] And then we have to make other decisions, we're a biracial family, right? We're a two-mom family, we're not going to send our kid to a school where they're the only kid of color, or the only kid in the class with two moms or two dads. So we had to, from a very early age, start investigating which schools are going to see my kid as wholly human." –Jacqueline Woodson Subscribe to Helga on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts, and follow Helga Davis on Facebook.

Hey everyone! On this episode, I talk about Jacqueline Woodson's book Brown Girl Dreaming. Join the conversation and leave a comment!

Amanda and Jenn discuss Korean fiction, Central American authors, fluffy audiobooks, and more in this week's episode of Get Booked. This episode is sponsored by Girls Burn Brighter by Shobha Rao and Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi.   Questions   1. Hello Get Booked friends! I would love some book recommendations for books written by Korean authors or about Korea. I recently read The Vegetarian by Han Kang and The Orphan Master's Son by Adam Johnson and realized that I do not know very much about Korean culture and history. I loved the cultural side notes that were included about Japan in Ozeki's Tale for the Time Being and would enjoy something like that, but about Korea. I am open to fiction or non-fiction and historical or contemporary works. --Sally   2. First, I just wanted to give Amanda a huge thank you for recommending Captive Prince! I’ve heard you recommend it a few times before, but I just never got around to reading it. After hearing you recommend it a few weeks ago I finally decided to pick it up from the library. Suffice it to say, I think this is the book I’ve been looking for all my life and I finished the series in three days. I’d love to know if there are any read-alikes out there? The Captive Prince series checked almost all of my boxes. M/M relationships are strongly preferred and no need to worry about trigger warnings for me. I’ve already read and loved Amberlough. I’ve also read The Magpie Lord, but only thought it was ok. Thanks again for the Captive Prince recommend! --Kevin   3. Coming off Black History Month I need help. I listened to The Bone Tree, read Brown Girl Dreaming, and read Invisible Man. Also read Banthology. These were all great esp, Brown Girl Dreaming. My request....I have noticed as with Homegoing, several of the books by people of color are very mentally heavy when reading one after the other. Justifiably so. I am looking for a female voice, mid 20-40's, lyrical, fun, a bit biting, with her girls with a story to tell. Something almost musical. I don't want YA. Something where the setting even plays a part. Got anything? --Michele   4. I know this is really last minute and I have no idea if you'll be able to help me, but I am really stuck. I am supposed to be getting a book for someone who I don't know based on their "reading" profile. They said they like autobiographies, especially ones related to travel and sports and that they are looking to get into self help books. They also mentioned that their favorite books are The Last Lecture, Mud Sweat and Tears and 1000 Days of Spring. They have a completely different reading taste to mine, so I am really out of my depth and hoping you could help. Thanks in advance and I LOVE the show! --Marija   5. Greetings! My husband and I are going on the trip of a lifetime during the month of April. We will be traveling through the Panama Canal and stopping at all the Central American countries except El Salvador. We will also be making 3 stops in Mexico and Cartegena, Colombia. I'm looking for literary fiction novels that take place in Central America (rather than Mexico or South America.) No short stories, please! Here are some books that I've read or are familiar with. (None of them take place in Central America, but you get the idea!): The Sound of Things Falling by Juan Gabriel Vasquez Like Water for Chocolate How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents Anything by Gabriel Garcia Marquez Thanks! --April   6. For about a year now I've been listening to podcasts (mostly Book Riot ones) at work. I haven't quite found enough to fill all my hours, but I find I prefer listening to talking over music. To fill the gaps, I tried turning to audiobooks. (Libby is the best.) My typical fare is heavily Sci Fi and Fantasy, but I was finding them a little too complicated to follow while working - so I tried YA (another love of mine) and it was still too important that I caught every detail. After that I tried nonfiction, but kept finding things that were either too dry on audio so it became basically white noise, or super depressing. TL:DR can you help me find books that are A) on audio, B) light in subject matter (as a grad student in my "free time" I spend a lot of time stressed out and would like my audiobooks to be a break from that), and C) simple enough that I can still follow even if I get a little distracted by a more-complicated-than-usual problem at work? Something like a cozy mystery or a fluffy romance (like Austenland?) might be good, but I don't know where to start. Bonus points for SF/F flavors, but they're not necessary, and extra bonus points for diversity of any kind, which I feel like I don't get enough of. Already read: Sarah Maclean, and Tessa Dare. Also, I used to love Lillian Jackson Braun's The Cat Who series, but have not kept up with the latest in cozy mystery good stuff. Thanks in advance! I love the show - a part of me wishes I could just fill all of my weekly hours with listening to Get Booked, but I imagine that would be very tiring for you. --Anne   7. Hi Amanda and Jenn, I'm in dire need of help! ! I'm going through a major life transition and I've found that the books that I would normally turn to don't seem to work anymore. I would like some recommendations of memoirs, nonfiction, or fiction that feature strong women who have made radical changes to their lives. Thank you! --Daniela   Books Discussed Empress: The Astonishing Reign of Nur Jahan by Ruby Lal (July 2018) Salt Houses by Hala Alyan The Fact of a Body by Alexandria Marzano-Lesnevich While the City Slept by Eli Sanders Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity by Katherine Boo I’ll Be Right There by Kyung-Sook Shin, translated by Sora Kim-Russell The Calligrapher’s Daughter by Eugenia Kim Sorcerer of the Wildeeps by Kai Ashante Wilson Valdemar: Last Herald Mage series (Magic’s Pawn #1) trigger warnings for rape, child abuse, suicide The Sisterhood of Blackberry Corner by Andrea Smith The Unleashing by Shelly Laurenston A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson A Guidebook to Relative Strangers by Camille T Dungy The Dream of My Return by Horacio Castellanos Moya, translated by Katherine Silver Central American author recommendations post The World In Half by Christina Henriquez Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowal Death Comes to Pemberley by PD James Hammer Head by Nina MacLaughlin Tiny Beautiful Things by Cheryl Strayed Braving The Wilderness by Brene Brown

Stephanie Sabol, Executive Director, Brand Management at Penguin Young Readers, talks about The Penguin Hotline, and writer friends share their most recommended books.  Stephanie Sabol and Book Recommendation Episode Stephanie Sabol The Penguin Hotline Who is Bruce Springsteen? by Stephanie Sabol The Who Was? series Where is the Solar System? What Was the Titanic? Jeff Kinney Jane, Unlimited by Kristin Cashore The Graceling series by Kristin Cashore Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas Turtles All the Way Down by John Green Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher Alex and Eliza by Melissa de la Cruz Once and for All by Sarah Dessen The One Memory of Flora Banks by Emily Barr Warcross by Marie Lu (listen to her First Draft episodes here and here) Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson American Street by Ibi Zoboi I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter by Erika L. Sánchez Here We Are: Feminism For the Real World edited by Kelly Jensen Suspect by Robert Crais Vanguard (Genesis Fleet book #1) by Jack Campbell Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor Akata Warrior by Nnedi Okorafor Looking for Alaska by John Green The Fault in Our Stars by John Green Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett World Without End by Ken Follett  A Column of Fire by Ken Follett Grant by Ron Chernow Do Not Become Alarmed by Maile Meloy Hallelujah Anyway by Annie Lamott Bird by Bird by Annie Lamott Vanishing New York: How a Great City Lost Its Soul by Jeremiah Moss Vanishing New York, the blog by Jeremiah Moss Atlas Obscura: An Explorer's Guide to the World's Hidden Wonders by Joshua Foer, Ella Morton, Dylan Thuras Los Angeles, Portrait of a City Highbrow, Lowbrow, Brilliant, Despicable: Fifty Years of New York Magazine by The Editors of New York Magazine The Education of Margot Sánchez by Lilliam Rivera (listen to her First Draft interview here) Piecing Me Together by Renée Watson (listen to her First Draft episode here) Done Dirt Cheap by Sarah Nicole Lemon (listen to her First Draft episode here) Valley Girls by Sarah Nicole Lemon A Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones (listen to her First Draft interview here)  White Trash: The 400-Year Untold History of Class in America by Nancy Isenberg Gray Wolf Island by Tracey Neithercott On the Jellicoe Road by Melina Marcheta These Vicious Masks by Tarun Shanker and Kelly Zekas Allegedly by Tiffany Jackson How to Break a Boy by Laurie Devore Winner Take All by Laurie Devore Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers (listen to her First Draft interview here) Song of the Current by Sarah Tolcser Light Years by Emily Ziff Griffin (listen to her First Draft interview here)  Sun in Days by Meghan O'Rourke The Dark Dark: Stories by Samantha Hunt Women Who Run with the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés Piper Perish by Kayla Cagan (listen to her First Draft interview here) Marlena by Julie Buntin Gem & Dixie by Sara Zarr (listen to her First Draft interview here) The Turner House by Angela Flournoy Insecure (TV show) Mirage by Somaiya Daud (listen to her First Draft interview here) Seven Brief Lessons on Physics by Carlo Rovelli Die for Me by Amy Plum (listen to her First Draft interview here) The Power by Naomi Alderman Pierre François: 5th Grade Mishaps by Laurie Ann Stephens A Song to Take the World Apart by Zan Romanoff (listen to her First Draft interview here) Grace and the Fever by Zan Romanoff Ship It by Britta Lundin Ten by Gretchen McNeil (listen to her First Draft interview here) I’m Not Your Manic Pixie Dream Girl by Gretchen McNeil  #MURDERTRENDING by Gretchen McNeil The Hearts We Sold by Emily Lloyd-Jones The Way You Make Me Feel by Maurene Goo (listen to her First Draft interviews here and here) I Believe in a Thing Called Love by Maurene Goo All the Wind in the World by Samantha Mabry (listen to her First Draft interview here) Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado